3 December Goodies

My Week wth Marilyn is a must see primarily because of Michelle Williams' captivating yet subtle performance. If she doesn't get an Oscar nod, I'll eat my car. Like Crazy is one of the best love stories I've ever seen on film with an ending that struck my wife and me in two opposite ways. Now The Artist is truly something else. I resisted this movie for more than the first half, but then I got drawn in, and by the end of the film, I was thoroughly enraptured.

Michael Shannon, Melancholia and Werner Herzog

I know now what Michael Shannon was so afraid of in Take Shelter- the planet, Melanancholia! Don't miss the movie, Melancholia, for the extended wedding party, but the rest of the movie isn''t worth it. Werner Herzog has another special movie out there, Into the Abyss, which examines 2 killers on death row and their families and friends. It is very bleak, but compelling nevertheless. Not as good or interesting as some of his other work, including the little acclaimed but very imaginative, My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done (see 3/7/10 post on this blog). starring Michael Shannon. If you're not watching the tv series, Boardwalk Empire, you should be. Michael Shannon has a key role in the series and is one weird character. That's the nitch this guy is carving for himself and these are all fascinating performances.

New TV Series and good oddball movie

Homeland is a new tv series on Showtime that is riveting , like Damages at its best. It involves terror cells, the CIA, surveillance and a returning US serviceman from Afghanistan, who was missing for 7+ years and presumed dead. This is all current and frightening. Claire Danes, better than ever, has the lead role and is supported by an exceptional cast in this edgy and very well written show. Then there is the movie, Take Shelter, with Michael Shannon getting crazy and crazier as he is convinced a devastating storm or something worse is coming very soon, so he builds an underground shelter. His wife, played by Jessica Chastain, is supportive as she can be and well grounded, but that's not enough. An intense movie that is clearly not for everyone.

Courage + rising star - Jessica Chastain

Ok. I'm a sucker for emotional movies involving great feats of courage, like Sarah's Key. Here's another one: The Help. Both of these movies are based on good, multi-dimensional books, which are better than the movies, but these movies are good too.
Like the disappointing movie, The Debt (I guess I'm an ageist, but do we really want to see a scarred Helen Mirren wrestling to the death with another 70 year old?), The Help has in the cast the actress Jessica Chastain. Her amazing beauty was shown so well in The Tree of Life. Now we know she's a very good actress too! Reminiscent of Jessica Lange in her early career.

At last!

It's been a long spell for me before seeing a movie as extraordinary as Sarah's Key. This is such a compelling story and an engaging film. I just saw it yesterday and immediately went out and bought the book. Kristen Scott Thomas has the lead role here and seems perfectly suited for it. It involves the roundup and sending to the death camps, Jews in Paris in 1942 by the French! police. This is a modern day quest to determine the truth, a most noble goal, but not easily obtained or appreciated by all, and there are unanticipated consequences. Not to be missed.

2 Movie Gems

The Tree of Life contains some of the most astounding photography and images I've ever seen. This gem is precious. The central story of the family is at times repetitive and boring. The cinematography is so spectacular with the music accompaniment that this just doesn't matter.
Midnight in Paris is another very special movie. Woody Allen comes through again. He loves Paris, like so many of us. The long sequence at the beginning pulled me in deep. The story is funny, of course, and I got a huge kick out of his take on Ernest Hemingway. These two films will be up for lots of awards.

Good new TV series + 2 movies to see

The Killing is quite an extraordinary new series on AMC. It a tough crime drama without the bullshit (hyped, implausible, oversexed crap). An excellent cast and writing with a thorough vetting of the issues. What more can I say? This series is up there. Don't miss the Oscar's best foreign film, In a Better World. An engaging and gritty story with a satisfying, non-sappy ending. Also a very good movie is The Lincoln Lawyer. Based on a Michael Connelly novel, this film stars Matthew McConaughey in his best performance yet (not a lot of competition there). The twists and turns here make this a compelling film.

2 More Good Films

Biutiful is a movie not to be missed. It is a harsh and wrenching depiction of the conditions people live (and die) under and should be seen by everyone, if for no other reason than to remind most of us how fortunate we are. The film features Javier Bardem in, again, an extraordinary performance. Another Year is also a very good movie and stars the irrepressible Jim Broadbent. I think there could be a fantastic film festival created if it were to show only movies in which he has appeared.

Oscar Time - February 2011

Top 10
Winters Bone*
King's Speech*
Blue Valentine
The Fighter
The Town
Fair Game
The Kids Are All Right
Ghost Writer
My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done
Social Network
*Tied for first place

Honorable Mention
Black Swan
Genius Within: Glenn Gould
Carlos
Client 9, The Rise and Fall of Elliot Spitzer
Art of the Steal

Best Under the Radar Movies
My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done
Genius Within: Glenn Gould

Best Scene
When Ryan Gosling plays his ukulele and sings "You Always Hurt the Ones You Love" to Michelle Williams in a storefront in Blue Valentine

Biggest Oversights in Nominations
The Town for Best Movie, Ryan Gosling for Best Actor in Blue Valentine and Mark Wahlberg for Best Actor in The Fighter

Best Soundtrack
Social Network

The Fighter and Blue Valentine, also True Grit and Somewhere

Mark Wahlberg takes quite a beating as he makes amazing comebacks in The Fighter, a film with the momentum of an oncoming train. This movie is clearly one of the top films of 2010. Another one is Blue Valentine, with outstanding performances by Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling. This is a love story that goes real sour, but the editing keeps the connections between this couple very close in time as you watch the movie, so that a budding love scene might be followed closely by one quite the opposite. The flashbacks seem quirky at first, but once in the rhythm, the film becomes fluid - loving and wrenching, and thoroughly engaging. Another good movie is True Grit. I did not find this movie as gripping or as entertaining as No Country For Old Men, but still found it clearly worth the ticket. Now, I'm not so sure about Somewhere. I had to see it because of Sofia Coppola, but in a few words, not much happens. As my movie mate said after it was over, every place is somewhere, and that sums it up for me.