Golden Globe Awards: Results

Here are the winners in the movie categories at the Golden Globes. The blue correspond to my correct predictions and the red corresponding to predictions which were wrong.

Best Motion Picture – Drama
* The Social Network
Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
* The Kids Are All Right
Best Director – Motion Picture
* David Fincher for The Social Network 
Best Screenplay – Motion Picture
* The Social Network: Aaron Sorkin
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama
* Colin Firth for The King’s Speech
Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama
* Natalie Portman for Black Swan

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
* Paul Giamatti for Barney’s Version

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
* Annette Bening for The Kids Are All Right 
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
* Christian Bale for The Fighter
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
* Melissa Leo for The Fighter
Best Original Song – Motion Picture
* Burlesque: Diane Warren (“You Haven’t Seen The Last of Me”) 

Best Original Score – Motion Picture
* The Social Network: Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross 

Best Animated Film
* Toy Story 3
Best Foreign Language Film
* In a Better World (Denmark)

Golden Globe Awards: Predictions

Here are my predictions for tonight's Golden Globe award winners:

BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
BLACK SWAN
THE FIGHTER
INCEPTION
THE KING’S SPEECH
THE SOCIAL NETWORK

BEST MOTION PICTURE – MUSICAL OR COMEDY 
ALICE IN WONDERLAND
BURLESQUE
THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHTRED
THE TOURIST

BEST DIRECTOR
Darren Aronofsky, BLACK SWAN
David Fincher, THE SOCIAL NETWORKTom Hooper, THE KING’S SPEECH
Christopher Nolan, INCEPTION
David O. Russell, THE FIGHTER

BEST SCREENPLAY
Danny Boyle, 127 HOURS
Lisa Cholodenko and Stuart Hart, THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
Christopher Nolan, INCEPTION
David Seidler, THE KING’S SPEECH
Aaron Sorkin, THE SOCIAL NETWORK

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Alexander Desplat, THE KING’S SPEECH
Danny Elfman, ALICE IN WONDERLAND
A.R. Robin, 127 HOURS
Trent Reznor, THE SOCIAL NETWORK
Hans Zimmer, INCEPTION

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM 
BIUTIFUL
THE CONCERT
THE EDGE
I AM LOVEIN A BETTER WORLD

BEST ANIMATED FILM
DESPICABLE ME
HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON
THE ILLUSIONIST
TANGLED
TOY STORY 3

BEST ORIGINAL SONG – MOTION PICTURE 
“Bound to You” – BURLESQUE
“Coming Home” – COUNTRY STRONG“I See the Light” – TANGLED
“There’s a Place for Us” – THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: THE DAWN TREADER
“You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me” – BURLESQUE

BOOK REVIEW: Paolo Bacigalupi's The Windup Girl

 

Paolo Bacigalupi's The Windup Girl is regarded as some as the most celebrated science fiction debut novel of all time. It was published in 2009 and has won the Nebula award, tied for the Hugo award for Best Novel, the John W. Campbell Award, and the Locus Award for Best Debut Novel.

The Windup Girl is considered an excellent example of a new genre of speculative fiction called "biopunk." Biopunk is a new term derived from cyberpunk science fiction and generally involves detailing the dangerous impacts of the biotechnology revolution on the near-future development of mankind. Bacigalupi had already made a notable name for himself by writing multiple award-winning short stories which contain many of the same themes which appear in this debut novel.

Similar to my experience with the other 2010 Hugo Award-winner for Best Novel, The City & The City, I really wanted to like this book but my actual experience of reading the book was less enjoyable than the enthusiastic reviews would have lead me to expect.

After reading the very first chapter I told my Other Half, "I don't think I'm going to like this book as much as the critics did."

My main problem with the book was my lack of connection with any of the main characters. Those were: Emiko (the eponymous windup girl of the title; she is a genetically modified humanoid--known as New People-- who has been engineered for absolute obedience); Hock Seng (a formerly very successful Chinese industrialist who is a refugee from an ethnic purge of Chinese people in Malaysia; he is known as a "yellow card" in Thailand due to his questionable immigrant status in the country); Anderson Lake (a secret representative of the multinational corporation AgriGen known as a "calorie man," he is currently the owner to Hock Seng's operations manager at a factory which produces "kink-springs";) Jaidee and Kanya (they are two "white shirts" who are employed by the Environment Ministry as somewhat arbitrary enforcers of strict environment regulations).

