sonnygideon

[sonnygideon]

“Oscars 2016″ - My reactions.

Here were my predictions. Let’s see how I did!

Best Picture

Prediction: The Revenant

Winner: Spotlight

This is the first time I haven’t called the Best Picture winner while watching. I’m legitimately shocked - not that it doesn’t deserve it but because it only one other Oscar. It’s the first film to do that since The Greatest Show On Earth.

Best Director

Prediction: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu

Winner: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu

Twice in a goddamn row. And both times I was nervous. 

Best Actor

Prediction: Leonardo DiCaprio

Winner: Leonardo DiCaprio

I love how this was marketed as the most unpredictable and tense race of the year. So satisfying to see him finally win, and I’m so glad I love both the leading categories even if it’s a switch from last year where I only loved the supporting categories.

Best Actress

Prediction: Brie Larson

Winner: Brie Larson

I can’t believe she’s hit her peak so soon after breaking out just 2 and a half years ago. I’m almost not as pumped for her future as the other young nominees, but I’m glad she’s being deservedly celebrated for a great performance and that Tremblay got his due in her speech.

Best Supporting Actor

Prediction: Sylvester Stallone

Winner: Mark Rylance

I wasn’t huge on Stallone but I am gutted for him. It’s not like this category would’ve made me happy unless it was a Tom Hardy surprise. I just didn’t think Mark Rylance did enough for this. Maybe he’ll grow on me like Alan Arkin. I’ll give it another chance with an open mind. I predicted Rylance until I saw the film.

Best Supporting Actress

Prediction: Alicia Vikander

Winner: Alicia Vikander

My fingers were crossed for a spoiler but as far as a weak winner goes, she’s not too bad. She’s the highlight of the film she’s in.

Best Original Screenplay

Prediction: Spotlight

Winner: Spotlight

Locked and loaded.

Best Adapted Screenplay

Prediction: The Big Short

Winner: The Big Short

Was hoping for a last minute spoiler but I don’t mind too much.

Best Cinematography

Prediction: The Revenant

Winner: The Revenant

Wow, Chivo. Such a full shelf.

Best Editing

Prediction: Mad Max: Fury Road

Winner: Mad Max: Fury Road

Damn straight.

Best Production Design

Prediction: Mad Max: Fury Road

Winner: Mad Max: Fury Road

Indeed.

Best Costume Design

Prediction: Mad Max: Fury Road

Winner: Mad Max: Fury Road

Glad I went with my gut.

Best Makeup & Hairstyling

Prediction: The Revenant

Winner: Mad Max: Fury Road

Goddammit I shouldn’t have gone against the grain.

Best Original Score

Prediction: The Hateful Eight

Winner: The Hateful Eight

It’s crazy that it’s his first competitive Oscar. It was solid work but that’s for him as a legend for sure. I’m most surprised he never learned to speak English though.

Best Original Song

Prediction: The Hunting Ground

Winner: Spectre

The song nobody liked won the award nobody cared about. Does Bond just win this now? Poor Diane Warren, but I’m kinda glad Lady Gaga missed out after such an Oscar begging performance. 

Best Sound Mixing

Prediction: The Revenant

Winner: Mad Max: Fury Road

I put too much faith in The Revenant.

Best Sound Editing

Prediction: Mad Max: Fury Road

Winner: Mad Max: Fury Road

And deserved.

Best Visual Effects

Prediction: Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Winner: Ex Machina

Did not think I would get this one wrong for Ex Machina. Deserved, kind of, but wow. For 2 robots right?

Best Animated Feature

Prediction: Inside Out

Winner: Inside Out

Duh.

Best Foreign Language Film

Prediction: Son of Saul

Winner: Son of Saul

Damn straight.

Best Documentary Feature

Prediction: Amy

Winner: Amy

There was legitimate reason to doubt but the frontrunner did its thing. Deservedly. I’m so glad Asif Kapadia finally won.

So the end tally was:

Mad Max: Fury Road - 6.

The Revenant - 3.

Spotlight - 2.

With Room, Bridge of Spies, The Danish Girl, The Big Short, The Hateful Eight, Spectre, Ex Machina Inside Out, Son of Saul and Amy winning one each.

I can’t believe I didn’t call Best Picture but I wasn’t ballsy enough to think it could do it just on screenplay. The Revenant’s wins are satisfying and Mad Max deserved its Oscars. I only got 15/21 which is my worst year yet and I didn’t get any of the short categories right this year from my extended predictions, though I did like Bear Story. What a tough bizarre year. I’m getting worse at this.

[sonnygideon]

“Oscars 2016” - My predictions.

