Her an Oscar Hopeful

Her
Director: Spike Jonze
Stars: Joaquin Phoenix, Scarlett Johansson, Amy Adams
Genre: Drama, Romance, Sci-fi

Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix) "just" went through a rough divorce. Now feeling very lonely and sad he doesn't have much contact with outsiders of any type. After a lonely stroll through a mall he comes across a brand new Operating System (OS). Theodore gets the OS in the first few moments with talking to the OS it  names it self Samantha (Scarlett Johansson). Samantha is an OS system that is more friendly and very human like. After a few instances Theodore and Samantha seem to fall in love with the other. Each of them showing different things the other has never seen or experienced before. Can love with a OS system really last? Or does the ever growing mind of an OS system out grow the mind of a full grown adult?

Her is gorgeous. The cinematography has such a soft mood there are a lot of pastel colors that I really enjoyed. Then entire movie has excellent acting even from Scarlett Johansson who does just the voice of the OS system. Her is set in a not to distance future the writers never tell you when exactly its set in, which is nice. It has this sort of whimsical wonder thinking that this could be coming soon in real life. Everything is so clean in ever scene. Spike Jonze went with really specific colors. There is a large absent of the color blue its mostly warm colors and earthy tones. I for one really want to play the video game that Theodore was playing throughout the whole film. Which actually could be deeper to the story then one may think.

8/10

Nominations
Best Original Screen Play
Best Achivment in Production Design
Best Original Song
Best Score
Best Picture

In best original screen play Spike Jonze is going up against, Bob Nelson (Nebraska) David O. Russell & Eric Warren Singer (American Hustle) Woody Allen (Blue Jasmine), Craig Borton & Melisa Wallack (Dallas Buyers Club). Her has been winning a lot of critics choice stuff for best original screen play it won a Golden Globe for best screen play. I feel Her could take this one home. Its a magnificent screen play such a well crafted original story that is so out of the ordinary its down right brilliant. The section is up against some tough contenders all of the writing is very good. The king of Oscar Nominations is nominated Woody Allen who has been nominated a whopping 30+ times for different mediums in films. I think Woody Allen is his biggest rival this year. The thing that has Spike a head of the rest is that we have all seen movies like the others before, maybe not Nebraska as much, but the other three aren't that super original. Yes Her is a love story it follows a lot of the love story plots but in its own special way Her is completely different.

Much like a lot of the other films Her is nominated with Production Design will be a battle. Its going up against, American Hustle, Gravity, The Great Gatsby, and 12 Years A Slave. Her had some great production design the future LA setting was great, the fake rail way system was a cool idea and a few LA firends are hoping that a railway system like that can become a reality. The one design aspect that sticks out to most people that I have talked to about Her is the choice in pants that all the men are wearing. Its a real, I don't know how to put it but eclectic way of dressing that is for sure. Potentially Her could take this award home other wise 12 Years a Slave is also a hottie in this category.

The original song for her is called "The Moon Song" it was writing by Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and the film writer Spike Jonze. Its going up against, Pharrell Williams who wrote "Happy" for Despicable Me 2 Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez for the song "Let It Go" for Frozen, and U2 who wrote "Ordinary Love" for Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom. There was a fifth nomination for the film "Alone Yet Not Alone" but it was revoked due to some sort of foul play with the head of the music section of the academy. Not sure exactly what happened at this moment.  Much like last year a superstar musician won, Adele for Skyfall. I believe that U2 will win over the others. The Academy like superstars its just simple like that.

Best original is going to go to Her,Gravity, The Book Thief, Philomena or Saving Mr. Banks. None of these scores really stood out to me to be that amazing. I actually think 12 Years A Slave got a little snubbed in this category that had a really good sound track. I think this will go to Gravity instead of Her. What Gravity does to have to score fit so well with the film is great, it helps a lot with the spitefulness of it a lot and they both complement each other perfectly.  

