I am really excited to hear Eric Howell’s Ana’s Playground now qualifies for an Oscar nomination. Here is what Eric wrote in his blog,

I am very pleased to report that “Ana’s Playground” has won “Best International Short Film” at the 22nd Foyle Film Festival in Northern Ireland. This festival is one of a few festivals that are sanctioned by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. WIth a win in the short film category, Ana’s Playground has automatically qualified to be considered by the Academy for an Oscar nomination in NEXT year’s award cycle. Wow.

Congrats Eric! I am really happy for you.

You can check out my previous interviews with Eric and a film trailer linked here and here.

1. “Date Night” is a comedy featuring Tina Fey (“30 Rock”) and Steve Carell (“The Office”). They try to revive their marriage by going out on a date. Hilarity ensues after they are mistaken for another married couple who owe people money. If, like me, the comedic veterans aren’t enough to convince you to watch the movie, “Date Night” also stars rapper Common, Mila Kunis (“That ‘7os Show”), Mark Wahlberg (“Four Brothers”) and James Franco (“Pineapple Express”).

2. “Did You Hear About the Morgans?” also centers on a marriage on the rocks and a married couple on the run. This time around, though, Hugh Grant (“Notting Hill”) and Sarah Jessica Parker (“Sex and City”)  are placed in the witness protection program after seeing a murder. I’ve seen this trailer in theaters several times and every time, someone reacts to the last part of the trailer. Indeed, the laughs start once they relocate to Wyoming …

3. “Kick Ass” follows newcomer Aaron Johnson as he decides to become a superhero even though he has no powers. The tone of the film is similar to the humor in several Owen Wilson movies, such as “The Darjeeling Limited.” Christopher Mintz-Plasse, of “Superbad” fame, also stars. Johnson can also be seen in the John Lennon-film, “Nowhere Boy.” Its trailer is over here.

4. Acclaimed actor James McAvoy can next be seen in “The Last Station,” which focuses on the life of famed author Leo Tolstoy (Christopher Plummer). The trailer doesn’t reveal much else, but the film does have a 7.3 star rating on IMDb.com. The film’s early release is supposedly a ploy to secure Plummer an Oscar nomination in next year’s weak Best Actor race. McAvoy’s real-life wife, Anne Marie Duff, as well as Oscar favorites Helen Mirren and Paul Giamatti co-star.

5. Focus Features is set to release “Babies,” a documentary which chronicles one year in the lives of different newborns around the world, namely Tokyo, San Francisco, Mongolia and Namibia.

Edward Norton, Adam Sandler, Ben Stiller, Robert Pattinson, Vanessa Hudgens, “Toy Story 3,” romantic comedies (Amy Adams! Nicholas Sparks!), potential Oscar nominees (George Clooney! Emily Blunt!) and more after the jump.

6. Hollywood takes another stab at “Beauty and the Beast” with the adaptation of Alex Flinn’s novel, “Beastly.” The teaser trailer is so abrupt that I’m not excited to see it in theaters. Relative unknown Alex Pettyfer and Vanessa Hudgens (“High School Musical”) star.

7. “Season of the Witch” reteams Nicolas Cage with “Gone in 60 Seconds” director, Dominic Sena. This heart-pounding action movie takes us with a band of knights who are tasked with moving a powerful witch to a monastery. Ron Perlman from “Hellboy” co-stars.

8. Amanda Seyfried (“Mamma Mia”) sure knows how to pick movies — at least, chick flicks that I want to see. First, there was Nicholas Sparks’s “Dear John.” Now, there’s “Letters to Juliet.” Seyfried stars as a girl who’s engaged to Gael Garcia Bernal (“Science of Sleep”) but goes on an adventure with Christopher Egan (“Eragon”) and Vanessa Redgrave after she finds Redgrave’s letter to a long lost love.

IMDb.com states that Hugh Dancy was originally cast in Bernal’s role but dropped out, which is a shame. Anyone who’s seen him in “The Jane Austen Book Club” knows that Dancy would have been perfect in this movie albeit in Egan’s role. Oh, well. Cue Taylor Swift’s “Love Story.”

9. Noah Baumbach (“The Squid and the Whale”) once again gifts us with his zing-damn-oh snap (!) dialogue in “Greenberg.” Ben Stiller tries his hand at drama as a man in a mid-life crisis. Jennifer Jason Leigh (“Single White Female”) and Rhys Ifans (to be seen in “Harry Potter 7″) round out the cast.

10. “Crazy Heart” is another film with an earlier-than-scheduled release date. Again, the movie studio is trying to nab its star, Jeff Bridges, a Best Actor nod. Bridges (“Iron Man”) stars as a country music star who’s down on his luck until his path crosses with a journalist (Maggie Gyllenhaal).

11. According to IMDb.com, “Remember Me” is up by 658 percent in popularity this week. The most probable reason? Robert Pattinson (“Twilight”) is the star. He is joined by Pierce Brosnan (“James Bond”), Chris Cooper (“The Kingdom”) and Emilie de Ravin (“Lost”).

12. In “Leaves of Grass,” Edward Norton plays twin brothers who plot to kill their small town’s drug lord. The supporting cast includes Susan Sarandon (“Stepmom”) and Keri Russell (“August Rush”).

13. “Extraordinary Measures” is based on the true story of John and Aileen Crowley who race to find a cure for their dying child. Brendan Fraser (“The Mummy”), Russell (“Felicity”) and Harrison Ford (“Indiana Jones”) star.

14. “In Ireland, women can propose to men on the 29th of February.” This is the premise of “Leap Year,” in which Amy Adams (“Enchanted”) takes it upon herself to propose to her longtime boyfriend. Fate intervenes when she lands in Wales instead and runs into Matthew Goode (“Chasing Liberty”).

15. In “Grown Ups,” five childhood friends reunite after 30 years. The movie’s cast is a who’s who of comedy, namely David Spade (“The Benchwarmers”), Chris Rock (“Down to Earth”), Adam Sandler (“Spanglish”), Kevin James (“Hitch”), Rob Schneider (“Hot Chick”), Maya Rudolph (“Away We Go”), Salma Hayek (“Frida”) and Maria Bello (“Coyote Ugly”).

16. After failing to impress the girl of his dreams, Michael Cera (“Superbad”) decides to rebel in the comedy, “Youth in Revolt.” Justin Long (“Accepted”) and Zach Galifianakis (“The Hangover”) also star in the movie. Trailer no.1 and trailer no. 2 follow:

17. Soon there won’t be another Sparks’s novel to film, and the world as we know it will come to an end. “The Last Song” is Hollywood’s latest try at the author’s romantic novels. Miley Cyrus (“Hannah Montana”) stars as a rebellious teenager who, along with her younger brother, is sent to spend the summer with her estranged dad. Cyrus, also a musical prodigy, falls in love and makes amends with her father.

