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Screen Best - by Andrew McMurtry

 
I'm a journalism student just looking to publish some movie reviews. I love movies and want to share my thoughts with the blogosphere. I hope you like my reviews and please comment, positive or negative, any are welcome. All images are found on Google images and all ideas are my own and based on things I've read. RATING SCALE 5 Stars – Absolute Classic, 4 Stars – Excellent Film, 3 Stars – Good, 2 Stars – Average, 1 Star – Why even bother, 0 Stars – I wanted to scratch my eyes out after seeing it

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Screen Best

Golden Globes 2010

January 18th 2010 13:26

Well, the Golden Globes have come and gone for yet another year. The Globes are generally a good predictor for the Academy will choose for the Oscars. And we have a pretty eclectic group this year. It probably reflects the diversity and brilliant movie-making of this year as we move into the second decade of the 21st century.


Of the ceremony, it was your normal affair, with the best speech coming from Robert Downey Jr., who won for “Sherlock Holmes”. The other difference was out of character awards ceremonies, an incredibly funny host, Ricky Gervais. While Neil Patrick Harris’ hosting performance at the Emmy’s was brilliant, Ricky Gervais was probably the funniest host I’ve seen. Announcing Mel Gibson by saying “I love a drink as much as the next guy, unless the next guy is Mel Gibson” who, god bless him, carried on with a straight face. But his monologue was great as well.


Anyway, in the end awards shows are all about the winners and the Golden Globes are no different. Here are the 2010 winners:

FILM
Best film drama: "Avatar"
Actor in a drama: Jeff Bridges, "Crazy Heart"
Actress in a drama: Sandra Bullock, "The Blind Side"
Best comedy or musical: "The Hangover"
Actor in a comedy or musical: Robert Downey, Jr. "Sherlock Holmes"
Actress in a comedy or musical: Meryl Streep, "Julie & Julia"
Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz, "Inglourious Basterds"
Supporting Actress: Mo'Nique, "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire"

Animated film: "Up"
Foreign Language film: "The White Ribbon," Germany
Director: James Cameron, "Avatar"
Screenwriter: Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner, "Up In the Air"
Original Score: Michael Giacchino, "Up"
Original Song: T Bone Burnett and Ryan Bingham, "The Weary Kind," from "Crazy Heart"

TELEVISION
Best TV drama: "Mad Men"
Actor in a drama: Michael C. Hall, "Dexter
Actress in a drama: Julianna Marguiles, "The Good Wife"
Best comedy or musical: "Glee"
Actor in a comedy or musical: Alec Baldwin, "30 Rock"
Actress in a comedy or musical: Toni Collette, "United States of Tara"

Best movie or mini-series: "Grey Gardens"
Actor in a movie or mini-series: Kevin Bacon, "Taking Chance"
Actress in a movie or mini-series: Drew Barrymore, "Grey Gardens"
Supporting actor, series, movie or mini-series: John Lithgow, "Dexter"
Supporting actress, series, movie or mini-series: Chloe Sevigny, "Big Love"
Cecile B. DeMille Award (career achievement): Martin Scorsese

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TV: Team Conan - I'M WITH COCO

January 14th 2010 15:33


As most people would have heard, NBC are thinking of tinkering with their late night line up once again. Last year, Conan O’Brien moved from Late Night, where he hosted for 17 years, to possibly television’s greatest institution “The Tonight Show” at about 11:30 made famous mostly by Johnny Carson. Jay Leno, who had held the position for the same amount of time, moved to prime time at about 10, before their news programming. Now, because of poor ratings, they are planning to move Leno back to 11:30 for a half hour show. And since Conan isn’t beating David Letterman on CBS, who’s been around for 17 years as well, NBC seem to not give a shit if they screw over their “Tonight Show” host.

While only half an hour later, it’s the principle that’s insulting to Conan “Coco” O’Brien. Six years after they promised him the show, they seem so eager to renege on his contract and I wouldn’t blame him if he went and found a new home. Although since moving to the new timeslot, Conan seems to have been struggling comedicly, the threat to his career has improved his monologue and general hilarity massively, even though I still found it much funnier than anything else on TV and the only show I want to watch every day. He just needs time to grow into his and make it his own. Now I have nothing against Leno but the physical humour Conan adds to already being a funny guy is what sets him apart. Plus Max Weinberg and the Weinberg 7/Tonight Show band are so game and hilarious.

Now I’m an Australian and it have to see it a day later anyway at either 10:30 or 12:30 on pay-TV on the Comedy Channel, but if Conan left, man would I be pissed. He is easily one of the most naturally funny people on TV. So here I am, pledging my allegiance to Team Conan. But then again it is up to the people. If you want him to stay, you have to watch. If not, don’t. But it will be a huge loss if Conan leaves the “Tonight Show”, even if he gets a better spot on FOX or another network.


Read Conan’s Statement.

