Big Oscar News

Whoa.....

Today the Academy announced that they would be expanding the list of Best Picture nominees to 10 each year instead of 5.

There were actually quite a few changes in the Academy's early years. In the Academy's first year (1928), there were only 3 nominees. Then 5 for a few years. Then 10 until 1943. Then 5 from 1943 until now.

So this is obviously a ploy to get more commercially successful films nominated and create more interest in the Academy (The Dark Knight snub from last year).

Here, for example, is the line-up from last year

2008

Nominated:
Slumdog Millionaire
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Milk
The Reader
Frost/Nixon

My guess for the next 5:
The Dark Knight
Wall-E
Doubt
Revolutionary Road
The Wrestler

Hmmm, it would have been a much more diverse list.

And my guesses for 2007

Nominees:
No Country for Old Men
Juno
There Will Be Blood
Atonement
Michael Clayton

My guess for the next 5 (This year was a bit harder, with 2 clear runner-ups and some rather blind guesses).
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
Into the Wild
Sweeny Todd-??
American Gangster-??
Ratatouille-??

This year was a bit harder, with 2 clear runner-ups and then some guesses.

Anyway, big news and it will make Oscar predicting quite interesting for 2009.

Top 10 Retrospective: 2006

Runners-Up: Inside Man, Volver, United 93, Children of Men, Jesus Camp,

10. A Prairie Home Companion: Robert Altman's swansong, and a fitting one at that. Beautiful performances and a poignant view of love and loss. Garrison Keillor and Altman prove a winning combination. Bonus points for some great musical numbers.



9. Half Nelson: Ryan Gosling and young Shareeka Epps give remarkable performances as a drug-addicted teacher and the young student who befriends him. What I loved about this movie is how nuanced it's view of the characters are. Gosling may be a drug addict, but he is also a committed teacher.



8. The Queen: A movie about Queen Elizabeth may sound boring, but Helen Mirren, Michael Sheen (as Tony Blair) and director Stephen Frears make it funny, intelligent, and thoughtful. A fascinating look at an intersection of two types of power, and of modern politics with tradition.

7. Borat: If you can stomach the satire, it's absolutely hilarious. I can't remember another movie since this where I laughed (or squirmed) this much.

6. Babel: A multinational cast and crew brings a story of global connections. While not every story is equally great (I found the storyline in Japan interesting but somewhat tangential), the entire movie radiates passion and emotion in its storytelling. There may be times when it goes over the top, but it's affecting and powerful nonetheless.

5. Little Miss Sunshine: The key to a great comedy is great characters, and Little Miss Sunshine delivers. Pushes the quirkiness and zaniness to the max without verging into annoyance.

4. Pan's Labyrinth: Director Guillermo del Toro mixes childhood fantasy with violent political conflict and delivers something quite unique. Blurs the line between fantasy and reality until we're not really sure what to think.



3. Little Children: Probably the most overlooked movie of the year, Oscar nominations for Kate Winslet (Actress) and Jackie Earle Haley (Supporting Actor) aside. A much more humane, less condescending film of suburban alienation than American Beauty. Director Todd Field followed up his masterful In the Bedroom with another movie of quiet power.



2. The Departed: Scorsese's energetic, violent, funny, thoughtful, suspenseful double cat-and-mouse thriller. Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Mark Wahlberg, and Vera Farmiga all turn in great performances. With all this great acting, a great script, and Scorsese back in top form, I can even forgive Jack Nicholson's hammy moments.

1. The Lives of Others: A deeply moving German drama about making moral choices in a totalitarian environment. Suspenseful and always engaging, a great film.


Sum-up:While it provided a wide variety of entertainments, 2006 was certainly not the best of recent years. I thoroughly recommend every movie on this list, but most of them lean more towards the "very good" rather than the "great."

Pete Seeger: The Power of Song

Pete Seeger: The Power of Song

So, based on this documentary and everything else I know about him, I think Pete Seeger is one of the most wonderful people alive and a true American treasure. The movie lovingly follows Seeger's life from childhood to singing with Woody Guthrie, to his time with The Weavers, to his blacklisting, to his revival, to his environmental activism. There's nothing particularly groundbreaking about the style or content of the movie, but it gives a great sense of Pete, his life, and his passion and activism. It's an inspirational story of a man who never let commerce get in the way of his belief and passion.

Grade: B+

Here's a nice version of Pete doing "Guantanamera":

Top 10 Retrospective: 2007

While I have come somewhat recently to movie blogging, that doesn't mean I don't have an extensive collection of movie related lists and documents that I've kept over the years. So, I thought I would periodically look back at some recent years in cinema to give a taste of my favorite films......

Best of 2007

Runners-Up: Michael Clayton, Knocked Up, Eastern Promises
Most Overrated Movie: Juno. I really really don't like this movie, and I am still dumbfounded as to how much acclaim it got.

10. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly: Beautifully shot and crafted movie of a man in a coma who writes a book using only his eye. Somehow manages to be inspiring rather than depressing.



9. I'm Not There: If not for the one step too avant-garde Richard Gere sequences, this would probably place higher. A meditation on the many facets of Bob Dylan. Cate Blanchett is terrific of course, but Heath Ledger also gives a great performance. Not for all tastes, but I found it fascinating.

8. Lars and the Real Girl: I was surprised at how much I liked this movie. The premise sounds a touch too indie, but the filmmakers make a poignant story about human goodness from the material. Between this performance and Half Nelson, I believe Ryan Gosling can do no wrong.



7. There Will Be Blood: Strange, terrifying, at times confusing, and always fascinating. P.T. Anderson is a great filmmaker and he creates a strange set of characters and landscapes that tie to our own culture. Daniel Day Lewis gives one of the best performances in modern film. The only reason it's not in the top 2 or 3 of my list is because of the misjudged final minutes.

