And the Oscar Won't Go to ... (Michelle's picks)

We spent the last week looking back on the biggest Oscar snubs in recent history. Now, in honour of tonight's big broadcast, we bring you what we think were the most notable non-nominations of the year.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Andy Serkis, Rise of the Planet of the Apes

THE ACTUAL NOMINEES:

• Kenneth Branagh, My Week with Marilyn
• Jonah Hill, Moneyball
• Nick Nolte, Warrior
• Christopher Plummer, Beginners
• Max Von Sydow, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

WHY HE DIDN'T GET NOMINATED: It's a movie in which apes ravage humankind in eventual escalation (possibly the previously released Wahlberg-starring sequel) to world dominance. It's not Oscar material, despite the ongoing campaign to get Andy Serkis the nom.

WHY HE SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Serkis makes ape Caesar more human than the humans in this film, even behind CGI. He creates a character you both sympathize with, wishing you could hold his hand at times and tell him it'll be OK, but who you also fear will lash out with unrestrained power. It's one of the most deeply emotional and moving performances of the year that the Academy failed to realize.

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Drive, Newton Thomas Sigel

THE ACTUAL NOMINEES:

• The Artist, Guillaume Schiffman
• The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Jeff Cronenweth
• Hugo, Robert Richardson
• The Tree of Life, Emmanuel Lubezki
• War Horse, Janusz Kamiński

WHY IT DIDN'T GET NOMINATED: As Emily mentioned when she chose it for Best Pic, it's far too gritty and daring of a film to garner a nom.

WHY IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN: The hues, lighting and composition in this movie are beyond gorgeous. If you ask me, I'd compare it to fine art. Choices are bold and risky, and they more than pay off. What the Academy literally did not see, I really can't say.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Elle Fanning, Super 8

THE ACTUAL NOMINEES:

• Bérénice Bejo, The Artist
• Jessica Chastain, The Help
• Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids
• Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
• Octavia Spencer, The Help

WHY SHE DIDN'T GET NOMINATED: Like Rise of the Planet of the Apes, sci-fi isn't a friend of the Academy unless it's got a political message (like District 9), though even then it's rare. Plus, kids don't get nominated as often as they should.

WHY SHE SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Elle Fanning frequently stole scenes away in Super 8, amid an also amazing ensemble of kids. She was completely her age (which you can't always say for her famous sister) though created so much heartfelt depth to her character. Even when her character was acting in a movie within the movie, she was perfectly convincing.

BEST ACTOR: Ryan Gosling, anything (Ides of March, Drive and Crazy, Stupid Love)

THE ACTUAL NOMINEES:

• Demián Bichir, A Better Life
• George Clooney, The Descendants
• Jean Dujardin, The Artist
• Gary Oldman, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
• Brad Pitt, Moneyball

WHY HE DIDN'T GET NOMINATED: It's beyond me. Seriously.

WHY HE SHOULD HAVE: To me, this was the ultimate snub this year. In three stellar performances, Ryan Gosling proved he was more than young hearthrob and would be competent, award-winning actor for years to come, delivering expertly in comedy, drama and action. It was a dream year of a career which would only fittingly have been tied up with an Oscar nom (or even SAG).

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Sandra Bullock, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

THE ACTUAL NOMINEES:

• Bérénice Bejo, The Artist
• Jessica Chastain, The Help
• Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids
• Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
• Octavia Spencer, The Help

WHY SHE DIDN'T GET NOMINATED: This is another one that's beyond reason, as was her win two years ago for Best Actress in The Blind Side. What the Academy saw then, I will never understand.

WHY SHE SHOULD HAVE: I was completely surprised by her performance in this film. After (overrated) The Blind Side performance and win, I wasn't expecting much but I was entirely blown away by her understated heart-wrenching performance of a woman who'd just lost her husband and was losing touch with her son. It was absolutely unforgettably touching.

Emily's Top 10 of 2011, Part 1

I want to preface my Top 10 of 2011 list by telling you two things. First off, I haven't seen every single movie that came out this year, so yes, some of your favourites may not have been included. Sorry.

Secondly, I kind of hate Top 10 lists. Not all of them, just the ones that are insincere, copies of every other Top 10 list that's been published and republished all over the web. I think someone's Top 10 list should be a reflection of the things that they enjoyed, were moved by or recommended the most. Not whatever else everyone said was the best.

These are the movies that made my year, either by making me smile, cry or ideally, both. If you didn't like them, I totally get it and feel free to sound off in the comments explaining why. But I did. And this is my list, after all.

DVD: Crazy Stupid Love

 

“That is such a cliche.” So says Steve Carell’s character as a rain storm suddenly pours down after his lowest moment in Crazy Stupid Love.

