jasonjnielsen

[jasonjnielsen]

2017 End of Year Movie Review

A note regarding this review of 2017 movies: I have not seen the following: All the Money in the World Columbus The Disaster Artist The Florida Project A Ghost Story The Greatest Showman Ingrid Goes West The Killing of a Sacred Deer The Square Suburbicon

2017 had something for everyone. Every genre seemed to succeed in one way or another.

Personally, I enjoyed the horror and sci-fi genres stepping up. Get Out is the first traditional horror movie nominated for best picture since The Silence of the Lambs. Get Out isn’t the only best picture nominee from one of these traditionally overlooked genres. Guillermo del Toro gave the world another brilliant, beautiful sci-fi/fantasy tale in The Shape of Water, this time earning best picture and best director nominations. Outside the Oscar nominations, the remake of Stephen King’s It is nostalgic, fun, charming, and most importantly, terrifying. It is the perfect storm to keep horror popular going into 2018. Even established auteur, Darren Aronofsky decided to dabble in the horror genre by giving us his unique Biblical fever dream mother! starring award-winners Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem. Even though it is either loved or hated depending on the critic, the genre succeeds when prominent stars take it seriously. Other horror films worth noting are the scary look at humanity, It Comes at Night; Netflix’s The Babysitter; the only movie to get Michael Fassbender erotically playing a flute, Alien: Covenant; and Gore Verbinski’s thriller damning American work ethic, A Cure for Wellness. Even Annabelle: Creation and Happy Death Day were fun. Plus, we were gifted the brilliant Sharknado 5: Global Swarming.

Super hero movies also stepped up their game. Thor: Ragnorok finally gave the Thor and Loki characters a story worth telling. Wonder Woman is bad-ass, with a great story and brought DC back from the dead. Logan gave the genre a dark, gritty side, told like a classic revenge flick. Even Justice League understood what it needed to do to succeed and did it well. 

2017 was truly great for all genres. If you like coming-of-age tales, look no further than Lady Bird, Call Me By Your Name, and The Big Sick. All have the heart-warming and heart-breaking moments that make those movies great. 2017 also had great dramatic thrillers, like Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri; Wind River; Good Time; and The Lost City of Z. If you want to “turn your brain off”, look no further than The Rock in The Fate of the Furious, Baywatch, and Jumanji. If you want socially relevant films, All Eyez on Me and Detroit shine a light on the struggle black Americans have had throughout the years. Coco, Leap!, and Ferdinand led the way in good animated movies. Plus, we were given a Star Wars movie.

Not everything was great, though, as the worst movie of the year might be the worst movie of all time.

WORST OF 2017 1. The Emoji Movie 2. 50 Shades Darker 3. The Bye Bye Man 4. Cars 3 5. The Belko Experminent

There’s really nothing to say. All these movies were expected to be terrible.

DISHONORARY MENTION: The Circle, Rough Night

**MY AWARDS**

Well... It’s a Movie... (The Movies I Expected to Be Terrible but Surprisingly Were Not) Annabelle: Creation The Babysitter Home Again Kidnap Power Rangers

At Least It’s Better Than a Poke in the Eye With a Dull Stick... Maybe (The Movies with High Expectations that Fall Well Short) Baywatch The Circle The Foreigner Logan Lucky The Mountain Between Us Phantom Thread The Post Roman J. Israel, Esq. Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets

Best Original Score Hans Zimmer (Dunkirk) Alexandre Desplat (The Shape of Water) Rupert Gregson-Williams (Wonder Woman) Oneohtrix Point Never (Good Time) Carter Burwell (Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri)

Best Original Song "Redbone" (Get Out) "Remember Me" (Coco) "Mystery of Love" (Call Me By Your Name) "The Pure and the Damned" (Good Time) "Be Somebody" (Leap!)

Best Cinematography Ben Richardson (Wind River) Dan Laustsen (The Shape of Water) Chung-hoon Chung (It) Jonathan Sela (Atomic Blonde) Matthew Jensen (Wonder Woman)

Best Directing Jordan Peele (Get Out) Guillermo del Toro (The Shape of Water) Martin McDonagh (Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri) Andy Muschietti (It) Taylor Sheridan (Wind River)

Best Supporting Actress Laurie Metcalf (Lady Bird) Holly Hunter (The Big Sick) Allison Janney (I, Tonya) Octavia Spencer (The Shape of Water) Sophia Lillis (It)

Best Supporting Actor Sam Rockwell (Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri) Richard Jenkins (The Shape of Water) Michael Shannon (The Shape of Water) Graham Greene (Wind River) Michael Stuhlbarg (Call Me By Your Name)

Best Lead Actress Sally Hawkins (The Shape of Water) Frances McDormand (Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri) Elizabeth Olsen (Wind River) Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird) Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman)

Best Lead Actor Gary Oldman (Darkest Hour) Timothée Chalamet (Call Me By Your Name) Robert Pattinson (Good Time) Daniel Kaluuya (Get Out) Jeremy Renner (Wind River)

Best Ensemble Cast The Shape of Water It Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri Call Me By Your Name Thor: Ragnarok

Top 10 of 2017 0. Sharkando 5: Global Swarming * 1. Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri 2. It 3. Lady Bird 4. The Shape of Water 5. Call Me By Your Name 6. Wind River 7. John Wick: Chapter 2 8. Get Out 9. Thor: Ragnarok 10. Good Time

Additional Great Movies of 2017 11. Wonder Woman 12. The Lost City of Z 13. The Big Sick 14. Atomic Blonde 15. Logan 16. Darkest Hour 17. All Eyez on Me 18. It Comes at Night 19. Dunkirk 20. Coco 21. Star Wars: The Last Jedi 22. Leap! 23. mother! 24. Detroit 25. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 26. The Fate of the Furious 27. Baby Driver 28. Spider-Man: Homecoming 29. The Babysitter

OVERALL RATINGS 10/10 Call Me By Your Name Get Out It John Wick: Chapter 2 Lady Bird The Shape of Water Sharknado 5: Global Swarming Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri Wind River

9/10 Atomic Blonde The Big Sick Good Time The Lost City of Z Thor: Ragnarok Wonder Woman

8/10 All Eyez on Me Baby Driver The Babysitter Coco Darkest Hour Detroit Dunkirk The Fate of the Furious Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 It Comes at Night Leap! Logan mother! Spider-Man: Homecoming Star Wars: The Last Jedi

7/10 Alien: Covenant American Made Baywatch Beauty and the Beast The Beguiled A Cure for Wellness Despicable Me 3 Fist Fight Gifted Girls Trip I, Tonya Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond - Featuring a Very Special, Contractually Obligated Mention of Tony Clifton Justice League The LEGO Batman Movie Molly's Game Only the Brave The Post Professor Marston and the Wonder Women Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets Wonder

6/10 All Nighter Annabelle: Creation Ferdinand Happy Death Day The Hitman's Bodyguard Home Again Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle Kidnap The LEGO Ninjago Movie Life Logan Lucky Megan Leavey The Mountain Between Us Phantom Thread Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales Power Rangers Roman J. Israel, Esq. Split The Star

5/10 A Bad Moms Christmas The Foreigner Little Evil The Mummy The Shack Wish Upon

4/10 The Circle Rough Night

3/10 The Belko Experiment The Bye Bye Man Cars 3

2/10 50 Shades Darker

1/10 The Emoji Movie

That’s it for this year!

Follow me at http://twitter.com/jasonjnielsen For my live movie reviews #jjnreviews, follow me at http://twitter.com/jjnreviews

*Like Sharknado, Sharknado 2: The Second One, and Sharknado 4: The 4th Awakens, this is the best goddamn movie of all time.  (Sharkando 3: Oh Hell No! is NOT included in this list.)

[jasonjnielsen]

2016 End of Year Movie Review

A note regarding this review of 2016 I have not seen the following movies: 20th Century Women Elle Florence Foster Jenkins Into the Forest Kubo and the Two Strings Loving Miss Sloan Sing Street Swiss Army Man

2016 was an interesting year of ups and downs. The number of really bad movies seems down from previous years, but so does the number of really good movies.

Looking at the downside first, look no further than the typical powerhouse players, George Clooney and Ben Affleck. Both had a disappointing year, despite movies that looked promising. Clooney’s movies had the right players, but they fell short of expectations. The Coen Brothers comedy Hail, Caesar! had funny moments but it also had too many inside jokes to get over, and despite the great chemistry of Clooney and Julia Roberts, Money Monster felt too preachy instead of focusing on being a good suspense thriller. As for Affleck, his role in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice will be remembered as the fourth(?) best Batman. The Accountant will probably not be remembered at all, as it is even more generic action than Jack Reacher. And let’s hope for Affleck’s sake, everyone forgets Live By Night. I was wondering why the trailers said “from the director of The Town”; after watching the movie, I understood. As bad as Clooney and Affleck’s movies were, they looked like Casablanca compared to the shit-fest that was Passengers. Seriously, fuck that movie.

As for the good, Felicity Jones. This was an awesome year for her. She played the awesome, bad ass lead of the new Star Wars supplementary film. She was also Mum in the beautiful, tear jerker, A Monster Calls. She showed massive range this year by going full-blown warrior to loving (yet also dying) single mother. I’m glad she’s getting to show off how good she really is. This year was also a great year for diversity. Fences, Hidden Figures, Lion, and Moonlight all showed the struggles of lives of non-straight-white-male people. As a mathematician, I especially love Hidden Figures because it is an inspiration to everyone who wants to go into a STEM field. I wish more movies would be made to showcase people of all races and genders in STEM fields because we truly do need the best of everyone to make this world great. Movies like Hidden Figures show how important our work truly is. For those who don’t like diversity, don’t worry, we also got the wonderful La La Land for us white, white people, which has, without a doubt, the best opening sequence of all time. Also, for the most part, horror movies really stepped it up this year. With the exception of Blair Witch, horror showed how good it could be in The Neon Demon, Don’t Breathe, Nocturnal Animals, 10 Cloverfield Lane, The Conjuring 2, and Green Room. Finally, I want to shout out to Denis Villeneuve, director of Arrival. He paired with Jóhann Jóhannsson to do the score for his best picture nominated film and struck gold again (they worked together in 2015′s intense thriller, Sicario).

Now, here is my list of best and worst of 2016.

WORST OF 2016 1. Blair Witch 2. The Choice 3. Passengers 4. Live By Night

Passengers looked like it should have been the best movie of all time. Two of my favorite actors, both of whom have amazing charisma and on-screen presence, Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt, end up having no chemistry together. Combine that with an awful story and Passengers is one of the biggest film disappointments in history. Seriously, how hard was it to make The Shining plus Sunshine? Martin Sheen tried his best to give me the twisted movie I so wanted. Instead, the movie ended up being a snore-fest with questionable moral values.