6. Ratatouille: Absolutely charming Pixar film about a rat who can cook. Rat Remy and food critic Anton Ego are two great characters in this film. Probably even more enjoyed by grown-ups then kids.

5. Atonement: One of my favorite books, and the movie didn't disappoint me. Director Joe Wright makes the material fast-paced and creates an emotional pull that lasts through the movie.

4. 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days: Absolutely riveting Romanian film about a young woman helping her friend secure an illegal abortion in the Communist-era Romania. At every moment, you feel like you are in the room with these characters. A thriller, a political movie, and a movie that raises important moral questions.



3. Once: A small gem of a film and the perfect modern musical. Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova play musicians who connect for a few days.

2. No Country for Old Men: A masterpiece of acting, pacing, cinematography, writing, and everything else under the sun. One of the most intense thrillers I've seen, and gives you a lot to ponder. Easily one of the Coen's best.

1. Into the Wild: Sean Penn directed this true story of the cross-country journey of Christopher McCandless (played by Emile Hirsch), a young college graduate who throws conventional life aside and connects with others on his way to Alaska. A road movie with heart, soul, and conviction.



Sum-Up: I think 2007 was a great year for film, one of the best in a long time. What I really loved is how so many of the year's films really worked to package compelling ideas in very specific directorial visions.

Up Review & Best of Pixar

Up (2009)

In today's cinematic marketplace, is there any better bet than having a good time at a Pixar movie? I don't really think so, and Up is no exception.

The first 15 minutes or so of Up are some of the greatest Pixar moments put to film, rivaled, I think, only by the opening vision of Wall-E. It starts with a delightful opening in the 1930s where Carl meets Ellie. They are two children with a love of adventure and we see them meet cute in an abandoned house full of adventure. It then moves on to a wordless montage that shows their subsequent life together in a beautiful and heartbreaking way. It is truly masterful filmmaking.

After the opening, we are left with Carl Frederickson as a proverbial grumpy old man (nicely voiced by Ed Asner). The rest of the movie, as you probably know, centers on his trip to Paradise Falls with a young boy scout. When they get to Paradise Falls, they are joined by an exotic bird and a talking dog....

I found the movie slowed a bit during their initial moments in Paradise Falls. After the masterpiece of the film's opening moments, it seemed inevitable that things would become a bit more mundane. Indeed, there are moments when Up reverts to standard (if enjoyable) action movie theatrics. By the end, though, we thoroughly care about the characters and are left with at least two more tear-jerking scenes.

Up has been getting some rave reviews, and it is definitely enjoyable with some truly great moments. To me, it doesn't reach the heights of Ratatouille or Wall-E, but few movies do. It's still better than 90% of movies out there, and I continue to commend Pixar for dreaming big and blessing filmgoers with such unique visions.


Grade: B+

Top 5 Pixar Films

The release of Up has led many bloggers to an appraisal of Pixar's canon, so I thought I'd join the group. The only one of the 10 I haven't seen is Cars, and I don't have a desire to. It's been a while since I've seen some of these, but here is my ranking as of now.

Runners-Up:

Good, but I didn't love them: A Bug's Life, The Incredibles
Very good but didn't quite crack the top 5: Finding Nemo, Up

5. Monsters, Inc.: Most underrated? It came out the same year as Shrek, but is so much better. Great premise and great characters.

4. Toy Story: Launched the Pixar empire with an inventive script, great characters, hilarious humor, and honest sentiment. A landmark.

3. Ratatouille: Arguably the most "conventional" Pixar film, but perfectly done. The scene where food critic Anton Ego tastes Remy's dish is one of the best Pixar moments ever.



2. Toy Story 2: Even better than 1. The addition of Jessie also added a much-needed female presence too often missing from Pixar. I can't wait for Toy Story 3 next year.



1. WALL-E: Destined to become an all-time classic. This funny, cerebral, dark film shows how far Pixar pulled animated film.

How about you? What did you think of Up? What's your favorite Pixar?

It's Here- Supporting Actress Smackdown 1992

To regular followers of the blog, you'll notice my plethora of 1992 viewings over the past several weeks. Now, head on over to Stinkylulu's site and check out how other movie fans and I graded the performances....

Judy Davis, Husbands and Wives
Joan Plowright, Enchanted April
Vanessa Redgrave, Howards End
Miranda Richardson, Damage
Marisa Tomei, My Cousin Vinny


I'm very glad to participate in this Smackdown, as 1992 was an awakening year for me in my taste for movies and the Oscars. The 1992 ceremonies (held in 1993) were the first Oscars I can remember watching. As a 12-year-old at the time, I had seen few movies aside from Aladdin that were nominated, but I loved the spirit of competition present in the ceremony. By the next year, I was already watching religiously and had persuaded my parents to let me see the R-rated Schindler's List before the ceremony. A lifetime love (and obsession) began.

Now to the Supporting Actress race. It was definitely a shock when Marisa Tomei won, and there were even rumors of an error in reading her name. What do I think happen? Well, I think Joan Plowright and Vanessa Redgrave appealed to much of the same constituency and split the voters. Miranda Richardson, I think, was never really in the hunt because her movie was probably off-putting to many viewers. So we come to Judy Davis and Marisa Tomei. Judy Davis was terrific, respected, and should have won, BUT she was in a Woody Allen movie in the year of the Soon-Yi scandal. Perhaps the voters weren't quite ready to reward a performance in an Allen film, no matter the level of performance. So they were left with Tomei. A young, breakfout star. Check. A funny and scene-stealing performance. Check. Looks good while accepting the Oscar. Check. A strange choice at the time, but now that we have seen her performances in In the Bedroom, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, and The Wrestler, it seems the Academy has vindicated itself. As you'll see at the smackdown, it's not my choice but its certainly not a bad one.

Review Round-Up

Here are some quick thoughts on movies I've seen in the past couple weeks....

