Each year, "Entertainment Weekly" (otherwise known as the Pop Culture Holy Book) publishes its list of 25 movies it believes the ardent movie fan must see before the Academy Awards. Note that this list is printed even before the nominations are announced, so the list is a suggested by the relative merits of the movies to earn nominations, not just predictions based on previous award wins. This year I decided to undertake a personal quest to see as many of the 2012 "must see" movies as I could, and came closer than ever before to actually crossing off the whole list. In preparation for the 2012 Academy Awards, here is a summary of my brief review of each of "Entertainment Weekly"'s "The 25 Movies You Need To See Before Oscar Night (2012)" (in ascending, or reverse, order):
25. Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory
Fascinating and gripping documentary about criminal (in)justice - the story of the "West Memphis 3" who were released from prison after 18 years because of DNA forensic evidence and a review of failures in the trial procedure, and only because they agreed to a bizarre deal to plead guilty but maintain their innocence. This is the kind of activist film-making, backed by legal, popular, and celebrity support, that tends to do very well.
24. Young Adult
Had no strong interest in this mature comedy even after reading it on this list, so I skipped it.
23. Drive
Intense action thriller that was thankfully relatively discreet with the graphic violence and strongly carried by Ryan Gosling, who would be my choice of chauffeur and bodyguard any day! Carey Mulligan is establishing herself as the go-to woman for dramatic supporting roles (see #16, below).
22. We Need To Talk About Kevin
Was publicized to premiere in St. Louis two weeks ago, but was rescheduled to April. Why? Don't get me started. But based on the coming attractions alone, I'm already creeped out.
21. J. Edgar
Despite my exhaustion with Clint Eastwood's directorial style (where he can only convey emotion - fear, anger, lust, joy, whatever - by using extreme close-up shots), Dustin Lance Black's screenplay was nuanced and controlled. Leonardo DiCaprio and Armie Hammer did well in their roles, but I felt this movie showed their potentials, not their most outstanding performances.
20. Bridesmaids
Normally not a fan of this kind of comedy, I was happy to support "the ladies" and those women cracked me up. Good for them! Work it, Girls.
19. Kung Fu Panda 2
Totally derivative comedy with cool animated action and solid cast voicing the characters. I can understand why this movie grossed as much as it did in international sales, but I found the story rather dull.
18. The Ides Of March
The movie that proves Ryan Gosling is sexy in a political suit, or a racing jacket (see #23, above)...or (almost) nothing (reference "Crazy, Stupid, Love"). Unlike "Drive," he turns in a solid performance with spoken lines and not fisticuffs action. Whereas this screenplay had smarts, it missed the mark in pacing and therefore did not feel like a cohesive package of a film.
17. Albert Nobbs
Good for you, Glenn Close, for shepherding a stage performance into a labor of love that took decades to reach mass audiences. This movie's intimacy magnifies the emotional turmoil that cultural conventions of gender can create, but also suggests that the intimacy of a live stage performance would have been far more gripping. Glenn Close turns out a truly masterful work of a life broken by desperation and secrecy, and Janet McTeer at least matches her (if not trumps her) with passionate bravado. The Sinead O'Connor song over the end credits sealed the deal to break my heart.
16. Shame
Enough with the hype over Michael Fassbender's nude scenes, already. Yes, he deserves the notoriety, but even more so, he deserves praise for what is a harrowingly sad and depressing performance about lives broken by addiction. This movie makes it perfectly clear that there is absolutely nothing sexy about sex addiction. Carey Mulligan, in another supporting role this year, is equally affecting.
15. My Week With Marilyn
Sad that I missed the chance to see this, because I like Michelle Williams and Eddie Redmayne.
14. Rango
The second animated feature on this list had much more detailed visual effects (especially the nuanced sunlight and shadows in the desert ghost town setting) and was completely original in its story and sly humor. Johnny Depp's voiced led character was very well done.
