Happy Oscar Day! 2017 was kind of an interesting year for films, huh? 2017 was an interesting year in general, and a lot of it was reflected in the movies that came out. I feel like it was a year women and people of color finally had their stories told, their voices heard, and the world listened...well, for the most part. Wonder Woman, The Fate of the Furious, Lady Bird, Get Out, The Big Sick, Mudbound, Shape of Water, Girl's Trip, Coco, etc. All movies where women and/or people of color were in front AND behind the camera! Some of these movies probably would not have been made even five years ago. And if the success of Black Panther is any indication, the trend can only continue! If you're a woman and/or a person of color (I'm two for two!) it is very exciting! At the risk of sounding racist, I ain't gonna lie. I'm getting sick of watching movies about white people all the damn time. #sorrynotsorry
And as far as the Oscar race goes, it seems like for the first time in quite some time, there's no clear front runner to win Best Picture. Some would say Three Billboards and Shape of Water are going head to head, but personally I'm rooting for Get Out!
I feel like I'm going to lose friends over this list, but here we go!
10. The Zookeeper's Wife
I cried. Based on a true story, The Zookeeper's wife tells the story of a zookeeper and his wife who managed to hide and relocate 300 Jewish people over the course of World War II in Nazi occupied Poland. Because of the war, their zoo is liquidated for the war efforts and turned into a pig farm. They hide the Jewish people in the basement of the zoo, and with very coordinated efforts, help each and every one of them escape. It's a pretty spectacular story! Jessica Chastain turns in a wonderful and heartbreaking performance as the zookeeper's resilient wife.
9. The Big Sick
What a sweet, delightful, gem of a film! And I love that it's based on the writer's true life story about how he met his wife. Kumail Nanjiani plays Kumail, a Pakistani whose family is trying to set him up with a Pakistani girl. Kumail rejects all the girls his parents invite to dinner, and starts dating a white girl named Emily, played wonderfully by Zoe Kazan. Even though it is the 21st Century, and even though they are in America, Kumail's parents still find it objectionable to marry outside their own race and/or religion, therefore, Kumail doesn't tell his parents about Emily. Their relationship is great until Emily learns that Kumail is keeping her a secret from his family, and isn't sure they have a future. Shortly after she breaks up with him, Emily has a medical emergency and ends up in a medically induced coma for several days. Because he still cares for her, Kumail spends much of his time at the hospital, and gets to know Emily's parents. The movie is quite funny and points out with humor how silly some traditions are, how our aversion to change and refusal of acceptance makes no sense, and how deep down, love really is all that matters.
8. The Boss Baby
The Boss Baby is on Netflix and I've already seen it like six times. It's so good! And if you'll notice, it is the only animated film on my list. Which means I liked it better than the front runner up for Best Animated Film. *GASP!* I feel dirty about it. I'll admit that The Boss Baby is rather silly, and Coco is exceptionally good, but...there's something about The Boss Baby that I just fell absolutely in love with! Going in, I thought the movie was going to suck. I was honestly ready for it to just be background noise while I browsed Facebook. But I got sucked in from the beginning and all the way to the end. Then I watched it again a few days later. And then again. And again. It's one of those movies that doesn't get old for me!
7. Baby Driver
Let's pretend Kevin Spacey is not in this movie, and let's pretend he does not play a man who takes a young boy under his wing, and financially supports him while simultaneously emotionally abusing and manipulating him. I saw Baby Driver before the Kevin Spacey controversy broke, but the news totally changed the way I saw the film. And it's quite a shame because I loved the movie! And now I feel...icky about it. But I choose to remember the film how I felt before I knew the truth, because the film is actually really good. And it's not fair to the rest of the filmmakers on this movie that a genuinely great film now comes off as creepy and inappropriate because of one actor's disgusting actions in his personal life. I had a lot of fun watching Baby Driver. The action is very good, and I was thoroughly entertained from start to finish!
6. Wonder Woman
Okay so here's an embarrassing confession: You remember the "No Man's Land" scene? Where Chris Pine kept telling Diana that they couldn't cross No Man's Land because everyone would die? And Diana was like, "That's lame. I can do it." And she totally does it like it's no big deal, charging ahead at the enemy head on, deflecting bullets, while the other men follow behind her. I cried. And I was like, "OMG WTF is happening? Is someone chopping onions?!" But then I saw this LA Times article and I was like, "Oh. I guess I'm not the only one!" (http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/herocomplex/la-et-hc-wonder-woman-crying-20170605-htmlstory.html) This article perfectly describes how I felt watching Wonder Woman. This movie is a big deal. And if you're a woman, it's a REALLY big deal. There have been female led comic book movies before like Elektra and Catwoman, but those movies SUCK. Woman Woman is the first time a female super hero is taken as seriously and given as much strength, dignity, confidence, honor, and all around badass-ness as any male super hero. That is a big deal. And can I get a "Hell Yeah" for Patty Jenkins?
