The Three Rivers Film Festival opens next Friday, and I shall be going for the first time this year. The festival opens with Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire and Terry Gilliam's The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus, and I think I shall be going to Gilliam's movie. Precious is bound to expand to Pittsburgh sometime soon after it opens. I also am going to try and see The Messenger, Bronson, Serious Moonlight and Thirst.
Everyone should check it out!
Living in Pittsburgh does have its advantages, but getting smaller independant feature films isn't one of them! Here are a sampling of the movies that I am DYING to see but aren't here yet.
Coco Before Chanel, New York, I Love You, An Education, Brief Interviews with Hideous Men, and A Serious Man.
These all need to come to Pittsburgh, pronto. Saw VI (this horse isn't dead yet?) and Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant seem to be the only wide releases coming out tomorrow. No word if Amelia is coming though.
I mentioned earlier that I wasn't a fan of AMPAS's decision to expand the Best Picture category from five nominees to ten. That doesn't mean that I won't have fun trying to predict who will be up for the top prize.
If there was a frontrunner going into the race at this time of year, Up in the Air is it. Everything George Clooney touches turns into gold, and it helps that he already has a Best Supporting Actor trophy to go with it. Every review to come out of the Toronto Film Festival was full of raves, praising Clooney (generating talk of a second Best Actor nomination) as well as costars Vera Farmiga and relative unknown Anna Kendrick.
Kathryn Bigelow's The Hurt Locker may not have been a box office blockbuster this summer, but it has been receiving plenty of talk. It is by far the only Iraq war film to generate any positive reaction since the war began. Bigelow is also poised to get a Best Director nomination for her film, a feat that, sadly, few women directors can brag about. I think The Hurt Locker might receive a lot more nominations that one might think. Jeremy Renner might nab a spot in the Best Actor race, and it could really clean up in the technical categories such as Best Sound Mixing and Editing as well as Cinematography and Film Editing.
Up, Pixar's lovely animated feature, may become the only second animated feature to be nominated for the big prize. The film's mixture of radiant energy and genuine, heartfelt emotion could land the film in the top ten. But what I ask is this: would Up receive a Best Picture nomination if the category was relegated to five participants? I think not. And if the film snags a Best Picture nod, will that mean it will get passed over in the Animated Feature category? Talk has been circulating that this may be the year that the Academy nominates five movies in the Animated Feature category instead of its usual three. Will Pixar finally get the shaft?
Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire (I think I am the only one who thinks this title is waaaaay too long) might be the underdog of the season. Snatching the coveted Audience Award at the Toronto Film Festival as well as the audience and jury award this past year at Sundance, Precious is a surefire crowdpleaser and Best Picture contender. One wouldn't think that an independent feature chronicling the turbulent inner-city life of an abused teenage mom would garner such prestigious attention, but star-making turns from Mo'Nique and Gabby Sidibe are attracting major notice. It also doesn't hurt that Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry have gotten behind the project.
The Road has been losing buzz in the past few weeks, but things might turn around after its November release. When John Hillcoat's film got bumped in October of 2008 to this year, there was talk that someone really messed up the adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's apocalyptic thriller. The reviews that have come out have been rather mixed so the film might miss out on a Best Picture nomination but since the category has been expanded to ten movies, anything can happen.
Let me get this gay: Rob Marshall is directing a film adaptation of the Maury Yeston musical Nine? And who did you say was in the cast? Oh that's right! Daniel Day-Lewis (OSCAR!), Marion Cotillard (OSCAR!), Nicole Kidman (OSCAR!), Judi Dench (OSCAR!), Penelope Cruz (OSCAR!), Sophia Loren (OSCAR and frickin' Italian royalty!) and Kate Hudson (NO OSCAR! And may I say, thank God Marica Gay Harden stole your thunder in 2000 Katie, because, let's face it, My Best Friend's Girl wasn't the awards bait your publicist promised. Don't worry, someone out there loves you). Oscar nominated director who knows his musicals + quite frankly, one of the most beautiful and talented casts ever = Best Picture nomination. And the gays rejoice!
