It's very rare for a director to have had films nominated for Best Picture in five different decades and only a few have ever achieved that feat. Alongside Martin Scorsese, the latest director to do so was Steven Spielberg who helmed two Best Picture nominees in the last few years. Rather than being contemporary tales though, Spielberg's latest offerings featured on times gone by and were on the whole rather stagnant.
This is certainly true of Spielberg's cinematic interpretation of Michael Morpurgo's best-selling family book War Horse. The film tells the story of Joey; a horse who is initially bought by a Devonshire farmer who is keen to get one over on his arrogant landlord. Although unhappy with his purchase at first, Ted soon discovers that his son Albert has formed a bond with Joey. Joey's trust of Albert eventually leads to him surprising everyone when he ploughs Ted's field. But, as the title suggests, war is coming and a bad harvest leads Ted to sell Joey to the war effort. From there we follow Joey's journey as he undergoes military training and forms a bond with a fellow horse. However, with the British army under attack, Joey is then trained to pull ambulances for the Germans before being taken away by two deserting brothers. Oddly, Joey then spends time with a jam-maker and his ill granddaughter before going back into war again. Rather conveniently, Joey is eventually freed from some barbed wire by a member of Albert's platoon. Finally, horse and boy are reunited in one of the sickliest endings to a Spielberg film I've ever seen as Albert comes back to Devon with Joey in toe. Part of my problem with War Horse was that no character stayed on screen long enough for you really to connect with anyone but Joey. Whilst the animal actors were superb, I find it hard to get emotionally attached to a horse and I feel that that's the key conceit of the film.
Additionally, War Horse is a film that could do with losing a good twenty minutes off its overall running time with its first half hour being extremely tiresome. Indeed, the lead up to the ploughing of a field is hardly the excitement you'd expect from the man who created Indiana Jones and Jurassic Park. The Devonshire that Spielberg imagines is wonderfully shot by his long term collaborator Janusz Kamiński however I still feel the sunny skies of England are a little exaggerated. Of the cast I enjoyed Tom Hiddleston and Benedict Cumberbatch as the two army men who were tasked with caring for the horses. Peter Mullan and Emily Watson were also fine as Albert's parents even if the former's drunken routine was a little clichéd at times. Unfortunately the main focus of the human players is Jeremy Irvine, a young actor who lacks the charisma to pull of some of the cornier elements of the plot. I was quite surprised to learn that Richard Curtis worked on a second draft of the script as character development is usually his strong suit. However I thought the characters in War Horse were thinly drawn at best and were gone again before you got to know them properly. Even the usually reliable John Williams delivered an overblown score that did nothing but signify that War Horse was incredibly melodramatic. Like all Spielberg films, War Horse looks great and this was proven by the film's six Oscar nods which came mainly in the art direction and sound categories. Although I enjoyed War Horse the first time around, it's not a film that stands up to repeat viewings and is one of Spielberg's most tiresome films.
While War Horse is a very British tale, Spielberg's return to the Best Picture category a year later saw him take on an incredibly American story. The film saw Spielberg tell the story of Abraham Lincoln's attempts to have the thirteenth amendment passed by the US House of Representatives. The very straight-forwardly titled Lincoln also looked at the president's relationship with his wife and children during the final four months of his life. At the heart of Lincoln is the story of a man who fought hard to free the slaves despite opposition from elsewhere. The film doesn't paint Lincoln as a saint but instead as somebody who occasionally made dubious decisions for the greater good. Judging from how Spielberg directs the film I got the impression that this is a story that Americans know already and therefore he doesn't really allow international audiences any time to truly get to know the characters. In fact, for the majority of the film it was hard to tell one politician in a wig from another unless they were played by an actor I was familiar with. Although the story isn't one that particularly lends itself to a cinematic setting, I didn't think that the usual engaging Spielberg put enough time into the visuals of Lincoln. In fact the only memorable moments came courtesy of the Civil War scenes at the start of the film and Lincoln's death at the end. The most interesting parts of Lincoln didn't revolve around the political aspects of the story but rather his relationship with his family. I was particularly intrigued to learn that Mary Lincoln had mental issues and that Abraham only stayed with her after she became pregnant. I personally would've liked to have had more scenes between the Lincolns and less involving the political scheming of the president's associates.
For authentically capturing the period of the time, Lincoln's production design team were awarded with an Oscar for their hard work. However, it was the film's other Oscar recipient who deserves the most praise and who made history with his award win. That recipient is Daniel Day-Lewis who won his third Best Actor Oscar to date for giving another fantastic performance as Lincoln. Having watched him develop over the course of this blog, I think that Lincoln represents Day-Lewis' third era as a performer. Although his performance incorporates some of the more brusque elements of the characters he played in Gangs of New York and There Will Be Blood, he lends a much more sympathetic edge to his turn as the former President. Day-Lewis is utterly mesmerising as Lincoln and makes you know exactly what the President is feeling even when he isn't saying anything at all. To date, Day-Lewis is the only man to win three awards in the Lead Actor category and I would say that this record is utterly well-deserved. For playing Mary Lincoln, Sally Field earned an Oscar nomination and I felt her performance here was certainly better than her Oscar-winning turn in Places in the Heart. The final member of the cast to earn a nod was Tommy Lee Jones, who as campaigning Thaddeus Stevens, added some much needed grit to proceedings. I also felt James Spader gave a suitably scenery-chewing turn as the somewhat devious William N Bilbo. Though I didn't find it as captivating as others did, Lincoln is still a solid piece of film-making by a man who knows exactly how to put an excellent movie together. Despite not being visually engaging, I think Lincoln's strengths are in the performances especially those given by Day-Lewis and Field. I do think that its Day-Lewis' turn as Lincoln which will give the film its lasting legacy and I feel that it'll definitely be the time of movie that will be played in history lessons for years to come.
Next up another director who changed course in the second decade of the 21st century.
Friday, 22 May 2015
Wednesday, 20 May 2015
Matt's Big Oscar Challenge Day 464: Scenes from the McConaissance
During the first decade of the 21st century Matthew McConaughey was seen as a little bit of a joke due to his presence in a number of sub-par romantic comedies. However, in the 2010s something magical happened and the actor started appearing in a string of critically-acclaimed movies. The actor's return to form, dubbed by some as the McConaissance, featured appearances in film such as Mud and Killer Joe. McConaughey finally won his Oscar at the 2014 ceremony after losing 47 pounds to play rodeo cowboy and AIDs victim Rod Woodruf in Dallas Buyers Club.
The film concentrates on the true story of Woodruf, who was given 30 days to live after contracting HIV but ends up using his own survival instincts to stay alive for seven years. Despite catching the disease after sleeping with a woman, the redneck community that Ron has grown up in dismiss him for being a homosexual. Ron's attitude to gay people is equally backward and its only after contracting the disease that he starts to change his mind about them. Part of the film is devoted to Ron's attempts at self-medicating and illegally purchasing the so-called wonder drug AZT to stay alive for longer. It's only when he collapses in Mexico that he learns the true side effects of AZT and meets a doctor who describes different medication for him to take. Ron's attitude about differing cultures continue when he meets the transgendered Rayon and eventually goes into business with her to sell non-FDA approved drugs to AIDs victims. Ron and Rayon set up the titular club in which they charge a monthly membership in return for the supply of drugs that they wouldn't get at a hospital. Although Dallas Buyers Club is a film about accepting those who are different to you the film never lapses into that much sentimentality. The only real emotional moment that occurs in the film is Rayon's death scene and Ron's later reaction when he learns of his friend's demise. The courtroom scenes, which feature Ron's further clashes with the FDA, are similarly brief but nonetheless really made me sympathise with his character a lot more. By the end of Dallas Buyers Club I'd really emotionally connected with the story and especially Ron's battle with the authorities.