DISHONORARY MENTION: Dirty Grandpa, The Girl on the Train, Independence Day: Resurgence, Money Monster, Morgan, and Nerve

**MY AWARDS**

Well… It’s a Movie… (The Movies I Expected to Be Terrible but Surprisingly Were Not) 10 Cloverfield Lane Don’t Breathe The Neon Demon

At Least It’s Better Than a Poke in the Eye With a Dull Stick… Maybe (The Movies with High Expectations that Fall Well Short) The Accountant Collateral Beauty Finding Dory The Girl on the Train Hail, Caesar! Live By Night Money Monster Morgan Passengers Sully

Best Original Score Mica Levi (Jackie) Jóhann Jóhannsson (Arrival) Nicholas Britell (Moonlight) Cliff Martinez (The Neon Demon) Dustin O'Halloran & Hauschka (Lion)

Best Original Song “How Far I’ll Go�� -Lin-Manuel Miranda (Moana) “City of Stars” -Justin Hurwitz (La La Land) “Try Everything” -Shakira (Zootopia) “Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” -Justin Hurwitz (La La Land) 

Best Cinematography James Laxton (Moonlight) Linus Sandgren (La La Land) Seamus McGarvey (Nocturnal Animals) Natasha Braier (The Neon Demon) Stéphane Fontaine (Jackie) Jody Lee Lipes (Manchester by the Sea) Greig Fraser (Lion)

Best Directing Barry Jenkins (Moonlight) Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester by the Sea) J.A. Bayona (A Monster Calls) Denis Villeneuve (Arrival) Mel Gibson (Hacksaw Ridge) Tom Ford (Nocturnal Animals) Tim Miller (Deadpool) Nicolas Winding Refn (The Neon Demon)

Best Supporting Actress Octavia Spencer (Hidden Figures) Viola Davis (Fences) Naomie Harris (Moonlight) Felicity Jones (A Monster Calls) Tilda Swinton (Hail, Caesar!) Nicole Kidman (Lion) Michelle Williams (Manchester by the Sea)

Best Supporting Actor Mahershala Ali (Moonlight) Dev Patel (Lion) Michael Shannon (Nocturnal Animals) Zachary Quinto (Snowden) Jovan Adepo (Fences) Kevin Costner (Hidden Figures) Aaron Paul (Eye in the Sky) Jeremy Renner (Arrival) Aaron Eckhart (Sully) Martin Sheen (Passengers)

Best Lead Actress Natalie Portman (Jackie) Emma Stone (La La Land) Amy Adams (Arrival) Felicity Jones (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) Hailee Steinfeld (Edge of Seventeen) Taraji P. Henson (Hidden Figures)

Best Lead Actor Ryan Gosling (La La Land) Casey Affleck (Manchester by the Sea) Denzel Washington (Fences) Chris Pine (Hell or High Water) Lewis MacDougall (A Monster Calls) Brad Pitt (Allied)

Best Ensemble Cast Hidden Figures A Monster Calls La La Land Hell or High Water Captain America: Civil War

Top 10 of 2016 0. Sharknado 4: The 4th Awakens * 1. A Monster Calls 2. Manchester by the Sea 3. Moana 4. Moonlight 5. The Neon Demon 6. Zootopia 7. La La Land 8. Hidden Figures 9. Lion 10. Arrival

Additional Great Movies of 2016 11. Deadpool 12. Don’t Breathe 13. Jackie 14. Hell or High Water 15. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story 16. Nocturnal Animals 17. Fences 18. Kung Fu Panda 3 19. Captain America: Civil War 20. Edge of Seventeen 21. Allied 22. Dr. Strange 23. Eye in the Sky 24. Pee Wee’s Big Holiday

Overall ratings: 10/10 Manchester by the Sea Moana A Monster Calls Moonlight The Neon Demon Sharknado 4: The 4th Awakens 9/10 Arrival Deadpool Don't Breathe Hidden Figures La La Land Lion Zootopia 8/10 Allied Captain America: Civil War Doctor Strange Edge of Seventeen Eye in the Sky Fences Hell or High Water Jackie Kung Fu Panda 3 Nocturnal Animals Pee Wee's Big Holiday Rogue One: A Star Wars Story 7/10 10 Cloverfield Lane Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Central Intelligence The Conjuring 2 Green Room Hacksaw Ridge Jack Reacher: Never Go Back The Jungle Book The Magnificent Seven Office Christmas Party Snowden Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows The Witch X-Men: Apocalypse 6/10 The Accountant Bad Moms Bad Santa 2 Collateral Beauty Finding Dory Ghostbusters Hail, Caesar! Lights Out The Lobster Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising The Secret Life of Pets Sing Suicide Squad Sully 5/10 Dirty Grandpa The Girl on the Train Independence Day: Resurgence Money Monster Morgan Nerve 4/10 Live By Night Passengers 3/10 Blair Witch The Choice

That’s it for this year!

Follow me at http://twitter.com/jasonjnielsen For my live movie reviews #jjnreviews, follow me at http://twitter.com/jjnreviews

*Like Sharknado and Sharknado 2: The Second One, this is the best goddamn movie of all time.

[jasonjnielsen]

2015 End of Year Movie Review

A note regarding this review of 2015 I have not seen the following movies: 45 Years Anomalisa Beasts of No Nation Clouds of Sils Maria Concussion Creed The Danish Girl Dope Freeheld

With the Oscars just a few hours away, I don’t have time to write up a full review (at this time). I do, however, need to mention a few things. First, the lead actress category is stacked this year. If possible, I would vote for Brie Larson, Saoirse Ronan, and Cate Blanchett to all win. Judging one of the performances over another is unfair to how phenomenal their performances and respective movies - Room, Brooklyn, and Carol - are. Second, as a horror fan, 2015 was one of my favorite years. Along with the terrifying foreign thriller, Goodnight Mommy, the US brought us Crimson Peak, Ex Machina, The Gift, It Follows, Maggie, and The Visit. All very different genres of horror, all very scary. I am excited for the direction of horror moving forward in the years to come. Third, the Oscars So White controversy is going to cast a shadow over the entire year. While I haven’t seen Beasts of No Nation, Concussion, Creed, or Dope, I do believe the nominations for the year are fairly correct. Saying that, however, I heard nothing good about The Danish Girl and only good things about Concussion and Creed. I love Will Smith and Michael B. Jordan. Maybe they should have been nominated over Eddie Redmayne. Maybe not. Honestly, the nominations last year were way more offensive, given the number of Selma snubs. The conversation is important, but the problem needs to be addressed at casting and not when the awards are being handed out. Finally, how good was Domhnall Gleeson this year? He is great in Brooklyn, Ex Machina, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. I really hope this year is the start of him continuing to do amazing things.

Now, here is my list of best and worst of 2015.

WORST OF 2015 1. The Human Centipede III (Final Sequence) 2. The Leisure Class 3. Minions 4. Unfriended 5. The Gunman 6. Taken 3 7. Insurgent 8. Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials 9. Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 10. Jupiter Ascending

Jupiter Ascending gets an honorary mention of also being awesome, simply because I believe Channing Tatum and Eddie Redmayne are trying to out-bad-act one another, and it’s absolutely brilliant. (but so, so bad)

DISHONORARY MENTION: Do You Believe?, Fifty Shades of Grey, The Gallows, The Hateful Eight, Hot Pursuit, The Lazarus Effect, Magic Mike XXL, Pitch Perfect 2, and San Andreas

**MY AWARDS**

Well... It’s a Movie... (The Movies I Expected to Be Terrible but Surprisingly Were Not) American Ultra The Gift Kingsman: The Secret Service Mad Max: Fury Road Spy

At Least It’s Better Than a Poke in the Eye With a Dull Stick… Maybe (The Movies with High Expectations that Fall Well Short) Avengers: Age of Ultrons Black Mass The Hateful Eight Insurgent The Intern The Martian Minions Paper Towns Pawn Sacrifice Pitch Perfect 2 Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No!

Best Original Score Rich Vreeland/Disasterpeace (It Follows) Jóhann Jóhannsson (Sicario) Carter Burwell (Carol) Tom Holkenborg aka Junkie XL (Mad Max: Fury Road) Stephen Rennicks (Room) Howard Shore (Spotlight) Ennio Morricone (The Hateful Eight) Michael Giacchino (Jupiter Ascending) Danny Elfman (Fifty Shades of Grey) John Williams (Star Wars: The Force Awakens)

Best Original Song "Kings Never Die" (Southpaw) "Phenomenal" (Southpaw)

Best Cinematography Danny Cohen (Room) John Seale (Mad Max: Fury Road) Emmanuel Lubezki (The Revenant) Roger Deakins (Sicario) Rob Hardy (Ex Machina) Ed Lachman (Carol) Mike Gioulakis (It Follows) Michael Bonvillain (American Ultra) Lukas Ettlin (Maggie)

Best Directing Joel Edgerton (The Gift) George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road) Todd Haynes (Carol) David O. Russell (Joy) Alejandro González Iñárritu (The Revenant) Adam McKay (The Big Short) Denis Villeneuve (Sicario) Alex Garland (Ex Machina) David Robert Mitchell (It Follows) Lenny Abrahamson (Room) F. Gary Gray (Straight Outta Compton) Danny Boyle (Steve Jobs) Guillermo del Toro (Crimson Peak) Henry Hobson (Maggie)

Best Supporting Actress Helen Mirren (Trumbo) Jessica Chastain (The Martian) Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs) Diane Ladd (Joy) Jessica Chastain (Crimson Peak) Oona Laurence (Southpaw) Sally Hawkins (Paddington) Brie Larson (Trainwreck) Molly Shannon (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl)

Best Supporting Actor Steve Carell (The Big Short) Benicio Del Toro (Sicario) Joel Edgerton (The Gift) Mark Rylance (Bridge of Spies) Jacob Tremblay (Room) Tom Hardy (The Revenant) Mark Ruffalo (Spotlight) Christian Bale (The Big Short) Emory Cohen (Brooklyn) Topher Grace (American Ultra) Seth Rogen (Steve Jobs) Domhnall Gleeson (Star Wars: The Force Awakens) Chiwetel Ejiofor (The Martian) Forest Whitaker (Southpaw) Paul Giamatti (Straight Outta Compton) Joel Edgerton (Black Mass) Hugh Bonneville (Paddington) Curtis '50 Cent' Jackson (Southpaw) RJ Cyler (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl) Peter Sarsgaard (Pawn Sacrifice) Domnhall Gleeson (Brooklyn) Jon Bernthal (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl) LeBron James (Trainwreck) Nick Offerman (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl)

Best Lead Actress Cate Blanchett (Carol) Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn) Brie Larson (Room) Rooney Mara (Carol) Jennifer Lawrence (Joy) Emily Blunt (Sicario) Olivia Cooke (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl) Charlize Theron (Mad Max: Fury Road) Maika Monroe (It Follows) Mia Wasikowska (Crimson Peak) Meryl Streep (Ricki and the Flash) Abigail Breslin (Maggie) Alicia Vikander (Ex Machina) Kristen Stewart (American Ultra) Melissa McCarthy (Spy)

Best Lead Actor Oscar Isaac (Ex Machina) Bryan Cranston (Trumbo) Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant) Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs) Michael Keaton (Spotlight) Jake Gyllenhaal (Southpaw) Thomas Mann (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl) Tom Hanks (Bridge of Spies) Ian McKellen (Mr. Holmes) Arnold Schwarzenegger (Maggie) O'Shea Jackson Jr. (Straight Outta Compton) Domhnall Gleeson (Ex Machina) Jason Mitchell (Straight Outta Compton) Tom Hardy (Mad Max: Fury Road) Corey Hawkins (Straight Outta Compton) Johnny Depp (Black Mass)

Best Ensemble Cast Spotlight The Big Short Steve Jobs Straight Outta Compton Trumbo Sicario American Ultra Furious Seven Me and Earl and the Dying Girl Kingsman: The Secret Service Crimson Peak Trainwreck Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation

Top 10 of 2015 1. Carol 2. Mad Max: Fury Road 3. Goodnight Mommy 4. It Follows 5. Joy 6. Room 7. Spotlight 8. Ex Machina 9. Straight Outta Compton 10. The Gift

Additional Great Movies of 2015 11. Sicario 12. Brooklyn 13. The Big Short 14. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl 15. American Ultra 16. Inside Out 17. Crimson Peak 18. Maggie 19. Paddington 20. The Revenant 21. Trumbo 22. Southpaw 23. Kingsman: The Secret Service 24. Trainwreck 25. Star Wars: The Force Awakens 26. Steve Jobs 27. The Visit 28. Bridge of Spies 29. Furious Seven 30. Spy

That’s it for this year!

