This list will be surprising for many. Most notably for putting "Avatar" and "Funny People" so high and for putting "The Hurt Locker", "Inglourious Basterds", "Moon" and (especially) "Up" too low. But this list isn't YOUR list. It's MY list. I could easily make a list that you could agree with. However, this is my PERSONAL favorite movies of 2009. Biggest factors for ranking are a combination of how much fun and enjoyment I had watching a movie and how much I'd like to return to that movie. So let the controversy begin:
These movies get an "A":
1. Avatar
2. (500) Days of Summer
3. I Love You, Man
4. Star Trek
5. Zombieland
6. Funny People
7. District 9
8. Taken
9. Fantastic Mr. Fox
10. Julie & Julia
11. Inglourious Basterds
12. The Hangover
13. Watchmen (note: this movie has grown on me over time)
B's:
14. Monsters Vs. Aliens
15. Michael Jackson: This Is It!
16. Princess & the Frog
17. Precious
18. Humpday
19. Coraline
20. The Hurt Locker
21. Moon
22. Up In the Air
23. X-Men Origins: Wolverine
24. Big Fan
C's:
25. Anvil! The Story of Anvil
26. Where the Wild Things Are
27. State of Play
28. Push
29. Capitalism: A Love Story
30. Paranormal Activity (note: avoids getting an F for the final scene)
D's:
31. Up (note: talking dogs flying bi-planes just loses me)
32. It Might Get Loud
33. Disney's A Christmas Carol
34. Knowing
F's
35. Bruno
36. Transformers 2
So... have you calmed down from my low ranking of "Up" yet? Haha. Hm... 36 movies. That may be a new record for me. The three movies I started watching but abandoned (out of sheer not-in-the-mood-ness) are "Ponyo", "Drag Me To Hell", and "Terminator: Salvation".
Here are the movies I haven't seen yet that I plan on seeing (in order of how much I want to see them):
New Moon (+RiffTrax)
Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs
Food, Inc.
Harry Potter and Whichever One Came Out This Year
Whip It
The Informant!
Adventureland
Sherlock Holmes
Jennifer's Body
Mike Judge's Extract
In the Loop
White Ribbon
A Single Man
An Education
A Serious Man
Bright Star
Away We Go
Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus
Men Who Stare At Goats
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
My Oscar Nom Reaction 2010
I woke up this morning at 7:30am to flip around the news channels and land on CNN (the only news network carrying the Oscar noms live). So, "Hurt Locker" and "Avatar" tie with 9 noms each (way too many for "Hurt Locker" imo considering it's technical achievements aren't *that* astounding). The $16M indie vs. the $2B blockbuster. Snobs can rest easy. "Hurt Locker" will grab Best Pic and Director. "Avatar" could sneak Best Director. At this point, "Hurt Locker" is a surefire Best Pic win. Here is my take on things along with my predictions (a "-" denotes who I think will win):
Actor in a Leading Role
-* Jeff Bridges in “Crazy Heart”
* George Clooney in “Up in the Air”
* Colin Firth in “A Single Man”
* Morgan Freeman in “Invictus”
* Jeremy Renner in “The Hurt Locker”
REACTION: No real surprises here considering this is pretty competitive. Maybe Morgan Freeman is the only thing that comes close, but apparently he was the best element of "Invictus". Jeff Bridges will win, and it will be a message of long-time-coming.
Actor in a Supporting Role
* Matt Damon in “Invictus”
* Woody Harrelson in “The Messenger”
* Christopher Plummer in “The Last Station”
* Stanley Tucci in “The Lovely Bones”
-* Christoph Waltz in “Inglourious Basterds”
REACTION: I called Christoph Waltz as this year's winner right after seeing "Inglourious Basterds". My prediction stays tho Plummer could easily win for seniority (typical for this category). Both Woody Harrelson and Stanley Tucci had a stellar year, tho Tucci has a good shot at this. Matt Damon is the biggest surprise here.
Actress in a Leading Role
-* Sandra Bullock in “The Blind Side”
* Helen Mirren in “The Last Station”
* Carey Mulligan in “An Education”
* Gabourey Sidibe in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”
* Meryl Streep in “Julie & Julia”
REACTION: I had a bet going that Bullock would not get nominated. Now she is the front-runner. Just watched "Julie & Julia" and, tho I don't normally root for Meryl Streep, I think it is a truly transforming performance and wholly delightful in every possible way. But this being Streep's 16th nom, Bullock will walk away with the gold. Congrats to a deserving Gabourey Sidibe too.
