Coming up: Best albums of 2007

As with the movies, I have a few CDs left to hear before compiling my year-end list. Specifically, I have the Allison Krauss/Robert Plant duets album and Rufus Wainwright's Judy Garland concert album on the way from Amazon.com and I have to give another listen or two to Arcade Fire's acclaimed Neon Bible, which I picked up last week.

The other albums vying for a spot on the list are the following (listed alphabetically by artist):

Lily Allen - Alright, Still
Feist - The Reminder
Fountains of Wayne - Traffic and Weather
Lyle Lovett and His Large Band - It's Not Big It's Large
M.I.A. - Kala
Paul McCartney - Memory Almost Full
Original Soundtrack - I'm Not There
Original Soundtrack - Once
Radiohead - In Rainbows
Josh Rouse - Country Mouse City House
Ron Sexsmith - Time Being
The Shins - Wincing Away the Night
Elliott Smith - New Moon
Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
Bruce Springsteen - Magic
Rufus Wainwright - Release the Stars
The White Stripes - Icky Thump
Wilco - Sky Blue Sky
Lucinda Williams - West
Amy Winehouse - Back to Black

Charlie Wilson's War

Date: December 23
Location: Muvico Boynton Beach

There's really no better movie experience for us right now than getting the babysitter and going to the new Boynton Muvico. It's literally 5 minutes away and it's a great theater. We could see White Chicks there and come away with a smile on our faces.

Charlie Wilson's War is no White Chicks. It's a smart, funny ride that showcases Aaron Sorkin at his witty best and sidesteps him at his preachy worst. Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and (particularly) Philip Seymour Hoffman tear into this dialogue with relish and it's an absolute treat to watch. The movie loses its way a bit in its final third — I expected a bit more conflict before the resolution — but it's mostly just a great time at the movies. It's refreshing to see a movie about the politics surrounding the Middle East conflict work first and best as a character-driven comedy.

Screen Actors Guild nominations

Into the Wild gets the biggest boost from the SAG nominations, picking up four, while Atonement and Sweeney Todd are completely shut out. No Country for Old Men and Michael Clayton pick up three apiece.

The biggest surprise is the ensemble category, the SAG equivalent of Best Picture, where No Country and Into the Wild are joined by Hairspray, 3:10 to Yuma and American Gangster, three films that have been pretty much out of the awards race thus far.

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role

GEORGE CLOONEY / Michael Clayton
DANIEL DAY-LEWIS / There Will Be Blood
RYAN GOSLING / Lars And The Real Girl
EMILE HIRSCH / Into The Wild
VIGGO MORTENSEN / Eastern Promises

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role

CATE BLANCHETT / Elizabeth: The Golden Age
JULIE CHRISTIE / Away From Her
MARION COTILLARD / La Vie En Rose
ANGELINA JOLIE / A Mighty Heart
ELLEN PAGE / Juno

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role

CASEY AFFLECK / The Assassination of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
JAVIER BARDEM / No Country For Old Men
HAL HOLBROOK / Into The Wild
TOMMY LEE JONES / No Country For Old Men
TOM WILKINSON / Michael Clayton

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role

CATE BLANCHETT / I'm Not There
RUBY DEE / American Gangster
CATHERINE KEENER / Into The Wild
AMY RYAN / Gone Baby Gone
TILDA SWINTON / Michael Clayton

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture

3:10 TO YUMA (Lionsgate)
AMERICAN GANGSTER (Universal Pictures)
HAIRSPRAY (New Line Cinema)
INTO THE WILD (Paramount Vantage)
NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN (Miramax Films)

What's left to see?

UPDATED: March 28 now that DVD is the only option for all of these.

I've been making a lot of headway the past few weeks, seeing some of the 2007 films that almost got away. So I thought I'd take a minute to detail what's left on my to-see list.

In order of must-see-ness:

There Will Be Blood - Paul Thomas Anderson is probably the most exciting young talent in movies today — he's stretching the boundaries of cinema in breathtaking ways. Word is this is another masterwork, but even if it falls short of Boogie Nights or Magnolia I'm certain it will be fascinating.

Juno - I hope it lives up to the hype, but even if it doesn't I'll be happy to spend a couple hours with this cast.

Charlie Wilson's War - Seems to have a great combination of laughs and brains, and a mischievous performance by Tom Hanks.

1. Michael Clayton

2. Sweeney Todd

3. Walk Hard - Incredibly silly, I'm sure, but it's a genre ripe for parody and I trust these guys to do it right.

4. Lars & the Real Girl

5. The Diving Bell & The Butterfly - I feel like I have to see this more than I want to see it, but the raves have me intrigued.

6. 3:10 to Yuma

7. Persepolis - See above.

8. The Great Debaters - Might be corny as hell, but the subject matter is great and I like the Denzel.

The Savages - This should probably be higher on the list, but the trailer doesn't do a whole lot for me. The idea of Linney and Hoffman putting on an acting clinic does, though.

9. I Am Legend - Probably not going to see this in the theater, but I still kind of want to.

The Bucket List - Good reviews could push this up the list. As it is, I'm very wary of Rob Reiner's output the past 10-15 years and the ads make it look pretty corny.

Into the Wild - Mostly excellent reviews but I can't shake my Sean Penn-as-director fatigue.