Follow me at http://twitter.com/jasonjnielsen For my live movie reviews #jjnreviews, follow me at http://twitter.com/jjnreviews

[jasonjnielsen]

2014 End of Year Movie Review

A note regarding this review of 2014 I have not seen the following movies: A Most Violent Year Cake Ida Inherent Vice Kill the Messenger A Most Wanted Man Pride Still Alice

2014 was an absolutely great year for movies. Aside from the brilliant films nominated for awards, we were given many other great pieces of art. Chris Rock's Top Five showed the world he is a legitimate actor and director, as well as still being relevant in comedy. Guardians of the Galaxy set a new bar for what superhero movies are supposed to be in terms of action, effects and style. It took characters many didn't know and somehow sucked us all into that universe and made us care. Jake Gyllenhaal brought out the super crazy in the socially relevant, terrifying, realistic thriller Nightcrawler (and still isn't going to get an Oscar - he wasn't even nominated!). Blue Ruin and John Wick brought revenge thrillers back in style. Blue Ruin was a genius slow build and John Wick was the best in-your-face action seen onscreen possibly since The Matrix. Bill Murray proved he's still one of the best actors by playing the bitter, yet oh-so-charming St. Vincent. Animated films like The Lego Movie and Big Hero 6 were absolutely adorable. Horror films like The Guest and The Signal went out to prove the genre isn't dead. 2014 is indeed one of my favorite years for movies.

Before I get into my awards, I would like to talk about a few of the best films of this year.

WILD Director: Jean-Marc Vallée Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern

Wild is a coming of age tale for adults. Reese Witherspoon plays Cheryl, who is going through a crisis and decides to hike a 100-mile trail to reflect on her life. Witherspoon almost single-handedly carries the movie, finding ways to show the emotional and physical pain experienced by Cheryl. The flashbacks to Laura Dern as her mother brought additional insight into the very messed up psyche of Cheryl. In Wild, you see the bad in people but you realize the good in people is truly beautiful. It is an emotional roller-coaster and should have been nominated for best picture.

#Wild is a fascinating journey of ups and downs in life. Witherspoon shines, showing a range of emotion and carrying all the scenes. 10/10.

— Jason Nielsen (@jjnreviews)

December 20, 2014

BOYHOOD

Director: Richard Linklater Starring: Ellar Coltrane, Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke

Boyhood is one of those movies that just make you say "wow". The movie is a technical phenomenon. To film a movie over the course of 12 years, with the industry and technology constantly changing, is a true nod to the genius of Linklater. As far as the story goes, my friend, Ryne, commented that "it was too real without being real". Indeed, it is one of the most realistic movies I've ever seen. Patricia Arquette shined as a single mother who kept making the wrong choices for herself while trying to make the right choices for her family. Ethan Hawke was great as the father who was rarely there, not for a lack of caring but because of something within himself that was lacking. The movie is about growth and life and how everything changes, and yet, everything sort of stays the same. It definitely lives up to the hype and deserves to be in the conversation for best picture.

#Boyhood asks a lot of questions, but like life, gives not answers but a series of moments to make with them what you can 10/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jjnreviews)

August 17, 2014

WHIPLASH Director: Damien Chazelle Starring: Miles Teller, J.K. Simmons

Drive for success can tear a person apart. Whiplash displays that perfectly. Miles Teller plays a drummer who wants to be the best, and J.K. Simmons plays the instructor who loves to test limits. I don't want to give too much away, but Simmons might play the best villain in cinema history: he's heartless, spiteful, vindictive, and all he cares about is finding the best at any cost. Every time I thought I knew where the movie was going, it turned into a new, more sadistic direction. Whiplash is a must-see. Seriously, stop what you're doing and see this movie now.

J.K. Simmons and Miles Teller are brilliant in #Whiplash. I wasn't enamored with the film as a whole but the performances were genius. 9/10

— Jason Nielsen (@jjnreviews)

January 18, 2015

BIRDMAN Director: Alejandro González Iñárritu Starring: Michael Keaton, Emma Stone, Edward Norton, Zach Galifianakis, Naomi Watts

On the surface, one might think Birdman is some self-righteous, pandering piece to Hollywood elite. It might be. But it might also be something more. Yes, Michael Keaton is playing a washed-up actor, trying to prove he's more than the man who played the super hero 20 years ago. Yes, Keaton was actually Batman 20 years ago and has been seen very infrequently since. Yes, Edward Norton is playing a controlling asshole, one who has trouble communicating at a human level offstage but who has no trouble stealing the show onstage. Yes, this is similar to what some have said about working with Norton - controlling but genius. The surface of this meta movie laughing at the audience is there. But inside the film, we get a man who is just trying to be relevant, not only to the world, not only to his daughter but also to himself. He doesn't want to be Birdman, but he is Birdman. Can we change who we are? Does it matter if we can or can't? Do we even matter? These are the questions raised in Birdman. Yes, it is meta. Yes, it has some self-deprecating humor. Yes, it can be seen as a joke on the audience. But isn't it also showing how much of a joke life is? Maybe me thinking about it this much is the joke. Whatever it is, it's funny and either so deep or so shallow, it's brilliant.

#Birdman is surreal and brilliant. Great performances by Keaton, Norton, Stone and Galifianakis! Best of the year! 10/10 #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jjnreviews)

November 16, 2014

SELMA Director: Ava DuVernay Starring: David Oyelowo

Probably the biggest travesty of this year's Academy Awards is the only "major award" Selma was nominated for was best picture. The movie should be getting a much bigger push. It's such an important movie about such an important person in history. I don't know too much about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. outside of him being the most important civil rights leader in history. Selma gave me a good impression of the struggles he dealt with and did not shy away from the pure hatred that comes with racism. At one point in the film, a bomb went off at a church, killing young black girls and I audibly said in the theatre "What the fuck?" because I could not believe what I just saw. I'm glad the movie did not hold back on the despicable violence. I'm glad the movie showed Dr. King as a human being and not some sort of God. I'm glad the movie tried to incorporate the politics of the time and how it affected the civil rights movement. I'm not ok with the movie being shunned by the Academy. David Oyelowo was the best actor of 2014 and Ava DuVernay definitely was the best director. Unfortunately, neither were nominated. Selma is the best movie of 2014. Everyone should see it.

David Oyelowo should win an Oscar for #Selma. Honestly, the movie should win too. Powerful, doesn't hold back. The best of the year. 10/10

— Jason Nielsen (@jjnreviews)

January 11, 2015

On to the nominations!

Best Adapted Screenplay American Sniper The Imitation Game Inherent Vice The Theory of Everything Whiplash

WHAT WILL WIN: Whiplash. Currently, it is on the outside looking in on major awards, yet it is still sitting at 95% from critics and 96% from users on Rotten Tomatoes. It's one of the best thrillers and it should be rewarded. WHAT SHOULD WIN: Anything but American Sniper. Seriously, American Sniper could have been great, but instead of making a real movie about the real horrors of war, we got a pile of pro-America propaganda. Don't get me wrong, I love living in America instead of some country ravaged by constant war, but the Kool-Aid drinking needs to stop. As does the neverending wars U.S. keeps starting.

Best Original Screenplay Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) Boyhood Foxcatcher The Grand Budapest Hotel Nightcrawler

WHAT WILL WIN: The Grand Budapest Hotel. WHAT SHOULD WIN: Anything but The Grand Budapest Hotel. The Grand Budapest Hotel is the same Wes Anderson we've seen over and over, except this one is less witty and more boring. If they want to give the award to a witty movie, Birdman would be a better choice.

Best Actress in a Supporting Role Patricia Arquette (Boyhood) Laura Dern (Wild) Keira Knightley (The Imitation Game) Emma Stone (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)) Meryl Streep (Into the Woods)

WHO WILL WIN: Patricia Arquette. WHO SHOULD WIN: Patricia Arquette.

Best Actor in a Supporting Role Robert Duvall (The Judge) Ethan Hawke (Boyhood) Edward Norton (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)) Mark Ruffal (Foxcatcher) J.K. Simmons (Whiplash)

WHO WILL WIN: Not since Christoph Waltz in Inglourious Basterds have I been as sure of an award. J.K. Simmons wins. He is easily the best supporting actor of the year. WHO SHOULD WIN: J.K. Simmons.

Best Actress in a Leading Role Marion Cotillard (Two Days. One Night) Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything) Julianne Moore (Still Alice) Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl) Reese Witherspoon (Wild)

WHO WILL WIN: Either Julianne Moore or Reese Witherspoon. I haven't seen Still Alice, but it looks great. Rosamund Pike was awesome in Gone Girl, but Witherspoon and Moore seem to have career-defining performances in their respective films. WHO SHOULD WIN: Without seeing Still Alice, I can't say for sure, but I am rooting for Witherspoon because Wild is one of the best of the year.

Best Actor in a Leading Role Steve Carell (Foxcatcher) Bradley Cooper (American Sniper) Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imiitation Game) Michael Keaton (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)) Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything)

A NOTE: This is an absolutely great year for leading actor roles. All five of these guys were terrific. Carell was captivating in the sub-par Foxcatcher. He stole every scene. Cooper was so good at trying to make American Sniper a film worth talking about. Cumberbatch and Redmayne both took historical geniuses and made me believe they were actually those people. Michael Keaton played Michael Keaton - how can he lose? Unfortunately, since it was such a good year, David Oyelowo (Selma), Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler), Miles Teller (Whiplash), Bill Murray (St. Vincent), Chris Rock (Top Five), Tom Hardy (The Drop) and James McAvoy (The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Them) were all left out of the conversation. WHO WILL WIN: Eddie Redmayne. It seems like he's winning all the awards, and honestly, I can't complain because he is truly great as Stephen Hawking. WHO SHOULD WIN: David Oyelowo, but since he's not nominated, Michael Keaton.

Best Directing Wes Anderson (The Grand Budapest Hotel) Alejandro G. Iñárritu (Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)) Richard Linklater (Boyhood) Bennett Miller (Foxcatcher) Morten Tyldum (The Imitation Game)

WHO WILL WIN: Richard Linklater. Seriously, directing a movie over 12 years can't be easy. WHO SHOULD WIN: Ava DuVernay for Selma, but since she isn't nominated for some unknown reason, Richard Linklater.

Best Picture American Sniper Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) Boyhood The Grand Budapest Hotel The Imitation Game Selma The Theory of Everything Whiplash

WHAT DOESN'T BELONG: American Sniper and The Grand Budapest Hotel. WHAT SHOULD BE NOMINATED: Wild, St. Vincent, Nightcrawler WHAT WILL WIN: Birdman or Boyhood are the most likely picks to win. The Grand Budapest Hotel (unfortunately) has a lot of traction among the hipsters, American Sniper (also unfortunately) has a lot of traction among the crazies, and Whiplash is just loved by everyone. Because of that, it could be a very thin line so anyone could win. WHAT SHOULD WIN: Selma > Birdman > Boyhood = Whiplash.

That was the best of the year, so what happened with the rest of the year?

