Oscar Forecast 2011: “The King’s Speech” with a Chance of Facebook

UPDATED - The Oscars are over already?? In the words of Melissa Leo: "F***!" Well what do you know the Academy wasn't as into The King's Speech as most people thought. So you all need to chill alright. Inception ended up winning just as many awards as "Speech" with four wins apeice. And who knew that Inception would (deservedly) take home Best Cinematography? (Poor Roger Deakins!) And even though The King's Speech was a British period piece, it followed the same exact winning pattern as recent gritty flicks like Million Dollar Baby, The Departed, and No Country For Old Men who all won 4 big Oscars and no technical honors. I'm glad Christian Bale finally has an Oscar and thank godness The Social Network won its most deserved win: Original Score. I'm saddened the Academy couldn't find a place to reward 127 Hours, but that's ok. They couldn't even find room to honor True Grit, which turned out to be this year's Gangs of New York with 10 losses. Ouch. Overall it was an entertaining show and James and Anne did good as first time hosts. I'm sure they'll be criticized in the morning (ie "well they're no Bob Hope or Billy Crystal" But who is anyways?) but they should be proud of their performances. I did decently with my predictions, with a total of 18 out of 24 correct categories. Only 364 days til next year's Oscars.... can't wait! Winners are below in BOLD

In less than 127 hours, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will announce the winners of the 83rd Annual Academy Awards. It’s been a long awards season but the big night is finally here! I think it’s been a pretty decent year for movies, there are some really great achievements out there. (What? No nominations for Piranha 3D?? It’s a Weinstein film for crying out loud!) This is a year in which I actually at least liked all of the Best Picture nominees and there have been years where I’ve only liked two or three. This is the second year of the Academy’s controversial decision to expand the Best Picture race to 10 nominees and while it’s great to see movies like 127 Hours and Toy Story 3 nominated for Best Picture, let’s be frank: they have ZERO chance of actually taking the top prize. I’m pretty confident that if there were only five nominees they would be The King’s Speech, The Social Network, The Fighter, True Grit and probably Black Swan (with a possibility of The Kids Are All Right). And even with five nominees it would still come down to a battle between a nerdy computer guy and a stuttering monarch. So will the Academy friend The Social Network or will they crown The King’s Speech? Without further ado I present my fearless predictions for the 2011 Academy Awards…

Best Picture
WhatWill Win: The King’s Speech. Do I really need to tell you this? Sure The Social Network seemed like a foregone conclusion a few months ago, but the tides certainly changed over there in crazy Hollywood. With the Weinsteins backing your film about a king with a speech impediment you might as well have given them the Oscar during pre-production. I guess there’s still a remote possibility that The Social Network could win, but I doubt it. The King’s Speech has SAG, PGA and DGA awards to back up it’s claim as the frontrunner.
What Should Win: 127 Hours. Hands down the best movie of the year. Emotionally raw, unnerving, majestic yet intimate, disturbing. Everything you want in a well-made film. Audacious filmmaking for sure.
Should Have Been Nominated: The Town

Best Director
Will Win: Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech. Finally we have a race! Hooper could easily loose here to David Fincher, who seems to be this year’s “veteran” who hasn’t yet won. Hooper has history on his side since he picked up the DGA award and his film is the frontrunner for BP. But a split is definitely possible, and I wouldn’t be surprised or shocked to hear Fincher’s name called. I just think the Academy loves The King’s Speech and what’s a best picture without a best director?
Should Win: David O. Russell, The Fighter. I loved The Fighter and I think a lot of its success is due to Russell’s great direction. He directed his actors wonderfully and they all delivered (with three of them being Oscar-nominated). But if I really had my pick I would vote for…
Should Have Been Nominated: Danny Boyle, 127 Hours

Best Actor
Will Win: Colin Firth, The King’s Speech. Like last year’s “race,” yawn. You don't need a pre-cog to see this one coming.
Should Win: James Franco, 127 Hours. This movie is practically a one man show. And he didn’t even talk to a volleyball! Franco’s performance is wonderful and even though he doesn’t stutter once, you are completely drawn into his strange and brutally intense predicament.
Should Have Been Nominated: Ryan Gosling, Blue Valentine

Best Actress
Will Win: Natalie Portman, Black Swan. She gave a great performance, she’s “young and hot,” and she prepared for the role for about a year. Just give it to her already. Poor Annette Bening, even with Hilary Swank not even nominated she’s still being sidelined by the hot young thing. There’s a chance she could still pull it off: Black Swan didn’t get nearly as many nominations as most people predicted (not even for screenplay) which could possibly expose the film’s potential weakness.
Should Win: Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right. Look I love both of these performances and since Bening was robbed for American Beauty, she deserves a little naked golden man.
Should Have Been Nominated: Julianne Moore, The Kids Are All Right

Best Supporting Actor
Will Win: Christian Bale, The Fighter. He gave another great performance, but finally in a movie that Academy likes. I’m worried that love of The King’s Speech could give Rush the edge here, but I’m still thinking Bale pulls it off. I don’t think the others even have a shot.
Should Win: Christian Bale, The Fighter. In any year any of these five actors could win for their performances here. This was a great year for supporting performances. But Bale just sticks out here with such a juicy role which is actually the most entertaining plot line of the film. He’s a scene stealer and that’s a great supporting performance
Should Have Been Nominated: Sam Rockwell, Conviction

Best Supporting Actress
Will Win: Melissa Leo, The Fighter. This is also going to be a close race. Leo has most of the precursor awards but a possible vote split with her Fighter co-star Amy Adams could hurt, which could lead to a victory by the young Hailee Steinfeld (or even in a King’s Speech sweep Carter). Leo is the safest bet, but literally anything can happen in this category. Anything.
Should Win: Amy Adams, The Fighter. I love both the supporting actresses in The Fighter, but I’ve been an Adams fan longer. She should have won for Junebug, and a win here would correct that. And to think she wasn’t even nominated for Enchanted. For shame, Academy!
Should Have Been Nominated: Mila Kunis, Black Swan

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
The King’s Speech

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
The Social Network

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Inside Job

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT

Strangers No More

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
In a Better World (Denmark)

BEST ANIMATED FILM
Toy Story 3

BEST ANIMATED SHORT

Day & Night (The Lost Thing)

BEST LIVE-ACTION SHORT

Na Wewe (God of Love)

BEST ART DIRECTION
The King’s Speech (Alice in Wonderland)

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
True Grit (Inception)

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
The King’s Speech (Alice in Wonderland)

BEST EDITING
The Social Network

BEST MAKEUP
The Wolfman

BEST SCORE
The King’s Speech (The Social Network)

BEST SONG
“We Belong Together,” Toy Story 3

BEST SOUND EDITING
Inception

BEST SOUND MIXING
Inception

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Inception

If I Had an Oscar Ballot...

It’s every movie freak’s dream to be able to vote for the Oscars (or am I alone here?) But a fan can dream right? So here would be my picks if I had an Oscar ballot in front of me:

Ranking of Best Picture
With 10 nominees for best picture, Academy members are actually required to rank all the films from their favorite to least favorite. They use a preferential voting system to find a winner, which is way too complicated to explain here, but I understand the general gist of it. At the end of the day each member will end up casting only one vote for one movie, but it may not necessarily be the top movie on their ballot. Here are my rankings:

BEST PICTURE
1 - 127 Hours
The Fighter
Black Swan
The Kids Are All Right
Inception
Toy Story 3
Winter’s Bone
True Grit
The King’s Speech
10 - The Social Network

This year, I actually enjoyed all ten best picture nominees. (Although I’d prefer to have The Town in there somewhere). I didn’t dislike any of the movies, and although I have The Social Network ranked last, it’s not a horrible movie by any stretch of the imagination, it’s just that, I wouldn’t want my ballot being unexpectedly cast for that film. 127 Hours was hands down my favorite film of the year.

