Bookends

It is around 2:00pm on Christmas Eve and "Fantastic Mr. Fox" is playing on HBO as I leave to run a few errands including taking a friend to LaGuardia airport. The scene playing is the first heist at the chicken farm. When I return in the evening, around 10:00pm or so, I turn on the TV and "Fantastic Mr. Fox" is on; the scene playing is the first heist at the chicken farm.

I wake up at 3:30am on Christmas Day so that I can be on the road to visit family in Maryland. After shaking cobwebs, showering, and filling up on gas, I strike out into the blackness of 5:00am. I always take the same route: 4th Ave. to 92nd St., then over the Verrazano Narrows Bridge, across Staten Island, over the Goethals Bridge, then I-95 beginning with the New Jersey Turnpike, the Delaware Memorial Bridge, then 895 via the Harbor Tunnel in Baltimore, then Ritchie Highway. Google Maps says it should take around 4 hours to make the 212 mile journey - I tend to average around 3 hours. Driving through the darkness with fewer cars on the road is very relaxing and I entertain myself singing along (when I can) to my guilty pleasures playlist on my iPhone playing through the audio system. After about an hour and a half of driving, I begin to notice the sky changing color to that piercing indigo such as when the moon is full. I then switch the playlist over to Rush - great driving music.

I finally meet my newest niece... I mean, my grandniece (I'm getting old), Abrianna, and, yes, she's a cute baby. She complains a little but is mostly smiles which is kind of mesmerizing to see. The other nieces arrive and are very surprised that their uncle is at their grandmother's. Food, merciless teasing of one niece in particular, surprises, laughs and Wii excitement until it's time for me to head back. The first thing I notice before I get back in the car is that the sky is the same overcast white-grey it was when I arrived 7.5 hours earlier.

The drive is mostly uneventful with the exception of the idiots out there who continue to cruise in the passing lane thereby forcing other drivers to pass on the right. If you do this, you suck because you are now creating an unnecessary and extremely dangerous situation. It's very simple: If you are not passing anyone, stay out of the far left lane. I digress...

Three hours later and I'm back in Brooklyn; the last hour is spent listening to the songs of Neil Finn. And the sky is as black as it was when I left.

I do enjoy the little moments.

2010 Academy Awards: Predictions and Personal Picks

Actor in a Leading Role:
Jeff Bridges, "Crazy Heart"
George Clooney, "Up in the Air"
Colin Firth, "A Single Man"
Morgan Freeman, "Invictus"
Jeremy Renner, "The Hurt Locker"

To be fair, each of the nominees performances are quite good even if the films left me wanting a bit more. I've seen all these films so I feel I can speak with some authority here. Jeremy Renner's performance was very good and I consider him the underdog favorite to win. Jeff Bridges is great in "Crazy Heart" and will most likely win. It's such a weird feeling because my favorite film in this group is "Up in the Air" - but not by much.
Prediction: Jeff Bridges
Personal pick: Jeremy Renner

Actor in a Supporting Role:
Matt Damon, "Invictus"
Woody Harrelson, "The Messenger"
Christopher Plummer, "The Last Station"
Stanley Tucci, "The Lovely Bones"
Christoph Waltz, "Inglorious Basterds"

I've seen three of the performances nominated here. While "The Lovely Bones" had its moments, Stanley Tucci did shine, but not as much as Christoph Waltz as Col. Hans Landa. Look out for Stanley Tucci as the underdog.
Prediction/Personal pick: Christoph Waltz

Actress in a Leading Role:
Sandra Bullock, "The Blind Side"
Helen Mirren, "The Last Station"
Carey Mulligan, "An Education"
Gabourey Sidibe, "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire"
Mery Streep, "Julie & Julia"

Having only see one of the performances, this is more difficult to make a personal pick. Carey Mulligan is great but many who saw "The Blind Side" raved about Sandra Bullock.
Prediction: Sandra Bullock (no personal pick)

Actress in a Supporting Role:
Penélope Cruz, "Nine"
Vera Farmiga, "Up in the Air"
Maggie Gyllenhall, "Crazy Heart"
Anna Kendrick, "Up in the Air"
Mo'Nique, "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire"

As with the actors, I've seen three of the performances nominated. And, yet, only one really stood out for me by more than just a little bit and I'm making her my personal pick. Mo'Nique has pretty much won accolades and awards for her performance and is the hands-down front-runner.
Prediction: Mo'Nique
Personal pick: Anna Kendrick

Animated Feature Film:
"Coraline"
"Fantastic Mr. Fox"
"The Princess and the Frog"
"The Secret of Kells"
"Up"

If there were truly any justice, "Fantastic Mr. Fox" should be up for Best Film. I guess I'll have to settle for it winning in this category. But therein lies an obstacle and that being Pixar's "Up" - a good film, just out-foxed. "Coraline" was very dark and the story, surprisingly, not as strong as my two favorites. I'll have to make it a point to see "The Secret of Kells" which I've heard is quite good.
Prediction: "Up"
Personal pick: "Fantastic Mr. Fox"

Directing:
James Cameron, "Avatar"
Kathryn Bigelow, "The Hurt Locker"
Quentin Tarentino, "Inglorious Basterds"
Lee Daniels, "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire"
Jason Reitman, "Up in the Air"