The Garden (2009)

This documentary follows a 14-acre community garden in South Central L.A. It was created after the L.A. riots, and was lovingly tended mostly by the Latino community. When the man who sold the land to the city wants it back, a backroom deal occurs which sells him back the land at a ridiculously low price. The movie pits the grassroots farmers and their defenders (who come to include numerous Hollywood celebs) against the shady financial dealings of urban politics. The struggle is moving, and it's a consistently interesting documentary. One flaw (which may not be the filmmakers' fault), is that we never really see or understand the man who got the garden in the first place. The movie also glosses over some of the internal politics of running the garden.

Grade: B

Wendy and Lucy (2008)

Filmmaker Kelly Reichardt, who made Old Joy (2006), returns with another minimalist tale of a drifter in the Pacific Northwest. Wendy and Lucy stars Michelle Williams as Wendy, a woman who has left Indiana and is traveling to Alaska with her dog Lucy. We don't get much back story on why she has traveling, but there is definitely the sense that there is more at stake than simply work. Much of the movie concerns Wendy's struggle to find Lucy when she is lost.

When I saw Old Joy, I appreciated the sense of disillusionment with modern America that Reichardt portrayed, but it also was so plotless that it was difficult to fully invest in the film. With Wendy and Lucy, I think Reichardt has really hit her stride as a filmmaker while making her point just as powerfully. The movie definitely won't appeal to those who bore of contemplative movies, but there is a sense of dramatic momentum and character development that I found riveting. Michelle Williams does a superb job in the title role, and all the supporting actors and actresses in small roles portray a true naturalism. The movie also ends with one of the most beautiful scenes I've seen in a long time. This movie was truly a miniature gem, and I can't wait to see what Reichardt will do in the future.

Grade: A-

Howards End (1992)

The last (and best) of my 1992 Supporting Actress screenings. The best movie of the Merchant-Ivory team (A Room With a View, The Remains of the Day). An absolutely superb cast (Anthony Hopkins, Emma Thompson, Vanessa Redgrave, Helena Bonham Carter) plays out E.M. Forster's drama of class conflict in early 20th-century England. The movies follows the intersections of the three families: the upper-class Wilcoxes, the artistic middle-class Schlegels, and the lower-class Basts. Forster's point, I think, is to show the ways that people of disparate ways are or aren't able to connect with one another. Some characters (such as Vanessa Redgrave's Mrs. Wilcox and Emma Thompson's Margaret Schelgel), have a natural sensibility to connection, while others, such as Anthony Hopkins' Henry Wilcox, are unable to see beyond their own circumstances. This movie is pitch-perfect and beautiful in its depiction of a world gone by, and also consistently dramatically compelling. A great film.

The great Vanessa Redgrave was nominated for Supporting Actress in the film. She opens the film in a great wordless title sequence, and appears in several more scenes during the first 45 minutes of the movie. She does a wonderful job at portraying an ethereal woman of great kindness and quiet passion. While she is gone for much of the movie, her presence lives on and continues to play an important role.

Grade: A

More Supporting Actress Screenings: My Cousin Vinny and Enchanted April

In preparation for StinkyLulu's upcoming blogathon http://www.stinkylulu.com/2009/05/supporting-actress-sundays-for-may09.html#links, I watched two more of the nominated movies. If you'd like a view of the nominations, here is a montage put together by Alex from Alex in Movieland, another blogathan participant:



Enchanted April (1992)

Pleasant movie about four very different women in WW1-era England who regain some life while sharing an Italian villa. Frothy, entertaining, and a little poignant at the end. Not incredibly deep and the character arcs are a little thin, but fun to watch.

Joan Plowright was nominated for her role as the middle-aged dowager who (re)opens herself to life and friendship while at the villa. Plowright plays her role well, but it does feel she could do this role in her sleep. On another note, one of the leading roles is played by Miranda Richardson. After being somewhat disappointed by her work in Damage, I was very impressed by her portrayal here.

Grade: B

My Cousin Vinny (1992)

This movie has the mark of many late-1980s/early-1990s comedies: lazy directing, by the book cinematography, and a predictable plot. It follows Joe Pesci as a novice lawyer who goes down to Alabama to help out a cousin wrongly accused of a crime. Marisa Tomei joins him as his working-class, very New York girlfriend. The movie is fairly entertaining and the final courtroom scenes are quite funny.

At the time Tomei won the Oscar, many were appalled. Looking back, though, Tomei really does give a great performance. Perhaps her later performances in In the Bedroom and The Wrestler are influencing me, but I see the same fierce intelligence and empathy in this same role. While it is a broadly written role, Tomei rarely overplays it.

Grade: C+

Woody Allen's Squabbling Spouses

Husbands and Wives (1992)

The next screening for my participation in StinkyLulu's Supporting Actress blogathon (http://www.stinkylulu.com/2009/05/supporting-actress-sundays-for-may09.html#links) is Woody Allen's Husbands and Wives, a scathing account of marital discord among four middle-aged characters. I consider this movie to be his finest of the 1990s. The movie begins when Jack and Sally (Sydney Pollack and Judy Davis) announce to their friends Gabe and Judy (Allen and Farrow) that they are divorcing. This announcement, and the subsequent fallout, involves both Jack and Sally finding new partners and Gabe and Judy turning an intense eye on their own relationship. The movie is filmed in documentary-style, and the emotions it touches are often raw. It pokes and prods at the myriad of ways that relationships can go sour, and how they come to define a person's identity.

The entire central foursome does an excellent job, with the two actresses showing the most range and emotion. Judy Davis, who was nominated for Supporting Actress, does an extremely fine job of playing the prickly, intellectual, easily wounded Sally. She has several bravura and scathingly hilarious scenes in which she steals the movie. Allen excels at writing supporting female parts that allow for actress to shine (Penelope Cruz in Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Dianne Wiest in Bullets Over Broadway). The movie can probably be technically considered a comedy, but probably the darkest "comedy" Allen has made. The emotions are rough and certain scenes are almost unbearably intimate.

