By Brett Blake Inspired by this piece over on The Playlist, Breanne Brennan and I decided to try our hands at ranking every Best Picture Academy Award winner in order from “worst” to “best,” in a relative sense. Speaking only for myself, I can say that this was almost an agonizing process; for all the flak the Oscars have (sometimes justifiably) received over the years, it can’t be denied that they have honored a lot of really great films, and to rank them is a tall order. Obviously, taste is subjective and usually not fixed in stone. As you’ll see, there’s a good deal of difference between our two lists (though a fair bit of approximate overlap, as well), and it’s also likely that these lists would look different if we compiled them next year, next month, or perhaps even tomorrow. Why did we do it, then? Because it’s fun, that’s why!
Feel free to leave feedback and tell us how badly we've screwed up these lists, and don't forget to watch the Academy Awards on Sunday night, March 2nd, on ABC.
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By Brett Blake As we start a new year, I feel it’s something of a responsibility to highlight films from the previous year that aren’t quite getting the appreciation they deserve, films that may have been well-received when they were released (in fact, all that follow were, for the most part), but for whatever reason are basically nowhere to be found in the big end-of-year conversation that’s taking place in the film community. I’m not just talking about awards consideration, either, but also the general “Hey, such-and-such was a really good movie” kind of discussion that takes place as one year rolls into the next. So, since nobody else is really talking about these, the task falls to me. Now, I’ll be completely honest, this is really just an excuse to highlight some good films that didn’t quite make it onto my “Best of 2013” list (still coming soon!). So consider this something of an appetizer to tide you over until the main event. With that said, here are seven films haven’t yet gotten their due… THE BOOK THIEF Despite appearing - on paper, anyway - to be something of an Oscar-bait film, THE BOOK THIEF has shown up on hardly any “Best of” lists, and awards pundits forecast it being essentially shut out from any significant nominations, save for John Williams’ lovely score (though he’s always nominated when he has an eligible score, so that really says more about respect for him than for the movie itself). I won’t make an argument that THE BOOK THIEF should be in major awards contention, but I will make the argument that it’s a high quality, genuinely affecting World War II drama. Yes, it plays with tropes we’ve seen before, but it does this extremely well, and Sophie Nélisse gives a remarkably accomplished performance for somebody so young. MY AMITYVILLE HORROR This documentary film is ostensibly a look the famed “Amityville Horror” haunting case from the 1970s through the eyes of one of the (now grown) children who lived through it, but the movie is actually much more than that, and it evolves over the course of its running time to become a portrait of deep psychological trauma. While the broad strokes of the haunting and its history are covered, the movie never loses sight of the damaged man at the center of it all, and more than anything else, it makes the case for how easily events can shape the entire outlook of the rest of a person’s life. PRISONERS PRISONERS is one more script draft away from a masterpiece of suspense. There are some spectacular sequences in this film, as well as a pair of tremendous performances from Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal. At times the movie is almost unbearably tense, and while developments in the third act come dangerously close to being too overwrought (and even silly), the film’s mastery of tone keeps everything from flying apart. Special mention must go to the starkly-beautiful cinematography (courtesy of the brilliant Roger Deakins), as well as the gutsy ending which won’t leave every audience member satisfied, but will get them talking about what they’ve just experienced. SIDE EFFECTS We have to go all the way back to February of 2013 for this one, and I really think that distance of time is the reason we’re not hearing more about SIDE EFFECTS at the end of the year. Director Steven Soderbergh claims this will be his final theatrical motion picture, and it’s a terrific note to go out on, a film clearly inspired by the works of Alfred Hitchcock - and, if we’re being honest, there’s a lot of Brian De Palma in here, too - that works as a top-flight suspense film of the sort that constantly keeps you guessing as to what the outcome will be. Soderbergh’s direction is as classy as ever, and the movie features Jude Law giving one of the performances of his career as a man whose life is slowly spinning out of his control. YOU'RE NEXT I think that 2013 was, all things considered, a fine year for mainstream (read: big-studio-released) horror films, and YOU’RE NEXT is one of the better poster children for that opinion. It’s a really clever spin on the “home invasion killers” subgenre (take THE STRANGERS, for example), and the way it both fulfills and subverts your expectations for this kind of movie is quite inventive on a script level. It’s a ton of fun, and it showcases a capable, badass female lead character rarely seen in horror films. The movie’s not particularly terrifying (it’s more of a dark romp, really), but it’s never anything less than completely entertaining. OUT OF THE FURNACE This film was released barely a month ago, and nobody is talking about it, which is both perplexing and a shame, since it features awards-caliber work from at least three of its cast members, the standout being Christian Bale. This could be the performance of Bale’s career so far (time will tell); it’s a performance of restraint, rage, and - ultimately - deep humanity that I found to be enormously affecting. OUT OF THE FURNACE is a pitch-black film, a tale of vengeance and crime, with a tone that some could find oppressive or hard to stomach, so I can understand it not being for everybody, but I hope people eventually do give it a look, because the acting is that good. ROOM 237 No movie this year - fictional or otherwise - was able to convey the power of cinema as well as this documentary. On the surface, it’s a deceptively simple film - we’re presented with several theories/interpretations/analyses of Stanley Kubrick’s seminal horror movie, THE SHINING. The proponents of these theories never appear on camera; we only hear their voices