Predictions and Further Nominations

13/14 for my 'Golden Globe' predictions is pretty impressive, but given that most of them were pretty obvious, perhaps not so. With the Globes wrapped up for another year, the awards season is now in full swing with other ceremonies just around the corner.
Tuesday 18th January - BAFTA nominations announced
Tuesday 25th January - OSCAR nominees announced
Sunday 30th January - SAG Awards
Sunday 13th February - BAFTA Awards
Sunday 27th February - OSCARS

Countdown to Globes

As the 'Golden Globes' get under way in just under 6 hours I felt it was perfect time to give my predictions for how the awards will go. These predictions are what I think will win, not necessarily what I want to win, most notably as I would prefer for 'The King's Speech' to triumph over 'The Social Network' but do not think it will.

BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA

BLACK SWAN

THE FIGHTER

INCEPTION

THE KING’S SPEECH

THE SOCIAL NETWORK

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
HALLE BERRY - FRANKIE AND ALICE
NICOLE KIDMAN - RABBIT HOLE
JENNIFER LAWRENCE - WINTER’S BONE
NATALIE PORTMAN - BLACK SWAN
MICHELLE WILLIAMS - BLUE VALENTINE

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
JESSE EISENBERG – THE SOCIAL NETWORK
COLIN FIRTH – THE KING’S SPEECH
JAMES FRANCO – 127 HOURS
RYAN GOSLING – BLUE VALENTINE
MARK WAHLBERG – THE FIGHTER

BEST MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL

ALICE IN WONDERLAND

BURLESQUE

THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT

RED

THE TOURIST

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL
ANNETTE BENING-THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
ANNE HATHAWAY – LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS
ANGELINA JOLIE – THE TOURIST
JULIANNE MOORE – THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
EMMA STONE – EASY A

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL
JOHNNY DEPP – ALICE IN WONDERLAND
JOHNNY DEPP – THE TOURIST
PAUL GIAMATTI – BARNEY’S VERSION
JAKE GYLLENHAAL – LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS
KEVIN SPACEY – CASINO JACK

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE
AMY ADAMS – THE FIGHTER
HELENA BONHAM CARTER – THE KING’S SPEECH
MILA KUNIS – BLACK SWAN
MELISSA LEO – THE FIGHTER
JACKI WEAVER – ANIMAL KINGDOM

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE
CHRISTIAN BALE – THE FIGHTER
MICHAEL DOUGLAS – WALL STREET: MONEY NEVER SLEEPS
ANDREW GARFIELD – THE SOCIAL NETWORK
JEREMY RENNER – THE TOWN
GEOFFREY RUSH – THE KING’S SPEECH

BEST DIRECTOR – MOTION PICTURE
DARREN ARONOFSKY – BLACK SWAN
DAVID FINCHER -THE SOCIAL NETWORK
TOM HOOPER – THE KING’S SPEECH
CHRISTOPHER NOLAN – INCEPTION
DAVID O. RUSSELL – THE FIGHTER

BEST SCREENPLAY – MOTION PICTURE
DANNY BOYLE, SIMON BEAUFOY – 127 HOURS
LISA CHOLODENKO, STUART BLUMBERG – THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
CHRISTOPHER NOLAN – INCEPTION
DAVID SEIDLER – THE KING’S SPEECH
AARON SORKIN – THE SOCIAL NETWORK

Best Foreign Language Film

Biutiful

The Concert

The Edge

I AM Love

in a better world

Best Animated Film

Despicable Me

How To Train Your dRAGON

tHE iLLUSIONIST

tANGLED

tOY sTORY 3

Best original SCORE

tHE King's SPEECH – ALEXANDRE DESPLAT

ALICE IN WONDERLAND – DANNY ELFMAN

127 HOURS – A.R. RAHMAN

THE SOCIAL NETWORK – TRENT REZNOR, ATTICUS ROSS

INCEPTION – HANZ ZIMMER

bEST ORIGINAL SONG

BOUND TO YOU – BURLESQUE

COMING HOME – COUNTRY STRONG

I SEE THE LIGHT – TANGLED

THERES A PLACE FOR US – tHE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA : tHE VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER

YOU HAVEN’T SEEN THE LAST OF ME - bURLESQUE

'The King's Speech' Review



I am going to give this move 5 Stars. I wanted to make this clear to start with as I feel it deserves them more than all of the other films I have reviewed so far put together. I quite simply loved this movie, and could not pick any faults in it. The story is surprisingly engaging, and often gripping, the performances are exquisite and the picture itself is beautifully shot, and therefore worthy of a great deal of artistic merit. Quite simply, I loved this film.

