Best Picture nominees 2015

It's coming to the end of the annual Award Season, so here are my thoughts in this year's Best Picture Oscar nominees. (And no, I'm still not over the fact that Nightcrawler and Gone Girl are not on this list.)

 

American Sniper

I've never been a fan of war movies. I've never been a fan of Bradley Cooper's. And yet, this film is surprisingly good. The politics (pro/anti-war) are irrelevant- it covers both sides, and it's a well-told true story, with some emotional weight. However, it definitely sags in the second half and shows us very little that we haven't seen in a million war films before. Despite its title, we don’t see enough of Bradley sniping, and frankly that would have made for a far more interesting and original film. As good as it is, it definitely does not deserve to be on this list, despite its enormous box-office success.

 

Birdman

I've always loved Michael Keaton, yet Oscar-calibre performances have never been his forte. Until now. And he's not alone, as both Edward Norton and Emma Stone (finally!) get a nod each for their supporting roles, and I would have happily added Zach Galifianakis to that list too. Borrowing from Alfred Hitchcock's Rope gimmick, this tale of a faded actor's attempt to (re)claim credibility plays as if it was all shot in one take (but for a few bizarre inserts at the bookends), and it works amazingly well. It’s a bit on the pretentious side, but the ending will have you discussing the possibilities for hours, and that can only be a good thing. Shame about all that fucking drumming.

 

Boyhood

The front-runner in this category, this is a genuinely awesome achievement. Watch 12 real years pass by before your very eyes as a boy (including the actor himself) grows from 6-18 in under three hours. Given that it is scripted and not a documentary, the plot could have used a bit more direction, and too much time is spent on the final, ponderous hour, but the ultimate result feels natural and uncontrived. Patricia Arquette is also a deserved favourite to take home the Supporting Actress Oscar for her recognisably honest role as the lead’s mother.

 

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Wes Anderson directs Ralph Feinnes in a wacky art house comedy? No thanks. However, somehow I DID end up seeing this upon its release, long before the awards buzz. Wes Anderson's hyper-real universe usually catches in my throat, but somehow this one just worked for me. Every scene is meticulous, necessary and beautifully shot. It's also hilarious, unpredictable and an absolutely unique tour-de-force.

 

The Imitation Game

Benedict Cumberbatch and Keira Knightley both get deserved nods in this (until recently) secret, true-life tale of the unlikeliest of tragic war heroes, Alan Turing. I would have liked to have seen Mark Strong get some awards recognition too, but that's surely only a matter of time anyway. The film has an emotional punch, as it celebrates a man who could never be celebrated in his far-too-short lifetime. If I had a criticism it would be that we learn next to nothing about the code-breaking machine Turing built, nor what it actually does. Great to see a nomination for its very melodious score.

 

Selma

Britain's David Oyelowo has been personally overlooked, despite deserved rave reviews for his incredible, dignified, human performance as Martin Luther King Jr. and the corresponding outrage is fully justified. The film follows a somewhat repetitive pattern and there are many scenes that simply make the same point made in a previous scene, leading to a bit of a lull rather than a building of tension. Criticising the film feels like criticising the real-life story, but this film's success rests squarely on Oyelowo's shoulders and would certainly suffer without his performance.

The Theory of Everything

Eddie Redmayne is simply phenomenal as scientific genius Stephen Hawking, and must surely be the Best Actor front-runner. I'm not quite feeling the love for the performance from Felicity Jones as his devoted wife, nor the Best Picture thing, but it is a far more compelling story than you may expect, both touching and amusing, and definitely more than just a performance-based film.

Whiplash

For my money, this is the best film of the bunch. Miles Teller has been cruelly overlooked this awards season, but thankfully JK Simmons is the hot favourite to win the Supporting Actor gong as a tyrannical teacher who conducts a much-admired Jazz band, comprised of the best of the best of the school's students. As someone who absolutely HATES jazz with a passion, even I shed a tear at the musical virtuosity in the phenomenal final scene. Yes, there is an argument that the female characters are either sidelined or altogether absent, but this is very much the tale of man vs. man, and all of the machismo and locker room banter that implies. If anything, it speaks further to the teacher's tunnel-visioned outlook. An amazing movie.

