&quot;No good movie is too long and no bad movie is short enough.&quot; -Roger Ebert

February 23, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

LIFE OF PI BEST PICTURE As strong of a film as “Life Of Pi” is, I do not see it winning Best Picture. In my opinion it’s down to “Argo” and “Lincoln”, with one of them taking the major award. But that doesn’t mean “Life Of Pi” won’t clean up. It’s going to win several awards out of its eleven nominations and it will … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [31] Life Of Pi – Eleven Nominations

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [30] No – One Nomination

February 22, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

NO As much as I enjoyed “No”, it never quite felt like an Academy Award worthy film, with its strange film quality. The story, however, did come off very Oscar friendly, bring a social injustice to light in a unique and humorous way. Gael Garcia Bernal also carries the film, adding a flair and familiar face to the Chilean film. Will it win? Not … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [30] No – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [29] Skyfall – Five Nominations

SKYFALL BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY All I have to say is that this better be Roger Deakins’ year. He’s been nominated ten times now (complete list) and has never won a single Academy Award. Now, he has another shot this year with one of my favorite films of 2012, “Skyfall”, made immensely more enjoyable by the amazing cinematography. With a grandness and epic sense to the … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [29] Skyfall – Five Nominations

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2013 Oscars Challenge: Short Film #5: Maggie Simpson in the Longest Daycare

MAGGIE SIMPSON IN THE LONGEST DAYCARE “The Longest Daycare” is a nice, wholesome, and complete story fit into a short. Depicting the character of Maggie Simpson, from the long running television series, as she faces a butterfly killing bully at daycare, this short also covers the range of emotions needed for connection. The main problem I have with this short and its chances of … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: Short Film #5: Maggie Simpson in the Longest Daycare

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2013 Oscars Challenge: Short Film #4: Fresh Guacamole

FRESH GUACAMOLE The shortest animated film of the category, “Fresh Guacamole” uses stop animation to depict two hands making a dip out of the most random of objects like a bomb, dice, and Christmas lights. What is lacking from “Fresh Guacamole” is any sort of connection or emotions. Sure, these aren’t required to produce a successful short, but this short lacks ingenuity or originality, … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: Short Film #4: Fresh Guacamole

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2013 Oscars Challenge: Short Film #3: Adam And Dog

ADAM AND DOG Next to “Paperman”, this is my second favorite animated short of the year, depicting a curious dog roaming around a new world filled with dinosaurs and open fields, when he happens upon the first man, presumably Adam. They share their time together, keeping each other (silently) company until the first female (can we assume Eve) shows up. There are strong Biblical … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: Short Film #3: Adam And Dog

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2013 Oscars Challenge: Short Film #2: Head Over Heels

HEAD OVER HEELS Reminiscent of Pixar’s “Up”, “Head Over Heels” delivers a short animated film about an aging couple forced to live upside from one another. The love is dwindling in their relationship as they hurdle through space, but it takes some innovative thinking and a lot of heart to bring these two together. There were really too many parallels between this short and … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: Short Film #2: Head Over Heels

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [28] Django Unchained – Five Nominations

February 15, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

DJANGO UNCHAINED BEST PICTURE Despite Roger Ebert placing this film high on the films to win Best Picture, “Django Unchained” doesn’t have much of a chance. If we think “Argo” is a tough call due to the lack of a Best Directing nomination, “Django” must be placed below that. Meaning it will have defy even more than “Argo” to win. That being said, it … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [28] Django Unchained – Five Nominations

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [27] The Sessions – One Nomination

February 15, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

THE SESSIONS Nominated Role: Helen Hunt plays Cheryl, a sex surrogate who is hired by a polio survivor to help him lose his virginity. Oddly enough, Helen Hunt received the only nomination from the film “The Sessions” despite John Hawkes, the real star of the film, missing out on his nomination. Granted the competition was tough this year in the Best Actor category, and … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [27] The Sessions – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [26] Zero Dark Thirty – Five Nominations

February 15, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

ZERO DARK THIRTY BEST PICTURE Before the Oscar nominations were announced, “Zero Dark Thirty” was the strong leader for Best Picture per general consensus in the critics circles, topping the ranks of over half the countries critics. But then the nominations were announced and the slander campaign began for Kathryn Bigelow’s latest film, bringing the question of authenticity to the table. Despite these remarks, … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [26] Zero Dark Thirty – Five Nominations

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [25] The Gatekeepers – One Nomination

February 11, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

THE GATEKEEPERS With two foreign documentaries making the cut this year, “The Gatekeepers” is probably the strongest of the two as far as the Academy is concerned. Both have a strong political front, with “5 Broken Cameras” shot guerrilla style while “The Gatekeepers” stays grounded in interviews and format, even breaking the film into chapters. Perhaps I related more with “5 Broken Cameras”, because … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [25] The Gatekeepers – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [24] The Master – Three Nominations

February 6, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

THE MASTER BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE Nominated Role: Joaquin Phoenix plays Freddie Quell, an alcoholic World War II veteran who turns for help to the founder of a controversial group known as The Cause. As much as Joaquin Phoenix has fallen off the deep end as of late, with the whole mock-umentary debacle that hovered over our lives for almost a year, … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [24] The Master – Three Nominations

