Movie Trailer - Wild

Director: Jean-Marc Vallee
Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Michael Huisman, Laura Dern
Release: December 5th, 2014

I'm not usually a big Reese Witherspoon fan; I think it's her chin.  But I might be willing to give her a chance.  I like what Vallee was able to do with Dallas Buyers Club and McConaughey; maybe he'll be able to do the same with Wild and Witherspoon.

Movie Review - Mud

Director: Jeff Nichols
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Tye Sheridan, Reese Witherspoon
Year: 2012

Dallas Buyers Club took America by storm right before Oscar time last year, creating a ton of buzz, catching the attention of millions, and ultimately winning multiple awards.  It was nominated for Best Picture, Jared Leto won for Best Supporting Actor, and Matthew McConaughey won for Best Actor.  It was seen as the high point of McConaughey's career, starring in such a moving drama that must have taken every bit of his soul to pull off.  The movie was great, he did a spectacular job, but I'm here to say that Mud is the better film.  Not only was it surprisingly spectacular, but McConaughey fit his role much better in this film than in DBC, producing what I would call the best character of his career, hands down.

The movie may be titled after the man pictured above, the catalyst for the film, but the lead character is a boy named Ellis.  He's a river boy, working with his father for enough cash to scrape by, living in a houseboat on the water that is his home.  Ellis & his best friend Neckbone cruise the river on a daily basis, and one day head out to an island where an old boat has been washed up into a tree.  The two mean to claim the wreck as their own, but someone is already living there.  His name is Mud, he's a local returning home, and he's in a mess of trouble.  Some dangerous men are after him, hence his hiding out on an island, but all he wants is to rescue the love of his life, Juniper, fix up the forgotten boat, and escape into the Gulf.  With the boys' help, he just might make it, but they soon learn that Mud has some dark secrets, that this fairy tale isn't as simple as it seems, and that love can't always conquer all.

There's a lot to touch on with this film, a lot of little things that make it so great.  The biggest is McConaughey and the best performance I've ever seen him deliver, including Dallas Buyers Club.  The latter might have taken more effort, but this character was perfect for him and so always felt real & easy.  The boy, Ellis, was almost as good, playing the naive, romantic, street-tough country kid perfectly.  And the side characters were excellent as well: his friend Neckbone, his parents, Michael Shannon in a small role.  Only Reese Witherspoon failed to be great, but luckily her part was little.  Speaking of Michael Shannon, he worked in a film also directed by Jeff Nichols called Take Shelter, a dark & disturbing drama that deserves your time.  Anyway, Mud is a strong film with good acting, but also interesting music, a cool feel, some heart-pounding moments, true feeling, just a touch of Hollywood drama, and depth when it matters most.

My rating: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰

Thought - 2014 Oscar Picks

Sunday March 2nd, 2014, the Academy Awards!  I've very excited about this year's Oscars, there are a ton of excellent films represented as well as the annual snubs left out.  It should be a great show, with Ellen hosting, and I'll be live-tweeting the event on Twitter (@OlieCoen).  You can check out my Oscars page for a complete listing of the nominees in the six major categories, but here are both my predictions and my picks for the best films of 2013.

Best Actor

• Winner - Leonardo DiCaprio - The Wolf of Wall Street
• Runner-up - Matthew McConaughey - Dallas Buyers Club
• My choice - Joaquin Phoenix - Her

Best Supporting Actor

• Winner - Jared Leto - Dallas Buyers Club
• Runner-up - Jonah Hill - The Wolf of Wall Street
• My choice - Jonah Hill - The Wolf of Wall Street

Best Actress

• Winner - Cate Blanchett - Blue Jasmine
• Runner-up - Sandra Bullock - Gravity
• My choice - Scarlett Johannson - Don Jon

Best Supporting Actress

• Winner - Jennifer Lawrence - American Hustle
• Runner-up - June Squibb - Nebraska
• My choice - Jennifer Lawrence - American Hustle

Best Director

• Winner - Alfonso Cuaron - Gravity
• Runner-up - Martin Scorsese - The Wolf of Wall Street
• My choice - Spike Jonze - Her

Best Picture

• Winner - Gravity
• Runner-up - The Wolf of Wall Street
• My choice - Inside Llewyn Davis

