Joe's Oscar Predictions: (I'm usually terrible at this)

Do you want to win a DVD prize? Go ahead and post in the comment section what you think is going to win and the commenter with the most correct choices will win a DVD prize of my choosing! It’s that easy. There is no reason you should not try.

Now, what do I think will win?

Here’s what I think! Tell me I’m a dummy, if you want. Or you could agree with me.

Best Picture:

Amour

Argo

Beasts of the Southern Wild

Django Unchained

Les Miserables

Life of Pi

Lincoln

Silver Linings Playbook

Zero Dark Thirty

I haven’t seen Lincoln yet. I know, I know, I know. How could I pick this to win when I haven’t seen it? Well, I’ve seen everything else (except Amour. But that’s a foreign flick. It’s like when Toy Story 3 got nominated for Best Picture, and all it did was cement a win in the Animated category). Basically, this year seems really weak to me. I liked all the movies above, but none of them really wowed me, or stood out. Personally, I think Argo deserves the win, but with the lack of a director nod I can’t see it beating a flick that is essentially made to win awards. With Steven Spielberg, one of the most beloved directors of all time. So, you know, Lincoln.

Best Director:

Michael Haneke

Ang Lee

David O. Russell

Steven Spielberg

Benh Zeitlin

This is my heart talking. Spielberg is probably going to add another Oscar statue to his mantel, but I really think Ang Lee deserves this. He made a movie that was previously deemed unfilmable (four other directors tried to make this flick and failed) and he brought us an emotional, exciting, and engaging movie. There wasn’t even a notable star, and yet it was a success. I couldn’t see that happening without this man in the director’s chair.

Best Actor:

Bradley Cooper

Daniel Day-Lewis

Hugh Jackman

Joaquin Phoenix

Denzel Washington

There is no way he can’t win. I mean, I really want Joaquin Phoenix to win because he blew me away in The Master. It was, hands down, the best performance I saw all year. But Phoenix had to shit talk the academy and now has basically alienated himself from winning the award. Instead, we have a crazy method actor portraying an American hero. This one is kind of a no-brainer.

Best Actress:

Jessica Chastain

Jennifer Lawrence

Emmanuelle River

Quvenzhane Wallis

Naomi Watts

There are two choices for this category: Chastain or Lawrence. Emmanuelle isn’t well known enough. Quvenzhane is too young. It doesn’t seem like many people saw or cared about The Impossible. Jennifer Lawrence did a great job, but she is too young. Chastain carried a three hour movie about in the ins and outs of political bureaucracy. It ends in a twenty-five realistic raid on bin Laden’s home. I mean, this isn’t really an easy movie to sit through. But Jessica Chastain was able to pull it off, without even wavering.

Best Supporting Actor:

Alan Arkin

Robert De Niro

Philip Seymour Hoffman

Tommy Lee Jones

Christoph Waltz

I heard Tommy Lee Jones was really good. That’s it. I heard somewhere that TLJ was going to win, so I pretty much had my mind made up. Also, I really love him! De Niro could win, and I think he would be a great winner. His work in Silver Linings Playbook is some of his best in years. I would venture to say it is his best since the early nineties. But for some reason, I still have a hunch TLJ is going to take it.

Best Supporting Actress:

Amy Adams

Sally Field

Anne Hathaway

Helen Hunt

Jacki Weaver

Anne Hathaway is the only notable performance from this category. Helen Hunt has the same issues as Naomi Watts—it doesn’t seem like anyone saw The Sessions. Jacki Weaver barely did anything in SLP. Amy Adams was great in The Master, but like Weaver, didn’t do a lot compared to Philip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix. Sally Field is Sally Field, so who cares. Anne Hathaway was easily the best part of Les Miserables and she was in it for the smallest portion of time. Tip your hats to the next William Hurt (A History of Violence), ladies and gentlemen.

Best Original Screenplay:

Amour

Django Unchained

Flight

Moonrise Kingdom

Zero Dark Thirty

Mark Boal basically wrote a news article in the form of a movie. It is debatable how accurate the story is, but that aside, the movie is expansive and takes a close look at the man hunt for Osama bin Laden. I give him added points for not making a political movie out of this political issue. It is a difficult task to make this movie and keep it fairly unbiased.

Best Adapted Screenplay:

Argo

Beasts of the Southern Wild

Life of Pi

Lincoln

Silver Linings Playbook

I don’t know, it’s just, Lincoln. I haven’t voted enough for this movie. I think it’s going to win more than I want it to. So, while I think Argo might win this as a consolation prize. I’m sticking with Lincoln because the movie did take a man’s life and whittle it down to an accessible (probably?) three hour movie.

