The Showtimes: My Look at Movies and Television

Joss Whedon in talks to direct Marvel's 'The Avengers'

2010-04-13T21:31:00.001-07:00

Buffy and Firefly creator may helm one of the most massive movies of all time

This isn't set in stone quite yet, but if it pans out...let's just say this is fantastic news. Joss Whedon reportedly in talks to direct Marvel's massive universe-wide film The Avengers. Whedon is easily one of the most creative minds in the entertainment business, and could be such a positive force for Marvel and the Avengers universe. There have been many rumors about who might direct, with Iron Man and Iron Man 2 director Jon Favreau the most recent rumor before Whedon. Like I said, as far as I know this isn't official yet, and we've seen these things fall apart before, so I'm staying cautious. It does appear to be more than a rumor though, with even Variety running a story, so I think this one could end up working out.

I never really watched Buffy, but I did enjoy its spinoff, Angel. Whedon's best work, however, would be his cult classic 2002 TV show Firefly, and its 2005 sequel movie Serenity. If you haven't watched them, go do that.......right now. Whedon's most recent venture, the innovative but ill-fated show Dollhouse is also certainly worth a watch, though it does take a few episodes to get into the show's complex, and periodically wacky, premise.

Let's just say that with Whedon at the helm, The Avengers movie will be one of the biggest films to watch for in 2012. With my blog supposedly rejuvenated, I will be following this story as it progresses, and will update as new info rolls in. You can read more detailed info from articles at Variety, Deadline, and Rope of Silicon

What I've Watched Recently #4 (4/11/10)

2010-04-13T21:16:00.001-07:00

This is my first post in over a month, ever since the night of the Oscars. Honestly, I'm just happy to be back, and hopefully, this time it'll stay that way. Of course, it doesn't help when school starts repeatedly kicking your ass, but enough with excuses.

Over the last couple weeks, I've been watching a lot of the first few seasons of Dexter, so I haven't watched many movies. But I got to see several good films this week, as well as a piece of crap to keep things interesting. Starting with the bad:

Possession – I saw the trailer a long time ago, and thought it could be interesting. When I actually got ahold of it to watch I didn't really care if it was good or not, and simply watched it out of loyalty to Lee Pace. A soapy snoozefest, plain and simple. Grade: D+

Date Night – Between this film and Hot Tub Time Machine I have laughed a lot this year, but this one probably got me just a little more than HTTM. I had a few minor issues with it, but all the leads and supporters did their parts nicely, and the laughs rolled in on queue. Grade: A-

Broken Embraces – My very first Almodovar film, and it was interesting to say the least. I am very interested in revisiting this one for sure, and I wouldn't be surprised to see it jump up a notch in my book. The direction was creative, the acting was fantastic, especially Penelope Cruz and Lluis Homar, and the story was engaging. I also have Volver sitting around, so I'll have to check that one out soon. Grade: B

Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans – This one was fantastic, and it left me wondering what the hell I'd just seen. Herzog's direction was certainly unique. Cage's acting and delivery were mesmerizing. My only problem was that a few of the supporting characters didn't get enough development, so they were no help to progressing Cage's character. Not that it needed help. "You think fish have dreams?" Grade: B+

A Town Called Panic – A very oddball, and yet completely enjoyable and strikingly creative stop-motion film. I was really surprised at how much I laughed and was amazed by this film. I almost missed this one due to weather, but I made it to the theater, and was pleased that I did. Grade: A-

What I've Watched Recently #3

2010-03-09T18:15:00.000-08:00

I missed the last couple editions of "What I Watched this Week," and so this week's article is extra-packed. It also led me to decide to alter the name of the article in a way that won't put the pressure on if I happen to miss a week for whatever reason.

It's an interesting haul for this post. A couple Oscar contenders, a few 2010 releases, some hidden gems from 2009, and even a SciFi Channel miniseries. Since I've got a bunch to go through, forgive me if these seem a bit short and basic. If you are interested in me expanding on any of these films, just let me know in the comments section:

Shutter Island - A dark, engrossing, and mind-numbing slice of psychological horror from master director Martin Scorsese. I think one of the problems with being considered one of the greatest living directors is that everyone judges your newest movies against your greatest works. Is this Goodfellas? No. Is it a chilling and fantastic descent into madness? Absolutely. The cast is insanely good, with standout performances from Leonardo DiCaprio and Ben Kingsley, and an all-to-short scene with Jackie Earle Haley. Scorsese's direction is impeccable, taking us from one maddening twist to another, and to another that makes you rethink it all, never releasing the tension until the end. My only problem with the film came here at the end, where explaining the meaning behind the madness, it seemed a bit sloppy and unnecessary and overlong. I'm not sure if this will cause me to lower the grade in future viewings, but for now it didn't seem to take anything away from the shocking conclusion. Grade: A-

The Crazies - I have to make this clear: The Crazies is NOT a zombie-horror movie. Okay, now that that's out of the way, I can say that this is a genuinely enjoyable action-survival thriller, with a good mix of tension, scares, action, and surprisingly intelligent storytelling. Solid acting featuring the criminally underrated Timothy Olyphant as the town sheriff risking it all to save his wife (Radha Mitchell), with his deputy (Joe Anderson) at his side. This trio give the film emotional depth not typically seen in this genre. Even better is that director Breck Eisner (whose only previous theatrical release was 2005's Sahara) seemed to have a handle on what he needed to do to make this kind of film work, and directed it with an enjoyable punch and style. Most importantly these are not mindless zombies, but instead fully-capable human beings driven to crazy impulses, making it all the more terrifying. The only minor qualm I had was with the very end, when I said, "Oh crap, of course that's how it ends." I won't give it away, but who knows, it might turn out to be for the film's benefit. We'll see... Grade: B+

