Category: Oscar Nominee

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Richard III (1995)

I generally enjoy the resetting Shakespeare’s works to other time periods. In some ways it makes them much more accessible while also allowing for more creativity for the adapters. Unfortunately if I’m not already semi-familiar with the work, it often makes it harder for me to initially engage with the work. That was the case with this rendition of Richard III set in an alternative 1930s England including fascist elements of the era. Getting over that obstacle, I think reworking the setting added a lot of texture to the story, particularly in the visuals. There are a number of great actors in the film, being lead by a particularly oleaginous Ian McKellen as the titular character bent on murder, war, and manipulations all to ascend to the throne.

Oscar Nominations: Best Art Direction-Set Decoration; Best Costume Design

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Paradise (1984)/Mona Lisa Descending a Staircase (1992)

With my blog reformatting, I’ve pondered what to do with regards to the short films I watch. Thus far, I’ve decided to at least include the Oscar nominated ones. I recently caught these two on YouTube and figured I’d pair them together. Ishu Patel’s Paradise didn’t mesmerize me quite as much as my recent viewing of his The Bead Game. Though employing some interesting techniques and beautiful colors, the story of a black bird who temporarily covets a caged, glamorous life is a much more standard animated affair.

Mona Lisa Descending a Staircase on the other hand doesn’t offer much in terms of a narrative, but is an impressive montage of famous works of art shown through clay stop motion animation. It comes off as a blending of Loving Vincent and the face morphing parts of Michael Jackson’s Black or White video.

Oscar Nomination: Best Short Film, Animated (Paradise)

Oscar Win: Best Short Film, Animated (Mona Lisa Descending a Staircase)

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Wyatt Earp (1994)

It’s difficult to review Wyatt Earp without comparing it to its contemporary, Tombstone. Where the latter employs its cast to create a fun, action-packed ensemble piece with memorable performances, the former squanders its stacked cast to instead create a one-person biopic centered on Kevin Costner’s character. Yes, the title gives that away, but it’s a mystery why anyone felt that the entirety of Earp’s life was exceptional enough to warrant three plus hours. The first hour could be cut out completely and all that would be missed is seeing Gene Hackman and Annabeth Gish. The narrative meanders much like Earp through the American West. It did not help that the writing, framing and costuming (which may be more authentic to the time period) created such generic, interchangeable characters that it made it difficult to track who was who and what side they were on. It got better by the time the plot settled into Tombstone, but by then a lot of my interest had waned.  Western

Oscar Nomination: Best Cinematography

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Love and Monsters (2020)

If you haven’t seen Zombieland, this movie might seem fresh and exciting. If you have seen Zombieland, this really feels like a repeat of that film except the zombies are giant cold-blooded animals. Throughout the film, I kept seeing Dylan O’Brien as Jesse Eisenberg’s Columbus character and it didn’t make a difference to the movie. Couldn’t they at least have changed the gender of the main character to mix it up some? Maybe it’s just my complete disinterest in zombie films, but I enjoyed this one better, despite having a protagonist that is the most uninteresting character in the entire film and a really stupid third act. It also imagines a post-apocalyptic world where the only romantic configuration is coupling, outright ignoring the needs/wants/desires of singles. It annoyed me in Deluge and it’s really disappointing that it’s where we still are 90 years later. I had gone into this really suspicious of this film’s Oscar nomination, but the monsters are really gorgeous to look at and fit seamlessly into the world.

Oscar Nomination: Best Achievement in Visual Effects

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The Bead Game (1977)

Artistically, this is an amazing filmmaking feat, stop-motion animation done entirely with beads. Somehow in its short six minute runtime, it manages to tell the entire story of animal life on earth. It juxtaposes wonderfully the inherent violence in the food chain, where the strongest survive, to the self-destructive nature of more ‘civilized’ human beings. I’m sure I will be seeking out Ishu Patel’s other Oscar nomination soon.

Oscar Nomination: Best Short Film, Animated

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You Were Never Lovelier (1942)

I love Fred Astaire. I love Rita Hayworth. Their dancing together is uniquely breezy compared to all of Astaire’s other partnerships. This story on the other hand is a feeble rehash of The Taming of the Shrew, set in Argentina. For reasons, Hayworth’s younger sisters aren’t allowed to get married until she does, so her father played by Adolphe Menjou invents a secret admirer to warm her ‘ice princess’ demeanor. The costuming choices are questionable, including oddly placed doily-like details on dresses and hats. Though I did discover that ‘fancy dress’ meant costumes. Apologies to Jerome Kern, but many of the songs felt rather shoehorned in, though I did enjoy the role of Xavier Cugat. It’s all generally harmless, but I really hope the other Astaire-Hayworth pairing is better than this one.

Oscar Nominations: Best Sound, Recording; Best Music, Original Song; Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture

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The Robe (1953)

By coincidence, one of the special features to the DVD of Titanic was a newsreel detailing how The Robe and Cinemascope won multiple Oscars in 1954. Indeed Cinemascope used in this film, supposedly the first ever, is absolutely gorgeous. It looks like a moving version of Raphael’s The School of Athens. I sadly maintain little interest in Biblical epics and this one about early followers of Jesus, focused on one of the Roman Tribunes at the crucifixion and his slave , definitely overstays its welcome. The acting is fine: Richard Burton is only slightly hammy as the Tribune, Jean Simmons is solid but only appears sporadically, and Victor Mature looks like he just walked off the set of Samson and Delilah.   Best Picture Nomination

Oscar Wins: Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Color; Best Costume Design, Color

Oscar Nominations: Best Picture; Best Actor in a Leading Role; Best Cinematography, Color

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Titanic (1953)

What makes a movie about the Titanic interesting is watching the change of experience for people excitedly sailing on an exotic vessel to the horrors of fearing for their lives as the ship begins sinking. Unfortunately, this movie forgoes showing much of that and instead devotes almost all of its runtime to a melodramatic family story that could literally be set anywhere. I generally enjoy Barbara Stanwyck and Clifton Webb, but I was really hoping to see more of the ship. The best parts are played by Thelma Ritter and the iceberg itself.

Oscar Win: Best Writing, Story and Screenplay

Oscar Nomination: Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White

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Luca (2021)

Storytelling-wise, this is one of the simple-mindedest Pixar films. It’s a rather bland, young person wanting to move beyond the constraints of the familial home rehash. There are also some stereotypical bits about outcasts and outcast friend groups. It all feels closer to a generic Disney film absent any of the heart normally seen in Pixar films. It is really pretty and colorful in both the underwater and Italian locales, but even the art isn’t as captivating or surprising as other Pixar films. It’s as forgettable as The Good Dinosaur and there wasn’t even an included short.

Oscar Nomination: Best Animated Feature Film

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Of Human Bondage (1934)

Bette Davis carries this film. Leslie Howard is a man with a disability who falls in love with Davis’s character. Davis is perfection in portraying the absolute highs and lows of her character. Howard is adequate as the man who is strung along by her, willing to sacrifice his livelihood, financially and occupationally, just to be with her. Even when he feels he has moved on, she is able to pull him back into her web.

Oscar Nomination: Best Actress in a Leading Role (write-in)

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