2008: Year In Movies (Part IV: Top 10)

2008: YEAR IN MOVIES
PART IV: TOP 10

My Top 10 was delayed a bit this year, with all the studios deciding that late-December, early-January releases were the way to go (I've spoken at length about this in previous "2008: Year In Movies" articles). Alas, though, I've seen everything that I've wished to see--you'll notice that I'm doing this list before I see Last Chance Harvey or Defiance, please forgive me for that. So, that being said, here's the ten best films of 2008. (*note: You may notice the indie-heavy lineup. This is not meant to be a statement against studio films, but I think it's worth mentioning that they did very little work in supporting more personal films)

1. WALL-E

WALL-E is officially the most adorable robot in cinematic history--not that he's had much competition (perhaps R2-D2 or Jonny-5 from Short Circuit?). That alone, though, is not the reason why WALL-E is the best film of 2008. It captures that recognition because it is easily the most effective love story to hit the screen since 2004's Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It also earns it because it is the first film that truly breaks the barrier between animated and live-action, with characters so entrancing that the few live-action moments in the film blend in with no awkwardness. It is also the best because it is impeccably made, with director Andrew Stanton using astonishing visuals to add rich texture to the future world it takes place in. The film is simply intoxicating in all the ways a film can be, and even with its sub-plot dealing with human will and environmentalism, it never sacrifices its innocence.

2. The Wrestler

Darren Aronofsky's bare-bones film drips with torment and redemption. How do people live when their lives are comprised of abuse and pain? Randy "The Ram" Robinson (Mickey Rourke) knows about hard times, especially in the shadow of the good times. Rourke gives a punishing (literally) performance as Randy, a professional wrestler who can't help but crawl back to the only place that makes sense to him: the wrestling ring. With career-topping work from Rourke, and an equally astonishing performance from Marisa Tomei--as a stripper Randy falls in love with--the only thing that could make The Wrestler a better movie is a theme song written and performed by Bruce Springsteen. Oh, wait, it's got that too.

3. Rachel Getting Married

After a good deal of clunkers, Jonathan Demme has finally re-emerged into the film world with this beautiful film. As Rachel (Rosemarie DeWitt) prepares to get married, her only worry is that a visit from her troubled sister Kym (Anne Hathaway) might open some old family wounds. Using a documentary style, Demme's atmospheric filmmaking literally brings us into this dysfunctional family, including a meddling father (Bill Irwin), as well as a distant, secretive mother (Debra Winger). We become a part of this wonderful, entertaining, and particularly ethnic wedding, and find it hard to let go even when the characters do. Orchestrating a spectacular ensemble performance, Demme wins us over with a lovely film that has as much to do with guilt as it does about family.

4. In Bruges

Not since Pulp Fiction have two hitmen been so charming. After they foil a job badly, both Ray (Colin Farrell) and Ken (Brendan Gleeson) are sent off to Bruges, Belgium to hide out until the smoke clears back home. What is there to do in Bruges? Well, according to this film, there really isn't much of anything, and as the two of them fight boredom--and guilt for their crimes--they encounter many strange people, including a drug dealing young women, a principled and pregnant hotel manager, and a bitter, racist dwarf. If things couldn't get any stranger, things go really hay-wire when their hot-headed boss, Harry (Ralph Fiennes), comes to Bruges to join in on the fun. Written and directed by the award-winning playwright Martin McDonaugh, In Bruges pulls off the perfect balance of hilarious dialogue and bleak, dark themes; and possesses wonderful performances from Farrell, Gleeson, and Fiennes.

5. Milk

What relevance a film like Milk has in this day and age. As gay-rights activist Harvey Milk, Sean Penn gives a beautiful performance, encompassing a man who spent the last decade of his life fighting to bring equality for homosexual men and women. After becoming the first-ever openly gay elected official, Milk was assassinated by another City Supervisor Dan White. Directed by Gus Van Sant, the film has a real heart at the center of the character of Milk, but is careful not to lionize the man, always giving a careful eye to his exuberance as well as his neediness. With a handful of wonderful supporting performances--including Josh Brolin as Dan White, James Franco as Milk's lover Scott, and Emile Hirsch as the enthusiastic campaigner Cleve Jones--the movie is a testament to a great man. Luckily, the testament is a great film as well.

6. Tropic Thunder

Speaking of relevance, not since Robert Altman's The Player has Hollywood satire been so dead-on and so hilarious simultaneously. Directed by comedic guru Ben Stiller, Tropic Thunder pulls off an impressive balance of biting satire, exciting action, and cramp-inducing hilarity. Dealing with a group of primadonna actors that are thrown into the jungle to shoot an expensive Vietnam picture, the cast includes Ben Stiller as pin headed action star, Jack Black as a drug-addicted comedian, and Robert Downey Jr. as an award-winning method actor who dyes his skin brown to play an African American. With particularly brilliant work from Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder is easily the funniest film of 2008. P.S. let's not forget the surprising turn from Tom Cruise as an overweight, excessively-hairy mogul Lex Grossman.

7. Reprise

Released in Norway in late 2006, Joachim Trier's debut film Reprise never saw US audiences until June of 2008. This film involves two young novelists--Philip (Anders Danielsen-Lie) and Erik (Espen Klouman-Høiner)--and how each react to their separate literary success. Philip, dealing with a devastating break-up, has a nervous breakdown and becomes almost a recluse, while Erik seems to find it hard to separate his success with the mediocre quality of his writing. Documenting youthful exuberance and the enthusiasm that comes with brewing creativity, Trier's film is a stirring, excitable piece that takes full advantage of its cast of mostly amateur actors. With the pressure of success, sometimes comes your downfall--no other film sings that sermon better than Reprise.

8. Happy-Go-Lucky

In a world full of cynics, there is at least one person in the world who sees the sunny side of life, and that's Poppy (Sally Hawkins). Directed by Mike Leigh, using his usual blend of naturalistic acting and broad plots, Happy-Go-Lucky is an expertly-crafted film about one person who refuses to let any one's sour mood bring her down. Guided by a superb performance from Hawkins, the movie noodles around the life and times of Poppy, not particularly sticking to any one particular aspect of its plot, but instead basking in the cheery attitude of its leading lady. The main sub-plot though, involves Poppy's volatile driving instructor Scott (brilliant Eddie Marsan). The complete antithesis of Poppy, the scenes between Marsan and Hawkins involves some of the best highlights of the film. Even when her cheekiness nearly reaches annoyance, there is no way that you could leave the film not wanting to be more... well, Poppy.

9. Revolutionary Road

Not since American Beauty has director Sam Mendes made a more fully realized film. Based on the famous Richard Yates novel, Revolutionary Road is the story of the dysfunctional Wheelers, Frank (Leonardo DiCaprio) and April (Kate Winslet). At one time a young, ambitious couple, the Wheelers are now a suburban family, trapped in every way by the conventions of societal constrictions. Mendes' film is like Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? on steroids, not for a second relenting on the hellish trip the Wheelers take on their inevitable downward spiral. Sparked by a spectacular supporting performance from Michael Shannon as a deranged, but truthful man who reflects the Wheelers' disappointments back onto them, the movie is a warning sign to the trials of marriage, and the consequences of marrying someone who you don't truly know.

10. Burn After Reading

When the Coen Brothers decided to follow-up their Oscar-winning No Country For Old Men with this farce, the common opinion was that they were just taking it easy; making a romp after their exhaustive work on the unbelievably serious No Country. Those people missed an opportunity to see an incredibly intelligent satire on the greedy, image-conscious American society we know all-too-well. The film tracks the various degrees of stupidity between two gym employees (Frances McDormand & Brad Pitt), their boss (Richard Jenkins), a CIA agent (John Malkovich), his volatile wife (Tilda Swinton), and a government officer (George Clooney) with an obsession with exercise and good flooring. Also, look out for appearances from the Russian embassy and a bizarre sex toy. Will there ever be a better dissection of Bush America? I find it hard to think so.