Black Dynamite - With such a hilarious and clever trailer, I was expecting a lot from this movie. It delivered, most of the time. I had trouble getting into the film at first, and some of the jokes fell a bit flat for me. However, I blame this mostly on not being intimately familiar with the blaxploitation genre. What I got was a humorous and clever homage to one of the 70's most popular and influential genres. Michael Jai White (who also produces) is in full control of the film starring as the ass-kicking, womanizing, fast-talking Black Dynamite, an ex-CIA agent and martial arts expert ready to work outside the law to get revenge on those who caused his brother's death. What ensues is an enjoyable bit of mayhem with a twist that just might s.

A Single Man - While I found the film overall to be rather overrated, Colin Firth's fantastic performance is not. I would stop short of giving him the Oscar as some pundits would, but I wholeheartedly agree with Collider's Matt Goldberg that Firth "expertly played a role that was like nothing he had done before in his career." As for the rest of the cast, Julianne Moore had the only other performance I would consider notable, though Matthew Goode was decent, though Nicholas Hoult's presence bugged me considerably throughout the whole movie. And while I give fashion designer/first-time director Tom Ford credit for trying to be stylish and symbolic with how he shot the movie, it simply didn't work, and the film suffered. Grade: C+ (For Firth, and him alone)

A Serious Man - I have had mixed feelings about the Coen Brothers in the past. While I have always appreciated their talent, especially in their scripts, a couple of their films just haven't resonated with me, most notably O Brother, Where Art Thou? However, I can happily say that A Serious Man is among the growing number of their movies that do. Starring a mostly unknown cast, this darkly-comedic tale unfolds very much like a modern-day Job story (from the Bible if you didn't know). Prof. Larry Gopnik, played wonderfully by Michael Stuhlbarg, watches as everything in his life gets progressively worse. Amidst a downward spiral of a cheating wife, free-loading brother who keeps getting into trouble with the police, misfit children, mystifying neighbors, and a crumbling teaching job, all he wants is to be "a serious man." And in the Coen Bros. style, the ending definitely leaves you with some food for thought. Grade: B+

Alice in Wonderland - I have only been a Tim Burton fan for a few years now. I still have to see the majority of his work, but I appreciate his rich and vivid imagination. Alice is certainly filled with great visual imagination. What's missing is narrative execution. The story is fun and light-hearted, but each event just sort of happens, with little in the way of a structured narrative. By the time you get to the end, it just becomes, "Okay, so that's it." But their is plenty to love in the movie as well. The story may be disjointed, but it's a fun ride, and showcases Burton's visual appealing style. Mia Wasikowska is certainly delightful as Alice, and will surely be a big star very soon. As for the rest of the cast, Johnny Depp's Mad Hatter is tolerable, though it's certainly hit-or-miss. Helena Bonham Carter, playing the Red Queen, is however on the top of her game, and the voice cast (notably Michael Sheen, Stephen Fry, and Alan Rickman) do their part nicely. In all, it was an enjoyable ride that I will be looking forward to taking again some day. Grade: B

Alice (SciFi Channel miniseries) - I had actually taped this when it first aired on the SciFi Channel. Yes, I called it SciFi channel, not Syfy as they now designate themselves. I will refuse to call it that as long as I live. I'm glad that I waited, however. I have only had a passing familiarity with the Alice in Wonderland story, so even going into Tim Burton's film, I wasn't sure what to expect. Similar to SciFi's Wizard of Oz miniseries, Tin Man, the characters, events, and places are quite abstract from their source material. That said, I found Alice to be a very creative, funny, and enjoyable take on the classic tale. It may not be as good as Tin Man, but it's fun way to spend three hours.

Bronson - An intensely shot film, anchored by the the gorgeously vicious, funny, and gripping performance by Tom Hardy. My greatest qualm with the movie is that it is not very chronologically clear, so I had trouble following the story at first. This is a minor issue however, as Hardy's charisma takes full control of the story. This is a brutal film, though I must say that based on what I'd heard of the man Hardy portrays (Michael Peterson aka Charles Bronson, Britain's most notorious prisoner), it was not as harsh as I expected. This is for the film's benefit, as it shows that director Nicolas Winding Refn is not interested in glorifying, exonerating, or condemning Bronson, but to simply show who the man is, in all his complexity. He was prone to violence, and spent 34 years in prison (30 in isolation), was positively psychotic, and yet so restrained that he never killed a single person in his life. Definitely a film to revisit, and it is a film I sincerely hope to get more out of with every repeat viewing. Grade: B+

Oscars 2010: Who Will Win, Who Should Win

2010-03-07T16:46:00.000-08:00

After I decided to do this article a couple of weeks ago, it seems like every other movie pundit or blogger has decided to do the same. But, as I have still found myself disagreeing with some of them, I figured I don't really care that its repetitive, and I'm doing one of my own. I will also have my reactions to the winners in the next couple days after the ceremony. Here we go:

Best Picture:
- Avatar
- The Blind Side
- District 9
- An Education
- The Hurt Locker
- Inglourious Basterds
- Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire
- A Serious Man
- Up
- Up in the Air

Who Will Win: The Hurt Locker

Who Should Win: Inglourious Basterds

This was a last minute switch for me. For the longest time, I had picked that The Hurt Locker should win, and I would still love to see it go home with the award. However, I realized that the best, and my favorite, film of the year is Inglourious Basterds. It is one of three films with a strong chance to win, along with The Hurt Locker and Avatar, and I would love to see it blindside (pun intended) everyone's expectations. But of the leading three, as long as Avatar doesn't win, as much as I loved that film, I will be pleased.