Actress in a Supporting Role
* Penélope Cruz in “Nine”
* Vera Farmiga in “Up in the Air”
* Maggie Gyllenhaal in “Crazy Heart”
* Anna Kendrick in “Up in the Air”
-* Mo’Nique in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”
REACTION: "Precious" is well done in may regards, but I'd say Mo'Nique comes out on top as the best element. I'm rooting for her, and she is the favored one. Glad to see "Up In the Air" get the double noms. Wouldn't be upset if Vera Farmiga won considering how well she did.
Animated Feature Film
* “Coraline” Henry Selick
* “Fantastic Mr. Fox” Wes Anderson
* “The Princess and the Frog” John Musker and Ron Clements
* “The Secret of Kells” Tomm Moore
-* “Up” Pete Docter
REACTION: The first truly competitive year for Animated Films since its inception in 2001. I called all these except that I predicted "Mary & Max" to get the darkhorse nom. Instead it went to "The Secret of Kells" (something totally off my radar). Rooting for "Mr. Fox" or even "Coraline", but it's no question that "Up" will win.
Directing
* “Avatar” James Cameron
-* “The Hurt Locker” Kathryn Bigelow
* “Inglourious Basterds” Quentin Tarantino
* “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels
* “Up in the Air” Jason Reitman
REACTION: I love this year's directors. They could've done well with 10 nominations. Any one of these in a different year could win. I'm a huge fan of both Reitman and Tarantino but it's a head-to-head with the formerly married Bigelow and Cameron. Cameron has a shot, but Bigelow will win.
Best Picture
* “Avatar” James Cameron and Jon Landau, Producers
* “The Blind Side” Nominees to be determined
* “District 9” Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham, Producers
* “An Education” Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey, Producers
-* “The Hurt Locker” Nominees to be determined
* “Inglourious Basterds” Lawrence Bender, Producer
* “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness and Gary Magness, Producers
* “A Serious Man” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, Producers
* “Up” Jonas Rivera, Producer
* “Up in the Air” Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman and Jason Reitman, Producers
REACTION: Two surprises here. One good; one bad. The good: "District 9". It really is an amazing well-put-together movie and by far the most ingenious on the list. The bad: "The Blind Side"!?!?! This one really upsets me. I'm convinced there are over a handful of other films that deserve higher recognition (I would include "Star Trek" and "The Hangover" among them). I really think this has more to do with appealing to viewers than anything else. Shameful. Then again, this *is* why they increased the ballot to 10 noms this year. It's Cameron vs. Bigelow again. Bigelow will come out on top (to casual viewers' dismay... because they haven't seen it).
Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
* “District 9” Written by Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell
* “An Education” Screenplay by Nick Hornby
* “In the Loop” Screenplay by Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche
* “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Screenplay by Geoffrey Fletcher
-* “Up in the Air” Screenplay by Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner
REACTION: Really tough call on the winner. They're all so good. Would this be Reitman's first Oscar if he won? Anyway, really glad to see "District 9" on there. This puts "In the Loop" back on my radar. It seemed "too British" kind of funny and highly political, but I may wind up watching it now.
Writing (Original Screenplay)
* “The Hurt Locker” Written by Mark Boal
-* “Inglourious Basterds” Written by Quentin Tarantino
* “The Messenger” Written by Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman
* “A Serious Man” Written by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
* “Up” Screenplay by Bob Peterson, Pete Docter, Story by Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy
REACTION: I'm guessing a three-way race among "Hurt Locker", "Basterds" and "Up". Since I can't guess among them, I'll go with my fave, "Basterds". To see Tarantino on stage (not seen since '94) would be great.
Art Direction
-* “Avatar” Art Direction: Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg; Set Decoration: Kim Sinclair
* “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” Art Direction: Dave Warren and Anastasia Masaro; Set Decoration: Caroline Smith
* “Nine” Art Direction: John Myhre; Set Decoration: Gordon Sim
* “Sherlock Holmes” Art Direction: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer
* “The Young Victoria” Art Direction: Patrice Vermette; Set Decoration: Maggie Gray
REACTION: "The Young Victoria" is the one least on my radar, but there's always a place reserved for period pics like this. No clue who will win, but I want it to go to "Avatar".
Cinematography
-* “Avatar” Mauro Fiore
* “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” Bruno Delbonnel
* “The Hurt Locker” Barry Ackroyd
* “Inglourious Basterds” Robert Richardson
* “The White Ribbon” Christian Berger
REACTION: "Harry Potter" is a real surprise here as well as (but not as much) the Best Foreign Film front-runner "White Ribbon". I'm hoping something other than "Hurt Locker" or "Harry Potter" will win, so, let's say, uh, "Avatar".