I guess that means two things. 1) We can look forward to Cyrus-filled soundtrack. 2) Supposedly, the studio thought Mandy Moore in two Sparks’s adaptations would have been too much. Nonetheless, Greg Kinnear (“Little Miss Sunshine”) and Kelly Preston (“Jerry Maguire”) lend the movie some credibility.

18. Maybe you’ve heard of James Cameron’s (“Titanic”) latest venture, “Avatar.” An adventure in another world and another time pits  human soldiers against an entirely new species. Sam Worthington (“Terminator: Salvation”), Sigourney Weaver (“Alien”), Zoe Saldana (“Star Trek”) and Michelle Rodriguez (“Girl Fight”) star.

19. It’s just a teaser trailer, but “Clash of the Titans” looks pretty amazing. Whoever created the score is some kind of genius. Liam Neeson (Batman Begins”), Ralph Fiennes (“Harry Potter”) and Worthington  are all part of the remake.

20. Catch the “Toy Story 3″ teaser and full trailers below:

21. Emily Blunt is “The Young Victoria.” From the looks of the trailer, Blunt (“The Devil Wears Prada”) will give another powerhouse performance as Queen Victoria. She is paired with Rupert Friend (“Pride and Prejudice”) as her Prince Albert. The ensemble cast includes Paul Bettany (“The Da Vinci Code”) and Jim Broadbent (“The Chronicles of Narnia”).

22. Clooney may have cinched another Oscar nomination with his performance in “Up in the Air.” In fact, director Jason Reitman (“Juno”), actresses Anna Kendrick (“Twilight”) and Vera Farmiga (“The Departed”) all have Oscar buzz surrounding them. Clooney is the guy that companies hire to travel all over the globe and fire people for them.

The film was originally meant to be a satire like Reitman’s “Thank You for Not Smoking,” but the recession called for a revamping of the movie. The first trailer below tells you more about the story, but the second trailer is by far the better one. Fasten your seatbelts …

Personally, I’m looking forward to “Up in the Air,” “The Young Victoria,” “Leap Year” and “Letters to Juliet” although I’d probably watch some, such as “Avatar” and “Did You Hear About the Morgans?” if my friends want to see them. What about you? Sound off in the comments!

//

Oscar Season is now upon us and studios are releasing their Oscar-friendly products every week. Because of this some of the movies that have already come out tend to be forgotten for the major categories. No AMPAS member will ever read this, but I’d still like to go over what films that I love that have already come out deserve to be in the running for Oscars in the major categories and some of the technical categories.

Best Picture: Where the Wild Things Are, Star Trek, Up

Best Director: Spike Jonze, Where the Wild Things Are; Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker; Pete Docter, Up

Best Actor: Sam Rockwell, Moon; Michael Stuhlbarg, A Serious Man; John Malkovich, The Great Buck Howard; Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker; Max Records, Where the Wild Things Are

Best Actress: Maya Rudolph, Away We Go; Gwyneth Paltrow, Two Lovers; Amy Adams, Sunshine Cleaning

Best Supporting Actor: Jackie Earl Hayley, Watchmen; Michel Gambon, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Best Supporting Actress: Kristen Stewart, Adeventureland; Emily Blunt, Sunshine Cleaning; Ginnifer Goodwin, He’s Just Not That Into You; Rachel McAdams, State of Play

Best Original Screenplay: Adventureland, Moon, Sin Nombre, Up

Best Adapted Screenplay: Where the Wild Things Are, Coraline, Star Trek

Original Score: Up, Star Trek, Drag Me To Hell, Coraline, Moon, Where the Wild Things Are, A Serious Man

Sound Mixing & Editing: Drag Me To Hell, Star Trek, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Make-Up: Drag Me to Hell, Star Trek, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Watchmen

Costume Design: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Confessions of a Shopaholic, Where the Wild Things Are, A Serious Man, Watchmen, Easy Virtue

Art Direction: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, A Serious Man, Coraline, Moon, Watchmen, Easy Virtue

Cinematography: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Sin Nombre, Where the Wild Things Are, The International

Visual Effects: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Moon, Star Trek, Watchmen, Where the Wild Things Are

Viggo Mortensen and Kodi Smit-McPhee take the long road to nowhere

Hollywood can be pretty predictable. For Example: once super hero movies hit it big, it seemed like every second movie was based on a comic book or graphic novel hero… they made alotta of money, but they were also alotta crap.

Thankfully, when dealing with great American literature, it’s a little harder to mess it up…. or maybe easier? Not in this case at least, thank God.

Last years big Oscar flick was No Country for Old Men, directed by the Coen Brothers and based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy. This year, I have a strong feeling that the interpretation of McCarthy’s The Road, directed by relative unknown John Hillcoat may tempt the Academy’s appetite for gorgeous cinematography and dystopian plot-lines. I find a general rule with the academy is if you contemplate ending it all by drowning yourself in your bucket sized soda while watching it, you probably will see it on the ballot. But I digress…

The Road stars Viggo Mortensen (Lord of the Rings, Eastern Promises) as ‘Man’ or ’Papa’. He is perhaps one of the most talented actors of our time, despite being a bit of a late bloomer in terms of his star status. It also stars Oscar’s favourite blonde, Charlize Theron (in the smaller supporting role of ‘Woman’). But the hopeful glue holding this otherwise bleak and grey post-apocalyptic flick is newcomer Kodi Smit-McPhee as ‘Boy’. At only 13-years-old, his innocence and depth of emotion is far beyond his years, and becomes the only reason you continue watching.

Mortensen (right) may finally taste Oscar Gold for his role as Papa

Interestingly, the boy is the only reason why Papa continues to stay alive in a world decimated by some unknown natural disaster, devoid of living things and running rampant with cannibals and gangs of outlaws. But this is no Mad Max; it’s picture of the fall of humanity is terrifying. In a sense, the film is about the nature of humanity. What would a human do to survive? Who are the ‘Good Guys’ when the concept of conscience, decency and basic order are lost to basic survival?

It’s not for everyone. Silent for long stretches of time, the film is a realist depiction of a common movie trend- the end of the world. NOT for children, the easily bored, or the weak stomached, it is nonetheless one of the greatest novel-to-film adaptations in a long time. At its core, it is about how much one father will sacrifice to see his son survive, and the hope that a child can find in the most hopeless of worlds.

