Southeastern Film Critics Show "The Social Network" Southern Hospitality

Since 1992, the Southeastern Film Critics Association (SEFCA) seeks to "promote the art of film criticism, the ethics of journalism and the camaraderie of peers among professionals working in the print, radio and online media in the Southeast."  Like practically every other film critics organization, they chose The Social Network as their "Best Picture."

2010 SEFCA Winners:
Best Picture: The Social Network

Best Actor: Colin Firth, The King's Speech

Best Actress: Natalie Portman, Black Swan

Best Supporting Actor: Geoffrey Rush, The King's Speech

Best Supporting Actress: Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit

Best Ensemble: The Social Network

Best Director: David Fincher, The Social Network

Best Original Screenplay: David Seidler, The King's Speech

Best Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network

Best Foreign-Language Film: Mother (South Korea)

Best Documentary: Inside Job

Best Animated Feature: Toy Story 3

Best Cinematography: Roger Deakins, True Grit

Wyatt Award: Winter's Bone (The Wyatt is given in memory of late SEFCA member Gene Wyatt, and is awarded to a film that captures the spirit of the South.)

TOP TEN FILMS of 2010
1. The Social Network
2. The King's Speech
3. Winter's Bone
4. Black Swan
5. Inception
6. True Grit
7. Toy Story 3
8. 127 Hours
9. The Fighter
10. The Kids Are All Right

http://www.sefca.org/

18 and Counting: "The Social Network" Wins with Online Film Critics

Founded in 1997, the Online Film Critics Society describes itself as “the largest, most respected organization for critics whose work appears primarily on the Internet.”  Last week these critics announced their nominees for their end of the year movie awards.  Sunday night, they announced the winners.  I'm not counting, but Entertainment Weekly says that with this "Best Picture" award, The Social Network has won 18 best picture awards.

2010 Online Film Critics Society Award Winners:

Best Picture: The Social Network

Best Director: David Fincher, The Social Network

Best Lead Actor: Colin Firth, The King's Speech

Best Lead Actress: Natalie Portman, Black Swan

Best Supporting Actor: Christian Bale, The Fighter

Best Supporting Actress: Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit

Best Original Screenplay: Christopher Nolan, Inception

Best Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network

Best Cinematography: Roger Deakins, True Grit

Best Editing: Lee Smith, Inception

Best Animated Feature: Toy Story 3

Best Foreign Language Film: Mother

Best Documentary: Exit Through The Gift Shop

http://www.ofcs.org/

Phoenix Film Critics Shout Out "The King's Speech" and "Inception"

The Phoenix Film Critics Society, which I think has been around for 10 years, announced its winners for this year's best films.  This page at the society's website list both winners and nominees.  As you can see, Phoenix critics put a stop (at least temporarily) to The Social Network express and named The King's Speech as "Best Picture."  They also honored Inception with seven awards.

PHOENIX FILM CRITICS SOCIETY WINNERS:

Best Picture: "The King’s Speech"

Best Director: Christopher Nolan, "Inception"

Best Actor in a Leading Role: Colin Firth, "The King’s Speech"

Best Actress in a Leading Role: Natalie Portman, "Black Swan"

Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Christian Bale, "The Fighter"

Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Melissa Leo, "The Fighter"

Best Ensemble Acting: "The Social Network"

Best Screenplay – Original: Christopher Nolan, "Inception"

Best Screenplay – Adaptation: Aaron Sorkin,"The Social Network"

Best Live Action Family Film: "Alice in Wonderland"

The Overlooked Film of the Year: "Never Let Me Go"

Best Animated Film: "Toy Story 3"

Best Foreign Language Film: "Biutiful"

Best Documentary Film: "Restrepo"

Best Original Song: “You Haven’t See the Last of Me” from "Burlesque"

Best Original Score: Hans Zimmer, "Inception"

Best Cinematography: "True Grit"

Best Film Editing: "Inception"

Best Production Design: "Inception"

Best Costume Design: "Alice in Wonderland"

Best Visual Effects: "Inception"

