Oscar Wrap-Up 2022

 

There’s a lot to talk about.

·         Just to get it out of the way I got 20/23. The shorts and song did me in. Not too difficult with Dune taking almost all the technical awards.

·         Beyonce’s performance to start the show was nice and all but not being in the theatre reminded me of the Grammys or MTV Video Music Awards.

·         What was DJ Kahlid doing there? His “hype-up” was anything but.

·         The three hosts were not that great. Wanda was too political. Amy was trying to be Ricky Gervais. Regina was horny.

·         I usually don’t comment on dresses but H.E.R. and Ariana DeBose sure have a lot of extra material to lug around with their dresses. Liked DeBose’s acceptance speech.

·         Gotta roll my eyes at the double standard. Apparently, it’s okay for Regina Hall to physically grope male actors and demean them on stage. Can’t imagine a man getting away with those shenanigans.

·         Why did the White Men Can’t Jump actors get a standing ovation?

·         Loved Troy Kotsur winning for CODA and his acceptance speech. Loved the audience signing their applause throughout the night as well. Also, Yuh-Jung Youn was cute as she presented the nominees.

·         So we rushed the tech awards but Chris Evans gets to plug Lightyear with a full trailer. Luckily CTV played a bank commercial instead. Maybe that’s the first time I was happy that CTV took over the feed.

·         We definitely should not talk about ‘Bruno’. That sucked. Maybe stick to the lyrics instead of Meghan Thee Stallion adding Oscar verses.

·         What was the lady beside the International Feature director writing in her note pad? Is she doing a magazine article or something?

·         The fan-voting stuff was a complete joke. Zack Snyder fan-boys apparently flooded twitter so Justice League and Army of the Dead topped the lists. Awesome idea Academy. Way to represent the masses. (I’m being sarcastic.)

·         Wanda and Regina’s consolation prizes was a dud.

·         How did Maya Rudolph get such a prime seat behind the nominees?

·         Why is Tony Hawk and other sports people introducing James Bond?

·         Robert DeNiro isn’t in The Godfather. He’s in Part II.

·         Then there’s the slap. I’ll grant you that Chris Rock shouldn’t poke fun at a medical condition, but he’s a comedian. Will Smith subsequent slap and verbal threats was way out of line, and frankly criminal. That’s assault. Plain and simple. Why he wasn’t escorted from the ceremony is beyond me. I kind of hope Chris Rock presses charges. Initially, Smith laughed at the joke (before looking over to his unimpressed wife). More on Smith later.

·         What the hell was up with the In Memorium? I liked the comments of Tyler Perry, Bill Murray and Jamie Lee Curtis but that singing group was distracting. They apparently wanted a gospel vibe and proclaim that everyone is going to heaven. Seemed disrespectful to me as it was all about the performers and not those who died. Also, why not sing “Thank You for Being a Friend”? What a trainwreck.

·         I liked Kevin Costner’s director introduction.

·         When the Pulp Fiction actors are dancing on stage to the music you’re playing way too loud, why would you instead cut to people in the crowd?

·         Will Smith’s acceptance speech was all over the place. It seems he was trying to justify his assault. He’s a man who ‘protects’ women? Saying ‘love can make you do crazy things’ seems like something an abusive husband might say. I have lost a ton of respect for Will Smith. He apologizes to the Academy but not Rock? The Oscars also kept blocking some of his speech with their title card while he cried on stage. Why not play him off? Are you afraid he’ll go and smack the shit out of the orchestra?

·         Why is the Make-Up award the third last award of the night? What an odd placement.

·         Gotta love the class of Amy Schumer who first insults Kirsten Dunst and then honors the Governor’s General award winners before making a comments about genocide and women’s rights. Way to make them feel shitty. If you don’t think it’s appropriate to give awards while there is tension in the world, don’t host the show.

·         Jessica Chastain is going on way too long. Do we not play people off anymore? Or is it only for technical and international winners?