The past two years we were treated to very strong choices coming on top. 12 Years A Slave and Gravity dueled it out for Best Picture in 2013 while Her took Screenplay and almost all the acting winners were my personal choices. The only downsides were the threats from American Hustle. Last year was even better - Oscar bait fell by the wayside to make way for four of the most unique and finest work 2014 had to offer; Birdman, Boyhood, The Grand Budapest Hotel and Whiplash. It did a great job of making me not feel so special. This year, it’s back to the ‘pretty good but not on my wavelength’ compatibility of 2012, which is a rare year that had none of my 9/10s nominated for Best Picture. This year, they only had 1, but fortunately right now it’s pretty in front.

Best Picture: The Revenant

Hell of a race this year. Shame it’s not one I’m really invested in. Baity biopics Bridge of Spies, Joy, Steve Jobs and The Danish Girl had eyes on them early but eventually fell by the wayside, though still grabbing significant acting nominations. I had my money on Carol for the first half of the year but this year wasn’t favouring the crop of female-led films. Instead, it’s more interested in ensembles as Spotlight did a Boyhood, even feeling like the only option to win at one point, and The Big Short stole away the PGA but not much else. I like both, but they’re pretty middling in the scheme of Best Picture winners this decade. The only choice from the nominees this year (sorry Room and Mad Max fans) is The Revenant. I didn’t think Inarritu would double dip, but here we are. He’s got a lot on his side for his epic, a film that almost meets Birdman’s match. Feel sorry for Linklater that the love couldn’t be shared.

Best Director: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu

Oscar numero five for the third Mexican director in a row to win. The streak of non-white males continues for nearly 10 years now, 10th if you make them a single dude which goes back to Scorsese. He deserved it for Birdman and he deserves it for The Revenant. Though it does feel like last season never ended.

Best Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio

The defining performance of 2015 even though nobody saw him til December. He was the frontrunner from the first image - which is pretty much the case for the past 3 winners (despite willful resistance to Redmayne) with just a couple of brief challengers throughout the year. He deserves it, and it’s nice that he’s such a lock and it’s not for supporting, but I wouldn’t call him the Best Actor of the year or of the nominees since I prefer Fassbender by a hair. Fassy will have his time though.

Best Actress: Brie Larson

This year has been incredibly strong for leading ladies that it’s almost a shame that Larson, my favourite performance of the year, has been dominating like she has. I would have never predicted her to win so soon after she broke out with Short Term 12. It’s a little bittersweet because Jacob Tremblay deserves to be nominated next to her rather than Larson being singled out, but we’ll take it.

Best Supporting Actor: Sylvester Stallone

Supporting Actor is really tough yet really weak this year. After the muscle in last year’s lineup, where they pretty much nailed the top 4, this year only has Tom Hardy who could meet the calibre of the last few winners. However, while he’s the least likely to win, I’m glad Stallone has emerged as the most likely to win as he’s a distant second best. I’m not a Rocky fan but there’s heart in his performance in Creed - it’s crazy that people predicted upon the film’s release that he’ll either get snubbed or win and that seems to be the case with precursors. Bale and Ruffalo are good but problematic and Rylance didn’t do much for me. Even so, he’s probably the most likely spoiler, and I’d be predicting Idris Elba had he been nominated, who I predicted a lock to win back in September. Stallone will be the weakest winner in this category since George Clooney but since Hardy isn’t winning he’ll do.

Best Supporting Actress: Alicia Vikander

The more the reality dawns on me that Vikander is winning the more it sours on me. I had been predicting her early on over Mara, but I hope she’s spoiled. Her performance in The Danish Girl is okay but forgettable, and there seems to be a temperament to vote for her because of her banner breakout year. Jennifer Jason Leigh and Rooney Mara and even Kate Winslet, the most most likely spoiler, are better than her. It just doesn’t feel right to validate a character like that when other more progressive transgender films are ignored.

Best Original Screenplay: Spotlight

Spotlight has a very solid script. I can’t complain about how it’s such a frontrunner since the other nominees are more problematic, though I prefer Ex Machina. It’s a decent consolation since it’s not winning anything else.

Best Adapted Screenplay: The Big Short

Similar deal to Spotlight in screenplay, and very unlikely to have a spoiler here unless the Academy really likes Room. It’s a very consistent lineup actually and The Big Short is only the weakest of the bunch because of the strength of the other films. I struggle to choose between Brooklyn and Carol for best in show but the category misses some of my favourite Adapted Screenplays of the year. I can live with this as a consolation prize but I’m not rooting for The Big Short to spoil anything else. I think its PGA win is an anomaly. 

