First of all: do not let anyone tell you this isn't scary. I was terrified. I am a wuss, but really, I was terrified. And it seemed like it wasn't just me - there were plenty of gasps and screams and curses in the theater.
Aside from that, though, I thought this movie was quite good. It was old-fashioned horror, very atmospheric, and full of gorgeous old houses and clothes and creepy creepy toys. It was a good transition into adult roles for Daniel Radcliffe, and he did a great job and made me very optimistic about his career prospects. Ciaran Hinds and the rest of the supporting cast did a nice job as well. I would have loved this movie had I not been looking away from the screen half the time because I was scared out of my mind.
(Random trivia: IMDb tells me that the young actor who played Radcliffe's character's son is in fact Radcliffe's real-life godson. Aww.)
Friday, February 10, 2012
Oscar Project 2012: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Movie: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
This was a great ending to the series, and I'm happy it's getting a bit of award recognition, even if only in the technical categories. I would have liked to see some acting nominations as well, and what about the score? Hmm.
Availability: It was everywhere, and it's on DVD now.
Nominated In:
Art Direction: Sure. All of the Harry Potter movies have been quite visually nice, and this one did a great job of looking grim and atmospheric.
Makeup: Sure. Voldemort! Grown-up trio! And... some other things I'm now forgetting, probably.
Visual Effects: Absolutely. There were some great magical battle scenes, among other highlights.
Movies left: 44; Days left: 17
Have seen 28% of movies and 50% of nominations.
Movie posts I owe you: 6
This was a great ending to the series, and I'm happy it's getting a bit of award recognition, even if only in the technical categories. I would have liked to see some acting nominations as well, and what about the score? Hmm.
Availability: It was everywhere, and it's on DVD now.
Nominated In:
Art Direction: Sure. All of the Harry Potter movies have been quite visually nice, and this one did a great job of looking grim and atmospheric.
Makeup: Sure. Voldemort! Grown-up trio! And... some other things I'm now forgetting, probably.
Visual Effects: Absolutely. There were some great magical battle scenes, among other highlights.
Movies left: 44; Days left: 17
Have seen 28% of movies and 50% of nominations.
Movie posts I owe you: 6
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Movie Thoughts: One for the Money
I went into One for the Money fully expecting it to be terrible. Or, more to the point, hilarrible. (That's hilarious and terrible all at once.) But . . . I actually liked it! It was really cute! I don't share the rampant Katherine Heigl hate that seems to pervade the Internet, and while she wasn't exactly my book!Stephanie, I thought she did a perfectly decent job with the character. And Jason O'Mara was perfect as Morelli. Daniel Sunjata's Ranger was a bit too cute and soft, too human, but he certainly wasn't bad or anything. It was a thoroughly enjoyable viewing experience, and totally the type of movie I will buy when it's $8 at Target and keep around to watch when I need to be cheered up.
(For the record, though, I still wish this was a TV series instead.)
(For the record, though, I still wish this was a TV series instead.)
Contest for Dallas-area movie fans!
My friend Jennifer Besser is in a new movie called Hear Me Whisper filming around Dallas, and they're having a contest for a few walk-on roles as well as the opportunity to audition for a speaking role! Get all the details here. Good luck!
Oscar Project 2012: A Separation
Movie: A Separation
This Iranian domestic drama is quiet but extremely powerful, and I haven't stopped thinking about it since I saw it. Aside from the strong story itself, it provides a fascinating look into life in modern Iran and the intersection of religion and personal life, as well the effects of class (and maybe sectarian?) differences. All the performances are strong, especially that of newcomer Sarina Farhadi. Overall, this was one of my favorite movies of the year.
Availability: I had to go to the arty theater in Boston for this one.
Nominated In:
Foreign Language Film: Definitely! I thought it was one of the best movies overall, not just among foreign films.
Original Screenplay: It's a little hard to judge writing based on subtitles, but my impression of this screenplay was that it was subtle and extremely well-constructed. And for such a serious movie, it had some sparkling moments of humor.
Movies left: 44; Days left: 18
Have seen 28% of movies and 50% of nominations.
Movie posts I owe you: 7
This Iranian domestic drama is quiet but extremely powerful, and I haven't stopped thinking about it since I saw it. Aside from the strong story itself, it provides a fascinating look into life in modern Iran and the intersection of religion and personal life, as well the effects of class (and maybe sectarian?) differences. All the performances are strong, especially that of newcomer Sarina Farhadi. Overall, this was one of my favorite movies of the year.