One of the central threads of the novel's plot is a political power struggle between General Pracha, the head of the Environmental Ministry, and the head of the Trade Ministry, Akkarat to control the city of Bangkok. The other main thread involves how (and whether) Emiko the windup girl will survive her dismal and desperate existence in Thailand. When we meet her, she is basically a sex slave who is being abused nightly for the entertainment and pleasure of men by another female employee. Because of her nature, Emiko can't refuse any request or order, regardless of how depraved or humiliating it is. Hock Seng is scheming to steal the plans for a revolutionary kink-spring in his boss Anderson Lake's safe in order to restart his career. Jaidee and Kanya (who is a secret mole for Akkarat) are pawns in the power struggle between Environment and Trade.

The most notable aspect of The Windup Girl is the alternate-history world view that Bacigalupi presents. In his vision, there has been an environmental catastrophe (Bangkok is literally under sea level, but is being protected by huge sea walls). Additionally, multinational corporations have their own private armies and regularly release genetically modified produce whose seeds can dominate and make sterile the indigenous produce of other nations. The currency of this new world is "calories." Most electric energy appears to be generated by kinetic energy, by turning "kink-springs" which can translate motion into power used to run machines. Of course, humans and animals get their energy to move from calories they eat. So, the corporations that control food production now control the world. It's an engaging and fascinating vision and Bacigalupi conveys it well. It's all the other aspects of a good book which seems to have eluded him: interesting (possibly sympathetic) characters in unusual situations with compelling conflicts and motivations. I was interested in the milieu the characters were in, but could care less what happened to the careers.

The primary defect of the book is the character of Emiko, the windup girl. It is just insupportable to re-create gender-based subordination in the form of what is essentially a real, live sex doll and not expect some people to object. Bacigalupi basically punts on the implication of his characterization of Emiko, even when he compounds it by layering on a Japanese name and explicitly giving her a bac story of being  a discarded plaything of a Japanese businessman who left her in Thailand because he didn't feel it was worth it to pay for Emiko to travel back to his country.

The way the stories are left somewhat unresolved makes it very likely that there will be a sequel to The Windup Girl but I doubt it will be a book I will feel is worth my time.

Title: The Windup Girl.
Author: Paolo Bacigalupi.
Length: 361 pages.
Publisher: Nightshade Books.
Date: September 15, 2009.

PLOT: B.
IMAGERY: B+.
IMPACT: B+.
WRITING: A-.

OVERALL GRADE:  B+ (3.33/4.0).

MOVIE REVIEW: The Fighter

Finally saw David O. Russell's The Fighter starring Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, Amy Adams and Melissa Leo in the week between Christmas and New Year's Day.

The Fighter tells the true story of Micky Ward, a Boston-Irish boxer whose (half)brother Dicky Edlund was a marginally successful but is now primarily coaching and training his younger brother while unsuccessfully trying to hide his crack addiction from his brother and mother. Micky is played by Mark Wahlberg and Dicky is played by Christian Bale. Their mom (and manager) Alice is played by Melissa Leo and Micky's girlfriend and future wife Charlene (played by Amy Adams).

The Fighter is animated by incendiary performances. The first of these is Bale's transformation from handsome, muscular hero (Batman begins, The Dark Knight) to a gaunt, hyperactive, confused drug addict. It is a harrowing performance to watch. ("Just give him his Oscar now" I whispered to my Other Half on the way out of the theater.) The flip-side of Bale's Dicky is Wahlberg's Micky. Although Wahlberg is the lead actor and presumably the eponymous fighter referred to in the title, Micky's lot in life resembles a follower, not a fighter. He basically does whatever his brother or mother tell him to do, and only slowly does he begin to realize that their wishes may not be parallel to his best interests. Wahlberg's performance is quiet and self-effacing where Bale's is flashy and unforgettable. Leo's Alice and Adams' Charlene are relatively similar in tone and appearance: strong, willful women with rough (and somewhat repellent) exteriors.

Although boxing is a 1-on-1 gladiatorial sport, in The Fighter most of the fighting (or squabbling) is done in threes: Micky and Charlene versus Dicky, Dicky and Alice versus Micky, Micky and Dicky versus the World, and Micky and Charlene versus his entire family. As you can see, many of these fights are between family members and are fraught with the intense emotions that can arise in those situations.