·         Stop bringing ‘legends’ on stage for final awards. They are old and get flustered easily. Remember five years ago? It was cringy watching Liza interact with Lady Gaga who sounded like she was talking to her grandma.  

·         Oscar tried to streamline the show and still went 30+ minutes overtime. Just go back to the traditional way. I don’t think they gained any new viewers tonight. Maybe more will tune in next year to see a Smith and Rock rematch.

Okay, here’s who won:

LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
THE LONG GOOD BYE (predicted)

ANIMATED SHORT FILM
THE WINDSHIELD WIPER

DOCUMENTARY SHORT
THE QUEEN OF BASKETBALL

SOUND
DUNE (predicted)

ORIGINAL SCORE
DUNE (predicted)

ORIGINAL SONG
NO TIME TO DIE

VISUAL EFFECTS
DUNE (predicted)

MAKE-UP & HAIRSTYLING
THE EYES OF TAMMY FAYE (predicted)

COSTUME DESIGN
CRUELLA (predicted)

PRODUCTION DESIGN
DUNE (predicted)

FILM EDITING
DUNE (predicted)

CINEMATOGRAPHY
DUNE (predicted)

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
SUMMER OF SOUL (predicted)

ANIMATED FEATURE
ENCANTO (predicted)

INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
DRIVE MY CAR (predicted)

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
CODA (predicted)

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
BELFAST (predicted)

BEST DIRECTOR
JANE CAMPION [THE POWER OF THE DOG] (predicted)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
ARIANA DEBOSE [WEST SIDE STORY] (predicted)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
TROY KOTSUR [CODA] (predicted)

BEST ACTRESS
JESSICA CHASTAIN [THE EYES OF TAMMY FAYE] (predicted)

BEST ACTOR
WILL SMITH [KING RICHARD] (predicted)

BEST PICTURE
CODA (predicted)

How did you do? What did you think of the awards?

Oscar Predictions 2022

 

It’s that time of year again for my fearless Oscar predictions. While I’m pretty confident in my acting categories, I’m taking a big gamble on the Best Picture and thinking that Dune is going to get a bunch of stuff.  Just as a reminder, I’m not predicting who I want to win but who I think the Academy will vote for. From ‘smaller’ to ‘bigger’, here we go:

LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
THE LONG GOODBYE
(Riz Ahmed is in it. Feel sad for him not getting an Oscar last year.)

ANIMATED SHORT FILM
ROBIN ROBIN
(It’s from Aardman. The Oscars love Aardman)

DOCUMENTARY SHORT
AUDIBLE
(About a deaf football player. Nervous of its chances if CODA wins.)

SOUND
DUNE
(I think Dune will get lots of technical categories starting with this one.)

ORIGINAL SCORE
DUNE
(Hans Zimmer tone music fits. Power of the Dog’s tone music does not.)

ORIGINAL SONG
DOS ORGUITAS [ENCANTO]
(Give it to Lin Manuel-Miranda instead of Billie Eilish.)

VISUAL EFFECTS
DUNE
(They have sandworms? Was toss-up between this and Spidey.)

MAKE-UP & HAIRSTYLING
THE EYES OF TAMMY FAYE
(I mean it’s right in the title of the film.)

COSTUME DESIGN
CRUELLA
(There’s a lot of extreme fashion in this one apparently. Haven’t seen it.)

PRODUCTION DESIGN
DUNE
(I prefer Nightmare Alley but think Dune’s epicness will win out)

FILM EDITING
DUNE
(This often matches with sound. Though I liked Tick, Tick...Boom! better.)

CINEMATOGRAPHY
DUNE
(There are some epic shots here. Power of the Dog may grab it though)

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
SUMMER OF SOUL
(Go, Questlove, go!)

ANIMATED FEATURE
ENCANTO
(Its songs alone give it the edge. Everyone will talk about Bruno.)

INTERNATIONAL FILM
DRVIE MY CAR
(Considering it’s also up for Best Picture.)

