The Kids Are All Right review

Brokeback Mountain was too soon for Hollywood right?  It didn't win a Best Picture Oscar.  Hollywood wasn't prepared to let a film about gays win gold, or so the rumors go.  Fast forward to 2010 and Hollywood seems to be a lot nicer.  The Kids Are All Right has now been nominated for 4 Oscars.  Whoa!  The movie is about a lesbian couple (Annette Bening and Julianne Moore), and their two children (Mia Wasikowska and Josh Hutcherson).  As the children get older, they want to meet the man who's sperm helped create them through artificial insemination (played by Mark Ruffalo).  Let's begin.

What I liked about the film:
The Story

It's a cute and original story about a family that could easily exist in our modern times.  I could only imagine adopted children searching for their biological parents, much like the children in the film search for Ruffalo's character.  The drama occurs when Moore's character begins an affair with Ruffalo behind Bening's back.  Ignoring the execution, it's a great, original story. 

The Cast

I think every actor nailed it, but one (wait for the dislikes to find out who).  Even though Bening's character is an absolute B; she nails it.  She is the strong minded, head of the household figure; and she was rewarded with an Oscar nom.  Moore is the one actor in this film who was snubbed.  She has perhaps the most difficult role in the film, and also goes through the biggest transition.  It's too bad there are only five slots, otherwise, she would have easily been a sixth choice for the academy.

The kids do fine in their respective roles.  Wasikowska's character was born from Benning's character, and boy are they similar.  Strong headed, leaders, etc.  Hutcherson was born from Moore's character and the same thing, he's just like her too.  Passive, submissive, underachiever, etc.  The young actors did well with their material.


What I didn't like about the film:
Mark Ruffalo

Oh man I'm going to get ish from FattMatt.  Believe me, I had trouble even typing out his name just now.  I usually LOVE Ruffalo's work.  I am a huge fan.  But this is my opinion... he was God awful.  He plays this hippie, nothing is a big deal douche bag.  Some might say "that's just his character"; I say no.  The character is supposed to be a charismatic womanizer, that is a good father figure, but has an affair with Moore, but loves women, but wants a family.  A pretty complex character right?  Ruffalo plays him so monotone it's unbelievable to me that he was nominated for Best Actor.

The Director
Lisa Cholodenko was even considered for a Best Director Oscar nomination?!?!  What the heck.  She would have been nominated for a character piece, and Christopher Nolan who had literally one million things to keep track of with Inception didn't?  I just don't get it.  Any director could have filmed this movie.  Anyone.  It's a character piece.  It wasn't a sweeping epic, or war film, just five main characters and the way they live their lives.  I don't get it.


The Verdict:
Pass
I did not like the film at all.  In fact, when the final credits began to roll, I cursed the screen and asked for two hours of my life back.  Maybe the hype was a part of my disappointment.  But I doubt that, because I usually don't feed into the hype, just formulate my own opinions; as you can tell by the contradictory review.  The film did well in theaters and I think Moore was definitely snubbed.  Bening will unfortunately lose to Natalie Portman who absolutely kills it in Black Swan.  Again, this is a big time pass for me.  Wont see it again.

Black Swan review

Almost done!  I have almost seen all the Best Picture nominees for this year's Oscars.  This one.. Black Swan.  So I think everyone is familiar with the movie by now.  Natalie Portman stars in Darren Aronofsky's mind screw.  A dark movie that explores one woman's battle with her inner demons.  The film, Aronofsky and Portman have all been nominated for Academy Awards.  The film co-stars Mila Kunis as Portman's alternate to the ballet.  Barbara Hershey plays Portman's mother, and Vincent Cassel plays Portman's instructor.  There is also a small, but impressive role starring Winona Ryder. 

Portman is a hands down favorite for Best Actress; but I just don't see why anything else was nominated for this film.  You all may be surprised by this review.  Let's begin.

What I liked about the film:
Natalie Portman

Her performance is as good as you've read.  She is a force to be reckoned with.  She plays a ballerina that has been cast in the famous "Swan Lake" ballet.  She must play the timid, innocent white swan, as well as the evil, seductive black swan.  We can see Portman discovering her character's dark side.  At the beginning of the film, her character Nina is very delicate.  She's a calm and sweet girl who is sheltered by her mother.  As the film progresses, we see Portman becoming the metaphorical Black Swan.  I have no doubt in my mind she will win the Oscar.  Amazing!

The Score

Clint Mansell's score is the reason the movie could even be considered a thriller.  The music carries every scene, particularly those where Portman is acting alone.  She can act like no other with her eyes, no dialogue at all.  Mansell's score does the talking for her.  It's heart pounding, edge of your seat suspense that is second to none.  Great job!

Barbara Hershey
Wow, I did NOT see this one coming.  Barbara Hershey plays Portman's mother in the film.  At the beginning of the film, we see her as an overbearing, controlling monster.  But as Portman makes her decent into evil, she appears to be protecting Portman from herself.  There is a lot of stuff I want to mention, but it will spoil the film, if interested, leave a comment.


What I didn't like about the film:
The Contrast

Really?  Like really?  I need to see Portman wear light colors the entire film and Kunis wearing black to realize the contrast?!  Really?  He should take a note from The Sixth Sense, subtlety is best!  In that film, the director used reds as a sign of death and evil, usually in the form of something small like a blanket or a door knob.  Aronofsky wanted to say to the audience 'HEY LOOK... PORTMAN IS THE WHITE SWAN AND KUNIS IS THE BLACK SWAN'.  So stupid, give the audience more credit.

