9/15 - Japan Day 8

The last full day in Japan.
I decided that today would be the day I finally go someplace I've wanted to go since my arrival: The Tokyo National Museum. This is the largest and oldest museum in Japan, and had the largest collection of Japanese art in the world. It was amazing how old some of the artifacts were in this museum. I enjoyed seeing ancient weapons and scrolls from times gone by. I also loved seeing some of the artwork, like a 300 year old painting of Mt. Fuji (see attached picture). There was a nice outside garden that was worth a stroll once I was done in the main museum building.
From the museum, I walked over to Ueno Park. This park is the largest park in Tokyo, with a zoo, a temple and several museums located within it. There was also a scenic pond, Shinobazu Pond, that was nice and clear on this super hot day.
I also took the train to Tokyo Station so I could purchase my ticket for the train to Narita Airport tomorrow.
There were a few things I would have liked to see still, but I think I managed to see about 80% of what I really wanted to see. I really think Kyoto was the highlight of this trip though! I loves all the temples I saw and my stay at the Ryoken Montonogo was beyond expectations. It's time to relax and get ready for trip home tomorrow.

9/14 - Japan Day 7

I had quite the wake-up call this early morning! Around 2:30am, a 5.1 earthquake hit a few miles off coast. I guess it felt more like a 4, here in Tokyo, but it was the biggest one I have felt in many years. I was able to go back to sleep relatively fast again, so that was good. Once it was time to actually get up, I went out to see a few more sights.
My first stop was going to be the gardens of the Imperial Palace, but I accidentally got on the wrong train and found myself near the Tokyo Municipal Building in Shinjuku. The TMG building has 2 towers, both with observation decks on the 45th floor - and access is free. I went up and had a wonderful birds-eye view of Tokyo (see picture).
From the TMG building, I traveled to the Ginza district. The Ginza is the premiere shopping district of Tokyo and has all sorts of shops and department stores. You really could spend all day in one of those department stores. They sell EVERYTHING! After seeing the Ginza, I finally went to the Imperial Palace. I was surprised at how little people there were in the East Garden! I went back to my hotel and ate at the 2nd restaurant they have, and it was good too. You would really be surprised at all the different foods I have eaten on this trip. Tonight I had pumpkin soup, some fish dish I don't remember the name of and more veggies than you could shake a stick at (that's such a strange saying!). Tomorrow is the last full day I have here, so I have to do some research before I head out in the AM. This trip certainly has been a blast and an real eye opener.

9/13 - Japan Day 6

One last partial day in Kyoto.
Woke up this morning to monks chanting as they walked the street outside my Ryoken. Then later, the staff came up, took away my bed and set up the table for breakfast, which was pretty damn good too. Checked out after breakfast and walked to the Yakasa Shrine on my way to the bus stop. My bus was in the Gion district, famous for Geisha's. I knew that firsthand because as I was walking to my hotel yesterday, I walked past a rickshaw carrying a Geisha. Once in Gion, I hopped on a bus and headed to Nijo Castle. Nijo was built in 1603 as the official residence of the first Tokugawa shogun. It is an elaborate building with elaborate woodcarvings and paintings on sliding doors. There was also a large sprawling garden behind the castle, which was great to walk. From there I went to Kinkaku-ji. This is one of Japan's most widely photographed tourist attractions, because of the Golden Pavilion. Built in 1397, and converted into a temple in 1408, the Temple's top floors are covered in gold leaf and make an arresting site - especially on sunny days like today.
After that, it was time to call it a day and make my trip back to Tokyo. I hopped on the Shinkansen and made it back around 7pm. Going to go have a beer and call it a day. My feet really hate me by now and have made the later part of the day somewhat painful. Not sure what I'm going to do tomorrow yet, can't wait to find out!

9/12 - Japan Day 5 (Kyoto)

I was right, no Internet in Kyoto.
Hopped on the Shinkansen (Bullet Train) early in the AM and was in Kyoto by 10am. It was a little difficult finding my bearings at first, so I did what I do best - got lost. Eventually got myself turned around and walked to Samjusangendo, the largest wooden building on Japan. Inside were 1001 wooden statues of the deity Kannpn. From there. I walked to Kiyomizu-dera. It was built in 798 and is one of Kyoto's most famous landmarks. It was a beautiful place to see, perched high on Mount Otowa. From there, I walked through the historic district of Higashiyama to the Ryoken I would be spending the night at. A Ryoken is an old style Japanese bed & breakfast. This place was absolutely amazing and the highlight of my trip so far! At check in, I had to leave my shoes in the front area and change into slippers. My room was small and had a table in the center about a foot tall and no bed. At dinner time, a girl began bringing me food, 2 dishes at a time. It was all amazing. I don't even know everything I ate, but it was a great meal. It went on for almost 2 hours before it was finished. After slightly recovering from dinner, it was time to use the bath. A room I had all to myself for half an hour with a relaxing wooden hot water bath, it was great! When that was over, I changed into the bath robe they gave me and made my back to my room. They had just finished setting up the bed and it was time to get some shut-eye.

