Argo (winner)
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Life of Pi
Lincoln
Silver Linings Playbook
I like several of the nominees well enough that I’m satisfied with their nominations. As usual, though, there are a few places where I think there’s room for improvement. The Academy decided that Cloud Atlas was worth ignoring completely, a decision with which I heartily disagree. It deserved several nominations, including one here. I might also toss out Joss Whedon’s version of Much Ado About Nothing as a well-adapted film. I’m less sure of Les Miserables, although the adaptation was excellent. I just didn’t like the film that much. The Academy would never consider films like John Dies at the End and Dredd, but maybe they should.
Weeding through the Nominees
5: The only thing I really liked about Beasts of the Southern Wild was the presence of Quvenzhane Wallis. As far as I can tell, she’s the reason that the film got a lot of traction when it came to various awards and she deserved all of the acclaim she got. But the film itself just left me confused. I’m not sure what it was trying to say and I’m equally not sure if what it had to say was worth hearing. This comes across to me as a “feel-good” nomination, and Cloud Atlas should’ve been here instead.
4: Life of Pi is another instance where I like a single aspect of the film and dislike everything else. In this case, the one thing I like is the visuals. It’s a beautiful movie, and there’s no getting around that. It might well be that this is an accurate and faithful adaptation of the underlying story, but I kind of don’t care because I think the story is pretty dumb overall. This is a film that tries to pull a big ol’ switch on us at the end and it falls flat completely. Love the look, completely ambivalent to everything else.
3: Lincoln would have been much more of a player for me in this except for the ending. If the movie had ended 5-10 minutes earlier than it did, it might well contend in my opinion. It’s not that the last few minutes are bad; they’re just unnecessary. Like it or not, knowing when to end the story is a big part of being successful. We get an unneeded coda, and as the last thing we take away from the movie, it’s one of the things most easily recalled. Gotta end strong or you don’t end up below the fold.
2: I like Argo quite a bit, and a big part of what I like about it is the screenplay. There’s a nice blend of the story being completely life-and-death serious and also being filled with characters who are pleasantly and entertainingly unhinged. As it happens, it’s also geared to be the winning screenplay by virtue of having movie producers as the heroes. It’s a little pandering in that respect. I like the nomination a lot (I’ve put it second, after all), but there’s a better option for winning in my opinion.
My Choice
1: I’m giving it to Silver Linings Playbook. One of the challenges of this story is that we’re presented with a series of characters who are unpleasant and difficult to like because of their various mental issues. By the end of the film, though, we actually do end up liking them and wanting them to be happy. The performances help in this respect (and four people were nominated for acting), but a lot of this comes from the screenplay. That’s good writing, and good writing should be rewarded.
Final Analysis
Solid pick! Silver Linings Playbook has some really memorable dialogue too. I love all the comedic exchanges (the whole bet/parlay conversation is a highlight) but it also has a real emotional heart that's not just surface level.
ReplyDeleteI was prepared to dislike Silver Linings Playbook, but by the middle of the film, it had won me over completely. Performance is a big part of that, but the characters come through dialogue hugely in this movie.
DeleteI totally agree with SLP being the rightful winner. I also like that you include Cloud Atlas. However, I would bump Argo. I like it, but found it weakest of the bunch in that regard. I also love everything about BotSW, so there's that.
ReplyDeleteI suspect I'm in the minority position on Beasts of the Southern Wild. It's one of those movies that everyone else seems to love more than I do.
DeleteI could go with any of these accept Lincoln. I enjoyed it, but mostly because of the three actors (Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, Tommy Lee Jones). I didn't think the script really stood out. I actually like the other four about the same. If I had to pick I might go with Beasts because it stands out as a unique script.
DeleteI agree it's unique. I just don't think it's that intelligible or very good. But that's my own thing.
DeleteI loved Silver Lining Playbook! Usually my favorite movie of the year is something like The Skin I Live In or Inglourious Basterds, but 2012 was that weird year where I had a four- or five-way tie that I still haven't resolved.
ReplyDeleteSome of the others were Django Unchained, Seven Psychopaths and Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, all movies that are like the kinds of movies I usually choose.
But Silver Lining Playbook really blew me away! It had everything going for it and it all worked so well. And the year after, I picked American Hustle.
I just realized that in 2014, I had a tie between X-Men: Days of Future Past and Grand Budapest Hotel. So that's three years in a row for Jennifer Lawrence!
I was genuinely surprised at how much I enjoyed Silver Linings Playbook. I expected to be sort of neutral on it, but it really does work all the way through, and it's one I'll happily watch again.
DeleteSilver Lining playbook may not have been my pick back then, but in hindsight that is the one I remember as the most interesting and that is the object of a screenplay, no?
ReplyDeleteAgreed. Good characters and good dialogue go a long way.
DeleteI agree that Cloud Atlas and possibly Much Ado About Nothing deserved nominations. I agree Beasts of the Southern Wild didn't belong here and that Lincoln should have ended 10 minutes sooner. I disagree on Life of Pi. While I wouldn't pick it to win I felt the ending is what raised the movie from good to great status. All the clues leading to it are presented during the course of the film and that's due to the screenwriter.
ReplyDeleteI mostly agree with your assessments of Argo and Silver Linings Playbook, but I would flip them and have Argo win. Much of what created the tension onscreen never really happened. When they adapted the story they made it work cinematically and that's the reason I'd go with it.
For what it's worth, my original thoughts on this placed Argo first, Silver Linings Playbook second, and 3-5 as I have them. As I started writing it up, I flipped the top two.
DeleteI don't think Argo is a bad choice, but my vote would have ultimately been different.
Of the nominees, I would've given it to SLP as well. I thought this category was a pretty weak showing, given what else was out there that year. Would have loved to have seen Rust and Bone and Killer Joe get nominated, but the latter probably had as good a chance as John Dies at the End and Dredd.
ReplyDeleteI really, really need to see Killer Joe. I should probably see Rust and Bone as well.
DeleteOne of the things I like about these posts is that I often get some solid recommendations.
SLP is one of my favorite movies and I think it should've won that category easy. While Argo had a good script, Silver Linings is a writer's movie.
ReplyDeleteI agree. I didn't really expect to like Silver Linings Playbook a lot, but one of the reasons I did was because of the screenplay. Well, that and it made Chris Tucker actually bearable.
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