Overall, all boxing movies come into the world in which Rocky and Raging Bull have influenced the audience. The Fighter is a worthy addition to that oeuvre, and with the depiction of family dynamics and the excellence of the acting, the movie should be viewed favorably with the great family dramas (Ordinary People and Dangerous Liaisons).

Title: The Fighter.
Running Time: 1 hour, 54 minutes.
MPAA Rating: R for language throughout, drug content, some violence and sexuality.
Release Date: Friday, December 10, 2010.
Attendance Date: Thursday, December 30, 2010.

Plot: B.
Acting: A+.
Visuals: A-.
Impact: A-.

Overall Grade: A- (3.667/4.0).

OSCARS 2011: PGA Announces Nominees For Best Picture

Here are the nominees for the Best Pictures of the Year according to the Producers Guild of America:

127 HOURS
Producers: Danny Boyle, Christian Colson

BLACK SWAN
Producers: Scott Franklin, Mike Medavoy, Brian Oliver

INCEPTION
Producers: Christopher Nolan, Emma Thomas

THE FIGHTER
Producers: David Hoberman, Todd Lieberman, Mark Wahlberg

THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
Producers: Gary Gilbert, Jeffrey Levy-Hinte, Celine Rattray

THE KING’S SPEECH
Producers: Iain Canning, Emile Sherman, Gareth Unwin

THE SOCIAL NETWORK
Producers: Dana Brunetti, Ceán Chaffin, Michael De Luca, Scott Rudin

THE TOWN
Producers: Basil Iwanyk, Graham King

TOY STORY 3
Producer: Darla K. Anderson

TRUE GRIT
Producers: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen, Scott Rudin

I've seen all of these movies except for Black Swan which I hope to get to this week. Click on the film name to go to my review.

The PGA and the Oscars' Best Picture nominees are often concordant, especially since both organizations moved to 10 nominees in the same year.

MOVIE REVIEW: True Grit

The Other Half and I saw Joel & Ethan Coen's True Grit last week in the run up to the holidays. We've always been a fan of the Coen Brothers, and I think we have seen most of their entire oeuvre (Raising Arizona, Miller's Crossing, Barton Fink, Fargo, The Hudsucker Proxy, The Big Lebowski, No Country for Old Men and Burn After Reading) although we skipped last year's Osar-nominated A Serious Man.

True Grit stars Jeff Bridges in the role that won John Wayne his Best Actor Oscar (which Bridges won last year for Crazy Heart), Matt Damon, Josh Brolin and introduces Hailee Stanfield. Stanfield plays 14-year-old Mattie Ross who hires Bridges' U.S. Marshall Rooster Cogburn to hunt down Brolin's Tom Chaney who killed Mattie's father and stole a horse. Damon plays a Texas Ranger named La Boeuf who has been tracking Chaney for years but hasn't been able to get very close to him. The three (La Boeuf, Cogburn and Ross) reluctantly join forces to find Chaney in the unincorporated Western Territory even though Mattie wants Chaney captured so that he can hang for killing her father while La Boeuf needs Chaney alive to be brought back to Texas in order to collect a substantial reward. Cogburn will go along with anyone who can guarantee him a steady enough to income to pay for his excessive alcohol consumption.

The original True Grit is a classic Western, based loosely on a book by the same name by Charles Portis. The novel has very stylized language (there are no contractions like "can't" or "ain't"); the Coen Brothers adapted the book, kept most of the formal dialogue and inserted broad humor.

In relation to the end-of-year award sweepstakes True Grit holds its own as an enjoyable, well-made and well-acted film in a genre which hearkens back to the Golden Age of Hollywood. It is not as meaningful a film as Clint Eastwood's Unforgiven, which re-imagined and re-invigorated the Western. However, (somewhat surprisingly to some) the Coen Brothers have not produced a quirky parody of a Western, but a pretty straightforward example which emphasizes the strengths of the form.

Title: True Grit.
Running Time: 1 hour, 50 minutes.
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some intense sequences of western violence including disturbing images.
Release Date: Wednesday, December 22, 2010.
Attendance Date: Thursday, December 23, 2010.

Writing: A-.
Acting: A.
Visuals: A-.
Impact: A-.

Overall Grade: A- (3.75/4.0).

