tag:weblogs.thecwdc.com,2009-04-11:/entertainment/movies/willie-waffle//365 2012-02-03T05:03:07Z Willie Waffle is the movie critic for people who hate movie critics. Movable Type 4.1 tag:weblogs.thecwdc.com,2012:/entertainment/movies/willie-waffle//365.156596 2012-02-03T05:01:18Z 2012-02-03T05:03:07Z

Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ This Woman in Black is frightening. 

More frightening than an ex-girlfriend. 

More frightening than Hillary Clinton chasing after Bill with a frying pan in her hand. 

More frightening than Kathie Lee Gifford without her makeup. 

Daniel Radcliffe stars as Arthur Kipps - an early 20th century barrister in London suffering since his wife passed away during child birth 4 years ago.  Struggling to be a father and not performing well at work, Arthur is being given one last chance to save his job and impress the firm's leadership.  

A wealthy widowed client out in the countryside has passed away, so Arthur needs to head out there, wrap up her affairs and the sell the old, creaky house in which she lived.  However, the young lawyer starts to realize everyone in town is not happy to see him, strange things start to happen upon his arrival, and he keeps seeing this strange, ghastly woman in black.

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Has Arthur gotten in over his head?

As you have heard from me time and time and time again (and pretty much every Halloween), the original, BBC version of The Woman in Black is the scariest movie I have ever seen (I had to stop the movie 3 times just to survive to tell the tale).  Upon hearing it was going to be remade, and dubbed by some as Scary Potter, I was worried.  Luckily, this version packs just as many frights (and I saw it on the big screen, so I couldn't stop the movie, but will admit to covering eyes once ... OK, twice).

Director James Watkins does hold (mostly) true to the original movie, but, stays true in the most important way.  The Woman in Black is not a gory, gross out, blood filled horror movie (the PG-13 rating was your first indication of that).  It's a movie full of subtle and not so subtle frights.

The audience must always be aware of the Woman in Black.  Is she hiding in the mirror?  Is she just behind the door?  Is that her making the creaky noise in the attic?  If you pay close attention, brief flashes of the Woman in Black will give you chills, but, if you miss those (and you might miss a few), Watkins has more obvious appearances that will scare your underpants off.  

Radcliffe shows he is a developing, growing actor as he steps from boyhood into manhood.  While some may think of him as a teen kid, Radcliffe more than adequately shows he is mature enough to be the leading man and fills Arthur with a sadness and determination that makes the character more than a frightened face.  He doesn't chew up the scenery, and realizes we are there for the big scares, but Radcliffe adds a little something more to make the character more real for the audience.

The Woman In Black doesn't have the greatest dialogue, or character development, but the purpose is to scare you.  Mission accomplished.








3 ½ Waffles (Out of 4)

The Woman in Black is rated PG-13 for thematic material and violence/disturbing images

]]> tag:weblogs.thecwdc.com,2012:/entertainment/movies/willie-waffle//365.156597 2012-02-03T05:00:01Z 2012-02-03T05:02:38Z

Set in 1988, and based on the true story, John "He Should Have Gotten a 1988 Hair Cut" Krasinski stars as Adam Carlson - a TV reporter in Alaska who bounces around the state filing human interest stories, who finds...

Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ Set in 1988, and based on the true story, John "He Should Have Gotten a 1988 Hair Cut" Krasinski stars as Adam Carlson - a TV reporter in Alaska who bounces around the state filing human interest stories, who finds the story of a lifetime.  At one of the most northern tips of the state, Carlson has come across three California Gray whales trapped under the ice after winter moves in a bit quicker than normal. 

Their only way to survive is to continue to bob up and down through one small hole in the ice, since the only other break in the surface is five miles away, which is too far for them to swim without coming up for air.  Now, as the story becomes an international sensation drawing the attention of every news organization, Adam tries to bring together a motley crew of people who can help save the whales,  including:

His ex-girlfriend, Rachel (Drew Barrymore), who runs the Alaska branch of Greenpeace,

The Communist ruled Soviet Union,

The Reagan White House and staffer Kelly Meyers (Vinessa Shaw),

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The National Guard led by Col. Scott Boyer (Dermot Mulroney),

An oil company tycoon, J.W. McGraw (Ted Danson),

The local Eskimos,

and more.

Will these longtime opponents be able to pull together to save the whales?

