2013 Oscar nominated Supporting Actress

And the nominees are:

Sally Hawkins in "Blue Jasmine"
This was a surprise for me because it's not a flamboyant role. However, in Woody Allen's take on "A Streetcar Named Desire," she is the perfect Stella to Cate Blanchett's Blanche. The bohemian younger sister who takes in the rich, but now destitute older sister, she portrayed a woman in touch with her life, no matter the circumstances, trying to deal with a sibling spiraling out of control.

Jennifer Lawrence in "American Hustle"
A no-brainer. She is becoming one of our finest young actresses, and in this movie showed her comedic talents. Playing the wife of Christian Bale, who is cheating on her with Amy Adams, she epitomizes the typical 1970's New Jersey "broad." And nearly stole the movie out from under her fellow actors.

Lupita Nyong'o in "12 Years a Slave"
Astonishing. Not yet out of acting school, her first film performance is the most raw and emotional performance of the group. She plays Patsy, the abused, beaten, and downtrodden slave of Michael Fassbender. She has scenes that are so gut-wrenching, I almost walked out of the theater. And I mean that in a good way...it was THAT powerful.

Julia Roberts in "August:Osage County"
I admit, I'm not a big fan, probably because I still can't believe she won the Oscar for "Erin Brokovich" over Ellen Burstyn for "Requiem for a Dream" in 2000. But this movie gave me a new appreciation for Ms. Roberts. As the oldest daughter reluctantly coming home during a family crisis, and facing a mother she despises, she brought an almost feral reality to a character who hates, despises, but will still defend family.

June Squibb in "Nebraska"
The funniest performance of the year. The 40+ year theater and film veteran is the oldest nominee and the least known. Not any longer. She plays the frustrated wife of Bruce Dern and rebukes and curses everyone trying to placate his illusion of winning a million dollars. The profane things that come out of her mouth are hysterical, and yet at her core, she will defend her family like a tigress.

And my thoughts are:

Who will win
Lupita Nyong'o
This is almost a given and may be "12 Years a Slave"'s best shot at an Oscar.

Who I would pick
June Squibb
Without a doubt, the funniest, yet heartfelt performance of the nominees. She was exactly like "old ladies" that might be in our families. A very realistic performance.

Honorable mention
Julianne Nicholson in "August:Osage County"
There is always someone that is left out, and this would be my pick. As the youngest daughter of the most dysfunctional family on screen since "Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolfe," she brought a vulnerable and nuanced performance to the role of the sister left behind, who's only happiness is falling in love with her cousin, and who is given the most emotionally shattering denoument.

So, Cinajim will continue next time with Supporting Actors.
Until then, keep it reel!

2013 Oscar nominated Animated Shorts

The Midtown Cinema in Harrisburg has granted us the chance to see the Oscar nominated shorts once again. What I love about the Animated shorts is that we not only get to see the 5 nominees, but also 3 "Highly Commended" shorts (in other words, up for consideration but didn't make the cut.)

Here are the nominees:

Feral
A feral child is found in the woods living amongst the wolves and is taken in by a man who hopes to civilize the child. Drawn in a chalk-like shadow play, it begins and ends with moments of transcendental contemplation of nature versus civilization. Ponderous.

Get a Horse
I almost wondered why this was included, since it starts out as a 1930's Mickey Mouse Toon. Suddenly, the characters break out of the black and white screen onto a color stage and proceed to fluctuate back and forth between the two. Very clever....but we expect this from Disney.

Mr. Hublot
A French film in which a solitary man spies a mechanical dog stranded in the metropolis streets below his apartment building. During a rainy night, he decides to rescue the dog. Very clever stop-motion/CGI animation that epitomizes Steampunk. At times very funny, yet also has some poignant moments.

Possessions
Based on Japanese mythology that claims after 100 years discarded objects take on a life of their own. A warrior is trapped in a storm and seeks refuge in a seemingly abandoned cabin. But he is not alone. An anime film that had the most beautiful colors I've seen in an animated film in years.

Room on the Broom
A claymation/CGI rendering of a childrens book concerning a witch and her cat flying on her broom. She continues to drop things and whenever they return to the ground to retrieve them, wind up picking up more passengers. Very sweet and charming.

And the highly commended shorts were:

Ala Francois
Another claymation/CGI (can anyone really tell the difference nowadays?) tale of a gathering at a French court in the 1700s. The only difference is, all of the characters are chickens. Very cute and funny.

The Missing Scarf
An Irish tale of a squirrel searching for his scarf. Along the way he comes across various animals with problems of their own, and he proceeds to help them rationalize their fears. Narrated with aplomb by George Takei, a very snarky and funny short.

