Oscar-nomics: Best Actor Predictions

This is the category I take most umbrage with, and not because who is in it, the list is respectable, but who is not. I thought Michael Fassbender not only had the biggest breakout year by far but also the best performance in Shame. He threw himself into every scene he was given and gave each scene no less than his all, which he did flawlessly. I was worried he would be snubbed since he failed to land a SAG nomination, but I was hoping the Academy would overlook that mess up and let him in. Oh well, lets see who got in instead, here are the nominees:

Demián Bichir A Better Life
No offense to Mr. Bichir, this is a well earned nomination, but its his nomination I am most upset about. While I am sure his performance is strong, it had a very little release. This, to me is one of those "hmm, maybe I will finally go check out this film," kind of nominees that happen every once in a while (such as Jacki Weaver last year for Animal Kingdom). That being said, he hasn't the momentum or the mentioned release time to truly mount an upset, so the nomination is the reward.

George Clooney The Descendants
This is arguably one of my favorite George Clooney performances. Not only do we see him be the George Clooney we all know and love, we also see his emotional side as a father trying to handle family and business all during a tragic accident. He was long since to be considered your winner, but I am not so convinced now. Lately, there has been a shift in momentum towards a new sheriff in town. I think Mr. Clooney will fall just short of...

Jean Dujardin The Artist
I knew this nomination was coming from a mile away, but I never considered him the frontiersmen. Then I started thinking about it and it actually makes the most sense. Being in a silent film, he must be able to act out each and every scene with only his body movements not his voice, which is hard to do. Granted, it throws subtlety out the window, but after seeing Mr. Dujardin on the awards circuit, there isn't a single bit of subtlety in his bones, and that's actually a compliment. He is a very charismatic man, he is in a Best Picture front-runner, and in a way he does the most acting than all the others combined (and they have the luxury of verbal conversations). I think Dujardin will squeak out a win here, and deservedly so (I mean since Fassbender is out).

Brad Pitt Moneyball
Now, I am really happy for this nomination, and I was hoping he would get more love than he did. Many were playing this category (and to a lesser extent the Adapted Screenplay category) as a Pitt vs Clooney battle. I was pulling for Mr. Pitt because while his is the most subtle of the two but also the most impactful, in my opinion, on the scene at had (Clooney was already surrounded by the emotional context of the scene). Pitt worked the dialogue with intelligence and humor, allowing us to better understand the logic of the game as well as Mr. Billy Beane. I only wish he had gained more momentum to win, because the man deserves to very much. That being said, I think he has been stuck in the #3 spot right now, but hey I'm pulling for you man (and this is coming from a devout Cardinals fan).

Gary Oldman Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
Now, if you want to talk about subtle performances, look no further than Mr. Oldman's performance. I personally felt his performance, as well as the film, was too subtle for their own good and the plot kind of got a little muddled because of it. Also, this being his first nomination, you can't help but wonder if the nomination is to say, "See, we have nominated the guy," because he has often been snubbed of an Oscar nomination. That being said, he has no chance of winning, he's not carrying a Best Picture nominee, he's had little award's season love and his performance isn't really much of a standout. The nomination is the reward.

And this was about as restrained as I can be in terms of holding back my hatred of the Academy for snubbing Mr. Fassbender, now if you'll excuse me, I am going to go and blow off some.... steam....

Winner: Jean Dujardin The Artist
Runner-Up: George Clooney The Descendants


Should Win: Brad Pitt Moneyball (but Jean Dujardin would be runner-up in this category)
Should've been Nominated: Michael Fassbender Shame

Oscar-nomics: NYFCC Awards Recipients 2011

Best First Feature: "Margin Call"

Thoughts: Kind of felt “Martha Marcy May Marlene” would be the one to take this in the awards circuit, but oh well my thoughts overall are limited to what I’ve heard and read.

Best Non-Fiction Film: "Cave of Forgotten Dreams"

Thoughts: Any win for the great Werner Herzog is a win in my book, glad to see him win, especially for him being snubbed from the Oscar Documentary shortlist a couple of weeks back.

