Alice in Wonderland

I've heard many negative things about this movie - so how is it making so much money at the box office?

What's Her Name - Parker Posey

Fans of Christopher Guest’s mockumentarys surely know how great Parker Posey can be, most notably in Waiting For Guffman and Best in Show. However, she has also starred in a number of early 90’s respected independent comedies, Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused and Noah Baumbach’s Kicking and Screaming. In the late 90’s she finally received a number of supporting roles in more mainstream hits, You’ve Got Mail and Scream 3. Entering the 90’s she continued to be noticed to mainstream audiences in mid-level movies such as Josie and the Pussycats and Laws of Attractions. Finally she had a mostly thankless role in Superman Returns back in 2006. So her resume outside of Guest is mostly spotty, but she still maintains a presence in a number of average mainstream movies.




Notable Films:

Dazed and Confused (1993)
Kicking and Screaming (1995)
Waiting For Guffman (1997)
You’ve Got Mail (1998)
Scream 3 (2000)
Best in Show (2000)
The Anniversary Party (2001)
A Mighty Wind (2003)
Laws of Attraction (2003)
Blade Trinity (2004)
Superman Returns (2006)
For Your Consideration (2006)
The Eye (2008)

Big Lebowski Makes Ebert's Great Movies List

Roger Ebert has always done a pretty good job with his column highlighting great movies, some of which are well known (The Godfather, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest) others are not.  His most recent addition was The Big Lebowski a movie he originally gave 3 stars.  Ebert has always wanted to be seen as hip, so his sudden acceptance of Big Lebowski isn't much of a surprise, and I'm glad to see it featured here.  Yet, the article just isn't very good, it never captures the essence of the movie.  Worst of all he refers to the Dude as Jeff Lebowski, and fan of the movie knows you don't call him Mr. Lebowski, he's The Dude and thats what you call him or His Dudeness, or Duder or El Duderino if you're not into the whole brevity thing.  Not to mention some of his other menial observations that don't matter (the similarity of Brant and the Big Lebowski).  A movie like The Big Lebowski deserves such a better article but all of its little plot nuances that don't amount to anything (a check for .69 cents).  Worst off Ebert says the rug pulled the room together!!! How do you screw that line up! Seriously the rug really tied the room together, did it not?  Sadly Ebert continues to grow more detached from the world (Knowing and Lakeview Terrace are apparantly four star movies and The Proposal was a box office disappointment this summer), and his awful article about this classic film is just another example of how far he has fallen.

Roger Ebert on The Big Lebowski

Depp

I watched From Hell tonight and was reminded of a day when you could really look forward to a Johnny Depp movie.  Not that his performance here is his best, but far more enjoyable than many of his recent roles.  He really needs to take a break from Burton and Jack Sparrow for awhile and explore his artistic talent again, where he actually created characters.  Maybe The Rum Diary later this year will be what he needs to redeem himself.

Mortenson and Cronenberg Teaming Up Again

Viggo Mortenson and David Cronenberg are teaming up again for their third film, in what should be expected to garner some award consideration two years from now.  Both Mortenson and Cronenberg are among the most underrated professionals in the business.  Their previous two collaborations A History of Violence and Eastern Promises were among the best films of the past decade.  The two are teaming up again in The Talking Cure, based on a play about the relationship between Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung.  Mortenson is set to play Freud with Michael Fassbender (Inglourious Basterds, Hunger) playing Jung.  Given the talent involved this is sure to be a highly anticipated film of 2011 or whenever it is released.  Given that Mortenson is portraying such a high profile figure of the early 20th century, Mortenson is sure to get some award attention, if everything falls into place Mortenson can find it his year to win some serious awards.  Here's hoping to the best for this film -- link below to the news story

Talking Cure 

The Coens

The last 25 years has seen the rise of several prominent filmmakers, Quentin Tarantino, David Fincher, Paul Thomas Anderson, Sam Mendes, Sofia Coppola, Guillermo del Toro and my personal favorites the Coen Brothers.  Each of this directors is distinct in his or her own way, but the Coen's along with Tarantino are perhaps have made their career based off their distinctive style.  The duo is also willing to tackle a variety of genres and turns out movies more consistently than any of these other directors.  The Coens are masters of black comedy, capturing the spirit of regions and time periods of America and a terrific understanding of language.  The two also have a great attention of detail (notice the background painting of scissors in Maude's apartment in The Big Lebowski - those scissors show up later).  The Coen's movie are also very existential in nature (Raising Arizona, Barton Fink, Big Lebowski, No Country For Old Men, A Serious Man) while providing madcap comedy.  The Coen's also have a real sense of genre and have shown their hand several times to another master of language, Preston Sturges.  Finally, their movies tend to feature absurd violence to demonstrate characters that are totally oblivious.   Many of these characters find themselves important, when in reality there is nothing important about them.  My ranking of their movies:

14.  The Hudsucker Proxy (1994)


This certainly has many of the features of Coen Brother movies, but it's the only movie of theirs that I couldn't get into.  The movie has the right zany tone and an outlandish plot, but in the end it fell flat for me.


13.  Intolerable Cruelty ( 2003)


Not bad per se, but this is one of the few efforts where it seemed as if the brothers were trying to be mainstream.  That said the movie takes a hard line on love, lawyers (espcially those profitting from divorce) and upper class lifestyle.  The Coens never hold back from what they attend to lampoon, and Cruelty, is no different.  The star power here ends up being a hindrance.



12. The Man Who Wasn't There (2001)


The most beautiful looking Coen brother movie, this black and white nod to film noir is very entertaining.  I honestly remember very little about this film, it's enjoyable but this seemed to be one of the more limited stories from the two.


11. Barton Fink (1991)


The first movie from the two blend genres, Barton Fink is a meditation on writer's block and the flaws of the Hollywood system.  Also featuring some of the brothers' most outlandish scenes and great performances from John Turturro and John Goodman, Barton Fink remains a solid but far from great effort from the two.  Also of note is the terrific set design (always a highlight of their films).

10. A Serious Man (2009)


A movie that I'm still digesting, this might be the most personal film for the two.  The two show a great attention to detail to recreats 60's suburbia through the eyes of a middle-age Jewish man.  One of the blacker comedies from the two it has also proven to be one of the most divisive and perhaps the most esoteric.

