The AMC Best Picture Showcase finished in spectacular fashion last night. The two-day event (in the Detroit market) was capped off with the two front-runners for Best Picture, while the rest of the day was filled with films that seemed to only get better upon repeat viewings.
I'm happy to report that the overall quality of the prints used this week was far better than last. There were some occasional color fluctuations, and Inception went wonky for a few minutes when the projector seemed to display the bottom half of the picture on the top of the screen and vice versa, but it was quickly remedied.
I'm also happy to say there was a much larger, much more mature crowd in attendance, with none of the obnoxious inappropriate laughing or drinking that occurred last week.
Things kicked off right at 11 once again with Winter's Bone, an emotionally taxing tale about a 17-year-old tasked with taking care of her family in the Ozarks. Her mother is nearly catatonic, and her father, a meth cooker, is on the run from the law. In order to post bail, he signed away his house and land, and if he doesn't show up for his court date, the family gets thrown out.
Winter's Bone is a bleak movie, with dreary, shady, and sometimes frightening characters. Though it's set in present-day, it almost feels like another time and place. Where civilized society aims to be courteous, particularly to women, this self-contained world of drugs and relative poverty solves its problems with violence, and it doesn't matter who they hurt. Several scenes are difficult to watch, not because of any excessive gore, but because the very nature of the acts being committed. Through it all, Jennifer Lawrence keeps her chin high and never backs down in her outstanding performance, but as good as the overall film was, it never struck me as being in the same class as most of the other nominees.
Second in line was Black Swan. Directed by Darren Aronofsky, whose amazing The Wrestler was also a Best Picture nominee, and starring Natalie Portman in a role that is almost sure to win her a much-deserved Oscar, Black Swan is a subtly disturbing, psychologically complex film that was enjoyable the first time around, but exceptional the second.
Portman plays ballet dancer Nina Sayers who has just been cast as the Swan Queen in a new production of Swan Lake by her stoic, temperamental director, Thomas (pronounced "Toe-MAH", and played note-perfect by Vincent Cassel). Nina is dedicated to perfection, but repressed and unable to handle the mounting pressure of everyone expectations, including her overbearing mother who treats her like a child and lives vicariously through her daughter. As she goes deeper and deeper into the production, trying to find the center of the production's evil twin, the black swan Odile, Nina becomes more and more unstable.
I call Black Swan "subtly disturbing" because there are numerous visual tricks in the film that you may not even be sure you saw. The expression of a painting shifts, a reflection in a mirror lags a half-second behind the real person in front of it, Nina's face appears on strangers she meets, and all sorts of other unsettling things show Nina's reality slipping away from her. Aronofsky's direction is nothing short of brilliant, with sweeping camera motions to simulate Nina "flying" during her dance routine.
Even the now legendary masturbation scene, the reason I'm sure a lot of guys consented to see the movie with their girlfriends in the first place, has a deeper meaning as Nina discovers her mother sleeping only a few feet away - as though she can never escape her watchful presence, become an adult, and just let loose. Black Swan was a film I didn't think should have had any legitimate chance to win Best Picture until yesterday afternoon.
Up next was the two and a half hour marathon that is Inception. Ironically, though I saw the film on the day of its original release and loved it, this was the film I was looking least forward to. Much like Black Swan, however, Inception also gets better upon repeat viewings.
Christopher Nolan's science-fiction action-thriller is so dense, watching it again helps make sense of the story, and where everything is taking place. It speaks to the strength of the story that when it was over, I was still discussing the ending, and discovering new theories that may prove or disprove the reality of it all.
It's nearly impossible to do a synopsis of a picture this long and this layered, but the basic premise is that Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his team are tasked with implanting an idea into the head of a young businessman who has just inherited his father's empire. For Cobb, this last, nearly impossible task is a way back home to see his family after being forced to leave America to escape a murder charge.
