Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Nine review

After seeing Nine a few days ago, I can't say that it was a perfect film. I enjoyed the musical numbers, but the story didn't quite work. First of all, Rob Marshall uses the same concept for the musical numbers that he used for Chicago: having the main character imagine the songs in their head. The problem with this is that, unlike with Roxie Hart, the film makers never give a reason why Guido would imagine songs in his head. Another problem is that the characters are never developed enough. Take Marion Cotillard: She's good, but stuck in a one-note role that needs more screen time. Same with Judi Dench. But I thought that Penelope Cruz was exceptional. She's great in her musical number and is able to make her character work. Daniel Day-Lewis is miscast and is unable to make his character be very interesting or compelling. The rest of the cast is good, but it seems like their more cameos then performances. So my grade for the film is a C plus leaning towards to a C. So tell me, what do you think of this film if you've seen it? If you have, do disagree with anything that I've said?

Monday, December 28, 2009

All of my favorite Best Actress nominees

Since a few fellow bloggers have been doing this, I've decided to make my own complete list of all of my favorite Best Actress nominees.

1950: Bette Davis in All About Eve
1950: Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard
1950: Anne Baxter in All About Eve
1954: Judy Garland in A Star Is Born
1965: Julie Andrews in The Sound Of Music
1967: Anne Bancroft in The Graduate
1967: Faye Dunaway in Bonnie Clyde
1974: Faye Dunaway in Chinatown
1976: Sissy Spacek in Carrie
1978: Jill Clayburg in An Unmarried Woman
1983: Debra Winger in Terms Of Endearment
1985: Whoopi Goldberg in The Color Purple
1987: Holly Hunter in Broadcast News
1988: Glenn Close in Dangerous Liasons
1989: Michelle Pfeiffer in The Fabulous Baker Boys
1990: Angelica Huston in The Grifters
1991: Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon in Thelma And Louise
1994: Winona Ryder in Little Women
1995: Elisabeth Shue in Leaving Las Vegas
1996: Brenda Blethyn in Secrets And Lies
1997: Helena Bonham-Carter in The Wings Of The Dove
1997: Judi Dench in Mrs. Brown
1999: Annette Benning in American Beauty
2000: Ellen Burstyn in Requiem For A Dream
2000: Laura Linney in You Can Count On Me
2001: Nicole Kidman in Moulin Rouge
2001: Sissy Spacek in In The Bedroom
2002: Diane Lane in Unfaithful
2002: Julianne Moore in Far From Heaven
2004: Kate Winslet in Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind
2005: Felicity Huffman in Transamerica
2006: Judi Dench in Notes On A Scandal
2006: Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada
2007: Laura Linney in The Savages
2007: Ellen Page in Juno
2008: Anne Hathaway in Rachel Getting Married
2008: Melissa Leo in Frozen River

Saturday, December 19, 2009

My ranking of most of Stephen Sondheim's scores

I'm doing this because Sage's ranking of The Golden Girls (I love that show as well) inspired me to do a post that didn't have anything to do with film or the Oscars. And being a huge Sondheim fan, I'm also doing this for fun. So, here it is:

1. Into The Woods: Not everyone loves it as much as I do, but it is my favorite of all of his scores. It is thought provoking, heartbreaking, funny, ect. The entire cast is great, especially Joanna Gleason and Bernadette Peters.

2. Sweeney Todd: This show is probably considered to be Sondheim's best. Although it isn't my personal favorite, it comes close. A very powerful,disturbing,and emotional score.

3. Company: Very beautiful and insightful. All of the songs are great,but my favorites are: Company, The Little Things You Do Together, Another Hundred People, Barcelona, and The Ladies Who Lunch.

4. Follies: A score which grew on me considerably. Stirring and simply brilliant. Original version is the best,even though it isn't complete.

5. A Little Night Music: Just wonderful. Favorite songs are: A Glamorous Life, You Must Meet My Wife, Every Day A Little Death, A Weekend In The Country, Send In The Clowns, and The Miller's Son.

6. Sunday In The Park With George: Hmm, took me a little time to get used to, (The show itself is a mixed bag and Mandy Patinkin is extremely annoying in the first act), but is eventually rewarding.

7. Assassins: Has a few tracks that I skip, but it still works. Unworthy Of Your Love is truly haunting as is the rest of the score.

As for the rest, I never really got into Passion, Pacific Overtures, and Merrily We Roll Along and I don't count West Side Story and Gypsy since he just wrote the lyrics and I've never listened to A.F.T.H.O.T.W.T.F. So if you care enough to comment, what do you think of Sondheim? What score do you think is his best work?

