OSCAR 2011: The Winners and Why

Last night's Academy Awards was, to say the least, surprising, but not necessarily in a good way. In fact, I have to admit I would have been a lot happier if we had absolutely no surprises. Realistically, that didn't happen, and we got plenty of shocking moments that simply didn't need to happen. "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" took home an Oscar for the absolute worst aspect of the film. "Hugo" took awards for technical aspects that simply didn't support it, all the while I was reminded of how soulless a feature Scorsese's latest was. But if there's a single win that defines the disappointment I feel this morning, it's Meryl Streep winning Best Actress.

From the very start of the evening, we saw Viola Davis absolutely working it on the red carpet, and I couldn't have felt happier for her. This was her night, and the Academy refused to recognize it. If she had taken the stage, last night would have been absolutely perfect in my memory. I don't blame Meryl Streep for winning. You have to blame the Academy for simply making the wrong decision and not voting on what's simply better and more deserving. Meryl Streep didn't need another award, but even more than that, her getting countless awards for performances like this is like giving Adam Sandler an Oscar for "Jack and Jill" because he was great in "Punch-Drunk Love" in the past. For the most part, however, I was pleased with what was predicted to win "The Artist"s wins were extremely heartfelt, and "A Separation" was just a great moment.

OSCAR 2011 PREDICTIONS: Best Picture

This is the absolute last race that anybody wants to talk about, because we all know inevitably what it's going to be. "The Artist" is going to win, and I still feel decidedly undecided in respects to that win. Why the hell do I feel that way? Because even though I love "The Artist" more than any other film in this category, I am still rather looking for some kind of adventurous buzz from the Oscars. I want something exciting to happen that will radiate vibes and talks to be bandied about for weeks. For several weeks, I did not have a film that I really wanted to champion. I look at the list of nine, and I honestly don't care enough about really any of them. Not even "The Artist".

Then last Friday I revisited "Moneyball", Bennett Miller's math-behind-baseball film that was well liked back in September, but lost its heat since then. It's easy to flash an indifferent eye its way, and in fact in many other situations I would. But I keep on circling back to a line that I believe defines the situation that the Academy Awards happen to be in right now. "I know these guys. I know the way they think, and they will erase us. And everything we've done here; None of it will matter." In going across every single category, I find the films that will win are never the ones I'd want. I don't have any feeling of satisfactions about the group that the Academy assembles as the best in these particular fields.

That's where I get off sore. "Moneyball" is a film that's entirely about the undervalued, and it's been greatly undervalued time and again this year. Mind you, it's far from my favorite film of the year, and in fact it didn't even crack the honorable mentions with me. I just adore the message it would send if it did win that impossible win. But I suppose I can't feel too bad about my favorite film of the bunch, "The Artist", winning on Sunday either. I just get annoyed with what they've fill the categories with this year. There is a far better group of nominees that have been criminally overlooked in this particular year. It seems so easy to make the right decision, but this year they just fouled up as hard as ever.

OSCAR 2011 PREDICTIONS: Supporting Actress

The supporting performance races are prime examples of what's so dull about this Oscar year. It's not as much about who wins as it is about who was eligible for consideration. There are precious few here who even scratch the surface of consideration in my book. I'm not at all sure how Janet McTeer made it into this bracket, but there's absolutely no enthusiasm heading her way. Melissa McCarthy is different, because the only reason she's here is because the enthusiasm of the public willed her into a nomination. No real chance of winning, but it's a consideration that many are thankful for. Myself, I would have been pleased if Rose Byrne were the proper nomination, but I guess it's too much to expect people go for the better performance over the louder one.

Berenice Bejo is here because of "The Artist", and she doesn't really belong here. There's nothing extraordinary about her performance. All the same, I have absolutely nothing against her, and she does ordinary and typical pretty well, all things considered. But really, it's the ladies from "The Help" that we're talking about here. Don't worry about them cancelling each other out. They know who they're voting for, and it's the underwhelming Octavia Spencer. Don't get me wrong. She's nice and funny, but not to the level necessary for a win. I thought Jessica Chastain was much more deserving for her performance, but I thought even more that she should have been nominated for "Take Shelter" instead, a film which got no love from the Academy. But we dried out tears a long time ago. Now we're just rolling our eyes.