Costume Design
* “Bright Star” Janet Patterson
* “Coco before Chanel” Catherine Leterrier
* “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” Monique Prudhomme
* “Nine” Colleen Atwood
-* “The Young Victoria” Sandy Powell
REACTION: I've heard of them all but only want to see a couple of 'em. I'll take a blind guess and go with the period drama.
Documentary (Feature)
* “Burma VJ” Anders Østergaard and Lise Lense-Møller
* “The Cove” Nominees to be determined
* “Food, Inc.” Robert Kenner and Elise Pearlstein
-* “The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers” Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith
* “Which Way Home” Rebecca Cammisa
REACTION: Best Doc has the best record for snubbing when it comes to noms (Foreign Film is a close second). "Food, Inc." is the only one I've heard of (which means it probably won't win). I'll go with the most politically themed as the winner.
Film Editing
-* “Avatar” Stephen Rivkin, John Refoua and James Cameron
* “District 9” Julian Clarke
* “The Hurt Locker” Bob Murawski and Chris Innis
* “Inglourious Basterds” Sally Menke
* “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Joe Klotz
REACTION: Wow. I've seen every one of those and walked away from each one of them noticing how well they were edited. I'll say "Avatar" waging on something of a technical sweep.
Foreign Language Film
* “Ajami” Israel
* “El Secreto de Sus Ojos” Argentina
* “The Milk of Sorrow” Peru
* “Un Prophète” France
* “The White Ribbon” Germany
REACTION: The only one on my radar is "White Ribbon". A WWI movie from Germany with noms in other categories? Yeah, it should win (tho, like, Best Doc, it's very unpredictable).
Makeup
-* “Il Divo” Aldo Signoretti and Vittorio Sodano
* “Star Trek” Barney Burman, Mindy Hall and Joel Harlow
* “The Young Victoria” Jon Henry Gordon and Jenny Shircore
REACTION: Haha! "Star Trek"? I really want that to win, but I'm going with the least known one here.
Music (Original Score)
* “Avatar” James Horner
* “Fantastic Mr. Fox” Alexandre Desplat
* “The Hurt Locker” Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders
* “Sherlock Holmes” Hans Zimmer
-* “Up” Michael Giacchino
REACTION: "Hurt Locker" had a score? Whatever. Giacchino is loved. "Up" is adored. It will win.
Music (Original Song)
* “Almost There” from “The Princess and the Frog” Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
* “Down in New Orleans” from “The Princess and the Frog” Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
* “Loin de Paname” from “Paris 36” Music by Reinhardt Wagner Lyric by Frank Thomas
* “Take It All” from “Nine” Music and Lyric by Maury Yeston
* “The Weary Kind (Theme from Crazy Heart)” from “Crazy Heart” Music and Lyric by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett
REACTION: Glad to see TP&TF get a couple noms. Jeff Bridge's acting has really helped "Crazy Heart" get recognition, and I'm guessing it will push this into a win. Nominations aren't too hard to guess for this category, but the winners are usually not as predictable.
Visual Effects
* “Avatar” Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R. Jones
* “District 9” Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers, Robert Habros and Matt Aitken
* “Star Trek” Roger Guyett, Russell Earl, Paul Kavanagh and Burt Dalton
I have no reaction to Documentary (Short Subject), Short Film (Animated), Short Film (Live Action), Sound Editing, or Sound Mixing.
And for what it's worth, next to Billy Crystal, Steve Martin is my favorite Oscar host and he will be co-hosting with Alec Baldwin on Sunday, March 7th (my birthday!). Check back here later for my reaction to the broadcast.
Actor in a Leading Role
-* Jeff Bridges in “Crazy Heart”
* George Clooney in “Up in the Air”
* Colin Firth in “A Single Man”
* Morgan Freeman in “Invictus”
* Jeremy Renner in “The Hurt Locker”
REACTION: No real surprises here considering this is pretty competitive. Maybe Morgan Freeman is the only thing that comes close, but apparently he was the best element of "Invictus". Jeff Bridges will win, and it will be a message of long-time-coming.
Actor in a Supporting Role
* Matt Damon in “Invictus”
* Woody Harrelson in “The Messenger”
* Christopher Plummer in “The Last Station”
* Stanley Tucci in “The Lovely Bones”
-* Christoph Waltz in “Inglourious Basterds”
REACTION: I called Christoph Waltz as this year's winner right after seeing "Inglourious Basterds". My prediction stays tho Plummer could easily win for seniority (typical for this category). Both Woody Harrelson and Stanley Tucci had a stellar year, tho Tucci has a good shot at this. Matt Damon is the biggest surprise here.
