Box Office Predictions (Dec. 18-20)

The time has finally come.  After twelve years of waiting, James Cameron’s Avatar hits the theaters in standard screens, 3-D presentations, and IMAX.  Reminder: this is the man that brought you The Abyss, Aliens, and Terminator.  Oh, and not to mention a little film called Titanic.  Cameron has a knack for reinventing the wheel and Avatar is no different.

I guess there’s still a question whether or not people are going to see this epic adventure that takes us to another world in Na’vi with blue people.  Nonetheless, I am excited to see this film.

Oh yeah, there’s another film coming out this weekend.  It’s a romantic comedy called Did You Hear About the Morgans? starring Hugh Grant and Sarah Jessica Parker.  I’m not so sure if those two actors can really attract an audience, but both have been known for their romantic comedies and fans of the genre will know that.

Here are our predictions:

My Predictions:

1.  Avatar – $80 million
2.  The Princess and the Frog – $17 million
3.  Did You Meet the Morgans? – $14 million
4.  The Blind Side – $9 million
5.  Invictus – $5 million

Phil’s Predictions:

1.  Avatar – $90 million
2.  Did You Hear About the Morgans? – $20 million
3.  The Princess and the Frog – $13 million
4.  The Blind Side – $8 million
5.  Invictus – $6 million

Sheehan’s Predictions:

1.  Avatar – $50 million
2.  The Princess and the Frog – $20 million
3.  The Blind Side – $12 million
4.  Did You Hear About the Morgans? – $8 million
5.  Invictus – $7 million

Review: The Road (2009)

The Road (2009)
119 minutes
Rated – R
Directed by John Hillcoat
Starring:  Viggo Mortensen, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Charlize Theron

Grade:  B

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Having read the novel written by Cormac McCarthy, I was very interested in seeing the approach Hillcoat took to try and adapt this beautifully haunting adventure about a man and his son as they travel South for the winter in a post-apocalytpic world.

There is no explanation about what happened, nor is it important.  All you know is that the devastation happened years ago.  After the man and his son have been living inside their home for while, they ran out of supplies and realized they couldn’t survive another winter in their house.  So they embark down the road and pray there’s a warmer and friendlier place than where they are now.

There are barely any people left, no animals, no plants, and practically no food.  They wheel a shopping cart of their essentials to survive that include a tarp, blankets, food, a lighter, and a gun.  A combination of ash and snow litters their world.

The state of the living is a brutal one.  Survival of the fittest among the remaining humans result in the strong dominating the weak.  We are shown of the unethical ways these people live, such as cannibalism.  The man tries his best to explain the dangers of these people.  He says they’re the “bad guys.”  His son believes him.

The Road takes us on an exhausting and depressing journey.  The man knows there is little hope for the two of them, but he keeps moving along because of the boy.  He is all that gives the man hope.  When the boy questions why they keep going on, the man says “because we’re carrying the fire.”  Tapping his chest, the boy seems to understand.  This is what keeps the boy going on as well.

Viggo Mortensen is very convincing as the protective father, paranoid of every little sound to keep himself and his son alive.  Kodi Smit-McPhee plays the fearful child very well, along with expressing his innocent and childish thoughts that brings out a warmness to the man’s cold exterior.

From an unfilmable novel, Hillcoat does his best to extract the emotion from McCarthy’s work an onto the screen.  Although it never hits home like the literature did, I couldn’t imagine a movie that looked as much as the book portrayed.  From the falling ash to the bleak sky and the colorless ocean, the film certainly ‘looked’ like it was supposed to.

The Road certainly isn’t an easy film to watch.  There are barely any bright moments during their never-ending path in Hell.  The realism in the movie is honest and truthful.  When everythin in the world is gone, what is there left to cling onto?  For the man, his son and the memories of his wife motivates him enough to keep going.  They still give him a glimmer of hope, because without hope, no one is able to take that next step down the road.

Review: Up in the Air (2009)

Up in the Air (2009)
109 minutes
Rated – R
Directed by Jason Reitman
Starring:  George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick, Jason Bateman

Grade:  A

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In his third feature film as a director, Jason Reitman really hits his stride in the not-too-light, not-too-heavy, Up in the Air.  This movie simply is ‘just right.’