Monday, December 14, 2009

My thoughts on the awards season so far

This year is not as exciting for me as it was last year. There were more films that I wanted to see and a lot more of contenders that were released before December. The only three ''award contender'' films I've seen are A Bright Star, An Education, and Precious. I absolutely hated A Bright Star and I had favorable to mixed feeling about An Education. Let me just get this out of the way: What's the deal with Mulligan? I mean, she was good, and most likely nomination worthy,but Oscar-caliber? No. Despite my opinion, she's the hot favorite right now to win Best Actress. As for Precious, I really liked it. Maybe the fantasy scenes got a bit much at times, but the performances were great and the script was solid. Well, the Golden Globe nominations came out today and it looks like the Best Picture race is a three way race between The Hurt Locker, Precious, and Up In The Air. Nine might be able to gain some steam,but it's gotten mixed reviews so far. The Lovely Bones used to be the frontrunner,but after seeing the trailer I thought it would back fire and it looks like it did,given that has a 43 % on Rotten Tomatoes according an Oscar site that I follow. Best Actor seems to be between Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart), Morgan Freeman (Invictus), George Clooney (Up In The Air), and Colin Firth (A Single Man). Best Supporting Actor is a total mystery to me and it looks like Monique is dominating the Supporting Actress race. So,tell me,who do you think will win and/or be nominated this year? What are your thoughts on the awards season so far?

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Guess Who's Coming To Dinner? review

I wasn't planning to watch this film today. I watched about half of A Room At The Top on my computer and I was going to finish it but I watched G.W.C.T.D instead on TV (thanks for giving me the link to it anyway Sage and I might rewatch it). I have to say that I didn't like it at all. It's a horribly dated film which is extremely hard to take. On the plus side,Spencer Tracy and Sidney Poiter delivered strong performances and Tracy's big speech at the end is quite good. As for Hepburn,I don't think that she deserved her Oscar.She is not bad,but her performance is dull and not Oscar-caliber. But I do think that her role is a leading one. Yes,her role is underwritten,but she and Tracy are co-leads. But when I do a Best Actress ranking,she'll probably rank somewhere near the end. But tell me what do you think of this film? Do you disagree with anything I've said about it? Do you think Hepburn deserved to win?

Sissy Spacek in Carrie

Monday, November 30, 2009

My top 10 Best Supporting Actress winners (as of now)

Note:I'm in the process of seeing most of the Best Actress winners so I can do a ranking like Sage (Again,thank you SO much for sending me the links for most of the Best Actress winners that I haven't seen yet!)did and what Fritz is doing right now,but I'l probably not do a Best Supporting Actress ranking anytime soon,so just enjoy this for now. Also,this list is different from the list that I originally had in mind and posted a while ago,both in new performances being added and others being taken out and the descending order.10.Marisa Tomei in My Cousin Vinny: A terrific comic performance which is incredibly enjoyable. 9: Beatrice Straight in Network:In only 6 minutes of screen time,Straight is absolutely unforgettable. 8. Cloris Leachman in The Last Picture Show:Heartbreaking,powerful,and subtle portrayal. 7. Sandy Dennis in Who's Afraid Of Virginia Wolf?:The transformation that Dennis goes through in this film is mesmerizing to watch. 6. Rachel Weisz in The Constant Gardener:Brilliant performance. Enough said! 5. Eileen Heckart in Butterflies Are Free:Heckart is just wonderful in this and becomes the center of the film. 4. Diane Wiest in Hannah And Her Sisters:I just LOVE,LOVE,LOVE,this performance and movie. 3. Catherine Zeta-Jones in Chicago:The most hated performance that is in my top ten. But I was blown away by her. 2. Angelina Jolie in Girl Interupted: An incredible performance which dominates the entire film. And #1. Shirley Jones in Elmer Gantry:When I first watched the video "My favorite Supporting Actress winners" that Sage posted on Youtube,Jones's clip struck a chord in me. After seeing Elmer Gantry last night,I was amazed by Jones. She delivers a stunning performance which I loved from her first scene to her last. So tell me,who are your favorites? Which of my choices do you like or dislike?

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Films I've seen recently

The Heiress:I loved this film. Not only was I blown away by Dehavilland's performance,the script,direction,and the other performances were great as well. The Lion In Winter: Wow. I loved this movie as well!. Hepburn was AMAZING and she and O'toole have great chemistry.Hud:A very strong movie as well. Paul Newman was excellent and both Neal and Douglas completely deserved their Oscars. The Rose Tattoo: The 1st half was good,but the film fell WAY down in the 2nd half. Not only was Burt Lancaster terrible,but the relationship between his character and Anna Magnani wasn't conceived very well and it just didn't make sense. However,Magnani is able to rise above this and deliver a brilliant performance. The Good Earth: Didn't really like this movie. Not bad,but it just wasn't my type of film. A good performance by Louise Rainer,although I wish her character was a little more. The Country Girl: A movie that just didn't have much of a plot,in my opinion. Good,but not great performances by Bing Crosby and William Holden,but the film was just alright. Grace Kelly stole the movie with her knock-out portrayal and, in my opinion, deserved her Oscar. Which brings me too............... A Star Is Born: Both Judy Garland and James Mason are outstanding in this. And although,as I said above,I felt that Kelly was deserving,Garland was still incredible,especially when she sings "The man that got away". Note:I also saw Klute and Howard's End recently,but I don't want to include to many films in my post.Please comment! I hate it when I get zero comments.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

