Cyrus

Cyrus is an interesting movie, I will say that. The actors are great. The cinematography, great. Plot line, great. Script, great. The thing that threw me off was its sense of humor, if that is what it was...
John, played by John C. Reilly, is recently divorced (recently meaning two years). Not yet over his soon to be married ex-wife, he lives alone, lonely. But his ex convinces him to get out of the house and go to a party. There he meets a lady named Molly (Marisa Tomei). It is an instant connection. But she has a son, a 21-year-old son, named Cyrus (Jonah Hill), who lives at home. Unwilling to share his mother's love with someone else, he does everything in his power to scare off John.
Overall it is a good movie, but the humor? The humor? I just don't get it! Throughout the movie I was thinking "is that supposed to be funny?" There are points in the movie where you laugh your ass off. But there are also parts when the character says something with such a bland demeanor that you do not know if you are either supposed to laugh out loud or sit still. Is the seriousness part of the humor? I still do not know...

I Love You, Phillip Morris - Trailer

2011 Golden Globe Nominations

The Golden Globes have never been reliable for having good taste or being well judged critics, so the choices are not surprising... Keep in mind that I have not seen all of the films that have been nominated. I am basing my approval and disapproval on what I have seen, heard, and read...
deserves: +

Best Motion Picture - Drama
Black Swan +
The King's Speech +
The Social Network
The Fighter
Inception

Best Director - Motion Picture
Derek Aronofsky - Black Swan +
David Fincher - The Social Network
Tom Hooper - The King's Speech +
Christopher Nolan - Inception
David O. Russell - The Fighter

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama
Jesse Eisenberg - The Social Network +
Colin Firth - The King's Speech +
Ryan Gosling - Blue Valentine +
James Franco - 127 Hours
Mark Wahlberg - The Fighter

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama
Halle Berry - Frankie and Alice
Nicole Kidman - Rabbit Hole +
Jennifer Lawrence - Winter's Bone +
Natalie Portman - Black Swan +
Michelle Williams - Blue Valentine +

Best Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical
Alice in Wonderland
Burlesque
The Kids Are Alright +
Red
The Tourist

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical
Johnny Depp - Alice in Wonderland
Johnny Depp - The Tourist
Paul Giamatti - Barney's Version +
Jake Gyllenhaal - Love and Other Drugs
Kevin Spacey - Casino Jack +

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical
Annette Benning - The Kids Are Alright +
Anne Hathaway - Love and Other Drugs +
Angelina Jolie - The Tourist
Julianne Moore - The Kids Are Alright
Emma Stone - Easy A +

Best Performance by an Actor In A Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Christian Bale - The Fighter +
Michael Douglas - Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps
Andrew Garfield - The Social Network
Jermey Renner - The Town +
Geoffry Rush - The King's Speech +

Best Performance by an Actress In A Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Amy Adams - The Fighter +
Helena Bonham Carter - The King's Speech +
Mila Kunas - Black Swan +
Melissa Leo - The Fighter
Jacki Weaver - Animal Kingdom

Best Animated Feature
Despicable Me +
How To Train Your Dragon
The Illusionist +
Tangled
Toy Story 3

Best Foreign Language Film
Biutiful (Mexico, Spain)
The Concert (France)
The Edge (Russia)
I Am Love (Italy)
In A Better World (Denmark)

Best Screenplay - Motion Picture
Simon Beaufoy, Danny Boyle - 127 Hours
Christopher Nolan - Inception
Stuart Blumberg, Lisa Cholodenko - The Kids Are Alright +
David Seilder - The King's Speech +
Aaron Sorkin - The Social Network +

Best Original Score - Motion Picture
"Bound To You" - Burlesque
Music By: Samuel Dixon
Lyrics By: Christina Aguilera and Sia Furler
"Coming Home" - Country Song
Music & Lyrics By: Bob DiPiero, Tom Douglas, Hillary Lindsey and Troy Verges
"I See The Light" - Tangled
Music By: Alan Menken
Lyrics By: Glenn Slater
"There's A Place For Us" - Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader
Music & Lyrics By: Hillary Lindsey, Carrie Underwood and David Hodges
"You Haven't Seen The Last Of Me" - Burlesque
Music & Lyrics By: Diane Warren

----------

Best Television Series - Drama
Boardwalk Empire (HBO) +
Dexter (SHOWTIME)
The Good Wife (CBS)
Mad Men (AMC) + The Walking Dead (AMC)

Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series - Drama
Steve Buscemi – Boardwalk Empire (HBO) +
Bryan Cranston – Breaking Bad (AMC) +
Michael C. Hall – Dexter (SHOWTIME) +
Jon Hamm – Mad Men (AMC) +
Hugh Laurie – House (FOX)

Best Performance by an Actress In A Television Series - Drama
Julianna Margulies – The Good Wife (CBS)
Elisabeth Moss – Mad Men (AMC)
Piper Perabo – Covert Affairs (USA)
Katey Sagal - Sons of Anarchy (FX)
Kyra Sedgwick – The Closer (TNT) +