Best Stunts: "Inception"

Breakthrough Performance on Camera: Chloe Moretz, "Kick-Ass"

Breakthrough Performance behind the Camera: Debra Granik, "Winter’s Bone"

Best Performance by a Youth in a Lead or Supporting Role – Male: Kodi Smit-McPhee, "Let Me In"

Best Performance by a Youth in a Lead or Supporting Role – Female: Hailee Steinfeld, "True Grit"

Top Ten Films
"127 Hours"
"Inception"
"Never Let Me Go"
"Shutter Island"
"The Kids Are All Right"
"The King’s Speech"
"The Social Network"
"True Grit"
"Toy Story 3"
"Winter’s Bone"

Black Film Critics Circle "The Social Network," But Spread the Love

There is a new film critics organization, the Black Film Critics Circle.  This is how they describe themselves on their website:

Welcome to the Black Film Critics Circle (BFCC), a new film critic’s organization dedicated to honoring excellence of professionals in the film industry in U.S. and World Cinema.

BFCC is a professional organization of film critics working in all areas of the media to include print publications,broadcast television, radio and on-line outlets.

I'm curious to see how long they last.  Like just about every critics organization, they chose The Social Network as their best picture,while also awarding it "Best Ensemble" and "Best Adapted Screenplay."  They also liked Black Swan with two wins, director and actress (Natalie Portman) and The Fighter, giving supporting acting honors to Christian Bale (actor) and Melissa Leo (actress).

The group also handed out special awards.  One of them is a surprise - a notice for Gareth Edwards, director of science fiction flick, Monsters, "for taking an original and organic approach to cinema that brings the industry back to its roots (visual storytelling) and favors creativity and resourcefulness over contrived storytelling and reliance on big budgets and mindless spectacle. 'Monsters' is a great look at how sci-fi is done right (human stories, not creature-features) by a director who just shot the film and THEN found the story to tell, with good visual effects employed economically to enhance the film - not define it."

THE WINNERS:
Picture: The Social Network

Director: Darren Afronosky, Black Swan

Actor: TIE
Colin Firth (The King's Speech)
James Franco (127 Hours)

Actress: Natalie Portman (Black Swan)

Supporting Actor: Christian Bale (The Fighter)

Supporting Actress: Melissa Leo (The Fighter)

Best Original Screenplay: Christopher Nolan – Inception

Best Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin – The Social Network

Best Documentary: Waiting For Superman

Best Foreign Film: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Best Animated Film: Toy Story 3

Best Ensemble: The Social Network


BFCC Pioneer Award - Haile Gerima
BFCC Rising Star/Best Newcomer Award - Jaden Smith
BFCC Special mention: Gareth Edwards for "Monsters"

TOP 10 Films:
1. The Social Network
2. Inception
3. Black Swan
4. The Fighter

5. TIE:
The Kids Are All Right
The Town

7. Toy Story 3
8. The King's Speech
9. Winter's Bone
10. The Ghost Writer

http://blackfilmcriticscircle.org/

New York Film Critics Circle "The Social Network"

Founded in 1935, the New York Film Critics Circle is, according to their website, “an organization of film reviewers from New York-based publications that exists to honor excellence in U.S. and world cinema.” Members are critics from daily newspapers, weekly newspapers, magazines, and online general-interest publications (that meet certain qualifications). Every year in December, Circle members meet in New York to vote on awards for the year's films. The Circle also puts on an awards presentation, which will be held on Monday, January 10, 2011 to honor 2010 winners.

The Circle was the first film critics organization that I encountered as a budding, young movie lover. The Circle's awards have been predictors of the Oscar nominations. However, The Circle sees it awards “as a principled alternative to the Oscars, honoring esthetic merit in a forum that is immune to commercial and political pressures,” according to their website.

