We all have movie favorites we would watch over and over, but none were made this year
SPECIAL OSCAR PREVIEW
SPECIAL OSCAR PREVIEW
By Ken Tingley
There are a rare few movies that we are always drawn.
We’ve all been there. You’ve got the remote and a half-hour to kill so you call up the guide on the television and you see the movie. It doesn’t matter where it is in the movie.
You navigate to the channel and figure you will watch until the commercial break, but you can’t turn it off. You keep watching. Even through long commercial breaks.
We all have one of these lists.
Six movies or so.
The lists vary but the results are the same.
Here’s my list:
Shawshank Redemption
Casablanca
Castaway
Apollo 13
It’s A Wonderful Life - even when’s its not Christmas.
Pitch Perfect
So as Oscar night approaches on Sunday, that’s what those of us who love the movies are searching for every year: To find another movie to add to the list. A movie that moves, us, that brings us joy, that makes us think.
After watching 35 Oscar-nominated movies this year - hoping to knock another 10 or so over the next two days - I have to sadly report I have not found any of those movies. Heck, I’m struggling to find a worth Best Picture winner.
My View
Best Picture Nominees
All Quiet on the Western Front
It is a brutal reminder of the devastation of World War I trench warfare and the impact of military technology to escalate the carnage. This is the first half-hour of “Saving Private Ryan” times 10. It’s brutal. It’s graphic. And technically the closest thing to the reality of war.
Avatar: The Way of Water
Watching the blue people in another adventure is an amazing visual experience.Throw in 3D and it tops anything I had ever seen before. The story is different, but the same, but three hours of almost constant wore me out.
The Banshees of Inishirin
The Irish can be quirky, but not this quirky. When one man wants to end a friendship, his mate refuses to comply. It’s a wonderful idea for a story and the acting is superb but as the movie drags on, you can’t help but ask yourself if anyone is this stubborn. The ending just went too far.
Everything Everywhere All at Once
This is one of the two movies I have not seen yet so I must reserve judgment. But when I asked a colleague who had seen the movie what it was about, he said simply. “I don’t really know.” That’s not a good sign. Since it is the favorite to win Best Picture I may have to cave and pay the $19.95 rental price.
The Fablemans
Steven Spielberg and his movies has been such an important part of recent cinema history, that his look at his own childhood is equally fascinating, if you are fascinated by Spielberg. The movie is honest about his parents and how their unusual relationship affected his upbringing. Not many of us could be that honest. For me, it was the best of the eight films I saw which were nonimated for Best Picture.
Tar
I can’t remember being more contemptuous of a Best Picture nominee ever. It is not worth a nomination for Best Picture and I believe I can make a case it is among the worst movies I have ever seen. From the bizarre 10 minutes of credits in the opening to a hard to follow plot line, this was just an awful experience. And I really like Cate Blanchett.
Top Gun Maverick
Looking for a night out this fall, we went to a late showing of “Top Gun Maverick.” We liked the first movie all those years ago. The word that stays with me about Maverick is “nostalgia.” Of course, we were also amazed Tom Cruise has not aged at all. Fun movie, good time, but not worthy to be a Best picture nominee.
Triangle of Sadness
This muddled tale of the ultra rich is not as bad as “Tar” but it was giving it a run for its money. I think it’s supposed to be a comedy. But I don’t remember laughing much.
Women Talking
This is the second movie I did not see. I’m still holding out hope it could be the dark horse that saves this movie season in this Handmaid’s tale of a religious community where the women are being abused by men.
Movies to consider
Biggest Heart
Rent the movie “Marcel the Shell with Shoes on” even if it is just for the cameo by Leslie Stahl from 60 Minutes. It’s nominated for best animated feature. This movie has more heart than all 10 best picture nominees combined.
Don’t cry for Argentina
I didn’t know anything about Argentina’s politics so don’t let that hold you back from seeing “Argentina 1985.”
In the early days of its democracy, a brave prosecutor and some brilliant young lawyers build a case for indicting and prosecuting the previous military leaders for their abuses while in power. It felt a lot like the times we are facing in our own country right now.