Dallas Buyer Club: Oscar Hopeful

Dallas Buys Club
Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Jared Leto, Jennifer Garner
Director: Jean-marc Vallee
Genera: Drama

Dallas Buyers Club follows the true life story of Ron Woodroof (McConaughey) a lady killing, drinking oil rig working of a man. After a trip to the hospital caused by a work accident the doctor informs him that he is HIV positive and has AIDS. After fall outs with his friends and a few trips to the hospital Ron meets a transgender named Rayon (Jared Leto). With legal HIV and AIDS drug in the US not helping anyone that much, Ron and Rayon create a plan to take legal Mexican HIV and AIDS drugs and bring them over the boarder to the states to sell. But to beat the law they aren't selling the drugs per say. What the two are selling is memberships. Memberships to a club in which you get all the free drugs you want. Will the plan be successful or will they meet their demise with the hand of the law?

7/10

Nominations
Best Writing Original Screen Play
Best Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling
Best Achievement in Film Editing
Best Supporting Actor (Jared Leto)
Best Lead Actor (Matthew McConaughey)
Best Motion Picture of the Year

Iv been saying it on Twitter and to all my friends "all hail the Mcconanssiance". McConaughey has had such an amazing last couple of years with great roles in films like, Mud, Magic Mike, The Wolf of Wall Street and even in TV with the new series True Detective. It seems he has really hit his stride in acting. He is going up against the likes of Leonardo DiCaprio (The Wolf of Wall Street) , Bruce Dern (Nebraska), Christian Bale (American Hustle) and Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave) . I have yet to see 12 Years A Slave but have heard no body bad mouthing Chiwetel. Its a tough year for lead actors. Its going to be a real surprise to see who wins, all of these men deserve it. Its hard to pick myself but to say to my self Id prefer to see McConaughey take it. He certainly deserves it, its real powerful transformation in the movie that Ron Woodroof goes through and McConaughey portrays it perfectly.

For best supporting actor it comes down to two people in this race, Jared Leto and Barkhad Abdi (Captian Phillips). Also in this race, Bradley Cooper (American Hustle), Michael Fassbender (12 Years a Slave) and Jonah Hill (The Wolf of Wall Street) I say it comes down to these two because Barkhad Abdi stole the show from Hanks in Captain Phillips. This Samilian taxi driver from Minneapolis with no acting experience answers an add in a local news paper for a casting call. The fact that he actually acts so well in it is something amazing and is such a rarity. Leto did do his best i'v ever see him do, he dressed as a women in tight clothes, he cries, he laughs. Leto's character is so wholesome on screen its truly brilliant how Jared really became Rayon. I do feel however that this will possibly go to Abdi. I feel that the Academy will take notice in the fact that he acted so perfectly with no previous acting experience. However if it is someone else besides Abdi it will be Leto.

Best achivement in make up and hairstyle this year is a weird one. Dallas Buyers Club is going up against, Bad Grandpa and The Lone Ranger. Surprised American Hustle did not get a nomination in this category for the job they did on Bradley Cooper's curls. I have yet to watch Bad Grandpa or The Lone Ranger. Judging from previews pictures and articles iv seen this could be a tough one for Dallas Buyers Club. Johnny Knoxville as the grandpa is pretty flawless, i'v always felt that way when any of the Jackass people do the old person shtick. It will probably come down to Dallas Buyers Club or Bad Grandpa in this one.

I'm not sure exactly how to judge film editing to tell you the truth. Dallas Buyers Club is going up against Gravity, American Hustle, Captain Phillips, and 12 Years a Slave. I have strong feelings towards Gravity I think that will take home the award or possibly 12 Years a Slave. These are just guesses from what I think film editing is all about. Sorry for the lack of depth in this section. I will try and do some reading up on what this category is all about.

Unfortunately, I don't see Dallas Buyers Club getting the best picture award. It was a great film super powerful everyone should definitely check it out. Everyone is well aware by now that it is going to one of three films Gravity (my personal choice), American Hustle, or 12 Years a Slave.

Pre Oscar Nominations

The 86th Oscar nominations are tomorrow morning (1-16-14), so technically today. With the Golden Globes last Sunday it gave us a pretty good idea of what maybe nominated in only a few hours (730am central time). I will be one of those people who will wake up early in anticipation to watch them. Yes to some 730 am isn't all that early. But hell most of the time the earliest I work is 10am anything before 9am to me, is early. Luckily I don't have to work till 1 in the afternoon tomorrow so I can take a nap after if needed. But I will probably be to amped over everything. A real life question about all this Oscar stuff is, should I have a viewing party or not of the actual Oscars? Below this paragraph is a few of my predictions for tomorrow. A lot of this is just speculation from things I'v heard in reviews and interviews, podcasts and that stuff. I haven't watched a few of these movies yet.

