And the Award Goes To...

Statistically, I'm never in the know come Oscar season. I've usually seen at least one or two of the Best Picture nominations by the time the award is given, and sometimes I'll see one or two more by the time Summer rolls around. The reason being, I hate seeing movies in New York City. It's crowded, it's annoying and I hate everyone. But I digress.

This year, I've had the amazing privilege of being married to someone in the Writers Guild. For awhile, each day was like Christmas as envelope after envelope would arrive in the mail with surprises inside. I'm three movies shy of being completely caught up in the Best Picture category and I've formed some opinions below.

Her.

I posted a blog about this earlier that can be found here, (or just scroll down). Honestly, the more I think about that movie, the more I love it. I hope it gets some love from others this year.

Nebraska.

It took me at least the length of the first act to really get into Nebraska. Slow, wasn't my complaint. It was more how uncomfortable the father's character made me. He was like a silent film star, completely unreachable by his struggling son. Yet the more I watched, the more I loved it. The Dad, (Bruce Dern) reminded me a little bit of my own Grandfather and the struggles he had with his children. I began to feel sympathy for him and his determination to collect his million dollar prize. I began to love the subtle, (sometimes not so subtle) nuances of his family members, both nuclear and extended. The small town feeling made me a bit nostalgic for my own towns of North Carolina and the slow interactions between people that don't seem that important, but should be regarded as sacred. The ending had me cheering and left me feeling pretty dandy.

 Capt. Phillips.
How do you write about a movie that actually happened? I'm sure that some parts were fictionalized or exaggerated, but in general, I was more blown away that these events took place. I was tense, uncomfortable and even though I knew how it was going to end, I just wanted it to get there so I could breathe. I will say that Tom Hanks was great in the role, (when is he not? Probably that Woody Allen movie, but I didn't see it). I really hated the opening scene in the car with his wife: "Life is moving so fast, you know?" IS IT?!


Gravity.
Hell yeah. I don't care what you pragmatists, (nerds) out there have to say about how realistic this Space disaster movie was. It ruled! I did see this in IMAX 3D and I was blown away. Like, shoes off, sweaty palms, knots in my stomach, eyes glued to the screen, what's going to happen next, into it. It was phenomenal, thought out and well executed. Of course, like others, I had problems with the actual story of Bullock's character and her inner struggle. She's in Space, (AS A METAPHOR!) to deal with the loss of her young daughter years earlier. But she learns to overcome, to fight to survive and COME BACK TO PLANET EARTH to live her life. I didn't care. She could've escaped to Space to overcome her fear of clowns - it didn't matter. This movie was gorgeous and I was literally at the edge of my seat the entire film. Bravo. I would cheer if it won Best Picture. It deserves it.

American Hustle.

I fell asleep while watching this movie. I don't know, maybe I need to give this another shot. I never felt like it went anywhere. I didn't care about a single character and didn't really care once it finally ended. It's nice to see Amy Adams taking more and more daring and tough female roles. Jennifer Lawrence, you're perfect. Anything you do is sensational and this movie is no exception. Still, ... meh. It's getting so much hype I know I need to give this another viewing. This time caffeinated.

The Wolf of Wall Street.

Around the second hour, overwhelmed by my desire to get up and empty my bladder but unable due to the fact that was in a theater, I thought, "Are they going to do anything else but blow?" The answer, tragically, no. I admire Scorsese and have always been a fan but I'm finding more and more recently just how indulgent he can really be. I can take some knocks from a movie. I can be scared, be pushed and sit comfortably in a very uncomfortable territory. Mostly in this movie, I was just embarrassed. Scene after scene, you're watching naked women being pummeled into desk tops and bathroom sinks by coked out day traders with little regard. I admire the way Scorsese said, "These guys have no remorse for anyone else and that's what this movie is about." I get that, but I still wanted to hide my face in my sweater. It was just difficult to watch and what's more, it just ended and that was that! I'm curious now about the actual Jordan Belfort, as I'm hearing he actually does posses remorse and is working to reverse it. Maybe it wasn't that I needed to see him have any kind of character arch, but I wanted the movie to have any kind of arch in general. It never went anywhere - scenes bled into scenes where more and more coke was introduced, pills, alcohol, more sex, boobies, boobies, boobies. Maybe this explains why I stopped watching my guilty pleasure show Intervention. There's only so much of rock bottom you can watch - and Wolf's rock bottom made it look like a party we all, (weirdly?) wanted to attend.

Yet to be seen, of course: Philomena, (I think I'll just have my dad tell me how it ended), 12 Years a Slave and Dallas Buyers Club.

Major shout outs to:

Cate Blanchett / Best Actress / Blue Jasmine

You really freaked me out, lady.