Review: The Grey

Genre: Thriller

Director: Joe Carnahan

Cast: Liam Neeson, Frank Grillo

"Live or Die This Day", this is a choice Ottway (Liam Neeson) struggles with every day. Writing a letter to his wife, Ottway cannot describe his feelings, often scribbling out his words. His job consists of protecting men on an oil drilling team from wolves. Ottway notes that most of these men are fugitives who could not adjust to the civilized world and are banished to the wilderness. Ottway goes outside to commit suicide but after hearing the howl of a wolf, he chooses to live. Flying home during a blizzard, his plane crashes; the survivors are faced with the task of choosing to "Live or Die This Day" while being stalked by wolves in the middle of their den, a place no man belongs.

The wolves act as an agent of nature; driving the survivors further into the wilderness, which claims as many lives as the wolves. The wolves attack the group at their weakest moments, when they act as individuals. Diaz (Frank Grillo) questions Ottway's leadership; he tries to put up a brave front like he's not afraid, though Ottway admits he's scared. Not long afterwards an omega wolf attacks Diaz, trying to prove himself to the alpha male. This exemplifies the best part about The Grey; the parallels between the survivors and the wolves. There is a philosophical (or spiritual) nature that runs throughout. The Grey is not about the wolves killing people as much as it is about holding onto a reason to live. While one man has religious faith, another lives to see his daughter again.

Joe Carnahan's minimalist approach is well executed. The wolves are almost never seen; they attack with the cover of snow or night. The camera never stays on the blood or gore too long nor does it ever feel gratuitous. The score and cinematography creates and builds up a sense of dread without resorting to the startle effect, placing the audience in the shoes of the protagonist. The movie has a beautiful but bleak quality to it. Even with all these great decisions, Carnahan's best one was casting Liam Neeson. Neeson gives one of his most personal and raw performances; his grieving and longing for his wife in the film comes from a place still tender in his own life.

The Grey is moving, soulful portrait on the meaning of living and dying. It's refreshing to come across a movie with such richness; a multi-layered movie with well fleshed-out characters and beautiful imagery, it's the perfect movie. The Grey is a masterpiece.

Score: 9/10

Top 5 Oscar Snubs

Can you feel it? That's right; Hollywood's most popular popularity contest comes to an end with the 84th Academy Awards but anyone who watches the show knows the fun ends well before the ceremony begins. Year after year, the Academy gets it wrong because of three reasons:

1. No one wins for their best work, making it more of a career achievement award, (Al Pacino did not win for The Godfather and Martin Scorsese did not win for Taxi Driver or Raging Bull).
2. No one is allowed to have more than two even if they deserve more (Denzel Washington should be 4 for 4 and Meryl Streep has 17 nods to only 2 wins)
3. Some people are not nominated at all (No Best Director nod for Christopher Nolan).

After seeing Transformers: Dark of the Moon on the list of nominations, I became outraged! I was so incensed that three weeks afterwards (and thousands of other snubee list later), I've come to my senses to do my own snubee list. So, without further ado, I give you my top 5 snubs.

5) No Uggie

The Artist is a fantastic film and deserves everything it will get but Uggie gets nothing. Uggie's performance should not be taken lightly: What, he cannot get nominated because he gets paid in sausages, and he cannot clean up after himself? Can he at least come through the front door and not the doggy door? What, there's no doggy door!!! He's not invited!!!? Oh, hecks no!!! Come on readers, we cannot stand for this. Let's form a flash mob, let's occupy the Oscars, we will not take this lying down! Let's begin a chant, Uggie will not be denied! Ug-gie! Ug-gie! Ug-gie!

4) Patton Oswalt

I'm not talking about being snubbed for Young Adult; I mean he got snubbed as host. I know, I know, after the tame (i.e. dead) styling's of Anne Hathaway and Professor Franco, the Oscars needed some edge and got hot, young comedian Billy Crystal to host. I know in their rush to book Billy Crystal, they overlooked Patton Oswalt because his schedule is packed. His tweets about being snubbed should have been enough to warrant a call (I will be heading over to the snubee party to see Ryan Gosling do a keg stand).