Darren Aronofsky

The man is nominated for an Oscar and he's an aspect of the movie I didn't like?  Yes, that's exactly right.  I don't like the art school canvas he's created.  I don't like his choice of lighting (yes I know that's the cinematographer's job).  I didn't like the OBVIOUS contrasts between Portman and Mila Kunis' character.  I didn't like the shaky cam for every freakin' shot.  I didn't like the fact that the film was essentially The Wrestler Part 2.  I seriously didn't like a damn thing about his directing.  I'm sure Portman benefited by Aronofsky directing.  Her performance along with Hershey's are what struck me as successes, not his directing.  Seriously, what the hell am I missing; I don't understand what the hell the hype is all about with this guy.  I've actually praised his visual style before, but this movie was just flat out bad to me.

The Verdict:
PASS
There will always be bad movies with amazing performances, this will be one of them.  I honestly have no clue how it was nominated for as many Oscars as it was.  I guess all I can say is; The Tourist was nominated for multiple Golden Globes this year.  Um, yeah, no more explanation is needed.  I know I'm going to get a lot of crap for this review, but I don't care.  It's my opinion and your on my blog, so you obviously are interested.  Secondly, it's art, and everyone reads art differently.  I'm just trying to figure out how paintings by 5 year old kids are considered art... to me, Black Swan is the same equivalent. 

The King's Speech review

I'm trying, as fast as I can, to watch all the Best Picture nominees for 2010.  The King's Speech was next in line, and boy was it worth the wait.  Tom Hooper directs Colin Firth as King George VI of Britain.  He was the country's leader just before World War II, and struggled with a stammer in his speech.  Helena Bonham Carter plays Firth's wife, Queen Elizabeth.  Geoffrey Rush plays the king's speech therapist, and the two form a close friendship as they tackle, The King's Speech. 

What I liked about the film:
The Cast

What an amazing ensemble.  Director Hooper didn't cast the biggest names, he cast the right people for the roles.  Firth has already won a Golden Globe and a SAG award for his take on the king.  He will most definitely win Best Actor at the Oscars.  He is simply brilliant.  He became the king.  His confidence was conveyed through his eyes and body, or the lack of I should say.  When Firth was around Carter and his daughters, he was comfortable, confident and stood tall.  When he was in front of an audience, he fell apart.  He was flustered and couldn't mutter a word.  It was wonderful to see Firth with his children, where he could be himself.  And even after he become king, he wanted to embrace his children with no formalities, a contradiction to the way Firth's character was raised with his father. 

He WILL win his first Oscar.  Carter, also nominated for an Oscar gives a heartbreaking performance.  She wants to be there for her husband in any way possible; even if that means recruiting Rush as the king's therapist behind his back.  She is deserving of her nomination, and it was nice to see her recognized. 

Geoffrey Rush steals the show!  He plays a failed actor who has devoted his career to helping those with speech impediments.  Rush stands for his beliefs in the face of the king.  It's either his way or the highway.  So the king must work with Rush on a daily basis, in his office, not in the comfort of his palace.  One of the best aspects of Rush's performance is how sincere he is.  He WANTS to help the king succeed.  He sees through Colin Firth's stammer and knows what kind of king he could be.  It was so fun to watch Rush and Firth go through the exercises to improve the king's speech.  They're funny, yet warm moments between the two characters.  Too bad Christian Bale will win an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for The Fighter, otherwise it would be Rush's Oscar to lose.  Magnificent job.


The Story

The movie is about a king with a speech problem?  How do you make an interesting and compelling story about that?  Director Tom Hooper has!  With the help of writer David Seidler, the story is amazing.  As the movie proceeds, we discover more and more factors that have played into the king's stammer.  His relationship with his father, his relationship with his brother, the way kids teased him; all important factors explained throughout the film.  As the story unfolds, we discover Rush is the king's only friend.  He motivates and encourages Firth to take over the thrown when his brother, played by Guy Pearce, has been deemed unfit to rule.  It was nice to watch a film that taught me a lot about a time and place in history that I didn't know much about. 

The Director

Pretty difficult task at hand I think; make a film about one speech in the history of the world.  Tom Hooper has made me a fan for life.  The build up, the anticipation leading up to the final speech is breathtaking.  My heart was racing in anticipation of the climax, the king's speech.  Hooper captured the place, London.  He also captured the time, the 20th century time of war.  It was amazing how the film intertwined Hitler's rise without it taking over the film.  The wardrobe was great and the score was phenomenal.  He's directed several projects from this era in the UK's history, hopefully he ventures out and we can see his skills in a different setting.


What I didn't like about the film?
Supporting Characters
Not really a "dislike" as much as a question mark.  There were a couple of characters that I was intrigued by and didn't get to see more of.  The relationship with Rush and his boys was amazing, and a total contradiction to Firth and his father.  I would have loved to see more of the boys.  Also, Guy Pearce's character intrigued and bewildered me.  Imagine what his character essentially does; he gives up the right to be one of the most powerful figures in the world, to be with a woman.  Wow, there's a movie there somewhere.  Great stuff.


The Verdict:
Brilliant
The movie was under MY radar, despite all the accolades.  I didn't really feel like it was a "must see", boy was I wrong.  The movie is something every movie fan should go see.  It's human emotion at its finest.  The love and friendship between Firth, Carter and Rush is undeniable.  The final speech moved me in a way that's difficult to describe.  It wasn't my generation, it wasn't my country, but I was so proud of the king.  He brought his people together at a time when they needed it most.  He was the leader they needed him to be.  The cast and director were at their very best.  I hope the movie continues to receive the recognition it deserves, and I will continue to promote it to the best of my ability.  Amazing film.

The Social Network DVD review

This time of year is really exciting for all movie fans.  The big question is, who will be nominated for the various categories at the Oscars?  To me, the Golden Globes are... meh.  Who cares?  Oscar is the real prize, and we're really close.  And one movie that has been a lock for nominations since the first trailer is, The Social Network.