OSCAR 2011: Requiem for an Ensemble

If there's been one category that's been sorely missing from the Academy bracket for ages, it's an award for Ensemble Cast that's been long standing within the SAG Awards. And it's a damn shame because there is plenty of room for them to honor a notably strong ensemble cast. Of course the Academy would quite easily muck it up to accommodate their own favorite films rather than consider the casts as a whole. So I offered them a slot for themselves, with what would very likely end up nominated if they chose. But honestly, I care a great deal more about what I would choose, because I'm just that narcissistic.

The only real overlap there would be would be in "Midnight in Paris", which they'd give access automatically whereas I understand why they deserve to be nominated. The cast of that piece is so immense and on-the-dot in a wide and expansive impersonatory and satirical joust for the win. On the smaller side, I think everybody was stunned by the synchronization of the work on "Drive", but less for the across the board subtle and shattering performances on "Tomboy". That may be just me, but I was devastated fantastically. I was giddy with joy at the assembled cast of the latest "Mission: Impossible", each of which served to a purpose. And the cast of "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy" leaves nary a weak link in the pot.

OSCAR 2011: My Reaction to the Academy Nods

Consider this your epic good-news-bad-news session, because a lot of people are salting their wounds with small nuggets of good tidings in this morning's Oscar nominations. We'll start from the bottom and work our way up to a crescendo of violence and anger, as per usual. As far as the shorts categories go, the only thing worth mentioning is that "La Luna", Pixar's latest short and sole nomination this year. It's nice to see that they haven't completely lost touch with their heart. However, I have no idea what got into the Doc branch's heads. I haven't even heard of most of them, and while I heard good things about "Pina", what dingus' gave the pass to "Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory"?

The Animated Feature nods embellished what I wouldn't have much of a problem catching up with, like films such as "Chico and Rita" and "A Cat in Paris". "The Adventures of Tintin" was the biggest surprise omission, as the Academy clearly doesn't consider it animation, nor should they. And I'd just like to give them a hand for not nominating "Cars 2". They could have gone wrong a great deal there, but they steered clear of that bullet. Unfortunately they also took a detour straight into a bomb. Nothing greater to report beyond "A Separation" in Foreign Language, as most worth mentioning were already discounted last week with the shortlist of nine.

AWARDS 2011: "Hugo" Leads the Oscar Nods

Well, that could have gone a great deal better, couldn't it. I'm not happy about the Oscar nominations, but I'll save the endless rant till much later today. There's much work be done here. Until then, grind out your own grievances against this slate of nods while I go off in the corner and cry for an hour.

Best Picture

"The Artist"
"The Descendants"
"Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close"
"The Help"
"Hugo"
"Midnight in Paris"
"Moneyball"
"The Tree of Life"
"War Horse"

AWARDS 2011: WGA Nominations Skew Disaffected

The WGA has had a notorious penchant for nominating inaccurate films for screenwriting, as they cancel out so many films on strict rules. Therefore, the little interest I usually muster for awards isn't even available now. It's a slow crawl to nomination morning, when all the silliness finally fades from the world and we can start talking not-really-that-seriously.

