Golden Globes

Although the Golden Globe nominations just came out and I have a few movies to see (18 to see all the best screenplay, acting, and picture nods) it means one thing to me. The best time of the year for movies has finally begun.

As I do every year, I will attempt to see the other 18 movies by the time the awards happen (yet another reason I love winter break!). The Golden Globe nominations are a good place to start if you're looking for those outstanding movies you may have missed earlier in the year and are usually at least somewhat accurate when it comes to predicting the Oscars.

Looking at the nominations so far, four movies clearly stand-out: Lincoln, Zero Dark Thirty, Les Misérables, and Silver Linings Playbook. The leader of the pack is Lincoln, no surprise to anyone, with seven nominations, the other three falling behind (with four nominations) my least favorite nominee, Argo, and my most anticipated movie of the year: Django Unchained (each receiving five nods).

Of the six mentioned above, I've already seen three and the winners are clear: Lincoln and Sliver Linings Playbook hands down. However the buzz surrounding both Zero Dark Thirty and Les Mis may make me think twice.

If the past few years have taught us anything it's that Kathryn Bigelow knows how to make a war movie not revolve around a war (the main rationale behind her adrenaline junkie focused Hurt Locker taking the big prize at the Oscars). But how can one make a movie about the search for Osama Bin Laden not revolve around war? I don't think it can be done, which makes me think this will end up being reminiscent of past 'war-centered' award winners like Apocalypse Now, Platoon, and The Deer Hunter. Where this movie will be different is the fact that no one in America will be able leave the theater without wanting to chant "U.S.A."

This is what I expect to see surrounding me in the theater:

As much as I love The Hurt Locker and Kathryn Bigelow for taking down James Cameron and his precious Avatar"d," (Don't get me wrong, I like Avatar, but I would have liked it better had it been an original story) I think this is an low and easy way to get nominations. Take a story that everyone has at least heard about and make it into a movie. I sincerely hope I fall in love with this movie.

Now onto Les Mis. A musical. The last time a musical won was 2006's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Could this be the year to dethrone a comedy? Possible, but not likely. Either way, it is already being heralded already as one of the musical greats. Probably most famously for having the actors sing live on the screen. In the modern age, yes this is something new and rare, but when film first started, the only way to record sound was to actually have them sing live. Maybe the nostalgia will capture audiences the way it did last year in The Artist. Although for many I think it will add a feeling of watching an actual Broadway production, which will detract some, but attract many more.

Finally there is Quentin Tarantino's new film Django Unchained (for those who don't know, the 'D' is silent). In true 'him-fashion,' for lack of a better word, Tarantino has made what looks to be like the best western in years! I'm especially looking forward to seeing Leonardo DiCaprio and Christoph Waltz (both nominated for Best Supporting Actor) square off in the film. Both are able to carry weighted roles and make them look easy. Seeing Jamie Foxx and what I'm sure will be gratuitous violence through out is definitely exciting as well.

Other movies worth mentioning are the Ewan McGregor and Emily Blunt carried Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, the awkwardly adorable Moonrise Kingdom, and the apparently visually stunning Life of Pi (Move over Avatar).

While I still like the Golden Globes they pale in comparison to both the Oscars and the Emmys so no TV talk from me today. Even some of the movies were a surprise. There was talk of The Dark Knight Rises getting some attention, but alas, it went unnoticed. We shall see how these movies hold up through the coming months building up to the Oscars.

Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln had an extremely tumultuous career as President of the United States. The Civil War and emancipating the slaves, culminating in his assassination. He was a man of many stories and loved by many and this new (albeit early) frontrunner for Oscars nails it on the head.

Lincoln is far less of a biopic than it is merely a period drama of his accomplishments in the last months of the Civil War, but as a period drama it is stupendous. Take Steven Spielberg, Sally Field, Tommy Lee Jones, and the incomparable Daniel Day-Lewis and combine them and you will get one of the greatest takes on a president ever made.

Opening in true Spielberg fashion, we are tossed right into the middle of Civil War at its peak. After an opening similar to Saving Private Ryan we meet the man, Abraham Lincoln (Day-Lewis). With many people against him, the movie follows how he helped end the Civil War and free the slaves.

Want to know what it felt like to live during 1865? See this movie. The art direction, costume design, and dialogue is how I imagine it was during this time. 

Daniel Day-Lewis became Lincoln, as he does with most of his roles. It is incredible to watch. It feels almost like watching a play where Abraham Lincoln is playing himself on stage. Sally Field as his deranged wife is astounding. I believed her emotion and felt like she actually was going crazy from losing a child. Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Tommy Lee Jones are perfect in the roles they play. 

With an odd amount of humor, unfortunately not joining the movie until a good 45 minutes in, James Spader's character and his other cronies are hilarious and provide some uplift and laughter to an otherwise slow movie. Without them I probably would have fallen asleep.

As a period drama this is an awesome movie, but as always seems to happen, slow movies will get lots of Oscar attention. I'm not saying that it doesn't deserve the nominations, but as of right now I don't think it should win best picture. Day-Lewis and Field are definite front runners for Best Actor and Supporting Actress. It will be quite the showdown in these categories this year. I hope anyway.

9/10