The movie is written by Aaron Sorkin and directed by David Fincher.  If you don't know, it's about Mark Zuckerberg and the creation of the phenomena, Facebook.com.  Jesse Eisenberg plays Zuckerberg, the Harvard dropout that was just voted Time Magazine's "Person of the Year".  Pretty incredible considering the unbelievable growth of Facebook.  The film also stars Andrew Garfield and Justin Timberlake, who play the real life people who helped get the site off the ground.  The film also stars Armie Hammer, who plays the Winklevoss twins.  He plays dual roles; Cameron and Tyler, who sue Zuckerberg, accusing him of stealing their idea for Facebook.


What I liked about the film:
Generational

Mark Zuckerberg

I am obviously a huge movie fan; hence this blog.  But the movies with the most notoriety are often period pieces from a time long ago.  World War II is among the Academy's favorite time.  Along with British period pieces like this years The King's Speech.  So to see a movie based on events that took place during my lifetime is a real treat.  The subject matter is fresh and relative; and a treat for the techies that understand a lot of the dialogue being spouted off by the amazing cast.

The Writing

The writing is quick, witty, smart, relative, unconventional, conventional, fragmented, organized, business oriented, abbreviated, elongated, etc.  Sorkin is a freakin' genius, period.  The man will go down as the best writer of my generation and on.  He is not only great at setting up characters and scenes, etc.; he's amazing with the dialogue in the film.  The writing is so smart, yet simple enough for anyone in the audience to understand.  The story is told in a nonlinear fashion.  It jumps from a chronological telling of the development of Facebook, and bounces back and forth to the depositions in the lawsuits brought against Zuckerberg.  Brilliant. 

The Acting

Jesse Eisenberg

Eisenberg surely be nominated for Academy Award for the film.  He delivers every line so effortlessly.  His eyes tell stories all their own, and his face expresses such a wide array of emotion, he was the perfect actor for the part.  Garfield delivers an amazing performance as Zuckerberg's best friend and co-founder of Facebook.  His character has perhaps the widest array of emotion in the film.  Happy, excited, sad, devastated, betrayed, etc.  The Winklevoss' are played by the same actor, Armie Hammer.  And boy did they do a great job of making the audience hate them.  Stuck up, entitled, arrogant, privileged jerks.  Hammer nails it!

The Director

I'm a huge fan of Fincher's work, I'll be the first to tell you that.  Se7en, The Game, Fight Club, Panic Room, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, the future Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, and of course The Social Network.  Wow, that is an amazing, and very underrated, resume!  He does a lot of things perfectly in this film.  The casting, the wardrobe of its time, the locations, and the score are all wonderful. 

What I didn't liked about the film:
The Length/Redundancy
It's exactly as the heading says.  The film is about 20-25 minutes too long.  90% of the film is fast paced and keeps the audience interested.  But there is a stretch in the middle act that just would NOT end.  Also, there are several scenes that didn't need to be there.  They added nothing to the story, and were pretty much covered earlier in the film.

Justin Timberlake
The last time I listed an actor as a "dislike" was my review for The Karate Kid.  In that case Taraji P. Henson almost ruined the film for me.  In this film, Justin Timberlake is the culprit.  I hated every SINGLE thing about his performance.  He plays Sean Parker, the founder of the song stealing site, Napster.com.  Supposedly he "earned" the part.  B-S, he got the part because the producers hoped to add a "big name" to the mostly unknown cast.  He's terrible and I hate his acting, period.


The (Two-Disc Collector's Edition) Blu-Ray of the film has a bunch of goodies.  Two audio commentaries; one with writer Sorkin, the other features director Fincher and the rest of the cast.  Also included is "How Did They Ever Make a Movie of Facebook?", a feature length documentary about the development of Facebook.  Also included are features with Trent Reznor who scored the film, and a few scene by scene breakdowns from the film.


The verdict:

Great, but not the best
The film is among the best I've seen in a long long time.  But strictly speaking in terms of my vote for Oscars, it wasn't as good as The Fighter.  I'm going to go out on a limb and say Inception & Toy Story 3 were better as well.  Not to fear, all four will be nominated and I'm sure one of them will win Best Picture.


Facebook has so quickly become embedded in our culture and our daily lives.  The fact that the events portrayed in the film occurred only 7 short years ago is pretty amazing in and of itself.  I hope this sparks a new line of films that happened in my lifetime.  War movies will always work, but these work just as well.  We'll see if I'm still blogging in 10 years, I'll have to look back at this post and see what the next Facebook will be.... as if anything could ever replace Facebook!

Coen Brothers Film "True Grit" Gets Posterized with a Trailer

FattMatt and I are huge fans of Joel & Ethan Coen. The men are brilliant in every sense of the word. Their ability of storytelling has been recognized time and time again, culminating with an Oscar win for No Country for Old Men a few years ago. True Grit is their latest, an adaptation of a novel by the same name. The brothers wrote and directed the film set to be released December 22nd. It stars last year's Oscar winner for Best Actor, Jeff Bridges. Also stars 2-time Oscar Nominee, Matt Damon. And returning to work with the Coen brothers, Josh Brolin, also an Oscar Nominee. Bridges also worked with the 'Brothers' on The Big Lebowski.

The movie also stars Barry Pepper (very underrated actor) and newcomer Hailee Steinfeld. It tells the story of a U.S. Marshal (Bridges) tracking down the man who murdered Steinfeld's father. The murderer is played by Brolin. Bridges and Steinfeld are accompanied by Matt Damon who plays a Texas Ranger. It follows the three on their quest for 'retribution'. Click the jump to see the trailer and read my thoughts.

