If I Were The Academy...

If I was the sole member of the Academy, what would the nominations and winners look like from movies that I saw last year?  Something like this:

 
BEST PICTURE
12 Years A Slave
The Conjuring
Despicable Me 2
Gravity
Lee Daniel’s The Butler
Saving Mr. Banks------------------------------->WINNER
Silver Linings Playbook
The Spectacular Now
Star Trek Into Darkness
Zero Dark Thirty


BEST ACTOR
Bradley Cooper, Silver Linings Playbook
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf of Wall Street
Chiwetel Ejiofar, 12 Years A Slave
Robert Redford, All Is Lost
Forest Whitaker, Lee Daniels’ The Butler---->WINNER


BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
George Clooney, Gravity
Benedict Cumberbatch, Star Trek Into Darkness
Michael Fassbender, 12 Years A Slave-------->WINNER
Tom Hanks, Saving Mr. Banks
Rob Reiner, The Wolf of Wall Street


BEST ACTRESS
Sandra Bullock, Gravity
Jessica Chastain, Zero Dark Thirty
Adele Exarchopolous, Blue Is The Warmest Color
Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook
Emma Thompson, Saving Mr. Banks----------->WINNER


BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Vera Farmiga, The Conjuring
Melissa Leo, Prisoners
Melissa McCarthy, The Heat
Sarah Paulson, 12 Years A Slave
Lea Seydoux, Blue Is The Warmest Color------>WINNER

BEST FILM EDITING
All Is Lost
Gravity------------------------------------------------>WINNER
Silver Linings Playbook
The Wolf of Wall Street
Zero Dark Thirty


BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Blue Is The Warmest Color------------------------->WINNER (by default)


BEST COSTUME DESIGN
12 Years A Slave
American Hustle
The Conjuring
The Great Gatsby
The Hobbit:  The Desolation of Smaug----------->WINNER

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
12 Years A Slave
The Great Gatsby
The Hobbit:  The Desolation of Smaug------------>WINNER
The Conjuring
Star Trek Into Darkness


BEST ANIMATED SHORT
The Blue Umbrella------------------------------------>WINNER
Get A Horse!


BEST MAKE UP
The Hobbit:  The Desolation of Smaug
Jackass Presents:  Bad Grandpa
Lee Daniels' The Butler------------------------------->WINNER
The Lone Ranger
Star Trek Into Darkness


BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
12 Years A Slave
All Is Lost
Gravity--------------------------------------------------->WINNER
To The Wonder
Saving Mr. Banks


BEST ORIGINAL SONG
Do You Want To Build A Snowman? - Frozen
In Summer– Frozen------------------------------------->WINNER


BEST SOUND
All Is Lost
Gravity---------------------------------------------------->WINNER
The Hobbit:  The Desolation of Smaug
Star Trek Into Darkness
Zero Dark Thirty


BEST DOCUMENTARY
Blackfish------------------------------------------------->WINNER (by default)


BEST ANIMATED MOVIE
The Croods
Despicable Me 2---------------------------------------->WINNER
Frozen


BEST ORIGINAL
All Is Lost
The Conjuring
Elysium
Gravity--------------------------------------------------->WINNER
Lee Daniels’ The Butler


BEST ADAPTATION
12 Years A Slave---------------------------------------->WINNER
Silver Linings Playbook
Star Trek Into Darkness
The Spectacular Now
The Wolf of Wall Street


BEST DIRECTOR
Kathryn Bigelow, Zero Dark Thirty
J.C. Chandor, All Is Lost
Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity------------------------------->WINNER
John Lee Hancock, Saving Mr. Banks
David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook


BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
12 Years A Slave
All Is Lost
Gravity---------------------------------------------------->WINNER
The Hobbit:  The Desolation of Smaug
Only God Forgives


BEST SPECIAL EFFECTS
Elysium
Evil Dead
Gravity--------------------------------------------------->WINNER
Iron Man 3
Star Trek Into Darkness

Best Picture - 2012

Looking at previous Best Picture nominees continues with the 2012 nominees.

'Amour' (PG-13)

Georges (Jean-Louis Trintignant) and Anne (Emmanuelle Riva) are an octogenarian couple. They are cultivated, retired music teachers. Their daughter, also a musician, lives in Britain with her family. One day, Anne has a stroke, and the couple's bond of love is severely tested.

I rented this a month ago so that I'd be able to do this post.  I know it came to the smaller movie theater in Muncie at some point in time but I didn't really have any interest in seeing it and it was way before awards season. 

Well...I had issues with this movie.  It's a bit pretentious.  At times the pacing is slower than molasses.  The title is the French word for 'love' but it really didn't feel like this couple was in love or loved each other at any point.  Their daughter Eva (Isabelle Huppert) wants to help, but Georges refuses.  And then there's the ending, which the very beginning of the movie practically gives away.  Let's just say right-to-die activists would praise this ending.  Everyone else, myself included, would call it murder.

Now Emmanuelle Riva does put in a very good performance as an elderly woman who's physical and mental abilities are draining day by day.  Having seen that happen to a few of my great grandparents, I could relate to this performance having seen it in real life.  But this performance is the only thing I can praise about 'Amour'.  In my opinion the movie itself did not deserve any of it's awards or nominations, apart from what was given to Riva. 

OSCAR WON:  Best Foreign Language Film (Austria)
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Director - Michael Haneke, Best Actress - Emmanuelle Riva, Best Original Screenplay - Michael Haneke

'Argo' (R)
Acting under the cover of a Hollywood producer scouting a location for a science fiction film, CIA agent Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck, who also directs) launches a dangerous operation to rescue six Americans in Tehran during the U.S. hostage crisis in Iran in 1980.

Even though you can probably guess the ending to this movie, I still thought it was a very good movie.  When Affleck is in Iran trying to get the six Americans out under the guise of being a Canadian film crew, it's very suspenseful.  One false move and they'll all be killed.  When it cuts back to Hollywood and follows Alan Arkin as a producer and John Goodman as a make up artist, it's pretty funny as they constantly have to talk about 'Argo' as if it was an actual movie in production and not a cover-up for a CIA operation.  The acting is also really good, and it's fun watching anything that's set in the 1980's. 

OSCARS WON:  Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay - Chris Terrio, Best Film Editing
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Supporting Actor - Alan Arkin, Best Original Score, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing

'Beasts of the Southern Wild' (PG-13)
Faced with both her hot-tempered father's (Dwight Henry) fading health and melting ice-caps that flood her ramshackle bayou community and unleash ancient aurochs, six-year-old Hushpuppy (Quvenzhane Wallis) must learn the ways of courage and love.

I've seen this movie twice.  The first time I got it from Redbox shortly after nominations had come out.  The second time was on a double date, with my ex-girlfriend's best friend/roommate renting it from Redbox and bringing it back to their house so that she, her date, myself, and my ex could all watch it.

