Oscar Dash 2015--The Nominees

Oscar Dash 2015! It is here!

I have only seen 3 out of 8 so far, but this list is fantastic. I'm surprised at the variety and quality of films this year. Don't forget to watch the big celebration on February 22. Here are the nominees for best picture:

American Sniper


Birdman or (the Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)


Boyhood


The Grand Budapest Hotel


The Imitation Game


Selma


The Theory of Everything


Whiplash


For all the categories, click here.

Happy Watching!

It's Not Me, I Swear!

It's Not Me, I Swear! (Philippe Falardeau, 2008)

Click here for the basics

Rating: Q=6, P=5 / Average OJ

Scale 1=3, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=2

Coming of Age, Divorce, Coping, Complex Relationships, Philosophical

Having just gone through a year of much death and loss, it was hard for me to watch this film. The struggles of Leon reminded me of many troubled friends I used to know and family I used to be closer to. It reminded me that growing up without real support can be devastating. And when I say real support, I mean someone who loves you unconditionally and makes an effort to understand your thoughts, feelings, and actions. Everyone deserves to feel some kind of security in a world that is so full of difference and often so painfully confusing.

--Don't understand the ratings? Click here

The Imitation Game

The Imitation Game (Morten Tyldum, 2014)

Click here for the basics

Rating: Q=7, P=6 / Can't Get Enough

Scale 1=3, Scale 2=4, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=3

Biopic, WWII, Historical, Drama

Benedict Cumberbatch is utterly amazing in this film about Alan Turing. The story is riveting, the pace is perfect, everything is as it should be. Alan Turing's accomplishments and his tragic personal story are important and timely. I believe everyone should see this film because they will learn much about our history, politically and socially. The moral here is that profound genius is often disguised as difference. But we should not be afraid of this--these people are sometimes the only ones capable of creating vast and imperative change. We should all be allowed to live honestly in this world.

--Don't understand the ratings? Click here

Happy 2015, Oscar Dash 2015

Happy 2015!

Have you made a list of goals or resolutions? What about a movie list? I've made one of those, as I'm sure you imagined. Don't forget that Oscar Dash starts mid-month, just after the nominations are revealed on January 15. Stay tuned for that announcement!

Until then, I thought I'd share three of my movie goals for this year (besides the annual dash):

I want to watch more...
1. Classics. So many fantastic films were made in the 1930s-1950s. I have seen a lot of them but many still to go. Here are a few I plan to watch before summer: 39 Steps, Spellbound, All Quiet on the Western Front, The Man Who Came to Dinner, Gentleman's Agreement, The Conversation, and La Dolce Vita.

2. Epics and 3+ hour long films. It's hard to do this, of course, because there is always so much to do after work and on the weekends. But I feel I need to see award-winning films like The English Patient, Patton, and the entirety of the 1915 classic Birth of a Nation.

3. Documentaries. There was a spurt of great documentaries a few years ago and then I didn't hear about as many. I need to remedy this.