Oscar history was made last night

The moment I had been waiting for for many, many years, finally arrived last night when Colin Firth announced that Meryl Streep had won her third Oscar.

After 29 years of being nominated and passed over simply because she had already won twice, Meryl was recognized for her unparalleled craft once again.

Here’s the memorable video:

Meryl looked genuinely shocked when she heard her name called, and both Glenn Close and Michelle Williams looked honestly happy that she had finally won her third Oscar.  I'm sure Viola Davis must have been very disappointed, but hopefully she'll get her golden guy soon enough.

Sandra Bullock jumped to her feet right away, as did the entire audience, and the cheers were so loud it was almost embarrassing.

I realized today that the last time I had been this happy for an Oscar result was when The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King swept the ceremony in 2004 with 11 wins, tying the record for most wins.  I loved that movie and the entire trilogy so much, a full sweep was more than I could have hoped for and made up for the Academy overlooking the previous two chapters.  I was overjoyed.

And now I'm so overjoyed for Meryl Streep, words can hardly explain.  Congratulations a million times over and thank you for the beautiful emotions you always make us feel whenever you grace us with your unmatchable gift.

BRAVA!!!

The 84th Annual Academy Awards – The Winners

The most important award ceremony in the world of cinema ended about an hour ago and I’m still on an incredible, indelible, and unforgettable high following my biggest idol’s third Oscar win.  Meryl Streep has finally joined that rarified club of 3 Oscar winners that until today included only Ingrid Bergman, Jack Nicholson, and Walter Brennan (Katherine Hepburn holds the record for most acting Oscar wins with four).

Meryl Streep won her first Oscar in 1979 for Kramer vs. Kramer (Supporting Actress) and her second in 1982 for Sophie’s Choice (Lead Actress).  Her third Oscar for The Iron Lady (Lead Actress) comes 29 years after her last win, with a career during which our greatest living actress accrued a record 17 Oscar nominations!!

Her win tonight was long overdue and greatly deserved (from what I’ve heard, since I still have to see the movie).  I have to admit that when Colin Firth announced her as the winner I was so overjoyed that I started crying.  And I was still crying countless tears of happiness well after the ceremony had ended.

The ceremony itself was simple and flowing.  Billy Crystal, back in the host seat for the ninth time after Eddie Murphy dropped out, did a good job, but wasn’t as brilliant as he’s been in years past.  His jokes were good but too few.  His introductory clip, in which he replayed scenes from many of the nominated movies of the night, was just cute.  And his medley of songs for the nine Best Picture nominees was, again, just cute.

What I was a little disappointed by was the impression I got that he’s not embracing his age, like many other men in Hollywood unfortunately do.  Likely, that contributed to him feeling a little stiff.

The presenters, on the other hand, did a better job than usual at appearing interesting, funny, and charming, especially Gwyneth Paltrow & Robert Downey, Jr. and Ben Stiller & Emma Stone, whose skits felt fresh, different, and cool.

Beauty was, as usual, front and center, with Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Lopez (it pains me to say this), and Cameron Diaz looking more stunning than anyone.  Lopez especially looked more gorgeous than ever in a gown that made her look like a Greek goddess.

Natalie Portman, Octavia Spencer, and Rooney Mara also looked particularly good, and even Meryl Streep, who sometimes makes poor sartorial choices, looked great.

As for the men, Tom Cruise was in great shape, but Tom Hanks looked better than he has in years.  The beefcake award however goes to Bradley Cooper, who would look gorgeous even wearing layers of paper mache.

The musical number by Cirque du Soleil was great, I liked the movies montage, and I found the skit about the screeners for The Wizard of Oz (Which character do you not like and would want to see gone?  Dorothy – LOL!!) very funny.

I also loved the Billy Crystal/Melissa McCarthy skit and the brief interviews with actors and actresses that were interspersed throughout.  Finally, I appreciated the world map put up during the Foreign Oscar presentation, which gave a visual clue of where those unknown movies were coming from.