13. The Iron Lady
Not a great motion picture, if judged by historical biopic standards: the flashbacks and flash-forwards and imagined inner life of an aged icon were rather clunky and not as smoothly handled as possible. But Meryl Streep proves she really can do anything. She eats up the screen in every scene with personality beyond "The Devil Wears Prada" and with joyful enthusiasm beyond "Mamma Mia!" - this is a master class in becoming a character and telling a story (as imperfect as that story may be).
12. Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows - Part 2
Well, of course I have seen this movie (in 3D, no less) - I had to wrap up the series, having seen the other 7 before it, and still loving all 7 original books. A movie like this will probably get a lot of technical category nominations, the way many sci-fi and fantasy films manage, but it's less of a great movie and more of the capstone to a pop culture phenomenon.
11. Beginners
Ewan McGregor and Christopher Plummer play off each other well, but again the pacing of this movie felt more dry than emotional; any tugs on my heart were a bit heavy handed and forced, but it was a joy to see Christopher Plummer really having fun in a role that could have easily been reduced to caricature by a lesser actor.
10. The Tree Of Life
The artistry and visual craftsmanship of the cinematography was stunning, but completely muddled whatever story there was here. This motion picture hardly felt like a movie; it was like watching a pastiche of images from the best possible science and nature documentaries (like "Planet Earth" and "Cosmos"), interlaced with some kind of plot that was yearning to be far more grandiose than the structure could allow. So I was visually enraptured, but when the end credits rolled, all I could think was, "What just happened?"
9. Extremely Loud And Incredibly Close
I had high hopes for the movie adaptation of Jonathan Safran Foer's deftly imagined 9/11 novel. Unfortunately, the treatment of his story in this movie felt forced: the lovely work on the book's pages just translated awkwardly into voiceovers and fast edits. In a meta-reflection, maybe that kind of disjointed emotion creating a feeling of lost opportunity is exactly what a 9/11-themed movie about hope and loss and searching for love and meaning should be all about. But a motion picture needs to tell a story well, and in this case even with a talented cast, the book told the story far better.
8. The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
I was cynical about the American re-boot of any of the very well done Swedish original films based on Stieg Larson's bestselling novels. Rooney Mara completely transforms herself not only physically and psychologically into the character or Lisbeth Salander, but she also makes her solid mark as a leader in a new generation of intelligent and powerful actors ready for more screen time. David Fincher's direction was deftly controlled, but some missteps (like why was Daniel Craig's character the only one not speaking with a Scandinavian accent?) almost made the opening title sequence and the original score more memorable than my final thought as I left the theater: "Gee, that was a decent remake."
7. Moneyball
I didn't know what to expect with this movie because some of what I heard about it made me think it would be another sentimental baseball movie, a la "Field Of Dreams," or "The Natural," or even "A League Of Their Own." But this was not just an underdog-wins-in-the-end movie; it was a surprisingly honest film about an earnest man with a dream to win, a desire to be a friend, and a heart to be a good father. It was far from cute treacle: it was solid entertainment.
6. Midnight In Paris
I think the reason I have a hard time liking Woody Allen's movies is that even when he does not appear in them, there is always a character who is basically Woody Allen. Such is the case here again, with a lead character who is so eccentric and neurotic that he is almost too much to like. But Owen Wilson turns on the charm and plays off the imaginative original screenplay with wit and panache, so this movie now stands on equal footing or possibly surpasses my heretofore other favorite Woody Allen movie, "Match Point." Overall, this was a fun romantic tale.
5. Hugo
Bravo to Martin Scorsese for applying all of his skill in making mob and crime action dramas to making a fun and visually gorgeous fantasy. The original children's book by Brian Selznick, is a masterful combination of fantasy fiction, historical revision, graphic novel, and picture book. What were gorgeous black-and-white illustrations in print have been given full color life in this movie that is beautifully realized in 3D - the colors are rich, the pacing is good, the characters are fun, the effects are dazzling, the cast is sweet, and the sentiment of the story is expertly conveyed. This is what 3D film-making should be and what good movies should be.