Best Supporting Actress: Jessica Chastain, "The Help," "Take Shelter" and "The Tree of Life"

Thoughts: She is my pick to win in the long run, glad to see her start off strong. I’m sure hoping she will choose soon which film she will submit for Oscar consideration. I will keep drumming the “Tree of Life” drum as long as I damn well have to, “The Help,” was fine but she doesn’t really stand out in that film as she does in “Tree of Life.” Still, great to see her off to a strong start.

Best Actress: Meryl Streep, "The Iron Lady"

Thoughts: Not a big surprise, considering its Streep we are talking about here. Word on the street is its Streep vs. Davis (rightfully so for the latter lady), but since “Iron Lady” hasn’t opened yet, I will stick with the simple idea that Streep is simply the best.

Best Supporting Actor: Albert Brooks, "Drive"

Thoughts: This might be my favorite win of the day. Mnay have pegged Plummer as the one to beat, and that is still rather plausible, but I am really glad Brooks get his due for a strong performance. Side note, upon hearing he won, he tweeted "Was just told about N.Y.F.C.C. and Spirit Awards! THANK YOU. I feel like Herman Cain at a Dallas Cheerleader convention." Albert “Hank Scorpio” Brooks for the win!!!

 

Best Actor: Brad Pitt, "Moneyball" and "The Tree of Life"

Thoughts: Glad to see Pitt getting his due for a strong year. Though many, myself included, consider his “Tree of Life” performance as more of a supporting turn, to see Mr. Pitt get some awards attention means Best Actor is going to be a fun competition to watch this year, especially with Clooney not off to as such a strong start that many thought he would when “Descendants” came out a week or so ago.

Best Foreign Language Film: "A Separation"

Thoughts: Heard good things, will check it out when I can, but for now, congratulations on the win.

Best Director: Michel Hazanavicius, "The Artist"

Thoughts: Not my first choice, what with Malick, Refn and perhaps even Bennett Miller, but I won’t rag on the choice, but I probably still don’t see this as truly being the best with all the choices I have previously mentioned, particularly Malick (I would also like to mention Soderbergh, but I don’t really feel as though Contagion has much of a chance to get nominated, let alone win).

Best Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin, Steven Zaillian, "Moneyball"

Thoughts: This is a huge win for the film. Sorkin and Zaillian are arguably the best of the best in terms of writers, so seeing them get their due (even though each have received Oscar gold in the past) is always welcome, congrats!!!

Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, "The Tree of Life"

Thoughts: I've said it before, and I will say it again, if this man doesn't dominate the awards season, then I'm giving up on movie awards/reviewing all together. Emmanuel Lubezki deserves Oscar gold!!!!

Special Award: Filmmaker Raoul Ruiz (posthumously)

Thoughts: Not terribly familiar with his work, so I'll stick with congrats on this one...

Best Picture: "The Artist"

Thoughts: Again, haven't seen it so my view on this is limited. It looks like the kind of film that has the right fluff to win over audiences and critics, much like how King's Speech did the previous year. However, by only receiving one other win for directing, its not terribly safe to assume that this automatically makes it the frontrunner. Still, congratulations are in order, and I have little to go on to hate the film, so congratulations and best of luck on the circuit.

Overall Thoughts: Surprised "The Descendants" was completely shut out really. Clooney's acting was considered to be the best of the best, though I am not complaining that he was defeated by Pitt. I think that even though "The Artist" won Best Picture, "Moneyball" was the real victor. Few films get released as far back as September and maintain such awards love, so to see it nab both best actor and screenplay is definitely huge. I am rather happy with both supporting picks, particularly Brooks since his hasn't been as touted, but I think we will be seeing him, most certainly Chastain, as well as Pitt and Streep come February.  

Well, thats it for now, Thursday will be the announcement of the National Board of Review awards.These are the tricky ones cause they were 2 for 2 in picking best picture in 07 and 08, but struck out in 09 and 10 (to their credit, they did pick Social Network last year). Will they be able to get back on track? Only time will tell. Check back for more on the awards seasons as well as my commentary and possible predictions, will this award ceremony shape whats to come or are we in store for something completely out of left field (pun not intended.... at first)?

