Last Minute Oscars

Well…here are some extremely last minute Oscar predictions and, when I say ‘last minute,’ I mean that it’s 8:08 PM and the Oscars start in twenty minutes.  I guess that’s the upside to having a blog, right?  I have no editors, no deadlines, and….I don’t get paid. So…

BEST PICTURE – ‘Argo’ (Runner Up: ‘Lincoln’)

BEST LEAD ACTOR – Daniel Day-Lewis, ‘Lincoln’

BEST LEAD ACTRESS – Jennifer Lawrence, ‘Silver Linings Playbook’ (Runner Up: Emmanuelle Riva, Jessica Chastain )

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR – Tommy Lee Jones (Runner-Ups:  Christoph Waltz)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS – Anne Hatheway

 BEST DIRECTOR – Steven Spielberg, ‘Lincoln’ (Runner Up: David O. Russell, ‘Silver Lining’s Playbook’, Michael Haneke, ‘Amour’

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY – ‘Amour’ (Runner Up: ‘Django Unchained’)

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY – ‘Lincoln,’ (Runner Up: ‘Argo’)

BEST ANIMATED FILM  - Wreck-It-Ralph (Runner Up: Frankenweenie)

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE: Amour

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Life of Pi

BEST EDITING – Argo

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN – Les Miserables (Runner Up: Lincoln)

BEST MAKEUP/HAIR – ‘The Hobbit’

BEST COSTUME – ‘Lincoln’, (Runner Up: Les Miserables)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE – ‘Life of Pi’ (Runner Up: Lincoln’)

BEST ORIGINAL SONG – ‘Skyfall,’ Adele

BEST SOUND MIXING – ‘Life of Pi’

BEST SOUND EDITING – ‘Skyfall’ (Runner Up: ‘Django Unchained’ )

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS – ‘The Hobbit’ (Runner Up: Life of Pi, The Avengers)

BEST DOCUMENTARY – ‘Searching for Sugar Man’

OSCAR PREDICTIONS 2013

OSCAR PREDICTIONS 2013

With a breath of unkempt tension followed by a potent exhale that bordered more accurately on an exclamation, I mustered up energy earlier today to yell ‘Oh shit, the Academy Awards are announced TOMORROW?!’  And so I proceed with my last minute, yet not-too-loosely mused Academy Award Nomination…Predictions.  Due to time restraint, my predictions state the films themselves rather than the individual artists

It’s a carnival of maniacally talented people this year.

(This is the first set of nominations)

BEST PICTURE

Zero Dark Thirty

Lincoln

Argo

Django Unchained

Life of Pi

Silver Linings Playbook

Beasts of the Southern Wild

Les Miserables

The Master

Moonrise Kingdom

SHOULD BE INCLUDED: ‘The Dark Knight Rises’

BEST DIRECTOR

Ben Affleck, ‘Argo’

Kathryn Bigelow, ‘Zero Dark Thirty’

Steven Spielberg , ‘Lincoln’

Ang Lee, ‘Life of Pi’

David O. Russell, ‘Silver Linings Playbook’

SHOULD BE INCLUDED:

Paul Thomas Anderson, ‘The Master’

Christopher Nolan, ‘The Dark Knight Rises’

Quentin Tarantino, Django Unchained

BEST LEAD ACTOR

Daniel-Day Lewis, ‘Lincoln’

Denzel Washington, ‘Flight’

Joaquin Phoenix, ‘The Master’

John Hawkes, ‘The Sessions’

Hugh Jackman, ‘Les Miserables’

BEST LEAD ACTRESS

Jennifer Lawrence, ‘Silver Linings Playbook’

Jessica Chastain, ‘Zero Dark Thirty’

Quvenzhane Wallis, ‘Beasts of the Southern Wild’

Naomi Watts, ‘The Impossible’

Marion Cotillard, ‘Rust and Bone’

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Tommy Lee Jones, ‘Lincoln’

Phillip Seymour Hoffman, ‘The Master’

Robert DeNiro, ‘Silver Linings Playbook’

Alan Arkin, ‘Argo’

Leonardo DiCaprio, ‘Django Unchained’

SHOULD BE INCLUDED:

Samuel  L. Jackson, ‘Django Unchained’

Christoph Waltz, ‘Django Unchained’

Tom Hardy, 'Lawless'

Javier Bardem, ‘Skyfall’

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Amy Adams, ‘The Master’

Sally Field, ‘Lincoln’

Helen Hunt, ‘The Sessions’

Anne Hathaway, ‘Les Miserables’

Maggie Smith, ‘The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel’

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

‘The Master’

‘Django Unchained’