The Blue Umbrella
Once again, I first wondered why this was an animated film. A man with blue boots and a blue umbrella is walking in the rain following a woman with red boots and a red umbrella. Suddenly the downspouts, mailboxes, drains, etc. start moving to the sound of the rain, and the two umbrellas develop faces. What transpires is the blue umbrella trying to meet up with the red umbrella. Another charming short.

So, there are the brief synopses of the shorts. My thoughts:

Mr. Hublot had me from the get-go, because it reminded me of the Wallace and Gromit shorts.

Room With a Broom. The crew who created this were in the "Highly Commended" category last year with their short "The Gruffalo's Child," and once again they created a charming tale, only this time they got the nomination.

However, the one that really blew me away was Possessions.
I wasn't sure where this story was going, but I was enthralled for the entire 15 or so minutes. A wonderful story with beautiful artwork. This is the one I'm rooting for Oscar night.

So readers, a warning...Ken and I have hit a landmark this year in the fact that not only did we strive to see all 9 Best Picture nominees and succeeded, but in the process have managed to see all of the acting nominees and all five director nominees. Expect a few blogs in the next few days!

Until next time.....Keep it Reel.

2013 Oscar nominated Live Shorts

It's been awhile since I have posted. Part of me has questioned why am I doing this? Who cares?
But it's Oscar season, my time of the year. Ken and I have seen 8 of the 9 best picture nominations, and we wind up at ABC (our pub) and I start talking movies...to strangers! Can't help myself.
So, I'm back. And thanks to the Midtown Cinema in Harrisburg, I can discuss the categories that we all scratch our heads at, because there is no place you can see them (usually.)
The nominees for Live Short Film are:

Aquel No Era Yo (That Wasn't Me)A doctor and his wife, with their driver,in a worn-torn country are abducted and abused by the guerillas seeking freedom. Brutal, thought-provoking and hard to watch.

Avant Que De Tout Perdre (Just Before Losing Everything)A woman picks up her daughter and son and seeks help from the employees where she works. She is trying to run away from an abusive husband. Slow start that becomes very suspenseful when the husband shows up at her workplace.

Helium

Enzo is a new janitor at a hospital for dying children. He meets a young boy who loves zeppelins and air baloons. He knows he is dying, but does not want to go to heaven, because it sounds boring.
Enzo begins to tell him a story about Helium, a place above the clouds where children can play forever in cabins held up by air baloons. Amazing and poignant.

Pitaako Mun Kaikki Hoitaa? (Do I have to take care of everything?)

A 7 minute film of a family who wakes up late for a wedding, and how everything goes horribly wrong. The funniest nominee.

So, here are my thoughts:

Who Will Win: That Wasn't Me....it has the biggest budget, and has the political bent..war-torn country, and children losing their innocence by becoming part of the warlord machine.

Who Should Win: Helium...a wonderful movie of children dealing with mortality, awesome effects for a small move, and an ending that had a tear running down my cheek.

Ken and I have one more to see before the Oscars (Wolf of Wall Street), but we hope to see the animated shorts Thursday, and I wll post that one next. Once we see all 9 best picture nominations, I'll post my thoughts on the upcoming Oscars.

Be back soon.....and keep it reel.

Beasts of the Southern Wild

Six year old Hushpuppy (Quvenzhane Wallis) is growing up in a squalid area of the Louisiana Bayou known as the "Bathtub."  She lives in an abandoned trailer a few yards away from her alcoholic and ailing father(Dwight Henry) who has his own dilapidated trailer.  Her mother allegedly "left for the sea" when Hushpuppy was small, but Hushpuppy retains the memory of her mother by talking to her mother's old jersey.

An impending storm threatens to flood the "Bathtub," but the locals refuse to leave their home.  At the same time, Hushpuppy hears a tale of maurauding mythical beasts called the Aroucks who might be released by the melting polar ice caps and devour everything in their way, including children.

This is a movie that can be viewed from so many angles.  At first glance, it is a tale of a young girl's survival amidst heart-rending poverty.  To most of us viewers, the living conditions of the people of the Bathtub are appalling...Hushpuppy wanders through the mud and filth in a shirt, underwear, and white galoshes with garbage, chickens, pigs, dogs, and sundry animals at her feet.  However, you begin to realize it is the only world they know, and they are able to find joy and celebration in their life.  Nightly fireworks, drinking, and buckets of local shellfish are a common celebration.

It is also a tale of a father and his daughter.  Daddy comes off at first as abusive, but as the tale progresses you realize that he truly loves his daughter and is only trying to make her tough in order to deal with their surroundings.  And although they battle, Hushpuppy stands by her father as well.