Half-time Report

Hey guys, I know I have been bad lately about movies reviews, I will post up another entry on some of the films I have recently saw (some within days of each other). I know I am a little late on this part too, but seeing as how we are just entering into the fall season, my favorite of the film season, I thought I’d write up a report card of the films I have seen so far. Now, I might not include all of the movies I have seen so far, but these are the films/acting/technical work that has struck me as the best/worst of the year so far, and I have to tell you, 2011 is shaping out to be much better than 2010, though there wasn’t a whole lot of competition really. So, with that out of the way, lets get this started:

Biggest Disappointment: Cars 2

Reason: Now, I will admit, this is not the worst film I have seen this year, but being it a Pixar

film, especially after such classics as Toy Story 3 and UP, the bar was set incredibly high. Cars 2 not only didn’t meet the bar, I think it is the weakest of the Pixar filmography, but with their

past films its easier to forgive than other films I have seen.

Final Grade: C

Biggest surprise: Thor

Reason: I almost gave this to Super 8, another film I enjoyed, but that was mostly due to the fact that little was known of the film beforehand and that doesn’t always equal success (District 9 and Inception are the exceptions). However, with Thor, there was a lot that could go wrong, mainly

Marvel trying to get all origin stories out of the way before the Avengers. Needless to say, I felt this was a very strong entry, you don’t get the feeling it was rushed or that they were making this solely because there was an Avengers film coming out. All in all, it was good summer fun.

Final Grade: B+

Best Supporting Actor: Brad Pitt (Tree of Life)

Reason: Brad Pitt brings a strong presence to the film, and I don’t just say that because he was

the only one I knew beforehand. He plays the role of a father who while stern, is still in the end the kind of father who just wishes for his kids to live a life they want to live. Balancing the angelic/

caring ways that is their mother (played wonderfully by Jessica Chastain), the father

represent nature and Pitt does that with grace and, along with Chastain, deserve some awards attention for this wonderful film

Best Supporting Actress: Viola Davis (The Help)

Reason: This was another close one for Jessica Chastain for Tree of Life and even Octavia Spencer for The Help, but Davis is the heart of the film (she shares it with Spencer, but Davis also acts as the voice which is why I give such leniency). I would consider her an Oscar frontrunner, my one qualm is she felt more of a lead than supporting in the film, whether or not that will translate into any trouble come awards season, we will see.

Final Grade: B+

Best Actress: Amy Ryan (Win Win)

Reason: Amy Ryan is a force to be reckoned with in this film. I love this film, I don’t think it will

win many awards, but Amy Ryan is almost as good if not as good as Paul Giammatti is in Win

Win. As a mother forced to take in a child when she learns of the kid’s background, Amy Ryan plays the character with much warmth as well as humor, its hard to not love her in this amazing film.

Best Actor: Paul Giamatti (Win Win)

Reason: This was a hard one because there were two men whom I felt were really effective this year so far in their roles. Points to Jake Gyllenhal for a role that needed some humanity, since we don’t get enough of that in Sci-fi films such as Source Cod. However, I just enjoyed Paul Giamatti’s job in this film so much more, he was so funny, so heartbreaking, such a great performance. This film will surely end up on my year end list for Todd McCarthy’s writing/directing, as well as the amazing performances of both Ryan and especially Giamatti.

Final Grade: A

Worst Film: Battle: Los Angeles

Reason: While I didn’t care for Cars 2, it was leaps and bounds better than Battle Los Angeles. I would talk about the many reasons why I didn’t like it, but honestly I can’t really remember a lot of it, and I think that’s the worst criticism I can make of a film. Aaron Eckhart gave it his best shot, but even he could save this film. I dislike it so that I am actually changing my grade, which was originally a gracious C+

Final Grade: D

Best Film: Tree of Life

Reason: While I loved Win Win and thoroughly enjoyed Source Code, there was just no beating Tree of Life. It is simply a beautiful piece of filmmaking and is one of the closest things to a masterpiece I have seen in years (Hurt Locker is the only film that comes close in recent years honestly). The music, by the legendary Alexandre Desplat, is classical and elegent, much like the film itself. The acting is superb, those three little boys as well as Pitt and Chastain were amazing. Terrence Malick deserves awards attention for his fluid direction and incredible script. The thing I loved most about the film, the part that if it doesn’t win I will give up on the Academy forever, is the Cinematography by Emmanuel Lubezki. I highly doubt I will see any other film this year, or in the next for that matter, that will come close to this masterful work from a legendary director.