Let's talk about Clint Eastwood's Nelson Mandela biopic Invictus. I heart Clint Eastwood. I heart Morgan Freeman. Hell, I heart the idea of a movie where Morgan Freeman plays Farrah Fawcett. Sadly, I am over this. Maybe it's because I haven't heard/seen that much about it. I am sure that come Oscar time I will be raving how amazing and spectacular it is, but I am kind of sick at how Eastwood swoops down and takes everything at the end of the year. Love ya, Uncle Eastwood. Your movies are thought-provoking and moving and blah blah blah. I am sure that he will receive yet another Best Director nomination and Freeman will get another deserved acting nom (remember, hearts all around!), but I don't care at this point of the game. Matt Damon is in this movie (and might be nominated for this and The Informant! but that's a different story for a different day) and I still don't care. Does that put it into perspective?
I think The Lovely Bones will be saved a slot this year. Peter "Thank God You Left the Shire" Jackson is at the helm and young Saoirse Ronan is starring in the much-anticipated adaptation. Ronan is in good company with former nominee Mark Wahlberg and past winner Rachel Weisz as her parents as well as Susan (please give her another Oscar) Sarandon as her grandmother. Stanley Tucci (Stanley FREAKING Tucci, people!!!) also lends supporting work as Ronan's possible killer. So let's recap: Oscar-winning and very much beloved director directs a cast so stellar, I get sunburned just staring at the poster. Yeah, I'm on board.
If Up can beat the odds as an animated feature, why can't Michael Moore's latest documentary grab the gold? Well probably because this isn't Moore's best. Before the film was released, there was talk that Moore might move up as far as Oscar nomination stature, but that idea has simply died. Sorry Mr. Moore. Too bad Fahrenheit 9/11 didn't come out this year.
Mira Nair's Amelia might snag some attention when it comes out later this month. After all, Hilary Swank is 2 for 2 for Best Actress I'm sure she will be up again for her portrayal of Amelia Earhart. The cinematography looks gorgeous, but, like Invictus, I feel over it until I actually see it. And while we are on the subject, I'd like to say something that I am sure I will repeat over and over this entire season. If Hilary Swank wins a third Academy Award before Meryl Streep wins a third Academy Award, I will seriously flip out. Swank is an accomplished actress and I am enthralled by her work time and time again. If Streep and Swank go head to head this year, I fully expect Carey Mulligan to swoop in and take the honor. Swank has already stolen 2 Oscars from Annette Bening. She definitely doesn't need to start on Meryl!
Speaking of Carey Mulligan! An Education is one of the most talked about movies of this year's award season. Mulligan's highly praised, subtle performance is making her the frontrunner of the Best Actress race, and it is my belief that Mulligan alone will be responsible for catapulting the movie into the top ten. My question is this. If my prediction is correct, does that mean that director Lone Sherfig will nab a nomination? The women might actually outweigh the men this year. Sherfig, Bigelow, and Jane Campion might all be honored. That would definitely be the start of an education the AMPAS needs.
Jane Campion's Bright Star has all the right ingredients for a Best Picture nomination. Great director, young promising cast, beautiful production values. Campion's star, however, seems to be fading. It not fully fading, it is definitely flickering. If it had a later release date, it might survive the crunch, but depite all the positive reviews, the film could fall completely. The breathtaking cinematography and art direction might push it through but I doubt it. Might suffer from Atonement syndrome--and that was a far superior and more ambitious film.
Tom Ford's A Single Man might get a boost later in the year because of Colin Firth's much talked about performance as a gay man who loses his lover after 16 years. It might be too small of a movie and it is, after all, fashion designer Tom Ford's first feature. We will have to see how this one does in the long run, but I am giving it the benefit of the doubt for now.
How awesome would this be?! Quentin Tatantino hasn't had some quality buzz for a long time, and the overall box office and surprise critical acclaim has at least kept the picture afloat. Some technical award nomination talk definitely hasn't hurt it at all, either.
