P.S. I Love You (2007)

This movie has been in my queue for quite some time. It can be funny how the longer and longer it takes you to watch a movie can sometimes be because you anticipate that it will not be good. Honestly for the 4 years it took me to get around to this one I had no idea that it starred Hilary Swank and Gerard Butler.

So the film starts with a painfully long opening sequence that makes you wonder if you missed the opening credits somehow. A 10+ minute argument that ends well, but was confusingly long, involving characters we didn't know yet. After the opening credits we learn that Butler's character is dead, there is no explanation why or how and first, this was even just grazed over when we do learn. It was an awkward and harsh shift in the film that did not leave you with an emotional connection to the Swank's character going through the loss... which was odd. The film becomes something you would watch on the Lifetime Network with Gina Gershon and Lisa Kudrow consoling Swank. Since Butler's character's death was illness related he had time to write letter, make audio recordings, plan vacations, and do a number of things for his widow. Cheesy and borderline ridiculous.

A film like this is typical now for Butler, so that wasn't odd for me. He is not good in these films and should stick with action. The real problem here is Swank, he is not good at Romantic comedy and it was more of a romance/drama than a comedy, because she doesn't really bring anything funny to the table. Avoid this one, it isn't even a good date night movie.


Vote: 3/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0431308/

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Love and Other Drugs (2010)

This was not the film I expected at all. For some reason I expected Anne Hathaway's character to be a crazy obsessive girlfriend, but I was quite off base here. The film was nominated for two Golden Globes: Jake Gyllenhaal for actor in a comedy, Anne Hathaway for actress in a comedy. Not Oscar worthy, but it was an entertaining movie, and the Globes are about entertainment, so I liked the nominations.

The film is actually about a pharmaceutical salesman and a girl with Parkinsons disease. Maybe an oversimplification, but when Jamie [Jake Gyllenhaal] starts working for Pfizer he shadows a doctor while trying to make the doctor his client. The doctor played by none other than Hank Azaria, the many voices of Springfield ["The Simpsons"]. Jamie is a womanizer and he falls in love with Maggie [Anne Hathaway], a woman not interested in a relationship given her medical condition.


I was surprised at the amount of nudity in this film, Hathaway and Gyllenhall show us a lot, and the movie poster is just a hint. Jake has been here before showing us a lot in Brokeback Mountain.This is, however, new territory for Hathaway, who had a minor role in Brokeback Mountain, but not like this. I thought the acting was pretty good, and I really liked the story. Some of the supporting cast was a little over the top, but overall it was a pretty good [racy] romantic comedy.


Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0758752/

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True Lies (1994)

Growing up I didn't watch a lot of movies, so there are a number of films that would make you say, "Really you never saw that?" Well this is one of those. Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jamie Lee Curtis with support from Tom Arnold, Bill Paxton, and Tia Carrere (Wayne's World).

This James Cameron action film, about a secret agent who uses his CIA resources to thwart his wife's extramarital affair. Thing go wrong and he ends up getting them both involved in his current case. Almost two and a half hours, but action packed and edited well, even nominated for an Oscar for visual effects.


I would be shocked if most people reading this have not already seen it. It was very good, a lot of fun, and a great inclusion on the "101 Action Movies to See Before You Die" book. Check it out if you missed it like me.

Vote: 9/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0111503/

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Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002)

So I really though this was a movie starring Kiefer Sutherland, Kenneth Branagh really looks like him in this movie poster. Based on true events, this film about three aboriginal girls escaping from their government camp to find their mothers across the Australian Outback. Branagh is a pretty minor character in the film, and it is centered around the three girls, Molly especially.

The film is really meant to bring light to the Australian Government's pour handling of the Aboriginal people. The term half-caste is a child that is half aboriginal and half white, those that are more fair skinned were allow to go on to higher learning, those that were darker were held basically in indentured servitude. The end goal was to "breed out" the race, slowly mixing them with the main population.

The plot of the film is following three girls as they are captured and them make an effort to travel by foot along the rabbit proof fence to find their families. The movie is very short, has a good message, and honestly doesn't have much more to it that what was said. It was good but honestly forgettable.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0252444/

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Animal Kingdom (2010)

Every year that I watch the Oscar ballot I hope there is a stand out film that I initially didn't care much about. This is that film. Usually a nomination in the acting category, primarily in the supporting actress category are very weak films. Ones with a fantastic dramatic spurt but either a bad script or bad editing, or some other major flaw that caused it to get ignored in the major categories.

I think the problem with this one is that foreign films with English speaking do very bad at the Oscars. There isn't a foreign film category, just a foreign LANGUAGE category. Therefore films like this fall through the cracks without much support from the production company for a publicity campaign. The bottom line is that this film is very good with performances as good if not better than Jacki Weaver's (which got the nomination).

