The Oscars have come and gone and awards season is (finally) over, right? Not in Cleveland. Here the fun is just getting started!
That is because this Thursday the 34th Cleveland International Film Festival kicks off at Tower City Cinemas downtown. One of the largest film festivals in the world, the 10 day festival features more than 300 films, documentaries, and short films from 80 countries.
Anyway, while at the event I entered an Oscar pool, picked everything correctly, and won several passes to the Film Festival (which is put on by the Cleveland Fim Society NOT the GCFC. The two organizations tend to get confused with one another, but have 2 very different missions. The GCFC focuses on bringing film work & jobs to Northeast Ohio, and the Film Society focuses on film preservation and the festival).
So, what should I see? What are you seeing? I could use some suggestions. Check out the festival program here and let me know what you plan on seeing. I welcome all opinions. I might even give you a ticket voucher. Chances are I won't have time to use all the ones I have. So let me know what you'd use it on.
Better last minute than never, right? When I set out to review all 10 of the Best Picture nominees this week I failed to anticipate how busy I would get. Even though my eyes were bigger than my stomach, I’m not one not to finish what I started, so here is my (very, very, very, very) brief attempt to review the remaining 6 nominees before the Oscar ceremony tonight.
An impressive original sci-fi film. "District 9" can pass itself off as a summer blockbuster and a small, emotional movie examining how we treat cultures different than our own; not the typical alien invasion film. Although it abandons some of its ethical statements and documentary style as the movie progresses into a gigantic battle, it’s a fun ride from start to finish. The less I tell you about this movie the better. It never goes where you expect it to, and that’s a good thing. It won’t win Best Picture, but it will be one of the few nominees that we are all still talking about 5 years from now.
The Hurt Locker This small movie about a three-man US bomb squad in Iraq is considered a front-runner for the big award. Will it beat “Avatar?” Maybe, if the voters felt like awarding a smaller film. Don’t be fooled though, despite a small budget “The Hurt Locker” isn’t a wuss, it’s an intense, suspenseful action film. Although set in Iraq, it does not get political. The plot is simple: survive 38 days. It’s easier than it sounds once you see the insane positions these soldiers have to put themselves in on a routine basis. As the movie points out, it takes a certain kind of person to do this, and “The Hurt Locker” does a great job exploring who that person is and what makes them tick. If anyone is going to beat James Cameron for Best Director, it will be (Cameron’s ex-wife) Kathryn Bigelow for the way she captures both the intensity of bomb diffusion and the quiet times in-between missions.
Inglorious Basterds This movie was not what I expected. Being a Quentin Tarantino movie I was expecting lots and lots and lots of blood; “Kill Bill” set in World War II. While the movie is bookended by two fairly violent scenes, the majority of the film is blood free. The cat-and-mouse game being played between the Good Guys and the Nazis as they sit across from each other at various tables in houses, restaurants, and bars is at times almost unbearably suspenseful. I enjoyed Tarantino’s revisionist history of WWII not for the gore, but for the way it was constructed: as a series of inter-connected short films that slowly become one. This method kept me engaged in the story even during the typical Tarantino dialogue scenes that run a few minutes too long. Trying to figure out where the story was going was half the fun. This is my pick for an upset for Best Picture and Tarantino’s best chance at winning the big award to-date.
Precious Everyone knows this movie as the one where an unspeakable amount of bad things happen to a poor teenage girl. I won’t list all of those things here; it’s worse than you even think it is. Yes, “Precious” is a good movie with strong acting and a powerful true tale of strength and perseverance, but it’s also tough to watch. This is the type of movie you will get in the mail from Netflix because you know it’s a movie you’re "supposed to watch," but you’re never in the mood to watch something this dark and it sits on the counter for 2 months until you return it unviewed. If that happens, I don’t blame you. A strong film, but I would never call this entertaining.
Up My wife can’t even tell you the plot of this movie without starting to tear up. I’m serious. The movie with talking dogs, blimp battles, and giant birds with a love for chocolate makes her cry. That’s because the guys at Pixar know how to make a good movie. All the crazy talking dogs in the world are meaningless unless there are some strong characters with strong motivations that drive everything. It doesn’t take much to lay that ground work. All you need in “Up” is the first 10 minutes. From there the movie can go in any crazy direction it wants to just as long as it remembers to come back to the simple relationships between old man Karl and his chubby friend. This will win Best Animated Movie and possibly Best Score. “Up” becomes a little too much of a kiddie cartoon in a few scenes towards the end, and that might hurt its chances as Best Picture.
Up in the Air Although it won’t win Best Picture, “Up in the Air” is the movie that best portrays what life in 2009 is like. George Clooney carries the picture well as a traveling businessman whose job it is to fire people. “Up in the Air” address a lot of the insecurities and concerns we all have right now with our jobs, the economy, the way technology has made making personal connections both easier and at times harder and less authentic, and what really matters in life (and one of the best soundtracks of the year). The ending is a little sloppy and some would argue ruins the whole film, but it stays true to the characters, and attempts to address how we live right now in a funny and entertaining way.
