Better late than never, my Oscar Predctions

The awards ceremony is tonight so this will not help anyone with their Academy Award pool sheets but I wanted to get both my predictions, who I would vote for of the nominated films and which film I thought was the best but wasn't nominated. So without further ado here we go

Best Adapted Screenplay
Prediction: "The Descendants" Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon & Jim Rash

My Vote: "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" Bridget O'Connor & Peter Straughan

Best Original Screenplay
Prediction: "Midnight in Paris" Woody Allen
My Vote: "A Separation" Asghar Farhadi
The Best but not Nominated: "50/50"Will Reiser
 
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Prediction & My Vote: Octavia Spencer "The Help"
The Best but not Nominated: Shailene Woodley "The Descendents"

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Prediction & My Vote: Christopher Plummer "Beginners"

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Prediction & My Vote: Viola Davis "The Help"

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Prediction: Jean Dujardin "The Artist"
My Vote: Brad Pitt "Moneyball"

Best Achievement in Directing
Prediction: Michel Hazanavicius "The Artist"  
My Vote: Terrence Malick "Tree of Life"
The Best but not Nominated: Nicolas Winding Refn "Drive"
 
Best Picture
Prediction: "The Artist"
My Vote: "Moneyball"
The Best but not Nominated: "Drive"

  

Just Another Opinion, My Top 10 Films of 2011

Better late than never I've finally seen most of the major releases of 2011. So I figured I would add my two cents to the end of year debate over what are the top 10 movies of the year.  Before the list some honorable mentions; "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2" ended the series on an emotional high point, creating a series of films that were constantly good is a major achievement. Terrance Malick is at his polarizing best in "Tree of Life." "Captain America: The First Avenger" and "X-Men: First Class" showed that period comic book films can be both artistically and commercially successful. "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" was a reboot that was much better than anyone could possibly hope.

10 The Muppets  Director James Bobin, and writer/star Jason Segel team for a gentle, loving rebirth for Kermit and pals, filled with those schmaltzy, toe-tapping Muppet tunes and giddily corny gags. The movie is an elaborate production, but it feels timeless. Blame the wave of nostalgia if you must but I had a huge smile plastered on my face for the entire film. The Muppets are back and that's a good thing.

9  My Week with Marilyn Personally I don't care if the story is true or not. The important thing is that it made for an excellent movie. Michelle Williams gave a remarkable performance, capturing the subtle nuances of a screen icon. Her movements and voice are impeccably honoring the memory and comedic timing of the Monroe. Kenneth Branagh performance as Sir Laurence Olivier is equal to Williams' work.

8  Being Elmo The second Muppetcentric film on my list is the documentary about the man behind the little red monster. Kevin Clash's journey is positively inspiring, and filmmakers Constance Marks and Philip Shane do a wonderful job of telling it. What could have been a childish rewind on the history of puppets becomes a tale of determination and dedication.

 7  The Guard Darkly funny, low-key buddy cop, crime film from Ireland with great lead performances from  Brendan Gleeson and Don Cheadle. Much of the film’s humor comes from Cheadle's reactions to Gleeson's off hand xenophobia, bigotry and vices. The script is fun, intelligent, and genuinely hilarious in places but also provides a satisfying conclusion. 

6  50/50  The fact that it was promoted as a cancer comedy may have scared away audiences, but director Jonathan Levine has crafted a film that manages to find the right tone in every scene. Comedy writer Will Reiser based the script on his own cancer diagnosis in his 20s, and his words are filled with dark humor and a wry recognition of the gravity of this situation, but also with real tenderness. One of the biggest reasons for the film's success is the performance of Joseph Gordon-Levitt who conveys both the strength and frailty of his charterer. 

5  The Descendants George Clooney has  built his reputation playing strong, independent men but here Alexander Payne asks him to play a deeply flawed one. The result maybe the best performance of his career.  In fact the entire cast is outrageously good especially Judy Greer. The script, written by Payne, Jim Rash and Nat Faxon, provide the poignant moments that make the relationships real but also the comedy bits that provide relief  yet the film never feels uneven and earns every laugh and every tear. 

 4  The Artist Who says you need 3-D? Who says you need widescreen CGI effects laden action? Hell you don't even need words as proved by director Michel Hazanavicius' wonderous dream of a film where every moment delights with grand visuals, lush music, timeless performances by Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo and a cute dog. Silence really is golden.

3  Moneyball  Less an adaptation of Michael Lewis' best-seller than a cinematic rendering of the unlikely marriage between passion and fiscal necessity that motivated baseball to put its faith in sabemetrics. Brad Pitt leads the film perfectly, creating an interesting protagonist and driving the film in a way few leads can. You won't catch him "acting" like some of his previous roles. Brad Pitt leads the film perfectly, creating a very interesting protagonist and driving the film in a way few leads can. He is charismatic throughout and shows the down side of Beane’s temper and single-mindedness well without ever turning the audience against him.