3) Shame

Every year someone delivers a "Give that person an Oscar right now!" performance. This year, that man is Michael Fassbender. It was a sight to behold...then he put his pants back on. Also, Carey Mulligan delivered an amazing performance that is more demanding than her previous nominated role in An Education. Both deserved to be recognized (a prime example of reason #3).

2) Ryan Gosling

Ryan Gosling destroyed it in 2011 and delivered not one but two great performances (three in the last year if you count Blue Valentine). I saw Half-Nelson (his only nomination), and his development as an actor has been extraordinary. It's hard for me to understand why his work in Drive went unnoticed (or his lead role in The Ides of March). Look, I don't have a man crush or anything but...ok, now I sound like I have a man crush. I think I should stop talking now so, yeah, Ryan Gosling...

1) Drive

The mother of all snubs, even more so than Uggie (yes, I know you all are stunned). For one, Drive is the coolest movie to come out this year. Second, it is the coolest movie to come out this year. Drive could not get a nod for anything and yet Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and some movie about a horse can (someone needs their head stomped in over this one)? Drive had everything the Oscars could want; it's artsy, has great acting, is beautifully shot, and it has Albert Brooks, but it also has Ryan Gosling and the only thing the Oscars hate more than dogs is Ryan Gosling (I've said his name way too much).

An Ode To: Nicholas Cage

In my top ten list, I let it slip that I'm a Nicholas Cage fan...I know this is a loaded statement; its like playing Russian Roulette with a full clip (There's no doubt Nicholas Cage has done this several times and has never shot himself). Nicholas Cage is the face of such crappy fare like Season of the Witch, Drive Angry (my favorite bad movie of 2011), National Treasure, National Treasure 2: The Book of Secrets, National Treasure 3: The Search for Zachary Taylor's Cane, Wicker Man, The Scourer's Apprentice, Trespass, Ghost Rider, and Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (this movie isn't out yet but based on the trailer, it's a mortal lock), The Rock, and many other films that shalt not be named. I'm pretty sure he takes a lot of thought into selecting film roles...and by lots of thought I mean he lines scripts against a wall, takes his Russian Roulette gun, blindfolds himself, shots at the wall and which ever script has the most holes in it is the part he takes. It makes a lot of sense when you don't think about it.

So, the $64,000 question: Why do I admire him? Well, I like him as an actor. I'm a student of the Roger Ebert school of thought on Nicholas Cage, he only knows two speeds: intense and intenser. Most people believe he overacts in his roles but I believe he goes to great lengths to portray his characters. There are two problems most people have with Nicholas Cage: his bad films do not hold up around him and become a showcase for "Crazy" Cage. On top of poor film selection, his behavior is...to put it as nice as I can...eccentric (Dog the Bounty Hunter bailed him out of jail...Dog the Bounty Hunter)! When he's not busy getting bailed out of jail by racist bounty hunters, he's not paying taxes, buying castles with money he should pay his taxes with, reading comics and wearing weird wigs (wait, he does that in his movies, now I'm doing it).

I will concede the bad movies above but as a counter argument, I present good movies like Raising Arizona, Adaptation, World Trade Center, Bad Lieutenant, Kick-Ass, and my two favorite Nicholas Cage films, Face/Off and Leaving Las Vegas. In Face/Off, Cage got to play the good guy and the bad guy. He got to be weird but he also showed the vunerability present in his best roles. It is easy to do this as the good guy but he did it as the bad guy too (Ex: tying his brothers shoes). Nicholas Cage shows a great range of emotion in that movie. My favorite Nicholas Cage movie is Leaving Las Vegas (for which he won an Oscar). In this movie, Cage plays a suicidal screenwriter content to drink himself to death. This movie shows what Cage does at his best; he brings to life to a dark, comedic, and complex character who hangs onto his sanity by the tips of his fingernails. When he receives good direction, he knows when to restrain himself and allow the damaged psyche of his characters to unfold at a slow pace, drawing the audience in as he destroys himself. His bad movies are too dependent on Nicholas Cage being eccentric from the opening to closing credits. I challenge anyone who does not like Nicholas Cage to look at these movies and not tell me these movies could be better without him.