as they speak over the film itself, which almost serves to transform them into one of the many disembodied spirits occupying the sinister, haunted Overlook hotel of THE SHINING itself. Most of the theories put forth are, quite honestly, rather goofy (one involves Kubrick using THE SHINING as subtle means to confess his involvement in faking the moon landing in 1969), but they illustrate the unique property of cinema, which is the idea that you can sit a hundred different people down in front of this collection of moving images and you’ll get a hundred different perspectives on what it all means. As much as ROOM 237 is a celebration of the greatness of THE SHINING, it’s equally a celebration of the magic of cinema itself. By Brett Blake Film scores are an intense interest of mine, and despite 2013 being a seriously lackluster year in that department, I’ve taken it upon myself to put something together honoring the year in cinematic music. I first thought of doing a simple list of my favorite scores of the year, but then I decided to go in a slightly different (and hopefully more interesting and fun) direction. What follows is a list, yes, but of the eleven best individual cues/tracks from the year’s scores. I know that eleven’s kind of a strange number, but I just couldn’t find a way to cut this down to ten, so eleven it is. Turn up the volume, and let’s begin... 11. “Where To?” from The Wolverine (Marco Beltrami) Beltrami’s score overall is a decent effort, but the standout cue is this end titles piece. It presents an optimistic theme over a propulsive rhythm that suggests our hero undertaking a journey. The progression is simple (state the theme, re-state the theme in bigger fashion, re-state the theme in even bigger fashion, etc), but it’s effective. 10. “StarWaves” from Oblivion (M83) An ambient and atmospheric track that builds towards an aural crescendo of electronic harmony that would be right in line with the kind of film scoring Tangerine Dream did in their prime. The entirety of the score is a bit hit-or-miss, but this one cue is its unquestionable highlight. 09. “Inside Information” from The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (Howard Shore) This track presents several variations of the themes for Smaug, one an eerie and occasionally brutal descending motif, the other a more intellectual and sinister melody. Shore’s usage of bells, gongs, percussion, and other eastern instrumentation gives Smaug’s music a vaguely-Chinese flavor that suits the dragon quite well. 08. “What Are You Going to Do When You Are Not Saving the World?” from Man of Steel (Hans Zimmer) An end credits-type piece that acts as a summation of all of Zimmer’s musical ideas for Superman. We have a hopeful (albeit with a somewhat melancholic flavor) theme for piano, which gives way to a building sense of momentum, before unleashing the full power of the orchestra with Zimmer’s main theme for the Man of Steel, which is grand and heroic (if also a little simplistic) in a manner befitting the character himself. 07. “Finale” from The Lone Ranger (Hans Zimmer) A hugely entertaining action track that makes use of the iconic “William Tell Overture” by Rossini. The first two-or-so minutes are a pretty straight-forward (though beefed-up) version of the Overture, and then Zimmer begins to play with the melody and the rhythms in some really fun variations, before eventually bringing in his own main theme for the Lone Ranger in noble and heroic fashion at around the 7:30 mark into the cue. The rest of Zimmer’s score is fairly uninspired, but there was no way I could leave this track off the list. It’s way too much fun. 06. “The Pendant / Evil Tango” from Evil Dead (Roque Banos) This end credits pieces gives you a great idea of the variety this score offers. It begins with a delicate, lovely theme for the film’s heroine, before crashing into a demonic, darkly playful rendition of the the score’s central theme, complete with a choir and slashing strings. Banos’ score in its entirety is one of the very best of the year, and don’t let the title or reputation of the franchise tell you otherwise. 05. “The Forest River” from The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (Howard Shore) A swirling, frenzied, and spectacular action cue that combines driving rhythms with multiple themes being tossed around the orchestra. It really captures the pulse of the roller-coaster-ride-type antics going on in the sequence. 04. “The Book Thief” from The Book Thief (John Williams) Many feel that this score is simply Williams “on autopilot,” and I guess I don’t necessarily disagree, but here’s what I’m certain of: Williams on autopilot is lightyears ahead of most other people. This suite offers a nice summation of the score’s themes and ideas, displaying a melancholic-yet-gorgeous mood that feels effortlessly conjured up by Williams. 03. “Can You Dig It?” from Iron Man 3 (Brian Tyler) A blast of fun that perfectly captures the energetic spirit of the film, and it’s got a great 1960s/1970s-snazzy-TV-theme-song quality that’s hard to dislike. That there’s also a distinct (and hummable) theme present is a huge plus. 02. “Beyond the Forest” from The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (Howard Shore) A striking track in which Shore expounds on some of his new themes for the film, it begins with a delicate and lush tone, then slowly grows into a full-throated, grand piece. There’s some stunning writing going on here, particularly for the strings and choir. 01. “Ode to Harrison” from Star Trek Into Darkness (Michael Giacchino) A lengthy presentation of Giacchino’s mysterious theme for the “John Harrison” character; several motifs are presented and slowly build off each other, and the track gradually increases in intensity until exploding into a grand statement of the melody. It’s a knockout cue, and one that was left off the album release of the score, which is shockingly inexplicable, as it’s the best piece of music Giacchino wrote for the film. Luckily, Giacchino presented the track on a radio show, thereby releasing it to the world. BONUS! - “Marvel Studios Fanfare” from Thor: The Dark World (Brian Tyler) Even though it’s far too short to take up one of the proper spots on this list (clocking in at under 30 seconds), I had to include this little piece as an added bonus (free of charge!). It perfectly sets the mood for the larger-than-life characters of the Marvel Universe with an absolutely HUGE sound and a catchy fanfare.
Feel free to share your favorite tracks and scores from 2013! |
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