2  Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy Alec Guinness was the definitive version  of John le Carre's spymaster George Smiley in two miniseries 30 years ago. But Garry Oldman makes the role completely his own, inhabiting Smiley's stillness and impenetrability, somehow conveying the man's subsurface passion while barely twitching a muscle. Director Tomas Alfredson and his phenomenal cast tell a fiercely cerebral, meticulously paced spellbinder, masterfully compacted from le Carre's sprawling novel. Read my entire review here http://bit.ly/z6dJEh

1 Drive Every little rev of an engine and bullet fired is perfectly measured in both design and volume, building relentless tension with silence and then going nuclear with blasts of sound, wedging audience members into that tight space between the cushion and the back of seat. Between the gripping performances, the stunning lighting, the perfect soundtrack and the taut script, the sound is only a small part of the brilliance that is director Nicolas Winding Refn’s film. Refn' direction is immaculate. The mood of the film spills over you in the opening getaway and continues for the entire running time. The violent content never feels gratuitous or like it’s glorifying the actions of the characters. The entire film is grounded in reality which only makes every punch hit harder. The best film of the year.

Dance, She Said...

If you’re hoping to emerge from Wim Wenders’ new documentary, "Pina," having learned about the life of German modern dance choreographer Pina Bausch, the film’s subject, allow me to warn you away from that expectation. What Wenders has made is not so much a documentary about Bausch as a remembrance of her; an impressionistic eulogy. Bausch unexpectedly passed away two days before shooting was scheduled to begin. Wenders was prepared to cancel the project but the dancers in Bausch's company (some of whom had worked with her for decades) convinced him to continue. For fans of modern dance the film is a feast. Others, like me, who are novices in the field will find a technically proficient yet ultimately hollow film.



"Pina" plunges the viewer right into the dancing without setting the scene. Wenders wants to engage the audience and then slowly unfold the documentary elements. Bausch is seen and heard, very briefly, in old clips; her sound bits are artistically vague. She wanted the dancing to speak for her. All of this is presented in 3D.  "Pina" is almost entirely staged and choreographed. With this level of control in addition to the fact that we are witnessing something that was designed to be presented on a stage both occupied and observed by real, three-dimensional people, Wenders has achieved one of the best and most worthy use of 3D.  

Bausch’s dances are recreated on stage, with the camera largely recording them from perspectives that would be possible from the audience. Others, however, are relocated to real-world settings. Wenders places these throughout in a deliberate way. At first, they take place in nature – at the top of a hill or alongside a stream. Then they move very abruptly into the city with a dance performed on a moving monorail car and then another on a street corner. Finally, we get dances set in locales that blend the two. One is presented inside a room with glass walls overlooking a verdant landscape. Another stunning example takes place on an expanse of grass that we only realize once the camera moves is nearly in the shadow of some massive, modern bridge-like structure. In blending the images of the two sides of dance, Wenders is offering a definition of the art form – of all art forms, perhaps.


Modern dance is not be the most commercial art and cinema may well be. The resulting mix makes the dances accessible to people who may not have been exposed to them. To a person who thinks these dances will be silly, a mere description of them would do nothing to convince her or him.  To see them so exuberantly and whimsically staged brings a better understanding of the art form. At the end of the film the audience still don’t know all that much about the life of Pina Bausch. That’s not what this film is for. It is about the beauty she gave the world and this film continues her work. 

I Am Iron Lady (Streep Re-Mix)

When producing a modern biopic filmmakers have to answer several questions. How much do they assume is common knowledge to the audience?  Should they concentrate on one major event or go the full Monty and attempt to tackle the subject's entire life? 



There are really only a handful of effective biopics. Films like "The Aviator,"  "Capote" and "Milk" work well because the filmmakers approach their subjects as film characters. This allows that the freedom to work from the inside out, rather than concentrating on complete accuracy. Other films like"Patton" and "Ed Wood" work because there is an unknowable quality to these figures that the filmmakers opt not to question.  Rather, they stand back and let us try to figure them out for ourselves.

Unfortunately, for every biopic that works, there are probably five that don’t.  For every "Ed Wood", there are two "Beyond the Sea." These films objectify the subject without delving too deep leading to a shallow almost exploitative viewing experience.  The filmmakers simply want to trade on their subjects’ recognizably, rather than actually saying something about them.