The personalized introductions of each lead actor and actress was also a nice touch, while I wasn’t crazy about the In Memoriam montage.  Usually it’s much more celebratory, with clips from an artist’s work, rather than still images with a name and dates.  In years prior, I found this rite of passage a lot more touching than this year.

The best acceptance speeches were given by Octavia Spencer (sweet and adorable), Christopher Plummer (funny and gracious), and Meryl Streep, who sounded genuinely grateful and surprised.

The sour notes of the night would actually have to be Viola Davis’ outfit and hairdo.  What was she thinking??  After showing up with gorgeous gowns and perfect hair and makeup for the Golden Globes and the SAGs, she decided to come to the Oscars with bleached hair and a dress that looked like it was made with curtain material.  Just awful.

And here are the night’s winners with a brief comment:

Best Motion Picture of the Year

The Artist (2011): Thomas Langmann

So glad that this “foreign” movie about old Hollywood won the night’s biggest prize.  It was well deserved and becomes only the second black and white movie to ever win Best Picture.

The Descendants (2011): Jim Burke, Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (2011): Scott Rudin
The Help (2011): Brunson Green, Chris Columbus, Michael Barnathan
Hugo (2011/II): Graham King, Martin Scorsese
Midnight in Paris (2011): Letty Aronson, Stephen Tenenbaum
Moneyball (2011): Michael De Luca, Rachael Horovitz, Brad Pitt
The Tree of Life (2011): Nominees to be determined
War Horse (2011): Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role

Jean Dujardin for The Artist (2011)

So happy for Dujardin.  He deserved this award, while Clooney will get plenty more chances.  What a handsome man!!

Demián Bichir for A Better Life (2011)
George Clooney for The Descendants (2011)
Gary Oldman for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)
Brad Pitt for Moneyball (2011)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role

Meryl Streep for The Iron Lady (2011)

No words can really express my happiness for Meryl’s win in this category.  BRAVA!!!!!

Glenn Close for Albert Nobbs (2011)
Viola Davis for The Help (2011)
Rooney Mara for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
Michelle Williams for My Week with Marilyn (2011)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role

Christopher Plummer for Beginners (2010)

So glad he won.

Kenneth Branagh for My Week with Marilyn (2011)
Jonah Hill for Moneyball (2011)
Nick Nolte for Warrior (2011)
Max von Sydow for Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (2011)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role

Octavia Spencer for The Help (2011)

Very glad she won, even though Bejo, Chastain, and McCarthy were all equally deserving.  She was so sweet onstage!!

Bérénice Bejo for The Artist (2011)
Jessica Chastain for The Help (2011)
Melissa McCarthy for Bridesmaids (2011)
Janet McTeer for Albert Nobbs (2011)

Best Achievement in Directing

Michel Hazanavicius for The Artist (2011)

So well deserved after the chances the guy took to make this movie.

Woody Allen for Midnight in Paris (2011)
Terrence Malick for The Tree of Life (2011)
Alexander Payne for The Descendants (2011)
Martin Scorsese for Hugo (2011/II)

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen

Midnight in Paris (2011): Woody Allen

Very happy that at least this beautiful movie got one of the night’s biggest awards.

The Artist (2011): Michel Hazanavicius
Bridesmaids (2011): Kristen Wiig, Annie Mumolo
Margin Call (2011): J.C. Chandor
A Separation (2011): Asghar Farhadi

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published

The Descendants (2011): Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash

Same as above.

Hugo (2011/II): John Logan
The Ides of March (2011): George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon
Moneyball (2011): Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin, Stan Chervin
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011): Bridget O'Connor, Peter Straughan

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year

Rango (2011)

Can’t wait to see this movie!!

A Cat in Paris (2010)
Chico & Rita (2010)
Kung Fu Panda 2 (2011)
Puss in Boots (2011)

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year

A Separation (2011): Asghar Farhadi(Iran)

Bullhead (2011): Michael R. Roskam(Belgium)
Footnote (2011): Joseph Cedar(Israel)
In Darkness (2011): Agnieszka Holland(Poland)
Monsieur Lazhar (2011): Philippe Falardeau(Canada)

Best Achievement in Cinematography

Hugo (2011/II): Robert Richardson

Can’t wait to see this movie!!  A little shocked that The Tree of Life didn’t even win this award.  Although, given how little I’ve liked the movie, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that it didn’t have a lot of support in the Academy’s voting body.