Best Television Series - Comedy or Musical
30 Rock (NBC) +
The Big Bang Theory (CBS) +
The Big C (SHOWTIME)
Glee (FOX)
Modern Family (ABC) +
Nurse Jackie (SHOWTIME)

Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series - Comedy or Musical
Alec Baldwin - 30 Rock (NBC) +
Steve Carell - The Office (NBC) +
Thomas Jane - Hung (HBO) +
Matthew Morrison - Glee (FOX)
Jim Parsons - The Big Bang Theory (CBS) +

Best Performance by an Actress In A Television Series - Comedy or Musical
Toni Collette - United States of Tara (SHOWTIME)
Edie Falco - Nurse Jackie (SHOWTIME)
Tina Fey - 30 Rock (NBC) +
Laura Linney - The Big C (SHOWTIME)
Lea Michele - Glee (FOX)

Best Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made For Television
Carlos (SUNDACE C) +
The Pacific (HBO)
Pillars Of The Earth (STARZ) +
Temple Grandin (HBO)
You Don't Know Jack (HBO) +

Best Performance by an Actor In A Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made For Television
Idris Elba – Luther
Ian McShane - Pillars Of The Earth (STARZ) +
Al Pacino – You Don't Know Jack (HBO) +
Dennis Quaid – The Special Relationship
Edgar Ramirez – Carlos (SUNDANCE C) +

Best Performance by an Actress In A Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made For Television
Hayley Atwell – Pillars Of The Earth (STARZ)
Claire Danes – Temple Grandin (HBO)
Judi Dench – Return To Cranford +
Romola Garai – Emma
Jennifer Love Hewitt – The Client List

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series, Or Motion Picture Made For Television
Scott Caan – Hawaii Five-O (CBS)
Chris Colfer – Glee (FOX)
Chris Noth – The Good Wife (CBS)
Eric Stonestreet – Modern Family (ABC)
David Strathairn – Temple Grandin (HBO)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series, Or Motion Picture Made For Television
Hope Davis – The Special Relationship
Jane Lynch – Glee (FOX) +
Kelly MacDonald – Boardwalk Empire (HBO) +
Julia Stiles – Dexter (SHOWTIME)
Sofia Vergara – Modern Family (ABC)

This is Spinal Tap

The ridiculous 'rockumentary' about an up and coming parody rock band, Spinal Tap, in the '80s. Getting their start in Britain, these unintelligent "musicians" are blind to the fact that they have no talent and no following, except for a small audience of potheads and relating idiots.
Their well thought out songs of stupidity are not that bad in my opinion. The eccentric lyrics are well thought out and are catchy, in a 'we're gonna make you laugh your ass off' way. They do not have bad voices and they are pretty bad ass at electric guitar.
Their antics off stage are even more wacky then on stage.
To sum up the movie, in four words. Comical sex, drugs, and rock n' roll.

Skeletons - Trailer

Rushmore

As you know, or do not know (depending if you have read my blog before), I am in love with the director, Wes Anderson (his movies, that is). Rushmore is just another to add to that wonderful list.
Rushmore, filmed in Houston, Texas (yeah!), is the story of a fifteen-year-old high school student named Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzman). He is an exeptionally smart playwrite and lives for the private school, Rushmore, that he attends. He is pretty much in charge of every club and extracurricular activity created in the school. But he finds himself spending to much time involved in hobbies and not enough time involved with acedemics, causing him to fail. This is the last straw, he is sentenced to 'acedemic probation'. Devistated, he has to endure public school. But he spends many days visiting Rushmore, uninvited.
He meets a young elementary school teacher, Miss Cross (Olivia Williams). And guess what, he falls in love. He also developes a close friendship with Herman Blume (Bill Murray), a business man who's two jerk sons attend Rushmore. He also finds himself becoming attracted to Miss Cross. The whole thing becomes an oddly entertaining, and heartwarming/breaking love triangle.
Of course, I have never had the grave experience of watching a bad Wes Anderson film. I think it is impossible that he could even dream of making a flop. So I guess that is all I have to say, since you have probably already guess that I would highly recomend this movie.

The New Tenants - Trailer

The New Tenants trailer from Det Danske Filminstitut on Vimeo.

Youth in Revolt

An original, unusual take on a teenage romance. It it cute, funny, poetic, dramatic, sharp, and weird at times. It is catagorized as a comedy, but I find it more of a dramatic romance.
Directed by Miguel Arteta, Nick Twist (Michael Cera), is a mama's boy, high school nerd, and virgin. He doesn't have any experience with relationships. He longs to escape from home, his mom (Jean Smart) I am sorry to say, is kind of a slut. She divorced his father, George (Steve Buscemi), and is now dating a gross hick, who has developed a rivalry with Nick.
On a trip to his mom's boyfriend's trailor, he meets a girl, Sheeni (Portia Doubleday), walking in the trailor park. He falls in love. The problem is she has a boyfriend (of course). He comes up with a plan to elope with her. She just doesn't want to date a goody-two-shoes.
So he devolpes a "bad-ass" alter-ego, named Francois Dillinger. And when he doesn't know what to do, he uses Francois as a sort of guide and mentor.
I think the ending was my favorite part of the movie. It was not quite what you expected, but at the same time it was. It is bitter-sweet, but I would say more sweet than bitter! :)