Big Miracle is a movie that wins most of us over by being nice about 90% of the time.  Director Ken Kwapis brings a light touch, which, mostly, keeps the drama going without hitting melodramatic territory, while writers Jack Amiel and Michael Begler (based on the book by Thomas Rose) provide plenty of different stories to give each character enough attention to make us realize their role in the operation.  Sure, everything does get a little too cutesy at times (this IS a Drew Barrymore movie after all), but Kwapis brings us back to where we need to be quick enough. 

Surprisingly, John Krasinski is smoother and more comfortable in the leading man role than I have ever seen in his other movies.  He is starting to display the confidence you need to carry a movie, especially when his character needs to be the ethical and moral fiber of the story.

Meanwhile, everyone else is fulfilling their supporting role.  Barrymore is not in the movie maybe as much as you would think, but gives Rachel enough spunk and avoids giving her too much cuteness.  Mulroney is a perfect, sparsely spoken military guy trying to complete a mission and Danson, while sometimes playing the bad guy a bit too comically and with a bit too much evil, does bring the right amount of heart and soul when given a chance.








3 Waffles (Out of 4)

Big Miracle is rated PG for language

]]> tag:weblogs.thecwdc.com,2012:/entertainment/movies/willie-waffle//365.156581 2012-01-27T05:06:27Z 2012-01-27T11:30:15Z

Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ No, this is not the story of Albert Brooks saying good-bye to the world after being snubbed for an Oscar nomination.  However, it could be the story of Seal (dude, you are not going to do better than Heidi Klum, so apologize and beg her to take you back before she hooks up with some international billionaire who owns his own fleet of yachts). 

Sam Worthington stars as Nick Cassidy - a former cop convicted of stealing a $40 million diamond from New York's largest real estate king, David Englander (Ed Harris, who looks shockingly thin in this movie, I wanted to pass my popcorn up to him on the screen to make sure the guy had something to eat).  Despite exhausting the appeals process, Nick still claims he is innocent, and isn't willing to take this injustice sitting down.

So, the dude escapes from prison and makes his way to Manhattan.  He checks into the Roosevelt Hotel, has one fine last meal, and steps out onto the ledge.  Everyone is worried he wants to jump, but he requests police negotiator Lydia Mercer (Elizabeth Banks) with a much different plan in mind.

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Man On A Ledge certainly defies logic, but does find a way to hook the audience into wondering how this whole massive scheme is going to end. 

If you let yourself think too hard, you might wonder why none of the NYPD officers on the scene at the hotel recognize a former colleague, who was arrested for stealing a $40 million diamond, and escaped from prison (which would start a massive manhunt and APB bulletin, complete with his description and photo broadcast to every police station in the tri-state area).  Yet, they all know about Lydia, and her stuff seems to have happened months earlier.  You can find a few moments like this.   

However, the rest of Man On A Ledge is a decent movie with some very predictable twists and turns.  I wish Worthington would remember at all times he is playing a NY cop and not let the Aussie accent invade his speech, and Banks might be pushing the tired, jaded, troubled cop thing down our throats a bit too much. 

Yet, Man On A Ledge has a decent caper movie feel to it as we see what is happening all around Nick.  Jamie Bell and Genesis Rodriguez provide some comic relief in some roles I feel should be kept secret to help you enjoy the movie more (even though the studio, Summit Entertainment, has been revealing more and more of the plot in its marketing of the film).  

I just wish the ending was much more inventive.  The big resolution felt like it was tacked on without enough thought and consideration, as if writer Pablo Fenjves knew he painted himself into a corner and couldn't come up with a better way out.  

 







2 Waffles (Out of 4)

Man On A Ledge is rated PG-13 for violence and brief strong language

]]> tag:weblogs.thecwdc.com,2012:/entertainment/movies/willie-waffle//365.156582 2012-01-27T05:01:21Z 2012-01-27T11:29:47Z

Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ Liam Neeson plays Ottway - a sniper hired to protect Alaskan oil workers from the various wolves that surround their base camp.  Of course, a heavy snowstorm quickly is moving in, which forces them to evacuate.  During the flight, the plane suffers some sort of malfunction and crashes.  Now, abandoned in the middle of nowhere, the survivors have to start making their way south to civilization, but find themselves outnumbered by hungry hungry wolves. 

Who will survive and who will be eaten?

Who will become wolfy chow?

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Director/co-writer Joe Carnahan and co-writer Ian Mackenzie Jeffers fill the movie with plenty of clichés, but none of the compelling dialogue and backstory that would make The Grey a taught thriller about survival and the human desire to keep fighting in the face of adversity.  We should be rooting for these guys to survive, not rooting for the wolves to eat them.  