As you might expect, things don't go smoothly or easily for Cobb's team. Inception has a lot of big action setpieces, and a lot of the type of dialogue you'd expect in a Christopher Nolan film where losing focus for one second can be the difference between understanding and not understanding the picture. It's immaculately shot, the visuals are stunning, and Hans Zimmer's score is remarkable, but once again I felt like it was only nominated because they needed a tenth film on the ballot. As much as I love Inception, and Nolan's work as a whole, it just never felt like a film of Best Picture caliber.
After a delicious dinner break at Buffalo Wild Wings, we returned for my personal favorite film of the year, The Social Network. Visionary director David Fincher has long been one of my favorites, and I am a stalwart fan who feels he has yet to make a bad picture. The Social Network, however, isn't just good - it's miraculous. With Aaron Sorkin's fantastically verbose, sharp-witted script, The Social Network is a true American classic - a film that captures a space and time in our generation, tells an interesting and twisty story, as well as being a phenomenal character study.
Jesse Eisenberg's performance as Facebook founder Mark Zuckerburg is enthralling, and far cry from the lighthearted, goofy kid he has played in most of his other films. However, it's an absolute crime that neither Andrew Garfield or Justin Timberlake were nominated for Best Supporting Actor for their respective roles as Facebook co-founder and former CFO Eduardo Saverin and Napster founder Shawn Parker. Timberlake is especially surprising, playing the slick, fast-talking, seductive Parker, who manages to ensnare Zuckerburg with his glitzy, glamorous lifestyle. Zuckerburg wants to be that guy that everybody around town knows, and it's easy to see why he lets Parker drive a wedge between him and Saverin.
Fincher's direction is as perfect as it's ever been, relying on his usual dark and somewhat gritty look, and the cinematography by Jeff Cronenweth (son of the legendary Jordan) is astoundingly beautiful at times, particularly during night scenes and the opening credit sequence.
What's most impressive about the film is that it works on multiple levels, and is never once boring or drags. Sorkin scripts are always heavy on dialogue, but always enthralling, and this one is no different. The idea of a movie based on the creation of Facebook may not sound appealing, but at its heart The Social Network isn't really about Facebook so much as it is the site's creator. Some have criticized the film for over-dramatizing certain events, and for a few instances of complete fiction, but let's not forget that this is a movie - not a documentary - and its first aim is to entertain.
The Social Network is a movie about a man desperate for something more, desperate for validation. He doesn't want to be another face in the crowd, and his determination isn't driven by greed. The irony that a man who created the world's most popular social networking site is socially inept himself, and he doesn't seem to care who he steps on to achieve his goal.
Even after five viewings, including two in less than 24 hours, The Social Network still keeps me riveted to the screen, picking apart every line of dialogue, every facial expression, and every piece of scenery. It's just that good.
So good, in fact, that I was sure the much-ballyhooed King's Speech would be a letdown. Nothing could be further from the truth, however, as both Geoffrey Rush and Colin Firth give marvelous performances as speech therapist Lionel Logue and Prince Albert, the Duke of York, respectively.
Set mainly in the 1930s with World War II approaching, Albert - who later becomes King George VI - searches for a doctor who can help him overcome his embarrassing stammer. He meets Logue through his wife, whose unorthodox methods seem silly at first, but eventually take hold and help build a friendship.
Much has been made of Firth's performance - his explosive bouts of anger, his realistic stammer, and his excellent dramatic scenes - but Rush stole the picture for me. His sense of humor is disarming and designed to make his patients feel at ease, and he eventually wins over the stoic Bertie (Prince Albert's nickname).
Once again, the cinematography is beautiful - from locations around the country, to Rush's simple yet attractive home - but the score by Alexandre Desplat was the real standout. Gorgeous orchestral arrangements ranging from whimsical to introspective, and a few traditional English and classical pieces thrown in for good measure, fill the film and sell the emotion of every scene, whether they're supposed to be funny or sad.
By the time it was over, I found myself questioning what my favorite picture truly was. The King's Speech deserves every accolade it has received, but The Social Network is still ultimately my favorite - though I can't say I'll be disappointed if either of them, or Black Swan wins the coveted golden statue.
After twelve hours in a theater, I was still ready for me, but alas the event was over. Minor quibbles aside, it was an incredible experience and I definitely plan on making it a yearly tradition.
