As we reach the end of my salute to the achievements of 2009 here are my top films. I have been lucky, of the 42 times I went to the cinema I only consider 6 outright failures, and none of the films were so dreadful they had nothing to recommend them. That doesn't make the compilation of a top ten list any easier, in fact the overall quality has meant that many films which were very good ended up being left out. All but the top 3 could easily have been displaced by the dozen other contenders.
I won't be giving any commentary to list, not even a brief sentence, but please note that I have chosen these films because they moved me, gave me pure unadulterated pleasure or just led to more conversation than any of the other films I saw (number 10 for instance has led to 4 different viewings with deep discussions about the outcome).
1. Where the Wild Things Are
2009. Dir: Spike Jonze. Starring: Max Records, Catherine Keener, James Gandolfini, Catherine O'Hara and Lauren Ambrose. My Review
2. Maria Larsson's Everlasting Moments
2008. Dir: Jan Troell. Starring: Maria Heiskanen, Mikhail Persbrandt, Jesper Christensen, Emil Jensen and Ghita Nørby. My Review
3. Che Part 2
2008. Dir: Steven Soderbergh. Starring Benicio Del Toro, Franka Potenta, Joaquim de Almeida, Demián Bichir and Lou Diamond Phillips. My Review
4. A Serious Man
2009. Dir: Ethan and Joel Coen. Starring: Michael Stuhlbarg, Richard Kind, Fred Melamed, Sari Lennick and Aaron Wolff. My Review
5. Away We Go
2009. Dir: Sam Mendes. Starring: John Krasinski, Maya Rudolph, Carmen Ejogo, Catherine O'Hara and Jeff Daniels. My Review
6. Milk
2008. Dir: Gus van Sant. Starring: Sean Penn, Emile Hirsch, Josh Brolin, Diego Luna and James Franco. Not Reviewed.
7. Antichrist
2009. Dir: Lars von Trier. Starring: Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg. My Review
8. Avatar
2009. Dir: James Cameron. Starring: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, Sigourney Weaver and Michelle Rodriguez. My Review
9. Drag me to Hell
2009. Dir: Sam Raimi. Starring: Alison Lohman, Justin Long, Lorna Raver, Dileep Rao and David Paymer. My Review
10. Doubt
2008. Dir: John Patrick Shanley. Starring: Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, Viola Davis and Joseph Foster. My Review
Thursday, 31 December 2009
2009 in Review - Best Film
Sunday, 27 December 2009
2009 in Review - Best Supporting Actress
Like most self-obsessed actors I dream of one day being accepted by the industry as one of their own, and eventually being invited to join the Academy. (I know, I know, but I can dream). Part of that dream would mean having my own ballot, my opportunity to give my opinion of the best performances and best films of the year.
Well, until AMPAS notice me I guess the only place I can say what I think is right here. So, starting today (and for the next 5 days) I'll give you my votes. Of course they won't follow the Academy rules - I'm using the films I've seen and not just the ones eligible for this years which means 15 of the actual nominees from last year have the opportnity to appear on my ballot.
Like the voters I don't have to explain myself, however I will give a sentence or two to explain my choice. Feel free to argue in the comments.
1. Marion Cotillard - Nine. Marion has proved in both her films this year that she is a singular talent. She really gets to show off her range both vocally and performance wise in Nine, and the way she responds to the audition tapes is jaw-droppingly real.
2. Penelope Cruz - Vicky Cristina Barcelona. Last years Oscar winner comes a very close second for me. Technically the third (or maybe even the fourth) billed actress she is a force everyone talks about and responds to, so much so that the film wilts without her.
3. Melanie Lynskey - Away We Go. Like most of the characters in Sam Mendes' latest film Lynskey only gets a short time to make an impact, but in her scenes as she gradually gets drunker we see the happy facade seep away to reveal the emptiness inside. Witness the pole dance and tell me you don't know everything about how she feels.
4. Marisa Tomei - The Wrestler. Continuing the theme of pole dancing, Tomei hits her usual high marks as a stripper confronting her own limits. Rourke may have taken most of the applause, but without Tomei backing him up we wouldn't have cared for his character.
5. Blanca Portillo - Broken Embraces. The character drifts between guarded sarcasm and over-zealous confessionals which in lesser hands could have been seen as terribly inconsistent. However Portillo shows the tension inside of her in every scene.
Thursday, 29 October 2009
Away We Go
2009. Dir: Sam Mendes. Starring: John Krasinski, Maya Rudolph, Carmen Ejogo, Catherine O'Hara and Jeff Daniels. ●●●●○
I've fallen behind somewhat on the reviewing, but hopefully I'm going to put that right over the next couple of days by letting you in on my feelings towards 3 films I've seen over the last 6 weeks. The flipside to that is that as time has passed I have become disconnected from my initial experiences. My reviews now will be low on specifics and more about the general feel of the film - any euphoria or crushing sense of disappointment will also have been muted by the delay. Nevertheless here goes with my review of the first of the films, which was also the best of the three.
