Intermission: 2010 Round-Up

It’s official, summer blockbusters are dead.  Long live winter cinematic wonder. Appearing like it could be the worst year in cinematic history since the doldrums of the late 1980s, 2010 ended with such a maelstrom of movie magnificence that I’m still trying to find my legs.  I might even go so far as to say that 2010 concluded with what could go down in recent history as some of the most beloved cinematic creations since LOTR at the brink of this century. Here is my list of the five “best” films of 2010:

(1) Black Swan.  The most revolutionary film of the year deserves top spot.   Not a heart-warmer by any stretch of the imagination, but cinematic genius through and through.  Darren Aronofsky so perfectly re-images the story of Swan Lake for modern times that I can even forgive the unnecessary hypersexuality of the film.  Yes, some tighter editing in the middle movement would have made for a less off-kilter viewing experience, but the last 15 minutes are brilliant beyond description.  Natalie Portman commands the stage and the screen to the film’s breathtakingly bleak final note.  A mesmerizing performance unlike anything I’ve seen in recent memory.

 

(2) The Social Network.  David Fincher takes here what should be an ultra boring talk-fest and makes magic.  The dialogue is smart (thank you Aaron Sorkin), the acting first-rate, and the theme timely (i.e., friendship, or the lack thereof, in the digital age).  I don’t need to rehash my earlier review (which you can find here), but suffice it to say, The Social Network may take home the Grand Pupa of all film awards because, let’s face it, it is far less off-putting than Black Swan.

 

 

 

(3) Toy Story 3.  This film is worthy of the number one spot on my list were it not for the more revolutionary films listed above.  This isn’t to say, however, that Toy Story 3 lacks inventiveness.  It builds on the grand Pixar tradition of blending strong story elements with state-of-the-art animation.  Here is a film that could have been a Thomas the Train-wreck were it not for the filmmakers instance on letting the characters mature, grow, and struggle.  Toy Story 3 does not bank on nostalgia as many lesser animated sequels have done, but insists that even toys must deal with the realities of growing old in a world that only has eyes for the *new*.  Powerful stuff covered with a wonderfully sweet candy shell of comedy, action, drama, and romance.

 

(4) The King’s Speech.  You have to love those Brits.  This film further solidifies the truth that English-language cinematic art is alive and well; although, you may have to abandon America to find it.  While the state of film funding in Great Britain looks grim, The King’s Speech proves that you can make a first-class movie with less than $15 million dollars (or $8 million pounds, if you prefer).  The key: passion and a good measure of heart.  The King’s Speech has both, but isn’t afraid to laugh at itself.  Where The Social Network shows us the underbelly of friendship, The King’s Speech demonstrates the power a true friend has in helping a person live into his potential.  Even if the film occasionally stumbles with a propensity toward gag-inducing heroic rhetoric, we can forgive such a stutter because we have learned to trust the heart behind the words.

(5) The Fighter.  A gritty feel-good film based on the true story of boxer Micky Ward.  While the ending of the movie is anything but a surprise, we do discover that the opponent in the ring is little to be feared compared to the one inside yourself.  In the film, Micky Ward battles his family, his history, and his heart to find a way to win.  Love them or hate them, the film’s main characters have beautifully touching story arches which help us forgive the rather one-dimensional secondary characters.  And, of course, what is a character without an actor and there are plenty of top-notch performances throughout this picture.  Christian Bale and Melissa Leo are well-worthy of any awards they garner playing Micky’s half-brother and mother respectively.  The Fighter may not explore new cinematic territory, but its powerfully touching story and meaty characters make it a worthy addition to my top five of the year.

Intermission: 2011 Best Picture Prognostication

I’ll admit that all the hullabaloo surrounding which films will win an Academy Award amounts to little more than glorified silliness.   While recognizing people for a job well-done is a most worthy undertaking, assigning merit to a piece of art remains risky business.  True, suggesting that movies deserve the label of “art” can be, in itself, a treacherous diving off point.  Nonetheless, we belong to a species that deeply enjoys and feels called to order and rank the world around us.

