OK so I am a day late with this weeks RETRO REVIEW, but here it is. As the Oscars are approaching I figure for the next few weeks I will dedicate my Retro-view to somewhat forgotten Oscar winners of the past.
Today's selection is ORDINARY PEOPLE, which was a huge Oscar winner in 1980. The flick was Robert Redford's directing debut and took home Best Picture, Best Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor for Timothy Hutton and Best Director for Redford.
The movie is straight out one of the heaviest flicks you could ever watch, but absolutely spot on in it's storytelling. The story follows a crumbling family dealing with the recent death of one son and the even more recent suicide attempt of another. (Hutton)
Hutton makes his film debut in this one and you can almost immediately tell why he won awards for his performance, and he is brilliantly complemented by to dramatic heavy hitters in Donald Sutherland and Mary Tyler Moore. Moore's performance made even more powerful by how "against type" she is as the emotionally shut off and cold Matriarch.
This movie makes you very tense at times, especially in scene's between Hutton and his Therapist (an amazing performance by Judd Hirsch), you really find yourself waiting for one of these characters to explode.
As the movie reaches it's climax you are left with a lot of questions, but even more you are left with empathy for all parties involved.
From time to time I will review a lesser known film that perhaps didn't spend anough time in the theaters for you to catch it, but is now availiable on DVD.
Staying with the Football theme today is BIG FAN.
BIG FAN stars Patton Oswalt as Paul, an obessed New York Giants fan who is stuck with a tough decision after his gridiron hero assaults him in a strip-club.
The movie is the directing debut of Robert Seigel, writer of The Wrestler, and yet again he paints a dark and almost hopeless picture with this film. Oswalt, who is one of the funniest comedians on the planet, makes himself nearly unrecognizable in his creation of the character. You really do get sucked into the character of Paul, leading you up to a true feeling of anxiety and the story reaches it's climax. Seigel just plain knows how to write a story about sad and desperate individuals, and has presented another story that makes you want to take the characters off the screen and help them, while at the same time being infinitely entertained by their downfall.
Once again I am here to offer you your Friday night video store alternative. THE FRIDAY RETRO REVIEW.
Going with a football theme for the Super Bowl weekend I have picked EVERYBODY'S ALL-AMERICAN.
The flick, based on a novel by legendary sports writer Frank DeFord, stars Dennis Quaid, Jessica Lange, Timothy Hutton and John Goodman.
The story follows 25 years in the life of Gavin "The Ghost" Grey (Quaid) and the people in his life as he goes from College Football hero to Pro Star to frustrated retiree. Director Taylor Hackford (Officer and a Gentleman, Ray) offers a great representation of how people deal with reality once the glory starts to fade.
The film is extremely well acted and Lange really shines as Babs, the suffering Debutante come "Players Wife", and also features strong supporting roles from Hutton and Goodman. If Bull Durham was the quintessential ROM-COM disguised as a sports film, then "ALL AMERICAN" is it's dramatic counter part, dealing with issues of love, adultery, betrayal and the civil rights movement much more than it deals with the gridiron.
That said, the football scenes in the movie are fantastic. The uniforms of the period are spot on, the sequences are beautifully shot and some spots are even imagined in a shockingly accurate "NFL Films" style. The portrayal of the characters or so specific that portions of the movie could only have been written by a veteran sportswriter.
FUN FACT: Real NFL players were used for the football scenes and one of them (Tim Fox of the New England Patriots) broke Dennis Quaid's collarbone while filming a scene. The footage was used for the film, so Quaid is not acting when you see him writhing in pain in the snow.
So it looks like the next project for Zooey Deschanel will be an HBO movie based on the Pamela DesBarres autobiography. Still confused? Read further:
Zooey Deschanel has just committed to star in an HBO half-hour pilot that will be based on I’m With the Band: Confessions of a Groupie, the Pamela Des Barres’ memoir of bed-hopping with musicians and movie stars in the late 1960s… Des Barres bragged about her bedroom experiences with the likes of Mick Jagger, Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page and actor Don Johnson. But along the with excitement of rolling with famous rockers, there was also the emptiness and heartbreak of being demeaned and discarded by stars once the next pretty young thing came along.
So let me get this straight. A woman I would step over a dying relative just to make out with is appearing in a film where she will be doing a ton of drugs and having even more sex? I think my bad girl fetish just went into overdrive.
So the word out of Hollywood is that the Fox network is having "Conversations" with Conan about bringing the show there in September, but that's where it stops.
FROM FORBES:
In a quarterly earnings call on Tuesday, Murdoch said the network was exploring different options for the time period. “If the programming people can show us we can do it … and make a profit, we would do it in a flash,” he admitted. In the meantime, he said he was “sure there have been some conversations” with O’Brien, but “no real negotiations.”
When pressed about resistance to the possible move, he explained that Fox affiliates are currently running profitable syndicated programs during the otherwise appealing 11 p.m. time period.
Thats all that I can report now on the topic, but I will keep you posted.
