Oscars 2016

Well, here’s my reaction to the Oscar nominees.  Unsurprisingly, I haven’t seen most of these movies.

BEST PICTURE

The Big Short, Bridge of Spies, Brooklyn, Mad Max: Fury Road, The Martian, The Revenant, Room, Spotlight

WHAT I’M ROOTING FOR

So far I’ve only seen Mad Max, The Martian, and The Revenant.  Bridge of Spies looks good, but hardly groundbreaking.  I’ve heard Room is excellent.  I found it quite refreshing that Fury Road was nominated.  I was expecting The Force Awakens to get an undeserved nomination as the token mainstream genre hit. 

WHAT I’M ROOTING AGAINST

The Revenant - just an ok movie with excellent cinematography.

THE SNUBS

Mockingjay Part 2, Inside Out

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

Anomalisa, Boy and the World, Inside Out, Shaun the Sheep Movie, When Marnie Was There

WHOM I’M ROOTING FOR

Don’t know, I’ve only seen Inside Out out of all of these, and most of the others look good.

THE SNUBS

The Good Dinosaur (possibly)

BEST DIRECTOR

Adam McKay (The Big Short), George Miller (Mad Max Fury Road), Alejandro G. Inarritu (The Revenant)

Lenny Abrahamson (Room), Tom McCarthy (Spotlight)

WHOM I’M ROOTING FOR

George Miller, with Alejandro G. Inarritu as a distant second.  I haven’t seen the other movies.

WHOM I’M ROOTING AGAINST

This isn’t very professional, but I’m very skeptical that Adam McKay can make a great film.  I have an established dislike for most for his work.

THE SNUBS

Quentin Tarantino (The Hateful Eight), Francis Lawrence (Mockingjay), Michael Dougherty (Krampus), Guillermo del Toro (Crimson Peak)

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Bridge of Spies, Ex Machina, Inside Out, Spotlight, Straight Outta Compton

WHOM I’M ROOTING FOR

Inside Out, probably, though I haven’t seen most of the others.

WHOM I’M ROOTING AGAINST

Ex Machina - that asinine line about favorite colors should have singlehandedly disqualified it for this award.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

The Big Short, Brooklyn, Carol, The Martian, Room

WHOM I’M ROOTING FOR

The Martian, though I haven’t seen the rest of these.

THE SNUBS

Mockingjay, particularly for its improved ending.

BEST ACTOR

Bryan Cranston (Trumbo), Matt Damon (The Martian), Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant), Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs), Eddie Redmayne (The Danish Girl)

WHOM I’M ROOTING FOR

This is a good group.  Matt Damon was likable in The Martian.  DiCaprio and Fassbender are both due for a win.  Bryan Cranston is a good actor, but I’m happy Trumbo didn’t get nominated for any other award.  I think I’m rooting for DiCaprio so I don’t have to listen to people continue complaining about his Oscar snubs. 

WHOM I’M ROOTING AGAINST

Eddie Redmayne just because he’s already gotten his, but that’s not very objective.  

THE SNUBS

Johnny Depp (Black Mass), Samuel L. Jackson (The Hateful Eight).

BEST ACTRESS

Cate Blanchett (Carol), Brie Larson (Room), Jennifer Lawrence (Joy), Charlotte Rampling (45 Years), Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn)

I haven’t seen any of these, but I know Jennifer Lawrence was good in Mockingjay.

THE SNUBS
Daisy Ridley (The Force Awakens)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Christian Bale (The Big Short), Tom Hardy (The Revenant), Mark Ruffalo (Spotlight), Mark Rylance (Bridge of Spies), Sylvester Stallone (Creed)

WHOM I’M ROOTING FOR

Tom Hardy because he’s Tom Hardy

WHOM I’M ROOTING AGAINST

Mark Ruffalo because he’s Mark Ruffalo

THE SNUBS

Walton Goggins (The Hateful Eight), John Goodman* (Trumbo), John Boyega (The Force Awakens) Donald Sutherland (Mockingjay), Oscar Isaac (Ex Machina/The Force Awakens)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Jennifer Jason Leigh (The Hateful Eight), Rooney Mara (Carol), Rachel McAdams (Spotlight), Alicia Vikander (The Danish Girl), Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs)

WHOM I’M ROOTING FOR

I’ve only seen The Hateful Eight, but Jennifer Jason Leigh was excellent in it.

