Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Stand up, America...

... that's your president walkin'.


Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Oscar Predictions!



After nailing the Golden Globes the other night, I feel it is time I predict Oscar Nominees (announced on the 22nd) and winners. Woo!




Best Picture:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Doubt
Milk
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

Winner: Slumdog Millionaire

Best Director:
David Fincher for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Gus Van Sant for Milk
Stephen Daldry for The Reader
Sam Mendes for Revolutionary Road
Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire

Winner: Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire

Best Actress in a Leading Role:
Meryl Streep for Doubt
Sally Hawkins for Happy-Go-Lucky
Kristin Scott Thomas for I've Loved You So Long
Anne Hathaway for Rachel Getting Married
Kate Winslet for Revolutionary Road

Winner: Kate Winslet for Revolutionary Road

Best Actor in a Leading Role:
Brad Pitt for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frank Langella for Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn for Milk
Leonardo DiCaprio for Revolutionary Road
Mickey Rourke for The Wrestler

Winner: Mickey Rourke for The Wrestler

Best Actress in a Supporting Role:
Amy Adams for Doubt
Viola Davis for Doubt
Penelope Cruz for Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Kate Winslet for The Reader
Marisa Tomei for The Wrestler

Winner: Kate Winslet for The Reader

Best Actor in a Supporting Role:
Heath Ledger for The Dark Knight
... That is all

Winner: Heath Ledger for The Dark Knight

Best Original Screenplay: The Guy that Wrote Milk for Milk
Best Adapted Screenplay: Simon Beaufoy for Slumdog Millionaire

So the winners are:

Best Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
Best Director: Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire
Best Actress: Kate Winslet for Revolutionary Road
Best Actor: Mickey Rourke for The Wrestler
Best Supporting Actress: Kate Winslet for The Reader
Best Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger for The Dark Knight
Best Adapted Screenplay: Simon Beaufoy for Slumdog Millionaire
Best Original Screenplay: The Guy who Wrote Milk for Milk

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Let's do it, Top Ten Greatest Films with 10 Honorable Mentions!

Layout: Name of Film (Release Date, Director(s), Country)

Let us start with the honorable mentions:
10. The Red Shoes (1948, Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, England)
The Red Shoes
9. Noz w wodzie (Knife in the Water)(1962, Roman Polanski, Poland)
Nóz w wodzie
8. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948, John Huston, United States)
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
7. The Birth of a Nation (1915, D.W. Griffith, United States)
The Birth of a Nation
6. Brazil (1985, Terry Gilliam, England)
Brazil
5. The Leopard (1963, Luchino Visconti, Italy)
Gattopardo, Il
4. Shadow of a Doubt (1943, Alfred Hitchcock, England)
Shadow of a Doubt
3. The Great Dictator (1940, Charles Chaplin, England)
The Great Dictator
2. M (1931, Fritz Lang, Germany)
M
1. Contempt (1963, Jean-Luc Godard, France)
Mépris, Le
The Top Ten Greatest Films of All Time

10. There Will Be Blood (2007, Paul Thomas Anderson, United States)

9. The Rules of the Game (1939, Jean Renoir, France)

8. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968, Stanley Kubrick, England)

7. Napoleon (1927, Abel Gance, France)

6. Jules et Jim (1963, Francois Traffaut, France)

5. Ikiru (1950, Akira Kurosawa, Japan)

4. Meshes of the Afternoon (1943, Maya Deren, United States)

3. 8 1/2 (1963, Federico Fellini, Italy)

2. Raging Bull (1980, Martin Scorsese, American)

1. Citizen Kane (1941, Orson Welles, American)

Thursday, December 18, 2008

lou reed sings in my ears...

Okay, so Milk was a poor films for many reasons; first, it moved way too fast, like it was trying to pour as many information into two hours, despite loosing character development and a comfortable setting for which to settle down into the film. Too bumby. Secondly, Sean Penn's performance was just like his performance in I Am Sam, which is to say he acted like he was mentally retarded in the most stereotypical way possible. He was terrible. Third, it had almost exact elements of other biopics like Ray and Walk the Line. So we've seen it before. A million times. Now we just have different character names, and instead of drugs, the title role struggles with homosexuality. Like it's a disease. Lastly, and the most disappointing thing about the film, is that it was no where near a Gus Van Sant film. I've seen films by other filmmakers that have more elements of Gus Van Sant then this one. The only thing that is somewhat Gus Van Sant is the part where Milk and Scott are looking in each other's eyes. That is all you'll find of him. Just so people know I am not being biases, I waited for this film for a year, I've studied all of Van Sant's films, I love them all (except To Die For which is awful), Gerry might be one of the best films ever made, and then he hits me with this. The thing is he's gone mainstream before with Good Will Hunting and Finding Forester, and they are still fantastic films. This was just generic garbage that will be looked at the least of his pictures. I am shocked and heartbroken that he turned out such a mediocre film. 'Cause next to films like Ray and Walk the Line, it's pretty good. But compared to Gerry, Elephant, My Own Private Idaho, and even Good Will Hunting, it's unrecognizable. It's truly a shame. I'm one of the many who adored his last film, Paranoid Park, and I remember when it got over, my dad said to me, "His next film is going to be Hollywood trash, because they don't let people make films like these for nothing!" And I said, "No, Gus can go back and forth without anyone noticing." I trusted Van Sant. Oh well.

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

I'm a blogger too

Well, well, well.
The world of blogging. It reminds me of Live Journal oh so far down the road. In fact, it's about the same, just more... grown up. It's as if Live Journal has aged. And well. 
God, I'm tired.
I could use some coffee.
I really don't know what to write about; I'll probably get out a lot of ranting here. I think my first post will be about the Gus Van Sant film Milk, which blew. I'll tell you why later, but for now, I need coffee, or alcohol or something.
Bye bye.