Here's the complete list of the 2010 winners:

Best Film – The Social Network

Best Director – David Fincher (The Social Network)

Best Screenplay – Lisa Cholodenko & Stuart Blumberg (The Kids Are All Right)

Best Actress – Annette Bening (for The Kids Are All Right)

Best Actor – Colin Firth (The King’s Speech)

Best Supporting Actress – Melissa Leo (The Fighter)

Best Supporting Actor – Mark Ruffalo (The Kids Are All Right)

Best Cinematography – Matthew Libatique (The Black Swan)

Best Animated Film – The Illusionist

Best Non-fiction Film – Inside Job

Best Foreign Language Film - Carlos

Best First Feature – Animal Kingdom

Chicago Film Critics Friend "The Social Network"

The Social Network express rolls on, as the Chicago Film Critics Association named the David Fincher film its "Best Picture" in the 22nd edition of these awards.  The film, which chronicles the drama around the development of Facebook, also won the director's award for Fincher and a screenplay prize.  Another film that is dominating its category during the awards season is Toy Story 3 (of which I've only seen the first half hour - more on that later), and it continues with the Chicago critics.

THE WINNERS:


Best Picture: The Social Network

Best Director: David Fincher "The Social Network"

Best Actor: Colin Firth "The King's Speech"

Best Actress: Natalie Portman "Black Swan"

Best Supporting Actor: Christian Bale "The Fighter"

Best Supporting Actress: Hailee Steinfeld "True Grit"

Best Original Screenplay: Christopher Nolan "Inception"

Best Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin "The Social Network"

Best Foreign Language Film: A Prophet

Best Documentary: Exit Through the Gift Shop

Best Animated Feature: Toy Story 3

Best Cinematography: Wally Pfister "Inception"

Best Original Score: Clint Mansell "Black Swan"

Most Promising Performer: Jennifer Lawrence "Winter's Bone"

Most Promising Filmmaker: Derek Cianfrance "Blue Valentine"

Washington D.C. Film Critics Elect "The Social Network"

Didn't even know this group existed.  Just how many film critics groups and associations are there?  Well, as it has been for most of the still young awards season, The Social Network won another best picture honor:

Press release:

The Social Network Has Lots of Friends in D.C.


Colin Firth and Jennifer Lawrence Named Best Actors; The Fighter Sweeps Supporting Actor Categories

Washington, D.C. — The Washington, D.C. Area Film Critics Association (WAFCA) today announced their 2010 winners, awarding The Social Network Best Film, Best Director (David Fincher) and Best Adapted Screenplay (Aaron Sorkin). Colin Firth, who was nominated last year for A Single Man, won Best Actor this year for The King's Speech. Newcomer Jennifer Lawrence, who dazzled early in the year, took home Best Actress for her role in Winter's Bone.

The Fighter swept both Supporting Actor categories with awards given to Christian Bale as a drug addled ex-boxer and Melissa Leo as his controlling mother. Best Acting Ensemble went to The Town, director Ben Affleck's Boston crime drama.

"This was easily the most competitive ballot in the history of our association," said Tim Gordon, WAFCA president. "We have never had so many tight races. It just goes to show how popular several of these categories were with all of our members."

Best Documentary went to British street artist Banksy's Exit Through the Gift Shop, Best Foreign Film was awarded to Alejandro González Iñárritu's Biutiful, and Toy Story 3 pushed past several strong contenders for Best Animated Feature. In other categories, Inception scored big, winning Best Original Screenplay (Christopher Nolan), Best Cinematography (Wally Pfister), Best Art Direction (Guy Hendrix Dyas, Luke Freeborn, Brad Ricker and Dean Wolcott), and Best Score (Hans Zimmer).

The Washington, D.C. Area Film Critics Association is comprised of 39 DC-VA-MD-based film critics from television, radio, print and the Internet. Voting was conducted from December 3-5, 2010.