‘Looper’

‘Moonrise Kingdom’

‘Zero Dark Thirty’

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

‘Argo’

‘Lincoln’

‘Life of Pi’

‘Silver Linings Playbook’

‘Perks of Being a Wallflower’

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

‘Life of Pi’

 ‘The Master’

‘Skyfall’

‘Zero Dark Thirty’

‘The Dark Knight Rises’

SHOULD BE INCLUDED : Django Unchained’

BEST FILM EDITING

‘Argo’

‘Zero Dark Thirty’

‘Life of Pi’

‘Lincoln’

‘The Master’

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

‘Lincoln’

 ‘Django Unchained’

‘Anna Karenina’

‘Les Miserables’

‘Mirror Mirror’

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

‘Lincoln’

‘Django Unchained’

 ‘Les Miserables’

‘Anna Karenina’

‘Prometheus’

‘The Master’

BEST MAKEUP

‘Lincoln’

 ‘Men in Black 3’

‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

SkyFlinch

               With a brooding and palpitating rhythm in its characters and a mesmerizing sobriety in its tone, ‘Skyfall’ excels through its damaged subjects but ultimately fails to support itself upon an eccentrically off-balance pace. The subtle tenacity and vigorous elegance of the film are found lurking behind its main players; menacingly reserved, poetic, and coarse. The director seems almost enamored with his own characters, attempting to remain faithful to the Bond franchise while avidly re-defining it.  This strained dichotomy of focus fundamentally fails. 
               The quality of villainy in the film is potent and frightening, enough to substantially subvert the assumed Bond narrative in preference of a familiar, yet equally effective, sub-text of eloquent societal decay.  Erratically commenting on the vivid and obstinate malignancy of society’s underbelly, the film breathes through a distinctly somber tone - a tone that eventually fails through a lack of cohesion with the necessary camp and action of the franchise. The refined pathological grimace of the focused yet belligerently malevolent villain is akin to that of ‘The Joker’s,’ and the film’s pre-supposition and effortless illustration of society’s unflinching dependence on 'chaos' provides a tumultuous, thrilling, and eccentric playground for the lead villainous character.  The overall fortitude and profundity of ‘Skyfall,’ however, are injured by the film’s supreme lack of nuance in every other area of the film (save for one silhouette-fight scene).  The film sets up an intoxicating portrait of a villain and a quite literally intoxicated Bond; however seems to carelessly and haphazardly ‘fill in the blanks’ with the remainder of the film’s structure. Lacking directorial wit with the wide-scale action sequences and proceeding with some of the most tiresome repartee that I’ve had to sit through, the film secures its place as a thoroughly iconic portrait of a villain, a successfully damaged James Bond, and a film palpably tired with antiquity. 

Recalling the Subject in Three Acts

On the subject of déjà vu, remaking, and recreating, I’ve taken time to do something rather enjoyable - as a creative outlet and an exercise. A little while ago, during a residence change, I didn’t have access to my film equipment to continue shooting a film that I was working on; however the ever-increasing palpable itch of cinematic story-telling continued to sink its proverbial teeth into my brain and, if you will, into my ‘thought-sickles.’ So, with the resources to create and attain new footage (and scenes) temporarily absent, I took it upon myself to utilize and re-edit footage into a new, unique short film.  This short film, which also serves as a music video, is an experimental story-telling of an abstract narrative, interweaving original footage from both released and un-released films, creating an entirely new story that works to deliver a narrative alongside the lyrics of the musical track. The new sequence of scenes creates a newly formed narrative, and the addition of the hip hop lyrics adds another layer of story and conceptual development to the film.  The end result is an abstract film that utilizes an interplay between re-edited scenes and the lyrics that are heard on top of it.  The new story, although coherent for myself, inevitably must require avid attention and analysis from outside viewers to understand.  However; I found it a surprisingly affective exercise, and a shockingly enjoyable project.  It features the song 'Three-Act Knee-Slap,' an original A Capella hip-hop composition by myself. The short film includes footage from these personal films of mine: 'Two Knives and a Hatchet,' 'Karma' (Unreleased), 'Story About a Character,' and 'Untitled Hanging' (Unreleased).

It does not star either Colin Farrell or Arnold Schwarzenegger…sorry.

