A Hot Tub and A Rabbit Hole

Last week I was hurtled backwards in time to 1986 via a hot tub where I shamelessly crimped my hair, wore scrunchies, and listened to cassette tapes on a Walkman.  Today, time stood still when I fell down a rabbit hole and learned that I was late for a very important date to battle a Jabberwocky. Curiouser and curiouser, I dare say!  

Ok, so maybe that didn't happen to me, but I did witness both methods of time travel in Hot Tub Time Machine and Alice in Wonderland.  I also noticed that these two seemingly uncommon movies actually have three things very much in common: Both have time travel portals that are just a little bit left of center (a hot tub and a rabbit hole, respectively), both star Crispin Glover (an actor who is quite practiced in the art of time travel, see Back to the Future), and both time traveling main characters have wacky sidekicks (a foul-mouthed, suicidal, alcoholic funnyman and a lovable, Bozo-esque, gap-toothed, Mad Hatter, respectively).

Hot Tub Time Machine.  This hilariously, crude movie is pretty much summed up in the title but here's a brief synopsis: Three long-lost best buddies (plus one cousin) reunite after a near fatal accident and decide to take a trip to a mountain ski resort to relive their 80's heydays. After a night of heavy drinking in a hot tub, they wake up the next morning, and to their hung-over shock and amazement, find themselves in 1986.  Hilarity ensues as they attempt to get back to 2010.  Notable 80's pop icons make cameos throughout the film such as Ronald Reagan, Michael Jackson, Poison, ALF, JanSport, leg warmers, and Kid 'N Play hairstyles.

Alice in Wonderland.  Do I even need to outline a synopsis?  Who hasn't seen Disney's take on Lewis Carroll's classic novel, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, or read the sequel, Through the Looking-Glass?  Even if you haven't (gasp!), you've at least heard the adventurous tale about the young English girl who falls into a rabbit hole and is met by peculiar creatures such as a consistently less-than-punctual white rabbit, a hookah-smoking caterpillar, a sassy, toothy Cheshire cat, two rotund, suspender-wearing, identical teenage boys, a cooky, tea party-loving Mad Hatter, and of course, Her Royal Ugliness, the Queen of Hearts.  In 1951, Disney gave us a colorful and cutesy 2-D, animated Alice and Co.  In 2010, they decided to bring Alice and her adventures in Wonderland back to life in 3-D, only this time the Mouse House wanted to tell a sinister, grittier version of Carroll's classic, so, naturally, they deferred to dark and twisty director Tim Burton (The Nightmare Before Christmas) to tell his side of the story.

In Burton's tale, Alice (Mia Wasikowska) returns to a nightmarish "Underland" as a 19-year-old where she reunites with her old friends including the Mad Hatter (Johnny Depp, brilliant as always!) and learns that it's her destiny to end the Red Queen's (Helena Bonham Carter) reign of terror and to restore the White Queen (Anne Hathaway) to her rightful throne by slaying the terrifying dragon-like Jabberwocky (taken from Carroll's short poem, Jabberwocky).  Burton's Alice in Wonderland delights with a no-nonsense, head-strong heroine who encounters (for her second time) the magic, enchantment, and, oh alright I'll say it, wonder of a land that is just beyond the possible impossibilities of her wildest dreams and gravest nightmares and tickles the childlike imagination of the audience.

Here are some of my favorite time traveling flicks: Back to the Future, Big, Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, Groundhog Day, Kate & Leopold, and 13 Going on 30.

Audiences love a good time travel story and Hollywood is more than happy to serve them up!  Let's face it, who, given the chance, wouldn't want to travel either back in time or forward into the future?  Who wouldn't want to be given the opportunity to alter an event in the past to change the outcome of one's future?  I think it's safe to say that while your life achievements and disappointments, past or present, shape you into the individual you are today and the one you will become tomorrow, everyone, at some point or another, would like at least one "do-over" in their lifetime.  Wouldn't you agree?  That's why time travel is such a winning (and moneymaking!) story for all ages.

You gotta admit, time travel is a pretty cool concept, or as Marty McFly would say, "Sounds pretty heavy."