9/11 - Japan Day 4

It was Sumo Wrestling Day!
Today was one of the days I looked forward to the most while planning this trip. I love attending sports events, so watching a day of Sumo wrestling seemed like a great day - and I was right. A sumo wrestling match takes no more than 5 minutes once the wrestlers hit the ring. More time is actually spent warming up than actually wrestling. You have to have an amazing sense of balance to sumo wrestle, because your opponent will slap, shove, twist and try to pick you up to get you to land outside the ring or touch the ground first. The average length of the actual wrestling bout takes no more than 7 seconds. I was at the Kokugukan Arena in Ryogoku for about 6 hours and saw as many as 40 matches today. Very glad I did this visit!
Tomorrow I'm off to Kyoto on the bullet train. I have decided not to go to Hiroshima on this trip and spend a little more time in Kyoto. I was feeling a little rushed and decided to just chill and enjoy Kyoto at a slower pace. Might not get Internet there, so the next update might be in a few days.

9/10 - Japan Day 3

Remember when I said yesterday that I'd adjusted to Japan time? I was wrong! Woke up this morning at 3:30am and couldn't get back to sleep. I decided today would be the perfect day to visit the Tsukiji Fish Market. This is the largest fish market in Japan and one of the largest in the world as well. Left the hotel around 5am By 5:45 I was walking into the warehouse. I missed the sign for the entrance on my first attempt, and accidentally stumbled upon the Tuna auctions, which was cool. Eventually I found the market and had a great sushi and rice meal for breakfast (picture below). After a couple hours walking around the market and surrounding area, I made my way to Hama Rikyu Garden. This was a nice, peaceful & large park over 300 years old. From the park, I boarded a riverboat cruise to the Asakusa district. Once in Asakusa, I walked the streets for a while until I arrived at Sensoji Temple. This is Tokyo's oldest and most popular temple, founded in 628 A.D. After 10hrs of walking around, my feet were killing me, so I made my way back to the hotel for a little rest. I had a good meal at the hotel's restaurant and decided to call it a day and soak my poor sore feet. Overall it was a great day, hot too (it was 85 degrees before 6am!!). I saw some great sights and enjoyed an hour long boat cruise as well.
Tomorrow - Sumo Wrestling (I'll be watching, not wresting)

9/9 - Japan Day 2

My first full day in Tokyo.
I was so tired last night that I had absolutely no problem getting to sleep and woke up adjusted to Japan time. Around 7:30 I left the hotel and went to the JR train station. Because I have a Japan Rail Pass, I don't pay to ride this metro rail to get around Tokyo. Unfortunately, when I got to the station, there was nobody there to let me through! I walked around and tried again at 8am and someone was there this time. I traveled to Harajuku station and walked to the Meiji Jingu. This shrine was built in 1920 and is surrounded by a beautiful park. I walked around the shrine and park for a while and then decided to walk around the neighborhood by the shrine. I got soooooo lost! By pure luck, I happened across Harajuku station and decided to go visit another historic area. According to the map I had, it looked easy enough to find Asakusa, an area that has been described as a "walk back in time". Well, I got off at the stop I thought was the right one, but this was for Asakusabashi, not Asakusa. I promptly got lost again and about 40 minutes later found My way back to the station! I forgot to mention that it was in the 90's today and I probably lost 5lbs in water before noon. I went back and rested for an hour at the hotel, which was awesome! In the afternoon, I spent several hours walking around the neighborhood around my hotel (yes, I got lost a 3rd time). I did get to see a neat little parade/celebration while I was lost, so that was cool. After that, I was finally totally exhausted enough to call it a day. Not sure what I'm going to check out tomorrow still, maybe the fish market, if I wake up early enough.

9/8 - Japan Day 1. (sorta)

I just flew in from LA and boy are my arms tired!  But seriously, this was one long exhausting trip!  It is almost 4am (LA time) which means its almost 8pm here.  I had absolutely no problems finding the hotel, and I now plan on staying up a few more hours to get on Japanese time.  Well, not much else to say right now, will post more later!

Coming soon to Japan....