Best Adapted Screenplay:

• "The Descendants"
  
• "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"
  
• "The Help"
  
• "Hugo"
  
• "Moneyball"

Best Original Screenplay:

• "Bridesmaids"
  
• "50/50"
  
• "Midnight in Paris"
  
• "Win Win"
  
• "Young Adult"

Best Documentary Screenplay:

• "Better This World"
  
• "If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front"
  
• "Nostalgia for the Light"
  
• "Pina"
  
• "Position Among the Stars"
• "Senna"

AWARDS 2011: PGA go for regulars, plus "Dragon Tattoo"

The producers guild are down to their dirty deeds once more, continuing to officially endorse the films which we all know will be nominated for Best Picture. There's little straying from the course at this point. It's probably going to be a seven film race this year, and if there's three below that are probably not going to make it, they're "Bridesmaids", "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo", and "The Ides of March". The rest are just cruising towards nomination day. I would like to see eight films make the cut, and who's to count out that possibility? If there's a film of the three discounted that could likely make it, it would be "Ides of March", which would be a nice capper to a decidedly dicey road it's been on.

Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures

• "The Artist"
• "Bridesmaids"
• "The Descendants"
• "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"
• "The Help"

AWARDS 2011: Broadcast Film Critics nominations hit

If I'm pretty damn far behind the beat, it's because more important things in real life have taken up the place of my attention span, however cramped it may be. So now I get along to the BFCA nominations, which remain a mere glyph for what the Oscars might be. The nods are mostly predictable in the vein of what you'd expect. The only thing really worth raising a glass to is Nick Nolte being nominated for supporting actor for "Warrior". Still need to see that one, but I've heard solid things going for the man.

BEST PICTURE
The Artist
The Descendants
Drive
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
The Help
Hugo
Midnight in Paris
Moneyball
The Tree of Life
War Horse

Carpet-Bagging: Before the gates open

We are in the last seconds of the pre-awards season, with the New York Film Critics Circle just on the edge of announcing their victors. We can be ready for a handful of surprises when we see exactly where the critics actually swing in their decisions. At the same time, don't be disappointed if the cards land exactly where we expect them to. The current frontrunners are still "The Artist", "The Descendants", and now effectively "War Horse". The trailer placed it as a winning and simple crowdpleaser several months ago, and even then I knew this was a lock for a nod. If you know me well enough, that also means I despised it quite fervently.

It's not that it's not pretty, but I have a much stronger pull to see the stage play and all its unique design elements than this relatively simple and straightforward exercise in spine-chilling. In the meantime, I continued my general cynicism against "The Descendants", which it's a shame when you employ such against an Alexander Payne film and not for it. I quite liked "Sideways", but I can feel the strands that were leading Payne towards this sort of conclusion. George Clooney is the frontrunner in the Best Actor race, and I doubt that's likely to deflate. Who's going to come in and steal the spotlight?

Jean Dujardin? As interesting an idea as that might be, he's pretty much just a nominee here, in the same vein as Christoph Waltz came along in 2009. He's bound to get a lot of offers after this film, and maybe one of them will bring him back around here, but he's not going to gallop away with this one. "The Artist", in the meantime, does have a strong inclination towards Best Picture, but the closer an opportunity it becomes, the less I see in it. It's really starting to seem more disingenuous a treat than the trailer lets on. 150 seconds conveys perhaps everything that the 90 minute film does, if my cynical non-viewer take on it proves fruitful enough.

So what else has shifted? Well, in case you hadn't noticed, the entire Best Picture race has skewed to becoming almost entirely sweet and obnoxiously endearing, even beyond the three frontrunners. I've already lamented about "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close", but I have even more reason to complain now that "Hugo" has entered the conversation quite boldly in comparison. That does give me pause enough to question why I didn't see it while I had the chance over Thanksgiving, but even more over the overlap of the two films' plots. They're practically the same, with the core difference being that Scorsese's film uses breathtaking technologies in a way it's not been seen before and as a tool to give tribute to the past. Stephen Daldry's film is trying to yank those tears out of your eyes in the most manipulative and predictable of ways.

Box Office Update: Crowded at the Front

I very nearly let this slide, as my Sunday afternoon schedule is quite hazily packed. I have two reviews from yesterday still in the works, not to mention my work outside of this site. It's severely frustrating, so forgive me for not having much enthusiasm vested in the workings of a typical box office weekend. True, this weekend was a fond improvement from last, with three films hitting just above the $20 million mark. All of them opened to fine reviews, and I only expressed interest enough to see one of them, and barely at that. "The Lion King 3D" was not that film, and this being its last week in theaters, I won't be able to check the film out at all as things are currently.