Best Cinematography: The Revenant

Looks like Lubezki is going to win thrice in a row. Poor Deakins, though it’s not like he deserved in any of those 3 years. I mean, Lubezki did deliver the best (or second best) cinematography in each of these years. This is the weakest of the three but I wouldn’t mind if Mad Max or somehow Carol were to spoil. I’m happy either way, if we ignore The Hateful Eight.

Best Editing: Mad Max: Fury Road

I’m not a Mad Max fan but I do appreciate the craft of its impeccable editing. I actually don’t mind The Big Short’s frenetic editing, but not over Mad Max. The Revenant’s editing is really underrated and I only really noticed how well done it was on second viewing. Spotlight is solid but The Martian really deserved the nomination over Star Wars.

Best Production Design: Mad Max: Fury Road

Mad Max seems to have dominated this category, and while it doesn’t really resonate with me as it does for others, I do appreciate that it’s a real unique choice. Hard to choose a spoiler since it’s a solid set of nominees, so probably The Revenant.

Best Costume Design: Mad Max: Fury Road

It’s a weirdly tough category to predict this year. The Revenant could be a sweeper. The Danish Girl is all about the costumes and won the guild. Mad Max also won the guild but it’s an out there choice. They love Sandy Powell and both her nominations are worthy. 

Best Makeup & Hairstyling: The Revenant

Here’s my theory: I think the Academy will praise Mad Max for its pre and post production (i.e. the designs and editing) whereas they will praise The Revenant for its production. So the techs that were in the trenches with Inarritu, DiCaprio and Chivo - such as the makeup for The Revenant’s gashes and scars - will be celebrated. I wouldn’t be surprised to be wrong and my prediction tally will rely on fringe categories like this.

Best Original Score: The Hateful Eight

It’s hard to be mad at Ennio Morricone. I don’t really remember his score for the film, but it’s a similar deal to Star Wars being nominated here. Carter Burwell gets his first well deserved nomination and Carol is the second best score of the year behind his own Anomalisa. If only he could win. 

Best Original Song: The Hunting Ground

Hard category to call if there will be an upset - but it’s hard to imagine Spectre or Fifty Shades of Grey being Oscar winning films. Looking forward to Diane Warren finally winning though Lady Gaga may steal that spotlight. First doc to win this prize since An Inconvenient Truth, right?

Best Sound Mixing: The Revenant

While Mad Max makes a case for itself to grab both sound categories (The Revenant even has a shot at both of them), The Revenant won the sound guild so I think it will win at least one of them and mixing seems most likely to go in line with my theory that they will celebrate those in the trenches. I wish Son of Saul got a random nomination here though.

Best Sound Editing: Mad Max: Fury Road

This usually goes to the loudest film and Mad Max really deserves it for its innovative work. The Revenant would be a real upset to take this as well.

Best Visual Effects: Star Wars: The Force Awaken

While this prize usually goes to a Best Picture nominee - and Mad Max and The Revenant have a shot - it’s hard to see the biggest film of all-time miss out on a win. This is its best bet, and certainly deserved. It’s almost a ritual for Star Wars to win this award.

Best Animated Feature: Inside Out

If only Anomalisa had a chance. Nope, Pixar made a film. 100% locked.

Best Foreign Language Film: Son of Saul

It couldn’t win at Cannes but the Oscar (and every other great award) is a good compromise. Hard to see an upset here. It’s an instant classic.

Best Documentary Feature: Amy

Amy was going to be the type of documentary to be snubbed entirely (like Senna) or win. Looks like it’s going to win. The Look of Silence has a decent shot, but it looks like the doc about a girl winning awards will win the award. It’s the best of the nominees though, and it fits in line with the music-theme this category has had this decade at least.

So my predicted tally is:

The Revenant - 6.

Mad Max: Fury Road - 4

Then one a piece for the other films which include: Room, Creed, The Danish Girl, Spotlight, The Big Short, The Hateful Eight, The Hunting Ground, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Inside Out, Son of Saul and Amy.

The hardest part of this is figuring out how the awards will divide between The Revenant and Mad Max. Depending on how hot they are on the latter, it could end up being a similar deal to The Artist and Hugo with 5 a piece, or it could be a 6/4 split in the other direction. However, The Danish Girl could easily grab a cheeky Costume Design and put itself in the multiple Oscar club for this year whereas the only other films I can see doing it is if Spotlight or The Big Short spoil Best Picture.

Reactions soon enough.

[sonnygideon]

“Oscars 2016” - My lineup.