Best Animated Feature:

Brave

Frankenweenie

ParaNorman

The Pirates! Band of Misfits

Wreck-It Ralph

I want any one of these movies to beat Brave. Mostly, I want ParaNorman to win because I loved that movie so so so so so much. It was like a classic kid gang movie from the nineties. Sadly, it seems like when Pixar makes a halfway decent movie it gets locked this category. So, Brave, that pile of shit.

Best Foreign Language Film:

Amour

War Witch

No

A Royal Affair

Kon-Tiki

Amour is nominated for best picture. If you don’t mark this as the winner for Foreign then you’re a dingus.

Best Cinematography:

Anna Karenina

Django Unchained

Life of Pi

Lincoln

Skyfall

Life of Pi looked beautiful. It was shot for 3D, so that's just another element to think about during the production. And on top of that, the 3D wasn’t heinous like it normally is. The movie relied heavily on the visuals to carry the story and you need compelling composition to obtain that challenge. They did it!

Best Editing:

Argo

Life of Pi

Lincoln

Silver Linings Playbook

Zero Dark Thirty

Again, I feel like I need to give Argo something. So, here you go, Affleck. Enjoy the editing award.

Best Production Design:

Anna Karenina

The Hobbit: An Expectedly Long Journey

Les Miserables

Life of Pi

Lincoln

A movie based on a stage play made to look like a stage play. Simple as that.

Best Costume Design:

Anna Karenina

Les Miserables

Lincoln

Mirror Mirror

Snow White and the Huntsman

I need to vote for Lincoln more. That’s about it. You always need to pick a period piece for this category. That puts Mirror Mirror and Snow White out of the running. Anna Karenina seemed too obscure, if that makes any sense? Like, it wasn’t grounded enough, but wasn’t over the top enough. I don’t really know, I’m basing that idea off the two minute trailer. Les Miserables is close, but Lincoln is based on a real man’s life, one that’s in an era that lends itself to an array of costumes.

Best Make-Up and Hairstyling:

Hitchcock

The Hobbit: An Expectedly Long Journey

Les Miserables

Did everyone see how great Anthony Hopkins looked as Hitchcock?

Best Original Score:

Anna Karenina

Argo

Life of Pi

Lincoln

Skyfall

The score in this movie was the only one I really thought about afterwards. It had all the emotional qualities you need for a good score, but was still unique in the setting.

Best Original Song:

Chasing Ice

Les Miserables

Life of Pi

Skyfall

Ted

I’m probably going to lose this one. I figured Les Miserables was the musical, so it had to win. Everyone has told me that I’m dumb. I should have picked Adele.

Best Sound Mixing:

Argo

Les Miserables

Life of Pi

Lincoln

Skyfall

I usually pick the loudest movie of the bunch. I probably should have picked Skyfall, but Life of Pi had that cool storm/ship sinking scene.

Best Sound Editing:

Argo

Django Unchained

Life of Pi

Skyfall

Zero Dark Thirty

^ See above. ^

Best Visual Effects:

The Avengers

The Hobbit

Life of Pi

Prometheus

Snow White and the Huntsman

Did you know the tiger was mostly configured with CGI? There weren’t any scenes shot with Suraj Sharma and the tiger together. But they interact for the majority of the movie!That is incredible to me. This is Benjamin Button good.

Best Documentary:

5 Broken Cameras

The Gatekeepers

How to Survive a Plague

The Invisible War

Searching for Sugar Man

This is the only documentary I watched, so I fail. But it was great! Depressing as shit, but great.

Best Short Documentary:

Inocente

Kings Point

Mondays at Racine

Open Heart

Redemption

I had no idea. This was a complete guess.

Best Short Animated:

Adam and Dog

Fresh Guacamole

Head Over Heels

Paperman

The Simpsons: The Longest Daycare

Paperman is such a touching short. I loved it. I really did. Watch it on youtube.

Best Short Live:

Asad

Buzkashi Boys

Curfew

Death of a Shadow

Henry

I like the name Henry?

There you go. I'm usually terrible at guessing who will win the Oscar, but you could copy me if you want. Or, if you want to win that DVD prize, make your own guesses below. 

I Just Finished House of Cards

by Joe

Hey, internet. I just wanted you all to know that I finished the Netflix Original series House of Cards today. This was a political drama starring Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright (-Penn).