- Kate B.

Actually, my esteemed colleague informs me that the movie is in limited release this weekend, and that it will open to a broader audience next week. Despite my display of internet rage now having been proven to be entirely inappropriate, I must admit I’m still somewhat miffed. This film has been delayed for over a year now, and this half-hearted release is actually disappointing. Jeez guys, you’re already pushing the envelope on getting it out there before the Oscars – make with the andale and get this sucker out there, no?

Hoy he hablado de un personaje de ficción. Sí, en este podcast no sólo voy a hablar de historias y personajes reales… La ficción también tiene cabida en este humilde podcast. Espero que os guste el capítulo, dedicado a Beowulf, héroe y rey de los Gautas. Aquí el guión:

1.- Anécdota sobre Bruce Springsteen.

2.- Beowulf.

3.- y vale.

Muchísimas gracias a @Zigaurre por su promoción, a @Luiso5 por sus ánimos, a @Stif por sus ánimos, a @Gomobel por sus sugerencias, a @G1ori por el seguimiento y a @Biciclo por su franqueza. También a @Cortador por sus sabios consejos.

Recordad que estoy totalmente abierto a cualquier tipo de sugerencia. Vuestras opiniones, aunque creáis que son poco provechosas, son todo lo contrario. Las necesito, en realidad. ¿Ha sonado desesperado? Es igual. Dadme vuestra opinión.

Escucha el episodio (o descárgalo).

Suscríbete a El Podcast del Búho en iTunes.

Fuentes: toda la información sobre el personaje la he recogido de mi experiencia personal viendo películas muy malas aunque entretenidas y cómo no, de la Wikipedia: aquí y aquí.

French Roast: A Big Mystery’s Brewing in the Fancy Parisian Café

French Roast is a subtle, gently humorous animated short film directed by the French filmmaker Fabrice O. Joubert.  The delightful film has been deservedly well received at film festivals around the world, culminating in receiving the Best of Show Prize at the annual Siggraph 2009.  French Roast was named last week to the short-list in the Animated Short Films category for the 82nd Annual Academy Awards.

The film is set entirely inside a small Parisian café, where a rather aloof cigar-smoking gentlemen is about to pay the check when he suddenly discovers that his wallet has disappeared.  In an attempt to stall for time, he decides to order some more coffee.  Very many cups of coffee later, with his bill quickly mounting up, he’s still rooted to the same spot in mortification, when a little old lady sitting next to him appears to have ample cash to donate to a wild looking vagrant.  Her bag is stuffed full of banknotes and looks quite inviting.  But events quickly take a turn for the worse when the police arrive.  Aside from revealing the gradual evaporation of the lead character’s unfriendly pomposity, one of the key directorial touches in the film is restricting the action very largely to one view of the café tables with a large reflecting window behind them upon which the wider action accumulates.

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French Roast: A Big Mystery’s Brewing in the Fancy Parisian Café

Slide Show: French Roast/A Big Mystery’s Brewing in the Fancy Parisian Café

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Ich weiß noch, dass ich aus dem Kino kam, nachdem ich Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind gesehen habe, und wusste, dass ich gerade Zeuge der Vorführung eines perfekten Films gewesen war. Es gibt diese Filme, bei denen einfach alles stimmt, bei denen alle Aspekte des Filmemachens perfekt ineinander greifen — auf der visuellen, der schauspielerischen und der Story-Ebene. Diese Perfektion muss nicht unbedingt bedeuten, dass der Film einem auch gefällt, aber man kann nicht anders, als sich vor einer Meisterleistung zu verbeugen.

Eternal Sunshine kombiniert die Vorstellungskraft von zwei erstaunlichen Individuen der Noughties, Drehbuchautor Charlie Kaufmann und Regisseur Michel Gondry. Die zwei hatten vorher schon einen Film gemacht (den vergessbaren Human Nature) und sie haben später alleine Filme gemacht, aber bei Eternal Sunshine schien einfach alles zu klappen: Jim Carrey spielt seine beste ernste Rolle, Kate Winslet scheint wie ein Stern, in den Nebenrollen brillieren Kirsten Dunst, Tom Wilkinson und Mark Ruffalo, die Visuellen Effekte sind einfallsreich und nahtlos, die Musik von Jon Brion traumhaft.

Dazu kommt eine Geschichte, die jeden Menschen, der schon einmal über Liebe und Schicksal nachgedacht hat, packen muss. Können zwei Menschen füreinander geschaffen sein, gar zum ewigen Scheitern geschaffen?
Wachsen oder zerbrechen wir an unseren Erinnerungen? Und wieviel ist “wahre” Liebe wirklich wert? Solange diese Fragen weiter gestellt werden, wird Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind seine Wirkung behalten.

Über Gondry-Kaufmann hinaus war 2004 vor allem ein gutes Jahr für erstaunlich gute Fortsetzungen. Spider-Man 2, mit Alfred Molina als Doc Ock, ist mit Abstand der Beste der Reihe (und The Incredibles nahm das ganze Genre gut auf die Schippe). Kill Bill Vol. 2 gab dem wahnwitzigen Schlachtfest aus Folge 1 plötzlich einen psychologischen Sinn und gefiel mir sehr gut. The Bourne Supremacy prägte deutlicher als sein Vorgänger einen neuen Typ von Actionfilm — die Häcksel-Action mit gebrochenem Held.

Phantastik mit guten Bildern würde ich als einen weiteren Trend des Jahres nennen, das definitiv zu meinen Lieblingsfilmjahren der Noughties gehört. Mit Hellboy und Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban adaptierten zwei mexikanische Regisseure, Guillermo del Toro und Alfonso Cuaron, fantastische Welten mit einem faszinierenden Gespür für Bild und Herz. Und Brad Silberling kochte in Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events eine Suppe, die Tim Burton sicher auch gefallen hätte. Einer meiner Lieblingsfilme des Jahres wird allerdings wohl kaum in die Geschichte eingehen: Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow gefiel mir mit seiner Pulp-Attitüde dennoch sehr gut.

Shaun of the Dead ist vielleicht die beste Komödie des Jahrzehnts, gerade weil sie ihr Parodieobjekt so ernst nimmt. Aber 2004 war auch das Jahr von Team America: World Police, dem wohl besten und bösesten Film über den neuen amerikanischen Post-9/11-Imperialismus-Traum. I Heart Huckabees hingegen geht von seiner Stimmung eher in eine ähnliche Richtung wie Eternal Sunshine.