Carnahan gives us some flashes of what we want to see in The Grey, but not nearly enough.  Ottway has a whole history to explain who he is and his current physical and emotional state, but that never becomes important enough to drive the apparent theme of human nature's desire to survive in the face of horrible conditions and probably death.     

We have mostly boring dialogue between the characters as we watch the guy with a kid hoping to be with her, and the guy who is a better fit for jail than society trying to show how tough he is, and so forth and so on.  Each one is taken down one after the other as we hope to see Neeson take on the wolves using a very particular set of skills, but even that doesn't live up to our expectations.  

Worst of all, the wolves look phony.  If you want the audience to get all scared, the predators need to be more ferocious than Scooby Doo.








1 Waffle (Out of 4)

The Grey is rated R for violence/disturbing content including bloody images, and for pervasive language

]]> tag:weblogs.thecwdc.com,2012:/entertainment/movies/willie-waffle//365.156583 2012-01-27T05:01:07Z 2012-01-27T03:26:39Z

Set around the turn of the 20th century Dublin, Glenn Close is Albert Nobbs - a woman who has been posing as a man to work as a waiter/butler at a fancy hotel in order to raise enough money to...

Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ Set around the turn of the 20th century Dublin, Glenn Close is Albert Nobbs - a woman who has been posing as a man to work as a waiter/butler at a fancy hotel in order to raise enough money to start her own business. 

Times are tough, employers have no respect for the employees, and jobs are not easily found (sound familiar?), so Nobbs does everything to keep her secret and her job.  However, this lonely lifestyle is about to be upended by the arrival of two new employees, Joe (Aaron Johnson) and Hubert (Janet McTeer), who might expose her secret. 

Will Albert be unmasked?

Will she reach her goals?

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I know McTeer earned an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress, but I was more impressed by Mia Wasikowska's performance as a young lady working at the hotel who has spirit and a love of life, but who might have all of that taken away.  We see the path her life likely is to take, but root for her to find a way to overcome destiny, especially as she gets caught up in a questionable situation.

Albert Nobbs might not be your first choice when thinking about which movie to see, but you should be daring and take a chance.








4 Waffles (Out of 4)

Albert Nobbs is rated R for some sexuality, brief nudity and language

]]> tag:weblogs.thecwdc.com,2012:/entertainment/movies/willie-waffle//365.156575 2012-01-24T14:04:24Z 2012-01-24T15:42:45Z

Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ I will forever eat my words for saying Jonah Hill will never get an Oscar nomination.  However, the formerly corpulent comic actor scored the adulation and respect so many in Hollywood crave today.  Am I the only one who is fearing the upcoming ads for the 21 Jump Street movie that will be touting Oscar Nominee Jonah Hill?

What are some of the other surprises? 

For a complete list of nominees, go here.



Best Picture

Under the new rules, we could have anywhere from 5 - 10 nominees, and the number of first place votes were of paramount importance, so I never thought those first place votes would be spread out over 9 nominees.  I was convinced The Artist, War Horse, The Descendants, The Help, and Hugo were locks for nominations (and Hugo surprisingly leads the competition with 11 total Oscar nominations), but welcome to the party Midnight in Paris, Moneyball, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close and Tree of Life.    

Midnight in Paris should not have been a surprise, since it has nominations from the Screen Actors Guild, Directors Guild, Producers Guild, and Writers Guild Awards (showing a broad base of support across every branch of The Academy), and I am pleased by the late campaign pushing Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close into the running, but I never thought Moneyball had enough people pushing it as their favorite, #1 choice. 

Tree of Life can thank the new rules for this nomination as people either love it or hate it, and a large enough group of Oscar voters loved it.  That group was possibly 5% of voters because you only needed 5% of first place votes to have a chance at a Best Picture nomination.  Think of Tree of Life as the Ron Paul of these Oscar nominees.  It might be a small base of support, but these people are sticking with it no matter how dire and slim the chances of victory.   

The movie with the most nominations goes on to win the Oscar for Best Picture about 70% of the time, so Hugo can make a claim to being the favorite (each branch of The Academy votes for the nominees in its category, so having the most nominations means you have a broad base of support from all members of The Academy from actors to directors to sound engineers, etc.).  However, I still think The Artist is the movie to beat. 

Best Actor

Leonardo DiCaprio and his swimsuit supermodel of the month girlfriend will be on the outside looking in after he was passed over for a nomination (like I predicted), but we did get one surprise, that shouldn't have been a surprise. 

]]> Shame. 

