THEY'VE GOT MY VOTE :: 92ND ACADEMY AWARDS

Reminder: These choices are who I want to win, not who I think will win.


Best Visual Effects - THE IRISHMAN

Best Editing - THE IRISHMAN

Best Costume Design - ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD

Best Makeup & Hairstyling - 1917

Best Cinematography - 1917

Best Production Design - 1917

Best Sound Mixing - AD ASTRA

Best Sound Editing - 1917

Best Original Score - 1917

Best International Feature Film - PARASITE

Best Adapted Screenplay - THE IRISHMAN

Best Original Screenplay - KNIVES OUT

Best Supporting Actress - Laura Dern (MARRIAGE STORY)

Best Supporting Actor - Joe Pesci (THE IRISHMAN)

Best Actress - Scarlett Johansson (MARRIAGE STORY)

Best Actor - Leonardo DiCaprio (ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD)

Best Director - Sam Mendes (1917)

Best Picture - PARASITE

THEY'VE GOT MAH VOTE :: 90TH ACADEMY AWARDS

Reminder: Any omitted categories are due to me not having seen any or enough films to make a good call. Also, these choices are who I want to win, not who I think will win.

***

Visual Effects - BLADE RUNNER 2049

Film Editing - BABY DRIVER

Cinematography - Roger Deakins (BLADE RUNNER 2049)

Production Design - BLADE RUNNER 2049

Sound Mixing - BABY DRIVER

Sound Editing - BABY DRIVER

Original Score - Alexander Desplat (THE SHAPE OF WATER)

Documentary Feature - ABACUS: SMALL ENOUGH TO JAIL

Adapted Screenplay - THE DISASTER ARTIST

Original Screenplay - THE SHAPE OF WATER

Supporting Actress - Laurie Metcalf (LADY BIRD)

Supporting Actor - Christopher Plummer (ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD)

Actress - Sally Hawkins (THE SHAPE OF WATER)

Director - Guillermo del Toro (THE SHAPE OF WATER)

Picture - GET OUT

THEY'VE GOT MAH VOTE :: 89TH ACADEMY AWARDS

Reminder: Some categories are omitted because I either haven't seen any films listed or not enough to make a reasonable call for.


Visual Effects - ROGUE ONE

Editing - Joe Walker (ARRIVAL)

Costume Design - LA LA LAND

Make-up and Hairstyling - STAR TREK BEYOND

Cinematography - Bradford Young (ARRIVAL)

Production Design - HAIL, CAESAR!

Sound Mixing - LA LA LAND

Sound Editing - LA LA LAND

Original Song - City of Stars (LA LA LAND)

Original Score - Mica Levi (JACKIE)

Documentary Feature - OJ: MADE IN AMERICA

Adapted Screenplay - Barry Jenkins and Tarell Alvin McCraney (MOONLIGHT)

Supporting Actress - Naomi Harris (MOONLIGHT)

Supporting Actor - Mahershala Ali (MOONLIGHT)

Actress - Isabelle Huppert (ELLE)

Director - Damien Chazelle (LA LA LAND)

Picture - LA LA LAND

THEY'VE GOT MAH VOTE :: 88TH ACADEMY AWARDS

Some categories are missing because I have not seen all or not enough films nominated to make my own call.

Best Visual Effects - MAD MAX FURY ROAD

Best Film Editing - Margaret Sixel (MAD MAX FURY ROAD)

Best Costume Design - MAD MAX FURY ROAD

Best Makeup and Hairstyling - MAD MAX FURY ROAD

Best Cinematography - Roger Deakins (SICARIO)

Best Production Design - MAD MAX FURY ROAD

Best Sound Mixing - MAD MAX FURY ROAD

Best Sound Editing - MAD MAX FURY ROAD

Best Original Score - Johann Johannson (SICARIO)

Best Animated Feature Film - INSIDE OUT

Best Adapted Screenplay - THE MARTIAN

Best Original Screenplay - INSIDE OUT

Best Actor - Leonardo DiCaprio (THE REVENANT)

Best Director - George Miller (MAD MAX FURY ROAD)

Best Picture - MAD MAX FURY ROAD

TO TELL YOU THE TRUTH...