Dallas Buyers Club's best attribute is probably its two central performances which were both rewarded with Oscars. Matthew McConaughey is absolutely fantastic as the hard-drinking, womanising Ron who later learns plenty of life lessons when he's at death door. McConaughey portrays Ron as a cocky character whose literal fight with AIDs resulting in his creation of the club. Interestingly, only a few years before, McConaughey was seen as nothing more than a romantic comedy lead and most had written him off as a serious actor. However, his performance in Dallas Buyers Club was the latest in the actor's career rebirth and demonstrated how effective his swaggering persona could be. Although Ron's attitude changes, McConaughey never loses sight of Woodruf's character and he remains a stubborn cowboy till his very last days. McConaughey also shared brilliant chemistry with Jared Leto who was utterly convincing as transgendered Rayon. Although I wasn't as crazy about his performance as some other people were I felt he gave a tender portrayal of a man who had rejected his family in order to be who he truly wanted to be. Despite Leto and McConaughey being well-utilised, I felt Jennifer Garner was under used as one of Ron's Doctors Eve Saks. Eve is the one member of the medical profession who believes that Ron is doing good and later almost begins a romance with him. It appears to me as if the writers weren't quite sure what to do with Eve and therefore he became an imbalanced character. In addition to the magnificent performances, the film's use of sound was tremendous as a loud speaker sound played every time Ron was about to pass out. Jean-Marc Vallée made sure his film was well-paced and this was aided by some excellent cinematography and editing. Ultimately Dallas Buyers Club was a film that dealt with terminal illness but didn't wallow in sentiment and I found that to be rather refreshing. I also developed an emotional connection with the characters and by the end of the film I'm not ashamed to admit that I had a little tear in my eye.
Next up is a look at two films from a director who we've seen a lot off during this blog.
The film concentrates on the true story of Woodruf, who was given 30 days to live after contracting HIV but ends up using his own survival instincts to stay alive for seven years. Despite catching the disease after sleeping with a woman, the redneck community that Ron has grown up in dismiss him for being a homosexual. Ron's attitude to gay people is equally backward and its only after contracting the disease that he starts to change his mind about them. Part of the film is devoted to Ron's attempts at self-medicating and illegally purchasing the so-called wonder drug AZT to stay alive for longer. It's only when he collapses in Mexico that he learns the true side effects of AZT and meets a doctor who describes different medication for him to take. Ron's attitude about differing cultures continue when he meets the transgendered Rayon and eventually goes into business with her to sell non-FDA approved drugs to AIDs victims. Ron and Rayon set up the titular club in which they charge a monthly membership in return for the supply of drugs that they wouldn't get at a hospital. Although Dallas Buyers Club is a film about accepting those who are different to you the film never lapses into that much sentimentality. The only real emotional moment that occurs in the film is Rayon's death scene and Ron's later reaction when he learns of his friend's demise. The courtroom scenes, which feature Ron's further clashes with the FDA, are similarly brief but nonetheless really made me sympathise with his character a lot more. By the end of Dallas Buyers Club I'd really emotionally connected with the story and especially Ron's battle with the authorities.
Dallas Buyers Club's best attribute is probably its two central performances which were both rewarded with Oscars. Matthew McConaughey is absolutely fantastic as the hard-drinking, womanising Ron who later learns plenty of life lessons when he's at death door. McConaughey portrays Ron as a cocky character whose literal fight with AIDs resulting in his creation of the club. Interestingly, only a few years before, McConaughey was seen as nothing more than a romantic comedy lead and most had written him off as a serious actor. However, his performance in Dallas Buyers Club was the latest in the actor's career rebirth and demonstrated how effective his swaggering persona could be. Although Ron's attitude changes, McConaughey never loses sight of Woodruf's character and he remains a stubborn cowboy till his very last days. McConaughey also shared brilliant chemistry with Jared Leto who was utterly convincing as transgendered Rayon. Although I wasn't as crazy about his performance as some other people were I felt he gave a tender portrayal of a man who had rejected his family in order to be who he truly wanted to be. Despite Leto and McConaughey being well-utilised, I felt Jennifer Garner was under used as one of Ron's Doctors Eve Saks. Eve is the one member of the medical profession who believes that Ron is doing good and later almost begins a romance with him. It appears to me as if the writers weren't quite sure what to do with Eve and therefore he became an imbalanced character. In addition to the magnificent performances, the film's use of sound was tremendous as a loud speaker sound played every time Ron was about to pass out. Jean-Marc Vallée made sure his film was well-paced and this was aided by some excellent cinematography and editing. Ultimately Dallas Buyers Club was a film that dealt with terminal illness but didn't wallow in sentiment and I found that to be rather refreshing. I also developed an emotional connection with the characters and by the end of the film I'm not ashamed to admit that I had a little tear in my eye.
Next up is a look at two films from a director who we've seen a lot off during this blog.
Matt's Big Oscar Challenge Days 462-463: The Year of Jessica
Every year there seems to be one star who comes out of nowhere to be a household name and in 2011 that person was Jessica Chastain. We've already met Chastain via her Oscar-nominated performance in Zero Dark Thirty but a couple of years' earlier it seemed like she was everywhere. In fact she was so ubiquitous that she featured in two of the nine films that were nominated for Best Picture at the following year's ceremony.
First up we have her appearance as Mrs O'Brien in Terrence Malick's oblique The Tree of Life. Chastain's turn as the caring mother to a trio of sons in the 1950s, one of whom soon passes away towards the start of the film, was one of only a handful of the movie’s positive elements. The film is sort of seen through the perspective of a modern day Jack O'Brien who is reflecting on his harsh upbringing at the hands of his tyrannical father. Rather than presenting any sort of coherent narrative, Malick instead presents the film as a series of scenes in Jack's life. The majority of the movie depicts his childhood as quite a bleak time due to the fact that his father would often fly into a rage at a moment's notice. From criticising his sons' behaviour at the dinner table to teaching them how to fight, it's fair to say that Mr O'Brien will never win father of the year. However, Malick depicts Chastain's character in a more sympathetic light as she's more able to forgive her son when he does something a little mischievous. Whilst a coming-of-age film is nothing new, Malick's film comments on all existence featuring as it does a twenty minute sequence which shows us the beginning of time. The fact that dinosaurs appear in a film that is primarily set in the 1950s is one of those pretentious aspects of The Tree of Life that I don't like. That sentiment is echoed in my feelings about the end of the film where Jack is what I assume is the afterlife and is confronted by his mother and father as well as other people who have touched his life. Whilst I always applaud film-makers who think outside the box I do think that Malick is somebody who didn't actually ever see the box. Indeed, this feels more like an art instillation than a coherent movie which I'm assuming is why the critics loved it so much.
The Tree of Life is one of those films that critics love because it makes them seem intelligent but I feel that if they looked at it objectively then there's very little of worth here. Chastain's aforementioned performance as the matriarchal figure showcases why she became such a breakout star in that year. Her facial expressions convey her character's inner torment and she is able to balance the fear Mrs O'Brien feels towards her husband with the love she has for her children. Chastain is more impressive than either of her A-list co-stars, Brad Pitt and Sean Penn who play Mr O'Brien and the adult Jack respectively. Pitt just wasn't convincing as a harsh father figure whilst Penn hardly appears and when he does he just looks wistfully into the sky. I believe my main issue with The Tree of Life was that I felt detached from it throughout its two hour plus running time. Even though there were some parts of the narrative that hung together, Malick did little to make us care about his characters. I do remember going to see the film at the cinema and at the time there were roadworks happening outside which spoilt the quieter moments of the movie. However, I did prefer to listen the rather irritating noises that watch some of the more outlandish scenes that Malick decided to include in his film. I was actually quite surprised that The Tree of Life garnered nominations in the Best Picture and Director categories as it doesn't seem like your typical Oscar film. It does appear to me that this is the Academy's way of trying to look like they enjoy arthouse cinema however this was the same year that Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close was up for the prize. In fact the only deserving nomination that The Tree of Life received was in the cinematography category which was one of the only elements of the film that deserved celebrating. Ultimately The Tree of Life is a pretentious piece of arthouse cinema that critics go potty over but normal people like me hate with a passion.