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

Thomas Newman (Bridge of Spies), Carter Burwell (Carol), Ennio Morricone (The Hateful Eight), Jόhannn Jόhannsson (Sicario), John Williams (Star Wars: The Force Awakens)

WHOM I’M ROOTING FOR

Ennio Morricone.  The Hateful Eight’s score was excellent, and this is a golden opportunity for the Academy to right a wrong by never giving Morricone an Oscar.  Sicario is a runner-up with a haunting score.  Bridge of Spies and Carol are also good, too.

WHOM I’M ROOTING AGAINST

John Williams for Force Awakens.  A very disappointing score.  Say what you will about the prequels, Williams really pulled it out for them.  Episode VII’s score was every bit as unoriginal as the movie itself.

THE SNUBS

Junkie XL (Mad Max: Fury Road), James Newton Howard (Mockingjay)

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

“Earned It” (Fifty Shades of Grey), “Manta Ray” (Racing Extinction), “Simple Song #3” (Youth), “Til It Happens to You” (The Hunting Ground), “Writing’s On the Wall” (Spectre)

WHAT I’M ROOTING FOR

“Simple Song #3”

THE SNUBS

Also, MLP:EG: The Friendship Games surprisingly had a consistently good collection of songnumbers.

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Carol, The Hateful Eight, Mad Max: Fury Road, The Revenant, Sicario

WHOM I’M ROOTING FOR

The Hateful Eight, for its excellent 70mm filming, and The Revenant.  Possibly Fury Road

THE SNUBS

Crimson Peak

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

Bridge of Spies, Mad Max: Fury Road, The Danish Girl, The Martian, The Revenant

WHOM I’M ROOTING FOR

Mad Max: Fury Road, hands down.

THE SNUBS

Crimson Peak, Cinderella, Krampus, Mockingjay

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Carol, Cinderella, The Danish Girl, Mad Max Fury Road, The Revenant

WHOM I’M ROOTING FOR

Mad Max: Fury Road, with Cinderella as an extremely distant second

WHOM I’M ROOTING AGAINST

All the others.  The Oscars should only consider memorable costume designs for this award.

THE SNUBS

Crimson Peak, Mockingjay, Krampus

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING

Mad Max: Fury Road, The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared, The Revenant

WHOM I’M ROOTING FOR

The Revenant.  I haven’t seen Hundred-Year-Old Man, but it actually looks like a fun movie anyways.

THE SNUBS

The Hateful Eight, Mockingjay

BEST SOUND MIXING

Mad Max: Fury Road,Bridge of Spies , Star Wars: The Force Awakens, The Martian, The Revenant

THE SNUBS

I usually don’t care much about this award, but Hateful Eight’s sound effects were spectacularly executed, and I’m actually quite miffed it wasn’t nominated.  Crimson Peak also deserved a nod.

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Ex Machina, Mad Max: Fury Road, The Martian, The Revenant, Star Wars: The Force Awakens

WHOM I’M ROOTING FOR

Mad Max: Fury Road – excellent stunts and refreshing use of great practical effects.  The runner-up would be Ex Machina for convincing use of CGI despite its relatively low budget.  Force Awakens looks like a good choice for awarding the best of both worlds.

WHOM I’M ROOTING AGAINST

The Revenant, for that fakey CGI bear.

MOST SNUBBED MOVIES (NOMINATIONS:SNUBS)

Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2   0:8

Crimson Peak    0:5

Krampus    0:3

Hateful Eight    3:5

*John Goodman has never even been nominated.  And people complain about Leonardo DiCaprio.

2015 Movies Ranked

<< 2014   2016 >>

25. Jupiter Ascending

D: The Wachowskis

**********

I had a bad feeling about this, but I still gave it a chance because I’m one of the few people who have liked all the Wachowskis’ movies up to this point.  It wasn’t even ironically enjoyable; it was just boring and unoriginal.  Even the action, an element which the Wachowskis have never disappointed on, was underwhelming.

