The Cove

THE COVE

Up For: Best Documentary, Features


With a tag line like "The Bourne Identity meets Flipper", the Cove was a passing joke between my colleagues and I at work in the video store. That combination makes the documentary sound ridiculous. View the film, however, you will be in awe.

The Cove was phenomenal. Though extremely one sided, the film is a great blend of information about the situation, and action from the filmmaker.

The director, Louie Psihoyos, is present the entire film, taking you to the Japanese location of the debate about dolphin killing.

The knowledge you gain from the telling of the first person stories and the interactions of the Americans with the Japanese are haunting but thought-provoking. I simply did not know that dolphin killing was such a huge deal in those parts.

A nice (and funny... not sure why) cameo from Hayden Panettiere will make this a fun filled documentary as well.

My favorite part of the film, the inclusive and unique adventure the filmmaker takes you on in fighting to see what actually happens in "the cove". The use of high tech equipment to catch and record what the secret dolphin killings is powerful and gut wrenching. The explanation of government involvement is intriguing as well, which caused a lot of after thought once the film was over about all government involvement and cover ups.

Overall, the documentary took me through the full range of emotion, providing for heart racing suspense and heart warming tales.

Not sure this one takes the Oscar, as Food Inc. was much more publicized, but a nice runner-up if anything.
(25 FILMS TO GO)

Coco Before Chanel

COCO BEFORE CHANEL

Up For: Best Achievement in Costume Design


Before committing to the Oscar Challenge, I scanned the list of Feature Films I would have to watch. Several categories looked like they would be torture. Costume Design was one of those categories.

You read a title like Coco Before Chanel and the first thing that came to my mind at least was "torture". I thought to myself "this is going to be a test". The image of pulling my teeth out watching some of these films haunted me.

After viewing Coco Before Chanel... absolutely fantastic.

The story is a tad overused, but the costume design was absolutely amazing. Not only that, but the cinematography and set design were gorgeous as well.

For a film about a famous designer, I expected nothing less than perfection in costume design. I was not let down. The films got stiff competition however. Nine & Young Victoria are surely going to be fore-runners in the taking of the title Best Costume Design.

Oscars aside, great film. I was impressed that a film with such a bland-sounding title kept be engaged throughout the whole piece. The film felt the right amount of historically accurate (I know absolutely nothing about Chanel besides that it involves clothing) and cinematic experience. The visuals are crisp, the story engaging, and the acting is wonderful. (Did not know that Audrey Tautou was also co-star in The Da Vinci Code with Tom Hanks). The male actors are exquisite as well.

Honestly, I would absolutely recommend this film to anyone... please do not get it confused with the Lifetime original Coco Chanel film that is also out starring Brigitte Boucher. I cannot vouch for that one. Maybe it's good, I would not know. Haha.

(26 FILMS TO GO)

Harry Potter & The Half Blood Prince

HARRY POTTER & THE HALF BLOOD PRINCE

Up For: Best Achievement in Cinematography

What an odd place for this film to be nominated.
Costume? Maybe.
Visual Effects? Possibly.
Cinematography? ...I really do not know...

The fact of the matter is, you watch this Harry Potter film and in no way would I leave a theater saying this film should be up for Best Cinematography. Most of the cinematography seems more of visual effects than actual hands on cinematography. Same with Avatar in that case. If you are considering the camera movements and style of digitally rendered 3D animation as cinematography, then okay, but then why isn't Up in this category?

Great installment in the Harry Potter franchise. The older Harry gets the more I feel the books match up with the films. They have a darkness to them that the books have, that the early films lacked. The early films had an innocence and child-like feel to them, while the books were dark and foreboding. Not Oscar-worthy however.

Surprised they haven't ever given Harry Potter a nod for Best Adapted Screenplay. The books are fantastic. What do the screenplays lack that the books have? So many questions. Excited to see how they finish off the franchise.