5. Mother!
Darren Aronofsky and Jennifer Lawrence? I'm in! I really want to tell you all about this film, but if you haven't seen it, I don't want to give anything away! Because going in, I literally had no idea what this movie was about. I just knew it was directed by Darren Aronofsky and starring Jennifer Lawrence. But after I watched it, I was blown away and shaken to my core. It was NOTHING like what I expected. I don't know what I expected, but it wasn't that! It isn't a movie the world wanted. It is a movie the world deserves. So how's about this? If you've seen this movie, reach out to me and we'll talk. If you haven't seen this movie, go see it. Then come back to me and let's talk.
4. The Greatest Showman
I sincerely don't understand why this movie got such terrible reviews. Every single person I know who has seen this movie absolutely loved it. According the IMDB, the Metascore is 48, but the IMDB rating is 8.0! Like, are you kidding?? What a HUGE discrepancy! When I see scores like that, it makes me feel sorry for critics. They must really hate joy. Because that's what this movie is. It's pure joy! Every once in a while, I see a film that totally illustrates the magic of filmmaking, and makes me fall in love with cinema again. (Not that I ever fall out of love with it.) The Greatest Showman is one of those movies. I impulse bought the soundtrack after watching the movie, and to this day, put on a one person sing-a-long show in my car. I hope "This is Me" wins for Best Song tonight! Wish the movie itself was up for more awards. But alas, it looks like the Academy hates joy too.
3. Molly's Game
I saw this movie as a pre-screening many months ago. So it's possible that the version I saw isn't the final cut that ended up being released. But I would be shocked if the final theatrical version is any different, because the version I saw was damn near perfect! I can't think of anything I would have changed. Jessica Chastain was amazing in this, and I am really surprised she did not receive a Best Actress nomination. She did have tough competition though. Actually, I'm surprised the movie in general has been all but left out of the Oscar race. I mean written and directed by Aaron Sorkin? I thought it'd be an Oscar darling. Which goes back to what I said earlier that the nominations this year have been less predictable than years past. Which is good! Anyway, back to Molly's Game. It's good! Jessica Chastain plays Molly Bloom, an ex-Olympic skier who runs the most exclusive and high stakes poker games in the world. Her players, the richest of the rich, include Hollywood movie stars, business tycoons, and unbeknownst to Molly, the Russian mafia. She gets caught up in that mess with only her super sexy lawyer Idris Elba on her side.
2. Get Out
I know Get Out is probably not going to win tonight, but I'm rooting for it! Just when I thought Hollywood had no originality left, Jordan Peele slaps us in the face with this! He manages to tell a story chock full of social commentary without being preachy or angry, yet tremendously entertaining and suspenseful at the same time. This film left us with a lot to talk about, and talk we did! There were so many discussions, articles, tweets, and media buzz surrounding this film and it's easy to see why. Love it or hate it, you can't deny that the movie sparked debate and triggered something inside of us that needed to be triggered. My only regret is that I did not catch this in the theater. What an exciting experience that would have been! I don't think Jordan Peele will win tonight, but I am extremely happy about his nomination and I would be trilled if he took Oscar home!
1. The Disaster Artist
Can I talk about this movie without discussing James Franco's sexual harassment allegations? You know what, this is my blog! I can, and I will!
I LOOOOVED this movie. It's so great! It made me smile, cry, and had me howling with laughter! The Disaster Artist tells the story of the making of the 2003 film The Room. A few months before The Disaster Artist came out, I watched The Room in preparation. Have you guys ever seen The Room? It has once been described as a film made by an alien who has never seen a movie, but has had them thoroughly explained. I think that description nails it. Tommy Wiseau, the writer, producer, director, and star of The Room is one of the most uniquely and irritatingly bizarre people on the planet! He's like a cartoon! And when you let a cartoon make a movie, The Room is what you get! The movie makes absolutely no sense. There are scenes and lines, but none of the scenes fit together, and none of the lines flow into a coherent plot. It's absolutely hysterical! If you only watched The Room and knew nothing about the making of it, you'd just think, "Wow that was a terrible movie!" but if you learned a little about it, you would be shocked! The Room looks like it was shot on videotape, filmed in one week, and cost maybe a hundred dollars. When in fact, it was shot on 35mm AND high definition, took six months to film, and cost six MILLION dollars! What kind of crazy person would spend that much of his own money on a film that bad? How delusional and out of touch would this person have to be? But more importantly, how much passion, confidence, and tenacity would this kind of person need to have? That's where the story of The Disaster Artist lies.
