So, as I started the 2021 post the other day, I figured I would start the 2022 early to compensate for the 2021 tardiness. The best thing that the pandemic brought was movies released to streaming services at the same time they hit theatres. So, for now, here are my thoughts on films that may or may not have an impact or at least be in the conversation at Oscar time.
King Richard
This retelling of the Williams sisters journey to greatness was a confirmation that Richard Williams (their Dad- played by a soon to be nominated Will Smith) was either a genius or a total lunatic- and probably a little of each if truth were told. Starting when Venus was about 10, the film chronicles her time as a amatuer in California through her declaration as a professional when she turned 14. Watching her Dad take her to the crappy Compton courts all the way to her first professional tennis tournament was a testament to his belief that his daughters would succeed.
Richard Williams was a walking contradiction. He refused to let his daughters brag about their own victories but told everyone he knew how good his daughters were. He preached sticking to the plan but had no problem changing things at a minute's notice without consulting anyone. He argued with his daughter's coaches minutes after telling them how good they were. The one constant thing in his life was his devotion to his daughters and their pursuit of greatness.
The film was very well made. The adult acting was superb. Will Smith, Anjanue Ellis, and Jon Bernthal were fantastic. Will Smith should be nominated for best actor. He was fantastic. He brought out both sides of Richard Williams equally- he was a genius who formulated a plan to make his daughters into world class athletes and then followed through. But he was extremely gruff with others and alienated a lot of people along the way.
Overall, I would recommend this movie to everyone- if for nothing else than to see Will Smith bring this incredibly complex man to life.
Rating 3.75/5
CODA
"Child of a Deaf Adult" is the title of this film and that is exactly what the film is about. The protagonist, a child born of deaf parents has one brother who is also deaf. She is the only one in the house that can hear anything. Predictably, the family depends on her for a lot of help in dealing with the real world and as she nears the end of high school, the story centers around her struggle to gain independence without feeling guilty about leaving.
Without giving anything away, there were a few moments in the film that really made you empathize will all parties involved. The family was scared to death to be without their daughter (and the inability to communicate associated with her absence) and the daughter, Ruby, waned to live her own life and not be tied to her family forever.
Overall, this is one of the best films from this year. There were a few scenes that I thought were brilliant. Coming a year after "Sound of Metal" would seemingly hurt this film as both dealt with the perils of being deaf. But CODA's center around a character who can hear helps to eliminate the similarities and stand on its own two feet. I would highly recommend seeing this film if you haven't.
Rating 4.25/ 5
The Power of the Dog
I had heard a lot of positives before seeing this film and it did not disappoint. Brilliant everything from script to acting, to set design to cinematography make this one of the year's best films. Benedict Cumberbatch, Jesse Plemons, Kodi Smit-McPhee, and Kirsten Dunst could all be nominated for acting awards. Jane Campion will be nominated for directing and the film will be up for a few more awards as well.
The story of two pretty much polar opposite brothers who own and run a ranch in the west just after the frontier was settled is compelling but the relationship changes when one marries and brings his new bride and step-son home to the ranch. The twist at the end of the film is what makes it work so well and I truly didn't see it coming at all.
Check this one out on Netflix asap if you haven't seen it yet.
Rating 4.4/5
Dune
So, going into this I have never read the book or seen the original version. I knew the previous movie had negative reviews and that the story was supposed to be too big to fit into one film. Other than that, I knew nothing. Given the penchant for science fiction adaptions to fall flat, I wasn't expecting much. To say I was pleasantly surprised would be an understatement. State of the art CGI combined with the visionary film-making of Denis Villenueve produced a believable world that I fell into without doubting a scene. Fantastic acting across the board made the transition seamless.
After watching, I am excited for the second half of the movie (the story was too big to fit into one film- even one almost three hours long) and after watching Euphoria on HBO while I had COVID last week, anything with Zendaya in it is OK by me. This is a science fiction story with substance to it and I am hoping for franchise installments that continue to improve like Lord of the Rings or Batman did. The second film may be the one that drags me back to the theatres after not going for the last ten years or so. The fact that I'm even considering a return says a lot about this film.
Rating 4/5
Don't Look Up
This film parodied the previous presidential administration's absolute incompetency in the midst of a global pandemic while also warning us of the damages of our current environmental practices. The plot is that a scientist and a student (Leonardo DeCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence respectively) discover an asteroid/ comet hurtling straight toward earth and it is big enough to wipe out the planet when it hits. The current president (Meryl Streep) and her chief of staff (Johan Hill- who also happens to be her son and clearly knows nothing about politics) refuse to deal with the impending Armageddon based on politics. They tell the public there is nothing to worry about- the asteroid isn't real. It is made up and since they don't want to deal with it, they just "Don't Look Up."