Allen is probably the modern director who most puts himself on the screen, or at least portrays a similar persona in many roles. In Husbands and Wives, released just after the Soon-Yi affair was uncovered and he and Farrow broke up, this makes for some uncomfortable moments. Allen portrays Farrow's character as passive aggressive and conniving. He also portrays himself as a man who has a 20-year-old in love with him, yet refuses to consummate the relationship. In the end, the blame for the marital problems are placed at Judy's feet. A bit of alternate reality for Woody? Then again, Allen includes a scene where the young woman played by Juliette Lewis (his young student) criticizes his character's views of women and men in a novel. So Allen is self-aware enough to recognize his own flaws.

All in all, Husbands and Wives is essential viewing for any Allen fan.

Grade: A-

Michael Moore & Sicko (2007)

Sicko (2007)

Documentarian/provocateur Michael Moore brings his trademark style to the American health care system. Like most of Moore's documentaries, it is in turns revelatory, moving, and annoying. Like almost all his films, it is easy to critique ways that he could make it better.

The most powerful portions of the movie are the stories of the ways that the American HMO system screws Americans. The audio footage of Nixon enthusiastically endorsing a system that treats fewer patients is particularly chilling. It's hard to watch stories of patients refused treatment or given the run-around by the system and not feel shocked and appalled. Technically it's probably nothing I didn't know or suspect, but Moore picks some great subjects. This is the best stuff.

Where Moore falters is in showing the systems of other countries: Canada, England, France, and Cuba. As someone who agrees with him about universal health care, there is no doubt that I would prefer a Canadian or European system of universal care. I do question, however, whether showing rich British and French system and all they can afford is really the best way of making his point. What's the point, that people can be rich even with high taxes?? Not revolutionary. It would have been more interesting to see how the poor and working-class are treated in these countries, because I think this would show the importance of a universal system in a more poignant way. It would also have been interesting to see problems that universal systems have endured and how they solved these problems.

I did find Moore's visit to Cuba with 9/11 rescue workers who had been denied care very moving. The fact that a person can get a medicine for about $.05 in Cuba that would cost $120 in the US is appalling. It's hard not to be moved by people being treated with dignity.

So, Moore continues his pattern of documentaries. He preaches to the choir (including me) and we agree with him. He throws in enough questionable material for his detractors to criticize him. I'm hoping that one of these days he matures as a film maker and realizes that sometimes nuance can beat out the obvious.

Grade: B-

Supporting Actress Blogathon & Review of Damage

I'm thrilled at the chance to participate in an upcoming blogathon at StinkyLulu's site (http://www.stinkylulu.com/2009/05/supporting-actress-sundays-for-may09.html#links). I'm a long-time fan of his supporting actress blogathons, where he and guests look back at nominated Supporting Actress performances and critique them. I am even more excited to participate in 1992's blogathon, the year when Marisa Tomei beat 4 British thespians and spawned an urban legend that the wrong name was read (http://www.snopes.com/movies/actors/tomei.asp).

So, in the next few weeks look for reviews of the following films that contain 1992 nominated supporting actress performances:

-Damage (Miranda Richardson)
-Enchanted April (Joan Plowright)
-Howards End (Vanessa Redgrave)
-Husbands and Wives (Judy Davis)
-My Cousin Vinny (Marisa Tomei)

and my first screening was......

Damage (1992)

I found Damage, Louis Malle's very serious and dramatic depiction of an erotic affair between a young woman and her fiance's father, fairly ridiculous in many ways. Little is given in the way of character development and, when it is given, it often feels patently false. The first hour consists of repeated scenes of Jeremy Irons and Juliette Binoche sneaking around and having trysts in various locales. The sex scenes are ludicrous and the characters' motivations and actions rarely believable. Jeremy Irons, who can be a great actor, also seems wooden and emotionless throughout the movie.

In my opinion the best part of the movie was Juliette Binoche, a great French actress (I love her later work in Blue, The English Patient, and Cache). While her character is drawn with broad sketches, she hints at layers underneath. I think the movie would have been much more interesting if it had been told from her perspective rather than Irons', but as in most films, male desire and psychology is given greater precedence.

Miranda Richardson was nominated for a role in which she was supremely miscast, the wife of Jeremy Irons. She plays the mother of 29-year-old actor Rupert Graves when she was (wait for it....) all of 34 years old. I could never buy that she was actually his mother. Nevertheless, she does her best with the role and has probably the movie's most emotional moment in a later scene.

I must admit that the movie was somewhat entertaining in a laughable way, but I don't recommend spending two hours of your time watching it.

Grade: C-

The Mysteries of Charlie Kaufman

Synecdoche, New York (2008)

I saw Synecdoche, New York over a week ago, and I've been pondering it and avoiding reviewing it ever since. It's definitely that kind of movie.

SNY (I can't handle trying to spell it every time I type it) is the directorial debut of Charlie Kaufman, the crazed genius writer behind such films as Adaptation, Being John Malkovich, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Malkovich is probably in my top-20 movies ever, and Eternal Sunshine in my Top 10, so you can definitely call me a Kaufman fan.

SNY follows Philip Seymour Hoffman as Caden Cotard, a stage director who has some personal loss with the breakup of his marriage, a few health problems, and then wins a genius grant. This takes up perhaps the first 1/2 hour of the movie and is fairly easy to follow. When he gets his grant, he decides to create a recreation of the minutiae of his life. He builds a set of his world and casts people in the parts of his life. The movie continually probes deeper into his production so that you continually have to question what you are watching. It's also pitched somewhere between crazy things happening with real-life logic and a sort of dream logic. It's much more impenetrable and I think personal than any of Kaufman's other movies.