TIED FOR 11TH PLACE (other good movies from the year)

Both The Dark Knight and Iron Man did a wonderful job resuscitating the successful, but floundering comic book genre using wonderful performances and excellent thematic writing; James Marsh's Man On Wire was not only a compelling documentary, but a brilliant recall of overbearing vanity and impressive performance art; Frost/Nixon is an exceptionally-made picture about the deconstruction of one of the most notorious men in American history; Courtney Hunt's debut feature Frozen River was a powerful film about matriarchal struggle (with a superb performance by Melissa Leo); John Patrick Shanley's adaptation of his own play, Doubt, has one of the more remarkable casting ensembles in a long time, and capatalizes on it; and Phillipe Claudel's ethereal and solemn I've Loved You So Long may be the best debut film of the year (if we're counting Reprise from 2006, that is).

The Wrestler (****)

THE WRESTLER
Directed and Produced by Darren Aronofsky

****

A lot of people think that wrestling is fake. The soap opera between the good guys and bad guys are very fake, and so is a majority of the choke holds and punches. But when you see a pro-wrestler get body-slammed off of the top step of a 14-foot ladder onto a wooden table laced with barb wire, that is real. These guys beat themselves up more than any other people on the planet. Who would want to get into this kind of job; live this kind of lifestyle? Darren Aronofsky's masterful film, The Wrestler, is a document of the kind of emotional human being that it takes to receive the punishment you see in pro-wrestling.

In the 1980's, Randy "The Ram" Robinson (Mickey Rourke) was a pro-wrestling superstar, achieving the kind of success few in that profession ever see. Today, Randy is a broken down man, performing in small gymnasiums for a handful of people. He can barely pay the rent in his trailer park, and can't convince his boss at the supermarket to give him more hours. More than that, though, his body is breaking down. Not only does he need a very visible hearing aid, but he's forced to resort to steroids and other hard drugs to stay in shape. He reaches his limit, though, when he suffers a serious heart attack after a particularly grueling wrestling match.

His doctor tells him that his professional wrestling career must end if he wants to stay alive. All of the years of abuse has taken a toll, and now he must pay the price. With nothing else to do, Randy takes solace in a stripper named Cassidy (Marisa Tomei). Cassidy, as well, has to deal with getting older in a profession dominated by youth, and visits from Randy are some of the few things she enjoys at her job. Cassidy convinces Randy that the main person he should be spending time with during this tormenting stretch is his estranged daughter Stephanie (Evan Rachel Wood). Some of the old wounds are hard to bond, but eventually Stephanie gives in to her charming father.

But alas, Randy's heart still reaches for the wrestling ring, and even life-threatening consequences can't stop his obsessive need for the spotlight again. Promoters set up a twenty-year rematch between The Ram and his arch-rival The Ayatolla (Ernest Miller), and Randy cannot turn it down. His crawl back into the professional wrestling lifestyle is equally exhilarating and heartbreaking, embracing the only place in the world where he feels worth a damn: the wrestling ring.

There is no other movie character in 2008 films that is more compelling than Randy "The Ram". Behind a career-reviving performance from Mickey Rourke, Randy is equal parts charming and sweet, as well as destructive and tormented. His quixotic compulsion to be the star of the ring is so emcompassing that his slow, inevitable decline is only redeemed by Randy's radiant accomplishment. A portrait of a man down-and-out, Rourke gives the performance of a lifetime, as we root for him even through his blunders.

The film was directed by Darren Aronofsky, the mastermind behind brilliant Requiem For a Dream and the inept The Fountain. He's certainly a fan of making fairly hard-hitting films, and while The Wrestler is not nearly as harsh as Requiem, it is relentless in shining light on the most unattractive aspects of these characters. Aronofsky really strips it down with this film, with incredibly bare cinematography, sometimes washing out the settings with light, sometimes using natural. It's an atmospheric film, not unlike Rachel Getting Married.

It's those astonishing performances though, that really makes The Wrestler a true treasure. As I've said, Rourke does career-defining work here, but is also supported by a wonderful job from Tomei. At the ripe age of 44, Tomei has never been more transparent, more beautiful, more moving. The two characters yearn for the times when they had their youth, when their beauty and strength was well enough to satisfy them in life, and when their only responsibilities in life were to themselves. The two seem on course for Oscar nominations and well-deserve it.

The Wrestler is one of the very best films of 2008, and it is too bad that the film has been kept away from general audiences for so long. As a sports film, it is not unlike Rocky with its heart for the underdog, or like On The Waterfront with a protagonist who just wishes to be a contender. It's a film about the fight for redemption, and how it affects us whether or not you are able to gain it. Randy wants to right all the wrongs that he's done in his life, sure, but more than anything he wants to be loved. He wants love from Cassidy and he wants love from Stephanie, but neither of those are even comparable for him to the love of the crowds.

Great Films: Se7en (1995)

GREAT FILMS: SE7EN
Directed by David Fincher

As critics and audiences alike go ga-ga for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, lets take a trip back to 1995, when Benjamin Button director David Fincher's only job had been Alien 3. After a luke-warm response to that film, Fincher approached a moderately green screenwriter in Andrew Kevin Walker about directing one of his screenplays. It was a film about two cops tracking down a serial killer. Pretty generic stuff, it seems, but Walker's script along with the masterful cinematic eye of Fincher went on to become one of the best and most disturbing psychological thrillers ever made.

Walker's script is about William Somerset (Morgan Freeman), a homocide detective in the gritty parts of New York City. Retirement is approaching in just seven days, and it can't come any faster for Somerset, who has allowed the grizzly murders that he witnesses everyday to effect his view on the world. He no longer wants to see the darkest aspects of humanity, but just wants to spend some time by himself. Det. David Mills (Brad Pitt) is the new transfer who will be mentored in NYC Homicide by Somerset before his departure a week later. Somerset does not trust Mills' confidence and impulsiveness, and does his best to convince him that working homicide in this town is different from working it any place else.

When they find a 500-pound man dead, face first in a plate of spaghetti, Somerset is concerned that the bizarre murder (apparently "fed to death") will only be the beginning of a stretch of murders. His suspicions come true when he finds the word "gluttony" written on the wall of the fat man's home. The next morning, Mills is put in charge of a case involving an important defense attorney who was stabbed to death in his high-level office. The word "greed" is written in the office's carpet with the attorney's blood. Somerset is able to put it together, a man is going around murdering those who break any of the "seven deadly sins".

Even as they get closer and closer to the killer (they find out that his name is John Doe), the strategic murderer is still able to complete his works of extreme violence. Each time performing the next killing with more malice and perversion. They find a man that John Doe has literally strapped and bound to a bed for an entire year, nourishing him just enough to stay alive, but not enough to spare him incredible pain (Sloth). They find a prostitute stabbed to death in quite an untorthodox fashion (Lust). They find a pretty girl who commited suicide after John cut up her face (Pride).

Everything leads to the film's most powerful moment: it's third act. With still a half-hour left in the film, John Doe reveals himself. Covered in blood, he surrenders to Mills and Somerset, despite being only two murders away from finishing what he started. Unlike many thrillers, the film's killer is given equal ground when he's on the screen. We know that he is evil, but he is also articulate, and most of all, tired of the way people flaunt their sins in the face of everyone who can see. John Doe is played by Kevin Spacey.

Leading up to that reveal, the film is pulsating with suspense as each murder is unveiled with shocking detail, but the film's entire dynamic changes once Doe is on the screen. In a scene of brilliant writing and acting, Mills, Somerset, and Doe sit in a police car as John promises to drive them to the next two corpses before completely surrendering to the police. Mills chides Doe for being a psychotic, but the soliloquy that John then indulges in is one so poetic, you are very nearly moved by Doe's nihilistic actions. A strong case could be made that these are career-best performances from Freeman, Pitt, and Spacey.