An Education review

After seeing An Education yesterday,I can say that the film was very good. Incomplete (for reasons that I can't say due to spoiler alert),but a strong movie none the less. Of course,the main reason I saw it was for Carey Mulligan's performance,which has been getting a lot of awards attention lately. But after seeing it,I can't honestly say that she's worthy of all the buzz she's been getting. Her performance was a strong one and probably nomination worthy,but win caliber? I don't think so. That said,everyone has gone gaga over her and she'll probably be nominated,but I think she'll need to be a sure thing to win. Anyone have any thoughts on this film or the Best Actress race this year?

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Best Supporting Actress Analysis

I've decided to have an Analysis of sorts of each of the Oscar winners in the top 8 categories. Lets start with Best Supporting Actress. 2000: Marcia Gay Harden as Lee Krasner in Pollock: A fierce, masterful performance. Have no problem with her winning, although I think that Frances Mcdormand should have won for Almost Famous. 2001: Jennifer Connelly as Alicia Nash in A Beautiful Mind: Awful. Just awful. 2002: Catherine Zeta-Jones as Velma Kelly in Chicago: This is my opinion, but I just love this performance. I felt that she clearly deserved her Oscar. 2003: Renee Zellweger as Ruby Thewes in Cold Mountain: Ugh. What a bad performance. Zellweger delivered great, Oscar-worthy performances in Bridget Jones's Diary and Chicago, but the Academy decided to give her an Oscar for an over the top, mediocre effort in a flawed movie. 2004: Cate Blanchett as Katharine Hepburn in The Aviator: Entertaining and wonderful characterization of Katharine Hepburn. But Virginia Madsen (Sideways) is my pick. 2005: Rachel Weisz as Tessa Quayle in The Constant Gardener: Beautifully layered, brilliant performance. A deserved win, although Amy Adams was great too. 2006: Jennifer Hudson as Effie White in Dreamgirls: Is there anything else that hasn't been said before? Just terrible. 2007: Tilda Swinton as Karen Crowder in Michael Clayton: Terrific, superb performance. 2008: Penelope Cruz as Maria Elena in Vicky Cristina Barcelona: Cruz brings plenty of fire and life to her film and delivers a strong performance, but Tomei (The Wrestler), Adams (Doubt),and Davis (also from Doubt) were all superior to her performance. I will post my Best Picture Analysis soon. Comment!

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Films I've seen recently

Rewatched films: Driving Miss Daisy: I love this movie and I loved it again when I saw it recently. And although I loved Michelle Pfeiffer inn TFBB, I have to stick with Jessica Tandy as my Best Actress selection. The Piano:Really liked this movie on 2nd viewing. The plot structure could be a little stronger, but it's superbly made and has amazing performances by Hunter and Paquin. The Graduate: A brilliant, classic film. Everything was pitch perfect. Films I saw for the first time: Sense And Sensibility: The story drags at times, but I thought it was really entertaining, with strong performances by Thompson and Winslet. Leaving Las Vegas: Wow. Just wow. What a great film. Brilliant acting by Cage and Shue with top notch writing and directing. Tell me your thoughts on these films!

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Michelle Pfeiffer in The Fabulous Baker Boys


http://lancemannion.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/michelle_pfeiffer.jpg

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Help

Something weird is going on with my computer. Whenever I try to drag the picture into the post window, it keeps showing the web address of the picture. How do you fix this?

My new favorite Best Actress nominees

I've decided to post a picture of each of my favorite Best Actress nominees. These will be new favorites, not the nominees I've already stated are my favorites.