The 2010 WAFCA Award Winners:

Best Film:
The Social Network

Best Director:
David Fincher (The Social Network)

Best Actor:
Colin Firth (The King's Speech)

Best Actress:
Jennifer Lawrence (Winter's Bone)

Best Supporting Actor:
Christian Bale (The Fighter)

Best Supporting Actress:
Melissa Leo (The Fighter)

Best Acting Ensemble:
The Town

Best Adapted Screenplay:
Aaron Sorkin (The Social Network)

Best Original Screenplay:
Christopher Nolan (Inception)

Best Animated Feature:
Toy Story 3

Best Documentary:
Exit Through the Gift Shop

Best Foreign Language Film:
Biutiful

Best Art Direction:
Guy Hendrix Dyas, Luke Freeborn, Brad Ricker and Dean Wolcott (Inception)

Best Cinematography:Wally Pfister (Inception)

Best Score:
Hans Zimmer (Inception)

http://www.wafca.com/index.htm

L.A. Film Critics Show "The Social Network" and "Carlos" Some Love

The Los Angeles Film Critics Association (LAFCA) is a professional organization of Los Angeles-based, professional film critics working in the Los Angeles print and electronic media. Since 1975, LAFCA members vote on the year's Achievement Awards each December, honoring screen excellence on both sides of the camera.  Yesterday (Sunday), they teased out the names of this year's winners.


36th LAFCA Winners:

Picture: The Social Network
Runner-up: (“Carlos”)

Director: TIE: Olivier Assayas for “Carlos,” and David Fincher for “The Social Network”

Actor: Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
Runner-up: Edgar Ramirez ("Carlos")

Actress: Kim Hye-Ja, Mother
Runner-up: Jennifer Lawrence ("Winter's Bone")

Supporting Actor: Niels Arestrup, A Prophet
Runner-up: Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech

Supporting: Actress Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom
Runner-up: Olivia Williams ("The Ghost Writer")

Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network
Runner-up: David Seidler ("The King’s Speech")

Foreign-Language Film: Carlos
Runner-up: "MOTHER" directed by Joon-ho Bong

Animation: Toy Story 3, directed by Lee Unkrich
Runner-up: "The Illusionist" directed by Sylvain Chomet

Documentary: Last Train Home
Runner-up: "Exit Through the Gift Shop" directed by Banksy

Cinematography: Matthew Libatique, Black Swan
Runner-up: Roger Deakins ("True Grit")

Music: TIE: Alexandre Desplat for “The Ghost Writer”, and Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross for “The Social Network”

Production: Design Guy Hendrix Dyas, Inception
Runner-up: Eve Stewart ("The King’s Speech")

New Generation: Lena Dunham, Tiny Furniture

Career Achievement: Paul Mazursky

The Douglas Edwards Experimental/Independent Film/Video Award:
Jean-Luc Godard, "Film Socialisme"

LEGACY OF CINEMA AWARDS:
Serge Bromberg for "Henri-Georges Clouzot's Inferno," and the F.W. Murnau Foundation and Fernando Pena for the restoration of "Metropolis"

http://www.lafca.net/

Boston Society of Film Critics Love Them Some "The Social Network"

The 18-member Boston Society of Film Critics includes some oft-quoted critics, including Boston Globe writers, Ty Burr and Wesley Morris.  This year, they beat the L.A. Film Critics in announcing their end-of-year prizes.  Thanks to the blog Film Experience for the following information (because the Bostonians' website has not been updated as of this writing):

Picture: The Social Network
Runner up: Toy Story 3

Director: David Fincher for The Social Network
Runner up: Darren Aronofsky for Black Swan

Actress: Natalie Portman in Black Swan
Runner up: Annette Bening in The Kids Are All Right

Actor: Jesse Eisenberg in The Social Network
Runner up: Colin Firth (The King's Speech)

Supporting Actress: Juliette Lewis in Conviction
Runner Up: Melissa Leo (The Fighter)

Supporting Actor: Christian Bale in The Fighter
Runner Up: Andrew Garfield in The Social Network

Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin for The Social Network
Runner up: Nicole Holocener for Please Give

Cinematography: Roger Deakins for True Grit
Runner up: Matthew Libatique for Black Swan

Editing (in memory of Karen Schmeer) Andrew Weisblum for Black Swan
Runner up: Lee Smith for Inception