The Hurt Locker

Wow! This film is amazing! Everything about it is amazing! The cinematography, acting, art direction, and directing! You truly feel like you are there, standing in front of a bomb about to explode! It gets your heart racing!
Directed by Kathryn Bigelow and written by Mark Boal, this movie is a bit of everything. Sergeant First Class William James (played by the talented Jeremy Renner) is addicted to war. As the leader of an Army bomb squad, he will put everything below the addrenaline rush. Even if it means endangering his team, Sergeant JT Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) and Specialist Owen Eldiridge (Brian Geraghty). They struggle with their emotions as they are on a journey where every one is a potential enemy.
It fully deserved the Oscar for Best Motion Picture. Like I said before, amazing!

Tenure

This movie was fun to watch. It was a sarcastic drama that you could just pop in the DVD player. It was good, except that it had absolutely no conclusion of important details. One of the most annoying and unnecessary things was the flash back in the beginning, no point to it at all.
Luke Wilson starring as Charlie Thurber, an English college professor struggling with a mid-life crisis. Charlie is determined to get tenure, a permanent job of a teacher until retirement, by sucking up to Dean Leakey (played by William Bogert). He soon finds himself in a competition against Elaine Grasso (Gretchen Mol), a high status professor from Harvard. His friend, Jay Hadley (David Koechner), a corky anthropology professor, and founder of the Sasquatch Club, tries to "help" him, by sabotaging Grasso's reputation. But she develops feelings for Charlie instead.
Like I said before, it would be a cute funny film, if there was any romantic chemistry between Wilson and Mol. David and Luke, on the other hand, seemed to naturally work very well together.
An example of a detail that was left unanswered was the fact that Charlie kept seeing Sasquatch, more like a man dressed like him. I was waiting for him to glance and see the face of Dean Leakey or Jay behind the mask, but it ended up ignored and never being addressed. There are certainly many other things left unanswered.
But it is just a relaxed movie that you can watch, if you're having a bad day. It is funny. I would recommend it, just for the hell of it.

Ali G Indahouse

A scripted plot based on the original british TV show Da Ali G Show featuring Sacha Baron Cohen. It is nothing like the show, which is made-up of improvisational interviews Cohen's alteregos (Ali G, and occasionly Borat, also made into an Oscar winning movie) with seemingly oblivious people. Sex, drugs (mainly pot), sexism, cussing (basically in every sentence), homosexual jokes, and more! It is not as funny and spontainious as the show. This is definitely one of the worst movies I have ever seen. But if you are into downright stupid comedy, then you will love it, if you are a absolutely no fun at all and cannot take a joke, then you will hate it. With that said...I LOVED IT!

7 Classic Disney Movies Based On R-Rated Stories

"This is sorta creepy...actually a lot creepy..."

We can understand watering down a story to make it child-appropriate, but Disney didn't have any business adapting these tales in the first place.

View >>

Lars and the Real Girl

A heartbreakingly, heartwarming journey that bends your definition of real love.
This story, directed by Craig Gillespie, follows a sweet-natured, socially isolated man, named Lars (Ryan Gosling), who finds love in a life-size sex doll, named Bianca. He is completely content, in a delusional way, with his plastic lover. But finds he is delveloping feelings for a co-worker Margo.
This is a sweet, not to mention unique, story about discovering the limits of true love, and what is held back. You find yourself knowing what these characters are feeling, no matter how weird their relationships become, thanks to the quirky, well-written script by Nancy Oliver.
Although odd, this is a movie about love, yes real love.

Splice :: rogerebert.com :: Reviews

Maybe it is not the usually si-fi movie it is advertised as...

Splice :: rogerebert.com :: Reviews

3D or Idiocracy

Is it just me or do the film production companies seem to be pumping out 3D films like free Target gift-cards? Do they think we are too stupid to enjoy the substance of a movie so they need to keep us "occupied" with things flying at our faces through the screen? What will be next, dramas, foreign films, documentaries?...

9

Visually, pretty cool (most likely if you have an HD TV). Too bad the movie is lame...
9 is about the future, a future of machines that have destroyed humanity. The thirst for technology that they have created has turned against them. All that is left to stop them are the numbered dolls, created by a mastermind. The characters all have different personalities (if you could call them that) and purposes. It sounds like it could have been a good si-fi movie, but the flatness of the 'dolls' 'personalities ruines it.
No emotion, no matter how hard they actors tried, which obviously was not very much. Almost NONE of the voices seemed to fit their characters. There were stabs at comedy here and there, I guess to show that they were some what human, but it did NOT work...at all.
The only character that seemed to do anything for the movie was #5, voiced by John C. Reilly. He had a voice that fit his character. He was the only one who had any emotion in his voice.
This movie is not worth seeing, unless you have a 3D Imax theatre in your home. To sum up this movie in one word it would be flat...just flat.

