Mike and I
have been watching movies nominated for Academy Awards this year, and we think
some great performances and movies were snubbed this year. When we saw “The Butler” last year, we
thought that Oprah and Forest Whitaker would definitely be nominated, but they
weren’t. We also thought that Tom Hanks
would be nominated for “Captain Phillips” because he makes you care for his
character quite a bit. Emma Thompson’s
performance in “Saving Mr. Banks” is still one of my favorite performances from
last year! Her difficult fussiness challenged
some of the sexism of the Disney production teams, and, yet, makes us aware
that Disney made people more sensitive to women with some of his films, like
Mary Poppins, which talked about the “suffragette” movement! I wish the Academy voters would have
nominated “Saving Mr. Banks” instead of “The Wolf of Wall Street!” I have no interest to watch “Wolf” after reading
the reviews that said it is a great, sardonic look at American frivolity, and
yet, seems like a movie with too much testosterone or masculinity, like some
violent action hero movie, where women are just sex objects. That’s also one reason Mike and I didn’t like
“American Hustle” too much, because the women are seen as sex objects by some
of the characters, especially the Bradley Cooper character. The writing was witty, and the set design for
“American Hustle” is stunning, and the costumes, and hair, especially the hair,
made me want to get a haircut after viewing the film! I hate when my hair looks bushy like the
seventies! I really like “Silver Linings
Playbook” much better, because of
Jennifer Lawrence’s sweet character, that wouldn’t give up on Bradley Cooper’s
character, because she deeply cared for him, despite his obsession for his
ex-wife!
Mike and I
did enjoy watching “Philomena,” because of the liberal journalist played by
Steve Coogan, who was also nominated for his excellent screenplay! Steve Coogan character is just after a juicy
story at the beginning of the film, by wanting to expose the cruelty of the
Irish Catholic Church, who sold thousands of babies on the “black market,”
sometimes without the consent of the mothers.
“Philomena” moved us so much because the impact of the era were millions
died of AIDS is still so heart-rending, and painfully honest! I couldn’t help and cry for these characters,
despite Philomena’s humble choice to continue being a Catholic after all she’s
been through, and the conservatism of some of the characters! AIDS still hurts until this day! And because I am living with HIV, and not
dying of AIDS because of life-saving medication, makes it all the more
poignant! If only some of those very
talented people, only lived a little longer, they would have been woken up from
the dead like Lazarus with this medication! Philomena was shown at the Vatican, and the
real Philomena Lee got to meet the Pope, who personally apologized for the
cruelty she lived through because of these cold hearted nuns! I feel better that there is a kinder, gentler
Pope in Rome, who cares about the very poor, and the sick(he once kissed the
feet of people living with HIV/AIDS!)
“12 Years a Slave” is also an excellent
film, and deserved the nine Academy Awards that is was nominated for. Though it might have a difficult time
sweeping the Oscars because of the Academy voters might vote for other
films. Lupita N’yongo is my choice to
win the best supporting actress Oscar this year, because she portrayed the
tormented slave very powerfully, and her performance is the most noble, and “serious”
of all the other Actors nominated! It’s
no wonder that not many movies have been made about the slavery era, but the
torture that they lived through is not easy to depict, and watch, and, yet, is
so important to remember history. It’s
hard to believe that these kinds of atrocities happened, but they did, which
makes them even deeper, and more important.
I hope one day to come across Solomon Northup’s book titled by the same
name, and see what he saw, when he was captured, and forced into slavery! Like Anne Frank, the torturers did not know
they are torturing someone smart enough to write his personal history and
experience of the times in torment!
British
actor, Chiwetel Ejiofor, definitely deserves a chance at winning this Oscar for
Best Actor! I think they might give it
to Matthew McCaughney, for his portrayal, of AIDS stricken straight man in “Dallas
Buyers Club.” McCaughney has been
winning at other Awards shows, and so has, Jared Leto, who brilliantly plays a
transgender person stricken with AIDS in the same film. Mike is not a big fan of McCaughney, but we
might see that movie anyway, because we like Jared Leto’s sensitive speech at
the Screen Actors Guild Award, where he sensitively acknowledges that AIDS is a
terrible disease that nobody deserves to die from( I don’t care how wicked
people think of your life!) Leto also
thanked all transgender people in the world for their “inspiration!” Michael Fassbender also has a chance for
winning an Oscar, because of the chilling way he portrayed the slave driver as
a real life “monster.” Academy voters
sometimes rewards these “monster” performances, like Christoph Waltz, or Charlize
Theron in the movie “Monster,” and Kathy Bates in “Misery!” Rewarding the “monsters” does give me a chill
of discomfort though!
Speaking of monster performance, Meryl
Streep was so convincing as the verbally abusive Violet Weston in the movie “August:
Osage County” that I think that she definitely transformed herself to become
this character, which is just plain remarkable!
I had to watch her being interviewed on Jimmy Kimmel one night, just to
make sure that she is not like Violet Weston at all, no not at all. She is, in fact, very sweet, and loved the
Beatles when she was 15, and got to see them at Shea stadium where she held up
a sign that said, “I Love You Paul!”