A Serious Man's recent release has generated some talk mainly because of its strong reviews. I think it has a shot mainly because it is directed by the Coen Brothers, something that a lot of the new younger voters might be attracted to. The plot (story of a Jewish man's life unraveling all around him) might attract the older, more traditional voters so it could be a movie that unites the entire Academy! The Coens took Picture and Director two years ago, but their comedy isn't always well received. Burn After Reading failed to grab any nominations last year.
I would love to see District 9 at least be considered. It is by far one of the best received sci-fi pics in the last few years, but that might also be the picture's downfall. Science fiction is NEVER taken seriously, no matter how ambitious the thematic elements are. Keep your fingers crossed!
Everyone loves a British import! And everyone especially loves a movie about fighting the man, so audiences will surely walk the plank to see Pirate Radio (formerly known as The Boat that Rocked, which is such a better title). Philip Seymour Hoffman leads the ensemble cast as a DJ who takes on the jazz-loving establighment by playing rock music (along with serveral other DJs) on a remote boat in the 1960s. The Academy loves Hoffman, but this might fare a lot better at the Golden Globes than at the Oscars.
My last entry is more of a plea. 500 Days of Summer is one of the most original movies in recent memory, and sadly, will probably be ignored come Oscar time simply because it is a romance that stars a younger cast. The screenplay will hopefully be nominated for its nonlinear structure, but the heartfelt story should not be underestimated nor skipped over.
So what do I think will be nominated?
Amelia
An Education
The Hurt Locker
Invictus
The Lovely Bones
Nine
Precious: Based in the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire
A Single Man
Up
Up in the Air
We shall see.
Last night I went to a midnight showing of the new horror flick Paranormal State at the Waterfront. Let me tell you people that I do not remember being so freaked out by a movie. I think the last flick that made my heart race this fast was 1999's The Blair Witch Project.
There are going to be people that expect too much and hate this movie. People are already calling it one of the scariest movies of all time and the advertising has guaranteed that you are going to have nightmares when you go to sleep.
The film (which was shot in seven days on a budget of $11,000) chronicles the inventigation of whether or not a young couple's house is haunted. Shot entirely with a handheld digital camera, primarily by husband Micah, the film has a very deliberate, slow pace. Micah and his wife Katie bicker and joke around, but at night, the jolts start to kick in.
The camera is always propped on a tripod near the foot of Micah and Katie's bed. They leave their bedroom door open to see if they can see any activity going on in the hallway. Every so often, you'll see a shadow or see the door slowly begin to close while they asleep.
What goes on, I will not reveal. I don't want to be the guy who claims that this movie is downright terrifying and then set up everyone to be disappointed. I will say this, though: I don't remember being so scared to go home when the sceening was over. I found myself becoming very paranoid as the night wore on, and I thought I kept hearing noises. Good horror movies will do that. The film doesn't show you a lot (it does show you some stuff, don't get me wrong) so it let's your mind get the better of you. That is much scarier than any knife-weilding serial killer popping out at you while the scary music blairs in your ears.
I am going to make a suggestion, if I may. See this movie with a bunch of your friends at night. I am sure that some will be frightened by watching it at any time, but if you really want to be affected, go see the latest show you possibly can. Then let me know how you feel walking to your car alone in a darkened parking lot.
This post is long overdue.
I am a FREAK about the Oscars. Actually, I love the entire film awards season, although my favorite is the Big Show that comes along every February. I always follow Oscar prognosticars all year and make sure I attend screenings of movies that look "Oscar-worthy."
I am hereby introducing a new section to my blog. I will be trying to predict this year's Oscar nominees and winners (I do this every year, but now I am bringing forth my geekiness for all of you to read) as well as commenting on the upcoming season.
Til then!
The Toronto Film Festival has ended and the buzz on Oscar hopefuls has heated up. There is one film, however, that has garnered mostly positive attention that I am starting to become obsessed with: Atom Egoyan's Chloe.
Chloe, starring Julianne Moore, Amanda Seyfried and Liam Neeson, is an erotic thriller similar in tone as Egoyan's previous work. Moore plays a doctor named Catherine who suspects her husband (Neeson) of cheating on her. Instead of asking her husband about his potential indiscretions, she hires a prostitute named Chloe (Seyfried) to approach her husband to see how far the encounter will go. As time goes on, the unbearable jealousy and tension mounts, and, if like other Egoyan films, explodes with a quiet urgency.