Hey there,
It's been a few months since I have logged on and written anything down.  I think I got somewhat burned out while writing my "days of Oscar" in the early part of the year.
In just over 4 weeks, I am flying to Japan for 8 days.  I will be arriving in Tokyo on Saturday, September 8th and going back to LA on the 16th.  In preparation for this trip, I have been learning a little Japanese (spoken, not written).  I also have bought a new laptop (a MacBook Pro) and also a new digital camera.  As of right now, I still have not decided on everything I'm going to be seeing & doing while in Japan.  I think I will be visiting Kyoto, but my mind is not yet made up on visiting Hiroshima as well.  The plan is to update daily while in Japan, but often things don't go as planned, I guess.
I don't know if I will post again before landing in Tokyo, so wish me luck on my first trip to the Asian Continent!

The 2012 Academy Awards

So it's now February 26th and the Academy Awards are tonight. As most of you know, I have tried to see as many nominated movies this year as possible and I have to say I've seen a LOT! This year there are 60 total films nominated, including the short films and I have seen all but 14 of them. I have decided to list my predictions for the Academy Awards below. This is only my best guess based on what I have seen in theaters or at home. I didn't always pick my favorite film, just the one I thought would win a certain category.

Best Picture

"The Artist"

Best Actor

Jean Dujardin - "The Artist"

Best Actress

Viola Davis - "The Help"

Best Supporting Actor

Christopher Plummer - "Beginners"

Best Supporting Actress

Octavia Spencer - "The Help"

Best Director

Michel Hazanavicius - "The Artist"

Best Original Screenplay

"Midnight in Paris" - Woody Allen

Best Adapted Screenplay

"The Descendants" - Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon & Jim Rash

Best Animated Feature

"Rango"

Best Foreign Film

"A Separation" - Iran

Best Feature Documentary

"Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory"

Best Cinematography

"The Tree of Life" - Emmanuel Lubezki

Best Editing

"The Artist" - Anne-Sophie Bion & Michel Hazanavicius

Best Art Direction

"Hugo" - Dante Ferretti & Francesca Lo Schaivo

Best Costume Design

"The Artist" - Mark Bridges

Best Makeup

"The Iron Lady" - Mark Coulier & J. Roy Helland

Best Original Score

"The Artist" - Ludovic Bource

Best Original Song

"The Muppets" - Man or Muppet - Bret McKenzie

Best Sound Mixing

"Hugo" - Tom Fleischman & John Midgley

Best Sound Editing

"War Horse" - Richard Hymns & Gary Rydstrom

Best Visual Effects

"Rise of the Planet of the Apes" - J. Letteri, D. Lemmon, R. White & D. Barrett

Best Documentary - Short Subject

"Saving Face" - Daniel Junge & Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy

Best Animated Short Film

"The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore" - William Joyce & Brandon Oldenburg

Best Live Action Short Film

"The Shore" - Terry George & Oorlagh George

2/26: On Golden Pond (1981)

Today is the last day, #34, in my 34 Days of Oscar. Later tonight are the

Academy Awards and the official end of my little 34 day experiment. The final movie I watched this morning was "On Golden Pond". This excellent film was nominated for 10 Academy Awards. It won Best Actor (Henry Fonda), Best Actress (Katharine Hepburn) and Best Adapted Screenplay. It was also nominated for Best Picture, Best Director (Mark Rydell), Best Supporting Actress (Jane Fonda), Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Original Score and Best Sound.

"On Golden Pond", based on the 1979 play by Ernest Thompson, focuses on Ethel and Norman Thayer (Hepburn & Fonda) who spend each summer at their lake house on "Golden Pond" lake. Norman's 80th birthday is approaching and their daughter Chelsea (Jane Fonda) will be arriving to celebrate and see her parents for the first time in several years. Norman is a bit of a curmudgeon and is often harsh to people other than his wife (including his daughter). When Chelsea arrives for the birthday, she arrives with her fiance Bill (Dabney Coleman) and Bill's son Billy. Chelsea and Bill plan on taking a month long vacation to Europe

and ask if Billy can stay at the lake house with Ethel and Norman. It isn't long before Norman begins to warm to having Billy around and they begin to spend most of their time together, fishing. When Chelsea returns from Europe, she sees that Billy has the relationship with her dad that she always wanted.

I really liked "On Golden Pond". I thought it was funny, sad and poignant all at the same time. Henry Fonda won the Academy Award for his performance and rightfully so. He gives a performance that is equal parts crotchety and

heartwarming. Katharine Hepburn also gives a spectacularly vibrant performance. She has so much energy as Norman's better half that she almost jumps off the screen. This is a much better film than the one that won the Academy Award this year in 1982 for Best Picture, "Chariots of Fire". The score though was a little annoying at times and sometimes overlapped the dialogue, making it hard to hear what was being said so I can see why it didn't win for Best Score. Jane Fonda was OK as the daughter who just wants a normal father/daughter relationship but I didn't see anything that makes me think she should have won the Academy

Award for Best Supporting Actress (which she didn't). The acting by the two main leads and the sharp and witty dialogue were the best things about this film. Other than not winning the award for Best Picture, I think it won all the awards that it should have.