So its interesting and difficult to follow and sometimes frustrating, but what is Kaufman trying to say? I'm not quite sure. I think he is imagining the ego of an artist's gaze taken to the extreme. Could any of us take a recreation of our life over and over and never ending? At the end, Hoffman's character seems to make a choice to leave this examination of his life for another path, which spins the movie in a whole new direction. He's also playing with dreams and reality. The viewer is constantly reeling because we're not sure how to take all the new information. It's not a one-sentence hook like Malkovich (a portal enters the brain of John Malkovich) or Sunshine (a company erases memories).

Hoffman is joined by some of the best current actresses in this film. Catherine Keener as his wife, Michelle Williams as Catherine Keener (sort of), Samantha Morton as a love interest, Emily Watson as Samantha Morton, Dianne Wiest as an actress and mentor, etc. The cast keeps things lively and interesting all along.

This is perhaps the hardest movie to grade that I've seen in quite some time. It's by turns fascinating and frustrating, emotionally compelling and off-putting. I decided to give it a B+, for a fascinating idea that will take some time to figure out. However I end up feeling about the movie (and I have a feeling I will want to revisit it soon), kudos to Charlie Kaufman for having the courage to create such a personal vision that will likely be loathed by many who see it. If you like Kaufman's other movies, and don't mind a movie that doesn't "make sense," definitely see it and let me know what you think.

Grade: B+

Clockers/ The Best of Spike Lee

Clockers (1995)

I checked out Clockers after finishing Richard Price's novel of the same name. Price was one of the lead writers on The Wire, my favorite show of all time by a large margin. His book covered many of the same complexities of the cop/drug dealer world as the show. As excited as I was by the book and by much of Lee's work, I couldn't wait to check out the movie.

Unfortunately, I found it to be one of Lee's weakest movies. The novel is a sprawling 700 pages. The movie follows Rocco, a New York City cop investigating a murder, and Strike, a young drug dealer under the sway of a drug kingpin who is involved with the murder. In order to condense the plot, the characters complexities are greatly reduced and several are turned into caricatures. Lee tries to put so much into this movie. The same material would have been covered in 6 or 7 episodes of The Wire and, thus, given the viewers a much deeper understanding of the characters. Nevertheless, Lee does prove an able director. There are some beautiful camera shots, and Mekhi Phifer is excellent as the young dealer. Nevertheless, on the whole it felt a little sketched in and incomplete. Perhaps The Wire has ruined other cop movies for me.

Grade: C+

The Best of Spike Lee

While Clockers was somewhat disappointing, I do usually admire (and sometimes love) Spike Lee as a director. While his ambition can get the better of him, at his best he is an expert and providing electric, thought-provoking entertainment. Here are my "Top 5" Lee movies. If you haven't seen any of them, I recommend checking them out right away.

1. Do the Right Thing (1989): 20 years later, and Lee's tale of racial dynamics and unrest in Brookyn still packs a thought-provoking wallop. He provides a vibrant mix of actors and characters and serves up no easy answers. The fact that this movie was denied a Best Picture nomination (the year that Driving Miss Daisy won) ranks as one of the most egregious Oscar mistakes of all time.

2. Malcolm X (1992): Lee's soaring biopic of Malcolm X is important filmmaking that is never boring, a frequent fault of screen biographies. Denzel Washington losing the Best Actor Oscar ranks as another awful oversight.

3. 25th Hour (2002): This is a great film that I think was unjustly ignored by many critics. This movie follows Monty Brogan (Edward Norton), a drug dealer in his last night in New York before going to prison. Lee produces an elegiac and mournful movie. While this movie mostly addresses race only tangentially, its most powerful scene involves Norton's tirade against his city. Its a great scene, one that shows Norton's profane rage and (ultimately) love for his city.



4. Get on the Bus (1996): Lee's movie of a group of men traveling across the county to the Million Man March allows him to explore the complexity of black males and their relationship to one another and America. Fascinating stuff.

5. Inside Man (2006): Hugely entertaining heist film. Lee lets loose and provides two hours of clever fun, along with some social commentary (but not too much). The great cast is led by Denzel Washington, Clive Owen, Jodie Foster, and Christopher Plummer.

Runners-Up: Crooklyn, He Got Game, Summer of Sam

Volver and The Times of Harvey Milk

Volver (2006)
*Second Viewing


In terms of quality, I would place this about smackdab in the middle of Almdovar's body of work, which means it's pretty darn good. All About My Mother and Talk to Her are two of my all-time favorites, and Volver doesn't quite live up to them. Penelope Cruz is magnificent as an earthy, tough, working-class Spanish mother who takes things (from cleaning up bodies to starting her own restaurant) into her own hands. This movie is truly a celebration (like many of Almodovar's films) of the strength and resilence of women. It's impressive that Almodovar can create a movie that includes death, incest, and cancer and yet still seem very fun to watch.

Grade: B+

The Times of Harvey Milk (1984)

If you've seen Milk, this documentary doesn't add a whole lot of new information, although you will be impressed at how much Sean Penn, James Franco, and Josh Brolin look like their characters. The best parts were hearing from a few on Milk's political allies and seeing the actual footage. And, of course, Milk's story continues to be both tragic and inspiring.

Grade: B

Best Performances of 2008: The Leads

Now for my favorite lead roles of the year. These roles are on screen enough to make or break a movie. If they're bad, they can ruin an experience and, if they're good, it's much easier to overlook a movie's flaws. Here are the performances that made mediocre movies enjoyable, good movies more compelling, or were essential elements in great movies.

Actor

Colin Farrell, In Bruges: So beneath the bad-boy antics lies a great actor. This movie was fun if not spectacular, but Farrell had the best moments and owned his screentime in a hilarious yet somehow poignant performance. His two essential monologues (one where you find out his original crime, and his final monologue, are great.