Ho-ly wow. Ho-ly mother or wow. I mean I loved No Country..., but this is just ridiculous! I clapped, I cheered every one-liner Bridges had and was curious about Brolin and Damon's characters. Now, hot damn that's a good trailer. So can Hollywood still produce great westerns? I say yes! Your thoughts?

My, how the mighty have fallen. Why, Mel Gibson, why?

This guy is suuuuuch an idiot.  I want to take a look at Mel Gibson in a nut shell.  My, how the mighty have fallen.

At one point, Mel Gibson was absolutely, hands down my favorite actor in Hollywood.  He was funny, he could bring emotion, he was in great action movies, he was the whole package.  He went on to direct Braveheart and win Oscars for said movie; he could do no wrong.

Passion of the Christ came out, and all but cemented the notion that "no publicity is bad publicity".  The movie was stomped on by Jewish-rights activists for it's portrayal of Jews in the film.  But the movie just kept making more and more money.  The guy could do no wrong!


Oh but he did wrong.  He got arrested in 2007 for a d.u.i. like everyone knows by now.  Then he goes off about Jews to the arresting officer.  What did we expect to happen?  The officer wasn't going to put it in the report?  He sure did put it in his report and the whole world attacked Gibson for his comments.

Time goes by, people begin to forget.  I guess time does heal all wounds.  It's 2010, it's been about 7 years since Gibson has been in a film (M. Night Shyamalan's Signs in 2002).  The movie is Edge of Darkness, and it performs below average for Gibson.  It's OK, it's cool.  Even Tom Cruise is having trouble at the box office these days, and he's just an idiot in general, not because he's Anti-Semitic.  So Edge of Darkness was to be the beginning of a return for Gibson.  And then THIS happens.

I don't want this blog to ever be a gossip column.  So when I heard that some celebrity gossip website got a hold of some tape, with Mel Gibson cursing and threatening his ex-girlfriend, I ignored it.  But today the tape is been made public and it is indeed Mel Gibson.  It is definitely Mel Gibson in the tape.  And it's as bad as the websites have been reporting.  He calls his ex every name in the book and throws an "n" word in for good measure.  This is so God awful, disgusting.

When is Gibson ever going to be punished for his actions, for his words?  I'm not talking monetarily either.  Well, it looks like people in and around Hollywood are just sick of his nonsense, and are going to do something about it.  The police have opened an investigation into an incident earlier this year where Gibson reportedly punched out two of his ex-girlfriends teeth in a domestic disturbance.  The new tape of Gibson belittling his ex-girlfriend is now evidence.

Second, his agency, William Morris Endeavor dropped him from their roster just hours ago!  After the general public all but forgot the d.u.i. charges and racial slurs, you go and do this you idiot?  Really?  Like really?  All we wanted, all IIIII wanted, was the Gibson of old.  The man in Ransom, the man in Braveheart and Lethal Weapon.  It's pretty apparent that I'm not going to see that man anymore, instead, the man in the picture to the right.  A mug shot so we can all remember how horrible a person Mel Gibson is.

You know what's a good movie? (Part 6)

Part 1: Forrest Gump

Connection: Tom Hanks

Part 2: Toy Story

Connection: Pixar

Part 3: The Incredibles

Connection: Superhero Films

Part 4: Batman (1989)

Connection: Jack Nicholson

Part 5: The Departed

Connection: Matt Damon

Part 6: Good Will Hunting

When talking about Hollywood pairs, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck are as obvious a pair as it gets.  The two childhood friends wrote a script, waiting year after year for the right moment, and that moment came in 1997.  Capped with an Academy Award for "Best ORIGINAL Screenplay".  The two men were 27 years old, and thrust into the Hollywood spotlight.

Good Will Hunting focuses on Matt Damon's character, Will.  Will is an underachiever, working as a janitor at a college.  At the college, Professor Lambeau wants to challenge his students.  He writes down partially completed math problems on a chalk board outside the classroom, in hopes one of his students will be able to solve them.  The professor is played by Stellan Skarsgard, terrifically played by Skarsgard!  We quickly find out, Will is a mathematical genius solving the problems on the board during his night shift at the college.  After a series of events, Will must work with Professor Lambeau AND see a therapist to stay out of jail.

Will does whatever it takes to avoid talking about his problems.  So one therapist after the other gives up on him, and refuses to take him as their patient.  Until Professor Lambeau calls upon Robin William's character, Sean, the two were college roommates.  This is where the meat of the story begins.

Williams plays a widower that is content with the way his life has played out.  He's a soft spoken man, very contrary to the Professor.  He sees Will as a tormented soul, not just a math prodigy.  It takes a long time for Sean to get Will to talk, but when they finally begin to do so, they see they're a lot more alike than either had expected.  Through their sessions, we discover that Will was abused as a child, physically and emotionally.  His only escape was being with his friends.

His friends consist of Ben Affleck, Casey Affleck and Cole Hauser.  We see the lifelong friendship the foursome have created.  The comedy in the movie comes while the four are just simply sitting around telling stories.  There is a line during these scenes that is pure comedy "How you like them Apples?" is truly epic! The scenes between the friends seem so organic, and how couldn't they be?  We know three of the four grew up together.  That organic feel was absolutely necessary in developing the characters.

Will's love interest is played by Minnie Driver, who does a magnificent job, and was rewarded with an Academy Award nomination for "Best Supporting Actress", she plays Skylar.  The relationship between Will and Skylar grows throughout the movie, but Will is still stand offish.  He wont let her in.  Skylar is a hard working student with aspirations that Will just can't relate to.  In a critical scene in the movie, Skylar asks Will to follow her to Stanford for her next school.  The thought of another person abandoning him is too much for Will to handle, and he explodes in a fit or rage.  The scene is very well done and crucial to understanding why Will is as tormented as he is.