Overall, I give "On Golden Pond" 4 out of 5 stars. It was a well written movie that was highlighted by 2 amazing and outstanding Academy Award winning performances. I would certainly recommend this movie to others and it was a great way to finish up my 34 Days of Oscar. I had a blast doing this and want to thank every one who took a few minutes and read a review or 2. After seeing 34 days in a row of movies, I'm looking forward to curling up with a good book for the next few weeks.

2/25: Network (1976)

On the second to last day, day 33, of my 34 Days of Oscar, I saw the movie "Network". This film was nominated in 1977 for 10 Academy Awards, winning 4. It won for Best Actor (Peter Finch), Best Actress (Faye Dunaway), Best Supporting Actress (Beatrice Straight) and Best Original Screenplay. It was also nominated for Best Picture, Best Director (Sidney Lumet), Best Actor (William Holden), Best Supporting Actor (Ned Beatty), Best Cinematography and Best Editing.

"Network" is the story of a struggling broadcasting network, UBS. Because of bad ratings, long time newsca

ster Howard Beale (Peter Finch)

is told that he will be fired in 2 weeks by his longtime friend and boss Max (William Holden). The next night, during the broadcast, Howard breaks from script and tells the audience that on his last day in 2 weeks, he will kill himself at the end of his show. Howard is immediately fired, but asks for one last chance to redeem himself during the following night's broadcast. During this last chance to speak, Howard has a breakdown and begins to rant again about how life is "Bullshit". When his rants begin to increase ratings for the news, Diana Christensen (Faye Dunaway) the head of UBS programming, see the ratings possibilities and decides to give him his own show. As Howard's mental stability begins to decline, Diana's boss Frank (Robert DuVall) fires Max and puts Diana in charge of the news, now classified as "entertainment". It now becomes a matter of how high the network ratings will get and what will happen to Howard once he eventually loses his appeal and his rating begin to drop.

I enjoyed "Network" and thought it was a well acted and finely written film. The Academy Award winning screenplay was witty, sharp and is still relevant over 30 years later. The late Peter Finch gave an amazing performance as a broadcaster who is losing his mind. He was the first person to win an Academy Award after his death. Faye Dunaway's Academy Award winning performance as a woman who lives and breathes TV and knows nothing

other than that was pretty good too. She is a straight shooter with no morals and no conscience at all. Beatrice Straight won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her 5 minutes of screen time as the neglected wife of William Holden's character. I was very surprised that she won especially when I realized she beat out Jodie Foster in "Taxi Driver" and Piper Laurie in "Carrie". "Network" lost the Best Picture, Director and Editing awards to "Rocky" this year. My only beef with this film is that the ending comes on way too suddenly. Out of nowhere, a major event happens and then the movie just ends. It felt too abrupt.

Overall, I give "Network" 4 out of 5 stars. It is a well written, well acted and relevant satire about the entertainment value of news broadcasting. It's amazing how you could almost take this script and without changing a word, remake it today and it would hold up nicely. That is the mark of a good movie.

2/24: Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory

On Day 32 in my 34 Days of Oscar, I saw the movie "Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory". This film is nominated for Best Feature Documentary at this year's Academy Awards.

"Paradise Lost 3: Revelations" follows the story of Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Miskelly - known as the West Memphis Three. In 1994, the three kids were arrested and charged with the murder of three local 8yr old boys. Although they claimed innocence, the West Memphis 3 were convicted of murder and either sentenced to life

in prison or, in the case of Echols, sentenced to death. A lot of the evidence against them was flimsy and circumstantial at best. An HBO documentary crew followed the original 1994 case and after they were sentenced, helped draw support to these 3

who, quite possibly, were wrongly imprisoned. This third installment focuses on the new forensic and DNA evidence that the three are trying to have admitted into court and free them after 17 years in prison. Also, a focus of this film is John Mark Byers, the stepfather of one of the murdered 8yr old kids. Mr Byers, once an opponent of the West Memphis Three, has now come to believe that they are innocent of murdering his son. Mr Byers has become of the people in the forefront to get justice for the West Memphis 3.

