Awkward Awards

This year, the 83^rd annual Academy Awards were spectacularly underwhelming. Hosted by the randomly placed James Franco and Anne Hathaway who were, with the exception of a few awkwardly delivered “jokes,” completely forgettable. There were no pleasant surprises or glaring omissions in regards to the awards given, and I generally agreed with the selections.

I felt that The Social Network deserved more than Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Score, but I was satisfied with The King’s Speech sweeping for Best Picture, Best Director (Tom Hooper) and Best Actor (Collin Firth). Best Actress went to Natalie Portman, which was quite deserved for her port rayal of mentally ill ballerina in the controversial Black Swan.

Although the hosts’ performances were disappointing, Hathaway’s fashion choices were not. She donned eight separate outfits during the show, including a fantastic sequined tuxeco. The only other discussion-worthy moment of the show besides the fashion was when Melissa Leo dropped the “F-bomb” on live television while accepting her Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for The Fighter. This was the first occasion of a profanity slip in Oscar’s history. Leo quickly followed up with this rather casual comment given the situation: “I had no idea. This word… I apologize to anyone that they offeneded. There’s a great deal of the English language that is in my vernacular. I really don’t mean to offend, and it’s probably a very inappropriate place to use that particular word.”

All in all, the show was rather uneventful. It had more awkward moments – Kirk Douglas’ endless droning – than funny ones, and the awards were quite expected and caused a feeling of indifference throughout the entire night. I can only hope for next year there are more “Oscar worthy moments,” during the Oscars.

Filed under: Uncategorized

Blue Valentine

Blue Valentine is the story of young love, and the struggle to keep it alive through the stresses of everyday life.  This film, starring Ryan Gosling (The Notebook) and Michelle Williams (Shutter Island) as a young married couple worn from a tumultuous relationship, only saw limited release due to its graphic sexual nature.

Its original rating of NC-17 was challenged, and eventually the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) awarded the film an R rating, although this did not result in a widened release of the film.  Directed by Derek Cianfrance, a Sundance favorite known for his controversial documentaries, and written by Cianfrance, Cami Delevigne, and Joey Curtis; Blue Valentine created a stir at its premier at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival, and has since been nominated for numerous awards including Best Performance by an Actor/Actress in a Drama at the Golden Globes.

Easy to relate to but not always easy to watch, Blue Valentine tells a story disturbingly familiar to many couples in America today.  Cindy (Williams) is a young, beautiful, but overworked nurse married to Dean (Gosling) an alcoholic high school dropout, wasting his extreme musical and intellectual talent by painting houses for a living.  They share a daughter Frankie, who is not biologically Dean’s child.  The story of their relationship and segments of their individual pasts are shown to the audience by flashing back periodically to their teenage lives.  You learn of Dean’s broken family and his desire to care for his own wife and child, and Cindy’s father’s dominance over her meek mother, creating an equally dysfunctional background.  Cindy and Dean meet and fall in love immediately after a breakup with an ex-boyfriend which ultimately severely affects her relationship with Dean.  Their stories culminate in a one-night-getaway to a cheap motel, where Cindy begins to come to terms with her true feelings for her husband.

The shockingly realistic sex scenes leave an air of disturbance and emotional strain on the audience, and the sensitive dynamics between the characters create a feeling of impending breakdown throughout the film.  The characters are each greatly endeared to you, making it difficult to watch their passionate struggles.  I myself have never been married or raised a child, but after viewing this film I have a new sense of empathy for people who have to experience those relationships change.  I have seen the breaking of a family from the child’s point of view, and this film gave me the vantage point of the people doing the breaking.  Conclusively, those are much more difficult eyes to look through.  My emotional disturbance as a result of this film was equal to that of watching a movie in which a character experiences the death of a loved one.  The camera angles, lighting, costuming, and set all contributed to the realistic feeling of Blue Valentine.  This is not a film to see when looking for an uplifting love story, but the thought-provoking nature of it will capture the attention of any viewer.

Filed under: Uncategorized

Rabbit Hole

Based on the play of the same name, Rabbit Hole is the story of a struggling couple,played by Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart, whose young son has tragically died.They struggle balancing their grief for their son with their relationships witheveryone else in their lives, particularly each other. The film is directed by JohnCameron Mitchell and written by Pulitzer Prize winner David Lindsay-Abaire. NicoleKidman personally produced this mostly depressing but also uplifting film.

