Still All Right

Spring is always a slow time for films. It's where studios burn off shoulda-coulda-woulda Oscar contenders and not-quite-there-yet summer flicks. Instead of recapping all the films that I've neglected to blog about individually, here's a list, from best to worst, of everything I've seen in 2010.

The Kids are All Right - The Sundance darling is still hanging in there as this year's best pic. Previous review here.

Shutter Island - The DiCaprio-Scorsese tandem has yet to misstep. While not as critically beloved as The Departed or The Aviator, Shutter Island is smart, tense, and impeccably made. Grade: A-

How to Train Your Dragon - Depending how critics and audiences react to Toy Story 3 and Tangled (Disney's take on the story of Rapunzel) later this year, a studio other than Disney/Pixar may walk away with the Best Animated Feature Oscar next year. How to Train Your Dragon was everything an animated film should be: imaginative, fun, and fully of whimsy. Grade: B+

Alice in Wonderland - I'm in the minority, but I love when Tim Burton goes "commercial," and Alice was no exception. Grade: B+

Freedom Writers - A solid documentary that not enough people will see. Previous review here.

Date Night - Not even the dream team of Steve Carrell and Tina Fey can save a script that is too unfocused. However the Carrell-Fey combination could make the phone book funny, and in the end, Date Night is worth watching just to see them together. Grade: B

Tucker & Dale Vs. Evil - Hopefully this one catches audiences' attention later in the year because it could be a promising franchise. Previous review here.

Robin Hood - Robin Hood is a mediocre film that doesn't do anything wrong, but it doesn't do anything great either. The entire film feels like a setup for a franchise. We'll see if Universal even gets that far. Grade: B-

Iron Man 2 - Iron Man 2 failed where the first film succeeded. There were too many characters and far too many storylines. Sometimes simpler is better, even for Tony Stark. Grade: B-

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightening Thief - Another great concept and story castrated by the limp film-making skills of Chris Columbus (see previous offenses: Rent and the first two Harry Potter films). Grade: B-

Clash of the Titans - The film wasn't terrible, but Percy Jackson made Greek mythology a whole lot more fun. Grade: C

Green Zone - Unlike the DiCaprio-Scorsese tandem the Damon-Greengrass pairing is no longer unblemished. Green Zone was run-of-the-mill and remarkably boring. Damon and Greengrass should stick to the world of Jason Bourne. Grade: C-

The Book of Eli - Sure, the twist ending was good, but everything else about Eli was a post-apocalyptic drag. Grade: D+

Splice - One of the worst movies ever. Period. Previous review here.

"Terrified"

After a three month hiatus, I'm back with my self-important and (mostly) meaningless blog posts. The world is the same as it was three months ago, when I last posted about the Oscars (shocker!). American Idol continues to disappoint, Glee is the gayest thing on television, and I still have an unhealthy crush on Kelly Clarkson. Well, I guess the passing of the health care bill was a "big f*cking deal," but I digress.

It would've been great to come back into the blogosphere with an earth-shattering entry. Unfortunately, for anyone reading this, I'm back with something that is neither timely nor relevant. I've already posted the subject on facebook and twitter, but I guess it's worth using 300 words on the subject anyhow.

It's a well-known secret that this season's American Idol is the reality juggernaut's worst. Simon is coasting, Ellen is a disappointment, and if it weren't for Crystal Bowersox we'd be headed for the worst Idol winner since that gray-haired train-wreck, Taylor Hicks. Other than Mama Sox, there has been one great find this season -- "Terrified," an unknown song written by Idol's newly-crowned cougar, Kara Dioguardi.

Didi Benami, one of the many female contestants eliminated faaaaar too early this season, put the song on the map in the early Hollywood rounds. See below:



After falling in love with Didi's version I found the "original" version recorded by another American Idol alum, Katharine McPhee, last year. The song has already broken 50 plays on my iTunes play count. Not too shabby for a song that I downloaded only a few months ago. If you haven't heard the song, take a listen. Every so often it's good to be a little "Terrified:"

Oscar Predictions

I haven't been much of a blogger lately, but with the Oscars this Sunday I couldn't let them go by without my (likely incredibly wrong) predictions. With that, here we go. (Excluding races like animated short and documentary feature, since I've seen hardly any of the nominated films.)

