Beasts of the Southern Wild

Before this movie I didn't know that "Bathtubs" exist in America. It's so unusual to think of a helpless Americans (although they're depicted everywhere in the movies/news) but the reality is there. This indie film screams of indieness and I LOVE IT. haha. The characters, the story, the dialogues, the cinematic effects.

I like this minimalist version of the poster.

And this kid, Quvenzhané Wallis, who plays 6-year-old Hushpuppy is so adorable! She's also nominated as Best Actress in the upcoming Oscar Awards, the youngest one to be nominated so far. This kid has a long waaay to go in the biz. Provided she don't go the Lindsay Lohan road. hee. 

Silver Linings Playbook

Jennifer Lawrence deserves all the best supporting actress nods she's been receiving since 2013 kicked in. Everytime she says "hey" and surprises the heck out of Pat (Bradley Cooper's whack but likeable enough character) I just wanna hug her and be my friend.

It's a good film. One of those that delves into the intricacies of the betrayed minds. I think Bradley Cooper did well too. He's not just that pretty face you get to stare to guy anymore. Robert DeNiro is Robert DeNiro.

2 down, 7(?!?) more to go. Make that 6. I forgot I watched Argo in the big screen.

Argo Fuck Yourself

While watching Argo, I can't seem to separate Homeland and Scandal storylines and characters from the movie, which means my TV series life has overlapped in every movie I get to watch (oftentimes, even in real life).

Moving on, Argo is seriously and mind-blowingly good. Okay, maybe the mindblowing thing was a bit of an exaggeration but it certainly an awesome movie. I was on the edge of my seat for the most part of the movie, as if I was one of the 6 Americans secretly being whisked off Iran during the Iranian hostage crisis

I love the cinematography and the stock footage. I never imagined Ben Affleck to be actually good in directing a film, but he did it. I especially loved Affleck's scenes wherein his character, Tony Mendez, need not to utter a single word in order to portray what he's thinking and feeling.

Bryan Cranston in this movie was more of Mr. White instead of Heisenberg, yay!

The best part of it all, Clinton's declassification of the whole operation. The world finally found out the CIA's involvement in the whole rescue mission. How Mendez earned his Intelligence Star has finally gone public.

Oscar Nominee Film # 2: Moneyball

If Rotten Tomatoes rated Moneyball with a whopping 94% on its Tomatometer, then you know that this film is not something you should shrug off as that-film-who-stars-handsome-Brad-Pitt. 

However, it isn't also one of those "sports movie" that you have in your mind. Mostly it's about what goes on behind the manager's room, the dugouts and the pitch. To quote a term, it's about "sports management".

Moneyball begins in year 2002 where an underfunded baseball team - the Oakland Athletics -just lost their 3 best players from other wealthier clubs. It is up to general-manager Billy Beane, with the aid of his senior scouts, to look for players that will replace the three from within their budget (which is really not much).

While negotiating with Cleveland Indian's GM, Beane meets Peter Brand, a 24-year-old economy graduate from Yale. Brand believes that a winning team is not necessarily made up of star players, instead a collection of talents that eventually will add up to the sum. He uses statistics in order to determine a player's weakness or strength, and from that information, together they built a team that ended with a baseball record.

It's not action-packed and for most people might be quite boring but I enjoyed watching every bit of it. It also doesn't hurt that I was watching Brad Pitt with his crinkly (or is that wrinkle?!) eyes who after all these years is still an eye candy. Definitely shows a formidable side of Pitt's acting career through the years. 

Oscar Nominee Film # 1: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

So I finally resolved myself into watching my first Oscar Nominee for Best Film category: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. The film was adapted from international best-seller novel by master espionage author (who was once employed by British intelligence services MI5 and MI6) John le Carré.

This film is not an easy one to watch as I constantly have to educate myself jargons about secret services and general background about the novel so I can have a better understanding of what's going on and not just obliviously sit there with agape expression and a thousand questions sprinting thru my brain.

Although I haven't read and seen that many spy films/novels, I am actually a huge fan of this kind of genre. Imagining the secret lives that these agents lead, the scandals, classified informations and all that shiznit excites the hell out of me. I remember the thrill and action rush - albeit only inside my head, in my own bed - I felt while reading Rober Ludlum's Bourne trilogy. 

However, for people thinking that this spy film is a la James Bond 007 secret agent, you might be disappointed to find that it isn't nowhere near to Ian Fleming's kind of espionage. There are no heart-stopping action scenes, lavish spy gadgets, sleek cars and beautiful women. 

In fact, the mood is very drab and melancholic, probably a great justification of the Cold era. Amidst it all is George Smiley, an intelligence officer who was pulled out of his forced retirement to investigate and reveal the identity of a double secret agent sitting inside the Circus - the in-house name for MI6.

Director Tomas Alfredson used nonlinear narrative technique to tell the story of how George Smiley unmasked the mole inside the British intelligence with the help of course of a few other agents (such as Ricki Tarr and Peter Guillam).

So, who was the mole? Was it Percy Alleline [Tinker], Bill Haydon [Tailor], Roy Bland [Soldier] or Toby Esterhase [Poorman] (George Smiley was Beggarman himself, the codes being assigned by the former Circus chief, Control). Watch the film and find out for yourself.

From left to right: Poorman, Tailor, Tinker, Control, Beggarman and Soldier.

Super 8

Super 8 reminded me so much of The Goonies, a 1985 film also produced by Spielberg.



And this 1986, Rob Reiner film (based on Stephen King's novella, The Body).



Did you see the common factor?

You got it right. Friends and adventures. I actually fell in love with the kids of Super 8, for me they're the real scene stealers. Aside from the "thing" that we're rooting for to live ( I won't spoil it for you if you haven't seen it yet). Is that a first? I'm not sure but I think no.

 I love the film's vintage effect and of course, a Spielberg movie is never without it: bicycles.