Well, it's my favorite time of the year in terms of films - the month of the Oscars. To me, the Oscars are important because of the recognition part of it. Have I been disappointed with any winners before? Surely. I definitely thought Henry Fonda should've won for Best Actor as Tom Joad instead of Jimmy Stewart in 1941. And I completely think Ralph Fiennes should've won Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Amon Göth instead of Tommy Lee Jones. Are there nominations I'm surprised about this year? Yes, I am, and that's what this post is about.
I'm going to cover most of the main nominations and some of the supplementary awards like Best Visual Effects and Best Sound. Lastly will be Best Picture.
First off will be Visuals. I was happy to see Hugo and Real Steel nominated, as I planned to do a review of Jackman's surprisingly good film, but never got to it. For both Sound awards, I was surprised to see Dragon Tattoo nominated for them as I come to realize now how well of a job it was designed. For Original Score, however, I was pissed not to see Dragon Tattoo nominated, as I felt it would possibly win this year. However I will be rooting for Hugo to win this year.
For Cinematography,I really want the Tree of Life as the winner, as that's the number one film I don't want to see leave empty-handed. I will not be upset if any other film wins, though. For Art Direction, I again hope Hugo wins, as I feel was designed beautifully and feels so fresh for the 1930s.
Now for the main awards. For Original Screenplay, I hope Woody Allen wins at least one more Oscar for his writing for Midnight in Paris. I was frustrated to see Kristen Wiig for Bridesmaids (see my review if you want to know why). For Adapted, I expect either the Descendents or Moneyball to win, as I love and admire Aaron Sorkin's work.
For Supporting Actress, I was surprisingly satisfied to see Melissa McCarthy for Bridesmaids, Octavia Spencer, and Jessica Chastain for the Help, although I think Bernice Bejo has the best chance of winning. For Supporting Actor, I think this is the Academy's biggest chance to award Christopher Plummer not just for his performance, but to recognize a whole career of work he has done as an actor.
For Lead Actress, I want Rooney Mara to win her first Oscar, but I think Meryl Streep may take her third Oscar for the Iron Lady. The best group however is the nominees for Best Actor. Brad Pitt gets his third nomination for Moneyball as Gary Oldman gets a surprise nomination. Though the real competition is between Jean Dujardin for the Artist and George Clooney for the Descendents. My personal choice is to give Clooeny his second Oscar.
For Best Director, I think it's an open arms race between all five directors; each of them deserve an individual Oscar for their work. I honestly cannot think of a winner, so I'll leave it for you to decide.
Lastly - Best Picture. I think Extremely Loud, the Help, War Horse, Tree of Life and Moneyball can quickly be crossed off. I think again the race will be between the Artist and the Descendents. I want the talkie to win, but again, either is good for me. Thank you so much for reading this incredibly long post.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Hugo
After the Departed, I have considered director Martin Scorsese to be on a cold streak. This includes Shutter Island, which I have considered it to be adequate. However, I think he brought his career back on top with his most recent release Hugo, starring Asa Butterfield in the title role. This is the first film since 1999 not to star Leonardo Dicaprio and his first PG film in 18 years. I think going for a new, fresh start was a terrific risk that Scorsese took, and resulted with great benefits.
Set in the early 1930s, a young boy named Hugo Cabret becomes an orphan and is trapped within the walls of a train station. Before his father died, he was working on a robot that they discovered at a museum, and the two decided to fix it. Once it is up to only Hugo, it is up to him to fix it and gets involved in an adventure with a grouchy old man (Ben Kingsley) and his adventurous god-daughter (Chloë Grace Moretz). As he shows the robot to the man, he starts to reminisce his past and his contributions to the art of film making.
Despite being marketed for kids, this is a pretty complex film. It is best recommended for kids ten and up as younger children may not follow the story as well. Despite that, any viewer will be hooked from the second the opening credits roll. It has a fantastic mix of mystery, drama, suspense, and comedy thanks to an entertaining performance by Sacha Baron Cohen as the station inspector. All of the leads do well at capturing the viewer's attention without making them bored.
The score by Howard Shore and the art direction are the basis in adding the perfect amount of atmosphere in the film. They both are beautiful, memorable, and poetic. The music also helps for the down time when much action isn't occurring at the time, making it feel relaxing and even comforting. I expect nominations in both of these categories for the Oscars this year.
What else can I say? This film is great. There is no other film that put me in such a satisfied state and had me smiling for half of the film due to its charm. The energy is terrific, Kingsley is terrific, and the time and care Scorsese put into this is well worth his time. This is a film I recommend to anyone, as Hugo receives a 3.5/4.