The film still, appropriately, played well this weekend, falling slightly as audiences tried to rake in the film's last winnings while they still could. Falling just barely behind it was "Moneyball", which I gave a slight pass to on Friday. Just on its tail, pun most definitely not intended, was "Dolphin Tale", which somehow found and audience in young children. Who could have guessed that? "Abduction" and "Killer Elite" were a good $10 million down from their newer competitors, but they still managed to fill out the top five. "The Help" fell slightly. "Contagion" fell slightly more. "Drive" fell even more, sadly. We can't account for taste in this particular market, but it was up nearly 20% from last year.

1. "The Lion King 3D" (Second Weekend; $22.1 million)

2. "Moneyball" (First Weekend; $20.6 million)

3. "Dolphin Tale" (First Weekend; $20.3 million)

4. "Abduction" (First Weekend; $11.2 million)

5. "Killer Elite" (First Weekend; $9.5 million)

6. "Contagion" (Third Weekend; $8.6 million)

7. "Drive" (Second Weekend; $5.8 million)

8. "The Help" (Seventh Weekend; $4.4 million)

9. "Straw Dogs" (Second Weekend; $2.1 million)

10. "I Don't Know How She Does It" (Second Weekend; $2 million)

Box Office Update: The "King" has Returned

So anyone with measured doubt about how much a 3D re-release of a 2D animated feature from 1995 could really bring in is scratching their heads. Hell, I'm scratching my head at how much "The Lion King 3D" made this weekend. I know that it's kind of brilliant and all, but are people really that eager to revive that classic theater-going experience? I guess that will happen when you release a beloved title that's being re-released specifically for 3D. People aren't going to be interested in seeing it in 2D. They want the entire new experience of it, so maybe I'll end up checking it out later this week. I've heard the film's not bad either.

"Contagion" would've topped the weekend if "Lion King" didn't over-perform to such a degree, instead landing in second from a 35.4% drop. "Drive" topped the rest of the new releases, though still falling to third place. What's more, the mainstream audiences really didn't like this one. Ally that to the action heavy expectations, but I'll get more into that at another time. By the time we get to "The Help", the box office is resting in low digits that garner little to no attention. "Straw Dogs" and "I Don't Know How She Does It" both earned about $5 million apiece. This weekend was a fine improvement from last weekend, but a slight downgrade from last year, when "The Town" and "Easy A" rocked the box office.

1. "The Lion King 3D" (First Weekend; $29.3 million)

2. "Contagion" (Second Weekend; $14.5 million)

3. "Drive" (First Weekend; $11 million)

4. "The Help" (Sixth Weekend; $6.4 million)

5. "Straw Dogs" (First Weekend; $5 million)

6. "I Don't Know How She Does It" (First Weekend; $4.5 million)

7. "The Debt" (Third Weekend; $2.9 million)

8. "Warrior" (Second Weekend; $2.8 million)

9. "Rise of the Apes" (Seventh Weekend; $2.6 million)

10. "Columbiana" (Fourth Weekend; $2.3 million)

Box Office Update: "Contagion" breaks competition down

The top player at the box office this weekend may lead you to believe this weekend was generous. In actuality, "Contagion" was perhaps the only real standout this weekend, with the rest withering in defeat. Soderbergh's film defeated a slump that's been dominated honorably by "The Help" for the past few weeks. Sadly, however, if it weren't for "Contagion", "The Help" would've still conquered the weekend. Despite its most substantial drop of 40%, the film still held on towards the top. Not even "Warrior" could draw in enough audiences, and its weak opening doesn't exactly inspire much confidence in it. The rest of the chart is old hat, with "Bucky Larson" thankfully not even making the top 10. This weekend was just a slight hair above last year, when the stats were pretty much exactly the same with "Resident Evil: Afterlife" in the top spot.