Die Tatsache, dass ich die großen Oscar-Filme des Jahres, Million Dollar Baby und Finding Neverland beispielsweise, jetzt erst erwähne, zeigt, dass 2004 einfach ein verdammt gutes Jahr für Mainstream-Kino war, abseits der großen Gefühle. Der Oscar für Million Dollar Baby ist verdient — der Film war sehr gut — aber ich bezweifle, dass er in den Köpfen so lange überleben wird. Den Auslandsoscar gewann Alexandro Amenabars Mar Adentro, ebenfalls verdient (vor allem gegen den Untergang).

2 Oscar Years ago, we saw a historical ceremony crowning four non-Americans, four Europeans as:

Best Actor in a Leading Role – The Great Britain, England’s Daniel Day Lewis took home his second Oscar, playing the role of a miner-turned-oil-empire in There Will Be Blood. Day Lewis becomes one of the less-than-ten actors to win Best Actor from the four award-giving heavies for the same film- The Oscars, The Globes, The BAFTA and SAG.

Best Actress in a Leading Role- France’s ultimate sexy starlet aka “it girl,” Marion Cotillard plays French chanteuse Edith Piaf on the French and internationally-acclaimed biopic of The Extraordinary Life of Edith Piaf in La Vie En Rose.

Best Actor in a Supporting Role – Spain’s Benicio Del Toro, as I love to call him, Javier Bardem has got to be one of the most deserving Oscar winners of all time. His thrilling performance as Anton Chigurh in the Western fortune thriller-drama No Country For Old Men scored him a huge number of Best Supporting Actor trophies. Chasing Josh Brolin and running away from Tommy Lee Jones has got to be the break of his life.

Best Actress in a Supporting Role – The Great Britain, Scotland’s prime actress Tilda Swinton wins an unexpected flip-of-the-envelope for the George Clooney- Tom Wilkinson- the late Sudney Pollack dragging yet high-tension law and corruption film, Michael Clayton. No matter the controversy surrounding Swinton’s first Oscar nomination and first Oscar win, and as you’ve guessed it, controversial acceptance speech and uninspiring outfit, she has still got to be one of my favortite winners. Playing Karen Crowder, a detailed lawyer and a puny antagonist on her knees, in her not-so-ordinary self got her an Oscar and a BAFTA in the same year. Winning over early favorite and previous winner in the categury Cate Blanchett, who she somewhat resembles is the most glorious she’s been.

On March 7, 2010, in which I’m gonna have to file a Vacation Leave on, we shall witness, we might witness two Brit non-Oscarables up the stage for Best Actor and Best Actress in a Leading Role.

Colin Firth, A Single Man.

A British gay professor in America had his one love passing away in front of him. How did he survive the menace and grief of the 1960’s American academe?

In his most daring yet, never-an-Oscar nominee Colin Firth does heavy drama as he stars with 4-Time Oscar nominee Julianne Moore in A Single Man. This could be Firth’s first nomination and win after a a long credential of romantic comedies that includes Love Actually, Nanny McPhee, Bridget Jones’s 1 and 2, Pride & Prejudice and the list goes on.

Carey Mulligan, An Education.

Jenny, a young and beautiful school girl, dreaming of big Universities suddenly sees herself enrolling in an education with a man twice her age, with a not-so-good resume.

British new comer Carey Mulligan leads a cast of veterans and all-time favorites including one of my ultimate favorite actors,  Peter Sarsgaard (Boys Don’t Cry, Garden State, The Orphan), Alfred Molina (more popularly known as Doc Oc in Spider Man- 2), Dominic Cooper (Mamma Mia!, The Duchess) and 2-Time Oscar winner Emma Thompson (Nanny McPhee, Sense And Sensibility, Stranger Than Fiction).

I’m always like this, more excited on who could be te four Best Actors are over the Best Picture and Original Screenplay. An Education could also be this year’s dark horse in the Motion Picture of the Year race.

If the heavens would favor the women this year, The Hurt Locker could turn out to be the biggest surprise if it wins Best Picture. The fouth Oscar Best Picture to be nominated following  and could be the first to win Best Picture with a female Director, Kathryn Bigelow.

I am crossing my fingers for the following to at least get an Oscar nod:

Julianne Moore, Best Supporting Actress for A Single Man

Christopher Plummer, Best Actor for The Last Station

Mo’Nique, Best Supporting Actress for Precious

Matt Damon, Best Supporting Actor for Invictus

Kate Hudson, Best Supporting Actress for Nine

and Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, Best Original Screenplay for (500) Days Of Summer.

On 2-Time Oscar winner Hilary Swank’s Amelia: I have always loved this Oscar heavy, two nominations, two wins, she’s one and only. Her new film by Mira Nair, Amelia, an Amelia Earhart biopic could be her third Oscar nomination and first loss, and it might be to British newcomer Mulligan, so I’m wishing either she gets nominated and win for the third time or NOT get nominated at all.

I love her. She knows.

]]> http://disembedded.wordpress.com/2009/11/26/a-matter-of-loaf-and-death-big-trouble-at-the-mill/ Thu, 26 Nov 2009 05:03:23 +0000 disembedded http://disembedded.wordpress.com/2009/11/26/a-matter-of-loaf-and-death-big-trouble-at-the-mill/

A Matter of Loaf and Death: Big Trouble at the Mill

A Matter of Loaf and Death is an award-winning, delightful clay-animated short film directed by Nick Clark, a four-time Academy Award-winning English filmmaker of stop-motion animation.  The film, starring the much-loved duo Wallace and his faithful dog Gromit, was named last week as one of 10 films to advance in the Animated Short Films category for the 82nd Annual Academy Awards.  A Matter of Loaf and Death played on BBC Television last year and was the highest-rated program of 2008 and the highest-rated non-sporting event in the United Kingdom since 2004.  In 2008, the film won the BAFTA Award for Best Short Animation and the Annie Award for Best Animated Short Subject.

A Matter of Loaf and Death is a suspenseful, romantic high-action murder mystery, with Wallace and and the ever-trusty Gromit starting a new bakery business, Top Bun.  Gromit learns that a number of bakers in town have been mysteriously disappearing, and tries to solve the case before Wallace ends up a victim himself.  The mystery involves a new love interest for Wallace, Ms. Piella Bakewell, who is a bread enthusiast and former pin-up girl for the “Bake-O-Lite” bread company, as well as, for the first time, a cute sweetheart for Gromit: Ms. Bakewell’s charming little French poodle, Fluffles.  The very urgent question now is: will Gromit be able to discover the identity of the Cereal Killer before poor Wallace ends up becoming the next ghastly victim?