New Filmmaker (in memory of David Brudnoy) Jeff Malmberg for Marwencol
Runner up: David Michôd for Animal Kingdom

Best Use of Music in a Film Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross for The Social Network
Runner up: Carter Burwell for True Grit

Ensemble Cast: The Fighter
Runner up: The Kids Are All Right

Documentary: Marwencol
Runner up: Inside Job

Foreign Language: Film Mother (South Korea)
Runner up: I Am Love (Italy)

Animated Film: Toy Story 3
Runner up: The Illusionist

http://www.thebsfc.org/

"The King's Speech" Rules the British Independent Film Awards

Created in 1998, The British Independent Film Awards (as they describe it) celebrates merit and achievement in independently funded British filmmaking, honor new film talent, and promote British films and filmmaking to a wider public.

2010 Winners

Best British Independent Film
The King's Speech

Best Director of a British Independent Film
Gareth Edwards for Monsters

The Douglas Hickox Award
Clio Barnard for The Arbor

Best Screenplay
David Seidler for The King's Speech

Best Performance by an Actress in a British Independent Film
Carey Mulligan for Never Let Me Go

Best Performance by an Actor in a British Independent Film
Colin Firth for The King's Speech

Best Supporting Actress
Helena Bonham Carter for The King's Speech

Best Supporting Actor
Geoffrey Rush for The King's Speech

Most Promising Newcomer
Joanne Froggatt for In Our Name

Best Achievement In Production
Monsters

The Raindance Award
Son of Babylon

Best Technical Achievement
Gareth Edwards for Monsters

Best British Documentary
Enemies of the People

Best British Short Film
Baby

Best Foreign Independent Film
A Prophet

The Richard Harris Award
Helena Bonham Carter

The Variety Award
Liam Neeson

The Special Jury Prize
Jenne Casarotto

For a complete list of the nominees: http://bifa.org.uk/nominations/2010

Review: Johansson Shines in "Girl with a Pearl Earring" (Happy B'day, Scarlett Johansson)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 78 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux

Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003)
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: UK and Luxembourg
Running time: 100 minutes (1 hour, 40 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for some sexual content
DIRECTOR: Peter Webber
WRITER: Olivia Hetreed (from a novel by Tracy Chevalier)
PRODUCERS: Andy Paterson and Anand Tucker
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Eduardo Serra (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Kate Evans
COMPOSER: Alexandre Desplat
Academy Award nominee

DRAMA/ROMANCE

Starring: Colin Firth, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Wilkinson, Judy Parfitt, Cillian Murphy, Essie Davis, Joanna Scanlan, and Alakina Mann

Girl with a Pearl Earring is a speculative account of the story behind the Johannes Vermeer painting of the same title. Set in 17th century Holland, the film revolves around Griet (Scarlett Johansson), a peasant girl who is forced to work in the household of the master painter Vermeer (Colin Firth) as a housemaid to his numerous children. Curious about art and painting, Griet draws the attention of the painter who soon teaches her to mix and grind his paint and fetch colors from market. Griet’s beauty also attracts the eye of Vermeer’s lustful patron, Van Ruijven (Tom Wilkinson), and Van Ruijven coerces Vermeer into painting a commission for his private chamber: the subject – Griet. Tensions arise, however, when Vermeer’s wife suspects intimacy between her servant and her husband. Yeah, but just wait until home girl sees that fabulous canvas her man painted with Griet as both muse and subject.

Peter Webber’s film earned Oscar® nominations (Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Best Cinematography, and Best Costume Design), and all of them are well deserved. Girl with a Pearl Earring is one of the most beautiful films I’ve seen since the mid-90’s sumptuous fest, Restoration. Webber, ably assisted by his master film photographer Eduardo Serra, frames many of the film’s shots as if they were individual works of art by Vermeer. In fact, the film is like a flipbook of paintings in Vermeer’s style, so accurately does the film capture the look and feel of the artist famous for his beautiful paintings capturing the daily life of domestics and servants.