Whilst Chastain tried her best to salvage her poorly written character in The Tree of Life, she had more success bringing a bit of humour to Tate Taylor's The Help. In fact Chastain was one of three female performers who were nominated for their role in a film that primarily concentrated on strong women. The plot of the film is based on Kathryn Stockett's book of the same name and involves Emma Stone's Skeeter; an aspiring writer in 1960s Mississippi. Although Skeeter is friendly with the snobbier members of the Jacksonville community, she is portrayed as a forward thinking young lady. Skeeter has the idea to write a book from the point of view of the African American women who help raise white children and clean the houses of families who give them very little respect. Skeeter targets Aibileen Clark, a well-meaning maid who is the first person to come forward to tell her story for the book. Aibileen is soon joined by Minnie Jackson, an outspoken maid who is fired by her Queen Bee boss Hildy after using the guest bathroom rather than the outside convenience that had been constructed for her. After Hildy spreads lies about Minnie being a thief, she is only able to get work with Chastain's Celia Foote who has been shunned by the other women of the community. Celia and Minnie's relationship is one of the most entertaining parts of the film as the former doesn't really know how to treat the latter. However the pair soon become friends as they bond over being shunned by their communities and help each other realise what is important in their life. Meanwhile, Hildy has Minnie's replacement arrested after she steals a ring to pay for her sons to go to college. This prompts a multitude of maids to come forward and tell their stories to Skeeter who eventually publishes the book of the title. After the book is published it seems to me as if Taylor didn't quite know how to finish his film with the last fifteen minutes or so feeling a little unnecessary. However I felt that for a two hour film, The Help was an incredibly easy watch.
Despite being a terribly emotionally manipulative film I have to hold my hands up and say The Help did work its magic on me. I found myself welling up several times during the film and I feel that that's a testament to the strong female ensemble cast rather than Taylor's direction or adapted screenplay. I'm not surprised that the cast were rewarded with the top prize at that year's Screen Actors Guild Awards or that Octavia Spencer won the Supporting Actress Oscar for her role as Minnie. I felt that Spencer's strength lay in the fact that she was able to balance the more comedic aspects of her role with the fact that this was a woman who wasn't able to speak her mind. Whilst being strong in certain aspects of her life she was also abused by both the women she worked for and her husband. Joining her in the Best Supporting Actress category was Chastain, whose Celia Foote was a fantastic creation; a white-trash socialite who was just incredibly likeable. As Aibileen, Viola Davis was nominated for Best Actress and I feel she should have triumphed over Meryl Streep's dodgy Margaret Thatcher impression. Davis' narration was the strong foundation the film was based around and I felt the actress perfectly anchored the film. Also worthy of credit is Emma Stone who arguably gave her breakout performance as the pioneering Skeeter. Stone perfectly conveyed her character's willingness to think towards the future whilst at the same trying to maintain friendships she had since youth. I liked how The Help had faith in actresses such as Davis, Stone, Spencer and Chastain who weren't exactly marquee names. Indeed only Davis was really a recognisable presence partly due to her scene-stealing performance in Doubt however not even she was a marquee name. The bigger names in the cast, such as Sissy Spacek and Alison Janney were confined to roles in which they bolstered the leading ladies. Although it's quite a predictable piece of cinema, The Help is one of those films that you can't help but like and to me that's a testament to all of the actresses who made their characters feel three-dimensional.
Next time we look at an actor whose career path took a change for the better during the early part of the 2010s.
First up we have her appearance as Mrs O'Brien in Terrence Malick's oblique The Tree of Life. Chastain's turn as the caring mother to a trio of sons in the 1950s, one of whom soon passes away towards the start of the film, was one of only a handful of the movie’s positive elements. The film is sort of seen through the perspective of a modern day Jack O'Brien who is reflecting on his harsh upbringing at the hands of his tyrannical father. Rather than presenting any sort of coherent narrative, Malick instead presents the film as a series of scenes in Jack's life. The majority of the movie depicts his childhood as quite a bleak time due to the fact that his father would often fly into a rage at a moment's notice. From criticising his sons' behaviour at the dinner table to teaching them how to fight, it's fair to say that Mr O'Brien will never win father of the year. However, Malick depicts Chastain's character in a more sympathetic light as she's more able to forgive her son when he does something a little mischievous. Whilst a coming-of-age film is nothing new, Malick's film comments on all existence featuring as it does a twenty minute sequence which shows us the beginning of time. The fact that dinosaurs appear in a film that is primarily set in the 1950s is one of those pretentious aspects of The Tree of Life that I don't like. That sentiment is echoed in my feelings about the end of the film where Jack is what I assume is the afterlife and is confronted by his mother and father as well as other people who have touched his life. Whilst I always applaud film-makers who think outside the box I do think that Malick is somebody who didn't actually ever see the box. Indeed, this feels more like an art instillation than a coherent movie which I'm assuming is why the critics loved it so much.
The Tree of Life is one of those films that critics love because it makes them seem intelligent but I feel that if they looked at it objectively then there's very little of worth here. Chastain's aforementioned performance as the matriarchal figure showcases why she became such a breakout star in that year. Her facial expressions convey her character's inner torment and she is able to balance the fear Mrs O'Brien feels towards her husband with the love she has for her children. Chastain is more impressive than either of her A-list co-stars, Brad Pitt and Sean Penn who play Mr O'Brien and the adult Jack respectively. Pitt just wasn't convincing as a harsh father figure whilst Penn hardly appears and when he does he just looks wistfully into the sky. I believe my main issue with The Tree of Life was that I felt detached from it throughout its two hour plus running time. Even though there were some parts of the narrative that hung together, Malick did little to make us care about his characters. I do remember going to see the film at the cinema and at the time there were roadworks happening outside which spoilt the quieter moments of the movie. However, I did prefer to listen the rather irritating noises that watch some of the more outlandish scenes that Malick decided to include in his film. I was actually quite surprised that The Tree of Life garnered nominations in the Best Picture and Director categories as it doesn't seem like your typical Oscar film. It does appear to me that this is the Academy's way of trying to look like they enjoy arthouse cinema however this was the same year that Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close was up for the prize. In fact the only deserving nomination that The Tree of Life received was in the cinematography category which was one of the only elements of the film that deserved celebrating. Ultimately The Tree of Life is a pretentious piece of arthouse cinema that critics go potty over but normal people like me hate with a passion.
Whilst Chastain tried her best to salvage her poorly written character in The Tree of Life, she had more success bringing a bit of humour to Tate Taylor's The Help. In fact Chastain was one of three female performers who were nominated for their role in a film that primarily concentrated on strong women. The plot of the film is based on Kathryn Stockett's book of the same name and involves Emma Stone's Skeeter; an aspiring writer in 1960s Mississippi. Although Skeeter is friendly with the snobbier members of the Jacksonville community, she is portrayed as a forward thinking young lady. Skeeter has the idea to write a book from the point of view of the African American women who help raise white children and clean the houses of families who give them very little respect. Skeeter targets Aibileen Clark, a well-meaning maid who is the first person to come forward to tell her story for the book. Aibileen is soon joined by Minnie Jackson, an outspoken maid who is fired by her Queen Bee boss Hildy after using the guest bathroom rather than the outside convenience that had been constructed for her. After Hildy spreads lies about Minnie being a thief, she is only able to get work with Chastain's Celia Foote who has been shunned by the other women of the community. Celia and Minnie's relationship is one of the most entertaining parts of the film as the former doesn't really know how to treat the latter. However the pair soon become friends as they bond over being shunned by their communities and help each other realise what is important in their life. Meanwhile, Hildy has Minnie's replacement arrested after she steals a ring to pay for her sons to go to college. This prompts a multitude of maids to come forward and tell their stories to Skeeter who eventually publishes the book of the title. After the book is published it seems to me as if Taylor didn't quite know how to finish his film with the last fifteen minutes or so feeling a little unnecessary. However I felt that for a two hour film, The Help was an incredibly easy watch.