As the movie very much pokes fun at the idiot Trumpies who refuse to vaccinate based on the president's bogus claims (which have been adopted by the entire Republican party of idiots), the asteroid continues to hurtle straight toward space just as the scientists predict it will.
About 2/3 of the way through the film, I was not sure that the film was going to turn out to be anything special. At that point, it looked like it was going to be just a satire/ parody of the political situation we find ourselves strangled by today. Then the comedy/ satire stopped and the film became very real when the comet was close to hitting and the film zeroes in on DeCaprio and Lawrence and their family/ friends who have gathered for the end of the world. As the very real asteroid hits and the very real consequences are felt, we see the very real tragedy unfold before our eyes. Director Adam McKay shoots a brilliant ending that shows us the stakes to this are very real and what will happen if we continue to follow these idiots who care nothing for mankind or America.
After the devastation on Earth, we join back up with the President and her crew who have taken a space shuttle to another habitable planet where they are promptly eaten by the native dinosaur creatures. As we see, they have no idea what the hell they were doing all along and their arrogance and belief in divine right means nothing at all.
Overall, this film takes a while to finally get to its main point but it was a masterful end to a film that will make you sick to your stomach when you realize that the plot is exactly what has happened with COVID and to a certain extent, environmental issues. If you aren't a Trumpie, you already know how dumb he and the Republican party are. If you are a Trumpie, you have no chance of getting anything from this film anyway because you weren't smart enough to figure it out in real life so don't even waste your time watching "the liberal (or truthful- at this point they are synonymous) media."
Overall Rating 3.5/5
Nightmare Alley
This film by Guillermo Del Toro (The Shape of Water) has somehow been nominated ahead of The Tragedy of Macbeth and Tick, Tick, Boom. Both of those films were substantially better then this one. I am not sure why the voters like his films so much; they aren't good. This one starred Bradley Cooper, as a Carnival con-man who intends to rip off anyone who is dumb enough to fall for his amazingly quickly picked- up tricks. I can say the performances were great in this movie; Cooper was fine, Cate Blanchett was good, Richard Straitharn was excellent as always and down the line.
My problem with the film was that it was unbelievable in many spots, the plot was uninteresting at best, and the director relies too much on scary characters and gimmicks to be considered a film with any emotional depth. Assuming you somehow end up caring for any of these people, the story falls flat. The ending comes full circle and leaves you wondering why you wasted two hours on this to have nothing happen in the end.
After finding Shape of Water to be wholly overrated and one of the worst Best Picture Winners in history, I do find comfort in knowing this has no shot to repeat. That being said, including this instead of Tick, Tick, Boom or The Tragedy of Macbeth will go down in history as a bad mistake for the academy again.
Overall Rating 1/5 for quality of performances alone. The movie itself sucked.
Belfast
This film was set in Belfast in 1969 and 1970 and centers around the fighting between the Protestants and the Catholics which caused so much violence and bloodshed at the time. The story is centered around a 6 or 7 year old boy who is based on Kenneth Branaugh as a child. This semi-autobiography shows the strain this conflict put on families, neighborhoods, and the entire nation. The constant news in the background tells the story that the boy and his family are living.
This film was technically perfect. Straight-forward camera angles coupled with the use of spaces available in row houses (think long, thin hallways for scenes where the parents discussed being trapped in their own country) combined with shooting in black and white to echo the time period when things were (and should have remained) much simpler help us to transport back to late 60's Ireland and drop into the middle of the conflict.
The acting was superb. Catriona Balfe was ROBBED when she was overlooked by the academy. Judi Dench (nominated for supporting actress) was excellent as always but Balfe's (not nominated) performance as the mother is what really hinged the movie together. The academy has gotten a couple of things wrong this year and this is by far, the biggest I have seen so far.
Overall, this film was very good. Clocking in at just over 90 minutes, it is short, curt, to the point, and tells a family story that will interest most everyone. See this one if you can.
Overall Rating 4.5/5
AND THE REST OF THE FILMS THAT WERE NOT NOMINATED FOR BEST PICTURE
The Tragedy of Macbeth (The Tragedy is that this wasn't nominated for best picture).
Now that Ethan has retired and Joel is running the show by himself, this Cohen directed film looked quite a bit different than earlier films like Fargo or No Country For old Men. Following the Shakespeare script exactly, it was filmed to look much like a play. One cut scenes, very little movement, and sets that looked like they were erected in about 4 hours mimicked the look and feel of a play. After I figured out what he was doing with the setting and shots, I actually liked it more.