And the rest… my picks are italicized…

BEST DIRECTOR
Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
Joel & Ethan Coen, True Grit
David Fincher, The Social Network
Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech
David O. Russell, The Fighter

I loved David O. Russell’s work on The Fighter, it’s quite understated and it’s not as flashy a job as let’s say Black Swan, although Darren Aronofksy is pretty close second here. I would vote for David Fincher just because I’d want him to win an Oscar, but to be frank if he was going to win, he should have won for Seven, Fight Club, Panic Room, Zodiac or Benjamin Button over The Social Network.

BEST ACTOR
Javier Bardem, Biutiful
Jeff Bridges, True Grit
Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
James Franco, 127 Hours

James Franco’s performance is the default winner here just because of the level of difficulty. He spends the entire film pined to a wall and yet he’s so compelling, likable and heart-wrenching the man deserves more than he’s been given so far this award season.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christian Bale, The Fighter
John Hawkes, Winter’s Bone
Jeremy Renner, The Town
Mark Ruffalo, The Kids Are All Right
Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech

Who doesn’t love Christina Bale, but here we have a chance to vote for not only a great actor who’s shockingly never been nominated, but actually rewarding him for literally his best performance to date. Although I do love Renner and Ruffalo, and even Rush was great but he’s won before. Hawkes’ nomination is his reward.


BEST ACTRESS
Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole
Jennifer Lawrence, Winter’s Bone
Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine

This is a tough call. I would hate voting for someone as a make-up vote for not winning previously, but I can’t help myself here. Bening was so great in American Beauty and Hilary Swank had to swipe it from her (twice). It’s really impossible to compare Bening and Portman’s performances but they were but equally great. Bening has the edge.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams, The Fighter
Helena Bonham Carter, The King’s Speech
Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit
Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom

Same thing here with Adams and Leo. They were both awesome in The Fighter, but in the end I have to give Adams the edge because she lost out on her magnificent performance in Junebug (and she wasn’t even nominated for Enchanted).

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Another Year
The Fighter
Inception
The Kids Are All Right
The King’s Speech

I think it’s possible that some Academy members will vote for Inception here simply because Christopher Nolan was snubbed because the Director’s Branch made a big mistake (yet again). However it deserves to win simply on the account that it’s not only the MOST original script of the year, it’s also the most fascinating, complex and memorable. Although I’m glad The Kids Are All Right and The Fighter are nominees.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
127 Hours
The Social Network
Toy Story 3
True Grit
Winter’s Bone

127 Hours just simply shines amongst all of these worthy nominees. I wish The Town was competing but you can’t have everything. On a side note, the book that was adapted into the Social Network, The Accidental Billionaires, is a great read and might even be more fascinating than the movie itself.

BEST ANIMATED FILM
How to Train Your Dragon
The Illusionist
Toy Story 3

I haven’t seen this category’s annual “foreign and or weird/arty” nominee The Illusionist, but I imagine I wouldn’t like it as much as Toy Story 3 or How to Train Your Dragon. In a way I almost want to vote for Dragon simply because Pixar dominates this category way too often and Cars didn’t even win, for shame!

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Exit Through the Gift Shop
Gasland
Inside Job
Restrepo
Waste Land

I’m admitting right now that I haven’t even seen ANY of these movies. But I plan on watching Exit Through the Gift Shop at some point, so it gets my vote simply to see what would happen if Banksy actually became an Oscar winner.

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Outside the Law (Algeria)
Incendies (Canada)
In a Better World (Denmark)
Dogtooth (Greece)
Biutiful (Mexico)

The only one of these film I’ve seen this year is Dogtooth, so technically I wouldn’t even be allowed to vote according to Academy’s rules, but since this is pure fantasy, I will give my vote to what is probably one of the strangest films nominated this year. A film full of incest, shocking violence and bizarre behavior that certainly has zero chances of actually winning. Oh those Greeks!

BEST ART DIRECTION
Alice in Wonderland
Happy Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 1
Inception
The King’s Speech
True Grit

Tim Burton films tend to get recognized a lot in this category and that’s completely justified. Alice in Wonderland wasn’t exactly my favorite of his films and although the production design was great, the jaw-dropping scenery in Inception gets my vote here.

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Black Swan
Inception
The King’s Speech
The Social Network
True Grit

I’m not completely excited about any of the nominees this year. Nothing will beat 2007 as THE year for outstanding cinematography. Don’t believe me, go look it up and tell me that not every one of those films looks simply scrumdiddlyumptious. I still can’t believe Roger Deakins doesn’t have an Oscar, so he definitely gets my vote. And there are some beautiful shots in True Grit to be sure.

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Alice in Wonderland
I Am Love
The King’s Speech
The Tempest
True Grit

Alice in Wonderland is full of bright colors and some rather eye-popping wardrobes.

BEST EDITING
127 Hours, Jon Harris
Black Swan, Andrew Weisblum
The Fighter, Pamela Martin
The King’s Speech, Tariq Anwar
The Social Network, Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter

I’m not sure I can’t still wrap my head around the fact that Inception is not one of the five best edited movies of the year. I expected it to win and it’s not even nominated! So then I must default to my favorite film of the year (because editing and picture sort of go hand in hand) and it actually features some great editing.

BEST MAKEUP
Barney’s Version
The Way Back
The Wolfman

I would love it if The Wolf man actually won because it would be first flat-out horror film to win this category since 1992 (Bram Stoker’s Dracula). Rick Baker is one of Hollywood’s greatest icons having won plenty of times before and certainly deserves another. The work in The Way Back is memorable if not completely flashy.

BEST SCORE
127 Hours
How to Train Your Dragon
Inception
The King’s Speech
The Social Network

My one vote for The Social Network is proudly cast here with its innovative and completely wonderful sounding score. This is a great slate of films this year, with Inception or How to Train Your Dragon easily getting my vote in another other year.

BEST SONG
“Coming Home,” Country Strong
“I See the Light,” Tangled
“If I Rise,” 127 Hours
“We Belong Together,” Toy Story 3

This category is pretty weak this year; all of the songs are kind of just ehh. Having said that, I’d love to see Alan Menken and a Disney ‘toon win again. Menken, who used to dominate this category hasn’t won since 1995 (for Pocahontas).

BEST SOUND EDITING
Inception
Toy Story 3
TRON: Legacy
True Grit
Unstoppable

The sound categories usually go with the loudest movie and since the loudest movie is also one of the best Inception is an easy choice. Although I’d love to cast a vote for Unstoppable here. Rememebr this category is essentially "best sound effects" so either film would be a viable option.

BEST SOUND MIXING
Inception
The King’s Speech
Salt
The Social Network
True Grit

Inception’s sound like is visuals are simply dazzling. The mix of score and sound is wondrous. This movie deserves to win just for those loud BURRNNNNNN sounds alone.

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Alice in Wonderland
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 1
Hereafter
Inception
Iron Man 2

No other movie made audience’s jaws drop like Inception. There are so many cool visual tricks here it’s hard to vote for anything else. Although so many of the trickery weren’t even computer-generated, which is cool, so for shear number of wacky CGI visuals Alice in Wonderland isn’t a shabby choice either.

She’s a Maniac, Maniac! “The Roommate” is Mostly Devoid of Chills, but Heavy on Trashy Fun

“I just wanna be your friend.”

It’s the beginning of February and I’ve just seen a 2011 film. And it’s a the dopey but fun “The Roommate.” Shockingly it was hard to find anyone to accompany to this film and that’s most likely because it’s pretty much garbage. However, it’s entertaining garbage. Sure it’s a complete rip-off of “Single White Female” (a film that isn’t exactly any more esteemed than this flick) and is a breeding ground for every thriller cliché known to man, but it was enjoyable in a turn of your brain sort of way. I was never bored during its 93 minute run and that’s probably because I amuse easily.