Elisabeth Shue in Leaving Las Vegas

Saturday, October 24, 2009

My picks for Best Supporting Actress

I have decided to post my choices on who should have won Best Supporting Actress. It will be only for the 2000s for now, since I still have a lot of films to see in the 90's , the 80's, and so on. So here it is. 2000:Frances Mcdormand as Elaine Miller in Almost Famous. 2001: Marisa Tomei as Natalie Strout in In The Bedroom. 2002: Catherine Zeta-Jones as Velma Kelly in Chicago. Holly Hunter as Melanie 'Mel' Freeland in Thirteen. 2004: Virginia Madsen as Maya Randall in Sideways. 2005: Rachel Weisz as Tessa Quayle in The Constant Gardener. 2006: Rinko Kikuchi as Chieko in Babel. 2007: Amy Ryan as Helene McCready in Gone Baby Gone. 2008: Marisa Tomei as Pam/Cassidy in The Wrestler. This is just my opinion, so don't be too harsh. Comment and tell me who your choices are! P.s I'll make a new list my choices for the 90's as soon as I see more films.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Films I've seen recently

Bullets Over Broadway: I'm a fan of Woody Allen films and I enjoyed this one. Good performances and very entertaining. A Bright Star: I saw this HORRIBLE movie last saturday and I hated it from start to finish. Too bad that Jane Campion, the director and screenwriter of The Piano which was a brilliant film, was the person behind this disaster of a movie. Boogie Nights: Really liked this movie. It faded a bit in the 2nd half, but the screenplay was brilliant and the entire cast was exceptional, especially Julianne Moore. The Fabulous Baker Boys: Felt like a big cliche movie at times, but Pfeiffer's dynamic performance elevated the entire film. I need to watch Driving Miss Daisy again to decide between Pfeiffer and Jessica Tandy for my Best Actress pick though. Tel me your thoughts on these movies!

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Afterthoughts on last post

Swinton is one of my favorite winners ever in this category. Although I don't feel she was the best of the nominees, it's still a great performance. The first time I saw Michael Clayton I wasn't that impressed with Swinton, but after repeated viewings, I've become a fan of the performance. My ranking: 1. Amy Ryan 2. Saorise Ronan 3. Tilda Swinton 4. Cate Blanchett 5. Ruby Dee. I never saw I'm Not There, but I watched Blanchett's performance on youtube which was posted by the Weinstein Company. Since her performance is one whole section of the film with no cuts, I think it counts. I didn't see American Gangster either, but Dee's performance is so short I think that should count as well. If you comment, could tell me who's your pick and why? I would really like to know.

Friday, October 16, 2009

Recall The Gold: Did Tilda Swinton Deserve her oscar?

The 2007 Best Supporting Actress race was the most unpredictable category of the night at the 80th Annual Academy Awards. All of the nominees (with the exception of Saorise Ronan) all were predicted to win and in the end Tilda Swinton managed to pull off a surprise (to most people anyway) win for her bravura performance as a nerve wracked corporate business woman who orders her head lawyer killed in Michael Clayton. Swinton was a longshot for most of the oscar season, but after her upset win at the baftas and the fact that Michael Clayton was probably going to go empty handed on oscar night led some award pundits to predict her win. That said, it's understandable that she was considered a dark horse given her fierce competition. Cate Blanchett had won the golden globe and several critics awards for her genderbending performance as Bob Dylan in I'm Not There. However, having honored Blanchett for The Aviator so recently I don't think voters were inclined to give her another oscar so soon. Amy Ryan (Gone Baby Gone)had won the most critics awards (15 in total) and looked like a sure thing but her globe loss to Blanchett and her SAG loss to Dee hurt her chances. Ruby Dee was the sentimental favorite and had managed to beat out early frontrunners Blanchett and Ryan. But the performance was still incredibly brief and the fact that American Gangster didn't get any other major nominations didn't help either. The only person out of the running was 13 year old Saorise Ronan whose character was probably too unlikeable and that child performances are usually undeservedly scorned probably kept her from a win. So, readers do you think that Swinton still deserves her oscar? Comment!

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

My picks for the 73rd oscars

Note: Unlike, my previous picks posts, I will be doing a post that includes my choice and why I chose it for the top 8 categories. Best Picture: Traffic. I'm really torn, because I think Crouching Tiger is an amazing movie. But I give a slight edge to Traffic. It was a complex, fascinating film. Best Director: Steven Soderbergh for Traffic. Hist storytelling skills are top notch and the movie is brilliantly made. Best Actor: I'm not going to do this category, because I've only seen two nominees. But right now, my choice is Ed Harris. Best Actress: Ellen Burstyn in Requiem For A Dream. I love Laura Linney in You Can Count On Me, but after watching RFAD last night, Burstn's haunting, devastating performance gets my vote. Best Supporting Actor: Benico Del Toro in Traffic. An excellent performance in a great cast. Best Supporting Actress: Frances Mcdormand in Almost Famous. Another difficult choice, where I could have easily gone with Kate Hudson or Marcia Gay Harden. But I love Frances Mdcormand and this is one of her best performances. Best Original Screenplay: Almost Famous. A great movie and Crowe's script was perfect. You Can Count On Me was a very close second. Best Adapted Screenplay: Traffic. The fact that they manged to make the story so involving and unconfusing was great achievement. If you do comment, could you tell me what your choices are? You don't have to go into great detail.