Let me say that I wish this field was expanded also because there are two films, sorry, directors whose work should be nominated. I've always found J.J. Abrams work to be Hitchcock-wannabe but he did an amazing job with "Star Trek" - watch the featurette and you'll see what I'm talking about. The other director? Wes Anderson's "Fantastic Mr. Fox" was pure genius. It is a sad thing that "Fox" is not being lauded more than it should be. But the fight really comes down to James Cameron, "Avatar," and Kathryn Bigelow for "The Hurt Locker." Out of the list of five, Quentin Tarentino's work, while typically Tarentino, produced a truly original and entertaining film.
Prediction: Kathryn Bigelow, "The Hurt Locker"
Personal pick: Quentin Tarentino, "Inglorious Basterds"

Writing (Adapted Screenplay):
Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell, "District 9"
Nick Hornby, "An Education"
Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche, "In the Loop"
Geoffrey Fletcher, "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire"
Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner, "Up in the Air"

I wish I'd read the pieces these films are adapted from but that's neither here nor there. From what I know of these films (of which I've seen three), the stories are all solid. Look for Geoffrey Fletcher to take this one although I wouldn't mind seeing Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner to win this.
Prediction: Geoffrey Fletcher, "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire"
Personal pick: Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner, "Up in the Air"

Writing (Original Screenplay):
Mark Boal, "The Hurt Locker"
Quentin Tarentino, "Inglorious Basterds"
Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman, "The Messenger"
Joel Coen & Ethan Coen, "A Serious Man"
Bob Peterson, Pete Docter. Story by Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy, "Up"

I've seen all but one of the work nominated and it might be a shame that my personal pick will be overlooked. If the work predicted wins, it wouldn't be a bad thing. Thankfully, "Avatar" was not recognized...
Prediction: Mark Boal, "The Hurt Locker"
Personal pick: Quentin Tarentino, "Inglorious Basterds"

I'll let you know how I did...

And the 2010 nominees for Best Picture are...

If you haven't heard, the 82nd Academy Awards best film category has been expanded to a field of ten. This is the first time this has happened since 1943 and this makes the Oscar race for Best Picture very interesting...

And they are:
"Avatar"*
"The Hurt Locker"*
"Precious: Based on the novel 'Push' by Sapphire"
"Up in the Air"*
"Inglourious Basterds"*
"Up"*
"The Blind Side"
"District 9"*
"An Education"*
"A Serious Man"*

As of this post, I've seen eight* from this list and was also pleasantly surprised to see an animated feature among them (although one was missing). So how do I rank these from a personal point of view? Which film was left off? Prediction?

From favorite to least favorite (or unseen):
"District 9"/"Inglourious Basterds" - tie
"Up in the Air"
"The Hurt Locker"
"An Education"
"Up"
"The Blind Side"/"Precious: Based on the novel 'Push' by Sapphire" - unseen
"A Serious Man"
"Avatar"

It's great seeing a Pixar film in this list as they consistently hit home runs with their stories but maybe a year too late; I liked "Up" but it's not as strong overall a film as "Wall-E" was. I think what put "Up" into this list was, first, guilt for "Wall-E" not being considered last year (I thought it was better than "Slumdog Millionaire" and I'm pretty sure I'm not the only who still thinks that) and, second, that brief but beautiful montage of Carl and Ellie's life together at the beginning of the film. I will discuss Pixar's impact on animated films in a future post.

So, yeah. I haven't seen "The Blind Side" or "Precious: Based on the novel 'Push' by Sapphire" but from what I've heard, they are better films than "A Serious Man" (sorry, Coen Brothers) or "Avatar" (James Cameron owes me an apology).

In my opinion, the best film of 2009 was "Fantastic Mr. Fox" and I am dumbfounded at its absence from this list. Reviews for it have been mostly positive and many film columnists have placed it in their top-ten of 2009. I don't get it. I really, really don't get it.

Overall, I think the list represents the better films from last year. That said, Best Picture will likely go to either "The Hurt Locker" or "Avatar" - if "Avatar" wins, I will be ill. From this list of nominees, I would like to see "Inglorious Basterds" win. I'd also be pleased with "District 9" or "Up in the Air" winning.

Next: The acting nominees...

This posting will be revised upon seeing "The Blind Side" and "Precious: Based on the novel 'Push' by Sapphire" very soon...

REVIEW: Avatar

(yawn)

OK - I'll write more than that... But before I do, prepare yourselves for an onslaught of cinematic musings to come from my keyboard. And now, back to... Oh, right...

Avatar is not a great movie. It's not even pretty good. It's not good. It's also not awful, but clearly, that ain't sayin' much. Before I saw this film, I heard it described as The Smurfs meets Dances With Wolves (except with a 'happier' ending) and that's pretty much on the mark. Even the language spoken by the Na'vi reminded me of the simplified Lakota dialect used in Dances With Wolves. More than a handful of people I've spoken to before and/or after having seen Avatar began their praise of the film by mentioning the special effects and I have to say: Special effects do not make a film good - it's the story. It has always been about the story.

My main problem with Avatar is that it was generally uninteresting. I was bored watching it and was reminded of a quote by Igor Stravinsky when he first attended a performance of Wagner's Parsifal and reminisced, "Once more I withdrew into myself, but I could think of only one thing, and that was the end of the act which would put an end to my martyrdom."

'Nuf sed...