Gary Oldman (like I predicted, and I want to rub that in since I botched Best Picture nominees so badly) earned his first Oscar nomination, while Demian Bichir also earned his first nomination for the little seen A Better Life.  Bichir follows up his Screen Actors Guild nomination with this one, which will encourage many studios to work as hard as Summit Entertainment did for Bichir by starting earlier than any other.  A Better Life was the first DVD I received during the awards season, and it looks like Summit was able to get some attention for Bichir before the clutter of the other campaigns emerged.  

George Clooney has to be considered the frontrunner over nominees Jean Dujardin (The Artist), Brad Pitt (Moneyball), Bichir and Oldman.  If he wins at the Screen Actors Guild awards on January 29, it's a lock.

Best Actress

Rooney Mara For The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo is the big surprise here.  The movie was good, but underwhelming in relation to the hype and anticipation.  However, Mara seems to have pushed aside veteran Tilda Swinton (We Need To Talk About Kevin), who earned a Screen Actors Guild nomination for this dark movie that has been wowing people in LA and NYC for the past few weeks. 

Of the nominees, look for a battle between Meryl Streep (The Iron Lady) and Viola Davis (The Help) for the golden bald dude, while Michelle Williams (My Week With Marilyn) could have won in a year with weaker nominees and Glenn Close (Albert Nobbs) should just be happy to squeak out a nomination.  While holding the record for most nominations by an actor (17 Oscar noms), will Streep win her first Oscar since 1983?

Best Supporting Actress

We shouldn't have been surprised by Janet McTeer's nomination for Albert Nobbs, but I thought Shailene Woodley (The Descendants) would get a nomination in a category that often supports and rewards young actresses.  She's a talented and beautiful young lady, so you can count on a big time Hollywood career for her, if she makes the right choices in the next year.

Meanwhile, the nominees will battle it out at the Screen Actors Guild awards on Sunday, and I think Octavia Spencer (The Help) is the frontrunner for now.  Melissa McCarthy (Bridesmaids), McTeer, and Jessica Chastain (The Help) should be happy to have nominations, while we should watch out for Berenice Bejo (The Artist).  The Weinstein Company year after year wages the best Oscar campaigns, and they are all in with The Artist being a major contender in all of the major categories. 

Best Supporting Actor

Jonah Hill (Moneyball) should not have been a surprise, and Albert Brooks (Drive) getting a snub should not have been a surprise, but they did surprise me. 

Max von Sydow (as I predicted) showed up as a nominee for Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, along with Christopher Plummer (Beginners), Nick Notle (Warrior) and Kenneth Branagh (My Week With Marilyn).  Plummer almost is a sure thing, since Uggie the Dog from The Artist is not eligible.

Other Surprises

The Academy's Feature Animation Branch continued to show its disapproval of motion capture animation by snubbing Steven Spielberg's The Adventures of Tin Tin for Best Animated Feature.  Motion capture animation often is derided as not being real animation, and the hard core purists, who are willing to accept CGI and other modern animation techniques, continue to shut out the motion capture guys.

Then, Project Nim is a shocking documentary if you ever get a chance to see it, but it was left off the list of nominees for Best Documentary. 

Meanwhile, David Fincher, who has been nominated by the Directors Guild for The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, was passed over in favor of Terrence Malick (The Tree of Life) and Steven Spielberg fails to get a nomination for War Horse in the Best Director category.  
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Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ The Academy has come up with a new way to pick nominees that no one has ever used before, so who will be able to understand and take advantage of the new rules?  This is another example of how the campaign counts, no matter how much anyone wants us to believe the Oscars are all about the art.

Which movies will be nominated for Best Picture?

The Artist

War Horse

The Descendants

Bridesmaids

The Help

Hugo

This year, to be nominated for Best Picture, the movie must receive at least 5% of the first place votes cast, which means a film with a passionate base of voters will be able to overcome one that might have more support, but tepid support. 

Being everyone's second or third favorite movie won't help very much (which is why I think Moneyball and Midnight in Paris get stepped over like Fredo).  Yes, Midnight in Paris has support from the Producers, Directors, Writers and Screen Actors guilds, which in another year would make it a sure thing for a Best Picture nominee, but I have yet to hear anyone anywhere argue Midnight in Paris is the best movie of the year.  It is in your top five, when being #1 counts more than ever this year. 

Additionally, The Academy has determined we will have anywhere from 5 to 10 nominees, as opposed to the set number of 10 nominees we have enjoyed the past few years.  If 7 movies have 5% of the first place votes, we get 7 nominees, so good luck trying to predict the number of nominees on top of all of that.     