That said, we must recognize that the Academy Awards are just that — honors bestowed upon artists by artists.  These are not the People’s Choice Awards and what the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences sees in a film should not be confused with what the average movie-goer enjoys.  Even the Academy itself recognized this fact until last year when it made a decision of singular stupidity.  It decided to forget its own place and began appealing to the masses by widening the number of Best Picture nominees from five to ten.  Not only did such a decision result in the dilution of the Academy brand (e.g., The Blind Side — enough said), but indicated that advertising dollars and viewership numbers were more important than awarding esteem to worthy pieces of cinematic art.

Now, I haven’t forgotten that this whole matter of ranking art is one of supreme silliness, but at least prior to last year the Academy took its role seriously and did not kowtow to the whims and wishes of the masses.  If you’re going to do something as ridiculous as assigning value to art, you should at least do it with consistency and with respect to oneself and to that which one destines to judge.  When you open the flood gates, one should not be surprised to find all sorts of debris floating to the surface.

Having gotten that off my chest, I now shall get about my business of double silliness by attempting to prognosticate those films that the Academy will nominate for the 2011 Best Picture.  And, yes, I do see the ridiculousness of trying to foretell a list of favorites for a small body of artists who will rank something that is probably best left unranked.  Yet, I do it with the highest degree of integrity and respect and that certainly adds value to this undertaking (or, at least, that’s what I tell myself).

For the sake of order, I have divided my prognostications into three categories: certain nominees, likely nominees, and long-shot nominees.

Certain Nominees (in alphabetical order):

127  Hours

Welcome back, Danny Boyle and Hello, James Franco.  Based on the book, “Between a Rock and a Hard Place,” it tells the riveting true story of Aron Ralston (aka, the adventurer who cut off his arm when it got stuck between a rock and, um, a rock . . . oops, I guess he should have told someone where he was going).

 

 

Inception

And the make-up nomination of the year goes to The Dark Knight; oh, I mean Inception.  A mind-twist of a movie that lacks heart (see my review here), but which has one very noteworthy element — Christopher Nolan.

 

 

The King’s Speech

Here is our standard Academy period piece, but with a dash of humor (Geoffrey Rush), a sprinkle of good-nature (Colin Firth), and a shocking secret ingredient that the MPAA found off-putting.

 

 

 

The Social Network

Dearest David Fincher, we think you’re brilliant but most Americans don’t like downer movies.  Mark Zuckerberg may have billions of dollars, but we need every advertising cent we can get.

– Your Friends at the Academy

 

 

 

Toy Story 3

Pixar.  Enough said.

 

 

 

 

 

Likely Nominees (in alphabetical order):

Black Swan

Artistic.  Dark.  Darren Aronofsky.  These traits make Black Swan a difficult film for the Academy to resist.  Mr. Aronofsky, please remember that a nomination is like a win . . . really.

 

 

 

The Kids are All Right

Ah, here is our political film of the year.  Never mind the quality of the film (see my review here), it has amazingly talented straight actors playing gay characters and that has a striking familiarity to a far superior film that the Academy snubbed.  Retribution never tasted sweeter for this little film that could.

 

 

 

True Grit

The Coen Brothers. Jeff Bridges.  Matt Damon. The wild west.  What more can I say?

 

 

 

 

Long-Shot Nominees (in alphabetical order):

Another Year

The geriatric choice of the year.  Not enough films for this demographic and Red isn’t good enough to make the cut.  Let’s not forget who makes up the vast majority of the Academy.

 

 

 

Blue Valentine

The NC-17 rating has made this valentine even bluer.  The Weinsteins may fight it, but the content may be too much for the Academy.  Expect to see some love for Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams, however.

 

 

 

Winter’s Bone

The “Indie” choice of the year.  May sneak in with the new ten nominee policy, but is too obscure to make it far up the ladder.  Jennifer Lawrence will likely get some respect ala Melissa Leo in Frozen River.