Thursday Movie Picks: Oscar Winning Movies

The Dellies - 2012 Best Director

And now we've reached the last award. Sort of. As I've said before, I will do a best and worst movie list, both this weekend. For now, we'll tackle the people who have painstakingly brought their vision to life in the form of these pictures. Click on the titles of my nominees to read my full reviews.

2012 - Best Director

The Real Nominees: Michael Haneke (Amour), Ang Lee (Life of Pi), David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook), Steven Spielberg (Lincoln), Benh Zeitlin (Beasts of the Southern Wild)

My Nominees:

Ben Affleck, Argo

It’s a masterwork crafted by Affleck, the director. For me, each of his three efforts from the special chair has been brilliant. He may have made his name as an actor and dater of starlets, but it seems his true calling is behind the camera.

Paul Thomas Anderson, The Master

Paul Thomas Anderson directs his movie in a manner that makes it difficult to look away from. The shots are beautiful and Hoffman and Phoenix command the screen. Many of their scenes together are scintillating. The director brings this out with excellent story-telling skills.

Ang Lee, Life of Pi

Including this one, I've only seen five of the twelve full-length features directed by Ang Lee. Until now, I’ve only liked one, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. If you shared my point of view, you’d understand why I wasn't really buying into the hype surrounding Life of Pi. However, I’ll admit that Mr. Lee has crafted a winner with this one.

Quentin Tarantino, Django Unchained

Nothing is so effective in the movie than at several points when we merely think something heinous is about to happen. This is when we’re intrinsically drawn to the edge of our seat while simultaneously trying to sink backwards into the thing. It is at these moments when Django is at its best.

Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild

By the end, we've been through more than enough ups and downs with this family to become fully vested in them. When life throws yet another thing at them, we duck. Beasts of the Southern Wild is just a wonderfully done film.


Honorable Mention:
Kathryn Bigelow, Zero Dark Thirty
Stephen Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Ben Lewin, The Sessions
Sam Mendes, Skyfall
Steven Spielberg, Lincoln
David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook


The Real Winner: Ang Lee, Life of Pi

And My Winner Is...

Quentin Tarantino, Django Unchained

Taking another cue from the Blaxploitation era, director Quentin Tarantino wraps this tale about the barbaric ways of slavery in spaghetti western garb. To drive it forward, we get a screenplay chock full of sharp, often funny, often stinging dialogue. Django Unchained continues the director’s tradition of creating great tension through words. This one has more action between conversations than his normal fare, but the relationship between the two dynamics remains the same. Dialogue, complete with dramatic pauses, creates tension, action releases it.

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The Dellies - 2012 Best Animated Feature

Today we dive into what is probably the most fun category. Every year tons of kiddie fare hits the theater. Truthfully, much of it is annoying and overly simple. That said, when one of these movies gets it right it can be a truly wonderful viewing experience. The movies below got it right. Click on the titles of my nominees and honorable mentions to read my full reviews.

2012 - Best Animated Feature

The Real Nominees: Brave (Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman), Frankenweenie (Tim Burton), ParaNorman (Sam Fell and Chris Butler), The Pirates! Band of Misfits (Peter Lord), Wreck-It Ralph (Rich Moore)

My Nominees

Brave

Directed by Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman

Brave is a beautiful looking film. Beginning with our heroine’s expertly rendered hair, it’s a wonderful mix of photo-realistic scenery and cartoonish people. Nearly every frame has a touch or two that are a treat to lay eyes on.

ParaNorman

Directed by Sam Fell and Chris Butler

The characters on the screen are plenty scared, but their plight is handled with a good deal of levity. And the jokes actually work.

The Pirates! Band of Misfits

Directed by Peter Lord

Verbally, Pirates prefers subtly inserted punchlines to the obvious or crass. All of this comes together in a solid package.

Rise of the Guardians

Directed by Peter Ramsey

It’s possible to see the entire plot as a test of faith and what happens if we don’t have it. No, this doesn't get preachy and it’s not an advertisement for any religion. However, the theme is present. More than any of this, it’s just plain fun to watch.

