Adnerb the Movie Nerd

Movie reviews from a middle school teacher's perspective

OSCAR PREDICTIONS

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What a strange year it has been!  I haven’t been able to write movie reviews since chipping a bone in my elbow.  I hope to be back into doing them once I’ve healed.  I didn’t get to review “The Outfit” (highly recommend with an Oscar-worthy performance by Mark Rylance) and “The Lost City” (entertaining fluff with Channing Tatum, Sandra Bullock, and Brad Pitt).  Anyway, even though they’ll have to be pretty short, I am getting on with the predictions.

I am usually super confident about my choices, but this year is a big exception.  If I get a few of these right, I will be happy.  I was not able to see many of the nominated movies because of limited runs and exclusive streaming rights.  Anyway, the following are what I think will win, not who I think should win.

PICTURE:   The Power of the Dog  (Coda would not be a surprise)

DIRECTOR:  Jane Campion (nailed it)

ACTRESS:  Jessica Chastain (nailed it)

ACTOR:  Will Smith (nailed it)

SUPPORTING ACTRESS:  Ariana DeBose (nailed it)

SUPPORTING ACTOR:  Troy Koster (nailed it)

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY:  Belfast (nailed it)

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY:  The Power of the Dog

ANIMATED FEATURE:  Encanto (nailed it)

ORIGINAL SONG:  Dos Oruguitas

ORIGINAL SCORE:  Dune (nailed it)

 

SO THIS YEAR MY SCORE WAS 8 OUT OF 11  —  NOT BAD FOR THIS CRAZY YEAR!!

 

What do you think?  See you on the red carpet!

 

 

 

 

The Power of the Dog

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“The Power of the Dog” has been nominated for the Best Picture Oscar.  Why, you ask?  Well it is full of great acting, wonderful costumes, and breathtaking scenery.  Will you want to watch it?  My guess is probably not.  In summary, this is a story about two ranching brothers who live in 1925 Montana.  Phil Burbank is a bitter bully who torments his brother, his horse, and anyone else who makes him angry.  Phil is played by Benedict Cumberbatch who speaks in an American accent and is perfectly convincing and menacing in his role.  Phil and his brother George (Jesse Plemons) stop at a prairie restaurant in a small  town to give their men a break on a cattle drive and meet widow Rose played by Kirsten Dunst and her seemingly tender-hearted son, Peter (Kodi Smit McPhee).  After a whirlwind courtship, George marries Rose and she and her son move to the ranch where Phil’s ominous presence and overt bullying cause a change in behavior in both Rose and Peter.  Everything that happens (or doesn’t happen) is so slow and subtle that if you blink, you may miss an important piece of the plot. In fact, you will spend most of the movie waiting for ‘something’ to happen. This is one of those movies that needs 100% of your attention.  By the way, “The Power of the Dog” has nothing to do with dogs for you animal lovers out there, and there is animal abuse depicted that is hard to watch.  That being said, this may be some of the best acting  of Cumberbatch’s career  and I would not be surprised if he won an Oscar.  His performance may be reason enough to see this, although Jesse Plemons really surprised me as the quiet, long-suffering brother.  But the other characters are sketchily drawn and hardly figure in the story. And a lot of what action is depicted is detached and doesn’t really add or detract from the story, and borders on the lightly bizarre at times.  I’ll be honest, after seeing this movie, I had to look up a few things on Google in order to understand exactly what the ending was all about.  That rarely happens to me.  I know this movie is an artistic triumph, but I just can’t give it my highest rating as it was not an enjoyable experience  and I don’t see myself watching it again.  If you end up watching, I would love to hear what you thought!