The real star, though, is Fincher. He would gain a legion fandom four years later when he directed the cult classic Fight Club, but Se7en is the film that brought him to the forefront of formidable filmmakers. He washes the entire film in darkness, and dresses the movie's sets as if they were from the 1940's. A dark story already indeed, but Fincher is not satisfied enough as he fills the screen with shadows and the dampest, darkest corners of the world. Never before have I seen a present-day movie setting look more like Hell.

Despite the film's unrelenting violence (each murder is covered with incredibly graphic notice), the film became one of the biggest hits of 1995. It undoubtedly helped Spacey boost his profile before winning the Oscar the next year for The Usual Suspects (I'm sure there are many today who would rather have awarded him for this film instead). It was Brad Pitt's first real box-office success as a lead performer, and he would continue to be one of the biggest stars in the world (it's amazing the lack of commercial success a celebrity of his calibur has acheived). This is a film that is completely unrelenting, and set the bar for murder mysteries for the next decade.

*note: Unfortunately, the success of Se7en has done nothing more than inspire less than stellar murder mysteries like Saw or Hostel. These films lack any of the intelligence that Se7en possesses, and none of those films should be admired without watching Se7en first.

7 Awesome Moments From The Golden Globes

7 AWESOME MOMENTS FROM THE GOLDEN GLOBES

I've been particularly harsh when it comes to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association's little celebrity get-together The Golden Globes, because they can be so shamelessly about celebrity and chic, and nearly ignore the more honorary aspects of an award show. That being said, the Globes have always been a rebel flag waving in the face of other Guilds and Academies, and for the first time this awards season, a major awards system made an effort to really shakes things up. Colin Farrell winning for Best Actor (Comedy/Musical) was a pleasant surprise, and so were these other seven moments:

1. Ricky Gervais introduces Happy-Go-Lucky and tells people to "Shush!"

Was I the only one terribly disappointed to find out that Ricky Gervais wasn't going to be the one to host the Academy Awards next month? Small moments like his four minutes on the stage last night is enough evidence to show that he's magic in front of an audience. In front of a notoriously rowdy group at the Globes, Gervais spilled out: ''How rude are you lot? Just because you're film stars? Shusssh!". He then went on a hilarious stint speaking about his disastrous attempts to get his film Ghost Town to be nominated for awards, and vowed to never "have sex with 200 middle-aged journalists" again.

2. John Adams continues to sweep EVERYTHING

I'm not much a mini-series kind of guy, but you don't have to be to understand that the seven part series John Adams is a true masterpiece and incredibly accurate story of American history. It's Globe awards included Best Actress (Laura Linney), Best Actor (Paul Giamatti), and Best Mini-Series/Made for TV Movie. Other than Tom Hanks' lightning speed acceptance speech (he was the film's producer), there weren't any particular magical televisions moments in any of their wins, its just nice to see something good win for a change.

3. Sally Hawkins tops Meryl Streep

Like I said, the Globes are an industry that cherishes star power, so the most pleasant win of the night was easily the little-known (in America anyway) Sally Hawkins for the splendid film Happy-Go-Lucky. Taking close to twenty minutes to approach the stage (cause her table was strategically placed at the far end of the ballroom), she stood in front of the microphone barely able to contain her own emotions. In a category where Meryl Streep (Mamma Mia!) seemed almost like a sure thing, a little, skinny Brit came out on top after all.

4. 30 Rock shows (in more ways than one) why it rocks

It's easy to get annoyed with the amount of critical success that the sitcom 30 Rock has achieved, especially compared to its dismal ratings, but with its three wins brought out the best in the show's recipients. Alec Baldwin chided Rumor Willis about handing her juice boxes years ago, while Tina Fey announced to all her Internet enemies that they can "suck it". Best of all, though, was unstable comedian (and 30 Rock star) Tracy Morgan accepting the statue for Best Series, and exclaiming "I'm am the face of post-racial America! Take that Cate Blanchett!"

5. The president of HFPA promises to keep it short... and does!

How often is the audience tortured by over-indulgent speeches from the presidents of, say, the Academy or the Screen Actors Guild? As HFPA president Jorge Camara approached the microphone after being introduced by Eva Mendes, he promised that he would spare us all from ramblings in his broken English, and went on to keep the promise as he then thanked everyone for coming and told everyone to have a great night, and took a quick opportunity to exit the stage. No boring soliloquies followed by laborious slide shows chronicling all the great stuff the industry has done. Simple... and awesome.

6. Kate Winslet wins twice, and is equally gracious

When Kate Winslet approached the stage after winning Best Supporting Actress for The Reader, it was good to see Winslet (a five-time nominee--no wins) go up to the stage overcome by emotion. More surprising, though, was her upending of Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway in the Best Actress-Drama award. Winning for Revolutionary Road, Winslet actually apologized to her fellow nominees (though it took her some time to remember Angelina Jolie) for being such a surprise winner. More than anything, this throws a major wrench at all of the Oscar prognosticators who saw the Best Actress as two-woman race between Hathaway and Streep. Now, its all over the place. Congrats, Kate.

7. Mickey Rourke wins; gets one-finger salute from Aronofsky

It must have been a pretty bad omen for television producers when Rourke nearly stumbled over his own feet trying to walk up the stage, because that was just the beginning of the five minutes of destruction Rourke would then create. In a rumbling, scrambling speech which referenced the phrases "balls" and "son-of-a-bitch" several times, Rourke would thank everyone from Axl Rose to his pet dogs, but the highlight of the moment was when cameras cut to director Darron Aronofsky who took opportunity to flip Rourke a major bird on a national television. Only in America can someone with the issues and discipline of Mickey Rourke get a standing ovation for having a career renaissance.

Bride Wars (*)

BRIDE WARS
Directed by Gary Winick



*

Think of the plot of Bride Wars: two women who are best friends become mortal enemies as they both get in the way of the other's perfect wedding. Think about how dull that sounds on paper. Yet, all that aside, someone thought enough to bring that very plot to the big screen, and invest in the careers of two talented young actresses no less. Of coarse, Bride Wars is not a film made with the intention of winning Oscars or getting four-star reviews from Manohla Davis, so in that case, I probably forgive this film, but I can't excuse its blandness.

Liv (Kate Hudson) and Emma (Anne Hathaway) are very best friends, and have been so seemingly since the womb. When they were young girls, they attended a wedding at the Plaza in Manhattan. From that moment on, they both established their dream wedding: June, in the Plaza, with no particular preferance on the groom. First things first, though, they have to be engaged, and of coarse, the two are conveniently proposed to within days of each other and scamper to make plans for their perfect ceremony.

They get in touch with Marion St. Claire (Candice Bergan), a legendary wedding planner who tells the two girls that there are two seperate openings in the Plaza in June. Perfect! Oh wait, a mistake is made--a mistake which makes no sense outside of this movie--and now Liv and Emma have their weddings scheduled on the same day. The two come together rationally, and decide to take their time before one of them makes the decision to try a completely different venue.

When Liv gives out her Save-the-Dates before a decision is made, Emma decides that it is now personal and the Bride Wars begin, indeed. Within weeks, Liv and Emma have halted communication with each other, and mayhem ensues: including horrible pranks involving body tan and blue hair dye. Needless to say, the grooms take a backseat to these hijinks, seemingly as important to the brides-to-be as waiters.

I understand the point of this film as an attempt to satirize the wedding-crazed culture some women can be emersed in. The problem is that this film has less a mind to satirize that it almost comes off sounding like an endorsement. Worse yet, the film has no true grasp of the actual entertaining aspects of its own story, and instead we are left with hackneyed plot conventions and stock female characters that border on assinine.