Nicholas Cage reminds me of Allen Iverson; he is one of the greatest players in the history of the NBA. Like Cage, Iverson got career accolades (4 scoring titles and a league MVP) and was recognized as someone who put everything he had into what he loved (Iverson played every game like his last), but like Cage, Iverson was difficult to work with and he wanted everything his way or no way at all. Iverson's shooting percentage was terrible for his career, only making 42.5% of his field goals; that's not much better than the percentage of good Cage movies. With this being said, Allen Iverson always had the ability to take over a game; Nicholas Cage has the ability to give a spectacular performance. While it is too late for Allen Iverson to make a comeback, Nicholas Cage can still turn his career around (Robert Downey Jr. did it and no one saw that coming).

Top Ten Movies of 2011

I know its 2012 but with awards season coming down to the wire, there are some films that have yet to get a wide release (or in the driving radius of a poor, recent college graduate). I have not seen some of the more critically acclaimed films of this year (like The Descendants, The Artist or Shame). Because I am an ethics-driven journalist, I have made this list based off of the movies I have seen. I won't lie, 2011 was not a great year for films, which makes this list easier. Also, the list is in descending order because one of my many, many, many pet-peeves is when top-ten list give away their number one film first, which is anti-climatic (trying to put a new twist to an old favorite).

First things first, this is my honorable mentions list:

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol (Or as I call it, Mission Impossible: Tom Cruise Saved Christmas).

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (If it was the original Swedish version, it would have been in the top ten)

Rise of The Planet of The Apes (this movie got cool points for being good but then deducted said points because James Franco was pretty normal...too normal)

Cedar Rapids (the second funniest movie this year)

Bridemaids (the funniest movie this year)

10) Martha Marcy May Marlene

Much was made of Elizabeth Olsen this past year; the little seen, never heard of younger sister of Mary-Kate and Ashley. Her enigmatic and subtle performance brought her out of their shadow but this movie was not just a showcase for her incredible talent; Sean Durkin's moody debut is a beautiful, and quiet film that blurs the already thin line between memory and reality.

9) The Muppets

I could care less if Fox News believes The Muppets are corrupting America's youth, I'm drinking the Kool-Aid. The Muppets is a fun trip down memory lane; the self-awareness is amazing (I wish I could travel by map), the actors are game (Chris Cooper is required to rap in every role from here on out), and of course, all the muppets are there and accounted for (hey, there's Uncle Deadly). The Muppets is a blast of much needed fun (and believe me, this list needs it.)

8)Moneyball

Moneyball is the type of movie that sneaks on you with its greatness. The movie is understated; it does not blow you away with flashy dialogue, or camera tricks. Brad Pitt shows he can play any type of role, Jonah Hill displays his dramatic chops, and the movie is a great metaphor about rich vs poor (a poor baseball team trying to compete against richer teams with more talent). Its a great movie about making the best out of the little available. It is the most traditional American film on this list.

7)The Help

When America fell under this movies' spell, I didn't see it but not because I wanted to be difficult or "cool"; I didn't have the money. So, like any child, I waited for my parents to buy it On-Demand and fell under said spell. This movie may not be perfect but it comes from a good place and addresses a subject no one wants to talk about; its also well-made and well performed. This movie has the best ensemble of actresses of any movie this year (and yes, that includes Bridemaids. And let the death threats begin in 3...2...)

6)X-Men: First Class

By far the best blockbuster this year (sorry Potterheads), X-Men: First Class was a high risk-low reward project for Matthew Vaughn. With everything standing against him, he delivered an high octane, character driven joyride with great performances. Jennifer Lawrence continues her reign as the queen of my heart, and James McAvoy is the most under appreciated actor working today. Through this movie I was introduced to Michael Fassbender, who has put up Jessica Chastain type number of movies this (well, technically last) year.

5)50/50

A lot of movies have failed in epic fashion to make cancer funny (cough...The Bucket List...cough). Many more movies failed to give cancer the emotional gravitas it deserves; 50/50 managed to be both funny and moving without the melodrama. Joseph Gordon-Levitt continues his streak of never making a bad movies ever (that includes Angel in the Outfield). 50/50 strikes a perfect balance between comedy and tragedy with fine performances from the entire cast.