Supporting Actress.
Jennifer Lawrence- American Hustle
Lupita Nyong'o- 12 Years A Slave
June Squibb- Nebraska
Sally Hawkins- Blue Jasmine
Tough to say who would take that last spot. Julia Roberts, Jennifer Gardner, Oprah, Scarlett Johansson????

Supporting Actor
Jared Leto- Dallas Buyers Club
Barkhad Abdi- Captain Phillips
Michael Fassbender- 12 Years A Slave
Bradley Cooper- American Hustle
Jonah Hill- Wolf of Wall Street

Lead Actress
Sandra Bullock- Gravity
Amy Adams- American Hustle
Kate Blanchett- Blue Jasmine
Emma Thompson- Saving Mr. Banks
Meryl Streep- August: Osage County

Lead Actor
Tom Hanks- Captain Phillips
Leonardo DiCaprio- Wolf of Wall Street
Christian Bale- American Hustle
Matthew McConaughey- Dallas Buyers Club
Chiwetel Ejiofor- 12 Years A Slave

Original Screen Play
Bob Nelson- Nebraska
Woody Allen- Blue Jasmine
Spike Jonze- Her
Eric Singer & David O.Russell- American Hustle
Alfonso & Jonas Cuaron- Gravity

Adapted Screen Play
Terence Winter- Wolf of Wall Street
John Ridley- 12 Years A Slave
Steve Coogan- Philomena
Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy & Ethan Hawke- Before Midnight
Billy Ray- Captain Phillips

Director
Alfons Cuaron- Gravity
Steve McQueen- 12 Years A Slave
Martin Scorsese- Wolf of Wall Street
David O.Russell- American Hustle
Spike Jonze-Her

Picture
Gravity
12 Years A Slave
Wolf of Wall Street
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Nebraska
Her
Dallas Buyers Club
Blue Jasmine

I would really like to see Bruce Dern get a lead actor nomination for Nebraska. To be honest I don't think Tom Hanks should really get a nomination. Lets get for real, its only for the last five minuets of Captain Phillips and that is not how the Academy should be nominated people. But they might think the same way I feel and I bet a lot of other people feel.

It would also be cool to see Louis Ck get a supporting nomination for American Hustle. He wasn't in it a whole lot but when he was I thought it was fantastic. If anyone is going to get a supporting nomination for Hustle though it will be Bradley Cooper.

If Scarlett Johansson gets a nomination I'm going to shit bricks. She has received a few critics choice nomination which is awesome. A nomination for only a voice actor would really pave the way for people like Andy Serkis a CGI actor to hopefully start getting nomination. Even though it should be the other way around.

Another actor getting critic nominations and awards that would be cool to see get a nomination is James Franco in Spring Breakers. I wouldn't be made if that movie got any nominations at all. However a movie that I would like to see not only get a lot of nomination but even win a lot of awards is Mud. That was my favorite movie that came out in 2014 it was amazing 98% on Rotten Tomatoes, McConuaghey was brilliant, Tye Sheridan did such a stand up job, writing was amazing. The only problem with Mud was it came out to early. It lost a lot of its buzz way before the award season even started which is so tragic.

Well those are my thoughts and picks on tomorrows Oscar nominations. Lets see how wrong I will be, OR right maybe?

ps, I'm sorta super tired so unfortunately, I don't really feel like proof reading. Im sorry if there are a lot of writing screw ups. I would work on it a little more but Iv been busy with other stuff than trying to put together my picks for the oscars. Please don't hate me and come on back.

A list of my top 25 favorite movies.

The other day my brother in law ask me a simple question. "What are you top favorite 25 movies of all time?". Seemed simple enough to answer I thought. I sure was wrong. It was extremely hard not only to remember all these great movies I love but to put them in a ranked list. Everyone has there favorite 5 on lock to tell at parties those five were easy, but what about beyond that? Eight list later I think I have my list down. For now.. Here it is and also my  Brother in law's lists. I also put in there Rotten Tomatoes score.