I think "Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory" is a very difficult movie to watch. There are images and photo's from the original crime scene that turns your stomach. It is also difficult to sit back and watch these three young men get railroaded and sentenced to prison with paper thin evidence. Even after watching this film, I do not know if one or all of the West Memphis 3 are guilty or innocent of this murder. I do know that the police were so happy to have someone to charge, they didn't seem to look at all the facts and evidence. I wish there had been a little more screentime with the West Memphis Three, but it's possible their incarceration limited how much they could

be interviewed. It is a dry documentary, but that is because it is trying to just show the facts and avoid letting emotion get in the way of what happened.

Overall, I give this film 3.5 out of 5 stars. It is a good documentary and I can see why it was nominated for a Academy Award. It is also very difficult to watch and very dark at times. I can easily see this film winning Best Feature Documentary tomorrow night, but I don't think I will be watching it ever again.

2/23: A Separation (2011)

On the 31st day of my 34 Days of Oscar, I saw the movie "A Separation". This Iranian movie is nominated for Best Foreign Film and Best Original Screenplay at this year's Academy Awards.

"A Separation" opens with the two main characters, Nader and Simin in a divorce court hearing. Simin wants a divorce so she can leave the country with their daughter Termeh, but Nader's father has Alzheimer's disease and wants his family to stay in Iran. Nader doesn't care if Simin wants to leave, but he won't allow her to take his daughter away too. Since the judge won't allow the divorce, Simin separates from Nader and goes to live with her mother in another part of town. Nader hires a housekeeper, Razieh, to take care of his elderly father while he is at work and Termeh is at school. A few days later, Nader comes home early and finds Razieh gone and his father partially tied to his bed and close to death. When Razieh comes back, Nader is furious and throws the housekeeper out of the house. Later that evening, Nader finds that the housekeeper is in the hospital and has had a miscarriage. Surprised to discover that Razheh was pregnant, he is even more shocked when he is arrested and charged the next day with the murder of his housekeeper's unborn child. Over the next few weeks, Nader has to prove his innocence, take care of his father and keep Simin from using this to her advantage and leave forever with his daughter.

I thought "A Separation" was a well made, tight suspenseful drama. Peyman Maadi, who plays Nader, gave a really great acting performance and conveyed every emotion that Nader was going through sometimes with just a hint of anger or sadness in his eyes. Leila Hatami also gave a good performance as Simin. She was a strong-willed but sensitive woman who just wants Nader to fight for her, but is beginning to understand that he is too proud and stubborn to ever do that. I thought the Academy Award nominated screenplay nomination was very well deserved. The plot took many twists and turns and you never knew how the story would end. At first I wasn't a fan of the somewhat ambigious ending but the more I thought about it, the more I liked it.

Overall, I give "A Separation" 4 out of 5 stars. It was a well crafted and acted film that deserves the nominations it received. It gave an interesting glimpse into everyday life in Iran that I found surprising because of it's normality. This was a well made film that has a good chance of winning that Academy Award for Best Foreign Film on Sunday.

2/22: Live Action and Animated Short Films (2011)

On Day 30 of my 34 Days of Oscar, I saw some of the short films that have been nominated this year for an Academy Award. I saw all the nominees for Best Live Action Short Film and all but one of the Best Animated Short Film nominees.

The categories for Best Live Action Short film and Animated Short Film have been around since the 5th Academy Award ceremonies in 1932. Originally introduced as "Short Subjects, Cartoons" until 1970 when it was called "Short Subjects, Animated Films", the category became finally known as Best Animated Short Film in 1974. Hanna-Barbera's Tom & Jerry is tied with Walt Disney's Silly Symphonies for the most wins in this category with 7 wins each. The category for Best Live Action Short film has had several name changes since it's introduction in 1932. One thing that has not changed has been what qualifies a movie as a short film. A movie has to be 40 minutes or less, including credits, to qualify for admission into any Short Film category at the Academy Awards.

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM

-"Pentecost" is an Irish short about a soccer-loving boy in a small Irish village who, because of an earlier mistake, was banned from being an altar boy. He is called upon to redeem himself when an important visitor arrives at his church.
I thought this was a cute and funny film with a good payoff at the end.

-"Raju" is a short about a German couple who travels to Calcutta, India to adopt a son. When he goes missing, they try all their options and discover something that could possibly tear them apart.

I thought this film was extremely well made and although I didn't care much for the woman who played the wife, I though the man who played the husband did an outstanding job. I have attached the trailer for this short above.

-"The Shore" is an Irish film about a man who comes back home to Ireland with his daughter after being gone for over 25 years. As his friends welcome him back, his daughter discovers that he had a whole other life that was left behind once he made it to America.