24. Mortdecai

D: David Koepp

**********

While it did have some funny moments, a lot of jokes went nowhere.  For the most part, it was a stillborn comedy with a plot that was nothing special.

23. Minions
D: Pierre Coffin, Kyle Balda
**********
I only went to see it for Scarlet Overkill, who was pretty sexy.  While some of the slapstick is amusing, most of the movie is a pointless waste of time.  I will admit that young Gru's reveal at the end was pretty good fanservice. 


22. Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens

D: J.J. Abrams

**********

Wow, they really went overboard with the Special Edition this time.  It was pretty much a rehash of A New Hope, but that didn’t surprise me much.  I was really disappointed by Finn’s character arc (they really sold up the lie that he would be a Jedi).  There were some good arcs, though.  Han and Leia’s arc was tragic and Luke’s depiction was better than I thought.  Kylo Ren was an interesting and surprisingly vulnerable villain.  Poe was likable, and BB-8 was cute.  The rushed pacing and overdone comic tone made it seem like a spoof of a classic.  Particularly disappointing was John Williams's score, an aspect of the series that was always great even in the prequels.   

21. Spectre

D: Sam Mendes

**********

It’s a fun movie, but it aborts a very good story arc that the series had done a great job building up to that point.  It makes the same mistake that Dark Knight Rises made with Batman.  I hated the theme song when I first heard it, but it’s grown on me.

20. Room
D: Lenny Abrahamson
**********
An original, effective movie, but not that enjoyable.

19. Black Mass

D: Scott Cooper

**********

From what I’ve heard, the movie took a really interesting story and simplified it for the sake of an aesthetic decision to depict Whitey Bulger as a demonic character who leads everyone astray.  It’s typical organized crime fare without much to set it apart except for Depp’s Oscar-worthy performance, good cinematography, and some nice shots of the Boston City Hall.

19. Cartel Land
D: Matthew Heineman
**********
An informative but oddly forgettable documentary.


18. Bone Tomahawk
D: S. Craig Zahler
**********
Watched this based on some enthusiastic recommendations.  Good, but a bit overpraised.


17. Ex Machina

D: Alex Garland

**********

Saw this hoping for a truly original SF movie.  It’s a typical plot, but its exploration of artificial consciousness does set it apart.  Still, what the fuck was with that asinine line about favorite colors?

16. Blackhat

D: Michael Mann

**********

This movie got some attention because of its relatively realistic depiction of hacking.  The gunfights and visual style were disappointing coming from Michael Mann, but it was certainly more watchable than Miami Vice (2006).  Though it was a huge flop, it was a decent movie that at least deserved to make its money back.

15. Crimson Peak

D: Guillermo del Toro

**********

A visually beautiful but predictable horror movie.  Between this and Pacific Rim, I’m getting the feeling that del Toro is using his visual style as a crutch.  Also, “I’M NOT AFRAID OF LUCILLE!  SHE LIES!”

14. Inside Out

D: Pete Docter

**********

Very creative movie that lives up to my expectations for Pixar.  Poor Bing-Bong.

13. Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation

D: Christopher McQuarrie

**********

A decent popcorn movie, but not the best in the series.  The leading lady was hyped, but she was mostly typical Bond girl material.  I liked the villain.

12. The Peanuts Movie

D: Steve Martino

**********

Aside from a couple bad pop songs, the movie is an earnest and passable adaptation.  The best part is the animation, which combines 2-D simplicity and 3-D detail in a way that’s beautiful and distinctive.

11. The Martian

D: Ridley Scott

**********

I good, funny movie with an optimistic portrayal of space exploration.  Matt Damon is lovably smarmy, and the comic relief really helps make the movie fun.  I’m not sure I can remove Scott from this list, though.  The film is visually generic and has little directorial vision.  It mostly seemed like a competent execution of a good script with a solid cast (think Brett Ratner and Red Dragon).