Best Actor:
- Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart)
- George Clooney (Up in the Air)
- Colin Firth (A Single Man)
- Morgan Freeman (Invictus)
- Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker)

Who Will Win: Jeff Bridges

Who Should Win: Jeff Bridges

Jeff Bridges deserves to finally take home the statue, and not just because this is his fifth nomination, having never won previously. I'm not sure what to say other than his performance is the most deserving of the year. I think there is a long shot that Jeremy Renner or Colin Firth could sneak up and pull an upset. While I wouldn't mind seeing Renner win, I just don't see that happening. Bridges will win, and deservedly so.

Best Actress:
- Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side)
- Helen Mirren (The Last Station)
- Carey Mulligan (An Education)
- Gabourey Sidibe (Precious)
- Meryl Streep (Julie & Julia)

Who Will Win: Sandra Bullock

Who Should Win: Mélanie Laurent. Oh wait, sorry....Carey Mulligan

If this were another year, Mulligan or Sidibe could have easily taken home the award. Somehow both Streep and Bullock arrived out of nowhere and began ruling awards buzz, blindsiding (oh yes, I did it again) the two younger actresses. I do not begrudge either Sandra Bullock or Meryl Streep their nominations. They were both wonderful performances. However, the best performance out of those nominated was easily Carey Mulligan. She provided such a open emotional honesty that was so refreshing, and I connected with her character unlike I did with any of the other nominees. Her tremendous performance is second this year only to the snubbed Mélanie Laurent (Inglourious Basterds).

Best Supporting Actor:
- Matt Damon (Invictus)
- Woody Harrellson (The Messenger)
- Christopher Plummer (The Last Station)
- Stanley Tucci (The Lovely Bones)
- Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds)

Who Will Win: Does anyone need to ask?

Who Should Win: No seriously, is there any doubt that Waltz will or should win

Congrats to Christopher Plummer for finally getting a nomination after such an enormous body of work, but he has no chance of winning. The only person who could possibly sneak up and beat Waltz is Woody Harrellson, hot off his win at the Independent Spirit Awards. Even if Tucci had been nominated for his wonderful performance in Julie & Julia, he wouldn't even get close. Waltz has it in the bag.

Best Supporting Actress:
- Penélope Cruz (Nine)
- Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air)
- Maggie Gyllenhaal (Crazy Heart)
- Anna Kendrick (Up in the Air)
- Mo'Nique (Precious)

Who Will Win: Mo'Nique

Who Should Win: Mélanie Lau.....sorry, Mo'Nique. I'm not sure why I keep doing that...

No, but seriously Academy, Mélanie could have fit into either Lead or Supporting Actress, and yet you blew it big time. I guarantee it'll be remember as one of the biggest Oscar snubs in recent memory. At any rate, Mo'Nique did such a fantastic job as the villainous mother of Precious. Anna Kendrick was also noticeably good, and if anyone can pull an upset it's her, but I think Mo'Nique is almost assured to win.

Best Director:
- Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker)
- James Cameron (Avatar)
- Lee Daniels (Precious)
- Jason Reitman (Up in the Air)
- Quentin Tarentino (Inglourious Basterds)

Who Will Win: Kathryn Bigelow

Who Should Win: Kathryn Bigelow, with QT close behind

I would love to see the Q win this award one day, but as much as I loved Inglourious Basterds, this is not that year. Bigelow deserves this award not because she would be the first female director to win the Oscar, but because she crafted her film with such intensity and complexity.

Best Original Screenplay:
- The Hurt Locker
- Inglourious Basterds
- The Messenger
- A Serious Man
- Up

Who Will Win: Inglourious Basterds

Who Should Win: Inglourios Basterds

My brain says to pick The Hurt Locker for this, as most pundits are, but my heart won't let me. The Academy is bound to mess up a couple times on Oscar night, but I'm hoping this won't be one of them. The Hurt Locker is a spectacular film, and Mark Boal's screenplay is top-notch. However, there is no way it matches the eloquence and brilliance of Quentin Tarentino.

Best Adapted Screenplay:
- District 9
- An Education
- In the Loop
- Precious
- Up in the Air

Who Will Win: Up in the Air

Who Should Win: In the Loop

I actually really liked four of these screenplays. Precious was a decent film, but I wasn't huge on it or its screenplay. Tonight, however, I would would be perfectly content to see Up in the Air, District 9, In the Loop, or An Education take home the win. Still, In the Loop is a riotous and clever political satire, a politically-incorrect film that has some of the most creative dialogue I've heard in awhile, and I think it is slightly the most deserving.