This is my favorite of the Live Action Short films. It was well made and the acting was mostly well done. It was difficult at times to understand the Irish accents, but I understood and liked this one overall. This one has the most star power in it with Ciaran Hinds ("Munich", "Harry Potter 7") as the lead.

-"Time Freak" is about a man who invents a time machine to travel throughout history. His only problem is that he just wants a perfect day and he has spent the past year and a half traveling to yesterday to work on his conversation skills.

I thought this was a cute film, but it was only 11 minutes long and I would have liked to have seen more time travel.

-"Tuba Atlantic" is from Norway and tells the story of a 70yr old man who has 6 days left to live. He wants to communicate with his long lost brother in America one last time before he dies and has devised the perfect device to do just that.

This was the dark comedy of the bunch. It was somewhat predictable, but was still fun and a little twisted.

BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM

-"Dimanche" ("Sunday") is a hand-drawn short from Canada telling the story of a young boy who travels to his grandparents house on Sunday. The kid is bored and walks outside to flatten a coin on the nearby train tracks.

This was the slowest of the shorts I got to see. I suppose it was done on purpose to describe how bored this kid was on Sunday, but it left me bored as well.

-"The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore" is a computer animated short about reading. The main character takes care of books while writing his own novel.

The was the most well made and technically sound of the animated shorts. It was like watching a dream. Very intelligent short film.

-"La Luna" is a Pixar animated short film. This is about a young boy who's father and grandpa take him out on a wooden boat to show him the unique family line of work.

This was not available for screening.

-"A Morning Stroll" is an English short about a man walking in the city who comes across a chicken traveling home for the day.

I loved this one and actually watched it twice. It was short and very very funny. Of all the short films I saw this was my favorite. I Don't know if it will win the Academy Award, but I hope it does.

-"Wild Life" is a Canadian short about a young English man who arrives in Alberta in 1909 with dreams of settling the wild frontier. His story is interspersed with the description of a comet heading towards the sun.

The was a dreary, but well made animated film. I believe it was supposed to be comedic, but it was mostly just dry.

Overall, my favorite Live Action Short Film was "The Shore" and my favorite Animated Short Film was "A Morning Stroll". That does not necessarily mean that's who I think will win the Academy Awards this year though. If you are interested in viewing these films, it might be possible to view them "On Demand" at home on cable. I wish more people could see these films, as a majority are really quite good.

2/21: In a Better World (2010)

I saw the movie "In a Better World" on day 29 in my 34 Days of Oscar. This Danish film won the Academy Award last year for Best Foreign Film. In Denmark, the original title is "Haeven" which translates to "The Revenge".

"In a Better World" is the story of 2 different families, both dealing with recent hardships and tragedy. Anton is a doctor who commutes to Africa and works out of a Sudanese refuge camp in the region of a sadistic warlord. Back in Denmark, he is separated from his wife after he had an affair and his son, Elias, is being bullied at school. Christian is the new student at Elias's school and he has just moved from London with his father Claus after his mother died of cancer. A few days after his arrival the school bully bloodies Christian's nose after he sticks up for Elias. In retaliation, Christian beats the school bully with a tire air pump and holds a knife to his throat. When Anton arrives back in town, he takes the new friends out kayaking on the nearby river. As they are walking back to the car, Elias's younger brother is attacked by a young child and Anton breaks up the fight. The father of the other child threatens Anton and ends up shoving him around and slapping him hard several times in front of the children. Christian believes the adult Anton is a coward for not fighting back and, along with Elias, plans his own extreme revenge upon this bullying adult. Anton, meanwhile, travels back to Sudan and has his own encounter with the sadistic bullying warlord who is mutilating women in the region. All of these situations lead to an explosive finale where both Anton and Claus have to deal with the consequences of their children's actions.

I thought the 2 main adult actors in "A Better World" were the best part of this film. Unfortunately, the movie primarily focuses on the child actors and they do not give nearly as good performances. I had more of a problem with the child playing Christian than the one playing Elias. I'm not sure if this was a directing issue, an acting problem or something the script lacked - maybe it was all three. I never believed his attitude and found his sulking misdemeanor towards his dad and everyone else annoying more than anything else. This film won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film, but it is one of my least favorite films to do so in a long time. I wish they had focused more on Anton in Sudan than back in Denmark. His character was much more interesting when dealing with the warlord than when dealing with his wife and son. I also found the reaction of Christian and Elias towards the bullying adult too over the top and found myself thinking of Christian as a psycho. Once you remove the likability of a character, any possible character arch becomes pointless as you stop caring what happens to them. That was my final reaction to this film, I just didn't care.