I will say that I liked this movie about as much as you can like a one-star film, and that is because you almost feel bad for the talented actresses involved. Hudson is a former Oscar-nominee, and second-generation movie star; while Hathaway is a future Oscar-nominee (we're all hoping) that has been quite a bright spot in Hollywood films for quite a few years now. Both of these actresses are immensely skilled, but are nearly wasted in these roles, where the dialogue rolls out their mouths like potatos.

I know, I know, Bride Wars is an easy target for somebody like me, so I hope it helps to say that I have no personal grudge against the filmmakers, nor did I find the film as torturous as, say, The Reader. But here is the truth: there was no effort put forth for this film. The writing is lazy, the direction is uninspired, and Hathaway, Hudson, and Bergan all play down to the level of the screenplay. Its lowest-common-denominator filmmaking, and I expect better for my price of admission.

Magic At The Broadcast Film Critics Awards

MAGIC AT THE BROADCAST FILM CRITICS AWARDS

Forgive me for not watching the "Critics Choice Awards" last night, but I find it hard to take it seriously when 1) it decides to broadcast itself on VH1 and 2) the BFCA makes the Hollywood Foreign Press look like the American Film Institute. I chuckle that they even have the gaul to call themselves the "critics choice" awards on their broadcast. But I digress, while seeing highlights of the ceremony, there actually was one magical moment I would have loved to see live...



That's right, it's a tie! There are so many things to love about this TV clip. For starters, there's the overflowing, yet hysterical acceptance speech from Hathaway ("I don't know how to win awards, I know how to not get nominated for awards"). There's the great wit and grace with which Viola Davis accepted the award for the missing Meryl Streep ("She would have especially thanked me"). But even better (and more memorable) is the metallic ice queen glare Angelina Jolie seems to be shooting at everyone when she didn't win for Changeling. Note to Angelina: pouting doesn't get you brownie points with the Academy.

More to the point, though: I know this was a tie, but this is a very big win for Hathaway. Not because the BFCA means anything, but because her youthful enthusiasm at the podium reminds me greatly of Marion Cotillard. Remember how well Cotillard played the press and later upended Julie Christie in the end? Don't be surprised if Hathaway is able to do the same thing, especially after Streep's soliliquy on refusing to campaign for her awards (like she has to). Streep is still the front-runner, but the wedge between her and Hathaway just got a whole lot smaller with that win last night.

The (Other) Guilds Have Spoken

THE (OTHER) GUILDS HAVE SPOKEN

Nine days into the new year, and we finally have the nominees for all of the Guild categories. I've already spoken at length about the Screen Actors Guild nominations, but here we'll discuss the Writer's, Director's, and Producer's Guild. Let's jump right in with some analysis.

PRODUCERS GUILD NOMINATIONS

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire

If we're talking in terms of all the websites and TV shows that have been predicting a Best Picture line-up, this short list is spot-on. As you know, I think there will be a little more "animated" Best Picture list. That being said, it's seeming more and more likely that this hackneyed group of films will end up being the ones announced on Oscar nomination morning. I was hoping that the Producers Guild would cause a little stir, perhaps nominate Doubt, The Wrestler, or WALL-E, but this is certainly the most conventional five that they could come up with.

"We will be nominated! We're gonna make em' choke!" -Richard Nixon

WRITERS GUILD NOMINATIONS

Best Original Screenplay
Woody Allen, VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA
Dustin Lance Black, MILK
Joel Coen & Ethan Coen, BURN AFTER READING
Tom McCarthy, THE VISITOR
Robert Siegal, THE WRESTLER

Best Adapted Screenplay
Simon Beaufoy, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE
Peter Morgan, FROST/NIXON
Jonathan Nolan, Chris Nolan, & David S. Goyer, THE DARK KNIGHT
Eric Roth & Robin Swicord, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
John Patrick Shanley, DOUBT

At least these guys mixed it up a little bit. In the original half, we have the emergence of Woody Allen, who despite being the most nominated screenwriter in Oscar history, was getting little to no traction for his Vicky Cristina Barcelona script; and the Coen Brothers get their first real notice for their Burn After Reading screenplay. These two surprises caused Jenny Lumet's Rachel Getting Married script to get bumped out, as well as Courtney Hunt for Frozen River. This could spell doom for the little indie films, though either can be swapped for Tom McCarthy's The Visitor script (Oscar rarely nominates TWO indies in the same category). As for adapted, the only thing these nominations do is lessen the chances for Justin Haythe (Revolutionary Road) and David Hare (The Reader).

Yeah, this movie is pretty irresistible.

DIRECTORS GUILD NOMINATIONS

Danny Boyle, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE
David Fincher, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
Ron Howard, FROST/NIXON
Christopher Nolan, THE DARK KNIGHT
Gus Van Sant, MILK

The DGA noms are usually the closest thing we can come to a Best Picture preview, as they consistently match the Oscar shortlist. I stand strong by my conviction that the lack of any real commercial success for Frost/Nixon will hurt it come Oscar time, but I'm looking stupider and stupider by the moment with that prediction. If this list does anything, it pretty much hammers the point home that films like WALL-E or Rachel Getting Married have seemingly no chance at crashing the high-brow party come Oscar time. It's not enough that 2008 was a pretty underachieving year as far as films go, but the monotony of the awards season has made it flat boring as well.


<---- I predict this will be Jonathan Demme's (Rachel Getting Married director) pissed, though not surprised face when he gets screwed over by Academy convention.

Some Films To Look Forward To In 2009

SOME FILMS TO LOOK FORWARD TO IN 2009

There are plenty of Hollywood blockbusters to look forward to in 2009 like G.I. Joe or Star Trek, and plenty of Oscar-grubbing Fall products like the Meryl Streep-hemmed Julie & Julia, but what I'm writing about here are films that I'm particularly looking forward to. These ten films are ones that I can't possibly wait long enough to see.

TWO LOVERS
Feb. 13

With the sudden retirement of Joaquin Phoenix, it seems that Two Lovers will become the last time to see him on the silver screen if he follows through on his promise. The premise is about a young man (Phoenix) who is having trouble choosing between a strait-laced woman his parents adore (Vanessa Shaw), and the beautiful, scatter-brained neighbor across the street (Gwyneth Paltrow). Sure, Phoenix is the story, but I'm more interested in seeing Paltrow and Shaw. Gwyneth seemed to rejuvenate her career with the tender, but glorious performance in Iron Man, but Shaw is a talented actress who has always toiled in b-films like Corky Romano or Ladybugs, but she seems to be given a vital opportunity to show her gifts in this film. Directed by James Gray.

WATCHMEN
Mar. 6

The controversy revolving around the film's release is still alive and well (Warner has decided to let the case's judge decide the film's fate), but that aside, this is easily the most anticipated movie of early 2009. Adapted from the classic graphic novel, the early word is that the film is unbelievably faithful, behind the direction of 300's Zack Snyder, and perfectly encompasses the look and tone that made the comic such a masterpiece. The story deals with costumed vigilantes brought down by the government, and when one of them is murdered, an investigator named Rorshach (Jackie Earle Haley) uncovers terrifying facts. A chance to be a Dark Knight-sized hit.

SUNSHINE CLEANING
Mar. 13

When you're told that you are watching a film from the producers of Little Miss Sunshine, there are certain connotations that go hand-in-hand with that. We are meant to believe we will be watching an unbelievably quirky dramedy, featuring emotionally scarred characters who defend themselves with their abrasive sense of humors. Okay, well Sunshine Cleaning doesn't seem to do anything to break that stereotype, but it does have a wonderful cast that includes Amy Adams, Emily Blunt, Alan Arkin, and Steve Zahn. We have two sisters (Adams and Blunt) who have underachieved at life, and have taken up a job cleaning up the mess after gruesome murders. Could be a very endearing indie nugget early in the year.