Leighton Meester who you all know all the fabulous Blair Waldorf from TV’s “Gossip Girl” plays a psychopath who is supposed to freak out her straight-laced college roommate but she doesn’t really seem to notice until the third act. Sarah Matthews like all of us have been is a college freshman. She enters her dorm room on the campus of the University of Los Angeles with about two bags (riiiight) and doesn’t meet her roommate until the next day when she wakes up with a huge hangover. Her roommate is Rebecca (Meester) who seems like such a sweet normal girl. But she’s not. She’s a bipolar manic depressive whacko! Although Sarah never seems to realize how crazy she is. The two become good friends at first, almost like sisters, but she get jealous easily and won't let anyone stand in the way of their friendship. This includes a slutty girl (Alyson Michalka) and Sarah’s new boyfriend Stephen (Cam Gigandet).

Nothing that happens in “The Roommate” is particularly original, but since this is a psycho-stalker movie in the vein of Fatal Attraction, Single White Female and One Hour Photo, I’m not going to dismiss this movie because let’s face it, it’s not “Casablanca.” Sure in this film they two girls adopt a pet kitty, which ends up in a clothes dryer. In Single White Female, a puppy falls to his death. Here, Rebecca gets the same tattoo that Sarah has and she even poses as her and fools her ex-boyfriend, which is similar to “Female.” This all culminates and a wickedly fun final act catfight that the audience has been waiting for. And say what you want about the film, I actually enjoyed Meester’s performance. It was nice to see her in a different vein from what we’re used to seeing her as every week on TV.

“The Roommate” adds nothing new to cinema and it’s pretty much everything you’ve seen before. It’s the standard PG-13 rated thriller that is made to rip-off unsuspecting teenagers. Sort of like “The Stepfather” last year, which I also enjoyed. If you find yourself a fan of trashy thrillers with hardly any cinematic merit, than “The Roommate” is certainly for you, all others, the art house theater is down the block. GRADE: B

The 6th Annual Golden Gallo Awards

Holy crap, it's the 6th Annual Golden Gallo Awards! My how time flies around here. Congrats to the Razzie Nominees and The Oscar Nominees (The King's Speech Best Sound, really Academy?) and now the movie awards to end all movie awards the Golden Gallos. Piranaha 3D is the big winner this year with 3 awards total. Congratulations to all of the winners!

Best Revamping of a Dying Franchise: A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET

Worst Attempt to End a Franchise: SAW 3D

Best Performance by a Scientologist: Tom Cruise, KNIGHT & DAY

Most Realistic Domestic Quarrel: BLUE VALENTINE

The “What the Heck Were They Thinking” Award: MY SOUL TO TAKE

Best Opening Title Sequence: BURIED

Best Closing Credit Sequence: THE OTHER GUYS

Best Performance by a Wax Figure in a Fiction Film: Cher, BURLESQUE

Best Performance by a Wax Figure in a Non-Fiction Film: Joan Rivers, JOAN RIVERS: A PIECE OF WORK

Film Least Deserving of an Award, Even a Golden Gallo: SKYLINE

Scene Stealer Award: Kieran Culkin, SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD

Movie Most Likely to Cause Nightmares (in a good way): PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2

Movie Most Likely to Cause Nightmares (in a bad way): MY SOUL TO TAKE

The Slumdog Millionaire Why-Don’t-I-Like-This-Movie? Award: KICK-ASS

The Trailer is Better than the Movie Award: YOU AGAIN

Least Obnoxious Child Performance: Chloe Moretz, KICK-ASS

Most Obnoxious Child Performance: Noah Ringer, THE LAST AIRBENDER

Most Gratuitous Use of Bathing Suits: PIRANHA 3D

Best Film Most Likely to be Forgotten by the Academy: CONVICTION

The “Or How I Learned to Love a Bomb” Guilty Pleasure Award: PIRANHA 3D

The Grease 2 Unnecessary Sequel Award: SAW 3D

The Music Score is Better Than the Movie: THE SOCIAL NETWORK

Best Performance By a Human Centipede: Ashley C. Williams, Ashlynn Yennie and Akihiro Kitamura, THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE

The Jaws 3D “I Only Wanted to See It Cause it Was in 3-D” Award: STEP UP 3D

The Come On People It’s Not That Bad Award: BURLESQUE

Best Use of a VCR as a Weapon: DOGTOOTH

The Don’t You Forget About Me “This Came Out This Year??” Award: SHUTTER ISLAND

The Ishtar Big-Budget Stinker Award: THE LAST AIRBENDER

Coolest Movie Poster Award: 127 HOURS

Best Film with a Cast Member of TV’s ‘Lost:’ THE TOWN

Worst Film with a Cast Member of TV’s ‘Lost:’ ROBIN HOOD

Best Prop: Cobb’s spinning totem in INCEPTION

Best Use of the McGuffin in an Action Comedy: the flashdrive in DATE NIGHT

Best Comeback from a Previously Horrid Attempt at Filmmaking: Tony Scott, UNSTOPPABLE

Best Self-Amputation in a Drama: 127 Hours

Worst Hairdo: Melissa Leo, THE FIGHTER

The “I Did Everything for this Movie” Award: Tom Six, THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE

Lost in Rotation: “Somewhere” Reflects the Dullness of the Celebrity Lifestyle

At the beginning of “Somewhere” actor Johnny Marco has no where to go. He lives his life: he gets visits from strippers, sometimes he hangs out with his buddy, he drives around in his Ferrari, and he takes part in publicity events for his film. To call his life mundane would be an insult to people who have mundane lives. Despite the fact that he’s a Hollywood actor, he seems to hangout mostly by himself. He does have a preteen daughter who comes to visit him and in a short time he begins to reexamine his life. Sofia Coppola who also directed the similarly themed “Lost in Translation” is pretty genius in the way she says so much by showing and saying so little. While I’m not the biggest fan of “Lost in Translation” I see its positives and with “Somewhere” she centers the similar story into the more interesting world of Hollywood rather than the foreign nature of the other film (which obviously was the point, but still I don’t really like that movie, sue me).

The beginning of “Somewhere” is almost boring. Nothing much happens at first, and that is exactly what Coppola is getting at. While in most films about Hollywood actors’ lifestyles are usually glamorized as these fascinating otherworldly people who don’t live ordinary lives, things are much different in “Somewhere.” Maybe it’s more true or maybe it’s not, but for the character of Johnny (Stephen Dorff) his life is almost tedious and doesn’t seem to have much meaning. Johnny falls down and break his arm. And then he hires two pole dancers who dance for him in which he promptly falls asleep. It seems like even though he’s an actor and he’s living in the famous Château Marmont hotel on Sunset Blvd., he almost painfully has no life (and obviously doesn’t know where to go since he literally drives around in circles in the opening scene). In fact much like his arm, he’s a broken man.

Of course that all changes when his daughter Cleo (Elle Fanning) visits for an indeterminate amount of time. He brings her along to several publicity events including a trip to Italy where his film is premiering and he attends an awards show. Coppola certainly knows how to make Americans feel awkward amongst odd foreigners; she certainly portrays Italians no less weird than she did to the Japanese in “Lost in Translation.” The two of them hang out which seems like it would “disrupt” his Hollywood way of life, but in fact it only enhances it and he comes to realize just how dull his life has been.

As odd as it may sound Coppola’s realistic style reminds me of Woody Allen’s similar approach. Her scenes of a Hollywood party seem like doppelgangers of scenes set in LA in “Annie Hall.” Like Allen, Coppola enjoys giving outsiders a look at famous lives. The stagnant and hardly moving camera also reminds me of Allen’s view which is simply as an observer, quietly watching as the scene unfolds. There’s nothing to flashy in “Somewhere” and anyone expecting anything else will certainly feel disappointed. This is a character study more than a deconstruction of the Hollywood lifestyle (although it does have things to say about it) and it features some great performances. The script is fairly strong and in a weaker year would probably be a shoo-in for an Oscar nomination.