I had high high hopes for it, and while it didn't wow me, it didn't let me down. Considering how much weight I put on this show I'm surprised it didn't let me down. So that says a lot for it.

Check it out.

Contemplating Violence in Movies

by Joe

I'm not sure what these people are saying. Is it that if you depicted no graphic violence, the world would calm down and there would be less violence? Or is it that if you sense certain things about violence and then portray those things in a film, does that make the violence go to another level? Or is the violence in films a way to experience something without having to do it in real life?

-David Lynch

I've been thinking about violence in the media recently. We're seeing a lot about the gun laws, and the NRA is keen on pointing out other causes to violent behavior in our society other than guns. Television and movie violence tends to top the list of main culprits when there is a mass shooting, or--to a lesser degree--the spreading of decadent behavior.

I'll just go ahead and say that I'm all for more regulations on guns. I think it's too easy to get firearms (the mere idea that you can buy hundreds of round of ammunition online without any sort of identity check is insane to me), and more extensive background checks is a good place to start. I'm not going to say it's the solution to the problem, but it's something. Do I think we should outright ban guns? No. In addition to that being pretty much impossible, I think there are a lot of responsible gun owners out there. I think they are aware of the power each firearm possesses and they treat it accordingly. I also think there are a lot of dumbshits out there, too. So, you know, take the good with the bad and deal with more rules.

But we're not here to talk about gun laws and my view on them. This is a movie blog.

So let's talk about movies.

I can't say whether we as a culture have gotten more violent in the past hundred years, but I can confidently say that our movies have. Not only are we seeing murders on screen, but we're seeing them in all their gory detail. Think about the shower scene from Hitchcock's Psycho (1960), and then weigh it against the scythe killing in Hostel: Part II (2007). WARNING: The second clip is brutal.

The fifty year span brought us a crisper image with color (I'm aware that color film was invented and in use in 1960. The reason Hitchcock chose to shoot it in black and white was because he didn't think the movie would get a wide release if audiences saw that much blood in color. Look how far we've come!) We're doused with so much more blood in the 2007 movie, and the wounds look more realistic (and visible, for that matter). The setting feels more like it's set in reality. It doesn't feel like a film set, which all movies do now days. Filmmakers are constantly trying to bring the stories closer to reality. To fold the audience further into the story they need to make it more real, and the easiest way to do that is visually. Making films look more like real life is one of the arguments for 48fps. Putting a realistic image with a semi-plausible plot line will bring the viewer further into the story. They are trying to convey a possible outcome in your life. 

You might say that the Hostel movies reach an extreme that Psycho doesn't even come close. I would agree with you. Absolutely correct. But at the same time, Psycho was that extreme when it came out. People probably reacted in a similar manner to that flick as they did to Eli Roth's movie. 

One more thing I want to get out of the way before I get into this anymore. 

I am against censorship. I do not think people should be able to tell Eli Roth or Quentin Tarantino that they can't make movies like Hostel or Pulp Fiction. I don't care if people have to rate it, and then put warnings out followed by a picket and a boycott. But no one should be allowed to tell them how or how not to express themselves. I think calling Hostel "art" would be a stretch, but again, I should not be able to dictate what constitutes a piece of art and what does not. Also: I loved Django Unchained and that movie is violent as shit. It's up to the viewer to educate themselves on what they're about to watch.

To add one more thing. I don't want it to seem like I'm casting blame on one thing. The state of violence in our culture is so much more complex than being able to point to a solitary cause. 

So.

Based on what Lynch said, I want to propose an idea: Is it possible we have gotten more violent as a culture, not directly because of violent movies, but rather as movies acting as a catalyst? We're shown the most depraved of acts and people when we watch certain movies. I know that there are people out there that match these characters. It might not be exact in the act, but in the potential and the personality. When millions of people see this it shows them a new normal. It shows them how much they could actually get away with in our society, and raising that bar allows people to comfortably slip into that more violent level of existence without the guilt. (Or you could say kids who haven't separating good from bad watch this shit and misinterrupt what the filmmakers are trying say and grow up with a skewed sense of reality. That would fall on the parents, though. And I watched T2 as a five-year-old and turned out mostly okay.)

Another way to look at it is profanity in television. Most network channels still shy away from too coarse of language, but we hear "bitch," "asshole," and "shit" regularly on FX. Those characters talk like I talk. They've made a brand that is more realistic to my life. Thus, more people are privy to this kind of language, making it more common, and then more acceptable in day to day interactions. When are artist then wants to push the line and shock people they have all the more work to do. Pushing that bar up shows us more and more of the decadent behavior.