THE SOLOIST
Apr. 24

This film was pushed back from an initial November 21st release, because they'd given up on the film as an Oscar contender, and thought April would give the film a better oppurtunity to be successful, box office-wise. It's directed by Atonement's Joe Wright, and is about a troubled journalist (Robert Downey Jr.) who takes up a friendship with schizophrenic homeless man (Jamie Foxx), who was an incredibly gifted cello player once upon a time. The film seems like a total sentimental weepie at first glance, but if you look at the film's pedigree (Downey Jr., Foxx, Wright), there is no reason to think that this film won't be anything less than a moving, wonderfully crafted tale of redemption.

THE BROTHERS BLOOM
May 29

When it was entertaining audiences in the film festival circuit last Fall most of the talk was about how director Rian Johnson's follow-up to the indie smash Brick was eerily similar to the films of Wes Anderson. That being said, nobody ever mentioned the resemblance in a negative tone, so I believe that he only borrowed the good aspects of Anderson--and when its good, its not a rip-off, but an homage. It's about two brothers (Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo) and their attempt to scam an insanely rich, but reticent heiress (Rachel Weisz). Supporting cast includes Rinko Kikuchi and Maximillian Schell, and the film overall looks like a wonderfully witty caper.

PUBLIC ENEMIES
July 1

I've said repeatedly that Michael Mann, based on style alone, is the greatest film director in the business today. Heat and Collateral are modern masterpieces, while Manhunter and The Insider are wonderful films thematically and comprehensively. For the first time since The Last of the Mohicans, Mann is tackling a period piece in this film about the rise of organized crime during Prohibition, and the FBI's attempts to thwart it. The cast includes Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, Channing Tatum, Giovanni Ribisi, and Billy Crudup as the various cops and robbers, and behind the keen eye of Michael Mann, I see little reason that this film will be anything less than the cinematic event of the Summer.

FUNNY PEOPLE
July 31

For those who saw Paul Thomas Anderson's romantic masterpiece Punch-Drunk Love, we saw a performance from Adam Sandler that defies description, other than beautiful. It was Sandler stripped down to straight adoration and unbridled rage, and it was THE performance of 2002. Since, Sandler has played around a lot in worthless films like Bedtime Stories and Chuck & Larry, or inspired groans in attempts at drama like Reign Over Me and Spanglish. Now, Sandler is giving the comedy-drama genre another shot, but this time he is working with the comedy guru Judd Apatow. Apatow, the best and most intuitive comedic filmmaker today, tells the story of a comedian (Sandler) who learns of his terminal illness, and decides to take a young comedian (Seth Rogen) under his wing. Objectively, the film looks sappy, but in the hands of Apatow, I trust the film will be a success and finally deliver on Sandler's potential.

INGLORIOUS BASTERDS
Aug. 21

That Tarantino will have this film ready by Cannes--or by this Aug. 21 premiere, no less--seems like wishful thinking, but because this guy made Pulp Fiction and the two Kill Bill films, we could care less about his notoriously long-winded film productions, and just admire the work. This has been a film that has been long hanging around for Tarantino fans, even before that Grindhouse vacation he took with Robert Rodriguez, and the fact that it is even being filmed now is good enough news for most fans of the eccentric filmmaker. Basterds tells the story of American soldiers during WWII, who are famous for their brutal murders of Nazis. With a cast including Brad Pitt, Mike Myers, Cloris Leachman, and Eli Roth, the film certainly looks to continue Tarantino's half-brained filmmaking style, and hopefully is something to watch.

SHUTTER ISLAND
Oct. 2

When Martin Scorsese makes a movie, it is an event. When he makes a film with Leonardo DiCaprio, usually talks of Oscars arise. When he makes a film adapted from the brutal but brilliant novelist Dennis Lehane, you have the highly anticipated Shutter Island. In his first feature film since winning his Oscar for The Departed, Scorsese goes back to the well, telling a dark, disturbing tale that follows a troubled but heroic protagonist. Scorsese turns to his main-stay DiCaprio to play the film's lead Teddy Daniels, but also has a supporting cast with such names as Mark Ruffalo, Emily Mortimer, Ben Kingsley, Michelle Williams, and Max von Sydow. This film is not only anticipated, but it has enough pedigree to win awards without anyone even seeing.

THE LOVELY BONES
Dec. 11

What happened to the Peter Jackson that directed Heavenly Creatures? He got sucked into the vortex that came with directing three mamoth Lord of the Rings films. Six years, several Academy Awards, and one King Kong later, Jackson is returning finally with a much smaller, more personal film. Based on the best-selling novel, The Lovely Bones follows a young girl who is brutally murdered, and watches the developments of her family and her killer from heaven. With young Oscar-nominee Soairse Ronan playing the main role, and Rachel Weisz, Mark Wahlberg, and Stanley Tucci taking supporting roles, the film seems to be quaint, but hard-hitting. In other words, this has the chance to be a real beautiful film.

2008: Year In Movies (Part III: The Most Disappointing)

2008: YEAR IN MOVIES
PART III: THE MOST DISAPPOINTING

Not necessarily the worst of the year--I don't usually go out of my way to see terrible prospects like Disaster Movie or 88 Minutes, though if I was choosing a "Worst of 2008", it would easily be handed to Righteous Kill. That's neither here or there, though, what hurts more for movie fans like me are films that come with high expectation and leave us kicking cans with anger as we leave the theater. Here are eight films I can think of:

THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON

I have nothing against this film in terms of its visual style. Its wondrous cinematography and groundbreaking visual effects may very well be the greatest of the year, but lets just call it straight: thematically, this film is a total train wreck. No other major film I can think of follows a more laborious, blank slate of a character than Benjamin Button does, and Eric Roth's script may be rich in heavy-handed mortality lessons, but its constantly straddled by unneeded cuts to an aging Daisy (both Blanchett and Julia Ormond are wasted in these pointless scenes) and futile parallels to moments in history (Hurricane Katrina? are you f***ing kidding me?). This movie and Slumdog Millionaire* seem like locks for a Best Picture nomination, and I've heard one of Button's biggest fans call it a "thinking man's Forrest Gump". Whether its smarter than Gump, I'm probably not the best judge of, but I know this, I rather watch Forrest run through life than see Benjamin Button plod around any day.

*note: I won't include Slumdog on this list, because I actually enjoyed that film quite a bit, but I cannot for the life of me understand the unbridled adoration that this movie has received from the awards circuit and audiences. I feel its a much more shallow film than its biggest fans would lead you to believe.

INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL

I know, I know, we should've known that this film was going to be a total stinker, but I'll ask you this: throw out the plot, if I tell you that you will watch a film directed by Steven Spielberg, with a story developed by George Lucas, and has a cast that includes Harrison Ford, Cate Blanchett, John Hurt, Ray Winstone, and Jim Broadbent, wouldn't you expect the film to be ten times better than the film that eventually reached the theaters? Watching Indiana Jones survive a nuclear blast by hiding in a refrigerator and later see Cate Blanchett get destroyed by aliens (ALIENS!!), you can't help but just shake your head at how much of a bastardization of the Indiana Jones franchise Crystal Skull really is.

NICK AND NORAH'S INFINITE PLAYLIST

I heard a lot about how this film (based on the novel by Rachel Cohn) is true to teenage life and love. As someone who is still a teenager (19), I found nothing within this exhausting, sentimental film that really rang true to my high school years. Headed by Michael Cera in the same performance he's had in his last five films, and Kat Dennings doing her best to prove she's much more than a pair of exuberantly-sized lips, the film sputters as a romance and hardly inspires a chuckle as a comedy. Add to that a character so unfunny as Ari Graynor's future A.A. member character Caroline--who is featured way too often in this hapless film--and you have a film that does more harm than good when defining a generation of teenagers who could care less about anything unless it involves cell phones or gay jokes.

