My Oscars Predictions

¨And the Oscar goes to…¨

I finally finished watching all the Oscar nominated films and therefore feel ready to make my predictions about how things might turn out on February 24^th although I expect the race to be very close this year considering the frontrunner for best picture, Argo, hasn’t received a best director nomination and that can hurt its chances. Lincoln can pick up the slack if Argo fails to deliver with the Academy although Argo has been winning all the major awards up to now. I will make my prediction on the ¨Who I think will win¨ category, I will also add the possible upset in the ¨Who might surprise¨ category, and finally I will mention my favorite nominee in the ¨Who I would vote¨ category.

BEST PICTURE

-Who I think will win: Argo

-Who might surprise: Lincoln

-Who I would vote: Life of Pi or Beasts of the Southern Wild

BEST DIRECTOR

-Who I think will win: Steven Spielberg

-Who might surprise: Ang Lee

-Who I would vote: Ang Lee

BEST LEAD ACTOR

-Who I think will win: Daniel Day Lewis

-Who might surprise: Joaquin Phoenix

-Who I would vote: Joaquin Phoenix

BEST LEAD ACTRESS

-Who I think will win: Jennifer Lawrence

-Who might surprise: Jessica Chastain or Emmanuelle Riva

-Who I would vote: Jessica Chastain

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

-Who I think will win: Robert De Niro

-Who might surprise: Tommy Lee Jones

-Who I would vote: Christoph Waltz

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

-Who I think will win: Anne Hathaway

-Who might surprise: Sally Field

-Who I would vote: Anne Hathaway for The Dark Knight Rises

BEST ANIMATED FILM

-Who I think will win: Frankenweenie

-Who might surprise: Wreck it Ralph

-Who I would vote: Wreck it Ralph

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

-Who I think will win: Life of Pi

-Who might surprise: Skyfall

-Who I would vote: Life of Pi

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

-Who I think will win: Anna Karenina

-Who might surprise: Les Miserables

-Who I would vote: Anna Karenina

BEST DOCUMENTARY FILM

-Who I think will win: Searching for Sugar Man

-Who might surprise: How to Survive a Plague

-Who I would vote: Searching for Sugar Man

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

-Who I think will win: Amour

-Who might surprise: A Royal Affair

-Who I would vote: A Royal Affair

BEST EDITING

-Who I think will win: Argo

-Who might surprise: Zero Dark Thirty

-Who I would vote: Zero Dark Thirty

  

BEST MAKEUP

-Who I think will win: Les Miserables

-Who might surprise: The Hobbit

-Who I would vote: Les Miserables

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

-Who I think will win: Life of Pi

-Who might surprise: Lincoln

-Who I would vote: Life of Pi

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

-Who I think will win: Skyfall

-Who might surprise: Pi´s Lullaby

-Who I would vote: Skyfall

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

-Who I think will win: Anna Karenina

-Who might surprise: Les Miserables

-Who I would vote: Life of Pi

BEST SOUND EDITING

-Who I think will win: Zero Dark Thirty

-Who might surprise: Argo

-Who I would vote: Zero Dark Thirty

BEST SOUND MIXING

-Who I think will win: Les Miserables

-Who might surprise: Life of Pi or Skyfall

-Who I would vote: Les Miserables

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

-Who I think will win: Life of Pi

-Who might surprise: The Hobbit

-Who I would vote: Life of Pi

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

-Who I think will win: Lincoln

-Who might surprise: Argo

-Who I would vote: Silver Linings Playbook

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

-Who I think will win: Zero Dark Thirty

-Who might surprise: Django Unchained or Amour

-Who I would vote: Django Unchained

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT

-Who I think will win: Open Heart

BEST SHORT FILM LIVE ACTION

-Who I think will win: Curfew

BEST SHORT FILM ANIMATED

-Who I think will win: Paperman

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My Top 10 Films of 2012

2012 was an exciting year for movies with some highly expected films that didn’t disappoint me like The Dark Knight Rises, The Avengers, and Django Unchained. Then there were also plenty of surprising small independent films like Beasts of the Southern Wild, My Sister´s Sister, and Safety Not Guaranteed that blew me away. This year I will avoid my worst movie list because to be honest I stayed away from pretty much all those bad films, but I will add a few films that disappointed me despite receiving a lot of critical acclaim. Since most of the bigger films come out later in the year, I just got around watching most of them. The following were my favorite films of the year:

1. The Dark Knight Rises (10/10)

This was my favorite film of the year and the perfect ending for one of my favorite trilogies of all time. Christopher Nolan delivered a wonderful film and managed to live up to its predecessor. The Batman had to come back and he did in a powerful way. The film works more as a perfectly crafted thriller than an actual superhero movie. It was like a Shakespearean tragedy. This was the most fun I had at the movies all year.