Despite being a terribly emotionally manipulative film I have to hold my hands up and say The Help did work its magic on me. I found myself welling up several times during the film and I feel that that's a testament to the strong female ensemble cast rather than Taylor's direction or adapted screenplay. I'm not surprised that the cast were rewarded with the top prize at that year's Screen Actors Guild Awards or that Octavia Spencer won the Supporting Actress Oscar for her role as Minnie. I felt that Spencer's strength lay in the fact that she was able to balance the more comedic aspects of her role with the fact that this was a woman who wasn't able to speak her mind. Whilst being strong in certain aspects of her life she was also abused by both the women she worked for and her husband. Joining her in the Best Supporting Actress category was Chastain, whose Celia Foote was a fantastic creation; a white-trash socialite who was just incredibly likeable. As Aibileen, Viola Davis was nominated for Best Actress and I feel she should have triumphed over Meryl Streep's dodgy Margaret Thatcher impression. Davis' narration was the strong foundation the film was based around and I felt the actress perfectly anchored the film. Also worthy of credit is Emma Stone who arguably gave her breakout performance as the pioneering Skeeter. Stone perfectly conveyed her character's willingness to think towards the future whilst at the same trying to maintain friendships she had since youth. I liked how The Help had faith in actresses such as Davis, Stone, Spencer and Chastain who weren't exactly marquee names. Indeed only Davis was really a recognisable presence partly due to her scene-stealing performance in Doubt however not even she was a marquee name. The bigger names in the cast, such as Sissy Spacek and Alison Janney were confined to roles in which they bolstered the leading ladies. Although it's quite a predictable piece of cinema, The Help is one of those films that you can't help but like and to me that's a testament to all of the actresses who made their characters feel three-dimensional.
Next time we look at an actor whose career path took a change for the better during the early part of the 2010s.
Sunday, 17 May 2015
Matt's Big Oscar Challenge Day 461: Prawn Cocktail
One genre of film that has been poorly represented over the years as far as the Oscar nominations go is sci-fi. If a science fiction movie does edge its way into the Best Picture field than it's usually a big budget affair like Star Wars or Avatar. So imagine my surprise when a small budget science fiction film from South Africa was given a Best Picture nod at the same ceremony that saw James Cameron's blue creatures attempt to take the prize.
The film District 9 was definitely a sleeper hit that achieved popularity partially due to the fact that it had been championed by Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson. District 9's director Neil Blomkamp had first touted the film in 2005, producing a shorter version of the movie entitled 'Alive in Joburg'. It then took four years for Blompkamp's full feature to make it to the screens and gradually build a large audience. District 9 takes place in an alternative South Africa where crustacean-like aliens had invaded twenty-five years earlier. Due to the fact that the aliens and humans began fighting with one another, the former group were moved into a ramshackle settlement known as District 9. The hero of the piece is middle-management goon Wikus van de Merwe who is tasked with evicting the residents of District 9 and taking them to a newly constructed district. However Wikus accidentally finds himself being exposed to a dark mixture which infuses his genetics with that of the aliens. As the film goes on, Wikus finds himself ostracised by his family whilst the company he works for wants to use him as a science experiment. Wikus eventually has to retreat to District 9 where he hunts down the intelligent alien Christopher whose liquid changed him in the first place. From there District 9 becomes a tense action film as Christopher and Wikus work together in order to get the former back to his home planet and the latter transformed back into his fully human form.
When I first watched District 9 I genuinely didn't know what to expect and so I was pleasantly surprised with what I found. Blompkamp's film touches on themes of xenophobia with District 9 being an approximation of the all-white District 6 which was in force during South Africa's Apartheid. I personally feel as if all sci-fi should have some sort of basis in reality and the message that District 9 gives about ostracising people who are different is brilliantly played out. The racism also extends to the fact that the humans refer to the aliens as 'prawns' which is used as a derogatory term that becomes more nasty each time it's heard. What I liked about District 9 was its distinctive look with the titular ghetto of the title being well-designed by Blomkamp and his team. The faux documentary style also allows for the plot to be explained without it becoming overly-expositional. Cinematographer Trent Opaloch perfectly transitioned between the documentary-like style and the more traditional shots which focused on Wikus' trials in District 9. In the lead role of Wikus, Sharlto Copley shines in what was his first film role ans an actor. A friend of Blomkamp's, Copley ideally fits into the role of the everyman in an extraordinary situation. It's because of his lack of experience that Copley is able to make Wikus feel like a believable protagonist and he makes us sympathise with him more as he starts to transform into a prawn. If there's one criticism I have of District 9 then it's in its final third when it basically descends into a more traditional sci-fi action film. That being said the ending was well done and the ambiguity of the finale suggested that a sequel may be coming at some point. District 9 is another example of the recurring theme we're seeing in the most recent nominees as the Academy now seems to be searching outside of the mainstream. Whilst it had its champions, District 9 would never have been nominated alongside the costume dramas and inspirational true stories of old. It's just a shame that there haven't been more examples of films like District 9 that have found favour with the academy and I'm hoping that we'll soon get another example of Oscar's searching outside of the box for its Best Picture nominees
Up next we look at two films from one actress who had a very eventful 2011.
Matt's Big Oscar Challenge Days 459-460: A Guide to Modern Technology
As we're well into the 21st century now it seems as if films are reflecting on our growing reliance on technology. The two films in this post look at our obsession with technology both from the creation of an online device that most of us use on a daily basis and by predicting how gadgets may take over our lives in the future.
We start with The Social Network, a film that is based on the creation of Facebook; a tool which nearly everyone utilises on a daily basis. David Fincher's film is based on the book 'The Accidental Billionaires' which tells the story of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his then friend Eduardo Saverin. The film starts with Zuckerberg attempting to get over a bitter separation from his girlfriend by hacking into Harvard University's various databases and ranking pictures of the female students. This stunt gets him into trouble with the university's board but also earns him the respect of the Winklevoss twins; rowing brothers who are looking to start a social networking site exclusive to Harvard. Building on this idea, Zuckerberg enlists Eduardo's help to build 'The Facebook', which is based on a similar idea to the Winklevoss' one albeit from the mind of Mark. As the film progresses, Mark and Eduardo's success heightens until they get the attention of Napster founder Sean Parker. Parker's involvement with Facebook puts Mark and Eduardo at odds with the latter jealous of the former's new friendship with the smooth-talking hipster. Very cleverly, Aaron Sorkin frames his screenplay around two depositions that Zuckeberg is currently embarking on. In one Zuckerberg is being sued by the Winklevoss twins for stealing their idea and in the other Eduardo is attempting to get back the shares that were unfairly taken from him. This allows the characters to talk in exposition without it ever feeling like the plot is simply being explained to us. The final scene is also brilliantly done as Sorkin seems to say that Zuckerberg started Facebook because he wanted to get a girl's attention.
There's so much to like about The Social Network it's hard to know where to start but I think we should start with a man called Aaron Sorkin. After Moneyball and now The Social Network I've come to the decision that I could watch films written by Sorkin all day. Here Sorkin is able to make technical speak and legal jargon seem exciting and turns a generally unlikeable nerd into someone we want to root for. Sorkin earned a deserved Oscar for his work on The Social Network as did editors Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall who make the use of algorithms seem vaguely interesting. The Social Network's other Oscar win was for its original score which was composed by Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor. Reznor's selection of tracks for different scenes was absolutely perfect with the central theme being particularly memorable. I also felt that The Social Network marked a return to form for David Fincher after the incredibly sappy The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. The then relatively unknown Jesse Eisenberg was catapulted into the mainstream thanks to his role as Zuckberg. Eisenberg dealt well with Sorkin's fast-paced dialogue and I for one found that he succeeded in explaining Zuckberg's various motives. Whilst Eisenberg earned an Oscar nomination for his role in the film, Andrew Garfield didn't which I feel is an oversight. Garfield's Eduardo is the emotional core of the film and the actor's wide-eyed portrayal of this genuinely nice guy perfectly balanced Eisenberg's more manic tone. If there was one complaint I had about The Social Network then it was the way that women were represented as most seem to either be crazy girlfriends or party-goers who would strip off at a moment's notice. Rashida Jones' junior law partner and Rooney Mara's jilted girlfriend were the only female characters who seemed remotely well-drawn and I think that's a shame in a film that's almost completely faultless.