The Artist (2011): Guillaume Schiffman
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011): Jeff Cronenweth
The Tree of Life (2011): Emmanuel Lubezki
War Horse (2011): Janusz Kaminski

Best Achievement in Editing

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011): Angus Wall, Kirk Baxter

Very well deserved, even if it’s an upset.

The Artist (2011): Anne-Sophie Bion, Michel Hazanavicius
The Descendants (2011): Kevin Tent
Hugo (2011/II): Thelma Schoonmaker
Moneyball (2011): Christopher Tellefsen

Best Achievement in Art Direction

Hugo (2011/II): Dante Ferretti, Francesca Lo Schiavo

The Artist (2011): Laurence Bennett, Gregory S. Hooper
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011): Stuart Craig, Stephenie McMillan
Midnight in Paris (2011): Anne Seibel, Hélène Dubreuil
War Horse (2011): Rick Carter, Lee Sandales

Best Achievement in Costume Design

The Artist (2011): Mark Bridges

Anonymous (2011/I): Lisy Christl
Hugo (2011/II): Sandy Powell
Jane Eyre (2011): Michael O'Connor
W.E. (2011): Arianne Phillips

Best Achievement in Makeup

The Iron Lady (2011)

Can’t wait to see this movie!!

Albert Nobbs (2011)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score

The Artist (2011): Ludovic Bource

The Adventures of Tintin (2011): John Williams
Hugo (2011/II): Howard Shore
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011): Alberto Iglesias
War Horse (2011): John Williams

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song

The Muppets (2011): Bret McKenzie("Man or Muppet")

Bret McKenzie is so cute.  Too bad they didn’t have them perform their songs (even in a year when there were only TWO nominees…)

Rio (2011): Sergio Mendes, Carlinhos Brown, Siedah Garrett("Real in Rio")

Best Achievement in Sound Mixing

Hugo (2011/II)

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
Moneyball (2011)
Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
War Horse (2011)

Best Achievement in Sound Editing

Hugo (2011/II)

Drive (2011)
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
War Horse (2011)

Best Achievement in Visual Effects

Hugo (2011/II)

From the clips I’ve seen, Hugo’s visual effects are amazing, but I would have liked to have seen rewarded the excellent work done in Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)
Real Steel (2011)
Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)
Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)

Best Documentary, Features

Undefeated (2011)

Hell and Back Again (2011)
If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front (2011)
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory (2011)
Pina (2011)

Best Documentary, Short Subjects

Saving Face (2011/II)

The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement (2011)
God Is the Bigger Elvis
Incident in New Baghdad (2011)
The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom (2011)

Best Short Film, Animated

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore (2011): William Joyce, Brandon Oldenburg

Dimanche (2011): Patrick Doyon
La Luna (2011): Enrico Casarosa
A Morning Stroll (2011): Grant Orchard, Sue Goffe
Wild Life (2011): Amanda Forbis, Wendy Tilby

Best Short Film, Live Action

The Shore: Terry George

Pentecost (2011): Peter McDonald
Raju (2011): Max Zähle, Stefan Gieren
Time Freak (2011): Andrew Bowler, Gigi Causey
Tuba Atlantic (2010): Hallvar Witzø

Overall, I got 19 right and 5 wrong, including Best Actress, Cinematography, and Editing that were real upsets of “sure” winners, and Visual Effects, which were sort of certainly going to go to Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

In conclusion, once again I can’t say that I’ve ever been happier to be wrong than when Meryl Streep won her THIRD Oscar.  She was radiant and the night belongs to her.

Goodnight, and see you next year Oscar!!

The 84th Annual Academy Awards – My bets

It’s crunch time.  In less than 24 hours we’ll know all the winners from last years’ crop of movies, performers, and technicians.  Here are my picks, who will win and who should win -- if I feel strongly towards a nominee.

