Oscars Go as Expected Except for One Thing

 

The 94th Oscars are history and was more normal after two years of Covid. Three hosts, Amy Schumer, Regina Hall, and Wanda Sykes shared hosting and had funny lines, but Chris Rock plucked a nerve with Will Smith who actually struck him. Later Smith won Best Actor and bared his soul in an emotional speech. The awards went pretty much as expected with Jessica Chastain, Ariana DeBose, and Troy Kotsur taking acting honors while Jane Campion was Best Director. I was happy Kenneth Branagh won Best Original Screenplay. Dune swept the technical categories with six as top winner and Coda took Best Picture. There were tributes to James Bond and The Godfather anniversaries and nice song performances. The show still ran over by a half hour but it moved fairly well. Time to reload for next year.

2022 OSCAR PREDICTIONS FOR 2021 FILMS

 

OK, this year’s Oscars could have a few surprises amid some tight races, and isn’t that part of the fun?!  I have seen all the Best Picture nominees and some of the other categories too.  So I am sticking my neck out in bold. Here’s hoping for a celebration of quality films. Dune could end up with the most Oscars with as many as six in technical categories. Enjoy.

PICTURE-All signs point to CODA instead of The Power of the Dog, but in my heart, Belfast was perfect

ACTOR-Will Smith has the love for King Richard but I loved Andrew Garfield in tick, tick… Boom!

ACTRESS-Jessica Chastain-The Eyes of Tammy Faye but Olivia Colman-The Lost Daughter and Penelope Cruz-Parallel Mothers are strong possibilities

SUPPORTING ACTOR-Troy Kotsur for CODA

SUPPORTING ACTRESS-Ariana DeBose sings, dances, acts in West Side Story

DIRECTOR-Jane Campion with The Power of the Dog

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY- Belfast I am hoping for, but maybe Licorice Pizza

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY-CODA but The Lost Daughter and The Power of the Dog are closing in

ANIMATED FEATURE-Encanto

FILM EDITING-Dune

CINEMATOGRAPHY-Dune but The Power of the Dog is strong

PRODUCTION DESIGN-Dune

ORIGINAL SCORE-Dune

ORIGINAL SONG-No Time To Die

SOUND- Dune

COSTUME DESIGN-Cruella

MAKEUP& HAIRSTYLING- The Eyes of Tammy Faye

VISUAL EFFECTS- Dune

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM-Drive My Car

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE-Summer of Soul

ANIMATED SHORT-Robin Robin

DOCUMENTARY SHORT-The Queen of Basketball but Audible is gaining

LIVE ACTION SHORT-The Long Goodbye

Soderbergh Channels His Hitchcock in KIMI

 

An updated homage of Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window, Kimi is a solid thriller from director Steven Soderbergh (Traffic) featuring Zoë Kravitz (The Batman) in a strong, lead performance.

Set in Seattle, Angela (Kravitz) lives alone in a high rise apartment and observes her neighbors on the other side of the street in an almost voyeuristic manner.  She works as a techie who reviews voice streams from the Kimi service (think Alexa), when she thinks she hears a horrible crime and wants to report it. That’s when things take a decided turn for the worse.  Can Angela survive the growing threat?  

Early on, we get bits and pieces of her background and learn she has emotional scars from her past.  This experience forms the basis whereby subsequent events test her ability to overcome her fears and face her trauma.  In fact, Angela proves to be resourceful utilizing her tech savvy and improvising on the spot. And just when things look hopeless, help comes from the unlikeliest of sources.

The film has good moments of mystery and tension with not only the primary influence of ‘Hitch’, but elements in varying degrees from Blow Up and Blow Out.  As is common in these films, there are an assortment of characters who are mysterious and even creepy, and things aren’t as they seem. If these elements had been further developed, it could have resulted in a more enriched narrative.

This is a relatively lean, modestly budgeted film with fluid camerawork and good pacing which serves the story well, and at a brisk 89 minutes, it’s almost too short but fun while it lasts.  It’s an effective exercise in the suspense genre, but could have been a bit more.

*** of  **** stars (add ½* for Kravitz fans)               on HBO Max

 

Hurt Dominated the Eighties

 

Lead actor William Hurt has passed at 71.  He combined good looks with acting prowess to dominate movies especially in the 1980s. With a stunning debut in Altered States, he starred in a series of high profile titles such as Body Heat, The Big Chill, Gorky Park, and the film that won him Best Actor Oscar, Kiss of the Spider Woman.  In addition to Children of a Lesser God and Broadcast News, he had a career resurgence as a supporting actor with A History of Violence and more recently as General Ross for the Marvel Cinematic Universe starting with The Incredible Hulk and ending with Black Widow. To see how good he was, simply pick any of his 1980s films.

Nosferatu 100 Years Later

 

100 years ago this month, the horror classic Nosferatu premiered in German cinemas. Master director F. W. Murnau (Sunrise) made this loose adaptation of Dracula at the height of Germany's film industry. It is still effective to this day with its haunting imagery.

THE BATMAN, a Stunning Epic

Matt Reeves (War for the Planet of the Apes) co-wrote and directed this latest version of comics hero, The Batman, and the results are truly impressive and sure to please fans.   

In seamy Gotham, a serial killer, The Riddler (Paul Dano), is targeting city officials with ghastly murders and leaving cryptic clues for Batman aka Bruce Wayne (Robert Pattinson).  Meanwhile, a vengeful thief, Selina Kyle (Zoë Kravitz), appears, who may or may not be trusted. With the city at the mercy of criminals and a corrupt police department, Batman and Lt. Gordon (Jeffrey Wright) uncover an insidious conspiracy with painful links to Wayne’s past, while The Riddler has a diabolical plan with devastating, terrifying consequences.

The film is grounded in a real world vividly created with dark, rain-soaked streets, and though rated PG-13, its intensity brings to mind Taxi Driver and Se7en.  Beginning with a macabre, detective story, this Batman (think of Jack Ryan portrayals), is a young,  fearless avenger who takes on vicious thugs with sheer ferocity, and just when you think things are wrapped up, the stakes are raised to an extreme level that enhances an already ambitious film. 

(Like other actors interpreting Hamlet,) Pattinson excels in a physically and psychologically demanding role, and he makes this Batman one for the ages. His scenes with Kravitz are electric, and they are both complimented by an excellent cast including Andy Serkis (as Alfred), John Turturro, and Colin Farrell (remarkable as Penguin).

Gloriously shot and scored, Reeves maintains his vision and a tense pacing throughout its three hour runtime.  Is it better than The Dark Knight?  No, but this remarkable film marks the beginning of a new era for Batman films; revel in it.   (There is a telling cameo near the film’s end.)

**** of **** stars (for Batman fans)

"Laddie" The Consumate Producer

 

Producer Alan Ladd Jr. has passed at 84. Son of legendary actor, Alan Ladd (Shane),  he worked his way up in Hollywood to lead 20th Century Fox and other studios (sometimes from his own production company The Ladd Company) to green light/produce such noteworthy films as Star Wars, Alien, Young Frankenstein, The Omen, The Turning Point, Julia, An Unmarried Woman, The Boys from Brazil, All That Jazz, Body Heat, The Right Stuff, Chariots of Fire, Thelma and Louise, Braveheart, and many, many more.  Most of his films were hits and Oscar honored. He championed Star Wars when few would, making him the darling of Hollywood creatives, and he promoted females to top industry positions while featuring films that were female themed.  Known to friends as "Laddie", he was the consumate film producer.