1. "Contagion" (First Weekend; $23.1 million)

2. "The Help" (Fifth Weekend; $8.7 million)

3. "Warrior" (First Weekend; $5.6 million)

4. "The Debt" (Second Weekend; $4.9 million)

5. "Columbiana" (Third Weekend; $4 million)

6. "Rise of the Apes" (Sixth Weekend; $3.9 million)

7. "Shark Night 3D" (Second Weekend; $3.5 million)

8. "Apollo 18" (Second Weekend; $2.9 million)

9. "Our Idiot Brother" (Third Weekend; $2.8 million)

10. "Spy Kids 4" (Fourth Weekend; $2.5 million)

Box Office Update: "Help"! Somebody! Anybody!

Does the enduring box office success of "The Help" have anything to do with how good a film it is? Maybe a little, but it's more to do with the fact that we have nothing better to do. I dismissed the lion's share of releases this weekend, and as it turns out I wasn't the only one. The only slightly positive film this weekend, "The Debt", ended up the strongest release, despite the tepid response on its Wednesday release. "Apollo 18" and "Shark Night 3D" fell just slightly behind, splitting the horror crowd down the middle. It was a very uneven weekend.

As far as long term box office goes, I'd actually say that August has been something of a success. Three films of this month have earned more than $100 million thus far. "The Smurfs" is somewhat arguable, as it premiered at the tail end of July, but it still managed $130 million throughout the month, despite terrible reviews. "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" could've been much worse than it was, so the general optimism from it has pushed it to $160 million. And "The Help" is still on the rise, currently with $118 million and climbing. This weekend was about 8% higher than last year, when "The American" arrived to undeserved critical bashing, just barely outrunning "Machete".

1. "The Help" (Fourth Weekend; $14.2 million)

2. "The Debt" (First Weekend; $9.7 million)

3. "Apollo 18" (First Weekend; $8.7 million)

4. "Shark Night 3D" (First Weekend; $8.6 million)

5. "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" (Fifth Weekend; $7.8 million)

6. "Columbiana" (Second Weekend; $7.4 million)

7. "Our Idiot Brother" (Second Weekend; $5.2 million)

8. "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" (Second Weekend; $4.9 million)

9. "Spy Kids 4" (Third Weekend; $4.6 million)

10. "The Smurfs" (Sixth Weekend; $4 million)

Box Office Update: "Help" Takes it by Storm

I suppose the box office could've tanked a lot more than it did, given the much buzzed about hurricane making its way across the east coast. I have to say that I'm personally underwhelmed by Irene, but it'll do to keep things interesting till we get some quality films our way. For now "The Help" continues to clean up the box office field, just coming shy of $100 million. I admit to completely forgetting of its staying power until it cropped up again this morning. I was focused on the new, which isn't all that interesting.

It shouldn't be surprising that "Columbiana" dominated amongst the new releases, given its action film orientation. I'd be tempted myself if I didn't know that they probably won't be repeating "never forget where you came from" to ridiculous extent as in the trailer. "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" was close behind, which is interesting as there isn't really a demographic for it. I guess that's why it didn't break $10 million. "Our Idiot Brother" was the lowest of the new releases, which is no surprise given it's indie reputation. Doesn't play as broadly as comedies like "Horrible Bosses". Also to no surprise, this weekend performed more than 20% down from last year. Same can be expected from next weekend.