Jacob's list.
25. Alien: 97%
24. Gangs of New York: 75%
23. Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy: 60%
22. Reservoir Dogs: 92%
21. Midnight Cowboy: 88%
20. The Incredibles: 97%
19. Watchmen: 64%
18. Shawshank Redemption 90%
17. Behind the Candelabra: 95%
16. Inglorious Bastards: 89%
15. Beginners: 84%




14. Saving Private Ryan: 92%
13. Looper: 93%
12. Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World: 81%
11. The Departed: 92%
10. Lord of the Rings, The Two Towers: 96%
09. Goodfellas: 97%
08. The Shinning: 92%
07. Jurassic Park: 93%
06. Star Wars, Return of the Jedi: 79%
05. Dark Knight: 94
04. Star Wars, Empire Strikes Back: 96%
03. 2001: A Space Odyssey: 97%
02. There will be Blood: 91%
01. Star Wars, A New Hope: 93%











Matt's list.
25.X-Men: 82%
24. The Hobbit: 65%
23. The Matrix: 87%
22. Anchor Man, The Legend of Ron Burgandy: 66%
21. Wedding Crashers: 75%
20. Harry Potter, Order of the Phoenix
19. Back to the Future: 96%
18. Pirates of the Caribbean, Curse of the Black Pearl: 79%
17. Dances with Wolves: 80%
16. Gangs of New York: 75%
15. Star Wars: Empire Strikes Back: 96%
14. Dark Knight: 94%
13. Liar Liar: 81%
12. The Last of the Mohicans: 97%
11. Braveheart: 81%
10. Lord of the Rings: Two Towers:  96%
09. Harry Potter, Deathly Hallows: 96%
08. Star Wars, Revenge of the Sith: 80%
07. Jurassic Park: 93%
06. Dumb and Dumber: 64%
05. Star Wars, Return of the Jedi 79%
04. Lord of the Rings, Return of the King: 94%
03. Spaceballs: 54%
02. Star Wars, A New Hope: 93%
01. Lord of the Rings: Fellow Ship of the Ring: 92%

Gravity: Review

Gravity

Director: Alfonso Cuaron

Stars: Sandra Bullock George Clooney

Genre: Science Fiction

      

347 miles above the solid ground of earth are Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) and Matt Kowalski (George Clooney), two astronauts working on repairing a malfunctioning part of the Hubble Space Telescope. After a catastrophic event that puts the mission in jeopardy, Dr. Stone and Kowalski try as fast as they can to quickly get back to the safety of the space shuttle, but it’s too late.  They lose radio contact with Houston, and the two astronauts are thrown around sending Dr. Stone outward into the dark depths of space. Dr. Stone and Kowalski now have a new mission: survive and get back to earth safely without drifting away into the abyss of space never to be heard from again.

Buckle up your seat belts for Gravity; it’s quite the crazy ride. Gravity definitely has spot on special effects. Alfonso and his special effects team really out did themselves by capturing the movement of particles in space. Anytime the characters would look down at earth or look up at the stars, it felt like you were looking out into space or down onto earth in real life. It was just gorgeous. A real fantastic spectacle for the eyes.  Sandra Bullock definitely acted spot on. A lot of people doubt her acting capabilities, but Gravity really shows what she can do. George Clooney didn't act badly by any means whatsoever; it just seemed that he wasn’t really acting at all. He was just kind of being George Clooney, which is never a bad thing. No? If you met George for a drink some Saturday night he would probably act the same way as he did in Gravity. It definitely did not take away from the film in any way, it was just something my friends and I noticed. Alfonso Cuaron was brilliant when making Gravity. A lot of work went into it.  When he was filming, he had to measure out each scene to look as authentic as possible. He worked really well with the actors and special effects team to make it the most visually entertaining and gorgeous film for us. Alfonso Cuaron really knows what needs to be done when making a film. There is sadness, happiness, and loneliness all right there for you in Gravity throughout the entirety of the film.

I’m normally not the one racing to the 3D theater, but this time I thought, "Heck, why not see this movie in 3D? It looks like it could be fun." I was correct. I’m not sure if it was because I saw it at the IMAX, or if Alfonso Cuaron just knows how to make a 3D movie. Either way, I was definitely pleased with the choice to pay the extra money to see it in 3D. The action sequences were not overpowering, and there were not too many things flying off the screen at your face. When there were, it didn't feel forced because they were in space. Also, it did not make me feel sick.