Because of all of this, I think Bridesmaids gets a nomination.  While it is not uncommon for a comedy to be nominated for Best Picture, so many of the recent comedy pictures with nominations had some sort of drama element to them (Lost in Translation, Sideways, Little Miss Sunshine, Juno, The Kids Are All Right).  Bridesmaids, even with its sense of heart and soul, is about as comical as a comedy gets, and many voters want to see a true comedy included with true dramas, which is why the movie has been nominated at the Producers Guild and Screen Actors Guild awards. 

Also, I think War Horse gets a nomination because the old guard of Hollywood will coalesce around this movie as a traditional, big movie Best Picture nominee.  I still think it is Bore Horse, but fans of sweeping epics have embraced War Horse.  

The Help, The Artist and The Descendants have all been included in just about every awards' discussion from critics groups to Golden Globes to Guild awards, so you have to consider them locks for nominations (with The Artist emerging as a frontrunner after winning Best Picture at The Producers Guild Awards), while Hugo has support from the Directors and Producers guilds, as well as an early win at the National Bord of Review, which shocked everyone and propelled it into the discussion for an Oscar.

Who could shock and surprise?  Watch out for The Tree of Life.  It is one of the most devisive movies of the year, but people who support it truly, passionately love it, which could help if these fans and voters list it as their first place choice.

I hope you get a chance to enjoy the announcements on Tuesday morning around 8:38 AM EST.  We'll talk about the nominees all week long.   
]]> tag:weblogs.thecwdc.com,2012:/entertainment/movies/willie-waffle//365.156271 2012-01-21T01:15:29Z 2012-01-21T03:01:04Z

Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ This year's list of nominees for Best Actor will resemble a list of Hollywood royalty, but you can always expect someone to try to crash the party.  This year, that guy is doing so silently.

Who will be nominated for Best Actor?

George Clooney - The Descendents

Jean Dujardin - The Artist

Brad Pitt - Moneyball

Michael Fassbender - Shame

Gary Oldman - Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

That's right.  I left Leonardo DiCaprio off the list!!!! 

I know you have read all about my theories regarding the Screen Actors Guild and its influence on which actors get nominated in the Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress categories.  That's why I have predicted Clooney, Dujardin and Pitt will follow up those SAG nominations with Oscar nominations.

The other two SAG nominees, DiCaprio and Demian Bichir (A Better Life), benefited from the earlier nomination date for the SAG Awards this year.  When the voting was taking place in late November and early December, DiCaprio looked like a sure thing with his performance in J. Edgar, while Bichir was the beneficiary of an aggressive, early-in-the-season campaign by Summit Entertainment (A Better Life was one of the first DVDs I received as a Critics' Choice voter).   

However, Bichir has disappeared from almost all Oscar talk, and DiCaprio has seen his prospects fade as J. Edgar did not have the box office returns nor the critical and awards acclaim one might expect from a Clint Eastwood movie.  It has been forgotten. 

Instead, Fassbender, while in a lesser movie than J. Edgar, has become the talk of the town for his wonderful performance in Shame.  I am not sure Oscar voters are ready to nominate a guy who engages in full frontal nudity in a movie with an NC-17 rating, but Fassbender also put in strong performances in X-Men: First Class and Jane Eyre this year, so he has the respect of voters, who will want to reward him somehow.

Meanwhile, I think voters want to reward Oldman for a fabulous career.  As DiCaprio fades, I have seen Oldman's stock rising as sentiment builds to reward an accomplished actor who has never been nominated. 

Who is the frontrunner?  You have to consider Clooney the favorite to win the Oscar.  Only Dujardin seems to have any chance of challenging him.
]]> tag:weblogs.thecwdc.com,2012:/entertainment/movies/willie-waffle//365.156270 2012-01-21T00:48:48Z 2012-01-21T01:14:58Z

Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ This year was a banner year for women in movies, and that makes it even more difficult than ever to predict which ones will be nominated, and which one will win.  In reality, all five of the potential nominees could have won the category in a normal year, and even a couple of snubs would have been sitting in the Kodak Theater as nominees if this was 2011, 2010, 2009, etc. 

So, who will be nominated for Best Actress?

Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady

Viola Davis, The Help

Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn

Tilda Swinton, We Need To Talk About Kevin

Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs

Again, we look to the Screen Actors Guild for some guidance here.  Remember, actors nominate actors at the Oscars, and many of these voters belong to the Screen Actors Guild, which has released its list of nominees and will hand out its awards on January 29.  A few years ago, it was Halle Berry's win at the SAG Awards that presaged her Oscar win, so don't take them lightly. 