Best Motion Picture of the Year

Will and should win: The Artist (2011): Thomas Langmann
I haven’t seen Hugo, War Horse, and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.  The Descendants and Midnight in Paris are both excellent movies, but the one that truly stands out for countless reasons is The Artist and it will justly be rewarded.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role

Will and should win: Jean Dujardin for The Artist (2011)
Dujardin really does deserve the gold here for the wondrous performance he turned in and because he’s not American and the Academy rarely awards foreign stars, so it would be nice overall.  Clooney did turn in a great performance, but if Dujardin weren’t going to win, I’d rather see Pitt be called onstage, since he’s a really good actor, did a great job not only in Moneyball but also in The Tree of Life, and he’s rarely offered the type of material that Hollywood rewards with Oscar gold.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role

Will win: Viola Davis for The Help (2011)
Should win: Meryl Streep for The Iron Lady (2011)
Unfortunately, Davis seems poised to take home her first Oscar, and I say that even though I think her win is totally deserved.  I’ll be very happy for her and very sad for Streep, who once again won’t win, even though she deserves it, simply because the movie she was cast in wasn’t as strong as her performance.  When will this lady, the best living performer of either gender, join the rarified club of triple acting Oscar winners?

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role

Will and should win: Christopher Plummer for Beginners (2010)
Plummer deserves this because he’s a great actor, because he never won an Oscar, and because he was great in Beginners.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role

Will win: Octavia Spencer for The Help (2011)
Should win: Melissa McCarthy for Bridesmaids (2011)
Spencer was great in The Help and will certainly win this since she’s been dominating the entire awards circuit but McCarthy was phenomenal in Bridesmaids and I would love to see her win.  Also, Jessica Chastain, who doesn’t stand a chance, gave us several memorable performances last year (The Help, The Tree of Life, The Debt among them) and would totally deserve some gold to take home.  But Spencer is very deserving as well.

Best Achievement in Directing

Will and should win: Michel Hazanavicius for The Artist (2011)
Totally deserved.  The chances he took directing and writing The Artist were huge and he should be rewarded.

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen

Will and should win: Midnight in Paris (2011): Woody Allen
Totally deserved.

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published

Will and should win: The Descendants (2011): Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash
Totally deserved.

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year

Will win: Rango (2011) 

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year

Will win: A Separation (2011): Asghar Farhadi (Iran)

Best Achievement in Cinematography

Will and should win: The Tree of Life (2011): Emmanuel Lubezki
I haven’t seen Hugo and War Horse but the only spoiler could be The Artist, which would deserve it for its beautiful black and white photography, but The Tree of Life’s photography and camera work are the movie’s real strengths.

Best Achievement in Editing

Will win: The Artist (2011): Anne-Sophie Bion, Michel Hazanavicius
I’m going with The Artist because this prize usually matches up with Best Picture, but I don’t feel strongly for any candidate.

Best Achievement in Art Direction

Will and should win: Hugo (2011/II): Dante Ferretti, Francesca Lo Schiavo
I’m rooting for Hugo here even if I haven’t seen it just because it looked stunning in the few clips I caught here and there.

Best Achievement in Costume Design

Will win: The Artist (2011): Mark Bridges 

Best Achievement in Makeup

Will and should win: The Iron Lady (2011)
I haven’t seen any of the nominees yet but I’ve heard repeatedly that The Iron Lady’s makeup is wondrous.

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score

Will and should win: The Artist (2011): Ludovic Bource
Given that Bource’s score was the only aural cue for the entire runtime, I’d say this award is a must for The Artist.

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song

Will win: The Muppets (2011): Bret McKenzie("Man or Muppet")

Best Achievement in Sound Mixing

Will win: Hugo (2011/II)

Best Achievement in Sound Editing

Will win: Hugo (2011/II) 

Best Achievement in Visual Effects

Will and should win: Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) 
Apes and Real Steel are the only two I’ve see but Apes, with its impressive motion capture, smokes the competitors in my opinion.