As the movie proceeds, Will and Sean's therapy sessions dive deeper and deeper into Will's psyche.  What this young man, Will, has been through, must have been unbelievably difficult.  Approaching the end of the movie, Will inches towards a breakthrough in therapy.  When the breakthrough occurs, it's amazing.  I personally think this specific scene is what garnered Robin Williams an Academy Award win for "Best Supporting Actor" and a nomination for Matt Damon for "Best Actor". 

The movie was directed by Gus Van Sant who had a very difficult task.  There were so many layers to every character; all of which needed ample screen time to develop.  We've seen many movies, this year alone, that had too many characters for their own good (i.e. Valentine's Day, Iron Man 2).  But Van Sant is like the conductor of a symphony, and what a symphony it is.  The way he peels away layer after layer off all the major characters is beautiful.  The tone, pacing, editing and music to the movie are perfect.  Speaking of which, the movie was nominated for "Best Film Editing", "Best Music, Original Dramatic Score", "Best Music, Original Song", "Best Director" for Van Sant and last, but not least, "Best Picture" of the year.

What I love more than the art that was created, was the way the art was created.  The movie is brilliant in my eyes.  But the way Matt Damon and Ben Affleck followed their dreams and became Oscar winning writers and two of Hollywood's A-List actors, is a movie waiting to happen.  They wrote the script, and were patient for the timing to be right; I'd say their timing was as good as it was going to get.  Nine Oscar nominations and two wins is impressive by anyone's standards.  Hopefully the duo reunite to bring us more original stories like the one in Good Will Hunting.

You know what's a good movie? (Part 5)

Part 1: Forrest Gump

Connection: Tom Hanks

Part 2: Toy Story

Connection: Pixar

Part 3: The Incredibles

Connection: Superhero Films

Part 4: Batman (1989)

Connection: Jack Nicholson

Part 5: The Departed

The Departed is about two Massachusetts State Police troopers; one played by Matt Damon, the other by Leonardo DiCaprio. Two troopers, two very different paths. I'm sorry, but we don't talk plot on AtD, it's more about opinion... for plot, WATCH THE MOVIE!

Let's start with Matt Damon. Damon has to play possibly the most difficult role in the film. He has to play it cool as a State Trooper, so he doesn't get caught tipping off Jack Nicholson and his thugs. But he also has a dark side; staying loyal to Jack Nicholson. Playing on both sides of the fence AND keeping a relationship going with a State Trooper therapist (Vera Farmiga) proves to be very difficult for Damon. Spectacular acting.

Leonardo DiCaprio has a similar role, but it's not quite so difficult. DiCaprio does a great job portraying someone who is tormented by the job he has taken on. He can't tell anyone who he is, he has to try and find the mole in the State Troopers (Damon) and he's falling for his therapist (Farmiga). It's a great performance, but again, Damon's is more difficult.

And then there's good old Jack Nicholson. The mob boss who NO ONE messes with. He loves Damon like a son, and uses him for his own benefit. As an audience we all think Nicholson is avoiding jail because of Damon helping him; well there's a lot more to the story. I've read that the part was originally written for Robert De Niro, but he had to pull out because of The Good Shepherd, a film he directed also starring Damon. Nicholson is ok in this movie. You see, no matter what Nicholson does, it feels like he's over-acting. I don't know how else to explain it, but I do like him in this film. He demands attention, takes over every scene he's in, and is very charismatic every time there's a run-in with the law.

Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen and Alec Baldwin give amazing performances in supporting character roles. Wahlberg is the only actor from the movie to be nominated for an Academy Award that year. He has some great one-liners that will either get you to love him or want to hit him right square in the eye. Great movies seem to always have great supporting casts.

Then there's the man that has to tie this tangled web of story together. Don't get me wrong, the movie is easy to follow, but that's only because of Martin Scorsese. Any other director would have lost the audience. There is a lot of double-crossing, deception, lies, cheating, cover-ups, etc. that could lose even the most sophisticated of movie fans. But Scorsese finds a way to make it flow very nicely, very simply. He was rewarded with his FIRST Oscar for Best Director on his 8th nomination. The movie also won Best Picture of the year. The Departed is a smart, very well executed thriller, that deserved the recognition it received in 2006. Thanks to a legendary director, and an excellent cast who gave spectacular performances.

You know what's a good movie? (Part 4)

Let's recap.

Part 1: Forrest Gump

Connection: Tom Hanks

Part 2: Toy Story

Connection: Pixar

Part 3: The Incredibles

Connection: Superhero Films

Part 4: Batman (1989)

So FattMatt and I need to apologize for not keeping this thing alive, but today we deliver. Batman, 1989... 'nuff said! I spent most of the past few hours "researching" this film. And by research I mean watching hours and hours of special features footage about the film. There's a lot to talk about, so let's jump right in.

Before this movie, there was no place for superhero movies the way there is now. Technology was not what it is today, and there was no way to produce these movies in way that would satisfy fans. Before Batman, there was the Richard Donner film, Superman: The Movie. That film proved you could make a good MOVIE that was about a superhero; it wasn't necessarily a good SUPERHERO movie. Batman carried on that tradition.

Also in 1989, the film's director was a relative unknown... Tim Burton. He had some success with Beetle Juice, but it is important to note that Beetle Juice LATER become the cult classic it is now. To add more doubt to the minds of everyone involved was the budget, at the time, it was the most expensive film in the history of the industry. In 1988, while the film was being made, Tim Burton was only 30 years old! Holy mother of wow!