10. Bridge of Spies
D: Steven Spielberg
**********
A solid movie about America and what it stands for vs. the Soviet Union.


9. Maggie

D: Henry Hobson

**********

I’m not a big fan of earnest zombie movies, but this is a heartfelt drama that features a surprisingly vulnerable Arnold Schwarzenegger.  For those of you expecting action/survival, don’t get your hopes up.  Unless it’s emotional survivial or something.

8. The Revenant
D: Alejandro G. Inarritu
**********
Excellent cinematography, but otherwise not much to write home about.  Chances are you probably figured out the plot from watching the trailer.  The CGI bear is a little out-of-place.  I would have preferred some well-executed animatronics like those in The Grey.

7. The Good Dinosaur

D: Peter Sohn

**********

It takes the Bambi/Don Bluth formula and milks it for all it’s worth.  What it lacks in originality, it makes up for in execution.  The character designs are great and Arlo is one of the most adorable cartoon characters I’ve ever seen (and people think the Minions are cute).    I was nonplussed when Arlo seemingly killed the fleeing, wounded antagonist at the end (and people complained about Man of Steel).

6. Krampus
D: Michael Dougherty
**********
I did have some problems with the movie's sometimes clumsy attempts to reconcile humor with suspense.  Still, the movie had great design and effects which contributed to a B-Movie atmosphere with a Christmas twist.  That, combined with some effective comic relief, made this much like the movie Drag Me to Hell should have been.  I think it could have been more faithful to the legend, though. 


5. The Lobster
D: Yorgos Lanthimos
**********
A dark satire about relationships and how we go about them whose absurdist humor is a bit dry for some people.


4. The Hateful Eight

D: Quentin Tarantino

**********

Not as fun as Django, but well-executed.  I might have to watch it again to see if there’s any subtle foreshadowing.  I respect the movie for not doing a recap montage during the reveal.  The 70mm cinematography is excellent, and so is the sound editing.  It would be a shame if Ennio Morricone does not win a belated Oscar for the haunting score.  I noticed some parallels to The Thing (Kurt Russell, Ennio Morricone, bunch of people in blizzard environment being suspicious of each other, the movie’s ending with a black guy and a white guy getting over their differences and waiting to die together.) 

3. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2

D: Francis Lawrence

**********

A solid end to a well-executed series.  It does get brutal at times, and Philip Seymour Hoffman’s partial absence is felt.

2. Mad Max: Fury Road

D: George Miller

**********

Visually brilliant movie with great design.  Practical effects, coherent and effectively simple plot…these all seem like a lost art.  One of the few effective attempts by a great director to revisit his old classics.  It doesn’t just work, it’s actually an improvement.  This movie (or Crimson Peak) should sweep all the design-based awards.  Liked the energetic score, too.

1. The VVitch
D: Robert Eggers
**********
A unique masterpiece of horror.  Would easily be the best film of the year if not for...

<< 2014   2016 >>

Least Favorite Movies of 2015

<< 2014   2016 >>

Favorite Movies of 2015

2015 was a terrible year, but I did a pretty good job avoiding bad movies.  Maybe it’s because I opted out of going to see any superhero flicks.  

3. Minions
D: Pierre Coffin, Kyle Balda
**********
I only went to see it for Scarlet Overkill, who was pretty sexy.  While some of the slapstick is amusing, most of the movie is a pointless waste of time.  I will admit that young Gru's reveal at the end was pretty good fanservice. 

2. Mortdecai

D: David Koepp

**********

While it did have some funny moments, a lot of jokes went nowhere.  For the most part, it was a stillborn comedy with a plot that was nothing special.

1. Jupiter Ascending

D: The Wachowskis

**********

I had a bad feeling about this, but I still gave it a chance because I’m one of the few people who have liked all the Wachowskis’ movies up to this point.  It wasn’t even ironically enjoyable; it was just boring and unoriginal.  Even the action, an element which the Wachowskis have never disappointed on, was underwhelming.