Best Documentary, Features

Will win: Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory (2011) 

Best Documentary, Short Subjects

Will win: Saving Face (2011/II)

Best Short Film, Animated

Will win: The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore (2011): William Joyce, Brandon Oldenburg

Best Short Film, Live Action

Will win: The Shore: Terry George

The winners will be announced tomorrow night.

Here’s the full list of nominees.

Fasting occasionally could help in keeping Alzheimer's and Parkinson's in check

A new study seems to suggest that regular periods of fasting could help protecting your brain from those degenerative diseases:

Fasting for regular periods could help protect the brain against degenerative illnesses, according to US scientists.

Researchers at the National Institute on Ageing in Baltimore said they had found evidence which shows that periods of stopping virtually all food intake for one or two days a week could protect the brain against some of the worst effects of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and other ailments.

"Reducing your calorie intake could help your brain, but doing so by cutting your intake of food is not likely to be the best method of triggering this protection. It is likely to be better to go on intermittent bouts of fasting, in which you eat hardly anything at all, and then have periods when you eat as much as you want," said Professor Mark Mattson, head of the institute's laboratory of neurosciences.

[…] Scientists have known for some time that a low-calorie diet is a recipe for longer life. Rats and mice reared on restricted amounts of food increase their lifespan by up to 40%. A similar effect has been noted in humans. But Mattson and his team have taken this notion further. They argue that starving yourself occasionally can stave off not just ill-health and early death but delay the onset of conditions affecting the brain, including strokes. "Our animal experiments clearly suggest this," said Mattson.

[…] The link between reductions in energy intake and the boosting of cell growth in the brain might seem an unlikely one, but Mattson insisted that there were sound evolutionary reasons for believing it to be the case. "When resources became scarce, our ancestors would have had to scrounge for food," said Mattson. "Those whose brains responded best – who remembered where promising sources could be found or recalled how to avoid predators — would have been the ones who got the food. Thus a mechanism linking periods of starvation to neural growth would have evolved."

Interesting findings, although I think it would be hard for any regular worker to fast for one or two days during the week.  I work in an office and I’m sure I’d feel sluggish and irritable, so I can’t imagine how people who do manual labor could do it.

More at The Guardian.

We are creating our own worst enemies

Scientific proof has been found that would link superbugs like MRSA to the massive amounts of antibiotics that farmers feed to their animals:

Speculation has long abounded that overuse of antibiotics by factory farmers has been a major contributing factor in the development of so-called “superbugs” like MRSA or Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Now, according to a report from Mother Jones, there is scientific proof.

According to a paper in the American Society of Microbiology’s newsletter mBio, researchers have sequenced the genomes of 88 closely-related strains of Staphylococcus aureus. They have concluded that one “particularly nasty” strain, CC398, began as a fairly harmless human bacterium known as MSSA, but evolved after colonizing the systems of pigs, chickens and other livestock.

Inside the animals, the bacterial strain was bombarded by an array of broad-spectrum antibiotics, drugs commonly used by factory farmers to reduce infections and disease in animals kept in close quarters. According to mBio, this allowed the germs to become resistant to antibiotics like tetracycline and methicillin, as well as allowing the microorganisms to become “bidirectional,” meaning that they can freely be transmitted between humans and livestock.

Sickening. More at Raw Story.

Drink diet at your own peril

A new study links drinking diet sodas to a heightened risk of heart attack and stroke:

Diet soda may benefit the waistline, but a new study suggests that people who drink it every day have a heightened risk of heart attack and stroke.

The study, which followed almost 2,600 older adults for a decade, found that those who drank diet soda every day were 44 percent more likely than non-drinkers to suffer a heart attack or stroke.

The findings, reported in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, don’t prove that the sugar-free drinks are actually to blame.

There may be other things about diet-soda lovers that explain the connection, researchers say.

“What we saw was an association,” said lead researcher Hannah Gardener, of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. “These people may tend to have more unhealthy habits.”

She and her colleagues tried to account for that, Gardener told Reuters Health.