The most controversial move of all was the casting of Michael Keaton to play the Caped Crusader; a move FattMatt and I LOVE! See, no matter who was cast, fans were going to be disappointed. This was a new take on Batman, never before seen on film. A dark Batman required a dramatic actor, not so much an action hero.

And for every Superhero film, you need a super villain; how about one of the best villains in comic book history... The Joker. The Joker was an obvious move on the part of the filmmakers. The trick of course was to cast someone GOOD enough to carry the roll. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Jack Nicholson. Joker Jack; does it get any better than that? This version of the Joker was true to the source material, far different than the one depicted in the 1960's Adam West Batman TV Series. Nicholson played him with a charisma that made you love the bad guy, even though you didn't want to. Kudos to Mr. Nicholson, and I am a firm believer that NO ONE else could have pulled off Tim Burton's Joker better than Jack Nicholson.

Burton enlisted the help of Danny Elfman for the score.

Batman Theme Song sound bite Batman sound bites

Elfman's theme for Batman was so good, so popular, that the studio gave the score it's own soundtrack, apart from the soundtrack with songs by Prince inspired by the film. The movie went on to gross over 400 million dollars worldwide! The movie and soundtrack were huge successes. It made Tim Burton the must-have director of his generation; it paved the way for Batman: The Animated Series; it lead to three live-action sequels; it opened the flood gates of comic book movies that we all know and love today.
The movie won an Oscar for Design and Nicholson was nominated for a Golden Globe for best Supporting Actor. A pretty good day at the office, Mr. Burton, a pretty good day.

And the Oscar goes to...

The show we wait all year to see is now over. Was it good? Were there any surprises? What movie won big? Umm... let's go through those questions one at a time shall we?

Was it good (the show)? Not really. I was a big fan of Hugh Jackman hosting the show last year. His Broadway style numbers were so fun and entertaining. I also enjoyed the style in which they announced the acting winners last year, by bringing out five previous winners. This year Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin hosted the show and it was sub-par to say the least. All the problems that plagued shows past, showed their ugly heads this year. There were unfunny jokes, clips and long boring video montages. Overall it failed to keep me entertained, and I'M A MOVIE LOVER!

Were there any surprises? Yes! The one and only big surprise came at "Best Supporting Actress"... Mo'Nique. Are you serious? The same woman that acted in Soul Plane and Phat Girlz just won an Oscar? Yes! And it sounds like deserving so. I did not watch it, so I can't criticize. And I will say this, she accepted her award with respect, class and grace. Very happy for the woman that has always been able to make me laugh.

What movie won big? The Hurt Locker. "Best Director" and "Best Picture" ahead of Avatar is a huge victory for the movie about the troops in Iraq. I loved the movie, and knew it had the lead over Avatar, I just knew it. The Academy loved Drama, and as great as Avatar was, The Hurt Locker was far better story telling by Katherine Bigelow.

Bigelow became the first women EVER to win the Oscar for "Best Directing", wow. Truly an amazing feat that was the icing on the cake for one of the best war movies ever made. Bigelow accepted, shaking at times, and found it difficult to find her words, but she did. Staying backstage for only a few moments while Tom Hanks announced The Hurt Locker for "Best Picture"; Bigelow returned onstage, as she is one of the producers on the film as well.

A few notables are Sandra Bullock, Jeff Bridges and Christoph Waltz. Sandra Bullock was humble, thankful and comedic while accepting her award. It's her first nomination and really solidified her as more than just a comedic actress in Hollywood. Way to go Ms. Bullock, my wife and I were rooting for you the entire way!

Jeff Bridges has delivered great work, year after year, in his illustrious career. He has stood the test of time, accepting great roles, one after the other. His Oscar win for "Crazy Hearts" capped a 4 nomination loosing streak. He thanked his parents, both actors, both deceased, for inspiring him to be an actor. Great work!

And lastly, Christoph Waltz who was so amazing in Inglourious Basterds. He won for "Best Supporting Actor" and thanked Quentin Tarantino for guiding him through the journey of movie making, as unorthodox as his style is.

Again, great movies, great characters, great performances, very poor show. Hopefully they take a few notes from what worked so well last year and apply it to next. They SHOULD look at last year, as it was a year when viewership went up from 2008 when the Oscars had it's lowest watched show ever. Come on Producers, make the show as fun as it is to go to the movies! Minus the 3D of course.

It's late, I'm tired, it's my Birthday tomorrow (today), goodnight!

You know what's a good movie? (Part 3)

To recap, Tonedog and I thought it would be a cool idea to try a six degrees of separation type game. We'll talk about a good movie, then find a common actor, director, plot, etc., and then move on to the next movie.

In the last installment of "YKWaGM?" Tonedog talked about Toy Story.
Today, I'm going to tie that in with a few common themes with The Incredibles, number one obviously being animation, and number two, Pixar.

Disney distributed Pixar's The Incredibles in 2004, roughly 10 years after Pixar's smash hit Toy Story. This film is easily one of my favorite animated features of all time, and includes an all-star cast including Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Samuel L. Jackson, Jason Lee, Sarah Vowell and Brad Bird.


The concept for the movie originated with Brad Bird, a former director and executive consultant on my favorite television series The Simpsons. Bird had also previously directed the excellent animated classic The Iron Giant. Work on The Incredibles started out as a traditionally-animated feature for Warner Bros.' animation studio, but after the studio shut down, Bird took the idea with him and went to Pixar.

Pixar had a lot of work on their hands making the feature. It was planned to be a whole 15 minutes longer than any of their previous films, and had a lot of difficult animation that needed to be perfected, such as long hair, skin and clothing on human characters.