Rabbit Hole relies heavily on its lead actors. Although the script is very deep andthorough, there are very few supporting characters with significant screen time.Kidman and Eckhart rise to this challenge like pros. Kidman nails the hollow,ghostliness of a mother who has just lost her son and is therefore not veryinterested in her husband anymore. Eckhart is equally divisive as the husband;choosing a side as an audience member is difficult because of how relatably eachcharacter is portrayed.
Lindsay-Abaire’s script is written in such a way that such an unappealing themeremains interesting for all 92 minutes. Such a deeply personal topic for many whohave lost loved ones is treated respectively and never once feels tacky or pandering.Lindsay-Abaire also manages to adapt a play to film effectively, keeping a well-structured plotline. However, the brief moments of humor in Rabbit Hole could havebeen better utilized by spreading them out more evenly throughout the movie. Theheavy film becomes mildly taxing to sit through by the end, and a few of the laughsfrom the beginning could have fixed that problem.
Rabbit Hole is a sad film that is still watchable thanks to its well-adapted script andexcellent actors. It doesn’t reach its potential as one of the years best films, likemany tragedy-themed films seem to do, but it may offer award recognition for itslead actors, Kidman and Eckhart.

Filed under: Uncategorized

Secretariat

Secretariat is based on the 70s true story of a horse named Secretariat setting the unbeaten record for The Triple Crown (the term for winning the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes.) In laymen’s terms, a really amazing horse broke all kinds of records and is still regarded as the best racehorse ever. It’s very aesthetically similar to Seabiscuit only without Tobey Maquire, and the horse is better.Diane Lane plays the horse’s owner, and John Malkovich plays its eccentric trainer, who tends to wear a lof of plaid. Malkovich, who is known for playing weirdos in movies and kind of acting like one in real life, has no trouble transforming into his character.

Secretariat stands squarely on the line of “cliché family film where organized sports save the day” and “well-made feminist period place.” Sometimes it falls on the  former side, but often it makes it’s way to the latter. Lane is flawless as Penny Chenery Tweedy, an in all fairness, if Sandra Bullock got an Oscar last year for The Blindside, Lane at least deserves a nomination. She is tough and independent without becoming obnoxious to an unrelatable point. (I’m looking at you, Bullock.) Additionally, those in charge of Lane’s costume design deserve serious props, because she was looking fierece.

A large cast of random stars, including Nelsan Ellis from True Blood, Dylan Walsh from Nip/Tuck, and Kevin Connolly from Entourage, might have been my favorite part of the movie. Each character added richness to the story without becoming overwhelming. In truth, the loaded list of characters keeps Secretariat interesting in between the relatively few major races portrayed, while the film is mostly focusing on family life and back story.

In the end, Secretariat can only do so much with its limited subject matter and PG family theme. Fortunately, it manages to remain entertaining for all two hours despite a predictable ending to anyone who has seen a Hollywood film.

Filed under: Uncategorized

Let Me In

Kodi Scott-McPhee of The Road and Chloe Moretz of Kick-Ass star in Let Me In as a lonely bullied boy and a pretty little think of indeterminate species. They live in a small town of snowy, 80’s New Mexico, where Owen (Scott-McPhee) is forced to tolerate his collapsing family life at home and traumatizing social life at school. Soon, Abby (Mortez) moves in next door, and as the local town experiences an unprecedented amount of suspicious murders and violence, she becomes the only friend of small, bully-target Owen. The two soon form a strong, innocent, and unique relationship. With strong supporting roles played by Richard Jenkins and Elias Kotes, the two young actors shine spectacularly in such a dark film. Scott-McPhee has an Omen-kid eeriness while remaining sympathetic, and Mortez is seemingly innocent while believably being the cause of the “horror” label on the film.

Let Me In is a remake of a 2008 critically acclaimed Swedish film called Let the Right One In, which is based on a Swedish novel. Apparently considering all of America’s remakes, sequels, and films based on books, we have no original ideas left. All ranting aside, Let Me In, is almost as good ad the original, which is saying something. Let the Right On In is highly regarded by American film critics as one of the best foreign films of 2008. Reeves effectively deals with such high expectations, directing his film in a way that is both high reminiscent of the original, almost mirroring it exactly, while keeping it relatable to American audiences.

Let Me In, mostly copying that of the original, has a stunningly jarring style. Certain clear buy unusual shots keep your eyes on the screen, maintaining the film’s beauty in the middle of bright red gore. However, Reeves does little to make his version different. It doesn’t surpass the original, which feels eerier and more natural. Although I cannot, in good conscience, give this movie a high score based solely on the fact that it’s entirely unoriginal and couldn’t even wait more than two years, Let Me In is a refreshing watch for fans of violence, romance, and mystery.

Filed under: Uncategorized