Overall, I give "In a Better World" 1.5 out of 5 stars. By the end of the film, I just stopped caring what happened to anyone and was happy to see the film over. The main problem in this film was the action centering around the character of Christian. It may have been the script or the director but, anytime that character was onscreen, I was not enjoying this movie.

2/20: The Last Emperor (1987)

On the 28th day in my 34 Days of Oscar, I saw the movie "The Last Emperor". This film was nominated for 9 Academy Awards, winning all of them. It won Best Picture, Best Director (Bernardo Bertolucci), Best Cinematography, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Editing, Best Original Score, Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design and Best Sound. It is only 1 of 2 films in the past 50 years to win Best Picture and sweep all the other categories it was nominated in too, the other being the final "Lord of the Rings" movie in 2004.

"The Last Emperor" is a biopic on the life of Puyi, the last Emperor of China. It is based on Puyi's own autobiography. It is told, mostly in flashbacks, as an adult Puyi sits in prison after World War II. At the age of 3, Puyi is anointed Emperor of China and is taken from his mother and told that his new home is the Forbidden City and he can never leave it. When Puyi gets older, he is brought a new tutor R.J. (Peter O'Toole). It is R.J.'s western influence that begins to convince Puyi that life in the Forbidden City needs to change and against the wishes of his council, Puyi begins a series of reforms inside the city. At the age of 18, an adult Puyi (John Lone) and his 2 wives are expelled from the Forbidden City by a warlord who has taken control of China. Puyi and his wives are given refuge by the Japanese Embassy and eventually move to Japan for several years. Under the influence of various Japanese officials, Puyi is installed as Emperor of his homeland of Manchukuo and is seen as a "Puppet" ruler who really answers to Japan. It is this tie to Japan and Puyi's desire to rule again that will eventually decide his fate after WWII and will determine if he will remain in prison for the rest of his life.

I was entertained by "The Last Emperor". I thought it was a little long at times, but that was necessary to detail the life of Puyi. The Academy Award winning costumes and set decorations were magnificent. There was so much attention to detail and so many different outfits from outlandish emperor costumes to prison garb. The Academy Award winning score really helped set the tone without being distracting but sounding authentic at the same time. The Oscar winning editing was, for a really long movie, quite efficient. The editing had to jump back and forth from present to past and back again smoothly while keeping the audience in the story. It was still a little long for my taste and there were times it was moving so slowly I looked at my watch. I completely understand why this movie won Best Picture. It was a good looking and well made epic-style film that the Academy usually goes for.

Overall, I give "The Last Emperor" 3 out of 5 stars. It was a well crafted film that told a interesting story. It was about 20 minutes too long and there were segments that should have been trimmed down a bit though. As a side note, after seeing this film, I have now seen every single film that has ever won the Academy Award for Best Picture. I started watching every film that had won this award in July of 2003 starting with the "Broadway Melody of 1929". Sometime soon I will write a post detailing what I saw, listing what I liked and which ones I really didn't. As for "The Last Emperor" it falls in the middle of these Award winning films. It was a good film, but it wasn't one of the best.

2/19: Albert Nobbs

On the 27th Day of my 34 Days of Oscar, I saw the movie "Albert Nobbs". This film is nominated this year for 3 Academy Awards: Best Actress (Glenn Close), Best Supporting Actress (Janet McTeer) and Best Makeup.

"Albert Nobbs", based on a short story by Irish writer George Moore, is the story of a woman working as a man in the late 19th Century in Ireland. Albert (Glenn Close) has made a living as a hotel waiter for over 30 years and is now working to save and buy herself a tobacco shop of her own.

When the owner of the hotel Albert is working at hires a new painter, Hubert Page (Janer McTeer), Albert is shocked to discover that Hubert is a woman posing as a man. Albert is also surprised to discover that Mr. Page has a wife and owns her own business. The story of Mr. Page gives Albert the confidence to begin the process of getting that tobacco shop she wants. Albert also starts courting one of the hotel maids, Helen (Mia Wasikowska) with the thought of having her be his wife. At first, Helen only goes out with Albert because her boyfriend wants to take Albert's money to finance their escape to America. As she spends more time with Albert, Helen begins to get conflicted on who she wants to be with and Albert grows ever closer to getting what she has always wanted - her own business and a wife to help run it.

