20 Feb 2013

Movies, movies and more movies!

Woah! Turns out I've seen quite a few movies in the past couple of weeks! Blame Oscar season... so many promising movies out all at once (after months of only so-so fare), I'm afraid I'm binging! No sign of it stopping either, still got a few more to see before the "big" night! :p


Who knew legal shenanigans in Congress could be so interesting??? Having them done by such fantastic actors with great dialogue probably helps... Legal and political dialogue my dad would have found easier to follow had it been in English... The Gettysburg Address (very original way of including it in there!) definitely sounded weird in Spanish! I think pretty much everything there is to say about this movie has been said in a hundred different places (fabulous Spielberg, Oscar-worthy Daniel Day Lewis and Tommy Lee Jones and Sally Field, beautifully filmed etc.). I'll just add that I thought it was quite interesting that they chose to show a different theatre for the moment we all knew was coming! Tears were unavoidable. Definitely a MUST SEE!


I don't quite know how to describe this movie... can't find the right words. Although a romantic comedy (so we know how it's going to end the moment it begins), it's sweet and quirky and simply feels "different"! It reminds me a lot of Benny and Joon (albeit less "innocent"), probably because both sets of lead characters are dealing with some form of mental illness. He's definitely a modern Pollyana! Anyhow, it feels very real. It's funny, sweet and sometimes surprisingly tense. The actors (Bradley Cooper, Robert de Niro and the fantastic Jennifer Lawrence) were amazing and the story is a lot of fun. Oh, and loved their dance routine! My verdict: Go see it!


A little break from the Oscar-heavy season for a little cops vs gangsters action. This one felt like it wanted to be a film noir, without quite succeeding. Based on the true tale of a group of cops (led by Josh Brolin) in the 1930s in Los Angeles who confront a mob boss (fantastic Sean Penn!) guerilla style, taking on various aspects of his operation quite violently. All done anonymously to protect themselves from the mob and corrupt cops and politicians whose pockets have been greased. Very intense, dark and violent. Good acting, but very predictable story and just not worth the whole deal of heading out to the cinema. Better wait to rent the dvd...
Side note: anyone remember when Josh Brolin was a Goonie?! Lifetime ago!!! He's unrecognisable now... For some reason that thought got stuck in my head during the movie and was very distracting! :p


Beasts of the Southern Wild
Winner of last year's Sundance festival, this film is definitely unlike anything else you'll see up on the screen these days! It's brutally real in its portrayal of a small community that lives in the "Bathtub", an area of Louisiana bayou above the New Orleans levees shortly before Katrina. It's a whole different world, right on the doorstep of one of the US's most fascinating cities. Seen through the eyes of the adorable little Hushpuppy who's got a very vivid imagination. It's harsh and sad and lovely. Go see it, but you probably won't want to see it a second time.
Oscar trivia: young Quvenzhané Wallis is the youngest best actress nominee EVER! (she was 5 when she got the part)


Broken City
This looked more interesting than it turned out to be. I don't quite know how to say what was wrong... other than it lacked a certain "spark"! I was hoping for more with those amazing actors involved! (Mark Wahlberg, Russell Crowe, Catherine Zeta Jones, Kyle Chandler) *sigh* I guess the story of ex-cop turned private-eye and a corrupt politician (who hires the PI to spy on his wife) just doesn't inspire me anymore. Another one to wait for the dvd, if that.



I still need to catch Amour and I'll be done with the Best Picture nominees. Will definitely find the time before Sunday night! Was also thinking about watching Flight and The Master so I could check out the performances (acting nominations galore!)...But The Master came and went in the blink of an eye, and everything I hear about Flight says "great beginning but boring everything else" so I guess I'll pass.
I'll try and get some Oscar thoughts up before the big night on Sunday! I don't know how the voters were able to pick just one... I'd have a hell of a time choosing between some of the options!!!

16 comments:

  1. Silver Linings Playbookk is my pick for Best Picture :)

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    1. I think it would be deserving of the Oscar, but I don't think it will win... too off-kilter for the Academy voters. ;o)

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  2. I loved Beasts of the Southern Wild and will be seeing it a second time. Quvenzhane Wallis is amazing.

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    1. I really liked it as well, but I don't think I would watch it again. Maybe several years from now if I happened upon it...

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  3. I am so far beind. I've only seen Les Mis so far which I absolutely loved.

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    1. I make an extra effort for Oscar season! ;o)
      I'm just glad most of the "big" movies are released in Spain not too long after the US now, so I can almost definitely watch all of the big Oscar nominees! A few years ago lots of them came out after the Oscars which used to drive me nuts! :p

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  4. I want to see Lincoln. I recently read "Killing Lincoln" and it was so good.

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    1. I think you'll really enjoy it Kim!

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  5. Good job on getting through so many movies before Sunday! I am so far behind, I gave up and just added all the nominee to my Netflix queue. Maybe next year I'll get to the cinema more often.

    Can't imagine watching Lincoln in another language. I wish I could just for the experience, especially the famous speeches.

    Great post, as always!

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    1. I'll admit I go a bit movie crazy each year when Oscar-season rolls in, I go waaay more often that during the rest of the year! :p

      If you wanted you could probably try Lincoln in another language... I think DVD releases in the US have Spanish as a second language option (I've seen it on a few), so you could always switch the language and try it out! ;o)

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  6. Thanks for the reviews! I think Jennifer Lawrence and de Niro were both wonderful in Silver Linings Playbook, but I have to say that I just didn't enjoy Beasts of the Southern Wild. I saw Amour and still think about that movie, it impacted me very powerfully but I also would not see it again any time soon. It's a classic, though, and Emmanuelle Riva is also nominated, at 85! Youngest and oldest in one awards season. :-)

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    1. I'm definitely going to see Amour today (unless something comes up), tomorrow I'll be out hiking all day so this is my last chance before Oscar night!
      I thought Beasts was interesting... but not Best Picture. I would have preferred to see Moonrise Kingdom in that spot.

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  7. I've been wanting to watch a good new movie for a few days so thanks for the recommendations! :)

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    1. That's the thing about this time of year: SO MANY good options! And this year seems to have been particularly rich! :o)

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  8. Jealous! I haven't been to a movie in months. My excuse - it's winter, too cold to leave my house. LOL!

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    1. Tsk! Tsk! That's not an excuse unless the ground is covered under 2m of snow! :p

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