9.  The Ladykillers (2004)


The Coen's first real adaptation (I don't count O'Brother), they still manage to make this remake uniquely theirs.  Featuring some of the most outlandish characters, The Ladykillers might be their most underrated movie.  Tom Hanks fit perfectly into the lead role, and the rest of the cast fills out nicely with J.K. Simmons and Irma Hall delivering the goods.  The portrait of Hall's dead husband is a terrific set-piece along with a pivotal bridge.  Lastly there is the cat, one of the many Coen's quasi MacGuffins.

8. O, Brother Where Art Thou (2000)

Maybe the most popular Coen movie this side of Big Lebowski, it's a terrific display of the Coen's knowledge of language.  Featuring George Clooney's greatest performance, O' Brother displays a terrific vision of the deep south in the 1930's in a way only the Coens can do it.  The movie parallels the Odyssey very closely, but make it a great story of one man's redemption.

7. Raising Arizona (1987)


Following their successful debut the crime drama Blood Simple, the Coen's made a madcap screwball comedy with Raising Arizona.  One of the funniest movies to come out of the 80's the movie also featured Nicolas Cage before the fall.  A movie that also terrificly captures the rural southwest, Raising Arizona proved that the Coen brothers were a duo with a unique vision that would serve them well for years to come.

6. Burn After Reading (2008)


The craziest Coen movie since Big Lebowski, also makes little sense upon a first viewing.  However, the movie boasts one of the strongest casts, some of the funniest moments while exhibiting the trademark Coen assuredness.  The movie features some great dialogue and set design as well (loved the CIA office).  This may not be a favorite of many but I loved the zany madcap nature of it.  This goes well with 2009's In the Loop which demonstrates the incompetence of mid-level government bureaucrats.

5. Blood Simple (1984)


The brilliant debut of the Coen's is a hard boiled pulp thriller.  The Coen's display their great knowledge of the Texas landscape (which they would re-visit 23 years later) the film's terrific cinematography only augments the desperation of these lowly characters.    


4. Fargo (1996)


The brilliance of the Coens was finally recognized with Fargo, which terrificly doubled as a crime drama and dark comedy.  Featuring some of the most memorable characters and landscape of their movies, Fargo remains one of their most popular movies.  Frances McDormand won a deserved Oscar for her role as a pregnant detective.  The Coens used their knowledge of Minnesota to capture the dialect and regionality of the upper-midwest to capture the bulk of the film's comedy.

3. Miller's Crossing (1990)


Miller's Crossing has risen to the top of the Coen Brother pile over the past decade.  While lacking some of the snappy dialogue of other Coen scripts, the movie contains its own language which is appropriate given the film's crime setting.  The Coen's present a gangster flick unlike those we are most familiar with, but also staying very true to the genre.  The movie was largely ignored at first, as it was released around the same time as Goodfellas.  It may not be based on a true story, but the Coen's manage to create their very own world with this movie and pull of it perfectly.


2. No Country For Old Men (2007)


There isn't much to say about this, but despite the bleakness of the movie the movie still features many iconic Coen Brother staples.  Particularly the clothing, dialogue and featuring a great depiction of early 80's Texas.  Javier Bardem won the second Coen brothers acting Oscar as one of the greatest villains of the decade.

1. The Big Lebowski (1998)


I loved this when I first saw it and have continued to do so over the last decade.  The Coens created their greatest character with some of their most iconic dialogue.  The movie feels authentically LA despite being made by two mid-western boys.  Not only their best films, but also one of very favorite films.



  

Tron: Legacy

It's good to see Tron finally getting its due close to thirty years later.  Today we finally get a new trailer -- it's good stuf.  Apparantly Daft Punk is doing the music, which I say is a good thing and an improvement on Journey - enjoy

What's Their Name - Frequent Coen Brothers Colloborators

Blood Simple the blistering debut from the Coen Brothers recently celebrated its 25th birthday.  I'm currently working on a large piece about the duo and a ranking of their movies and performances, until then I wanted to highlight several frequent actors and actresses the two work with frequently.  Like most directors the Coens have a troupe of actors they like to work with.  This list has evolved throughout their career, at the moment they are using a different set of actors than 15-20 years ago.  Richard Jenkins, J.K, Simmons and now Josh Brolin seem to be favorites of the two.

Frances McDormand - 7 films


Given that she is married to Joel it shouldn't be too surprising the Coens prefer to use her.  McDormand was the first actor to win an Oscar in a Coen Brothers movie as Marge Gunderson in Fargo, her most iconic role.    Since then the Coens have used her sparingly, next in 2001's The Man Who Wasn't There and not again until 2008's Burn After Reading, one of her more under-appreciated roles.

1985 - Blood Simple
1987 - Raising Arizona
1990 - Miller's Crossing
1991 - Barton Fink
1996 - Fargo
2001 - The Man Who Wasn't There
2008 - Burn After Reading


Jon Polito - 5 Films


An odd looking guy to be sure, Jon Polito is always reliable in Coen films, especially his terrific Coen debut as Johnny Casper in Miller's Crossing or his awkward cluelessness as a low rent PI in The Big Lebowski.  The Coens havn't used Polito in some time as he focuses mostly on tv appearances.  Hopefully the Coens will find another rule that Polito is just right for sometime soon.


1990 - Miller's Crossing
1991 - Barton Fink
1994 - The Hudsucker Proxy
1998 - The Big Lebowski
2001 - The Man Who Wasn't There


Richard Jenkins - 3 Films


A character actor that blends into his Coen Brothers roles as much as he does his other roles.  Jenkins is not immediately thought of as a Coen Brother staple, but his turn in Burn After Reading as a gym manager proved Jenkins to be one of the Coens finest actors.

2001 - The Man Who Wasn't There
2003 - Intolerable Cruelity
2008 - Burn After Reading


John Turturro - 4 Films


Another actor who always nails his Coen roles.  His performance as Bernie in Miller's Crossing is among the finest in a Coen movie, and despite limited screentime in Big Lebowski, The Jesus stands out as a great character among a movie full of them.