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Classic Wes Anderson, people! The signature comedy, the one color theme (in this case orange, red, and gold), the long pauses, the lasting close-ups. You are aware of the clearcut personalities of the characters, almost imediatly. Sure some of the pauses are little too long, but somehow that makes it more unique, more appealing...to me at least.
A whole world is created by the detailed animation and recognizable characatures.
Cocky, handsome [Fantastic] Mr. Fox (voiced by the smooth, George Clooney) is nearing the end of his salad days. He has a family to look after and care for. His son, Ash (voiced by the awkward, Jason Schwartzman), is desperate to impress his father. But his father seems to be focused more on Kristofferson (voiced by Eric Chase Anderson), a cousin who has come to stay with them. It seems that Mr. Fox has replaced Kristofferson as his son. Mrs. Fox (voiced by the always original, Meryl Streep) is a sweet, dedicated housewife, who is worried for her husband's safety.
Mr. Fox longs to be the daring guy he used to be. But he, and his whole family, end up in trouble when he starts to get back into his old habits.
Anderson's comedy may be a little mature for children, although silly sometimes. And the plot may also be a little too slow and complicated for them. My 7 year old sister was not that impressed. I did enjoy watching it with my family.

Babies :: rogerebert.com :: Reviews

Babies :: rogerebert.com :: Reviews

The Brothers Bloom

Have you ever watched a movie, there is good acting, good cinematography, good directing, a good score, and a good script, but there were so many twists you were just ready for it to end. That is what is wrong with this movie.
Directed and written by Rian Johnson, The Brothers Bloom is about two brothers that become con-men. The younger brother, Bloom (Adrian Brody), is longing for a real life, an "unwritten" one. The older brother, Stephen (Mark Ruffalo), is still obsessed with the thrill of the con. With their "sidekick" (in a sense), Bang Bang (Rinko Kikuchi), they devise the most radical and imaginative cons, all written by Stephen, and pull them off, or possibly smooth talk their way out of it! But when the try to rip-off Penelope (Rachel Weisz), a lonely, single, heiress from New Jersey, it does not quite go as planed.
The problem is the brothers (and the writing) con you, and the audience, too much. The first two twists are intriguing and unexpected, but when you get to the 3rd (at the least), it sort of loses its thrill. Not that the movie was not good and fun to watch. It has a bit of everything, adventure/action/romance/comedy/drama, ect.
Adrien Brody gives a wonderful performance, and so does Mark Ruffalo. Like always Robbie Coltrane (The Curator), does a fantastic job. Rinko Kikuchi, whom I had never heard of before this film, is amazing, and I hope to see more of her in American, or British, movies! Rachel Weisz on the other hand...I do not like as much. Her character is a big part of the movie and she did not really seem to capture it well. I can see how it would be a hard role to play, an eccentric, lonely, hopeful, heiress, longing for adventure. But it just does not work, it seems like she is pushing too hard. Not to generalize, but I have never really liked her movies, or acting.
Yes, I would recommend this movie. Although you may get exhausted at times, its fun.

And personally I think Adrien Brody is handsome, although everyone seems to disagree. I guess I have a thing for tall, thin, jewish looking guys. Oh well, just felt like mentioning that.

Whatever Works

Boris Yellnikoff (Larry David from Curb Your Enthusiasm) hates people. The human race is a "failed" species, according to him. They are all "microbes" compared to his Nobel Prize intelligence. He would rather be isolated from the world than have a social interaction. Long story short, lets just say he is an extreme pessimist.
On his way home, from visiting the few friends he has, he meets a happy-go-lucky runaway named Melody St. Ann Celestine (Evan Rachel Wood). He takes her in and figures out, although she is not the smartest person in the world, she is not so bad. She opens his heart to the not so bad things in life and, for once, he is happy.
Woody Allen directs this sarcastic film about a guy who learns to love, despite how stupid.
I have to say I did not expect much of this movie. I thought it was going to be another story about a not so likable guy who finally discovers the meaning of life, or something like that. But I was pleasantly surprised. They were a lot of laughs, which I did not expect either. It was a feel good movie with a guy who learned what feel good was.

And the Winners Are...

Shame on the Academy for awarding Sandra Bullock the Best Actress award. Uhh, I am very ashamed of what the main stream film business has come too. People's taste these days...

http://oscar.go.com/oscar-night/winners

*copy link and paste onto little search link thingy...