For Your Consideration: "Inception"

The campaigns for the 2010 Best Picture Oscar have begun in earnest.... Here is the promotional trailer for Christopher Nolan's Inception

MOVIE REVIEW: The King's Speech

Finally saw The King's Speech, the latest Oscar-bait ("Based on the incredible true story") from The Weinstein Company. It is directed by Tom Hooper, starring the crème de la crème of British acting talent (Colin Firth as King George VI, Helena Bonham Carter as Queen Elizabeth, Timothy Squall as Winston Churchill, Michael Gambon as King George V) as well as some renowned Australian actors (Geoffrey Rush and Guy Pearce).

The King's Speech is widely seen as a front-runner for the 2010 Best Picture Oscar, with Firth garnering kudos from almost every critics group under the sun and building a convincing claim that last year's Best Actor nomination for A Single Man was merely a precursor to a win this year. Rush, who already has a Best Actor statuette for Shine, is generating buzz for a supporting Oscar, but it looks like Christian Bale's work in The Fighter may have that category wrapped up.

It's hard to evaluate the film outside the context of the annual Oscar race, especially considering the Weinsteins' history and the caliber of the actors involved. Hooper is a well-regarded but youthful British direct most well-known for the HBO miniseries John Adams which starred Paul Giamatti and Laura Linney and won a boatload of Emmys last year.

The King's Speech is about the story of an unorthodox Australian speech therapist named Lionel Logue who worked with the Duke of York (the King's second oldest son) to try to correct a severe stammer and a concomitant paralyzing fear of public speaking. Firth does a heart-wrenching job of portraying the agony of a chronic stutterer. Since, he is second-in-line for the throne, Firth's character (called Bertie by his friends and family) has many, many opportunities (and obligations) to give public speeches and the film depicts the way time seems to stand still as Firth labors to produce coherent and articulate sounds. In addition to the personal journey of Bertie to overcome what appears to be an insurmountable disability, the film also is leavened with suspense as the political intrigue thickens as Bertie's brother becomes King, making Bertie next in line. Of course, the problem is that if Bertie becomes King then of course he will have even more obligations to speak publicly.

Overall, the film depicts pre-World War II era London impeccably. Firth's performance, along with Bonham Carter's clever turn as his consort and Rush's attempt to steal scenes are the main reasons to see the film. Although it is hugely entertaining and captivating, I did n;t leave the film thinking "Wow, that was a reallly good movie" which is how I did feel when I walked out of Toy Story 3, Inception, The Kids Are All Right and The Social Network.

Title: The King's Speech.
Running Time: 1 hour, 51 minutes.
MPAA Rating: R for some language.
Release Date: Friday, November 26, 2010.
Seen: Tuesday, December 21, 2010.

Plot: B+.
Acting: A.
Visuals: A-.
Impact: A.

Overall Grade: A- (3.75/4.0).

MOVIE REVIEW: 127 Hours

The husband and I saw Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle's 127 Hours at our usual theaters in Alhambra recently. 127 Hours is the follow-up to his multiple Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire  (Best Picture, Director, Adapted Screenplay, Cinematography, Editing, Sound Mixing, Score and Song) stars James Franco in the incredible true story of Aron Ralston. Ralston is the guy who went hiking in a Utah canyon without telling anyone where he was going and after a freak accident left him trapped under a boulder was forced to cut off half of his own right arm in order to escape after nearly 5 days (127 hours) with minimal food and water.

127 Hours is currently rated 93% positively on rottentomatoes.com, one of top-rated movies of 2010. Franco is also stating to garner multiple notices from critics for his riveting performance in the film.

Initial marketing of the film concentrated on the audience reaction to the graphic nature of the scene where Franco's character saws off his own arm with a dull knife in order to escape his entrapment under a boulder in a canyon crevice. More recently, Fox Searchlight has started marketing a "I Kept My Eyes Open For 127 Hours" website, button and t-shirt campaign to rebrand the intense film experience as a rite of passage (or possibly indication of machismo) for some filmgoers.

Actually, I don't think I could wear the t-shirt because although I may have kept my eyes open for the entire
film, I was definitely squirming in my seat during the scene where Franco's character starts to cut into his own flesh. Director Danny Boyle does an incredible job of really placing the audience in the position of Aron Ralston. You really do feel like you are trapped in that canyon with James Franco, which is an amazing feat of immersive filmmaking.

The visuals and impact of the film are the most impactful of any film that I have seen all year. You are filled with immense respect and admiration for Aron Ralston and it really makes you question what you would do in a similar situation.


127 Hours really makes you think about the limits of human endurance and marvel at the power of film in the hands of a gifted filmmaker and a fully committed actor.