Movie Review - The Wolf of Wall Street

Director: Martin Scorsese
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Margot Robbie
Year: 2013

I'm one of those annoying people who think that Inside Llewyn Davis is the best film of 2013.  I love the Coen Brothers' style, they delivered yet again, the film is near perfect, and I left the theatre thinking that I had seen an Oscar winner.  Well, the Academy though differently.  Not only was Llewyn not nominated for Best Actor or Best Director, but it was also left off the list for Best Picture.  Now, I knew that not everyone would love the film the way I did, it's a unique movie done in a unique way, but I was shocked that the Academy didn't consider it to be one of the top ten films of the year.  That's no knock on the other films up for Best Picture, they all had their successes with either critics, audiences, or both.  But I would put Llewyn in front of any of the others that I've seen, including the mighty Wolf of Wall Street.

The Wolf in question is Jordan Belfort, a lowly stock broker turned millionaire who lit the financial world on fire in the 1980s.  This is a true story based on Belfort's own book and follows his career, including all its ups and downs.  Belfort began as a Wall St. broker and quickly began dabbling in penny stocks, worthless companies whose shares can be sold for high profits.  His fledgling company, Stratton Oakmont, became a booming empire almost overnight, and the money started rolling in.  But with the fortune came the problems; drugs, crime, money laundering, coverups.  And while fighting off the FBI, Belfort was also fighting his own addictions; his dependency on Quaaludes and other drugs as well as his penchant for prostitutes.  The high life can't last forever, and as Belfort's enemies began to creep closer his empire began to crumble out from under his feet, leaving him with only his friends and his wits to count on.

I have literally never seen a film like The Wolf of Wall Street.  It was insane.  Three hours worth of hard drugs, naked women, mountains of cash, meltdowns, cocaine highs, Quaalude lows, motivational speeches, tidal waves, hookers, midgets, booze, cops, and the ridiculous fashions of the 80s.  It was an intense and wild ride though bright colors and spending sprees, made all the more incredible by its mostly being true.  What a crazy life to have led, what a tremendous roller coaster to have been on.  It stressed me out; I kept having to remind myself that I wasn't the one doing the drugs, that I wasn't throwing money off the side of a yacht, that these things were real but were happening to someone else.  Seems dramatic, but the story was that in-your-face, that uncontrolled and explosive.  But it was also well done, taken from real life to a book to a screenplay to the theatre without losing any of its energy along the way.

And the credit there goes to Scorsese, who directed another solid film following the rise and fall of power.  It had a major Departed feel, and I'm sure some of that had to do with Leo being in both films.  DiCaprio was excellent; insane and yet human, unpredictable yet a true friend.  I imagine he'll win Best Actor for this role, although Matthew McConaughey might give him a run for his money.  Incidentally, McConaughey had a nice cameo in this film, as did some others: Jean Dujardin, Jon Favreau, Rob Reiner.  And they all were excellent, as were all the side characters, including Jonah Hill, who was far better in this roll than in Moneyball, though I think he'll get beat out for the Oscar by Jared Leto.  The film as a whole was very good, but it wasn't amazing.  The acting was strong, the plot was cool, but man was it long & crazy.  It could have been more concise, slightly less manic, bottled up just a little bit.  The beginning was tremendous, hilarious, excellent.  And then it fizzled bit by bit until by the end I was ready for it to be over.  It wasn't better than Llewyn, not even close.  It wasn't even better than 12 Years or American Hustle.  It was more on par with Captain Phillips or Dallas Buyers Club; a film that was well-made but not mind-blowing.  Did I enjoy it?  Yes.  Love it?  No.  But it's worth seeing and fun to watch and you should probably check it out.

My rating: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰

Thought - Oscar Update

Two months ago I posted some early Oscar Predictions.  Since then the picture has changed a little and it's time for an Oscar Update.  I'm trying to see & review as many contenders as possible before the Academy Awards and I hope to give you some insight into any movies you don't get the chance to see.  So here are some candidates for Best Picture:

This is the Indiewire.com ranking of top possible Academy Award contenders:

1. Gravity
2. 12 Years a Slave
3. Saving Mr. Banks
4. Nebraska
5. The Wolf of Wall Street
6. Inside Llewyn Davis
7. American Hustle
8. Captain Phillips
9. Her
10. The Butler
11. Blue Jasmine
12. August: Osage County
13. Dallas Buyers Club
14. Philomena
15. All is Lost
16. Fruitvale Station
17. Prisoners
18. Lone Survivor
19. The Book Thief
20. Before Midnight

Added: Dallas Buyers Club, Lone Survivor, The Book Thief.