Best Animated Film:
- Coraline
- Fantastic Mr. Fox
- The Princess and the Frog
- The Secret of Kells
- Up

Who Will Win: Up

Who Should Win: Fantastic Mr. Fox

Up is a fine film, both entertaining and touching, and I will be perfectly happy to see it win. However, Fantastic Mr. Fox is a witty and inventive adaptation of Roald Dahl's book. With a prime voice cast starring George Clooney, it Fox is never short on imagination. Also, it's been nominated for a month now and I still have no idea what The Secret of Kells is....

Best Foreign Film:
- Ajami (Israel)
- El Secreto de sus Ojos (Argentina)
- The Milk of Sorrow (Peru)
- Un Prophete (France)
- The White Ribbon (Germany)

Who Will Win: The White Ribbon

Who Should Win: The White Ribbon or Un Prophete

Haven't had a chance yet to see any of these, but I have to bet it'll be one of the two favorites for the majority of awards season. Some are saying that El Secreto de sus Ojos might upset The White Ribbon, the same way Departures surprised Waltz with Bashir last year. But I don't think so.

Best Documentary:
- Burma VJ
- The Cove
- Food Inc.
- The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers
- Which Way Home

Who Will Win: The Cove

Who Should Win: The Cove

Again, I haven't seen any of these, but I've heard great things about The Cove. It should win, as it's already racked up wins at some other awards shows.

Best Original Score:
- Avatar (James Horner)
- Fantastic Mr. Fox (Alexandre Desplat)
- The Hurt Locker (Marco Beltrami, Buck Sanders)
- Sherlock Holmes (Hans Zimmer)
- Up (Michael Giacchino)

Who Will Win: Up (Michael Giacchino)

Who Should Win: Michael Giacchino for Star Trek...or Up

I haven't really paid attention to any scores this year, despite being a big fan of them usually. Everyone says Horner's Avatar score is crap, which I think I agree with, I didn't even know The Hurt Locker had a score, and the consensus is Giacchino will win. Good enough for me, even though it should be for the one score I did listen to last year, his score for Star Trek.

Best Original Song:
- Crazy Heart ("The Weary Kind")
- Faubourg 36 ("Loin de Paname")
- Nine ("Take It All")
- The Princess and the Frog ("Almost There")
- The Princess and the Frog ("Down in new Orleans")

Who Will Win: Crazy Heart ("The Weary Kind")

Who Should Win: Crazy Heart ("The Weary Kind")

I am not a fan of country music, but "The Weary Kind" is a beautiful and touching song that I can really get behind. One of Nine's only good songs, "Take It All" is another favorite of mine. Marion Cotillard performs it with an emotional depth that the rest of the film and cast lacks. But I don't see an upset happening, and this will be one of the two Oscars that Crazy Heart will take home.

Best Visual Effects:
- Avatar
- District 9
- Star Trek

Who Will Win: Avatar

Who Should Win: Avatar

This one is a no-brainer. I might be against Avatar winning Best Picture or Director, but not this category. Star Trek and District 9 both had brilliant effects (especially District 9 with its $30 million budget). Any other year and either film would be a front runner, but as it stands neither can match Avatar's visual brilliance or technical wizardry.

Best Cinematography:
- Avatar
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
- The Hurt Locker
- Inglourious Basterds
- The White Ribbon

Who Will Win: The White Ribbon

Who Should Win: Inglourious Basterds

Most people are saying Avatar, but the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) already awarded The White Ribbon as the year's best, and I'm hoping the Academy voters recognize that Avatar doesn't count in this category. Cinematography is a beautiful art that takes real technical skill. But with Avatar, it's essentially some guy in a room telling a computer what to look at. Hopefully, the Academy will see fit to award Robert Richardson for his fantastic work on Inglourious Basterds, or at least not give this one to Avatar.

Best Art Direction:
- Avatar
- The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus
- Nine
- Sherlock Holmes
- The Young Victoria

Who Will Win: Close, but probably Avatar

Who Should Win: Avatar

I don't really have much of a stake in this race, but I guess Avatar would be most deserving. This is the one of two categories (along with Visual Effects) where its all about looks. And if you could say one thing about Avatar is that it looked great. It's a little close because Avatar took home the prize at the Art Director's Guild Awards for Fantasy Film, while Sherlock Holmes won for Period Film. Still, I think Avatar's got it. It's so pretty.

Best Costume Design:
- Bright Star
- Coco Before Chanel
- The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus
- Nine
- The Young Victoria

Who Will Win: The Young Victoria

Who Should Win: The Young Victoria

The Young Victoria is an enjoyable film and I'd love it to go home with something tonight. This looks to be its best shot at that. I'm just gonna echo what everyone else has said. When you need to pick who'll win Best Costume Design, go with the period piece with the best amount of buzz.

Best Makeup:
- Il Divo
- Star Trek
- The Young Victoria

Who Will Win: Star Trek

Who Should Win: Star Trek

Il Divo better not win, cause it came out in 2008. I could be happy with either Star Trek or The Young Victoria winning. However, with Romulans, Orion girls, and a wide assortment of aliens, I have to believe that this would be Star Trek's one Oscar category in which it can shine.

For the rest of these categories, I don't have either the technical knowledge or familiarity with the category to make a call. Therefore, I am going to be relying on expert's opinions.