Film Review - The Thing (2011)

I am a big fan of John Carpenter's 1982 version of The Thing. It's one of a handful of horror films (Aliens, Poltergeist, A Nightmare on Elm Street, the first two versions of Invasion of the Body Snatchers) that have formed the foundation of what I look for in a good horror film. And, unlike a lot of film fans, remakes do not bother me in the slightest, as long as they do the job.
Of course, 1982's The Thing is in itself a remake- although similarities with the black & white original are minimal at best, so it's the 1982 John Carpenter version that will be hereon referred to as the original, especially since this 2011 version isn't a remake anyway, but a prequel to that specific film. Set in 1982, the film ends where the original begins. Well, sort of. Over the end credits we get glimpses of the bridge between the two stories- but it does leave one or two particularly large open ends.
Importantly, no previous knowledge is required in watching this film, although if you do have prior knowledge, then you have a clearer picture of where this is going, and how much hope there is for the characters involved. For me, this was an effective device, as it meant anybody could be disposable at any time, and by any means, but with the possibility of survival for anyone, also. As a result, there were some genuine heart-in-mouth moments, but also the occasional eye roll.
The original is a master class in paranoia. This achieves that, but in a slightly different, but no less effective way. The original features some phenomenal physical effects. This uses a combination of physical effects and CGI, but it has to be said that the CGI has a tendency to remove credibility, rather than add to the scares. It's fair to say the plot follows an almost identical path to the original, with specifics tweaked here and there. However, they've managed to justify this film's existence by throwing in a few new ideas, re-imagining some of the genuinely creepy moments, and expanding the mythology regarding the "thing" itself. Although this latter part is only partially successful, as it doesn't really add anything worthwhile to the story.
So fans of the 1982 film needn't worry- their beloved film has not been abused in any way. But truth be told, given the choice, next time I'm in the mood to watch "The Thing", I'm more likely to stick to the John Carpenter version than rewatch this one.

Film Review - A Very Harold and Kumar 3D Christmas

I am a newcomer to this duo's franchise (bar their original Van Wilder appearance), and coming in on part three of a trilogy isn't often a wise move. Fortunately, as I suspected, it wasn't a problem here.
In fact, the duo are separated as the movie begins, so as they rediscover their friendship, so too do the new audience. But there are other references that clearly have bigger pay-offs for the faithful, but nothing I found alienating or overly knowing. Speaking of which, the cameo from "NPH" is legen... wait for it... dary! [Well, actually, as cameos go, it's pretty run-of-the mill, but I saw the opportunity and took it...]
John Cho is a particular revelation as Harold, displaying an outstanding understanding of comedy. Kal Penn is given the less demanding role, but it's also the less sympathetic, and subsequently the one with the most growth.
Yes, I did say growth. Despite its ludicrous plotting, the film does have its contemplative moments too. But with the emphasis more on "moment" than the "contemplative". The film tips the balance in the favour of humour, and it does keep things moving.
As for the film's humour, it gets as base as you can possibly get- from toilet humour, to racial stereotypes, to babies on drugs. But there's something inherently likeable about the duo that makes it all forgivably amusing, rather than shocking or offensive. However, we are talking more of guilty sniggers than out-loud belly laughs.
If any film was going to get the 3D thing right... perhaps surprisingly, it was this. But even then, it only partially succeeds, taking absolute glee in mocking the 3D trend, they throw everything they can think of at the screen. Literally. Snow, dust, glass shards, cocaine, eggs, fingers, canes... Some work, but some have no impact at all.
I am delighted to see someone finally re-acknowledging that 3D is a gimmick; no more, no less. [See my Immortals review... Ask and you shall receive!]

The Time Traveler's Wife - review

Oh how it pains me to leave out that "L".

I can be a sucker for a good love story. I can even be a sucker for a bad one. Good or bad, this one suckered me. I was curious to see how this intriguing idea was going to play out, and was very happy with the way it did. I haven't read the novel so have no idea what changes have been made, but I certainly didn't feel like I was missing anything (except, perhaps, for more of Ron Livingstone, whose "best friend" role isn't given enough screen time to develop).

I have been a big fan of Bana since "Troy" (without him, there's no reason to see it) and even liked his polarising "Hulk". Rachel McAdams should be a much bigger star than she is by now. Fantastic in "Mean Girls", "The Notebook" and the so-so "Red Eye", somehow she still isn't a household name. Hopefully the success of this film will change that.

Much has been made of the pairing of this two, but I had no problem with their chemistry (or lack thereof). They are an unlikely match age-wise, but the nature of the story makes it irrelevant.