Tommy Wiseau is bat shit crazy and made a horrendously abhorrent, god awful film. But he made a film. A film that ended up with a huge cult following, and now is beloved as the best worst film of all time. Probably not what Tommy Wiseau was going for, but he'll take it. And after watching The Disaster Artist and loving the dedication and persistence of Tommy, I'll take it too!
Ugh, so I think I need to bring up James Franco's issues. When the nominations first came out, I was really upset that he did not receive a Best Actor nomination. He 100% did not receive a nomination because of the allegations against him. I was of two minds: On the one hand, I feel people who behave poorly should face consequences and be held accountable. On the other, James's performance was one of the best I've ever seen, and he deserves professional recognition for it. After some time, I came to peace with the situation. Much like I said about Baby Driver, I choose to love this film, despite the allegations against James Franco. I see the film as a piece of art that had many, many artists working on it. Just because one artist behaved like a creep, the art doesn't suddenly become bad. I believe it is wrong to reward poor behavior, so I guess it's for the best that James Franco did not receive an Oscar nomination, even though his performance is truly exceptional and the film is my favorite of the year.
Here are my brief thoughts on the rest of the nominated films:
Dunkirk: Good, slow, sad.
Phantom Thread: I really liked this one! If my list was a top 20, Phantom Thread would make the cut. I don't think Daniel Day Lewis will win tonight, but he is quite excellent, as usual. As I was watching the film, I really liked it...until the "twist"...then I loved it!
The Shape of Water: What a strange, but enchanting film! I'm rooting for Guillermo del Toro for Best Director all the way!
Three Billboards outside Ebbing Missouri: I thought this movie was fuuuuuuuuuucked up! It's good! But daaaaaaaaamn! This movie shows that you shouldn't (literally) fight fire with fire! Frances McDormand will win tonight. It's the only one I'm sure of.
Call Me by Your Name: Didn't see it
Darkest Hour: Didn't see it
Lady Bird: Didn't see it
The Post: Didn't see it
And as far as the Oscar race goes, it seems like for the first time in quite some time, there's no clear front runner to win Best Picture. Some would say Three Billboards and Shape of Water are going head to head, but personally I'm rooting for Get Out!
I feel like I'm going to lose friends over this list, but here we go!
10. The Zookeeper's Wife
I cried. Based on a true story, The Zookeeper's wife tells the story of a zookeeper and his wife who managed to hide and relocate 300 Jewish people over the course of World War II in Nazi occupied Poland. Because of the war, their zoo is liquidated for the war efforts and turned into a pig farm. They hide the Jewish people in the basement of the zoo, and with very coordinated efforts, help each and every one of them escape. It's a pretty spectacular story! Jessica Chastain turns in a wonderful and heartbreaking performance as the zookeeper's resilient wife.
9. The Big Sick
What a sweet, delightful, gem of a film! And I love that it's based on the writer's true life story about how he met his wife. Kumail Nanjiani plays Kumail, a Pakistani whose family is trying to set him up with a Pakistani girl. Kumail rejects all the girls his parents invite to dinner, and starts dating a white girl named Emily, played wonderfully by Zoe Kazan. Even though it is the 21st Century, and even though they are in America, Kumail's parents still find it objectionable to marry outside their own race and/or religion, therefore, Kumail doesn't tell his parents about Emily. Their relationship is great until Emily learns that Kumail is keeping her a secret from his family, and isn't sure they have a future. Shortly after she breaks up with him, Emily has a medical emergency and ends up in a medically induced coma for several days. Because he still cares for her, Kumail spends much of his time at the hospital, and gets to know Emily's parents. The movie is quite funny and points out with humor how silly some traditions are, how our aversion to change and refusal of acceptance makes no sense, and how deep down, love really is all that matters.