Best Editing:
- Avatar
- District 9
- The Hurt Locker
- Inglourious Basterds
- Precious

Who Will Win: The Hurt Locker

Best Sound Editing:
- Avatar
- Inglourious Basterds
- The Hurt Locker
- Star Trek
- Up

Who Will Win: Avatar

Best Sound Mixing:
- Avatar
- The Hurt Locker
- Inglourious Basterds
- Star Trek
- Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

Who Will Win: The Hurt Locker

Best Documentary - Short Feature:
- China's Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Provence
- The Lost Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner
- The Last Truck: Closing of GM Plant
- Music by Prudence
- Rabbit à la Berlin

Who Will Win: The Last Truck: Closing of GM Plant

Who Should Win:

Best Short Film, Animated:
- French Roast
- Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty
- The Lady and the Reaper
- Logorama
- Wallace and Gromit in 'A Matter of Life and Death'

Who Will Win: It's a toss up between 'A Matter of Life and Death', 'Logorama,' or 'French Roast'

The only time Wallace and Gromit creator Nick Park has every lost, was in 1991 when he beat him self. Meanwhile, he has 4 Oscars to his name. Will tonight make it five?

Best Short Film, Live Action:
- The Door
- Instead of Abracadabra
- Kavi
- Miracle Fish
- The New Tenants

Who Will Win: The Door

'Kavi' is the only one I've seen...

Awesome update: SPLICE to hit theaters in June

2010-03-03T19:44:00.000-08:00

I reported several weeks ago in my first (and so far, only) news article, that Warner Brothers had joined with mega-producer Joel Silver and his Dark Castle label to pick up a Sundace favorite, Vincenzo Nattali's Splice. The film starring Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley, and produced by the visionary Guillermo del Toro, was described by Steve "Frosty" Weintraub of Collider as "original, dark, and twisted, and it looks like a Hollywood-produced film."

Now, Collider is reporting via Box Office Mojo that Warner Brothers plans to make good on the conditions they agreed to when buying the film, namely giving it a wide summer release. Warner Bros has set the date for June 4. That will pit Splice against raunchy comedy Get Him to the Greek, action-comedy Killers, and kid's comedy Marmaduke, plus an obscure Colin Farrell movie about a mermaid (Ondine). Now that's what I call well-executed counter-programming. Can't wait for June.

Note: I have not posted anything recently cause I'm currently out with bronchitis. It'll be a few days til I'm over it, but I'm still going to see Alice in Wonderland tonight, after which I will post a new What I've Watched Recently. Plus, I fully intend to have my very belated Top Films of 2009 list done by the Oscars on Sunday. Also, I will try to get out my first "what I'm looking forward to" article about the movies I'm anticipating in the month of March.

What I Watched this Week #2 (2/22/10)

2010-02-22T20:12:00.000-08:00

I actually got to see several good films this week:

Goodfellas - I was finally able to see this film, and I understand what all the praise is about. From the small handful of Scorsese films I've seen, it's arguably the best. I love The Departed, but Goodfellas just had something special. With faultless direction, top-notch performances (especially the Oscar-winning Joe Pesci, of course), and a rivetingly tragic story, it's too bad it only came away with a Supporting Actor Oscar win. Scorsese deserved his awards for The Departed, but I think he shouldn't have had to wait an extra 16 years to finally win. Grade: A

Precious - This has been floating around limited release for about three months now, and finally made it to my town this last week. I was unsure of what what I thought about the film after seeing it, and my first instinct was to give it a B. It is a very good film, but a few technical aspects of the film, all rooted in Lee Daniels directing, seemed a bit lacking. I guess Daniels' only previous experience as a film director was a crime thriller, so that may be where some of the unusual shots came from. However, the film succeeds on both the strength of its very emotional story and the power of the performances, especially Gabourey Sidibe and Mo'Nique, which led me to give it more credit. Grade: B+

In the Loop - A very, very funny and clever political satire. Very well-written film, as evidenced by its single Oscar nomination of Best Adapted Screenplay. I liken it to one of 2009's best films, In Bruges. Similar to In Bruges, it's a very sweary movie, but in the best way possible. The dialogue is so unbelievably creative and irreverent and Armando Iannucci's direction so precise, and I was laughing out loud the whole movie. The primarily British cast is led most hilariously by Peter Capaldi and Tom Hollander, while some of the Americans, like James Gandolfini, Anna Chlumsky, and David Rasche, held their own as well. Grade: A-

Note: Some Random Updates

2010-02-22T19:35:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted in about a week. Being sick will do that I suppose. So I guess instead of doing an actual article, I decided to do this post. I don't know why. At any rate, I've made a few decisions about some upcoming articles. Here we go...

First, I had intended to write up a Most Anticipated Films of 2010 list awhile back. I ran into some issues with that, beyond simply finding time to do it. I realized that, since I wanted to make a serious attempt at a list, such a task was a bit harder than just digging through this year's upcoming releases and finding a few cool movies. Since I'd simply be relying on old news articles from months ago or random searching on IMDB, I figured there were too many unknowns for an amateur movie blogger like myself to compile a comprehensive list. I may try to do a list for 2011, starting it throughout this year as I hear of movies. We'll have to see. As it turns out, I still intend to do a monthly post relating to upcoming movies I am excited for within that month, starting with March. I figure this would also help cover all the movies coming out later this year that we don't yet know about, that a typical list would miss.