<< 2014   2015 >>

2016 Movie Preview

MOVIES I INTEND TO SEE

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi

Jan 15

D: Michael Bay

Not the biggest fan of Michael Bay, but I’ll probably see this for no other reason than to spite people who are more offended that Michael Bay is making a movie about Benghazi than the thing itself.

                                                       

Kung Fu Panda 3

Jan 29

D: Jennifer Yuh Nelson, Alessandro Carloni

The trailers emphasize Po’s buffoonery, but the movies have always been more than that.  I’m a little worried since the villain seems to be played for laughs, though.

Deadpool

Feb 12

D: Tim Miller

Looks like a movie that does justice to a funny character.  However, considering that it’s a gunplay-heavy action comedy, I’m afraid of the direction it might take politically.  I hope this isn’t Shoot’em Up all over again. 

Zoolander No. 2

Feb 12

D: Ben Stiller

I love Zoolander, so I’ll momentarily lift my avoidance of comedians (the worst of the bad bunch that is Hollywood) to see this.  The trailer isn’t terribly funny (with the exception of “All is all”), but that’s not necessarily a bad sign with comedies.  I wouldn’t be too surprised if the movie sucks but receives the critical acclaim the first one should have gotten.  Zoolander pioneered this brand of quirky comedy, which seems to have gotten stale nowadays.

Zootopia

Mar 4

D: Byron Howard, Rich Moore

Not the first time Jason Bateman was turned into afurry.  It’s not like the anthros are a new thing, and Kung Fu Panda is a popular contemporary anthro movie, so what’s the big deal with this one?  I think it’s because this is Disney coming back to furry cartoons.  The company has been distancing itself from the image despite being one of the primary sources of the Fandom.  Now they’re consciously embracing it.  That’s why it’s making such a splash among furries.  It looks promising, but it might suck.  Heaven help you, Disney, if you make Jason Bateman unfunny.

Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice

Mar 25

D: Zack Snyder

I know Man of Steel wasn’t that good a movie, but I thought it was fun.  I may not like Zack Snyder’s penchant for intermittent speed during action scenes, but his art direction usually results in beautiful looking movies.  I also like Jeremy Irons and Jesse Eisenberg.  

Captain America: Civil War

May 6

D: Anthony & Joe Russo

I was surprised by how much I loved Winter Soldier.  It had the best action in the Marvel movie series, and I am completely on board with the Russo Bros.  Even more so now that Iron Man is involved.

Finding Dory

June 17

D: Andrew Stanton

Finding Nemo was a good movie, and the sequel will probably be good too.  I also like orcas.

Ghostbusters

July 15

D: Paul Feig

I know Ghostbusters is a classic, but I don’t mind it being remade with a female cast because I find Kristen Wiig and Melissa McCarthy funny.  I also love the new Ecto 1.

Suicide Squad

Aug 5

D: David Ayer

People may complain about how dark the DC movies are, but I like the grittiness.  It’s interesting how this world is exploring a world gone mad by the events of Man of Steel.  Jared Leto is perfectly cast as the Joker, even if the character design is questionable.   Funny, there were no superhero movies last year I intended to see, but this year there’s four.

Moana

Nov 23

D: Ron Clements, John Musker

I don’t like how these directors are now doing a 3D animated film, but I’m sure it will be good.

THE MAYBES

Ratchet and Clank

Apr 29

D: Jerrica Cleland, Kevin Munroe

Who knows?  This might actually be a good video game movie.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows

June 3

D: Dave Clark

As much as I hate what Michael Bay did to my childhood with “Transformers,” this looks like a faithful adaptation of the cartoon.  

Warcraft

June 17

D: Duncan Jones

The premise is interesting; I like the orcs’ being depicted in a sympathetic light.  There isn’t enough of that in high fantasy.  The CGI in the trailer looks awful and the cinematography looks inept, though.  Duncan Jones is a good director but maybe he’s out of his element in this genre.