Monday, October 12, 2009

My thoughts on my favorite Best Actress nominees part 2

Judi Dench in Notes On A Scandal: Might very well be the best performance of Dench's career. Laura Linney in You Can Count On Me and The Savages: I really can't decide which performance is better. Is it Linney's beautifully nuanced work in You Can Count On Me or is it her bitingly funny, yet compassionate performance in The Savages? I really don't care. Both are great. Kate Winslet in Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind: Winslet's amazing performance is one of my all time favorites. Glenn Close in Dangerous Liasons: Absolutely brilliant. Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada: A performance which gets better and better with repeated viewings. Her best work this decade for me. Diane Lane in Unfaithful: A superb, subtle portrayal of an adulterous wife. Very complex and real and that train scene! Just wow. So that's all. But, believe me, I have a lot of favorite losing nominees, but these (and the performances from part 1) rank highest on my list. If you do comment, could tell me which ones you like or don't like? I'd really like to know.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Most overrated films and performances:

I know Twister published a post like this, but I wanted to make my own because I feel that these films and performances are incredibly overrated. Singing In The Rain: When I read the part of Sage's worst to best Supporting Actress review when she said that Singing In the Rain is perhaps the most overrated movie of all time, I completely agreed with what she said. It's a fun, entertaining musical, but is it the greatest movie musical of all time? The 10th best film ever made? No! Marion Cotillard in La Vie En Rose: A excellent performance and my 2nd choice for Best Actress that year, but Cotillard's performance is WAY overpraised. She was called by one youtube user as one of the top 5 best Best Actress winners of all time and she is actually number 2 on a "greatest performances of all time" video. Cotillard doesn't even come close these descriptions and another reason I have a problem with this win is because it fits right in to the academy's love of honoring biopic performances. Not to say all the actors who won for real people performances weren't deserving, but I get sick of actors always winning for playing real people and Cotillard is a prime example of that. Casablanca: You'll probably want to tie me up, shoot me, and throw me of a bridge for this, but I didn't find this film to be that great. Yes, it has a good script, but I think that this movie is quite dated. I also think that the reason why it is so loved is because it was one of the first films to combine so many genre's sucesfully (drama, romance, mystery, war film, ect). Please comment and tell me if you agree or disagree with my choices.

Worst Supporting Actress Winners

Note: I didn't see The Bad And The Beautiful, Harvey, Rosemary's Baby, or Sayonara, but I watched their performances on youtube. Ruth Gordon in Rosemary's Baby: Completely agree with Twister on this. This is an incredibly bland and one-note performance. In fact, I don't even find it creepy. Minnie is pushy, nosy, and noisy but she didn't scare me at all. This performance is a miscalculation of both Gordon and the filmmakers. Josephine Hull in Harvey: Has it's funny moments, but it's overdone and not award-worthy. Renee Zellweger in Cold Mountain: She makes Cold Mountain interesting and it's sort of a guilty pleasure, but it's WAY over the top and her competion was far more deserving. Jessica Lane in Tootsie: A sleep-walking performance which was just a consolation win. Teri Garr was much better. Gloria Grahame in The Bad And The Beautiful: BORING and one-note. Miyoshi Umeki in Sayonara: You know, when I watched this I couldn't stop laughing because it was SO bad. Kim Basinger in L.A confidential: Flat out awful. Jenniffer Hudson in Dreamgirls: A performance so overblown she practically brings the house down (not in a good way). Jenniffer Conelly in A Beautiful Mind: Now at number 1. What can I say that I haven't said before about this travesty? So, what do you think? Which ones do you disagree or agree with?

Saturday, October 10, 2009

My thoughts on my favorite Best Actress nominees part 1

Holly Hunter in Broadcast News: One of my favorite actresses is absolutely great in this film. Debra Winger in Terms Of Endearment: You know, I just can't decide between Winger and Maclaine for the win that year. But I can salute Winger's fantastic nominated performance. Bette Davis in All About Eve: A performance for the ages. Julianne Moore in Far From Heaven: As you are probably already aware of, I love this film and Moore is brilliant in the lead. Can you imagine anyone else in the part? Cate Blanchett in Elizabeth: A towering, yet subtle portrayal of the great monarch. Angelica Huston in The Grifters: Huston nails the role of Lily and manages to make her human. Ellen Page in Juno: A soon to be iconic performance. Like Moore in Far From Heaven, could anyone else have played this character? Well, that's all for now. Please comment and my 2nd post will be up soon!