Both times honestly I kinda question why this was as acclaimed as it was.  It's not a bad movie by any means.  Quvenzhane Wallis was really good, but outside of her performance there isn't a whole lot I can recommend.  My main problem with the movie was the way that Hushpuppy was treated by her father.  Apart from being close to the other members of their community, they are the only family that each other has.  He yells at her, swears at her, they live in separate run down trailers, she's largely on her own, and often her dad tells her to go back home.  I just couldn't get into a movie like this.  And I also couldn't tell if the ancient aurochs were real or were just in Hushpuppy's imagination.  I think she's only imagining them, but at the same time I don't know.  

OSCARS WON:  None
NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Director - Benh Zeitlin, Best Actress - Quvenzhane Wallis, Best Adapted Screenplay - Lucy Alibar and Benh Zeitlin

'Django Unchained' (R)
With the help of a German bounty hunter (Christoph Waltz), a freed slave (Jamie Foxx) sets out to rescue his wife (Kerry Washington) from a brutal Mississippi plantation owner (Leonardo DiCaprio).

Saw this a few days after it was released in theaters.  It was released on Christmas Day.  December 26 I went with my family to see the first 'The Hobbit' movie.  December 27 I went to go see 'Les Miserables' by myself.  December 28 I went to go see this movie, also by myself. 

Anyway, much like how 'Inglourious Basterds' was "World War II According To Quentin Tarantino", this movie is "Slavery In America According To Quentin Tarantino".  Slavery was brutal and horrifying, but Quentin Tarantino takes it up a notch.  By far the bloodiest western I've seen.  But having said all of that, this is a pretty good movie.  The acting is great, from Jamie Foxx as the silent Western hero type character to Leonardo DiCaprio's villainous plantation owner.  The cinematography is also great.  Often this movie is also very funny.  I could've done without some of the more anachronistic music but that's a minor complaint.

After the movie was already released and I returned to school from winter break I read a review of this movie in the school newspaper, The Ball State Daily News.  The person wrote a negative review of the movie, mainly citing how the movie was so overbearing that it distracts from any message the movie was trying to say.  The person cited the "Mandingo Fighting" that was depicted in the movie.  Since Mandingo Fighting didn't actually exist, the person wondered why it was even included in the movie.  The person concluded that it was only in the movie so that Tarantino could catch the audiences eye with it. 

In my opinion, I do partially agree with that conclusion in that it certainly does seem like it's only in their to get our attention, which indeed the rather vicious fight does.  But I also think that Tarantino's inclusion of Mandingo Fighting was his way of showing how brutal the treatment of slaves was back then, in an over the top way.  This is by no means an accurate or realistic depiction of Slavery in America.  For a far more realistic depiction, watch '12 Years A Slave'.  'Django Unchained' is supposed to be historical fiction, after all.  Following this logic this person might have an issue with Hitler being shot in a burning movie theater in 'Inglourious Basterds'.  After all, World War II didn't end that way and Hitler didn't die that way, so why put it in the movie? 

OSCARS WON:  Best Supporting Actor - Christoph Waltz, Best Original Screenplay - Quentin Tarantino
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Sound Editing, Best Cinematography

'Les Miserables' (PG-13)
In 19th-century France, Jean Valjean (Hugh Jackman), who for decades has been hunted by the ruthless policeman Javert (Russell Crowe) after breaking parole, agrees to care for a factory worker's daughter. The decision changes their lives for ever.

I first heard of 'Les Miserables' when my high school drama department put it on as their spring musical.  I saw it so that I could get extra credit in English class.  I didn't know much about the story going into it, but I absolutely loved it.  I was thoroughly invested in the many story lines, the songs were pretty good...it was and still is the best production of any play or musical that I saw throughout my high school experience.  I knew there was already a few movies of it, but when I heard they were adapting this musical into a movie, I was excited. 

And it did not disappoint.  I loved this movie.  It was my favorite movie from 2012.  I've watched this movie many many times since.  What can be said that hasn't already been said about this version of 'Les Miserables'?  I was so invested in the movie and was greatly enjoying virtually every aspect of this movie that the things that could have bothered me didn't really bother me.  From the performances to the songs, to the cinematography to the costumes and makeup, everything is great.  Sure, Russell Crowe isn't exactly the best singer in the world, but it works for the character.  And who knew that Hugh Jackman and Anne Hathaway could sing so well? 

OSCARS WON:  Best Supporting Actress - Anne Hathaway, Best Sound Mixing, Best Makeup and Hairstyling
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Actor - Hugh Jackman, Best Original Song - "Suddenly", Best Production Design

'Life of Pi' (PG)
A young man who survives a disaster at sea is hurtled into an epic journey of adventure and discovery. While cast away, he forms an unexpected connection with another survivor: a fearsome Bengal tiger.  Based on the novel by Yann Martel.

I haven't read the book.  I went to see it because I heard it was really good and that it was worth seeing in 3D.  And indeed the 3D for this movie was great and was one of the few movies I've seen in the past few years where the 3D was worth it.  The special effects were also top notch.  My only complaint is that there's a scene towards the end of the movie that makes you question whether or not the previous events you just saw actually happened or were just a different variation of events that really happened. 

OSCARS WON:  Best Director - Ang Lee, Best Original Score, Best Cinematography, Best Visual Effects
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay - David Magee, Best Original Song - "Pi's Lullaby", Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Production Design, Best Film Editing

'Lincoln' (PG-13)
As the Civil War continues to rage, America's president (Daniel Day-Lewis) struggles with continuing carnage on the battlefield and as he fights with many inside his own cabinet and his own party in Congress on the decision to emancipate the slaves with the Thirteenth Amendment.

If you know me you know that I love history, specifically U.S. history.  But more specifically, the U.S. Presidency.  So a movie about Abraham Lincoln is right up my alley.  I was really looking forward to this movie.  So on opening weekend I woke up early on Saturday, walked to the nearest Chase ATM, then walked all the way across campus and then some to my car at the football stadium to drive over to the theater.   

Well...the movie is very well made.  It's great visually.  The acting is great, particularly Daniel Day-Lewis as he pretty much embodies Abraham Lincoln.  Heck, they might as well have just handed him the Best Actor Oscar as soon as the above poster was first released.  But other than that...this movie can get really dry.  It's two and a half hours long and it definitely feels like it.   

OSCARS WON:  Best Actor - Daniel Day-Lewis, Best Production Design
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Director - Steven Spielberg, Best Supporting Actor - Tommy Lee Jones, Best Supporting Actress - Sally Field, Best Adapted Screenplay - Tony Kushner, Best Original Score, Best Sound Mixing, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Film Editing

'Silver Linings Playbook' (R)
After a stint in a mental institution, former teacher Pat Solitano (Bradley Cooper) moves back in with his parents (Robert DeNiro and Jacki Weaver) and tries to reconcile with his ex-wife. Things get more challenging when Pat meets Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence), a mysterious girl with problems of her own.  Based on the novel by Matthew Quick.