David v. Goliath

My apologies to any avid readers of my blog (read: myself).  It's been over a week since I've written to you regarding the Academy Awards.  Honestly, for the past week I've been debating whether or not I should even honor the awards show by writing a review.  I've come to the conclusion that my Oscar-season posts deserve some sort of closure; I just needed time to stop feeling sorry for the viewing public - myself included - who wasted 5 hours of their precious Sunday evening watching an awards show that was, to put it nicely, one huge yawn.

Surprisingly, the 82nd Academy Awards was the highest-rated Oscars in five years, with 41.3 million viewers.  Maybe the five additional best picture nominee slots drew viewers or perhaps it was funnymen cohosts Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin (who, with the exception of their Paranormal Activity spoof and matching Snuggies, produced lackluster laughs).  Gone was Hugh Jackman and his highly entertaining old Hollywood song-and-dance numbers and in his place stood Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother) to open the ceremony with a poor man's version of the same routine (Harris scored delightfully as host of the Emmy and Tony Awards but fell short here).  Were ten Best Picture nominees and two comedians really enough to spike the ratings?

If you didn't see the Oscars here's what you missed.  Nothing.  Seriously, here's what you missed: A touching tribute to the late, great director John Hughes (The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, Home Alone, etc.).  A strange salute to horror films.  Ben Stiller presenting in Avatar getup.  Farrah Fawcett's memorial montage snub.  Best Documentary Short producer, Elinor Burkett pulling a Kanye West to director Roger Ross Williams who won for Music by Prudence.  The first African-American, Geoffrey Fletcher (Precious), winning a statue for screenwriting.  The first woman, Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker), taking home the gold for Best Director.  The lowest-grossing film ever to be named Best Picture ($21 million worldwide) knocking the highest-grossing film of all time ($2.6 billion) to the ground.  YAWN.  

Ok, I guess the making of history will go down in the books, but I was still unimpressed.  Apparently, according to Entertainment Weekly magazine, so were the guests of honor themselves: "There were times during the ceremony when even some of the nominees seemed to be struggling to stay focused.  A number of them, especially the ones who had lost, spent the bulk of the evening at the bar in the theatre lobby, watching the show on the monitors. 'We're done,' Matt Damon told EW, laughing."  Well, Matt, I can't say that I blame you.  If I hadn't been foolish enough to give up alcohol for Lent, I would've spent my entire evening at the bar too, just as a way to keep myself entertained.

So why were the ratings up this year?  My guess?  The David and Goliath story of The Hurt Locker v. Avatar was probably why people tuned in to watch the 2010 Oscars.  The same reason they tuned in to watch in 1998 when the biggest blockbuster of the year, Titanic, won Best Picture.  The audience wanted to see history repeat itself.  And they were disappointed.  They paid $15 to put on a pair of 3D glasses and spend 3 hours on the moonscape of Pandora versus seeing yet another Iraq war drama and the special-effects extravaganza didn't even win Best Picture.  What gives??  My guess?  The new voting system for ten nominees.  In the past, when only five Best Picture nominees were slotted, Oscar voters had only one vote for their favorite film.  With ten nominees, voters numbered all contenders in order of preference.  From there, all first place choices were counted and if no picture earned 51% of the votes, the second choice is looked at, then the third, and so on until one film has earned 51%.  In other words, The Hurt Locker may not have been voters' first choice, however, it received 51% of the votes so it was named Best Picture.  I don't think it's pushing the envelope to say that the Academy's rule change was not universally favored by Academy voters or the viewing public.

Oscar producer, Adam Shankman, was quoted as saying, "I think everything just conspired to make a good evening of television."  I whole-heartily disagree with you, Mr. Shankman.  That was quite possibly the dullest, dreariest, mind-numbing, most predictable Academy Awards I have ever seen.  Yes, even more tiresome than the year Lord of the Rings made a clean sweep in 2003.

Congratulations are in order to my favorite wins: Up for Animated Feature and The Cove for Documentary Feature.  And I'll leave you with one final thought:  If I had a nickel for every time I saw a celebrity chewing gum on the red carpet pre-show, I would be a rich woman.  Just saying.

Dear Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Please do better next year.  Yours truly, Amateur Critic.