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Films I've seen recently

A few days ago, I decided to watch Jerry Maguire. Earlier in the year, I had watched many films that were nominated for the 1996 awards (Fargo, The English Patient, Secrets And Lies, Shine, Sling Blade), but I never got around to watching Jerry Maguire. I thought it was entertaining, but I had several problems with it. First of all, the movie dragged towards the end and I thought there needed to be more explanation (spoiler alert!)about why Jerry and Dorothy split up before they got back together at the end. Another problem I had is that the entertainment weekly critics in their "critics choices" article were saying that this film is some sort of meditation on corporate values. But I don't feel that it does that at all, nor does it aim to do that. The performances were, overall, quite good. Tom Cruise was great and has wonderful chemistry with the excellent Zellweger. Cuba Gooding J.R's performance seems universally hated, but I didn't hate it. I just thought it was sub-par and not oscar worthy. That said, I enjoyed this movie. Another movie that I saw was The Crucible, another 1996 film. At first, I didn't like it and it has some HORRIBLE acting, but it grew on me towards the end. Despite what I said about the acting, I was very impressed by Joan Allen's performance. She was superb as Elizabeth Proctor and was the soul of the film.

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

My thoughts on my favorite Supporting Actress nominees part 2

Amy Adams in Junebug: Adams inhabits the soul of her character beautifully and is incredibly funny and entertaining. Olivia Dehavilland in Gone With The Wind: She's in GWTW for God sake! Enough said. Thelma Ritter in All About Eve: Incredibly brief screen time, but pitch perfect and totally memorable. Marisa Tomei in In The Bedroom: One of my favorite actresses works at the top of her game in this unjustly underrated film. Ellen Burstyn in The Last Picture Show: A great, impeccable performance in one of the best films of the 70's. Frances Mcdormand in Almost Famous: Hilarious warm, and wonderful. Kate Winslet in Iris: Vibrant and rewarding portrayal. Joan Allen in Nixon: In a muddled mess of a film, Allen comes through with a fierce, totally believable depiction of a woman who feels unloved and taken for granted by her husband. Note: I decided to add Allen on the list because I was obviously very impressed by her performance and I wanted to add one extra nominee. Please comment and tell me what you think!

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Worst supporting actor winners

Kevin Kline in A fish Called Wanda: I know a lot of people like this performance, but I DESPISE it. He takes it WAY over the top and its incredibly annoying. George Chakiris in West Side Story: I love this movie, but Chakiris really doesn't do anything special here. I would have nominated Russ Tamblyn (who played Riff) instead. Jim Broadbent in Iris: A cringe-worthy performance in which I thought Broadbent was trying to channel Geoffrey Rush in Shine, another awful performance. Javier Bardem in No Country For Old Men: A lifeless caricature in which Bardem adds nothing special to. Ben Johnson in The Last Picture Show: I didn't hate this by any means, but it's not an oscar-worthy performance by any sense, especially since Johnson's more worthier co-star Jeff Bridges was also nominated. Well, that's all I could come up with right now. Please comment! Note: Not in any order.

Dangerous Liasons review

Today, I decided to sit down and watch Dangerous Liasons. And, boy, I was impressed. The script was brilliant, the direction excellent, and the acting (with the exception of Michelle Pfeiffer) was exceptional. John Malkovich was robbed of a best actor nomination for his performance and Glenn Close was brilliant. But Pfeiffer didn't impress me. I agree with supporting actress smackdown people that she relied to much on her appearence and she's unable to sell her character's emotions and torments. That said, I really liked this movie.

Friday, October 2, 2009

My thoughts on my favorite supporting actress nominees part 1

Since my first post failed, I'm going to post them in parts.. Catherine Keener in Being John Malkovich: Keener manages to avoid one note scenery chewing and delivers a deliciously bitchy, unique, and three dimensional star turn that is a driving force behind Being John Malkovich. No small feat. Chloe Sevigny in Boy's Don't Cry: This performance seems to have a lot of fans these days (Shoutout to Twister!) and I'm glad to count myself as one of them. Her understated,heartbreaking portrayal was searingly authentic. Marisa Tomei in The Wrestler: A gut wrenching, raw performance. The fact that she managed to avoid "The hooker/stripper with a heart of gold" cliche is quite impressive. Holly Hunter in Thirteen: In a gritty, unflichingly realistic movie, Hunter shows us why she's one of our most talented and underrated actresses working today. Joan Cusack in In & Out: Hilarious and she also brings a lot of depth to the part. Shohreh Aghdashloo in House Of Sand And Fog: Aghdashloo conveys her character's sadness, anger, and love for her family wonderfully and her beautiful presence helps support and ground the film. Patricia Clarkson in Pieces Of April: Funny and heartbreaking. Marianne Jean-Baptise in Secrets And Lies: A subtle, detailed performance. It's weird that she now stars on Without A Trace. Please comment and my the 2nd part will be up soon.