Independence Day: Resurgence

Jun 24

D: Roland Emmerich

So they’re making a sequel to Independence Day.  This seems odd because I was pretty sure they stated that the entire alien race was on that ship.  It’s also odd that Brent Spiner is listed as a cast member, because I’m pretty sure his character died.  Maybe the aliens will raise the dead like in Plan 9 From Outer Space.  Most of the reasons I liked the first one (the use of practical effects and the fact that it came out when I was 11) won’t apply to this one.  Still, the idea of the humans having reverse-engineered alien technology to even the odds makes this slightly interesting. 

The Secret Lives of Pets

July 8

D: Chris Renaud, Yarrow Cheney

Looks meh, but a maybe.

Pete’s Dragon

Aug 12

D: David Lowery

I’m not the biggest fan of Disney’s bland, pseudodark live-action remakes of its animated classics (I’m looking at you, Maleficent), but I’m not really familiar with the original Pete’s Dragon.  Hopefully they’ll fix the dragon’s design, which I was never too fond of.

Storks

Aug 23

D: Nicholas Stoller, Doug Sweetland

Don’t know anything about this, but I like Kelsey Grammer.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Nov 18

D: David Yates

I thought we were done with Harry Potter.  Oh well, this might be worth checking out.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Dec 18

D: Gareth Edwards

I know that Star Wars has always been overcommercialized, but I always liked to think that at least the movies were a special occasion, good or bad.  A plethora of spin-offs would just make things even more banal.

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children

Dec 25

D: Tim Burton

I had already written Tim Burton off, there’s an off-chance he might redeem himself.  At least I can dream.

MOVIES I PROBABLY WILL NOT SEE

Gods of Egypt

Feb 26

D: Alex Proyas

You know what?  Maybe I should have put Alex Proyas on this list.

The Jungle Book

April 15

D: Jon Favreau

Another unnecessary live-action remake from Disney.  At least we’ve perfected live-action talking animals now.  I love Bill Murray, but he is grossly miscast as Baloo.  If you’re going to have a celebrity voice him, you should have gone back to John Goodman.  Still, I think it is funny to think of Bill Murray Baloo hearing that Mowgli has been kidnapped by monkeys and just not giving a shit.

The Huntsman: Winter’s War

Apr 22

D: Cedric Nicolas-Troyan

I like the monochromatic look, but it looks like generic live-action gritty reboot dreck.

Snowden

May 13

D: Oliver Stone

Not really interested in a puff piece on Snowden made by a left-wing conspiracy theorist.

The Angry Birds Movie

May 20

D: Clay Kaytis, Fergal Reilly

A movie based on a video game I’ve never played nor ever had any intention of playing.

Alice Through the Looking Glass

May 27

D: James Bobin

Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland was so bad I’m surprised a sequel even got greenlit.  Lots of 3D garbage cinematography by the look of it.  The design of the villain looks good, though.

X-Men: Apocalypse

May 27

D: Bryan Singer

I didn’t like Days of Future Past.  They should probably just let this series die.

The Purge 3

July 1

D: James DeMonaco

The series’ premise was about how supporting the NRA and Tea Party are somehow like making crime legal for a night.  I’m not kidding, that’s literally the logicbehind these movies.

Ice Age: Collision Course

July 22

D: Mike Thurmeier, Galen T. Chu

I never really liked this series that much.

Star Trek Beyond

July 22

D: Justin Lin

Star Trek made by the director of Fast and Furious?  I’m not the biggest fan of the new Star Trek movies, but this looks like total garbage.

Ben-Hur

Aug 12

D: Timur Bekmambetov

Now here’s an answer to a question nobody asked: Let’s make a remake of Ben-Hur with action scenes that randomly slow down and speed up!  (Yes, I know Ben-Hur was a remake, too)

Sly Cooper

Sep 25

D: Kevin Munroe

I love the games, but I never really thought the story had the potential for a movie adapation.  The animation lacks the stylized look of the source material.  And dear Gosh, Murray, what did they do to you? 

Underworld: Next Generation

Oct 21

D: Anna Foerster

Not much more explanation needed for why I’m not rushing out to see this one.

Trolls

Nov 4

D: Mike Mitchell

This has got to be the most absurdly belated movie adaptation since The Simpsons Movie.  I mean this is at least 20 years too late.  I never liked troll dolls anyway.