Best Picture

Anomalisa

The Lobster

Son of Saul

Victoria

The Revenant

The End of the Tour

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

Taxi Tehran

The Stanford Prison Experiment

Virgin Mountain

Best Director

Duke Johnson & Charlie Kaufman for Anomalisa

Yorgos Lanthimos for The Lobster

Laszlo Nemes for Son of Saul

Sebastian Schipper for Victoria

Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu for The Revenant

Best Actor

Christopher Abbott for James White

Michael Fassbender for Steve Jobs

Leonardo DiCaprio for The Revenant

Geza Rohrig for Son of Saul

Jason Segel for The End of the Tour

Best Actress

Brie Larson for Room

Rooney Mara for Carol

Cate Blanchett for Carol

Bel Powley for The Diary of a Teenage Girl

Saoirse Ronan for Brooklyn

Best Supporting Actor

Tom Hardy for The Revenant

Ralph Fiennes for A Bigger Splash

Oscar Isaac for Ex Machina

Walton Goggins for The Hateful Eight

Alexander Skarsgard for The Diary of a Teenage Girl

Best Supporting Actress

Jennifer Jason Leigh for The Hateful Eight

Rachel Weisz for The Lobster

Elizabeth Banks for Love & Mercy

Cynthia Nixon for James White

Olivia Cooke for Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

Best Original Screenplay

The Lobster

Virgin Mountain

The Stanford Prison Experiment

Love & Mercy

Ex Machina

Best Adapted Screenplay

Anomalisa

The End of the Tour

Brooklyn

Carol

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

Best Editing

The Lobster

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

Mad Max: Fury Road

The Revenant

Carol

Best Cinematography

Victoria

The Revenant

The Lobster

Son of Saul

Carol

Best Production Design

Anomalisa

High-Rise

Carol

Ex Machina

Son of Saul

Best Costume Design

Carol

The Assassin

Mad Max: Fury Road

Brooklyn

The Diary of a Teenage Girl

Best Makeup & Hairstyling

The Revenant

High-Rise

Carol

Mad Max: Fury Road

Mr. Holmes

Best Visual Effects

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

The Martian

The Revenant

Ex Machina

Mad Max: Fury Road

Best Sound Editing

Mad Max: Fury Road

The Revenant

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Son of Saul

The Martian

Best Sound Mixing

Son of Saul

Mad Max: Fury Road

Love & Mercy

The Revenant

Sicario

Best Score

Anomalisa

Carol

Brooklyn

Mistress America

The Lobster

Best Song

“Feels Like Summer” from Shaun the Sheep Movie

“Hey Baby Doll” from Danny Collins

“One Kind of Love” from Love & Mercy

“Don’t Look Down” from Danny Collins

“So Long” from Concussion

Best Animated Feature

Anomalisa

The Little Prince

Inside Out

Shaun the Sheep Movie

The Peanuts Movie

Best Documentary Feature

Call Me Lucky

Amy

Finders Keepers

What Happened, Miss Simone?

Best of Enemies

Best Foreign Language Film

Son of Saul

Victoria

Taxi Tehran

Dheepan

The Second Mother

Anomalisa - 6 wins/6 noms Son of Saul - 2 wins/8 noms The Lobster - 2 wins/7 noms The Revenant - 1 win/10 noms Carol - 1 win/9 noms Mad Max: Fury Road - 1 win/6 noms Victoria - 1 win/4 noms The Hateful Eight - 1 win/2 noms James White - 1 win/2 noms Shaun the Sheep Movie - 1 win/2 noms Star Wars: The Force Awakens - 1 win/2 noms Call Me Lucky - 1 win/1 nom Room - 1 win/1 nom Brooklyn - 4 noms Ex Machina - 4 noms Me and Earl and the Dying Girl - 4 noms The Diary of a Teenage Girl - 3 noms The End of the Tour - 3 noms Love & Mercy - 3 noms Danny Collins - 2 noms High-Rise - 2 noms The Martian - 2 noms The Stanford Prison Experiment - 2 noms Taxi Tehran - 2 noms Virgin Mountain - 2 noms Amy - 1 nom Best of Enemies - 1 nom A Bigger Splash - 1 nom Concussion - 1 nom Dheepan - 1 nom Finders Keepers - 1 nom Inside Out - 1 nom The Little Prince - 1 nom Mistress America - 1 nom The Peanuts Movie - 1 nom The Second Mother - 1 nom Sicario - 1 nom What Happened, Miss Simone? - 1 nom

[sonnygideon]

Top 10 of 2015: February

[sonnygideon]

Top 10 of 2015: January

[sonnygideon]

Best Films Seen In 2015

The Revenant (2015, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu)

45 Years (2015, Andrew Haigh)

[sonnygideon]

Films Seen In Cinema - 2016

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) - 7/10 via. Pasadena, Arclight