THE READER

The most boring movie of 2008, The Reader really tries your patience as it strolls haplessly into the Nazi Drama category. Let me just start by saying that since The Pianist in 2002, the genre of Holocaust Drama has really degenerated into one that relies soly on shock and guilt. We have a nonsensical romance between first-timer David Kross and nudity-veteran Kate Winslet that spirals into so many sex scenes (which, to their credit, has produced the most controversy--i.e. promotion--for the film). Add to that, we cut to the future in which we see that David Kross has turned into the six-foot-tall Ralph Fiennes in only ten years time (??). Just a completely flat narrative, which wasn't able to capture the most interesting aspects from the literary treasure it was based on.

STEP BROTHERS

There are only two kinds of people who could actually find this kind of movie funny: immature teenagers who find punches to the groin and two-minute farts hilarious, and psychotic sexual deviants who enjoy seeing things like Will Ferrall rubbing his scrotum on a snare drum. The movie certainly holds comedic pedigree within its cast: headed by Will Ferrall and John C. Reily, and also containing performances from future Oscar-nominee (I hope) Richard Jenkins and former Oscar-winner Mary Steenburgen. They all have comedic backgrounds, but they're all wasted in this jokeless film. The few times that this film's comedy depends on dialogue and actor improvisation, the movie is very funny, but unfortunately, the film spends too much time on gross-out gags that relate very little to the plot and are only there to appease shallow minds.

VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA

It almost hurts to put this film on here, as big a fan of Woody Allen as I am, and this is certainly a very traditional Woody Allen type of film. We have two women: one romantic and one conservative, and both swoon over the charm of a exotic male character, while the exotic male's borderline crazy ex-wife causes more issues. Standard Woody stuff. A fiery performance from Penelope Crúz* makes this film watchable, but this film is a total diagram of what has gone wrong with Woody's filmmaking in the last decade: his monotonous storytelling and visual style has become completely dull. Nothing within this film is remotely surprising or engaging, and without that, I'd at least expect the characters to be dynamic. Crúz is like lightning in a bottle, and Rebecca Hall's Vicky is certainly interesting, but two leads--Javier Bardem and Scarlett Johanssen--stand around vapidly, apparently under the idea that their characters are under constant sedation.

*note: To watch the ACTUAL great performance from Crúz in 2008, check out her beautiful work in the movie Elegy opposite Ben Kingsley.

W.

Why make a two-hour film about a completely unpopular president still in office? Because Oliver Stone has absolutely no fear of the consequences that come with political drama. That being said, Stone's film lacks any profundity or bite, and save a title performance from Josh Brolin, is really inconsequential and passé. Add to that, the film is completely misguided as to what it's trying to be. Elizabeth Banks (as the First Lady) and Richard Dreyfuss (as Vice Pres. Cheney) suggest a high-brow chronology of a man in over his head, while Toby Jones (as the suave Karl Rove) and Thandie Newton (as Condie Rice) seem to think there within some biting, satirical Saturday Night Live sketch. The film never makes an effort to choose and we're left with a film as uneven as it is uninspired.

ZACK AND MIRI MAKE A PORNO

Days before I saw this film, I wrote a personal letter (via the blog) to Larry Miller, whose Utah movie theater chain refused to play Zack and Miri because it was "innappropriate", while having no issue showing Saw V. I personally defended Kevin Smith's new comedy, and I don't regret it. But I do regret having a mind to think that this film would be anything more than a lousy, one-note sex comedy, which takes its low-brow premise and doesn't deliver with anything useful or entertaining. Here's the deal: Kevin Smith acts like his films are anarchic and challenging, but the truth is, that if you take out the detailed sex dialogue, his films are really as soggy and sappy as an episode of One Tree Hill. Sometimes, Smith can hit a home run (Chasing Amy, Dogma), and sometimes Smith will ignore the sentamentality altogether (Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Clerks). Zack and Miri Make a Porno does neither, and pays the consequences.

COMING JANUARY 16th:

THE WRESTLER
and
2008: YEAR IN MOVIES (PARTS IV & V)

2008: Year In Movies (Part II: Final Oscar Predictions)

2008:YEAR IN MOVIES
PART II: FINAL OSCAR PREDICTIONS

Best Picture

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL-E

Alright, I'll finally admit that The Dark Knight does have a very good chance of getting onto the Best Picture shortlist (especially since most of these December releases have been very underwhelming), but I think the fact that nearly nobody is seeing Frost/Nixon will eventually hurt its chances, though everybody seems to think of it as somewhat as a lock. Benjamin Button, Milk, and Slumdog have nothing to worry about, I don't think, but I think that with Frost/Nixon on such shaky ground, I choose WALL-E the sweetest, most beautiful film of the year to get recognized here (yeah, this is mostly wishful thinking, but whatever).

Best Director

Darron Aronofsky, THE WRESTLER
Danny Boyle, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE
David Fincher, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
Christopher Nolan, THE DARK KNIGHT
Gus Van Sant, MILK

Boyle has won nearly every award he can win for directing Slumdog Millionaire so he seems pretty safe, and based of Benjamin Button's grandiose scale alone, Fincher shouldn't have to worry neither. Even if The Dark Knight doesn't pull off a Best Picture nomination, it would be criminal if they didn't recognize Nolan for his work on the film, so he's pretty solid, and Gus Van Sant has actually had two acclaimed movies this year (with Paranoid Park as well), and I'm sure the Academy will want reward him for the prolificity. The last spot comes down to Darron Aronofsky's bare-bone style in The Wrestler and Ron Howard's incredibly well-executed work in Frost/Nixon. Again, I see Frost/Nixon's lack of commercial success hurting it, and Aronofsky pulls a semi-surprise with the nom.

Best Actor

Clint Eastwood, GRAN TORINO
Richard Jenkins, THE VISITOR
Frank Langella, FROST/NIXON
Sean Penn, MILK
Mickey Rourke, THE WRESTLER

Penn, Rourke, and Langella, I feel, have absolutely nothing to worry about, but those last two spots can really go to a number of people. There's Clint's final performance (or so he says) in Gran Torino, Leonardo DiCaprio's impressive work in Revolutionary Road, Brad Pitt's metamorphasis as Benjamin Button in Benjamin Button, or little Richard Jenkins in that little indie gem: The Visitor. I feel people are really rooting for Jenkins here, and he will walk away with a nomination, and the sentamentality behind "Clint's last performance", will help him onto the shortlist. As always, DiCaprio suffers from "great performance, wrong year", but though Pitt is picking up traction, his vapidness as the film's emotional source will turn enough people off.

Best Actress

Anne Hathaway, RACHEL GETTING MARRIED
Sally Hawkins, HAPPY-GO-LUCKY
Melissa Leo, FROZEN RIVER
Meryl Streep, DOUBT
Kate Winslet, REVOLUTIONARY ROAD

Like Best Actor, there are three who really shouldn't have to worry about getting in: Hathaway, Streep, and Winslet. This category is even more of a hodge-podge than the Best Actor category, as Oscar precursers have been all over the place this season. There's the critical darlings: Sally Hawkins' overjoyed performance in Happy-Go-Lucky and Melissa Leo's haggard, brilliant work in Frozen River. Then, there are the movie stars with Kristen Scott-Thomas in the French film I've Loved You So Long and Angelina Jolie's work of melodrama Changeling. Again, wishful thinking makes me think that they'll go for Leo and Hawkins despite their lack of starpower.