All five women above were nominated for SAG Awards, so I feel safe predicting them here.  However, Glenn Close could find herself on the outside looking in.  When the SAG nominations were announced in December, Close and her film, Albert Nobbs, were taking a traditional path to Oscar contention by having a small release in December, then expanding that release throughout January to capitalize on possible Oscar nominations. 

Yet, Albert Nobbs quickly has become a forgotten film as Roadside Attractions and its PR firms have failed to get any buzz building for the movie.  This leaves her vulnerable to a challenge from a young, newly acclaimed actress like Rooney Mara (The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo) or Elizabeth Olson (Martha Marcy May Marlene)  I still wish Charlize Theron would get more attention for her turn in Young Adult, but that ship has sailed.  The movie never took off, and might end up being one of those you catch on DVD or on TV in a few years and find yourself surprised at how good it was.

Who is the favorite?  The SAG Awards should shed some light on this January 29.  Streep has her best chance to win her first Oscar since 1983 (even though she has a record 16 nominations to her name, she hasn't won since Sophie's Choice), but the Viola Davis train feels like it is coming down the tracks.  She is a well respected actress, who many feel deserves some recognition, and The Help has been building momentum throughout the campaign season.


]]> tag:weblogs.thecwdc.com,2012:/entertainment/movies/willie-waffle//365.156264 2012-01-20T05:05:12Z 2012-01-20T05:04:52Z

Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ It's a movie you have heard a great deal about, but haven't had a chance to see, since it has been withheld from 99% of country until this week.  Luckily, the wait was worth it for those who aren't afraid to let some emotion creep into their movie going experience.

Thomas Horn stars as Oskar Schell - a troubled 9-year old boy still suffering from the loss of his father, Thomas (Tom Hanks), who was a victim of the September 11th terrorist attacks.  Thomas and Oskar had a special bond forged by the father's efforts to create adventures and mysteries for Oskar to solve, which would help him develop social skills he lacked. 

Now, a year later, as he goes through his father's belongings, Oskar finds a vase with a key in it.  Only in an envelope with a last name on it, Oskar thinks the key is part of what could be the last puzzle his father gave him to solve, and he is off to find the lock this key will open, while confronting a horrible secret he has been holding on to for far too long. 

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What will the key unlock?

Can Oskar come to grips with the events of September 11th?

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is one of the most emotional movies you will ever see in your life.  When all of us hardened, jaded, soulless critics saw it a few weeks ago, you could hear the audible tears and sniffling throughout the theater (even I had one manly tear running down my unshaven cheek).

Most of this is because of Horn.  You will hear many disagreements about his performance, but I think it was fantastic.  Oskar is not a happy little moppet.  He is an annoying kid with some serious emotional and social troubles, so watching Horn being prickly or overbearing exactly is who he needs to be. 

You will believe when you witness the scenes where a frantic, manic Oskar is going through a litany of thoughts.  His rantings, ravings, and tensions all give us insight into his mind and soul that wouldn't be possible if Horn pulled back one inch.  

Often, I rail against the use of September 11th as a storytelling device or a cheap way to get emotion out of the audience, but in Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, it is one of the rare times when its use is needed.  As Oskar goes from person to person, the only way most of these New Yorkers would give the kid the time of day would be because he lost his father in the Twin Towers. 

It is one of the few connecting bonds between all Americans, and, especially, New Yorkers.  A kid who shows up at your door step claiming to solve a puzzle given to him by his father who died on September 11th is met with sympathy and help, instead of having the door slammed in his face. 

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is making a late run at Oscar glory, but has what it takes to be a nominee when they are announced on January 24.








4 Waffles (Out of 4)

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is rated PG-13 for emotional thematic material, some disturbing images, and language

]]> tag:weblogs.thecwdc.com,2012:/entertainment/movies/willie-waffle//365.156265 2012-01-20T05:02:23Z 2012-01-20T05:04:25Z

Are you ready for a little action with your history? Set in 1944 and inspired by the true story, Nate Parker, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Terrence Howard, Method Man, Tristan Wilds, Ne-Yo, David Oyelowo and more star as members of the...

Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ Are you ready for a little action with your history?