(27 FILMS TO GO)

In The Loop

IN THE LOOP

Up For:
Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published

Never would I have told myself, "Hey, I'm bored, let's watch In The Loop tonight." The cover of the DVD was uninviting, the tagline of "British comedy" turned me off, and I had literally heard nothing about it. But the Oscar Challenge makes you watch films you never thought you would see.

My verdict after viewing? Great film. Several occurrences provided for its success in my eyes. First, the reemergence of Anna Chlumsky from her days as the main character in My Girl. She is a) grown-up a lot and gorgeous, b) still able to act. Next, James Gandolfini was dead on. His tough guy persona in the film, mixed with comical dialogue was brilliant and really shows his range of acting (from Sopranos to a British comedy). Tom Hollander played his dumb-guy part perfectly. Peter Capaldi is spot on with his vulgar insensitivity towards everyone. And Chris Addison makes a great film debut.

In The Loop was a great surprise. I do not see it taking home the Oscar, however, but does not take away from its brilliant and dynamic screenplay.

If you enjoy the Office (either the BBC or USA version), then I suggest this film to you.

(28 FILMS TO GO)

Coraline

CORALINE

Up For:
Best Animated Feature Film of the Year

Wholeheartedly did not enjoy the viewing of this film. Personal preference for stop motion animation, the story was nothing spectacular. Not sure if there was a lack of Animated Features this year, but Coraline was far from anything enjoyable.

The film "9" (though I have not viewed it yet) seems like it had more potential than this film.

The story is dry. Plain and simple, it has been done before. Sure, never in a separate universe where the "other" mother has buttons for eyes, but watch Home Alone and you will understand the jest of this film.

Even the stop motion wasn't the greatest. Sure, the graphics are getting better and I had to ask myself whether this was digitally done or good-old fashion stop motion claymation.

Overall, never been a big fan of the sub-genre of movies that Tim Burton helped to create and which Coraline carries on from.

No chances at Best Animated Feature. Coraline doesn't hold up against Up.

(29 FILMS TO GO)

Crazy Heart

CRAZY HEART

Up For:
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song

Where in God's name is the Best Picture nomination?

Crazy Heart was absolutely amazing. By far the best film viewed throughout this journey (Sorry Up In The Air, Thank you Marcus Theaters for finally getting something good at your theaters).

Jeff Bridges will take this award hands down. The guy was bred for success. Winning an Oscar in 1971 for Last Picture Show, to being a legend from the Coen Brothers' Big Lebowski, to Crazy Heart (which has its moments of Big Lebowski nostalgia). Singing his own songs, wearing his emotion on his sleeve, Bridges has engraved himself as one of my favorite actors of all time.

Maggie Gyllenhaal was stunning as well. Name any movie Maggie has been in before this film, I would most likely say I did not enjoy her (she was fine in The Dark Knight, but when you're replacing Katie Holmes, anyone looks good in that part). Maggie finally found the part for her. She was made for this part and for that I enjoyed it. Do not see the Oscar in her future, however. (Anna Kendrick still blew her away).

Best Original song... more like Best Original songS! My friends and I left the theater after seeing the film asking each other which song was up for the award because all of them were great. "The Weary Kind" is up for the award and rightfully so (oddly enough, written by Ryan Bingham, the character from Up In The Air... coincidence?). The "Falling Seems Like Flying" song was a personal favorite of mine. Even if you do not see this film, at least give the record (or CD) a try. In the essence of Walk The Line if you will.

Colin Farrell? This film made me enjoy two actors that I normally would not enjoy. Add Robert Duvall (loved him in The Road this year as well), and you have another great film.

As a musician myself, this film meant a lot more to me. It is uplifting yet rooted to the ground and down to earth. I will own this film.

Seriously though, no Best Picture, no Best Adapted Screenplay, not even Best Director? Very confusing this year, Oscars... very confusing. Would have put this in the running for Best Picture if it were there... guess you need to make room for Blind Side & District 9??? Whatever.