Thursday, October 1, 2009

My favorite supporting actress nominees

In no order (I don't believe in ranking nominees by personal preference): Catherine Keener in Being John Malkovich, Ellen Burstyn in The Last Picture Show, Joan Cusack in In & Out, Holly Hunter in Thirteen, Marisa Tomei in The Wrestler, Patricia Clarkson in Pieces Of April, Olivia Dehavilland in Gone With The Wind, Chloe Sevigny in Boy's Don't Cry, Shoreh Aghdashloo in House Of Sand And Fog, Marisa Tomei in In The Bedroom, Kate Winslet in Iris, Frances Mddormand in Almost Famous, Amy Ryan in Gone Baby Gone, Thelma Ritter in All About Eve, Amy Adams in Junebug, and Marianne Jean-Baptise in Secrets And Lies. Please comment and tell me what you think! I have many more, but these are the ones who I've decided to post for now.

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

My favorite best actress nominees

Since Sage Slowdive and Twister gave their lists of their favorite Supporting actress nominees, I've decided to post my favorite nominees in the leading actress category. They are: Bette Davis in All About Eve, Cate Blanchett in Elizabeth, Julianne Moore in Far From Heaven, Holly Hunter in Broadcast News, Debra Winger in Terms Of Endearment, Kate Winslet in Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind, Judi Dench in Notes On A Scandal, Ellen Page in Juno, Laura Linney in You Can Count On Me and The Savages, and Diane Lane in Unfaithful. Please comment and tell me what your favorites are!

Saturday, September 26, 2009

Performances (and films) robbed of oscars in no order

1. Kate Winslet as Clementine Kruczynski in Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind: One of my all time favorite actresses gives her best performance to date in this amazing movie. True, she had played roles with the same outline as this before, but never had she done it with so many layers and she had never mesmerized the screen like she does here. She lost to Hilary Swank's good, if hardly spectacular work in Million Dollar Baby. 2. Julianne Moore as Cathy Whitaker in Far From Heaven: A heartbreaking, beautifully developed portrayal of a woman whose world slowly crumbles around her. The fact that she lost is incredibly saddening. 3.Jack Nicholson as Warren Schmdit in About Schmidt: Adrien Brody was good, but Nicholson was superb. 4. Holly Hunter as Melanie Freeland in Thirteen: A powerful, totally realistic performance. Renee Zellweger won instead as consolation for her loss's for Chicago and Bridget Jones's Diary. 5. In The Bedroom: A richly nuanced film about a family being ripped apart by a tragedy. It lost to AWFUL A Beautiful Mind. I'll post more soon. Please comment!

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Aterthoughts on last post

In my opinion, Basinger is one of the worst winners ever in this category. I mean, L.A Confidential is a great movie but this performance left a bad taste in my mouth. She never delves deep enough into her character, nor does she make it special enough to warrant that "true supporting performance title". I don't understand why she even got a nomination. Even Driver (whose work was occasionally inspired but annoying and two-dimensioal) was better then her. My Ranking (I have not seen Moore's performance yet): 1. Joan Cusack 2. Gloria Stuart 3. Minnie Driver 4. Kim Basinger

Did Kim Basinger dseserve her oscar?

12 years ago, Kim basinger was awarded the oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of a mysterious prostitute in L.A Confidential. She had managed to win a Golden Globe and an SAG award (tied with Gloria Stuart) and after some odd career choices Hollywood was happy to welcome her back with open arms. Her strongest competion came from Gloria Stuart who had tied with Basinger for the SAG award and was starring in the biggest box office hit and Best Picture frontrunner Titantic and was an actress from the first golden age of Hollywood. But voters probably didn't feel the need to give her the oscar since Titantic was bound to get it's moment in other categories . Julianne Moore (whose performance I haven't seen) had gotten a lot of acclaim for her performance as a porn star in Boogie Nights, but the film was most likely too dark and controversial for the Academy. Joan Cusack delivered a great comic performance in In & 0ut and had won the critic's choice choice award but oscar's bias against comic performances kept her from a win. And Minnie Driver had to be happy for a nomination since the nomination itself was probably a result of miramax's heated campaign for Good Will Hunting. So readers, do you feel Basinger still deserves her oscar over Cusack, Driver, Moore, and Stuart?