While The Social Network dealt with the creation of a piece of technology that would later take over our lives, it didn't display how obsessed we'd get with Facebook itself. Conversely in Spike Jonze's Her, the main concept is how one day technology could be in our lives so much that we begin to fall in love with it. Obviously this surreal concept could only come from the man who'd previously directed such surreal hits as Being John Malkovich and Adaptation. Unlike those two films, both of which were written by Charlie Kauffman, Jonze was going solo here with his script for Her ultimately winning the Best Original Screenplay Oscar. The film's protagonist Theodore is a contradiction in that he is able to write sentimental letters in the voices of other people but is rarely able to voice his own emotions. Theodore's attempts at a proper relationship have resulted in divorce and, when we first meet him, he's almost completely reliant on his computer. When he learns that he can personally tailor a new Operating System he jumps on board and soon buys a female voiced OS named Samantha. Samantha quickly becomes the most stable relationship in Theodore's life and the former starts to develop human characteristics. Soon Samantha and Theodore begin a sexual relationship but as he soon learns there's only so far you can go with a disembodied voice. When Samantha hires a sex surrogate, Theodore becomes uneasy as he can't associate the woman in front of him with the voice of Samantha. From there their relationship becomes strained as she tries to solve her identity crisis whilst he decides whether he can date an OS. Theodore's decision is ultimately made for him and the film ends in a rather predictable manner, which is a shame as I felt it had a lot of good ideas.
With the rise of people using Siri on their iphones and engaging with technology on a regular basis, Her doesn't seem like that much of a far-fetched idea. The over-reliance on technology is something that Jonze establishes early on in the film as he gives the notion that in the future we'll spend more time talking to computers than we will with each other. I have to say that I didn't buy into the romance between Theodore and Samantha as I found these segments quite hard to handle. I instead was rooting for Theodore to settle down with his sweet-natured colleague Amy who later develops a friendship with another OS. Her's main issue is the fact that I didn't really care for Theodore all that much and found him to be quite an awkward character to like. As Jonze has created a character that struggles to interact in social situations I think it's a hard ask for us to warm to a man who is quite cold. The only thing not putting me off Theodore altogether is the strong performance given by Joaquin Phoenix. Phoenix injects a certain sort of nervous energy into Theodore that at least makes understand some of his character's decisions. Phoenix must also be applauded for convincingly interacting with a character who isn't present as he expertly portrays Theodore's interactions with Samantha. Scarlett Johansson is equally impressive as the automated voice who secretly longs to have a body in order to be with the man she supposedly loves. Johansson's sultry tones perfectly bring Sam to life and as a result you utterly buy the fact that Theodore falls in love with her. The supporting players are less well-served with character development with Rooney Mara turning up once again her as Theodore's ex-wife whilst Amy Adams gives a one-note turn as Amy. The futuristic design of Her is another positive aspect as is Arcade Fire's score and Karen O's 'Moon Song'. It's fair to say that Her is full of good ideas but not all of them are successfully realised and what you end up getting is a film that is sometimes too quirky for its own good.
Next up more dystopian nightmares this time with a side serving of crustaceans.
We start with The Social Network, a film that is based on the creation of Facebook; a tool which nearly everyone utilises on a daily basis. David Fincher's film is based on the book 'The Accidental Billionaires' which tells the story of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and his then friend Eduardo Saverin. The film starts with Zuckerberg attempting to get over a bitter separation from his girlfriend by hacking into Harvard University's various databases and ranking pictures of the female students. This stunt gets him into trouble with the university's board but also earns him the respect of the Winklevoss twins; rowing brothers who are looking to start a social networking site exclusive to Harvard. Building on this idea, Zuckerberg enlists Eduardo's help to build 'The Facebook', which is based on a similar idea to the Winklevoss' one albeit from the mind of Mark. As the film progresses, Mark and Eduardo's success heightens until they get the attention of Napster founder Sean Parker. Parker's involvement with Facebook puts Mark and Eduardo at odds with the latter jealous of the former's new friendship with the smooth-talking hipster. Very cleverly, Aaron Sorkin frames his screenplay around two depositions that Zuckeberg is currently embarking on. In one Zuckerberg is being sued by the Winklevoss twins for stealing their idea and in the other Eduardo is attempting to get back the shares that were unfairly taken from him. This allows the characters to talk in exposition without it ever feeling like the plot is simply being explained to us. The final scene is also brilliantly done as Sorkin seems to say that Zuckerberg started Facebook because he wanted to get a girl's attention.
There's so much to like about The Social Network it's hard to know where to start but I think we should start with a man called Aaron Sorkin. After Moneyball and now The Social Network I've come to the decision that I could watch films written by Sorkin all day. Here Sorkin is able to make technical speak and legal jargon seem exciting and turns a generally unlikeable nerd into someone we want to root for. Sorkin earned a deserved Oscar for his work on The Social Network as did editors Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall who make the use of algorithms seem vaguely interesting. The Social Network's other Oscar win was for its original score which was composed by Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor. Reznor's selection of tracks for different scenes was absolutely perfect with the central theme being particularly memorable. I also felt that The Social Network marked a return to form for David Fincher after the incredibly sappy The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. The then relatively unknown Jesse Eisenberg was catapulted into the mainstream thanks to his role as Zuckberg. Eisenberg dealt well with Sorkin's fast-paced dialogue and I for one found that he succeeded in explaining Zuckberg's various motives. Whilst Eisenberg earned an Oscar nomination for his role in the film, Andrew Garfield didn't which I feel is an oversight. Garfield's Eduardo is the emotional core of the film and the actor's wide-eyed portrayal of this genuinely nice guy perfectly balanced Eisenberg's more manic tone. If there was one complaint I had about The Social Network then it was the way that women were represented as most seem to either be crazy girlfriends or party-goers who would strip off at a moment's notice. Rashida Jones' junior law partner and Rooney Mara's jilted girlfriend were the only female characters who seemed remotely well-drawn and I think that's a shame in a film that's almost completely faultless.
While The Social Network dealt with the creation of a piece of technology that would later take over our lives, it didn't display how obsessed we'd get with Facebook itself. Conversely in Spike Jonze's Her, the main concept is how one day technology could be in our lives so much that we begin to fall in love with it. Obviously this surreal concept could only come from the man who'd previously directed such surreal hits as Being John Malkovich and Adaptation. Unlike those two films, both of which were written by Charlie Kauffman, Jonze was going solo here with his script for Her ultimately winning the Best Original Screenplay Oscar. The film's protagonist Theodore is a contradiction in that he is able to write sentimental letters in the voices of other people but is rarely able to voice his own emotions. Theodore's attempts at a proper relationship have resulted in divorce and, when we first meet him, he's almost completely reliant on his computer. When he learns that he can personally tailor a new Operating System he jumps on board and soon buys a female voiced OS named Samantha. Samantha quickly becomes the most stable relationship in Theodore's life and the former starts to develop human characteristics. Soon Samantha and Theodore begin a sexual relationship but as he soon learns there's only so far you can go with a disembodied voice. When Samantha hires a sex surrogate, Theodore becomes uneasy as he can't associate the woman in front of him with the voice of Samantha. From there their relationship becomes strained as she tries to solve her identity crisis whilst he decides whether he can date an OS. Theodore's decision is ultimately made for him and the film ends in a rather predictable manner, which is a shame as I felt it had a lot of good ideas.