4. The Help
I hesitated a long time before I could watch this movie. I knew the original source novel was not something I would normally read, and I understood the criticisms of the inherent undertone of the White savior who swoops in to rescue the African American downtrodden. But I finally gave in and saw it and was underwhelmed by the hype. Thee were moments of clever comedy and triumphant emotion, but nothing struck me as truly great or fantastically innovative. In fact, everything about this movie felt a bit expected. I hope every award this movie might earn will encourage a cultural shift in expectations: can powerhouse actors like Octavia Spencer and Viola Davis please portray characters that are not the hired help? If nothing else, this movie proves these two women can do anything, and I won't necessarily hesitate to see them ever again. Enough already.
3. War Horse
Having seen the definition of "theatrical magic" in the Broadway stage show based on the same novel that is the source material for Steven Spielberg's live-action adaptation, I knew that no movie would ever equal that production. But I wanted to see it anyway, and I admit that I still got teary-eyed over it. There is gorgeous cinematography in this film, but the acting and effects and editing are just a bit better than any other child-and-horse, or child-and-dog, or dog-and-cat, or child and whale, or child and...oh well, you get the point. It's that kind of sentimental tearjerker of a movie. Oh, and it's about a boy and his horse. Right.
2. The Descendants
I appreciated the honest depictions of modern families and complicated relationships in yet another movie adaptation of a novel. A lot of people keep referencing George Clooney's subtle performance about a father trying to raise two daughters in Hawaii while his wife lies in a hospital. Teenage rebellion. Infidelity. Adult friends. Confrontations. Hard choices. All of that is in here. But I thought George Clooney masterfully acted like...well, like George Clooney. I've seen that smirk and the shoulder shrugs, and the dismissive head bobs before: in "ER," in "Ocean's Eleven," in "Up In The Air," even in "The Ides Of March" (see #18, above). I thought his performances in "Good Night, And Good Luck" and "The American" (and even in "The Fantastic Mr. Fox") were far more clever and skilled. Having just visited Kauai for my Birthday Adventure 2012 trip last month, the movie felt even more wistful to me, but that did not elevate it to "best" status for me.
1. The Artist
This was a truly gorgeous and wonderfully original homage to motion pictures. The format of this silent black-and-white film made the emotional spark and simple glamor of this movie pop out with so more life and heart than many modern voiced motion picture. Both leads, Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo, are simply a joy to watch and carry this lovely story from beginning to end. Lovely, lovely, lovely.
And my own personal additions to the list, based on critical reviews or awards season "buzz:"
+ Pina 3D
Wim Wenders once again employs 3D film-making to achieve its best possible cinematic beauty (and spares us his sometimes overly effusive voiceover narration) with this tribute to choreographer Pina Bausch. The subtitle to this movie is "...dance, dance, otherwise we are lost..." and using brief clips of the musings of the dancers who appear throughout, these performances showcase not the gorgeous artistry and storytelling of dance.
+ Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Gary Oldman gives a solid performance in an otherwise muddled and befuddling spy caper that does not have enough drama, does not have enough emotion, does not have enough plot, and does not have enough resolution to match. An ultimately unsatisfying disappointment of a movie.
+ Carnage
Four great actors giving it their all in a film adaptation of what was most assuredly a fantastic, tightly wound staged theatrical performance (that I will always regret missing on Broadway). Unfortunately, much was lost in this translation: the movie felt forced, the camera work felt clunky, the pacing felt anguished. The ensemble really chews up the screen, but for all their efforts, that's about all the carnage I witnessed.
Summary:
Quest Results = 22/25. Take that, "Entertainment Weekly" List! And I don't even get the screeners! Ha! I felt frustrated that the three movies I could not cross off the list either played in St. Louis for one week only engagements or will not screen at all before March. But I feel pretty proud of the results of my planning, scheduling, and stamina - determination pays off! Now I need to fill out my ballot...
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