Availability: I had to go to the arty theater in Boston for this one.
Nominated In:
Foreign Language Film: Definitely! I thought it was one of the best movies overall, not just among foreign films.
Original Screenplay: It's a little hard to judge writing based on subtitles, but my impression of this screenplay was that it was subtle and extremely well-constructed. And for such a serious movie, it had some sparkling moments of humor.
Movies left: 44; Days left: 18
Have seen 28% of movies and 50% of nominations.
Movie posts I owe you: 7
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Oscar Project 2012: The Help
Movie: The Help
It's hard to know exactly how to approach this one, because while some of its elements and performances were perfectly adequate, even good, its whole underlying story and the way it deals with segregation and civil rights are so problematic that it's hard to have any positive feelings about it at all. (For more on the kind of issues I mean, read Alyssa Rosenberg's review.) I don't want to blame the actors for the writing, of course, but at the same time, I don't want this getting any recognition at all.
Availability: On DVD now.
Nominated In:
Actress in a Leading Role: Viola Davis did a very good job, and as I said, I can't blame her for my problems with the writing. But given some of the other extremely strong nominees in this category this year, I'd be annoyed if she won.
Actress in a Supporting Role: Octavia Spencer and Jessica Chastain both did perfectly nice jobs with the material they were given, but I didn't really think they were so good as to deserve two of the nominations in this category.
Best Picture: No way. This movie doesn't come close to deserving that award either on its merits as a film alone or given its larger issues.
Movies left: 44; Days left: 20
Have seen 28% of movies and 50% of nominations.
Movie posts I owe you: 8
It's hard to know exactly how to approach this one, because while some of its elements and performances were perfectly adequate, even good, its whole underlying story and the way it deals with segregation and civil rights are so problematic that it's hard to have any positive feelings about it at all. (For more on the kind of issues I mean, read Alyssa Rosenberg's review.) I don't want to blame the actors for the writing, of course, but at the same time, I don't want this getting any recognition at all.
Availability: On DVD now.
Nominated In:
Actress in a Leading Role: Viola Davis did a very good job, and as I said, I can't blame her for my problems with the writing. But given some of the other extremely strong nominees in this category this year, I'd be annoyed if she won.
Actress in a Supporting Role: Octavia Spencer and Jessica Chastain both did perfectly nice jobs with the material they were given, but I didn't really think they were so good as to deserve two of the nominations in this category.
Best Picture: No way. This movie doesn't come close to deserving that award either on its merits as a film alone or given its larger issues.
Movies left: 44; Days left: 20
Have seen 28% of movies and 50% of nominations.
Movie posts I owe you: 8
Monday, February 6, 2012
Oscar Project 2012: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Movie: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
I come from a family of Le Carre fans, so we were all really excited about this one, and while no adaptation is perfect, I really, really liked this. The cast was amazing, the tone and atmosphere were perfect, and the movie as a whole was thoroughly enjoyable in a complicated, dreary way. I know a lot of viewers were confused by it, and it definitely helps to have read the book and/or seen the BBC miniseries, but I also think the confusion was part of the point. Who wants a straightforward spy story?
Availability: Was widely available; starting to leave theaters now, so go see it!
Nominated In:
Actor in a Leading Role: Gary Oldman had some big shoes to fill, after Alec Guinness in the miniseries, and he did a virtually perfect job of it, playing the character exactly without making it seem like he was imitating Guinness. He kept Smiley correctly understated, but was a very strong presence at the same time.
Original Score: The score was great - moody and atmospheric, with those paranoid seventies undertones.
Adapted Screenplay: The adaptation did a good job of making an extremely complicated book as comprehensible as possible in two hours. I really only had one issue with it: every single female character in the book had her role either reduced or written out completely in this version. That was extremely disappointing.
Movies left: 44; Days left: 21
Have seen 28% of movies and 50% of nominations.
Movie posts I owe you: 9
I come from a family of Le Carre fans, so we were all really excited about this one, and while no adaptation is perfect, I really, really liked this. The cast was amazing, the tone and atmosphere were perfect, and the movie as a whole was thoroughly enjoyable in a complicated, dreary way. I know a lot of viewers were confused by it, and it definitely helps to have read the book and/or seen the BBC miniseries, but I also think the confusion was part of the point. Who wants a straightforward spy story?