The interpretation of the play intrigued me. I had always read MacBeth as a female driven play. I thought Lady MacBeth coerced Macbeth into killing the king and the rest of the play was Macbeth dealing with the guilt of being coerced into doing something that he maybe didn't want to. But as I watched this film, I thought the blame for the murder was much more evenly spread. Macbeth (played in what may be an oscar-winning performance by Denzel Washington- who ironically is part of my other favorite Shakespeare play/ movie adaption Much Ado About Nothing) seemingly was just as committed as Lady Macbeth before and after the murder. It was an interesting take on the language of the play and either I am wrong about my interpretation of the play or Cohen wanted to shake things up a bit when he produced his version.
Every part of this film was excellent. The acting was top notch and I learned more about the language through Denzel's acting than I did from reading it about 20 different times. Frances McDormand was good as usual but I think the subdued take on her character's involvement cost the audience a chance to see her truly shine. The sets were perfect, the lighting was terrific, everything was good. This will be a heavy hitter during awards season. If you can get past the Shakespearean language, it is well worth it.
Rating 4/5
Tick Tick Boom (The best one of the year)
This musical starring Andrew Garfield as Jonathan Larson, the writer of the plays Tick, Tick, Boom and also Rent was surprisingly good. I knew nothing about Larson before watching so I had no frame of reference at all. This film tells the story of him struggling to get his plays read and produced. It also highlights the AIDS epidemic as several of his friends were gay. Set in the 80's/ 90's in New York, the lack of help these people got with their medical issue was disheartening at best.
Combining a compelling dramatic storyline with songs from his musical, Tick, Tick, Boom was a musical movie that I enjoyed and could rewatch. Andrew Garfield should go toe to toe with Denzel for the best actor nod this year. Contrasting their performances and picking a winner makes me glad I don't have to place Oscar votes. Even if you aren't a fan of musicals, watch this film. I promise you will like it.
Rating 4.5/ 5
The Tender Bar
Set in Long Island, NY, starting in 1973, this film tells the story of a boy who wants to become a writer. Based on a memoir by J.R. Moehringer, the boy is basically abandoned by his father and is rasied by his mother and his extended family; an uncle in particular who is a surrogate father. Played brilliantly by Ben Affleck, the uncle dispenses wisdom at his bar, the Dickens (as in Charles) and inspires his nephew to become a writer.
Meanwhile, Mom is insisting that J.R. attend Harvard or Yale despite the family's lack of money and social standing. With the help of his uncle, his Mom's persistence, and a lot of hard work; J.R. is able to attend a good college and meets a girl who he falls in love with despite the tremendous socioeconomic gap between the families. As life often goes, J.R. wins some and loses some. Regardless of the situation, the two constants he can count on are his mother and his uncle who are there regardless of the situation or outcome.
The true star of this movie is Ben Affleck who turns in a performance to remember. His New York bravado combined with his fun-loving, wisdom dispensing, go-lucky attitude is a joy to watch. Hopefully, It will take a monumental performance to wrestle the Best Supporting Actor from him this year.
Rating 4/5
Being The Ricardos
This film chronicled Lucille Ball and Desi Arnez during the week Lucille Ball was accused of being a communist in Hollywood during the height of McCartyism. Nicole Kidman was flawless as Lucille Ball and Javier Bardem, as usual, was equally good as Arnez. Having never seen an episode of "I Love Lucy", I had no frame of reference for this story or the actual show. Seeing the behind the scenes production made me realize how talented these people are as they ad-lib and rehearse.
Seeing the impact of McCarthyism in real time combined with the rocky relationship Ball and Arnez had made for an interesting intertwining of plot lines that carried my attention through the entire film. The effect the McCarthyism had was frightening and you, again, are reminded how an unchecked government can abuse their power.
As the Oscars near, I expect Kidman to be nominated for best actress and Bardem may get a nod at supporting as well. The rest of the film was at a minimum, adequate. While nothing stood out to me, I noticed nothing that detracted from the film as well. My guess is that this gets nominations for the actors and that is it.
Rating 3.5/5
The Harder They Fall
I was, to be frank, expecting a lot more from this film. The film's opening title was "These. People. Existed." I assumed we were going to get a look at the hardships that African American cowboys experienced in contrast to the typical all-white cowboy movies we grew up on. Instead, we got an all-white American cowboy movie plot; it just had black actors and contemporary African-American language. To say I was disappointed was an understatement.
After the first 20 minutes or so, and I had discovered this film would be just another western revenge story (like almost all Westerns), I was mildly amused by it. I am a huge fan of both Idris Elba (Stringer Bell to me) and Regina King so teaming them up as the bad guys made this much more interesting for me. That being said, nothing else stood out during the film; the action scenes were predictable; the ending, even with the plot twist, was almost cookie cutter shaped. The scenery, the score, everything except the more gratuitous violence and African American dialogue/ slang, was just a recycled western film from 30 years ago.
If you are really bored or really like Westerns, watch this one. If they aren't your thing or you don't really want to see 2 1/2 hours of recycled material, don't waste your time with this one.