Title: 127 Hours.

Running Time: 1 hour, 33 minutes.

MPAA Rating: R for language and some disturbing violent content/bloody images.

Release Date: Friday, November 5, 2010.

Seen: Sunday, December 11, 2010.

Plot: B+.

Acting: A.

Visuals: A+.

Impact: A+.

Overall Grade: B+ (4.0/4.0).

SAG Award Nominationss Announced

The Screen Actors Guild award nominations were announced this morning. Since the Actors branch is the largest block of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the SAG Awards often track the Oscar nominations very very closely.

Here they are (courtesy AwardsDaily.com):

Ensemble:
Black Swan
The Fighter
The Kids Are All Right
The King’s Speech
The Social Network

Actress, Lead:
Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole
Jennifer Lawrence, Winter’s Bone
Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Hilary Swank, Conviction

Actor, Motion Picture
Jeff Bridges, True Grit
Robert Duvall, Get Low
Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
James Franco, 127 Hours

Supporting Actor
Christian Bale, The Fighter
John Hawkes, Winter’s Bone
Jeremy Renner, The Town
Mark Ruffalo, The Kids Are All Right
Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech

Actress, Supporting
Amy Adams, The Fighter
Helena Bonham Carter, The King’s Speech
Mila Kunis, Black Swan
Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit

I am bitterly disappointed by the absence of Inception from this list.

TIME Magazine Names Mark Zuckerberg Person of the Year

Facebook founder and the world's youngest billionaire Mark Zuckerberg has been named Time magazine's Person of the Year for 2010.

The editors explain their choice:

At 26, Zuckerberg is a year older than our first Person of the Year, Charles Lindbergh — another young man who used technology to bridge continents. He is the same age as Queen Elizabeth when she was Person of the Year, for 1952. But unlike the Queen, he did not inherit an empire; he created one. (The Queen, by the way, launched a Facebook page this year.) Person of the Year is not and never has been an honor. It is a recognition of the power of individuals to shape our world. For connecting more than half a billion people and mapping the social relations among them (something that has never been done before); for creating a new system of exchanging information that has become both indispensable and sometimes a little scary; and finally, for changing how we all live our lives in ways that are innovative and even optimistic, Mark Elliot Zuckerberg is TIME's 2010 Person of the Year.

The story of the founding of Facebook is depicted in the movie The Social Network starring Jesse Eisenberg as Zuckerberg, adapted from a fictionalization into a screenplay by Aaron Sorkin and directed by David Fincher. The movie has been winning several  end-of-year critics awards and must be considered one of the frontrunners for the Best Picture Oscar.

Golden Globes Nominations Announced

The Golden Globe nominations are out. The King's Speech leads with 7, The Social Network and The Fighter are tied with 6.

BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
BLACK SWAN
THE FIGHTER
INCEPTION
THE KING’S SPEECH
THE SOCIAL NETWORK

BEST MOTION PICTURE – MUSICAL OR COMEDY 
ALICE IN WONDERLAND
BURLESQUE
THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
RED
THE TOURIST

BEST DIRECTOR
Darren Aronofsky, BLACK SWAN
David Fincher, THE SOCIAL NETWORK
Tom Hooper, THE KING’S SPEECH
Christopher Nolan, INCEPTION
David O. Russell, THE FIGHTER

BEST SCREENPLAY
Danny Boyle, 127 HOURS
Lisa Cholodenko and Stuart Hart, THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
Christopher Nolan, INCEPTION
David Seidler, THE KING’S SPEECH
Aaron Sorkin, THE SOCIAL NETWORK

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Alexander Desplat, THE KING’S SPEECH
Danny Elfman, ALICE IN WONDERLAND
A.R. Robin, 127 HOURS
Trent Reznor, THE SOCIAL NETWORK
Hans Zimmer, INCEPTION

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM 
BIUTIFUL
THE CONCERT
THE EDGE
I AM LOVE
IN A BETTER WORLD

BEST ANIMATED FILM
DESPICABLE ME
HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON
THE ILLUSIONIST
TANGLED
TOY STORY

BEST ORIGINAL SONG – MOTION PICTURE 
“Bound to You” – BURLESQUE
“Coming Home” – COUNTRY STRONG
“I See the Light” – TANGLED
“There’s a Place for Us” – THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: THE DAWN TREADER
“You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me” – BURLESQUE