Videos


Visiting Finland

Speaking to Barack Obama

Transit Strike Sketch from 2005

Also watch his "Inside the Actors Studio" appearance and his Harvard Commencement Speech was pretty funny too. (You'll have to find the ITAS clip yourself, even though YouTube has it broken up into 9 parts, Commencement speech is linked).

NOTE: None of the above clips were created by me and were found via You Tube and Spike.com.
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SCREENBEST BEST OF 2009: Gran Turino (2009)

January 12th 2010 00:50

Clint Eastwood has once again shown how good a moviemaker he is. His last offering “Gran Torino” isn’t a no holds barred action thriller like the movies that made him famous but rather a modern view of suburban America and racial tensions that are occurring. It has poignant views of life, death and getting by. It still has humour; it still has heart and it doesn’t feel preachy but when you see it, it’s a movie you won’t get out of your head. Fantastic acting from the whole cast, especially Clint. This is an instant classic. “Gran Torino” looks at the post-automotive industry wasteland that Detroit has become, with gangs and violence the norm.

The story begins at a funeral. Walt (Clint Eastwood) is an elderly man whose wife has just passed away. As a man who worked in the Ford factory for years and fought in Korea when he was young, he looks down at his family, who are disrespectful towards him, especially his grandchildren. His children are disrespectful as well but they feel as though they are helping him and getting turned down by a stubborn old man. With no one but his dog Daisy to keep him company, he is fairly lonely, except for constant pestering from the local priest. That is until he saves a local Asian boy named Thao from being taken by his cousin’s gang and his sister Sue from being harassed by a gang of black kids. After begrudgingly accepting them into his life at first, Walt begins to soften. He lets them into his life but the gang overtones are always present. But for his new friends to actually live their lives, Walt has to take situation into his own hands.

In a way, “Gran Torino” is all about the past. Based around Walt’s 1972 Gran Torino, the series of events that occur can only solved by the past. Whether it be skills learnt in the past or demons from the past that haunt all the main characters. It is all about retribution with an undertone of tolerance. One of the best things is the way he feels about his neighbours. From the beginning he hates them because they are Asian and he’s a Korean War vet. But by the end he loves them, much deeper than his family. In a way they become family. The reciprocated love between the two leads to the climax, which is both expected and surprising. It’s a nice idea though. You can’t blame Walt for being the way he is. With an unappreciative family who don’t understand him, Walt shuns everyone, except for an Asian girl next door, named Su. Walt, a Korean War veteran, understandably dislikes, well, everyone. And the Asian family haven’t done anything to be hated for, but after what Walt has seen and done and been shot at for, it’s very hard to blame him. Su helps Walt to open his eyes about her culture and people. The line “I have more in common with these gooks than I do my own spoilt rotten family” sums Walt Kowalski up in the beginning. And with such a disrespectful family, it’s easy to see why he latches on to a family that shows him the kindness and reverence he deserves.

Walt Kowalski is a tough man. A Vietnam vet with a fierce and intense demeanour, he has earned the right to be a little crabby sometimes. After his wife’s death Walt rejects the church and any help offered to him by anyone. It is a great character for Clint to play. Perfect even. While the other actors are good, they are shown to be very inexperienced to the brilliance of Mr Eastwood. Walt is funny in the way that he says what he feels, with no holding back. The Hmong kids, on the other hand, show Walt the respect he deserves. Their culture is one of respect of elders and traditions so Walt sees this as a much preferable alternative to his family. The film travels along until at a modest pace, with Walt’s deteriorating health condition acting as some sort of a timeline. Mundane acts, such as mowing his lawn act as pillars, help the story to flow, although they don’t seem too interesting by themselves. It helps to tell you what kind of person Walt is. It is the simple things that make the man. The other main character is the priest Father Janovich (Christopher Carley). His insight into Walt and trying to get him to open up and confess his sins is one of the best plot points. He acts as a moral radar, stopping Walt from doing anything too hasty. But it really is the Clint Eastwood show for much of the movie.

With a very intelligent script and some great acting led by the great Clint Eastwood, Gran Torino is an instant classic. Looking at the racial tension in the melting pot of post-auto Detroit is a brilliant idea. Gangs and violence throughout the neighbourhood show the displeasure and the social breakdown that has occurred. Gangs are much more prevalent in Detroit now and I know this even though I’m Australian. There has to be some reason for house prices to be cheaper than most cars. But this is a great film and I can’t believe this didn’t get any Oscar or other main awards nominations. The understated soundtrack compliments the beauty of the film. Its soft tones are subtle and follow the film, barely noticeable mostly, but just subtle enough. The imagery is intense in some instances with the images of a beaten girl and Walt bashing one of the thugs being some of the most harrowing. Either way, it’s a brilliant film and one that should go down as one of Clint’s best, which is a big call in a glittering film career bound to go down as one of the greatest. I’d give it 5 out of 5.