Overall Rating: 2/5
The Last Duel
This film starring Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, and Adam Driver looked promising. Until I saw it was a Ridley Scott film and then the wind was let out of my sails. After watching, I don't have much to say other then if you want a wholly predictable film with a cool fight in it (given the title is "The Last Duel" I don't think I'm giving too much away here), then this is for you. If you are looking for something you haven't seen 12 times before, I would look elsewhere.
Rating 1/5
Spencer
This story told an imagined version of what Princess Diana could have been like over a Christmas Holiday after Prince Charles left her for Camilla. The film itself was interesting and Kristin Stewart's performance as Diana was nominated for best actress. I found her constant whispering and throaty dialogue a bit much and more importantly, super annoying and unintelligible. So much so that we turned the subtitles on after the first 15 minutes or so. After getting past Stewart's speech, the movie actually was fairly entertaining- even for someone like me who never followed the Royals and didn't even know who Camilla was until after the movie.
So, I would recommend watching the movie IF... you care about the royal family or Princess Diana AND don't mind watching movies in English with subtitles. As for Stewart's performance as Diana, she has no chance to win the Oscar.
Overall Rating 3
The Eyes of Tammy Faye
Kristin Stewart has no chance to win the Oscar because Jessica Chastain has it in the bag. She was perfect as Tammy Faye Bakker; wife of televangelist and super thief, Jim Bakker. I hated these scumbags when they were on TV (before they got busted, it didn't take a brain surgeon to figure out they weren't going to stay out of jail for very long) so my view of Tammy Faye was JADED to say the least. By the end of the film, her innocence (while probably exaggerated for poetic license's sake) will make most viewers at least question their pre-conceived notions of her. She was a small-town, poor, lonely, innocent teen-ager who wanted to help other people through her ministry. What she turned into was a little more complex and Chastain does brilliantly bringing it to life. In my opinion, there is no way she loses this one although I haven't seem two of the other nominated films yet.
As for the actual movie, you know these scumbags are scummy and no amount of Awwwww Schucks country charm can hide the fact that they willingly stole from millions of people who thought their money was going to be used for good. While there is certainly no excuse for believing in televangelists- now or then- these people perfected the art of stealing from the poor every Sunday morning on national TV. And, as we have seen with the 2016 election, roughly 33% of our country will believe anything that anyone says so long as they wear a cross or say they are conservative so at this point, people should know better- but they don't and probably won't ever.
The film itself was technically fine- nothing stood out good or bad. I would say watch it for Chastain's performance alone. She carried this movie and deserves the best Actress award.
Overall Rating: 3.5/5.
The House of Gucci
My wife wanted to watch this and I had heard so much about Lady Gaga and Jared Leto's performances that I wanted to watch it as well. I knew nothing of the Gucci family history so this story was shocking to say the least.
Before I continue, I need to address the elephant in the room... the accents from just about everyone in this film were some of the worst in recorded history. My 21 year old walked in during the film and immediately asked, "What is wrong with Al Pacino?" Jared Leto sounded exactly like the voice actors in a Donkey Kong game. And good God, Adam Driver as Mr. Gucci himself. Think Kylo Ren goes to Italy and is trying to order a pizza in an Italian accent on a dare. Who cast him? These were some of the worst casting decisions ever. I love all three of them but there is no way they should ever play anyone outside of the eastern half of the USA again.
Sorry. Had to get that out there. The film itself was OK- Lady Gaga was OK. People were upset that she wasn't nominated and I think her portrayal of characters we intensely root for has clouded our judgement of her acting abilities. Just like in "A Star is Born" the fact that we totally are on her character's side during the entire movie clouds our thinking onto believing she deserves an award. Don't get me wrong. I loved her in both films- but she shouldn't be winning any Oscars for her acting.
The real story here is the story. The actual facts coming to light are what is amazing about this film. I won't give anything away but it's not what I was expecting for sure. See it just to learn about the Guccis.
Overall Rating 3/5
MOVIES LEFT FOR ME TO SEE
West Side Story
Drive My Car
Licorice Pizza
The Lost Daughter
Parallel Mothers
The Worst Person in the World
I will amend these as I see other films and/ or the actual nominations come out but from what I have seen so far (missing most noticeably Belfast), here are my very fluid predictions:
Best Picture: Tick Tick Boom but since it wasn't nominated somehow, I'll pick Belfast.
Best Director: Campion for The Power of the Dog
Best Actor: Will Smith for King Richard although this could easily go to Denzel or Andrew Garfield
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain for Eyes of Tammy Faye
Best Supporting Actor: Ciaran Hinds for Belfast- although I loved Affleck in The Tender Bar.
Best Supporting Actress: Dunst for The Power of the Dog
Director: Campion for Power of the Dog
Original Screenplay: Belfast
Adapted Screenplay: The Power of the Dog
