2016 OSCAR BLOG POST

As usual, I am a year behind but I may become more up to date as we purchased an Amazon firestick. So now I have access to movies in a much more timely fashion.  Hopefully, I'll get my blogs up in the same calendar year that the films are nominated for.  That being said, there were eight movies nominated in the year 2016 and I will review them as I watch them.  We already know Spotlight took home best picture.  DeCaprio walked out with best actor, Brie Larson won for her performance in Room, and Innaritu won best director for the second year in a row for The Revenant (last year was Birdman).  That being said, here are my reviews of each film:

MAD MAX: FURY ROAD

After having not seen the original Mad Max movies in probably 20ish years (and not remembering a whole lot about them to be honest), I was a little intrigued by this nomination.  I don't remember the older films being anything special besides the special effects and outlandishness of the plot, setting, and characters.  After watching this film, I am pretty sure that this nomination was in recognition of George Miller's lifetime contributions to film; not for the actual movie.  I wasn't expecting very much to be honest so I wasn't let down per se; just not a lot going on here.  The scenery and setting were phenomenal and the special effects were first rate.  Some of the chase scenes were fantastic and the cinematography was top notch.  That being said, I felt no empathy or connection to any of the characters at any point and the simple "get out of Dodge" at all costs plot was thin at best.  I honestly can't believe this film was nominated as a stand-alone production.  As I stated earlier, this is one of those "body of work" nominations that directors get at the end of their careers.  My rating is a 2/ 5.  If you aren't a a fan of this genre, then I wouldn't even watch it.

BRIDGE OF SPIES

Going into this, I knew very little about this story except that Gary Powers was shot down in Russian airspace in the U2 spyplane.  This is only a sidestory for the film we see though.  James Donavan (played by Tom Hanks) is the negotiator sent by the US government to get Mr. Powers back.  He has a bargaining chip, Rudolph Abel, a russian spy who was caught by the USA.  The story unfolds as Donovan heads to East Berlin during the cold war crisis to negotiate a trade.  The plot is good, the acting better, and the directing is good as well.  I don't think I noticed any flaws during the first viewing.  It was a well made movie.  That being said, that is the highest compliment I can give it.  It was a good story and a well made movie.  I don't think it was Oscar material- certainly not a best picture winner.  When the film ended, so did my interaction with it.  No bigger picture, no deeper questions to be asked about it or the story.

Sidenote: The film did get a bonus for casting two actors who appeared in "The Wire" though.  Any film gets a bump up for that.

Again, I have no complaints at all but I just didn't think it did anything to separate itself from the other well-made movies of 2015.  Overall rating 3.5/ 5.

THE REVENANT

I think my opinion of this film was affected by the pre-game hype it recieved.  Innaritu coming off Birdman (which I loved except the ending), DeCaprio seeking revenge, eating real Bison hearts in the middle of the wilderness, etc.   Tom Hardy as the bad guy?  What wasn't going to be great about this movie?  After seeing the original way in which Birdman was orchestrated, directed, and filmed, I was expecting a different take on the traditional revenge story.  I thought for sure Innaritu would do soemthing to dazzle.  This was the first place I was let down.  It was shot in a very traditional, though beautiful, straightforward method.  Don't get me wrong, it was borderline perfect but I was expecting a little more.  And the screenplay was lacking for sure.  I kept expecting a new angle or twist on what ended up being a simple revenge story.  Never happened.  I was disappointed here for sure.

As a craft, the filmmaking was flawless.  The movie's score was fine, the cinematography was perfect, the directing was on point.  The setting was beautiful, the acting was good as well even if it was a little thin on substance.  The film does get bonus points for the CGI bear that attacked DeCaprio.  That was painful to watch.  It made me want to stay out of the woods forever.

Taking all of the film's obvious strengths into account, I couldn't get over the weak screenplay and lack of substance in the plot.  Overall rating 3.5/ 5.

ROOM

After two really good movies and a not-so-Oscar movie, I was starting to lose hope about this year's class of best picture candidates.  I didn't know much about Room going in and still don't know if it is based on a real-life story or not.  It doesn't matter.  The plot is such that you have to watch.  The problem with watching the film is that one part of you knows that you are watching a depiction of one of the worst things we, as humans, are capable of.  Here is a quick plot synopsos:  a 17 year old girl is kidnapped by a stranger and forced to live in his shed in his back yard.  Being a forethinking psychopathic child-abductor, he has furnished it with just enough to survive; a sink, bathtub, and a small kitchenette.  She lives there for the next seven years and has a son (by her captor) after two years of imprisonment.  The son is not allowed to leave- he thinks the entire world is encapsulated within this "room."  After about 45 movie minutes, they escape.