An Amateur's Oscar Picks

The best thing about turning 17 years old?  I was finally able to see R-rated films without parental supervision.  For most 16 going on 17 year olds, seeing R-rated films legally was like turning 21 and finally being able to drink... legally.  They had been blessed early on with the ability to purchase a ticket for Men in Black II and guiltlessly sneak into Gangs of New York.  I was not blessed with this ability.  Fear kept me from tagging along with the other brave souls of my age.  Not fear of getting caught and kicked out of the cinema but rather the all-consuming fear of total embarrassment when I had to explain to my friends just how my mother would end my life if she found out I saw Happy Gilmore without her knowledge.  And every spring, that fear would turn into unbearable, gut-wrenching pain on Oscar's biggest night... the Academy Awards.  

With the exception of 1992 when Beauty and the Beast was nominated for Best Picture (the first animated film to be nominated in a Best Picture category), most Best Picture nominees were R-rated films.  Since Oscar season is a season I look forward to with breathless anticipation (ok, it's not really a season but it should be... spring, summer, fall, winter, Oscar), not being "of age" to see the nominees I so desperately needed to see in order to properly fill out my ballot nearly killed me... until 2002 when I turned 17.

Since Academy Awards 20o2 when A Beautiful Mind took home the golden statue for Best Picture, I am proud to say that my Oscar predictions exceed my amateur critic status as I have been legally and loyally enjoying (or despising) every nominated film for the past (almost) decade.  

So without further ado, here are my 82nd Annual Academy Awards predictions:

BEST PICTURE

Avatar

*Avatar deserves this win, however, wouldn't it make for an entertaining awards night if a low-budget film like The Hurt Locker took home the Oscar in this category over the highest-grossing film of all time?  Indeed!

BEST ACTOR

Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds)

BEST ACTRESS

Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Mo'Nique (Precious)

BEST DIRECTOR

Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker)

*Even though I think James Cameron should win for his ground-breaking technology, my vote goes to Bigelow who picked up a Director's Guild award for her war drama in January and is the clear favorite to become the first female winner ever in this category!

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Quentin Tarantino (Inglourious Basterds)

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Jason Reitman & Sheldon Turner (Up in the Air)

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

The White Ribbon (Germany)

CINEMATOGRAPHY

The Hurt Locker

VISUAL EFFECTS

Avatar

SOUND MIXING

Avatar

SOUND EDITING

Avatar

*With the exception of last year, Sound Mixing and Sound Editing awards are usually given to the same recipient.

LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM

The New Tenants

*With its Tarantinoesque banter, I think it might have an edge over Kavi, a story about a boy born into slavery in modern India.

MAKEUP

Star Trek

FILM EDITING

The Hurt Locker

DOCUMENTARY SHORT

Music by Prudence

*A story about a disabled singer from Zimbabwe is a clear winner over other nominees such as The Last Truck, about a GM plant in Ohio.

ORIGINAL SONG

"The Weary Kind" (Theme from Crazy Heart), music and lyrics by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett

ORIGINAL SCORE

Avatar, music by James Horner

*An apology to my sister for this one.  Allison, I know Ann Marie Calhoun, the violinist in the Sherlock Holmes score, is one of your artists but I think James Horner will take home the gold for this category since he took home the prize for Titanic, his last James Cameron collaboration.

COSTUME DESIGN

The Young Victoria

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

The Cove

*If The Cove moved Academy members like it moved me (I bought a "Save Japanese Dolphins" bracelet after seeing this doc!), then it's a sure winner.

ANIMATED FEATURE

Up

ANIMATED SHORT

A Matter of Loaf and Death

*Four-time winner Nick Park is a safe bet for his new Wallace & Gromit claymation.

ART DIRECTION

Avatar

Well, there you have it folks!  The Amateur Critic's picks for the 2010 Academy Awards!  So on Sunday, March 7, gather with friends and family, grab that glass of champagne to toast the winners (unless you're a moron who gave up alcohol for Lent like I did!), and tune in to watch Steve Martin & Alec Baldwin co-host the 82nd Annual Academy Awards on ABC at 5:00pm.

Dear John & Valentine's Day: Where did Cupid's Arrow Land?

Our two Valentine's weekend front-runners were Dear John starring Amanda Seyfried and Channing Tatum and Valentine's Day starring every actor in Hollywood.  Seriously, how can you compete?

