Review: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)

* * *
Director: Peter Jackson
Starring: Martin Freeman, Ian McKellan, Richard Armitage, Orlando Bloom, Evageline Lily

I was a bit cool on An Unexpected Journey, the first entry in the Hobbit trilogy, finding it overly padded and lacking in impact compared to The Lord of the Rings series, though I did ultimately find more to like about it than to dislike. I'm more enthusiastic with respect to the follow up, The Desolation of Smaug, though I still think that The Hobbit is a far cry from the magic of The Lord of the Rings, and I still think that this new series has some pretty serious structural and narrative problems. On the plus side, this film isn't stopped dead by singing and it has a pretty exciting villain in its titular character. The downside is that the presence of so many Dwarves still hasn't been justified, given that only about four of them have discernible personalities, a problem exacerbated by the arrival of a bunch of new characters.

Review: No (2012)

* * *
Director: Pablo Larrain
Starring: Gael Garcia Bernal

Much of politics is a matter of advertising, of selling one candidate over another, of taking complex ideological stances and simplifying them as much as possible to make them not just palatable, but appealing to the electorate. Advertising can reduce a political race to "good" and "bad" or "us" and "them," and it can be used to create the illusion that there's a race at all, allowing dictatorship to carry on in disguise as Democracy. Pablo Larrain's No is set during Chile's 1988 plebiscite to determine whether or not the rule of Augusto Pinochet would be extended for another eight years, and unlike many politically themed movies it isn't about the battle between democratic ideals and the tyrannical forces of power, but about the triumph of marketing and turning politics (and, by extension, Democracy) into a commodity. That may sound cynical, but No really isn't a cynical movie - or, at least, it doesn't feel that way because it depicts an instance where the use of manipulative tactics yielded the good result rather than reinforcing the bad status quo.

Review: The Spectacular Now (2013)

* * * 1/2
Director: James Ponsoldt
Starring: Miles Teller, Shaileen Woodley

Now is what matters. The past is done and the future has too many variables, too many opportunities for disappointment, but now is as perfect as it is fleeting. "This is the youngest that we're ever going to be," the protagonist of The Spectacular Now states, nostalgic for the moment even as he's living it, aware that he's about to be forced to cross over to a new phase he feels ill-prepared for. A movie about teenagers that is refreshingly sincere and sensitive without being patronizing, James Ponsoldt's latest is one of the better films of its kind, even if it doesn't necessarily explore one of its main themes in full.

Review: Drug War (2013)

* * * 1/2
Director: Johnnie To
Starring: Sun Honglei, Louis Koo

A successful film doesn't necessarily have to do something new, it just has to take the familiar and make it seem fresh. Johnnie To's Drug War is a genre picture through and through, a police procedural where a cop teams up with a con in the name of justice, but questions whether he can really trust his informant. While far from innovative, the film is so meticulously put together, and unfolds so expertly, that the skill it brings to the table is really all that it needs. Given the film's genre trappings, and the fact that Hollywood loves to remake successful non-English language films, I fully expect to see an English language remake within the next couple of years (with a drastically different ending, presumably), but I don't expect it would hold a candle to the original.

Review: Short Term 12 (2013)

* * * *
Director: Destin Cretton
Starring: Brie Larson, Kaitlyn Dever, John Gallagher, Jr.

Children are often credited with possessing a preternatural ability towards resilience, but the pains endured in childhood can be the slowest to heal. Destin Cretton's Short Term 12 is about people in pain, suffering from the still open wounds of bad childhoods, struggling not to let that pain define or consume them. It's a sharp, character driven film that unfolds without affectation, driven forward by the compelling performance at its center. Although it falters ever so slightly in its final act, moving away from realism to engage in a climax that is purely the thing of movies, for the most part Short Term 12 rings with blunt authenticity. It's not always nice, but it feels real.