One of the main reasons I appreciate the film so much is because of it's adult tone. While primarily a kids movie, the film had a lot of grown-up issues in it, such as the government ban of superheros, insurance company practices and family and marital problems. There's even [spoiler alert] a character that dies in the end!
The humor in the movie is also just plain genius, and reminiscent of the sarcastic tone found in The Simpsons.

Like that, Pixar once again revolutionized the animated film industry as we knew it, just as they had done a decade before with Toy Story. It's also the first Pixar film to feature an entirely human cast of characters.

The movie eventually opened up to $70,467,623 its opening weekend, averaging about $9,000 per screen, the highest opening weekend for Pixar at the time, and held its # 1 spot the second week. It went on to become the 5th highest grossing film of 2004, and the 3rd highest for Pixar after Finding Nemo and Up.
It is ranked in over 25 professional film critic's Top 10 lists for 2004.
It was nominated for 4 Academy Awards and won 2 of them, including Best Animated Feature, the 2nd of Pixar's 4.

Till today, I'd have to rank The Incredibles as my favorite animated movie of all time, tied with Disney's most recent hit, and Academy Award nominee for best picture, Up. I hope a sequel will soon be in the works, as they have a lot of different ways to continue this story line.

I hope you can all agree with me when I say that Pixar's The Incredibles is most definitely one of the greatest films of the 2000s.

Check back for our next installment of You Know What's a Good Movie? to see what movie Tonedog will tie-in with this new classic.

You know what's a good movie?

Hello devout readers! FattMatt and I decided to try something new today, play a game of sorts. It's called, "You know what's a good movie?". For the next few days, we're going to talk about movies that are connected in some way. Maybe they share a director, maybe they share a starring actor or actress, or maybe there is a common plot? We're going to start with a very obvious movie, because we honestly don't know what movie we're going to discuss tomorrow, until tomorrow.

So.... You know what's a good movie? Forrest Gump. The movie that won every Oscar there is to win was an amazing piece of film history. Tom Hanks plays Forrest Gump; a man who lives an incredible life filled with some of this country's greatest moments in history. It co-stars Robin Wright Penn and is directed by Robert Zemeckis.

FattMatt and I have discussed over and over. We've tried explaining this to people numerous times; the movie is based on the notion of coincidence or chance. Yes, indeed, the character of Forrest is lovable and charming. The special effects that placed Tom Hanks in the pages of history were breath taking. The love story sub-plot was reminiscent of Romeo and Juliet, the star-crossed lovers that could not be. But the fundamental idea of the film is that anyone, from anywhere can do great things. In Forrest Gump's case, it was all by chance.


By chance he was a college football star. By chance he was a ping pong champion, a Vietnam War hero, a shrimp boat Captain phenom because a hurricane took out every other boat in the area. This made for an amazing adventure through the life of someone who was so pure, so innocent, he couldn't hurt a fly.

Tom Hanks played it perfectly, one of those performances we rarely get to see. Where an actor BECOMES the character, not simply plays the part. Few actors have ever accomplished this. Off the top of my head, the only other two that come to mind... Denzel Washington in Training Day and Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight.

Robin Wright Penn played the troubled love of Forrest Gump, Jenny. And Penn delivered! She expressed pain, confusion and hurt that so few actresses could ever pull off. Jenny was abused as a child and that lead to many, many wrong decisions. The one constant in her life was Forrest. Her and Forrest, again, by chance, stay in each other's lives. Penn was terrific.

Robert Zemeckis won the Oscar for Best Director and deserved it. The movie was well ahead of its times as far as visual story telling and special effects. Forrest Gump had an amazing soundtrack that played to the times in the film. Looking back, there are movies today that still can't convince you of Zemeckis did years ago. That Tom Hanks shook hands with the presidents of past? Amazing. Keeping the theme throughout the film convincing must have been a difficult task.

Forrest Gump will forever be talked about. It's one of those "movies for the ages". It's one of the few that I can think of from the 1990's that has stayed with the times. Truly an amazing film.

Check back tomorrow for the next installment of "You know what's a good movie?".

Susan Sarandon joins Wall Street 2

Susan Sarandon has joined the cast of Wall Street 2, the sequel to the award winning original. She is set to play Shia LeBeouf's mom. This doesn't really come as a surprise, lady can act! She is in the upcoming The Lovely Bones and won an Oscar for Dead Man Walking.

The sequel is being written by Allan Loeb. Also cast so far are: Frank Langella and Michael Douglas, who will play the same character as the first film, Gordon Gekko. Oliver Stone is directing the film. Looks like they're pulling all the stops and hiring real actor chops. Looking forward to this.

Sandra Bullock's The Blind Side trailer

We here at AtD are big Sandra Bullock fans. From her performances in Demolition Man (yep, remember that Stallone movie?) to her work on The Proposal (excellent movie!). She was a highlight in the Oscar winner, Crash. Now comes The Blind Side. A true story about Michael Oher, a lineman for the Baltimore Ravens. It follows Oher's poor upbringing to when he was one of the most in demand college prospects in the country. Sandra Bullock plays Leigh Anne Tuohy, a woman who adopts Oher and takes care of him. This movie has all the makings of an "early Oscar favorite". So see the trailer for yourself and tell us what you thought. Enjoy.

The Academy Awards to have 10 Best Picture nominees next year

Last year's Academy Awards was probably the most entertaining of the award show's history, in a long time. Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway doing a mini Broadway show of the nominees was pretty creative. The format for presenting the major acting awards was also very creative. Next year, the Academy will do something they haven't done since the 1940's... have 10 Best Picture nominees.