Paranormal Activity 3 is the best of the series

CinemaSins is damaging online criticism

I just don't get Blade Runner

The Dark Knight Rises is still better than Batman Begins

Prometheus > Alien

Coldplay is just dandy

Leave Paul Haggis' Crash alone

Confused Matthew should just shut the fuck up

The Informer is John Ford's best film

The Funny Games remake must be defended

Slumdog Millionaire deserved its Oscars

Ocean's Twelve is better than its predecessor

Inception isn't trash

The Village is M. Night Shyamalan's best film

RedLetterMedia is losing me because of Boyhood

THEY'VE GOT MAH VOTE :: 86TH OSCAR PICKS

Second verse, same as the first!


Visual Effects - Gravity

Editing - Gravity

Costume Design - American Hustle

Makeup and Hairstyling - Dallas Buyers Club

Cinematography - Emmanuel Lubezki (Gravity)

Production Design - The Great Gatsby

Sound Mixing - Gravity

Sound Editing - Gravity

Original Song - "Let it Go" (Frozen)

Original Score - Steven Price (Gravity)

Animated Short - Get a Horse!

Animated Feature - Frozen

Adapted Screenplay - John Ridley (12 Years a Slave)

Original Screenplay - Eric Warren Singer & David O. Russell (American Hustle)

Supporting Actress - Lupita Nyong'o (12 Years a Slave)

Supporting Actor - Michael Fassbender (12 Years a Slave)

Actress - Sandra Bullock (Gravity)

Actor - Christian Bale (American Hustle)

Director - Alfonso Cuarón (Gravity)

Picture - 12 Years a Slave

DOUBLE THE BILL (A Response to Luke)

Pain & Gain / Spring Breakers

Short Cuts / Magnolia

Videodrome / eXistenZ

Schizopolis / Lost Highway

The New World / Avatar

Psycho / Funny Games

The Girlfriend Experience / Magic Mike

Psycho '98 / Funny Games U.S.

The Matrix Reloaded / The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Sunset Boulevard / Mulholland Drive

The Night of the Hunter / Undertow

The Informant! / Side Effects

Raising Cain / Stoker

Mission to Mars / Prometheus

2013, The Year of Sleaze :: The Show So Far

After the huge rush of quality films last year, this has been a comparatively sloggish one to put it mildly. Of the following, here is a quick recap of every (U.S. release official) 2013 film I've seen so far as of 18th August.

Side Effects
The Informant!'s serious, sexy alternate. The cinemas will miss you Soderbergh.

To the Wonder
Mleh...

Stoker
I've never seen any of them Giallo films but from what I've read, this was a damn fine cup of blood.

Oz the Great & Powerful
Yeah I think it's brilliant, ya got a problem wid dat? (does futterwacken)

Spring Breakers
This movie is so good it makes you like Skrillix and Britney Spears music.

Trance
I'm a sucker for this kind of music score and soundtrack set on top of these kinds of stories, which Danny Boyle has always been great at.

Oblivion
We may have reached the point where it's getting harder to create a genuinely original sci-fi film without guessing what tropes will fall into play, but at least you can have the chance to do it well which I feel this did.

Pain & Gain
Never in my life would I consider calling a Michael Bay film not just one of the year's best but one of my all time favourites.

The Great Gatsby
Good. Certainly more tolerable than Australia, I can surely say.

Only God Forgives
To those who hate it, I can't argue with your points.

After Earth
Well... I spose after you make The Last Airbender, all you can go is up...

World War Z
I'm very nonchalant with this one. Yep, it exists. Moving on...

Pacific Rim
A giant robot hits a sea monster with a battleship. All arguments past, present and future are invalid.

V/H/S/2
Wrap-around was uninteresting, Clinical Trials had a potential story but not much payoff, Ride in the Park was hilarious and surprisingly moving, Safe Haven was FUCKMETHATWASSCARYDIDYOUGUYSSEETHAT!!!! and Slumber Party Alien Abduction was nihilistic as fuck.

The Conjuring
Now who says you can't make effectively chilling horror movies anymore?

The World's End
Woopsie daisy!

Passion
Classic De Palma, welcome back and all that.

Prince Avalanche
This is not a retreat, it's a step forward.

FUCK THAT NOISE!

A lot of my friends on Facebook (especially Jacob) have often chided me for liking every single film.