Review: Her (2013)

* * * 1/2
Director: Spike Jonze
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Scarlett Johansson, Amy Adams

Of all the questions that Spike Jonze's Her asks, the most pressing is, what does it mean to be human? It takes more than a body, surely, yet while a body may not define a person's humanity, it would seem to be an essential part of it, giving people the ability to physically connect and physically experience the world. But, as experience and connection increasingly become more virtual than physical, but no less real, our definitions may have to change. In Her the meaning of what it is to be human is expanded, while at the same time the limitations of human beings is acknowledged. Technology advances at an increasingly fast rate, and though humans may consider the attainment of "consciousness" as the end point of technological advancement, it may actually only be the beginning. Her is a charming film with a great deal on its mind, exploring this theme and others, deftly mixing science fiction and romance, comedy and drama, and exploring intellectual themes without sacrificing heart or soul.

Oscar Cursed: Cameron Crowe Edition

Cameron Crowe used to be kind of a cool filmmaker. Maybe never cutting edge, exactly, but "edgy" by the standards of American mainstream films. He was never a very prolific filmmaker (save in 2011, when he released two documentaries and a feature film), averaging about three movies a decade since his screenwriting debut in 1982, but most of the films that he made had a certain cachet either as cult classics or genuine classic classics. Then he was embraced by the Academy with an extremely Oscar friendly movie, following it up with another Oscar friendly movie which would net him the prize for Original Screenplay. He was sort of an "everyman" filmmaker whose work was filled with warmth and focused on character. And then he made a film which is pretty much the exact opposite of all that came before - a dark, mind-bender type thriller that ultimately polarized critics, followed by a less than successful return to warmth. Whatever Crowe had leading up to his Oscar win, he seemed to lose after taking home the prize.

SAG Winners

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture: American Hustle

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role: Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role: Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture: Lone Survivor

21st Century Essentials: Old Boy (2003)

All eras have works of art that are fundamental to our understanding of not only the craft itself, but the culture from which it was created. The 21st century is still nascent, but it isn't too early to start creating a canon that demonstrates the heights to which film as an artform has reached since the year 2000. These are the essential films:



Director: Park Chan-wook
Starring: Choi Min-sik
Country: South Korea

I’d tell you to forget about the recent remake of Old Boy, but that’s probably not necessary. If you only ever see one version of Old Boy, make it Park Chan-wook’s 2003 take, a visceral thriller that strips its characters bare as it folds back layer upon layer of narrative, punctuating its plot points with bloody action that, under Park’s assured direction, elevates violence to a state of aesthetic grace. The middle entry (and best) of Park’s “Vengeance Trilogy,” Old Boy is a story of revenge and redemption, told with both patience and blistering intensity. Beautifully crafted and executed, it’s an absolute masterpiece.

SAG Predictions

Another day, another awards show. The Screen Actors Guild will hand out its awards tomorrow. My predictions:

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture: American Hustle

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role: Bruce Dern, Nebraska

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role: Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture: Lone Survivor

Friday's Top 5... Oscar Snubs, 2014

#5: Inside Llewyn Davis - Several Categories
I had pretty much reconciled myself to the fact that the Coens' latest was going to be overlooked. In fact, I predicted that it would only be nominated for one Oscar and it ended up with two nominations, so I probably shouldn't consider it "snubbed," exactly... but I do. This movie was so good and there were so many good things about it, from Oscar Isaac's terrific lead performance, to the cleverly structured screenplay, to the music which, sadly, wasn't eligible to be nominated anyway. AMPAS, you missed the boat.

