Oscar nominations 2008

Hello and I'm sorry for the delay in writing in my blog...but I am back! The nominations for the 2008 Oscar's were announced last Tuesday. Atonement, There Will Be Blood and No Country for Old Men were big and expected nominations. Overall, the nominations were fairly unsurprising with the above-mentioned films being selected. The best animated feature film category was a surprise not for Ratatouille and perhaps not for Surf's Up but that the lesser known Persepolis (about an Iranian girl growing up) was nominated. In my quest to see as many nominated films as possible, I already had one category completed at the time of the nomination announcement. I have seen all of the nominees for Best Original Song. My favorite nominees are for Julie Christie's amazing lead role Sarah Polley's adapted screenplay nominations for Away From Her and the best song nomination for Falling Slowly from the movie Once. Please see earlier blog entries for these movies. I will be leaving my husband for the next month for my annual "affair with Oscar" but will check in to this blog from time to time to update movie reviews and let us all hope that the writer's strike is ended so that we can all watch the glitz and glamour that i the Oscars on 2/24/08! Happy movie-watching and here is to many enthusiastic thumbs-ups!

Evening

Based on the book of the same name by Susan Minot this movie, co-written for the screen by the author and Michael Cunningham, explores the depth of relationships. Vanessa Redgrave plays Ann who is dying and travelling in and out of her memories which are shown as flashbacks to the viewers. Her real-life daughter, Natasha Richardson plays her daughter Connie that has the job, husband and family while Toni Collette plays her other daughter, Nina who is single and confused at what she should be feeling and unsure of what she really feels. During Ann's flashbacks, we learn of her best friend Lila, Lila's brother Buddy and family friend Harris played wonderfully by Patrick Wilson. Patrick played Raoul in the big screen version of Phantom of the Opera and also the married man who has an affair with Kate Winslet's character in last years Little Children. This movie made me want to run out and check out Minot's book from the library (which I did) because I could tell that there was more character depth in the book than appeared in the movie. I think this could have been a wonderful movie but alas I can only say it is OK-to-good. I felt like the director was showing me scenes to elicit emotion instead of simply letting the story draw you in by itself. This is why I can't wait to read the book. I give the movie a half-hearted thumbs up while the thumbs wait to hold the pages of the book!

Hairspray

Oh my goodness, I don't know what hurts more my cheeks from smiling or my toes from tapping. I was apprehensive to see the new movie Hairspray because I liked the original and its songs so much. I also love Grease so much that when I heard reviews that this was the "Grease for the younger generation", I felt like it was a slap in the face to my favorite. Well, after finally seeing it, the verdict is.......THEY ARE RIGHT! The songs (kudos to the amazing Marc Shaiman, who got my attention from his work with Bette Midler) were fun to dance too and the lyrics deliciously added to the screenplay. The casting of Michele Pfeiffer, Nikki Blonsky, Elijah Kelley, Queen Latifah, Amanda Bynes and especially the pairing of Christopher Walken and John Travolta as a couple was dead on and you could so tell that they were all having a blast filming. The only two drawbacks were that Brittany Snow and Zac Efron seemed like they were in awe of everyone around them and so didn't let themselves really take charge of their roles. Allison Janney was funny but the role was too small for her talent. It was wonderful to see Jerry Stiller, Ricki Lake and even John Waters himself be a part of both movies. I would gladly see this movie again. I give this two thumbs dancing to the top!

Once

The independent movie Once asks: "How often do you find the right person?" My response is in the form of a poem: Once? Many times? Is the right person, the love of your life Or the one that helped you grow through childhood Or that helped you survive a turbulent time Or to share a joyful experience what about that one person that comes along who helps to refocus your attention back to the pathways of your heart the one that helps to see into the depths of your soul the individual who reminds you of your dreams and who will help you to attain them in any way then you may fulfill those wishes and transport them into the dream world that will become your reality. Once is a unique movie in that it is told mostly through music and leaves the viewer thinking about when or if they have ever found the "right" person. I give this a thumb-strumming on the guitar upwards.

Bourne Ultimatum

This third installment to the Bourne series (Bourne Identity, Bourne Supremacy) based on the books by Robert Ludlum lives up to the other two in action. This movie keeps you on the edge of your seat from the beginning until the end. Good action scenes and good acting by David Strathairn, Joan Allen, Matt Damon and especially Albert Finney...how did he keep from flinching and stay calm with a gun pointed in his face? That man amazes me. Even though I don't much remember the specific details of the first two, I remember in the second one Jason is starting to try to figure out what is his own real history. This one picks right up wear he leaves off. The way that the CIA can tap into phone lines, building security, floor plans and everything is scary. It makes you think about that the fact that this is fiction but in the news we are constantly hearing about our rights to privacy vs our rights to national security/protection and the patriot act. The twists and turns and slight humor thrown into the screenplay makes this movie enjoyable for men and women alike. SPOILER ALERT: I wonder if there will be a fourth movie (maybe called Bourne again---thanks Em). Since Robert Ludlum's passing in March 2001, Eric Van Lustbader has continued the book series in 2007 with his novel Bourne Betrayal. Even though I like all three movies, I think the movie industry needs to start straying away from never-ending series and enjoy the fresh new talent making movies. I give Bourne Ultimatum a grabbing the end of the seat thumbs up!