mood: tired
song: Love Song - Sara Bareilles

i really think i should put up a separate 'showbiz' blog, with the barrage of hollywood-inspired posts that (thankfully) overshadow my pathetic mawkish life. movies and music simply are my favorite pastimes. i was supposed to do an awfully long rant about how horrible my recent crisis / breakdown went (VERY HIGH DRAMA!), but retelling it here is quite a depressing task. so, on to lighter things!

---

as any moviegoer would say, i can't wait for the Oscars. it's been my annual tradition to look up the nominations and anticipate for the winners (and so far, i haven't missed a telecast since 1997). one of the good things about awards seasons is that (well, aside from the politics and the aggressive campaigning) 'quality films' get noticed. hollywood isn't just about blockbusters and romantic comedies and sequels. there are movies that have a lot of passion and character in them, and if they're good for the jury, then it must be something. it's just sad that not much of these movies drift by the country (most are shown here really late. others run for a limited screening only, and others simply don't exist. better look for dvds!).

with this thought, the first two movies i've seen this year are quite worthy of accolades.
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street is one bloody sweet musical. the 1979 Tony Award-winning play by Stephen Sondheim has been adapted to the screen by the dark loving hands of Tim Burton and his equally dark loving collaborator Johnny Depp. at first i was unfazed about the movie, since i wasn't really fond of musicals and dark loving stuff (!). but in the middle of macabre hell week (just after taking two exams in the morning), mom persuaded us to watch it (right.this.moment.!) so the gang went to the nearest theater about 3 hours later. with my senses still reeling badly, i sat there with an exanimate feeling. some time after, the sado-masochist in me started kicking in (nyahaha) and smiled ridiculously at the blood gleefully splashing across the screen. i started thinking Johnny can actually sing! his baritone can be very moving, i was tingling (it was the "My Friends" part, i think). the lyrics are so funny and lovable and well-thought out... Sondheim is a genius; you can definitely call its music as the story. after watching its entirety did i find the gore disturbing. and the cast was superb... blast from the past with three "HP" characters in there! Alan Rickman is always amazing, i was surprised when he sang too haha... and the boy playing Toby is an angel. (never mind the lovebirds - merely eyecandy!) ... this film is visually spectacular as well as a feast of melodic wit.

we saw American Gangster yesterday and wondered why it didn't fare well at the Oscar noms. perhaps it was reminiscent of "The Departed"? this topbills Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe (respectively Best Actors both) in a 1970's-set crime drama. it isn't my preferred genre either but interestingly enough, blood (as with the former) was a great enticer. (ok, so i'm set to murder people now!!! ^^;;) ... the story was effective. both of them delivered solid performances... somehow Denzel is good with playing baddie roles (like in "Training Day") but he's still as sleek as ever. as the movie was based on actual events, it's nice to think that things like this happen: the glory of telling the truth.

---

finally, the Oscar nominees roundup notes:

"No Country For Old Men" and "There Will Be Blood" as frontrunners: honestly, i'm not fond of "Southern locale" movies, but since they're in the loop, i might as well watch 'em. bigger bump on "No Country...", based on Cormac McCarthy's novel, with Javier Bardem playing a murderer as menacing as his hair.

"Juno" is a delightful shoo-in at the Best Picture category. it's like this year's "Little Miss Sunshine". the little triumph story that could, penned by Diablo Cody - a twentysomething ad man turned stripper turned screenwriter. Ellen Page is a darling (i read the "Time" interview). and the movie has Michael Cera (of "Superbad" fame) playing the baby's dorky dad!

"Atonement" could be a very long shot. while having won Best Picture - Drama at the Golden Globes, it has been shut out in other award-giving bodies. aside from BP, most of their nominations were technical. it should win something! period dramas rule!

my 2007 favorite movie "Ratatouille" got a lot of noms, amazingly for a cartoon. (it even has a Best Original Screenplay nod!) ... in the Best Animated Film though, it could face tough competition from "Persepolis", a France-Iran monochrome project about Muslim girls defying tradition. (i've seen the previews, and it looks interesting!) ... but no fear, i'm still counting on Remy!

"The Simpsons Movie" got snubbed! d'oh with "Surf's Up"! :(

my other 2007 favorite movie "The Bourne Ultimatum" got 3 winks! hooray Matt!

sad i wasn't able to catch "La Vie En Rose"'s theater run, with all the buzz surrounding Marion Cotillard's performance as the iconic Edith Piaf. also, has "Gone Baby Gone" shown in here?

"Enchanted" having 3 out of 5 in the Best Song category still isn't a assurance that it wins one. (remember "Dreamgirls" being upset by Melissa Etheridge of "An Inconvenient Truth"?) though i would like to see the guy who sang "So Close".

i'm surprised "Hairspray" didn't get nominated at all. as well as "The Great Debaters" and "A Mighty Heart".

so, the movie list catches the fever:
H's Movie Guide (updated 01/27/08):

Must-see: Atonement, The Other Boleyn Girl, Across the Universe, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Michael Clayton, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Juno, The Bucket List, Vantage Point, La Vie En Rose, Persepolis, Charlie Wilson's War, Paris Je t'aime, The Kite Runner, A Mighty Heart, The Great Debaters, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Love in the Time of Cholera, Before the Devil Knows You're Dead

Oscar-wise: No Country For Old Men, There Will Be Blood, Away From Her, I'm Not There, The Savages

Libellés : movies

---