Not only is the film good to look at, the film is also simply a superbly made drama. Ms. Johansson continues to prove that she is talented young actress. She has relatively little dialogue in the film, but she carries the movie by giving a performance that must be visually interpreted if one is to see into her character. True movie lovers appreciate when a performer can silently establish mood, character, and story so well. Although she won a Golden Globe nomination, the Academy was not forthcoming with an Oscar® nomination. It’s up to us to honor such a performance as if it had been so acclaimed with awards.

9 of 10
A+

NOTES:
2004 Academy Awards: 3 nominations: “Best Art Direction-Set Decoration” (Ben van Os-art director and Cecile Heideman-set decorator), “Best Cinematography”), Eduardo Serra), and “Best Costume Design” (Dien van Straalen)

2004 BAFTA Awards: 2 wins: “Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film” (Andy Paterson, Anand Tucker, and Peter Webber) and “Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music” (Alexandre Desplat); 8 nominations: “Best Cinematography” (Eduardo Serra), “Best Costume Design” (Dien van Straalen), “Best Make Up/Hair” (Jenny Shircore), “Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role” (Scarlett Johansson), “Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role” (Judy Parfitt), “Best Production Design” (Ben van Os), “Best Screenplay – Adapted” (Olivia Hetreed), “Carl Foreman Award for the Most Promising Newcomer” (Peter Webber-director)

2004 Golden Globes: 2 nominations: “Best Original Score - Motion Picture” (Alexandre Desplat) and “Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama” (Scarlett Johansson)

--------------------

"The King's Speech" Wins Top Award at Toronto

“The King’s Speech” won the audience award (Cadillac People’s Choice Award) at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival. Directed by British film and television director, Tom Hooper, the movie stars Colin Firth as Britain’s reluctant King George VI and Geoffrey Rush as speech therapist Lionel Logue. In the film, Logue helps King George (the father of Queen Elizabeth II) in his struggle to overcome a stammer in his speech.

CADILLAC PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD
"The King's Speech" (directed by Tom Hooper)
Runner-up: "The First Grader" (directed by Justin Chadwick)

CADILLAC PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD FOR DOCUMENTARY
"Force of Nature: The David Suzuki Movie" (directed by Sturla Gunnarsson)
Runner-up: "Nostalgia For The Light" (directed by Patricio Guzmán)

CADILLAC PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD FOR MIDNIGHT MADNESS
"Stake Land" (directed by Jim Mickle)
Runner-up: "Fubar II" (directed by Michael Dowse)

CITY OF TORONTO AND ASTRAL MEDIA’S THE MOVIE NETWORK AWARD FOR BEST CANADIAN FEATURE FILM
"Incendies" (directed by Denis Villeneuve)

SKYY VODKA AWARD FOR BEST CANADIAN FIRST FEATURE FILM
"The High Cost of Living" (directed by Deborah Chow)

PRIZES OF THE INTERNATIONAL CRITICS (FIPRESCI PRIZE) FOR SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS SECTION
"L'Amour Fou" (directed by Pierre Thoretton)

PRIZES OF THE INTERNATIONAL CRITICS" (FIPRESCI PRIZE) FOR DISCOVERY SECTION
"Beautiful Boy" (directed by Shawn Ku)

AWARD FOR BEST CANADIAN SHORT FILM
"Les fleurs de l'âge" (Little Flowers)" (directed by Vincent Biron)

Review: Colin Firth is Strong in "The Advocate" a.k.a. "The Hour of the Pig"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 94 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux


The Hour of the Pig (1993)
Also known as The Advocate
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: France/UK
Running time: 102 minutes
MPAA – R (originally NC-17)
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Leslie Megahey
PRODUCER: David M. Thompson
CINEMATOGRAPHER: John Hooper
EDITOR: Isabelle Dedieu

DRAMA/MYSTERY/HISTORICAL with elements of a thriller

Starring: Colin Firth, Ian Holm, Donald Pleasence, Amina Annabi, Nicol Williamson, Michael Gough, Harriet Walter, Jim Carter, Lysette Anthony, Sophie Dix, and Justin Chadwick

France in the year 1452: Richard Courtois (Colin Firth), a lawyer from Paris, and his law clerk, Mathieu (Jim Carter), move to the small rural village of Abbeville, in the province of Ponthieu, where Courtois will become the public defender. He hopes to find peace in the countryside, but what he finds instead is ignorance, superstition, and fear. He is especially taken aback because some of the clients he must defend are animals (because in Middle Ages France, animals could be tried and executed for murder as the law recognized they could be possessed to do evil).