With the rise of people using Siri on their iphones and engaging with technology on a regular basis, Her doesn't seem like that much of a far-fetched idea. The over-reliance on technology is something that Jonze establishes early on in the film as he gives the notion that in the future we'll spend more time talking to computers than we will with each other. I have to say that I didn't buy into the romance between Theodore and Samantha as I found these segments quite hard to handle. I instead was rooting for Theodore to settle down with his sweet-natured colleague Amy who later develops a friendship with another OS. Her's main issue is the fact that I didn't really care for Theodore all that much and found him to be quite an awkward character to like. As Jonze has created a character that struggles to interact in social situations I think it's a hard ask for us to warm to a man who is quite cold. The only thing not putting me off Theodore altogether is the strong performance given by Joaquin Phoenix. Phoenix injects a certain sort of nervous energy into Theodore that at least makes understand some of his character's decisions. Phoenix must also be applauded for convincingly interacting with a character who isn't present as he expertly portrays Theodore's interactions with Samantha. Scarlett Johansson is equally impressive as the automated voice who secretly longs to have a body in order to be with the man she supposedly loves. Johansson's sultry tones perfectly bring Sam to life and as a result you utterly buy the fact that Theodore falls in love with her. The supporting players are less well-served with character development with Rooney Mara turning up once again her as Theodore's ex-wife whilst Amy Adams gives a one-note turn as Amy. The futuristic design of Her is another positive aspect as is Arcade Fire's score and Karen O's 'Moon Song'. It's fair to say that Her is full of good ideas but not all of them are successfully realised and what you end up getting is a film that is sometimes too quirky for its own good.
Next up more dystopian nightmares this time with a side serving of crustaceans.
Matt's Big Oscar Challenge Days 457-458: Carry on Clooney
We carry straight on from the last post with two more films that involved George Clooney both in front and behind the screen.
We start with Up in the Air, the film which earned Clooney his second Best Actor nomination and was possibly the film that capitalised on his old-school movie star charm. Up in the Air is directed and co-written by Jason Reitman who we first met when he helmed Juno with this film sharing a similar tone with his previous Oscar winner. Just like with Juno, Up in the Air deals with quite a serious subject matter in this case mass redundancies; quite a pressing topic during the recession in the late noughties. The film sees Clooney play Ryan Bingham, a man who fires people for a living and spends most of his time in planes going from different destinations in America. Ryan's life is devoted to racking up 10 million air miles and to presenting his self-help course known as 'the empty backpack'. Up in the Air sees Ryan experiencing two changes in his life, firstly the prospect that he made be grounded and sent back to his office in Omaha. This is due to the fact that whiz kid recruit Natalie has set up a new video conferencing firing system which enables all employees to do their job from the office. Annoyed at this idea, Ryan takes Natalie on the road in an attempt to show her that firing people isn't as simple as she believes. At the same time Ryan encounters Alex, who is also a frequent flyer and the two share a mutual attraction as they marvel at each other's air miles. As the film progresses the commitment-phobic Ryan realises that he might be falling for Alex in a big way. However, in a similar manner to Juno, Up in the Air doesn't finish in the way you think it might and instead there are a few twists littered before the finale.
Whilst promoting Up in the Air, Reitman said that he wanted to make Ryan a likeable character who fires people for a living and to do that he had to cast the most charming actor possible. It's Clooney's charm that makes the film in my opinion and in particular it's the fact that he's now an ageing heartthrob that gives Ryan that extra bit of sympathy. Clooney is great at delivering Reitman and Shelton Turner's fast-paced dialogue and is equally adept at presenting the plot of the film without his lines every feeling particularly expositional. Clooney is fantastically supported by Vera Farmiga as Alex, who more than holds her own in his company and the two form a believable chemistry throughout the film. Similarly great is Anna Kendrick who gave a breakthrough turn as the ambitious but insecure Natalie whose relationship with Ryan is equally as important as his romance with Alex. Reitman added a tinge of realism to the piece by interviewing numerous people who had recently been made redundant and adding their experiences into the film. Reitman asked them to think back to when they were let go and so their responses to Natalie and Ryan's appearance feel totally natural. Juno's JK Simmons also gives a memorable if brief turn as one of the fired employees in a pivotal scene in which Ryan demonstrates to Natalie that the job isn't as easy as she initially believed. Everything about Up in the Air is well-styled from the business suits that the characters don down to the loyalty cards that turn both Ryan and Alex on. If I were to have one criticism of the film it would be that the pace dips briefly when Ryan and Alex attend his sister's wedding however the subsequent final act of Up in the Air more than makes up for it. Despite being nominated for six awards at the Oscars, including honours for the three lead performers, Up in the Air failed to secure one win. This is a shame as I feel it's an incredibly relevant film with three fantastic performances and a brilliant director at the helm.
Three years later, Clooney finally made it to the stage as part of the team of that year's Best Picture winner Argo. Argo was based on the hostage crisis in Iran's American embassy in the early 1980s and more specifically the six 'houseguests' of the Canadian ambassador who'd fled their workplace just before the rioting took place. To get the six out of Iran, CIA operative Tony Mendez came up with an elaborate story to create a fake sci-fi movie, the titular Argo, and pass the Americans off as a film crew scouting locations in Iran. Clooney first learnt of this bizarre story after reading an article about it and so set about producing the picture. Clooney eventually hired Ben Affleck to both direct the piece and star in the role of Mendez; however Clooney himself would only be credited as a producer. Since we last saw him in Good Will Hunting, Affleck's career trajectory had been precarious to say the least initially starring in several flops and being more famous for his relationship with Jennifer Lopez. However, in 2007, he began directing films and earned rave reviews for his first two features; Gone Baby Gone and The Town. His roles both behind and in front of the camera were equally impressive here as Argo was visually impressive and had a fantastic lead turn. As the film goes on Mendez turns to make-up artist John Chambers for help in creating the fake movie who in turn introduces him to veteran producer Lester Siegel. The scenes featuring Chambers and Siegel are where Argo turns itself into somewhat of a black comedy however the balance between these scenes and those of the hostages is excellent. In its third act, Argo becomes somewhat of a thriller as Mendez travels to Iran and attempts to extract the houseguests from Iran. This is easier said than done and I was personally on the edge of my seat to see if they would actually make it through the airport without getting rumbled.
It's easy to see why Argo won Best Picture as it is both based on a real life story and features some lines that feel like they'd been written by a Hollywood insider. I was quite impressed with Chris Terrio's screenplay which, as I previously mentioned, was well-balanced making the film feel both comedic and dramatic at the same time. One of the odd things about Argo's presence at the Oscars was the fact that Affleck didn't even get a look in when it came to the Best Director category. This is partly to do with the fact that not all of the directors of the nine nominated films could feature in a category which only honoured five film-makers. However, I do believe that Affleck's fine direction of the piece should have at least received a nomination over say Tom Hooper's helming of Les Miserables. Affleck himself proved to be a fine lead, here presenting Tony as the harassed everyman who found himself carrying out somewhat of an impossible task. Of the cast, only Alan Arkin was nominated for an Oscar for his role as sharp-tongued producer Lester Siegel. Indeed Arkin's interplay with John Goodman's John Chambers were some of the highlights of the film and I personally loved his rather foul-mouthed explanation of Argo's plot. Rodrigo Prieto's cinematography gave the Iranian scenes an extra sense of dread as he presented the siege at the embassy in a rather dramatic style. Argo managed to keep my attention due to its fine pacing and it's mixture of Hollywood satire and edge-of-your-seat thriller. It also represents the fact that the Academy were selecting more interesting films to win Best Picture as I don't think a film like Argo could ever have won the award twenty years prior. Whether it's win was ultimately the right choice is an interesting debate and you'll have to find out my verdict in my review of the most recent Oscar ceremonies.
Up next we have a look at two films that explored the way that technology was starting to take over our lives in the second decade of the 21st century.