Anomalisa (2015) - 10/10 via. Los Angeles, Landmark (directors in attendance)

The Revenant (2015) - 9/10 via. Pasadena, Arclight

Hail, Caesar! (2016) - 7/10 via. Pasadena, Arclight

The Witch (2016) - 8/10 via. Los Angeles, Wilshire Screening Room

[sonnygideon]

Film Log - 2016

JANUARY

The Hateful Eight (2015) - 7/10

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) - 7/10

The Peanuts Movie (2015) - 6/10

Joy (2015) - 7/10

The Revenant (2015) - 9/10

The Danish Girl (2015) - 6/10

Concussion (2015) - 7/10

Spotlight (2015) - 8/10

Son of Saul (2015) - 9/10

Room (2015) - 8/10

45 Years (2015) - 8/10

Anomalisa (2015) - 10/10 (+)

Sisters (2015) - 6/10

The Club (2015) - 7/10

Steve Jobs (2015) - 8/10

Shaun the Sheep Movie (2015) - 7/10

Creed (2015) - 7/10

Ex Machina (2015) - 8/10

Straight Outta Compton (2015) - 7/10

Call Me Lucky (2015) - 8/10

Seymour: An Introduction (2015) - 7/10

Knight of Cups (2015) - 6/10

Aferim! (2015) - 7/10

Cartel Land (2015) - 7/10

Kill Bill Vol. 1 (2003) - 7/10

Kill Bill Vol. 2 (2004) - 8/10 (+)

Winter on Fire (2015) - 7/10

What Happened, Miss Simone? (2015) - 8/10

Dope (2015) - 6/10

Irrational Man (2015) - 7/10

A War (2015) - 7/10

The End of the Tour (2015) - 9/10

Amy (2015) - 8/10

The Ecstasy of Wilko Johnson (2015) - 7/10

Mississippi Grind (2015) - 8/10

Racing Extinction (2015) - 7/10

Macbeth (2015) - 6/10

Gueros (2015) - 8/10

The Mend (2015) - 7/10

I’ll See You In My Dreams (2015) - 7/10

Welcome to Leith (2015) - 8/10

Grandma (2015) - 7/10

Meru (2015) - 8/10

Babel (2006) - 8/10 (-)

Space Jam (1996) - 6/10

Magic Mike XXL (2015) - 7/10

The Godfather Epic (1977) - 8/10

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) - 7/10

Blackhat (2015) - 6/10

FEBRUARY

Clouds of Sils Maria (2014) - 7/10

Legend (2015) - 7/10

The Kids Are All Right (2010) - 7/10

Brooklyn (2015) - 8/10

The Big Short (2015) - 8/10

Anomalisa (2015) - 10/10

The Look of Silence (2014) - 8/10

Knocked Up (2007) - 7/10

Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (2007) - 6/10

Spider-Man 2 (2004) - 6/10

The Revenant (2015) - 9/10

The Departed (2006) - 8/10

Annie Hall (1977) - 9/10

Dreamgirls (2006) - 6/10

Hail, Caesar! (2016) - 7/10

When Harry Met Sally... (1989) - 8/10

All Things Must Pass: The Rise and Fall of Tower Records (2015) - 7/10

Boy & The World (2014) - 6/10

Dheepan (2015) - 8/10

The Witch (2016) - 8/10

The Prince of Egypt (1998) - 5/10

Ernest & Celestine (2012) - 8/10

Signs (2002) - 6/10

MARCH

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince (2009) - 6/10

Casting By (2013) - 8/10

Forrest Gump (1994) - 7/10

Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011) - 7/10

Gravity (2013) - 9/10

Bruce Almighty (2003) - 7/10

Zootopia (2016) - 8/10

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) - 7/10

I Love You, Man (2009) - 6/10

Toy Story 3 (2010) - 9/10

Clerks II (2006) - 7/10

Tyrannosaur (2011) - 7/10

La Ronde (1950) - 8/10

In Bruges (2008) - 8/10

Krisha (2016) - 8/10

The Wind Rises (2013) - 7/10

Certified Copy (2010) - 8/10

Kate Plays Christine (2016) - 7/10

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) - 9/10

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) - 7/10

The World’s End (2013) - 6/10

Whiplash (2014) - 10/10

What Richard Did (2012) - 7/10

APRIL

Stagecoach (1939) - 8/10

Simon of the Desert (1965) - 7/10

Berberian Sound Studio (2012) - 7/10

Closely Watched Trains (1966) - 9/10

Stories We Tell (2012) - 8/10

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (2001) - 6/10

Rust and Bone (2012) - 7/10

The Broken Circle Breakdown (2012) - 8/10

Sightseers (2012) - 6/10

In The House (2012) - 8/10

Wadjda (2012) - 7/10

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) - 7/10 (+)