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A Matter of Loaf and Death: Big Trouble at the Mill

The full-version of A Matter of Loaf and Death can also be viewed here.

Slide Show: A Matter of Loaf and Death

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Oscar bait.  That sums up this movie.  I’m sure it’s a good movie, but you don’t hire Helen Mirren, Christopher Plummer and Paul Giamatti without the Oscars on your mind.  Also the fact that it’s about the drama in Leo Tolstoy’s personal life doesn’t hurt.  I won’t pretend that I know anything about Tolstoy, but War & Peace is somewhere on my list of books to read (sure it is).

And look it’s Octavia of the Julii.

Click poster to watch trailer.

From Apple.

- izi

Joanna Newsom in Armani; image courtesy of wmagazine.com

So W just dropped news that Joanna Newsom has a proper follow-up to Ys and the subsequent Joanna Newsom and the Ys Street Band EP, the particulars to which twentyfourbit.com elaborated, all of which I know about thanks to GRCA’s Emily Marks.

Now, I’m not sure why it’s taking her so long to make another full-length, which I’m assuming Drag City is releasing. Some might speculate that her hiatus might be due to her relationship with SNL’s Andy Samberg. And while I have no problem with giving Samberg a good feminist hard time, I’m not entirely sure if her absence can be attributed to playing house. With recent appearances in trendy fashion magazines like W, much as she did earlier in her career with publications like PAPER, I think it might have something to do with playing dress-up.

The boys of Lonely Island with their dates at the 61st Annual Primetime Emmy Awards; image courtesy of aceshowbiz.com

Yikes! I realize those last two sentences might have infantilized the singer, something choruses of music critics do any time they call her voice “child-like.” What I mean is that Newsom has been mingling in the fashion world. Perhaps it’s no surprise that a long-haired, full-lipped, leggy white lady recording artist can get designers to take notice. However, I find it particularly interesting who she’s syncing up with, how this might help construct her image, and what all this might suggest about the commodification of indie. Because she’s not just putting on Armani. She’s friends with Rodarte, waxing pretentious about the collaborative process and wearing their designs to in-the-know, downtown fêtes. 

Joanna Newsom representing Rodarte's Fall 2008 collection; image courtesy of obsoleteantics.blogspot.com

Sisters Kate and Laura Mulleavy, who created a label honoring their mother’s maiden name, Rodarte, have made quite a splash in the fashion world and on the red carpet over the past few years. They seem like cool ladies with whom I’d definitely want to watch some movies. Yet I’m still on the fence about their decidely avant-garde design aesthetic. I almost like a lot of it, but it gets way too drapey and twee at times — particularly when factoring in the cost.

Natalie Portman and Reese Witherspoon’s dresses for the 2009 Oscars were vivid shades of pink and blue, but the knotty bodice patterns and woozy detailing made me a bit nauseous. Similar situation with the dress Tilda Swinton wore for a premiere of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – loved the color palette, wanted to rip off the sleeves. And in theory, I like the Rodarte sweater Kristen Stewart wore in last January’s Teen Vogue, but in actual practice, I have a hunch that I could find some moth-eaten angora free of charge if I just brave the family attic. 

Cute sweater or is Kristen Stewart just wearing the empress's new cardigan?; image courtesy of flickr.com

That said, I like that Rodarte work with retailers like the Gap and Target to make their clothes more accessible and affordable. And they have made some killer, coveted items that I’d snap up if I had the money.

Reese Witherspoon's minty fresh Rodarte minidress; image courtesy of girladvantage.com

Michelle Obama wore a 2007 Rodarte dress to meet with Queen Rania in April 2009; image courtesy of paulrfrost.blogspot.com

But Newsom and Rodarte seems an interesting match. Though musicians pairing up with designers is nothing new (see also: Cher and Bob Mackie, Madonna and Jean-Paul Gaultier, Courtney Love and Christina Aguilera representing Versace, M.I.A. representing Marc Jacobs), something seems pretty perfect with the alignment here. Perhaps with the three ladies’ talk about collaborative processes, we’ll get to see a Newsom-designed collection, as we did with Chloë Sevigny’s 2008 collection for Opening Ceremony.

Chloë Sevigny models her own designs for Opening Ceremony, convincing this blogger that t-shirts can be successfully paired with strapless dresses; image courtesy of stylefrizz.com

This pairing might be read alongside what commercial ventures Newsom has entertained. In an era that has seen many independent artists rely upon advertising and television shows to get their music heard, Newsom’s music has been featured in several places. Often she has elected that her music be used in documentary work. However, The Milk-Eyed Mender’s “Sprout and the Bean” was featured in Victoria’s Secret’s Dream Angels ad campaign. Note that her voice is not heard in this spot.

Or it could be that a dress is just a dress. Which is fine too. But while I’m excited about hearing Newsom’s new album, I’ll have two labels on my mind when it comes out: Drag City and Rodarte.

By Jen

Throughout her distinguished career, Lauren Bacall has been recognized, nominated, and rewarded for her groundbreaking roles, distinctive abilities, and personal choices.  However, one specific award always managed to elude her.

In 1997, after over 50 successful years in movies which included work in some of today’s classics with a variety of the most well-known movie stars of the time, Lauren Bacall was finally nominated for her first Academy Award for her supporting role in The Mirror Has Two Faces.

However, the competition that year was fierce and the little golden man fell into the hands of the lovely Juliette Binoche for her supporting role in The English Patient.

Finally, this year, not long after her 85th birthday, the dazzling actress was awarded an Honorary Academy Award for her life’s work, which was presented at the Inaugural Governor’s Awards which took place on November 14, months ahead of the widely televised and more well-known Academy Awards show.

Grazia Fashion: Lauren Bacall’s early Oscar!

Screen legend Lauren Bacall given Oscar for life’s work – Yahoo! News

Lauren Bacall – Wikipedia

Lauren Bacall – IMDb

Partly Cloudy: A Lonely Cloud Creates Hazardous Babies for His Stork-Partner

Partly Cloudy is a delightful animated short film by Pixar Animation Studios, which was named as one of 10 films to advance in the voting process for the “Animated Short Films” category for the 82nd Annual Academy Awards.  The list is international, with movies representing production companies from Australia, France, America, Canada and other countries.