4)We Need To Talk About Kevin

To put the power of this movie in perspective, I saw it last May while at Cannes. I also saw the number 10, 2 and 1 movies on this list over there. I re-watched Martha Marcy May Marlene (#10), the number 2 and number 1 movies on this list again in America, but not this one. I can't put this movie into words, you just need to see it. Tilda Swinton has never been better but its the movie as a whole that stays with you long after its over.

3)Take Shelter

I make no secret about my admiration for Jeff Nichols but I also admire Nicholas Cage, so that's not saying much. Jeff Nichols still had to make a great movie. I'm surprised Take Shelter is not getting more love considering Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain both are crazy hot right now. Take Shelter has great lead performances and a slow burn quality that builds dread and tension through both everyday and supernatural circumstances, something only the next two films on this list do a better job of.

2)Melancholia

Lars von Trier is, to put it as nice as I can, a very, very, very, complicated person. I've learned so much about him in the past year; from his infamous Cannes rant to his filmography. Melancholia was my first von Trier movie (and after reading summaries about his other films, my last) but that does not take away from the power of this movie. I cringed when other movie reviewers threw around the word masterpiece but after seeing it a second time, I've warmed up to it. Kirsten Dunst nails her role as the walking embodiment of depression, and in a cruel sense of irony, this is the most beautiful film I've seen all year. There are so many things this movie does right from a technical standpoint (Earth's destruction has never sounded so good) to the cinematography, this is a movie you need to see.

1)Drive

This has been Ryan Gosling's year but to be honest, this is the only movie he's done that I cared about. Don't get me wrong, he was the second best part about Crazy, Stupid Love (after Emma Stone, of course) and his performance in The Ides of March should get him a Best Actor nod at the Oscars but this is not a Top Ten performances list. Drive is the coolest, most stylish, and best crafted film of the year. Nicolas Winding-Refn builds and builds and builds tension at a perfect, if not slower, pace than most people are accustomed to, but when the tension floods over, its something to behold. Drive also holds the distinction of having the best skull-crushing in the history of cinema. Drive is a hypnotic blend of silence, violence, romance and thrills. Drive also boost the coolest soundtrack of the year (A reeeeal Human Being, and A Real Hero).

Even though Drive is my number one movie, its not head over shoulders better than the other movies on this list. The movies on this list, like all list, are subject to what someone looks for in a movie; all the movies on this list are character driven films that go to some dark places(and yes, even The Muppets has some darkness in it). Either way, this is the first (and depending on if you believe the Apocalypse is coming), the last top ten list I will do. Please, tell me what you think?

Review: Like Crazy

Genre: Romantic Drama

Director: Drake Doremus

Cast: Anton Yelchin, Felicity Jones, Jennifer Lawrence

Love is the purest form of addiction; it can lift a person into a state of euphoria, but once that feeling wears off, a sobering and empty feeling is left. Addiction to love is maddening, frustrating, painful, and irrational. These are the messy and ugly parts of love most movies skip over in favor of a happy ending: Like Crazy is not one of those movies.

The plot is simple: Anna (Felicity Jones) is a British college student who falls in love with her TA Jacob (Anton Yelchin). They become each others everything, so much so that Anna over stays her student visa. Anna goes back to England for a family wedding but when she tries to come back to America, she's denied entry and sent back to England, forcing her and Jacob into a long distance relationship. Cut off from each other, Anna and Jacob spend their time in quiet agony; with forlorn looks and painful expressions, like their bodies are going through withdrawal. Just when it seems they find a way to recover from each other, they fall back into the same pattern. In one scene, Jacob excuses himself from a night out with friends to call Anna; Anna answers but hangs up after a couple of minutes. In the moments after Anna hangs up, she lays on her bed in a fetal position, trying to keep herself from calling back. She relents and calls Jacob back, crying and rambling.

Anton Yelchin and Felicity Jones give nuanced and naturalistic performances. Without using a lot of dialogue, both actors convey the fragility and hopelessness of first love; every moment they are apart resonates with the audience. Director Drake Doremus creates an intimate film that moves like a scrapbook with frequent use of jump cuts; each shot is as beautiful as any photograph. Doremus positions the camera like the audience is watching something secret, something not meant for outsiders to see. This makes those moments of longing and suffering Anna and Jacob go through more intense on the audience.