Critics Choice Winners

Best Picture: 12 Years a Slave

Best Director: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Best Actor: Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Best Original Screenplay: Spike Jonze, Her

Best Adapted Screenplay: John Ridley, 12 Years a Slave

Oscar Nominees

And the nominees are...:

Best Picture
12 Years a Slave
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
Her
Nebraska
Philomena
The Wolf of Wall Street

Best Director
Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity
Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave
Alexander Payne, Nebraska
David O. Russell, American Hustle
Martin Scorsese, The Wolf of Wall Street

Best Actress
Amy Adams, American Hustle
Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine
Sandra Bullock, Gravity
Judi Dench, Philomena
Meryl Streep, August: Osage County

Best Actor
Christian Bale, American Hustle
Bruce Dern, Nebraska
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf of Wall Street
Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave
Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club

Best Supporting Actress
Sally Hawkins, Blue Jasmine
Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle
Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave
Julia Roberts, August: Osage County
June Squib, Nebraska

Best Supporting Actor
Barkhad Abdi, Captain Phillips
Bradley Cooper, American Hustle
Michael Fassbender, 12 Years a Slave
Jonah Hill, The Wolf of Wall Street
Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Oscar Predictions

The nominees will be announced tomorrow morning. My predictions:

Best Picture
12 Years a Slave
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
Her
Nebraska
Saving Mr. Banks
The Wolf of Wall Street

Best Director
Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity
Paul Greengrass, Captain Phillips
Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave
Alexander Payne, Nebraska
David O. Russell, American Hustle

Best Actress
Amy Adams, American Hustle
Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine
Sandra Bullock, Gravity
Judi Dench, Philomena
Emma Thompson, Saving Mr. Banks

Best Actor
Bruce Dern, Nebraska
Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave
Tom Hanks, Captain Phillips
Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club
Robert Redford, All is Lost

Best Supporting Actress
Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle
Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave
Julia Roberts, August: Osage County
June Squib, Nebraska
Oprah Winfrey, Lee Daniels' The Butler

Best Supporting Actor
Barkhad Abdi, Captain Phillips
Daniel Bruhl, Rush
Bradley Cooper, American Hustle
Michael Fassbender, 12 Years a Slave
Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Review: Byzantium (2013)

* * 1/2
Director: Neil Jordan
Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Gemma Arterton

Neil Jordan's Byzantium is an odd duck of a film. In its first half it's a sleepily gothic romance, and then in the second it roars to life as a pseudo-feminist story about women seizing power denied to them by male dominated institutions. I liked the second half better, though the first half isn't bad, merely rather slow. A melancholy vampire story that manages to be both brutally and beautifully horrific (the image of a waterfall of blood is at once ridiculous and sublime), Byzantium is fairly transfixing once it gathers some steam and realizes which of its two female protagonists is the more interesting one.

Partners in Crime: Hitchcock & Grant

Celebrating cinema's greatest collaborations


When you think of Alfred Hitchcock in relation to his actors, you're most likely to think of the series of actresses he worked with, women of a certain type who became collectively known as "Hitchcock Blonde." But among his many collaborations, one of the most fruitful was his work with Cary Grant, whom he once described as "the only actor I ever loved in my whole life." Although Grant was already a star by the time he began working with Hitchcock, their work together would bring darker edges to Grant's charming persona, sinister and dangerous qualities which demonstrate that Grant was one of the most versatile actors of his time, though he's rarely given credit for it. Grant and Hitchcock worked together on four occasions, all four of them bona fide classics.

Review: Don Jon (2013)

* * *
Director: Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Scarlett Johansson, Julianne Moore

One of the great misconceptions about feminism is that it's something which solely benefits women, and one of the great deceptions about patriarchy is that it's only harmful to women. Patriarchy creates impossible and restrictive standards for men just as it does for women, entrenching in each gender ideas and expectations regarding the other which are unfair at best, and destructive at worst. This is a long way of saying that Joseph Gordon-Levitt's feature directorial debut Don Jon is an uncommonly intelligent film about the ways men and women relate (or fail to do so) and how the culture of "masculinity" and "femininity" determines the confines of that discourse - even if the film ultimately does not quite live up to its thematic ideals.