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
CODA
(Both this & Power of the Dog use silence but CODA is far better.)

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
BELFAST
(This is the Oscar that Kenneth Branagh will finally achieve.)

BEST DIRECTOR
JANE CAMPION [THE POWER OF THE DOG]
(I think Spielberg should get it but Campion is the favourite.)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
ARIANA DE BOSE [WEST SIDE STORY]
(Time to make some more history. She was pretty awesome.)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
TROY KOTSUR [CODA]
(He was amazing in this film, full of passion and emotion.)

BEST ACTRESS
JESSICA CHASTAIN [THE EYES OF TAMMY FAYE]
(As long as it’s not Kristen Stewart or Penelope Cruz.)

BEST ACTOR
WILL SMITH [KING RICHARD]
(His third nomination for playing a non-fictional person is the charm)

BEST PICTURE
CODA
(It’s more uplifting than Power of the Dog. The SAG win also helps.)

I only got 17 out of 23 last year. We’ll see what happens this Sunday. 

Film: The Power of the Dog

 

GENRE: Western
RATING: R for sexual content and nudity
RUNTIME: 2 hours and 6 minutes
PLATFORM: Netflix
STARRING: Benedict Cumberbatch (Imitation Game, Doctor Strange)
Kirsten Dunst (Spider-Man); Kodi Smit-McPhee (X-Men: Apocalypse)
DIRECTOR: Jane Campion (The Piano, Holy Smoke, Top of the Lake)
WRITER: Campion (The Piano, In the Cut, Bright Star)
PLOT: A rancher torments his new sister-in-law and her son.    

FULL DISCLOSURE: I hate westerns. This was just for the Oscars.

STORY STUFF: Not a fan of the western. Don’t like the slow pace and the dust and dirty lifestyle. This film has plenty of both. Interesting that it was divided into five parts. Watching someone torment others is not that captivating to me. There’s a bit of a twist at the end but if you’ve seen any high school television show, you’ll know what the bullies are hiding.

ACTING STUFF: Cumberbatch plays a good asshole. I’m usually a fan of Jesse Plemons and Kirsten Dunst but neither of their performances grabbed me this time around (despite what the Oscars think), I preferred them in the second season of Fargo. Smit-McPhee does well as the delicate son.

ARTISTIC STUFF: I did enjoy Ari Wegner’s cinematography of the film. New Zealand is beautiful subbing in for Montana. I was not a fan of the music. I appreciate the fact that Johnny Greenwood (There Will Be Blood) didn’t go the twangy angle but the tonal score didn’t work for me. It did remind me of There Will Be Blood.

VERDICT: One and half stars out of five
SEE IT IF: You like slow westerns or want to prep for Oscars
UPCOMING REVIEW:  Oscar Predictions

Film: Turning Red

 

GENRE: Animated, Coming of Age
RATING: PG for thematic material and suggestive content
RUNTIME: 1 hour and 40 minutes
PLATFORM: Disney+
STARRING: Sandra Oh (Killing Eve, Grey’s Anatomy, The Chair)
Rosalie Chiang (newcomer); Ava Morse (Ron’s Gone Wrong)
DIRECTOR: Domee Shi (Bao – Pixar animated short)
WRITERS: Shi (Bao); Julia Cho (Fringe, Halt and Catch Fire)
PLOT: A 13-year-old girl turns into a giant red panda when emotional.    

FULL DISCLOSURE: I love Pixar so I gave this a chance.

STORY STUFF: It was a cute story but definitely not one of Pixar’s best. I guess I was unable to relate to a thirteen-year-old Asian girl. Pixar is usually able to give me a strong emotional response and maybe a tear or two but that didn’t happen at all in this film. I think Inside Out captured some of the overall themes better. I liked that it took place in 2002 so they could play off the boy band craze but I found it bizarre that they were buying tickets to the concert from the venue on the night of the performance. Have the creators never been to a concert before? Either the characters should be buying expensive scalped tickets or this band is incredibly unpopular to still have tickets available. I was also surprised that Meilin keeps calling people jerkface and other names, I wonder how parents feel about that.