Leonardo DiCaprio, Revolutionary Road: Plays his tricky character with the right mix of charm, guilt, and lost dreams. Plays his entirely believable character arc very well. After The Aviator, The Departed, and this, can we finally call this former Tiger Beat cover model one of our most consistently good actors?

Richard Jenkins, The Visitor: Great to see this character actor (perhaps best known for his role on Six Feet Under) get to be the star of the show. He gives a beautiful performance as an emotionally closed economics professor opening himself to all kinds of life's pains and joys. Bonus points for 2008: very funny in Burn After Reading.



Sean Penn, Milk: Penn takes Harvey Milk and, without imitation or obvious stereotyping, makes a three-dimensional character out of him. There are many ways this performance could have gone wrong, but Penn does everything right. The best performance by one of my very favorite actors.

Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler: Perfectly cast as a washed-up wrestler looking for redemption. A physically and emotionally demanding role. I'm not sure if this role will cause a resurgence in his career, or if this performance is a "one-trick pony" (like Randy the Ram), but nevertheless this performance will continue to be remembered and celebrated.

My favorite performance: Sean Penn
Runner-Up performance: Mickey Rourke

Actress

Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married: Gives a complex performance as the force of nature sister whose visit to her sister's wedding throws the family into turmoil. Hathaway never makes the cheap easy choices that would gain obvious sympathy points, yet by the end of the movie the audience cares more about Kym precisely because of her brokenness and complexity.

Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky: Has the incredibly difficult role of playing a character who is not only the main character, but also a sort of living treatise of the movie's philosophy. Director Mike Leigh allows his actors to improvise much of their roles, and Hawkins does an astonishing job. Poppy, the irrepressibly happy elementary school teacher, is one of the most memorable characters of recent years.



Melissa Leo, Frozen River: I was no superfan of this fairly predictable indie movie, but Leo captured my attention every second she was on screen. A powerhouse as a tough as nails working-class mom willing to fight for her piece of the pie.

Meryl Streep, Doubt: While at times her performance as Sister Aloysisus threatened to descend into caricature (and, OK, maybe the ending did), Streep expertly fleshes out her character to provide both humor and real emotion. Another great performance by (in my mind) one of the two greatest modern actresses. The other one being....

Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road: To my mind, Winslet's performance here was a touch more accomplished than her excellent award-winning role in The Reader. I would have put both in my top 5, but I decided to limit myself to one appearance per actor. Watching Winslet as April Wheeler is spellbinding. There's not a moment where Winslet is not truly living the dark emotions of her character.

My favorite performance: Sally Hawkins
Runner-Up: Kate Winslet

Best Performances of 2008: Supporting Actor and Actress

As a follow-up to my Top 10 of 2008, here are my favorite performances of the year, or the performances I would have nominated for Oscars. I find supporting performances fascinating. At their best, they make me want to watch a new movie with them as a protagonist. These are the performances where they light up the screen each time they are on and elevate the movie to another level (Heath Ledger, Viola Davis). Other supporting performances are great because they play a perfect role in a great ensemble (Eddie Marsan, Rosemarie Dewitt). However their roles play in their movies, here are 10 supporting performances I found compelling.....

Supporting Actor:

Josh Brolin, Milk: Takes the villainous role of Dan White, which could be played as a cliched bigot, and turns it into a fascinating character study. Lets you see the internal struggles he goes through which leads him to his ultimate act.

Bill Irwin, Rachel Getting Married: Probably the most sympathetic role in the movie, the father trying to hold his family together. Natural, endearing, and responsive to the actors around him. I wasn't familiar with Irwin before this movie, but I hope he gets more roles after this movie.

Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight: While I found The Dark Knight entertaining but slightly overhyped, there's no denying that Ledger's swansong is the most fascinating part of the movie. Finds the uneasy evil place inside his character and puts past superhero villains to shame. I wonder if Jack Nicholson feels angry?

Eddie Marsan, Happy-Go-Lucky: If Ledger is the evil side to Batman, Eddie Marsan's driving instructor is the negative worldview in opposition to Sally Hawkins' Poppy. He expertly goes head-to-head with Hawkins' performance and is one-half of what feels like the emotional and intellectual core of the movie.

Brad Pitt, Burn After Reading: As a dim-witted gym instructor, Pitt manages to stand out in a cast that includes Frances McDormand, George Clooney, and John Malkovich. Made me laugh every moment he was on screen.



My favorite: Bill Irwin
Runner-Up: Josh Brolin

Supporting Actress:

Penelope Cruz, Vicky Christina Barcelona: The Oscar-winning performance was terrific. Brings a huge dose of European humor and energy to Woody Allen's movie when she enters halfway through.

Viola Davis, Doubt: A performance that truly elevates the movie. In a few short minutes, Davis' turn as the mother of a possibly abused student adds countless layers of intellectual and emotional complexity to a movie that, before, risked being a "did-he-or-didn't-he" style mystery. Astounding.

Rosemarie Dewitt, Rachel Getting Married: As the title character, Dewitt does a beautiful job playing the counterpoint to Anne Hathaway's performance as drug addict Kym. The two do a beautiful job of showing the good and bad qualities of both sisters, so that as an audience our sympathies switch depending on the scene.

Hannah Schygulla, The Edge of Heaven: A beautifully understated performance of a somewhat distant mother who must deal with real emotions after a tragic event.

Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler: Tomei takes a somewhat underwritten "stripper with a heart of gold" role and takes it new places. Moments that would seem cliched in the hands of other actresses feel emotionally truthful and beautiful.



My favorite: Viola Davis
Runner-Up: Penelope Cruz

Some reviews from my vacation....

I've had a string of visitors and have then been out of town, so I haven't been able to blog for awhile! On my vacation, I did manage to see two movies on DVD and one in the theater. Here are my reviews.