Phyllida Lloyd’s "The Iron Lady" is not totally in the latter camp, but is certainly not in the former.  In telling the story of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, Lloyd displays an eye for detail and tone that effectively creates a political world that is an impenetrable bureaucracy.  The men at the heart of British government in the 1970s and 80s are portrayed as stubborn bulldogs. They’ve been doing this the same way for years and they just going to keep on doing it that way until they die.  In the midst of this comes a strong-willed, independent woman, who fights her way into the boys club and quickly takes charge. It is to Lloyd’s credit that the lead up to Thatcher’s reign is exciting and effective.  When telling the story of an important political figure, few things are more important than creating a strong context.  We need to get a sense of where and when this person lived, so that we might better understand how they might have decided to take certain actions.  Lloyd manages to go against the standard biopic stereotype and manages to tell a good portion of the story visually, rather than simply have characters sit around in a medium shot explaining everything to the audience.

Unfortunately, once Thatcher takes office, the film devolves into a story we’ve seen countless times before, albeit with the genders reversed.  Once again, the familiar trope of the unappreciated spouse complaining about not being a priority gets trotted out and we are given some token introspection from Thatcher.  Also, many of the specific achievements that Thatcher obtained while in office are skimmed over.  Perhaps Lloyd found the simple fact of Thatcher’s election to be inspiring enough.  Maybe she didn’t feel comfortable really delving into a figure as divisive as the conservative Prime Minister. Whatever the director’s reason, I think it is a major mistake to retreat from Thatcher's ideals. There are a few scenes when the audience is given a sense of this woman’s convictions, whether we believe in them or not, and these scenes are stirring.  There is the moment when she decides to go to war to defend the British territories, even though she is under tremendous pressure to simply let them go.  As we see Thatcher stand up to her advisers and even the American ambassador, we really start to feel like we’re seeing the real Thatcher in action, rather than a quick series of reenactments.

Ultimately, the choice to make a film about Margaret Thatcher at all is an interesting one.  Thatcher is a controversial figure, and there is no doubt a great film to be made about her.  Unfortunately, Lloyd and her screenwriter seldom seem very interested in going very deep into her character.

As with any biopic, good or bad, the vital element of the film is the lead performance.  And, thankfully, Meryl Streep displays a commitment to crafting not only a physically and behaviorally accurate performance, but one of substance.  Like so many other actors in these types of roles, Streep could have relied heavily on the exterior of the character; the part we are all familiar with.  Instead, much like Phillip Seymour Hoffman in "Capote", Streep creates a full-fledged, three-dimensional character with hopes, dreams, and fears.  Only after the character is finished does Streep layer on the cosmetic qualities.  

It has become such a standard position that Meryl Streep is a great actress that we sometimes forget why we think that.  Her performance here reminds us. At every level, she is committed to the performance.  She puts forth a great amount of effort into the role while making it all look so easy.  It would have been enough for her to skate through this role, throw on an accent, sound commanding, then go home.  But she doesn’t.  She invests herself in the role.  While watching the film, I not only forgot that I was watching Meryl Streep; I forgot that I was watching “The Best Actress of Her Generation.”  I wasn’t even thinking in those terms.  I was simply watching Margaret Thatcher.

It is Streep’s committed performance that makes me wish there was a better film surrounding her. She certainly elevates the film- along with the sturdy support of Jim Broadbent- but there is only so high it can go when it seems only superficially interested in its subject. Ultimately, the choice to make a film about Margaret Thatcher at all is an interesting one.  Thatcher is a controversial figure, and there is no doubt a great film to be made about her.  Unfortunately, Lloyd and her screenwriter seldom seem very interested in going very deep into her character

Seventies Spy

Director Tomas Alfredson's adaptation of John le Carre's "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" is an uncommon movie going event. A intelligent, complicated film that requires attention and patience from the audience. It's the kind of movie we're always hearing they don't make anymore, until they do. And here it is.

The story is pretty standard stuff; a mole has infiltrated the highest levels of British intelligence, and must be flushed out. "There's a rotten apple," the agency head, known only as Control (John Hurt), tells his agent, Jim Prideaux (Mark Strong). "We have to find it." And with that, he dispatches Prideaux to Budapest to get the mole's name. The agent is promptly shot. Control is dismissed, but after his death, his deputy George Smiley (Gary Oldman) is asked to investigate the mole. He narrows it down to four men: new agency head Percy Alleline (Toby Jones) and his deputies Bill Haydon (Colin Firth), Roy Bland (Ciaran Hinds), and Toby Esterhase (David Denick). And thus, slowly, methodically, Smiley sets out to find his man.