Set in 1944 and inspired by the true story, Nate Parker, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Terrence Howard, Method Man, Tristan Wilds, Ne-Yo, David Oyelowo and more star as members of the Tuskegee Airmen - a collection of African-American pilots valiantly determined to dispel the racist notions that they are inferior in any way.  Finally, they get their chance as the Air Force rethinks its strategy to better protect the massive bombers flying over Europe and key to winning the war

Will the Tuskegee Airmen be able to help win the war?

Spoiler Alert - We are not speaking German, so I think you know how the war went for us.

]]> Red Tails is much more than a historical story, even though that history still is very important.

Director Anthony Hemingway fills Red Tails with some exciting action as the pilots engage in daring dog fights and aerial maneuvers.  Plus, this is one of the finest acting ensembles put together for any movie.  The personal relationships between the characters and the struggles they face become more real because of it.

Specifically, look for Oyelowo and Parker.  As two best buddies looking out for each other, but, also, willing to be brutally honest when the other needs it, you get to see a great friendship full of caring and concern.  Oyelowo exhibits the confidence and cockiness you know a great pilot needs to do the unthinkable, while Parker brings a steady, even keel to help show the leadership and guidance his character must provide for everyone's safety.  

Sadly, writers John Ridley and Aaron McGruder provide some of the worst, most amateurish, phony dialogue you have ever heard in a big time Hollywood movie. While it is fun to see Red Tails is a slight throwback to the World War II movies of that era, the dialogue doesn't need to be this simplistic and obvious.

However, the rest of the movie works.  Produced by George Lucas, I do wish he made Jar Jar Binks a German pilot who got shot down out of the sky, but maybe he will insert that into the Red Tails DVD Limited Edition release.

  






2 ½ Waffles (Out of 4)

Red Tails is rated PG-13 for some sequences of war violence

]]> tag:weblogs.thecwdc.com,2012:/entertainment/movies/willie-waffle//365.156266 2012-01-20T05:01:59Z 2012-01-20T05:03:57Z

I am convinced director Steven Soderbergh wants to be some modern day talent scout who discovers a young woman and makes her into an international superstar (and you can't just hang around the soda counter at Schwab's anymore, so this...

Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ I am convinced director Steven Soderbergh wants to be some modern day talent scout who discovers a young woman and makes her into an international superstar (and you can't just hang around the soda counter at Schwab's anymore, so this is more difficult than it was in the 1930's).  He failed with Sasha Grey in The Girlfriend Experience, while he could be more successful with Gina Carano in Haywire, if they can get past all of those rumors about looping in another voice for hers.

Current MMA/Muy Thai fighter, and former American Gladiator (she was Crush), Carano stars as Mallory - a former Marine who has become some sort of covert operative working for a shadowy company that carries out the kind of dirty work governments need performed, but want to maintain plausible deniability about afterwards.  After rescuing a journalist in Barcelona, Mallory has decided to get out of the business, but is called back by her boss, Kenneth (Ewan McGregor), to do one more job by request of the new client. 

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What is going on here?

Who can she trust?

How much will it hurt when she starts to kick booty?

Haywire is full of many big names like Channing Tatum, Michael Douglas, Antonio Banderas, Ewan McGregor, and Michael Fassbender, but this is the Gina Carano movie from start to finish, which has its benefits and drawbacks.

One of the benefits is Carano's screen presence and an ability to kick booty approaching that of Jason Statham.  Some of the fight scenes feel repetitive (which is not her fault), but you can't deny the brutality of the choreography, which is shocking in the right way.  Carano, with her fighting background, is able to make it feel real when she busts up whoever is in her way or trying to do her harm. 

One of the drawbacks is Carano's lack of acting ability.  She's OK, as Mallory is supposed to be a calm, level headed, unemotional professional, but Carano is almost too one note.  She seems to have one, angry face which is upon her countenance for 99% of the movie.  It is appropriate and works for most of Haywire, but it would be good to see her more emotional, especially in some scenes with her father (Bill Paxton).

Which, unfortunately, leads into our discussion of whether not we are hearing Carano's voice in Haywire.  A few weeks ago, the gang at TMZ noticed how different her voice was on their tape of her out and about in Hollywood compared to the voice they were hearing in trailers and commercials for Haywire.  It turns out, they were right, as Carano admitted her voice was altered.

Why is this a big deal?  I think it is because Soderbergh is bringing in this person who has never acted before and trying to make her into a star.  It's insulting to attempt to bring in a pretty face, and a tough fighter, then replace her voice because it might not be up to snuff.  I'd like to think actors are not interchangeable parts mostly valued for how they look, because we can alter their shortcomings to maintain the benefits of their looks (stop laughing, I actually mean it).  Plus, let's earn it with some dedication and hard work (again, stop laughing). 