The movie opens up with a number of business employees that have just been let go by their company.  Some are real people and some are actors.  I couldn’t tell the difference.  They were all distraught and on the verge of tears as their world was falling right in front of them.

And that’s when we meet Ryan Bingham (Clooney).  He’s a corporate hit man who informs people that they’ve been let go when managers and executives are too afraid to do so themselves.  This also means that Bingham has to travel around the country… a lot.  We are shown the daily routine of his life as he nonchalantly walks through the airport while others are running.  He checks in with ease and knows all the tricks to save time.  That’s what happens when you spend 322 days on the road a year.

This isn’t a job for most people, but for Bingham this is his ideal situation.  He enjoys being on the move constantly.  He’s comfortable without allowing anyone else close to him.  In addition to his care-free lifestyle, he’s a motivational speaker famous for his “What’s in Your Backpack” speech, where he expresses carrying the minimum amount of baggage possible by avoiding commitment and leaving everything behind while constantly moving forward.  It’s the life he lives and he’s more than content with it.

That is until he meets two women.  First he meets the female version of himself in Alex (Farmiga).  Their frequent flying lifestyle and the exhilaration of a casual relationship keeps them marking their calendars for the next one-night stand.  As Alex puts it, “Just think of me as yourself, but with a vagina.”  This, in all ways, intrigues Bingham further than anyone has before.

The other woman who affects Bingham is a 23-year-old whipper-snapper, Natalie Keener (Kendrick).  Natalie has an idea to cut the costs of air-travel and room expenses by taking everyone off the road and have the firings be done via video conferencing.  Bingham and Natalie’s boss (Bateman) loves the idea.  To get her acquainted with the procedure, Bingham is forced to take Natalie on the road with him to ’show her the ropes.’  The clash between the uptight and professional Natalie with the smooth, ‘go with the flow’ Bingham serves up many laughs along the way.

It’s a splendid showcase of talent in front of and behind the camera throughout the movie.  What is and will make this film an absolute success with critics and the public is how timely and personal the issues and situations are.  From the rough economic times resulting in lay-offs to the inner struggle we have to cure loneliness and to commit to another person… Up in the Air has it all (and remarkably in under two hours).

George Clooney is pitch perfect as Ryan Bingham.  He’s convincing as the loose businessman who goes through a revelation of self-improvement when he allows true feelings to interfere with his preaching.  Vera Farmiga is lovely and playful as Alex.  She reels you in with her smile and then you get lost in her web of excitement.  And last but not least is Anna Kendrick who is just as outstanding as she is hilarious when she opposes Clooney’s every step.  She is his disapproving shadow that argues with all his morals, or lack there of.

There are a lot of plot points that constantly change the tone of the film.  Whether they crash a party, attend a wedding, fire employees, or share personal experiences, the emotional roller-coaster is always fluctuating.  The genius of Reitman is how he combines the elements of intelligence and reality into mainstream films while avoiding sappy Hollywood endings.  That is not easily done.  Expect many more great films from this young director.

Golden Globes Nominations 2010

Ah yes, the beginning of awards season includes the number of critics awards and the sometimes controversial, yet mostly entertaining Golden Globes.  This is not The Academy Awards folks.  This is merely a party that combines movie stars with television stars with dinner and alcohol.  They like to remind you that “anything can happen” during the Golden Globes.

But first, let’s take a look at the nominations:

MOTION PICTURES

Best Picture, Drama:
“Avatar”
“The Hurt Locker”
“Inglourious Basterds”
“Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”
“Up in the Air”

Best Picture, Musical or Comedy:
“(500) Days of Summer”
“The Hangover”
“It’s Complicated”
“Julie & Julia”
“Nine”

Best Lead Actor, Drama:
Jeff Bridges, “Crazy Heart”
George Clooney, “Up in the Air”
Colin Firth, “A Single Man”
Morgan Freeman, “Invictus”
Tobey Maguire, “Brothers”

Best Lead Actress, Drama:
Emily Blunt, “The Young Victoria”
Sandra Bullock, “The Blind Side”
Helen Mirren, “The Last Station”
Carey Mulligan, “An Education”
Gabourey Sidibe, “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”

Best Director:
Kathryn Bigelow, “The Hurt Locker”
James Cameron, “Avatar”
Clint Eastwood, “Invictus”
Jason Reitman, “Up in the Air”
Quentin Tarantino, “Inglourious Basterds”