I've written plenty about this movie.  Great acting all around and the movie perfectly balances between being very funny and being very serious when necessary.  By far the best of the three movies I've seen from David O. Russell.  

OSCAR WON:  Best Actress - Jennifer Lawrence
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Director - David O. Russell, Best Actor - Bradley Cooper, Best Supporting Actor - Robert De Niro, Best Supporting Actress - Jacki Weaver, Best Adapted Screenplay - David O. Russell, Best Film Editing

 

'Zero Dark Thirty' (R)
Kathryn Bigelow's follow up to 'The Hurt Locker' is a chronicle of the decade-long hunt for al-Qaeda terrorist leader Osama Bin Laden after the September 2001 attacks, and his death at the hands of the Navy S.E.A.L. Team 6 in May 2011.

The movie originally was centered on the unsuccessful efforts to find Bin Laden.  The script was already completed and filming was about to begin when the news of Bin Laden's death came about.  So screenwriter Mark Boal and director Kathryn Bigelow decided to scrap their script and start from scratch. 

I've written about this already, but even though I knew how it was gonna end I still thought it was very suspenseful with a very strong lead performance from Jessica Chastain.  It is a little bit of a long sit and sometimes a little difficult to watch, but if you have the time I do highly recommend watching this one.

OSCARS WON:  Best Sound Editing (tie with 'Skyfall')
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Actress - Jessica Chastain, Best Original Screenplay - Mark Boal, Best Film Editing

Best Picture - 2011

Continuing on with 2011's nominees.

'The Artist' (PG-13)
Silent movie star George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) meets young dancer Peppy Miller (Berenice Bejo), but the arrival of talking pictures sends their careers in opposite directions.

I really haven't seen many silent movies, so this was an experience for me.  Heck, the only other (mostly) silent movie I've seen was Mel Brooks' 1976 satire 'Silent Movie', which I thought had it's moments but it mostly just kinda dragged.  I saw 'The Artist' after the nominations had come out so I knew about all the hype and acclaim going into it.  But with it being silent and in black and white, I didn't really know what to expect.  I've seen enough shows and movies that do side jokes to how black and white silent movies were so I knew some of those tropes going into this.

This was a great movie.  And honestly, if I hadn't recognized a few of the more well known actors in this movie (such as John Goodman, James Cromwell, and Malcolm McDowell) you could have told me this movie was made in the 1930s and if I hadn't known better I might have believed you.  It perfectly recreates that style of movie.  In addition to that it's also very funny, has a sweet romantic subplot, and handles the more dramatic aspects of its story well.  It introduced American audiences to Jean Dujardin, who since winning the Best Actor Oscar has been in supporting roles in 'The Wolf of Wall Street' and 'The Monuments Men'.

This deserved all the acclaim that it had been getting.  This is on Netflix and I highly, highly, highly recommend this movie. 

 OSCARS WON:  Best Picture, Best Director - Michel Hazanavicius, Best Actor - Jean Dujardin, Best Original Score, Best Costume Design
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Supporting Actress - Berenice Bejo, Best Original Screenplay - Michel Hazanavicius, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing

'The Descendants' (R)
Based on the book by Kaui Hart Hemmings.  Land baron Matt King (George Clooney) tries to reconnect with his two daughters (Shailene Woodley and Amara Miller) after his wife is seriously injured in a boating accident and it's discovered she was cheating on him.

I remember going to see this in theaters right after I got out of my night class.  I had a cold at the time so I sat in the theater with one of my hands awkwardly in front of my nose just so I could breath out of my nose right.


Anyway, this was the first of Alexander Payne's movies that I've seen.  Over all I thought it was pretty good with another great performance from George Clooney and nicely balances between light hearted comedy and drama.  It was the big screen debut for Shailene Woodley, who has since gone on to 'The Spectacular Now' and will next be seen in the adaptations 'Divergent' and 'The Fault In Our Stars'.  Yep, that's all I got for this movie. 

OSCAR WON:  Best Adapted Screenplay - Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon and Jim Nash
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Director - Alexander Payne, Best Actor - George Clooney, Best Film Editing

'Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close' (PG-13)
A nine-year-old amateur inventor, Francophile, and pacifist Oskar Schell (Thomas Horn) searches New York City for the lock that matches a mysterious key left behind by his father Thomas (Tom Hanks), who died in the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.  Based on the book by Jonathan Safran Foer.

The trailer for this almost had me in tears.  It had a limited release in December 2011 to qualify for awards before being released nationwide in January 2012.  The limited release reviews were extremely mixed.  Some praised it, others hated it, some claimed it was Oscar bait, others simply thought the book was better.  I've never read the book so I can't really compare it to the movie.

The movie...overall was good with great supporting performances from Max von Sydow as a mysterious mute man and Tom Hanks as Oskar's father.  But there was one huge thing that greatly hindered this movie:  The character of Oskar.  This was former 'Kid Jeopardy!' champion Thomas Horn's acting debut, so I won't berate him.  But I'll berate this character.  This character is insufferable.  He's rude, he's annoying, and he's a brat.  I know in the movie at one point he does comment that he was tested for Asperger's but that the results were inconclusive.  I should be sympathetic towards this character...instead he makes me angry.  The final nail in the coffin where I immediately wrote this character off and couldn't buy it anymore was when Oskar tells his mother (Sandra Bullock) that he wishes that it was her in the towers instead of his father.  Sorry, not buying it.  I could rant awhile over this, but I have six other movies to talk about for this post.

On a final note, I still feel that Max von Sydow should have won Best Supporting Actor over Christopher Plummer (who won for 'Beginners'...I'll talk about that movie some other time). 


OSCARS WON:  None
NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor - Max von Sydow

'The Help' (PG-13)
An aspiring author (Emma Stone) during the civil rights movement of the 1960s decides to write a book detailing the African-American maids' point of view on the white families for which they work, and the hardships they go through on a daily basis.  Based on the novel by Kathryn Stockett.

Every Friday at Ball State University the University Program Board puts on 'Friday Night Filmworks', showing movies that have already been to theaters but haven't came out on DVD yet.  Usually I go if I hadn't seen the movie, and that was the case with 'The Help'.  I hadn't seen it, so I decided to walk over to Pruis Hall after work and watch this movie.  It was a packed auditorium, and with almost 500 people in attendance and 'The Help' clocking in at almost two and a half hours, it got hot in that place.

But anyway, what did I think of this movie?  Honestly it was pretty good, driven by the lead performances of Emma Stone and Viola Davis.  The drama never gets too heavy handed, and sometimes it actually is kinda funny.  One scene is a but gross, but it's also pretty funny (let's just say it involves a pie).  From what I've read about that time period the movie appeared to be a good depiction of how things actually were back then.  My only complaint is that the movie is a little too long, but that's a minor complaint to what otherwise was a very good movie.