(30 FILMS TO GO)

A Serious Man

A SERIOUS MAN

Up For:
Best Motion Picture of the Year
Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen

Honestly, what would the Academy Awards be without a Coen Brothers film these days? A staple in the Awards for almost 2 decades, not seeing them at the Oscars for at least one award would be a rare occurrence. Winning the big awards (Best Picture, Screenplay, and Directing) in 2007, they make a return this year with Best Picture & Screenplay.

Best Picture, no way. With no offense what-so-ever to the Coen Brothers, this was not a Best Picture. It definitely deserved the nomination, because out of the year, this was the one film that felt like an Oscar-nominated film.

The screenplay, however, was fantastic. Deeply rooted in the Jewish culture, it created an entire world (set, dialogue, atmosphere) that was Yiddish through and through. Not just anyone could produce such a screenplay, and, if by some miracle, Serious Man wins the Best Screenplay, I will approve.

The performance from lead star Michael Stuhlbarg was great. Though the film had a Ben Stiller-esc feel where everything bad is happening to the main character, I somehow was less annoyed than I am in a "Stiller" (Meet The Fockers, nothing ever goes right for Stiller in that film and it ends up being painful). Stuhlbarg's reactions and timing make for a decent flick.

Overall, Coen Brothers definitely have an aura about them. Take away their name from the cover of the Blu Ray case, with no knowledge that it was them, and I would have walked away from the film, wondering whether the Coen Brothers were at it again. They have created a type of film all their own (like Tarantino, he more or less revolutionized an existing film-type, but you know when you've just watched a Tarantino film).

(31 FILMS TO GO)

Up In The Air

UP IN THE AIR

Up For:
Best Motion Picture of the Year
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Two Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Best Achievement in Directing
Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published

Made my first set-back in the Oscar challenge... I enjoyed Up In The Air so much, I went to it twice (oops). Instead of working my way through the 33 films left, I had to see Up In The Air again.

Absolutely phenomenal film. Not only did I come to the realization that I knew nothing about this film going in (expect that it was nominated and George Clooney was in it), but I realized how great a film can get.

Upon the first viewing, George Clooney becomes my number one contender for winning the Best Actor Oscar. His fast and smooth persona is role model-esc. You want to be Ryan Bingham by the end of the film (but not really, haha). Every actor and actress brings their A-Game to the film. Two nominations in the supporting actress category is enough to tell you. Every one that was in this film was pretty much nominated for an Oscar.

Anna Kendrick, hands down, should bring home the Oscar. It is what she needs and deserves. (It may make her think twice about being in films, if I can call them films, like Twilight). Sure, Vera Farmiga was absolutely stunning in her part (love her from Running Scared, but boy has she aged), she was nothing in comparison to Anna Kendrick and I think even Vera thinks Anna should get the Oscar.

With Juno and Thank You for Smoking under his belt, Jason Reitman. Though I am skeptical whether he will take home the statue (with Kathryn Bigelow as my pick thus far for Hurt Locker), if he wins the award, I will be completely content.

All of these nominations of like skyscrapers in a city, and to make a great film, you need to fill in the spots that are not filled with skyscrapers with buildings that are substantial. Danny McBride, Zach Galifianakis, J.K. Simmons, Jason Bateman, and Melanie Lynskey are the parts that make this film the greatest city it could possibly be.

The style of this film is fantastic, which makes for easy multiple viewings. Quit cuts, intriguing plot, and depth to the characters and story, makes this film a favorite instantly.

My favorite parts included the initial meeting between George Clooney and Anna Kendrick, bringing out the best of both characters in an argument and the exchange between Clooney, Kendrick, and J.K. Simmons.

Overall, this film takes an original story of an occupation that people know little about and develops something at a grand and emotional way.

If you were going to watch only one film this year from the Academy Awards nominees, see this film. One of the best dramas to date.

(32 FILMS TO GO)

The Challenge Begins

Thus far, the films that have been weighed in on were films that I went to in the theater, not knowing that I would eventually challenge my self to see all the Oscar nominated films. Not a bad start, but leaving 33 films to see.

