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Thursday, February 14, 2013

ACADEMY AWARD NOMINATED SHORT FILMS



ACADEMY AWARD
NOMINATED SHORT FILMS



KUDOS TO

DIA's of Detroit Film Theatre

for making this possible.






THE ANIMATED NOMINEES





Animation - Oscar Nominated Short Films 2013 by myfilm-gr











MAGGIE SIMPSON IN "THE LONGEST DAYCARE"






Talk about "the pursuit of life"!  Really nice and very well done.  Being a fan of the franchise I wish I could say that I'm surprised but I'm not.  This is the longest running TV show ever for a reason.  Underneath all the cooky comedy, and special guests, and all the laughable situations that they get into, there is a real connection with what is real.  I guess that's why we've marveled at it for so long.
     This will be the first Silent film for the Simpsons.  Talk about diversifying your portfolio. Kudos!




ADAM AND A DOG





     Here's another silent film but this time with watercolors masterfully used and a very original concept.  Interesting but at the same time a little morbid than I thought it should be.  Recognizing it's not about me but the film itself, I'll leave it for you to judge.




FRESH GUACAMOLE












Cute.  Very innovative!




HEAD OVER HEELS


PITCH








VIEW





      Interesting... I liked the ending, I really did but  can't help but think of how awesome it would of been for them to see 'eye to eye'... but ultimately I guess that's the point... effort:)
nice.



PAPERMAN








              Hands down Walt Disney has conventional animation on lock and key.  Do I really need to comment here?  Look for this one to win the Oscar.






THE LIVE ACTION NOMINEES  





DEATH OF A SHADOW





      A very different take on the afterlife.  A little too melancholy for my tastes but interesting to a point.  After that point I wasn't that blown away by it. Still worth taking a look at.



HENRY




      Gérard Poirier  [Henry] gave the best acting performance of the night.  I think this film will win the Oscar for live action shorts.  It hits home with all who has or has had family members going through this.



CURFEW



      Even though I pegged Henry to win the Oscar, Curfew was my favorite. Being an Uncle you don't see a lot of films about us. I am forever grateful that I saw this one. Passive aggressive, yet warm.  I loved it.
reminder:  I have to look up red telephones in films on GOOGLE.



BUZKASHI BOYS



    
     This film did a wonderful job of showing a contrast between dreaming big and contentment. Even though they left the debate up to us and it makes for good discussions, I was left not feeling any closure.
     I loved the setting and cinematography.    I especially like the character Ahmad, he reminded me of my very good friend/brother Lynwood, although Lynwood favored Rafi physically at that age.
I liked it a lot but I may be biased.  It was nostalgic for me.


ASAD



     A very different view of life with pirates.  Think: the innocence of the so-called young "terrorists" in the film BABEL set in a "City of God" setting... Just replace Rio with Somalia.
          ASAD is pretty familiar to all who grew up in poverty... Albeit, the poor here has nothing on poverty overseas, the dangers in everyday functioning seem all too familiar.
   I loved it!!  If it wasn't for Curfew, this would be may favorite out the bunch.

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Life of Pi









THE PITCH






WORTH
$$$$$



THE VIEWING

"Above all: don't lose hope." 


      If you review movies as a profession or as a hobby you will have viewed an abundance of films in such a short amount of timeSometimes this can create a contentment of  mediocrity no matter how high the highs are and the same for the lows.  This being a hobby of mine or something that I really like to do, I try not to over do it so that I don't get burned out and keep my attention fresh.  Some films/movies gets passed on because of one reason or another... The Life of Pi was one of those films.  I couldn't tell you why I initially passed on it I just did.... Fast forward to current times.  This last weekend was dry, nothing jumped out at me so I took a chance on Pi and loved it.  I mean I'm still in the seat after the last credit rolls down that big silver screen and no I'm not waiting for the name of the second assistant camera man for the "a" camera or the key grip....  No, I'm taking it all in.  A day later I'm still... taking it all in.
    I'm shocked that I haven't heard more about it.  I'm even more shocked that it didn't do better in the box office.  I ended up seeing it twice in the theater because I wanted to show my family.   
     This film had so many layers of depth that even on the second go around I learned things from questions my sister asked... I say 'learned' because as we discussed them I found a whole dimension different from the obvious and conventional one...  The question then became truly "Which story did I prefer?When you're are alone for that amount of time it is uncanny what your mind will do to you.  Having said that it and knowing God for myself I love the way "God" was portrayed in this story.  I wouldn't put this film in the "Religion" category although I know most would... This was an experience with God which is indeed the direct opposite of religion, in my opinion.

   Of all the movies and films I reviewed on this site up to this point this "film" is most definitely worth watching inside the theater... It's in 3D but worth every penny.  I expect it to grab many awards Oscar night.

letter grade: A+   



"Which story do you prefer?"