OSCAR WON:  Best Supporting Actress - Octavia Spencer
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Actress - Viola Davis, Best Supporting Actress - Jessica Chastain

'Hugo' (PG)
Set in 1930s Paris, an orphan (Asa Butterfield) who lives in the walls of a train station is wrapped up in a mystery involving his late father (Jude Law) and an automaton.  He also gets in trouble with the Station Inspector (Sacha Baron Cohen) and befriends Isabelle (Chloe Grace Moretz), the goddaughter of the toymaker (Ben Kingsley) who he has been stealing mechanical parts from.  Based on the novel 'The Invention of Hugo Cabret' by Brian Selznick.

Saw this in theaters after I kept hearing about all the critical acclaim that it was getting.  And indeed, this was a wonderful movie.  Good acting, GREAT 3D, and as the movies goes on it becomes a love letter to the first motion pictures ever made.  Not only is it the first 3D movie Martin Scorsese has made but also his first family movie.  Well, this was a short review.   

OSCARS WON:  Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Visual Effects
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Director - Martin Scorsese, Best Adapted Screenplay - John Logan, Best Original Score, Best Costume Design, Best Film Editing

 'Midnight In Paris' (PG-13)
While on a trip to Paris with his fiancée's family, nostalgic screenwriter Gil Pender (Owen Wilson) finds himself mysteriously going back to the 1920s every day at midnight.

Rented this from Redbox just before 2011 ended so I could count this among the movies I had seen in 2011.  This was the first Woody Allen movie I've seen, and three years later it's still the only Woody Allen movie I've seen apart from a few scenes from 'Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Sex (But Were Afraid To Ask)'.  But as far as 'Midnight In Paris' goes, I will say this:  It is a wonderfully original movie.  It's interesting to see all of the various famous people he meets in the 1920's, such as Ernest Hemingway, Salvador Dali and F. Scott Fitzgerald among others.  The performances for the most part are particularly good, although Marion Cotillard as Adriana, Picasso's mistress and eventually Gil's love interest.  The movie is occasionally amusing but I wasn't exactly laughing out loud. 


OSCARS WON:  Best Original Screenplay - Woody Allen
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Director - Woody Allen, Best Art Direction

 'Moneyball' (PG-13)
Based on the true story of Oakland A's general manager Billy Beane's (Brad Pitt) successful attempt to assemble a baseball team on a lean budget by employing computer-generated analysis to acquire new players.  With Jonah Hill as the analyst who gives this idea to Billy Beane, the late Philip Seymour Hoffman as the manager of the Oakland A's, and Chris Pratt as a player who is brought into the A's under this new system.

The first time I saw this movie I thought it was way too long and dragged out and I was wondering why it was getting the acclaim that it was getting.  I then saw 'Drive' later that day which was a much better movie and all was well.

I've seen 'Drive' once.  But 'Moneyball' I've seen many times since, and each time I watch it it just gets better and better.  Honestly every aspect of the movie just becomes better and better upon repeated viewings.  And it doesn't feel dragged out and it actually becomes interesting.  How Billy Beane primarily became a general manager after his own MLB playing career fizzled after being a phenom in high school.  How he won't watch the games or attend them, and how he gets angry often.  Jonah Hill's nomination is a bit of a head scratcher as he doesn't do or say a whole lot during the movie but it is nice to see him in something not raunchy for once. 

OSCARS WON:  None
NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Actor - Brad Pitt, Best Supporting Actor - Jonah Hill, Best Adapted Screenplay - Steve Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin, Best Sound Mixing, Best Film Editing

 'The Tree of Life' (PG-13)
Inter cut between the present day, Texas in 1956, the creation of the universe, dinosaurs, the eventual destruction of the universe, and the afterlife. In 1956, the eldest son witnesses the loss of innocence and struggles with his parents' conflicting teachings.  His mother (Jessica Chastain) is a free spirit and caring.  His father (Brad Pitt) is stern and demanding.  In the present and now late middle aged (Sean Penn), he deals with the loss of his brother.

Technically, there is no narrative, mostly just piecing together scenes that follow the theme of life.  I was in awe over this movie when I rented it from Redbox.  The camera work and special effects for this moving are AMAZING.  It truly is a visual treat.  The acting and the musical score were also superb.  Chastain should've been nominated for this role instead of her role in 'The Help'.  Could an actual linear storyline have made the movie even better?  Perhaps.  But it's great the way it is.   

OSCARS WON:  None
NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Director - Terrence Malick, Best Cinematography

'War Horse' (PG-13)
The tale of a horse named Joey, who is bought by a poor farmer and despite being a thoroughbred is trained to plough the field's by the farmer's son Albert (Jeremy Irvine).  The two bond together, but World War I separates the two as Joey is sold to the British army.  The movie follows Joey's journey through World War I as he eventually winds up in France, and eventually under German hands.  Also features Tom Hiddleston and Benedict Cumberbatch as British army officers.  Based on the children's book and stage play of the same name.

The first trailer came out for this and to me it just screamed 'OSCAR BAIT'.  I had no intentions of seeing this...until it got nominated for Best Picture.  Saw this the same week I saw 'The Artist' and 'The Descendants'.  I try to go into every movie I see with an open mind, but perhaps my 'Oscar Bait' mindset for this movie was still there as I sat through all 2 and a half hours of 'War Horse'.

It's....okay.  Perhaps that mindset was still there as scene after scene happened and I just kept telling myself 'Okay...now what?'.  There were people in the theater bawling there eyes out by the end of the movie.  I wasn't one of them.  Now, is it a bad movie?  Not by any stretch of the imagination.  The whole movie has kind of an old-fashioned quality to it.  Can't quite explain that fully, but this looks and feels like it could've been released in the 60's or 70's.  Now one thing I can say positive about the movie is the cinematography.  It's great to look at.  Other than that, I've got nothing else for 'War Horse'. 


OSCARS WON:  None
NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Original Score, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography

Best Picture - 2010

Continuing on with my look at previous Best Picture nominees with the nominees from 2010.

'127 Hours' (R)
Based on a true story, mountain climber Aron Ralston (James Franco) becomes trapped under a boulder while canyoneering alone near Moab, Utah and resorts to desperate measures in order to survive.  From Danny Boyle, the Academy Award winning director of 'Slumdog Millionaire'.

This is one I rented from Redbox almost a month after the Oscars because that's when it finally became available.  So by then I already knew about how James Franco bombed as co-host of the Oscars.  Watching this did I think of all that?  Perhaps, because while it is based on a true story I had a very hard time trying to take this seriously.  From Franco hallucinating a giant blown up Scooby-Doo, doing his own "radio show" trying to keep his spirits up, drinking his own urine, the 'Operation' sound effects during the amputation scene....yeah.  I could go on and on.  It's not a bad movie by any means. 

OSCARS WON:  None
NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Actor - James Franco, Best Adapted Screenplay - Danny Boyle and Simon Beaufoy, Best Original Score, Best Original Song - "If I Rise", Best Film Editing

'Black Swan' (R)
A ballet dancer (Natalie Portman) wins the lead in "Swan Lake" and is perfect for the role of the delicate White Swan - Princess Odette - but slowly loses her mind as she becomes more and more like Odile, the Black Swan.