Julianne Moore is my favorite actress.. She is the kind of actress that makes you feel exactly what she is feeling. Her performances in Boogie Nights and Far From Heaven showcase her confidence to do risky material, but at the same time she is marvelously restrained. Moore was nominated for Oscars for both films, but she should have walked away with a statuette by now--especially for Far From Heaven.
I didn't know that Tom Ford's A Single Man existed until recently. Maybe it was because I kept coming across the name and thinking it was the new Coen Bros. movie, A Serious Man, a movie that I'm really jazzed for.
A Single Man stars Colin Firth as a man who tries to piece his life back together after the death of his lover in 1962. The movie also stars Matthew Goode, Ginnifer Goodwin, and the lovely, luminous Julianne Moore.
Check out the intriguing trailer.
I LOVE movie theater standees!
I went to AMC today and saw a couple movies. When I was killing time in the lobby, I noticed that they were displaying a bunch of standees for upcoming movies. I took some pics to share my adoration for these lovely advertising tools.
Ellen Page and I are tight. I taught her all her moves for her new movie.
A traditionally hand-drawn Disney feature with all new music? Hell yeah, I'm on board!
Need I say more?
I swear to God. If Hilary Swank wins a third Oscar for Amelia before Tom Hanks or Meryl Streep wins a third Oscar, I will kill a bitch.
Let me just get this out of the way. I hate Megan Fox. I think she is trashy and not very talented. When I saw trailer for the new movie Jennifer's Body, I was psyched but was also concerned. I didn't want this gaudy girl getting in the way of Diablo Cody's first post-Juno cinematic adventure.
Well Ms. Fox's presence all over the internet has certainly obscured the movie a bit. Her no-doubt-she's-had-work-done face is EVERYWHERE (not to mention an array of poorly superimposed images of her naked body). I am the kind of person who always admits they are wrong when it comes to watching movies, and I will say this. Megan Fox holds her own in this movie. Granted, she is playing a vapid, trashy girl who devours teenage boys for kicks. Don't think she had to crack a book to study for her role.
Amanda Seyfried, however, is the true star of this movie, a demented post-Heathers look at female friendship and sex. Fox plays the title character who, along with Seyfriend's gawky character named Needy, go to a concert at a local dive bar only to have their evening culminate with the bar burning to the ground and almost everyone inside meeting their maker. Jennifer then is lured into the skeezy band's van, leaving Needy in the dust. The next time Needy sees Jennifer, Jennifer is bloody and looks as if she's been run over twice.
Jennifer becomes, if possible, even hotter. She struts, she purrs, she spouts Diablo Cody quips! She also shows no remorse over the classmates who lost their lives, and then certain male members of the student body are showing up dead, their insides uncerimoniously on the outside. Long story short, Jennifer has turned into a demon and the school's meal plan isn't exactly fulfilling Jennifer's appetite.
I really liked this movie. Amanda Seyfried is really coming into her own as an actress. Her chemistry with her boyfriend Chip (Johnny Simmons) is very sweet and genuine. Diablo Cody keeps the laughs coming along with the jolts. Some complain that her dialogue is too staged and that no teenagers actually talk like this, but I love all teh zippy one-liners. If teenagers having reomotely intelligent conversations is your biggest complaint about a movie featuring a demon girl feasting on virgin boys, than consider yourself lucky.
So I was checking my weekly film listings (remember, cause I'm a dinkus), and I realize that by Friday, there will be 11 movies out that I need to see.
11!
They are the following:
Gamer
9
Whiteout
In the Loop
Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself
Yoo-Hoo Mrs. Goldberg
(Those are just the ones that are out now!!! I'm having heart palpatations!!!)
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
The Informant!
Jennifer's Body (So. Freakin'. Excited.)
Love Happens (Worst. Title. Ever.)
Cold Souls
Bring it on, bitches.