WORST of 2014 1. Transformers: Age of Extinction 1. Transformers: Age of Extinction 1. The Expendables 3 1. The Expendables 3 5. Transcendence 6. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies 7. Ouija 8. The Maze Runner 9. The Monuments Men 10. A Million Ways to Die in the West

Your eyes do not deceive you. Tran4mers and 3xpendables are both tied for my bottom four movies. They are so unwatchably bad, giving them only one slot in the bottom would not be fair for the rest of the movies.

DISHONORARY MENTION: Annabelle; As Above, So Below; The Giver; The Grand Budapest Hotel; Into the Storm; Muppets Most Wanted; Mr. Peabody & Sherman; The November Man; and Under the Skin

**MY AWARDS**

Well... It's a Movie... (The Movies I Expected to Be Terrible but Surprisingly Were Not)  300: Rise of an Empire Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day Draft Day Hercules Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit Noah The Purge: Anarchy Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Vampire Academy

At Least It’s Better Than a Poke in the Eye With a Dull Stick… Maybe (The Movies with High Expectations that Fall Well Short) American Sniper Annabelle As Above, So Below Foxcatcher The Grand Budapest Hotel The Judge Lucy Men, Women & Children The Monuments Men Mr. Peabody & Sherman Muppets Most Wanted Nymphomaniac: Vol. II Transcendence Unbroken Under the Skin X-Men: Days of Future Past

Best Original Score Alexandre Desplat (The Imitation Game) Jóhann Jóhannsson (The Theory of Everything) Ludwig Göransson (Top Five) Hans Zimmer (Interstellar) Jon Brion and Theo Green (The Gambler) Antonio Sanchez (Birdman) Steve Moore (The Guest) Gregg Alexander (Begin Again) Nima Fakhrara (The Signal) Carlos Rafael Rivera (A Walk Among the Tombstones) Mark Mothersbaugh (The Lego Movie)

Best Original Song "Glory" (Selma) "Everything is Awesome" (The Lego Movie)

Best Cinematography Emmanuel Lubezki (Birdman) Mihai Malaimare Jr. (A Walk Among the Tombstones) Bradford Young (Selma) Sharone Meir (Whiplash) Jeremy Saulnier (Blue Ruin) Jonathan Sela (John Wick) Nicolas Karakatsanis (The Drop) Greig Fraser (The Gambler) Bruno Delbonnel (Big Eyes)

Best Directing Ava DuVernay (Selma) Alejandro González Iñárritu (Birdman) Richard Linklater (Boyhood) Dan Gilroy (Nightcrawler) Damien Chazelle (Whiplash) Jean-Marc Vallée (Wild) James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy) Tim Burton (Big Eyes) Michaël R. Roskam (The Drop) Jeremy Saulnier (Blue Ruin) Lars von Trier (Nymphomaniac: Vol. I) Chris Rock (Top Five) Scott Frank (A Walk Among the Tombstones) William Eubank (The Signal) Clint Eastwood (Jersey Boys)

Best Supporting Actress Patricia Arquette (Boyhood) Laura Dern (Wild) Meryl Streep (Into the Woods) Keira Knightley (The Imitation Game) Laura Dern (The Fault in Our Stars) Melissa McCarthy (St. Vincent) Emma Stone (Birdman) Noomi Rapace (The Drop) Helen Mirren (The Hundred-Foot Journey) Carrie Coon (Gone Girl) Viola Davis (The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Them) Catherine Keener (Begin Again) Olivia Cooke (The Signal) Brie Larson (The Gambler)

Best Supporting Actor J.K. Simmons (Whiplash) Ethan Hawke (Boyhood) Edward Norton (Birdman) Mark Ruffalo (Foxcatcher) Shia LaBeouf (Nymphomaniac: Vol. I) Tim Roth (Selma) James Gandolfini (The Drop) Chris Pine (Into the Woods) Willem Dafoe (The Fault in Our Stars) Tyler Perry (Gone Girl) Zach Galifianakis (Birdman) Alex Lawther (The Imitation Game) Matthias Schoenaerts (The Drop) Joseph Russo (Jersey Boys) John Goodman (The Gambler) Takamasa Ishihara (Unbroken)

Best Lead Actress Reese Witherspoon (Wild) Jessica Chastain (The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Them) Shailene Woodley (The Fault in Our Stars) Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl) Amy Adams (Big Eyes) Zoe Kazan (What If) Jennifer Lawrence (The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1) Keira Knightley (Begin Again) Chloë Grace Moretz (If I Stay)

Best Lead Actor David Oyelowo (Selma) Michael Keaton (Birdman) Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game) Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler) Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything) Miles Teller (Whiplash) Bill Murray (St. Vincent) Chris Rock (Top Five) Tom Hardy (The Drop) James McAvoy (The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Them) Bradley Cooper (American Sniper) Steve Carell (Foxcatcher) Dan Stevens (The Guest) John Lloyd Young (Jersey Boys) Macon Blair (Blue Ruin) Christoph Waltz (Big Eyes) Keanu Reeves (John Wick) Ellar Coltrane (Boyhood) Nicolas Cage (Joe) Mark Ruffalo (Begin Again) Brenton Thwaites (The Signal) Tom Cruise (Edge of Tomorrow)

Best Ensemble Cast Birdman Guardians of the Galaxy Foxcatcher Into the Woods Jersey Boys 22 Jump Street St. Vincent The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1

Top 10 of 2014 0. Sharknado 2: The Second One 1. Selma 2. Birdman 3. Whiplash 3. Boyhood 5. Wild 6. Nymphomaniac: Vol. I 7. St. Vincent 8. Nightcrawler 9. The Imitation Game 10. Top Five

Additional Great Movies of 2014 11. The Drop 12. The Guest 13. Guardians of the Galaxy 14. 22 Jump Street 15. Blue Ruin 16. The Lego Movie 17. John Wick 18. Gone Girl 19. The Theory of Everything 20. The Signal 21. The Fault in Our Stars 22. The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Them 23. Big Hero 6 24. Bad Words 25. A Walk Among the Tombstones 26. Into the Woods 27. Interstellar 28. Big Eyes 29. Edge of Tomorrow 30. Joe

Honorary Mention (8/10 or better!) Camp Takota Divergent Earth to Echo Noah

That’s it for this year!

Follow me at http://twitter.com/jasonjnielsen For my live movie reviews #jjnreviews, follow me at http://twitter.com/jjnreviews

[jasonjnielsen]

I had a day off this weekend from shooting Supernatural, and I was walking around downtown Vancouver on Saturday, sampling all the artisan coffee I could get my throat around. At one point I saw a pair of guys walking towards me wearing gamer shirts. Black short-sleeved, one Halo and one Call of...

[jasonjnielsen]

2013 End of Year Movie Review

**update August 10, 2014** Movies I saw after the original post: Nymphomaniac: Vol. I 10/10 Nymphomaniac: Vol. II 6/10

**original post March 1, 2014** By the start of August 2013, the year was looking pretty grim. As of July 24, my top five films of the year were Mud, Mama, The Place Beyond the Pines, This is the End, The Evil Dead, and Pacific Rim, with Sharknado getting an honorary mention for awesome. Mud and The Place Beyond the Pines are indy classics, with great performances by Matthew McConaughey (Mud) and Bradley Cooper and Ryan Gosling (both of The Place Beyond the Pines). With a creepy atmosphere and characters the audience can actually be interested in, Mama is one of the few horror movies that does everything right. As for This is the End, The Evil Dead, and Pacific Rim, they fulfilled the most important role in a movie: being entertaining. With all the positives, I gave none of the movies a perfect 10/10. They all felt lacking - missing something. Luckily for me, the year really picked up in the latter months, showcasing the best in cinema and making 2013 another great year for movies.

Before going any further, here is a list of movies from 2013 I wanted to see but did not have a chance: Before Midnight Blue Caprice The Butler Ernest & Célestine Gloria The Grandmaster The Great Beauty The Immigrant Jobs Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom Nymphomaniac Oldboy Out of the Furnace Short Term 12 Wadjda The Wind Rises

A number of these films are foreign films (Ernest & Célestine, Gloria, The Grandmaster, The Great Beauty, Wadjda, The Wind Rises) or limited release (Blue Caprice, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, Oldboy, Short Term 12). A couple of them (The Immigrant, Nymphomaniac) have not even been released on a wider scale in the United States yet. Before Midnight is the third in a series of which I have seen neither of the other films. With The Butler, Jobs, and Out of the Furnace, I am disappointed I did not see them - as they looked great - but, as cynical as this may sound, none of them received even one Academy Award nomination. Out of the three, only The Butler was really talked about during awards season, with the exception of the Razzie nomination for Jobs. All in all, I came as close as I could to seeing the best of the best of 2013.

On to the Oscar nominations and who I think will win! (major awards only)

Best Adapted Screenplay Before Midnight  Captain Phillips Philomena 12 Years a Slave The Wolf of Wall Street

WHAT WILL WIN: 12 Years a Slave. Currently, best picture is a 3-way race among American Hustle, Gravity, and 12 Years a Slave. Since I don't think 12 Years a Slave is taking home the big one or even a lead acting award, it has to win some of the smaller ones. WHAT SHOULD WIN: 12 Years a Slave (honorary mention to Philomena).

Best Original Screenplay American Hustle Blue Jasmine Dallas Buyers Club Her Nebraska

WHAT WILL WIN: Blue Jasmine. This one is close, but the Academy loves Woody Allen. I don't think the negative press of recent toward Woody Allen is going to overshadow the film. I can see American Hustle, Her, or Nebraska also winning this award. Dallas Buyers Club really feels like it's on the outside looking in for this category. WHAT SHOULD WIN: Her. Spike Jonze made a wonderful, unique movie. The script is elegant, thought provoking, and definitely original.

Best Actress in a Supporting Role Sally Hawkins (Blue Jasmine) Jennifer Lawrence (American Hustle) Lupita Nyong'o (12 Years a Slave) Julia Roberts (August: Osage County) June Squibb (Nebraska)

WHO WILL WIN: Lupita Nyong'o (60%) OR Jennifer Lawrence (40%). This really is tough to pick. Like me, the Academy seems to be in love with Jennifer Lawrence, but I give the slight edge to Lupita Nyong'o because 12 Years a Slave needs to win some major award, even if it is one of the minor major awards. WHO SHOULD WIN: Scarlett Johansson from Her deserves to not only be nominated in this category but also win. Out of the nominees, however, June Squibb was unforgettable in Nebraska and is who I'm personally rooting for. WHO DOESN'T BELONG: Julia Roberts. It's not her performance that I have issue with. She was fantastic! She just doesn't belong in this category. The movie is centralized around her character - we see a majority of the story from her perspective; in fact, she's only not in it for the opening scenes (which is somewhere around ten minutes of screen time).

Best Actor in a Supporting Role Barkhad Abdi (Captain Phillips) Bradley Cooper (American Hustle) Michael Fassbender (12 Years a Slave) Jonah Hill (The Wolf of Wall Street) Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club)

WHO WILL WIN: Jared Leto. 'Nuff said. WHO SHOULD WIN: see above. HONORARY MENTION: Michael Fassbender was so evil. WHO I WANT TO WIN: Jonah Hill. This is the End 2 would be so great if he was an Academy Award-winning actor instead of simply an Academy Award-nominated actor.

Best Actress in a Leading Role Amy Adams (American Hustle) Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine) Sandra Bullock (Gravity) Judi Dench (Philomena) Meryl Streep (August: Osage County)

WHO WILL WIN: Cate Blanchett. She is getting all the hype and has won so many awards this season. It's all but certain she walks away with the Oscar. WHO SHOULD WIN: Judi Dench. Not often do I go against Meryl Streep, but Dame Judi Dench was absolutely perfect. Her facial expressions alone could elicit a range of emotion from extreme joy to immense sadness. As far as I know, Judi Dench actually is Philomena. She was that good.

