2017 Oscar Preview

RIP, Bill Paxton. One of my personal favorites.




The big night for film celebration is finally here, and it's time to see who will actually take home the coveted gold statues for their innovative and passionate work. This year marked a drama-free nomination process as most deserved candidates were recognized; no whitewashing or out-of-left-field nominees. Besides the political animosity, and the impending mean tweets we will no doubt hear about from our Commander-in-Chief, and some Meryl Streep jokes, it should be La La Land's night to celebrate. Without further ado, here are my projected winners for the big categories, and who I think did the best job in cinema in 2016.

Original Screenplay - Although I really liked Hell or High Water, I don't think there is a snowball's chance in hell that La La Land loses. It's as close as a sure thing as there will be for the evening, and if I'm wrong, I will be shocked.

Adapted Screenplay - Moonlight will pick up the win here. A beautiful film that made my top 5, and although I am not familiar with the source material, the overall critical response has put it in the upper echelon, therefore it deserves the award.

Supporting Actress - Viola Davis should and will win. I was a bit surprised she ended up in the supporting actress category, but the screen-time requirements must have just met the criteria. I would venture that this might have been the strongest female performance of the year as her tense scenes with Denzel Washington were some of the sharpest and emotional.

Supporting Actor - This is often my favorite category (Okay, it's my favorite every year) and always packed with scene-stealing performances. Some of the greatest characters of cinema have been supporting actors and actresses, and this year I have no gripe with any of the nominations. I find it off that Aaron Taylor-Johnson won the Golden Globe and missed out on the nomination to his co-star Michael Shannon (who deserves it), but as strong as the category is, Mahershala Ali will walk away with the win for his role in Moonlight. Who should win? Michael Shannon. His acting is hit or miss, but when he hits, he hits hard. If you haven't seen his brief appearance in Revolutionary Road (2008), check it out. He is a titan when the role is right, but his role selection is often questionable (Man of Steel, Premium Rush).

Actress - I would have liked to see Taraji P. Henson nominated for Hidden Figures, but I suppose there's no stopping Emma Stone on this one. She's swept pretty much every award along the way, and to lose out on the big one just seems too unlikely. Her performance was great, but the category was a bit weak as a whole, even if the overrated Meryl Streep is nominated.

Actor - This is a great category this year, but is really a 3 person race. Garfield and Gosling aren't legitimate threats. There is some trending in the direction of Denzel Washington for his performance in Fences, and I must say, it is warranted. Exceptional acting in a slightly too long and boring film. As outstanding as it was, and although I think he will snag the trophy for the third time in his impressive career, the more deserved actor in my opinion is Casey Affleck. He played the role with a sorrow on his face that you could feel in your soul. His performance is the things careers are remembered for.

Director - Damien Chezelle will win for La La Land. It was impressive, and I can't find fault with this choice. He's struck gold with the feel-good film of the year; a whimsical, musical romance in Hollywood. Can't really go wrong with this one.

Picture - La La Land will win. In my mind, it was a top 5 film, but not the best of the year. The most complete, emotional, and well-done film of the year was by far Manchester by the Sea. Blown away by the story, the acting, and the tone. Kenneth Lonergan shouldn't be disappointed at all for losing to La La Land, but I am.

There you have it. Is it too early to look to next year? Perhaps, but I'll still lock in one bold prediction. Daniel Day-Lewis wins his 4th Best Actor Oscar for his role in the as-yet untitled Paul Thomas Anderson period piece set in 1950's London. Last time they worked together? There Will Be Blood, which was one of the strongest acting performances of the twenty-first century. Period.

John Wick: Chapter 2

Legendary film characters just happen; they can’t be forced. In 2014, we were introduced to John Wick, the boogeyman of hitmen at the twilight of his career, his reputation preceding him wherever he goes, inspiring trepidation in all he encounters. The Continental, a quirky underground fraternal order of assassins, resources, and even their own economy, exist in plain sight. Much like other films of this nature, we are given a glimpse at the glamour of the profession without so much as an intimation at the emotional toil, law enforcement interaction, or health consequences.

Realism aside, the twelve-year-old boy in me loved the film. It’s the typical macho fantasy of the most dangerous type of man, feared even among the most dangerous and ruthless killers in the criminal underworld. A true alpha male with the fighting skills spanning all disciplines: hands, feet, knives, guns, cars. He’s an aged, grizzled slow-moving man with a blood-thirst, but he has a moral code, and apparently a soft spot for dogs and American muscle cars. You can’t write this any better, folks.

Keanu Reeves is in his element. A man of few words (the fewer the better), he delivers one-liners with focus that would make Arnold Schwarzenegger proud, but there’s something about his acting that is still laughable. It’s something we’ve come to not only expect, but that we hold endearing, and the fact that he continues to take on action roles well into his fifties is testament to the physical training he endures. He does look smooth with the gun, and accomplishes some impressive judo that was no doubt intended to channel “The Matrix” and the Kung-Fu fury of Neo.

Director Chad Stahelski was elevated to his position after a long and distinguished career of stunt work, coordination, and eventually, 2nd unit direction. The action is clearly the draw, as is Reeves pseudo-iconic character. He puts a good deal of attention toward the confrontations, but the bloodshed gets old after a while. There’s only so many head shot squibs a person can handle. It’s hard to tell if the intent is to be an ultra-violent action film, or if it’s simply a byproduct of the narrative. Either way, the sheer number of deaths actually gets old, as waves and waves of nameless henchmen keep running head-first into the boogeyman and all of the deadly tricks of his trade.