Wreck-It Ralph

Directed by Rich Moore

There’s more to this movie than being pretty and loud. It eventually becomes a redemption tale. That much is expected. What’s not is the complexity of the redeeming and how many actually go through it.


Honorable Mention:
Ice Age: Continental Drift
Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted


The Real Winner: Brave (Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman)

And My Winner Is...

Rise of the Guardians

Directed by Peter Ramsey

On the surface, things boil down to that good guys/bad guy stuff. That aspect alone is fun, but there’s more to it than that. It plays on our childhood hopes and fears to create both excitement and dread.

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The Dellies - 2012 Best Documentary Feature

I'll be honest right off the bat. This is the category I am probably least qualified to present an award, not that I'm actually qualified to give any, but you get my drift. For much of my life I only watched one or two docs per year and kept telling myself I should watch more. Recently, I have. However, that still only amounts to a handful each of the last few years (not quite that many this year). Sadly, my handful doesn't fully match the Academy's nominees. Still, I'll give it a go. Click on the titles of my nominees to read my full reviews.

2012 Best Documentary - Feature

The Real Nominees: 5 Broken Cameras (Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi), The Gatekeepers (Dror Moreh, Philippa Kowarski, and Estelle Fialon), How to Survive a Plague (David France and Howard Gertler), The Invisible War (Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering), Searching for Sugar Man (Malik Bendjelloul and Simon Chinn)

My Nominees:

Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry

Directed by Alison Klayman

With such dedication to both his ideals and working toward them combined with his popularity, it can be argued that Ai Weiwei is the most important artist in the world. Never Sorry ably conveys this point.

How to Survive a Plague

Directed by David France and Howard Gertler

Its story is very well told. It is also a reminder that even though AIDS isn't the immediate nailing up of the coffin it once was, it’s still out there and plenty of people continue to die from it.

The Invisible War

Directed by Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering

The film itself contributed to changes in how allegations of sex crimes are handled. Like many policy changes, it’s not a solution by itself, but a step in the right direction.

The Queen of Versailles

Directed by Lauren Greenfield

Real life intervened and gave us a plot. We get to see people go through a range of emotions, both good and bad. We see a change in the way they interact with one another. There is substance and even sadness in watching their family fortune deteriorate.

Something From Nothing: The Art of Rap

Directed by Ice-T

If you’re at all a (hip hop) fan, the nearly two hours flies by as a new perspective or another rhyme is never too far away.


The Real Winner: Searching for Sugar Man (Malik Bendjelloul and Simon Chinn)

And My Winner Is...

The Invisible War

Directed by Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering

"There are some works of writing or painting, speech, or film that do more than just stand as great works of art. They change things. They put before us something fundamentally wrong with the world — with the society we take for granted, with the institutions on which we depend and that in turn depend on us — and demand change. "The Invisible War" belongs in that pantheon, and is easily one of the most important films of the year." - Jonathan Hahn, The Los Angeles Review of Books

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The Dellies - 2012 Best Supporting Actress

For this next category, you'll find that this is where I'm probably most divergent from the Academy's thinking. That's mainly because I slid two of the nominees over to the Best Actress category, as I explained in that post, and dropped another out of the running. Hey, I did say these were my awards, right? Anyhoo, on with the show...

2012 Best Supporting Actress

The Real Nominees: Amy Adams (The Master), Sally Field (Lincoln), Anne Hathaway (Les Miserables), Helen Hunt (The Sessions), Jacki Weaver (Silver Linings Playbook)

My Nominees:

Gina Gershon, Killer Joe

Gina Gershon is thoroughly skanky. She's practically the epitome of trailer trash royalty.

Anne Hathaway, Les Miserables

We get a wonderful turn by Anne Hathaway. In just a handful of scenes, she gives us a gut-wrenching few minutes of screen time.

Charlize Theron, Snow White and the Huntsman

She seethes, hisses and vampirically gains strength by literally draining it from others. Like the bloodsucker, she earns both our dread and the pity we reserve for one whose seemingly boundless power is really fueled by a fatal flaw.

Jacki Weaver, Silver Linings Playbook

Weaver does an excellent job conveying her character’s raggedness from being pulled to and fro. She tries to do right by everyone and often winds up little more than an enabler.