Best Actor in a Leading Role Christian Bale (American Hustle) Bruce Dern (Nebraska) Leonardo DiCaprio (The Wolf of Wall Street) Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave) Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club)

WHO WILL WIN: Matthew McConaughey (70%) OR Leonardo DiCaprio (30%). Both gave great performances and both have the pedigree the Academy is looking for. After an underwhelming career of forgotten chick flicks like Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, McConaughey seems to have undergone a career transition and has consistently been doing great work recently (The Lincoln Lawyer, Killer Joe, Magic Mike, Mud, Dallas Buyers Club, The Wolf of Wall Street). Along with that, the TV Series True Detective seems to be the hottest thing out there right now. People love to see a comeback and he may well win an Oscar for his strong career choices over the past three years. On the other hand, Leo has yet to win an Academy Award, despite being consistently one of the most prominent actors for nearly twenty years. He was previously nominated for the films What's Eating Gilbert Grape, The Aviator, and Blood Diamond. As for the rest of his career? Titanic, Gangs of New York, Catch Me If You Can, The Departed, Inception, Django Unchained, and a number of other great films where he just missed out on a nomination. In essence, it's comeback versus career achievement. WHO SHOULD WIN: Chiwetel Ejiofor. 12 Years a Slave is an amazing movie put solely on the weight of Ejiofor. Even though the movie has an incredibly strong supporting cast, he is the one carrying every scene.

Best Directing David O. Russell (American Hustle) Alfonso Cuarón (Gravity) Alexander Payne (Nebraska) Steve McQueen (12 Years a Slave) Martin Scorsese (The Wolf of Wall Street)

WHO WILL WIN: Alfonso Cuarón. First and foremost, Gravity looks and feels amazing. It is technically sound and a marvel of cinema. Second (and most importantly), Cuarón is winning director's guild awards, which essentially seals the deal at the Academy Awards. WHO SHOULD WIN: Spike Jonze (Her). Oh, that wasn't nominated. How about Ben Stiller for The Secret Life of Walter Mitty? No? Ok. Give it to Abdellatif Kechiche for Blue is the Warmest Color... FINE... out of the nominees, Steve McQueen wins for me because of how he took on the subject matter. 12 Years a Slave isn't pretentious; it doesn't hold back; it feels real. McQueen made one of the most powerful and socially relevant movies in years. He would get my vote.

Best Picture American Hustle Captain Phillips Dallas Buyers Club Gravity Her Nebraska Philomena 12 Years a Slave The Wolf of Wall Street

WHAT WILL WIN: American Hustle (45%) OR 12 Years a Slave (30%) OR Gravity (25%). It's honestly a 3-horse race. I think American Hustle has a slight edge because it probably will not be winning any of the acting awards and almost definitely will not be winning the best director. Saying that, some voters might not be willing to vote for a movie that isn't winning other major awards, which means anything is possible. If the Woody Allen scandal is enough to somehow grant Sandra Bullock best lead actress, Gravity might get there. WHAT SHOULD WIN: Her. Not since Synecdoche, New York has a movie sucked me into its universe and made me feel such a range of emotion. It is so unique and absolutely wonderful.

Now that all the official stuff is out of the way, I can get on to my ratings. Since I just went over some of the top, I'll start my section off with the bottom of 2013.

WORST of 2013 1. Bad Grandpa 2. Drinking Buddies 3. Planes 4. The Fifth Estate 5. After Earth 6. Texas Chainsaw 3D 7. The Counselor 8. No One Lives 9. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug 10. The Hangover Part III

DISHONORARY MENTION: A Good Day to Die Hard, The Colony, Grudge Match, Olympus Has Fallen, RIPD, The Wolverine, The World's End

ADDITIONAL RAGE: I struggled long and hard on where to put The Counselor. It is genuinely one of the worst thought-out films of all time. First off, the plot makes no sense: "Hey, counselor guy, we are an established drug trafficking organization about to make a 40 million dollar shipment but we are about $20,000 short this month. Could you spot us that money? We'll totally hook you up with a couple million after the transaction is complete." Second, none of the dialogue drives the plot forward. It's a bunch of pretentious conversations only vaguely resembling something that could be considered progressing the story. Third, it's a huge waste of talent. With the acting talent presented, I thought The Counselor was going to be great. Unfortunately, it was not.

MORE ADDITIONAL RAGE: At the end of the day, Bad Grandpa was almost certainly going to be a lock as my worst movie of the year. Once it went the route of trying to throw in a Borat-esque story and started going away from the stunts, it sealed the deal.

RAGE CONTINUED: Drinking Buddies, like The Counselor, was filled with what seemed to be a great cast but ended up being limited by unrealistic, pretentious dialogue. It also had the least interesting story of the year.

RAGE CONTINUED: I may be being hard on Planes, as it is a kids' movie, but I can't imagine any child enjoying it. It was so boring and the voice acting was abysmal.

RAGE CONTINUED: Once again speaking of "pretentious" - The Fifth Estate just felt like some sort of cult initiation film for followers of Julian Assange.

RAGE CONTINUED: After Earth has one of the most charismatic stars in movie history. What is he doing the entire movie? Lying down, dying. Sorry, Will Smith, your son can't act.

RAGE CONTINUED: Texas Chainsaw 3D committed one of the biggest sins in R-rated horror movies - no boobies. That would have been acceptable if it had been an ok movie. The plot degenerated into nonsense that makes about as much sense as the ending of Feast 3.

FINAL BIT OF RAGE: As for the rest of the movies that made me rage, only The World's End really upset me. I knew the rest would be garbage, but Edgar Wright really let me down with this follow-up to Hot Fuzz. :(

**MY AWARDS**

Best Original Score (in order) William Butler and Owen Pallett (Her) Hans Zimmer (Rush) Hans Zimmer (12 Years a Slave) Mark Orton (Nebraska) Theodore Shapiro (The Secret Life of Walter Mitty) Alexandre Desplat (Philomena)

Best Song (in order) "Hang Me, Oh Hang Me" (Inside Llewyn Davis) "Let it Go" (Frozen)

Well… It’s A Movie… (The Movies I Expected to Be Terrible but Surprisingly Were Not) A Haunted House Elysium Last Vegas The Lone Ranger Oz the Great and Powerful Pain & Gain Rush World War Z

At Least It’s Better Than a Poke in the Eye With a Dull Stick… Maybe (The Movies with High Expectations that Fall Well Short) Blue Jasmine The Book Thief Captain Phillips The Counselor Despicable Me 2 Epic The Great Gatsby Only God Forgives Upstream Color The Wolf of Wall Street The World's End

Best Supporting Actress (in order) Scarlett Johansson (Her) June Squibb (Nebraska) Léa Seydoux (Blue is the Warmest Color) Jodie Foster (Elysium) Kristin Scott Thomas (Only God Forgives) Sally Hawkins (Blue Jasmine) Lupita Nyong'o (12 Years a Slave) Melissa Leo (Prisoners) Jennifer Lawrence (American Hustle) Rooney Mara (Her) Margo Martindale (August: Osage County) Carey Mulligan (Inside Llewyn Davis) Carey Mulligan (The Great Gatsby) Emily Watson (The Book Thief) Michelle Williams (Oz the Great and Powerful)

Best Supporting Actor (in order) Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club) Sam Rockwell (The Way Way Back) Bradley Cooper (The Place Beyond the Pines) Michael Fassbender (12 Years a Slave) Chris Cooper (August: Osage County) Ryan Gosling (The Place Beyond the Pines) Jonah Hill (The Wolf of Wall Street) Barkhad Abdi (Captain Phillips) John Goodman (Inside Llewyn Davis) Tom Hanks (Saving Mr. Banks) Lasse Fogelstrøm (The Hunt) Bradley Cooper (American Hustle) Paul Giamatti (Saving Mr. Banks) Andrew Dice Clay (Blue Jasmine) George Clooney (Gravity) Paul Dano (12 Years a Slave)

Best Lead Actress (in order) Judi Dench (Philomena) Emma Thompson (Saving Mr. Banks) Adèle Exarchopoulos (Blue is the Warmest Color) Meryl Streep (August: Osage County) Amy Adams (American Hustle) Julia Roberts (August: Osage County) Sophie Nélisse (The Book Thief) Cate Blanchette (Blue Jasmine) Jessica Chastain (Mama) Sandra Bullock (Gravity) Amy Acker (Much Ado About Nothing) Tina Fey (Admission)

Best Lead Actor (in order) Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave) Joaquin Phoenix (Her) Bruce Dern (Nebraska) Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club) Oscar Isaac (Inside Llewyn Davis) Robert Redford (All is Lost) Matthew McConaughey (Mud) Michael B. Jordan (Fruitvale Station) Mads Mikkelsen (The Hunt) Leonardo DiCaprio (The Wolf of Wall Street) Christian Bale (American Hustle) Steve Coogan (Philomena) Tom Hanks (Captain Phillips) Chris Hemsworth (Rush) Tye Sheridan (Mud) Hugh Jackman (Prisoners) Brad Pitt (World War Z)

Best Ensemble Cast (in order) American Hustle 12 Years a Slave The Place Beyond the Pines Much Ado About Nothing Mud Pain & Gain

Top 10 of 2013 0. Sharknado* 1. Her 2. Blue is the Warmest Color 3. Inside Llewyn Davis 4. Rush 5. 12 Years a Slave 6. August: Osage County 7. Mud 8. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty 9. American Hustle 10. Nebraska *Sharknado is beyond yearly ratings, as it may be the best made for SyFy movie of all time.

Additional Great Movies of 2013 11. Philomena 12. Dallas Buyers Club 13. Mama 14. The Place Beyond the Pines 15. Gravity 16. The Hunt 17. Much Ado About Nothing 18. Prisoners 19. The Way Way Back 20. Saving Mr. Banks 21. All is Lost 22. Fruitvale Station 23. This is the End 24. Enough Said 25. Evil Dead

Honorary Mention (8/10 or better!) Carrie Elysium Oz the Great and Powerful Pacific Rim Pain & Gain You're Next

That's it for this year!

Follow me at http://twitter.com/jasonjnielsen For my live movie reviews #jjnreviews, follow me at http://twitter.com/jjnreviews

Thanks for reading my book! :)

[jasonjnielsen]

"They were singing ‘America the Beautiful’ in foreign talk! Only English can give that song its certain je na sais quoi. Last thing I wanna be is a prima donna here, but I am full of schadenfreude over this." -Stephen Colbert

[jasonjnielsen]

Mid-year 2013 Movie Reviews

HOT Sharknado, Mama, Mud, The Place Beyond the Pines NOT After Earth, Texas Chainsaw 3D, A Good Day to Die Hard, The Hangover Part III

A Year of Remakes, Reboots, Prequels, and Sequels I rarely have hope for movies that try to piggy-back off established films and TV shows, especially those whose prime was many years ago. The 1981 Evil Dead is one of my favorite horror movies of all time, and I was skeptical upon hearing of its reboot. After seeing the red-band trailer, my interest began to rise. I can say, without a shadow of a doubt, the reboot delivered in every way an Evil Dead fan could hope. It paid homage to the original trilogy while maintaining its own identity. As I said on Twitter:

All I wanted out of #EvilDead was tree rape, @GroovyBruce and a box around the moon. 2/3 ain't bad. 8/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

April 5, 2013

Oz the Great and Powerful and The Lone Ranger also brought to the big screen old tales thought to be lost in generations past. Oz the Great and Powerful was an interesting addition to the 1939 classic The Wizard of Oz. After the disappointment that was Return to Oz in 1985, I figured no one would have the ambition to attempt a resurrection of one of the greatest films of all time. With a solid director in Sam Raimi, combined with excellent acting by James Franco, Michelle Williams, Rachel Weisz, and even Mila Kunis, Oz the Great and Powerful seems to have succeeded at telling its own story while adding depth to the classic film. On the other end of the coin, The Lone Ranger only succeeded at mediocrity - a massive disappointment for what was, in its time, a hit television show. The Lone Ranger was a box office flop, but it had its moments of fun and adventure. The biggest issue was its length; it would have been perfectly acceptable as a 100-minute movie. Unfortunately, its run time is 149 minutes and the slow-paced middle seems to drag on forever.