Whilst promoting Up in the Air, Reitman said that he wanted to make Ryan a likeable character who fires people for a living and to do that he had to cast the most charming actor possible. It's Clooney's charm that makes the film in my opinion and in particular it's the fact that he's now an ageing heartthrob that gives Ryan that extra bit of sympathy. Clooney is great at delivering Reitman and Shelton Turner's fast-paced dialogue and is equally adept at presenting the plot of the film without his lines every feeling particularly expositional. Clooney is fantastically supported by Vera Farmiga as Alex, who more than holds her own in his company and the two form a believable chemistry throughout the film. Similarly great is Anna Kendrick who gave a breakthrough turn as the ambitious but insecure Natalie whose relationship with Ryan is equally as important as his romance with Alex. Reitman added a tinge of realism to the piece by interviewing numerous people who had recently been made redundant and adding their experiences into the film. Reitman asked them to think back to when they were let go and so their responses to Natalie and Ryan's appearance feel totally natural. Juno's JK Simmons also gives a memorable if brief turn as one of the fired employees in a pivotal scene in which Ryan demonstrates to Natalie that the job isn't as easy as she initially believed. Everything about Up in the Air is well-styled from the business suits that the characters don down to the loyalty cards that turn both Ryan and Alex on. If I were to have one criticism of the film it would be that the pace dips briefly when Ryan and Alex attend his sister's wedding however the subsequent final act of Up in the Air more than makes up for it. Despite being nominated for six awards at the Oscars, including honours for the three lead performers, Up in the Air failed to secure one win. This is a shame as I feel it's an incredibly relevant film with three fantastic performances and a brilliant director at the helm.
Three years later, Clooney finally made it to the stage as part of the team of that year's Best Picture winner Argo. Argo was based on the hostage crisis in Iran's American embassy in the early 1980s and more specifically the six 'houseguests' of the Canadian ambassador who'd fled their workplace just before the rioting took place. To get the six out of Iran, CIA operative Tony Mendez came up with an elaborate story to create a fake sci-fi movie, the titular Argo, and pass the Americans off as a film crew scouting locations in Iran. Clooney first learnt of this bizarre story after reading an article about it and so set about producing the picture. Clooney eventually hired Ben Affleck to both direct the piece and star in the role of Mendez; however Clooney himself would only be credited as a producer. Since we last saw him in Good Will Hunting, Affleck's career trajectory had been precarious to say the least initially starring in several flops and being more famous for his relationship with Jennifer Lopez. However, in 2007, he began directing films and earned rave reviews for his first two features; Gone Baby Gone and The Town. His roles both behind and in front of the camera were equally impressive here as Argo was visually impressive and had a fantastic lead turn. As the film goes on Mendez turns to make-up artist John Chambers for help in creating the fake movie who in turn introduces him to veteran producer Lester Siegel. The scenes featuring Chambers and Siegel are where Argo turns itself into somewhat of a black comedy however the balance between these scenes and those of the hostages is excellent. In its third act, Argo becomes somewhat of a thriller as Mendez travels to Iran and attempts to extract the houseguests from Iran. This is easier said than done and I was personally on the edge of my seat to see if they would actually make it through the airport without getting rumbled.
It's easy to see why Argo won Best Picture as it is both based on a real life story and features some lines that feel like they'd been written by a Hollywood insider. I was quite impressed with Chris Terrio's screenplay which, as I previously mentioned, was well-balanced making the film feel both comedic and dramatic at the same time. One of the odd things about Argo's presence at the Oscars was the fact that Affleck didn't even get a look in when it came to the Best Director category. This is partly to do with the fact that not all of the directors of the nine nominated films could feature in a category which only honoured five film-makers. However, I do believe that Affleck's fine direction of the piece should have at least received a nomination over say Tom Hooper's helming of Les Miserables. Affleck himself proved to be a fine lead, here presenting Tony as the harassed everyman who found himself carrying out somewhat of an impossible task. Of the cast, only Alan Arkin was nominated for an Oscar for his role as sharp-tongued producer Lester Siegel. Indeed Arkin's interplay with John Goodman's John Chambers were some of the highlights of the film and I personally loved his rather foul-mouthed explanation of Argo's plot. Rodrigo Prieto's cinematography gave the Iranian scenes an extra sense of dread as he presented the siege at the embassy in a rather dramatic style. Argo managed to keep my attention due to its fine pacing and it's mixture of Hollywood satire and edge-of-your-seat thriller. It also represents the fact that the Academy were selecting more interesting films to win Best Picture as I don't think a film like Argo could ever have won the award twenty years prior. Whether it's win was ultimately the right choice is an interesting debate and you'll have to find out my verdict in my review of the most recent Oscar ceremonies.
Up next we have a look at two films that explored the way that technology was starting to take over our lives in the second decade of the 21st century.
Matt's Big Oscar Challenge Days 455-456: Growing Paynes
In the last decade, one Best Picture nominee I had the most praise for was Sideways, a beautifully melancholy comedy drama from the pen of Alexander Payne. Oscar seemingly fell in love with Payne after that because both of his next two films were nominated in the Best Picture category.
Seven years after Sideways, Payne's next project was The Descendants; an adaptation of Kaui Hart Hemmings' book of the same name. Just like he did with Sideways, Payne won the Oscar for adapted screenplay this time sharing the award with his co-writers Jim Rash and Nat Faxon. The film itself is based around the life of Hawaiian lawyer Matt King, whose wife Elizabeth has recently been hospitalised following a boating accident. As a result of this, Matt is forced to become a proper father to his mischievous ten-year-old daughter Scottie and her troubled teenager sister Alexandra. Whilst trying to deal with his personal issues Matt is also involved with the sale of an expensive plot of land that was owned by his ancestors. As the lawyer, it's his job to trawl through the legal paperwork and make the ultimate decision whether he and his cousins should sell and to who. Events get even more complicated when Alex reveals that Elizabeth was cheating on Matt with smarmy real estate agent Brian Speer to the extent that she was about to ask him for a divorce. The film then follows Matt's quest to track down Brian, bond with his daughters and decide what to do with the land. At the film's heart is a story about the bonds between family which is represented both through Matt's relationship with his daughters and his decision regarding his ancestral land. I think that Payne and his co-writers did a good job at looking at a man who had essentially been passive all of his life and turn him into someone who had to be active. In a way this is the sort of film I would have a liked A Serious Man to be as Matt King is similar to the protagonist from the Coen Brothers' film. But, thanks in part to Payne's script, you grow to like Matt and his daughters as the film goes on.
A big part of why the film works is due to George Clooney's performance as Matt, in which he changed his image from the debonair film star. Elsewhere in the blog we've seen Clooney play everything from smooth-talking astronaut to intelligent fixer but The Descendants sees him alter his style. Matt is instead quite ineffectual at points and Clooney brilliantly displays his character's hopelessness especially in regards to raising his daughters and Elizabeth's situation. Despite altering his style, Clooney's vocals are still as silky as ever and they are well utilised to deliver several of the film's key monologues. I did feel at times as if Payne, Rash and Faxon were cheating at times by heaping a dollop of exposition onto our plates, but Clooney's delivery is so flawless that it doesn't really matter. Lending able support is Shailene Woodley, who earned a Golden Globe nomination and became a breakout star through her role as the damaged Alex. Woodley and Clooney share a believable chemistry and the scenes between their characters are thoroughly touching. One of my only issues was the fact that Alex had to be accompanied by the frankly useless Sid, a surfer dude who in my opinion served very little purpose. Due to the fact that The Descendants is filmed in and around Hawaii, The Descendants also has some great locations to work from and cinematographer Phedon Papamichael utilises these throughout the film. Further contributing to this theme is the Hawaiian music-heavy soundtrack which I found utterly pleasurable. Whilst The Descendants contains very little in the way of twists and turns it's a lovely little character study on the meaning of family. It also includes one of George Clooney's best performances to date and if you're worried that we haven't had enough of him yet then you're in luck because the next post is dedicated just to him.