1990 - Miller's Crossing
1991 - Barton Fink
1998 - The Big Lebowski
2000 - O, Brother Where Art Thou


Of course John Goodman, Steve Buscemi and George Clooney are Coen staples, not to mention Holly Hunter.  Jeff Bridges is back for a second Coen movie in this True Grit late this year.  There a whole host of others, the so-called family tree only helps to add to their movies.  When all is said and done, aside from their quirkiness these actor and actresses will be a large part of the Coen legacy.

Oscar Wrap-Up

The ceremony lacked much suspense last night, as it became apparantly rather quickly the The Hurt Locker was the favorite movie in the room.  Its win probalay doesn't mean as much as some of the speculation today would have you believe.  Certainly important is Bigelow becoming the first woman to win Best Director, but the film's small box office isn't much of a story in my eyes.  The movie will find an audience on DVD as it plays like any other action flick.  The night also lacked many surprises as Precious's screenplay win was the biggest shocker of the night, given it was the heaviest of the screenplays, we should've seen that coming.  I couldn't care much less about whether Bullock deserved to win or not, Tilda Swinton not being in the field was enough of a travesty.  Jeff Bridges was great as always and you have to feel for the director of Music by Prudence.  


I liked NPH's opening, but Martin and Baldwin just fell flat.  I also felt bad for the guys of Hurt Locker as it didn't seem like they got any love from their movie's filmmakers.  Glad to see Up have a good night too.  Overall though the show lacked spirit and seemed to be just going through the motions.  Oscar night just seems to be less of an event than it used to be.

Now it's time to wait til next year's ceremony, I havn't even thought about what might win yet, but I'll try to create a preview soon.

Iron Man 2 Trailer

A nice diverson as a write a few articles and contemplate my Oscar Wrap-up.

Quick Thoughts

I'll have full analysis later, but I was happy to see Bigelow and Hurt Locker win.  Decent telecast but didn't enjoy the Martin/Baldwin combo.

Live Blogging

12:04 great night - not much suspense though -- can't argue with most of the winners - i;m a little tipsy full wrap-up tomorrow


11:59 Tom Hanks presents Best Pic - Hurt Locker! won 6


11:58 Ho-hum speech - Baldwin and Martin have been virtually non-existent since their opening


11:56 Director -- I think its a no-brainer that it will be Bigelow - winner is Bigelow!!!!!! likely not the woman you would think to win this but certainly deserving


11:53 never got your appeal Barbara


11:51 boring speech Sandra


11:48 and out Best Lady of the evening is Sandra Bullock -- should've stuck with my gut and realized the Academy doesn't care much about how great a performance really is 


11:45  Oprah makes me want to slit my throat


11:41 Nor did I ever hope to see Hope Floats mentioned at the Oscars


11:40  Could I be right on Meryl Streep's win?


11:39:  Hurt Locker might have the edge winning both sound categories - an odd way of looking at it I know


11:33 -  Best Actor lets go Dude!!! damn straight! Jeff Bridges


11:32 I never thought SWAT would be mentioned at the Oscars


11:30  Funny stuff Tim Robbins


11:28 Few montages this year or honorary awards


11:27  interesting way of presenting the nominees in the Best Actor/Actress categories with co-stars announcing the nominees


11:20 Kathy Bates worked with Cameron on Titanic - I was expecting Michael Biehn (not really)


11:18  Foreign language film - always a bit tough to tell - winner is Secret in Their Eyes -- knew I should've gone something outside the most well known


11:16  whats with the lamps?


11:10  Keanu better enjoy his Oscar spotlight


11:08  and Editing goes to Hurt Locker - I still think Best Pic is up in the air -- not the movie


11:06  Editing - if Avatar wins this I think its over


11:04 Documentary Feature - should be The Cove I think - yep


10:55 Visual effects goes to Avatar like you thought it would be something else?


10:52   yeah!!! Up wins Best Score (love his LOST stuff by the way)


10:48 I don't know about these dance numbers for these scores


10:38  In memoriam - i don't like you demi


10:37 Sandra Bullock presenting cinematography (lipstick is too red but still hot)  Avatar - so still tough to say between Avatar and Hurt Locker -- thats good keep the suspense


10:30  I thought Travolta was dead but I like connections announcing the Best Pics nominees instead of the cast


10:29 Sci-Tech - never care about it but I'm sure they deserve their wins


10:27 Sound Mixing goes to Hurt Locker - is a sweep coming?


10:25 Sound Editing goes to Hurt Locker - will Avatar win Sound Mixing?


10:23 I love me some Morgan Freeman


10:20  Sorry to inform Kristen but its commonly known that Silence of the Lambs in 1991 won for horror - and Twilight aint horror - love the tribute though


10:18  yuck Twilight


10:17  Funny stuff Steve Martin sharing a bed ala Paranormal Activity


10:12  Costume Design (SJP's is awful by the way) The young Victoria - hilarious dress by the way Sandy Powell


10:07  Art Direction - I'll be surprised if Avatar doesn't take this for its first win of the night - and it is Avatar


9:59  Supporting Actress - Mo'Nique - Yawn


9:50  Adapted Screenplay goes to Precious!!!! holy crap thats a shock didnt Up in the Air win everything in the award season!!!


9:42  Best Make-up (where the heck was District 9) goes to Star Trek


9:38  I like Ben Stiller as a Navi


9:37 Live Action Short - The New Tenants


9:35 - WTF!!! who is this lady pulling a Kanye interrupting this guy


9:34 Documentary Short goes to Music by Prudence


9:32 Interesting a tribute to short films - Short Film Animated goes to Logorama - I havn't seen the shorts yet but I was expecting Wallace and Gromit to take this


9:29 Ok Saldena's dress is ok from the waist up and then you see the bottom half


9:18 Love a tribute to John Hughes - but seriously Molly don't make it so obvious you're reading off a teleprompter and that dress is terrible


9:14 Big moment for Hurt Locker if it wins Original Screenplay here - and it goes to HURT LOCKER!!!


9:13 Lovin Downey Jr and his tie


9:04 Hooray with T-Bone Burnett - a deserved win for best song


9:03 Miley Cyrus looks a bit old in that dress


9:00 Up wins animated

8:44 and in no surprise Best Supporting Actor goes to Christoph Waltz


8:42 What was with Clooney's look?