As for the modern sequels, none have been too exciting and most have not been too offensive to the world of cinema. Fast & Furious 6, G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Grown Ups 2, and Iron Man 3 more or less met expectations of their predecessors. I neither recommend nor not recommend seeing any of those movies. Next in line are a couple disappointing sequels. Despicable Me 2 was nowhere near the greatness that was the first film, and Star Trek Into Darkness fell well below the mark set by the 2009 Star Trek. At the bottom of the barrel for this year are nearly unbearable sequels, The Hangover Part III, A Good Day to Die Hard, and Texas Chainsaw 3D. These movies should have never been made. They are awful.

On that note, After Earth, also should have never been made. For an alleged action movie, it never ceased to bore me. It is easily the worst movie of the year thus far.

The Ratings (in alphabetical order by ranking)

#Sharknado cannot be topped! Best shark-related movie in SyFy history! 10/10! (real rating 5/10) #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

July 12, 2013

No cheap scares, awesome story, great camera work, amazing acting, fantastic music. #Mama is everything I want in horror. 9/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

January 20, 2013

#Mud is fascinating in every way. Life is simple. Take advantage of the little things. Great performances. Beautiful story. 9/10 #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

May 26, 2013

#ThePlaceBeyondThePines is filled with characters you hate to hate. Great drama of flawed ppl trying to do the right thing. 9/10 #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

May 4, 2013

All I wanted out of #EvilDead was tree rape, @GroovyBruce and a box around the moon. 2/3 ain't bad. 8/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

April 5, 2013

#OzTheGreatAndPowerful is unintentionally awesome. 8/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

March 8, 2013

#PacificRim has solid special effects and is a fun ride overall. I especially enjoyed the fact it takes itself seriously. 8/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

July 20, 2013

#PainAndGain is like a movie on some sort of cocaine overdrive. Fantastically stupid story with perfect performances. 8/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

April 26, 2013

#ThisIsTheEnd started slow but picked up about 20 minutes in. Never slowed down after. Danny McBride really brought it. 8/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

June 12, 2013

#21andOver is inappropriate comedy throughout. Predictable yet still funny. 7/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

May 8, 2013

#42movie was good but it felt like a lot of good scenes just put together instead of a fully flowing movie. 7/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

April 12, 2013

#Admission is a heart-felt comedy. Funny and charming. 7/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

May 16, 2013

#TheConjuring is solid creepy horror. Possessions are always interesting. A few too many jump scares. And a hasty finish. 7/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

July 20, 2013

#DarkSkies is a fun Slender awareness film. Creepy vibes throughout. One of the better alien movies of recent. 7/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

May 30, 2013

I suppose it's fitting #GangsterSquad set in L.A. has some of the most Hollywood chase scenes. A lot of action, no suspense 7/10 #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

January 13, 2013

#GIJoeRetaliation was almost perfect. It understood my hatred for Duke and Flint. It needed more (any?) Destro though. 7/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

June 7, 2013

#IronMan3 had good acting. The story was very straightforward but the action was top-notch and easy to follow. 7/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

May 4, 2013

#ManOfSteel had an interesting story and Kevin Costner shines. I just wish Ultimate Warrior wasn't behind the camera. 7/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

June 14, 2013

#ThePurge was fairly predictable. Perfectly cast and is one of the most appropriately titled movie ever. Catharsis ftw. 7/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

June 9, 2013

I couldn't stop thinking about the logistics behind #Snitch; however, it stayed strong and didn't go the cheesy route. 7/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

March 22, 2013

That is it. I have had it with these mutha fucking zombies on this mutha fucking plane. *throws grenade* #WorldWarZ. 7/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

June 24, 2013

#FastAndFurious6. Ignores previous movies. Bad physics. Convoluted plot. Unnecessary twists. Boring middle. Good music. 6/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

July 4, 2013

#GrownUps2 is a fun slapstick style comedy. I especially enjoyed the 80s theme party. 6/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

July 12, 2013

#AHauntedHouse had some good jokes. Points out the ridiculousness of scary movies. Marlon Wayans always makes me laugh. 6/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

January 13, 2013

#TheHeat was funny. McCarthy and Bullock have great on-screen chemistry. Definitely enjoyable but not overly special. 6/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

June 30, 2013

#IncredibleBurtWonderstone was a fairly stock, yet fun film. Jim Carrey is perfectly cast. The ending is great. 6/10. #jjnreviews #rapist

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

April 23, 2013

#LastStand was a fun action movie. Started a little on the slow side and collateral damage seems to be ignored, but meh. 6/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

February 15, 2013

#NowYouSeeMe was so fun. Loved everything about it except the ending. It expects way too big of a leap of faith. 6/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

June 30, 2013

Logic aside, #Oblivion is a fun ride of a movie. Nothing in it remotely makes sense, but the action and effects were great. 6/10 #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

May 12, 2013

#DespicableMe2 is cute at times but is nowhere near the level of the first. Scenes without minions are forgettable. 5/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

July 7, 2013

#IdentityThief didn't bring much more to the table than what the trailers advertised. Just ok. 5/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

February 11, 2013

#TheLoneRanger is overly campy. Would have been better at least 30 minutes shorter. As it is, it's just meh. 5/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

July 7, 2013

#SafeHaven had so many twists, all of which are hilarious, none of which make sense. 5/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

March 1, 2013

Wrath of Khan #StarTrekIntoDarkness is not. It just feels like a throwaway film. Nothing felt epic, despite the lens flares 5/10 #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

May 16, 2013

#WarmBodies was exactly what I was expecting. Nothing special. A few clever jokes but a very underwhelming story. 5/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

February 21, 2013

#GoodDayToDieHard replaces plot and the McClane charm of prior Die Hard films with explosions and generic, boring action. 4/10. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

April 5, 2013

Like the prior films the best part of #Hangover3 was the credits (because the movie is over) <- better joke than any in it. 4/10 #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

May 26, 2013

#AfterEarth may be the most boring movie of the year. Not since I, Robot have I been so uninterested in a Will Smith movie. 3/10 #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

July 15, 2013

On a scale from one to "makes sense", #TexasChainsaw3D gets a 3. 3/10 seems about right. #jjnreviews

— Jason Nielsen (@jasonjnielsen)

January 6, 2013

[jasonjnielsen]

Last-minute post before the 2013 Oscars!

I find rebranding the 85th Academy Awards to simply "The Oscars" appalling. The Academy Awards have a legacy of excellence, showcasing some of the best in cinema over the last 85 years. What is the purpose of removing the reference of its lengthy tradition? This feels like the academy is turning its back on arguably the best year in cinema, 1939; a slap in the face to one of the greatest hosts, Billy Crystal; an insult to one of my favorite best picture winners from only a few years ago, Slumdog Millionaire. I understand the move is to try and open itself up to the younger crowd; however, on a night when the Oscars will celebrate 50 years of James Bond; on a night when Emmanuelle Riva - now 86 - could become the oldest best actress winner, it is completely disgraceful to ignore history. /rant

With that said, here are this year's Academy Award nominees for best picture and my Twitter reviews:

Amour (seen January 15, 2013) Haneke continues to be one of the best around. #Amour is a simple film portraying a complex story. Beautiful and haunting. 10/10 #jjnreviews

Argo (seen October 15, 2012) #Argo was very well done; I definitely felt the tension. Bryan Cranston stole every scene. 8/10. #jjnreviews

Beasts of the Southern Wild (seen February 24, 2013) #BeastsOfTheSouthernWild is a magnificently executed film with one of the most badass endings I've ever seen. 8/10. #jjnreviews

Django Unchained (seen January 2, 2013) Tarantino didn't even write himself into a corner, yet #DjangoUnchained found a way to have a Mexican standoff. Unoriginal. 7/10 #jjnreviews

Les Misérables (seen January 2, 2013) #LesMiserables did not disappoint. Easily the best film from 2012 I've seen. Even Russell Crowe was amazing! 10/10. #jjnreviews

Life of Pi (seen December 7, 2012) #LifeOfPi was a fun adventure with a good finale. 8/10. #jjnreviews

Lincoln (seen November 18, 2012) All of the Oscars. Give them all to #Lincoln. 10/10 on acting. 9/10 overall. #jjnreviews

Silver Linings Playbook (seen January 2, 2013) #SilverLiningsPlaybook is a heart-felt comedy that I really enjoyed. Jennifer Lawrence continues to be one of the best. 9/10. #jjnreviews

Zero Dark Thirty (seen January 14, 2013) We know what is going to happen in the end, yet #ZeroDarkThirty maintained a high level of suspense. Very polarizing film. 8/10. #jjnreviews

With all that, here is how the movies of 2012 stand up with one another.

Top 10 of 2012 1. Amour 2. Les Misérables *3. Lincoln *3. Pitch Perfect (*tied) 5. Looper 6. End of Watch 7. Silver Linings Playbook 8. Cloud Atlas 9. Life of Pi 10. Moonrise Kingdom

Not Quite Good Enough (11-20) 11. Beasts of the Southern Wild 12. Argo 13. The Cabin in the Woods 14. Prometheus 15. John Dies at the End 16. Wreck-It Ralph 17. Zero Dark Thirty 18. Trouble with the Curve 19. Skyfall 20. The Dark Knight Rises

Honorable Mention (7/10 or better) 21. Magic Mike 22. Lawless 23. Ted 24. Brave 25. Hope Springs 26. Rise of the Guardians 27. Parental Guidance 28. The Avengers 29. The Master 30. Django Unchained 31. God Bless America 32. Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted 33. Silent House 34. Jack Reacher 35. The Hunger Games 36. The Impossible 37. The Amazing Spider-Man 38. The Man with the Iron Fists 39. Total Recall 40. Here Comes the Boom 41. Won't Back Down 42. The Secret World of Arrietty 43. Battleship 44. The Possession 45. Project X

Top Movies I Still Need to See Anna Karenina Arbitrage Hitchcock Hyde Park on Hudson The Perks of Being a Wallflower The Sessions

Well... It's A Movie... (The Movies I Expected to Be Terrible but Surprisingly Were Not) Battleship Jack Reacher Magic Mike The Man with the Iron Fists Mirror Mirror Parental Guidance Pitch Perfect Ted The Three Stooges The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2

At Least It's Better Than a Poke in the Eye With a Dull Stick... Maybe (The Movies with High Expectations that Fall Well Short) The Amazing Spider-Man Django Unchained Killing Them Softly The Master The Secret World of Arrietty

WORST of 2012 1. Dreams from My Real Father 2. Hostel: Part III 3. The Determinators 4. The Wicker Tree 5. Quarantine 2: Terminal 6. The Collection 7. The Campaign 8. House at the End of the Street 9. Piranha 3DD 10. Snow White and the Huntsman

Super Average Movies of 2012 The Amazing Spider-Man Django Unchained Flight The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey The Master

My Oscars

Best Motion Picture of the Year Amour

Best Animated Feature Film Wreck-It Ralph

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln) **runners-up** Joaquin Phoenix (The Master) Hugh Jackman (Les Misérables) Suraj Sharma (Life of Pi)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role Emmanuelle Riva (Amour) **runners-up** Quvenzhané Wallis (Beasts of the Southern Wild) Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty) Noomi Rapace (Prometheus)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role Tommy Lee Jones (Lincoln) **runners-up** Bryan Cranston (Argo) Leonardo DiCaprio (Django Unchained) Russell Crowe (Les Misérables)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role Anne Hathaway (Les Misérables) **runners-up** Amy Adams (The Master) Marion Cotillard (The Dark Knight Rises) Sally Field (Lincoln)

Best Achievement in Directing Ang Lee (Life of Pi) **runners-up** Michael Haneke (Amour) Tom Hooper (Les Misérables) Benh Zeitlin (Beasts of the Southern Wild)

Best Ensemble Cast Moonrise Kingdom **runners-up** Les Misérables Cloud Atlas Silver Linings Playbook

[jasonjnielsen]

2011 Movies

Here is how the movies of 2011 stand up with one another.