In Partly Cloudy, the storks get their babies from way up high in the stratosphere, where cloud people sculpt babies from clouds and bring them to life.  However, in this story there is a real dilemma.  Gus, a lonely and insecure gray cloud, is a master at creating “dangerous” babies: crocodiles, porcupines, rams and even much worse.  Gus’s beloved creations are truly works of art, but they’re more than a handful for his loyal delivery-stork partner, Peck.  As Gus’s creations become more and more rambunctious, Peck’s job gets harder and harder.  How on earth will Peck manage to handle both his hazardous cargo and his friend’s fiery temperament?

Partly Cloudy: A Lonely Cloud Creates Hazardous Babies for His Stork-Partner

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What makes a good blog? What makes a successful blog? What makes a worthwhile blog? I’ve no idea. (And – it’s worth noting – these are quite different questions.) I ask them because I am celebrating an anniversary today. Not ten years or even a year, but three months of happy blogging. This might seem a bit premature, but I said to myself when I began that I would keep going for six months come what may; so the halfway mark gives a small excuse to take stock.

Mostly, I’ve really enjoyed it. I’m posting about three or four times a week, and the rhythm of writing has forced me to think about the topics at hand, and made me reflect more generally on what is happening around me and in the press. I’m more curious, and a bit braver about trying to express (or at least trying to form) my own opinion. Usually an idea grabs me or annoys me and I scribble it down for an upcoming post. Now and then I’m feeling a bit blank or too busy to think, and I feel the pressure to write (‘what if I fall silent?!’). Then something catches my attention, or I put it off for a day.

Other unexpected effectsof starting to blog: I write quicker than three months ago; and once or twice a post has grown into an article that has been published – so the blogging has helped me risk stepping into a more public debate. Hopefully, some of the posts have got people thinking about something they might have missed, and reflecting a bit more deeply. This is the point! And that is what makes me feel as a priest that it is worth wasting a little bit of time on this.

The stats: I get about 100 page hits a day. WordPress doesn’t tell you how many unique visitors you get, and I don’t want to sign up to these statistics websites because with my love of detail I would get drawn into obsessing about the stats. Anyway, if there are a hundred page hits, and each person is clicking on each of the twenty-five posts displayed, then that means four people are reading the blog each day! (I know, it’s possibly slightly more than that…)

But I had one exceptional weekend, just ten days ago. For some reason my post about ‘best movies of the decade’ got picked up and put on the WordPress homepage (they choose a few every day) – this is like getting invited to the Oscars – and I had six thousand hits in three days. Suddenly I was ‘out there’ in this strange world of connections and clicking and commentators; and then, as quickly as the link was taken off the WordPress page, I was back in my office with my four friends… WordPress.com, by the way, has been a fantastic (and free) host.

my brief moment in the blogging stratosphere last weekend

I’m still not sure if the blog has any unity. Friends have called it ‘eclectic’ – I think they mean it is pretty random. This is my concern, that there is no focus or theme to the posts, so readers aren’t quite sure what they are coming to, or why they should come back. Perhaps it doesn’t matter too much. Or perhaps there is a theme developing: Even with all the random posts about film or technology or faith or morality, I feel an underlying thread is the question ‘what does it mean to be human?’ I teach a number of courses in philosophy and theology, and most of the posts here would provide food for thought in the course called ‘Philosophical Anthropology’ – the philosophy of the human person.

So another three months lie ahead. To any regular readers: Now is the time for feedback. I’m not fishing for compliments, just genuinely wanting to know how you are finding the blog. What have you enjoyed most? What isn’t working? What would make it more interesting for you? Any concrete advice about the topics that could be considered, the frequency of posts, the length of posts, the use of images, etc. In a nutshell, what has your experience been?! (As they say…)

Do post any of your thoughts in the comments box below. And that is another matter itself – how do you encourage people to comment and interact more?

Ze is in verwachting van het tweede kind van haar eigen vader, heeft geen vrienden op school, wordt als een slaaf rondgecommandeerd door haar moeder en daarbovenop wordt ze ook nog eens gepest met haar overgewicht. Het leven van Precious is kortom de hel op aarde. Dat de bijna twee uur durende film Precious: Based on the Novel by Sappphire geen vrolijke zit is, mag dan ook geen verassing heten.

Dat de film gebaseerd op het boek Push: A Novel echter zo ver gaat in het tonen van de smerigheid en pijnlijke gebeurtenissen uit het leven van de zwaarlijvige tienermoeder is dat wel. In het leven van Precious is namelijk zo weinig plaats voor optimisme dat je het eerste uur regelmatig de neiging hebt de bioscoop zo snel mogelijk te verlaten. Iedere vorm van opsmuk wordt gemeden en de harde realiteit wordt in al haar facetten benadrukt. De straten waar het hoofdpersoon doorheen wandelt, het huis waar ze woont, het eten dat ze eet en de feeks van een moeder die haar iedere dag thuis opwacht na school, alles is even smerig en deprimerend.

Het is dan ook bijna niet te geloven dat Precious: Based on the Novel by Sappphire een film van Amerikaanse makelij is. Veel meer doet het tonen van de harde realiteit, de troosteloosheid en afzichtelijke omgeving denken aan bijvoorbeeld het England dat we kennen uit de Mike Leigh films. Nog groter is de verbazing, als blijkt dat de executive producer van de film niemand minder dan Oprah Winfrey is. Gelukkig is overduidelijk te zien dat deze koningin van de sentimentele tv haar naam pas aan de film heeft verbonden nadat deze al af was, want Precious: Based on the Novel by Sappphire weet lange tijd juist ieder vorm van sentiment vakkundig te omzeilen.

De ommekeer komt (eindelijk zou je bijna zeggen) na een klein uur, als Precious door omstandigheden wat meer tijd doorbrengt op de alternatieve school waar ze geplaatst is, en daar onder de hoede van de lerares Ms Rain (Paula Patton) komt. Zij is een rustpunt in het leven van Precious en zorgt ervoor dat ze zowaar wat geloof in eigen kunnen krijgt. De film komt in rustiger vaarwater en er breekt zowaar een gedeelte in de film aan waarin er wel plaats is voor hoop en dromen. Overigens zonder dat de dreiging van het noodlot en de ellende ver weg zijn.

Het is ook het sein om de tranen wat rijkelijker te laten vloeien. Storend is dit echter allerminst omdat het nergens nep of goedkoop wordt. Bovendien is er nog het grootste pluspunt van de film: Gabourey ‘Gabby’ Sidibe. Zij is het namelijk die met glans de rol vertolkt van Precious, de puber wiens leven je niemand toewenst. Zonder groots op uitbundig te acteren weet zij steevast haar emoties over te brengen en het is dan ook geen toeval dat zij  nu al veelvuldig wordt getipts als mogelijke/waarschijnlijke Oscarwinnares.