8:37  This co-host thing ain't working, someone needs to yank Alec Baldwin off the stage


8:34  NPH should start every award show, loved the Harold and Kumar reference.


8:20:  Ten minutes to the Oscar telecast - Neil Patrick Harris is supposedly opening up the show and all the nominees all suppose to be on stage for some sort of American Idol type of thing.  Anyway stay tuned for a great night

Sam Mendes Filmography

Ten years ago American Beauty was the big winner at the Oscars to cap off one of the best cinematic years.  The Matrix and The Cider House Rules were the other big winners that evening.  Since then Mendes has come closest to gaining Oscar consideration again with Road to Perdition which did land six nominations.  Last year's underrated  Revolutionary Road gained three nominations.  Mendes has been pegged to direct the next Bond movie, which should be an interesting project as he has yet to direct an action movie, but I'm sure he'll figure out somehow to make Bond a trapped person burdened by the world's conventions.  Below is my ranking of Mendes' films.

5. Away We Go (2009)
4. Jarhead (2005)
3. Road to Perdition (2002)
2. Revolutionary Road (2008)
1. American Beauty (1999)

The Dude Abides

Jeff Bridge should finally be getting his due tonight for one of his best performances.  It was twelves years ago, the Coen Brothers came out with my favorite of their films The Big Lebowski.  The Dude has become one of the most iconic screen characters of the last two decades, partially due to people like discovering it after its release on DVD and playing it non-stop at college.  Owen Gleiberman at EW has a good article about how this role might be key to Bridges winning the Oscar.  The best performances in my opinion are the ones that create singular characters that stay with us and The Dude is certainly one of those.  

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Live Blogging

I'm taking an attempt to live blog the Oscars tomorrow -- come join if you wish -- make sure you watch with a beverage of choice (if you have vodka, kahula and cream go for the white russian in honor of The Dude) I myself will likely be drinking Captain and Coke.  Make sure to root for your favorite of the nominees, I've got my fingers crosssed for Hurt Locker and Bridges.

Maybe Gabby Can Win

There seems to be far more buzz on Gabby than I had thought and that a vote split could help her.  The other sentiment seems to be the anti-Bullock votes might be split among Gabby and Carey still propelling Bullock to the win.  I'm still sticking my guns and saying that Streep wins -- I think theres too much of a sentiment to give the top acting prizes to longtime screen veterans.  Both Streep and Bridges are 60, a win by both will be only the second time that the lead winners were both over the age of 60 (On Golden Pond was the one time) - this could be the deciding factor.

Remembering Marty's Win

One of my favorite Oscar moments -- don't know why George Lucas was there presenting the award as he is hardly considered on of the best directors of the last 40 years.  I could think of countless other winners from that time period James Cameron, Clint Eastwood, Jonathon Demme, Oliver Stone or Woody Allen that would've made more sense.  Anyway here's a link to his speech.

Marty

Big Weekend For Alice in Wonderland

Alice in Wonderland exceeded expectations and should finish its opening weekend in the 90-100 million dollar ballpark.  Like Avatar, Alice in Wonderland's gorss is a bit augmented by its use of 3-D.  Of course Johnny Depp has become quite the marquee name of late, and people seem to have taken to his colloborations with Tim Burton (even if it's getting tired in my eyes).  Their last team-up Sweeney Todd did modestly at the boxoffice for a violent musical.  Before that they hit it big with the mostly forgotten Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which opened to over 50 million in the summer of 2005, so perhaps the success of Alice shouldn't be too shocking.  I havn't seen Alice yet, but despite slightly better than average reviews I'm not too keen about this project.  Burton seems to have lost his artistic vision of the last five years.

Also released this weekend to a respectable opening was Antoine Fuqua's latest Brooklyn's Finest.  The movie seems like a retread of most gritty cop dramas, so I can't expect it perform much better from this pint forward.

Avatar should be passing Return of the Jedi by the end of the weekend also on the inflation adjusted chart.

Terry Gilliam's Harsh Words For the Academy

In the long term the Academy Awards honestly don't mean much, but regardless for most of those in Hollywood it is still the highest honor they can receive.  Of course you always have detractors especially from the higher brow crowd and those that believe Tarantino and Fincher are the greatest directors of the last twenty years.  However, other significant actors and filmmakers have always expressed their reservation of the awards. George C. Scott famously called them a "meat parade" and skipped the Oscars in which he won for Patton to watch ice hockey.  Woody Allen didn't show up at the ceremony until the 2002 telecast.  Now Terry Gilliam chimes in with his opinion.  Now despite Gilliam's films not being the most easily accessible, his films have constantly been recognized in the crafts and even the acting categories, and was nominated himself for his Brazil screenplay.  There is much truth regarding the Academy Awards being a large
self-congratulatory pow-wow, for the most part you have to be part of their system to be awarded, unless they feel they can be noble by awarding an outsider.  One only has to look at George Clooney's acceptance speech from a few years ago to see how highly these people think about themselves.  At least for me and still makes interesting film history and one night of entertainment.

Ranking Best Actor and Best Picture Winners From the 00's

This past decade saw noticeable trends in both of these categories.  The bio-pic was clearly a favored genre in both categories, with Best Actor having more success in winning when nominated.  Despite the apparent popularity of the genre, only one bio-pic (A Beautiful Mind) actually won Oscar's top prize.  Whereas, five of the men that won as lead actor did so for portraying a historical figure.  Best Picture winners were more often given to films in genres the Oscar previously ignored.  This started with Gladiator, only the second sword and sandal epic to win.  This followed with the resurgence of the musical with Chicago's win in 2002 and then again the next year as Return of the King won as the third movie of a fantasy trilogy, not to mention some of the other recent winners.  My preference for the film's and performances follow


Best Picture


9.    Chicago (2002)
8.    Crash (2005)
7.    Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
6.    A Beautiful Mind (2001)
5.   Million Dollar Baby (2004)
4.   Gladiator (2000)
3.   The Departed (2006)
2.   No Country For Old Men (2007)
1.   The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)