The film is centered around a boy, we start with him in his living room with his dead mother, who has just O.D.'ed and he is looking for a place to live. Seventeen and turning to family he calls his grandmother [Jacki Weaver] who offers to take him in. Janine [Weaver] and her boys are criminals, and the police are hot on their tails. Ben Mendelsohn was incredible in this film. Not many performance jar me that much, and he really freaked me out. His encounters with Laura Wheelwright's character were chilling, and his interaction with our main character [played by James Frecheville] was fantastic. Guy Pearce [Memento] was actually kind of weak to me in this film. I can't explain it, but I didn't really like his acting.

It is disappointing that this film hasn't received more press, it is worth seeing. Be aware that this is definitely not a movie for kids.

Vote: 9/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1313092/

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Oscar Live-Action Short Films (2010)

I was fully expecting and hoping to have this post out before the Oscars, but the delay of Na Wewe made that impossible. While waiting I lacked the motivation to write about the other four I had seen. Since the Oscars are over I can say that Na Wewe was the pre-Oscar favorite for the win, The Confession was in "second" and my pick since I didn't like Na Wewe. No one thought Wish 143 was deep enough to win, yet it was my favorite this year. Wish 143 and The Confession are online for free viewing so check them out, the other three can now be found on iTunes for just $1.99 each.

Film: Wish 143
Director: Ian Barnes
Runtime: 24 min
Country: UK
Vote: 8/10

You know those charity organizations that grant wishes for terminally ill children? Well this film is about a [I think...] 16 year old boy who wants to have sex before he dies. A wish that can't exactly be filled by the charity, but one that makes the paper, and the priest at the hospital tries to help the boy cope with. I really liked it.


Film: The Confession
Director: Tanel Toom
Runtime: 26 min
Country: UK
Vote: 7/10

When two catholic boys have to prepare for their first confession they look to pull a prank worthy of needing to confess. When it spirals out of control how will they deal with trying to admit their involvement. Well acted and worth watching.





Film: Na Wewe
Director: Ivan Goldschmidt
Runtime: 19 min
Country: Belgium
Vote: 7/10

 Based in 1994 in Burundi during a civil war. A journalist and his assistant hitch a ride after their car breaks down. When they are stopped at a Hutus road block the group has to talk their way out of the situation. The most realistic of the group, and very intense. Also the only subtitled of the group.
 
Film: The Crush
Director: Michael Creagh
Runtime:15 min
Country: Ireland
Vote: 7/10


Definitely not the plot I was expecting. Ardal is an 8-year-old boy who has a crush on his teacher. When he meets his teachers real boyfriend, he challenges the boyfriend for the teacher. Good but not great.


WINNER:
Film: God of Love
Director: Luke Matheny
Runtime: 18 min
Country: USA
Vote: 6/10

The only U.S. entry and this years winner. I'd expect more US nominations and wins, but this is actually pretty rare lately. Written by, directed by, and starring Luke Matheny, a curly haired boy while girl troubles. A night club singer and champion dart thrower, he is granted the magical gift of darts that will make anyone fall in love, much like cupid. Considered an up and coming Wes Anderson, expect to see him making feature length films in the near future. I didn't care for it much, but I also don't love Anderson. If you do like Wes Anderson, you should really check this one out.

It is hard to say if this was a strong or weak year. I didn't really LOVE anything, but nothing was really that bad. The winner was my least favorite, which is a first, but check them out for yourself.
 

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Oscar Animated Short Films (2010)

First off, I wrote this post some time ago, but getting access to The Lost Thing was delayed and I held off posting until after the Oscars. Now that things are said and done, for the first time in a decade I liked the winner the most.

Each year it seems like I get more into this Oscar category. This year I went as far as to watch a few films that didn't even make the short list (Top 10). About 30 short films qualify each year, a number that I'm sure is growing. Qualification is winning a film festival during the year. At the same time you can win a festival while being released say 2 years earlier, which takes a spot away from a film that could have qualified. I honestly do not know what festivals any of these films won.

WINNER:

Film: The Lost Thing

Director: Andrew Ruhemann, Shaun Tan
Runtime: 15 min
Country: Australia
Vote: 8/10

Easily my favorite this year. Maybe the anticipation of it's itunes release Feb. 22nd helped. Really it is just a cool little short film. Unique styling, interesting story that keeps you interested, and a good soundtrack. I felt that it was one scene too long and the ending was a little bad. If I had a vote this would get my pick. This also has the best idea for a film that could before feature length in the future, kind of like 9.