Courtois must defend a pig accused of murdering a Jewish boy. He tries to settle the case by buying the pig, but the owner, Samira (Amina Annabi), refuses the offer. Samira is an alluring Moor who travels throughout France in a caravan with her people, and she believes that the pig is innocent and shouldn’t be punished. Courtois comes to believe that the Jewish boy’s murder is part of a sinister conspiracy. Still, he is trying to solve a mystery in a town where the denizens view Courtois’ intelligence as if it were as mysterious as the witchcraft they fear so much.

The Hour of the Pig better known as The Advocate to American audiences, is probably one of the strangest coherent movies many film viewers will ever see. The history of filmmaking is full of strange, peculiar, and ultimately confounding films. There are others films that are strange because they contain ideas from the real world, either past or present, that mystify us because they are so alien either to our times and culture. The Advocate is one such film. It’s story takes place in a time in France when the power of the feudal lords was waning, and the economically powerful bourgeoisie were throwing their power behind a centralized authority, the monarchy.

Still, the feudal lord in this film, Seigneur Jehan d’Auferre, the Lord of Abbeville (wonderfully played by the always regal Nicol Williamson), wields a lot of power and also influences both the outcome of both and the lives of the film’s central players. The Seigneur recognizes that the peasants are ignorant and superstitious, but it is best to appease their fear when it comes to religious matters. Into this comes Courtois, who recognizes the law about prosecuting animals, but thinks it to be ridiculous as a practical matter. In his estimation, the local magistrate, Boniface (Michael Gough, who played Bruce Wayne’s butler Alfred in the 1989 film Batman and its three sequels), and the local prosecutor, Pincheon (Donald Pleasence), should not prosecute animals simply because they are supposed to be reasonable and enlightened men who shouldn’t do such a… dumb thing.

Courtois finds himself in the midst of a murder mystery, where the political and religious leaders of Abbeville know more than they let on. They are corrupt not only so they can maintain their power, but also because it allows them to take advantage of the villagers for both their bodies and souls. In a quiet way, this film takes a glance at how superstition and particularly fear dictate how a community lives. The Advocate is fascinating; combine that with a murder mystery and plenty of seduction (the frankness of language, innuendo, and sex will surprise some viewers who expect period dramas to be so refined) and The Advocate is a mystery thriller to rival classic Film-Noir.

Actor Colin Firth is one of the two people who hold this concept together. He plays Richard Courtois with great subtlety for a lead. Although we see this narrative largely through Courtoir’s eyes, Firth is not flashy and doesn’t try to dominate the screen. He doesn’t need to because he knows that the strange world of Middle Ages Abbeville will develop before our eyes with him as the guide, but doesn’t need to show off because of it. We attend him without Firth forcing our attention to Courtois, and Firth rewards us with a wonderful trip into the past with his character as our guide.

The other pillar is writer/director Leslie Megahey, who allows the actors to play with and embody the characters. However, the fact that Megahey created such an engaging screenplay from such an alien time (that feels so real) is the biggest achievement, and his film (whether you know it as The Hour of the Pig or The Advocate) is a fascinating story worth watching.

7 of 10
A-

Saturday, May 06, 2006

"The Hurt Locker" Puts a Hurt on BAFTAs

“The Hurt Locker” sweep British Academy of Film and Television Arts Awards

The ensemble drama about a bomb-disposal unit in Iraq, The Hurt Locker, dominated the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) awards. It won six of the eight categories for which it was nominated including the top prizes: best picture, director and original screenplay. It beat out the favorite, Avatar, in nearly all categories in which both movies went head to head. Avatar, which recently won the top prizes at the Golden Globes, only won two BAFTA awards, for visual effects and production design.