As of February 27, 2012

Top 10 of 2011 1. The Artist 2. Drive 3. Super 8 4. Another Earth 5. The Sunset Limited 6. Midnight in Paris 7. Winnie the Pooh 8. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo 9. Rango 10. The Descendants 

Not Quite Good Enough (11-20) 11. The Muppets 12. Hobo with a Shotgun 13. X-Men: First Class 14. Scream 4 15. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy 16. Bridesmaids 17. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 18. The Adventures of Tintin 19. My Week with Marilyn 20. The Ides of March 

Honorable Mention 20. The Iron Lady 21. Shame 

Top Movies I Still Need to See Albert Nobbs Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close The Help Hugo War Horse 

Well... It's A Movie... (The 5 Movies to Not Be as Terrible as I Was Expecting) 1. Fast Five 2. Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol 3. In Time 4. Water for Elephants 5. Rio 

At Least It's Better Than a Poke in the Eye With a Dull Stick...Maybe (The 5 Movies with High Expectations that Fall Well Short) 1. The Tree of Life 2. The Tree of Life 3. Jane Eyre 4. Don't Be Afraid of the Dark 5. Red State 

WORST of 2011 1. The Human Centipede II (Full Sequence) 2. Battle: Los Angeles 3. The Hangover Part II 4. Titanic 2 5. Transformers: Dark of the Moon 

Super Average Movies of 2011 1. Win Win 2. Captain America: The First Avenger 3. In Time 4. TrollHunter 5. The Rite 

My Oscars

Best Motion Picture of the Year   The Artist 

Best Animated Feature Film Rango 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role Jean Dujardin (The Artist) **runners-up** George Clooney (The Descendants) Michael Fassbender (Shame) Gary Oldman (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role Michelle Williams (My Week with Marilyn) **runners-up** Meryl Streep (The Iron Lady) Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) Mia Wasikowska (Jane Eyre) 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role Colin Firth (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy)  

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role Bérénice Bejo (The Artist) 

Best Achievement in Directing Michel Hazanavicius (The Artist) **runners-up** Woody Allen (Midnight in Paris)  Terrence Malick (The Tree of Life) Steven Spielberg (The Adventures of Tintin)

[jasonjnielsen]

2010 Movies

Here is how the movies of 2010 stand up with one another.

As of February 14, 2011 

Top 10 of 2010 1. Black Swan 2. Winter's Bone 3. The Kids Are All Right 4. The Fighter 5. The King's Speech 6. Buried 7. Waiting for Superman 8. Solitary Man 9. Shutter Island 10. Inception 

Not Quite Good Enough (11-20) 11. Hereafter 12. The Ghost Writer 13. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest 14. Tangled 15. 127 Hours 16. A Serbian Film 17. The Social Network 18. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World 19. Toy Story 3 20. True Grit 

Honorable Mention 21. The Town 22. Blue Valentine 23. The A-Team 24. Kick Ass 25. The Good Heart 26. The Wolfman 27. The Other Guys 28. Diary of a Wimpy Kid 29. How to Train Your Dragon 30. Knight and Day 31. The Last Exorcism 32. Unstoppable 33. Salt 34. Easy A 35. The Girl Who Played with Fire 36. Daybreakers 37. Let Me In  

Well... It's A Movie... (The 5 Movies to Not Be as Terrible as I Was Expecting) 1. Unstoppable 2. Alice in Wonderland 3. The Karate Kid 4. Shrek Forever After 5. Hot Tub Time Machine 

At Least It's Better Than a Poke in the Eye With a Dull Stick...Maybe (The 5 Movies with High Expectations that Fall Well Short) 1. Brooklyn's Finest 2. The Girl Who Played with Fire 3. Clash of the Titans 4. Piranha 5. Robin Hood 

WORST of 2010 *1. MacGruber *1. The Last Airbender (* tied for WORST movie of the year) 3. Wrong Side of Town 4. Charlie St. Cloud 5. Splintered 6. Green Zone 7. Survival of the Dead 8. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse 9. Saw 3D 10. Clash of the Titans 

Super Average Movies of 2010 1. Iron Man 2 2. The Karate Kid 3. Alice in Wonderland 4. From Paris with Love 5. The Book of Eli 

My Oscars

Best Motion Picture of the Year   Black Swan 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role Colin Firth (The King's Speech) **runners-up** Ryan Reynolds (Buried) Michael Douglas (Solitary Man) Ewan McGregor (The Ghost Writer) Leonardo DiCaprio (Shutter Island) Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network) 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role Natalie Portman (Black Swan) **runners-up** Jennifer Lawrence (Winter's Bone) Noomi Rapace (The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest) Julianne Moore (The Kids Are All Right) Angelina Jolie (Salt) Chloe Moretz (Let Me In) 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role Christian Bale (The Fighter) **runners-up** Mark Ruffalo (The Kids Are All Right) Geoffrey Rush (The King's Speech) John Hawkes (Winter's Bone) 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role Annette Bening (The Kids Are All Right) **runners-up** Amy Adams (The Fighter) Jenna Fischer (Solitary Man) Helena Bonham Carter (The King's Speech) 

Best Achievement in Directing Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan) **runners-up** Rodrigo Cortés (Buried) Christopher Nolan (Inception) Martin Scorsese (Shutter Island)

[jasonjnielsen]

2009 Movies

Here is how the movies of 2009 stand up with one another.

As of February 14, 2010

Top 10 of 2009 *1. Up *1. The Road (* tied for favorite movie of the year) 3. Moon 4. Up in the Air 5. The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans 6. The Lovely Bones 7. Avatar 8. (500) Days of Summer 9. Inglourious Basterds 10. An Education 

Not Quite Good Enough (11-20) 11. Fantastic Mr. Fox 12. Away We Go 13. Whip It 14. Crazy Heart 15. Notorious 16. Invictus 17. Precious 18. A Serious Man 19. The Girlfriend Experience 20. Where the Wild Things Are 

Bumped off from previous top 20 21. Paranormal Activity 22. Star Trek 23. The Invention of Lying 24. Trick 'r Treat 25. Nine 26. Zombieland 27. Pandorum 28. The Last House on the Left 29. The Men Who Stare at Goats 30. Julie & Julia 31. House of the Devil 32. A Christmas Carol 

Top Movies I Still Need to See The Messenger Skin 

Well... It's A Movie... (The 5 Movies to Not Be as Terrible as I Was Expecting) 1. 2012 2. The Taking of Pelham 123 3. My Bloody Valentine 3-D 4. Whiteout 5. Dance Flick 

At Least It's Better Than a Poke in the Eye With a Dull Stick...Maybe (The 5 Movies with High Expectations that Fall Well Short) 1. 9 2. Public Enemies 3. The Hurt Locker 4. My Sister's Keeper 5. Sunshine Cleaning 

WORST of 2009 (or the "Congratulations to the Saw series and Feast series for successfully not making my bottom 10 this year" award) 1. Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus 2. Stan Helsing 3. The Final Destination 4. S. Darko 5. Halloween II 6. Angels & Demons 7. G-Force 8. The Informant! 9. Mutant Chronicles 10. Friday the 13th 

Super Average Movies of 2009 1. Surrogates 2. Whiteout 3. Gamer 4. Push 5. The Hurt Locker 

My Oscars

Best Motion Picture of the Year The Road 

Best Animated Feature Up 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role **TIE** Jeff Bridges [Crazy Heart] Sam Rockwell [Moon] **runners-up** Viggo Mortensen [The Road] George Clooney [Up in the Air] Morgan Freeman [Invictus] Matt Damon [The Informant!] Jamal Woolard [Notorious] Daniel Day-Lewis [Nine] Joseph Gordon-Levitt [(500) Days of Summer] 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role Sasha Grey [The Girlfriend Experience] **runners-up** Carey Mulligan [An Education] Meryl Streep [Julie & Julia] Gabourey Sidibe [Precious] Maya Rudolph [Away We Go] 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role Christoph Waltz [Inglourious Basterds] **runners-up** Brad Pitt [Inglourious Basterds] George Clooney [The Men Who Stare at Goats] 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role Mo'Nique [Precious] **runners-up** Kristen Wiig [Whip It] Anna Kendrick [Up in the Air] Cameron Diaz [My Sister's Keeper] Zooey Deschanel [(500) Days of Summer] 

Best Achievement in Directing James Cameron [Avatar] **runner-up** Quentin Tarantino [Inglourious Basterds]

[jasonjnielsen]

2008 Movies

Here is how the movies of 2008 stand up with one another.

As of January 18, 2009

Top 10 of 2008 1. Slumdog Millionaire 2. The Wrestler 3. The Visitor 4. Gran Torino 5. Milk 6. The Dark Knight 7. Smart People 8. Quarantine 9. Let the Right One In 10. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button 

Not Quite Good Enough (11 - 20) 11. Burn After Reading 12. Horton Hears a Who 13. Cloverfield 14. Tropic Thunder 15. Frost/Nixon 16. Red 17. Kung Fu Panda 18. WALL*E 19. Incredible Hulk 20. Role Models 

Bumped off from previous top 20 21. Iron Man 22. Get Smart 23. Pineapple Express 

Top Movies I Still Need to See Miracle at St. Anna

Well...It's A Movie... (The 5 Movies to Not Be as Terrible as I Was Expecting) 1. Hancock 2. Chapter 27 3. Mirrors 4. College Road Trip 5. Valkyrie

At Least It's Better Than a Poke in the Eye With a Dull Stick...Maybe (The 5 Movies with High Expectations that Fall Well Short) 1. Righteous Kill 2. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull 3. Charlie Bartlett 4. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian 5. WALL*E

WORST of 2008 1. Saw V 2. The Happening  3. Revolutionary Road 4. Righteous Kill 5. Twilight 

Bumped off from previous WORST 5 6. Feast II: Sloppy Seconds 

Super Average Movies of 2008 1. Charlie Bartlett 2. Hancock 3. Valkyrie 4. Vantage Point 5. Made of Honor 

My Oscars

Best Motion Picture of the Year Slumdog Millionaire 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler) ...if not him then definitely Richard Jenkins (The Visitor) 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role ...I haven't seen the top movies with a female lead so go Meryl Streep (Doubt)! 