Film: Day and Night

Director: Teddy Newton
Runtime: 6 min
Country: USA
Vote: 8/10

The biggest misconception with Oscar predictors is that this category is Pixar's to lose, just like Animated Feature. They couldn't be more wrong. Last year Partly Cloudy was short listed but failed to get a nomination. Two years ago Presto did not win. Three years ago Pixar was not nominated in this category. Four years ago Lifted lost; One Man Band, Boundin', and Mike's New Car all lost before that! All told, it has been a decade since Pixar has won this category with For the Birds, which is their 3rd and last win in the category in 23 years. Entertainment does not win this category. New and different does. Many of the shorts I just listed were my favorites, but they were nothing NEW. Only Wallace and Gromit seem to be able to win without being new here. The short is very cute, and aired before Toy Story 3 in theaters this year. Day and Night are characters that show each other all of the wonderful things they get to see. Definitely worth checking out, but I won't put it for the win on my ballot.

Film: Let's Pollute
Director: Geefwee Boedoe
Runtime: 6 min
Country: USA
Vote: 8/10

Probably the most witty short film in the group. This satire about American's and how much they pollute was really clever. Telling people that using stuff twice is pointless and to throw stuff away instead of using it twice. Growing up with a mother who was very conscious about not polluting, a lot of these jokes really hit home. Check this one out. Note: the youtube version is French, but you can still get the gist of the jokes.


Film: The Gruffalo
Director: Max Lang, Jakob Schuh
Runtime: 27 min
Country: UK
Vote: 7/10


This actually aired on BBC on Christmas Day and features voice work by Helena Bonham Carter, John Hurt, Tom Wilkinson, and James Corden. The fame of the cast and the popularity of the Children's Classic make this a real contender for the win. Many feel that it should have been made into a feature length film, personally I found it pretty slow at time and it does have the longest run time of any nominee in 3 years.


Film: Madagascar, a Journey Diary
Director: Bastien Dubois
Runtime: 11 min
Country: France
Vote: 6/10

Available on youtube with subtitles, the only foreign nominee, which is strange because there are usually several. This short film has an awful pace with some spectacular visuals. The first half is a young man traveling to some sort of religious funeral, then the last half looks like a journal with pictures that move. Images come to life and the animated scrap book just looks amazing. The story just made no sense to me, that doesn't seem to be a problem with the voters in this category so I will pick this one to win the Oscar.

Films that made the short list, but did not get nominated:
Film: Coyote Falls
Director: Matthew O'Callaghan
Runtime: 3 min
Country: USA
Vote: 6/10

A 3 minute Road Runner vs. Wile Coyote short film, available in HD on youtube, that was shown as a preview to 3D animated films in the theater this year. Being short listed was enough of an honor because it is just too short. We are familiar with the characters, so it was fun, but not worthy of much recognition.




Film: Sensology
Director: Michel Gagné
Runtime: 6 min
Country: USA
Vote: 5/10

This reminds me of a lot of the 1960's and 1970's artistic animated films on the Library of Congress National Film Registry. I could even see this getting picked in a decade when it becomes eligible. An animated visualization of two Jazz musicians, it is amazing how long 6 minutes can feel. Director Michel Gagné has done work on The Iron Giant, Ratatouille, and The Incredibles so he is not new to the business. It was fine with me that he did not get a nomination.



Qualified Films (won a Festival) that did not make the short list:
Film: Animated History of Poland
Director: Tomasz Baginski
Runtime: 8 min
Country: Poland
Vote: 6/10

After reading some people's comments of the short list, it was felt that these two were slighted recognition. Since they were available I gave them a shot. It also gives me a feel for films that these were up against for nominations. This one has absolutely no dialog and the only text on the screen is time frames that the images took place during. Polish history teachers should show this to their classes, but the reality is I didn't get most of it because I'm not all that familiar with Poland's history. For what it is, it was pretty neat.


Film: My Name is Maria
Director: Elio Quiroga
Runtime: 4 min
Country: Spain
Vote: 4/10

Probably the worst short film of the group. I'm very happy that this one was left off. I don't mean any offense to Quirogo or the staff that worked on this because the visuals were alright. The story was by far the most depressing animated short film I have ever seen. It is centered around a little girl that witnesses her family go through economic difficulties, then some sort of war, all dying in the process. Morbid and Depressing.

This year is not a easy pick, a lot of people are going with Pixar... prove me wrong and take that risk if you want. The most popular is The Gruffalo, the obvious and maybe best choice. Personally I'm picking Madagascar because it is foreign, doesn't make any sense, and has the best art work which tends to win over cute story in this category.

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