Now I have better things to do than to constantly rag on a film's merit of low worth like people who make videos on blip that compares a work of fiction to military dictators, yet I cannot deny that some films tend to rub me the wrong way.

Don't let the above asinine title fool you, this is not a hate list. I don't hate any movie. These films are based on more of a disappointment level and how I can't say that I actually 'LIKE' them.

So, as usual, in no particular order:

The Golden Compass

No surprise to those who know me. This is more of a special mention since I still have not seen the whole film and marks the first time I've ever walked out of a movie feeling pissed.

My Super Ex-Girlfriend

All's well that ends well? No...

Premonition

Well that ending came out of nowhere...

Astro Boy

So did this...

King Ralph

Hey guys! Let's start our comedy with the pointless killing of multiple people!

Date Movie

Must I explain?

Paranormal Activity 4

Liked 1, 2 was ok, LOVED 3. This was balls.

Killing Them Softly

People tend to consider Prometheus and The Dark Knight Rises as the biggest disappointments of 2012. I never understood that. I was more disappointed with this.

Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole

To paraphrase an video game critic, if you find us Australians offensive, you'll find this movie offensively Australian.

Bad Boys

I always lose it when it gets to the scene where Martin must... BECOME WILL!

25 Hot Celbs

THEY'VE GOT MAH VOTE! :: 85th OSCAR PICKS

Like a good deal of people in similar situations, I'm usually unable to see all the films nominated. This is either out of restrictions and/or laziness. Though unlike last year where the Best Picture & Director winner was the only one I had yet to see before the day, this year I've now seen all nominees for the main two.

Now these picks aren't chosen out of what I predict is going to win, but what I'd personally vote for. I've purposefully neglected adding some of the categories, most notably Animated Film because of the 5 nominees, the only one I've seen is Frankenweenie.

Like many attention seeking assholes I will be live-tweeting the event as it unfolds on @mrfist126.

Best Actor

Joaquin Phoenix - The Master

Best Actress

Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty

Best Supporting Actor

Christoph Waltz - Django Unchained

Best Supporting Actress

Amy Adams - The Master

Best Director

Michael Haneke - Amour

Best Original Screenplay

Moonrise Kingdom

Best Adapted Screenplay

Beasts of the Southern Wild

Best Foreign Language Film

Amour

Best Score

Life of Pi

Best Song

Skyfall

Best Cinematography

Roger Deakins - Skyfall

Best Editing

Tim Squyres - Life of Pi

Best Visual Effects

Life of Pi

Best Picture

Argo

I LOVE THIS SHIT! :: YOU LIKE WHAT?! (A Response to Aaron)

The Limits of Control

Screw the stuffy business establishment, let's kill em all and continue to enjoy pretty looking art.

Psycho (1998)

Sometimes sacrifices must be made...

The Village

Yeah, yeah I called it too.

The Room

Fuck you, it's funny.

The Wicker Man (2006)

See previous comment.

Southland Tales

Yes, you did see two cars pork each other. Plus Timberlake lipsyncs The Killers.

Synecdoche, New York

Existentialism: It can fuck you up.

Funny Games (both)

It's MEANT to be bad??? What are ya, high?

Smokin' Aces

CLINT MANSELL, BITCH!!!

Gerry

Cheaper than a travel ticket to the desert. Plus no sunburn.

Solaris

CLIFF MARTINEZ, BITCH!!!

The Fountain

Hotel

I'm just the kind of person who enjoys having the jizz of pretentious film-making all over my face...

Stay

It's like that play, only trippy.

Knowing

I knew that math test I skipped would catch up to me...

Speed Racer

Tastes like psychadelic bubblegum, only crunchy!

Paranormal Activity 1, 2 & 3

Tis like one of them spooky mansions at the carnival. It's dark, you jump out of your seat and it's over fast.

Prometheus

REALLY?!?!?! Really?!

The difference between movies and books.

MOVIES!

BOOKS!

Tangental Conversation: And Coming in at No. 6 is...

Anyone who pays close attention to this site will notice that one of my 'Ingredients' is Lists. So far, the only time I've used it is for my Video Collection (which by the way has been updated again) and my own MIXTAPES which categorizes a number of songs which, for me, fits in the appropriate topic I feel it represents. However, what I will not do is to make a top numbered list.