Het enige puntje van kritiek dat mogelijk op Precious: Based on the Novel by Sappphire van toepassing is, is de grote hoeveelheid leed en ellende die je voorgeschoteld krijgt. De mokerslagen volgen elkaar zo snel op en de balans slaat zo fors uit in de richting van de minder leuke zaken des levens, dat je na een tijdje bijna immuun raakt voor zoveel ellende. Voor de mensen die hier echter geen last van hebben, blijft er een indrukwekkend en beklijvend drama over met een glansrol van hoofdrolspeelster Gabourey “Gabby” Sidibe.

The Best Movie of 2009?

I think Up deserves an Oscar. Not only is it the best animated picture of the year, it is one that convinced me that digital animation is a formidable medium that I would be well-served to accept. What I really liked about Up is that although a children’s film, its message of life after death is actually quite grown up, and not in the grown up, slyly winking style of a Wes Anderson Fantastic Mr. Fox but grown up in the fact that the movie’s themes are presented elegantly and simply, at once entertaining and on-message. Are children’s movies the next adults between 18 and 49 genre? I do not know, but Up makes a good argument for.

This idea is funny, because Up really does not have any characters from that demographic. Think about it, Carl is a senior citizen and Russell is a pre-adolescent boy, a tween in Disney-speak (thankfully without the obnoxious Hannah Montana baggage). The only adults are the cell-phone carrying architects who are trying to evict Carl from his home. You could argue that it is the mere absence of adults that marks this film—Russell’s dad is negligent, the medical techs who come to take Carl to Shady Oaks simpering, and Carl’s wife Ellie dead. Is director Peter Docter doing away with adults for a reason? Are they artifacts of a meshugge generation, one whose main aim beyond technology is money? Do they know as much about life as old people and children?

By all appearances from the plot, this is an adventure. Newlyweds Carl and wife Ellie picks a point on the globe, South America (“Just like America, but south” according to Russell) remote enough to not be bothered, to travel to one day when they have the money. Unfortunately, Ellie dies (again, very un-Disney) and Carl is left alone. A balloon vendor, Carl ties up thousands of balloons to his home and takes off one morning after assaulting a contractor come to take over his house and build an office on top of it. Unlikely but equally unfortunate, a young boy, Russell hitches along for the ride. At Paradise Falls, they find a crazed explorer Charles Muntz, bent on discovering a rare bird. Chaos ensues as Carl and company find the aptly named she-bird “Kevin” first.

Here’s the ironic part to the adventure—it’s essentially pointless. Oh, sure, they save Kevin and meet a loveable golden named Dug, but there is no intrinsic value to the adventure. In fact, the only thing Carl learns is that his wife’s adventure book is already quite full. Under “Things I’m Going to Do” are photos from the couple’s marriage. It was his promise to Adventure with her, yet he finds that that promise was not broken.

OK, before you throw Dorothy’s “there’s no place like home” at me—I don’t find this message hackneyed. Think about it, the balloon-home is unable to be rescued; in the final scene it rests on the cliff of Paradise Falls. The house, the dream, the wife is gone. All that remains is a scrapbook with a couple of memories from a mundane and childless marriage. We can rightly assume Carl is assigned to Shady Oaks after returning to the city—he could even be on probation for assaulting the contractor. Russell’s dad does not show up for his “Wilderness Explorers” ceremony. Review that awards ceremony scene at the end—have you seen a more depressing pay-off in a movie? In a kids’ movie for gosh sake? I have never seen a bigger tent-pole movie with such a humble message—enjoy the things you have because they will turn into memories.

Yet according to Up those memories need to sustain us. Look at Muntz. In his quest to find the bird, whatever it is, he loses out on a lifetime of memories, instead retreating into himself and his madness. This is what happens when you try to hold onto things—you end up losing everything else.

So, in the end, Up is a winsome piece of fluff. The story is exciting, the characters warm and fun, but like Prospero’s midnight mushrooms, they are of no weight, no purpose, their only object being to send a wispy message: Enjoy life when you can.

A pretty subversive message coming from a Silicon Valley media conglomerate that makes pablum for kids, huh? All I can say is I am glad I was there for the ride.

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
01. Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia/It’s Complicated
02. Gabourey Sidibe, Precious
03. Carey Mulligan, An Education
04. Abbie Cornish, Bright Star
05. Marion Cottilard, Nine
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IN CONTENTION
06. Helen Mirren, The Last Station
07. Saoirse Ronan, The Lovely Bones
08. Tilda Swinton, Julia
09. Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side
10. Hilary Swank,  Amelia

The big question on my mind in this catagorey is: Will Streep get in for J&J or IC? Her incredible performance in Julie & Julia won her rave reviews and people love her, but It’s Complicated has the AMPAS on it’s side (the hosts are Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin, Meryl’s co-stars.) I think It’s Complicated might sneak in with it’s dark horse chance.

I’m feeling confident with the top three and I’m pretty sure they’re locks. Mulligan is loosing a bit of buzz as Sidibe’s builds, but I think they’re safe, Sidibe with the upperhand. The gut feeling in this catagorey is a nom for Abbie Cornish in Bright Star. Australia is already rooting for her and her performance has fanatstic reviews. She’s a newcomer in a role written by Jane Campion – but the film has lost all it’s buzz. People have seem to have forgotten the film in the path of other recent hits. The final spot belongs to either Mirren, Cottilard and Ronan. All three are past nominees with the former two winners in the catagorey. Mirren and Cottilard are apparently best in show in The Last Station and Nine, respectivley and the Academy loves the veteran and the new star. But if Ronan steals Bones, the Academy might want to, with all their new rule changes, opening up etc, want to make her the youngest actress two have two nominations. Swinton is a dark horse, but her performance was praised by many critics – but is the film to small? Bullock…I’d be suprised if she got a nomination, but I’m just throwing her in the mix. But I’m worried about Swank. People HATED Amelia and her performance has many haters, but she could pull a Cate Blanchett for Elizabeth: The Golden Age – a respected performance in a terrible film.

Thoughts? Happy Reading!
Andrew

Have you noticed all the buzz surrounding the new movie AVATAR? Written and directed by James Cameron, this 4-year project just might set the new standard in digital effects, mixing human and digital actors, and the proper application of 3-D effects for theater viewing.

In the past few weeks, I’ve seen High Definition extended trailers shown on Fox, trailers at the new Dallas Cowboys Stadium “Jerryland” or as one friend of mine referred to it as the “Death Star.” Last week I received my latest copy of Wired Magazine and there is a 12-page article about the movie and the effects process. Playboy had an exclusive interview about James Cameron and how this movie has been taking up all his time. Tonight, on 60 Minutes there was an interview with James Cameron, similar to the Playboy interview, in which he describes the 4-year journey and what his movie attempts to bring to moviegoers.