Golden Globe Winners

As they're announced:

Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture: Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle

Best Original Score, Motion Picture: Alex Ebert, All Is Lost

Best Original Song, Motion Picture: "Ordinary Love," Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom

Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy: Amy Adams, American Hustle

Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Best Screenplay, Motion Picture: Spike Jonze, Her

Best Foreign Language Film: The Great Beauty

Best Animated Feature Film: Frozen

Best Director, Motion Picture: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity

Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy: Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf of Wall Street

Best Motion Picture Musical or Comedy: American Hustle

Best Actress in a Motion Picture Drama: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Best Actor in a Motion Picture Drama: Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club

Best Motion Picture Drama: 12 Years a Slave

Golden Globe Predictions

The Golden Globes will be handed out tomorrow, here are my predictions:

Best Motion Picture Drama: 12 Years a Slave

Best Motion Picture Musical or Comedy: American Hustle

Best Director: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity

Best Actress - Drama: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Best Actor - Drama: Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave

Best Actress - Musical or Comedy: Meryl Streep, August: Osage County

Best Actor - Musical or Comedy: Bruce Dern, Nebraska

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Best Screenplay: David O. Russell, American Hustle

Best Animated Feature: Frozen

Best Foreign Language Film: The Great Beauty

Best Original Score: Hans Zimmer, 12 Years a Slave

Best Original Song: "Please Mr. Kennedy," Inside Llewyn Davis

Georgia Film Critics Winners

The critics from Georgia weighed in yesterday as well, with 12 Years a Slave dominating the acting awards and Her taking the top prize. Their winners:

Best Picture: Her

Best Director: Alfonso Cuaron, Her

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave

Best Supporting Actor: Michael Fassbender, 12 Years a Slave

Best Original Screenplay: Her

Best Adapted Screenplay: Short Term 12

Best Animated Film: Frozen

Best Foreign Language Film: No

Best Documentary: Stories We Tell

Best Ensemble: American Hustle

Best Cinematography: Gravity

Best Production Design: Gravity

Best Original Score: Her

Best Original Song: "Please Mr. Kennedy," Inside Llewyn Davis

Breakthrough Award: Brie Larsen

Keep track of who has won what so far with the 2013 Award Winners

Iowa Film Critics Association Winners

The Iowa Film Critics announced their winners yesterday, showing a lot of love for 12 Years a Slave. Their winners:

Best Picture: 12 Years a Slave

Best Director: Steven McQueen, 12 Years a Slave

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave

Best Supporting Actor: Michael Fassbender, 12 Years a Slave

Best Documentary: 20 Feet From Stardom

Best Animated Film: Frozen

Keep track of who has won what so far with the 2013 Award Winners

Top 10 Week... Films of 2013

#10: Captain Phillips
Paul Greengrass delivers another taut, inspired by true events thriller with Captain Phillips, which depicts the hijacking of the Maersk Alabama by Somali pirates. What makes the film a cut above is the way that it manages to both narrow and broaden its scope, making the film a battle of wills between two men who have more in common than either might suspect, while also making it an examination of the larger socieconomic factors at play on the international stage. At the end of the day, both men are pawns in a bigger game, hanging on to the economic ladder as best they can.

Top 10 Week... Performances By Women in 2013

#10: Mia Wasikowska, Stoker
There's nothing groundbreaking about an alienated teenager, but when the role is conquered with as much skill as Mia Wasikowska brings to Stoker, it seems fresh in spite of itself. As an outcast whose sexual awakening is also an awakening towards violence, Wasikowska brings a steely intensity to the film and finds a way to let her character flower beneath the veil of a deliberately flat affect. Although the character is at once repulsed and attracted to violence, she never feels inconsistent which is due in no small part to Wasikowska's firm grasp of her complicated psychology. Stoker was one of the first movies of 2013 to really blow me away and though the year had many great things to come, Wasikowska's performance stuck with me all year, it's that good.