The last scene in Like Crazy will make anyone question their perception of love, Anna and Jacob love each other but that's not enough. Love comes along with other issues that require attention and dedication to work through, like any addiction. Love plays tricks with our mind and though it may feel good for the moment we have it, it may not be worth it to fall back into.

Score: 8/10

5 Reasons To Love Transformers: Dark Of The Moon

I'll be up front, this movie gets a 5/10. It's the worse movie of the Transformers franchise. I could do a review about how bad this movie is but what good will that do me or you? This movie has grossed 600 million dollars worldwide (that sound you hear is Michael Bay laughing all the way to the bank and how evil is that laugh)!!! In the showing I went to, the audience clapped on three separate occasions. If most moviegoers listened to critics, there would not be three Transformers movies and every human on the planet would be required to see Tree of Life. I've come to the conclusion that the Transformers movies are like cake; cake has tons of sugar, and no nutritional value whatsoever but it's soooo good. No one needs cake but everyone wants it, everyone loves cake! Since I'm a glass half-full kind of guy (some would say an enabler), I will give you 5 things I loved about Transformers: Dark of the Moon.

1. Rosie Huntington-Whiteley

Every movie site I go to says Rosie Huntington-Whiteley is just eye candy but they are wrong. Just because she's a Victoria Secret model who was voted No. 1 on Maxim's Magazine Hot 100 list and FHM World's Sexist Woman poll doesn't mean she's not a capable actress. We can't judge her on the basis of her looks (that's hotism, it's like racism except not as bad). There's more to Rosie than pouty lips, long legs and a cute British accent; she has personality! Michael Bay likes her better than She Who Must Not Be Named; he treats her like a lady (he allows her to stand around in clingy white outfits while he eye-molest her with the camera) Rosie doesn't have to bend over a steaming car, straddle a bike or get dry humped by an robot. She even gets to talk smack to Megatron, and convince him to help Optimus Prime. It's like she's a robot whisperer. Next time my Rock'em-Sock'em robots have an dispute, I'm calling Ms. Rosie.

2. America Is Always Right

Nothing says American imperialism like sending talking, 50-foot robots to do your bidding. The Autobots go on "stealth" missions around the globe, which is awesome because I can see Optimus Prime blending in with an African village or a Middle-Eastern desert to find terrorist. Optimus Prime is the ma....er...robot. At one point in the film, after the Decepticons have taken over Chicago; Optimus gives an awe-inspiring speech (I know this because I woke up and people were clapping). He tells the Autobots, "We will take the battle to them!" The only thing missing from the speech is an American flag lowering into the frame and Uncle Sam pointing at the audience (though after leaving the theatre I saw two guys in Army uniforms sitting behind a desk). Optimus kicks tailpipe and takes license plates; he gives walk quietly and carry a big stick a new meaning.

3. Mr. LaBeouf
You have to hand it to Mr. LaBeouf, he's one of the richest actors in Hollywood and he has a Steven Spielberg co-sign. All he's had to do is run a lot, fight monkeys, hang out with robots and hook-up with hot chicks (on-screen and off-screen). He's a national treasure, the most talented actor of his generation, and he's a complete BA. I dare not draw the ire of anyone who's bad enough to fight people in bars, survive being called an "f**king idiot" by Han Solo and diss his own movies in public without giving back the money he made off the crappy movie he just threw under the bus. He deserves to be the next great American Icon (why else would I call him Mr. LaBeouf even though we're around the same age). Watch out Samuel L. Jackson, Mr. LaBeouf is the new king of cool (hahaha...sorry, I couldn't type that with a straight face).

4. Great Talent
We've already established that Mr. LaBeouf is an all-world actor who can do no wrong but even Michael Jordan needed Scottie Pippen, Phil Jackson and the occasional white guy to win championships. The supporting cast in this movie is filled with excellent actors. Frances McDormand and John Malkovich have been nominated for Academy's Awards. Frances McDormand is noted for her ability to play strong female characters (which she is in this movie) and John Malkovich is known to portray crazy characters (and he brings the straitjacket to this role). This movie has America's favorite Asian Ken Jeong, he was funny as always (and considering the competition he faced from this film's plot, that's no small feat). This movie also has America's favorite fake doctor McDreamy (government name: Patrick Dempsey). Don't laugh at the mention of Dempsey's name in the same paragraph as McDormand and Malkovich (come on guys, stop), he did a good job. In Bayiverse, where one-dimensional stereotypes reign, these guys dared to make their characters two-dimensional.