Availability: Was widely available; starting to leave theaters now, so go see it!
Nominated In:
Actor in a Leading Role: Gary Oldman had some big shoes to fill, after Alec Guinness in the miniseries, and he did a virtually perfect job of it, playing the character exactly without making it seem like he was imitating Guinness. He kept Smiley correctly understated, but was a very strong presence at the same time.
Original Score: The score was great - moody and atmospheric, with those paranoid seventies undertones.
Adapted Screenplay: The adaptation did a good job of making an extremely complicated book as comprehensible as possible in two hours. I really only had one issue with it: every single female character in the book had her role either reduced or written out completely in this version. That was extremely disappointing.
Movies left: 44; Days left: 21
Have seen 28% of movies and 50% of nominations.
Movie posts I owe you: 9
Friday, February 3, 2012
Oscar Project 2012: Midnight in Paris
Movie: Midnight in Paris
Oh, look, I reviewed this one here. In summary, it was charming and hey, Cole Porter! But it was really facile and frustrating in retrospect.
Availability: It's on DVD now.
Nominated In:
Art Direction: It was very pretty! Actually, yes, I think the art direction was probably the strongest part of the whole thing.
Directing: Um. I always have trouble judging this one, honestly. I think the directing was probably perfectly competent, but I also don't think that it provided a lot of huge directorial challenges, and I can't recall any particularly daring or noteworthy directorial choices. Although, actually, deciding how obvious and hammy the historical characters should be was probably a concern, and Allen did a fine job of that.
Original Screenplay: The writing itself was clever and sparkling, but there were some major plot issues, so this one is kind of a wash.
Best Picture: . . . no. This was a charming bauble at best, and a self-congratulatory mess at worst. It was cute enough if you don't let yourself actually think about it, which is not what I want to say about my Best Picture choice.
Movies left: 46; Days left: 24
Have seen 25% of movies and 41% of nominations.
Movie posts I owe you: 8
Oh, look, I reviewed this one here. In summary, it was charming and hey, Cole Porter! But it was really facile and frustrating in retrospect.
Availability: It's on DVD now.
Nominated In:
Art Direction: It was very pretty! Actually, yes, I think the art direction was probably the strongest part of the whole thing.
Directing: Um. I always have trouble judging this one, honestly. I think the directing was probably perfectly competent, but I also don't think that it provided a lot of huge directorial challenges, and I can't recall any particularly daring or noteworthy directorial choices. Although, actually, deciding how obvious and hammy the historical characters should be was probably a concern, and Allen did a fine job of that.
Original Screenplay: The writing itself was clever and sparkling, but there were some major plot issues, so this one is kind of a wash.
Best Picture: . . . no. This was a charming bauble at best, and a self-congratulatory mess at worst. It was cute enough if you don't let yourself actually think about it, which is not what I want to say about my Best Picture choice.
Movies left: 46; Days left: 24
Have seen 25% of movies and 41% of nominations.
Movie posts I owe you: 8
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Oscar Project 2012: My Week with Marilyn
Movie: My Week with Marilyn
I'm not particularly a Marilyn Monroe fan (nothing against her, just never got that interested), so I was surprised and delighted by how much I enjoyed this quiet charmer based on the memoirs of a young man who worked on the set of a movie Monroe filmed in England with Sir Laurence Olivier. Honestly, I don't know enough to judge the historical accuracy of any of it, but I thought the movie worked both as a self-contained story and as an examination of issues of celebrity that felt surprisingly modern. I know some have criticized this movie for viewing Monroe through a male gaze, but because I saw this more as Colin's story, that didn't really bother me. I guess I feel like when you're basing a movie on a man's memoir in the first place, that ship has sailed, and while sure, I'd like to see more movies about women on their own terms, I don't think that means I have to resent that this particular movie exists.
I also want to mention that several of the actors who weren't nominated for anything did extremely good work here, including Eddie Redmayne, Emma Watson, Michael Kitchen, Julia Ormond, and of course Judi Dench. And I'd like to give this movie bonus points for not playing "Candle in the Wind" over the closing credits.
Availability: It's certainly not everywhere, but it wasn't too hard to find, either. I had a few options and wound up driving about 50 minutes for it.