Best Actor


9.  Jamie Foxx - Ray (2004)
8.  Denzel Washington - Training Day (2001)
7.  Adrien Brody - The Pianist (2002)
6.  Sean Penn - Milk (2008)
5.  Phillip Seymour Hoffman - Capote (2005)
4.  Russell Crowe - Gladiator (2000)
3.  Forest Whitaker - The Last King of Scotland (2006)
2.  Sean Penn - Mystic River (2003)
1.  Daniel Day-Lewis - There Will Be Blood (2007)

The Spirit Awards

The Independent Spirit Awards have never quite been the big FU to Hollywood that they or its supporters think it is.  Regardless the awards are important in recognizing lesser known films.  The winner is usually nominated for Best Picture, but last year's highly regarded The Wrestler was not, so it's possible.  Precious is the only film nominated here also nominated by the Academy.  Precious is easily the frontrunner, it is the most high profile and has been highly regarded.  However, I don't know how independent a movie that has had Oprah front and center for it really is.  The rest of the nominees are also have a rather high profile with Amreeka likely as the lowest profile.  The awards will be broadcast on IFC tonight at 11 eastern time 8 pacific

The Crazies

The Crazies

Starring: Timothy Olyphant, Radha Mitchell, Joe Anderson, Danielle Panabaker

Director: Breck Eisner

Runtime: 101 Minutes

The Crazies is a moderately successful horror film that relies on some of the usual boo moments, but also creates a fairly foreboding atmosphere that coupled with solid performances, makes for a solid movie experience.  

Centering around a small town that after a toxin is accidentally released into the town's water supply the citizens start exhibiting unusual behavior.  Soon the military is in the town and separating the infected from the uninfected.  The town's sheriff (Timothy Olyphant) sneaks away after being led to buses for the uninfected to release his pregnant wife (Radha Mitchell).  When he returns the military has left town and the couple are left with an older teen (Danielle Panabaker) and the town deputy (Joe Anderson).  The four have no choice but to leave town where the crazies are still running amok.

The film's strongest aspect is the atmosphere it creates.  Along with a minimal score there is always a sense of something lurking in the shadows, and while you expect some of the boo moments, plenty of tension exists.  The opening moments of the movie are especially strong, particularly a confrontation at a high school baseball game where one on of the infected residents walks onto the field with a shotgun.  At this point the audience remains as confused as everyone else as odd incidents continue to happen around town.  The rest of the movie plays like your average chase/escape flick with you usual band of survivors.  Despite that the movie has several well filmed scenes, including an attack in a car wash and the climax at a truck stop.  

The film is at its weakest when involving the military, as the Eisner never fully makes them into the villains that he wants them to be.  Additionally, the military as antagonist is a storyline that has been overused so any impact has been mooted.     Neither does the movie have much to tell us, any chance to make social commentary were missed.  The script could have easily spent some time exploring small town dynamics and hysteria, particularly in an increasing urban age.  

None of that however, takes away from the rather engrossing experience that doesn't run too long.  The Crazies certainly is better than other horror film remakes (Friday the 13th, Halloween, The Hitcher and Last House on the Left), and early moments of the movie recall some of the lower budget horror movies of the 70's.

B

Hobbling

Final Predictions

Much of this Oscar season has focused on the race between The Hurt Locker and Avatar, the small film vs. the big film.  Earlier in the Fall much of the attention was between Precious and Up in the Air before The Hurt Locker won over all the critics and guilds and Avatar broke box office records while winning the Golden Globes.  Meanwhile attention has also been focused on Jeff Bridges' performance in Crazy Heart, which should finally land him that elusive Oscar.  Sandra Bullock pulled ahead of legend Meryl Streep in the Best Actress race.  Finally a sentiment has arisen regarding Inglourious Basterd's chances in the race, which certainly seem possible (more so in original screenplay though).  When predicting Oscar winners it's sometimes best to throw logic out the window and just go with what seems right, or as I say apply Academy logic.  This is a group that isn't worried about finding a film that may stand the test of time like say the New York Film Critics.  That being said they rarely pick a bad film either and half the fun of the Oscars is just complaining about the choices.  Many of you don't know that the last film to grab to nominees in the Best Actor category was Amadeus (Tom Hulce losing to co-star F. Murray Abraham) or that Field of Dreams was a Best Picture nominee in 1989, I do but I'm self proclaimed geek/nerd when it comes to such pointless trivia (trivia after all has its root in trivial).  Without further ado, my picks to win

Best Picture:  Avatar


All month I've been on a kick for The Hurt Locker, I thought Avatar might behave too similarly to Star Wars which lost to the smaller Annie Hall.  Yet, in the end Avatar seems too big to ignore.  Like it or not, Avatar is truly a landmark film that has changed the way Hollywood looks at movies, and for that might it will get many of the Academy's votes.  So I have to follow my own rules of using the Academy's logic, and despite Avatar's sci-fi status, it is also a sweeping human drama, epic in scope and a part of history.  Oscar likes to be part of history and despite my wish to see The Hurt Locker take this (and the precursor logic) I have to predict Avatar  for the win.


Best Director:  Kathryn Bigelow - The Hurt Locker

I honestly think this is one of the easiest categories to predict.  James Cameron could easily be honored for taking on such a massive undertaking, but Oscar awarded him for Titanic, and even he has stated his support for his ex-wife.  Some people think that QT might pull out the win, but there isn't a sentiment that this is his year to win an Oscar for directing and hes a very devisive figure.  That leaves Bigelow whom people have credited her directing as the key in making The Hurt Locker as prominent as it is.  Secondly, unlike Tarantino there is a larger sentiment that this is her year, couple that with her win at the DGA (only 6 winners of this have lost at Oscars) and Bigelow should win.

Best Actor: Jeff Bridges - Crazy Heart


Jeff Bridges didn't enter this race until later in the Fall when Fox Searchlight decided that following the buzz on Bridges' performance that this could set up well in award season.  The decision has certainly paid off as Bridges' superb performance along with a sweeping sentiment to award the veteran actor has made him the frontrunner.  Colin Firth's turn in A Single Man has received heaps of praise as well, but that film's buzz was lost long ago.  The only other real possibility is Jeremy Renner's star turn in The Hurt Locker; however, there is likely sentiment that Renner needs to pay his dues (more important in this category than Best Actress) before they reward him.  Plus Renner's film succeeds based on taut directing and editing as opposed to his singular performance.