10. The Kite Runner - Seems way too grim, but probably worth seeing. I might feel differently if I'd read the novel.




Eastern Promises

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
My Kid Could Paint That
King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters
Margot at the Wedding
Paris, je t'aime
11. Control
12. Waitress
13. The Ten
In the Vallery of Elah
14. Fred Claus
15 The Hunting Party
16. Rescue Dawn
17. Interview
18. A Mighty Heart

I'm Not There

Date: December 18
Location: Landmark Art Cinema (Atlanta)

I returned to the excellent midtown Atlanta theater where I saw Pan's Labyrinth about a year ago to catch Todd Haynes' unique Bob Dylan biopic. I wish South Florida had a theater like this, with big posters of classic films in the lobby, eight large screens showing indie fare, employees and patrons you can just tell are film lovers. If I ever get a big-money job offer in Atlanta, this movie theater will be a check in the 'pro' column.

The film is fascinating and often transcendent. It's an art film in the truest sense of the word — eschewing simple things like plot and narrative in favor of a scattered exploration of the "many lives" of Bob Dylan. This is the kind of movie ensemble awards are made for... all the actors are terrific, with Cate Blanchett and young Marcus Carl Franklin the standouts. Tying everything together is Dylan's music, used to tremendous effect from fade in to fade out. Not every scene is successful, but so much of the film works so well that it easily ranks among the year's best.

Overlooked performances

Every year, the critics groups and the Academy inevitably narrow their focus to a group of about 6-7 actors in each category. The Oscar nominations almost always come from those shortlists — it's the reason the winner of our annual contest usually goes 25-out-of-30 or better.

But of course there are many more performances just as worthy of awards each year that get lost because their films weren't well-received overall, came out too early, flew too far under the radar or some other unfortunate combination of events.

So rather than heap praise on the Julie Christies and Marion Cotillards, the Javier Bardems and Daniel Day Lewises, I'm going to look at each acting category and sing the praises of some wonderful performers who won't hear their names called at year end.

Stay tuned for the first installment soon.

Bug

Date: December 17
Location: Clifton Living Room

An extremely creepy exploration of loneliness and paranoia, Bug is the opposite of a feel-good movie. The film is based on a stage play (and obviously so, as it is dialogue-heavy and takes place almost entirely in a motel room) about a beaten-down (literally and figuratively) woman who finds comfort in the arms of a paranoid schizophrenic and eventually comes to share his obsessions. It really is quite fascinating, despite the grisly subject matter, and features an outstanding performance by Ashley Judd. Judd started out with such promise a dozen or so years ago but chose to pursue a career in TV-worthy crime flicks. Here, she reminds us what a raw, vital actress she really is, delivering one of the best performances (male or female) I've seen all year. It's a pity she's being ignored by the award shows.

Dallas/Ft. Worth Critics

OK, one more...

Best Films

1. No Country for Old Men
2. Juno
3. There Will Be Blood
4. Atonement
5. Michael Clayton
6. Into the Wild
7. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
8. The Kite Runner
9. The Assassination of Jesse James
10. Charlie Wilson's War

Best Actor
Daniel Day-Lewis

Best Actress
Julie Christie

Best Supporting Actor
Javier Bardem

Best Supporting Actress
Tilda Swinton

Best Director
Joel Coen and Ethan Coen

Screenplay
Juno, Diablo Cody

Best Animated Film
Ratatouille

Cinematography
Roger Deakins, Assassination of Jesse James

Atonement

Date: December 15
Location: Regal South Beach

One thing is made abundantly clear by this lush adaptation of Ian McEwan's celebrated novel — director Joe Wright is one of the brightest new talents working in film today. His Pride & Prejudice was my top film of 2005 and here he ups the ante — hitting the same grace notes, moving his camera in even grander fashion. Ultimately, though, Atonement falls a bit short of his masterful debut.

This is an extremely difficult novel to adapt, and screenwriter Christopher Hampton is up to the task — he fully deserves his likely Oscar nomination. The opening hour, set in the Tallis family estate, is flawlessly executed — with shifts in time and perspective that ratchet up the drama and suspense while driving home the film's underlying theme. The film's second half branches to follow the three main characters' lives in wartime. The focus is mainly on the young man's experiences in Dunkirk, and it is here that Wright stages a scene that's been mentioned in every review of the film — a 6-minute Steadicam shot capturing the madness of war. It's a shot for the ages, and a highlight of the film.

My one complaint is that the film feels a bit too short. I wanted more of the Tallis sisters' experiences during the second half — what's there is extraordinary, but a little more would have made the movie's strong ending even more powerful. That criticism aside, though, this is a wonderful achievement and one of the year's best films.

Gone Baby Gone

Date: December 14
Location: Movies at Delray

I saw this at a trashy little old-school movie theater in Delray Beach, probably days before it disappears from screens altogether, and I'm so glad I did. Definitely among my favorite films of the year, this story about a Boston private eye investigating a kidnapping resonates both as a suspense yarn and a morality tale. Ben Affleck does teriffic work in his directorial debut — he blows away master Clint Eastwood, whose overrated Mystic River is by far the lesser Dennis Lehane adaptation. And Casey Affleck does his best work (unless he tops it in the Jesse James flick) as the young private eye whose inner strength trumps his inexperience. My only minor complaint is of the "I wish it were longer" variety — Michelle Monaghan's character clearly has a backstory that I wish had been explored. Like No Country for Old Men, this film has me heading to the bookstore for the source material.