Writer Derek Kolstad is the weak link of the trio (it’s a stretch to say the others are strong). “John Wick: Chapter 2” would be just as good as a silent film, as every conversation is a bit too cool for school, and leads with the unspoken glance, and ends with Keanu completely butchering his delivery. The dialogue is awful, and doesn’t contribute anything significant to the plot, which is absurd in its own right. Even the attempt to imply that there are hundreds of assassins hidden among us dilutes the novelty of the genre and makes the film more Roger Corman and less, I don’t know, John Woo.

Supporting players Ruby Rose and Ian McShane headline a cast of dozens of hitmen and henchmen of all shapes and sizes. I have to say, I was disappointed in Ruby Rose’s Ares. She’s the mysterious attractive female assassin, but, spoiler alert, she doesn’t deliver the final showdown payoff that her presence advertises. McShane overacts as the manager of the establishment that apparently runs the New York hitman union, but he has one of those gravelly voices that can put you in a trance, so he is forgiven.

“John Wick: Chapter 2” isn’t all bad. I mostly enjoyed the action, when it wasn’t redundant. The opening scene and the shootout ballets are exceptionally choreographed, and it looks like the whole experience might have been a tad painful for Reeves (and his double). You go to certain movies for specific reasons, and this one provides the violence desired. I was thrown off by the blatant attempt to make this a viable franchise, when in fact it’s more of a one-hit wonder. The original is worth checking out, this one not so much unless you’re a big fan of the genre. Or a 12-year-old boy. 5/10.

2017 Year-in-Preview

2017 holds some promise, but also will devour the movie-going audience’s money by putting out sequels, reboots, and recycled material galore. I’ll break some of the more anticipated films down into four distinct categories, and hopefully it will help you navigate the convoluted path of how to spend your hard earned money on movie night.

The Tent Poles. Called so because they literally allow movie studios to stay afloat financially, these will almost certainly make billions of dollars worldwide. Each. Superhero films will again reign supreme with “Logan“, Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2”, “Wonder Woman”, “Spider-Man: Homecoming”, “Thor: Ragnarok”, “Justice League”, and of course, the tent pole of the entire industry, Disney’s “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” all slated for 2017 releases. Marvel and Disney are much more bankable these days than Warner Bros. and their DC brand, but keep an eye on “Wonder Woman”. It isn’t written or directed by Zack Snyder (a writing credit, but not screenplay), so I have hope that the DCEU just might come to rival Marvel yet. These films will be the best bang for your buck, and if you’re a casual fan, you can’t do wrong planning to see any of them.

The Kids’ Movies. Once upon a time, kids’ movies weren’t behemoth blockbusters, but then Pixar came along and amped up the game. The success of “The Lego Movie” in 2014 has spawned two follow-ups; “Lego Batman” and “Ninjago Lego”, and we are also going to be treated to “Cars 3”, “Despicable Me 2”, “Smurfs 2”, and “The Nut Job 2”. Don’t expect any of the original films on the release calendar to gain any traction, there won’t be a “Frozen” in the bunch. But there will be plenty to choose from.

The Reboots and Sequels. As if we haven’t just finally forgotten about David Hasselhoff, “Baywatch” is coming this summer. We’ll also be treated to a new “Jumanji”, “Flatliners”, “Six Billion Dollar Man”, “Beauty and the Beast”, “Murder on the Orient Express”, “King Arthur”, “It”, and yes, “Kong: Skull Island”. There are some promising sequels however, particularly “Alien: Covenant” which is my personally most anticipated film of 2017. Ridley Scott is back and it looks to retain the grittiness and fear from his 1979 original. “Blade Runner: 2049” is another that is bringing Ryan Gosling in to pick up where Harrison Ford left off in 1982, and with Dennis Villaneuve (“Arrival”) at the helm, I’m quite optimistic. Not so much about the new “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales”, “Fast and the Furious 8”, “War for the Planet of the Apes”, or “Transformers: The Last Knight”. Some that may hold interested depending on your feelings toward the originals are “Kingsmen: The Golden Circle”, “John Wick 2”, “World War Z 2”, and “Trainspotting 2”.

The Original Films. There are a few movies on my radar that are fresh, original, and intriguing. The first is “Wind River”. Written and directed by the red hot Taylor Sheridan and starring Elizabeth Olson and Jeremy Renner, it should give you the action and complex story satisfaction you desire. Chris Nolan brings us “Dunkirk” trying his hand at a World War 2 narrative, and one of the more interesting films in my opinion is based on a book from a few years back, “The Circle”. Tom Hanks is the lead as we are taken into a near future where social media takes over our lives almost entirely. “Granite Mountain” might be the most heartbreaking action film of the year, about the Prescott, Arizona firefighters who died fighting a wildfire in 2013. Comedian Jordan Peele brings us “Get Out”, a horror film about an interracial relationship, and it just might be the guilty pleasure surprise of the year. Also noteworthy are “Life” about astronauts who discover something beyond our planet, “Red Sparrow” about Jennifer Lawrence as a Soviet double agent, and “American Made” which reunites Tom Cruise with Doug Liman in a 1980’s drug cartel drama.

So, what are Adam’s must-see films? I’m glad you asked. “Alien: Covenant”, “Blade Runner: 2049”, “Star Wars: The Last Jedi”, “Wind River”, “Granite Mountain”, and “Dunkirk”. But let’s be honest, I’ll probably see most (all) of the aforementioned films. Email me your thoughts as we enter another year of big budget entertainment.