It may not be a film I'll dash to see again soon, but am sure one day in the future will see it on a Blu-Ray shelf, think "awww" and come home with it....

9/10

Rent - review

As something of a Rent virgin, this was all new to me- the story, characters, songs. The closest I've ever come to familiarity with this was "Lease: The Musical" in Team America: World Police.

After a strong opening with the excellent "Seasons of Love", things rapidly went downhill with cheesy forgettable song after cheesy forgettable song- the kind that aren't actual songs, but dialogue set (vaguely) to music. However, we then have a few interesting set-pieces, including "Tango:Maureen" and "Out Tonight", and the plot is underway. Things take another dip an hour in, when we're finally introduced to the much-mentioned Maureen. I'm assuming she is supposed to be a breath of fresh air, but is, in fact, irritating beyond comprehension. Fortunately, she isn't given much to do and is very quickly sidelined for the mawkish second half.

Shame that Taye Diggs is relegated to little more than a cameo, and it is pretty clear that Chris Columbus couldn't direct traffic. The lack of imagination in bringing the stage to life is suffocating rather than breathtaking.

I'd be lying if I said this film had no effect on me, and will certainly be tracking down some of the soundtrack. First impressions- good, not great, but could be a grower.

7/10

JCVD - review

A curious one, this. About 30 minutes in, wasn't sure I was going to make it through. It begins very strangely, seemingly lacking in narrative, and comes across a bit rambling and experimental. Then the film enters a second chapter- at first, adding to the confusion. Then it becomes clear we are seeing the same events, but from a different perspective. Now I was interested. All I knew about this film was the notorious to-camera "this is my life" monologue, and yet it didn't seem quite so out of place when it happened. This is clearly a vanity project, despite the lengths to which Jean-Claude Van Damme goes to show he's not a real-life action hero. An interesting idea, mostly successful, and has certainly raised Van Damme in my estimation. He certainly gives an emotional performance- but I still can't work out what the hell I just watched. Bonkers.
7/10

District 9 - review

This is my favourite film of the year so far. Given this, and that I saw it very recently, I thought I'd have a go at a proper review that's worthy of the film. I'll keep it as spoiler-free as I can for those who haven't seen it.

This one really came out of nowhere. I hadn't even heard of it until I saw the trailer before GI Joe about a month ago. I couldn't work out exactly what the plot was- it looked bombastic and confusing, like Alien Nation meets Transformers, but shot documentary-style.

How wrong I was.

The film simply presents you with facts, documentary-style, about incidents that occurred recently in an area known as District 9. To quote Jim Dale, the facts were these...

Approximately 20 years ago, an alien spaceship appeared over Johannesburg... and that was it. After several months, nothing else had happened. The military eventually managed to get on board and evacuate the contained aliens, keeping them in an area called District 9. The aliens showed no hostility, no friendliness... in fact, no purpose whatsoever. Despite this, 20 years later, local residents are complaining of the NIMBY factor and the aliens (or "prawns" as the less-sympathetic amongst the humans amusingly refer to them) are forced to move on to a smaller, more concentrated area, referred to as District 10. It is the day before this transition that these events take place- partly in documentary-style, but we as viewers also get to see a glimpse of the true story behind the news reports.

The man in charge of the eviction is pen-pushing nepotist Wikus Van De Merwe, played to perfection by newcomer Sharlto Copley. He is a bumbling, amiable man, yet is cheerfully unaware of how casually inhumane he is. This is someone that's going to have to earn your sympathy, but yet seems too harmless to actively dislike- at least until he's given a position of power.

The other character of note is an alien, curiously named Christopher Johnson. Clearly a very different being to most of his fellows, he stands up to his species' mistreatments. Through him, we learn that not all of the aliens are necessarily the unorganised cat food-addicted rabble they appear to be. Friends or foes? The answer should be obvious, but who's going to humour them long enough to find out? There is clearly a very well-considered back story for the aliens here- but, much like the oft-compared Cloverfield, even at the end of the film we are yet to find out what it is. And even in a sequel, it's not certain we need this information. That's not to say we don't want it...

District 9 expertly magpies from existing sci fi lore - a bit of Robocop here, a bit of Aliens there, just a dash of Independence Day... but it's all only on a very superficial level. District 9 has its own story to tell, and its own points to make. For example, much is made of the human-alien transformation, but it's merely a MacGuffin; a plot device. It is only important because of where it takes our lead character. If you think the film is ripping off The Fly, then either you're not paying attention, or you are missing the point completely. Of both movies. It's like saying Orwell's Animal Farm rips off Disney's Bambi for having talking animals.