Best Actress: Meryl Streep - Julie & Julia

The one acting category where there is still some doubt as to who will win.  Lately most people have been predicting Bullock to win, but I'm not convinced (a SAG win doesn't always translate to a win).  Bullock is saying all the right things, but there also seems to be a segment that doesn't think she deserves to win, Streep doesn't have that.  Streep is one of the most popular people in Hollywood and there should be a sentiment that Streep deserves another Oscar (something she hasn't done in 27 years).  If they want to reward Bridges based on a veteran sentiment why shouldn't that translate to Streep?  Carey Mulligan and Gabourey Sidibe are not out of this as well.  If a vote split were to occur, I'd be inclined to say that Mulligan is more likely to take the prize.  Overall her performance has been more widely hailed nor has it been lost in the enormous buzz of any her co-stars.  Additionally, if people want to award An Education, this is the best place to do it.  As far as Sidibe is concerned, she is charming but she has been drowned out by Mo'Nique's buzz.  While the movie has lost its Buzz, Mo'Nique kept while Sidibe's quietly faded away as well.

Best Supporting Actor : Christoph Waltz - Inglourious Basterds


Anything else would be shocking, the only other performance with any love attached to is Woody Harrelson's and doesn't have nearly the support Waltz had.  This was won back in May at Cannes.

Best Supporting Actress: Mo'Nique - Precious


Despite her lack of campaigning for the movie and her annoying acceptance speeches, Mo'Nique has won basically won everything save for the NBR.  An upset won't happen, but if it does I would put my money on Vera Farmiga.

Best Adapted Screenplay: Jason Reitman & Sheldon Turner - Up in the Air


This is where the Academy awards Up in the Air, a movie that they clearly loved and has enough support that I can't imagine them not awarding it somewhere.  It was nice to see them honor District 9 and In the Loop here.

Best Original Screenplay: Mark Boal - The Hurt Locker


This is where you shouldn't necessarily apply your logic to the proceedings, Tarantino has been winning many polls that predicting the Oscars, but the fact of the matter is that Boal is winning the vast majority of screenplay awards.  Tarantino did win once for Pulp Fiction, but that screenplay was edgier and more ground breaking than his work here.

Animated: Up
Fantastic Mr. Fox  could win, but that seems far more popular among the critics.

Art Direction: Avatar


Cinematography: Avatar


Costume Design: The Young Victoria


Documentary (Feature): The Cove


Documentary (Short): China's Unnatural Disaster


Editing: The Hurt Locker


Foreign Film: The White Ribbon


Make-Up: Star Trek


Original Score: Up


Original Song: The Weary Kind - Crazy Heart


Sound Editing: Avatar


Sound Mixing: The Hurt Locker


Visual Effects: Avatar


Short Film - Live Action: The Door


Short Film - Animated: A Matter of Loaf and Death

Zack Snyder

Zack Snyder takes a break from the visceral to what looks like a more family friendly movie with Legend of the Guardians.  Zack Snyder had a very promising debut with his Dawn of the Dead remake, then garnered mainstream success with 300.  Many fanboys thought last year's Watchmen was great, but I thought the movie was an empty shell of the graphi novel.  I don't know what to make of this owl movie - the only notable thing is the use of 30 Seconds to Mars.

Jack Lemmon - Save the Tiger

The latest in my series of Best Actor Winners

Year: 1973
Actor: Jack Lemmon
Film: Save the Tiger
Director: John Avildsen
Role: Harry Stoner

Other Nominees:

Marlon Brando - Last Tango in Paris
Jack Nicholson - The Last Detail
Al Pacino - Serpico
Robert Redford - The Sting


A few days ago I wrote about Al Pacino's drunken night at the Oscars in 1974, which he lost in the Best Actor category to Jack Lemmon.  Most familiar with his work in Billy Wilder movies, with Walter Matthau and Glengarry Glen Ross, I wasn't sure what to expect with his performance here.  Given the competition that Lemmon beat I was expecting a disappointing performance.  As talented as Lemmon was as an actor I didn't imagine Oscar honoring him twice.  The win seemed to be more of the result of a vote split than anything, from what I understand his win was a bit of surprise (Lemmon's only other notable nomination came from the Golden Globes).  Despite this I approached the film with an open mind and Lemmon's performance proved award worthy.

Lemmon made a great career of imbuing in his characters an awkward sense of likability.  Many of his characters seemed unsure of their place in the world, but none quite take the existential bent Save the Tiger does.  Playing well with Jack Gilford, Lemmon's businessman Harry Stoner is a middle aged man around the age of 50 that is at lost in the modern world of the early 1970's.  Harry is a veteran of War World II who keeps nostalgic about the music and entertainment of his younger days, as demonstrated when he hook sup with a young hitchhiker and they both rattle off names of famous people.  Stone is also a man that looks back at all that he accomplished and wonders if any of it was worth it, he thinks of friends that died in Normandy and throughout Europe and wonders if he's no more alive than they are (a terrific scene occurs when Harry is presenter his business's new clothing line to an audience and all he sees are fallen soldiers.)  Lemmon plays this role so sincerely, without resorting to the sentimental traps that many actors fall into.  It's not much of a stretch to see some of Stoner in Lemmon's later role in Glengarry Glen Ross and for that matter even Grumpy Old Men.  Harry Stoner is a deeply conflicted character and Lemmon never fails to sell that.

Any one of the five nominees could have easily won this Oscar, however Brando had just won and Redford's role didn't carry the necessary dramatic weight that Oscar generally prefers.  That left Pacino and Nicholson fighting it out for the top prize in the opinions of most people, so Lemmon's win came as a surprise.  Nicholson's performance in The Last Detail is regarded as one of his finest and typfied his image at the time as a young outlandish character.  Pacino was also popular at the time for his role in the first Godfather and in his role here as Serpico as a whistle blower cop.  Given the popularity of those two actors in the early 70's, it's easy to see why they were considered the frontrunners.  Given the popularity of Pacino and Nicholson their roles in 1973 have been more highly regarded over the time, that doesn't make Lemmon's superb performance any less worthy.

