And the Winner Is
I go to a lot of movies. I prefer independent and foreign movies for losts of reasons. I complain about Hollywood movies, but I go see the best picture nominees every year. The best movie I saw all year was an Afghani movie called "The Patience Stone" and as the neighborhood is literally being blown apart and the mother is trying to decide what to do with her invalid husband, a four year old appears in the doorway and says, "We're out of bananas." Wow. Life is chaos, and hey, we're out of snacks. That's my life in one scene. But Hollywood. I do love it.
American Hustle - I loved the feel of this movie. It was an outstanding ensamble cast in that no one actor stood out more than the others. I particularly liked the dynamic between Christian Bale and Amy Adams.
Captain Phillips - I liked this movie more than I thought I would. Frank and I both agreed that it was exciting and that Tom Hanks was not as annoying as we thought he would be. Not a BP.
Twelve Years a Slave - I think this will win BP. It was not my favorite.
Dallas Buyers Club - I really liked this movie. I think that Matthew McConehey and Jared Leto are both going to win acting awards, which is nice, they did a great job, but my favorite things about this film were the film-y moments, like when the MM character learns that he has AIDS and he is leaned over his folded hands praying with a little candle burning in front of him, and then the camera pans back and you realize that he's in a strip club next to the stage, not a church. I love stuff like that.
Gravity - I saw this in 3D because I knew it would be nominated for best picture and knew it wasn't one I wanted to see any other way. I also knew going in that I wasn't going to like the movie. It is a beautifully filmed movie and a compelling story, but too much coincidence and gagging emotion for me. I didn't have one second where I truly worried that she wasn't going to make it safely back to Earth. Bor-ing.
Her - I loved this movie and I have had some really interesting conversations with people about it. My perspective is as someone who sees a lot of movies, and I guess what I would say is that it is a mashup of every romantic comedy film ever made - the formulaic way they fall in love, go a carnival, double date, plan a long weekend out of town that doesn't save the relationship, it was all exactly what I would expect if you were having a relationship with an operating system. And the ending! I love that he connects with a real life person in an awkward and unclear way - very human.
Nebraska - This is a beautiful film. I loved the wide, long shots of the prairie and the complex flatness of the characters. I thought the simple story with resolution for the main character not only with his self esteem but with his son was beautiful. Any other year I think they would win Best Picture, but TYS is going to win. I thought Bruce Dern did a great job and sort of how the movie feels like a Best Picture, he feels like a Best Actor. He's an outstanding actor and it would have been nice to acknowledge him with an Oscar at this point in his career (I don't always agree with those career nod awards, but in this case I think he deserved the award and I thought for awhile that he was going to get the career actor without an oscar vote, but that seems unlikely now.).
Philomena - Nice movie. I can't think of a single reason why this needed to be a movie instead of just a tv show or tv movie. There is nothing visually interesting about the movie that required a big screen.
The Wolf of Wallstreet - Now THIS is a movie. Wow. Huge, crazy shots that captured emotion and story line just in the movement of the camera. Leonardo DiCaprio was wonderful in this and he would be my pick for best actor. He was beautifully physical in this role almost like a silent film actor in the scene where he takes quaaludes and then drives a car.
Blue Jasmine did not get nominated for best picture, but I think Cate Blanchett will win Best Actress. It's a great story and she does a great job appearing to have several see through layers - normal but crazy. I read an interview with her and she said that she was under the impression that the film was a comedy and that's how she portrayed the character. I think that makes a lot of sense when you see how slightly out of whack she is with the other characters in the movie. Woody is a good writer and director. There will be no love for Woody this year, but I think Cate will get a statue.
American Hustle - I loved the feel of this movie. It was an outstanding ensamble cast in that no one actor stood out more than the others. I particularly liked the dynamic between Christian Bale and Amy Adams.
Captain Phillips - I liked this movie more than I thought I would. Frank and I both agreed that it was exciting and that Tom Hanks was not as annoying as we thought he would be. Not a BP.
Twelve Years a Slave - I think this will win BP. It was not my favorite.
Dallas Buyers Club - I really liked this movie. I think that Matthew McConehey and Jared Leto are both going to win acting awards, which is nice, they did a great job, but my favorite things about this film were the film-y moments, like when the MM character learns that he has AIDS and he is leaned over his folded hands praying with a little candle burning in front of him, and then the camera pans back and you realize that he's in a strip club next to the stage, not a church. I love stuff like that.
Gravity - I saw this in 3D because I knew it would be nominated for best picture and knew it wasn't one I wanted to see any other way. I also knew going in that I wasn't going to like the movie. It is a beautifully filmed movie and a compelling story, but too much coincidence and gagging emotion for me. I didn't have one second where I truly worried that she wasn't going to make it safely back to Earth. Bor-ing.
Her - I loved this movie and I have had some really interesting conversations with people about it. My perspective is as someone who sees a lot of movies, and I guess what I would say is that it is a mashup of every romantic comedy film ever made - the formulaic way they fall in love, go a carnival, double date, plan a long weekend out of town that doesn't save the relationship, it was all exactly what I would expect if you were having a relationship with an operating system. And the ending! I love that he connects with a real life person in an awkward and unclear way - very human.
Nebraska - This is a beautiful film. I loved the wide, long shots of the prairie and the complex flatness of the characters. I thought the simple story with resolution for the main character not only with his self esteem but with his son was beautiful. Any other year I think they would win Best Picture, but TYS is going to win. I thought Bruce Dern did a great job and sort of how the movie feels like a Best Picture, he feels like a Best Actor. He's an outstanding actor and it would have been nice to acknowledge him with an Oscar at this point in his career (I don't always agree with those career nod awards, but in this case I think he deserved the award and I thought for awhile that he was going to get the career actor without an oscar vote, but that seems unlikely now.).
Philomena - Nice movie. I can't think of a single reason why this needed to be a movie instead of just a tv show or tv movie. There is nothing visually interesting about the movie that required a big screen.
The Wolf of Wallstreet - Now THIS is a movie. Wow. Huge, crazy shots that captured emotion and story line just in the movement of the camera. Leonardo DiCaprio was wonderful in this and he would be my pick for best actor. He was beautifully physical in this role almost like a silent film actor in the scene where he takes quaaludes and then drives a car.
Blue Jasmine did not get nominated for best picture, but I think Cate Blanchett will win Best Actress. It's a great story and she does a great job appearing to have several see through layers - normal but crazy. I read an interview with her and she said that she was under the impression that the film was a comedy and that's how she portrayed the character. I think that makes a lot of sense when you see how slightly out of whack she is with the other characters in the movie. Woody is a good writer and director. There will be no love for Woody this year, but I think Cate will get a statue.
posted by Lea at 8:44 AM
1 Comments:
Nice run down. I enjoyed Gravity in 3D and American Hustle. I would also include Before Midnight on the list. I liked it so much I bought it to see again. And again. I did not get to Nebraska but will rent it soon.
Me
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