The Academy asked me to hold off on my predictions for the 2016 Academy Awards until tonight so I wouldn’t influence the voters. I understand. Frankly, I didn’t get to see a lot of the pictures yet, which makes me qualified to be an official Oscar voter. That plus the fact that I’m a white male…
I’m not watching the Oscars tonight. I really enjoy the spectacle generally, but I am passing this time. I really feel the #OscarsSoWhite movement is an important one. I stand with Spike and Jada…
Nevertheless, I am a huge movie fan. So I’m going to leave you with a few thoughts and 140 character reviews of some of the nominees. Some of these have links to my full review, but a bunch of them I’ve seen only within the past couple of weeks and haven’t reviewed yet. (I actually only saw The Revenant this morning, Ex Machina last night, Spotlight yesterday and The Big Short Friday night.)
So now, without further ado, here are my thoughts for the February 28th telecast of the Oscars:
Best Picture:
Someone needs to explain to me this whole number of nominees thing. For years there were only five, which was too few. But instead of upping it to ten, they have this weird criteria. But they are allowed ten. So you should have ten. Every time. It’s totally inexcusable that Ex Machina and Chi-Raq weren’t included here, and there are other pictures that had deserved those extra slots. No, Chi-Raq isn’t on the face of it a “Best Picture”, but it’s unbelievably timely and unique. And Bridge of Spies, while excellent, is in no way on the same level of import as some of the others.
If anything other than The Big Short wins, I’m calling shenanigans…
140 Character Reviews:
Bridge of Spies (2015): Exactly what it looks like. Maybe best example of a note-perfect film that no one in the world asked for. Talented people not exerting much.
Brooklyn (2015): Yes, you’ve seen and read stories like this before. It isn’t unique. But there’s something to be said for doing something well, nay perfect.
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015): Original filmmaker Miller returns to his most famous (human) character with intense, unrelenting, disturbing & completely nuts thrill ride.
Room (2015): I’m sorry. I just ran out of time. I really do want to see this. It looks great, and Brie Larson is sure to win without my help…
Spotlight (2015): Less about church scandal than power and vitality of journalism. Wonderfully executed with few factual missteps; but some are pretty bad…
The Big Short (2015): One of single best examples of masterful adaptation of a difficult subject matter. The book is excellent, but the film is truly sublime…
The Martian (2015): If you haven’t read the book, you’ll love it almost without qualification. If you have, it can never be as satisfying, but it’s still great.
The Revenant (2015): Fantastic if your idea of good time is watching people eat raw meat & get violently & graphically maimed. Gorgeous achievement but overlong.
Nominees for other awards:
140 Character Reviews:
Ex Machina (2015): This is EXACTLY what great science fiction looks like. AI is our future; more stories coming. Superbly written, acted & paced. Masterpiece.
Straight Outta Compton (2015): More than a simple biopic, time capsule of tumultuous age. Missing some important players, still mostly candid/truthful. Punches own weight.
The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared (2013 – US 2015): Lovely, funny adaptation of quirky Swedish novel. Hints of Being There/Forrest Gump in no way detract from triumph. Full of fun characters.
Inside Out (2015): Typical Pixar magic from co-director Pete Docter w/ great emotional stuff leading to leaky eyes & lots of laughs. So why didn’t it grab me?
Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens (2015): No surprise that House of Mouse would give fans EXACTLY what they clamored for. Careful what you wish for. Equal parts great & derivative…
Cinderella (2015): Typically well-made live-action update of classic fairy tale is aggressively ok. Far too long for little ones to sit still – parents, too…
Should Be Here / Robbed:
Jason Mitchell’s performance as Eric “Eazy-E” Wright in Straight Outta Compton was noteworthy and probably should have earned him a nod…
Chi-Raq is the most important film that came out last year. Yes, it’s a bit of a mixed bag, but it deserves to be part of the national conversation…
Ian McKellen was absolutely robbed of a nomination…
140 Character Reviews:
Chi-Raq (2015): Spike’s latest joint is his most important & timely ever; high praise indeed considering his previous work. #MostImportantAmericanFilmmaker
Mr. Holmes (2015): Unsurprisingly brilliant performance by the always dependable Ian McKellen as the world’s first private consulting detective, now retired…