2. Life of Pi (10/10)

Ang Lee delivered the most spectacular visuals that I´ve seen on screen in Life of Pi. It not only was gorgeous to look at, but it had a wonderful story about a boy, a tiger, and their struggle for survival. Ang Lee reminded me in this film about how hard it is to accept the fact that many times we don´t get the chance to say good bye to the ones we love. Movies can be such a magical and emotional experience; Life of Pi reminded me of it.

3. Beasts of the Southern Wild (10/10)

A million years from now, we are still going to remember Hushpuppy, the girl from the Bathtub. This is unlike any other movie I saw in 2012, and I felt as if I were reading a poem rather than watching a movie. The film also deals with the struggle for survival, but what really blew me away here was Quvenzhane Wallis´s performance. This 9 year old girl was absolutely amazing in a film that began making noise in the Cannes Festival. This was Benh Zeitlin´s first feature film, and an absolute triumph. The movie successfully mixes some surrealism with a tender story between a daughter and her father. I will keep an eye on Zeitlin in the future.

4. Django Unchained (9/10)

This may not be Quentin Tarantino´s best film, but it is a great one nonetheless. Tarantino is one of the best storytellers of our time and he manages to mix comedy with violence in a way many others fail. In this Spaghetti Western (actually Southern) Tarantino redefines a genre and surprises us with great action scenes, dialogues, and awesome performances. Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jamie Foxx, and Samuel L Jackson were amazing in this film. Tarantino no longer has my curiosity, he has my complete attention. I never get tired of his films and have such an exciting time at the movies.

5. Silver Linings Playbook (9/10)

David O Russell does a wonderful job in this crazy romantic comedy thanks to some great performances from his ensemble cast. It´s so hard to make romantic comedies that work these days since there are so many clichés, but this film definitely stands out from the rest by doing something crazier: telling a love story between two mentally troubled adults. The script is quirky, but sharp, and it works really well. I was laughing so hard at this wonderful comedy and the chemistry between Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper was amazing. Russell gives a very sensitive direction here. This is crazy good.

6. People Like Us (9/10)

I´m probably the only person who has this film on my top 10 list considering it didn’t receive much love from the critics, but I really loved this film and found it to be the most emotional film of 2012. It also happens to be one of the best family dramas I´ve seen in a long time. It is one of those films that has you smiling in one scene and crying in the next one. Chris Pine and Elizabeth Banks give terrific performances here, and this is one of those movies I saw early in the year that has continued to stick with me.

7. Bernie (9/10)

I never thought I would see Jack Black giving such a great performance as the one he gave in Bernie. He really deserved more love from the Academy this year because he gives the performance of his career. This film is so unbelievable that you just know it has to be true because it would be impossible for someone to make this sort of story up. Richard Linklater is a great director and he doesn’t disappoint in this film where he includes some documentary footage from the people who actually knew the real life Bernie. This was a wonderful and funny small film that many people haven’t even heard of but is worth seeing.

8. End of Watch (9/10)

This was such a great cop thriller and a wonderful homage to all policemen from director David Ayer (screenwriter of Training Day). Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Peña give great performances as partners fighting crime in this realistic thriller. Ayer knows his material and delivers a very authentic script. The film combines some great action scenes with a lot of laughs and dramatic moments. This is required viewing for cops everywhere and their families, because Ayer pays a beautiful homage to all the hard working honest cops out there.

9. Prometheus (9/10)

I couldn’t leave out one of the best science fiction films I´ve seen in a while. The visuals were incredible; there were very strong performances (especially from Michael Fassbender and Noomi Rapace), and the suspense was very intense. Ridley Scott did a wonderful job with this Alien prequel and despite all the criticism he has received I really loved this movie. There are plenty of scares and thrills in Prometheus and the tension is very well constructed. There is one scene involving Noomi Rapace undergoing a surgical procedure that will remain as one of the most shocking scenes of the year for me.