As a film student for three years, I would watch the Academy Awards every year and never know half the films nominated. I would see them later (Michael Clayton & No Country For Old Men come to mind as two I saw after the awards) and I wished I would have viewed them before.

Looking at the list remaining, I was worried I would not find half of them or go broke seeing them for 8 bucks a pop in the theater. Imaginarium and Nine disappeared from theaters just as soon as they appeared (at least around the Minnesota/North Dakota area). Marcus Theaters brought some of the films back (Precious, Blind Side, Crazy Heart, & Lovely Bones). Fargo Theatre got Up In The Air, Young Victoria, and now A Single Man.

A good chunk of the films were released on DVD already, so those would be the easiest to view, since I work at a video store after all.

Online streams of the remaining films and wishful thinking would have to cover the rest of the films on the list.

I thought it would be easiest to break them up into sections and take them out that way.

DVD/Blu Ray
Coraline
A Serious Man
(the only short I have access to): Wallace & Gromitt: A Matter of Loaf and Death
Bright Star
Food Inc.
Julie & Julia
Paris 36
The Cove
Coco Before Chanel
In The Loop
Harry Potter & The Half Blood Prince


Theaters
Crazy Heart (West Acres)
A Single Man (Fargo Theatre)
Up In The Air (Fargo Theatre)
Avatar (Century)
Blind Side (West Acres)
Lovely Bones (West Acres)
Precious (Century)
Princess & Frog (Safari)
Secret of Kells (@ Fargo Film Festival - Wednesday March 3rd)


Not on DVD/Blu Ray -or- in Theaters
Burma VJ
An Education
Fantastic Mr. Fox
Il Divo
Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus
Invictus
Last Station
Messenger
Most Dangerous Man in America
Nine
Which Way Home
White Ribbon
Young Victoria

(33 FILMS TO GO)

The Hurt Locker

THE HURT LOCKER

Up For:
Best Motion Picture of the Year
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Best Achievement in Directing
Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen
Best Achievement in Cinematography
Best Achievement in Editing
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score
Best Achievement in Sound Mixing
Best Achievement in Sound Editing

In the lead for nominations, (along with Avatar... blah), Hurt Locker is the most underrated film of the year.

When in the theater, I heard absolutely nothing about the film. One older couple that came into the video store told me they walked out of the film because it was so horrible. Not such a great review to hear from the film's first weeks.

Not even sure what it was, who was in it, or what I would get from viewing it (this was before I started working my way through the nominees), I was hugely surprised by the outcome. The film is overall well done. Those nine nominations were not easily give. Hurt Locker worked its ass off for those noms.

With 33 films to watch (6 to watch in the Best Picture category at the time of viewing Hurt Locker), I believe that this is the closest film I have seen to take the Best Picture category.

Kathryn Bigelow could easily take home the Best Director Oscar, and I really hope she does (and not just because she is James Cameron's ex-wife... take that Cameron, haha). Not only a great image of a woman director winning the highest honor of directors, but because she ultimately deserves it.

Hurt Locker mixes powerful situations with deep, complex emotion and makes you work through this film with the characters. Ever disarmed a bomb in real life? You will feel like you are the one disarming the bombs in this one. The handling of the situations in the film is very original. It felt less like a war film and more like six or seven different segments of how to disarm a bomb, but in a cinematic way and not an instruction video way.

Jeremy Renner was great. (After viewing this film, without seeing several big contenders, Jeremy Renner had his Oscar in the bag). He had such a character to play with and it came out great in the end. You are gunning for him to succeed in moments of stress, and want to slap him for his arrogance in other scenes, which supplies a broad spectrum that you expect from an Oscar-worthy performance.

Hurt Locker is going to be in my top two for winning the Best Picture category, even after being through most of the Best Pic noms. If I had my choice, it would win.

Oscars aside, this film went up with Moon and The Road as films that will stand the test of time coming out of 2009. If Hurt Locker would not have been nominated for anything, I would find that odd, and would have been less likely to embark on the Oscar journey that came from viewing it.

(33 FILMS TO GO)