Dear John, an adaptation of Nicholas Sparks's novel and the first film to overthrow the reigning Avatar, is a tearful story of boy meets girl, boy falls in love with girl (in two weeks might I add!), boy leaves for war, many love letters ensue.  The love letters between John Tyree (Tatum) and Savannah Curtis (Seyfried) carry the plot.  What makes the plot convincing is the undeniable chemistry between Amanda and Channing.  For those who haven't seen Dear John, there's a flush-inducing, steamy nighttime barn scene that makes those two hours worthwhile!  I'm just saying...

Anyway, as an avid Nick Sparks reader, I was quite surprised how closely the film followed the events of his novel.  More often than not, as most of us romance novel readers can attest to, the novel rarely translates to film 100% accurately, resulting in inevitable disappointment.  Disappointment is how I felt after seeing Message in a Bottle and A Walk to Remember (I didn't dare give a dime to see Nights in Rodanthe, Sparks's worst novel, hands down).  I was pleasantly pleased with Dear John until the end.  The happily-ever-after ending may have been what the audience paid to see but definitely not what Sparks wrote, which in my opinion, was the more realistic ending, not to mention the more clever one.  Hollywood took liberties to give audiences what they want: A sappy Valentine's Day movie that ends predictably happy.

Valentine's Day, directed by the ever-so popular Garry Marshall (creator of classic TV show, Happy Days and the director of hit films, Pretty Woman and The Princess Diaries), is a two hour tribute to romance with a handful of intersecting (and at times, surprising!) story lines, some bittersweet and others downright hilarious!  

Recruiting Hollywood's most attractive and attractively humorous cast, probably wasn't too difficult for Garry Marshall seeing as how the majority have previously starred in his movies.  And it was an ingenious idea.  If it hadn't been for the A-list cast, would the box office numbers reflect the millions of love-stricken, shameless women who rushed to the theatre to indulge in a movie aimed at their demographic?  Hard to say.  I mean, let's face it, those who saw the trailer for the film knew not to expect much from the plot except for silly enjoy-ability.  Aha!  That's where we were all fooled!  For those lovelorn and hopeful romantics who were gullible enough to open their pocketbooks for this film, our low expectations gave way to high marks for a movie that made us laugh heartily and love even more deeply (and it didn't hurt that McSteamy Eric Dane appears shirtless or that the Marina del Rey Marriott, my wedding reception venue, had a cameo!)

So it looks like Cupid made his mark on both our Valentine's movies... and our hearts!

An Education on Life, Love, and the Pursuit of Happiness

When I was 16 years old, I was a sophomore at a Catholic high school in Orange County and my primary concern was remembering to look out for cross-walking pedestrians when making a right-hand turn so that I wouldn't fail my driving test (I still forget to look out for pedestrians from time to time - oops!).  My secondary concern was not-so patiently waiting for some immature, albeit cute, high school boy to ask me to my first high school Homecoming dance (which I later regretted as said immature high school boy ditched me the moment we stepped onto the dance floor).  And my last concern was how in the world I was going to pull an all-nighter to finish my religion project (my fault entirely as I was quite the procrastinator back in the day... unfortunately I still am).  None of my concerns included achieving high enough grades to be considered an applicant for Oxford University and they certainly didn't include wondering whether or not my father would allow me to accompany my 35 year old boyfriend on a trip to Paris.  However, that is exactly the two concerns of our heroine, Jenny (captivatingly played by Carey Mulligan) in An Education.

Jenny, a 16 year old schoolgirl in early-1960s suburban London, falls for a charming and mysterious older man (Peter Sarsgaard) and soon finds herself in over her head socially and emotionally.  Jenny is at a crossroad having to choose between her thirst for knowledge and her desire to be cultured.  Her two choices raise this question: What should be valued more? An education from textbooks and classroom lectures or an education from living life properly (in Jenny's case enriching her life with art, poetry, jazz music, traveling, and fine dining)?  When David Goldman (Sarsgaard) introduces her to this new world, Jenny has a decision to make: College or Culture?  

Which would you choose, dear reader, when both options are presented to you on a silver platter?  Would you choose the responsible, long-term investment of a school-bound education or would you choose the short-term gratification of fulfilling your passions?

In hindsight, having a college degree under my belt, I'm proud that I made the decision to seek out a higher education.  On the other hand, I graduated almost three years ago and I'm unemployed so a romantic weekend get-a-way to Paris and sipping champagne and munching caviar at a jazz nightclub doesn't sound so bad.  In fact, if I'm really honest, it sounds downright tasty and there's a good chance I'd give my left arm to be doing that right now!