Second, I still fully intend to finish my article of my Top Movies of 2009. I started it awhile back, when it was a Top 10 list. It eventually grew into a Top 15, then finally a Top 25 Movies of 2009 list. I was going to post it at the beginning of the year, but I realized there were still some movies that I really should see before making the list official, most notably several Oscar-nominated films. I have been able to see a few of those films, and I only have a few more I consider to be must-watches before I can complete my list. I know I'll be a bit late to the party with my 'Top Films' list, but I think it's something I should finish, whether on principle, as good practice, or just for fun. I plan to have it up before the Oscars on March 7th, at the very latest.

Also, I have a new poll up for who will win Best Actress at the Oscars. I don't care if you select who you think will win, or who should win. It's up to you! So vote if your heart desires.

What I Watched this Week #1 (2/13/10)

2010-02-13T20:29:00.000-08:00

I realized a few days ago that writing reviews is actually quite the feat. Until I've gotten more experienced with reviews, I've decided to just do a weekly roundup of the movies I've watched, and share a few thoughts on each film. This first installment is posted on a Saturday night. I'm not sure yet, but I may end up doing this weekly post on Fridays, with new releases kicking off each week. That'll be something that will I figure out after I've done a few installments.

Nine – It showed some promise, especially with the emotional depth of Marion Cotillard's performance, it just didn't follow through on its potential. I'm so glad "Take It All" got an Oscar nom for Original Song. I only wish Marion had as well, instead of Penelope Cruz (so boring). Grade: C+

Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief – The script, mostly the dialogue, could certainly have used some work. It was a bit corny, but still entertaining. I love Greek mythology, so it was fun to see it set in a modern setting. There was definitely some fun casting as well. Grade: C+

Adam – One of few romantic, albeit dramatic, comedies I have seen recently that I liked. Solid performances from the leads, especially Hugh Dancy, made it a charming if unspectacular movie. Started to run out of steam towards the end, but still ended well. Grade: B-

The Wolfman – I don't know why so many people are knocking this film, but it is my favorite of the week. Well-made and directed, well-acted, and patiently paced piece of Gothic horror. Rick Baker's makeup was fantastic as were the special effects (the transformations were incredible) and action sequences. After waiting so long for this movie, I was not disappointed. Grade: B+

Dark Sci-Fi May Get a Big Boost This Summer

2010-02-13T10:56:00.000-08:00

Producer Joel Silver and Dark Castle in talks to buy Sundance hit Splice; to be distributed by Warner Bros.

Months ago, when the first images were released for the sci-fi/horror film Splice from director Vincenzo Natali (Cube), I immediately knew this was a movie I couldn't wait to see. In addition to being produced by Guillermo del Toro, it stars Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley as a husband and wife team of geneticists who specialize in creating new creatures by combining different animal DNA. But when they decide to put human DNA in one of their creations, the situation turns disastrous. From what I can tell, it offers up a thought-provoking commentary of scientific ethics about "playing God," while still keeping the chilling and gory touches that del Toro and Natali are so good at. That's enough to get me interested. Additionally, many reviewers have compared it to some of David Cronenberg's older work.

For several months I had been silently waiting to hear anything about a release date. When I heard it would be playing at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival last month, I was excited for the chance to hear some kind of buzz about the film. I've heard almost universally positive words from critics and bloggers who saw it. Steve "Frosty" Weintraub of Collider called it "original, dark, and twisted, and it looks like a Hollywood film."

The news just keeps getting better. Yesterday, both Collider and Slashfilm reported via a story at Deadline Hollywood, that mega-producer Joel Silver (Die Hard, The Matrix, V for Vendetta, Sherlock Holmes) and his Dark Castle label are in negotiations to purchase the film for at least $25 million, if not more. Warner Brothers would presumably distribute. This would make it one of the biggest buys in recent Sundance memory. The deal is also said to include a requirement that the film get a big summer release of 3,000 screens. If this comes true, it could turn a film that would probably have been nothing more than a niche cult-classic into a huge blockbuster. Imagine possible Paranormal Activity, except this one might actually have replay value.

Here's a clip released last year that was premiered by Rotten Tomatoes:

Reaction to the Oscar nominations

2010-02-07T16:53:00.000-08:00

I realize this post is about a week behind schedule, but better late than never. There were a number of expected nominations (some of them are already being pegged as expected winners), as well as a few surprises (both pleasant or otherwise). I will make my actual picks a day or two before the Oscar ceremonies. So in the meantime, here are my thoughts/reactions on what turned out to be the best nominations, the names that shouldn't be there, and a few of the biggest snubs of the year.

Best Picture -
1. Avatar
2. The Blind Side
3. District 9
4. An Education
5. The Hurt Locker
6. Inglourious Basterds
7. Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire
8. A Serious Man
9. Up
10. Up in the Air

My reaction: I still need to see Precious and A Serious Man, though I expect to have seen them within the next couple of weeks. I'm not surprised to see either of them nominated. Other nominees that were expected are Avatar, An Education, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, and Up in the Air. All of these are deserving, as is the pleasant surprise, District 9.

I think I was one of the few people that didn't expect Up to get a nomination. It's a great and truly moving film, and I'm glad to see an animated film make the Best Picture race, but I would have preferred what I believe to be the best animated movie of 2009, Fantastic Mr. Fox. The other big surprise is the omission of Invictus (which I unfortunately missed in theaters), and the inclusion of The Blind Side, a film I don't think belongs in a Best Picture race. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed the movie, and Sandra Bullock gives a great performance. Nonetheless, I think it rode into the nomination solely because of the growing Sandra Bullock bandwagon.