Best Supporting Actor

Josh Brolin, MILK
Robert Downey Jr., TROPIC THUNDER
Philip Seymour Hoffman, DOUBT
Heath Ledger, THE DARK KNIGHT
Dev Patel, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE

This category can be summed up simply: Heath Ledger, and everybody else. I'm not sure if he'll win but there is no way that they can't nominate him. That being said, both Downey Jr. and Brolin seem pretty secure here. Downey Jr. has the benefit of being in Iron Man earlier. I think Hoffman is on a lot shakier ground than most people think he is in, but for now, I think he's in. Which leaves one spot which could go to James Franco's incredibly delicate performance as the lover in Milk, or Michael Shannon's crazy but honest character in Revolutionary Road. I think it goes to the youngster Dev Patel for Slumdog Millionaire, despite the extreme category fraud. They'll try to find a way to acknowledge this film some how in the acting categories.

Best Supporting Actress

Penelope Cruz, VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA
Viola Davis, DOUBT
Taraji P. Henson, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
Marisa Tomei, THE WRESTLER
Kate Winslet, THE READER

Penelope Cruz and Viola Davis have been sucking up all of the attention in this category so far, so they seem like safe bets. If I'm going to believe that they will leave out Brad Pitt, I have to at least believe that they'll go for the soulful performance from Benjamin Button, from Taraji P. Henson as Benjamin's mother. In another act of terrible character fraud, Kate Winslet seems to be on a streamline toward a double-nomination year, as she gets recognized for The Reader (if she loses both, she could tie Deborah Kerr for most losses without a win for an actress). The last spot can go to a handful of indie performances: Debra Winger and Rosemary DeWitt from Rachel Getting Married were both great and in the running, while Amy Adams could also get recognition for her performance in Doubt. I think they'll go for Marisa Tomei in The Wrestler.

Best Original Screenplay

Dustin Lance Black, MILK
Jenny Lumet, RACHEL GETTING MARRIED
Martin McDonaugh, IN BRUGES
Robert D. Siegal, THE WRESTLER
Andrew Stanton, WALL-E

This is a bit of an empty category this year in many ways, as most of the major best picture contenders are delegated to the adapted section. Dustin Lance Black's Milk screenplay seems to be the closest thing to a lock in the category, as well as Jenny Lumet (Sidney's daughter) for her wonderful Rachel Getting Married script. It would be criminal if Andrew Stanton wasn't nominated for the brilliant WALL-E screenplay, despite its lack of dialogue. There are a number of screenplays in the running, including Thomas McCarthy's The Visitor, Mike Leigh's Happy-Go-Lucky and the all-time leader in screenwriting nominations: Woody Allen for Vicky Cristina Barcelona. In the end, I say they go with Robert D. Siegal's work on The Wrestler and Martin McDonaugh's wonderful, wordy script for In Bruges.

Best Adapted Screenplay

Simon Beaufoy, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE
David Hare, THE READER
Peter Morgan, FROST/NIXON
Eric Roth, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
John Patrick Shanley, DOUBT

A pretty loaded slate here, and with the exception of The Reader, its a pretty formidable one as well. Slumdog Millionaire and Benjamin Button will have no trouble getting nominated here, and I can't see a situation in which John Patrick Shanley doesn't get nominated for a screenplay which borrows most of the parts from his original Tony-winning play. Peter Morgan's script for Frost/Nixon is excellent and the film's pedigree can help Morgan win his second Oscar nomination. Either Jonathan Nolan's Dark Knight screenplay or Justin Haythe's script for Revolutionary Road has a shot, but I think the Academy will go a little more literary and conventional with the Nazi drama, The Reader.

Best Cinematography

Roger Deakins, REVOLUTIONARY ROAD
Anthony Dod Mantle, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE
Claudio Miranda, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
Wally Pfister, THE DARK KNIGHT
Mandy Walker, AUSTRAILIA

Some thing tells me Australia has a real shot here, while Roger Deakins will probably get nominated once again (how has he not won yet?).

Best Art Direction

Briggite Broch, THE READER
Donald Graham Burt, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
Nathan Crowley, THE DARK KNIGHT
Michael Corneblith, FROST/NIXON
Catherine Martin, AUSTRAILIA

Austrailia and Frost/Nixon make a semi-surprising splash and get recognition here.

Best Editing

Chris Dickens, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE
Matt Chesse & Richard Peirson, QUANTOM OF SOLACE
Daniel P. Hill & Mike Hill, FROST/NIXON
Elliot Graham & Gis Van Sant, MILK
Lee Smith, THE DARK KNIGHT

Well, Quantom of Solace certainly has the most cuts, and they seem to make that more of a factor most of the time, than actual quality editing.

Best Costume Design

Lindy Hemming, THE DARK KNIGHT
Catherine Martin, AUSTRAILIA
Michael O'Connor, THE DUCHESS
Ann Roth, THE READER
Jacqueline West, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON

If I'm Jacqueline West, I'm still peeved about losing last year to the lady from Elizabeth: The Golden Age. The Duchess's sole recognition should come here.

Best Visual Effects

Iron Man
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
WALL-E

Will they count the effects in an animated film? Hope so.

Best Make-Up

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
Synecdoche, New York

Synecdoche and Benjamin Button both take aging make-up to the extreme, but both use it beautifully. Both should get recognized.

Best Original Score

Alexandre Desplat, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
Danny Elfman, MILK
James Newton Howard, THE DARK KNIGHT
Thomas Newman, WALL-E
Hans Zimmer, FROST/NIXON

Kind of a Best Picture mish-mash here, I'm never good at predicting this category.

Best Original Song

"I Thought I Lost You" from BOLT
"Rock Me, Sexy Jesus" from HAMLET 2
"Little Person" from SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK
"Down To Earth" from WALL-E
"The Wrestler" from THE WRESTLER

The Wrestler, Bolt and WALL-E nominations seem like locks, and the other two are just personal preferences.

Best Sound Mixing/Editing

Austrailia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Iron Man
Quantom of Solace
WALL-E

These categories rarely differ so it could give me a better average if I just match them up.

Best Foreign-Language Film

Last Stop 157 (Brazil)
The Class (France)
Waltz With Bashir (Israel)
Gomorra (Italy)
Der Baader Meinhof Komplex (Germany)

I think Waltz With Bashir gets its nomination here, instead of animated. It has a better shot here anyway.

Best Documentary

Encounters at the End of the World (Wernor Herzog)
I.O.U.S.A. (Patrick Creadon)
Man On Wire (James Marsh)
Standard Operating Procedure (Errol Morris)
Trouble The Water (Carl Deal & Tia Lessin)

Trouble The Water is the hot indie, but Man On Wire has literally had a titanic sweep in the precursors so far.

Best Animated Film

Bolt
Kung Fu Panda
WALL-E

Well, if my wishful thinking doesn't really work out in the Best Picture category, we at least know that WALL-E won't have any trouble in this category.

Revolutionary Road (***1/2)

REVOLUTIONARY ROAD
Directed by Sam Mendes



***1/2

Richard Yates' novel Revolutionary Road is a fondly remembered novel about marriage in the 1950's, and how quickly paradise can become purgatory. It's a biting story, critical of the average American's striving need to conform to societal stereotypes during the supposed happy-go-lucky times in the 50's. 47 years after it's publication, the novel is now a film, and its director, Sam Mendes does a very satisfying and bold job of making sure that the film in no way relents on the story's foreboding tone.

The story follows Frank Wheeler (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his wife April (Kate Winslet). They meet at a party, and roll away in passion: getting married, having children and moving into a home on Revolutionary Road. Frank gets a job as a salesman, and is quickly sucked into the life of an American working man, while April sits at home, slowly becoming disenfranchised with the direction of their lives, and how their existence lacks meaning. How did they lose the enthusiasm they had when they first met?

April comes up with an idea to rebuild their happiness: moving to Paris. There were times when Frank dreamed of living in Paris, and April believes that living there would help them discover the people they wanted to be. She would work as a Secretary and support the family, while Frank takes time to find what he really wants in life. Everything goes swimmingly until Frank begins feeling the pressure when his boss offers him a big promotion. Better to stay in a disappointing life where money is assured than move to Europe with uncertainty, right?