So here's a nice little interview between Mel Gibson (promoting Edge Of Darkness) and WGN-Chicago's Dean Richards. Richards tries to stray away from the fluffy questions and goes for the hardball. And Hilarity ensues!
You tell em Mel. I think it was kinda bush league to bring up a 4 year old incedent, but in Richards' defense it still is the first thing you think about when you see Mel...ADMIT IT. The only way this would have been better is if Mel called him "Sugartits"
Now, I am the last one that would ever suggest anyone watch Fox News. That being said, tonight is night one of a two-night interview featuring Jon Stewart on The O'Reilly Factor. These two have been on each other respective shows in the past, but either was pimping a book or something else at the time. This is a no promotion, mano y mano, showdown.
Below is a little preview of what happens when America's greatest "Fake" newsman goes head to head with "Real" news networks. Enjoy
So Oscar nominations came out today, and it's been a pretty good year for movies so this should be an interesting award race.
BEST PICTURE: The Hurt Locker, An Education, Precious, Inglourious Basterds, A Serious Man, Up, District 9, The Blind Side, Up In The Air, Avatar
So the Academy went back to 10 Nominations this year (they used to in the early days) and I have no problem with that. In my opinion you could take nearly any combination of 5 from this list and beat last years 5. That said, Hurt Locker has already won the Producers and Directors Guild awards so that would make it the odds on favorite (that and it's incredible!), but Avatar could still swoop in to crush our collective spirit.
BEST DIRECTOR: *“Avatar” James Cameron *“The Hurt Locker” Kathryn Bigelow *“Inglourious Basterds” Quentin Tarantino *“Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels *“Up in the Air” Jason Reitman
People are seeing this as the Ex-wife vs. Ex-Husband battle between James Cameron and Katheryn Bigelow, and they are probably right. However, it would be great to see Tarantino win it because "Basterds" is his careers absolute masterstroke.
BEST ACTOR: * Jeff Bridges in “Crazy Heart” * George Clooney in “Up in the Air” * Colin Firth in “A Single Man” * Morgan Freeman in “Invictus” * Jeremy Renner in “The Hurt Locker”
The best acting categories are going to be tight this year. Jeff Bridges will most likely take it for the "hey, you haven't won yet" vote (not that he is undeserved). But I feel if any performance was better than Bridges, it would be Renner in Hurt Locker. Don't count out George Clooney, who could surprise everyone after his great run in "Up In The Air"
BEST ACTRESS: * Sandra Bullock in “The Blind Side” * Helen Mirren in “The Last Station” * Carey Mulligan in “An Education” * Gabourey Sidibe in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” * Meryl Streep in “Julie & Julia”
The Oscars love to award the surprise newcomer (see Jennifer Hudson, Marlie Matlin, et all) so Sidibe is a strong contender. That said, Bullock is getting a lot of attention after winning the Golden Globe and Meryl Streep just plain wins Oscars.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: * Matt Damon in “Invictus” * Woody Harrelson in “The Messenger” * Christopher Plummer in “The Last Station” * Stanley Tucci in “The Lovely Bones” * Christoph Waltz in “Inglourious Basterds”
This may be the only dead-on lock of the major categories. I really can't see anyone beating Waltz. He is this years Javier Bardem.
Would like to see either of the Women from "Up In The Air" take it, but it is very likely that Mo'Nique would fall into the same "newcomer" category as her co-star. However, if she does win, I would possibly look for someone else to walk away with Best Actress.
Thats all I'm going to handicap now, I will have a nearly-full preview just before the March 7th ceremony.
Going into this years Grammy's I was preparing myself for the worst. After, IMHO, some of the worst nominees for the big awards in history, I found myself expecting the ceremony to be mostly terrible, and I was kinda right, but there were some highlights as well.
First the Big Awards:
Best New Artist:
Zac Brown Band
MGMT
Carrie Hilton
Silversun Pickups
The Ting Tings
So this is the hot new artist in Country, and he is touring a bunch of dates with DMB this summer.So perhaps this is the next big crossover star.
Song of the Year-
Poker Face- Lady GaGa
Pretty Wings- Maxwell
Single Ladies- Beyonce
Use Somebody- Kings Of Leon
You Belong With Me- Taylor Swift
Wait seriously? SONG OF THE YEAR? Like, best song written and recorded in the last 12 months? BEST? ugh.
Record of the Year
Halo- Beyonce
I’ve Got a Feeling- Black Eyed Peas
Use Somebody- KOL
Pokerface- Lady GaGa
You Belong With Me- Taylor Swift
Very deserved for a fantastic piece of Pop writing that never gets out of your head.
Album of the Year
Lady Gaga
Beyonce
Taylor Swift
Black Eyed Peas
Dave Matthews Band
Personally I thought DMB's Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King was an incredible record. That said you really can't say anything bad about Taylor Swift and still have a soul. She writes all her own songs (and NO other 20 year old gets to do that in Country music) she hasn't become jaded or divaish by all the praise handed to her over the last year, I would never buy her record but I see no issue with her recieving the award. And compared to the other three (besides herself and DMB) her not winning could have meant the end of music as we know it.Awesome visual of Swift accepting her award DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF LADY GAGA! MWAH HA HA HA.