Alfredson, working from a tight screenplay by Peter Straughan and the late Bridget O'Connor, trusts the viewer to piece together who is who and who does what; in this regard, the distinguished cast of recognizable actors (which also includes Tom Hardy and Benedict Cumberbatch) is an indisputable asset. The film also offers the opportunity to watch some of the finest character actors squaring off, and working with more than the meager material they're sometimes saddled with in their small supporting turns. You've seldom seen this many fine British actors outside the Harry Potter pictures; there are so many good roles that even the smaller ones are filled by interesting young actors, like Christian McKay (from "Me & Orson Welles) and Stephen Graham (who plays Al Capone on "Boardwalk Empire"). The supporting cast performs admirably, with particular kudos due to recently minted Oscar winner Firth, who is doing some utterly extraordinary things in his final scene with Oldman.

Having this set of familiar faces in place allows Alfredson to just get on with things, indulging in the kind of elliptical storytelling--filled with flashbacks, detours, and dead-ends--that is le Carre's forte. The director's style isn't flashy, it's a deceptively low-key picture in which voices are seldom raised. Alfredson has a sure sense of exactly when to get in and out of a scene, and he can build tension with the basic tools of lingering close-ups and Alberto Iglesias's moody score. There are many scenes that build susspense from a simple phone ringing or a quick gaze. 

The filmmakers couldn't have a sturdier presence at the film's center than Oldman. The astonishing restraint of his performance will come as a surprise to those who remember the actor in full scenery chewing mode in films like "The Fifth Element" and "The Professional". But he works well in this minor key. This is not an aggressive character; he's so refined that he swims wearing his spectacles. But Oldman gives him a vibrant interior life, finding the characterization in the pauses rather than monologues. and when he is called to deliver he delivers in spades.

If you are one of the multitude who bemoan the death of intelligent adult thrillers then you owe it to yourself to seek out "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy".

Spielberg's Horse Tale

"War Horse" is the first Steven Spielberg film to be edited digitally. He was the final holdout who manually cut actual film on a flatbed editing board. This move to the modern seems odd since everything else about the production feels like it comes from a earlier time. Handsomely mounted and utterly sappy, "War Horse" is the director's least successful picture since "The Terminal"; it has its moments, but they are undercut by a complete lack of faith in the audience not trusting them to find the emotiona beats but being lead to them by John Williams' bombastic score.

The film is based on the novel by Michael Morpurgo, which also inspired the current Broadway play. It is the story of Joey, the war horse of the title, and Albert (Jeremy Irvine), the boy who raises him, trains him, and loves him. The film takes its time getting the horse to war; the first quarter or so of the film concerns the horse's formative time, as Albert attempts to make Joey into a plow horse, and thus save his family farm. In these village and farm scenes, nestled in lush, rolling hills, Spielberg is clearly aping John Ford's "The Quiet Man", but the lovely visuals are constantly undercut by Williams' musical swells.

As the parents, the venerable character actors Emily Watson and Peter Mullan give their stereotypical roles some weight. Dear old Dad drinks too much and allows his pride cloud his judgement. Mum is wise and steadfast. Due to various calamities the family is forced to sell Joey to the British army at the outset of World War I. We then follow Joey on his travels: from the British army to the Germans, to a French farmhouse, back to the Germans, and, well, you can probably guess the finale. It's one of those international movies where the German soldiers and the French peasants all speak English, rendering a line complimenting a German soldier's grasp of the language into a bit of a head-scratcher.

The film is visually gorgeous, every frame is a pretty picture; we'd expect nothing less of Spielberg and his regular cinematographer, the great Janusz Kaminski. They fill the film with elegant compositions (the shot with the windmill blades is masterful) and infectious warmth. But they're also altogether too reliant on the crutches of Spielberg's style: the hero angle and big, slow, low-shot zooms--there are probably as many of both.

The battle scenes are brilliantly staged, though once Spielberg gets to the trench warfare, he appears to be repeating cues from "Saving Private Ryan" over a dozen years ago but none of the sequences carry the weight of the earlier film. In addition, the stakes are far lower--the film is so conventional that we're fairly certain how it's going to turn out so there's not much suspense. There, and elsewhere in the third act, the film only shines in the pauses.

One of those pauses is the picture's best single scene, which finds a British and German soldier coming together in no mans land. This is a small, human, funny, and rather remarkable encounter, and it's so well observed and believable that it only draws our attention to how phony the rest of the film is. Some of that's the writing; some of it is the director's too-presentational staging. But much of that is Williams's overstuffed and nonstop music, which can take even the most finely-tuned encounter and slather it in so much string-assisted artificiality as to render it all into Hollywood pap.

There are moments, here and there; the way the Frenchman protects his granddaughter, the horse's climactic run and the real emotion worked up in the third act. "War Horse"offers many pretty pictures, some excellent scenes but falls short.