Daily diet-soda drinkers did tend to be heavier and more often have heart risk factors like high blood pressure, diabetes and unhealthy cholesterol levels.

That all suggests that people who were trying to shed pounds or manage existing health problems often opted for a diet soda over the sugar-laden variety.

But even after the researchers factored in those differences — along with people’s reported diet and exercise habits — they found that daily diet soda was linked to a 44-percent higher chance of heart attack or stroke.

There’s a lot more in the article at Raw Story.

The Ides of March

George Clooney’s latest effort behind the camera is another well crafted film.

Synopsis: a high-level staffer on a primary campaign for the US Presidency finds out pretty quickly how dirty politics can be.  He gets involved with an intern, discovers unsavory facts about the man he’s working to get elected, is tricked by the enemy, gets fired and begins figuring out how he can effectively hit back and regain his footing.

The handsome Ryan Gosling plays the quick-on-his-toes staffer who ends up outsmarting his boss, an always great Philip Seymour Hoffman, and working directly for the big shot politician with some skeletons in his closet played by George Clooney himself.  Paul Giamatti, Evan Rachel Wood and Marisa Tomei round up a great cast that delivers very good performances.

Clooney’s directing skills are getting more refined with time and experience, and he might turn out to be one of those great directors who started out working in front of the camera, à la Clint Eastwood.  Clooney also wrote the screenplay, and again he did a very good job.  The narrative keeps the focus on what matters and doesn’t wander needlessly.

The Bottom Line: The Ides of March is a well made political thriller that showcases good performances and tells an interesting story, especially for the times we live in, when money more than ever dominates in politics.  Clooney does a good job as a writer, director, and actor but it’s Gosling’s presence that demands your full attention at all times.

Grade: 7

A life for a book

Unfortunately, not in a good sense.  This is a tweet I read this morning:

Afghan angry over Quran burnings at NATO base kills US soldier, Afghan official tells.

I don’t see anything justified or reasonable in that statement.  Only fanaticism and madness.

More proof of the evils of religion.

Dr. Seuss' The Cat in the Hat

Deep personal shame compels me to premise this review by saying 2 things: one, I cannot stand Mike Myers; two, we watched this on Family Night after Danny picked it, so I’m not to blame for such a poor choice.  That being said, Dr. Seuss' The Cat in the Hat is much worse than one might imagine.

Synopsis: a single mother has to get her house ready for a party for her boss and coworkers and asks her two kids not to mess anything up or she might lose her job.  Unfortunately for everyone, a very mischievous Cat with a Hat shows up to wreak havoc on their fairly good intensions.  Will the Cat cost their mom her job?

Dr. Seuss' The Cat in the Hat is, in no uncertain terms, one of the worst “movies” I’ve ever seen.  And I do feel the need to enclose the term in quotes because it is an insult to include this smelly turd in the same company of 99% of the movies out there.

I’ve read the Dr. Seuss story to my kids many times and, as any other parent who has done the same knows, it is a funny, innocent story of mischief with a nice final resolution and a good overall message for children.  All that is nowhere to be found in this production whose only goal was to cash in on the millions previously made by that other (lame) big budget Dr. Seuss adaptation, Jim Carrey’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas.

This “movie” is lame, ridiculous, annoying, uninspiring, slightly dirty, insulting, and vulgar.

Myers plays his usual forced, unfunny self, just with lots of makeup.  The kids (Dakota Fanning in one of her first roles and Spencer Breslin) are decent enough and the adults (Kelly Preston, Alec Baldwin and Sean Hayes) do as good a job as they can with the material at hand.

The problem is that the material at hand, specifically the screenplay, is so poor and lacking, it’s unsalvageable.  Not even the greatest thespian could be expected to improve this colorful mess.

The Bottom Line: unless you’re a HUGE fan of Myers, do yourself and your kids a favor and skip this monstrosity.  You could opt to read the children the original story instead or, if they really want to see a movie, steer them towards the lovely Horton Hears a Who, which is so sweet and well made, it deserves an Oscar next to this abomination.