Pink- I’ve always kinda dug Pink.Crazy ass cirque du soliel performance with Pink in some kind of trapeze basket contraption, OH MAN THEY DUNKED HER IN WATER TOO! Whether you like her music or not, Pink has some brass ones for sure.
Lady Antebellum- I actually met Charles Kelly from this band once and he is a great guy so it’s nice to see him gain success. “Need You Now” is a nice little country popper and the performance was simple and understated.
Bon Jovi- I liked Bon Jovi for about 5 minutes when I was 8, now they just bother me.That said, the performance is probably one of the best of the night even if it is a damn medley. They bring out Jennifer Nettles from Sugarland for “You Can’t Go Home” which is ok.Looks like the “fan vote” winner was “Livin on a Prayer”ROCK THAT TALK BOX RITCHIE!Unfortunatly it was a 2 minute version because it was part of said medley.
Dave Matthews Band-Nice sweet performance of “You and Me”joined by numerous young and old musicians. A great tribute to their fallen friend.
Maxwell and Roberta Flack- Maxwell is a fantastic voice that has always been underappreciated on the mainstream level, so nice to see him take center stage tonight.“Pretty Wings” is a great track. Segue to Robert Flack and a nice duet on “Where Is The Love”
Drake, Eminem, Lil Wayne-Great piece of hip hop theater to finish off the night, but I am SO done with auto tune.
THE "MEH"
Green Day- This "21 Guns" tune got real old in a hurry. Having the cast of the American Idiot musical perform it with them made it a lot more interesting, but it still comes of like a less interesting version of Rent.
Jaime Foxx, T-Pain and Slash-Wait…what?Funny little opera thing at the beginning.I’m so tired of auto-tune but it’s a catchy track.(George Clinton dancing in the audience is pretty classic)This performance is what a hip-hop performance should be.Just enough fun to not be boring, and there are more musicians than dancers.Slash drops in to play the riff from the end of “November Rain”and either his guitar is out of tune, he forgot how to play it or both.
Zac Brown Band (w Leon Russell)- starts with “America The Beautiful” which comes off as a little hamhanded but a nice way to show off the bands vocal ability.
Many times these celebrity duets at the Grammy’s come off as a tad sloppy and this is no exception, but it’s got a fun barroom quality to it and Leon can still play the hell out of the piano, segue into the ZBB hit “Chicken Fried” which is a nice slice of southern rock, but nothing to write home about.
Taylor Swift (w/ Stevie Nicks)- Another nice simple one in front of a basic backdrop.A bit of “Fairytale” and then segue into “Rhiannon” with Stevie Nicks.Swift’s voice seems to be struggling a bit tonight but the duet with Nicks is still a nice change of pace from the over-produced silliness the first hour gave us (Except for Pink, that was rad pants!).The performance finishes up with a folkier take on “You Belong With Me” that as a Faces type vibe to it.
Michael Jackson Tribute-I swear they get the strangest groups of folks together for these celebrity tributes.Usher, Smokey Robinson and Jennifer Hudson I understand but Celine Dion and Carrie Underwood?The Jackson kids accept the Lifetime Achievement award on behalf of their father,Maybe now they will stop exploiting the hell out of these kids.
Mary J Blige and Andrea Bocelli performance for Haiti- Their version of “Greensleves” on Bocelli’s Christmas album was amazing.This time it’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water”Bocelli starts in Italian, then Blige comes in with all of her power.Would’ve been better if they harmonized more.Instead it kind of came off as a vocal pissing match.
THE BAD:
Lady GaGa- Unimpressive high production performance.Duet with Elton John was a snore.It’s not that Lady Gaga is bad, she’s just numbingly mediocre, and yet everyone seems to be ignoring that obvious fact.
Beyonce- Uh Oh, Beyonce brought the riot squad. And then does her “If I were a boy” song?What the hell does any of this have to do with anything?I am forever in the camp that Beyonce’s voice is not near as good as she gets credit for.But that’s just me.Segue into a cover of “You Oughta Know?”seriously?Oh nice, she chickens out on the f-word part.I’ll give it a mildly amusing smirk.That’s it. (Still don’t understand why the dancers are dressed as riot cops)
Black Eyed Peas-The only good thing this band ever did was when Will.I.Am punched Perez Hilton.Seriously they are the death of music. To be honest I went out side for a cigarette during this performance, while I was outside, I saw a stray cat run across the street that may have been a Raccoon, and that was considerably more interesting than anything BEP could have done.
So in conclusion. I think, even if you didn't agree with some of the nominees, the Grammy's were a helluva lot better when performers just played thier nominated track. The MEDLEY fest is killing the show. Some of the suprise duets were good, but showing the rehearsal footage before commercial, ruins even that surprise. Bascially, I think The Grammy's need to tighten things up, because this uears show just came off as a sloppy mess.
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