If you’ve only seen the trailer (with that overly swelling Muse soundtrack), you might be tempted to say the same about the romantic dramedy, which documents in a semi-Love, Actually style, the various types and stages of L-O-V-E. And indeed, there are plenty of expected and not-totally-fresh feel good moments throughout the film. However, like a solid long-term relationship, there are just enough surprises to keep you not only interested but genuinely excited. Some are crazy (Josh Groban—yes, that Josh Groban—playing a lawyer!?). Some are stupid (Marisa Tomei jumping Steve Carell’s bones with crazy eyed aplomb). But most of it is just, to quote Eliza Doolittle, loverly. Really, really, really loverly.

Read the rest of Emily’s review.

Crazy, Stupid, Love

 

 Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures

Starring Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Julianne Moore and Emma Stone. Directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa. 118 minutes. PG

"That is such a cliche." So says Steve Carell's character as a rain storm suddenly pours down after his lowest moment in Crazy Stupid Love.

If you've only seen the trailer (with that overly swelling Muse soundtrack), you might be tempted to say the same about the romantic dramedy, which documents in a semi-Love, Actually style, the various types and stages of L-O-V-E. And indeed, there are plenty of expected and not-totally-fresh feel good moments throughout the film. However, like a solid long-term relationship, there are just enough surprises to keep you not only interested but genuinely excited. Some are crazy (Josh Groban--yes, that Josh Groban--playing a lawyer!?). Some are stupid (Marisa Tomei jumping Steve Carell's bones with crazy eyed aplomb). But most of it is just, to quote Eliza Doolittle, loverly. Really, really, really loverly.

The main story (as I said, there are several) is an all-too-familiar one, both in real and reel life. Cal and Emily, (Steve Carell and Julianne Moore), a middle-aged couple and former high school sweethearts, are forced to separate after one of them (Moore) becomes restless with their non-heated sex life and has a reckless affair with a coworker (Kevin Bacon). He moves into a second-rate bachelor pad. She stays in their gorgeous suburban house with the kids. No one is truly happy.

One night, as Cal drowns his sorrows in a vodka cran at a local singles watering hole, he's befriend by Jacob (a tanned and tenacious Ryan Gosling), a perfectly coiffed womanizer with a secretly perfect heart. Jake gives him a haircut, a new, properly fitted wardrobe and very specific instructions on how to approach a lady suitor. Seeing as Cal was previously a one-woman-man, he struggles a bit with the transition. But as soon as he scores his first one-night-stand, he's a whole new, confident dude. But does he really love the single life, or is he still just pining away for his wife?

As Cal attempts to cope with losing what he thought was the love of his life, Jacob falls in love for the first time. The extremely lucky (Jake's stomach situation looks like it's been, to quote one character, "Photoshopped") lady? Whip smart, but slightly gutless twentysomething lawyer, Hannah (the ever-gorgeous, ever-hilarious Emma Stone of Easy A). The problem is, Hannah is already attached to a douchebag (the previously mentioned Groban) and Jake, well, he doesn't quite know how to woo a traditional, non-easy-going (if you know what I mean) gal.

There are a few other storylines, including one involving Cal and Emily's son (Jonah Bobo, Zathura) and his overwhelming attraction to his older babysitter (If Demi and Ashton can do it, why can't they!?) and another involving said babysitter's (Analeigh Tipton, TV's Hung) overwhelming attraction to Cal. But they border on cutesy and inappropriate at the best of times. It's easy to overlook them though, especially once Jacob and Hannah's story really starts up.

Carell and Moore are stunning as Cal and Emily (Carell, especially, showing the nuanced emotional range he gave, but no one really saw in Dan in Real Life) but Gosling and Stone are what make the film a true head-turner. Directors Glenn Ficarra and John Requa should have spent more time with the white hot duo. Not only are they fantastic individual actors (Gosling lets superbly loose, showing us why he started his career in comedy--Breaker High, bay-bee!--and why he will eventually win an Oscar), their chemistry is positively sparkling. Whether they're trying out a massage chair or reenacting a famous romantic movie scene, you can't keep your eyes off them.

Gosling and Stone would be nothing, however, without the sincerely charming script, courtesy of Dan Fogelman. Think of this film as the near-perfect summer rom-dram you wanted The Kids Are All Right to be. Sure, it doesn't break any new ground in terms of diversity like that film, but it's messages are, and I believe were meant to be, universal. 

Fogelman may be more familiar with fantasy (he wrote the animated flicks, Cars and Tangled), but Crazy, Stupid, Love is lighter than you'd expect bloated fairytale tropes and too-hopeless romanticism to be, and fairly heavy on relatable realities: feelings and situations that everyone has or has seen someone else experience (unrequited crushes, failed pick-up lines, lust) in the pursuit of the L word. The emotions can be, as the title evokes, big and a little messy at times, but hey, isn't that amore? A