The move will hopefully create more interest and also give fan favorites a better chance of being nominated. Movies like The Dark Knight and Iron Man missed out last year for more dramatic movies like Milk and Frost/Nixon. The Associated Press reported President of the Academy, Sid Ganis, had this to say:

Having 10 Best Picture nominees is going allow Academy voters to recognize and include some of the fantastic movies that often show up in the other Oscar categories, but have been squeezed out of the race for the top prize. I can’t wait to see what that list of ten looks like when the nominees are announced in February.

I personally think it's stupid, and a waste of time, just trying to get people to somehow tune in for the show. Let's say for example a movie like Defiance was in the running last year for Best Picture, would it really have affected Slumdog Millionaire's chance of winning the prize? My answer is NO. But! But! If it is a year with a close race, a movie third on the list of favorites could screw up the votes and a surprise fourth or fifth place movie wins Best Picture.

Either way, let us know what you think... whether you agree or disagree, the decision has been made.

Tony: No Country For Old Men Review

Holy mother of wow... Let me start off by giving you a warning: this is not an action movie. This is one of the purest drama's to ever be made. "No Country..." is one of those "hard to explain" movies... "you just have to see it". But I'll try my best.
The movie is dark... real dark! The Coen brothers are remarkable. They also wrote the script which is amazing. The dialogue in this movie will be studied for years to come, it's that good. Speaking of dialogue, Tommy Lee Jones gives a performance that will be remembered as his best since "The Fugitive" in which he won an Oscar for.
All the acting is phenomenal in this movie. I was scared of the scary characters, and I cared for the "good guys". How long has it been since you were literally "on the edge of your seat" in a movie? Well I was during "No Country...". The cat and mouse game is so good, it's uncomfortable to watch sometimes. It's uncomfortable because you never know what's going to happen, and that my friends is the entire concept of the movie. Not theme, but concept. There are many themes in the movie, just read the title. But the primary concept is unpredictability.
Remember "Forrest Gump"? My cousin Mat and I have a perfect example of the concept of a movie: In "Forrest Gump", the concept was coincidence. Everything amazing that happened to Forrest Gump was pure coincidence. If things were just the tiniest bit different, he wouldn't have been a war hero, or met all those presidents or been a world ping-pong champion. In "No Country..." nothing is predictable. The best parts are when you start to get cocky and think you've figured it out... you haven't figured out a damn thing.
There are no cliches throughout this movie that helps you predict the ending, it's all about unpredictability. The ending will be talked about for years... you will see why if you ever watch it.
There are other techniques in the movie that lend themselves to the dark feel. For example, there's no sountrack... let me say this again, there's NO music throughout the entire film. You may not pay attention to the music in the movies you watch, but its the music in certain scenes that create emotion. You hear happy music in a scene when a family is at the park, you feel happy. You hear a symphony playing during a scene where someone dies, you feel sad. There's no music in "No Country..." you will feel nothing. And the absence of emotion is what lends to the darkness of the film. Another technique is the lack of color. Everything is so plain, even ugly at times. Dirty browns, greens, etc. also create a cold mood throughout the movie.
This movie was just nominated for 8 Oscars, and it's not for being an average movie. But you have to watch carefully, or you will walk out of the theater cheated, but it will be your own fault. Pay attention to the dialogue, pay attention to the sites and locations, pay attention to the mood the directors have setup for you. If you do these things, I'm telling you, "No Country for Old Men" will be one of the best movies you ever see. What if you don't like the movie? It's ok, because that means we just Agree To Disagree.

Tony: There Will Be Blood Review

Hey Everyone,

Ok, so the big debate this year, as far as the Oscars are concerned, is the "Best Picture" category. "No Country For Old Men" and "There Will Be Blood" seem to be the front runners. After seeing "No Country..." I thought I had it figured out, I knew it was going to win best picture, even WITH all the hype behind "There Will Be Blood". So, let's review the movie...
Again, I'm not gonna tell you word for word what the movie is about, just basics... Daniel Day-Lewis is Daniel, "an oil man". His business is just beginning to boom when a boy comes to him and tells him of a place that has tons of oil. He goes out to California and the movie mainly takes place there, covering most of Daniel's life.
The movie is completely centered around the Daniel character... and who better than Daniel Day-Lewis to take on the role? The guy is amazing, brilliant, astonishing! This man loses himself in the character he plays. He has said he needs months, sometimes years to recover from the rigors of playing certain characters, that's nuts! His methods of preparing for a role will seriously shock you. In "There Will Be Blood", he BECOMES the character. Who/what is this character all about?....
Daniel is a deeply troubled man; but he presents himself well, for the most part. He takes care of himself physically, dresses decent, and speaks intelligently; but it's the emotions boiling underneath that shows great acting. Day-Lewis makes it uneasy to watch him, he makes it uncomfortable to be in the same theater as the character. You feel like he's going to explode with anger at any given moment... and when you think it's about to happen... he has a moving scene with his son in the movie, the character is human again, not just an oil machine. The movie shows a person's battle with his/her inner demons. Greed, envy, anger, and other emotions are also explored throughout the movie.
The movie has somewhat of a surprise ending that I will not spoil. If you pay attention throughout the movie, the ending will mean that much more to you. Blink, and you could miss the setup to the ending. For the most part, the movie has a conclusion, there is some room for the audience to make their own conclusion, but not much.
Overall, I would recommend this movie to anyone who truly enjoys an epic film, which is exactly what this was, EPIC. It follows the life and times of a man who is truly battling his own demons. Don't go watch this with people looking for an "action" film, but I guess the marketing shows that this is not that type of movie. Do I think it will beat out "No Country..." for the "Best Picture" Oscar? No, I don't think so. Daniel Day-Lewis will most definitely win the "Best Actor" Oscar hands down, his performance alone is worth the 10.50 ticket price, and the great story and dialogue are just the icing on the cake. This is a must see!