Best Picture
Nominees: Avatar, The Blind Side, District 9, An Education, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, Precious, A Serious Man, Up, Up in the Air
Will Win: The Hurt Locker seems destined to become the lowest-grossing Best Picture winner ever. Avatar will win the most awards, but The Hurt Locker will come away with the one that matters. I can't see the Academy going for Avatar, not without screenplay or acting nods.
Should Win: Up. Two months ago, in my "Best of 2009" post, I named Up my favorite flick. So for consistencies sake, I'm sticking with my unpopular choice.

Best Director
Nominees: James Cameron, Avatar; Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker; Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds; Lee Daniels, Precious; Jason Reitman, Up in the Air
Will & Should Win: Kathryn Bigelow has swept all the precursor awards and Oscar night should be no different. She created, without question, the year's most intense film.

Best Actor
Nominees: Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart; George Clooney, Up in the Air; Colin Firth, A Single Man; Morgan Freeman, Invictus; Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker
Will Win: Jeff Bridges will take home this year's "Lifetime Achievement Oscar." It doesn't hurt that his boozy performance is pretty dang good.
Should Win: Colin Firth's career-making performance in A Single Man was everything an Oscar-winning performance should be.

Best Actress
Nominees: Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side; Helen Mirren, The Last Station; Carey Mulligan, An Education; Gabourey Sidibe, Precious; Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia
Will Win: "Sandy" Bullock has everything going for her. She has the precursor awards, the "paid her dues" factor, and everyone in Hollywood loves her. Hopefully a win will lead to her making better movies. Oscar winners don't star in All About Steve, Sandra. Take note.
Should Win: Gabourey Sidibe. Two months ago I said Meryl Streep. However, if I were voting I'd go with Gabourey Sidibe and her heart-breaking turn in Precious.

Best Supporting Actor
Nominees: Matt Damon, Invictus; Woody Harrelson, The Messenger; Christopher Plummer, The Last Station; Stanley Tucci, The Lovely Bones; Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds
Will & Should Win: Christoph Waltz is a virtual lock to take home the golden statue for his deliciously evil portrayal of a fictional Nazi colonel.

Best Supporting Actress
Nominees: Penelope Cruz, Nine; Vera Farmiga, Up in the Air; Maggie Gyllenhaal, Crazy Heart; Anna Kendrick, Up in the Air; Mo'Nique, Precious
Will & Should Win: Mo'Nique's tour-de-force performance in Precious is in a completely different league than the rest of the nominees.

Best Adapted Screenplay
Nominees: An Education, In the Loop, District 9, Precious, Up in the Air
Will & Should Win: Up in the Air contained the year's smartest and wittiest dialogue. It should take this in a cakewalk.

Best Original Screenplay
Nominees: The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, The Messenger, A Serious Man, Up
Will Win: Inglourious Basterds. Just how Adapted Screenplay will be Up in the Air's big consolation prize, the Original Screenplay award will likely be runner-up prize for Tarantino's "Holocaust reinterpretation."
Should Win: Up. Again, many will disagree, but I'd give the award to Up for delivering the year's most affecting storytelling.

Best Art Direction
Nominees: Avatar, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, Nine, Sherlock Holmes, The Young Victoria
Will & Should Win: Avatar succeeded largely on artistic vision, so the film should be the frontrunner here.

Best Cinematography
Nominees: Avatar, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, The White Ribbon
Will & Should Win: Avatar was 2009's most beautifully shot film. Again, it should win this one fairly easily.

Best Costume Design
Nominees: Bright Star, Coco Before Chanel, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, Nine, The Young Victoria
Will & Should Win: The Young Victoria. The Academy loves a period piece, and the costumes in The Young Victoria were impeccably "Victorian."

Best Film Editing
Nominees: Avatar, District 9, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, Precious
Will Win: The Hurt Locker. Kathryn's Bigelow's film is highly-regarded in many circles, and that love should carry over into an editing win.
Should Win: Avatar. Before nominations, I would've gone with Up in the Air, but it stunningly was left off the list. However, he final action scene in Avatar is reason enough to bestow James Cameron's epic with Best Editing.

Best Makeup
Nominees: Il Divo, Star Trek, The Young Victoria
Will & Should Win: Star Trek. The film with the truly the best makeup job (District 9) isn't even nominated, so Star Trek wins by default. It did have a green woman...