The Cove

This is the heartbreaking, yet at times heartwarming, journey through a cove in Taji, Japan where the unbelievably cruel act of the annual slaughter of dolphins takes place. Ric O'Barry, the trainer of the dolphin, Kathy, that appeared on the popular TV show Flipper. When Kathy died from depression in his arm, he decided he would try and stop the capture of dolphins for entertainment, which he feels he has created. And the mental, and physical, abuse that comes with captivity.
He rounds up a team of people that are willing to try and stop this horrific act at all cost. The Cove is off limits...but of coarse that does not matter to them. It is hardly any chance of getting into it, it is blocked by rails, steep slopes/mountains, fences, and even electric fences. They maneuver around all of these challenges though, they are extremely brave, talented, determined, and passionate activists.
These are the type of people who deserved to be looked up to, and I certainly do. The film crew, oh my god the film crew, they are willing to risk it all, along with everyone else. Could you imagine what it would be like to follow these people around, having to go through almost all of the same things, carrying a film camera on your shoulder? How brave!
This film is disturbing, depressing (and I mean "I wanna kill myself" depressing), and there is a possibility that you may lose all possible hope in humanity. But don't, I am not saying you will not cry, or the images on the screen will not snap your heart in half, I am simply saying there is hope. There is hope because of the people who are willing to risk it all, the very people that you are watching on the TV screen.

The Nominees Are...

italic - should win, bold - will win, * - bullshit

Best Picture

Avatar - James Cameron & Jon Landau

The Blind Side - Gil Netter, Andrew A. Kosove, & Broderick Johnson*

District 9 - Peter Jackson & Carolynne Cunningham

An Education - Finola Dwyer & Amanda Posey

The Hurt Locker - Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier, & Greg Shapiro

Inglorious Bastards - Lawrence Bender

Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire - Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness, & Gary Magness

A Serious Man - Joel Coen & Ethan Coen

Up - Jonas Rivera

Up in the Air - Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman, & Jason Reitman


Best Actor

Jeff Bridges - Crazy Heart

George Clooney - Up in the Air

Colin Firth - A Single Man

Morgan Freeman - Invictus

Jeremy Renner - The Hurt Locker


Best Actress in a Leading Role

Sandra Bullock - The Blind Side*

Helen Mirren - The Last Station

Carey Mulligan - An Education

Gabourey Sidibe - Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire

Meryl Streep - Julie & Julia*


Best Actor in a Supporting Role

Matt Damon - Invictus

Woody Harrelson - The Messenger

Christopher Plummer - The Last Station

Stanley Tucci - The Lovely Bones

Christopher Waltz - Inglorious Bastards


Best Actress in a Supporting Role

Penelope Cruz - Nine

Vera Farmiga - Up in the Air

Maggie Gyllenhaal - Crazy Heart

Anna Kendrick - Up in the Air

Mo'Nique - Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire


Best Animated Feature

Coraline - Henry Selick

Fantastic Mr. Fox - Wes Anderson

The Princess and the Frog - John Musker & Ron Clements*

The Secret Kells - Tomm Moore

Up - Peter Docter


Best Documentary Feature

Berma VJ - Anders Ostergaard & Lise Lense-Moller

The Cove - Louie Psihoyos & Fisher Stevens

Food Inc. - Robert Kenner & Elise Pearlstein

The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers - Judith Ehrlich & Rick Goldsmith

Which Way Home - Rebecca Cammisa


Best Documentary Short

China's Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province - Jon Alpert & Matthew O'Neill

The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner - Daniel Junge & Henry Ansbacher

The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant - Steven Bognar & Julia Reichert

Music by Prudince - Roger Ross Williams & Elinor Burkett

Rabbit a la Berlin - Bartek Konopka & Anna Wydra


Best Foreign Language Film

Ajami - Isreal - Directed by Scandar Copti & Yaron Shani

The Milk of Sorrow (La Teta Asustada) - Peru - Directed by Claudia Llosa

A Prophete (Un Prophete) - France - Directed by Jacques Audiard

The Secret in Their Eyes (El Secreto de Sus Ojos) - Argentina - Directed by Juan José Campanella

The White Ribbon (Das Weisse Band) - Germany - Directed by Michael Haneke


Best Directing

Avatar - James Cameron

The Hurt Locker - Kathryn Bigelow

Inglorious Bastards - Quentin Tarantino

Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire - Lee Daniels

Up in the Air - Jason Reitman


Best Cinematography

Avatar - Mauro Fiore

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince - Bruno Delbonnel
The Hurt Locker - Barry Ackroyd

Inglorious Bastards - Robert Richardson

The White Ribbon (Das Weisse Band) - Christian Berger


Best Art Direction

Avatar - Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg (Art Direction); Kim Sinclair (Set Decoration)

Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus - Dave Warren and Anastasia Masaro (Art Direction); Caroline Smith (Set Decoration)

Nine - John Myhre (Art Direction); Gordon Sim (Set Decoration)

Sherlock Holmes - Sarah Greenwood (Art Direction); Katie Spencer (Set Decoration)

The Young Victoria - Patrice Vermette (Art Direction); Maggie Gray (Set Decoration)