Best Lead Actor, Musical or Comedy:
Matt Damon, “The Informant!”
Daniel Day-Lewis, “Nine”
Robert Downey Jr., “Sherlock Holmes”
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, “(500) Days of Summer”
Michael Stuhlbarg, “A Serious Man”

Best Lead Actress, Musical or Comedy:
Sandra Bullock, “The Proposal”
Marion Cotillard, “Nine”
Julia Roberts, “Duplicity”
Meryl Streep, “It’s Complicated”
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”
Anna Kendrick, “Up in the Air”
Mo’Nique, “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”
Julianne Moore, “A Single Man”

Best Foreign Language Film:
“Baaria”
“Broken Embraces”
“The Maid (La Nana)”
“A Prophet”
“The White Ribbon”

Best Animated Film:
“Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs”
“Coraline”
“Fantastic Mr. Fox”
“The Princess and the Frog”
“Up”

Best Screenplay:
Neill Blomkamp, “District 9″
Mark Boal, “The Hurt Locker”
Nancy Meyers, “It’s Complicated”
Jason Reitman, “Up in the Air”
Quentin Tarantino, “Inglourious Basterds”

Best Original Score:
Michael Giacchino, “Up”
Marvin Hamlisch, “The Informant!”
James Horner, “Avatar”
Abel Korzeniowski, “A Single Man”
Karen O, Carter Burwell, “Where the Wild Things Are”

Best Original Song:
“Cinema Italiano” (written by Maury Yeston), “Nine”
“I Want to Come Home” (written by Paul McCartney); “Everybody’s Fine”
“I Will See You” (written by James Horner, Simon Franglen, Kuk Harrell);
“Avatar”
“The Weary Kind (Theme from ‘Crazy Heart’)” (written by Ryan Bingham, T Bone Burnett), “Crazy Heart”
“Winter” (written by U2), “Brothers”

TELEVISION:

Best Series, Drama:
“Big Love,” HBO
“Dexter,” Showtime
“House,” Fox
“Mad Men,” AMC
“True Blood,” HBO

Best Actor, Drama:
Simon Baker, “The Mentalist”
Michael C. Hall, “Dexter”
Jon Hamm, “Mad Men”
Hugh Laurie, “House”
Bill Paxton, “Big Love”

Best Actress, Drama:
Glenn Close, “Damages”
January Jones, “Mad Men”
Julianna Margulies, “The Good Wife”
Anna Paquin, “True Blood”
Kyra Sedgwick, “The Closer”

Best Series, Musical or Comedy:
“30 Rock,” NBC
“Entourage,” HBO
“Glee,” Fox
“Modern Family,” ABC
“The Office,” NBC

Best Actor, Musical or Comedy:
Alec Baldwin, “30 Rock”
Steve Carell, “The Office”
David Duchovny, “Californication”
Thomas Jane, “Hung”
Matthew Morrison, “Glee”

Best Actress, Musical or Comedy:
Toni Collette, “United States of Tara”
Courteney Cox, “Cougar Town”
Edie Falco, “Nurse Jackie”
Tina Fey, “30 Rock”
Lea Michele, “Glee”

Best Miniseries or Movie:
“Georgia O’Keeffe,” Lifetime Television
“Grey Gardens,” HBO
“Into the Storm,” HBO
“Little Dorrit,” PBS
“Taking Chance,” HBO

Best Actress, Miniseries or Movie:
Joan Allen, “Georgia O’Keeffe”
Drew Barrymore, “Grey Gardens”
Jessica Lange, “Grey Gardens”
Anna Paquin, “The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler”
Sigourney Weaver, “Prayers for Bobby”

Best Actor, Miniseries or Movie:
Kevin Bacon, “Taking Chance”
Kenneth Branagh, “Wallander: One Step Behind”
Chiwetel Ejiofor, “Endgame”
Brendan Gleeson, “Into the Storm”
Jeremy Irons, “Georgia O’Keeffe”

Best Supporting Actress, Series, Miniseries or Movie:
Jane Adams, “Hung”
Rose Byrne, “Damages”
Jane Lynch, “Glee”
Janet McTeer, “Into the Storm”
Chloe Sevigny, “Big Love”

Best Supporting Actor, Series, Miniseries or Movie:
Michael Emerson, “Lost”
Neil Patrick Harris, “How I Met Your Mother”
William Hurt, “Damages”
John Lithgow, “Dexter”
Jeremy Piven, “Entourage”

Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award: Martin Scorsese.

