Admit it, you don't care about sound mixing or costume design. You'd just as soon, and probably do, skip the whole show to see who takes this prize.
WHO I'D PICK:
BLACK SWAN
Every year when the nominees are announced, there are naturally many movies that slipped under my radar, and so I have to hunt them out. Six was the case with this year's picks, four of which were still in theaters. I arranged them so that I would see the ones I was least excited to see first so my experience would get better each movie, this put Black Swan at number two. Sadly, the last two, though excellent, couldn't meet my expectation. Black Swan is a terrific and terrifying thriller about an innocent prima ballerina who is sucked into a whirlpool of delusion and darkness after she lands the lead role in the ballet Swan Lake. I picked this one for second because, honestly, who wants to see a movie about ballet? But the flawless editing and perfect performance by Natalie Portman made this one the most gripping of all this year's ten nominees. Absolutely too dark for me to recommend to my friend's, but there is no doubt who should walk away with the statue Sunday night.
MY FAVORITE PART: The final ballet which starts with a whimper and ends with a bang has what few movies do: a perfect ending.
WHO THEY'LL PICK (PROBABLY):
THE KING'S SPEECH
All the hype you've heard is true. Tom Hooper's look at the pathetically speech-impaired King George VI really is an engaging and well put together little piece of film. It also happens to fit many of the molds that Oscar voters tend to flock to: Period piece (about British Royalty no less), actors who have lent their talent to Jane Austen adaptations, and a main character who's handicapped, among other things. But to say it isn't deserving is a lie. All the actors give great performances, and the story has this way of cutting right to the heart. After all, at it's core, The King's Speech is just another buddy picture, with Colin Firth's "Bertie" and Geoffrey Rush's unorthodox speech therapist Lionel Logue always bickering back and forth, then making up over tea or airplane models. I would rank it the second best movie made this year, and as such, you won't see me cry when it takes off with the gold.
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