Best Costume Design

Bright Star - Janet Patterson

Coco Before Chanel - Katherine Leterrier

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus - Monique Prudhomme

Nine - Colleen Atwood

The Young Victoria - Sandy Powell


Best Film Editing

Avatar - Stephen Rivkin, John Refoua, & James Cameron

District 9 - Julian Clarke

The Hurt Locker - Bob Murawski & Chris Innis

Inglorious Bastards - Sally Menke

Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire - Joe Klotz


Best Makeup

II Divo - Aldo Signoretti & Vittorio Sodano

Star Trek - Barney Burman, Mindy Hall, & Joel Harlow

The Young Victoria - Jon Henry Gordon & Jenny Shircore


Best Sound Editing

Avatar - Christopher Boyes & Gwendolyn Yates Whittle

The Hurt Locker - Paul N.J. Ottosson

Inglorious Bastards - Wylie Stateman

Star Trek - Mark Stoeckinger & Alan Rankin

Up - Micheal Silvers & Tom Myers


Best Sound Mixing

Avatar - Christopher Boyes, Gary Summers, Andy Nelson, & Tony Johnson

The Hurt Locker - Paul N.J. Ottosson & Ray Beckett

Inglorious Bastards - Michael Minkler, Tony Lamberti, & Mark Ulano

Star Trek - Anna Behlmer, Andy Nelson, & Peter J. Devlin

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen - Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers, & Geoffrey Patterson


Best Visual Effects

Avatar - Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham, & Andrew R. Jones

District 9 - Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers, Robert Habros, & Matt Aitken

Star Trek - Roger Guyett, Russell Earl, Paul Kavanagh, & Burt Dalton


Best Short Film (Animated)

French Roast - Fabrice O. Joubert

Granny O'Grimms Sleeping Beauty - Nicky Phelan and Darragh O'Connell

The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerta) - Javier Recio Gracia

Logorama - Nicolas Schmerkin

A Matter of Loaf and Death - Nick Park


Best Short Film (Live Action)

The Door - Juanita Wilson & James Flynn

Instead of Abracadabra - Patrik Eklund & Mathias Fjellström

Kavi - Gregg Heveley

Miracle Fish - Luke Doolan & Drew Bailey

The New Tenents - Joachim Back & Tivi Magnusson


Best Music (Original Score)

Avatar - James Horner

Fantastic Mr. Fox - Alexandre Desplat

The Hurt Locker - Marco Beltrami & Buck Sanders

Sherlock Holmes - Hans Zimmer

Up - Michael Giacchino


Best Music (Original Song)

The Princess and the Frog - "Almost There" - Music and Lyric by Randy Newman*

The Princess and the Frog - "Down in New Orleans" - Music and Lyric by Randy Newman*

Paris 36 - "Loin De Paname" - Music by Reinhardt Wagner and Lyric by Frank Thomas

Nine - "Take It All" - Music and Lyric by Maury Yeston

Crazy Heart - "The Weary Kind (Theme from Crazy Heart) - Music and Lyric by Ryan Bingham & T Bone Burnett

Best Writing (Original Screenplay)

The Hurt Locker - Written by Mark Boal

Inglorious Bastards - Written by Quentin Tarantino

The Messenger - Written by Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman

A Serious Man - Written by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen

Up - Screenplay by Bob Peterson & Pete Docter. Story by Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, & Tom McCarthy


Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

District 9 - Written by Neill Blomkamp & Terri Tatchell

An Education - Screenplay by Nick Hornby

In the Loop - Screenplay by Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, & Tony Roche

Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire - Screenplay by Geoffrey Fletcher

Up in the Air - Screenplay by Jason Reitman & Sheldon Turner




*Remember I cannot predict the future!*

Zombieland

An outbreak of mad cow disease is infecting people and turning them into...ZOMBIES!!! A dorky teen, called Columbus, meets up with a country hard ass, called Tallahassee, and two girls who have trust issues. They are the only ones who have seemed to survive the zombie apocalypse. All of them are headed towards a land that is hopefully untouched by this bizarre tragedy.
Directed by Ruben Fleischer and written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, this has the ideal script for a 15 year old adolescent boy and the amount of blood that you might find in a slaughterhouse. The zombies look freakin' awesome, the makeup artist is pretty damn good (at the least).
Woody Harrelson, (Tallahassee), does an amazing job at being a bad ass! And Abigail Breslin does a pretty good job, (veering off from her usual goody-goody roles).

I guess if I had to sum up this movie in one sentence it would be:
Kick ass as fuck!!!!!

To Be Or Not To Be?

Do not be so gruesomely pessimistic, but do not be obliviously optimistic. Do not be so quick to judge, but do not be so quick to trust. Do not generalize, but do not think all people are leaders.

Golden Globe Winners of 2010

Best Motion Picture - Drama
Avatar

Best Motion Picture - Comedy/Musical
The Hangover

Best Director
Avatar

Best Actress - Drama
Sandra Bullock - The Blind Side

Best Actor - Drama
Jeff Bridges - Crazy Heart

Best Actress - Comedy/Musical
Meryl Streep - Julie & Julia

Best Actor - Comedy/Musical
Robert Downey Jr. - Sherlock Holmes

Best Supporting Actress
Mo'nique - Precious: Based On The Novel Push By Sapphire

Best Supporting Actor
Christopher Waltz - Inglorious Bastards

Best Animated Feature Film
Up

Best Screenplay
Jason Reitman & Sheldon Turner - Up In The Air

Best Original Score
Up

Best Original Song
The Weary Kind - Crazy Heart (theme)