Essentially what I'm saying is I think the violence is already here in our society. Movies or no movies, the violent people are among us. But film shines a light on it, making it a common thought. The light that is shined perpetuates the rise in violent behavior, but doesn't necessarily cause it.

Am I way far off on this? Am I buying into the NRA's everything but guns mantra? I haven't committed myself to this theory, but it's been bouncing around my head today. Let me know what you think.

And one more note:

I'd be a fool not to touch on the fact that books have been violent much longer than movies. There has been more rape, murder, sex, and gore in books as a whole than movies collectively. So why would we not see a spike in societal violence from the effects of books? You have to actively visualize what a book is telling you. It is much easier to desensitize yourself from passively watching a movie than it is when you're actively reading a book. 

Play by Play: A Clockwork Orange

Before we get into this. I just want to let everyone know that Katie hates seeing eyeballs on screen. Mostly when the eyeballs are getting injured/popping out of the sockets. We all have our weird fear of things on screen, like I can't stand seeing the needle go into the skin. On top of that, she really does not like watching overt sexual content. So, you know, she made a great choice when she plugged A Clockwork Orange in. I asked her to make play by play notes while the movie ran, giving us pretty much a stream of consciousness experience. Let's take a look. (Joe)

Weeell, this movie is off to a great start. R.I.P. Drunk Old Dude.

Grandma has purple hair? Whaaaa? 

Oh. Mom. My bad. Wait, he's in high school? Bull.
Also, love the obsession with Beethoven. At least this kid has good taste. 

So, super creepy guy in the bedroom, yes?
Wait, so he has a key to his house, felt him up, and made himself a drink? What a jerk.
Again, loving the soundtrack.
House of mirrors? 

Hehey! 2001 reference, yes??
Surprise! More ladies.
Orchestra's back. Get ready to close your eyes.
CALLED IT.
I can't get past the eyeballs on the sleeves. Aaaaaahhhhh 

NO. THERE’S MORE ORCHESTRA. Girls run!
Waaiit. Whaa?
Woah woah woah, a knife? But, why? They're friends, what did he do? 

Hold up. Now they're hanging out? I'd be out of there in a heartbeat. "See my hand? I'M OUT."
Why the fascination with women's bodies? Come on lady.
Cats. I like her. 

Good for her! She didn't answer the door. At least she's not dumb.
Calling the police! Goodness gracious she's so smart. I hope I don't see more of her than I want to.
Woah, what are those paintings?
I don't like her anymore.
He looks so smug. I don't like him anymore either.
Haha wait, I never liked him.
Why am I still watching this?
Creepy guy's back! Boys watch out!
He killed cat woman! I don't know how to feel about that.
How much longer is this movie? I need to watch Disney or something.
His eyes are gorgeous. I wish they weren't; it would make it so much easier to stop watching.

Op! Just smiled. Ew. I can stop watching now.
Did he just smirk at the officer? He just smirked at the officer. That's not okay.
His tie is short and fat and it looks silly. 

Ha! And the back part is longer. Classic.
Woah! Almost saw body parts I didn't want to. Thanks Kubrick. 

HIS EYES. I can't look past them.
Boooobs again. Goodness.
Hahahahaha the Father just referred to him as his inmate number. For some reason I found that hilarious.
Haha! He just did it again. Love it.
Okay. I made it. I'm an hour in. Aaaaand, I still don't know what it's about.
Hold up. He's still talking to the Father. Maybe he'll change his ways? 

Gah! What a cool composition!
Oh no. Orchestra again.
Naked lady pictures next to a cross. Stay classy, inmate #655321.
Okay, orchestra music's gone and nothing happened. I'm confused.

Well! This has been fun. 1hr 11mins and 25 seconds in. I'm out. 

GAH I have to keep going. Dammit Joe, you seriously owe me big time.

Damn. It was paused too long the screen went black.

It's still paused.
I'm going out of my way to find things to distract me now.

IMMA DO IT.