Rebel Wilson, Pitch Perfect

A sizable share of the movie’s funniest moments are hers. Her timing is rock solid and she has charisma to spare.


Honorable Mention
Samantha Barks, Les Miserables
Ann Dowd, Compliance
Carmen Ejogo, Sparkle
America Ferrera, End of Watch
Maggie Smith, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel


The Real Winner: Anne Hathaway, Les Miserables

And My Winner Is...

Rebel Wilson, Pitch Perfect

This might be the best comedic performance of the last few years including 2011’s Oscar nominated turn by Melissa McCarthy in Bridesmaids.

Click Here for the Rest of the Dellies!

The Dellies - 2012 Best Supporting Actor

For me, this next category is probably the toughest. So much great work was turned in by guys portraying secondary characters. Whittling it down to five nominees proved a difficult task, one that makes me begrudgingly admit The Academy almost got right. Almost. With that tantalizing tease, let's move on to...

2012 - Best Supporting Actor

The Real Nominees: Alan Arkin (Argo), Robert DeNiro (Silver Linings Playbook), Tommy Lee Jones (Lincoln), Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Master), Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained)

My Nominees:

Alan Arkin, Argo

In Argo, Alan Arkin is particularly exceptional. He can proudly add this to a long list of fine supporting roles.

Samuel L. Jackson, Django Unchained

Jackson breathes an unbelievable amount of life into his character. He is funny, conniving, deliciously evil, and perhaps the smartest person in the movie.

Tommy Lee Jones, Lincoln

When neither Daniel Day-Lewis nor Sally Field are on the screen, the movie is carried by a magnificent Tommy Lee Jones who give his most inspired performance in years.

Philip Seymour Hoffman, The Master

Hoffman is perfectly charismatic as the leader of a budding way of thought, no matter how out there it may be. In an exemplary manner, he pulls off his character’s ability to instantly adapt his explanations to most lines of questioning and knack for shouting down anyone not persuaded by his answers.

Christoph Waltz, Django Unchained

Christoph Waltz switches sides of the coin, going from playing the unapologetic villain in Inglourious Basterds to a kinder, gentler man in Django Unchained, albeit one still capable of mowing down whoever stands in his way. He gives a moustache twirlingly fun performance.

Honorable Mention:
Robert DeNiro, Silver Linings Playbook
Leonardo DiCaprio, Django Unchained
Jeremy Irons, The Words
Jude Law, Rise of the Guardians
Ezra Miller, The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Hugo Weaving, Cloud Atlas

The Real Winner: Christoph Waltz, Django Unchained

And My Winner Is...

Samuel L. Jackson, Django Unchained

The portrayal I thought was best of all in a movie filled with great ones is that of Samuel L. Jackson. Every word he says, every movement of his body and shift of his eyes feels true. It’s nothing less than masterful.

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The Dellies - 2012 Best Actress

With my first award, I merely confirmed the Academy's choice for Daniel Day-Lewis as Best Actor. I assure you that won't be the case with all of the awards.

Before moving on, I have to get into semantics. The lines between an actor in a leading role and one in a supporting role is blurred by the Academy. My first instinct is to say that anyone who is not the protagonist is in a supporting role. However, that isn't quite right. For instance, Jennifer Lawrence received a nod for, and won, Best Actress for her work in Silver Linings Playbook though she doesn't play the main character. That leads me to my prevailing notion which is that the words "lead" and "supporting" are gender specific. In other words, Lawrence is the lead female in SLP. However, that doesn't really hold water since Helen Hunt received a nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role in The Sessions even though I would say she is the lead female character in that movie. Still, the latter is the definition I prefer so that's the one I'll go with. In other words, Two of the ladies below were actually nominated for Best Supporting Actress. You should already know who one is, I'll give you one guess as to who the other is. Forget about it, let's just get on with it...

Best Actress

The Real Nominees: Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty), Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook), Emanuelle Riva (Amour), Quvenzhane Wallis (Beasts of the Southern Wilds), Naomi Watts (The Impossible)

My Nominees:

Jessica Chastain, Zero Dark Thirty

As Maya, Jessica Chastain is nothing, if not fierce. Her ferocity is drawn from unwavering conviction. She is the type of person we viewers might not like if we had to work with/for her, but we’d appreciate her and be glad she’s on our side.

