Indie Gems: Everything Is Illuminated

Sammy Davis Jr. Jr.

Jonathon (Elijah Wood) travels to Ukraine in research his grandfather's past. He hires a man, Alex (Eugene Hutz) and his grandfather (Boris Leskin) to help him navigate the country and search for a woman that helped his grandfather during the Holocaust.

Elijah Wood needed a film to remind everyone that he's more than just Frodo and this is it. Wood's character is calm and collected (literally, the guy collects everything) and the film shows his range. The scene stealer however is Eugene Hutz who plays Alex with so much energy. The three main characters balance the movie well. Jonathon's passions, Alex's eccentric actions, Grandfather's heart, and of course their dog, Sammy Davis Jr. Jr.

Recommended: Yes

Grade: B

Memorable Quote: "Many girls want to be carnal with me... because I'm such a premium dancer!"


DVD Review: Like Crazy

I love you. I want you. I need you.

Jacob (Anton Yelchin) and British exchange student Anna (Felicity Jones) meet in college in California. They fall madly in love, so much that Anna ends up violating the terms of her student visa and gets herself banned from the U.S when she returns to England to visit. Jacob has a great business in LA building furniture that he doesn't want to give up, so they are forced into a long distance relationship. Over the years Jacob begins seeing Sam (Jennifer Lawrence) and Anna dates Simon (Charlie Bewley) but they still can't shake each other, and while their lives are so different now, they still try to find a way to be together.

What I liked best about this film was how invested we get in the characters. Of course at the beginning we want them to stay together and be in love, but as they grow older, get great jobs and meet other people, we want them to just be at peace and live their lives. The ending is symbolic and leaves more questions than answers. Performances were great all around, I found myself really drawn to Jennifer Lawrence's character and my heart ached for her. Its just more proof that life isn't always fair.

Recommended: Yes

Grade: B

Memorable Quote: "It's not fair to you to be with someone that isn't fully committed." - Jacob (Anton Yelchin)

Indie Gems: Sunshine Cleaning

Life's a messy business.

Cash strapped Rose (Amy Adams) finds herself in a bind when her young son gets kicked out of school. In order to afford tuition to a private school, Rose and her slacker sister Norah (Emily Blunt) start a crime scene clean up business to earn extra cash.

This is a movie that I've been putting off for a long time, but I'm really glad I finally sat down and watched it. I loved the cast, Amy and Emily are both funny and interesting leads. Small supporting roles by Alan Arkin and Steve Zahn are a nice touch, the only performance I had an issue with was Jason Spevack, who played Rose's young song. I found him to be incredibly annoying. If so many scenes of his weren't tied to Arkin's, I'd say the film would've been better off without him.

Sunshine cleaning may be predictable at parts, but it's still a sweet little film with a talented cast.

Recommended: Yes

Grade: B

Memorable Quote: "We come into these people's lives, and we help." - Rose (Amy Adams)

DVD Review: The Guard

Odd couple.

Gerry Boyle (Brendan Gleeson) is a peculiar Irish cop with an unconventional way of handling his cases. He is put to task when he must team up with an American FBI agent, Wendell Everett (Don Cheadle) to solve a murder and break up a massive drug ring.

I loved how Gleeson and Cheadle played off of each other. Sure this may have been a typical buddy cop formula but they made it special and fun. It helps that Ireland is such a beautiful country to look at. I loved the scenery. This film first came to my attention when Gleeson was nominated for a Golden Globe for his role. Deserving he was, I'm kind of disappointed I hadn't heard of it until then. My only gripe is the ending, not that there was anything wrong with it, I had just hoped for something different.

Recommended: Yes

Grade: A

Memorable Quote: "You don't know people speak Gaelic in Ireland and I'M the idoit?" - Gerry Boyle (Brenden Gleeson)



Indie Gems: The Believer

Know your enemy.

Anyone who thinks Ryan Gosling's talent came out of nowhere is sorely mistaken. This 2001 Sundance hit proves that he always had that talent, even at a young age.

Danny (Gosling) is an anti-Semitic man who's world views catch the eyes of a powerful group. The big secret is Danny is actually Jewish, and he's been fighting with his religion and self-loathing for years.