A+

Honorable Mention: Win Win, Source Code, X-men: First Class, Super 8

That’s it from me on the half-time report, here’s a list of films I have on my radar come fall, see you there:

1. Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (David Fincher, Daniel Craig, Rooney Mara)

2. Dangerous Method (David Cronenberg, Viggo Mortenson, Michael Fassbender)

3. Corialanus (Ralph Fiennes)

4. J. Edgar (Clint Eastwood, Leo Dicaprio)

5. My Week with Marilyn (Kenneth Brannagh, Michelle Williams)

6. The Adventures of TinTin (Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson)

7. The Descendants (Alexander Payne, George Clooney)

8. Moneyball (Brad Pitt, Aaron Sorkin)

Review: Tree of Life

How do you suppose life began? Was it thanks to the Big Bang? Did an almighty being have something to do with it? Could it be both? We ask these questions a lot, and are never closer to the answer, but we come to a level of acceptance of such ideas. In “Tree of Life,” that is simply what is happening. The legendary Terrence Malick (Thin Red Line) weaves a story about the creation of life itself, but does not take a side. Rather, he shows a balance of such ideas, accepting both as they are, and further represents said ideas in the form of a singular family, a bold move if you ask me.

The story begins with a family mourning the death of their child; the only detail we are truly given of this son is his age. We see one of the brothers, Jack (Sean Penn), still grieving years after his brother’s death, as well as his parent’s reaction. We are then thrown into visuals of the creation of time, with voices throughout discussing faith, evolution, love, life, what have you. We are shown the Big Bang, dinosaurs, and everything in between in a set of visuals that harkens back to A Space Odyssey and even reminded me of Planet Earth, the BBC series.

We are then taken back to the childhood of Jack, as he is raised in two separate ideals, which is the film’s main motif: nature and grace (an allusion to the conflicting ideas of evolution and creation). The father (Brad Pitt) represents nature and the mother (Jessica Chastain), represents grace. We see most of the film in the viewpoint of the children, as they are taught about life’s greatest values through the two conflicting influences that are their parents. Which side will they choose? Do they have to choose a side? Is accepting either side a wrong choice?

This is, quite possibly, the most beautiful film I have ever seen. It’s a cheaply made film, well for the visuals anyway, around 32 million. It is an artistic masterpiece, everything happens for a reason. The music adds a certain angelic tone to the film, which is further aided by the equally angelic Jessica Chastain. Brad Pitt has come a long way from 12 monkeys and other such films, this is his strongest performance I have seen. Emanuel Lubezki, the cinematographer who often works with Alfonso Cuaron (one of my favorite directors) and was robbed of a win for Children of Men in particular, is the true champion of the film (aside Malick himself). I am not only putting him on my list for an Oscar nomination, I am giving him the win right now. I have never seen a film crafted so magnificently as this, it’s the closest to a masterpiece I have ever seen.

Mr. Lubezki isn’t the only champion here, however. Terrence Malick, a perfectionist known for creating what many critics consider “masterpieces,” wrote and directed a truly magnificent work of art. He takes his time with his shots, which some may consider being a weakness of the film, but I think it truly works. There isn’t an actual plot/goal to the film, its simply the showing, in an almost documentary feel, of creation as seen in a single household. It’s truly an exceptional piece of work.

The film won the Palm d’or (Cannes version of Best Picture), but it has received its share of applause and boos. I see this film as being considered a controversial film, which is understandable. I see this as a film accepting of both ideas, not discrediting either. It tells us that life is beautiful and it should be treasured. “The less you love, the more life will pass you by.” I doubt I will see a film that will be better than this, it is truly an excellent, near-perfect piece of filmmaking.

Jack’s Grade: A+