The Hollywood life certainly isn’t as fabulous as its cracked up to be and “Somewhere” just shows one example of it. This isn’t a downward spiral story about a drug addict or anything; Johnny seems like a pretty nice, average guy - at least for a celebrity. This is a fine film and a touching story about a father and a daughter. It’s a small simple film, certainly one worth seeing and pondering. But you’ll have to see it if you want to know if Johnny ever actually ends up somewhere. GRADE: B+

2011 Oscar Nomination Predictions

UPDATED: So here we have it people, the moment everyone in the world has been eagerly waiting for: the Oscar nominations have been revealed! There were some surprises, but not too many outright shocks. In Best Picture, Winter's Bone edged out The Town (which only received one nomination for Jeremy Renner). Also John Hawkes, who had scored a surprise SAG nod, edged out Andrew Garfield of The Social Network, I thought that could happen to him or Mark Ruffalo, who got in. I think I'm mostly surprised by Christopher Nolan's Best Director snub (both the Coens and David O. Russell got in) which must certainly sting especially after haven been snubbed for The Dark Knight in 2008. but he is a best picture and best screenplay nominee. Inception didn't even get an editing nomination, which pretty much nulls its Best Picture chances, but let's be honest, did it even have a shot? Hailee is in Supporting, but so is Jacki Weaver, who booted out Mila Kunis. And good job for nominated Michelle Williams who is great in Blue Valentine. Javier Bardem knocked out Robert Duvall, which I thought could happen, thank god, because i have no desire to watch Get Low. I think I'm surprised Waiting for Superman didnt make it into the Documentary category since it was the perceived frontrunner. And only four song nominations and none for Burleseque! Cher is pissed that she won't be able to perform at the Oscars! I'm glad the Academy's music branch showed it could be hip and cool by actually nominating "The Social Network" for Best Score; could it actually win? Danny Elfman gets skunked again. I'm proud of my Unstoppable prediction in the Sound Editing field which no one seemed to predict except me. And I'm not quite sure why The King's Speech is nominated for Sound Mixing, but oh well. Overall there were enough surprises to keep things fun and not enough snubs to truly piss me off. I wish The Town was a best picture nominee, mostly because I just assumed it would make it months ago, oh well. See you on Feburary 27th!
I correctly predicted 83 of the 107 nominees.

Check out all the nominees here:
http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/83/nominees.html




[from Saturday]: On January 25the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will announce the nominations for the 83rd Annual Academy Awards. Who else is super excited? Trying to predict how the Academy will think it sometimes pretty tricky; and yet sometimes it’s painfully predictable. Most of the time most categories will have four sure things and one pesky open slot in which any movie could fit. This year for nearly every category there are six films vying for only five slots. And this is the second year the Academy will nominate ten films for Best Picture and there are eleven solid contenders. Which will they leave out? There are several things I’ll be keeping my eye out for this Tuesday. First being, how many nominations will “127 Hours” get? It seemed like a movie that would be Oscar gold, what with director Danny Boyle coming freshly off the Oscar-dominating “Slumdog Millionaire.” 127 Hour seems like a movie no one really wants to see because it features a scene of self-amputation. Hopefully it gets more nominations than “Into the Wild” received which was famously snubbed three years ago. I’m curious as to how many nominations the frontrunner “The Social Network” will get. I’m not completely sold that it will get a tremendous showing in the craft categories, but love for the film could find it a lot of love. I’m hoping they find plenty of love for “The Town” which I had been predicting would be invited to the big dance the second after I saw it. While I hope many of my predictions are correct, I really do hope there are plenty of suprises hidden up the Academy’s sleeve. Only time will tell, until then check out my predictions below:


Best Picture
“Black Swan”
“The Fighter”
“Inception”
“The Kids Are All Right”
“The King's Speech”
“127 Hours”
“The Social Network"
“The Town”
“Toy Story 3”
“True Grit”

There are 11 films vying for these ten slots. I believe the well-loved, but little seen indie “Winter’s Bone” is on the outs, but it could just as easily sneak in there and bump off “127 Hours” a wonderful film that many just don’t even want to see. The only other vulnerable films are “The Town or “The Kids Are All Right” but I can’t see anything else (like “Blue Valentine” for instance) besides “Bone” making the cut.

Best Director
Darren Aronofsky “Black Swan”
David O. Russell “The Fighter”
Christopher Nolan “Inception”
Tom Hooper “The King's Speech”
David Fincher “The Social Network”

I think there are four sure things here. I’m wishy washy with David O. Russell, but he did receive a Golden Globe and Director’s Guild nod, so I’m pretty confident. Although the well-liked Coens could edge him out here

Best Actor
Jeff Bridges “True Grit”
Robert Duvall “Get Low”
Jesse Eisenberg “The Social Network”
Colin Firth “The King's Speech”
James Franco “127 Hours”

I’m kind of confident these five actors are sure things. I’m not really sure that Ryan Gosling or Javier Bardem (a former Best Supporting Actor winner) could make it in there, but weirder things have happened (see 2007’s surprise nod for Tommy Lee Jones, a former Best Supporting Actor winner).

Best Actress
Annette Bening “The Kids Are All Right”
Nicole Kidman “Rabbit Hole”
Jennifer Lawrence “Winter's Bone"
Natalie Portman “Black Swan"
Hailee Steinfeld “True Grit”

Here is where things start to get interesting. I believe there are four sure things here. I’m going out on limb and predicting the Academy will show some common sense (as BAFTA did recently) and place Steinfeld in the Best Actress category even though the studio has been campaigning for her in Supporting. They did this with Keisha Castle-Hughes in 2003 and most recently with Kate Winslet in The Reader in 2008. If she doesn’t make it here, then I can see literally anyone replacing her such as Michelle Williams (certainly deserving), Julianne Moore (fingers crossed!) or even the always likable Hilary Swank, who got a surprise SAG nomination. I’d love it just to see Round 3 of Swank vs. Bening. Although at this point, it’s Portman’s to lose.

Best Supporting Actor
Christian Bale “The Fighter”
Andrew Garfield “The Social Network”
Jeremy Renner “The Town”
Mark Ruffalo “The Kids Are All Right”
Geoffrey Rush “The King's Speech”

An interesting race here, while not as dramatic as the Actress races. Garfield seems weak because he didn’t get a SAG nom, but he bounced back with a nod from BAFTA, a group who in general wasn’t as warm with The Social Network as much as other groups have been (although to be fair they weren’t that warm to The Fighter either). Mark Ruffalo is the only other potentionally weak one, with a possibility of either Sam Rockwell or the SAG-nominated John Hawkes from “Winter’s Bone.” SAG is notorious for rewarding smaller, more indie type roles, so I think that was really just a fluke.

Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams "The Fighter"
Helena Bonham Carter “The King's Speech”
Mila Kunis “Black Swan”
Melissa Leo “The Fighter”
Jacki Weaver “Animal Kingdom”

And here we are back to the madness of this extremely strong year for female actresses. If Steinfeld does get nominated here she will bump out Jacki Weaver for sure. This fifth slot is also a head scratcher this year because it’s possible for a number of different performers to get a surprise nod. Maybe Barbara Hershey from “Black Swan?” (She did get a BAFTA nod). Who knows, maybe Kunis gets bumped out too? Could critic darling Leslie Manville get placed here (she’s also a possibility in Lead although from what I hear she’s really part of an ensemble). I’m not confident that Weaver gets in and in fact this the category I’m probably the least confident in.