However, the biggest problem with Haywire is the storytelling.  Soderbergh and writer Lem Dobbs try too hard to keep everything mysterious, surprising and confusing to a fault.  Sure, we are not supposed to figure out every little secret and twist immediately, but the two don't play fair with the audience as we get twists for twists' sake and it all becomes so hazy, I felt myself giving up on trying to figure out the plot.  I figured I could sit back, enjoy watching Carano kick some booty, then let Soderbergh reveal the bad guy at the end. 

Haywire is a decent action movie with Soderbergh's traditional visual flair. 








2 ½ Waffles (Out of 4)

Haywire is rated R for some violence.

]]> tag:weblogs.thecwdc.com,2012:/entertainment/movies/willie-waffle//365.156263 2012-01-19T17:08:13Z 2012-01-19T17:09:44Z

Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ We interrupt this week's Oscar nomination predictions to bring you the new Bruce Springsteen song, We Take Care Of Our Own.  The new CD/Album/Download drops March 6.


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Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ The Best Director category is a great indicator for which movie will win Best Picture at the Oscars.  Primarily since the 1970's, but, to some extent, throughout movie history, the director is most held responsible for the greatness or failure of a movie.  Because of this, the movie named Best Picture at the Oscars has been directed by the person who won Best Director 62 out of 83 times.  That's an amazing win-loss record the Wizards could only dream of. 

Who will be nominated for Best Director at the Oscars?

Michel Hazanavicius - The Artist

Alexander Payne - The Descendants

Martin Scorsese - Hugo

Woody Allen - Midnight in Paris

Steven Spielberg - War Horse

Like actors nominate actors for Best Actress, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress, members of the Academy's Directors Branch nominate directors for Best Director.  And, like actors, they have their Directors Guild of America, to which many Academy voting members belong.  In fact, it is one of the most reliable predictors of who will win on Oscar night.

57 times out of 63 the winner of the Directors Guild award has gone on to win Best Director at the Oscars.

David Fincher (The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo) was the fifth DGA nominee (Spielberg was shut out), but I fear the momentum is with War Horse and Spielberg.  It has done well at the box office, while many question if we will get the next two planned sequels to The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, and I feel Spielberg is a favorite among those Oscar voters, especially the older generation, who tend to admire and appreciate War Horse more than a younger generation. 

Right now, I think the favorite is Hazanavicius, because I believe The Artist is the favorite for Best Picture.  Payne and The Descendants seem to be emerging as the challenger, so don't count them out.  Plus, Woody Allen is enjoying a revival of sorts for Midnight in Paris, but I think Oscar voters will reward him in the Best Original Screenplay category.


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Willie Waffle http://www.dc50tv.com/entertainment/movies/ Whereas the Best Supporting Actress category is where we get the newcomers, the Best Supporting Actor category is where we get to honor the vets.  Sometimes, it is the vets who never got any honors, even though they deserve them.  Other times, it is for a guy who might not get another chance.

Who will be the Oscar nominees for Best Supporting Actor announced on January 24?

Christopher Plummer - Beginners

Kenneth Branagh - My Week With Marilyn

Nick Nolte - Warrior

Max von Sydow - Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Albert Brooks - Drive

This is the hardest category to predict because no one other than Plummer seems to have any momentum.  If Uggie the Dog from The Artist was eligible, he would have a better chance of getting a nomination than the other four guys.

Nolte, Branagh and Plummer all received Screen Actors Guild nominations, which, as I mentioned yesterday, is a great indicator for who might get an Oscar nomination.

However, I don't believe the other two SAG nominees in this category, Armie Hammer (J. Edgar) and Jonah Hill (Moneyball), will be wearing tuxes in the Kodak theater on Oscar night. 

J. Edgar is a movie that has lost all steam and underwhelmed both at the box office and throughout the awards season (I loved it, but I am in the minority).  Meanwhile, when you look at Jonah Hill, do the words "Oscar Nominee" come to mind?  I don't think Oscar voters will be willing to go there with the guy who is making the 21 Jump Street movie.

Which brings us to Albert Brooks and Max von Sydow.  Brooks was considered a contender early on, and seems to be holding on to that mantle, while von Sydow could be benefiting from the late breaking momentum for Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.  The movie entered the fray late in the awards season, but has been impressing as we get closer to its January 20 nation-wide release. 

Plummer is the man to beat as Oscar voters look to honor an actor who has had an amazing career, but only one previous Oscar nomination for the 2009 movie The Last Station.



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