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Now remember, for what it’s worth these are ONLY the Golden Globes.  This is not the Oscars, nor is it any of the Guild awards.  This is an awards show that rewards glitz and glamor and a merely 92 people that make up the Hollywood Foreign Press Association votes for the winners.  It is no where close to the prestige it is to win an Academy Award that is made up of over 6,000 professionals in the cinema industry.

That being said, here are a few thoughts:

- It’s weird looking at only five Best Picture nominees for Drama.  I know in total the Golden Globes have 10 Best Picture nominees (just like this year’s Oscars), but let’s be honest.  The Hangover will NOT be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars.
- Tobey Maguire (Brothers) over Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker)?  Really?
- Because of its limit, the Best Supporting Acting categories, Best Screenplay, and Best Director are the real prizes of the night.
- There’s really not much to say about the TV categories.  The same shows get nominated year after year.  The new show here is “Glee.”
- This is where I get confused.  The GG rewards movies like The Hangover for its impact in the box office (and nothing else), but the top-rated comedies on CBS almost gets completely shut out.  What’s the deal?

San Francisco Film Critics also vote for ‘The Hurt Locker’

Best Picture:  The Hurt Locker

Best Director:  Kathryn Bigelow

Best Original Screenplay:  Quentin Tarantino (Inglourious Basterds)

Best Adapted Screenplay:  Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach (Fanastic Mr. Fox)

Best Actor:  Colin Firth (A Single Man)

Best Actress:  Meryl Streep (Julie & Julia)

Best Supporting Actor:  Christian McKay (Me and Orson Welles)

Best Supporting Actress:  Mo’Nique (Precious)

Best Animated Feature:  Coraline

Best Foreign Language Film:  You, the Living

Best Documentary:  Anvil! The Story of Anvil

Best Cinematography:  Roger Deakins (A Serious Man)

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Quick Notes:

Once again, ‘The Hurt Locker’ is voted as the best film of 2009 by another critics group.  It is quite outstanding what this little film from the summer is doing all over the nation during awards season.  Let’s see if the film can keeps its momentum up when it counts in early March.

Mo’Nique appears to be sweeping these critics awards for Best Supporting Actress.  Do not be surprised when she holds the golden statue behind the podium during the Academy Awards.

Colin Firth has emerged as Best Actor over George Clooney.  Like I said before (and most people know), this year is an extremely tight race for Best Actor.  I’ll do a separate post about it later.

And finally, Kathryn Bigelow wins Best Director again.  Will this be the year a female director finally wins the award???

NYFCC awards ‘The Hurt Locker’ as Best Picture of 2009

The results are in for the New York Film Critics Circle.  Once again, The Hurt Locker takes the grand prize as Best Picture of the Year.  By no means does this indicate that this is the frontrunner for the Academy Award, in my opinion.  I still have a feeling Avatar and Up in the Air will be very serious contenders, but what can be guaranteed is a nomination for Best Picture and one for Kathryn Bigelow for Best Director.

Here are the rest of the winners:

Best Director:  Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker)

Best Screenplay:  In the Loop

Best Actor:  George Clooney (Up in the Air)

Best Actress:  Meryl Streep (Julie & Julia)

Best Supporting Actor:  Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds)

Best Supporting Actress:  Mo’Nique (Precious)

Best Cinematographer:  Christian Berger (The White Ribbon)

Best Animated Film:  Fantastic Mr. Fox

Best Documentary:  Of Time and The City

Best Foreign Film:  Summer Hours

Best First Film:  Hunger (Steve McQueen)

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Other quick notes:  Fantastic Mr. Fox has been topping Pixar’s Up in these critics awards precursors.  What does that mean?  Well, this certainly hurts the chances for Up to be included as one of the ten Best Picture nominations that a lot of people have been discussing.

Meryl Streep’s win as Best Actress over Carey Mulligan came to a bit surprise for me.  And George Clooney continues to have a very strong case to be the slight front-runner in the extremely talented and packed Best Actor category this year.

