It’s time for another posting of reviews of 2009 Oscar nominees. This time there are no non-nominated films in the list. There are still a handful of 2009 nominees I haven’t seen yet, but those will come much later (after they are released on DVD). After this, I still have more 2009 film reviews to post as well as a handful of 2010 flicks.
Avatar
… Few directors can command large budgets and deliver box office-savvy pictures the way Cameron can. Surpassing popular directors like Roland Emmerich and Michael Bay without breaking a sweat is one of his strongest qualities. If only his capability at screenwriting matched his talent to put butts in the seats, we would be joyful, but at least he’s better at getting to the emotional heart of the film in ways that Bay could only dream about. …
Read the Full Review Here
Coco Before Chanel
Before the famed fashion designer put her name on one of the most popular brands in the world, Coco Chanel was a humble seamstress. Coco Before Chanel takes the audience on a look back at her rags to riches story. …
Coraline
Forced to move to a new town where she doesn’t know anyone, the title character of Coraline finds a strange new world within the walls of her home as she fights to stave off boredom and find the attention she craves from her busy parents. …
Crazy Heart
… Jeff Bridges delivers a stellar performance as a washed up musician who tours backwater pubs across the country living off the fumes of his diminishing fame. His dependence on alcohol has made him a miserable sot barking nastily at those who question his sincerity and worrying only about himself and where his next bottle is coming from. …
Il Divo
… Giulio Andreotti (Toni Servillo) was the former Prime Minister of Italy whose questionable Mafia connections are the subject of much debate in Italy. The title Il Divo (the divine) is one of the many nicknames the Senator for Life has received over the years and may be a rather perfect name. …
Faubourg 36 (Paris 36)
… The film is bookended by an investigation into the kindly old theater manager Pigoil (Jugnot) and his purported involvement in the murder of local kingpin Galapiat (Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu). You eventually find out who killed Galapiat, but by that point you don’t really care much. …
The Hurt Locker
… Depictions of war have been fantastical to realistic and everywhere in between. The Hurt Locker lands distinctly on the side of realistic, hoping to bring the audience into the war zone and help them understand what’s going on. But, there’s so much more going on in the Iraqi war zones than can be depicted in one film, so we are only shown a few such elements. …
In the Loop
… Behind all this is the key plot of the film, namely the backroom dealings and political rumblings that surrounded the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq and Britain’s complicity. While the subject is never dealt with superficially, it’s not as biting as it could possibly have been. …
Nine
Theater has long sought strange and unusual sources for its stage adaptations. Nine is one of the more esoteric choices, bringing Italian director Federico Fellini’s masterpiece 8 ½ to the boards. Now, the Tony-award winning musical has been adapted to the big screen marking the first time in more than two decades that a motion picture was adapted from the stage after having itself been adapted from the big screen. …
Read the Full Review Here
Precious
… From the outset of this film, we have a young woman painted broadly as the typical teenager hoping for a better life. What isn’t typical, however, is that she comes from a poor family and is the recipient of mental, sexual and physical abuse. So, her dreams are less hopes for the future, but ways to escape the horrors of her own life. …
The Princess and the Frog
Every generation or so, Walt Disney studios produces a half dozen or so great films, followed by a half dozen not-so-great and just-plain-terrible features. Disney may very well have begun a new period of success as The Princess and the Frog evokes the elements that made Disney one of the world’s greatest animation studios. …
A Serious Man
The Coen Bros. take a step back after their Oscar winning success No Country for Old Men to tackle something less populist and ultimately more interesting before they head back into Oscar territory with their planned re-adaptation of True Grit. …
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
… More akin to the lazy, economically advantageous materials used on modern toys, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is a generic product made from cheap plot devices and marketed exclusively to those who were fans of the original (both the original toys and the first feature film). …
The Young Victoria
British monarchs have long been fascinating subjects for films. From Henry VIII to Elizabeth II, the Royal Families of the United Kingdom are gold mines for intriguing stories and clashing wills. Why, then, is The Young Victoria so adventureless? …
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