Check it out here:

“Total Recall” – Remaking Déjà Vu

           To speak candidly, the sincerity of the “Total Recall” remake is ominously questionable, balancing haphazardly on the fence between an ingenuously and brazenly poignant remake of a science fiction classic and an entirely new film that would be more aptly titled ‘Somewhat of a Remembrance.’  The candor in question is wrapped up in a brightly-packaged, enigmatic and visceral trailer that serves to both titillate and allude to the original film, but also to boldly exhibit a vivid onslaught of nuances, additions, and all-encompassing changes to the original film.  This plethora of apparent alterations inevitably begs the question; how large is the concept-gap between the original and the re-make?  The following question is multiple choice –

Will the 2012 Remake of “Total Recall” be:

A.) A Sincere Homage (and a great new update to the original science fiction classic)

B.) An Entirely New, Unique Film

C.) A Messy, CGI Orgy

Serving as an incredible, ground-breaking film based on conceptual advancement, mastery of special effects, and a zealous display of devout ‘action-chops,’ the original “Total Recall” film stands as a difficult piece to re-make.  The original film’s pronounced, dexterous and proficient utilization of advanced special effects (for it’s time) provokes the argument that the remake may rely on an abundance of special effects to ‘awe’ the audience, to ‘live up to the original,’ and of course to sell tickets. The grave mistake in remaking the film based entirely on advanced special effects (if that isn’t a mistake in of itself) is found in the fact that the original classic succeeded mainly through a stellar conceptual basis on which the special effects thrived.  Now - I’m fully aware that I continue to allude to a specific advanced concept, a laudable originality, and a blatant rejection of antiquity…so what exactly am I trying to say?  What exactly am I forgetting to mention?

OH YES – the author of the original short story: Philip K. Dick.

           

Philip K. Dick wrote and released the most conceptually advanced and mind-bending stories to date (arguably), eventually adapted into around 20 films as of today – including groundbreaking classics such as “Blade Runner,” “Total Recall” (1990), and “Screamers,” leading science fiction cinema and story-telling into a new era of ingenuity – bringing along with it more recent Philip K. Dick adaptations including “Minority Report” and “A Scanner Darkly.”

The concepts that these stories base themselves upon are innovative, and the subsequent film adaptations serve as callbacks to Dick’s originality – utilizing the original story and concept with the addition of cinematic nuance, visceral propulsion, and new levels of narrative complexity that contribute to a catalytic synergy of cinematic and conceptual advancement.  So, audiences are currently faced with a questionable remake of a classically unique adaptation based on a conceptually revolutionary story…can one even fathom that this remake will live up to the Dick Standard (yes, I said it) with three degrees of separation existing already between this remake and the original story?

The trailer for the new “Total Recall” film makes it abundantly clear that this remake will utilize a multitude of updates, nuances, and alterations to the story (like most remakes) that will present an entirely new film experience.  At the same time as these distinct changes may potentially provoke a disastrous downfall for the film (and audiences), these same refinements serve as potential signs of validity for the remake, considering that the original film was based on nuance. In fact, if the film was re-made with no alterations whatsoever, I wouldn’t consider that a feasible, recognizable, or honorable remake of the original sci-fi cult classic (Let’s quickly cutaway to the shot-by-shot remake of “Psycho,” followed by a scoff and a depressed moan).  More acutely phrased, the film’s success as a remake is based on the ingenuity of these cinematic nuances, distinctions, and alterations.  Some films have wildly succeeded in this arena, and many have fallen flat.

One such film that exemplifies the almost transcendental success of a Philip K. Dick adaptation, presenting audiences with a new level of mind-bending originality and altered story-telling, is “A Scanner Darkly.”  Written (Adaptation) and Directed by Richard Linkater and released in 2006, the film allows Philip K. Dick to palpably breathe through this adaptation.  “A Scanner Darkly,” filmed, re-created, and exhibited by Linklater with a sense of cinematic and narrative evolution, re-tells the original story with an absurdly affecting delivery, concise direction, and smart, witty dialogue.  In addition, the entire film is rotoscoped.  As Linklater’s second rotoscoped film (The first being “Waking Life”), the film masters the art-form that has rarely been seen since, delivering a unique experience to the viewers. Rotoscoping is an animation-technique used in moving film wherein artists trace over every single frame of the film, one-by-one, to create a hauntingly surreal effect that combines a seemingly animated film with actual captured footage.  The rotoscoping of “A Scanner Darkly” serves as a key element in its success as an adaptation, as it not only re-tells the story but continues to expand the repertoire and preconceived notions of the 'known' and the 'accepted.'  The film embraces the concept of forward movement, enhancement, and evolution of the medium through which the story is told, therefore creating a homage to Philip K. Dick as well as creating an original, stand-alone film.