I thought "Albert Nobbs" really only had 2 things going for it, the performances of the 2 main women in it. I thought Glenn Close, in her Oscar nominated role, was great (if not a little creepy sometimes) as the awkward and lonely Mr. Nobbs. The best part about this film, though, was the performance of Janet McTeer. She turned in an amazingly complex and compassionate performance as the woman who discovers and keeps Albert's secret. I am glad that her performance was noticed and that she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for this role, she deserved it. The makeup in "Albert Nobbs" has been nominated for an Academy Award as well. In my opinion they did a good job, just not good enough. In my opinion,a good

makeup job doesn't draw attention to itself, but I kept thinking about how strange Glen Close looked in all that makeup. I don't know if it could have been any better, I just kept watching & wondering how nobody noticed she was a woman. I also didn't really care for the whole storyline of the movie itself. I didn't like a lot of the characters and found myself annoyed at the plot as it progressed.

Overall, I don't recommend "Albert Nobbs" and give it 2.5 out of 5 stars. My rating probably would have been a little lower if not for the 2 Academy Award nominated performances, especially Janet McTeer. This is one of those rare cases where I disliked the movie, but really liked the performances.

2/18: Undefeated (2011)

On the 26th day of my 34 Days of Oscar, I saw the movie "Undefeated". This movie has been nominated this year for an Academy Award for Best Feature Documentary.

"Undefeated" is the story of the 2009 season of the Memphis area Manassas Tigers. The Tigers are a High School football team coached for the past few years by Bill Courtney. Before Bill Courtney's arrival as the football coach 6 years ago, the Tigers were arguably the worst High School football team in the state. They were so bad, that other schools would pay Manassas $3000 a game just to play them so their school can have a practice game. The Manassas Tigers have existed for over 104 years and have never won a single playoff game before. The camera follows Bill as he not only

tries to turn his men into football players, but keep them in school and possibly help them get into college. There are 3 football players that get the most screen time: OC is the kid who has the talent to get into a lot of colleges but his grades are so low that no colleges are asking. Money is the small but smart and determined kid who just wants to make it to college. Chavis is the hothead defensive star who's temperament might gt him kicked off the team if he doesn't pull it together. Coach Courtney has to unite all of players and try to give the town of Manassas at least 1 winning football season just to show everyone that hard work does pay off.

I thought "Undefeated" was a great documentary. I am a football fan, so I found everything extremely interesting. I liked how the focus wasn't just on football, but on academics. There are several emotional scenes in this film that won't leave a dry eye in the house. This is one of the better documentaries I have seen this year, but I'm not sure if it will win the Academy Award or not. I only wish that there would have been more interviews with the students. Only OC and Money expressed thoughts to the camera at times. I also would have liked this movie to focus on more than just 3 kids. There are a lot more kids on the team and we never even knew what some of their names were.

Also, I have a small quibble with the title. The Tigers lose their very first game of the season, so they are not really "Undefeated" are they!

Overall, I give "Undefeated" 3.5 out of 5 stars. I thought it was a well made documentary and certainly deserved it's nomination for an Academy Award. I wish they had made more an an attempt to involve more students in this movie and get their point of view though. It was an almost perfect documentary, but it still misses the mark by a little.

2/17: The Ides Of March (2011)

On the 25th day in my 34 Days of Oscar, I saw the movie "The Ides of March". This film, based on a Broadway play, has been nominated this year for an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.

"The Ides of March" follows Stephen Meyers (Ryan Gosling) as he works on the campaign trail for Governor Mike Morris (George Clooney) who is currently competing to get the Democratic nomination in the upcoming presidential elections. He is working with Paul Zara (Philip

Seymour Hoffman) as the main "brain trust" behind Morris's campaign. One day he gets a secret phone call from Tom Duffy (Paul Giamatti) who is the campaign manager of Morris's Democratic rival. Duffy wants to meet and against his better judgement, Meyers agrees to do so.

In the fallout from that meeting, Meyers discovers that the next few days will not only threaten his job, but the entire presidential campaign of Governor Morris.

There wasn't anything in "The Ides of March" that caught me by surprise. It was attempting to show the viewer what it is like on the campaign trail for a presidential hopeful, but felt like a leftover episode from the TV show "The West Wing". The all-star cast did an excellent job and without them, this movie would have been a snooze-fest. George Clooney and Ryan Gosling both put in great performances and had a little fire in their eyes, especially in a scene near the end of the film. Clooney also directed "The Ides of March" and continues to show a great talent for working behind the camera as well. The screenplay, based of the Broadway play "Farragut North", has been nominated this year for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. The dialogue is snappy, but it didn't feel as smart as other political movies I have seen in the past.

In the end, I give "The Ides of March" 2 out of 5 stars. It had great acting performances from everyone, but the award nominated script didn't pack enough of a punch to it. If you are interested in checking out good "behind the scenes" political fiction, check out old episodes of "The West Wing". This movie is somewhat depressing and you have a pretty good idea what's going to happen within the first few minutes of seeing the characters on screen.