Another monkey wrench within the plot is the town real estate woman Helen Givings (Kathy Bates) and her troubled son John (Michael Shannon). John has had a rough go in the last couple of years after a few shock therapy treatments, and Helen thinks spending time with a modern couple his age will help him recoup. As he enters the lives of the Wheelers, it ends up the main illness he suffers from is honesty, effortlessly thrashing the lies and facades Frank and April work so hard to create. No one reveals their fates better than John.

Sam Mendes hit a home run (and the Oscar stage) with his first film, American Beauty, but has since struggled with properly executing his usually complicated visual motifs. Road To Perdition was gorgeous film to look at, but was an empty thematic experience, and Jarhead struggled to balance its harsh attitude with its solemn tone. Revolutionary Road is easily the best film Mendes has done since Beauty. It's his most fully-realized movie-going experience, even if certain aspects of the story seem a little off (the Wheeler children serve absolutely no purpose to the story whatsoever).

The screenplay, adapted from Yates' novel, was written by Justin Haythe with incredible attention to the sharp dialogue. The words Frank and April use against each other are as sharp as knives, and are much more damaging than any physical harm or adultery they may commit. Many have been turned off by the film's unpleasantness, and I believe that many could care less about the plight of the Wheelers in the economic times we live in today, but this film dissects the supposed happiness of the suburban home life so violently, it leaves an unbelievable effect.

Winslet and DiCaprio, reuniting for the first time since Titanic, are--no pun intended--revolutionary in their performances. It's a much more cynical view of Rose and Jack if they'd ever made if off the boat. Much like Frost/Nixon, the two performances work so well because they work together, supporting each other so efficiently that they completely inhabit the skin of the characters. It must be said, though, that in his few scenes, Michael Shannon's portrayal of John Givings stands toe-to-toe with the two of them--and wins.

Revolutionary Road was probably the most anticipated film of the year before the Fall season (ironically, most people won't be able to see it till 2009), but it quickly fell out of favor for most people who were expecting a Titanic recreation. What they get instead is a searing film about those who choose that ordinary is just not acceptable. It's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? with less ferociousness, and more solemness.

2008: Year In Movies (PART I: Year In Review)

2008: YEAR IN MOVIES
PART I: YEAR IN REVIEW

If there's one defining thing about movies in 2008 for me, it's this: for the first time in a long time, the seat-filling films from the summer actually out-did the over-hyped, underwhelming films from the fall. More than any of the year, it seems, a majority of the greatness this year came from the months in the middle. Whether it be a romance-oriented Pixar film (WALL-E), a biting, hilarious Hollywood satire (Tropic Thunder), or an uber-successful comic book film that may just become the zeitgeist movie of the decade (The Dark Knight), it was the summer that delivered the biggest punches, while Fall films were just reeling.

But let's start really early in the year, when several independent films seldom seen by anyone were circling through multiplexes. There was the Martin McDonaugh hit-man comedy In Bruges, the incredibly nuanced (if under-budgeted) Frozen River, and the massive word-of-mouth picture The Visitor. All three released early in the year and still picking up steam as we head into the beginning of 2009, as Oscar nominations approach.

The summer started out with a bit of a thud, with both Speed Racer and the new Indiana Jones movie failing to bring the big thrills audiences and critics expected from them, but it was the return of Robert Downey Jr. in the expertly-made Iron Man that really got Summer movie season started. WALL-E came out in June and wowed audiences and critics alike, but let's be honest, the biggest film of the summer--and year--was The Dark Knight. With an iconic performance by Heath Ledger and already the second biggest box office numbers in history, it's already gained classic status.

As we transitioned from Summer to Autumn, we were previewed with some excellent films such as Rachel Getting Married, but it was around this time that two films emerged from the film festival circuit with new-found Oscar buzz: The Wrestler and Slumdog Millionaire. The two films, almost an afterthought beforehand, were all the rage at the major festivals. Meanwhile, heavily-buzzed films like Blindness and Miracle At St. Anna floundered in the cinemas.

Then we hit the fall, and nothing could be seen. Every single film studios hoped to win Oscars was postponed to Christmas or later, and for that reason, the general public has still not been able to access a majority of the films that they want to see before Oscar time. No other year I've experienced have the studios worked so hard to make their "prestige pics" unwatchable. To make matters worse, after months and months of keeping the films from us, the films weren't even up to the ever-growing potential. Movies such as The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and The Reader were not only droll, but disappointing in more ways the one.

2007 was a year in which there were several films that people loved. Other than The Dark Knight, it is hard to pin-point one film that the audience has truly gravitated to strongly this year. There certainly is WALL-E which has a legion of followers, but as rediculous as it sounds, some people still have trouble supporting an animated film. I fear the Oscars will come and go this February, with no consequence for the film world, but since Miley Cyrus might perform, they might actually get some people to watch.

COMING SOON IN JANUARY

Revolutionary Road
Last Chance Harvey
The Wrestler
AND
Further parts of 2008: Year In Movies

The Reader (*1/2)

THE READER
Directed by Stephen Daldry



*1/2

It’s an old Hollywood theory that if you make a film dealing with the Holocaust and release it during Christmas time you’re sure to cash in on gushing critical fervor, and subsequently awards will flow through. The Reader takes this theory mightily serious, and exploits so many aspects of December “prestige pics”, you feel like throwing up more than half the time you are watching the screen.

The film was made by Stephen Daldry, who had all but disappeared from the film industry since his 2002 film The Hours. The six-year hiatus has done little to hone his craft, as he makes a film so mind-numbingly boring and misguided that the audience is never sure what to take seriously, and what to pass off as sexual fantasy. It is so blindingly catering toward Oscar, yet so furiously trying to seem sensual that neither aspects seem sincere.

The film opens with Michael (Ralph Fiennes), who is in his fifties and is an incredibly closeted and secretive man. He mopes around with a face of doom and disappointment, even his daughter is not sure what to do in his presence. Why does Michael act this way? Well, the film flashes back to take further investigation.

A young Michael (David Kross) gets caught in a rainstorm in freezing weather. An older woman (Kate Winslet) helps him home where he finds out that he has acquired Scarlet Fever. After months of rehabilitation, he goes back and visits the woman for her help that fateful day. Her name is Hanna Schmitz. They both make advancing glances at each other, until the two are wrapped in a passionate love affair that lasts for one summer.

Then, suddenly, Hanna has gone. Michael moves on and attends law school, and hopes the opportunity will bring him further life experiences beyond his relationship with Hanna. That is, until he sees Hanna again. As a project for his law class, Michael attends a courtroom case, and finds Hanna on trial for war crimes. What crime? Being a ruthless guard at a Nazi concentration camp.

As a Holocaust film, this movie is simply a joke. The movie could care less about the subhuman activities that transpired during that dark time in history. What does it teach Michael to learn that the love of his young life was an organizer of mass murder? He doesn’t seem to learn much of anything—he just mopes around with his hands in his face. There really isn't anywhere for these characters to go in terms of an arc, and the set-up to the romance between Hanna and Michael is something out of a high school fantasy.

There are two or three redeemable moments, particularly coming from the performances of Winslet and Fiennes, but a majority of the time, the characters stand around in laborious indecision. Sure, David Kross has a tough role to grasp, but most of the time, the young Michael comes off as whiny and annoying, when he’s supposed to seem endearing. There is exactly no charm within any of these characters, and that makes it impossible for us to care about any of them.

David Hare’s adaptation seems quite half-hearted. As a screenwriter you have to know the difference between adapting a novel and just re-writing the book in a screenplay format. With a pace like Catholic mass, the movie makes Benjamin Button seem succinct by comparison. The Reader is not my kind of film, to be honest, but I did not expect this film to be one of my least favorite of the year. It certainly is the most disappointing.