But for now we skip two years into the future with Nebraska which, like Sideways, was another road trip film. Interestingly it was the first of Payne's films in which he wasn't actively involved with the screenwriting and instead the script came courtesy of Bob Nelson. Payne had been touted as the director of Nebraska for many years but it was only after completing The Descendants that he decided to work on the film. The key protagonist in the film is Woody Grant, an alcoholic man with two sons and an incredibly outspoken wife who believes he's come into a million dollars. In fact, Nelson establishes right from the start that Woody's money doesn't exist and in fact it's simply a scam set up by a magazine company. Nevertheless, Woody is determined to get to Lincoln, Nebraska to collect his winnings and his younger son David decides to accompany him. In my opinion, Nebraska is as much David's story as it is Woody's as his reason for the trip is to get away from his Montana hometown following his recent break-up. David is another classic Payne protagonist in that he is unlucky in love, has a lowly job as a hi-fi salesman and has a lot less success than his anchorman brother. Along the way David learns that Woody never really wanted children and that he really wasn't bothered about marrying his now wife Kate. The majority of the film's action is set around Hawthorne in Nebraska, Woody's hometown, where he experiences a family reunion of sorts. Despite David's protestations, everybody believes that Woody has won the money and soon people are bothering David asking for money that they loaned to Woody at one time or another. The culmination of the film's story is incredibly sweet-natured as Woody inevitably doesn't get the money he started out wanting but instead gets an even better gift.
I've written a lot about casting choices over the course of this blog and Nebraska line-up of actors certainly benefits the film in the long run. The studio allegedly wanted big names to play the roles of Woody and David, but Payne argued otherwise. Vintage character actor Bruce Dern was chosen to play Woody and earned himself a Best Actor nomination as a result. Dern perfectly portrays Woody as a man who is detached from society for the most part, but who is revealed to have been quite the womaniser in his day. Dern is completely believable as the former alcoholic and you can absolutely understand how he's alienated his family. I personally feel that Dern is at his best when conveying how much the prize-winning letter means to Woody as he frantically reads it throughout the film. Saturday Night Live regular Will Forte was similarly a lesser-known star but really turned in an excellent turn as the begrudgingly compliant David. Forte makes David a character who is easy to sympathise with even though you understand that he's sometimes his own worst enemy. Completing the trio of fine performances is the wonderful June Squibb, who like Dern was given an Oscar nomination for her role as the outrageous Kate. Squibb really portrays Kate as a force-of-nature and she easily makes you believe in her character's backstory. Nebraska is given even more charm by the fact that its shot in black-and-white which makes this traditional story seem even more old-fashioned. I personally felt that this technique really set the film apart from all of its contemporaries and it definitely felt apt for a film from Payne. Although it took a while to get going, Nebraska was funny and poignant look at father-son relationships and once again included a central male character who was detached from the rest of the world.
Next up we have the promised return of George Clooney in his roles as both performer and producer.
Seven years after Sideways, Payne's next project was The Descendants; an adaptation of Kaui Hart Hemmings' book of the same name. Just like he did with Sideways, Payne won the Oscar for adapted screenplay this time sharing the award with his co-writers Jim Rash and Nat Faxon. The film itself is based around the life of Hawaiian lawyer Matt King, whose wife Elizabeth has recently been hospitalised following a boating accident. As a result of this, Matt is forced to become a proper father to his mischievous ten-year-old daughter Scottie and her troubled teenager sister Alexandra. Whilst trying to deal with his personal issues Matt is also involved with the sale of an expensive plot of land that was owned by his ancestors. As the lawyer, it's his job to trawl through the legal paperwork and make the ultimate decision whether he and his cousins should sell and to who. Events get even more complicated when Alex reveals that Elizabeth was cheating on Matt with smarmy real estate agent Brian Speer to the extent that she was about to ask him for a divorce. The film then follows Matt's quest to track down Brian, bond with his daughters and decide what to do with the land. At the film's heart is a story about the bonds between family which is represented both through Matt's relationship with his daughters and his decision regarding his ancestral land. I think that Payne and his co-writers did a good job at looking at a man who had essentially been passive all of his life and turn him into someone who had to be active. In a way this is the sort of film I would have a liked A Serious Man to be as Matt King is similar to the protagonist from the Coen Brothers' film. But, thanks in part to Payne's script, you grow to like Matt and his daughters as the film goes on.
A big part of why the film works is due to George Clooney's performance as Matt, in which he changed his image from the debonair film star. Elsewhere in the blog we've seen Clooney play everything from smooth-talking astronaut to intelligent fixer but The Descendants sees him alter his style. Matt is instead quite ineffectual at points and Clooney brilliantly displays his character's hopelessness especially in regards to raising his daughters and Elizabeth's situation. Despite altering his style, Clooney's vocals are still as silky as ever and they are well utilised to deliver several of the film's key monologues. I did feel at times as if Payne, Rash and Faxon were cheating at times by heaping a dollop of exposition onto our plates, but Clooney's delivery is so flawless that it doesn't really matter. Lending able support is Shailene Woodley, who earned a Golden Globe nomination and became a breakout star through her role as the damaged Alex. Woodley and Clooney share a believable chemistry and the scenes between their characters are thoroughly touching. One of my only issues was the fact that Alex had to be accompanied by the frankly useless Sid, a surfer dude who in my opinion served very little purpose. Due to the fact that The Descendants is filmed in and around Hawaii, The Descendants also has some great locations to work from and cinematographer Phedon Papamichael utilises these throughout the film. Further contributing to this theme is the Hawaiian music-heavy soundtrack which I found utterly pleasurable. Whilst The Descendants contains very little in the way of twists and turns it's a lovely little character study on the meaning of family. It also includes one of George Clooney's best performances to date and if you're worried that we haven't had enough of him yet then you're in luck because the next post is dedicated just to him.
But for now we skip two years into the future with Nebraska which, like Sideways, was another road trip film. Interestingly it was the first of Payne's films in which he wasn't actively involved with the screenwriting and instead the script came courtesy of Bob Nelson. Payne had been touted as the director of Nebraska for many years but it was only after completing The Descendants that he decided to work on the film. The key protagonist in the film is Woody Grant, an alcoholic man with two sons and an incredibly outspoken wife who believes he's come into a million dollars. In fact, Nelson establishes right from the start that Woody's money doesn't exist and in fact it's simply a scam set up by a magazine company. Nevertheless, Woody is determined to get to Lincoln, Nebraska to collect his winnings and his younger son David decides to accompany him. In my opinion, Nebraska is as much David's story as it is Woody's as his reason for the trip is to get away from his Montana hometown following his recent break-up. David is another classic Payne protagonist in that he is unlucky in love, has a lowly job as a hi-fi salesman and has a lot less success than his anchorman brother. Along the way David learns that Woody never really wanted children and that he really wasn't bothered about marrying his now wife Kate. The majority of the film's action is set around Hawthorne in Nebraska, Woody's hometown, where he experiences a family reunion of sorts. Despite David's protestations, everybody believes that Woody has won the money and soon people are bothering David asking for money that they loaned to Woody at one time or another. The culmination of the film's story is incredibly sweet-natured as Woody inevitably doesn't get the money he started out wanting but instead gets an even better gift.
I've written a lot about casting choices over the course of this blog and Nebraska line-up of actors certainly benefits the film in the long run. The studio allegedly wanted big names to play the roles of Woody and David, but Payne argued otherwise. Vintage character actor Bruce Dern was chosen to play Woody and earned himself a Best Actor nomination as a result. Dern perfectly portrays Woody as a man who is detached from society for the most part, but who is revealed to have been quite the womaniser in his day. Dern is completely believable as the former alcoholic and you can absolutely understand how he's alienated his family. I personally feel that Dern is at his best when conveying how much the prize-winning letter means to Woody as he frantically reads it throughout the film. Saturday Night Live regular Will Forte was similarly a lesser-known star but really turned in an excellent turn as the begrudgingly compliant David. Forte makes David a character who is easy to sympathise with even though you understand that he's sometimes his own worst enemy. Completing the trio of fine performances is the wonderful June Squibb, who like Dern was given an Oscar nomination for her role as the outrageous Kate. Squibb really portrays Kate as a force-of-nature and she easily makes you believe in her character's backstory. Nebraska is given even more charm by the fact that its shot in black-and-white which makes this traditional story seem even more old-fashioned. I personally felt that this technique really set the film apart from all of its contemporaries and it definitely felt apt for a film from Payne. Although it took a while to get going, Nebraska was funny and poignant look at father-son relationships and once again included a central male character who was detached from the rest of the world.
Next up we have the promised return of George Clooney in his roles as both performer and producer.
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