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REVIEW: The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009)

January 10th 2010 10:31

The new Twilight movie just snuck up didn’t it. I had no idea it was going to come out. Of course I’d have to have been living under a rock on Mars underwater for that to be true. With intense and constant media attention since, well the first film, “New Moon” had such great hype and such great expectation. Oh well, I guess you can’t pick them all. “New Moon” is disappointing after such a great opening to the franchise with “Twilight”. Not to say it is horribly poor, it just hasn’t reached the standard the first one reached. New directors bring new ideas. “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy probably showed best the benefits of having the same director for all the movies. Catherine Hardwicke did a great job with the first movie, despite some very teeny dialogue, and created a really good film. Unfortunately Chris Weitz made this film look very amateur in comparison and more like the early Harry Potter films, although he did probably the second hardest book (after the fourth one) to adapt.

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REVIEW: Twilight (2008)

January 9th 2010 08:51

“Twilight” is the vampire movie which has taken the world by storm since its movie release. I thought it was about time I reviewed it. It’s a good story, good film, despite all the naysayers. It makes an easy to watch film, which is the best thing about it. The vampire genre has truly gone insane since this book series and subsequent film production have started. TV series, book series and movies have sprung out of the woodwork about vampires. Many choose to make them look ugly and different from humans, whereas “Twilight” makes them look alike except for only a few subtle differences. It just makes them outcasts. But the real story is the forbidden love story which is well done in both the book and the film.

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REVIEW: The Lovely Bones (2009)

January 7th 2010 11:50

“The Lovely Bones” is a sad, but completely brilliant movie. I’m actually surprised that it hasn’t received better reviews from most people. It is an amazing film and a feather in the already brimmed cap of director Peter Jackson. He truly captured the sorrow of a family who had suffered through the loss of a much loved daughter while looking at the much bigger crumbling of the family structure in the search for her killer. Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t a fun movie. At times it is very hard to watch but it is a very good idea for a film and I think it is well done. There are some great visual effects, especially of the purgatory scenes. It won’t be a classic film for Peter Jackson but it reaffirms him as one of the better users of CGI technology. “The Lovely Bones” is one of the better movies I’ve seen this year and probably the launching pad of the careers of stars Saoirse Ronan and Rose McIver.

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REVIEW: Platoon (1986)

January 4th 2010 01:23

One of my favourite lines in any movies was in Gran Torino, when Walt Kowalski says “The thing that haunts a guy is the stuff he wasn't ordered to do.” That is what “Platoon” is. It’s all about the things that happen in the heat of war. Or sometimes the things that happen after the battle. It’s a heavy subject matter. Frustration at being so far from home, mixed with fear and testosterone make it a horrible image of war. Horrible but necessary, especially for those who have never fought and hope never to witness the atrocity of war. There is one scene in particular in a Vietnamese village, where a little girl has a gun pointed at her face. That is a brutal, haunting image. It also sees the harsh occupation by the Americans, torching the village, rape the girls and beating the locals. It’s intense and unforgiving, the way a war movie should be.

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REVIEW: I Love You, Man (2009)

January 1st 2010 12:51

“I Love You, Man” is a great new idea for a film. While the romantic comedy genre has been used almost to death over the past few years, the idea to do a bromantic comedy is a nice change. The sub-trends of men nowadays, like metrosexuals, manscapers and all the other touchy feely man trends, and Apatow type comedies of the past few years have paved the way for this type of film to be made. And thank god. It’s fresh and funny and made like to look and sound like real life. It’s nice to not have too cerebral a script especially for this type of movie. And with a solid cast of funny and clever people, the film is a great example of how to show a bromance.

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TV: Scrubs: Med School (2009)

December 7th 2009 13:29

Ah, Scrubs. For a moment there I though you were terminal. But now you’re back bigger than ever. The same style of jokes that were in the original show are still there with crazy flashbacks and segues but it seems like it has been slightly tweaked. I’ve only seen the first two episodes so far and I’ve got to say they’ve done a good job. It may not be the old show that I know and love but it is back in some form. It’ll be different when Zach Braff leaves in a couple of week’s time but I’m glad he still has something to do with the show.

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REVIEW: The Invention of Lying (2009)

December 4th 2009 01:38

“The Invention of Lying” is British comedy legend Ricky Gervais’ new film about a world where everyone has to tell the blunt and painful truth. It’s a difficult concept to imagine in our world especially since we are so ingrained with all sorts of lying in our lives. Gervais and co-writer/director Matthew Robinson’s script seemed hell bent on hitting on all sorts of lying being eliminated and thus no one seems to have a though without verbalising it. They’ve taken out all chances of a lie of omission, which is clever but annoying at the same time as everyone is so shallow and mean when they tell the painful truth. That is until unassuming Mark Bellison (Ricky Gervais) tells the worlds first lie. It’s a good concept and with cameos from Jeffrey Tambor, Jonah Hill, Tina Fey, Jason Bateman and Phillip Seymour Hoffman, it is set to be a classic if done right.

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