Sally Field, Lincoln

In the role of First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln,is nearly her leading man's equal, coming apart at the seams one moment and the very picture of composure the next.

Helen Hunt, The Sessions

The flip side of John Hawkes’ restraint is the unshakable bravery of the work done by Helen Hunt.

Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook

Again proving herself a superior talent, Lawrence’s portrayal is note-perfect all the way through. Always at the appropriate times, she’s stand-offish, emotional, manipulative, confident and never quite stable.

Michelle Williams, Take This Waltz

As has become the norm, Ms. Williams turns in a tremendous performance making us feel every emotion with her.

Honorable Mention:
Marion Cotillard, Rust and Bone
Judi Dench, Skyfall
Quvenzhane Wallis, Beasts of the Southern Wilds
Emma Watson, The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The Real Winner: Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook

And My Winner Is...

Helen Hunt, The Sessions

Not least of the reasons her performance has to considered courageous is because most of her screen-time is spent naked. Her character’s job description is pretty much being a sex object. The genius of the directing, the writing, and finally, Hunt herself, is they all refuse to let that be all there is to her. She’s a fully formed being grown from the Hollywood archetype of the hooker with a heart of gold, but is so much more.

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The Dellies - 2012 Best Actor

At long last, I'm finally ready to put a bow on 2012. Sorta. I mean, I'll still see more movies released during last year, but I'm comfortable enough to say what I think are the best and worse '12 has to offer. I'm working from a pool of roughly 130 movies, so even though I've missed a lot (still haven't seen Amour) I'm rolling with it.

Normally, I would just do a best and worst list and be done with it. I'm going to do something a little different this time. Let's call it "The Dellies." Basically, I'm going to go through the major Oscar categories and give my own opinions on the best.

No worries, I'll still get to a best and worst pic list.

For now, I'll start with

Best Actor

The Real Nominees: Bradley Cooper (Silver Linings Playbook), Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln), Hugh Jackman (Les Miserables), Joaquin Phoenix (The Master), Denzel Washington (Flight)

My Nominees:

Daniel Day-Lewis, Lincoln

As has been said so many times already, Daniel Day-Lewis inhabits the character to such a degree he is truly lost within Abraham Lincoln.

John Hawkes, The Sessions

Through an astoundingly charming performance by John Hawkes, Mark is worthy of both our sympathy and empathy. Even though he literally lies still throughout the movie, he still manages an impressive range of emotion.

Dwight Henry, Beasts of the Southern Wild

Though overshadowed in the media by his co-star, Henry is no less excellent as her dad. Through him, we come to appreciate Wink as a passionate man doing what he thinks is right, whether we think it actually is or not.

Hugh Jackman, Les Miserables

His emotions bubble to the surface, compelling us to watch. It’s not until after the movie that we realize we just saw Wolverine singing.

Joaquin Phoenix, The Master

The work Phoenix turns in is flat amazing. From the start, he fully embodies this raging man-child who is understanding of little more than pleasure and pain.


Honorable Mentions:
Bradley Cooper, Silver Linings Playbook
Frank Langella, Robot & Frank
Matthew McConaughey, Killer Joe
Suraj Sharma, Life of Pi
Denzel Washington, Flight


The Real Winner: Daniel Day-Lewis, Lincoln

And My Winner Is...

Daniel Day-Lewis, Lincoln

I'll keep it simple. Daniel Day-Lewis is so good that I really felt like I was watching the sixteenth President of the United States.

Congrats to the Winners!

 

Just finished watching the Oscars. Congrats to all the winners, especially Argo, taking home the honors for Best Picture. You can read my review of it here.

Movies I've reviewed that received at least one nomination this year (alphabetically):

The Avengers

Django Unchained
Flight
Mirror Mirror
Moonrise Kingdom
ParaNorman
Silver Linings Playbook
Snow White and the Huntsman
Ted


In the coming weeks, I should get to a bunch more nominees, particularly from the Best Picture category. Stay tuned!