Rather than Up or Blind Side, I would have preferred others movie that were more deserving to get into the race. I think some good picks would have been: Star Trek, (500) Days of Summer, Moon, or Fantastic Mr. Fox.

I promise the rest of the categories won't be quite as long. So here we go:

Best Actor -
1. Jeff Bridges for Crazy Heart
2. George Clooney for Up in the Air
3. Colin Firth for A Single Man
4. Morgan Freeman for Invictus
5. Jeremy Renner for The Hurt Locker

My reaction: No big surprises in this category. Bridges, Clooney, and Firth were all guaranteed to get nominations. There was some talk that Freeman could end up getting snubbed at the last minute, but I still expected him to make it as well. I had a feeling Jeremy Renner would score a nomination, and am very pleased that the Academy agreed. The only name I feel is missing is Sam Rockwell for his tour-de-force performance in the criminally overlooked Moon. I'm not sure whose slot Rockwell would have otherwise taken, but I can't help feeling that he should be on there.

Best Actress -
1. Sandra Bullock for The Blind Side
2. Helen Mirren for The Last Station
3. Carey Mulligan for An Education
4. Gabourey Sidibe for Precious
5. Meryl Streep for Julie & Julia

My reaction: There is instantly one name missing: Melanie Laurent, for her role in Ingourious Basterds as Shoshanna, a young Jewish woman seeking revenge against the Nazis after the death of her family. She could fit into either Lead or Supporting Actress, but was somehow overlooked in both. In my opinion, it will go down as the biggest snub of the year. Props to the Austin Film Critics Association for being the only group to recognize her as Best Actress. Also missing is Emily Blunt for her wonderful performance in The Young Victoria. I would happily have seen her get a nom over Helen Mirren if Laurent could not, but am once again disappointed.

Of the nominees, Bullock, Mulligan, Sidibe, and Streep all deserve to be on the list, especially Mulligan and (from all the buzz I've heard) Sidibe. I've heard some critics say that this is a weak year for lead female performances. I would disagree, and suggest that the problem is actually that most of the best nominees are being overlooked in favor of weaker ones. Case in point is Helen Mirren's nomination. I haven't seen the film and I've got nothing against her, and I even thought she was good in State of Play last April. But I've heard she gives a rather average performance in what Rope of Silicon's Brad Brevet called "a made-for-TV film masquerading as a theatrical feature."

Best Supporting Actor -
1. Matt Damon for Invictus
2. Woody Harrelson for The Messenger
3. Christopher Plummer for The Last Station
4. Stanley Tucci for The Lovely Bones
5. Christoph Waltz for Inglourious Basterds

My reaction: Not much of a reaction to this category, as I've only seen Waltz's performance and all of these noms were expected anyway. Christoph Waltz has got this category in the bag. It would have been nice to see Tucci recognized for his hilarious performance in Julie & Julia rather than a creepy role like The Lovely Bones. Also, it would have been cool to see Alfred Molina get a nom for An Education, but it's not something I'm too worried about.

Best Supporting Actor -
1. Penelope Cruz for Nine
2. Vera Farmiga for Up in the Air
3. Maggie Gyllenhaal for Crazy Heart
4. Anna Kendrick for Up in the Air
5. Mo'Nique for Precious

My reaction: Once again, Melanie Laurent should have been here. As for those nominated, Mo'Nique, Kendrick, and Farmiga all were expected to get nominations. While Gyllenhaal is the big surprise of the category, I would have to say that she belongs much more than Penelope Cruz. She was honestly one of the weakest parts of the promising, but ultimately disappointing Nine. The slot should have gone to Cruz's co-star, Marion Cotillard, for one of two possible performances: Nine or Public Enemies. I would even have rather seen Nicole Kidman nominated for Nine instead of Cruz. It's also a little surprising that both Julianne Moore (A Single Man) and Samantha Morton (The Messenger) were snubbed, since both had been picking up awards season steam, and were expected to score nominations.

Best Director -
1. Kathryn Bigelow for The Hurt Locker
2. James Cameron for Avatar
3. Lee Daniels for Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire
4. Jason Reitman for Up in the Air
5. Quentin Tarentino for Inglourious Basterds

My reaction: It would have been cool to see Neill Blomkamp score a nomination for District 9, but I wasn't putting too much stock in that happening. The only semi-surprise was Lee Daniels getting a nom over the expected Clint Eastwood (Invictus). My only reaction is that either Bigelow or Tarentino better win or I'll have a conniption.

Other various reactions -
Best Screenplay: I am very pleased with good crop of Best Screenplay nods, including Inglourious Basterds, The Hurt Locker, District 9, An Education, In the Loop, and Up in the Air.

Sci-fi: I'm also very excited that Star Trek scored four nominations, even if I was hoping for a nod for Best Picture or Director. Also, I'm happy that District 9 got nominated for Best Visual Effects instead of the disaster that was Transformers 2. While the effects in Transformers 2 were arguably one of the few good things about that movie, I would rather see a more quality film get the honor.

Best Original Song: I'm also pleased that the two best songs of the year, "The Weary Kind" (Crazy Heart) and "Take It All" (Nine), were nominated.