Logically, you would think the film would take a turn upwards after they gain their freedom. However, they both face the reality that neither of them has spent a minute in the world in 7 years (all his life for the boy).  This is when the film really makes you uncomfortable; you are made to process the horror of the act that was perpetrated on the girl as she tries to fit back in with her family and society and raise a fatherless child who has no clue what the world is; much less how to fit in.

As depressing as all of this is, you also see the flip side; both mother and son slowly progress back into society.  The change they make inspires you to realize that whatever crap is in your life, it can't be that bad.  This film was an excellent potrayal of the human spirit and what we can accomplish when motivated.

Brie Larson won best actress for this just about everywhere.  She deserved it.  The kid (Jacob Tremblay) was excellent as well.  It is a simply shot film that relies on the emotional impact of the situation to speak for it.

You must see this film; don't expect it to make you comfortable and don' expect to like it.  Expect to learn a lesson about humanity and question what things in your life are really"stressful."

Overall rating 5/5.

THE MARTIAN

Left behind by his crew (through no fault of their own), Matt Damon's astrounaut character must figure out how to survive on Mars for four years on a food supply that should last about 90 days.  He does manage to make it with the assorted hiccups and pitfalls associated with flying solo on an uninhabitable planet with nothing around but some left-over NASA equipment and good old ingenuity.  When it is time for Damon to be rescued, this story becomes slightly predictable with the almost didn't make it in outer space finish.  That barely diminishes the performance Damon gives as someone alone on Mars for 600 days and the worldwide effort made by humans on Earth to bring him home.

Another story of the great accomplishments people are capable of when motivated, this story is entertaining and will draw you in based on the sheer weight of Damon's isolation on Mars.

Overall rating 4/5.

BROOKLYN

A coming of age story from a turn of the century irish immigrant who comes to Brooklyn and meets the Italian boy of her dreams.  She is called back to Ireland and easily falls back into the familiar culture and temptations it provides; despite being secretly married before leaving to return home to Ireland.

A decent film- not the emotional rollercoaster that Room is by any means.  This movie is well made but falls short on plot, screenplay, and emotional depth when compared to the others.  If you are not a romance fan, this one can probably be skipped.

Overall rating 3/5

SPOTLIGHT

This film chronicles the Boston Globe's investigative team as it examines and uncovers the Catholic Church's attempts to hide the priest abuse cases in Boston during the 60's, 70's, 80's and beyond. Releasing the article in early 2002 shook the foundation of the church and its believers as the truth of the scandal was exposed.  A brilliant screenplay shines as the actors involved played their parts perfectly.  The directorial prowess of "The Wire" actor Tom McCarthy (reporter in the last season) was fully visible as the pacing, setting and shooting were perfect.  For a film with literally no action (not one fight, car chase, murder, etc.), this film moves quickly and never has the feel of being boring or drawn out.  It is a true example of how a great screenplay can carry a movie.

The absolute criminal intent of the Catholic church is brought out beautifully in this film.  There is no doubt that the church not only covered for these pedofiles but did so in a way to deceive the public and keep their legal liability to a minimum.  Exposing one of the strongest organizations in the world to their roots is not an easy task for four investigative reporters to take on.  Played beautifully by Michael Keeton, Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams, and Brian d'arcy James, these reporters wouldn't give up and eventually exposed one of the biggest scandals of the last 100 years.

This film is my pick for the Best Picture of this year.  It provides clarity to not only how the Catholic Church got away with these travesties, but how the community let it go on; despite everyone knowing on some level what was happening.  A fantastic film that everyone should see.

Overall rating 5/5.

THE BIG SHORT

This film was similar to Spotlight in that its focus was to expose another corrupt situation.  This one dealt with the banking industry in relation to the housing market collapse in 2009.  As Spotlight did, this film left no room for interpretation or doubt about the guilty parties.  The banking industry was all but unregulated as this went down due to lack of money and staff in the SEC at this time.  As a result of their lack of oversight combined with unscrupulous banking practices, the housing market was allowed to completely run off the rails with the taxpayers picking up the tab for the self- destruction caused by the banks.

As far as the film itself, the shining star was Steve Carell.  He was fantastic as one of the few people who saw this coming and as a result, used the system to make a ton of money.  His character kept trying to find out reasons to not invest in this scheme.  Through his gathering of information, the depths of the scandalous banking practices are exposed.  His character flaws combined with his tenacious work ethic make him a total antihero who you find yourself rooting for anyway.

Outside of Carrell's performance, I felt the rest of the film was rather pedestrian.  The screenplay was good, the plot was well-paced, the dialouge was good; not great.  The other actors were fine but I didn't feel much else stood out.  You should definitely watch this film just to see the depths of corruption that were perpetuated by the banks and unchecked by the government.

Overall rating 3.5/ 5

Overall, not a bad year for the Oscars: two great movies, two pretty good movies, a couple of thro-ins at the end to satisfy the fans of the genres they represent.  I'm never let down by the movies nominated for best picture.