It's Official!

It looks as though my predictions weren't far off.  For the most part, the actual nominees match my predictions in most cases and were surprising in others.

Here are the actual nominees for the 82nd Annual Academy Awards in the eight major categories (the nominees in italics are ones I did not predict):

BEST PICTURE

Avatar

The Blind Side

District 9

An Education

The Hurt Locker

Inglourious Basterds

Precious

A Serious Man

Up

Up in the Air

BEST ACTOR

Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart)

George Clooney (Up in the Air)

Colin Firth (A Single Man)

Morgan Freeman (Invictus)

Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker)

BEST ACTRESS

Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side)

Helen Mirren (The Last Station)

Carey Mulligan (An Education)

Gabourey Sidibe (Precious)

Meryl Streep (Julie & Julia)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Matt Damon (Invictus)

Woody Harrelson (The Messenger)

Christopher Plummer (The Last Station)

Stanley Tucci (The Lovely Bones)

Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Penelope Cruz (Nine)

Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air)

Maggie Gyllenhaal (Crazy Heart)

Anna Kendrick (Up in the Air)

Mo'Nique (Precious)

BEST DIRECTOR

James Cameron (Avatar)

Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker)

Quentin Tarantino (Inglourious Basterds)

Lee Daniels (Precious)

Jason Reitman (Up in the Air)

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

District 9

An Education

In the Loop

Precious

Up in the Air

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

The Hurt Locker

Inglourious Basterds

The Messenger

A Serious Man

Up

Watch the 82nd Annual Academy Awards live, Sunday March 7, and check back before then to see my predictions for the winners!

Oscar Nom Predictions

Below are my nominee predictions for the top eight categories for the 82nd Annual Academy Awards. 

(My predictions are based on previous Golden Globe, SAG, BFCA, etc. nominations and wins) 

And the Nominees Will Be...

BEST PICTURE

**This year there will be five additional Best Picture slots to fill.

Avatar

The Hurt Locker

Inglourious Basterds

Precious

Up in the Air

(if there were only five slots, my guess is the five films above would be nominated)

An Education

Invictus

The Messenger (or District 9, both films have cult followings)

A Serious Man

Up

BEST ACTOR

Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart)

George Clooney (Up in the Air)

Colin Firth (A Single Man)

Morgan Freeman (Invictus)

Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker) 

*The fifth slot could also go to Viggo Mortensen for The Road

BEST ACTRESS

Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side)

Carey Mulligan (An Education)

Gabourey Sidibe (Precious)

Meryl Streep (Julie & Julia)

Helen Mirren (The Last Station)

*The fifth slot could also go to Emily Blunt for The Young Victoria

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Matt Damon (Invictus)

Woody Harrelson (The Messenger)

Christopher Plummer (The Last Station)

Stanley Tucci (The Lovely Bones)

Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air)

Anna Kendrick (Up in the Air)

Mo'Nique (Precious)

Julianne Moore (A Single Man)

Samantha Morton (The Messenger)

*The fifth slot could also go to Penelope Cruz for Nine

BEST DIRECTOR

James Cameron (Avatar)

Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker)

Clint Eastwood (Invictus)

Jason Reitman (Up in the Air)

Quentin Tarantino (Inglourious Basterds)

*Outside contender is Precious's Lee Daniels

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

An Education (Nick Hornby)

Fantastic Mr. Fox (Wes Anderson & Noah Baumbach)

Precious (Geoffrey Fletcher)

Up in the Air (Jason Reitman & Sheldon Turner)

District 9 (Neill Blomkamp & Terri Tatchell)

*The fifth slot could also go to Nora Ephron for Julie & Julia or Tom Ford for A Single Man

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

The Hurt Locker (Mark Boal)

Inglourious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino)

A Serious Man (Joel & Ethan Coen)

Up (Bob Peterson & Pete Docter)

(500) Days of Summer (Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber)

*The fifth slot could also go to Nancy Meyers for It's Complicated

Watch the Academy's President, Tom Sherak, announce the nominees live on ABC tomorrow, February 2nd, at 5:30AM PST.  I know I will!!

Good luck to all the contenders!!  May the best men (& women!) be nominated!!