The Electrifying Life of Louis Wain

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This movie won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but it sure was mine. This is the kind of little British drama you can usually find on PBS.  It is the true story of Louis Wain. If you are like me, and never heard of him, I suggest you google his name before watching the movie.  Take a look at his very interesting, and sometimes bizarre, drawings and paintings of cats.  Before Louis Wain, people believed cats belonged outside catching mice.  Most would not have dreamed of keeping one in the house. Wain’s drawings were so popular that they helped launch cats as companions and pets.  In “The Electrifying Life of Louis Wain” Benedict Cumberbatch does an outstanding job of showing us Louis’s unorthodox mind.  His life is hard and confusing to him (he may have been autistic or suffered from schizophrenia) until he marries his sisters’ governess – played delightfully by Claire Foy.  Their romance is so sweet and Louis is blissfully happy.  But this being a true story, unfortunately, it doesn’t stay that way.  The electricity in the title refers to the Louis’s belief that electricity can pull us forward in time and help us hold on to our memories.  This idea inspired him to create cats that became more and more psychedelic over the years. But his inner demons cause his life to become sadder and his sanity more tenuous.   Olivia Colman adds her terrific voice as the narrator.  This story gave me a deep appreciation of this man I had never heard of, and his unique and powerful pictures of cats. If you’re interested, you can find this mesmerizing tale on Amazon Prime.

The King’s Daughter

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What can you say about a truly terrible movie?  Not since I saw Johnny Depp in “Mordecai” have I been so disappointed in a movie as I was in “The King’s Daughter.”  Pierce Brosnan (shame on you!) stars as the most unhistorical Louis XIV in history.  He has the ludicrous idea that if he can catch and kill a mermaid, he will live forever.  For some unexplained reason, he has hidden an illegitimate daughter in a nunnery (even though he had many illegitimate offspring with many mistresses that he proudly took credit for).  While at the nunnery, his daughter, Marie-Josephe, played by a dismally underqualified and uninspiring Kaya Scodelario, is an independent and troublesome charge.  She is eventually brought to court, where it is revealed the King is actually her father.    In another story line, a mermaid from Atlantis (?) is captured in the most ham fisted and unbelievable way (the CGI is amateurish); and put in a super quickly created grotto near the palace.  (In an amazing feat of 17th century construction, the grotto is full of underwater pinnacles, deep fissures and a secret connection to the harbor of Le Havre via the River Seine!)  Louis needs this mermaid so he can have her killed during a solar eclipse, thereby somehow guaranteeing his immortality.  William Hurt (How dare you!  What a sad way to put a stake in the remnants of what used to be a great acting life) plays a priest who supports his king until even he realizes killing a mermaid is just plain wrong.  Many other pointless and uninspiring events occur. So what makes this movie so terrible (if the plot isn’t enough of a clue)?  Well, it is not interesting or entertaining, has no action, a half-hearted romance, and the worst costumes ever!  Most of the supporting characters are poorly developed cartoons who aren’t going to get anyone’s interest. It wasn’t until I was looking up the movie on my phone that I discovered this was actually filmed in 2014 and couldn’t find someone willing to distribute it.  I guess with COVID curtailing filming, even a terrible movie seems like a good investment.  It isn’t.  It is too late for me, but at least you can save yourself and your loved ones by totally ignoring “The King’s Daughter.”

Jungle Cruise

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Do you want to completely escape your troubles and watch a movie that doesn’t involve any thinking what-so-ever; and yet is surprisingly entertaining? Then you are in luck, because I have the perfect movie for you. Disney is constantly coming out with movies that are loosely inspired by some of its most popular theme park rides. The Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean immediately come to mind. Jungle Cruise is another one, but it is made enjoyable by the performances of Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt. I was mesmerized by Emily Blunt’s performance in the Quiet Place I and II. But here she is equally engaging as a turn of the century scientist who wears pants and kicks butt. Dwayne Johnson plays a charming riverboat captain with a big secret. Paul Giamatti has a small role as the Italian dock owner Nilo Nemolato; while Jesse Plemons is the inevitable evil villain, Prince Joachim. The story is loaded with spectacular special effects, and a somewhat complicated plot with a few little twists here and there. And of course, there is the usual spooky jungle river mythos story. It doesn’t have much to do with the ride, but neither have the others! There are a number of interesting side characters (including British comedian Jack Whitehall as Emily’s brother) that really flesh out the tale and help add a touch of humor. They do a pretty good job of establishing the settings and atmosphere. No worries about me spoiling the plot, it is silly, full of holes, and really who cares? Just sit back, relax and escape.