Best Adapted Screenplay
“127 Hours”
“The Social Network”
“Toy Story 3”
“True Grit”
“Winter's Bone”

I’m debating how much love the Academy will give “127 Hours” a film that has terrific direction, writing, acting, cinematography, editing, music, sound etc. and yet I can actually picture it getting the shaft just because it features a difficult-to-watch amputation scene (the Academy wasn’t very kind to the similar “Into the Wild” three years ago). So having said that, I’m not very sure whether “127 Hours” can make it here and if it doesn’t it’ll certainly make room for “The Town” the more likely of the weaker Best Picture possibilities.

Best Original Screenplay
“Black Swan”
“Inception”
“The Kids Are All Right”
“The King's Speech"
“The Fighter”

This is another category that will be tough to call. I want to say that Mike Leigh will get in for “Another Year” but with it’s awards chances waning over the past coupe months I’m not too sure about that which is why I think “Black Swam” and “The Fighter” are better possibilities, but not sure things.

Best Art Direction
“Alice in Wonderland”
“Inception”
“The King's Speech”
“Shutter Island”
“True Grit”

Best Cinematography
“Black Swan”
“Inception”
“Shutter Island”
“The Social Network”
“True Grit”

Best Costume Design
“Alice in Wonderland”
“Black Swan”
“The King's Speech”
“The Tempest”
“True Grit”

Best Editing
“127 Hours”
“Black Swan”
“Inception”
“The Social Network”
“The Fighter”

Best Makeup
“Alice in Wonderland”
“Barney’s Version”
“The Wolfman”

Best Original Score
“127 Hours”
“Alice in Wonderland”
“Inception”
“The King’s Speech”
“The Social Network”

Best Original Song
‘Haven’t Seen the Last of Me’ from “Burlesque”
‘If I Rise’ from “127 Hours”
‘I See the Light’ from “Tangled”
‘We Belong Together’ from “Toy Story 3”
‘Shine’ from “Waiting for Superman”

Sound Editing
“Inception”
“Iron Man 2”
“Toy Story 3”
“TRON Legacy”
“Unstoppable”

Sound Mixing
“Inception”
“The Town”
“TRON Legacy”
“True Grit”
“Unstoppable”

Visual Effects
“Alice in Wonderland”
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I”
“Inception”
“Iron Man 2”
“TRON Legacy”

Animated Feature Film
“How to Train Your Dragon”
“The Illusionist”
“Toy Story 3”

Documentary Feature
“Exit Through the Gift Shop”
“Gasland”
“Inside Job”
“The Tillman Story”
“Waiting for Superman”

Foreign Language Film
Algeria, “Hors la Loi” (“Outside the Law”)
Canada, “Incendies”
Denmark, “In a Better World”
Mexico, “Biutiful”
South Africa, “Life, above All”

A Walk to Remember: Colin Farrell & Co. Catch the Midnight Express in “The Way Back”

“The Way Back” is Australian director Peter Weir’s first film since “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World” and like that film did, it should have Oscar written all over it. It’s epic and moving and almost grueling to watch, but for some reason, it’s not a movie that has clicked much with anyone. And that’s most likely because it’s essentially over two hours of people walking and walking. Think “Lord of the Rings” without the fantastical creatures. The film is based on the true story, set during World War II, of prisoners of a Siberian prison escaping and walking 4,000 miles to freedom over the Himalayas into the safety of India. And what a harrowing journey it was and this film is a fascinating account of that nearly impossible journey. Some survive and some don’t. Perhaps the film spoils something when it says at the beginning that three men made it, but that doesn’t matter because it’s hard to say exactly which of the three will make it.

Jim Sturgess, who you may remember from “Across the Universe,” is Janusz a Polish man who is arrested by the Soviets and accused to sabotage and sentenced to twenty years in the Gulag prison. In there he meets some inmates including an American named “Mr. Smith” (Ed Harris) and a Russian criminal named Valka (Colin Farrell, always great). They soon conspire, with a few others, to escape the prison, enter the woods and live off the land as they make their way to freedom. Seven of them escape into the freezing cold forest, during a blizzard no less. And soon one man, who has “night blindness” gets lost and freezes to death. But their journey doesn’t always consist of cold weather they must face the harshness of the Gobi desert. They had made it to Mongolia, but realize that it’s under Communist rule so they decide to press on even further to India. And meanwhile they find a young Polish girl (Saoirse Ronan), all alone, who had been following the group of men. They reluctantly take her in, much to Mr. Smith’s dissatisfaction.

Sure the film is really about a bunch of guys who slowly walk and walk to get to freedom, but its in the details that the film really soars. The hardships these men and girl must face are just incredible. The harshness of the cold and heat seem unbearable. They eat bugs, their feet swell up, they face near dehydration, and the realistic tone of the film really makes you feel a part of it. When they encounter villages of people, Valka even has to murder to steal food and supplies. And the performances are great. Farrell, like he always manages to do, just gets lost in his performance. You never see him as Colin, he’s always Valka. Saoirse Ronan is a fine young actress and I can’t image what it must have been like for her to shoot this film. All of the actors look completely weathered thanks to the wonderful make-up and costume design. You’d think Mr. Weir really made these guys walk thousands of miles.

“The Way Back” doesn’t quite hit the emotional chord of other similar movies, but it also is not emotionally manipulative at all. It sort of reminded me of “Alive” meets “Rescue Dawn” and for all of this stuff that you’ve probably seen before, it does truly feel original. The lush landscapes are equally beautiful and threatening and while there is little characterization that exists, this feels more about the experience than anything else. This is a distressing film indeed, but nothing seems more distressful than not giving it a chance at all. GRADE: B+

Boxers, Piranha and Lesbians, Oh My! The Best Films of 2010

It took me until August to award a film with an “A” rating (that would be Piranha 3D and if you know me at all, you realize that makes perfect sense) so I worried slightly about whether 2010 was going to be a dud of a year. In fact the last couple months of 2010 gave us some great films. Plenty of great acting, writing and directing going on. Lots of truly rewarding and original stuff this year amongst all the remakes and reboots. Keep looking and you’ll find the good stuff. And here they are:

1) 127 Hours (dir. Danny Boyle)
Danny Boyle’s “127 Hours” is basically an Oscar-worthy torture porn flick. It’s a highbrow “Saw” movie which finds an ordinary person, the real life adventurer Aron Ralston (an electric James Franco), in an extraordinary situation, where he faces a choice: die from starvation or cut off his own limb to stay alive. Sure Boyle fills his claustrophobic, yet tremendously entertaining film with beautiful and touching cutaways to better and brighter moments in Aron’s life, but he certainly spends the film’s finale right in there as Aron chops away at that arm. A sort of weird mix of “The Diving Bell & the Butterfly” and “Into the Wild,” this is audacious filmmaking and without question the most stunning and mesmerizing film of the year – assuming you have the stomach to take it. Highly recommended! Fun Fact: The camcorder used by James Franco in the film was the actual one Aron Ralston used when he was trapped in Blue John Canyon.

2) The Town (dir. Ben Affleck)
Ben Affleck is two for two with this tremendous follow up to “Gone Baby Gone.” This Boston-set (where else?) heist flick is more than just a cops and robbers movie. It carries emotional weight (the bank robber falls in love with the victim but she doesn’t know he’s the bank robber!) and plenty of cool gun and car chases. The chase with the gang dressed as nuns is one of the best action scenes of the year (see “Inception” for the other). For a fun time pair this awesome flick with “The Departed” for a Wicked Cool Bas-ton Movie Marathon. Fun Fact: The film's premiere was held at Fenway Park. The cast walked a red carpet along the first baseline.