Album Review: “Raditude” by Weezer

Weezer – “Raditude”

Raditude?  More like Bad-itude.

- Review by Michael Vivenzio

Grade:  C+

I tried guys, I really did. I tried as much as I did with Maladroit, as much as I did with the Red Album. I even tried as much as I did with Make Believe so you know I tried hard. However, no matter how hard I try, no matter how many chances I give them, I have given up on my former favorite band. Weezer; just tell me why? I just don’t understand how a band can fall so far. The Blue Album is my favorite album of all time, Pinkerton falls somewhere in my top 10 as well. Green Album, eh, it’s alright. But what happened to this band?

Sometime after Rivers mental collapse and Pinkerton’s commercial failure the band shifted gears. At first it was noticeable but it was bearable. “Buddy Holly” was replaced by “Hash-Pipe”, “Say It Ain’t So” was exchanged for “Island in the Sun”, “Holiday” for “Crab”. I was fine with that; you can’t expect greatness from a band every album but it was a worthy effort. Then came “Beverly Hills” and video’s with puppets and “Weeze” and fans from their “Tired of Sex” days were left confused, some even a little hurt. Honestly if it’s a joke, if these last four albums have just been a prank, a horrible sadistic way to get back at their fans for not accepting Pinkerton then i’ll accept it. Weezer deliberately making bad music now and depriving their fans for not supporting them when they put out their most personal album in some crazy way makes sense to me. A collaboration with Lil’ Wayne doesn’t.

Enough bashing Weezer, the reason you read these reviews is cause you want to know what the reviewer thinks of the album right? I thought it was okay. Take Weezer’s name off the album and i’ll even say I kind of liked it. It’s really catchy, the melodies get stuck in your head, it’s simple pop music. It’s just not a Weezer album. The first song on the album is its strong point. “If You’re Wondering If I Want You To (I Want You To)” is simple, it has a really catchy chorus, the lyrics aren’t too absurd, and it will get stuck in your head and you’ll be humming it for hours. It is probably their strongest single in years.

After the first track it starts to go down-hill. “I’m Your Daddy” features those ‘great’ Weezer lyric’s you’ve grown to expect from the band in recent years such as “I’d like to give you a demonstration of what it is I do, I’ll take you out to dinner at Palermo’s we’ll split a cheese fondu”. Wow, what a guy! “The Girl Got Hot” isn’t pulling any punches with the title, it’s about an ugly girl who changed her look and now she’s hot. Note to Weezer: Before writing your next album make sure you remove all copies of “She’s All That” from your studio to avoid writing another song like this.

“Tripping Down the Freeway” is pretty good. Not great Weezer but definitely Green Album worthy, I’ll take it. “Love is the Answer” – I have no words for this song, only letters. WTF? “Let it All Hang Out” again is alright, I can do without the product placement and the Jay-Z references (Nothing against you Hov, you da shit) but aside from that it’s a pretty good pop song. “In the Mall” is my guilty pleasure on this album; the song is completely ridiculous but it still rocks. I’d be lying through my teeth if I didn’t admit that the instant that guitar starts up on this song I don’t get a little pumped up.

“Put Me Back Together” is one of the better songs on the album but I can’t tell if I feel that way because I think the song is genuinely good or because it’s the song that forces “Can’t Stop Partying” to end. But it makes me realize the thing about the “new” Weezer that I don’t like. Weezer is meant to be a sad band; anyone who has ever listened to “Butterfly” will agree with that. All of Pinkerton and even some of the songs on Blue are pretty depressing. More importantly they weren’t trying to come off as something they weren’t, they were just Weezer songs. I feel like they are just trying too hard to reinvent themselves as a “cool” poppy party band when they were already in my opinion a cool poppy party band. Stop singing songs about Patron and taking girls on dates to Best Buy, I liked you a lot more when you sang about Pink Triangles and forbidden love affairs with underage Japanese girls. Get back to your roots.

Recommended listening:
Ozma – Rock and Roll Part Three. It’s the third best album Weezer ever wrote…they just didn’t write it. If you are yearning for the past as much as I am this album will get you through the day.