Other Wins/Nominations:

Best Actor Drama Nomination: Golden Globes

Rachel McAdams Joins Owen Wilson in Woody Allen's Next

The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that Rachel McAdams is joining Owen Wilson along with Marion Cotilliard in Woody Allen's yet untitlted next film.  Allen after a a mostly lackluster decade finished off with a couple of stronger films with Match Point and Vicki Cristina Barcelona.  Last year's Whatever Works didn't quite live up to the hype of surrounding it, but Allen is still standing better than he did ten years ago.  Of course there was about a fifteen year period where Allen rarely misstepped, that's unlikely to happen again.  


As far as McAdams is concerned, she's coming off her biggest year in 2009 since her breakthrough with Wedding Crashers and Red Eye in 2005.  Dramatically she hasn't proven much to me, State of Play was one of last year's more underrated films, but she was far from great in it.  The Time Traveler's Wife saw moderate success, while Sherlock Holmes held its own against Avatar over Christmas.  Of course the latter's success was more due to the male leads than McAdams presence.  Her character was too ancillary to move the meter either way.  I think McAdams is very pretty and she works better within a comedy than a drama, so I hope Allen plans this to be more comedic than some of his more recent proceedings.    

Are We Due For an Upset Somewhere?

There seems to be a large consensus on who will be winning the major Oscars this year, with the only two categories experiencing some deviation being Best Picture and Original Screenplay.  I'm on the record as stating that Best Actress isn't as clear as most have made it out to be, but Roger Ebert is right when he recently said this has been one of the easiest years to predict the winners.  With that in mind it has to beg the question whether we are due for an upset.  This past decade hasn't seen many big upsets in terms of the acting categories, Marcia Gay Harden, Adrien Brody and to a lesser extent Alan Arkin have been among the biggest.  The upset story of the decade has to go to Crash four years ago for beating Brokeback Mountain.  If an upset were to occur, where will it be?  A Streep win would be a very minor upset and it seems unlikely for an upset in the supporting categories (none of the apparent also-rans seem strong enough to win).  I suppose that leaves a disappointed Jeff Bridges in favor of Colin Firth?  This is all just idle speculation I want there to be an upset to shake up Oscar night, but given that nomination morning gave us few surprises that likely doesn't bode well for those outside shots.  Another four days and we'll find out.

Blockbuster Can't Stay Alive Too Much Longer Can It?

In case many of you havn't noticed many Blockbuster stores are closing, the one time rental titan seems to be on their last leg.  As hard as they tried Blockbuster's online rentral program hasn't reached the success of Netflix.  Not helping matters is the rise of Redbox and the ability to stream movies on your PC or television with ITunes, Amazon and other services.  Further proof that Blockbuster is hurting it the following news they are reintroducing late fees.  Considering that the lack of fees attracts people to other rental services this can't be a wise move by Blockbuster, but it will surely help in the short term to generate more profite.  In the long term this is sure to be Blockbuster's last gasp.

What's His Name? - David Morse

David Morse has remained one of the more reliable character actors of the last twenty years.  Like many character actors he sometimes get typecast, but his roles never stick out like a sore thumb.  Morse was one of the many actors on the 80's hit St. Elsewhere, since then he has taken on a large number of supporting roles in notable movies.  The most notable of these was as a prison guard in Frank Darabont's  The Green Mile.  Morse was given a chance to headline a tv drama again several years ago with the CBS show Hack, which lasted all of two seasons.  Morse has also recently been seen in short guest stint on House.  Most recently David Morse was one of three notable cameos in Oscar front runner The Hurt Locker, a role that seemed well suited to his subtle intensity he brings to many of his roles.  Other notable roles below:

The Rock (1996)


The first role I saw Morse in was Michael Bay's The Rock.  I first caught this as an impressionable 8th grader in the late 90's, and while I still maintain it is one of Bay's better movies the movie has lost a bit of its esteem.  Still Morse works really well here as one of Ed Harris' top soldiers who takes over Alcatraz.  Morse always works well as a military guy or cop with a bit of a dirty side and here is not exception.  Morse's character stays loyal to Harris in the end something he seems to deem more important than their mission at hand.

The Negotiator (1998)


Another action/hostage movie that Morse appeared in, this time as a cop.  In my opinion this is one of the more underrated action movies of the 90's, while it runs a little long the performances really help drive the movie.  Aside from Jackson and Spacey, Morse's performance helps keep the tension high on the ground as well.

16 Blocks (2006)


I suppose this movie is a guilty pleasure of mine, where David Morse again plays a cop.  This time Morse is corrupt and is out to kill the witness that Bruce Willis needs to transport to court to testify against several officers.  Morse works well as a villain without having to resort to chewing the scenery.

Other notable movies:

The Crossing Guard - (1995)
12 Monkeys - (1995)
Contact - (1997)
Dancer in the Dark - (2000)
Distrubia - (2007)

Oscar Drinking Game

For those of you looking to spice your Oscar night,

Whenever any of the Best Picture nominees wins an award take so many drinks (add one drink to or a toast if your favorite wins for the Best Picture winner)....

Avatar - 1
The Blind Side - 3
District 9 - Raise a glass and take a good savory drink
An Education - 2
The Hurt Locker - 1
Inglourious Basterds - 2
Precious - 2
A Serious Man - 3
Up - 2
Up in the Air -2

Anytime someone thanks God - 1 drink
Anytime someone thank their parents/close family - 1 drink
Antime someone forgets to thank their parents/close family - 2 drinks
If the Foreign Film winner cuts his speech short due to his lack of English - 2 drinks
If the orchestra tries to cut off the winner's speech - 2 drinks
A losing nominee looks sad or angry - 2 drinks
Someone curses - 3 drinks
Winner cries - 1 drink
Winner gives a smug speech - 2 drinks
Alec Baldwin is actually funnier than Steve Martin - Finish your drink
If someone mentions how beautiful Kathryn Bigelow is - 2 drinks
if its Gabourey Sidibe - 3 drinks
If Oprah is thanked - 3 drinks
A presenter can't say a name - 1 drink
If Jack Nicholson looks drunk - 1 drink
If someone mentions The Dude - 3 drinks
If Tarantino gives a self-indulgent speech - 2 drinks