Best Original Score
Nominees: Avatar, Fantastic Mr. Fox, The Hurt Locker, Sherlock Holmes, Up
Will & Should Win: Up. Nearly the first ten minutes of Up contain no dialogue. Michael Giacchino's score should receive the award for carrying the film that long, not to mention they're the most moving ten minutes of the entire picture.

Best Original Song
Nominees: "The Weary Kind," Crazy Heart; "Almost There," Princess and the Frog; "Down in New Orleans," Princess and the Frog, "Take it All ," Nine; "Loin de Paname," Paris 36
Will & Should Win: "The Weary Kind," Crazy Heart. No song was more integral or more powerfully used in a storyline than "The Weary Kind" in Crazy Heart.

Best Sound Editing
Nominees: Avatar, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, Star Trek, Up
Will Win: Avatar. When you spend $500 million on a film, there's a reason it will sweep the majority of the Oscar tech awards.
Should Win: Star Trek. The use of sound in Star Trek blew me away, but it's being overshadowed by the "Biggest Film of All Time."

Best Sound Mixing
Nominees: Avatar, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, Star Trek, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
Will Win: Avatar. See above.
Should Win: Star Trek. Again, see above.

Visual Effects
Nominees: Avatar, District 9, Star Trek
Will & Should Win: Avatar. Easiest prediction by far.

Animated Feature Film
Nominees: Coraline, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Princess & the Frog, The Secret of Kells, Up
Will & Should Win: Up. It's nominated for Best Picture, and it's my favorite picture (regardless of medium) for the entire year, so it's is the easy choice.

Predicted Awards Tally: Avatar - 6 , The Hurt Locker - 3 , Crazy Heart - 2, Inglourious Basterds - 2, Up - 2, Precious - 1, Star Trek - 1, Up in the Air - 1, The Young Victoria - 1

"I Got You"

Two years ago, Leona Lewis was the biggest name in pop music. Her debut album Spirit, and its lead single, "Bleeding Love," took the world by storm. One would think her insane success would guarantee automatic sales of her sophomore album, Echo. That hasn't been the case. Her sales have sagged, especially in the U.S., even though Echo is flat out better than Spirit. Lewis just released the video for the album's second single, "I Got You." The song is fantastic, just try not getting the chorus (And when you need a place to run to/ for better for worse/ I got you) stuck in your head -- it's impossible. It's definitely one of her best.

Video:

And for those who missed out on "Happy," the catchy yet (slightly) schmaltzy lead single, watch the video. It's good stuff. Embedded below:

"You're All I Need"

It's Valentine's Day, so it's the perfect excuse for me to post two of the best scenes from my all-time favorite television pairing, Alias' Sydney and Vaughn. They likely won't mean much for anyone who hasn't seen the show, but they're adorable nonetheless.

Vaughn: Syd, this watch belonged to my father. It's broken now, but it used to keep perfect time. And when he gave it to me, he said, "You could set your heart by this watch." It stopped October first -- the day we met.

Clip:



Vaughn: We're not gonna make it out of here. There's something I need you to know.
Sydney: Vaughn...
Vaughn: In my life, there's only one person...
Sydney: Don't do this.
Vaughn: Look at me.
Sydney: Vaughn...
Vaughn: The only reason I pushed you away...
Sydney: Please...
Vaughn: The only reason I didn't know how to be around you...
Sydney: They're coming.
Vaughn: Sydney...
Sydney: I know, Vaughn. I know. We'll find each other. We always find each other.

Clip:

"In My Book You'll Always Be Client #1"

I've always loved Saturday Night Live's Weekend Update, but these crass Valentine's Day cards from Eliot Spitzer might actually make V-Day more enjoyable.

Video:

If I Were an Academy: 2009 Edition

It's that time of year again: Oscar nomination time. Tomorrow the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences will announce the 2010 Oscar nominees, and as always, I am stoked. Unlike many critics, I think 2009 was a fantastic year for film. Better than most years in recent memory. It was a year that contained crowd-pleasing comedies (The Hangover, Julie & Julia), animated films with multi-generational appeal (Up, 9, Fantastic Mr. Fox), gut-wrenching dramas (The Hurt Locker, Precious, A Single Man), and, oh yeah, what will soon be the highest grossing film of all-time (Avatar). With that, what follows is my "ballot" if I were an Academy member, as well as my 2010 Oscar predictions. (And as a note, I've seen almost everything worth seeing, but not quite.)