This is a very good movie.  It's very well acted by Natalie Portman, well shot, and often it's just downright creepy and messes with your mind.  It makes you question if certain things are actually happening or if it's all just in Natalie Portman's head.  She deserved her Oscar for this performance.  Yep, that's pretty much all I've got to say about 'Black Swan'.    

OSCAR WON:  Best Actress - Natalie Portman
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Director - Darren Aronofsky, Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing

'The Fighter' (R)
A look at the early years of boxer "Irish" Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg) and his brother Dicky Eklund (Christian Bale) who helped train him before going pro in the mid 1980s.

The first movie I've seen directed by David O. Russell, who has movies that I'll be talking about for the 2012 nominees and my wrap-up of 2013's nominees after the Oscars on Monday.  So what did I think of 'The Fighter'?  The acting in this movie is great.  Christian Bale constantly gains and loses weight for roles, and in this he's so skinny he really does look like the crack addict that his character is supposed to be.  Mark Wahlberg and Amy Adams are also great too.  And honestly the acting is the only thing I really liked about it.  It's slow and I just couldn't really get invested in the story.

Bale deserved his Oscar.  I still believe that Hailee Steinfeld from 'True Grit' should have win over Melissa Leo in this movie. 

OSCARS WON:  Best Supporting Actor - Christian Bale, Best Supporting Actress - Melissa Leo
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Director - David O. Russell, Best Original Screenplay - Scott Silver and Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson, Best Film Editing

'Inception' (PG-13)
Skilled extractor Dom (Leonardo DiCaprio) is offered a chance to regain his old life as payment for a task considered to be impossible.

Christopher Nolan's follow up to 'The Dark Knight' brought us to the world of dreams.  It's very well acted, shot well, the score by Hans Zimmer is now copied in almost every trailer for any blockbuster I've seen since, and the special effects look extremely realistic.  It gets complicated amid all the "dreams within dreams", but for the most part it's easy to follow along to...until the final 20 seconds of the movie that makes you question everything that you just saw previously.  In the theater there was one big collective groan right as the movie cut to black and the credits started rolling. 

OSCARS WON:  Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Cinematography, Best Visual Effects
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay - Christopher Nolan, Best Original Score, Best Art Direction

'The Kids Are All Right' (R)
Two children (Mia Wasikowska and Josh Hutcherson) conceived by artificial insemination to two lesbian parents (Annette Bening and Julianne Moore) bring their biological father (Mark Ruffalo) into their family life.

Rented this one from Redbox shortly after the nominations came out.  I chuckled every now and then and thought that overall it was okay but I had two thoughts in my mind:

1. This got nominated for all these awards?  Really?  Honestly, I didn't think it should've been nominated at all.
2. If it was about a straight couple instead of a lesbian couple, this would not have gotten as much acclaim as it did.                 

OSCARS WON:  None
NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Actress - Annette Bening, Best Supporting Actor - Mark Ruffalo, Best Original Screenplay - Lisa Cholodenko and Stuart Blumberg

 'The King's Speech' (R)
The story of King George VI (Colin Firth) of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, his impromptu ascension to the throne and the speech therapist Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush) who helped the unsure monarch become worthy of it.

Saw this shortly after the nominations came out and awards momentum had begun starting to build in favor of 'King's Speech'.  I thought it was very good, with a strong lead performance by Colin Firth.  Sometimes it gets a bit heavy handed with it's more dramatic scenes, but those didn't bother me a whole lot.  But between that it is an inspirational story.  And sometimes the movie is quite funny,  particularly the scene where King George has to shout a barrage of f-words and other British vulgarities after Lionel Logue notices that King George doesn't stammer when he swears.  That scene alone is why this movie is Rated R with no other objectionable content other than that scene of profanities.

I'll probably mention this again for the next movie, but 'The Social Network' was winning awards left and right until the Director's Guild of America awarded Tom Hooper as Best Director for 'King's Speech' and then the momentum swung in this movies favor for the rest of awards season.  As soon as 'King's Speech' won I immediately thought that it was overrated and that 'Social Network' should have won.

I'll have another Tom Hooper movie to talk about for the 2012 nominees. 

OSCARS WON:  Best Picture, Best Director - Tom Hooper, Best Actor - Colin Firth, Best Original Screenplay - David Seidler,
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Supporting Actor - Geoffrey Rush, Best Supporting Actress - Helena Bonham Carter, Best Original Score, Best Sound Mixing, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Film Editing

'The Social Network' (PG-13)
Harvard student Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) creates the social networking site that would become known as Facebook, but is later sued by two brothers (Armie Hammer) who claimed he stole their idea, and the cofounder (Andrew Garfield) who was later squeezed out of the business.

Sure some people might scoff at the fact that this is a movie about the creation of Facebook.  But those people really should give this movie a chance.  It is a great movie.  Sure it is about the creation of Facebook, but it goes a lot deeper than that.  Twisting and turning themes of greed, friendship, and betrayal as one man (allegedly) puts himself at the top and discards those who he feels he's better than and no longer needs after he's done with them.

This was getting critical acclaim and was winning awards left and right throughout late 2010 and early 2011.  That is, until late January came along and 'The King's Speech' then started to pick up awards left and right and as stated earlier won Best Picture.  I knew it was probably going to lose to 'King's Speech''s sudden awards momentum, but I was still a bit mad when it won over this movie.  I even bought this on DVD because of frustrated I was. 

OSCARS WON:  Best Adapted Screenplay - Aaron Sorkin, Best Original Score, Best Film Editing
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Director - David Fincher, Best Actor - Jesse Eisenberg, Best Sound Mixing, Best Cinematography

 'Toy Story 3' (G)
The toys are mistakenly delivered to a day-care center instead of the attic right before Andy leaves for college, and it's up to Woody to convince the other toys that they weren't abandoned and to return home.

Only the third animated movie to be nominated for Best Picture, after 'Beauty and the Beast' and 'Up'.   It is Pixar's highest grossing movie to date, and the only animated movie to gross over $1 billion worldwide.  What can I say that already hasn't been said about 'Toy Story 3'?  You'll laugh out loud, you'll cry, it's a great conclusion to honestly one of the better film trilogies out there.  It was my favorite movie from 2010, and I can watch it constantly and never get tired of it.  And to be perfectly honest, with how I feel about this movie combined with how the ending of the movie plays out, I don't want a 'Toy Story 4'.  This trilogy is perfect as is. 

OSCARS WON:  Best Animated Feature, Best Original Song - "We Belong Together"
ALSO NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay - Michael Arndt, Best Sound Editing

 'True Grit' (PG-13)
A tough U.S. Marshal (Jeff Bridges) helps a stubborn young woman (Hailee Steinfeld) track down her father's murderer (Josh Brolin).