10. Your Sister´s Sister (9/10)

It was very hard having to leave other equally great movies out, but I couldn’t forget this wonderful small independent film directed by Lynn Shelton (Humpday) staring Mark Duplass, Emily Blunt, and Rosemarie DeWitt. The film is basically an improvised character study between three people dealing with different situations in a cabin on a beautiful location. The performances were great and the script was very cleverly written. The film felt real and spontaneous with some ingenious twists that worked really well. This is a really funny romantic comedy and I laughed really hard during the several surprising revelations that took place.

The following films couldn’t make it to my top 10 list but all received the same score from me (9/10). They would all be included in my top 25 list. In no particular order I present to you the rest of films that left a mark on me in 2012: The Intouchables, Argo, Moonrise Kingdom, The Avengers, The Hunger Games, Safety Not Guaranteed, Lawless, Pitch Perfect, Get the Gringo, El Pescador, Wreck-it Ralph, Flight, Zero Dark Thirty, The Master, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

As for the most disappointing films for me, they were: Cosmopolis, Killing Them Softly, Killer Joe, Premium Rush, The Odd Life of Timothy Green, Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, What to Expect When You´re Expecting, Resident Evil: Retribution, The Watch, Total Recall, Rock of Ages, The Dictator, Take This Waltz, Snow White and the Huntsman, Underworld Awakening, Battleship, and Touchback.  

Here is a really cool edited video with several films from 2012 that pretty much sum up the year in movies:

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My Reaction to the Acadamy Award Nominations

There were some pleasant surprises this year as the Acadamy Award nominations were announced to us by future Oscar host Seth Macfarlane and Emma Stone in a very short but funny presentation. I will begin by mentioning some of the pleasant surprises, because there were also some negative ones as some major directors were ignored.

First of all I must say that I´m excited for all the love that Beasts of the Southern Wild received after being nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Actress in a Leading Role, and Best Adapted Screenplay. This was one of my top three films of the year (although I have to admit I still have to see five of the nine nominated films for 2012 since most of these films haven´t come out here in Ecuador yet). The other favorite of mine was Life of Pi which also received a lot of love from Acamdey voters by getting 11 nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Cinematography. This film blew my mind visually and it deserves all the technical awards. The film with most nominations was Steven Spielbergh´s Lincoln which received 12 nominations including all the big awards. Daniel Day Lewis gave one of the best performances of the year and I think he will win this category easily although he has some competition in Joaquin Pheonix (The Master) and Hugh Jackman (Les Mis). I´m glad Denzel Washington received some love for his work in Flight, although I don´t think he has a chance here. However, I loved his work in that film. The small independent film, Silver Linings Playbook received a lot of love from the Academy as well receiving 8 nominations including all the important ones (director, actor, actress, and picture). I haven´t had a chance to see this film yet, but it looks good. The German film, Amour received much love as well as it will be competing for Best Picture and Best Director. It received 5 nominations. Les Miserables got 8 nominations, although it didn´t receive a Best Director nod which was a surprise for many. Finally, there´s Django Unchained, that received 5 Acadamy Awards including Best Picture although there was no love for Quentin Tarantino in the Best Director department. 

The negative surprises from today´s nominations came from the lack of love for Argo and Zero Dark Thirty which seemed like Lincoln´s main rivals in this year´s Oscars. They both received Best Picture nods, but neither Bigelow nor Affleck received director nominations for there work in these highly critically acclaimed films. Not having a Best Director nomination usually means they won´t end up contending for Best Picture. Argo did recieve 7 nominations however and Zero Dark Thirty ended up with only five when many were predicting each one of these films would get at least 10. I was sad that there was no love for Moonrise Kingdom although it did recieve a nomination for Original Screenplay for Wes Anderson. I was hoping it would recieve a Best Picture nod considering it was one of his best films in quite some time. My favorite film of the year, The Dark Knight Rises, received no love whatsoever, and I was hoping it would at least get a couple nods for vissuals. There were a couple of smaller performances I wished would get recognized like Richard Gere´s work in Arbitrage (his best work to date) and Jack Black in Bernie, but I knew they were long shots. 