That’s all 10. Sorry I was so brief with these final reviews. Time got the best of me.
Where are you going to (or where did you) watch the Oscars (or do you even care)? Me, I’ll be at the Road to the Red Carpet party, a charity event for the Greater Cleveland Film Commission, a great nonprofit that works hard to bring film and production work to Northeast Ohio (i.e. “Spiderman 3”).
As always, if you agree or disagree with me, let me know in the comments.
Continuing my (alphabetical) reviews of the 10 Best Picture nominees in preparation for Sunday's Academy Awards ceremony, today brings two of the highest grossing movies of the past 3 months: "Avatar" and "The Blind Side."
Chances are that if you wanted to see either of these movies, you probably already have. Nevertheless, after the jump, I take a closer look at these 2 films. Agree or disagree with me? Let me know in the comments.
Avatar
Unless you've been living inside a rock that's under another rock that's lying on the bottom of the ocean, you've heard of "Avatar." It's now the largest grossing movie of all time with a worldwide intake of $2.5 billion (although with 80% of the US domestic gross coming from the 3D version of the movie, the extra $3 surcharge for 3D movies is inflating that number quite a bit).
So is it worth all that money? Sure, why not. In "Avatar", writer/director James Cameron was able to construct a perfect storm of everything that makes his past blockbusters, including "Terminator 2" and "Titanic," a success: sci-fi action, romance, and groundbreaking technology. "Avatar" has something for everyone of all ages.
Visually, the story of paralyzed soldier Jake Sully using Avatar technology to pose as a member of the blue alien-like Na'vi tribe that resides on a distant moon (it's not as complicated as it sounds), is unlike anything we've seen on film for a long time. The vivid colors, landscapes, and unique creatures of the Na'vi world fully transport the viewer, and the tense action scenes keep everyone on the edge of their seats.
The film's main weaknesses are the dialogue and some of the acting. Like "Star Wars" before it, "Avatar" is going to be mocked for years to come for its cheesy, sometimes poorly written dialogue. Some critics complain that the movie is just a generic sci-fi blend of many existing blockbusters, including "Dances With Wolves" and "Ferngully: The Last Rainforest." I say, what's so wrong about that? Yeah, there are elements of many other hit movies in this, why do you think it's making so much money? In a year when big budget crowd pleasers included the awful"Transformers 2" and "GI Joe," the willingness of Cameron to take risks creating an entirely original world should be commended.
That being said, I'm not sure it should win Best Picture. It's not perfect, and a little too long. Instead, I think "Avatar" should be awarded a Special Achievement Award for the way it advances movie making, similar to the award presented to "Toy Story" in 1996.
Bottom line: One of the best movie going experiences of the year, but the dialogue, acting, and occasional story flaws are too much to award it as Best Picture.
Trailer:
The Blind Side "The Blind Side" is the only movie out of the 10 Best Picture nominees that I can safely say should not be nominated. Give it a Family Circle magazine award for Best Family Film (take that "Squeakquel"!), but don't elevate its status to the Best Picture category. To put it in football terms: "Blind Side" is playing JV while all the other nominees made Varsity.
Am I too cynical to enjoy an uplifting "true story" that tugs on the heart strings? No, not when it's a good movie. Look at fellow nominee "Up." That movie is a cartoon with talking dogs, and it still has more three dimensional characters than "Blind Side."
I think Michael Oher's story of facing adversity and rising up from the ghetto to the NFL, thanks to the help of a loving family that believed in him when no one else would, is an inspirational story worth telling. "The Blind Side" takes a crack at it, but they water it down with stereotyped characters, generic dialogue, and very little actual conflict. It's a Hallmark made for TV movie that is trying to pass itself off as something more. Plus, as anyone who has read Oher's autobiography can attest, the movie takes SEVERAL liberties in an effort to play up the cheese.
There are also basic structure problems. At 128 min. it's a long movie for a family to sit through, especially when the entire third act veers off into courtroom drama territory right when I was ready for it to be over.
Bottom line: A harmless family film with a good story, but not anywhere near the quality of a Best Picture.
Trailer:
What did you think of "Avatar" and "The Blind Side?" Tomorrow I'll tackle "District 9" and "The Hurt Locker."
Well Oscar time is upon us. The big awards show is this Sunday night. Who are you rooting for? Have you even seen any of the nominated movies? In past years your answer to that questions was probably "no," but this year, in an effort to increase TV ratings (& DVD sales), the Academy increased the number of Best Picture nominees from 5 to 10. The thought was that with 10 nominees, some big budget studio movies that people have actually seen would get to join the art house crowd, and the masses would tune in to root for their favorite movie.