8. The Boss Baby
The Boss Baby is on Netflix and I've already seen it like six times. It's so good! And if you'll notice, it is the only animated film on my list. Which means I liked it better than the front runner up for Best Animated Film. *GASP!* I feel dirty about it. I'll admit that The Boss Baby is rather silly, and Coco is exceptionally good, but...there's something about The Boss Baby that I just fell absolutely in love with! Going in, I thought the movie was going to suck. I was honestly ready for it to just be background noise while I browsed Facebook. But I got sucked in from the beginning and all the way to the end. Then I watched it again a few days later. And then again. And again. It's one of those movies that doesn't get old for me!
7. Baby Driver
Let's pretend Kevin Spacey is not in this movie, and let's pretend he does not play a man who takes a young boy under his wing, and financially supports him while simultaneously emotionally abusing and manipulating him. I saw Baby Driver before the Kevin Spacey controversy broke, but the news totally changed the way I saw the film. And it's quite a shame because I loved the movie! And now I feel...icky about it. But I choose to remember the film how I felt before I knew the truth, because the film is actually really good. And it's not fair to the rest of the filmmakers on this movie that a genuinely great film now comes off as creepy and inappropriate because of one actor's disgusting actions in his personal life. I had a lot of fun watching Baby Driver. The action is very good, and I was thoroughly entertained from start to finish!
6. Wonder Woman
Okay so here's an embarrassing confession: You remember the "No Man's Land" scene? Where Chris Pine kept telling Diana that they couldn't cross No Man's Land because everyone would die? And Diana was like, "That's lame. I can do it." And she totally does it like it's no big deal, charging ahead at the enemy head on, deflecting bullets, while the other men follow behind her. I cried. And I was like, "OMG WTF is happening? Is someone chopping onions?!" But then I saw this LA Times article and I was like, "Oh. I guess I'm not the only one!" (http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/herocomplex/la-et-hc-wonder-woman-crying-20170605-htmlstory.html) This article perfectly describes how I felt watching Wonder Woman. This movie is a big deal. And if you're a woman, it's a REALLY big deal. There have been female led comic book movies before like Elektra and Catwoman, but those movies SUCK. Woman Woman is the first time a female super hero is taken as seriously and given as much strength, dignity, confidence, honor, and all around badass-ness as any male super hero. That is a big deal. And can I get a "Hell Yeah" for Patty Jenkins?
5. Mother!
Darren Aronofsky and Jennifer Lawrence? I'm in! I really want to tell you all about this film, but if you haven't seen it, I don't want to give anything away! Because going in, I literally had no idea what this movie was about. I just knew it was directed by Darren Aronofsky and starring Jennifer Lawrence. But after I watched it, I was blown away and shaken to my core. It was NOTHING like what I expected. I don't know what I expected, but it wasn't that! It isn't a movie the world wanted. It is a movie the world deserves. So how's about this? If you've seen this movie, reach out to me and we'll talk. If you haven't seen this movie, go see it. Then come back to me and let's talk.
4. The Greatest Showman
I sincerely don't understand why this movie got such terrible reviews. Every single person I know who has seen this movie absolutely loved it. According the IMDB, the Metascore is 48, but the IMDB rating is 8.0! Like, are you kidding?? What a HUGE discrepancy! When I see scores like that, it makes me feel sorry for critics. They must really hate joy. Because that's what this movie is. It's pure joy! Every once in a while, I see a film that totally illustrates the magic of filmmaking, and makes me fall in love with cinema again. (Not that I ever fall out of love with it.) The Greatest Showman is one of those movies. I impulse bought the soundtrack after watching the movie, and to this day, put on a one person sing-a-long show in my car. I hope "This is Me" wins for Best Song tonight! Wish the movie itself was up for more awards. But alas, it looks like the Academy hates joy too.
3. Molly's Game
I saw this movie as a pre-screening many months ago. So it's possible that the version I saw isn't the final cut that ended up being released. But I would be shocked if the final theatrical version is any different, because the version I saw was damn near perfect! I can't think of anything I would have changed. Jessica Chastain was amazing in this, and I am really surprised she did not receive a Best Actress nomination. She did have tough competition though. Actually, I'm surprised the movie in general has been all but left out of the Oscar race. I mean written and directed by Aaron Sorkin? I thought it'd be an Oscar darling. Which goes back to what I said earlier that the nominations this year have been less predictable than years past. Which is good! Anyway, back to Molly's Game. It's good! Jessica Chastain plays Molly Bloom, an ex-Olympic skier who runs the most exclusive and high stakes poker games in the world. Her players, the richest of the rich, include Hollywood movie stars, business tycoons, and unbeknownst to Molly, the Russian mafia. She gets caught up in that mess with only her super sexy lawyer Idris Elba on her side.