5. Robot Violence
You gotta love that PG-13 rating; it lets you get away with anything. In Transformers, robots can get ripped apart limb from limb, and decapitated without causing any fuss. When the Decepticons kill humans with their weapons, there's no blood (I guess the MPAA don't like blood with their genocide). The best part about the violence is that when the robots are killed, they leak (or bleed) out oil. Of course the Decepticons get the fatalities; they are pure evil!!!! Look at their name; it has deception and con in it! No one will be scarred from watching robots kill other robots. There are 3 types of violence that will always be funny: Muppet on muppet, mascot on mascot, and robot on robot.

Case closed, now go out and watch Transformers! Transformers are not that different from us; I mean, they don't have hearts in all but they fight, bicker, disagree and lust after women. Plus, Hollywood has been working hard all summer to make sequels to movies you don't want to see. It takes a lot of energy to manipulate you into spending $30 of your hard earned money on fake 3D and crappy concessions. See their retread franchises, experience the loss of hearing and sight that's bound to occur. Come for Rosie, stay for Optimus. What else are you going to see, The Green Latern?

It Just Is

In Words I Never Said, Lupe Fiasco said that fear is a weak emotion. I don't disagree with this statement, but I also don't believe it's that cut and dry. Fear can be a powerful motivator; it can force someone to look in the mirror and make necessary changes. It can propel people to do amazing things. Fear can also be crippling; it can keep people stuck in frustrating jobs, and bad situations. It depends on how the person uses it. Fear is like fire; if controlled it keeps you warm, but if not it can burn you alive.

I had a fear of following through with pursuing screenwriting despite writing being my passion. I never thought I could identify with any filmmaker at Cannes, but that changed after Jeff Nicholas visited our class. Jeff Nicholas is a up and coming director who came to Cannes to promote his new film, Take Shelter. Take Shelter is about a man who has vivid dreams of a coming storm and the stress these visions put on his relationship with his wife, and their deaf daughter.

With Shotgun Stories (his debut feature), every dime he made went towards making that movie. He told our class that making films is like a compulsion; something inside of him that would not leave him alone. He needed to prove to himself that he could do it. One of the reasons I needed to come on this trip was to prove to myself I could step out of my comfort zone. Even before discovering my love for writing I felt I needed to write; I could not shake the feeling. My passion for writing and movies is something I cannot explain or control, it just is.

Shotgun Stories is about the relationship and interactions between two sets of half-brothers. The inspiration behind the idea came from thinking about how he would react if he lost one of his brothers. It's hard not to think about the anxiety fatherhood can bring when watching Take Shelter. It's rare nowadays for directors to put themselves, or at least part of themselves on display to the world. As much as I love Christopher Nolan movies, I could never sense any of his personal experiences coming through in his work. Everything I write (this post especially) are about my personal experiences; I learned that lesson firsthand during the table reading of my script. It was like I was naked, and I was. My words, my experiences, my view of the world were on display for all to see. I couldn't even imagine how Jeff felt during the first showing of Take Shelter or Shotgun Stories.

With my own fear and insecurities in mind, I raised my hand and asked Jeff if fear would play a role in what he does next. He took a minute to think before saying yes. He explained that there is a price for trying to find his voice and not selling out to make bigger movies; he's not rich. There are not a lot of directors who have a say in what movie they do next. I want to be able to write and direct my own films, but bills have to be paid. With that being said, Take Shelter gives me hope; it's garnering a lot of buzz and could win awards this coming year. Jeff Nicholas is close to becoming a household name; it's a matter of when, not if. In the coming years, I hope to be in his position as a up and coming director who talks to aspiring filmmakers. I hope to tell them fear should not change or dampen their fire for film-making; it should be used as fuel to power their ascent to greater heights.