Best Animated: Fantastic Mr. Fox, Up, Coraline are all deserving. I missed Princess and the Frog in theaters. But what the hell is The Secret of Kells, and how did it beat Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs for the fifth slot.

Go 'Kavi' for best Best Short Film, Live Action!
And a final thought...Didn't Il Divo (Best Makeup) get released in 2008?

Most Disappointing Movies of 2009

2010-02-07T15:07:00.001-08:00

I haven't posted a note or blog in awhile, so I thought I'd return as we are entering the heart of movie awards season.

Withing the next few weeks, I'm going to post my Top 10 Movies of 2009, my Top Performers of 2009, and Most Anticipated of 2010 (those movies that haven't already been released in theaters). I thought I'd preface those with the films that, in my opinion, were the most disappointing of this last year. This isn't to say that all of these movies are completely terrible (though some certainly are), and I even like a couple of them. Rather, these are the movies that I expected to be much better than they turned out to be.

5. Extract - I still kind of liked this one, as it still had moments of brilliance. Jason Bateman and Mila Kunis were great as the leads, and there were fantastic supporting turns by Ben Affleck, J.K. Simmons, and Clifton Collins Jr. I must say, though, that Kristen Wiig was sadly underused. Somehow the film just didn't seem to come together, and the jokes and tone of the film were confusingly choppy. I don't think it was bad direction. While I'm not a fan of Mike Judge's TV work (King of the Hill), his movie credits (Office Space and Idiocracy) are impeccable. I will certainly have to rewatch this one, if only in the hope that I'll find something better in it another time around

4. Year One - I don't have much to say about this one, as it was just so tragically horrible. When I first heard of this one in the summer of 2008, I thought, "Wow, this one could be pretty funny." With Jack Black and Michael Cera in the lead roles and Harold Ramis (Groundhog Day, Caddyshack) directing, this one should have been so good. After a surprisingly funny opening, the movie took a drastic turn for the worse. Even a slew of supporting roles and cameos by the likes of David Cross, Vinnie Jones, Olivia Wilde, Bill Hader, and Paul Rudd couldn't save this mess. And Oliver Platt's character was way too creepy.

3. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen - With the same writers who, just earlier this year, gave us the incredible Star Trek reboot, and loving the original Transformers movie from 2007 (which they also wrote), I could not have expected such an utter failure. I'm even a fan of most of Michael Bay's movies (The Rock, Bad Boys 1&2, The Island), while most people just scoff. How so many cool action scenes (i.e. Optimus Prime taking on three Decepticons in the forest), ended up surround by so many terrible jokes, lines, plot devices, and characters, I have no idea. If Michael Bay wants me to keep me interested, he'd better make Transformers 3 a masterpiece.

2. Where the Wild Things Are - Did I think this was a terrible movie? No. Did I think it was lacking something? Absolutely. As a big fan of the book as a kid, and knowing Spike Jonze's talent (Being John Malkovich, Adaptation), I was really looking forward to this one. This is a tricky one to explain. I understand the difficulty of adapting such a short children's book into a feature-length film, and I was fine with the thin storyline and slightly dark tone. There was just something about it though, and it seemed more dull and depressing than thoughtful and dark. That said, the set design and visuals are beautiful, and I'll be revisiting this one on DVD to give it another go.

1. The Invention of Lying - I was a huge fan of Ricky Gervais' underseen comedy from 2008, Ghost Town. With such an impressive comedy ensemble in addition to Gervais, including Jennifer Garner, Jonah Hill, Louis C.K., Rob Lowe, and Tina Fey, combined with a thought-provoking premise, I expected this one to be a sure-fire hit. What I got was a mess of misfiring jokes, a choppy story, mostly boring performances outside of Gervais, and an unsatisfying ending. The best parts of the movie were the brief cameos by Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Edward Norton. I'm not sure I want to risk suffering through this one again to see if its better the second time.

Honorable mention: Fanboys - I remembered this one after I had made my list. I don't know what it was about this movie, but it just didn't work. After waiting so long to see it, and being a huge Star Wars fan, it was so terribly disappointing. With a few funny jokes, it just couldn't pull its act together. I don't blame the performers or director, but rather their studio The Weinstein Company, who have been notorious for destroying their own movies. The only exception was Inglourious Basterds, because no one messes with the Q.

Wow! I feel like an idiot....

2010-02-07T13:42:00.000-08:00

Alright, so last year I was so gung ho about getting a movie blog started. That obviously has not happened. After a couple of starts and stops, it has been nine months since I posted anything on this blog. I went ahead and deleted my two posts from last May cause they were pretty pointless. I decided to leave the three blogs from February 2009, because I'm too lazy to go back and look at them. It is very possible that doing this blog will be totally pointless, as we now know that movie blogs are a dime a dozen. Maybe no one will ever read these posts, but I'm gonna do it anyway.

Last time around, I tried to do a daily news post, an extensive review for every movie I watched, etc, etc. This time around I'm gonna take a laid back approach to the blog. With school, work, and all the crap life will throw, that'll be all the work on the blog I'll be able to do. I'll comment on a movie or TV news story when its something I feel led to comment on, I'll try to review the movie I see in theaters, and I may even occasionally do DVD reviews for movie that I Netflix. I'll definitely be doing an Oscar preview on either March 5th or 6th, before the 2010 ceremonies on the evening of March 7th.