Category Archives: Uncategorized

Oscar Winners 2021

Posted on by • Posted in Uncategorized • Tagged , • Leave a comment

All avid moviegoers who look forward to the Academy Awards as a once a year major event, are now – after Pandemic Academy awards last night – looking for a quick return to normalcy. There was nothing watchable with the Academy Awards last night. This is understandable under the circumstances but this Oscar show was hard to sit through.

The winner for best picture “Nomadland” (reviewed in this blog) was a good movie/documentary about the plight of so many homeless and near homeless in this country, but it was also a movie that does not compare to a best picture winner within a normal year. Hopefully, maybe even next year, the Oscars will have a host again, maybe even Billy Crystal, and this show will be a major event again.

Best original screenplay

Judas and the Black Messiah
Minari
Promising Young Woman – WINNER
Sound of Metal
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best adapted screenplay

Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
The Father – WINNER
Nomadland
One Night in Miami
The White Tiger

Best international feature film

Another Round – WINNER
Better Days
Collective
The Man Who Sold His Skin
Quo Vadis, Aida?

Best actor in a supporting role

Sacha Baron Cohen, The Trial of the Chicago 7
Daniel Kaluuya, Judas and the Black Messiah – WINNER
Leslie Odom, Jr, One Night in Miami
Paul Raci, Sound of Metal
Lakeith Stanfield, Judas and the Black Messiah

Best makeup and hairstyling

Emma
Hillbilly Elegy
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom – WINNER
Mank
Pinocchio

Best costume design

Emma
Mank
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom – WINNER
Mulan
Pinocchio

Best director

Thomas Vinterberg, Another Round
Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman
David Fincher, Mank
Lee Isaac Chung, Minari
Chloé Zhao, Nomadland – WINNER

Best sound

Greyhound
Mank
News of the World
Sound of Metal – WINNER
Soul

Best live-action short film

Feeling Through
The Letter Room
The Present
Two Distant Strangers – WINNER
White Eye

Best animated short film

Burrow
Genius Loci
If Anything Happens I Love You – WINNER
Opera
Yes-People

Best animated feature film

Onward
Over the Moon
A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
Soul – WINNER
Wolfwalkers

Best documentary short

Colette – WINNER
A Concerto Is a Conversation
Do Not Split
Hunger Ward
A Love Song for Latasha

Best documentary

Collective
Crip Camp
The Mole Agent
My Octopus Teacher – WINNER
Time

Best visual effects

Love and Monsters
The Midnight Sky
Mulan
The One and Only Ivan
Tenet – WINNER

Best actress in a supporting role

Maria Bakalova, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Glenn Close, Hillbilly Elegy
Olivia Colman, The Father
Amanda Seyfried, Mank
Youn Yuh-Jung, Minari – WINNER

Best production design

The Father
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Mank – WINNER
News of the World
Tenet

Best cinematography

Judas and the Black Messiah
Mank – WINNER
News of the World
Nomadland
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best film editing

The Father
Nomadland
Promising Young Woman
Sound of Metal – WINNER
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best original score

Da 5 Bloods
Mank
Minari
News of the World
Soul – WINNER

Best original song

Husavik, Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
Fight For You, Judas and the Black Messiah – WINNER
Io Sì (Seen), The Life Ahead
Speak Now, One Night in Miami
Hear My Voice, The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best picture

The Father
Judas and the Black Messiah
Mank
Minari
Nomadland – WINNER
Promising Young Woman
Sound of Metal
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best actress in a leading role

Viola Davis, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Andra Day, The United States vs Billie Holiday
Vanessa Kirby, Pieces of a Woman
Frances McDormand, Nomadland – WINNER
Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman

Best actor in a leading role

Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal
Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Anthony Hopkins, The Father – WINNER
Gary Oldman, Mank
Steven Yeun, Minari

Best makeup and hairstyling

Advertisement

Emma
Hillbilly Elegy
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom – WINNER
Mank
Pinocchio

Best costume design

Emma
Mank
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom – WINNER
Mulan
Pinocchio

Best director

Thomas Vinterberg, Another Round
Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman
David Fincher, Mank
Lee Isaac Chung, Minari
Chloé Zhao, Nomadland – WINNER

Best sound

Greyhound
Mank
News of the World
Sound of Metal – WINNER
Soul

Best live-action short film

Feeling Through
The Letter Room
The Present
Two Distant Strangers – WINNER
White Eye

Best animated short film

Burrow
Genius Loci
If Anything Happens I Love You – WINNER
Opera
Yes-People

Best animated feature film

Onward
Over the Moon
A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
Soul – WINNER
Wolfwalkers

Colette – WINNER
A Concerto Is a Conversation
Do Not Split
Hunger Ward
A Love Song for Latasha

Best documentary

Collective
Crip Camp
The Mole Agent
My Octopus Teacher – WINNER
Time

Best visual effects

Love and Monsters
The Midnight Sky
Mulan
The One and Only Ivan
Tenet – WINNER

Best actress in a supporting role

Maria Bakalova, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Glenn Close, Hillbilly Elegy
Olivia Colman, The Father
Amanda Seyfried, Mank
Youn Yuh-Jung, Minari – WINNER