Nominated In:
Actress in a Leading Role: Michelle Williams did an amazing job as Marilyn. She perfectly walked the very fine line of offering a recognizable portrayal of an iconic figure without suggesting that she was about to go start an impersonation act in Vegas. This would have been a really easy role to overact, and she didn't. And really, years ago, who would have thought? Good on you, Jen Lindley.
Actor in a Supporting Role: I actually wasn't particularly impressed with Branagh's performance here. It was very broad and hammy, and one of the weaker parts of the movie.
Movies left: 46; Days left: 25
Have seen 25% of movies and 41% of nominations.
Movie posts I owe you: 9
I'm not particularly a Marilyn Monroe fan (nothing against her, just never got that interested), so I was surprised and delighted by how much I enjoyed this quiet charmer based on the memoirs of a young man who worked on the set of a movie Monroe filmed in England with Sir Laurence Olivier. Honestly, I don't know enough to judge the historical accuracy of any of it, but I thought the movie worked both as a self-contained story and as an examination of issues of celebrity that felt surprisingly modern. I know some have criticized this movie for viewing Monroe through a male gaze, but because I saw this more as Colin's story, that didn't really bother me. I guess I feel like when you're basing a movie on a man's memoir in the first place, that ship has sailed, and while sure, I'd like to see more movies about women on their own terms, I don't think that means I have to resent that this particular movie exists.
I also want to mention that several of the actors who weren't nominated for anything did extremely good work here, including Eddie Redmayne, Emma Watson, Michael Kitchen, Julia Ormond, and of course Judi Dench. And I'd like to give this movie bonus points for not playing "Candle in the Wind" over the closing credits.
Availability: It's certainly not everywhere, but it wasn't too hard to find, either. I had a few options and wound up driving about 50 minutes for it.
Nominated In:
Actress in a Leading Role: Michelle Williams did an amazing job as Marilyn. She perfectly walked the very fine line of offering a recognizable portrayal of an iconic figure without suggesting that she was about to go start an impersonation act in Vegas. This would have been a really easy role to overact, and she didn't. And really, years ago, who would have thought? Good on you, Jen Lindley.
Actor in a Supporting Role: I actually wasn't particularly impressed with Branagh's performance here. It was very broad and hammy, and one of the weaker parts of the movie.
Movies left: 46; Days left: 25
Have seen 25% of movies and 41% of nominations.
Movie posts I owe you: 9
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Oscar Project 2012: The Adventures of Tintin
Movie: The Adventures of Tintin
I'm a reasonably enthusiastic Tintin fan (though certainly not an expert), and I was pleased by how well this movie captured the flavor of the books and TV show. Overall, I thought the movie was well-done and a lot of fun, although it did drag slightly at times, and once or twice Tintin did something uncharacteristically dumb in order to set things for an action scene. But Jamie Bell did a great job voicing an iconic character, and Snowy was, as always, particularly adorable. I saw this in 3D and was glad I did, because the animation made good use of the technology.
Availability: This was more widely available a month or so ago, but it's not too hard to find.
Nominated In:
Music (Original Score): The score was by John Williams, and you know, I love the way his scores actually fit the movies rather than all sounding alike. (*cough*James Horner*cough*) This dramatic, sometimes cartoonish and old-fashioned score matched the movie perfectly.
Movies left: 47; Days left: 26
Have seen 23% of movies and 37% of nominations.
Movie posts I owe you: 9
I'm a reasonably enthusiastic Tintin fan (though certainly not an expert), and I was pleased by how well this movie captured the flavor of the books and TV show. Overall, I thought the movie was well-done and a lot of fun, although it did drag slightly at times, and once or twice Tintin did something uncharacteristically dumb in order to set things for an action scene. But Jamie Bell did a great job voicing an iconic character, and Snowy was, as always, particularly adorable. I saw this in 3D and was glad I did, because the animation made good use of the technology.
Availability: This was more widely available a month or so ago, but it's not too hard to find.
Nominated In:
Music (Original Score): The score was by John Williams, and you know, I love the way his scores actually fit the movies rather than all sounding alike. (*cough*James Horner*cough*) This dramatic, sometimes cartoonish and old-fashioned score matched the movie perfectly.
Movies left: 47; Days left: 26
Have seen 23% of movies and 37% of nominations.
Movie posts I owe you: 9
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