Best Foreign Film
The White Ribbon

Best TV Series - Drama
Mad Men

Best TV Series - Comedy/Musical
Glee

Best Actress in a TV Series - Drama
Julianna Marguiles - The Good Wife

Best Actor in a TV Series - Drama
Michael C. Hall - Dexter

Best Actress in a TV Series - Comedy/Musical
Toni Collette - United States of Tara

Best Actor in a TV Series - Comedy/Musical
Alec Baldwin - 30 Rock

Best Supporting Actress in a TV Series
Chloe Sevigny - Big Love

Best Supporting Actor in a TV Series
John Lithgal - Dexter

The Lovely Bones

Good story, good acting, good movie (for the most part)...except it was ruined! The sad thing is that only a couple of things ruined the entire movie.
A 14 year old suburban girl, Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan), kidnapped, raped, and murdered by a disturbed serial killer, George Harvey (Stanley Tucci), who rapes then murders young girls. When she realizes that she has died she goes to a sort of in between world, not reality and not heaven. Her father, Jack Salmon (Mark Wahlberg), is determined to find her killer, with Suzy guiding him from beyond. Susan Sarandon plays Grandma Lynn, who is a sarcastic alcoholic, brings some comedy to this dark story.
It did not stay true to the book, it was too watered down, the director, Peter Jackson, narrowed the character's personalities too much. Especially the murders character, I guess her thought that Stanley Tucci could not handle it, but I dare to disagree. Stanley Tucci is a phenomenal actor when he wants to be and I think he wanted to be this character. I also think he thought that the audience could not handle the characters gruesome mentality.
The thing that slaughtered the film is the in between world. I guess the word for it would be over-done. There were as many special effects as an action movie. This movie was definitely produced for adolescent girls.
I am extremely disappointed in this movie. It could have been well done. I don't blame anyone but the director.

A Letter to Rush Limbaugh :: rogerebert.com :: Opinion

READ THIS!!!! YOU GO ROGER, YOU ARE NOW ONE OF MY TOP TWO HEROES!!!! GOD DAMN YOU RUSH LIMBAUGH, dang I have wanted to say that for a loooooong time!!!!!!!!!!!!


A Letter to Rush Limbaugh :: rogerebert.com :: Opinion

Kathryn Bigelow: Best Director

Kathryn Bigelow was the first woman director last night at the Critics' Choice Movie Awards to win Best Director! She is the director of The Hurt Locker, probably one of the best films of the decade. The Hurt Locker also won Best Picture.
This maybe cliche, but I hope to be standing on the exact spot on stage she was. Her presence will linger on that stage. She has set a high standard for women directors, which is exactly what we need, to make a our mark on a genre overpowered by men. My heart is full of nothing but love for her. I am unbelievably proud.

Critics' Choice Movie Awards

There were triumphant moments and shockingly horrible moments at the Critics' Choice Movie Awards. The first woman director, Kathryn Bigelow, won Best Director! The Cove won best documentary! The best actress award was a TIE! The most devastating and undeserving tie I have ever seen on an award show...
Meryl Streep & Sandra Bullock, two of the most undeserving nominees in the Best Actress category! I am sure they at least did a decant job acting in those movies, from what I have heard, Meryl Streep did. She had a small challenge playing Julia Child, with the accent and all, but... All of the other nominees deserved to win over those two!
Do not get me wrong, I am not dissing Sandra Bullock or anything, actually let me take that back... The Blind Side was probably the best acting she has done in a long time, if not ever, but I mean look at her movie career...it is not the best track record I have ever seen. She has the same character personality in most, if not all, of her "films", just in a different sticky situation. Predictable romantic comedies/chick flicks. The girl and the guy who do not really like each other or do not really want to fall in love, but always end up doing it anyway... This film was a big jump for her, and from what I have heard, she handled it pretty well for her acting abilities.
All I can say is...disappointing...for the most part...

Golden Globe Awards 2010

I haven't seen all of the films or TV shows nominated but I am predicting the winners from what I have seen, what I have heard, and what I have read. Remember I can not predict the future.

who's going to win in bold
who should win in italics
* who has a chance
~ what I have seen
^ who should not be nominated



Best Drama - Film

• Avatar ~
• The Hurt Locker *
• Inglorious Bastards *
  
• Precious: Based On The Novel By Sapphire ~ *
  
• Up In The Air

Should Be Nominated - Best Drama - Film

• Public Enemies
  

Best Actress - Drama - Film

• Emily Blunt - The Young Victoria
• Sandra Bullock - The Blind Side ^
• Helen Mirren - The Last Station
• Carey Mulligan - An Education
• Gabourey Sidibe - Precious: Based On The Novel By Sapphire ~ *

Best Actor - Drama - Film

• Jeff Bridges - Crazy Heart
• George Clooney - Up In The Air
• Colin Firth - A Single Man
• Morgan Freeman - Invictus *
  