Beyond the Hills (2012) - 8/10

Take This Waltz (2012) - 6/10

The Promise: The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town (2012) - 8/10 (-)

Jiro Dreams of Sushi (2012) - 7/10

ParaNorman (2012) - 6/10

Land of Mine (2015) - 8/10

Ace in the Hole (1951) - 9/10 (+)

Chronicle (2012) - 6/10

Like Someone in Love (2012) - 7/10

Ruby Sparks (2012) - 7/10

The Comedy (2012) - 8/10

End of Watch (2012) - 7/10

Laurence Anyways (2012) - 8/10

Safety Not Guaranteed (2012) - 6/10

Indie Game: The Movie (2012) - 8/10

Compliance (2012) - 7/10

Roman Holiday (1953) - 9/10

The Grey (2012) - 7/10

Barbara (2012) - 8/10

Harry Potter and the Prisoner Azkaban (2004) - 8/10 (+)

Cosmopolis (2012) - 6/10

Leviathan (2012) - 7/10

Seeking a Friend of the End of the World (2012) - 8/10

Dredd (2012) - 6/10

Moonrise Kingdom (2012) - 9/10

The House I Live In (2012) - 8/10

Frankenweenie (2012) - 7/10

The Invisible War (2012) - 8/10

How to Survive a Plague (2012) - 7/10

Neighboring Sounds (2012) - 8/10

On The Road (2012) - 6/10

Post Tenebras Lux (2012) - 7/10

Your Sister’s Sister (2012) - 7/10

Paradise: Love (2012) - 8/10

Caesar Must Die (2012) - 7/10

Damsels in Distress (2012) - 8/10

Magic Mike (2012) - 7/10

The Queen of Versailles (2012) - 8/10

Se7en (1995) - 10/10

Zero Dark Thirty (2012) - 6/10

Silver Linings Playbook (2012) - 8/10

Lincoln (2012) - 8/10 (+)

Total: 149

First viewing count: 99

Italic = rewatch Bold = cinema (x) = viewings this year (+/-) = rating increased or decreased since last viewing

[sonnygideon]

“The Pearl Button” (2015, Patricio Guzman)

IMDb Link: Chile, with its 2,670 miles of coastline and the largest archipelago in the world, presents a supernatural landscape. Some say that water has memory. This film shows that it also has a voice.

I missed Patricio Guzman’s quietly acclaimed documentary Nostalgia for the Light, but it doesn’t seem essential to understand this extension of his love letter to Chile with The Pearl Button. When picturing Chile, I often neglect to think about the fact it has, by far, the longest coastline of any country. The relationship to the water isn’t richer than anywhere but Chile, and Guzman’s deeply personal and deeply existential documentary studies this spiritual connection. It puts Chile and its indigenous people into perspective with vivid Herzogian ambition, contrasting the details of a tragically lost and betrayed culture with the way water is ultimately the essence of life. 

There’s a great and tragic divide between races and generations, but as the film points out, we’re all made from the same water and stardust that’s been around for millions of years. It’s beautifully illustrated, though I wish it was put in the face of those who most need their perspectives altered. The Pearl Button feels quite in the vein of contemporary documentaries that want to uncover atrocities of the past to have them inked in history books, but it ideally marries those details with the broad strokes of its profound cosmic study. Both therapeutic and unsettling, it’s a couple polishes away from being a documentary for the ages, but it’s certainly one of the best the year and the decade has to offer.

8/10

[sonnygideon]

“Neon Bull” (2015, Gabriel Mascaro)

IMDb Link: Iremar works at a rodeo in the North East of Brazil but dreams of fashion designs.

Neon Bull is one of those films built on poetic imagery to tell its narrative, but they’re not rooted in abstraction or fantasy but real life subversions. It’s working on a lot of compelling themes of gender roles, masculinity, sexuality and that relationship with nature, but what makes it most interesting is the choices of the backdrops of a rodeo and the textiles industry. Had it fleshed out its characters a little more, granted more insight to make them more human as individuals since the film does a great job of establishing relationships, it would be a little easier to digest and embrace. For now it still needs decoding. The important narrative beats are more broad, such as how the protagonist rejects a father-figure opportunity to a little girl he’s close to, instead letting someone else who doesn’t have his interests fill that gap. It’s expertly crafted by director Gabriel Mascaro which is enough to let him relish in its ambiguous contexts and rich subtexts.