When I first started watching this film, I was afraid it would remind me too much of American History X and not be able to stand on it's own. While there were some comparisons, The Believer definitely delivered on a different level. While I say AHX is a better film, Believer really captures the conflict that Danny is having as his hides his true identity from his new group of friends. It was different for me to watch Gosling be a complete asshole at the beginning of the film, I enjoyed that change of pace. Gosling has range, and while I love watching all of his newer projects, it's nice to take a step back and look at where he came from.

Recommended: Yes

Grade: B

Memorable Quote: "How can you say all this when you, yourself are Jewish?" - Guy Danielson (A.D Miles)

Short Film Review: En forelskelse

Awakening.

Carsten (Allan Hyde) is meeting his girlfriend, Melissa's (Julie Grundtvig-Wester) parents for the first time. They are extremely laid back when it comes to their daughter's first serious relationship and welcome him with open arms. While on a vacation to their family's cabin, Carsten finds himself attracted to Melissa's father. This poses a serious threat to their relationship, and obviously confuses Carsten greatly.

I came across this film while looking through Allan Hyde's filmography. What can I say, I loved his turn as Godric in True Blood. That was the best part of season 2. Anyways, I ended up watching it on Youtube before it was taken down for copyright reasons. (damn) The film accomplished a lot in 38 minutes and was very emotionally driven. Obviously a film like this isn't going to have a happy ending, but it still was very enjoyable (and at times, uncomfortable) to watch.

This Danish film is not available on Netflix or Hulu. I hope that someone breaks Youtube's terms and conditions and uploads it again. So that more people outside of Denmark can see this.

Recommended: Yes

Grade: A

Memorable Quote: "What do you mean by man to man?" - Carsten (Allan Hyde)

2012 Academy Award Winners + My Thoughts.

I got 12/24 with my picks. Split right down the middle, holy crap that is bad. I think this is the worst I've ever done with my Oscar pics. Most of this is Hugo's fault. All and all, the show itself was pretty lackluster, but it did have some great moments. Billy Crystal was a very "meh" host to me, Chris Rock made me laugh harder in his two minutes presenting than Crystal did throughout the entire show.
My thoughts as always are printed in green.

Best Picture
"The Artist"
"The Descendants"
"Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close"
"Hugo"
"Midnight in Paris"
"The Help"
"Moneyball"
"War Horse"
"The Tree of Life"
Predicted Winner: The Artist
Actual Winner: The Artist
Part of me really hoped that The Descendants would come out on top, but I knew it wouldn't.
Best Actor
Demian Bichir, "A Better Life"
George Clooney, "The Descendants"
Jean Dujardin, "The Artist"
Gary Oldman, "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy"
Brad Pitt, "Moneyball"
Predicted Winner: Jean Dujardin
Actual Winner: Jean Dujardin

Best Actress
Glenn Close, "Albert Nobbs"
Viola Davis, "The Help"
Rooney Mara, "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
Meryl Streep, "The Iron Lady"
Michelle Williams, "My Week With Marilyn"
Predicted Winner: Viola Davis
Actual Winner: Meryl Streep
This legitimately surprised me. I thought Viola had it in the bag. I suppose the Academy felt bad that Meryl hadn't won anything since the 80's.
Best Supporting Actor
Kenneth Branagh, "My Week With Marilyn"
Jonah Hill, "Moneyball"
Nick Nolte, "Warrior"
Christopher Plummer, "Beginners"
Max Von Sydow, "Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close"
Predicted Winner: Christopher Plummer
Actual Winner: Christopher Plummer
I loved his acceptance speech. What a classy dude.


Best Supporting Actress
Berenice Bejo, "The Artist"
Jessica Chastain, "The Help"
Melissa McCarthy, "Bridesmaids"
Janet McTeer, "Albert Nobbs"
Octavia Spencer, "The Help"
Predicted Winner: Octavia Spencer
Actual Winner: Octavia Spencer
She almost had me in tears, her and Jessica Chastain who looked so genuinely happy that Ocativa won.

Best Director
Woody Allen, "Midnight in Paris"
Michel Hazanavicius, "The Artist"
Terrence Malick, "The Tree of Life"
Alexander Payne, "The Descendants"
Martin Scorsese, "Hugo"
Predicted Winner: Martin Scorses: Hugo
Actual Winner: Michel Hazanavicius.
I suppose I shouldve known that the Best Pic winner would take home Best Director, but the Academy has surprised me here before.