Actress in a Leading Role
-* Sandra Bullock in “The Blind Side”
* Helen Mirren in “The Last Station”
* Carey Mulligan in “An Education”
* Gabourey Sidibe in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”
* Meryl Streep in “Julie & Julia”
REACTION: I had a bet going that Bullock would not get nominated. Now she is the front-runner. Just watched "Julie & Julia" and, tho I don't normally root for Meryl Streep, I think it is a truly transforming performance and wholly delightful in every possible way. But this being Streep's 16th nom, Bullock will walk away with the gold. Congrats to a deserving Gabourey Sidibe too.
Actress in a Supporting Role
* Penélope Cruz in “Nine”
* Vera Farmiga in “Up in the Air”
* Maggie Gyllenhaal in “Crazy Heart”
* Anna Kendrick in “Up in the Air”
-* Mo’Nique in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”
REACTION: "Precious" is well done in may regards, but I'd say Mo'Nique comes out on top as the best element. I'm rooting for her, and she is the favored one. Glad to see "Up In the Air" get the double noms. Wouldn't be upset if Vera Farmiga won considering how well she did.
Animated Feature Film
* “Coraline” Henry Selick
* “Fantastic Mr. Fox” Wes Anderson
* “The Princess and the Frog” John Musker and Ron Clements
* “The Secret of Kells” Tomm Moore
-* “Up” Pete Docter
REACTION: The first truly competitive year for Animated Films since its inception in 2001. I called all these except that I predicted "Mary & Max" to get the darkhorse nom. Instead it went to "The Secret of Kells" (something totally off my radar). Rooting for "Mr. Fox" or even "Coraline", but it's no question that "Up" will win.
Directing
* “Avatar” James Cameron
-* “The Hurt Locker” Kathryn Bigelow
* “Inglourious Basterds” Quentin Tarantino
* “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels
* “Up in the Air” Jason Reitman
REACTION: I love this year's directors. They could've done well with 10 nominations. Any one of these in a different year could win. I'm a huge fan of both Reitman and Tarantino but it's a head-to-head with the formerly married Bigelow and Cameron. Cameron has a shot, but Bigelow will win.
Best Picture
* “Avatar” James Cameron and Jon Landau, Producers
* “The Blind Side” Nominees to be determined
* “District 9” Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham, Producers
* “An Education” Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey, Producers
-* “The Hurt Locker” Nominees to be determined
* “Inglourious Basterds” Lawrence Bender, Producer
* “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness and Gary Magness, Producers
* “A Serious Man” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, Producers
* “Up” Jonas Rivera, Producer
* “Up in the Air” Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman and Jason Reitman, Producers
REACTION: Two surprises here. One good; one bad. The good: "District 9". It really is an amazing well-put-together movie and by far the most ingenious on the list. The bad: "The Blind Side"!?!?! This one really upsets me. I'm convinced there are over a handful of other films that deserve higher recognition (I would include "Star Trek" and "The Hangover" among them). I really think this has more to do with appealing to viewers than anything else. Shameful. Then again, this *is* why they increased the ballot to 10 noms this year. It's Cameron vs. Bigelow again. Bigelow will come out on top (to casual viewers' dismay... because they haven't seen it).
Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
* “District 9” Written by Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell
* “An Education” Screenplay by Nick Hornby
* “In the Loop” Screenplay by Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche
* “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Screenplay by Geoffrey Fletcher
-* “Up in the Air” Screenplay by Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner
REACTION: Really tough call on the winner. They're all so good. Would this be Reitman's first Oscar if he won? Anyway, really glad to see "District 9" on there. This puts "In the Loop" back on my radar. It seemed "too British" kind of funny and highly political, but I may wind up watching it now.
Writing (Original Screenplay)
* “The Hurt Locker” Written by Mark Boal
-* “Inglourious Basterds” Written by Quentin Tarantino
* “The Messenger” Written by Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman
* “A Serious Man” Written by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
* “Up” Screenplay by Bob Peterson, Pete Docter, Story by Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy
REACTION: I'm guessing a three-way race among "Hurt Locker", "Basterds" and "Up". Since I can't guess among them, I'll go with my fave, "Basterds". To see Tarantino on stage (not seen since '94) would be great.
