Cinéma Geek L'essentiel du cinéma d'auteur, asiatique et geek
Brave
I give it a 8/10. Pixar doing normally so well (except for the Cars franchise), I had higher expectations than what I got. This felt not very Pixar-esque, and more Disney-Without-Pixar-esque. Stunningly beautiful, but a princess story that is not bad, but not very exciting either. Technically impeccable, that hair looks amazing?
Nominated for:
Animated Feature Film
Zero Dark Thirty
I give it a 9/10. I absolutely loved that movie. I was afraid to be bathed in American patriotism, but not really. It’s more of an investigative thriller, and I could only realize the patriotism was indirectly present when Osama gets killed and I felt hyped for it. It is after all the murder of an individual, where did the feeling of success and pride come from? From great story-telling, that’s where! I would have preferred this to get the best picture instead of Lincoln, but apparently the story of this movie is in the middle of a little scandal, I’m not sure I get it (not true to the facts? or true to facts that the movie production shouldn’t know about?). I don’t personally care and I’d give this one the big prize, if a patriotic american one is felt needed after giving it to a French movie last year. Personally, I’d give it to Life of Pi.
Not many more movies to watch, if I get to see all the movie shorts, then that’s a +15 movies and the 50 target will be reached!
Nominated for:
Actress In a Leading Role
Best Picture
Film Editing
Sound Editing
Writing (Original Screenplay)
Skyfall
Nominated for :
– Cinematography
– Music (Original Score)
– Music (Original Song)
– Sound Editing
– Sound Mixing
My rank: 08/10. Exciting!!! 😀
Anna Karenina
I give it a … I can’t give a note to this, I am not objective. I almost never like historic pieces of this kind. Drama of the richest… seems like an excuse for hollywood actors to get dressed in fancy old classic dresses and uniforms. Fake characters with fake issues and dealing with them in a fake way. So artificial, so superficial. And this is no exception. Story of a woman who falls in love for the first classy man giving her attention. Call this romance, I call this immature teen drama disguised as something supposedly romantic. It’s not because they are in a classic decor and costumes that this story is more interesting. Yawn.
Nominated for:
Cinematography
Costume Design
Music (Original Score)
Production Design
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPGLRO3fZnQ
Moonrise Kingdom
(This was the first review written for the Oscars of 2013 movies) So it’s Oscar season again, here are my serie of short reviews helping me to track what I’ve watched in movies that may or may not be nominated (we’ll know only at the end of January). I start with a movie that came out a while back, but it’s a movie that left such a great impression, and which I believe the Academy could be sympathetic with.
I give it a 10/10. An amazing Wes Anderson movie that feels even better when you’ve seen the rest of his movies, my favorite so far. You can see his touch in perfect continuity with what he’s done before, even adding a cartoonish element that reminds Fantastic Mr. Fox. It’s pretty, vintage, cute, funny, classy, great acting, great direction, great everything, it’s like eating a gummy bear for the first time. It’s splendid.
– Nominated for Writing (Original Screenplay)
Hobbit
I give it a 09/10. If you loved LOTR you’re gonna love this too. Feels quite at home to get back to the Shire and the Middle Earth, slicing goblins and orcs. Certainly will be nominated for some technical stuff, but I think everyone will be careful and wait if it’s all good until the end of the third movie before directing and scenario nominations are drawn.
Nominated for:
Makeup and Hairstyling
Production Design
Visual Effects
Seven Psychopaths
My rank: 09/10. Sadly I doubt this will be nominated, but this is still great filmmaking. I was curious what the director of In Bruges would do as a second movie, I had loved that first one so much. Well he’s done another awesome movie that balances comedy, gangster, vulgarity, and all of that while doing a movie that you could also say is intelligent and somewhat… spirited? Don’t get fooled by the title, you’ll be laughing the whole time, not scary at all.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qu40LrQUIhc
Beasts of the Southern Wild
I give it a 8/10. Based on the trailer, I was expecting more magical elements than the metaphoric aurochs, but the movie served a deep and realistic movie about a child facing tremendous changes and challenges by herself in her world ravaged by Katrina. A bit like Winter’s Bones was (and Precious too in some aspects), there is a social statement showing a side of the american people that is rarely shown in movies, the world of the very poor and uneducated. It’s tough at parts, sometimes cute, emotionally tense and, I would say, draining. The girl is awesome, she’s six years old and the movie lies on her shoulders alone and she’s always spot on. Tremendous accomplishment by a young director as well, I hope it gets one Oscar statue, no matter which one, although Writing is the least unlikely to win.
Nominated for:
Actress In a Leading Role
Best Picture
Directing
Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZF7i2n5NXLo
War Witch ou Rebèle
I give it a 8/10. This movie (A Québec production!) made me think of Beasts of the Southern Wild a lot. Story of a little girl that goes through changes forced upon everyone in her village and losing her parents, forced to face life alone. This mixed with a bit of magic / metaphorical images, here being ghosts instead of aurochs. War context instead of natural disaster. I wouldn’t say they are a copy of each other, but they can be strangely paralleled and compared. This one is great as well, fascinating to witness events of that world that with such a drastic difference of level of development compared to us.
Nominated for:
Foreign Language Film
Wreck-It Ralph
– Nominated for Animated Feature Film –
My rank: 08/10. Very likely to get a slot for best animated movie, not sure on the chances to win. It’s very nice entertainment, funny from beginning to end, family friendly in that it’s good for adults and and safe for kids. Lots of treats for videogames geeks too. The end is very much Disney-like, you never fear the good ones will actually succeed perfectly at everything, and that’s somewhat …plain? Loved how they animated the 8 bits characters the Wreck it Ralph game (everyone but Ralph and Felix).