Well those were my reactions to this year´s nominations. I look forward to watching the Oscars on February 24 to see who ends up with the big prize at the end. I still have several films to watch before I can make my predictions but this looks like it will be a very tight race between Lincoln, Silver Linings Playbook, Life of Pi, Amour, and Beasts of the Southern Wild. I Think Lincoln has the big edge for now. In case you missed the nominations this morning, here is a video.

My Review: Beasts of the Southern Wild (10/10)

¨In a million years, when kids go to school, they gonna know: Once there was a Hushpuppy, and she lived with her daddy in The Bathtub.¨

Beasts of the Southern Wild is without a doubt one of the best films of 2012. It is unlike any other movie you have seen and it makes you actually feel like you are reading a poem instead of watching a film. It came as a huge surprise for me considering I didn’t know the director or the stars of this film. I heard of the success it was having after winning the Camera d`Or in the Cannes Film Festival and the Dramatic Grand Jury Prize in the Sundance Film Festival, but I really didn’t think I would be as surprised by this film as the critics claimed to be. This small film was truly a magical experience for me as it mixes some surrealism with a tender story about the relationship between a father and his young daughter and their struggle for survival. The characters in this story are facing an oncoming storm that is threatening their lives, but at the same time the father is going through a severe illness that is threatening his. The storm plays out as sort of a parable of what the young daughter is facing ahead of her as her father is her only means for survival and his death would mean hers as well. It`s hard to decipher if some scenes are actually really happening or if they are just in the daughter`s imagination, and this plays out beautifully in this magical/realistic film. This is Benh Zeitlin`s first feature film and he also co-wrote the screenplay with Lucy Alibar. The film is based on Alibar`s stage play ¨Juicy and Delicious.¨ Zeitlin has made an impressive film and he will definitely be someone to keep an eye on, especially if you enjoy seeing something unique and different. The screenplay works really well thanks to a great performance from the cast, especially from the two lead roles who play father and daughter.

The story takes place in a fictional Delta community in the southern Louisiana bayou known as ¨The Bathtub.¨ This forgotten community is cut from the rest of the world by a levee and they have been warned that at any moment the water level will rise so high that there will be no more land left in that region. In the Bathtub we meet a young six year old girl named Hushpuppy (Quvenzhane Wallis) who lives with her alcoholic father, Wink (Dwight Henry), and several other farm animals. Hushpuppy is a very imaginative young girl and she believes that this world she lives in is in balance with the entire universe. If one small piece breaks, everything else does as well. The upcoming storm is threatening her perception of the world, as well as her relationship with Wink who has disappeared for a few days. Surviving on her own for a couple of days, she hears her father coming back and from what the viewer can see he has escaped from a hospital or something. It doesn’t take much time for her to realize that her father is very sick. Wink is very hot tempered, but at the same time he cares for his daughter and tries to be tough to teach her how to survive on her own in this community. The ice caps are melting, the water levels are rising, her father is ill, and a mystical animal named aurochs all seem to be heading her way and putting in danger her life as well as the rest of the small and poor community of the Bathtub. Somehow she must fight along with her father to restore the balance in the universe and fix the broken pieces that have threatened this balance. Among the residents of the community we have the teacher Miss Bathsheba (Gina Montana), Walrus (Lowell Landes), Jean (Levy Easterly), and Joy (Jonshel Alexander) who all refuse to leave from their beloved land.

I can’t say for sure if in the future people will remember Hushpuppy, but they will remember the young Quvenzhané Wallis who portrays her because she just delivered one of the best female performances of the year. I am sure she will receive an Oscar nomination for her portrayal because she simply carries this magical movie on her own. Her on screen presence is just electrifying and hypnotic. Once you took one look at her, it was impossible to look anywhere else. She is brilliant and single handedly makes this movie so much better than it already is. Dwight Henry also gives a very strong performance as the father. Both Henry and Wallis had never acted before in their lives. This film seemed to have all the perfect ingredients to fail, but every piece fit together so well that everything was like Hushpuppy said ¨The whole universe depends on everything fitting together just right. If one piece busts, even the smallest piece... the whole universe will get busted.¨ Every piece of the universe that was Beasts of the Southern Wild fit so well together that it made for a perfect film and one of the best of the year. I highly recommend this magical and emotional film to everyone because it will take you by storm. It is unlike anything you have seen before, and I mean it in a good way. Wallis is really captivating and her performance left me with goose bumps all over my skin.

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