Well some big studio films DID in fact get nominated for Best Picture. Time will tell whether that results in a ratings increase.
I'm a movie buff, but could care less about the actual Oscars. I'm fine stopping at the nominees. Give me a list of some of the best movies and performances of the year and I'll choose what I like from them; no need to declare an ultimate winner.
Regardless, I have seen 9 out of 10 of this years Best Picture batch. So I thought I would spend this week briefly reviewing the contenders. After the jump I take a look at "A Serious Man" and "An Education"
A Serious Man
Two years ago the Coen Brothers won the Best Director/Picture combo for "No Country for Old Men." They followed that up with "Burn After Reading" and now what they claim is their most personal film, "A Serious Man."
Set in the suburban Midwest in the 1960s, the movie centers on Larry Gopnik, a middle aged professor with a lot of problems piling up at once: He might not get tenure, a student is blackmailing him, his wife wants a divorce & wants to date Larry's friend, his kids are brats, and his brother is a nutjob with no job prospects sleeping on Larry's couch. All of these problems cause Larry to wonder why God is "punishing" him for simply trying to get by and be a serious man. He visits 3 rabbis to receive guidance and clarity.
Now I like the Coen Brothers generally, and this movie is well done, and does a good job at capturing Larry's frustrations with his life, but the movie just isn't that interesting. Maybe I'd get more out of it if I grew up Jewish, in the Midwest, in the 1960s, but I didn't do any of those things. The acting and the Coens' portrayal of the 60s keeps my interest for a while, but the story is too mundane to keep my interest for the whole movie. I lost interest about 2/3 of the way through. I get that it's sort of the Coens' point that all of these typical problems that Larry faces are a part of life, and how we look at these problems determines whether they destroy us or not, but the conflict is so mundane that it isn't compelling for everyone.
Bottom line: Cool style and acting w/ a story that is not for everyone. Not likely to win.
Trailer:
An Education This is the one Best Picture nominee that I haven't seen, so I can't really provide any insight into the movie. This just isn't my type of movie. I know it's based on a book, but it looks so generic. I can pretty much tell what it's about just by looking at the poster. Young girl in the 1960s, probably in Europe, falls in love with a much older man. He might be tutoring her or she might be tutoring him, I'm not sure. Either way, through their relationship she receives "an education" on life and love, and her eyes are opened as she matures from a girl to a woman.
I haven't seen the trailer yet or read much about the movie, but I'm pretty confidant I'm in the ballpark. I have yet to have someone prove me wrong. Have you seen it? If so I'd love your insight. I'd be willing to post a guest review if you write a good one up.
I'm sure it's a good movie if you like these types of films. I am a fan of the novels by Nick Hornby, who adopted the script (& received an Oscar nomination for it) but did not write the book it is based on. Hornby's books have been turned into pretty good movies ("High Fidelity" & "About A Boy") so I bet he's good at writing a film script too.
Bottom Line: No idea, but it would be quite an upset if it wins Best Picture.
Trailer (After watching it for the first time, my guess review does not change):
Have you seen "A Serious Man" or "An Education?" Do you agree or disagree with my reviews? If so, let me know. Tomorrow: "Avatar" & "The Blind Side." Read more!
The Grammys have come and gone. Just two more weeks and the airwaves will be award show free for a little while. The Oscars will be held on Feb. 22. Are you prepared? Do you have your brackets filled out? Can you argue for your favorite film among the 5 Best Picture nominees? Well, it's kind of hard to do that if you haven't seen them all, you better get your act together and run out to the theatre.
OR as we all do with most things, you can conduct a last minute cram session. AMC theatres can help you through your procrastination. On Feb. 21, the Saturday before the Oscars, AMC theatres around the country will hold their annual Best Picture Showcase: $30 gets you all 5 Best Pictures and unlimited popcorn & soda.
From 10:30 a.m. until 11:30 p.m. you can relax in a theatre and watch Milk, The Reader, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Slumdog Millionaire, and Frost/Nixon (in that order). You also receive a special pass that lets you come and go as you please in case you would rather run errands than watch the boring parts of Benny Button again (a.k.a ALL OF IT!).
If you like movies, it really is a fun time. My wife and I did this 2 years ago, had a blast, and hung out with some fun people.
Only 1 theatre in the Cleveland area is participating: AMC Ridge Park Square 8 in Brooklyn (Ridge Rd at I-480). For other locations or more information check out the AMC website.
Now get to work ! What movie do you think is the true BEST picture?
Read more!
JD Drake is a advertising/marketing professional residing in Cleveland, OH. He has never had a cavity, but lies awake at night in fear that the streak will soon end.
That is because this Thursday the 34th Cleveland International Film Festival kicks off at Tower City Cinemas downtown. One of the largest film festivals in the world, the 10 day festival features more than 300 films, documentaries, and short films from 80 countries.
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