Gosh this is disgusting.
Stop with the eye drops! You're killing me!
I actually really enjoy this song. 1:16:00. Buuuut, not the video that’s playing simultaneously.
Beethoven! Damn you Burgess, you genius.
Young Malcolm McDowell looks nothing like old Malcolm McDowell.
Wait, now he's performing in a play? I'm still getting over the eye part. I couldn't handle anything after that. I'm struggling even now to keep watching.
Woah! Violence makes him sick! Burgess, again, you genius.
Uh oh. Techno 70s music is back. Please don't show more of that poor girl than needed.
Whoo! He's getting better!
His tie is even on proportionally now. Was this intentional? I hope so. I love it.
Hehey! Yellow hair! Nice change, Mom.
Why is he yelling?
Ah. I'm so proud of him. That tie looks smashing.
Short and fat ties must run in the family. Come on, Dad. 

No! The snake’s gone, too?

The music in the background is not helping.
Aww. I actually feel bad for him now. :( 

So much emotion!
Woah! Drunk homeless man is alive?!
Are those his friends? I don't recognize them without their eyeball infused long sleeve shirts.

Long shot! Good one, Kubrick.
Woah woah woah! Stop hitting him!
Cool sound design though.
Wait, where is he going?
OH SNAP.
Wait, whaa? What happened to the lady?
Wait, “victim”? But the treatment worked...
Woah, is he crazy? What's wrong with the old man now? 

Oh gosh, please don't go where I think this is going.
Singing in the Rain. Good choice.
WOAH, HOLD UP. NOT A GOOD CHOICE.
Oh man. I hate to say it but this movie is turning out great.
I think he's being poisoned. Or they're going to kill them. 

Poisoned it was!
Spoke too soon.
Okay, not cool. He's obviously changed, so now they're being cruel. 

But he did rape and murder his wife, so the old man has a right. But does he?
KUBRICK OH MY GOSH THE SYMMETRY IS AMAZING. 

I'm so conflicted.
He's still alive?! Oh my gosh. 

Oh ew. He’s right there. Be professional guys.
Pink hair. I don't get why Mom's hair color keeps changing.
There's the short and fat tie on Dad again. This has to be on purpose.
Symmetry again. Man. So cool.
Okay, now a blue haired nurse? Come on.
Now he's back. Back to being bad? Like before he went to recovery?
COOL HOSPITAL SHOT.
I'm sorry, I can't look past the ties. They're always super thick. I hate it.
But I love the fact that the long monologue of the cop guy is broken up by shots of Alex eating. Very cute. 

Ha! I love it.
No, no, no, not Beethoven's 9th.
Phew. Back to the cool hospital shot. 

So what did Fredrick promise him? I was distracted by him eating.
What's happening to his face? 

WHAT?!
Oh no.

Cool Trailer! 'Spring Breakers'

by Joe

Did you love that trailer? Me too.

I can't wait to see James "I just sucked on too man lemons" Franco make an ass of himself again. He started out with a fake gangsta emcee kind of accent, then switched to Southern? Also, giving yourself an accent takes more than just dropping one letter off of the word. He's so dumb. You know this, I know this, so let's just stop talking about it!

Secondly, there has got to be a better way for girls like Vanessa Hudgens and Selena Gomez to make that scary shift from kids/family friendly to serious movies. I mean, take a note from Ryan Gosling (his shift was The Believer), Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Mysterious Skin), Leonardo DiCaprio (The Beach), or Neil Patrick Harris (Harold and Kumar). Two of the above mentioned films are indie, to the point of near no one has seen them. One was about an American Nazi youth and the other was sexually depraved. NPH's choice was so over the top that he played himself  (it helps that he had hit rock bottom and didn't have much to lose), and DiCaprio's was this strange movie that didn't really have a mass appeal. It wasn't necessarily trying to be cool, but weird.

These girls have instead picked a party movie for their transition. They are only painting themselves into a different corner at this point. Look at Thomas Mann:

You might recognize him from Project X. It's a very R-rated comedy about some kids throwing a house party. GROWN UP THEMES! And it looks like Spring Breakers will have a similar tone.

Speaking of Thomas Mann, though, you might also recognize him from Fun Size, the Nickelodeon produced party movie. That one I'm still trying figure out. He hasn't been in a lot and his two biggest movies are probably often mixed up.

Essentially, these "adults" are now typecasting themselves as the party crowd. Do you really think Sam Mendes is going to see one of these actors drinking a beer on screen and think that makes them more appealing for one of his movies? No, but Todd Phillips might (but Phillips is also too smart to cast one of these dip-shits). The audience they seem to be trying to get away from is only a few years behind these movies (or not at all. At this point they are just setting bad examples for their existing fan base).

Do something outside the box. Robert Pattinson made Cosmopolis, not fucking Let's Get Hammered on the Party Boat. You know, because he recognized the ramifications of his choices.