If someone other than Mo'Nique wins Supporting Actress - 2 drinks
someone other than Christoph Waltz - 3 drinks
someone other than Jeff Bridges - 3 drinks
someone other than Meryl Streep or Sandra Bullock - 4 drinks

New OkGo Video - simply awesome

Some Cool Useless Oscar Info

I stumbled across this little cool graphic earlier, interestingly it includes the longest acceptance speech, given by Greer Garson back in 1943 for her turn in Mrs. Miniver, but it doesn't mention that the shortest was given by John Mills for Ryan's Daughter.  Mills played a mute and his speech was a simple bow.  Enjoy

Dr. Horrible

During the writer's strike in 2008, Joss Whedon develope a short film with his brothers called Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog to keep the creative process flowing.  What they developed was an amusing musical about the titular aspiring villian, his nemesis Captian Hammer and the woman that they both are after.  Neil Patrick proved that his comedic talents as Barney were no fluke by proving his adeptness at music in his amusing role.  Nathan Fillion is terrific playing an unlikeable self-centered superhero, and Felicia Day is charming as the love interest. 

One of the few stories to make the story from the "villain's" perspective, from the start you want to see Dr. Horrible end up with his love from the laundromat.  Meanwhile Captian Hammer just comes off as a total douchebag that strouts his superioty over those he supposedly saves.  The music is also wonderful and really contributes to the story and humor.  Despite running over just 45 minutes, the film feels complete.  The film also feels like a such large production, when in reality old props from Serenity and Firefly were used along with on-location shooting around LA. 

If you like NPH and/or Joss Whedon this comes highly recommended - check it out.

Al Pacino's Drunken Night at the 1974 Oscar Telecast

If there was one decade of cinema I would have liked to have experienced other than the silent age of the 1920's, it would be the 1970's.  A decade dominated by some of the greatest actor and boldest filmmakers churning out great film after great film.  Each year saw a field of highly deserving nominees in most categories.  It was also the time when Al Pacino was at his peak.  With that, somehow I missed this little news nugget last week (Pacino-Serpico).

I found this little golden piece of new while researching Save the Tiger, for which Jack Lemmon won his second Oscar.  I don't find this particular piece of news all that revelatory, but it amused me nonetheless.  Pacino only 23 at the time, was now enjoying immense fame after following up his breakthrough in The Godfather, with in what is my opinion his second greatest role in Serpico.  Given his youth and now immense popularity, how can you blame him for getting ripped that night?   As an aside, how great was that field of 73 nominees? I'll dive a bit deeper into when I do my write up on Jack Lemmon's performance later this week, but also nominated were Marlon Brando in the classic Last Tango in Paris, Jack Nicholson in the The Last Detail and despite my reservations about the film one of Robert Redford's finest performances in The Sting.

Today it seems most people try to play it safe at these awards shows, though I'm sure Mickey Rourke was drunk at last year's Oscars.  Who knows maybe more attendees and nominees are more stoned than what is known.  Occasionaly we still get some random moments, Adrien Brody's impromptu kiss of Halle Berry seven years ago comes to mind, but other than that these moments are rare.  Al Pacino did win that Oscar as discussed in Scent of a Woman, but was too sober to make it a memorable acceptance speech.

Now if we can persuade Jeff Bridges to show up as The Dude on Sunday night.

Denzel Washington - Training Day

My latest addition of Best Actor Winners

Year: 2001
Actor: Denzel Washington
Film: Training Day
Director: Antoine Fuqua
Role: Alonzo Harris

Other Nominees:
Russell Crowe - A Beautiful Mind
Sean Penn - I Am Sam
Will Smith - Ali
Tom Wilkinson - In the Bedroom


Denzel Washington remains one of the more reliable actors of the last two decades, churning out moderate hit after moderate hit.  He also has given some of the strongest performances of the this time period.  Having won a supporting statue for Glory, audiences were beginning to wonder if he could pick up a lead statue.  In 1999 Washington was brilliant in Norman Jewison's The Hurricane, but was also up against superb work from Kevin Spacey and Russell Crowe.  Kevin Spacey won for his fine work on American Beauty.  The following year Russell Crowe was again nominated, this time for Oscar favorite Gladiator.  The overriding sentiment was give to Crowe a makeup Oscar for his commanding performance as Maximus.  Like many cases his work as Maximus paled in comparison to his terrific turn a year later in The Insider.  However, a year later Crowe delivered another fine performance in A Beautiful Mind.  This set up a battle between Washington and Crowe for Best Actor.

Many felt despite Crowe having won a year earlier that he would win again, given the overwhelming support the Academy had shown for A Beautiful Mind.  Yet, Washington could not be denied, for his searing portrayal of a corrupt narcotics cop.  There is nothing likable about Washington's character, and Washington uses every possible moment to make him larger than a life (a trait Oscar loves).  In an otherwise average movie, Washington's presence makes it difficult to grow disinterested in the proceedings.  On the whole Washington generally fails to engage me into his characterizations, but he delivers such a fierce performance thats it's difficult not to be engaged.  I only wish he could've given us a better understanding of what makes his character tick and led him towards the path he took.

Any discussion of the 2001 Oscars is not complete without mention of the so-called race factor.  Halle Berry famously became the first African-American to win Best Actress, while Washington became the second African-American to win Best Actor, not to mention Sidney Poitier's honorary award.  It might be very possible that voters got caught up in the wave to correct past slights of African-American characters, but Washington delivers on his finest performance, so to focus on such petty reasons does is performance a disservice.

Also of note is Ethan Hawke's supporting nomination, interesting in that he is clearly the lead of the film.  At one time Oscar wasn't against to nominating male co-stars in the lead category, but it's become an unwritten rule that a movie can't have two leads.  Gene Hackman was also unfairly snubbed in one of the decade's finest performances and easily the best performance of 2001.

Other Wins and Nominations:
Actor of the Year - AFI
Best Actor - Boston Film Critics
Best Actor Nomination - Chicago Film Critics
Best Actor Drama Nomination - Golden Globes
Best Actor - Kansas City Film Critics
Best Actor - Los Angeles Film Critics
Best Actor Nomination - Online Film Critics
Best Actor Nomination - SAG