Nominated for best international feature, it faces tough competition from “All Quiet on the Western Front.”
What acting?
It’s encouraging to see a relatively obscure actor like Paul Mescal nominated for best actor in a small intimate movie like “Aftersun.” This portrait of a father and daughter and their summer holidaytogether when she was a young girl just never goes anywhere. And if anyone should have been nominated, it was the young girl and not Mescal.
That’s entertainment
If you are looking for an entertaining old-fashioned whodunit, dial up “Glass Onion: A Knives Up Mystery.” It’s fun, a little scarey and has more than a few plot twists about a sinister mad chef’s whose meals will leave you seeking fast food. It is nominated for adapted screenplay.
Cartoons
The animated features rarely disappoint me - even a remake of Pinocchio. I was expecting to be bored by this old chestnut, but there was plenty of new plot twists to enjoy and it is visually gorgeous. That said, try to see “Marcel the Shell,” “The Sea Beast” and “Turning Red.” They are all a lot of fun.
Thought provoking
“Bardo: False chronicle of a Handful of Truths,” is nominated for cinematography and its bizarre opening had me wondering if I would make it through the end, but I found this movie the most provoking of all the Oscar nominees I viewed. It left me wondering about life, death and was any of it worth it. It follows an acclaimed documentary film director as he faces his own midlife crisis. Visually stunning.
If you love fashion
Mrs. Harris is a cleaning woman in London who falls in love with her employer’s Dior gown. She scrapes and saves for years to afford a trip to Paris where to liver her dream of buying her own Dior gown. “Mrs. Harris goes to Paris” is a fish out of water story that is as enjoyable as any best picture nominee this year. And if you love fashion, you’ll understand Mrs. Harris (Olivia Colman) and her journey.
Chick flick?
“My Year of Dicks” may be the best title of any movie this year. This animated short followes the journey of a young girl as she sets a goal for losing her virginity. The male species does not come off looking good on this journey. The scene where the father has “The talk” with his daughter is worth watching it. It’s just 26 minutes long, so don’t let the title scare you.
He could be a neighbor
“Stranger at the Gate” was best of the documentary short as we hear the story of a former Marine who went from planning a mass murder of an Islamic Center to becoming part of its community and impressing Islam himself. It is frightening and inspirational all at the same time.
My consensus is that this was another bad year for movies. Or maybe I just long for the good old days. One thing is for certain, they don’t have enough great voices to justify 10 nominees for Best Picture.
I watched Women Talking last night. It's very well acted, kind of chilling to see women discussing their desperate situation and what to do about it. It's a quiet film about what happens when women are programmed in a cult, then isolated from the rest of the world. Interestingly, the reviews I read from men were negative. I guess that's because mem aren't interested in watching women talk.
The Banahees of Inishirin is an allegory on the absurdity of the Irish Civil War. However, it was difficult to watch. The actors were fantastic.
I watched Banshees of Inishirin last night, thought it was quite good. It’s a fable and left me thinking. I remember “liking” All’s Quiet but I don’t remember anything about the movie now - which isn’t a good sign for a movie. I loved Everything, Everywhere. It’s a rare Oscar movie I would watch again. I haven’t seen a lot of the other movies yet. I have no interest in the Avatar movie (I hated the 1st one), Top Gun, or the Fablemans. Not an Oscar Best Pic contender but I’m looking forward to seeing EO, the Polish movie about the circus donkey. In general I find Oscar Best Pic winners to be tedious and not worth watching a second time. Some not worth watching the first time. Many movies are too long. There are some really long movies that I find worth the extra time but usually they could cut 1/4 or 1/2 hour and make the movie better…or conversely, maybe they cut too much to make the movie run at about 2 hours and left some worthwhile part of the story on the editing room floor, but as a viewer how am I to know that?
Having been involved in a short film “festival” I found it surprising how much story can be packed into a few minutes or less, even into a few seconds. Often now I find myself at the end of a movie that I liked but didn’t love thinking about what the director/editor could have cut to make the movie better.
Anyway, Oscars are all about Hollywood. On average the best movies I’ve seen in recent years have come out of Iran. On average because it’s only about a half dozen or so but all have been excellent.