The first western to have been nominated for Best Picture since 1992's 'Unforgiven'.  This was a great movie that in my opinion belongs with other classic westerns.  Great cinematography, great performances...The Coen Brothers knock this one way out of the park.  I'll have more about this when I do my post about remakes.

OSCARS WON:  None
NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Director - Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, Best Actor - Jeff Bridges, Best Supporting Actress - Hailee Steinfeld, Best Adapted Screenplay - Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design

'Winter's Bone' (R)
An unflinching Ozark Mountain girl (Jennifer Lawrence) hacks through dangerous social terrain as she hunts down her drug-dealing father while trying to keep her family intact.

I got this from Redbox after the Oscars had already happened and simply put I severely disliked this movie.  It was BORING.  Glaciers move at a quicker pace than this movie.  Since I was bored to tears, it was awfully hard to get invested.  Is anything really all that bad about it?  Not really.  I mean the acting is fine and it has the potential to be an interesting...but man is it hard to sit through.  On the plus side, it was Jennifer Lawrence's breakout role.  Not her first, but it's the one that put her on the map.   

OSCARS WON:  None
NOMINATED FOR:  Best Picture, Best Actress - Jennifer Lawrence, Best Supporting Actor - John Hawkins, Best Adapted Screenplay - Debra Granik and Anne Rosellini

Random Stuff and Updates

Lots of things to talk about today.



The Fantastic Four is the latest superhero franchise to receive the reboot treatment and the cast for the titular heroes was recently revealed.

• Reed Richards/Mr. Fantasic - Miles Teller ('The Spectacular Now', 'That Awkward Moment', the 'Footloose' remake, '21 & Over', 'Project X')
• Sue Storm/The Invisible Woman - Kate Mara ("House of Cards")
• Johnny Storm/The Human Torch - Michael B. Jordan ('Chronicle', 'Fruitvale Station', 'That Awkward Moment')
• Ben Grimm/The Thing - Jamie Bell ('King Kong', 'The Adventures of Tintin')

I have no problem with a reboot of Fantastic Four.  The first two 'Fantastic Four' movies really aren't that good although the second is better than the first.  My only reaction to the casting was that all of these people are good actors...but I can't really see any of them in any of these roles.  But from what I hear the reboot will be based on the Ultimate Fantastic Four storyline, which features a younger version of the titular heroes so the younger cast makes sense.  Much like Ben Affleck as Batman in the Batman/Superman movie, I'll hold off on judgement until a finally see a production pic.

Currently, 'The Fantastic Four' will be heading to theaters June 19, 2015. 


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TRAILERS
Trailers that I recently watched on YouTube that I haven't seen in theaters yet.

'Son of God' - Remember that miniseries "The Bible" that came out last year on the History Channel?  Well, 'Son of God' is the trimmed down version of the miniseries that focuses solely on Jesus Christ.  Truth be told it doesn't look bad.  My only thing is if you've seen the miniseries or you own the miniseries then you've already seen the movie.

'Guardians of the Galaxy' - The next entry in Phase 2 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the one that precedes the 'Avengers' sequel.  The trailer looks like it could be a lot of fun. 

'Heaven Is For Real' - Remember the incredible story a few years back where a boy had a near death experience, said he visited Heaven, and co-wrote a book about his experience?  Well that book gets the big screen treatment from the director of 'We Were Soldiers' and 'The Man In The Iron Mask'.  Truth be told, sure it does look like a Hallmark made for TV movie.  But with that being said, it actually does look really good.

'Anchorman 2:  The Legend Continues - The Super Sized R Rated Version' - For one week only, 'Anchorman 2' is coming back to theaters in an R-rated, 143 minute cut allegedly with "763 new jokes".  Sure, I liked "Anchorman 2" and I'll probably buy it when it comes out on DVD.  Do I need to shell out money to see an R-rated 2 and a half hour version of it?  No.  'Anchorman 2' was already too long anyway.


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'Space Jam 2' was recently announced by Warner Bros.  Initial reports had NBA "star" LeBron James starring alongside the Looney Tunes, but his people have since denied that story.  So this sequel may or may not actually happen.  If it does, cool...if not, whatever. 


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UPDATES
This Sunday is the Oscars.  I won't be watching them because I will be busy working.  My predictions for the Oscars will be up on Saturday.  The next several days I will be continuing my Best Picture showcase until I'm finally caught up to this year.  Friday I will post up how the nominations/wins would look like if I was the sole member of the Academy.


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TWITTER!
I have finally gotten around to creating a Twitter account for this blog.  So if you have Twitter, you can follow this blog @jake_says_stuff.  Or you can follow at my personal Twitter account @jake_ware.

REVIEW - 'The LEGO Movie'

'The LEGO Movie' (PG) ***1/2

 An ordinary LEGO minifigure Emmet (voice of Chris Pratt), mistakenly thought to be the extraordinary MasterBuilder, is recruited to join a quest to stop evil LEGO tyrant Lord Business (voice of Will Ferrell) from gluing the universe together.  Also features the voices of Elizabeth Banks as Wyldstyle, Morgan Freeman as Vitruvius, Nick Offerman as Metalbeard, Liam Neeson as Good Cop/Bad Cop, Channing Tatum as Superman, Jonah Hill as Green Lantern, Will Arnett as Batman, Will Forte as Abraham Lincoln, Charlie Day as 80's Space man Benny, and many others. 

Simply put...EVERYTHING IS AWESOME!  It's half tempting just to finish the review right there and hit 'publish'.  That pretty much sums up the movie.  The animation is great.  Despite being completely CGI it looks like it's stop motion using actual LEGO pieces.  It's also very funny.  It's from the same people who made the 'Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs' movies (as well as '21 Jump Street' and it's upcoming sequel).  It's a love letter to anyone who has ever played with LEGO sets and pieces at any point in their lives.  As Emmet is in awe over characters building things out of the most random items, I was also in awe.  As Emmet was reacting to seeing a character or set by saying "AWESOME!" I too was quietly saying that to myself in my head.  I mean, it's awesome seeing the LEGO Batman flying in and helping out the main characters.  Heck, this was a better Batman movie than 'Batman & Robin'.  

To me, the last act of the movie is perfect and I wish there wasn't a sequel...but after getting extremely good reviews and making tons of money on opening weekend, the sequel has been penciled in for May 2017. 

Now I saw this in 2D.  Seeing it in 2D, there were many moments that would have looked great in 3D.  My only minor complaint was that for some of the action scenes I couldn't really tell what was happening.  Not because of rapid cuts, but just because they're LEGOs moving really fast.  But like I said, that's minor because I was enjoying the rest of the movie.  

Just go see this movie.  Right now.  Already saw it?  Go see it again.  Then go buy a LEGO set and put it together.



TRAILERS
'Muppets Most Wanted' - I liked the previous 'Muppet' movie enough to go see this one.

'Mr. Peabody and Sherman' - I don't know.  Maybe it'll be good. 