Art Direction
-* “Avatar” Art Direction: Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg; Set Decoration: Kim Sinclair
* “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” Art Direction: Dave Warren and Anastasia Masaro; Set Decoration: Caroline Smith
* “Nine” Art Direction: John Myhre; Set Decoration: Gordon Sim
* “Sherlock Holmes” Art Direction: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer
* “The Young Victoria” Art Direction: Patrice Vermette; Set Decoration: Maggie Gray
REACTION: "The Young Victoria" is the one least on my radar, but there's always a place reserved for period pics like this. No clue who will win, but I want it to go to "Avatar".
Cinematography
-* “Avatar” Mauro Fiore
* “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” Bruno Delbonnel
* “The Hurt Locker” Barry Ackroyd
* “Inglourious Basterds” Robert Richardson
* “The White Ribbon” Christian Berger
REACTION: "Harry Potter" is a real surprise here as well as (but not as much) the Best Foreign Film front-runner "White Ribbon". I'm hoping something other than "Hurt Locker" or "Harry Potter" will win, so, let's say, uh, "Avatar".
Costume Design
* “Bright Star” Janet Patterson
* “Coco before Chanel” Catherine Leterrier
* “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” Monique Prudhomme
* “Nine” Colleen Atwood
-* “The Young Victoria” Sandy Powell
REACTION: I've heard of them all but only want to see a couple of 'em. I'll take a blind guess and go with the period drama.
Documentary (Feature)
* “Burma VJ” Anders Østergaard and Lise Lense-Møller
* “The Cove” Nominees to be determined
* “Food, Inc.” Robert Kenner and Elise Pearlstein
-* “The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers” Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith
* “Which Way Home” Rebecca Cammisa
REACTION: Best Doc has the best record for snubbing when it comes to noms (Foreign Film is a close second). "Food, Inc." is the only one I've heard of (which means it probably won't win). I'll go with the most politically themed as the winner.
Film Editing
-* “Avatar” Stephen Rivkin, John Refoua and James Cameron
* “District 9” Julian Clarke
* “The Hurt Locker” Bob Murawski and Chris Innis
* “Inglourious Basterds” Sally Menke
* “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Joe Klotz
REACTION: Wow. I've seen every one of those and walked away from each one of them noticing how well they were edited. I'll say "Avatar" waging on something of a technical sweep.
Foreign Language Film
* “Ajami” Israel
* “El Secreto de Sus Ojos” Argentina
* “The Milk of Sorrow” Peru
* “Un Prophète” France
* “The White Ribbon” Germany
REACTION: The only one on my radar is "White Ribbon". A WWI movie from Germany with noms in other categories? Yeah, it should win (tho, like, Best Doc, it's very unpredictable).
Makeup
-* “Il Divo” Aldo Signoretti and Vittorio Sodano
* “Star Trek” Barney Burman, Mindy Hall and Joel Harlow
* “The Young Victoria” Jon Henry Gordon and Jenny Shircore
REACTION: Haha! "Star Trek"? I really want that to win, but I'm going with the least known one here.
Music (Original Score)
* “Avatar” James Horner
* “Fantastic Mr. Fox” Alexandre Desplat
* “The Hurt Locker” Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders
* “Sherlock Holmes” Hans Zimmer
-* “Up” Michael Giacchino
REACTION: "Hurt Locker" had a score? Whatever. Giacchino is loved. "Up" is adored. It will win.
Music (Original Song)
* “Almost There” from “The Princess and the Frog” Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
* “Down in New Orleans” from “The Princess and the Frog” Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
* “Loin de Paname” from “Paris 36” Music by Reinhardt Wagner Lyric by Frank Thomas
* “Take It All” from “Nine” Music and Lyric by Maury Yeston
* “The Weary Kind (Theme from Crazy Heart)” from “Crazy Heart” Music and Lyric by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett
REACTION: Glad to see TP&TF get a couple noms. Jeff Bridge's acting has really helped "Crazy Heart" get recognition, and I'm guessing it will push this into a win. Nominations aren't too hard to guess for this category, but the winners are usually not as predictable.
Visual Effects
* “Avatar” Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R. Jones
* “District 9” Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers, Robert Habros and Matt Aitken
* “Star Trek” Roger Guyett, Russell Earl, Paul Kavanagh and Burt Dalton
I have no reaction to Documentary (Short Subject), Short Film (Animated), Short Film (Live Action), Sound Editing, or Sound Mixing.
And for what it's worth, next to Billy Crystal, Steve Martin is my favorite Oscar host and he will be co-hosting with Alec Baldwin on Sunday, March 7th (my birthday!). Check back here later for my reaction to the broadcast.
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