I do not think that the Academy Made Clint Eastwood's Day today.

So, I think I have seen more movies in the past month than I saw all of last year (at the theater at least). Partly due to the holidays and nothing else to do, partly because there happen to be a lot of great movies out, and partly because my dad and I resurrected our father-daughter movie dates. Since the Oscar nominations came out today-link below if you are interested-
http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2009-01-22-oscar-nominations-list_N.htm

I thought I would also give my .02 (ok, probably more like a quarter, I have lots of opinions) about some of them (not all Oscar worthy, that is ok-its the MOVIES!).

So let's see....my best friend and I took our moms to see "Marley and Me"-a must for pet-lovers. Take hankies. But also, expect to laugh a lot. See, that is what makes a hankie movie worth it in the end....if its also funny. Anyway, the film will not be winning any prestigious awards, but it did make me want to go out and get the book (it's based on a true story).

I think the next one I saw was "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" which I think is based on an F. Scott Fitzgerald story. I really liked this movie, and I know that despite being nominated for many awards and leading the Oscar noms (though so far not winning many/any?) it has gotten pretty mixed reviews. I think the story is intriguing, and the thought of aging in reverse, having all of the knowledge and life experience of a wise old man when you appear to be a young adult or child, is quite interesting, though maybe not fleshed out in the movie as much as I would like. I did like Brad Pitt in this, I don't think he is the greatest actor ever, but this was a good role for him. I did not like Cate Blanchett, something about her bugs/distracts me and I kept wishing they had cast Kate Winset instead. Anyway, I hope if the movie wins nothin else it wins for make-up/CGI or whatever technology was used to age Pitt's character Ben Button. Seemed pretty realistic, and the makeup used to age the other characters was also spectacular. I think this one would have a bigger impact seen on a big screen, so if you have been debating between whether its a renter or worth the $10 bucks, go to the theater.

One movie that while good, you can wait for the DVD, is "Doubt." I was really surprised that this movie not only managed a Best Picture nom for the Oscars, but also a Lead Actress nom, not Supporting, for Amy Adams. If you are not familiar with this one, Meryl Streep and Amy Adams are nuns at a Catholic church/school and Philip Seymour Hoffman is the parish's priest, and he is accused by the two of an inappropriate relationship with the school's first black student (set in the 60's, obviously). Now, I liked this movie a lot, don't get me wrong, its a "thinker" and I thought it was really well done. I don't think Amy Adams deserved a Lead Actress nom-and honestly, maybe not a Supporting one either. I've only seen her play one type of character (naive, unworldly ingenue) and while she does it well, I'd be interested to see her try something else before I go off giving her any acting awards. Loved "Junebug", even sat through "Enchanted" with a 6 year old, and I think she's very pretty and good at those types of roles-but compared to Meryl Streep or Kate Winslet? Not even close. But, back to the movie, if you are at all interested in the inner workings of the Catholic Church or just religion in general, this movie will give you some things to think about.

And most recently, I saw "Gran Torino" and "Slumdog Millionaire" over the MLK weekend. Let's start with Slumdog. While you won't need your hankies for this one, it does highlight poverty, trafficking, and violence in India, heavy subplots for a film centered around a young man participating in India's version of "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" and being accused of cheating. This is one of those "triumph of the human spirit" stories, and it is very, very well-crafted and the story is told in such an interesting way-mostly through flash backs, revealing his life story through the context of a tv game show. And the music-I love the music! I really hope there is a soundtrack to this because it makes me happy. And, please stay in your seat through the credits-the cast does a big, Bollywood dance at the end. I will be shocked if this film does not win Best Picture-it got no acting noms, and reminds me of a few years ago when "Crash" won seemingly to reward the ensemble cast of actors and film making people who did not get individually recognized. Oh, and I totally want to adopt a little Indian boy now. There were a couple outside the theater an I did consider snatching one, but there were too many people around. I soooo hope that the kids from this movie get to attend the Oscars.

Finally, "Gran Torino". Seriously, did no one from Hollywood watch this movie????? Completely shut out from the Oscars. I do not understand this world. I mean, I know America re-elected George Bush, but I expect more from my elite, liberal, Hollywood. Ok. So this one is about a bad-ass grumpy retired auto-worker (that would be the iconic Mr. Eastwood, who in addition to starring I believe also directed/produced this movie) living in an old neighborhood in Detroit. He has recently lost his wife, his neighborhood has been taken over by immigrant populations, and his family wants him to move to a retirement home. If you have ever seen a Clint Eastwood movie....well, you know he's not going ANYWHERE. So, an unlikely chain of events result in him befriending the teenage children of the Hmong family that lives next door. I don't want to be one of those movie reviewers who give you the WHOLE storyline, and I really want you to go see this one, so take it from me-the story that follows is powerful, thought-provoking, and challenges our stereotypes about racism, prejudice, community, and family. I'm sure this one hit me a little closer to home thanks to my current line of work with refugee populations, as well as the whole English-Only fiasco here in Nashville (that we voted on today and hopefully will be OVER if it doesn't pass, God help us if it does). All I will say is that Clint's character, Walt, doesn't really like ANYONE, and the friendship that he cultivates with the two teenagers in this movie is moving and extraordinary because it really is the most unlikely set of friends I can imagine. The character's progression was brilliant, and I'm sorry to Brad Pitt and Philip Seymour Hoffman, but Clint's performance is so out of your league in this movie that I am flabbergasted that they were nominated and he was not (haven't seen any of the other nominees' performances so I won't judge). Anyway, if you can't tell, I loved this movie so much, and I am royally pissed that it got ignored. I might just get all Dirty Harry up in here....

So, despite all that, I will watch the Oscars and it Kate Winslet can finally win one I might-MIGHT-forgive them for the Clint thing. After all, he has lots of trophies, and probably doesn't really care. Oh, and I was quite surprised that "The Dark Knight" did not make the Best Picture or Best Director categories as expected. I know those type movies don't usually win, but thy typically throw one in the mix (think Lord of the Rings, Pirates of the Carribean) for a little recognition and ratings.

If anyone has seen Revolutionary Road....I'd love to hear if it's good! I don't know if it is out here yet (I'm thinking maybe this weekend it is supposed to be here) but this was another one that got nearly shut out but looks interesting. Sean Penn irritates me on a personal level, so that's standing between me and Milk.

Ok, so its almost time to go home, thanks for helping me kill my last few minutes at work!