Director Tom Hooper will propel himself into the big leagues with this picture, as his work on it is top notch. A focused vision clearly leads this film throughout the two hour run time with everything in the film feeling not only relevant, but necessary. The performances he has gotten from his cast are altogether fantastic, with every cast member, even the ones playing smaller parts, giving it their all. Hooper's picture is also visually stunning, and the cinematography needs a great deal of credit for this. Every scene in the film has been photographed to create the most interesting outcome, with parts being shot from unusual angles which ultimately create a greater aesthetic to the film. And the editing also deserves great merit for the way in which scenes and shots have been threaded together throughout this picture.

Now onto the all round superb performances. Starting with Colin Firth in the lead role, a performance which he simply must win awards for. Playing so many different sides to a complex character, Firth brings heart, frustration, sadness, pain and yearning to this character, and provides superb depth to each side. Playing a character that can barely speak and show the effect of this impairment takes huge skill, and Firth delivers a flawless performance. We are taken on a journey in this movie, and we feel everything that Firth's character feels, feeling sympathy for him during the moments where he can barely get a word out, feeling nervous with him when he is made to speak in front of large audiences, and also feeling the triumph when he and the speech therapist make breakthroughs. Firth proved himself in last years emotionally charged 'A Single Man' and has perhaps even bettered this in 'The King's Speech'.

The always fantastic Helena Bonham Carter delivers another pitch perfect performance as the Queen Mum-to-be, playing a strong character who is massively devoted to her husband. Bonham Carter is probably the most versatile actress around just now, and could quite frankly play anything. In this she creates both touching and hysterically funny moments. Geoffrey Rush is also superb in this as Lionel Logue, the 'controversial' speech therapist. Rush is wickedly funny in this role, playing a fearless character who says everything he shouldn't to a monarch. The chemistry between Rush and Firth is superb and this makes for onscreen magic as the two create so many unforgettable scenes together. Even all of the smaller parts are played hugely well, notably Guy Pearce as King Edward VIII and Timothy Spall as Winston Churchill (a role which he nails).

The writing in this film is brilliant, with screenwriter David Seidler successfully creating both a witty and dramatic script, with parts filled with energy which the actors can excel in and ultimately feed of each other to create the best outcome. The language used is well utilised and thought out, with a precision which is always evident in both pace of the speech and the emotion within.

I expected this film to be good but I was blown away by just how good it was,  I was constantly engaged and in awe of the performances, cinematography and writing. The Score to the movie was also terrifically used to emphasise the mood of the moment. This movie was both surprisingly gripping, given the subject matter and even more surprisingly, absolutely hilarious at times, especially thanks to Rush's character. I plead with people to not to read the title and categorise this movie as a typical period piece, along with those so boring they can send you off to sleep, this movie is filled with heart and is an absolute pleasure to watch.  This is about as uplifting as cinema can get and therefore I urge everyone to go and see it, it fills you with such joy, and for anyone who appreciates quality cinema this film is simply unmissable. I hope this movie wins BIG during awards season.

Verdict:
5 Stars

'Little Fockers' Review

This movie quite simply pails in comparison to its predecessors. Despite having a few laugh out loud moments and decent performances from it's cast, it cannot be saved from it's weak plot and moments of unnecessary stupidity. It is shame that this movie was such a letdown given the potential that the series holds. I must however make it clear at this stage that I did not dislike this movie, as it was watchable.