1. "The Help" (Third Weekend; $14.3 million)
2. "Columbiana" (First Weekend; $10.3 million)
3. "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" (First Weekend; $8.7 million)
4. "Rise of the Apes" (Fourth Weekend; $8.7 million)
5. "Our Idiot Brother" (First Weekend; $6.6 million)
6. "Spy Kids 4" (Second Weekend; $5.7 million)
7. "The Smurfs" (Fifth Weekend; $4.8 million)
8. "Conan" (Second Weekend; $3.1 million)
9. "Fright Night" (Second Weekend; $3 million)
10. "Crazy, Stupid, Love." (Fifth Weekend; $2.9 million)

Carpet-Bagging: The Big & Loud Bracket

I'm officially kicking off this official segment to discuss any and all things Oscar and awards related, as last year was very loose with its designation. I'm still not into making predictions until September is well underway. In fact, I don't feel comfortable making guesses on films I haven't had the chance to see yet. The only mildly certain bet I can place is that Alexandre Desplat will be nominated in Best Original Score again, and he will, in all likelihood, not win. As far as what I've already seen, I wouldn't say his work on "A Better Life" has much traction, but he may find an unexpected push in "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2".

In spite of my downtrodden pan of the film nearly a month ago, his score had me padding my eyes quite a few times. Unfortunately, it was whilst I was at home listening to it, wishing the film had only lived up to it. Talking of the massive blockbuster of the summer, Warner Bros. is clearly intent on a Best Picture push for their biggest cash-cow of the year. While I doubt it will get the 5% of the votes needed to secure a nomination, and sincerely hope that's the case, the film has insurmountable box office power and a frankly unbelievable critical backing to boot. It could get enough of a passionate vote to make it in.

However, I expect it to find more success in the technical categories, which I'd be so happy about if they weren't so poor this time out. Desplat's score is the best of the series, and that's the biggest recommendation I can push. However, I had nothing but contempt for the stale and obvious approach to the cinematography, and only a little less for the visual effects. They were competent most of the time, but the broomstick scenes in the Room of Requirement are the worst visual effects I've seen in the entire series. Art Direction is almost guaranteed, and it's been the film's strongest player in past years. No acting, directing, or writing accolades to be nominated here.

Box Office Update: "Help", I Need Somebody!

If I had some sort of foresight on the box office of this weekend, I'd have taken the time out of my weekend to see "Fright Night". It is unfair that that should hit below $10 million. That being said, I still won't see it, if only because I'd rather see something great instead of something merely adequate. Hell, I'm even shelling out some pity for "One Day", which maybe received too much of a critical bashing. I think people were pissed it wasn't the second coming of "An Education", and they immediately wrote it off. I certainly did, without seeing it. I doubt I'd like it too well, but I'm not a huge fan of romances.

On to the real winner of the weekend, "The Help" came out on top, having only dipped % from last weekend. I guess I was right to assume that people would flock to it. It's an extremely likable film. I could see it going on to surpass "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" at this point. The science fiction reboot isn't declining massively, but at a steady pace of which you could expect. It certainly has more staying power than some other notable blockbusters. As for the other new releases I don't really care about, obviously they were the bigger successes. "Spy Kids 4" proved most successful, a horrific crime against nature in my opinion, with "Conan" just behind it.

Of course, what could you have expected with August beginning to draw to a close. There's always been that expectation of something lesser as the most successful part of the year closes out. Next week's slate does have its work cut out for it, as there was a slight resurgence at the end of last summer with "Takers" and "The Last Exorcism". I suppose that "Columbiana", "Our Idiot Brother", and "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" are somewhat up to the task. They're covering the market pretty well.

1. "The Help" (Second Weekend; $20.5 million)

2. "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" (Third Weekend; $16.3 million)

3. "Spy Kids 4" (First Weekend; $12 million)

4. "Conan" (First Weekend; $10 million)

5. "The Smurfs" (Fourth Weekend; $8 million)

6. "Fright Night" (First Weekend; $7.9 million)

7. "Final Destination 5" (Second Weekend; $7.7 million)

8. "30 Minutes or Less" (Second Weekend; $6.3 million)

9. "One Day" (First Weekend; $5.1 million)

10. "Crazy, Stupid, Love" (Fourth Weekend; $4.9 million)

Box Office Update: "Help" Wins Under "Rise"

If things seem somewhat tried and redundant in the coming weeks, it's frankly because there's absolutely nothing new to say. "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" looks to be the last major blockbuster of the summer, still holding the top slot for the second consecutive weekend. That wouldn't be such a major accomplishment if things had unfolded as predicted, but "The Help" was a surprisingly strong debut. Much as I hoped, audiences have been reacting to the drama positively in all corners. It certainly shows up the other debuts this weekend.