All of the films that succeed in adapting Dick’s stories have consistently utilized unique, altered and rarely-seen methods of cinematic delivery, re-visiting the story alongside a sense of awe, disbelief, and distinct exhilaration.  Philip K. Dick’s initial story, on which “Total Recall” is based, provides a certain conundrum in of itself (but also a permeating reassurance). The original “Total Recall” succeeded…will the re-make?  Will this new film rely on special effects or, like the original, intertwine the special effects and action with the originality of the story? Will I be paying $14 for a CGI money-shot, or a legitimately unique film? Will this remake sacrifice conceptual development for ticket sales?  In other words; this film combines action, special effects, Hollywood movie stars, and consistent allusions to the original, classic film.  So, it boils down to this (which I wish I never had to ask): Did anybody even make the effort to create a great film? Mostly everything seems to be there in this remake, looking only at the trailer...but my nerves remind me that I should be on my proverbial toes of disappointment.  Having said that - hell yes “Total Recall,” hell yes Colin Farrell, hell yes...Philip K. Dick.  

The Paracelsus Propulsion

After joining Paracelsus Films on a comically immersive film shoot just a few weeks ago – leaving me with distinct memories of a mind control contest, musings about why Sauron (The Dark Lord from ‘The Lord of the Rings’) was misunderstood in his time, and a corrupt senator spilling the beans about what exactly happened to his secretary – I have avidly followed the Production Crew’s progress in filming their new feature ‘How to Win the Internet: And Other Questionable Endeavors.’  Let’s cut to present day:

EXT. EMPTY FIELD – DAY

Dennis Hurley stands, dressed in a tight, red, full-body suit, holding and waving a somewhat decrepit cardboard sign over his head that says ‘DONATE.’  Flailing his legs side to side haphazardly, and quietly singing ‘How to Win the Internet’ repeatedly to himself with a subtle waiver of nervousness in his voice, we CUT TO Vincent C. Morreale standing opposite - a frozen look of disappointed shock in his face, and a camera in his hands.

Of course this is just their newest Promo.  Paracelsus Films proves that their hilarity-driven productions are nothing short of all-encompassing; reaching even to this scene in their new video.  The appeal video – a reflection of Paracelsus' own quirky hilarity - was produced with no budget, filmed in under two hours, and was primarily written on the spot.  Serving as a hilarious short as well as a motivated promotion for their feature film and the funding for its completion, the video utilizes elements of darkly humorous self-reflection, palpable traces of satire about the crew’s own process, and comically audible punch-lines in their timing. Continuing to write, direct, film, edit and produce with a miniscule amount of funding, the crew members somehow take time to produce this hysterical video, essentially using their time away from filming …to begin filming. That, right there folks, is a true mark of sincerity and passion; taking an active pause to allow propulsion, and filling proverbial and literal empty space with creative motion. In this way, a pause ceases to remain a pause, but rather a drive, with consistency and determination creating a synergistic catalyst of momentum.  By these standards, Paracelsus films and filmmakers with this similar sense of drive create something out of nothing.  To rephrase the cliché; a void becomes void itself. To rephrase the wordy quasi-poetry: Donate!  

After watching the promotional video, I immediately felt the urge to write about and comment on it, asking Vincent C. Morreale – the artistic director for Paracelsus Films – exactly what the promo video cost to make.  He responded verbatim; “As for the budget, well...add in actor costs, props and locations... carry the one...Nothing.” 

            With a list of incentives for donations – my personal favorite being combat training – Paracelsus Films continues to urge viewers, patrons, and otherwise to contribute through their IndieGoGo site, which you can find here

And if you’re interested in checking out an example of their fight choreography, you can watch their short film “Chess Mates” here 

And you can watch their appeal video here

Update - My Original HD Trailers, Upcoming Blog

Readers!

My next post is coming soon!  I conducted a personal interview with a successful independent actor, speaking about his upcoming feature-length film "The Wicker Tree," a sequel to the original 1973 film "The Wicker Man," written and directed by the same 'auteur' and creator of the cult-classic original.

Until my hard-drive digs itself up from the depths of the electronically deceased (George A. Romero, take note - You've done Night of, Dawn of, Day of, Diary of, and Survival of the Dead...when will the zombie-craving cinema hordes be presented with Zombie Hard-Drives and/or Zombie Robots...from space...It's conceptually irrelevant, narratively void, and quite possibly profitable as hell - and 'when there's no more room in hell, the dead walk the earth,' right?...I'm thinking "Inanity of the Dead"), I hope to sate a few appetites with a new playlist - A short selection of my original HD Trailers, personally edited and scored to promote my own Independent Film-making.  Included are trailers for two short films - one of which is making the festival circuit now - one feature length film (currently in-production), and one feature length film (currently in post-production).

In the meantime; look out for my upcoming blog!