For James Cameron, it is extremely hard to top the the success of his last film, “Titatic.” This movie made well over a billion dollars and still remains the most profitable movie of all time. AVATAR, which cost roughly $400 million to make, is gonna take some time to make money above and beyond production costs, but I have a feeling….this movie could start making money in roughly two weeks.

Along with the movie, James Cameron worked exclusively on Avatar, the video game, which should hit stores on December 1st. This Ubisoft produced game (same folks that brought you Halo) takes you on a first-person adventure two-years prior to the time the movie takes place. I’ve seen the game trailers and it looks spectacular! I can’t wait to see it on my HDTV.

If you wondering when the movie will hit….mark your calendars for Dec 18th. I am curious to hear your thoughts and predictions on the success of this movie. I am already predicting Oscars for Best Visual Effects, Sound Mixing & Editing, Cinematography, and Art Direction. We’ll see how I do when March rolls around.

Heathaplex Vision

Nota del Autor: Como otro feature aquí en este nuevo blog, vamos a diseccionar algunos trailers (y teasers), porque queda claro que a veces nos engañan, o bien, pueden presentar a un producto mediocre, que en principio nos podría parecer interesante. Y qué mejor que iniciar a lo grande con el ya (por fin) proximísimo regreso de James Cameron y su mundo de Pandora en Avatar, que presume de tener un trailersote (?) de 210 seg; para los lentos, eso es 3 min y medio. Sólo un shout out antes a Empire (Magazine) que de vez en cuando hace esto también, y que me dio la idea.

Full post…

“The Cat Piano,” Eddie White and Ari Gibson
“French Roast,” Fabrice O. Joubert
“Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty,” Nicky Phelan
“The Kinematograph,” Tomek Baginski
“The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte),” Javier Recio Gracia
“Logorama,” Nicolas Schmerkin
“A Matter of Loaf and Death,” Nick Park
“Partly Cloudy,” Peter Sohn
“Runaway,” Cordell Barker
“Variete,” Roelof van den Bergh

Fünf von denen werden als als nominierungen schaffen…mal sehen:

“The Cat Piano,” Eddie White and Ari Gibson

einfach fantastisch! gehört ganz ganz oben auf der liste! katzen*geile farben*geile erzählung: WIN!

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“French Roast,” Fabrice O. Joubert

besuche die seite: Frenchroast
nicholas marlet hat sein bestes gegeben…witzig.

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“Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty,” Nicky Phelan
viele halten dies für das witzigste in ganz ganz langer zeit…also GUTE gewinnchancen!

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“The Kinematograph,” Tomek Baginski

polnisch, wahnsinn!
vielleicht mein favorit!!!

ANSEHEN!

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“The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte),” Javier Recio Gracia

sehr ungewöhnlich. ja und die academy lieeeebt ja die spanier, also gute chancen..

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“Logorama,” Nicolas Schmerkin
jap, wird wohl das rennen machen…

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“A Matter of Loaf and Death,” Nick Park

ja, leider wallace & gromit…nicht mein fall…

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“Partly Cloudy,” Peter Sohn

kennen wir, ist ein pixar…

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“Runaway,” Cordell Barker

DER HAMMER!!!!! FAVORIT!

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“Variete,” Roelof van den Bergh

Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire (2009)
★★★★ / ★★★★

I find it an uncommon experience to watch a movie that really gets involved with my emotions, but it’s rare that I watch a movie that has the ability to completely transport me in its reality. Directed by Lee Daniels, “Precious” tells the story of an pregnant, obese, illiterate African-American teenager (Gabourey “Gabby” Sidibe) who has grown accustomed to the physical and emotional abuse inflicted by her mother (Mo’Nique) and how she eventually found strength inside of her to stand up and take her life in a positive direction. A few people who genuinely took interest in Precious were Paula Patton as the school teacher, Mariah Carey as one of the people who works for the welfare system, and Lenny Kravitz as a male nurse who took care of her after she had her second baby.

I have to admit that I choose to ignore or even actively stay away from people like Precious, partly due to fear since she came from a terrible neighborhood and partly due to how she presented herself: very quiet yet volatile and someone that seemed like she had no interest in taking care of herself. That stereotype that I often rely on doesn’t come consciously to me anymore and it was nice, through watching this film, to be reminded that despite physical appearances, everyone has a surprising (and even touching) story to tell, a story that transcends all the stigma and the pain that a person shows and hides. Even though the subject matter of this film was depressing, it found enough moments to insert not just amusing lines and moments but actual hopes and dreams of the lead character’s. Such scenes illustrated that although Precious didn’t like herself (when she looks in the mirror, she sees a completely different person–Caucasian, skinny, happy), she wanted to break out from her violent living environment and ultimately be loved for who she is and what she has to offer.

I thought the scenes of physical abuse from her father were done in a sensitive and insightful way. Instead of actually showing us the act, I admired how the picture chose to dissociate itself from the scene as when Precious would dissociate herself from the experience and think shiny, happy thoughts. From what I learned in Psychology, rape victims, especially those people who were raped ever since they were children, dissociate their minds from their bodies as a defense mechanism. So I thought the film’s craft was spot-on. Mo’Nique’s character was beyond cruel but just when I thought she was a complete monster, the movie shows us that she does indeed have a heart. It’s just that she became angry and bitter over the years because of how she interpreted certain events and how she saw certain realities. Again, I saw this through a psychological lens so her reaction made sense to me even though I do not agree with the way transfered all her frustration and anger (that should have been directed to her husband and herself) to her only daughter. Mo’Nique has been getting a lot of strong Oscar buzz for Best Actress and I believe she should be nominated because out of the many movies I’ve seen in 2009, her performance stands out by a mile.

The reason why I consider “Precious” one of the strongest movies of 2009 is because, despite its gloomy premise, it’s ultimately a very inspiring story about a seemingly hopeless girl from Harlem who chose to break the chains of abuse and find an alternative path so that she could grow as a person and maybe even reach her potential. This is a great film to show to kids from the poorer neighborhoods because it might give them enough courage to speak out and discover a role model that they might not have in their respective homes. It’s been a while since I saw people actually crying in the movies and people talking about it right when we were walking out of the theaters. Even though I saw this film alone (For some reason, I almost always watch the best films of the year by myself), I felt connected with the world and wanting to embrace everyone in it.