It seems like a ritual that every year or, god forbid, a decade goes by, people on the internet will make a top 10 list of favourite movies / games / etc. of the previous 1 - 10 years. This is often followed up by the worst movies of the year / decade. This is a scenario that I see no point in doing.

To me, making a top whatever list is pointless because lists change all the time and at the time we make them, it only corresponds with how we're feeling at that moment. One day we might say that X is better than Y. Then when we watch Y we might say 'Actually, this is a little bit better than X'. This is another thing that bugs me about this.

I don't believe that ANY film / book / game should be compared to another because each work should stand on it's own merits, whether it's a remake, adaptation or sequel (more on that at another time) and I really don't see how or why I must choose a numbered slot to put said work in if it'll only change in time.

Hell, I can't even make a top # personal favourite list. When I see a film, I see it for what it is, and then when a watch something else I don't try and compare how it's similar or different to the previous one. Unless I start watching all of a selected director's films by which I then start noticing any trademarks.

Now I will one day make some reviews of films that I consider to be great or start making notes on a directors oeuvre. But when it comes to figuring out whether Dark City should go in #3 or #7, forget it.

P.S. Hypocritically, if pressed, #1 would go to Magnolia.

Thoughts on The Dark Knight Rises

Tangental Conversation: M Night Shyamalan

It's very painful to see someone fall so hard after having such a great start. I became a fan of M. Night around the time Signs came out on dvd yet before The Village came out in cinemas. This was also around the time I started becoming a film buff. His films are very mesmorising to me not just from the stories he told but, like many great directors, the way he told them.

I've always loved the way how the camera gracefully moves around as it shows us what is happening, or what it's hiding from us. Long takes always drew my breath away and he knew how to use them. The scene in The Sixth Sense where we follow Toni Collette from the kitchen to the laundry, and when she comes back, ALL the cupboards and drawers are suddenly open. Or the scene in Signs where Mel Gibson carries his sick son to the couch and we end on the reflection of the TV screen.

I saw The Village at the cinema with my mother in 2004, and we see each Shyamalan film since. Even watching it again today, I still feel that The Village is very underrated, yet I believe this started the downturn of his career.

His next film Lady in the Water feels very weird to me. It just seems that this film doesn't have a clear view of common sense. (I mean, learning the prophecy from cereal packets?) As for that thing about casting himself as writer whose work will change the world, I didn't think much of it when I first saw it but when it was pointed out to me..... yeah, not the wisest move. Though at least he made so that the character would be killed visciously in the future.

I wouldn't call it bad, just unfortunate. It's more of a B-Movie to me, but at least there are still some very good things about it. James Newton Howard's music is beautiful and Chris Doyle's photography always looks nice. Even in his current films the best things in his films are the music & photography.

The Happening (M. Night's ACTUAL B-Movie) was the first one that left me felt terribly disappointed. I made the mistake in expecting more but receiving very little. It was nice to see him make a move into more violent territory but, at the time, it just didn't add up to much. I watched it again recently and I liked it better on the second viewing for seeing it at what he wanted to show us.

When it was announced that he was making an adaptation of The Last Airbender, I went to see the entire series anyway I could, and it's a great show. I had to wait 2 extra months for the film to come out to Australia and I tried not to read many reviews as possible, but from what I saw it wasn't pretty. Even with that in mind, when the film came out I told myself that I would see this film and at least TRY to like it. I made the decision to not see the film in 3D, since films should be able to stand on 2D alone.

Yet even though the fight scenes were spectacular, Andrew Lesnie's brilliant photography, JNH's music, there were some cute moments with the animals and the acting was pretty decent considering. But pretty much all I heard was exposition here and discription there, and the transitions between scenes felt so loose yet choppy at the same time usually connected by the narration. But I can say that I liked it better than when I saw The Happening for the first time.

I've said this before when The Happening came out but I still have faith in Shyamalan. I still believe that he has another good film in him and his current films prove to me he's still a fantastic director. As a writer, however, he's his own worst enemy. I've heard that he only directs his own scripts but if that's true, then these films should be clear that he needs someone to assist him with any other projects he has.

An Airbender sequel will pretty much never happen now, but I've heard he plans to reunite with Bruce Willis. If that's true or not, then I hope that film no. 10 will mark the resurrection he desperately needs.

For all our sakes.