Eliminated: Rush, The Monuments Men, Foxcatcher, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Labor Day, Mud, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, Ain't Them Bodies Saints.

Movie Review - Dallas Buyers Club

Director: Jean-Marc Vallee
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Jared Leto, Jennifer Garner
Year: 2013

Talk about surprise Oscar buzz.  Here is a film that was flying way under the radar and then leaped into the conversation.  What changed?  People saw it.  It's a pretty good sign when no one is talking about a film and then as soon as advanced screenings run their course no one can stop talking it.  When I first saw the trailer in August I thought it looked edgy, interesting, and well done.  But I had concerns about the cast.  I knew Jared Leto would be good, but Matthew McConaughey is a really big wild card, delivering awful & wonderful performances seemingly at random.  But my biggest concern was Jennifer Garner.  There aren't many actresses that I enjoy less; I just can't stand her acting "style" nor do I really like looking at her on screen.  I know that's my problem, but I think a lot of people had reservations about this cast, leading to it's underwhelming aspirations.  Then I actually saw the film and realized why it's now going to be an Oscar contender.

The story follows 80s cowboy Ron Woodroof.  He's a rodeo rider, a gambler, a drinker, an addict, a con man, a ladies man, a trouble-maker, and a rebel.  But when he finds himself in the hospital after an accident he learns that he's one more thing; an man who is HIV positive.  The doctors give him 30 days to live, but that's not enough time for Ron Woodroof.  He sets out to get the drugs that might save his life, only to find American law to be way behind the AIDS epidemic that is sweeping the nation.  So he goes to Mexico, and what he discovers is that there are other "cures" for the disease, other ways to manage it without destroying your body from the inside out.  And there are people in the U.S. who are willing to pay anything for these drugs, willing to make a millionaire out of the man who can bring them life in a bottle.  With the help of his new & unlikely friend Rayon, Ron starts a business that will make him rich, save his life, and perhaps give it an actual purpose.

What helps this film make such an impact is that it's a true story.  Ron Woodroof was a man with AIDS who defied the system and attempted to make a difference.  He directly affected the laws surrounding FDA approval, the treatment of the virus, and the way those who were sick were viewed.  The director, Jean-Marc Vallee, did a great job of letting the story speak for itself, allowing the action to dictate the flow & feel of the movie, and giving his actors space to share the story through the characters that they developed.  I can't see him or any other member of the crew getting much credit for the success of the film.  Because it was successful, but in the way that Argo was, with a story that was powerful by itself and didn't need a strong director to help deliver the punch.  I understand now the Oscar buzz surrounding the film; it was strong, well-made, and about an important topic.  But it was the actors who brought it to that level.

I would be extremely surprised if Matthew McConaughey wasn't nominated for a Best Actor Academy Award.  His performance of Ron Woodroof was probably the best of his career.  He played him realistically, passionately, and without holding back anything.  The torture he must have put his body & his soul through to really fill this role must have been incredible.  I know that sounds dramatic, but it's a acting job that deserves a large amount of respect & awe.  Jared Leto wasn't far behind as Rayon, Ron's business partner and unlikely friend.  He was solid, lovable, honest, and a great compliment to the story.  And even Jennifer Garner wasn't horrible.  Her part was much smaller than I thought it would be, and she actually did a good job with the little she was called upon to do.  All in all, Dallas Buyers Club is a good movie with an amazing story and some incredible acting.  The actors were better than the film & the film wasn't as good as the plot.  But it's one of the movies you have got to see this year and one that should be well-represented in March.

My rating: ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰

Movie Trailer - Dallas Buyers Club

Director: Jean-Marc Vallee
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Jennifer Garner, Jared Leto
Release: November 1st, 2013

I wish they had cast about any other human on the planet as the female lead in this movie.  Jennifer Garner is horrible; is that even up for debate?  What's she doing in a film that looks really edgy, interesting, and well done?  She doesn't belong here.  That might sound mean but I don't care.  Maybe this movie doesn't end up being amazing, who knows, but regardless she shouldn't be in it.