Fish Tank won the award for best British film.

The Hurt Locker’s director, Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win for the BAFTA Award for best director. Ms. Bigelow dedicated her award to "never abandoning the need to find a resolution for peace

Not all the major prizes went back to Hollywood. Colin Firth (A Single Man) beat out Jeff Bridges, the heavy Oscar favorite for Crazy Heart, as best actor. Carey Mulligan won best actress for her role as a young ingénue in the British film, An Education.

Two actors who were expected to win and who are Oscar favorites did indeed win. Mo'Nique won supporting actress for Precious: Based on the Novel “Push” by Sapphire, and Christoph Waltz for supporting actor in Inglourious Basterds.

Kristen Stewart of Twilight and New Moon won the “Orange Rising Star Award,” the only category to be decided by public vote.

Go to The Envelope for a full report.  Go here for a full list of winners.

Review: "Love Actually" is Christmas and "Valentine's Day"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 71 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux

Love Actually (2003)
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA/UK
Running time: 135 minutes
MPAA – R for sexuality, nudity, and language
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Richard Curtis
PRODUCERS: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, and Duncan Kenworthy
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Michael Coulter (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Nick Moore

COMEDY/DRAMA with elements of romance

Starring: Bill Nighy, Gregory Fisher, Colin Firth, Sienna Guillory, Liam Neeson, Thomas Sangster, Emma Thompson, Kris Marshall, Heike Makatsch, Martin Freeman, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Andrew Lincoln, Keira Knightley, Hugh Grant, Nina Sosanya, Martine McCutcheon, Laura Linney, Alan Rickman, Rodrigo Santoro, Declan Donnelly, Lúcia Moniz, Billy Bob Thornton, Rowan Atkinson, and Colin Coull

A father deals with the recent death of his wife by focusing all his attention on his young stepson’s schoolboy crush on an American girl who may soon be leaving for home. A man is deeply smitten by his best friend’s new bride, so he deals with it by acting coldly towards her. An aging rock star attempts to briefly reclaim the spotlight by dueling with a popular boy “band” for the number one spot on the charts with a Christmas song, and he does it by being a vulgar buffoon, much to the chagrin of his manager. This is just a small taste of the delights in Richard Curtis’ Love Actually.

Who would think that the British could make a feel good film as sweet, life affirming, and romantic as anything a big Hollywood studio could? Who would think that that film, Love Actually, would end up being one of the five best films of 2003? This ensemble comedy/drama about eight couples and their love lives in the five weeks before Christmas is an absolute delight.

Although the multitude of movie stars and character actors would comprise a dream team for any ensemble film, the true star of the film is writer/director Richard Curtis. An accomplished writer of British TV (the “Blackadder” series) and film (Four Weddings and a Funeral and the adaptation of the novel for Bridget Jones), Curtis had a ready-made disaster on his hands, as Love Actually starts off a bit slow and there are so many subplots to follow. However, if the viewer is patient, he can watch as Curtis brilliantly and subtly weaves together a film of tremendous power. I was completely taken in by the poignancy, the comedy, and (what I describe as) light-hearted pathos of Love Actually.

Love Actually is so feel-good, but not too sentimental. It’s a love letter to love – love of lovers, spouses, friends, and family. And when it’s done this well, there’s nothing wrong with being sweet. Love Actually makes a bad day good and a good day really fun, and the soundtrack is slammin,’ too.

9 of 10
A+

NOTES:


2004 BAFTA Awards: 1 win for “Best Performance for an Actor in a Supporting Role” (Bill Nighy) and 2 nominations for “Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film” (Richard Curtis, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, and Duncan Kenworthy) and best supporting actress (Emma Thompson)


2004 Golden Globes Awards: 2 nominations for best motion picture-musical or comedy and best screenplay-motion picture

Buy Love Actually (Widescreen Edition)