"Final Destination 5" couldn't scrape $20 million, so things may be coming to a halt for the horror franchise. "The Smurfs" continues to reap more cash than it deserves, now climbing past $100 million. "30 Minutes or Less" proved to be mostly a failure, due likely to negative reviews and some controversy over real life events. "Glee" didn't even scratch the top ten, falling at number 11 with under $6 million. Things are still generally more positive than the end of last summer, but that could change somewhat quickly.

1. "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" (Second Weekend; $27.5 million)

2. "The Help" (First Weekend; $25.5 million)

3. "Final Destination 5" (First Weekend; $18.4 million)

4. "The Smurfs" (Third Weekend; $13.5 million)

5. "30 Minutes or Less" (First Weekend; $13 million)

6. "Cowboys and Aliens" (Third Weekend; $7.6 million)

7. "Captain America" (Fourth Weekend; $7.1 million)

8. "Crazy, Stupid, Love" (Third Weekend; $6.9 million)

9. "Deathly Hallows: Part 2" (Fifth Weekend; $6.8 million)

10. "The Change Up" (Second Weekend; $6.2 million)

Weekend Report: "Help"less Wandering

Having already effused this morning about the highlight of the mainstream summer, to say absolutely nothing of indie greats like "Midnight in Paris" and "The Tree of Life", the rest of this month is admittedly headed nowhere. I'm in fact surprised that "The Help" hasn't gotten a total critical backing. True, it's not the most controversial of racial commentaries, but it's worthy and emotional entertainment nonetheless. I'm certain audiences will embrace it entirely by the time the weekend is out, and expect a prosperous life through till September.

The other competitors this weekend are less fortunate, with "30 Minutes or Less" taking critical flak for obvious reasons, but also gaining a bit of controversy. Anybody denying the obvious ties to real world events is moronically ignorant and this point. It might still get an audience from the curious, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was a massive failure. "Final Destination 5" at least has a built in audience of people who simply want to see people they hate die in graphic fashion. Say what you want about the mediocre young actors, but the filmmakers seem to have a good eye on casting people who we're meant to not care about.

And finally there's "Glee: The 3D Concert Movie". I am a pretty decent fan of the show, which has had plenty of strong moments I enjoy. All the same, there is no real reason for this film to actually exist. I don't see why I'd ever spend money to see any concert movie for that matter, much less in 3D. People are better off with "The Help", but if I had the option, I'd be rushing to see "Senna" this weekend. Having heard fantastic things about it from most ends, It'll be a while before it come 'round my way.

Film Review: "The Help" (***)

I admit some hesitation on the rating I'd place on "The Help", but then I felt that the work of cast and crew behind this film was more deserving than three lousy stars. And then I remembered how corny the script was at times, and reverted back to three. Not to say that this isn't worth it. On the contrary, I am very happy that I was able to end my summer film experience one a relative high note, because I know for sure that I'm not checking out any more of this month's releases. I had expressed unease earlier, because despite the cast behind it being mostly strong, it seemed like far too safe an area to be interesting. Indeed it is, but this isn't really a film that invites too much suspense, nor does it need it.

Based on the bestselling novel of the same name, "The Help" chronicles the lives of a community of people living in Jackson, Mississippi in the 1960s. While it permeates through several lives, it mostly focuses on a main triad of protagonists. There's Skeeter, a strong willed, business-driven white girl, Aibileen, a proven and experienced black maid for a white family, and Minnie, an outspoken and sassy friend of Aibileen's who has lost a great deal of jobs due to that description. They all bring a different mentality to the table, and they do it in order to change the racist way things are done in Jackson.