'The Boxtrolls' - From the same people who made 'Coraline' and 'Paranorman'.  Most of the trailer is showing how the figures for the movie were made. 

REVIEW - 'The Monuments Men'

'The Monuments Men' (PG-13) **1/2
An unlikely World War II platoon consisting of architects, sculptors and professors (George Clooney, Matt Damon, John Goodman, Bill Murray, Bob Balaban, Jean Dujardin) is tasked to rescue art masterpieces from Nazi thieves and return them to their owners.  With Cate Blanchett as a French museum worker. 

This was one I had been looking forward to seeing.  The trailers for it looked really good.  It's got a great cast, good director, the story is interesting, and it was possibly gearing up for awards contention with it's original December release.  But apparently it was pushed back to February because of needing more time for post production.  I was disappointed, but still looked forward to the movie all the same. 

But then I finally saw the movie.  And you know what....overall it's just not very interesting.  Aside from George Clooney's one speech about why it's important to save works of art there isn't really any sense of urgency to save these.  You don't really learn much about these characters.  We're just more or less thrown straight into finding the various Monuments Men and introductions are thrown about later during a scene at basic training.  Half of them I couldn't remember what their names were until the closing credits.  The acting for the most part is okay, but it's nothing special. 

Now, having said how much I wasn't really invested in it and how uninteresting it was, there are a few scenes in the movie actually are pretty good.  The scene where Bill Murray gets a Christmas care package from home that contains a recording of his granddaughters singing "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas".  The scene from the trailer that shows Matt Damon accidentally stepping on a land mine.  And a scene where Bill Murray and Bob Balaban are at a farm trying to get help in their mission.  Those three scenes honestly were the main highlights from the movie but it also shows how drastically the tone changes.  Sometimes it's dead serious, other times it's tense, other times it's very light-hearted about itself.  But whenever they do drop a one liner it usually is a bit funny.  The musical score is also pretty good.    

This is the fifth movie directed by George Clooney.  The others being the Chuck Barris biography 'Confessions of a Dangerous Mind', the football comedy 'Leatherheads', the 1950s newsroom drama 'Good Night and Good Luck", and the political thriller 'The Ides of March'.  Out of those I've only seen 'The Ides of March', which actually is a pretty good movie.  It shows a fair amount of political wheeling and dealing and backstabbing and scandals behind the scenes of the Ohio Democratic Primary.  If you like the Netflix series "House of Cards" you'll probably like 'Ides of March'.  Heck, the creator of "House of Cards" wrote the play on which 'Ides of March' was based on.  Despite being two completely different movies, I'd still say that 'Ides of March' is better than 'Monuments Men'. 

Overall 'The Monuments Men' has it's moments, but for the most part it's just rather uninteresting.

 

TRAILERS:
'Pompeii' - looks like if you combined '300' and 'Pearl Harbor' in a blender, and the blender fell onto the floor.

'X-Men:  Days of Future Past' - looking forward to it, but at the same time I'm still really mixed about this movie.

'The Amazing Spider-man 2' - I've already seen 'Spider-man 2'.  It came out ten years ago and is one of the best superhero movies. 

'Million Dollar Arm' - looks okay.

'Sabotage' - looks like it could be a solid rental.

'Edge of Tomorrow' - looks like if you combined 'Oblivion' and 'Groundhog Day' in a blender. 

'Draft Day' - This looks like it could go in one of two different ways:  Either it could it be pretty good....or it could be ridiculously boring.

Movies to watch on Singles Awareness Day

Well today is Valentine's Day, also known to some as Singles Awareness Day.  School children give their entire class Valentine's Day cards because that's just what they do.  Movie theaters, Hallmark, Walmart, various flower shops, various candy companies, and various restaurants are all making tons of money from romantic movies, chocolate, flowers, and dinners of varying prices from couples who today declare their love and appreciation for each other.  You know, stuff they should be declaring already without needing a special holiday to declare it.

But anyway, since I'm single this year, what are my plans?  Drastically different from last years, that's for sure.  I'll be staying at home, doing laundry, going to the library, and binge watching as much as I can of Season 2 of "House of Cards" on Netflix.  And buying a ticket to go see "Monty Python's Spamalot".   

Anyway, here are some comedies that just so happen to have romance in them.  They can be enjoyed today or any other day of the year, and you don't have to be in a relationship to enjoy these movies.    

 'Groundhog Day'
An arrogant weatherman (Bill Murray) finds himself living the same day over and over again.  This allows not only for plenty of shenanigans but also possibly a chance to change his ways for the better and possibly fall in love with his news producer (Andie MacDowell).  It's funny, but when it gets serious...it gets really serious.  I usually try and watch this once a year on Groundhog Day.  Super Bowl Sunday took precedence over anything else happening that day so I'll have to pop this in at some point.     

 'Hitch'
Remember back to a time when Will Smith was starring in movies and his kid's careers weren't being shoved down our throats?  Me too.  While helping his latest client Albert (Kevin James) woo the fine lady of his dreams Allegra (Amber Vallera), professional "date doctor" Alex 'Hitch' Hitchens (Will Smith) finds that his game doesn't quite work on the gossip columnist (Eva Mendes) with whom he's smitten.  I've only seen this once, back in 2005 when it was in theaters.  I remember thinking that it was very funny, but also a bit long.

 'Bridesmaids'
Competition between the maid of honor Annie (Kristen Wiig) and a bridesmaid (Rose Bryne), over who is the bride's (Maya Rudolph) best friend, threatens to upend the maid of honor's life. With Ellie Kemper and Melissa McCarthy as fellow bridesmaids with the latter being the future in-law, Chris O'Dowd as a cop whom Annie takes a liking to, Jon Hamm as, well, um...a "friend" of Annie's and Rebel Wilson and Matt Lucas as Annie's British roommates.  This actually got ridiculously good reviews upon release and was even nominated for two Academy Awards:  Best Original Screenplay (Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo) and Best Supporting Actress (Melissa McCarthy).

Simply put, this movie is hilarious from start to finish and was one of my favorites from 2011.  Sure the premise is chick flick material, but it warps that premise and various chick flick stereotypes with a very raunchy sense of humor. 

 'The Five-Year Engagement'
One year after meeting, Tom (Jason Segel, who also co-wrote) proposes to his girlfriend Violet (Emily Blunt), but unexpected events keep tripping them up as they look to walk down the aisle together.  With Chris Pratt, Rhys Ifans, Jacki Weaver, Mindy Kaling, and Kevin Hart in one of the few movies that I can actually tolerate him in.  Once again, a movie that has a chick flick-like premise and warps it with a raunchy sense of humor.  It's a bit lengthy, but it is funny enough that I can recommend it.