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role Josh Brolin (Milk) ...even though Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight) will probably win ...James Franco (Milk) was snubbed! ...PS go Robert Downey, Jr. (Tropic Thunder) 

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role Marisa Tomei (The Wrestler) 

Best Achievement in Directing Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire)

[jasonjnielsen]

I'm Back!

With the Academy Awards coming up, I am going to post my top movies from the past few years, including the top movies of 2012.

[jasonjnielsen]

Dogtooth (2009)

"Dogtooth" is something. For anyone who has seen the film, that sentence would probably be considered a fair description of it. The Greek horror/comedy showcases the lifestyle of a very dysfunctional family. Every scene feels like it is there solely to top the previous one. The Academy Award-nominated film is a roller-coaster ride with few twists but many crazy turns that leaves the audience more nauseous than entertained.

The bizarre does not stop there. The children seem to love playing masochistic games, like "who can hold his or her hand in scalding hot water the longest" and "who wakes up first after inhaling an anesthetic". Once a week, the father brings Christina, an employee of his, to the house to have sex with his son. Oh, the family also has to learn how to bark like a dog in order to scare away the man-eating cats that killed the children's unknown brother. In fact, none of the family members have any names. In a vacuum, all these acts would seem crazy; however, in this family's reality, it is normal. Everyone seems... happy.

Since the children all learn the same (wrong) information from their parents, the daughters are extremely innocent in nature. Christina's visits to the house cause all sorts of sexual tension, which finally boils over one day when the older daughter is solicited by Christina to give some oral pleasure in exchange for a headband. This does not open the older sister's eyes to sex, though. Instead, it seems to be the first time she has experienced the concept of bartering, as, later that day, she trades away the same headband for some licking from her younger sister. Licking of her shoulder, that is.

A few weeks later, Christina's visit causes a major disturbance which the mother and father never thought would be possible. Christina allows the older sister to borrow a few video tapes for more oral pleasure. Apparently, "Jaws", "Rocky" and "Flashdance" have a strong impact on how a sheltered child acts. The consequences of the older sister watching these movies create some of the most awkwardly funny moments of "Dogtooth". Nevertheless, she has seen the outside world and wants out. What follows is a brutally disturbing series of events. Note: this is less shock-and-awe tactics and more psychological terror.

Academy Award-nominated. That's what I kept telling myself throughout the experience that was "Dogtooth". As every second passed, I couldn't help but wonder, "Why?" Is it an allegory on a higher power, like government, sheltering everyone from the truth? I decided that had to be the case; I had to have just witnessed a modern-day rip-off of "A Clockwork Orange", right? Unfortunately, I'm not sure it isn't just another movie trying to be the most absurd film in the genre.

8/10

Cast & Credits Father - Christos Stergioglou Mother - Michele Valley Son - Hristos Passalis Older daughter - Aggeliki Papoulia Younger daughter - Mary Tsoni Christina - Anna Kalaitzidou Kino International Directed by Giorgos Lanthimos Screenplay by Giorgos Lanthimos and Efthymis Filippou Runtime: 94 minutes MPAA: Not rated Language: Greek 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1379182/

[jasonjnielsen]

The Boyhood Dream Has Come True, Part Two

Image courtesy of xkcd.com/179/

  First off, a special thank you is in order: after a random unscheduled update two weeks ago, my computer was forced to restart, closing all my windows and documents without saving, including everything I had written for this installment. Thank you, Windows Update. You are a more valuable asset to the Microsoft community than the paperclip in Microsoft Word. I truly do treasure all the things you do. (/sarcasm) Along with that little hiccup, I've been completely swamped with my life as a graduate student and have thus not had time to rewrite part two... until now...

In third or fourth grade (I can't honestly recall which), a good portion of our class completely despised Mrs. Bahe. She yelled a lot and was just plain mean. I never really had any issue with her; however, I couldn't help but notice she was not very nice to my friends. Several guys in our class (probably led by Ryan Smith) decided to start a revolution to fight back against the oppression. It sounded like a good time, so I was in. Somehow, we found out she was slightly allergic to something in cologne. The battle lines were drawn: it was us against her and we now had a weapon to fight back. During recess one day, we devised our plan of attack: lather ourselves in cologne in the bathroom before her class. It was foolproof! After two minutes, she left the class and we rejoiced in our victory. The celebration was short-lived, however, as our principal, Mr. Lahmann, came into the classroom and demanded all us boys to go with him to the lunchroom. He gave us a long speech about "respect", most of which I completely ignored. Then, he ended his diatribe with a phrase that would continue to ring true until the day we graduated: "The teachers are tired of your antics. You all need to grow up. You are the worst class we have ever had." That's heavy stuff for a ten-year-old.

The hatred of our class continued in the form of our fourth grade math instructor, Ms. Boie. She especially hated my friend, Nathan, and my cousin, Ed. Granted, they rarely did their math homework, but when they did, it resulted in yelling about how poorly they did on the assignment. I can't help but wonder what would have happened had we ever had any positive reinforcement growing up. Ms. Boie's "evil ways" became such a joke among my friends that, to this day, I remember the jingle Nathan would recite during recess: "NATHAN! Do you have your math assignment?! Do you have your math assignment?! Do me up the butt! Do me up the butt!" (Interestingly enough, I recall Nathan once saying something similar in reference to Ms. Durkopf: "Joe's gone through puberty. Joe's gone through puberty. Do me up the butt! Do me up the butt!")

The teachers continued in their plot against our class throughout my young life. In sixth grade, Mr. Lowell Frisch confiscated our Magic cards, assaulted some of my classmates and even threw a chair across the room. In seventh grade, Mr. Stead told our social studies class, "If you were in the real world and this class was your job, you would have been fired weeks ago". The list can go on-and-on-and-on. Looking back, it's good stuff, really. As a kid, though, I couldn't help but wonder why we were being isolated. After much deliberation with my friends, we came to the conclusion it was simply the teachers' ways of abusing power. This just fueled the fire for my complete disregard for anyone who happens to be an authority figure, unless he or she has earned my respect.

Enter high school. Apparently, things change in the ninth grade. Here, the teachers seemed to be less offended by our shenanigans. Several of the teachers were, for lack of a better term, cool. Throughout the years, Mr. Wright accumulated not only wisdom he could share with his students, but he also gained the ability to turn his devilish red hair to shades of gray. I made sure to slip this in as many conversations with him as possible; in response, he made sure to let me know I was #1. Ms. Salsbury (I refuse to call her Bolte) allowed us to swear in class (to a certain extent - the f-bomb was prohibidado). Mr. Stauffer allowed us boys to work out disputes how teenage boys typically do (read: fighting). Even the school days felt less structured. Maybe the teachers cared less, maybe they gave up on us, but to me, it felt like they were treating us like adults.

What does this have to do with me? Why is this relevant? Well, my confrontational nature leads me to a lot of trash-talking. (It's true.) Naturally, I gravitated toward two career choices which fit me perfectly: author and lawyer. An author would allow me to put all my glorious thoughts on paper and become remembered for all eternity. No one ever accused me of being modest. A lawyer would allow me to spew B.S. on a daily basis with, more or less, no negative consequences. Also, I love arguing, as any one of my friends can affirm.

"Wait! So how did you become a mathematician," you say? Unfortunately, I hate reading so writing just seemed like an illogical path. One is always tied with the other. I've been trying to convince people otherwise for a decade now. The argument isn't going well in my favor. My aspirations to become a lawyer were crushed by my parents simply telling me "law school is too expensive". (Ha! The hypocrisy of saying that while allowing me to go to Wartburg College.) Also, my dad was really pushing me to go into some sort of engineering.

Now you're probably scratching your head, saying to yourself, "Engineering? Them's the fancy numbers and wacky symbols, right? I thought you were doing words and such?" I've always been really good at mathematics. During my freshman year in high school, I completed my Algebra I homework so far in advance to the point I essentially finished the requirements to pass Algebra II. The next year, I decided to actually get credit for Algebra II while also taking Geometry. The guidance counselor, Mr. Dennis "Spits" Thompson, said taking both Algebra II and Geometry in the same year was an illegal maneuver in the high school system. He didn't give me any concrete reasoning, so I decided to do some investigating. To my delight, Algebra II was not a prerequisite for Geometry. I showed him this, only for him to attempt to spit on me, take out another hoop from his desk and make me jump through it: he claimed no schedule could be constructed to take both classes. After fifteen minutes of making my own schedule featuring Algebra II, Geometry and all required sophomore classes in it, I was joyously taking as much math as I could. This trend continued, as I took Trigonometry and Pre-Calculus in my junior year and two college-level Calculus courses during my senior year. I was succeeding in math, and it seemed to be my destiny. Finally, I was growing up.

In part three, I will stop with the reminiscing and talk about where I am now and my hopeful future. I have so many stories about Wartburg, so I'm just going to have to skip them and will come back to them in a later series. Sorry for the delay... I still blame Windows Update. At least it's up now! (For that, I blame insomnia.)

[jasonjnielsen]

The Boyhood Dream Has Come True, Part One

Image courtesy of World Wrestling Entertainment

"The boyhood dream has come true for Shawn Michaels." Those are the words Vince McMahon said when Shawn Michaels won his first world championship at Wrestlemania XII in 1996. Watching this made me think about my life and where it is going. What is my "boyhood dream"? Where am I headed in life? Will it take me to where I want to be?

The little things relating to professional wrestling also stick out in my mind. When I was around ten years old, my cousins, Mark and Paul, had stayed the night at my house; I woke up a little before 6am, went downstairs and turned on ESPN. They were covering some sort of court case featuring Hulk Hogan. At the time, I had no idea what the case was about, but the broadcaster stated Hulk Hogan admitted to using steroids and I burst out, "I knew it!" My mom promptly came into the living room and told me to be quiet so as to not wake everyone else up. Not very many 10-year olds in 1994 would even know what steroids were. But I knew and I cared because my life was professional wrestling.

My life and professional wrestling continue to be intertwined even today: I can tell you Nathan and Chyanne were dating during Summerslam 2004 when Randy Orton defeated Chris Benoit for the World Heavyweight Championship (or as WWE would like to remember it, the Summerslam where Randy Orton posed in the center of the ring and was awarded the title). I remember the drug raid that took place in Sumner during Wrestlemania 21. No offense toward Triple H and Batista, but their match just didn't have the same level of excitement as the Sumner Police Department versus marijuana (and, in some cases, meth). The post-Wrestlemania party featured me driving around town to check out the action with the "fugitive" Nathan. The post-post-Wrestlemania party featured my dad telling me Nathan had stashed a bag of pot in our drain pipe to hide from the cops. Good times. Today, I still watch WWE. I've watched TNA since it debuted on television. I catch as much ROH as I can. And I never turn away a local independent show. I love wrestling... so... why am I not involved in wrestling?

As a big kid, I idolized people like John Tenta (Earthquake), Leon White (Vader), Scott Bigelow (Bam Bam Bigelow) and Rodney Anoa'i (Yokozuna). These guys weighed 350, 400, 500 pounds! If they could be professional wrestlers, then why couldn't I? Unfortunately, I never knew how one went about becoming a professional wrestler. I had no connections with anyone in the industry; I would have to do it myself. Mick Foley hadn't yet written "Have A Nice Day: A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks" so I didn't even have any insight as to what life as an aspiring kid breaking into the business would be like. Along with those hurdles, I had people telling me from every direction professional wrestling wasn't a "real" career choice. In short, fake wrestling = fake job. I was pushed in other directions, away from my real dream... and I strayed off the path I truly desired...

In part two, I will recap the roads I've taken to get where I'm at now and how those paths have made me who I am today.