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [23] Flight – Two Nominations

February 6, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

FLIGHT BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE Nominated Role: As Whip Whitaker, Denzel Washington plays a pilot with a substance abuse problem whose life changes after he performs a daring maneuver during an airliner crash. Denzel Washington delivers a tortured performance worthy of an Academy Award. Unfortunately, there’s not going to be a third win for Denzel this year, the first two being “Glory” … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [23] Flight – Two Nominations

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [22] Hitchcock – One Nomination

February 2, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

HITCHCOCK The best part of the Oscar season is when a film like “Hitchcock” gets nominated for an Academy Award. One of the only surprising nominations of the year, the film really does have great use of Makeup and Hairstyling. Immersing Anthony Hopkins into the visage of Alfred Hitchcock is no simple task, but on-screen, you tend to forget you are watching an actor … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [22] Hitchcock – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [21] Kon-Tiki – One Nomination

February 2, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

KON-TIKI One of the strongest and most elaborate Foreign Languages I can ever remember, I cannot believe “Kon-Tiki” is not being talked about more. If “Amour” hadn’t acquired 4 nominations including Best Foreign Language Film, Best Directing, Best Screenplay, and Best Picture, I would have to argue that “Kon-Tiki” could rival it. Being Norway’s highest grossing film this year and becoming the first Norwegian … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [21] Kon-Tiki – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [20] Silver Linings Playbook – Eight Nominations

January 31, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK BEST PICTURE The Oscars are never easy to predict. Sure, some categories are easier than others. There are locks, safe bets, and poor choices in all categories, but it always come down to a hand full of nominees that makes predicting hard. Following the Toronto International Film Festival and the People’s Choice Award win for “Silver Linings Playbook”, Roger Ebert predicted … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [20] Silver Linings Playbook – Eight Nominations

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [19] War Witch – One Nomination

January 24, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

WAR WITCH One foreign language film in and already I’m blown away. The seventh Canadian film ever to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language film, it would be the second to actually win, behind 2003’s “The Barbarian Invasions” from director Denys Arcand. This year director Kim Nguyen takes the nomination, with the film “War Witch” headed by Rachel Mwanza, another … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [19] War Witch – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [18] Searching For Sugar Man – One Nomination

January 24, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN Of all the films up for Best Documentary Feature, “Searching For Sugar Man” appears to be the favorite among Oscar experts. With winning producer Simon Chinn (“Man On Wire” (2008)) at the helm, this heartfelt, hybrid documentary takes you on a journey through the life of singer/songwriter Rodriguez, starting with him recording his first album, to being forgotten, to reemerging … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [18] Searching For Sugar Man – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [17] Prometheus – One Nomination

January 24, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

PROMETHEUS If the Visual Effects award was given to the film with the most use of visual effects (quantity), “Prometheus” would be the odds-on favorite. But since they must also (and should also) take into consideration is quality and creativity, the nominees earn themselves an equal playing field. However, as with any science fiction film, it’s hard to separate the film from the visual … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [17] Prometheus – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [16] Les Misérables – Eight Nominations

January 21, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

LES MISÉRABLES BEST PICTURE Sadly, despite early buzzing, “Les Misérables” lost its chance of winning Best Picture when it failed to garner both a directing nomination for Tom Hooper and an Adapted Screenplay nomination, both of which are almost a prerequisite for winning the ultimate prize for Best Picture. Since “Les Misérables” failed to reel those nominations in, it will have to settle for … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [16] Les Misérables – Eight Nominations

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [15] Beasts Of The Southern Wild – Four Nominations

January 21, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD BEST PICTURE On the morning of Oscar nomination announcements, it didn’t come as a complete surprise that “Beasts of the Southern Wild” was nominated for Best Picture. Although I was not entirely sure it would make the cut, I had a feeling that if the Best Picture nominations went to 9 or 10, that it would make it and … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [15] Beasts Of The Southern Wild – Four Nominations

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [14] Moonrise Kingdom – One Nomination

January 21, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

MOONRISE KINGDOM One of my favorite screenplays of the year, Wes Anderson has a way about writing that brings out the comedic in the most mundane of ways. Set around two runaway children and the search party of family, friends, and khaki scouts, you never quite know where a Wes Anderson comedy is going to take you, but you love the adventure it takes … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [14] Moonrise Kingdom – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [13] 5 Broken Cameras – One Nomination

January 20, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

5 BROKEN CAMERAS I believe my review says everything needed to be said about this amazing documentary. Out of the three documentaries I have viewed thus far, this is my personal pick to win, although I have a feeling the more talked about “The Invisible War” could have a better shot. REVIEW Any human being willing to put their life on the line to … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [13] 5 Broken Cameras – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: Short Film #1: Paperman

January 20, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

PAPERMAN Granted I have not seen any of the other animated shorts so far this year, it will definitely take a lot to beat out my current favorite, Disney’s short entitled “Paperman” which is playing before screenings of the feature “Wreck-It Ralph”. Telling the silent, black-and-white (for the most part) love story of two strangers passing by and eventually being led to find one … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: Short Film #1: Paperman

