Just came back from an Oscar nominee double-feature and I feel as though I did my bit for God and country (though I suppose only Genie noms should make me feel that way). Now all that’s left is Ray, which is on video, so I’m a sorry sack of crap if I can’t pull that off between now and next Sunday.
I’m glad to have both movies out of the way, each for a different reason. Million Dollar Baby has a twist that I’d heard critics allude to, and I was sure it would be completely spoiled for me before I got to see it. It’s not a crazy twist; she doesn’t turn out to be a ghost, and she doesn’t reveal her package to Stephen Rea, and she’s neither Keyser Soze nor Tyler Durden, but the story takes a big turn, and sometimes just the knowledge that there is a twist is spoiler enough for me. Having seen it, I like it a lot. From a Best Picture standpoint, if I can boil the script, the cinematography, the acting, the directing, the artistic merit, and the potential longevity of this movie down to a single number, that number would be two.
I didn’t want to see Finding Neverland because, well, I pretty much just didn’t wanna. Period dress and Peter Pan and little British boys—not sure about you, but it isn't the kind of thing that I generally get excited about. Having seen it, I liked it enough. It could have been broadcast on the Hallmark Channel if the cast was of a lesser caliber. At any moment the movie could have crossed over into obvious, emotion-demanding territory, but it never did. Hard to believe that this movie comes from the director of Monster’s Ball. In fact, I was sort of hoping that at some point Winslet’s character would tell Barrie, “I want you to make me feel good. Can you make me feel geeeeewd? Awwggghhhmmme feel geeeeewd!” Sadly: never happened.
I’m glad to have both movies out of the way, each for a different reason. Million Dollar Baby has a twist that I’d heard critics allude to, and I was sure it would be completely spoiled for me before I got to see it. It’s not a crazy twist; she doesn’t turn out to be a ghost, and she doesn’t reveal her package to Stephen Rea, and she’s neither Keyser Soze nor Tyler Durden, but the story takes a big turn, and sometimes just the knowledge that there is a twist is spoiler enough for me. Having seen it, I like it a lot. From a Best Picture standpoint, if I can boil the script, the cinematography, the acting, the directing, the artistic merit, and the potential longevity of this movie down to a single number, that number would be two.
I didn’t want to see Finding Neverland because, well, I pretty much just didn’t wanna. Period dress and Peter Pan and little British boys—not sure about you, but it isn't the kind of thing that I generally get excited about. Having seen it, I liked it enough. It could have been broadcast on the Hallmark Channel if the cast was of a lesser caliber. At any moment the movie could have crossed over into obvious, emotion-demanding territory, but it never did. Hard to believe that this movie comes from the director of Monster’s Ball. In fact, I was sort of hoping that at some point Winslet’s character would tell Barrie, “I want you to make me feel good. Can you make me feel geeeeewd? Awwggghhhmmme feel geeeeewd!” Sadly: never happened.
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YEAH!