3) Piranha 3D (dir. Alexandre Aja)
The best horror film of the year is also one of the year’s funniest. It was simply one of the most enjoyable times I had at the theater. The film from the guy who brought us High Tension and the The Hills Have Eyes remake throws everything at the viewer in glorious 3D which is not limited to Jerry O’Connell’s genitalia. The film features some of Hollywood’s greatest B-list actors including Elizabeth Shue, Richard Dreyfuss and Christopher Lloyd, not to mention some of the wildest and bloodiest gore scenes ever committed to celluloid. I’m pretty sure most of the film’s production budget was for the fake blood and gore. This is the type of movie 3D was made for. This film certainly doesn’t bite, assuming you’re in on the joke. Fun Fact: Alexandre Aja planned to have Joe Dante (director of the original Piranha) and James Cameron (director of Piranha Part Two: The Spawning) play boat captains who give safety lessons to the teens. Dante wanted to do it but Cameron was too busy.

4) The Fighter (dir. David O. Russell)
Marky Mark does it again. Except this time he’s surrounded by of the interesting characters. The true life tale of “Irish” Mickey Ward famed shot at the welterweight championship is a boxing movie for people who don’t like boxing movies. The film thankfully follows around Mickey’s crazy family including his brother Dickie (a terrific Christian Bale) his mother (a wonderful Melissa Leo), his seven badly-coifed sisters, and his girlfriend (a superb Amy Adams). It’s rare for a “sports movie” to make you care about the characters this much and it has the balls to spend plenty of the film’s runtime without actually showing a boxing match. Fun Fact: In the film, Christian Bale plays Dickie Eklund, who is 7 years older than his half-brother Mickey Ward, played by Mark Wahlberg. In reality, Wahlberg is 3 years Bale's senior.

5) Black Swan (dir. Darren Aronofsky)
The year’s second best horror film has nothing to due with killer fish, but rather a ballerina’s tormented psyche as she turns into an evil black swan. Leave it to Darren Aronofksy to make a horror movie set in the world of New York ballet. He turned the story of addiction into a horror flick with “Requiem for a Dream” and here he also gives us chilling and disturbing images that will most likely stick with you for days. The film’s gritty style fits the tone. One would think a film about dancers would have a pretty and polished look, but Aronofksy forgoes that to show us the seedy underbelly of this world. He gets into our heroine’s head (and under her skin sometimes) so flawlessly we’re not sure if we’ll be the same after the film ends. Sort of an Oscar-worthy “David Cronenberg does Showgirls” riff, this is a thrilling movie that will certainly stay with you. Fun Fact: The film began as a screenplay called "The Understudy" and took place in the world of New York theater. Darren Aronofsky liked the script, but suggested it be changed to ballet.

6) The Kids Are All Right (dir. Lisa Cholodenko)
The hit dramedy from Sundance about a lesbian couple (played wonderfully by Annette Bening and Julianne Moore) and their two teenage kids who decide to seek out their natural father unbeknownst to mom and mom. A fine ensemble cast all around with a great script with plenty of twists and turns. This film, like Up in the Air last year just sort of feels like the movie of the moment. It so represents life “now.” I think this should have been this year’s “Little Miss Sunshine” but alas there are some people who don’t want to watch a movie about lesbians that doesn’t involve the words “late night” or “Cinemax.” A real charmer and winner. Fun Fact: The film's title is based on the title of the song "The Kids Are Alright" by The Who.

7) Rabbit Hole (dir. John Cameron Mitchell)
No one wants to watch a movie about a couple grieving over the lost of their young son. Except for “Rabbit Hole” which is instantly watchable and instantly unforgettable. It features some standout performances especially sure-to-be-nominated Nicole Kidman and sure-to-be-left-out Aaron Eckhart as the couple who can’t seem to move on. Their young son was struck and killed by a teenage driver and each of them find comfort in different places: she by meeting with the boy who killed her son and he with a support group. This is an honest, unflinching portrait of a pretty traumatic subject matter and yet you can’t take your eyes off the screen. It offers humor and a pretty humanistic story of loss that is simply one of the year’s best. Fun Fact: Aaron Eckhart was personally hand-picked by Nicole Kidman to play her husband.

8) Inception (dir. Christopher Nolan)
The movie that not only captivated a summer audience but confused the hell out of it as well. This mind-bending sci-fi action thriller involves people entering other’s subconscious dreams in order to extract or - in the film’s major storyline - “plant” an idea in someone’s mind. A top-notch cast led by Leonardo DiCaprio, Ellen Page, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Marion Cottilard and plenty more where that came are perfect in a film from the wondrous mind of Christopher Nolan who gave us “The Dark Knight.” There are simply too many dazzling visuals in this movie to even describe, but the standout being the zero gravity fight sequence which had everyone’s jaws glued to the floor in theaters across the country. Truly original. Fun Fact: The use of the Édith Piaf song "Non, je ne regrette rien" is used as a plot device. Marion Cotillard played Piaf in La Vie en Rose. Christopher Nolan has stated that this is "pure coincidence". After Cotillard was cast Nolan intended to change the song to eliminate speculation on the subject, but composer Hans Zimmer persuaded him to keep it.

9) Easy A (dir. Will Gluck)
The year’s most lauded teen comedy is a well-written fable about a teenage girl who spreads a rumor about herself which gets wildly out of control. Critics understandably ate this movie up because movies about high school aren’t usually this smart or well-done. It sort of feels like a distant cousin of “Juno” or “Mean Girls.” And not only that, but it’s a sweet tribute to the John Hughes high school films of the 80s. Emma Stone is great in her charismatic Golden Globe-nominated role of Olive Prendergast (and Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson are great as her hip parents) who sees parallels between her situation and the classic novel “The Scarlet Letter.” A funny flick with great performances and a witty script elevate this above the usual teen garbage. This one gets straight As indeed. Fun Fact: Olive's family members are all named after foods: her parents' names are Dill and Rosemary, both herbs; her younger brother's name is Chip, and the one at college is named Kale.

10) Conviction (dir. Tony Goldwyn)
A wonderful true life tale of Betty Anne Waters (Hilary Swank) who spend countless years pursuing a law degree so that she could represent her incriminated brother Kenny who was falsely accused of murder. The problem is Kenny, as played wonderfully by Sam Rockwell, isn’t the most likable guy. But Betty and Kenny are brother and sister and this is a story about sibling love that truly touches your heart. The film could easily been schmaltzy Lifetime movie corniness – and maybe some of it is to a point – but there is no denying the powerful story we’re given to witness and the emotionally charged performances from a great cast–including a scene stealing Juliet Lewis–as well. Fun Fact: The movie does not reveal, even in the closing captions, that six months after being released from prison, Kenny tragically fell from a wall while taking a shortcut, suffered a brain injury and died.

Honorable Mentions:
Unstoppable
Blue Valentine
Let Me In
Shutter Island
Frozen
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
Toy Story 3
Best Worst Movie
How to Train Your Dragon
Winter's Bone

Worst Films of the Year:
The Expendables
The Last Airbender
My Soul to Take
Skyline
Robin Hood

Here's a fun tribute to 2010:

2010 Salute to Cinema from Ben Zuk on Vimeo.

Scenes from a Marriage: Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams are in Top Form in “Blue Valentine”

If the recent movie “Rabbit Hole” taught us anything it’s that it’s not impossible to fine a film about grieving parents entertaining. The same goes for “Blue Valentine” which traces the development and dissolution of a marriage. These are two films with tough subject matter and traditionally difficult to watch material, but they are worth seeing first and foremost for their powerful performances. Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams prove they are two of this country’s most talented young stars and have tremendously successful careers ahead of them. If “500 Days of Summer” was fun, quirky indie comedy of last year, then “Blue Valentine” is the depressing, gritty indie drama of this year. Both films trace a romantic relationship in completely different ways. They both have similar plot structures: crosscutting in time with the beginning and end of their respective relationships. While “Summer” was amusing and funny, “Valentine” is sad and harrowing. And it’s made even more difficult to watch because in the early stages of this couple’s relationship, they are so likable and in love it’s tragic to see how they end up.