Top Ten / Best Picture
1. Up. Without question, Pixar's best and most moving film. The film's opening 15 minutes are some of the best ever.
2. A Single Man. The best "gay movie" I've seen. Yes, better than Brokeback Mountain. Tom Ford's directorial debut is beautifully shot, incredibly acted, and utterly moving.
3. Precious. This wake-up call for all of America features two dynamite performances from Mo'Nique and newcomer Gabourey Sibide.
4. Avatar. The story isn't the most original, but the groundbreaking visuals are an absolute spectacle, and worth seeing again, and again, and again.
5. The Hurt Locker. A Single Man may be one of the best "gay" movies ever made, and The Hurt Locker may be one of the best war films ever made. Kathryn Bigelow's detailed direction makes The Hurt Locker the definition of a nail-biter.
6. Up in the Air. The movie of the moment. Jason Reitman's third film is the perfect film to describe the state of America in 2009.
7. Where the Wild Things Are. Maurice Sendak's beloved short story becomes an even better film that brings out the child in all of us.
8. (500) Days of Summer. The year's best romantic comedy, and it isn't even a feel-good love story.
9. Inglourious Basterds. Tarantino rewrites history and it couldn't be more fun. As with Up, the film's opening sequence is absolute brilliance.
10. District 9. The rare sci-fi flick that's both intelligent and entertaining.

What Will Actually Be Nominated: An Education, Avatar, District 9, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, Invictus, Precious, A Serious Man, Up, Up in the Air

Best Director:
Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker
Tom Ford, A Single Man
James Cameron, Avatar
Jason Reitman, Up in the Air
Pete Docter, Up

Who Will Actually Be Nominated: Bigelow, Cameron, Lee Daniels (Precious), Reitman, Quentin Tarantino (Inglourious Basterds)

Best Actor
Colin Firth, A Single Man
Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker
Max Records, Where the Wild Things Are
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, (500) Days of Summer
George Clooney, Up in the Air

Who Will Actually Be Nominated: Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart), Clooney, Firth, Morgan Freeman (Invictus), Renner

Best Actress
Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia
Gabourey Sibide, Precious
Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side
Carey Mulligan, An Education
Emily Blunt, The Young Victoria

Who Will Actually Be Nominated: Blunt, Bullock, Mulligan, Sibide, Streep (We agree! Go figure.)

Best Supporting Actor
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds
Peter Calpadi, In the Loop
Anthony Mackie, The Hurt Locker
Zach Galfanakis, The Hangover
Stanley Tucci, Julie & Julia

Who Will Actually Be Nominated: Matt Damon (Invictus), Woody Harrelson (The Messenger), Alfred Molina (An Education), Waltz, Tucci (The Lovely Bones)

Best Supporting Actress
Mo'Nique, Precious
Julianne Moore, A Single Man
Vera Farmiga, Up in the Air
Diane Kruger, Inglourious Basterds
Anna Kendrick, Up in the Air

Who Will Actually Be Nominated: Farmiga, Kendrick, Melanie Laurent (Inglourious Basterds), Mo'Nique, Moore

Original Screenplay
Up
(500) Days of Summer
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
The Hangover

What Will Actually Be Nominated: A Serious Man, (500) Days of Summer, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, Up

Adapted Screenplay
Up in the Air
A Single Man
Where the Wild Things Are
Precious
In the Loop

What Will Actually Be Nominated: An Education, District 9, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Precious, Up in the Air

2009's Best (and Worst) of the Rest
11. An Education
12. Star Trek
13. Julie & Julia
14. The Hangover
15. In the Loop
16. Fantastic Mr. Fox
17. Zombieland
18. Adventureland
19. Food Inc.
20. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
21. Paranormal Activity
22. I Love You, Man
23. The Proposal
24. 9
25. Sunshine Cleaning
26. The Blind Side
27. Earth
28. The Road
29. The Princess & the Frog
30. Invictus
31. Duplicity
32. The Time Traveler's Wife
33. Coraline
34. The Invention of Lying
35. The Young Victoria
36. The Informant!
37. Bruno
38. Surrogates
39. Taken
40. X-Men Origins: Wolverine
41. Law Abiding Citizen
42. G.I. Joe: The Rise of the Cobra
43. He's Just Not That Into You
44. 2012
45. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
46. The Men Who Stare At Goats