Box Office Results: 2-D animation still sells with ‘Princess and the Frog’

Studio Estimates for Dec. 11-13:

1.  The Princess and the Frog – $25 million
2.  The Blind Side – $15.5 million
3.  Invictus – $9.1 million
4.  New Moon – $8 million
5.  A Christmas Carol – $6.9 million

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Disney took advantage of a relatively weak box office showing this weekend as The Princess and the Frog topped the weekend grossing $25 million.  It’s not the grand box office opening that other animated features received, but as a traditional 2-D animation in December, expect this film to rely on lasting power to up its total gross rather than the first weekend explosion many bigger blockbusters go through.

As we find ourselves in the middle of awards season, Sandra Bullock and The Blind Side are continuing its impressive run, grossing $15.5 million this weekend with Oscar buzz for Bullock stronger than ever (she was on the cover of EW).  I still haven’t seen the film yet, but I cannot completely buy into the idea of The Blind Side and Sandra Bullock being serious contenders for the Academy Awards.  If they keep this momentum up though, it’ll be pretty hard to ignore their accomplishments.

Speaking of awards season, veterans Clint Eastwood and Morgan Freeman and their film Invictus landed the third spot in the Top 5 with $9.1 million this weekend.  Also starring Matt Damon, this fairly strong result just shows how these all-stars can pull their weight in December. 

Rounding out the Top 5 was New Moon with $8 million and A Christmas Carol with $6.9 million. 

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As for our predictions, both Sheehan and I were able to correctly predict four of the Top 5.  We both included Brothers in the fifth spot, but the drama only grossed $5 million.  The two of us did fairly well with our predictions, but I edged him out with my gross estimates. 

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Check back for our new predictions on Friday when two new releases hit the theaters nationwide.  First, the romantic comedy Did You Hear About the Morgans? starring Hugh Grant and Sarah Jessica Parker.  And then the much anticipated sci-fi film, Avatar, that has been said will transcend the 3-D technology for films.

LA Critics choose ‘The Hurt Locker’ as Best Picture

The Los Angeles Film Critics Association announced their awards.  The top honor for Best Picture went to the war/drama, The Hurt Locker.  Runner-up was the crowd and critic favorite Up in the Air.

If The Hurt Locker continues to flex their muscle during the precursors, then it’s almost a lock that it’ll receive a Best Picture nomination.  In my opinion, I feel it will receive a nomination but there is still a lot of time from now and the revealing of the nominations.

The rest of the winners are below:

Best Actor:  Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart)
Runner-up:  Colin Firth (A Single Man)

Best Actress:  Yolande Moreau (Seraphine)
Runner-up:  Carey Mulligan (An Education)

New Generation Award:  Neill Blomkamp (District 9)

Best Supporting Actor:  Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds)
Runner-up:  Peter Capeldi (In the Loop)

Best Supporting Actress:  Mo’Nique (Precious)
Runner-up:  Anna Kendrick (Up in the Air)

Best Director:  Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker)
Runner-up:  Michael Haneke (The White Ribbon)

Best Screenplay:  Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner (Up in the Air)
Runner-up:  In the Loop

Best Cinematography:  Christian Berger (The White Ribbon)
Runner-up:  Barry Ackroyd (The Hurt Locker)

Best Foreign Language Film:  Summer Hours
Runner-up:  The White Ribbon

Best Animated Film:  Fantastic Mr. Fox
Runner-up:  Up

Best Score:  T-Bone Burnett and Stephen Bruton (Crazy Heart)
Runner-up:  Alexandrew Desplat (Fantastic Mr. Fox)

Best Production Design:  Philip Ivey (District 9)
Runner-up:  Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg (Avatar)

AFI announces their Top Ten Films of 2009

The American Film Institute announced its top ten films of the year.  The films include:

- A Serious Man
- A Single Man
- Coraline
- The Hangover
- The Hurt Locker
- The Messanger
- Precious
- Sugar
- Up
- Up in the Air

To me, I was surprised that such an unknown film like Sugar made AFI’s list.  Also, the inclusion of The Hangover really shocked me.  To think that the film institute picked The Hangover over other films like Invictus, Avatar, 500 Days of Summer, Inglourious Basterds, etc. is very mind-boggling.

What does this mean for the Academy Awards Best Picture race?  Probably not much… but as we near the voting process, it’s hard to imagine that there won’t be a few head-scratchers with ten nominations this year.  All I have to say is that I really hope The Hangover doesn’t get a Best Picture nomination.