Paris Je T'aime

Date: January 12
Location: Clifton Living Room

It's been a good year for short films, from Wes Anderson's quirky Hotel Chevalier to Pixar's comic alien abduction film, Lifted and most notably, this collection of 18 short film by 21 directors, each set in a different Parisian neighborhood. Every one is worthy, and some are close to divine. My favorites were Tom Twyker's hyperactive look at a young romance starring Natalie Portman, Alfonso Cuaron's one-take street conversation with a twist starring Nick Nolte and Ludivine Sagnier, and Alexander Payne's deadpan love letter to Paris by a clumsily-accented American mail carrier abroad. The Coen Brothers, Gus Van Sant, Walter Salles and a bunch of directors I'm not familiar with also turn in memorable films. The film works best as a sort of mix-CD of wonderful short films — and taken as a whole it's a splendid travelogue for the City of Lights (almost as effective as Ratatouille in that regard).

Writers and Directors Guild nominees

Over the past few days, the writers and directors have chimed in with their nominees for outstanding work in 2007. The director nominees often match up closely with the Oscars... the writers not so much.

One curious bit of information: A mistake by the writers guild led them to post the nominees in order of total votes, so the lists below reflect the descending degree of passion in the guilds for those titles. Good news for Diablo Cody and the Coen Brothers.

At this point, it looks like No Country for Old Men, Michael Clayton and There Will Be Blood are positioned very well for Best Picture nominations. Juno, too, is likely to show up there.

Oscar nominations will be announced on Jan. 22. I will solicit contest entries about a week before then.

ORIGINAL SCRENPLAY
Diablo Cody - Juno
Tony Gilroy - Michael Clayton
Tamara Jenkins - The Savages
Judd Apatow - Knocked Up
Nancy Oliver - Lars and the Real Girl

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
The Coens - No Country For Old Men
Paul Thomas Anderson - There Will Be Blood
Ronald Harwood - The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
Sean Penn - Into The Wild
James Vanderbilt - Zodiac

DIRECTION
Paul Thomas Anderson - There Will Be Blood
The Coen Brothers - No Country for Old Men
Tony Gilroy - Michael Clayton
Sean Penn - Into the Wild
Julian Schnabel - The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

The Savages

Date: January 9
Location: Clifton Living Room

A sharp, downbeat little film that features two of the best actors working today, The Savages is easy to appreciate but hard to love. Phillip Seymour Hoffman turns in his third award-worthy performance of 2008 as a son dealing with his father's deteriorating mental health. Laura Linney, as his sister, is equally good in the showier role. These two should be in every movie released — they're that good. As for the film itself, I respected what it was doing and I found it very real and often quite powerful. But I can't imagine ever popping it into my DVD player again, and that hurts it a bit in my rankings.

Juno

Date: January 1
Location: Muvico Boynton Beach

I remember reading the Entertainment Weekly Fall Preview a few months back and at the end of the section for each month they had a little "Also coming out this month" blurb where they listed a bunch of titles not deemed worthy of more expansive coverage. Tucked away in there was Juno, wchich caught my eye because it starred three of my favorite actors — Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman. 'That's interesting,' I thought. 'Will probably have to catch up with it on DVD.'

Cut to a few months later, and this little film is on dozens of top ten lists, it's lighting up the box office in limited release and it's considered a shoo-in for Oscar nominations in the screenplay and actress categories, with Best Picture and Best Supporting Actress in its sights. It just goes to show you, sometimes a movie can cut through the white noise and find its rightful spot in the conversation.

The movie this gem most reminds me of is Rushmore, one of my all-time favorites. It has a similar seasonal structure (complete with title cards), careful and witty shot composition, a Brit-pop soundtrack and — most important — a precocious, witty, wise-beyond-his/her-years teenage protagonist who is really masking a deep well of insecurity. Ellen Page's Juno McGuff is the female descendant of Max Fischer, and joins him in the pantheon of great cinematic characters. (She also represents the second such addition to the pantheon in 2007, joining Javier Bardem's Anton Chigurh from No Country for Old Men).

Page gives what may well be the performance of the year (look out, Marion Cotillard), selling the bracingly clever dialogue as completely authentic and heartfelt. Much credit, certainly, goes to Diablo Cody for penning the whip-smart script, but it's hard to imagine another actress embodying Juno like this. Cera, as always, has perfect timing and delivery. Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner are exceptional, in roles that are subtly different from anything either has tried before. And J.K. Simmons and Allison Janney, as Juno's parents, are funny, touching and real.

In addition to delivering huge laughs (Juno's introduction to lawyer Gerta Rauss produced my biggest guffaw of the year), the film is wonderful and surprising in a dozen different ways. The plot takes unpredictable turns that feel just right — I can't remember being so blissfully unaware of where a film was taking me. The path of Jennifer Garner's character, in particular, is unexpectedly touching.

And to cap it all off, the opening credits alone are worthy of a short film Oscar and two Belle & Sebastian tunes are featured on the superb soundtrack. Start to finish, this film is a treat. I can't wait to see it again.

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.