The Sweet Hereafter (1997)

I had seen this movie a bit after it came out, and I found that it lived up to my memories of its quality. Ian Holm (many roles, including Bilbo Baggins in TLOTR) plays a lawyer who comes to a small Canadian town to try to start a lawsuit with the families of children who died in a bus crash. Holm is excellent at portraying a man with complicated motives, including his guilt over his own drug-addicted daughter. While dramatically wrenching events occur (including the bus crash), the movie is structured and told in an understated way. The movie is pitched somewhere between the head and the heart, and it ends up affecting both. The most exciting thing about the movie's writing and direction (which both earned Oscar noms in '97) is its structure. The story flips back between three main times, before the crash, the weeks following the crash, and a couple of years later. It also includes one more flashback to many years earlier that I think is the emotional center of the film. Definitely a standout of the later 1990s.

Grade: A-

I Love You, Man (2009)

The most Judd Apatow movie not made by Judd Apatow. Pretty close in tone to Knocked Up and The-40-Year-Old Virgin, it doesn't quite measure up to those films, but still an enjoyable time if you go in for the usual mix of profane material mixed in with honest sentiment. Paul Rudd does a terrific job as Peter, a "nice guy" who is getting married and needs to find a best man. After a series of bad man-dates, he meets Sydney, played very funnily by Jason Segel. Their relationship follows many traditional routes of romantic comedy, with the catch that it's really friendship romantic comedy (despite Rudd's upcoming wedding his relationship with his fiancee is really background). Has some truly funny moments, but does peter out a bit at the end. Nevertheless, Rudd and Segel's interplay is worth the price of admission.

Grade: B

Twilight (2008)

I watched this one not entirely by choice, and I wouldn't choose to watch it again. While I had heard the hype, this was really my first full exposure to the Twilight franchise and I can't say it excited me. Brooding teen romance, crappy special effects, and a plot that seemed simultaneously rushed and a little bit boring. Some of the early scenes, where Bella and Edward meet, do have a kitschy appeal, but by the end I was mostly just bored. I'll take Harry Potter and his pals any day of the week.

Grade: C-

It's March 2009..... Time for "Best of 2008"

OK, so I know that it is several months past the end of '08, but I think I am ready to complete my "Top 10 of 2008" list. Because of the late-year Oscar glut, it took me awhile to catch up with movies I would like to see.

These are my (very) personal opinions of what I found most interesting, enjoyable, well-made of 2008's films. Please feel free to comment or argue with my picks! I'm also the kind of person that tends to go back to movies and find very different things (both positive and negative), so I see my top 10 list as a living list that may change.

A few critically-acclaimed films I have not yet seen (and thus, have no chance of making this list):
Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, Synecdoche NY, Wendy & Lucy, Waltz with Bashir, Gran Torino.

Runners Up (movies that I felt pained to leave out):

Happy-Go-Lucky: Sally Hawkins gives an absolutely incredible performance in Mike Leigh's highly enjoyable and thought-provoking comedic drama (or dramatic comedy?).

The Visitor: Another movie anchored by a great lead performance (Oscar-nominated Richard Jenkins). A quiet and poignant movie about global connections and finding joy.

The Wrestler: I really wrestled (sorry) with whether to put this movie on the list. Mickey Rourke and Marisa Tomei were terrific and its a movie I've thought about a lot since I've seen it. If the script had been up to the level of their performances, and the movie had reveled a little less in the violence, it would have made the cut. Still, definitely a powerful film.

And now to the list..... in descending order.


10: Slumdog Millionaire: While I do think this movie was over-awarded, there is no denying its energy and charm. Kudos to director Danny Boyle for creating a moving and enjoyable crowd-pleaser.

9. Chop Shop: In many ways, a response to the energy and color of Slumdog Millionaire. A quiet and realistic account of a young teenager and his sister surviving in a Queens slum. It has the power and truthfulness of a great documentary.

8. The Edge of Heaven: A German-Turkish film about the ways in which we make connections across ages, races, and nationalities. The kind of movie where you come to care about the characters so much, you almost wish for a sequel.

7. Revolutionary Road: Certainly not without its flaws, but its great moments are among the best moments of the year. Leonardo and (especially) Kate give fantastic performances as a 50s couple in a meltdown.


6. Vicky Christina Barcelona: In my mind, Woody's best since Husbands and Wives (1992). I love Woody at his best, and this is both a return to form and a new direction. He takes his camera to Barcelona and comes up with a sexy, breezy, melancholy look at love and desire. Penelope Cruz is rightfully heralded for her great performance. Rebecca Hall, a British actress who I was unfamiliar with, is also wonderful.

5. Trouble the Water: Extremely powerful documentary showing the struggle by Katrina survivors. Once you see this movie, I guarantee you will not forget Kimberly Rivers.

4. Milk: Enthralling biopic chronicling Harvey Milk's political birth and career. Sean Penn justly won the Oscar for his incredible performance.

3. The Class: The French nominee for Best Foreign Film. The documentary-like account of a year with a teacher and his students. Puts almost all American teacher movies to shame.

2. Wall-E: Instant classic. A mix of Chaplin-style slapstick, sweet romance, and sharp satire, it truly creates a world of its own.

1. Rachel Getting Married: This movie was somewhat divisive, and didn't get nearly the awards traction I think it deserved, and if you don't connect with it, it may surprise you to see it as my number 1. I love well-made slice-of-life movies. The kind of movies where the camera wanders, you meet many characters, and there are no easy resolutions. This is one of the best. The ensemble cast does an amazing job of inhabiting very specific characters that you alternately want to hug and slap in the face. With a great script by Jenny Lumet and direction by Jonathan Demme, its truly something special. I can't wait to watch it again.

Hope you enjoyed the list. Give me your thoughts (or your tops of the year) in the comments!

Coming soon- Ben's favorite performances of the year!