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [12] Wreck-It Ralph – One Nomination

January 20, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

WRECK-IT RALPH As far as I’m concerned, “Wreck-It Ralph” breaks the mold of your run-of-the-mill animated features, delivering on all accounts, not only with impressive, well-known talent voice acting, but with a heartfelt, yet always comical story involving characters both that we know from our childhood like Pac-Man and Sonic the Hedgehog, along with new characters that still resemble familiar characters. Also, as far … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [12] Wreck-It Ralph – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [11] Snow White and the Huntsman – Two Nominations

January 17, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN BEST VISUAL EFFECTS The visual effects category could be a tough egg to crack this year. With such amazing films falling into the category this year, it could be a tough call for all the films involved. Creating something from nothing is an art in itself and any film that can do so effectively and throughout an entire film, … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [11] Snow White and the Huntsman – Two Nominations

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [10] Marvel’s The Avengers – One Nomination

January 15, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

MARVEL’S THE AVENGERS As far as visual effects go, if superhero films didn’t at least invent them, they sure as hell reinvented them. And “Marvel’s The Avengers” is no different. Creating an Incredible Hulk that resembles Mark Ruffalo, an alien race that invades Manhattan, countless sets and set pieces, including a hovering carrier ship, the Stark tower, and the Tesseract; all of these make … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [10] Marvel’s The Avengers – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [9] How To Survive A Plague – One Nomination

HOW TO SURVIVE A PLAGUE “How To Survive A Plague” appears to be the little documentary that could, with no real connection to any awards in the past, yet a spot in the final five competing for Best Documentary Feature. Comparable to “The Invisible War” in that it currently has a 100% rating on the movie reviews site Rotten Tomatoes, what the film doesn’t … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [9] How To Survive A Plague – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [8] Ted – One Nomination

TED Whether you believe Seth MacFarlane’s buddy comedy about a talking bear was nominated because Seth is hosting the Oscars this year is irrelevant, as the Best Original Song category has recently been in shambles anyhow. So, “Ted” getting nominated in this category is equal to “The Muppets” winning last year, and at least there are five nominees this year. That being said, “Ted” … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [8] Ted – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [7] The Impossible – One Nomination

THE IMPOSSIBLE Nominated Role: As Maria, Naomi Watts portrays a wife and mother struggling to survive in the aftermath of a terrifying tsunami. There are two cases to be made for Naomi Watts’ performance in “The Impossible” and whether she deserves her first Academy Awards win (nominated only once in 2003 for her leading role in “21 Grams”). The first case is that she … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [7] The Impossible – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [6] The Invisible War – One Nomination

THE INVISIBLE WAR You know Kirby Dick from the documentary “This Film Is Not Yet Rated”, but he was once nominated for Best Documentary Feature for his film “Twist Of Faith” in 2005, about a man who confronts the Catholic church regarding his childhood abuse. Needless to say, “Born Into Brothels” won that year (“Super Size Me” was that year as well), which left … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [6] The Invisible War – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [5] Brave – One Nomination

BRAVE If you look at the statistics of Pixar winning awards, the results are staggering. Pixar has earned 26 Academy Awards, seven Golden Globe Awards, and eleven Grammy Awards, including six Best Animated Feature Awards (“Finding Nemo”, “The Incredibles”, “Ratatouille”, “WALL-E”, “Up”, and “Toy Story 3”). So to say “Brave” shouldn’t be at the top of your list for Best Animated Feature is ill-advised. … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [5] Brave – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [4] Frankenweenie – One Nomination

FRANKENWEENIE “Frankenweenie” cleaned up at the critics awards this year, alongside “ParaNorman” as the overall favorite of the year. But will this translate into an Oscar or will Pixar’s “Brave” take the top prize like we know it should. Whatever ends up taking Best Animated Feature, no one can take away Tim Burton’s passion project about a boy’s best friend, Sparky, the dog, which … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [4] Frankenweenie – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [3] Mirror Mirror – One Nomination

January 13, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

MIRROR MIRROR Posthumously nominated, Eiko Ishioka is up for an Oscar for Best Costume Design for her work on Tarsem Singh’s Snow White adaptation, “Mirror Mirror”. Although I completely agree with the nomination, with some of the strongest costumes of 2012, the film itself is disastrous. But the brilliance of the costumes helps to at least accentuate the beauty of the film, if nothing … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [3] Mirror Mirror – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [2] ParaNorman – One Nomination

January 13, 2013 + 2013 Oscars Challenge

PARANORMAN Consider 2012 the year of stop animated films, with three of the five nominations for Best Animated Feature going to that genre of animation. With overlapping techniques and themes, including the horror genre in both “ParaNorman” and “Frankenweenie”, and the strong influence of the subject of science in both the “Frankenweenie” and “The Pirates! Band Of Misfits”, it might be a tough call … Read More 2013 Oscars Challenge: [2] ParaNorman – One Nomination

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2013 Oscars Challenge: [1] The Pirates! Band Of Misfits – One Nomination