Hahahaha! I like Meryl! I hope the Pulitzer Prize winning play and
movie doesn’t make us believe that the U.S. is becoming more isolated, less
educated and verbally abusive to each other as portrayed in “August!” It is almost frightening, watching Julia
Roberts character swear so viciously at her mother! I don’t think I’ve ever seen Julia be vicious
in any film! It’s almost campy, but too
serious to laugh without a little discomfort.
Mike and I spent the last week watching the
trilogy, "Before Sunrise," "Before Sunset," and
"Before Midnight," and really enjoyed them. The first of the
films(which all star Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy as Jesse and Celine) is
probably my favorite, because the conservations that this couple has seems so
real, and terribly romantic, yet realistic as well! The first is set in 1994,
and the others were filmed nine years apart each, up to 2013, where the actors
are older, wiser, and little more cynical with age! We see the actors age, not
always gracefully, but love how their connection is so deep! Mike likes the
second one the most, because it filmed in Paris! The scenes in Paris are so
lovely, and fluid, and the romance is not on the screen, but in-between the
words of their dialogue. The last two were nominated for Oscars for writing,
which made me interested in them. Critics praised them, calling them classics
in realism and film! The last one, Before Midnight, we rented at the redbox,
and it's the hardest to watch, because the couple are going through emotional
difficulties, but it still leaves you hopeful that time transcends all the
difficulties of age, and people in love still choose to stay together!
Mike and I also got to see “Nebraska,”
which is a brilliant, quiet little indie movie that packs a punch! Will Forte’s character, makes you care
somewhat for this “senile” old man who is determined that he holds a winning
lottery ticket! It’s a great father/son
road movie, that makes you laugh, and annoyed with these people at the same
time, and feeling that they are somehow terribly real in some parts of the
world! I don’t like the fact that the
old man uses the word “co—ksucker” because that’s very homophobic! That moment in the film made me slightly
uncomfortable! I still cared enough
about the son characters to like this film.
Speaking of homophobic rants, Alec Baldwin, an actor I detest, made the news
once again for calling a photo-journalist a “f—g” and other homophobic
names! That is so irresponsible and
stupid in my book. Someone on facebook
said that being homophobic has nothing with being “phobic” or afraid. Being homophobic means you're being a Gay hating
jerk, throwing prejudiced words around mean-spiritedly and hatefully!
I’m happy Bruce Dern and June Squibb were
nominated for “Nebraska” a film that reminds me of “Paper Moon” and “Last
Picture Show!”
I had trouble watching Woody Allen’s “Blue
Jasmine” because Alec Baldwin is in it, who plays a womanizing pig in it too! Woody Allen has been in the news lately
because Mia Farrow’s adopted daughter Dylan Farrow continues to confront the
public with allegations that Woody molested her as a child! Very disgraceful, and disgusting to think
about, and I’m afraid there is a element of truth in it! Yet, we know that Allen is not a serial sex
offender, otherwise he would be in jail right now! Dylan just wants to tell her story, and Allen
deeply denies the allegations, despite the fact that he married one of Mia
Farrow’s adopted daughters, which lends credibility to Dylan Farrow’s
story. It’s been so long ago that it’s
past the “statute of limitations” so it won’t go to trial, even though both
Allen and Farrow deserve a fair trial!
Woody Allen’s films about complicated
relationships, are still so interesting to watch, that I’m thinking this scandal
has left him and the Farrow family with a deep sense of disgust!
Cate Blanchett has a good chance of winning
an Oscar for “Blue Jasmine,” which is still a powerful performance, about a
woman whose life unravels into homelessness and mental illness, because of her
husband’s scandal. How true this sounds
to Woody’s life, and his terribly interesting homage to “A Streetcar Named
Desire” is still very interesting to watch.
One critic says, you don’t know if you want to cry for Cate Blanchett’s
character or tell her to snap out of it!
Mike and I are still yet to watch “Her” and
“Gravity.” We definitely want to see
"her," because critics praised Phoenix’s performance, an actor I like because he was born on Puerto
Rico! We also want to see “Invisible
Woman” because I am a big fan of the Charles Dickens novels and stories! I also want to see Mandela: Long Walk To
Freedom. I think U2 might win an Oscar for their song "Ordinary Love," a song I like and have been listening too, while shaving! They won a Golden Globe for it too! What happened to Coldplay's song "Atlas" which was snubbed! The Academy actually revoked a song for the film "Alone Yet Not Alone" because the songwriter, who was once a member of the Academy, wrote to Academy members telling them to support the song, which is favoritism!
Some great films only got minor
nominations, like Saving Mr. Banks and The Book Thief, which have both been
nominated for Best Original Score! John
Williams has been nominated so many times, 49 I’m pretty sure, that only Walt
Disney has more nominations in history than him! Mike and I were lucky enough to hear and see
John Williams conduct music he wrote for the movies at the Chicago Symphony
Orchestra! And I was deeply moved by all
the beautiful music he wrote, and excited too!
E.T. is still my favorite John Williams score, and he conducted some of
that score at the CSO to my delight.
Mike loved it too!
Thanks for reading my blog, and see you at
the movies, like Roger Ebert once inscribed in a signed book for me!