Best production design

The Father
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Mank – WINNER
News of the World
Tenet

Best cinematography

Judas and the Black Messiah
Mank – WINNER
News of the World
Nomadland
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best film editing

The Father
Nomadland
Promising Young Woman
Sound of Metal – WINNER
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best original score

Da 5 Bloods
Mank
Minari
News of the World
Soul – WINNER

Best original song

Husavik, Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
Fight For You, Judas and the Black Messiah – WINNER
Io Sì (Seen), The Life Ahead
Speak Now, One Night in Miami
Hear My Voice, The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best picture

The Father
Judas and the Black Messiah
Mank
Minari
Nomadland – WINNER
Promising Young Woman
Sound of Metal
The Trial of the Chicago 7

Best actress in a leading role

Viola Davis, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Andra Day, The United States vs Billie Holiday
Vanessa Kirby, Pieces of a Woman
Frances McDormand, Nomadland – WINNER
Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman

Best actor in a leading role

Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal
Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Anthony Hopkins, The Father – WINNER
Gary Oldman, Mank
Steven Yeun, Minari

Movie Review: Together Together

Posted on by • Posted in Uncategorized • Tagged , • Leave a comment

On a recent episode of “Real Time with Bill Maher”, he mentioned the statistic that the single population of the United States has doubled in the last 50 years. This amazing statistic is based on the misery index of the millions who have gotten married and divorced, currently 53% for first marriages and 70% for second. Studies have shown the getting married and staying married is responsible for longer lives and more happiness – but we all know what happens when things, just don’t work out. Bill Maher is 65 years old and has never been married and more importantly, doesn’t care if he ever gets married and never wants kids. There is nothing wrong with this decision, when you consider the downside of divorce, child support, legal bills and even living in your car. The statistics show that the single percentage of the populations of the United States is now the fastest growing demographic. Trends are changing and for good reason.

The new movie “Together Together” is about a man in his late 40’s named Matt, played by Ed Helms – who through no fault of his own, never found the right woman to marry. Despite this he still wants to have children, and he turns to the help of a surrogate named Anna, played by Patti Harrison to give birth to his child. Most movies I have seen about surrogates always involve a woman who cannot have a child, this is the first one I have seen involving a man. This movie is unusual because it shows in a very subtle way how the relationship between Anna and Matt changes over time into a strong friendship, despite their 20+ year age difference. They visit the obstetrician together and discuss plans for the future, while slowly learning about what each of them has gone through in their lives. There is a good bit of humor in this story, most of which works and I thought the acting and directing was well done.

The Rotten Tomatoes review for this film is a bit too high in my opinion – around 93%. I give this movie about an 80% and do recommend it.

Movie Review: Minari

Posted on by • Posted in Uncategorized • Tagged , , , • Leave a comment

The new movie “Munari” reminded me of several others in the last few years, where parents who are barely surviving (the couple in this movie have jobs where they separate baby chicks by sex into boxes) bring their children along for the ride. The point is, if you are an adult and unable to make a living – then do not have children. Its always been just that simple.

Munari is a heartbreaking story about a Korean family mired in poverty and trying to break out of their plight by starting a farm in a field somewhere in the Midwest, all the while living in a run down tractor trailer that had some furniture and plumbing in side. Somewhat like the devastating movie The Florida Project, released in 2017 about young children being raised in a hellish-purple apartment building in Florida, Minari is also told within the perspective of two young Korean children, Anna and David, where David has a dangerous heart ailment. Children have no way of fully understanding, and have no perspective about poverty and squalor. All they know is that they have parents and an innate ability to look at the world in a way that allows them to survive. For me, the naive innocence of children living on the edge is the most devastating part of both of these films.

The father Jacob, is played by very well by Steven Yeun, who is most famous for his years on the TV series “The Walking Dead” and his horrific end that came from the side of a large baseball bat. The mother, Monica is also played very well by Yeri Han, who is always at the edge of taking the kids and leaving her husband to possibly avoid financial disaster. Their arguments about their many problems and lack of money create some of the best acting in this movie.

What bothered me about this depressing story about a Korean family close to becoming homeless is Jacob’s plan of running a farm is backed by bank loans – and what bank would give him money to do this? His only source of income, is sorting baby chickens (known as chicken sexing) with his wife, his collateral is his house which is the back of a tractor trailer, and his land looks like an abandoned field. Somewhere along the line, all movies have to make sense as well as entertain and educate and I think this bank loan part of the story just did not work in the real world.

It was very surprising to see the actor Will Patton in this Korean movie with subtitles, where he plays the character Paul who an almost insane religious fanatic who helps with the farm and on Sunday, carries a large cross on his shoulder while going to church. This definately is something I have ever seen any character do in any movie – except for films about Jesus Christ and the crucifixion.

Minari is one of the 10 films nominated for an Academy Award this year, and has very a very high 98% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. My rating is more in the 85% rating and I do recommend this film.