9/10

Prisoners: Review

PRISONERS

Director: Denis Villeneuve 

Stars: Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Paul Dano

Genre: Crime/Drama/Thriller 

 It's Thanksgiving morning. Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman), his wife, son and young daughter are going to eat a Thanksgiving Day meal with Franklin Birch (Terrance Howard) and his wife, and two daughters. Before the meal, the four kids go on a walk in the neighborhood, and a mysterious RV is parked outside a house. The young girls think it is very cool and start to play on it. After being pulled off it unwillingly by Keller's son, they head back to the house to feast on all the great food that is prepared for Thanksgiving. After the meal, the families are lounging, and the two young girls decide to go play outside, this time going without the guidance of their older siblings. A few hours pass, and the girls don’t return. Keller and Franklin set out to look for them. After Keller’s son tells him about the weird RV in the neighborhood, they call the police. Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal), a cop who has solved every case he has ever been assigned, is tasked to find the two little girls. After an arrest on Alex Jones (Paul Dano), the family thinks they can rest a little easier. However, no charges are made on Alex, and forty-eight hours later, he is released. Keller, who is distraught over his missing daughter, decides to take matters into his own hands, while detective Loki follows other leads he has come across.

Make sure to bring a jacket to this one. It's cold, and not just outside. Prisoners had this whole dark, wet, cold theme going on the whole time. For instance, it was raining for most of the film. Prisoners has really good acting throughout its entirety; I definitely would not be surprised to see Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal get nominated for their rolls this coming award season. Jackman really brought out the inner chaos of what a father would go through if something like this were to happen to his child. Gyllenhaal seemed like an icecold Brooklyn detective who had a lot of emotion invested in finding the two missing girls. The story was really well told; I was shivering on the edge of my seat the entire time. At times one may think that it takes a weird turn in to something you might not like but it all comes out to one hell of a ride. The score for Prisoners did not stand out to me as something that is making the scene more intense. It was the acting that really made me feel how suspenseful this movie really was. This is something that is very hard to do; not a lot of movies can pull this off. Argo, for example, pulled this off last year. Prisoners is definitely worth a watch, whether you choose to see it in a theater or rent it. Seeing it on TV one afternoon would definitely take away from the story.

8/10

Prince Avalanche: Review

PRINCE AVALANCHE                      

Director: David Gordon Green

Stars: Paul Rudd, Emile Hirsch

Genera: Comedy/Drama

Alvin (Paul Rudd) and Lance (Emile Hirsch) are two city road workers, working on the last parts of a new highway after a fire ripped through the area, painting lines and replacing reflector polls. Alvin and Lance are out there alone with only themselves and their deepest thoughts. The two characters clash with differences; Alvin is a hard working solitude loving man who hirers his girlfriend’s brother, Lance. Lance is a party loving socialite who doesn’t do well with the quiet isolation of the wild. The characters have their head-butting matches and comedy ensues. But, this is not just a simple slapstick comedy. ‘Prince Avalanche’ has some heart in there. As a coming of age tale, it shows you that no matter how you may think you have your life planned out everyone could still have some growing up to do.

Prince Avalanche had some fantastic cinematography: a lot of the scene splitting cuts looked like something out of a Redbull produced snowboard video; very gorgeous and beautiful surroundings. The writing is quite clever. Really take notice in the beauty of the characters' movements and the subtle actions that they use in each scene. A lot of scenes aren’t about the spoken jokes but about what all is happening in the specific shot. Emile and Paul have great chemistry on screen together; its literally like Paul Rudd hired his girl friend’s bonehead brother to work with him.

All in all I was a real big fan of this film. It was funny well put together easy on the eyes. There was a few parts that didn’t make sense and I’m not sure if I just missed something or if that just the way it was.

7/10

Side note: Once I went to a meet up to meet Olan Rodgers that man from Balloonshop fame and before meeting him I went to a comic book store and they had ‘Prince Avalanche’ poster so I took on and had Olan sign it. He seemed kind of offended at first. That was before I saw the movie and now I kind of wish he wouldn’t have signed it because the poster looks pretty cool and everyone who looks at it will say who singed it and I’ll have to tell a boring story. Boring to the listener, pretty neat to me.