The film has a lot to say, and says it. It also has a lot to do, and just gets on with doing it. If you get the subtext, great. If you don't, it doesn't matter because the film has moved on and you won't feel like you're missing anything, anyway.

The pacing is very deliberate. Starting off as a documentary, events are leisurely explained and shown to us, with little commentary or judgement. Even when we are taken out of the documentary context, characters do not suddenly start behaving differently. It's a very deft way of setting an ominous tone. We're waiting for the sting in the tail, even if there may not be one.

For a film with such a tiny budget, not to mention a debut director in Neill Blomkamp, the special effects are flawless. The aliens are clearly CGI creations, but move, communicate and emote better than some of the humans. They are purely there to tell the story, and are far more convincing than a man in suit would be. If you've come purely for an Independence Day-style dogfights or action set-pieces, then you're in for disappointment. That said, there are some amazing shoot-outs and when Blomkamp decides to flex his action muscles, he does indeed have an impressive set of guns. (Sorry.)

Crucially, this is violence with consequence. When Wikus is forced to fire a gun, he is doing so very much against his will- even on a "prawn". We learn that the aliens' technology is incredibly powerful and see its devastating potential- yet always in the hands of humans (the irony of that statement shouldn't be lost on those who've seen the film). The aliens are deliberately insect-like, rather than cute and cuddly- giving us that extra distance to strip them of humanity, should we choose to do so. Ultimately, we judge them more on the way they are treated than the way they behave. And yet it is never over-laboured, it's just there for you to acknowledge or not.

If the film has a flaw, it's the mixture of narrative styles- we jump from documentary to movie narrative without warning- at times you don't even notice, but when you do it can pull you out of the film. However, I was so engrossed by this point I just shrugged it off. Also, there were a lot of one-dimensional characters, particularly the Nigerian gangsters, the members of MNU (the organisation for whom Wikus works), and the largely faceless hordes of aliens. However, this can simply be explained away by the leads' interactions with these characters. There's not really much time for fleshing these characters out, and they're not likely to show their vulnerable sides on the job. You could level this at the actors, an obvious drawback of a star-free vehicle, but surprisingly isn't as much of an issue as you may fear. Plus there's always a guilty pleasure in seeing a cartoon villain finally get their comeuppance.

So there you go. For me, this was a visceral, emotional and thoroughly entertaining experience; something completely unexpected. After less than a month on release, the film currently sits at #44 on the imdb all-time chart. I pity Mr. Blomkamp... how on Earth will he follow that? I, for one, can't wait to find out.

10/10

The Last House on the Left (2009 remake) - review

As far as slasher/horror/thriller movies go, the original Last House on the Left is a pretty nasty one- not so much for what you see, but for the uncomfortable story presented to you. To this remake's credit, it keeps pretty faithful to that side of things, and as a result, this is an equally uncomfortable watch. Unfortunately the film lets itself down in the Dad (Tony Goldwyn) vs bad guy finale, while the mother (Monica Potter) pretty much just watches hubby getting smashed through paper furniture. A shame, since the couple have easily given the most sympathetic performances up to that point- nice, without overplaying it. That said, I still feel a little tense even now that it's over, and the film must get some credit for that, at least.
7/10

Hush - review

Like a low-budget, British version of Breakdown, this film certainly works on a suspense level. However, the suspension of disbelief required is more than most would be willing to give. Too many coincidences, conveniently-timed moments and downright nonsensical incidents erase at the film's credibility. The potential is there and it raises some interesting issues- then ignores them, going for the contrived plot where the protagonist just happens to make all the right assumptions.
7/10

Top Movies of 2009 (so far) - IMHO

1. District 9
2. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
3. Inglourious Basterds
4. Drag Me to Hell
5. The Time Traveler's Wife*
6. Let the Right One In
7. The Wrestler
8. Bolt
9. Frost/Nixon
10. Frozen River

*added September 9th
Potential candidates still to come... Up!, Avatar, Surrogates, Fantastic Mr Fox

Welcome!

This blog will hopefully soon contain various information about movies that I would find interesting.

This may include reviews (my own/others), news, UK/US box office info, release dates, Top 10s etc.

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