Oscar Season Movies that deserve all their praise — Page 3

To my thinking, THE SHAPE OF WATER is the most deserving of a Best Picture Oscar of the bunch. It's a real movie-movie with a personal vision that is fully executed in every detail to brilliant moving effect. It's much less a literary script like THREE BILLBOARDS or CALL ME BY YOUR NAME, since the story is carried far more fully in pictures than words, but every word is smartly chosen.

By contrast, I just saw a screening of PHANTOM THREAD on Monday-- sheesh, is that a chore to sit through! Full marks for the production design, costume design and score-- all are lovely and meticulous. But Daniel Day Lewis' lead performance is like a caricature of every previous DDL performance you've ever seen rolled into one. Weird accent, check. Ice cold exterior, check. Psychotic manipulator of every woman in sight, check. A total indulgence without redemption that ruined what might have been a fascinating look into the rarified world of 50's Haute Couture. So much skill in the service of so little. What a waste.

Updated On: 12/21/17 at 02:57 PM

Woah, Caleb Landry Jones has featured roles in The Florida Project, Get Out, and 3 Billboards. 3 Oscar contenders all in one season. Dang!! I didn’t notice that.

I’ve only seen Get Out and thought it was terrific.

Updated On: 12/22/17 at 04:05 PM

Today I caught I, TONYA and THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI.

I was highly anticipating I, TONYA, as I have a strange fascination with the whole incident, and everything surrounding it in the world of competitive figure skating. Not to mention I was always Pro-Tonya in the Nancy/Tonya debacle. The trailer only built it up ever more, as it looked like a wild campy black comedy, the kind of movie I can't get enough of, not to mention I'm one of the biggest Allison Janney fans around. I thought the movie was good, but I felt let down in a way, because I didn't think it was great. The best things about it are the story and two great performances from Margot Robbie and the aforementioned Janney. Margot's portrayal is insanely good and scarily uncanny. Allison Janney pulls out every trick she has, and convincingly plays one of the worst characters I've ever seen, while still dragging as along. Tonya's mother is someone a lot of people are going to love to hate. Sebastian Stan was just meh for me. Another terrible character, but he didn't pull it off nearly as well as Janney. The writing never reached the potential I was hoping for, it was a butter knife and I was hoping for a butch knife's sharpness and edge. It also never fully commits to the campy/satirical tone the marketing suggests. I think Janney is a lock for the nomination, and is Metcalf's (LADY BIRD) only real threat. Robbie is wonderful in the movie. Ronan (LADY BIRD), McDormand (BILLBOARDS), and Hawkins (THE SHAPE OF WATER) are all fighting it out right now for winner. I've yet to see MOLLY'S GAME or THE POST, but I have a feeling Robbie will edge her way in along with Streep, and Jessica Chastain will be the odd one out.

As for THREE BILLBOARDS, there isn't much to add that hasn't been said for those who liked it. McDormand was spectacular, and I could easily see her winning this year. I loved the script, and thought the supporting cast was strong all around. THREE BILLBOARDS and THE SHAPE OF WATER are my two favorites so far, with WATER having an edge.

Tomorrow I'll watch CALL ME BY YOUR NAME, and later this week I hope to catch THE DISASTER ARTIST.

Updated On: 12/28/17 at 12:41 AM

There does seem to be an odd actor overlap amongst the year's most acclaimed films. In addition to Caleb Landry Jones and Michael Stuhlbarg's three films, Timothee Chalamet is in both Call Me by Your Name and Lady Bird.

I finally saw CMBYN. I liked it, didn't love it.

Haven't seen Call Me By Your Name yet...damn suburbs. I did see 3 Billboards a few weeks ago, while I enjoyed all the performances I had some real issues with the tone, which for me did work all that well. I also had some issues with Sam Rockwell's character, not the performance, but the transition that character has. Two films I just caught up with this week that I don't think anyone is talking about, and has two of the best performances of the year that is Kristen Stewart in Personal Shopper and Francis Pugh in Lady Macbeth. These women are carrying these very delicate and intricate films on their backs, and doing it beautifully. Lady Macbeth had me torn about a character that I haven't felt in a long time. Personal Shopper was one of the creepiest and somewhat scariest films I've seen all year.