I’m not sure that you really feel much hope at the end of “Blue Valentine” but there is one thing that is certain when the film ends: you’ve witnesses some of the year’s finest acting. It’s a rare film that can follow just two actors around for nearly the entire runtime and be completely captivated the whole time. Gosling is Dean, a high school dropout who works for a moving company. Williams is Cindy, who is preparing for med school and takes care of her elderly grandmother. By happenstance Dean and Cindy meet and soon begin a romantic relationship. These scenes of their relationship are actually flashbacks; maybe 6 or 7 years in the past, although we never truly know. Their present status of their relationship is practically nonexistent. They bicker and fight; they get on each other’s nerves. They have a young daughter. They think a weekend at a cheap hotel might bring that spark back, but it seems like the spark has been gone and lost forever. The film opens with the family dog having run off, and Cindy finds it dead on the side of the road. This can’t be a good sign.

What’s so fascinating about “Blue Valentine” is the structure that the film takes. By going back in forth in time you begin to really care about this couple, which makes the scenes set in the present all the more difficult to watch. As they begin to fall in love, in the past scenes (which appear to be shot in shaky 16mm) you begin to fall for them too. That’s because Gosling and Williams seem like such likable people. They feel so normal and natural, almost seemingly plucked off the street. And you really feel as if these two people have a long history together in the scenes set in the present. And that’s due to director Derek Cianfrance’s ingenious decision to have his two actors live together for months before shooting those scenes. They built an off camera history which really translates on screen. And they certainly looked weathered, what with Goslings receding hairline and Williams worn in eyes. And besides, look at how difficult a job these two actors have. They have to be lovable and irritating all at the same time.

This is a small indie film that feels born of another time. As a film of the gritty intimate films of the early 1970s, it sort of has a New Wave vibe. It’s uncompromising in its depictions and it refuses to take the easy way out. It, now famously, features some intense sexual scenes which shocked the MPAA, but doesn’t quit feel all that shocking as you’re watching the film. The only thing truly shocking about the film is how real it feels. This is certainly a great combination of wonderful filmmaking and great acting which equally a compulsively watchable and distressing story about falling in and out of love. GRADE: A-

Where’s the Grief? Nicole Kidman Takes Us on an Emotional Journey Down the “Rabbit Hole”

“Rabbit Hole” can be a tough film to watch, but it’s worth every minute. It’s not exactly the depressingly emotional feel-bad drama that it could have ended up being and it’s certainly not a clichéd overly-sentimental melodrama. This is a powerful flick with great acting and a subtly interesting plot you quickly forget just how quickly you become emotionally invested in what’s going on. It’s a story about loss and grief yes, but it’s also about moving on after having faced a terrible tragedy and finding comfort in the unlikeliest of places. And the two main characters of “Rabbit Hole” face the worst tragedy of them all: the death of their young child.

“Rabbit Hole” begins eight months after an “incident” of which we know nothing about. We’re introduced to Becca (Nicole Kidman) and Howie (Aaron Eckhart). They’re a married couple. They look pretty normal. But something is bothering theme. We learn through the film’s sharp dialogue that a tragedy has befallen them: they four year old son was accidently killed. He was hit by a car, driven by a young teenage boy. They’re not quite sure how to deal with their grief. After all, everything in their house reminds them of little Danny. His room was kept the same and he has paintings up on the fridge. Going to a support group for parents who have lost a child. It seems to help Howie, but not Becca. In fact, she hates it when the other parents justify their children’s deaths by saying “God needed an angel.” She isn’t buying it.

This leads Becca to find solace, not an extramarital affair, which usually happens in stories like this, but rather in the forming of a friendship, if you wanna call it that, with the young man who killed her son. They meet in the park and talk. Just talk, and he shares his comic book that he’s writing about parallel universes called “Rabbit Hole.” I think what we’re supposed to get from this is how Becca feels as if she’s living on another level since the death of her son. Nothing is normal anymore. It’s about what the grief process will do to a person.

Of course the movie as a whole isn’t a complete downer. Director John Cameron Mitchell, known for more eccentric filmmaking, (he directed “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” and “Shortbus”) injects some much needed humor into his film. A scene that find Howie and a fellow support group member (Sandra Oh) getting high right before a meeting is simply inspired. The film is written by playwright David Lindsay-Abaire who adapted the script from his own Pulitzer Prize-winning play. His writing is beautiful and poignant and never heavy-handed. Both the writing and directing feel natural and nothing is ever forced down the viewers throats. When we cry or laugh at something emotional on screen it feels genuine.

The aces here are obviously the standout performances. Kidman is great as is Eckhart. They have good chemistry; you really get the sense that this is a real married couple going through a painful situation. Dianne Wiest is also great as Kidman’s mother who also knows the pains of losing a child. A scene between Wiest and Kidman that takes place in a basement is pretty touching and powerful. Wiest in another year would most likely be an Oscar contender, but I fear the film’s lack of strong commercial appeal has likely done her in.

“Rabbit Hole” is a wonderful film from beginning to end. It is moving and unexpectedly humorous. It features great performances, a strong screenplay and perfectly subtle direction. It feels something along the lines of “In the Bedroom” or “Rachel Getting Married” or “Ordinary People” and is certainly worthy of being named alongside those other equally as powerful films. GRADE: A

Into the West: The Coen Brothers Hardly Make a False Move with “True Grit”

My favorite Western is “Back to the Future Part III.” I realize not only is this blasphemous, but it also doesn’t make any sense. And that’s because to be perfectly honest, I’m not a fan of Westerns. The components that make up a Western never really interested me. Was it a surprise that I was, at first, disappointed with Quentin Tarantino’s second Kill Bill movie, seeing as though it was more Western-influenced than the first part? Not really. Westerns to me, like their setting, seem ultimately dry and dull. I really only saw True Grit for two reasons: its Oscar buzz and because the Coen Brothers were behind it. I could care less that it’s a remake of the John Wayne classic. I haven’t seen it so it means nothing to me. But after seeing this updated “True Grit” I can say that I did find myself entertained, but not nearly as much as someone who would more fully appreciate this type of film.

“True Grit” makes a sort of strange turn for Joel and Ethan Cohen. They are known for their quirky flicks that are usually dark but have a strange sense of humor to them. They are true originals. Even if something like “No Country for Old Men” was based on a novel, they certainly put their own stamp on the material. That movie is sincerely a Coen Brothers movie, no question. Here in True Grit you’ll have to look a little harder. But they are certainly there. Here this time they not only working from a novel (by Charles Portis) but this is the second time this story is hitting the big screen. Jeff Bridges (a reason along to see this movie) steps into the Oscar-winning shoes of John Wayne as Rooster Cogburn, a man hired by a fourteen year old girl named Mattie Ross (newcomer Hailee Steinfeld) to avenge her father’s death. Mattie’s father was killed by the coward Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin) and Mattie is hell-bend on revenge. Steinfeld certainly is a find. This is her feature film debut and you’d think she’d been in twenty other movies. After some disagreements, Mattie and Rooster set off to find Chaney in Indian territory. They are also joined by LaBoeuf (an equally good Matt Damon).

That’s pretty much all the story offers, as since this is a more traditional western, the plot is simply about vengeance. Of course the performances elevate this thing and the beauty camerawork by long-time Coen collaborator Roger Deakins is beautiful (although his work here isn't nearly as flasy or interesting as what he did with "The Assassination of Jesse James..."). There are lots of chases and guns shooting and lots of greasy, dirty bad guys here as well. And despite all the traditional aspects of the film, there are some genuine Coen touches. I’m not sure if in the original film LaBoeuf’s tongue gets nearly bitten off and Rooster yanks the bitten part out of his mouth, but here it seems overwhelmingly like a great, squeamish Coen Moment. The film doesn’t reach the level of intensity of “No Country for Old Men” and is not nearly as violence (this flick is PG-13) but there are some pretty violent things going on. Including witnessing three men getting hanged. One of which comically doesn’t get any last words.