2. Get Out
I know Get Out is probably not going to win tonight, but I'm rooting for it! Just when I thought Hollywood had no originality left, Jordan Peele slaps us in the face with this! He manages to tell a story chock full of social commentary without being preachy or angry, yet tremendously entertaining and suspenseful at the same time. This film left us with a lot to talk about, and talk we did! There were so many discussions, articles, tweets, and media buzz surrounding this film and it's easy to see why. Love it or hate it, you can't deny that the movie sparked debate and triggered something inside of us that needed to be triggered. My only regret is that I did not catch this in the theater. What an exciting experience that would have been! I don't think Jordan Peele will win tonight, but I am extremely happy about his nomination and I would be trilled if he took Oscar home!
1. The Disaster Artist
Can I talk about this movie without discussing James Franco's sexual harassment allegations? You know what, this is my blog! I can, and I will!
I LOOOOVED this movie. It's so great! It made me smile, cry, and had me howling with laughter! The Disaster Artist tells the story of the making of the 2003 film The Room. A few months before The Disaster Artist came out, I watched The Room in preparation. Have you guys ever seen The Room? It has once been described as a film made by an alien who has never seen a movie, but has had them thoroughly explained. I think that description nails it. Tommy Wiseau, the writer, producer, director, and star of The Room is one of the most uniquely and irritatingly bizarre people on the planet! He's like a cartoon! And when you let a cartoon make a movie, The Room is what you get! The movie makes absolutely no sense. There are scenes and lines, but none of the scenes fit together, and none of the lines flow into a coherent plot. It's absolutely hysterical! If you only watched The Room and knew nothing about the making of it, you'd just think, "Wow that was a terrible movie!" but if you learned a little about it, you would be shocked! The Room looks like it was shot on videotape, filmed in one week, and cost maybe a hundred dollars. When in fact, it was shot on 35mm AND high definition, took six months to film, and cost six MILLION dollars! What kind of crazy person would spend that much of his own money on a film that bad? How delusional and out of touch would this person have to be? But more importantly, how much passion, confidence, and tenacity would this kind of person need to have? That's where the story of The Disaster Artist lies.
Tommy Wiseau is bat shit crazy and made a horrendously abhorrent, god awful film. But he made a film. A film that ended up with a huge cult following, and now is beloved as the best worst film of all time. Probably not what Tommy Wiseau was going for, but he'll take it. And after watching The Disaster Artist and loving the dedication and persistence of Tommy, I'll take it too!
Ugh, so I think I need to bring up James Franco's issues. When the nominations first came out, I was really upset that he did not receive a Best Actor nomination. He 100% did not receive a nomination because of the allegations against him. I was of two minds: On the one hand, I feel people who behave poorly should face consequences and be held accountable. On the other, James's performance was one of the best I've ever seen, and he deserves professional recognition for it. After some time, I came to peace with the situation. Much like I said about Baby Driver, I choose to love this film, despite the allegations against James Franco. I see the film as a piece of art that had many, many artists working on it. Just because one artist behaved like a creep, the art doesn't suddenly become bad. I believe it is wrong to reward poor behavior, so I guess it's for the best that James Franco did not receive an Oscar nomination, even though his performance is truly exceptional and the film is my favorite of the year.
Here are my brief thoughts on the rest of the nominated films:
Dunkirk: Good, slow, sad.
Phantom Thread: I really liked this one! If my list was a top 20, Phantom Thread would make the cut. I don't think Daniel Day Lewis will win tonight, but he is quite excellent, as usual. As I was watching the film, I really liked it...until the "twist"...then I loved it!
The Shape of Water: What a strange, but enchanting film! I'm rooting for Guillermo del Toro for Best Director all the way!
Three Billboards outside Ebbing Missouri: I thought this movie was fuuuuuuuuuucked up! It's good! But daaaaaaaaamn! This movie shows that you shouldn't (literally) fight fire with fire! Frances McDormand will win tonight. It's the only one I'm sure of.
Call Me by Your Name: Didn't see it
Darkest Hour: Didn't see it
Lady Bird: Didn't see it
The Post: Didn't see it
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