ACTING STUFF: I enjoyed the voice work of the parents; Oh adds loads of humour, sternness and emotion into her motherly role. Orion Lee adds a sense of calm as the father. Chiang get a bit too extreme at times as Meilin but that fits the story somewhat. I was disappointed that some of her friends were so one-note. Morse as Miriam is the exception as she is the most dynamic of the group but chill Priya (Maitreya Ramakrishnan) and angrily hyper Abby (Hyein Park) got too repetitive. Of all the students I’ve taught over the years, I can’t think of anyone matching Abby’s persona (thank goodness).

ARTISTIC STUFF: I like the fact that Canada was featured heavily in this film (unfortunately it was Toronto). They had the Tim Horton’s, authentic Canadian currency, multi-cultural citizens and more. Because it’s Pixar, the animation is top notch. The boy band songs and concert intro was right on the money. You can tell that the creators had a lot of fun putting this all together.

VERDICT: Three stars out of five
SEE IT IF: You like Pixar and have Disney+ and a girl.
UPCOMING REVIEW:  Remaining Oscar contenders

Film: Nightmare Alley

 

GENRE: Drama, Crime
RATING: R for bloody violence and some nudity and language
RUNTIME: 2 hours and 30 minutes
PLATFORM: Download
STARRING: Bradley Cooper (Alias, A Star is Born, American Hustle)
Cate Blanchett (Elizabeth); Rooney Mara (Girl with the Dragon Tattoo)
DIRECTOR: Guillermo del Toro (Shape of Water, Pan’s Labytinth)
WRITERS: del Toro (Hellboy, Hobbit 1-3); Kim Morgan (newcomer)
PLOT: A carny can ‘read minds’ but goes on his own and gets in over his head with the wealthy elite.    

FULL DISCLOSURE: Just watching this for the Oscars.

STORY STUFF: I have a hard time seeing this winning Best Picture as it was just okay. The opening carny stuff reminded me of HBO’s Carnivale which I enjoyed a lot better. I usually like a good con artist story but this one didn’t grab me. It wasn’t slick and the pacing dragged at times. The conclusion was sad with a chilling edge which was an interesting way to end the story.

ACTING STUFF: Cooper is charming and plays the con well but I wasn’t riveted. Blanchett was too over the top for me. The film has a good cast including Willem Dafoe, Toni Colette, Richard Jenkins, Mary Steenbugen, & David Strathairn but they have all done much better work in other films.

ARTISTIC STUFF: The production design was awesome. It was my favourite part of the film. I loved the depth and furniture of the psychiatrist’s office among other things. I would be good with the film getting the Oscar for this element.

VERDICT: Two stars out of five
SEE IT IF: You appreciate interior design.
UPCOMING REVIEW:  Remaining Oscar contenders

Film: The Batman

 

GENRE: Action, Mystery
RATING: PG-13 for violent and disturbing content and strong language RUNTIME: 2 hours and 55 minutes
PLATFORM: Movie Theatre
STARRING: Robert Pattinson (Twilight, Tenet, The Lighthouse)
Zoe Kravitz (Divergent); Jeffrey Wright (Hunger Games; Shaft)
DIRECTOR: Matt Reeves (Cloverfield, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes)
WRITERS: Reeves (Let Me In, War for the Planet of the Apes)
Peter Craig (Hunger Games Mockingjay, The Town, Bad Boys for Life)
PLOT: Batman and Jim Gordon investigate a series of political murders orchestrated by the sadistic Riddler.    

FULL DISCLOSURE: I do not like Robert Pattinson.

