Just Myself wrote:The only reason Kathryn Bigelow won Best Director is because it was a mediocre year film-wise, and the Academy thought it would look good to hand the award to its first female victor.
The Academy is a joke and has been since it's creation (hell, it was started by the studios and headed by actors). The awards ceremony is just one big self-congratulatory night for Hollywood. Since you don't have to be a movie scholar or critic to vote, just about anyone in the industry can and will. A lot of the times they will vote for people whom they feel were snubbed in the past, or if they want to show how progressive they are (by voting an actor/actress simply due to their race, gender, etc. or voting for a movie due to it's subject matter/message), or if the movie is just making too big an impact to ignore. I believe it was Lionel Barrymore who stated that he felt he only got the Oscar because they knew he was dying and felt bad for him. I honesty can't image how bad that has to feel to earn a pity Oscar or any other non-deserved one. I honestly trust AFI more then the Academy, and even they don't know what they're doing half the time.
Anyways, I watched quite a mismatch of movies:
Waterloo Bridge (1940) 7/10 - I had seen the original pre-code Mae Clark version from the 30s but never this sanitized/glamorized MGM version from the 40s. The story itself isn't really anything special, star-crossed lovers who meet only to be separated, and they REALLY do everything in their power to avoid the subject of prostitution (even though it is a significant plot point in the story). Still, the whole damn movie is carried on Vivien Leigh's fantastic performance. It's very reserved and moving (not to mention she looks beautiful). It's a shame people generally don't know her outside
Gone with the Wind and
A Streetcar Named Desire (coincidentally the roles she won her Oscars for), as she easily could've won one for this.
The Maltese Falcon (1941) 8/10 - just bought this on Blu-Ray as I love it (although they're skimpy on the extras). It's a detective story and one of the first film noir. Bogie
is Sam Spade. The whole supporting cast is excellent too. Perfect pacing and intriguing story. Thank you John Huston.
Sweet Smell of Success (1957) 7.5/10 - J.J. Hunsecker...Sidney Falco...these names are just so iconic and so are the image of these characters played by Burt Lancaster and Tony Curtis respectively. Hell, even the jazzy score by Elmer Bernstein is iconic. Anyways, it's the story of a newspaper columnist who uses a sleazy press agent to break up his younger sister's relationship with a jazz musician. Make no mistake, the main character we follow, Sidney Falco the press agent, is an ass hole. Most of the characters are unlikable but I was captivated all the same. What really stands out to me is the realistic acting and direction found here, both of which feel ahead of their time (I love the use of camera). I watched it again for the first time in years because the new Criterion Blu-Ray is coming out and I couldn't remember if I liked it enough to buy it.
The Social Network (2010) 8/10 - I'm one who hasn't been too impressed with David Fincher and find him almost as overrated as Kubrick. With that said, I found this movie about Facebook very entertaining, even if only about 40% of it is accurate. It was quite exhilarating at times with the quick editing and music (which sounds similar to the
Book of Eli score, which I loved). It also had some emotional moments. I felt the ending was a little anti-climactic (I'm sure they felt it was a good bookend but I felt let down). Since I didn't care for
Benjamin Button or
Zodiac, I was happy to find that this movie captivated me as much as
Se7en did the first time I saw it.
The Kids Are All Right (2010) 6.5/10 - a story about a lesbian couple who suddenly have the sperm donor of their kids show up in their lives. The acting throughout is pretty great. I was actually liking this one up to the ending.
Piranha (2010) 4.5/10 - I honestly don't know why I watched this. I only feel bad for those who had to watch that CG penis get devoured by the Piranhas in eye-popping 3D. I also feel bad for Richard Dreyfuss and Christopher Lloyd for appearing in this.