Set in the early 1930s, a young boy named Hugo Cabret becomes an orphan and is trapped within the walls of a train station. Before his father died, he was working on a robot that they discovered at a museum, and the two decided to fix it. Once it is up to only Hugo, it is up to him to fix it and gets involved in an adventure with a grouchy old man (Ben Kingsley) and his adventurous god-daughter (Chloë Grace Moretz). As he shows the robot to the man, he starts to reminisce his past and his contributions to the art of film making.
Despite being marketed for kids, this is a pretty complex film. It is best recommended for kids ten and up as younger children may not follow the story as well. Despite that, any viewer will be hooked from the second the opening credits roll. It has a fantastic mix of mystery, drama, suspense, and comedy thanks to an entertaining performance by Sacha Baron Cohen as the station inspector. All of the leads do well at capturing the viewer's attention without making them bored.
The score by Howard Shore and the art direction are the basis in adding the perfect amount of atmosphere in the film. They both are beautiful, memorable, and poetic. The music also helps for the down time when much action isn't occurring at the time, making it feel relaxing and even comforting. I expect nominations in both of these categories for the Oscars this year.
What else can I say? This film is great. There is no other film that put me in such a satisfied state and had me smiling for half of the film due to its charm. The energy is terrific, Kingsley is terrific, and the time and care Scorsese put into this is well worth his time. This is a film I recommend to anyone, as Hugo receives a 3.5/4.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
What feels reminiscent of David Fincher's earlier work like Fight Club and Se7en is his new, grim film, the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Starring Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara in the title role, it is intense, mysterious, and gripping. It has twists as exciting as Chinatown, and Rooney Mara is fantastic in her first big break. It is one not to be missed.
Journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Craig) is given an assignment to search for a girl who is missing and supposedly dead from forty years ago. He is aided by a cynical, tattooed, and pierced girl named Lizbeth Salander (Mara). As the two team up they witness a series of events that they didn't expect, discovering immense corruption.
The film is a remake of the original Swedish version, which is hailed as a modern-day classic on its own, and the does a good job of living up with an English cast. Mara, as I said, is truly the show-stealer and I hope becomes an unexpected nominee for Best Actress at the Oscars this year. My gripe with Craig is that he is inconsistent with his accent and it makes the setting awkward in that situation. Besides that, the supporting cast is strong, including Christopher Plummer still as good as ever and Yorik van Wageningen as a devious, yet moving villain. It brings you down, but never picks you up, in terms of tone.
The score by Atticus Ross and Trent Reznor is top-notch. They were brilliant in the Social Network and still have that magic touch in this film. Again, I hope they receive an Oscar nomination. Jeff Croensworth's dark photography is beautiful and really helps capture the viewer's attention. Everything technical is tied so well together and never feels too overly edited.
As a film by Fincher, this film truly holds up and goes beyond my expectations. Though it doesn't compare as well to his recent releases - Benjamin Button and the Social Network - the film feels so quick despite being two hours and 40 minutes. The viewer will be intrigued from the very beginning and it never stops being interesting. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo receives a 3/4.
Journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Craig) is given an assignment to search for a girl who is missing and supposedly dead from forty years ago. He is aided by a cynical, tattooed, and pierced girl named Lizbeth Salander (Mara). As the two team up they witness a series of events that they didn't expect, discovering immense corruption.
The film is a remake of the original Swedish version, which is hailed as a modern-day classic on its own, and the does a good job of living up with an English cast. Mara, as I said, is truly the show-stealer and I hope becomes an unexpected nominee for Best Actress at the Oscars this year. My gripe with Craig is that he is inconsistent with his accent and it makes the setting awkward in that situation. Besides that, the supporting cast is strong, including Christopher Plummer still as good as ever and Yorik van Wageningen as a devious, yet moving villain. It brings you down, but never picks you up, in terms of tone.
The score by Atticus Ross and Trent Reznor is top-notch. They were brilliant in the Social Network and still have that magic touch in this film. Again, I hope they receive an Oscar nomination. Jeff Croensworth's dark photography is beautiful and really helps capture the viewer's attention. Everything technical is tied so well together and never feels too overly edited.As a film by Fincher, this film truly holds up and goes beyond my expectations. Though it doesn't compare as well to his recent releases - Benjamin Button and the Social Network - the film feels so quick despite being two hours and 40 minutes. The viewer will be intrigued from the very beginning and it never stops being interesting. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo receives a 3/4.
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