7/10

[sonnygideon]

“One Floor Below” (2015, Radu Muntean)

IMDb Link: After being the sole unfortunate witness of a domestic quarrel that ends up in a murder, Patrascu finds himself at odds with two very close neighbors: one is the bizarre murderer, the other one his very own conscience. 

I’m used to arthouse films being uneventful. There’s usually a purpose in its anti-narrative. That’s pretty much all One Floor Below wants to be, an uneventful piece, but there it finds its human core. It’s a slow-burning character study that leaves itself vague enough to have you guessing what the theme is until the third act. It reveals itself to be about the bystander effect - something rarely approached in film and frankly, hard to make cinematic - in the voyeuristic desire to listen and watch but not to act and get involved even if the opportunity presents itself. While voyeurism is a well-worn meta-theme that’s been thoroughly explored to great effect by many classic films, One Floor Below isn’t interested on that level and instead subverts it to focus on avoidance.

Few other films would have a character witness strong evidence of a murder then have the protagonist, who otherwise seemed to be strong and controlling, to actively ignore, if not articulating it in a way that their internal conflict is obvious, even as the suspected and almost wilfully guilty murderer gets as close to him as possible to taunt his knowledge. It’s an interesting idea, though somewhat forced to make it work as it’s otherwise as naturalistic as possible. It’s unfortunately quite limited to that one moment where it becomes clear as it spends too much time seemingly about not much. It hinges on the protagonist and although he’s not given many layers, he’s interesting in the few he’s got. The wide photography is reliably crisp and cold as you can expect from Romania, but it leaves a little more to be desired than a slight Haneke-esque examination.

7/10

[sonnygideon]

“Tangerine” (2015, Sean Baker)

IMDb Link: A working girl tears through Tinseltown on Christmas Eve searching for the pimp who broke her heart.

To many, Tangerine is the little film that could, but it couldn’t for me, and I’m surprised it’s so widely loved as it is. Firstly, the iPhone aesthetic - last resort or not - simply didn’t work, especially in the first act. It feels like a scratchpad, an awkward rehearsal stage that’s yet to be fleshed out. While the rugged handheld photography and frequent irritating flicker of the iris lends it to feel more documentary-esque and as lived in as its characters, it’s hard to embrace when it’s completely butchered by sloppy overzealous editing. Fortunately, it tempers later on as the taxi driver meets Alexandra, played by Mya Taylor, who was the highlight of the duo for me. Sin-Dee was only good when her personality got out of her way and she had human moments of self-realisation, which Taylor’s performance is rife with. Anchoring on her tested my patience.

The film is at its best when it’s on testing the endurance of their friendship, because otherwise it feels like it’s trying to be overly perverse and trying to shock to engage. While there are some good moments, the storytelling is too meandering and thematically bleak for me. I appreciate its originality in the approach at times, but it does feel in the vein of Pulp Fiction and Clerks especially in its humour, which was often funny. It works best when it’s on the comic idea of masculinity with the supporting men preferring women with penises, but otherwise it’s too amateurish in its script and production to match the boldness of the performances. There’s something to admire in the concept of it though, despite my problems with Baker’s direction, and like it or not, you do get swept up in Tangerine’s vibrant energy and naturally, its colour.

6/10

[sonnygideon]

“Ingrid Bergman In Her Own Words” (2015, Stig Bjorkman)

IMDb Link: A captivating look behind the scenes of the remarkable life of a young Swedish girl who became one of the most celebrated actresses of American and World cinema. 

I’m always so surprised by how few Ingrid Bergman films I’ve actually seen. I’ve seen Casablanca, Notorious and only recently saw Journey to Italy and her Oscar-winning Murder on the Orient Express. But yet I still feel so utterly familiar with her as a Hollywood icon. Contrary to In Her Own Words however, as evidently I don’t know much about her. The film essentially maps out her life through archive footage, clips from her films and especially her own home video. While interviews with those close and personal to her help, there is perhaps a more insightful documentary to be made about Bergman. You have to play with what you’re given however, and her diary entries can be as elusive as she ostensibly usually is. The documentary studies the contradictions of her character and the way she always dreams of something better and so restarts her life every 10 years, often estranging herself from her children, and thus overlaps the loves of her life, leading to some infamous controversies. The film paints her as only human of course, though it’s still quite safely approached despite conflicting feelings expressed by her children. It’s bittersweet breezy and well-produced but inessential.

7/10

[sonnygideon]

“Flocken” (2015, Beata Gardeler)

IMDb Link: A 14-year old girl reports that she has been raped, but is not believed. The entire village turns against her and her family. 