The Coen Brothers are at it again and they certainly put their stamp on this True Grit remake. Fans of Westerns will be pleased and non-fans will find some things here to enjoy. I can’t say it’s converted me into a fan of this genre, although the film’s third act is pretty riveting, however you’d be hard pressed to find anything truly disappointing here in “True Grit.” GRADE: B

Stutter Island: “The King’s Speech” is Certainly a Crowning Achievement

“The King’s Speech” is one of the Oscar frontrunners for Best Picture. And I could see why – if this were the mid-90s. The problem is that the Academy rarely goes for the “British period piece” anymore. To some, myself included, it was a shock that Atonement was nominated a few years ago (it’s director was snubbed which showed a sign of weakness) and yet here we are in 2010 with “The King’s Speech” about the ascension of King George VI to the British throne. The problem is that to be a good king you must be able to address your people and if you can hardly get a sentence out of your mouth because of stammering, to be quite frank, you’ll look like a fool. This is the true story of the relationship between the popular monarch and his speech therapist Lionel Logue. It was a special relationship and it is simply the best part about “The King’s Speech” and that is due to the wonderful performances of Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush and their wonderful onscreen chemistry.

I’ll still put my money on “The Social Network” for Best Picture, but in “The King’s Speech” we have everything in place for a glorious Academy Award-baiting movie. We have a period setting, with glorious costume and production design. We have terrific performances from its cast and it’s simply a bonus to be telling a real life story. The film begins with Albert Frederick Arthur George (firth) having to give a speech. He stutters and stammers. Good thing his older brother Edward is the heir to the crown. His loving and supportive wife Elizabeth (Helen Bonham Carter) sets him up with several therapists, one of which makes him stuff marbles into his mouth. She finds the eccentric Mr. Logue (Rush) who insists that, although he’s treating a member of the Royal Family, they be on a first name basis and do the therapy on his own premises. They start a wonderful working relationship as Bertie (as Lionel calls him) begins to warm up to his therapist’s strange methods. He forces him to read aloud with music blasting into his ears from headphones, which makes a recording of his voice sound nearly flawless.

And of course there is all that stuff with Albert having to become the King of England once his brother Edward (Guy Pearce) decides he’d rather marry an American woman than take the throne. All of this stuff is played out in pretty standard fashion and staged well enough by director Tom Hooper. He employs plenty of use of short lenses and close-ups which really through the viewer off kilter. But it’s never extremely flashy and doesn’t exactly call attention to itself. This isn’t the elaborately staged “British period piece” that “Atonement” was. You won’t find any six minute long tracking shots in this film.

What the film has most going is in its performances. Colin Firth, who was also amazing in last year’s “A Single Man” is great here as well. He might as well clear off space on his mantle right now. There’s no competition. Rush is exceptional as well and the two actors play off each other exquisitely. Rush almost steals the film and any scene without him makes you complete aware that something’s just missing. Carter is good too in the role of “the supportive wife” but she’s not exactly relevatory. And Michael Gambon shows up as the dying King.

“The King’s Speech” is a good movie, but it’s not a movie I personally loved. Sure it has the pedigree and all the factors of a traditional Oscar flick, but it doesn’t really transcend anything. Sure it makes you feel good, but in that regard I think “The Fighter” did that much better. I can recommend “The King’s Speech” if you want to see what all the Oscar fuss is about or if you’re a speech pathology student. I smell a field trip! GRADE: B

I’m a Dancer! “Black Swan” is an Unnerving and Strange Ballerina Fright Fest

How is it that I have seen two Showgirls-like films within nearly weeks of each other? Is 2010 the year of honoring one of the most rewarding and entertaining cult films of all time? Maybe part of its 15th anniversary celebration? We got the splashy musical form of Showgirls around Thanksgiving with the Cher-tastic “Burlesque” and now we have the ballerina horror flick version known as “Black Swan.” Ok ok ok, I’m really only joking around “Black Swan” is a serious film with great awards potential and Burlesque and Showgirls probably don’t deserve to be mentioned with it, but come on, I can’t be the only one who spotted some strangely suspicious similarities: “Attack it! Attack it!” equals “Thrust it! Thrust it!” and the story about the rival between two lesbianonic female dance rivals seem a little obvious to me. But I digress. What’s important here is that “Black Swan” is a great film and a particularly strange yet interesting one. It’s a movie that practically demands to be seen more than once because there’s really so much going on I can’t imagine I was able to take it all in one sitting.

Let me get something out the way first. “Black Swan” is a horror film. There I said it. Don’t believe me? When you watch the movie I’m pretty sure you’ll either jump (I did) make some kind of audible sound of disgust (I did) or want to hind your eyes (I almost did). There are frightening images here. Of course this isn’t the time of horror film where a crazy guy in a mask stalks large breasted coeds, but it relies on disturbing images and delving deep into the subconscious of its emotionally and psychologically damaged heroine. In a way it reminded me a lot of Roman Polanski's "Repulsion" and even some of David Cronenberg's early movies. The film stars the wonderfully engaging Natalie Portman as Nina Sayers, a dancer in a New York City ballet company. Like most professional dancers, she's obsessed with it. The company’s director Thomas (Vincent Cassel) has announced they will be doing “Swan Lake” but a version in which the main star will have to act out two parts the White Swan (innocence/virginal) and the Black Swan (cunning/sexual). He replaces the “aging” ballerina star played by Winona Ryder and the ballet-obsessed Nina fights for the role which she gets. Enter her main rival Lily (Mila Kunis).

The film’s script (written by Mark Heyman, Andres Heinz, and John J. McLaughlin) then focuses mainly on Nina’s obsession with dance, her attempts to find the “darker half” of her personality, and how this new girl Lily begins to warp her mind. As the virginal (it’s assumed by not made clear) Nina, part of her psychology involves being able to “let loose” in order to fit the Black Swan role. Thomas even gives her an assignment to help her out: he tells her to go home and touch herself. This brings us one of the film’s most disturbing and frightening scenes when Nina begins to enjoy herself under the covers, turns around and begins humping her bed and when she looks over she sees her mother sleeping in the chair next to her bed. What a nightmare! And that’s because Nina has yet another horror in her life: her obsessed mother Erica played by Barbara Hershey. Erica is a former dancer as well and she keeps a close eye on Nina. She’s one of those wacky stage mothers who never found success herself and would rather enjoy success through her own daughter.

Since this is a Darren Aronofsky film there are plenty of disturbing things going on here. As rehearsals for “Swan Lake” progress Nina becomes more and more psychologically unstable. She has weird dreams and visions, of which she’s not sure what is real. She seems to be scratching at her back which becomes more and more damaged as the film progresses and her skin sort of begins to become “bird-like.” Perhaps Nina’s only way to play the role of the Black Swan is to actually become one in her own mind. Aronofsky is great a great director. He’s great at makes horror films where one wouldn’t normally find one (i.e. Requiem for a Dream) and he’s great at giving us character studies about people who are obsessed with their careers (i.e. The Wrestler). Here he combines the two in a remarkable piece of filmmaking. Look at the way he uses the wonderful texture of his 16mm film stock to get at the nitty gritty of the ballerina world. A happy film about dancers would be much more glossy and shiny; here we’re given the opposite. This is a dark and almost ugly film. Look at the way his camera follows Nina so closely when she’s walking to work and from work or even in her dance routines; sometimes you expect Portman to hit the cameraman in the head.

“Black Swan” is truly a sight to behold. It has some grotesque and yet beautiful images. It features great performances and pretty mesmerizing direction. You feel like you’re begin guided by someone who knows exactly what they’re doing and doing this specially for a certain purpose. There are no unintentional shots in this film. “Black Swan” is a pretty bizarre backstage flick and it may leave you scratching your head. But don’t scratch too hard or Barbara Hershey use her scissors on you… GRADE: A