Best Original Screenplay
Woody Allen, "Midnight in Paris"
JC Chandor, "Margin Call"
Asghar Farhadi, "A Separation"
Michel Hazanavicius, "The Artist"
Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo, "Bridesmaids"
Predicted Winner: Midnight in Paris
Actual Winner: Midnight in Paris.
Of course Woody no showed.

Best Adapted Screenplay
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxton, Jim Rash, "The Descendants"
John Logan, "Hugo"
George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon, "The Ides of March"
Aaron Sorkin, Steven Zaillian, "Moneyball"
Bridget O'Connor, Peter Straughn, "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy"
Predicted Winner: The Descendants
Actual Winner: The Descendants
I was so happy about this! I loved that movie.

Best Animated Feature
"A Cat In Paris"
"Chico & Rita"
"Kung Fu Panda 2"
"Puss in Boots"
"Rango"
Predicted Winner: Rango
Actual Winner: Rango

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year
Bullhead (Belgium)
Footnote (Israel)
In Darkness (Poland)
Monsieur Lazhar (Canada)
A Separation (Iran)
Predicted Winner: A Seperation
Actual Winner: A Seperation

Original Score
"The Adventures of Tintin," John Williams
"The Artist," Ludovic Bource
"Hugo," Howard Shore
"Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy," Alberto Iglesias
"War Horse," John Williams
Predicted Winner: War Horse
Actual Winner: The Artist
This surprised me, mainly because I didn't find anything original about The Artist's score at all.
Best Original Song
"Man or Muppet," The Muppets; Music and Lyric by Bret McKenzie
"Real in Rio," Rio; Music by Sergio Mendes and Carlinhos Brown, Lyric by Siedah Garrett
Predicted Winner: Man or Muppet
Actual Winner: Man or Muppet

Best Achievement in Art Direction
"The Artist"
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2"
"Hugo"
"Midnight in Paris"
"War Horse"
Predicted Winner: The Artist
Actual Winner: Hugo
I should've predicted Hugo to win more things, because this is the film that totally screwed my picks.


Best Achievement in Cinematography
"The Artist"
"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
"Hugo"
"The Tree of Life"
"War Horse"
Predicted Winner: The Artist
Actual Winner: Hugo
See?

Best Achievement in Costume Design
"Anonymous"
"The Artist"
"Hugo"
"Jane Eyre"
"W.E."
Predicted Winner: The Artist
Actual Winner: The Artist

Best Documentary Feature
"Hell and Back Again"
"If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front"
"Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory"
"Pina"
"Undefeated"
Predicted Winner: Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory
Actual Winner: Undefeated.
This surprised me, because you know, Paradise Lost got three innocent men out of prison.
Best Documentary Short Subject
"The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement?"
"God Is the Bigger Elvis"
"Incident in New Baghdad"
"Saving Face"
"The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom"
Predicted Winner: Saving Face
Actual Winner: Saving Face

Best Achievement in Film Editing
"The Artist"
"The Descendants"
"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
"Hugo"
"Moneyball"
Predicted Winner: Hugo
Actual Winner: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Best Achievement in Makeup
"Albert Nobbs"
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2"
"The Iron Lady"
Predicted Winner: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Actual Winner: The Iron Lady
I beg to disagree..

Best Animated Short Film
Dimanche/Sunday
The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore
La Luna
A Morning Stroll
Wild Life
Predicted Winner: La Luna
Actual Winner: The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

Best Live Action Short Film
"Pentecost"
"Raju"
"The Shore"
"Time Freak"
"Tuba Atlantic"
Predicted Winner: The Shore
Actual Winner: The Shore

Best Achievement in Sound Editing
"Drive"
"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
"Hugo"
"Transformers: Dark of the Moon"
"War Horse"
Predicted Winner: Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Actual winner: Hugo
Again, Hugo got me. I always guess the big budget popcorn flicks in the sound categories. It worked against me here.


Best Achievement in Sound Mixing
"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"
"Hugo"
"Moneyball"
"Transformers: Dark of the Moon"
"War Horse"
Predicted Winner: Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Actual Winner: Hugo.
Hugo, putting me in my place yet again..

Best Achievement in Visual Effects
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2"
"Hugo"
"Real Steel"
"Rise of the Planet of the Apes"
"Transformers: Dark of the Moon"
Predicted Winner: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Actual Winner: Hugo
One last time, just for good measure.