Despite good performances from most of the other cast members, Robert DeNiro is this movie's saving grace, and is the main reason this movie was not a complete disaster, as he still nails this character and is consistently funny throughout. Jessica Alba on the other hand, who played a drugs rep (a new character to the series) was ridiculous in this film, and at moments quite simply made it unbearable.

I felt that this movie was perhaps made given the fact they had managed to get all the cast on board again, and because of this did not particularly care about the film's plot, and therefore created a story which seemed to go nowhere special. Moments in the film were stupid beyond comprehension, often taking this movie away from anything remotely realistic, which was a big mistake given it is meant to be the story of a family which people can somewhat relate to. The writing was particularly week and some lines had zero relevance and were just used as a desperate ploy to get some laughs, this notably happened during a dinner table scene when the son (a 'little focker') asked his father if, and I quote 'can girls poop out of their vagina'. An example of a gag so cheap, if it were an item of clothing, even Primark would not stock it.

All in all, only characters we have grown to love, strong performances from some cast members and a few genuinely funny moments are all that allows this movie to edge away from being a bad one.

Verdict:

2 Stars

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

So here it is, 2011, and judging by the films that will be coming our way, we are set for another solid year of cinema. Within the next few days I will give my personal review of 2010, and what I felt were the best films of the year. With the Golden Globes just around the corner and the Oscars following suit not long after, we are now amidst awards season so make your bets now, who will be the big winners of 2011? In my upcoming posts I will give my awards predictions and look forward to hearing and seeing other peoples.

I Hope 2011 is a good year for everyone, and my new years resolution is to see more films at the cinema in 2011 than I did in 2010, so here is to a wonderful year of cinema going!

The Greatest Christmas Movie

Merry Christmas Everyone, (which I say with even more enthusiasm than Shakin Stevens, plus I'd make a far better music video than him) and it is that time of year again when people sit round a glowing tree opening assorted parcels and eat like the apocalypse is nigh. And with this festive post today I bring you the results of the Christmas movie poll, so here you have it:

1. It's A Wonderful Life

A true classic, highly deserving of this title. A must watch for everyone.

2. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation

Chevy Chase at his slapstick best, hilarious from start to finish.

3. Home Alone/ The Muppet Christmas Carol

Tied for third place was two more festive favourites, the fantastically fun 'Home Alone', and the charm of the muppets combined with Michael Caine as Scrooge to create 'The Muppet Christmas Carol',  two firm family favourite.

Truly Intriguing Movie Facts: Part III

• While shooting the famous run through the streets of Philadelphia in 'Rocky', Sylvester Stallone pulled a tendon in his leg and had to be taken to a local hospital in a wheelbarrow.
• 'Top Gun' director Tony Scott was officially fired three times during the film's production.
• Sean Connery turned down the role of Gandalf in the 'Lord Of The Rings' trilogy as the 18 month filming time was too much for him.
• Some of the chariot racers in 'Ben Hur' were seen to be wearing wrist watches.
• Actor Max Von Sydow played Jesus Christ in 'The Greatest Story Ever Told' and Satan in 'Needful Things', making him the only actor to play both.
• The scene in Frenchy's bedroom in 'Grease' in which Rizzo is singing the line about Elvis, was filmed on the very same day that Elvis actually died.
• In 'Toy Story' whenever a character's eyes blink, they never blink together, but one at a time.
• During the climactic motorbike chase in 'The Great Escape', director Jim Sturges allowed Steve McQueen to ride (in disguise) as one of the pursuing German soldiers, so in the final sequence, through the magic of editing, he is actually chasing himself.
• Bette Davis was in the process of breaking up with husband William Sherry while she was making 'All About Eve'. Her raspy voice in the film is due a burst blood vessel in her throat from screaming at her soon-to-be-ex-husband. Director Joseph L. Mankiewicz liked the sound of her voice and in feeling it worked with the character encouraged her not to change it.
• For 'Saving Private Ryan' all of the principle actors underwent days of gruelling army training, except for Matt Damon, who was spared so that the other actors would resent him, and they would therefore portray that resentment in their performances.