• Tobey Maguire - Brothers *

Should Be Nominated - Best Actor - Drama - Film

• Johnny Depp - Public Enemies
  

Best Comedy/Musical - Film

• (500) Days Of Summer ~ * -for comedy
  
• The Hangover ~
• It's Complicated
  
• Julie & Julia ^
  
• Nine * -for musical

Should Be Nominated - Best Comedy/Musical - Film

• Away We Go
  

Best Actress - Comedy/Musical - Film

• Sandra Bullock - The Proposal ^
• Marion Cotillard - Nine *
• Julia Roberts - Duplicity
• Meryl Streep - It's Complicated
• Meryl Streep - Julie & Julia

Best Actor - Comedy/Musical - Film

• Matt Damon - The Informant! -for comedy
  
• Daniel Day-Lewis - Nine -for musical
  
• Robert Downey Jr. - Sherlock Holmes *
• Joseph Gordon-Levitt - (500) Days Of Summer ~ *
• Michael Stuhlbarg - A Serious Man

Best Supporting Actress - Film

• Penelope Cruz - Nine *
  
• Vera Farmiga - Up In The Air *
  
• Anna Kendrick - Up In The Air *
  
• Mo'nique - Precious: Based On The Novel By Sapphire ~
  
• Julianne Moore - A Single Man

Best Supporting Actor - Film

• Matt Damon - Invictus
• Woody Harrelson - The Messenger *
  
• Christopher Plummer - The Last Station *
  
• Stanley Tucci - The Lovely Bones *
  
• Christopher Waltz - Inglorious Bastard
  

Best Animated Film

• Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs ^
  
• Coraline * ~
  
• Fantastic Mr. Fox
• The Princess And Frog ^
  
• Up * ~
  

Best Director - Drama - Film

• Kathryn Bigelow - The Hurt Locker *
  
• James Cameron - Avatar
• Clint Eastwood - Invictus *
  
• Jason Reitman - Up In The Air
  
• Quentin Tarantino - Inglorious Bastards *

Best TV Series - Drama

• Big Love (HBO) *
  
• Dexter (SHOWTIME) *
  
• House (FOX) ~
  
• Mad Men (AMC) ~
  
• True Blood (HBO) * ~
  

Best Actress - TV - Drama

• Glenn Close - Damages (FX) *
  
• January Jones - Mad Men (AMC) ~
  
• Julianna Margulies - The Good Wife (CBS)
• Anna Paquin - True Blood (HBO) * ~
  
• Kyra Sedgwick - The Closer (TNT) * ~
  

Best Actor - TV -Drama

• Simon Baker - The Mentalist (CBS) ^ ~
  
• Michael C. Hall - Dexter (SHOWTIME) *
  
• Jon Hamm - Mad Men (AMC) ~
  
• Hugh Laurie - House (FOX) ~
  
• Bill Paxton - Big Love (HBO)

Best TV Series - Comedy/Musical

• 30 Rock (NBC) ~
  
• Entourage (HBO) *
  
• Glee (FOX) ^
  
• Modern Family (ABC) ~
  
• The Office (NBC) ~

Should Be Nominated - Best TV Series - Comedy/Musical

• It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia
• How I Met Your Mother
• The Big Bang Theory
  

Best Actress - TV - Comedy/Musical

• Toni Collette - United States Of Tara (SHOWTIME)
• Courtney Cox - Cougar Town (ABC) ^
  
• Edie Falco - Nurse Jackie (SHOWTIME)
• Tina Fay - 30 Rock (NBC) ~
  
• Lea Michele - Glee (FOX) ^
  

Best Actor - TV - Comedy/Musical

• Alec Baldwin - 30 Rock (NBC) ~
  
• Steve Carell - The Office (NBC) * ~
  
• David Duchovny - Californication (SHOWTIME) *
  
• Thomas Jane - Hung (HBO)
  
• Matthew Morrison - Glee (FOX) ^

Should Be Nominated - Best Actor - TV - Comedy/Musical

• Danny Devito - It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia
• Neil Patrick Harris - How I Met Your Mother

Sunday, January 17th
NBC
7:00 central
Ricky Jervais is hosting

Paper Heart

A corky documentary, directed by Nicholas Jasenovec, about love. I wonder why nobody has thought of this before. Love is usually thought of as either simple or overly complicated. It is certainly stereotyped, but this film dives deep into the concept of the word...love.
Charlyne Yi, comedian and actress, does not believe in love. She decides to go on a journey to figure out if love is real or not. On her journey she meets Michael Cera (from Juno). Ironically, they make an instant connection, and as the movie progresses, they fall in love. But Charlyne refuses to except this.
Their relationship seems real, but I could not quite figure out if it was part of the plot of the movie, or just a coincidence, they would be a good couple though.
Personally, I did not like Charlyne. I thought that she was to immature, so much so that she seemed like a 12 year old. She was too quiet, now if she was shy that would be a different story, but she just did not follow through when she spoke and did not make it clear why she was even speaking. But I am certain that she would be lovable to a lot of people.
The best scenes in the film were little puppet shows, which acted out moments when the couples being interviewed truly fell in love.
This was not the best documentary I have seen, but it did change my perspective on love.

*I would recommend this film.