Top 10 Week... Performances By Men in 2013

#10: Jake Gyllenhaal, Prisoners
Jake Gyllenhaal's performance in Prisoners as the detective with no unsolved cases is a thing of perfection. Gyllenhaal nails the cop-speak cadence, a sort of calming, neutral and to the point tone, and anchors the film with his quiet, single-minded determination. It's an unfussy performance of the type that is rarely recognized for being as good as it is, but here it's crucial to the film's success. Although Hugh Jackman has the flashier role as the father taking the investigation into his own hands, it's Gyllenhaal's quietly simmering detective who drives the story forward.

Top 10 Week... Scenes of 2013

#10: "Paris Weekend," Frances Ha
Technically not one scene, but a sequence of scenes, yet I couldn't not include the lonely, spur of the moment trip to Paris from Frances Ha. The eponymous character, trying to prove that she's doing fine and has it together, decides to go on a trip that she can't afford, wastes much of it sleeping off jet lag, and spends the rest of it wandering around by herself as Hot Chocolate's "Every 1's a Winner" plays on the soundtrack. Basically, Frances flies 7 hours to see Puss in Boots, which is sad but also slightly funny, unlike the rest of the film which is funny while also being slightly sad.

Top 10 Week... Posters of 2013

#10: Saving Mr. Banks
A bit obvious? Perhaps, but charming nevertheless. And, really, what other image could better encapsulate a movie about the creator of Mickey Mouse and the creator of Mary Poppins?

National Society of Film Critics Winners

The National Society of Film Critics announced their winners yesterday and showed a lot of love for Inside Llewyn Davis. Their winners:

Best Picture: Inside Llewyn Davis

Best Director: Joel & Ethan Coen, Inside Llewyn Davis

Best Actor: Oscar Isaac, Inside Llewyn Davis

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Best Supporting Actor: James Franco, Spring Breakers

Best Supporting Actress: Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle

Best Screenplay: Before Midnight

Best Foreign Language Film: Blue is the Warmest Color

Best Nonfiction Feature: (tie) The Act of Killing and At Berkeley

Best Cinematography: Inside Llewyn Davis

Keep track of who has won what so far with the 2013 Award Winners

Friday's Top 5... Movies That Just Missed Making My Top 10

2013 was an exceptionally great year for movies and performances, which made my list making for the year particularly difficult. Several films which would made my Top 10 in virtually any other year I had to leave out, but I wanted to at least give them a little bit of a spotlight before I unveil my Top 10s of the year next week. So here they are, five films which just missed making the cut:

#5: Prisoners
Denis Villeneuve's abduction thriller was one of the most intense films of the year, featuring a ferocious performance by Hugh Jackman as a man who goes to incredible lengths to find his daughter, and a quieter, but no less skilled, performance by Jake Gyllenhaal as the detective on the case. Playing with War on Terror themes, the film is morally complex and marvelously crafted by Villeneuve, not to mention beautifully photographed by the great Roger Deakins.

Review: The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

* * 1/2
Director: Martin Scorsese
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill

The Roman Empire lives and it is now called Wall Street. Though a satirical account of the rise and fall of stockbroker Jordan Belfort, The Wolf of Wall Street is nevertheless illuminating in terms of the current state of the North American economy - that we haven't collapsed into anarchy is something of a miracle if this story is to be believed. A tale of excess, debauchery, greed, and massive consumption, the film is as loud, as brash, as slick, and as unapologetic as its protagonist but, Jesus God, does it ever feel like it's a million hours long. At just a hair under 3 hours, it's far from being literally the longest movie I've seen all year, but when it comes to characters like the ones portrayed here, a little goes a long way.

Review: The World's End (2013)

* * * 1/2
Director: Edgar Wright
Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost

The capper to the Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy - the comedic genre sendups from director Edgar Wright and actors Simon Pegg and Nick Frost which also includes Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz - may not be as laugh out loud funny as previous installments, but it makes up for that with its richer (and deeper) thematic roots. A film that plays on the necessity of growing up, the disappointment of life not meeting expectations, and the reality of friendships fading with time, The World's End is one of the better films about friendships between men, with nice little asides about the problems of an increasingly homogenized of culture. And robots. Murderous, alien robots.