Then there is the fairy tale element.  Hushpuppy talks to, and at one point tries to find the mother that is not there.  The Arouchs might be imaginary beasts, but to the child's mind they are real and she realizes she will have to face them someday.

This movie is a labor of love for all involved, since it is the first major film for most of the crew.  Behn Zeitlin is the director, co-writer, and also contributor to the Zydeco-flavored score.  His is the most assured directorial debut I've seen in years.  He is aided by Ben Richardson's cinematography which is at times harsh and brutal, and then magical and joyous.

The cast is so realistic it's scary, but then again, most are from around the area where it was filmed.  Dwight Henry owned a bakery across the street from where the film crew had headquarters, and was asked to play the part of Daddy.  He succeeds brilliantly.  Rough, course, abusive, and sickly, yet at his core has a fatherly love for his daughter that is real and heartfelt.

And then there's Quvenzhasne Wallis.  She was 5 years old at the audition (and had to lie that she was 6..the age minimum to audition.)  She gives the most astonishing performance of the year.  There is no artifice to her movements or reactions.  Every emotion, from lashing out at her father, to being amazed at hearing the heart-beats of animals that she holds to her ear, to the unbridled joy at the nightly celebrations, emanate as if from her soul.  And her matter-of-fact narration is spot on. At one point they are forced to go to a shelter, and as Hushpuppy wanders among the injured she states simply that "when somebody gets sick here, they plug them into the wall."

This is not a movie for everyone (my husband said he "didn't get it.")  It is bleak and heart-breaking, but also a celebration of life in the midst of despair.  One of the most unusual and astounding films of this year.   

Moonrise Kingdom

It's 1965 New England and 12 year old Sam (Jared Gilman) escapes from his scout camp and meets up with young Suzy (Kara Hayward) to run away together.  Her family and the scout troop, along with a social worker, attempt to find them before a storm of the century hits the island.

That's the basic plot of what I consider the best picture I have seen this year.  To start off, it's a Wes Anderson film, a director known for some quirky movies ("Rushmore," "Bottle Rocket," "The Royal Tennenbaums.")  In this movie, he takes an old trope of young kids at the onset of puberty who want to be together (think "Friends," the movie for which Elton John wrote "This is Your Song") and yet made it the most original movie of the year.

My initial reaction was to the art and set design.  The movie opens with a panoramic view of the rooms of the best "lighthouse" house I've ever seen (I want to live there!)  The 1965 details are exquisite, down to the board games the kids play with, to the battery-operated record player with the plastic lid.  And anyone who has ever been in the boy scouts can relate to the scout camp.

And speaking of scout camp, the costume designers are also remarkable.  The kerchiefs (does anyone use that term anymore?) to the knee socks and badges are spot on.  Then there is the performance of Noah's Ark in the local church where the children (about 2 dozen?!) are dressed as various animals.  And once again this takes me back to the art direction...spectacular in a local theater group way.

Another standout has to be the cinematography: from the soft greens of the woods, to the foggy sunset scenes at the light house, to how the rain water glistens off Suzy's hair...there are scenes you could frame and hang on the wall.  It's a beautiful movie to see.

Now the acting.  You have a core of great actors:  Bill Murray and Francis McDormand as Suzy's parents, Ed Norton as the Scout Leader, Bruce Willis as the Sheriff, Tilda Swinton as the Social Worker, and cameos by Jason Schwartzman and Harvey Keitel.  But the keys to this movie are Sam and Suzy.  I don't know where Wes Anderson found Jared and Kara, but they work!  They are supposed to be outcasts yet wise beyond their years and the connection between the two of them had me cheering for them throughout the movie.

And the music.  It's been years since I've wanted to run out and buy the soundtrack to a movie.  The spell has been broken- I'm buying this one tomorrow!  Suzy's brother puts on an album of Benjamin Britton: one of those Leonard Bernstein "Let's teach children about the orchestra" deals where the narrator says "first comes the harp, then comes the clarinet...etc, etc, etc.)  For some reason this works beautifully in the movie (so much in fact the hair was standing up on my arms at one point.)  And the scene where Suzy plays a French 45 record (if I have to explain this, I will track you down) while they dance on the shore in their underwear is perfect...typical 60's European tune that gets them to dance without any inhibitions.  I stayed for the credits, just to see the music credits (until my husband told me that we should go because the usher who needs to clean the theater is glaring at us.)

So as you can tell, I loved this movie.  I've been slack lately with the blog, but when I get inspired, I have to write one; whether it's the best or not...I'm finding that my problem is if I don't do it right away (re "Ted") I don't do it.  So here you go.

And go see "Moonrise Kingdom." ................... And keep it reel.