Revolutionary Road

On Saturday, I went to the AFI Silver Theater in Silver Spring (which I highly recommend if you're in the DC area) to see Revolutionary Road. As a huge Kate Winslet fan, I was of course interested to weigh in on which performance she should have been nominated for this year (RR or The Reader).

If you're not sure what to expect, make sure you're not looking for Titanic Pt. 2. There is much more pain than love to be found in this movie. Nevertheless, Kate and Leo do show the same chemistry that worked so well in Titanic. Yes, I'll admit it, I actually think Titanic holds up as a good blockbuster epic movie. Needless to say, the two actors go to a much darker place in Revolutionary Road.

To be honest, the movie started out a little shaky. After a very quick set-up of their meeting, the movie moves to a scene where they are already living in the suburbs and having a bitter fight in a car. Since we have no real clue of their relationship, this scene seems a little jarring and negative for a pre-titles sequence. While I realize that this movie is probably following the novel, I would have appreciated a little more time (if only 10 minutes or so), showing the falling in love phase of the two. While there are very small glimpses throughout the film, I think later scenes would have more resonance if we had a fuller sense of the love the two had lost.

Once Revolutionary Road gets into its particular rhythms, though, I found it quite compelling. While it is certainly insightful about life in the suburbs, condemning this particular lifestyle is not really its main point. The movie is more about individual choices and compromises that people make in their lives, and how these choices have repercussions throughout their lives.

DiCaprio does an outstanding job at a fairly tricky role. He plays a character who espouses independent ideas but, when push comes to shove, consistently ends up being the one taking the traditional route. He plays Jack Wheeler with an intelligence that shows us his character is always aware of his failings, even as he knowingly chooses more conventional route.

Winslet is absolutely fantastic playing a character that is fairly unlikable on the surface. There are things she does and says in this movie that are hard to swallow and certainly hard for many to relate to. Yet, because she is such a compelling actress, Kate helps us see underneath the actions of her character to her longing for an interesting life. There is a particular scene, a quiet breakfast scene that takes place between two crucial dramatic scenes, where she is absolutely riveting. Her brilliance as an actress is that she is as compelling in moments of calm as in moments of great drama. So, for the record, I do believe this is a slightly more impressive performance than The Reader (which is saying a lot).

The supporting cast is great as well. The actors playing their neighbors are wonderful, as is Kathy Bates as a realtor/neighbor. Michael Shannon received a Supporting Actor nomination for his small but pivotal role as a mentally unstable man who is able to see deep into the Wheeler's marriage.

All in all, I highly recommend this movie. While it is certainly flawed, I think it's a movie that I will think about for a long time.

Grade: A-

Misery and Citizen Ruth

This weekend I watched two films from the 90s that I have neglected to see up until now. One I watched mainly because I've heard so much about its lead performance (Kathy Bates in Misery), while the other I watched because I love the director (Alexander Payne's Citizen Ruth).

Misery (1990)

On the whole, I was a bit disappointed in Misery. Maybe I had seen enough clips of the movie so that nothing really surprised me. Kathy Bates does give a very entertaining performance, and Jame Caan does a perfectly fine job as the writer stuck under his number-one fan's control, but the movie got a little repetitive and didn't hold my attention the entire time. The premise, I admit, is a good one. A deranged fan takes her favorite author hostage and rages at him when she finds out her favorite romance-novel heroine is killed off. As the movie goes on, the neuroseus of Bates' character get stranger and stranger. For most of the movie, it is suspensful and entertaining to see where her obsessions will go next. By the end of the movie, we are in full-blown horror mode, and it didn't quite work for me. If she had stayed equally crazy but perhaps less dangerous, I actually think this movie would have been more powerful.

Another thing that I noticed while watchign this movie is the utterly boring and lazy way that many films from the 1980s/early 1990s were shot. Perhaps cinematographers and directors have gotten much more daring, but the production values seemed very workman-like and almost appropriate for a TV-movie. Of all the decades in which film was made, I think I have the least love for movies made in the 80s, and this picture (while released in 1990), shows me why so many films from this period are difficult to get really excited about.

Grade: C+

Citizen Ruth (1996)

While suffering from a few ending problems of its own, I found Citizen Ruth a much more satisfying movie to watch. Alexander Payne is one of my favorite modern directors. I absolutely love Election and About Schmidt, and I really like Sideways as well. This was his first movie, and it provides a taste of what Payne is able to achieve in his later films.

Citizen Ruth is a comedy about Ruth Stoops, a glue-sniffing pregnant woman who becomes an unlikely symbol in the battle between the pro-life and pro-choice movement. The movie satirizes both sides of the issue (although perhaps the pro-life side a little more brutally) and their blind allegiance to a cause. As we watch both sides battle over "Ruth," we see how easy it is for people to spout slogans without thinking about the actual people involved.

The most successful part of the film is probably Laura Dern's gutsy performance as Ruth. She plays a woman with barely any redeeming qualities and of limited intelligence, yet by the end of the film she has made this woman so vivid that the audience is cheering her on. She could have played her role for more sentiment or for more cheap laughs, but instead she fully inhabits her character.

Most of the supporting cast is great as well. Mary Kay Place (Big Love, Being John Malkovich, My So-Called Life) is wonderful as the pro-life activist who first takes Ruth in. Swoozie Kurtz is also amusing as her pro-choice counterpart. In fact, the whole cast provides an array of vivid characters until the end, when Burt Reynolds overplays his part as a national pro-life leader. He seemed to be coming in from a slightly broader movie.

All in all, Citizen Ruth is a highly entertaining movie. What Alexander Payne did not provide here, that he does in his other movies (even Election I think), is an emotional hook for the audience. While we do cheer Ruth on, it is hard to fully identify with her, and it is certainly difficult to connect with any of the other characters. What Payne leaves us with, then, is some quite good satire that is fun to watch, gives food for thought, but lacks the emotional heft of his other films.

Grade: B