'The Princess Bride'
A kindly grandfather (Peter Falk) reads to his sick grandson (Fred Savage) a classic tale of love and adventure as the beautiful Buttercup (Robin Wright), engaged to the odious Prince Humperdinck (Chris Sarandon), is kidnapped and held against her will in order to start a war, It is up to Westley (her childhood beau now returned as the Dread Pirate Roberts, played by Cary Elwes) to save her. On the way he meets a thief (Wallace Shawn) and his hired helpers, an accomplished swordsman (Mandy Patinkin) and a huge, super strong giant (Andre The Giant), both of whom become Westley's companions in his quest.

The first time I watched this I didn't know what to think of it.  I didn't know if it wanted to be a classic fantasy adventure movie or a silly comedy with "Monty Python" style absurdity.  As time went on and I watched it again and again....well, why couldn't it be both? It is very funny, the action is great, and it is ridiculously quotable.  "INCONCEIVABLE!" You might say?  Well, watch this movie and see if you DON'T end up quoting it in some way, shape or form.  

REVIEWS - 'Philomena' and 'Her'

'Philomena' (PG-13) ***
Recently fired and depressed, world-weary political journalist Martin Sixsmith (Steve Coogan, who also co-wrote the script) picks up the story of a Philomena Lee (Judi Dench), who has been searching for her son who had been taken away from her decades ago after she became pregnant and was forced to live in a convent.  Based on a true story and nominated for 4 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actress (Judi Dench), Best Original Score (Alexandre Desplat) and Best Adapted Screenplay (Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope).  It is a very interesting and rather sad story, often very funny and spearheaded by a great performance by Judi Dench.  It didn't exactly resonate with me after I saw it, but I did enjoy it as I was watching it.  Some have claimed that 'Philomena' is anti-Catholic.  As a Catholic myself, I didn't feel that this movie was anti-Catholic.

TRAILER
'August:  Osage County' - Doesn't look bad, just not something I'd go see. 






'Her' (R) ****
Set in the not too distant future, 'Her' follows the story of Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix), a lonely writer who is going through an impending divorce from his childhood sweetheart Catherine (Rooney Mara).  He soon develops an unlikely relationship with his newly purchased operating system named Samantha (voiced by Scarlett Johansson) that's designed to meet his every need.  Also features Amy Adams as Theodore's neighbor Amy, Chris Pratt as Theodore's boss, and Olivia Wilde as a woman who Theodore goes on a blind date with.  Nominated for 6 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay (Spike Jonze), Best Original Score (William Butler and Owen Pallett), Best Original Song ("The Moon Song"), and Best Production Design.

Whenever the trailer for 'Her' would pop up over the past few months I would always say the same thing.  Looks good...but also really strange.  And after having finally seen 'Her', yes it is indeed a very strange movie.  But at the same time I thought it was great.  It weaves back and forth between being a rather serious drama and a very funny comedy (Kristen Wiig's voice cameo as a lady in a chat room that Joaquin Phoenix stumbles upon and tries to talk to had me and the other three people in the theater laughing out loud).  It is very well acted, shot well, and the music is also pretty good.  There are also a couple monologues in the final scene of the movie that provided an emotional gut punch that I haven't felt during a movie in a long time.  Those final monologues from two of the characters elevated this movie from being really really good to being great.  Let's just say had some events from last year not happened, then I would not have felt as much a connection to this movie as I did.  I still probably would have liked the movie a lot, it just wouldn't have meant as much as it does now.  I highly recommend this movie.  And it's better than the other Spike Jonze movie that I've seen, the adaptation of 'Where The Wild Things Are'.

NO TRAILERS
Never had that before...

NFL Playoff Pick 'Em - SUPER BOWL

It's all come down to this.  The number 1 offense versus the number 1 defense.  Two number 1 seeds facing each other in the Super Bowl for the first time since Super Bowl XLIV.  The Seahawks hoping to win their first ever Super Bowl championship, and Peyton Manning trying to match his brother with a 2nd Super Bowl championship and 2nd Super Bowl MVP.  After the season Manning had, a Super Bowl is the only proper way to finish it.  If the Seahawks win I won't be too upset.  



BRONCOS vs. Seahawks



Last week:  2-0, 100%
Playoffs:  7-3, 70%
Regular Season:  154-102, 60.16%
Overall:  161-105, 60.52%




PAST SUPER BOWL PREDICTIONS

2001:  RAVENS vs. Giants - This is the first Super Bowl that I actually remember watching.  I don't remember why I picked the Ravens, but I think I was more excited about the Super Bowl being on my birthday that year.  And thankfully they won.

2002:  RAMS vs. Patriots - Once again, I don't remember why I picked the Rams.  Even before the Manning/Brady rivalry was in full swing I never liked the Patriots...

2003:  Raiders vs. BUCCANEERS - I remember being the only one in my house to have picked the Buccaneers.  Everyone else picked the Raiders because of the Fort Wayne-connection.

2004:  PANTHERS vs. Patriots - Still didn't like the Patriots...

2005:  Patriots vs. EAGLES - (see above)

2006:  SEAHAWKS vs. Steelers - If I remember right the Steelers had beaten the Colts in the playoffs and so naturally being bitter about it I of course picked against them in the Super Bowl.  8 years later I still think that the Seahawks should've won this...

2007:  COLTS vs. Bears - The first seven seconds of this game thankfully wasn't indicative of the remaining 59:53.  I won $5 off of this game from the person I had a locker next to in high school. 

2008:  GIANTS vs. Patriots - I certainly didn't want to see the Patriots have a perfect season, coincidentally occuring just after getting caught for Spygate.  Sure people bicker and argue about who is better between Manning or Brady....but Brady still lost this game, arguably the biggest game of his career.  Had he won this, well, the scales might have been tipped in favor of Brady, much to my chagrin.

2009:  Steelers vs. CARDINALS - 5 years later and I still think that the Cardinals should have won this...

2010:  Saints vs. COLTS - Everyone knew that it was going to be a Saints/Colts Super Bowl for most of that season.  And for a good portion of this game it certainly looked like another Colts win.  But then came that onside kick...and that BS two-point conversion....

2011:  Steelers vs. PACKERS - Of course I wasn't gonna pick the Steelers!  In my opinion they stole their two previous Super Bowl wins.  And thankfully the Pack won and brought Lombardi home. 

2012:  GIANTS vs. Patriots - This rematch pretty much had the same ending as their previous Super Bowl game.  It all came down to miracle catches on long drives for the Giants, easy Giants touchdowns, and last ditch Hail Mary efforts by the Patriots to win it all.  But, alas, they are now 0-2 in Super Bowls since Spygate and since Brady married that supermodel.

2013:  Ravens vs.  49ERS - The Ravens had beaten the Colts in the playoffs so being bitter I wanted revenge.  I was on opposite sides with the person I had watched the game with, since this person not only picked the Ravens but was also coincidentally wearing a Ravens t-shirt (referring to Anderson University, not Baltimore).  A year later I still think the 49ers should've won this game.... 


OVERALL SUPER BOWL RECORD:  6-7, 46.15%
Well shoot...my own record is against me...oh well...GO BRONCOS!