Saturday, September 19, 2009

The 74th Academy Awards

The 74th academy Awards were a major disappointment in my opinion. Sure, I don't remember watching them, but the Academy's choices were terrible. A Beautiful Mind won Best Picture, Ron Howard won Best Director, Halle Berry won Best Actress, Jim Broadbent won Best Supporting Actor, Jennifer Connelly won Best Supporting Actress, and A Beautiful Mind won Best Adapted screenplay. The simple fact that A Beautiful Mind was even nominated for any oscars at all is an absolute travesty. This boring, dumb, uneven, and stupid film is one of the very worst Best Picture winners in HISTORY. As for Jennifer Connelly, she is, in my opinion, the worst winner of the oscar for Best Supporting Actress in HISTORY. Her bland, pathetic, shallow work is incredibly cringe-worthy and the other nominees, especially Tomei and Winslet, were far more award-worthy. Jim Broadbent tried, but couldn't add enough depth to break away from his film's depiction of him as a bumbling baffoon. As for Halle Berry, well, don't even let me start on her. Absolutely AWFUL. The only deserving winner in the top 8 categories was Gosford Park's win for Best Original Screenplay. But tell me readers, what do YOU think of these choices?

Saturday, September 12, 2009

My 2002 oscar choices

Here are my choices for who should have won the top 8 categories in 2002. Best picture:Chicago Best director:Rob Marshall for Chicago Best actor: Jack Nicholson in About Schmit Best actress: Julianne Moore in Far From Heaven Best supporting actor: Chris Cooper in Adaptation (Not the amazing performance that people say it is, but much better then Walken,Reily,and Harris who were good,not great. Did not see Paul Newman's performance) Best supporting actress:Catherine Zeta-Jones in Chicago Best original screenplay:Far From Heaven (by a hair over Talk To Her) Best adapted screenplay: Adaptation.

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Aterthoughts on last post

Most people think that Kidman did not deserve her oscar and feel that she was horrible. Although I don't feel that Nicole was the best, I thought she was quite good and certainly deserved her nomination. That said, my vote would have gone to Julianne Moore. Her heartbreaking, deeply layered performance gets better every time I see Far From Heaven and it's sad that her flawed, lesser work in The Hours caused her to split her votes with this great performance. Diane Lane is my second choice for her magnetic,passionate work in Unfaithful and Zellweger ranks third for a terrific performance in a great movie. Note: I plan on seeing Salma's performance soon,but not right away.

Did Nicole Kidman deserve her oscar?

Seven (or technicaly six,but whatever) years ago, Nicole Kidman won her first oscar for her performance as mentally troubled author Virginia Wolf in The Hours. Kidman had all the factors for a victory. 1. She plays a real person 2. She's a beautiful actress turned ugly (that nose!) 3. She had a previous nomination and loss for Moulin Rouge a year previously 4. she had won a number of key precusor awards,including the golden globe and the bafta and 5. The film was a highly respected best picture nominee that was unlikely to triumph anywhere else (it's other best shot at a victory was in the screenplay category but it lost). Kidman was in a neck and neck race with Chicago's Renee Zellweger who also won a globe award (but In the musical or comedy category) and mangaged to win the Sag Award over Kidman. However,voters probably felt that Chicago would get its due in other categories and that Zellweger's time would come. (It did. She would go win best supporting actress for cold mountain a year later). Before Kidman won the globe, the early frontrunner was Julianne Moore, who had won a staggering 16 critics prizes for her devastating portrayal of Cathy Whitaker, a 50's housewife who finds out that her husband is gay and falls in love with her black gardener in Far From Heaven. But Moore was also nominated in the supporting category for The Hours which caused her to split her votes,leaving her empty handed. She still had a chance to win, but it faded sadly. As for the other nominees, Diane Lane was both erotic and vulnerable as a woman who has an affair for no reason in Unfaithful, but the film was lukewarm with critics and recieved no other nominations. And Salma Hayek (whose performance I haven't seen) had be content with a nomination and had no shot at a victory. So, do you think that Nicole Kidman still deserved her oscar over Hayek, Lane, Moore, and Zellweger?

recall the gold introduction

When I read the "Recall The Gold" article that entertainment weekly, Iwas immediately intrigued by the idea of revoting the oscars several years later. So I've decided to post, every once in a while, A recall (Or more of a review) of a certain oscar race. So let's begin.

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Talk to her review

Pedro Almodovar's Talk To Her is a beautiful,eccentric,and fascinating movie that is one of my favorite films of 2002. It really captivated me in ways that all great movies should do. It certainly deserved it's oscar nomination for best director and while I would have been happier to see Todd Haynes win the best original screenplay oscar for Far From Heaven(more on that later), I'm pleased that Almodovar got it. Highly reccomended.

Monday, September 7, 2009

introduction

Hi,my name is joe burns (that's not my real name. I didn't use my real one because I'm not comforatable with using it) and this is my first blog. I'm a HUGE fan of the oscars and most of the posts on here will be about them or film in general. Hope you'll enjoy.