Away we Go is a simple movie to describe, essentially a road movie with a pregnant couple looking for a new home to raise their child. As they travel from city to city each chapter introduces us to a bizarre selection of family and friends who are either sympathetic or highly neurotic. For every characterization you enjoy - Melanie Lynskey's college friend - there will be at least one that will make you want to leave the cinema - Alison Janney's screaming harpy.
Whilst the story may be pretty predicatable and episodic the film works as a whole due to the power of the central performances and the beleievable nature of the screenplay. Krasinski and Rudolph always come across as flawed people who are very much in love, and we can see them through each others eyes and as such we are able to forgive their foibles in the same way that we fall in love with the rough edges of our own partners. Every detail of the relationship between our protangonists is realistic and measured.
The ending itself is a testament to the power of love between this couple. They prove to themselves that having family and friends to support when the baby is born is good, but the most important thing is to have each other, to identify and nurture the love in your own relationship.
Some of the performances are better than others, and the lack of ambition in the story telling and direction shows, muting the overall enjoyment of the piece.
On the technical side the work by Dave Eggars and Vendela Vida on the script is perfect, even the grating characters seem to have been written in such a way that you believe in their existence. Kudos also needs to be given to Location Scout Sarah Crofts, who has found unique settings and feels for each of the cities on this extraordinary road trip.
Overall I'd say this was a minor success, pleasing and enjoyable, one which Mendes can be proud to add to his back catalogue.
Friday, 18 September 2009
Out this week (18/09/09)
It's a particularly busy week with a wide variety of mainstream and art house productions. That's not to say that most of them look even passably entertaining. Personally I'm tempted by Sam Mendes slumming with a dramedy between major downers, so the film of the week is Away we Go.
The Agent
Virtually a two hander between literary agent (William Beck) and his top talent (Stephen Kennedy), whose latest novel isn't up to the usual standard. Satire on the publishing business and showcase for the two stars this could be an interesting watch for those in the know.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Away we Go
John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph just want a place to raise their unborn baby. Somewhere where they can be near friends who will advise and help them. Unfortunately as they travel the country they find out all their friends are nutcases who shouldn't be within a retraining orders of kids. Sounds great.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●●●○○○
Birdwatchers
Brizillian film, with hard to spot eco-message about disputed land between a wealthy developer and an indigenious tribe. The love story at the centre may be pure hokum, mind.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Blind Dating
Chris Pine, pre-Star Trek, was doing risible guff like this, playing a blind man playing the dating game. The heart of this comedy about love being blind (sorry) may be in the right place but the execution seems a little ropey. For diehard Pine fans only.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
Wacky kids animation about a machine that can cause clouds to burst with food (like meatballs). How they spin that out over 89 minutes I've no idea, but the easy on the eye animations looks fun to me.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●○○○○○○
Dil Bole Hadippa
Cross dressing cricket based romantic comedy. Really - it's abot a girl who wants to be in the Indian criket team so much she dresses like a lad. Complications (and hilarity) ensue.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
The Firm
Cinematic remake of classic BBC TV special on football hooliganism. This is the third fottball hooliganism film this year - based on that it doesn't matter if it's the best surely it can't be that big a market.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●○○○○○○
Gamer
The premise (of real people being controlled by first person gaming devices) is fascinating, Gerard Butler is suitably hunky as the lead and the violence appears to be just the right level. Why does this look so pants?
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Nandhalala
Much delayed Bollywood road movie about a boy and a man with learning difficulties. Sounds like my very worst nightmare.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
31 North 62 East
The name over the poster is Jonathan Rhys-Davis - the hammy dwarf from Lord of the Rings. If the biggest selling point for this UK conspiracy theory yarn is that then don't expect big returns at the Box Office.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Unnai Pol Oruvan
This is the Tamil remake of a Hindi film (see below for the opposite) about a complex bomb threat in a major city which is being used as a ransom to release convicted terrorists - only all is not as it seems.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Wanted
Hindi remake of Tamil film (told you) which I know very little about, except that it's been filmed in locations all over the world and may involve a mafia hit.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Tuesday, 4 August 2009
Tuesday Trailers - Away We Go
Good news. We're in August, which of course means we can show the trailers for films coming out in September - this month is pretty flat to the extent I had to miss trailers out last Tuesday. Bad news. September isn't much better. There are 3 films I'm looking forward to (a bit). Two of which have opened quietly in the U.S. and the third hasn't even released a trailer yet. The first film is Sam Mendes' Away We Go, squeezed in between the filming and post of Revolutionary Road it's a road movie about a heavily pregnant couple (John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph) looking for the best place to bring up their children. Beware, there's an awful lot of quirk in this:
Away We Go comes out on 18 September 2009.