Magic Mike

Mike (Channing Tatum) works during the day as a construction worker and a car detailer, but at night is "Magic Mike," the star of the Xquisite Male Revue Show run by Dallas (Matthew McConaughey.)  What Mike really wants is to start his own business designing one of a kind furniture.

One day at the construction job, he befriends a new young worker, Adam (Alex Pettyfer.)  When Adam loses his job, Mike takes him into Xquisite for a job.

Yes, this is the male stripper movie everyone has been talking about.  Warning...do not let the trailer fool you.  Yes, there are several scenes of the guys performing on stage (and some of the best "man ass" you will ever see.)  But that is only the framework of the movie.  This is more akin to "Boggie Nights," where fame and money comes at a price.

Steven Soderbergh once again shows why he is a director to be noticed.  This could have turned into what the trailer thinks it is, but he takes the story into a completely different scenario.  The screenplay by Reid Carolin is believable and realistic, basically because it is semi-autobiographical for Channing Tatum, who was a male stripper at 19. Also, Soderbergh uses odd camera angles and lighting to disorient the viewer the same as the characters.  While some may find this annoying, I thought it put the viewer into the moment.

The one who should be mentioned (and who won't in most reviews) is Alison Faulk, the choreographer.  The stage performance scenes are incredible to behold, and she was able to get the actors to perform seamlessly as a group, yet also let them shine on their own.

Now to the acting.  Alex Pettyfer is perfect as the young upstart who is shy at first to get on the stage and disrobe, but then becomes "The Kid."  He has the "Star is Born" role, including the descent into drugs, and he nails it. 

Matthew McConaughey has never been better.  As Dallas, the aging stripper who is building an empire to expand his dream...he is my first pick this year for a best supporting actor nomination.  Bombastic, flamboyent, and self-referential (yes, there is a scene with bongo drums,) he gives the performance of his career.

And then there is Channing.  Always touted as a wooden actor, he has proven himself this year with three movies:  "The Vow," where he proved he could do a dramatic romance; "21 Jump Street," where the world found out that he is an awesome comedic actor; and now "Magic Mike."  He conveys the yearning of someone who wants more from life, the knowledge that his body can make money, and the pathos of someone who realizes that he needs to move on.  And yes, his dance moves are s"pec"tacular (not to mention he has the best ass in Hollywood right now.)

Anyone who thinks this movie is only for straight women and gay men will be missing out on one of the best pictures of 2012.

Ten Inch Hero

A group of employees at a restaurant in Santa Cruz deal with love, loss, and the bonds that hold them together.

Piper (Elisabeth Harnois) is an art student who reads an article about a young girl in the neighborhood who may be the daughter she gave up for adoption. Jen (Clea DuVall) is the painfully shy, self conscious geek who has befriended a guy on the internet but is terrified to meet him in real life.  Tish (Danneel Harris) is the maneater who takes on any cute guy who comes into the restaurant.  Trucker is the restaurant owner who is in love with Zoe who owns the Crystal Shop across the street and may or may not be a witch.  And Priestley (Jensen Ackles,) who is the mohawked smart ass of the group.

This is without a doubt an underrated gem!  A co-worker told me about the movie, and since we are both fans of Jensen Ackles ("Supernatural") I had to check it out.

This has a cute story by Betsy Morris, with competent direction by David Mackay.  But what makes the movie a step above the usual indie fare is the cast.

Elisabeth Harnois is totally believable as Piper; befriending the young girl (who may or may not be her daughter) and falling in love with the young girl's "father."  Danneel Harris (now Danneel Ackles..yes, she eventually married Jared)  is spot on as the restaurant "slut."  There is a storyline involving two guys that you can see the resolution coming from a mile away, yet she makes you care to see where it will lead.

I've always admired Clea DuVall, who is known for playing the edgy, Goth outsider type ("The Faculty," "Carnival.")  In her role as Jen she shows a vulnerability and innocence that won me over.  There is a scene
where she goes to a restaurant with Piper and Tish to finally meet her internet friend, and yet can't gather the courage to meet him that is heartbreaking.

The older couple of Zoe (Alice Krige, still looking stunning!) and Trucker (John Doe from the band "X") is also charming, with a twist ending that I did not see coming.

And then there is Jensen Ackles.  Why is this guy not a big star!  He is funny, handsome, and self-deprecating.  And the guy is the best at one-liners!  Part of the fun in this movie is seeing what color his hair will be and what outrageous T-shirt he will be wearing.  But he knocks it out of the park when he attempts to buy tampons for the girls to show them how comfortable he is with his manhood.  This scene alone proved what a comedic actor he really is.

So you can tell, I really enjoyed this movie.  I haven't blogged for awhile, but this movie got me back so I could let people know to look out for this one.  It is definitely going on my Christmas list.  Highly recommended!