Flocken won an award at the Los Angeles Film Festival while I was in attendance but for some reason the film was never on my radar. It’s a shame, because I would have felt like I really discovered something special, but fortunately I was able to catch up with it now. The film takes a sensitive topic in a contemporary way in the way social media rumours can contribute to alienation in victim-blaming, along with acknowledging how dangerously easy it is for a false rape accusation to ruin lives. There’s more ground this subject has to cover that Flocken doesn’t explore, but it takes a very restrained approach, focusing on the real menace of the scenario but grounded in reality. It’s procedural in a way, as the narrative never commits to a perspective, but each hint of the girl, the boy, the boy’s mother or any other townsperson is richly realized. It’s expertly handled as we quickly switch from pitying to condemning characters and back again, more efficient and subdued than similarly themed The Hunt. It’s beautifully crafted with an artful use of silhouettes. There’s a lot of potential in director Beata Gardeler, even if the film ends more black and white than I would have wanted after its previous shades of grey.

8/10

[sonnygideon]

“My Nazi Legacy” (2015, David Evans)

IMDb Link: A human-rights lawyer conducts conversations with two men whose fathers were indicted as war criminals for their roles in WWII - Nazi Governors and consultants to Adolf Hitler himself.

After researching the origins of international laws, human rights lawyer Phillipe Sands encountered two men who are the sons of high-ranking officers of the Third Reich and he interviews them to discover how they reconcile their father’s crimes. Niklas Frank absolutely condemns his father while Horst von Wachter can’t bring himself to admit his father’s responsibility. Directed by David Evans, My Nazi Legacy is a very straightforward documentary which is its blessing and its curse. First and foremost, it does aid in being very focused between the arguments with the three men. 

However, it is more of a document of their relationship rather than digging into the legacy, which makes it feel more like a TV spot. Fortunately the deeper it gets into it the more it marries the two. They visit nostalgic places to the men as well as places where the victims of the Holocaust were killed to spark debate about their feelings on their father’s legacies. While there is initially a mature respect between them, with consideration that they are not personally responsible, Horst’s optimistic denial that his father was responsible brews an exasperated tension as each presentation of evidence fails to change his opinion. Sands is hurt while Frank grows to hate him. 

Ultimately, it’s very anguished and then unresolved, but Horst’s lack of admittance is contrasted with Frank’s complete rejection of his father as well as Sands’ lack of forgiveness for Horst’s father. It tests whether it’s cruel to interrogate someone into disowning their own father despite their crimes, but suggests that under the circumstances that it is valid. With a wealth of archive footage, Evans humanises the victims and the perpetrators, if only in small everyday activities rather than anything revealing. It’s a personal and slight documentary, perhaps more ripe for television despite some cinematic shots, but it’s emotionally charged and thoughtful.

7/10

[sonnygideon]

“Taxi Tehran” (2015, Jafar Panahi)

IMDb Link: Jafar Panahi is banned from making movies by the Iranian government, he poses as a taxi driver and makes a movie about social challenges in Iran.

I’ve been familiar with the work of Jafar Panahi since his literal boundary breaking documentary This Is Not A Film. I’ve still not caught up with his pre-arrest work, but his work under his filmmaking ban is too fascinating to miss. Now outside of his house - and free from trying to solve the third act of Closed Curtain - comes his lightest and most surprising work yet in Taxi Tehran. Never leaving the confines of a taxi cab, Panahi casts himself as the lead character, who balances his ineptitude with free rides and an endearing smile, and he’s playing a version of himself as passengers recognise him as the film director. 

However, of course, they are actors, uncredited to dive through loopholes in Panahi’s ban, and in doing so he skirts the lines between fact and fiction and the idea of a director’s control as things in the taxi get out of control and sometimes out of his sight. It’s as surprising as it is profound, as although it’s very light on its feet, anytime the waters seem to settle he brings out a twist in his irreverent day with brilliant juxtapositions of banality and life or death situations, citizens and criminals, superstition and rational thought, art and pirated DVDs. While small and slice-of-life, the taxi is a vibrant melting pot.

It’s the sordid reality that the Iranian government resists and it’s close to harmless here but gasp-inducing whenever it steps over these imaginary lines, including a moment where Panahi exits the taxi. But breaking free of these limitations it’s liberating, yet deliciously bittersweet. Perhaps Panahi is exhausting the concept of making films about not being able to make films and right now he’s doing work that technically anybody could do. However, it wouldn’t mean half as much without Panahi’s unique context. Taxi Tehran is his richest, most fully realized piece yet, packed full of small moments of incidental beauty from Panahi’s passion for the art of filmmaking and freedom of speech.

9/10

[sonnygideon]

Top 10 of 2015: December