STORY STUFF: Okay, that was a lot better than I thought it would be, but it wasn’t amazing like the critics said. I’m a big fan of the film noir mysteriousness of the movie. The problem is that it goes on way too long. Batman solves a few riddles quickly then takes about an hour to solve another one. This movie is just way too long. They even take the James Bond route of adding another action set piece at the end of the film just because they can. Cut down the riddles a bit and remove the disaster to get to the two-hour mark and you would have an amazing film. It also doesn’t help that everyone walks really slowly through rooms. I also found it odd that people rarely call him Batman. Also, Gotham News doesn’t seem to have any problem showing highly disturbing and inappropriate content as long as they provide a warning first.

ACTING STUFF: I begrudging admit that Pattinson is really good as Batman. His demeanor and vocal tone works well; he may be the best one. I hated his Bruce Wayne though. That was terrible with his stupid hair in his face. I liked Bale’s Bruce better, then Keaton. I loved Paul Dano (Little Miss Sunshine) as The Riddler; he’s creepy then completely insane. Colin Farrell gets some fun lines as Penguin and even sounds like Danny DeVito at times.  I like Wright as Gordon but felt Oldman did it better. Kravitz is compelling as Catwoman. I was not a fan of Andy Serkis (LOTR) as Alfred. I think I dozed off during his heart to heart with Bruce.

ARTISTIC STUFF: The cinematography is top notch. There are some fantastic camera moves that looked really cool. The lighting is a bit too dark but is used effectively. The production design works well but a little too rainy for my liking. Batman’s costume is sleek and I kind of like the darkened eyes so Bruce can see easily through the cowl. Riddler’s Saw-style serial killer was a little too covered up for my liking. Also, I was not a fan of Farrell’s make-up as Penguin. He just looks scarred and bloated – a missed opportunity. I did not like the music in the film. Too much use of “Ava Maria” and some of Batman’s approach music sounded too much like Darth Vader’s Imperial March. Michael Giacchino has done far better work in the past (look at his imdb credits).     

VERDICT: Four stars out of five
SEE IT IF: You like Batman and have three hours to kill.
UPCOMING REVIEW:  Remaining Oscar contenders

Film: CODA

 

GENRE: Drama, Comedy
RATING: PG-13 for language and sexual content
RUNTIME: 1 hour and 51 minutes
PLATFORM: Apple TV+
STARRING: Emilia Jones (Locke & Key); Troy Kotsur (The Number 23)
Marlee Matlin (Children of a Lesser God, West Wing, Quantico)
DIRECTOR: Sian Heder (newcomer)
WRITER: Heder (Orange is the New Black)
PLOT: A child of deaf adults needs to help her family’s fishing business while trying to pursue her love of music.   

FULL DISCLOSURE: Watched this without the subtitles.

STORY STUFF: I didn’t think this film would affect me the way it did. It kind of snuck up on me. The story is at times heartbreaking and at other times inspirational and other times really funny. I often found myself empathizing with Jones’ Ruby, imagining what I would do if I was in the same situation. I admit there was a welling of the eyes a few times. There are some moments in the film, where things could be resolved a lot faster if people would just say what was actually going on in their lives. Speaking of miscommunicating, I watched a downloaded version of the film instead of taking the time to set up my Apple TV+ of which I am a subscriber. My version didn’t have subtitles. That could have been helpful. However, I’m amazed at how much I got anyway and still loved the film.

ACTING STUFF: Kotsur is fantastic and deservedly won the SAG award for Supporting Actor. He better get the Oscar. His expressiveness and emotion is pitch perfect even if I didn’t understand everything he signed. It was that powerful. Jones plays the teenager torn between two worlds incredibly well. She also has a great singing voice.

ARTISTIC STUFF: Which school choir sings “Let’s Get It On”? That seems incredibly inappropriate. Reminds of Glee where the teacher is singing explicitly sexual songs with his students. What I did appreciate was the use of Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now” which seemed forever connected to Love Actually. I liked it better here. I also liked the cinematography and use of rack focus.     

VERDICT: Four and half stars out of five
SEE IT IF: You want to be moved by a heartwarming story.
UPCOMING REVIEW: The Batman