Grade: 1

Moneyball

Yet another candidate for the Best Picture Oscar at this Sunday’s telecast, Moneyball is a good movie that should please even non-sport-movies fans.

Synopsis: Billy Beane is the general manager of the Oakland A, a baseball team that wouldn’t stand a chance playing against well financed teams like the Yankees that can buy up all the best players around.  Facing a limited budget and desiring to change the basic rules of how the boardroom games are played, Beane decides to use computer generate analysis to pick his players even if on paper they seem worthless.  Will the gamble pay off?

Brad Pitt played Beane with intensity and depth, garnering his third Academy Award acting nomination (he’s also nominated as a producer for Moneyball this year).  Jonah Hill, who played the computer analyst that enabled Beane to reach his goal of changing the way the game is run, also earned plenty of accolades and an Academy Award, although after watching the movie, I honestly don’t see how he deserved such an honor.  He is good, but I don’t see the excellence, and frankly Philip Seymour Hoffman was much better, even though he might have had less screen time.

At any rate, the movie is enjoyable even for someone who, like me, has no knowledge or interest in the game of baseball whatsoever.  A good screenplay, excellent performances from the whole cast, very good direction, and a nice score all conjure to create a good movie that certainly doesn’t stand a chance to be crowned the Best of 2011, especially when facing The Artist and The Descendants.

The Bottom Line: whether because you love baseball, or you like Brad Pitt, or you just like well made movies, Moneyball is a film worth watching, even though it might not leave a lasting impression.

Grade: 7

Best Friends Forever

This cute video tugs at all the right heart strings:

TRON: Legacy

I have a vague impression of having watched the original TRON from 1982, but I’m not sure and I can’t remember if I liked it or not.  The sequel, however, is an enjoyable follow up to a movie that’s now become a classic (although it wasn’t received too well in its time).

Synopsis: Sam Flynn, the son of legendary software creator Kevin Flynn, seems stuck in his privileged life by the sudden loss of his father when he was a young boy.  Suddenly though, he’s sucked into the same virtual world that had kidnapped his dad over a decade earlier, and the two are reunited.  Not everything is fine in this virtual world though, and it will be up to Kevin to make sure that Sam is able to return to the real world.

Considering that the entire virtual world is obviously computer generated, the visual effects are quite exceptional, and they were probably great in 3D.  The score is a perfect match and the screenplay is simple and predictable but overall not bad (the face off between Kevin and Clu is fascinating if only for the rejuvenating effect on Bridges’ features).  The acting is average though and even the great Jeff Bridges, who reprises the role he first played almost 30 years ago, doesn’t wow us.

The nice surprise was seeing Michael Sheen in a funny, eclectic, and crazier role as Zuse that turned the image I had of him from Frost/Nixon and The Queen completely on its head.  Bravo!

The Bottom Line: TRON: Legacy is neither a crappy nor a great sci-fi movie.  It’s a good sequel to a visionary (for its time) but ultimately bland 80s sci-fi movie that holds its own and doesn’t disappoint.  Don’t expect too much though.

Grade: 6

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

For his latest film, David Fincher decided to tackle one of the most popular books of the last decade, and he scored another big hit.  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a fast paced thriller that holds your attention from beginning to end.

Synopsis: an investigative journalist finds himself in hot waters when his latest hit piece encroaches on the turf of a rich and powerful man.  Having to lay low for a while, he accepts to investigate the sudden disappearance, years prior, of the niece of another powerful man during a family reunion.  He will find this assignment even more dangerous than the prior one, and will be helped by an unlikely alienated hacker.

Daniel Craig brings his raw masculinity and acting to a role that seems custom built for him.  However, it’s Rooney Mara (unrecognizable from The Social Network) that steals the show as the titular heroine.  She is a revelation, in the rawness of her craft and the ability to fish such a deep characterization out of her young soul.  She deservedly received a Best Actress Oscar nomination for her turn as Lisbeth Salander, and her place in Hollywood is already firmly established.

Among the sprawling supporting cast, a mention goes to Christopher Plummer (2011 was really a plum year for the aging actor), Stellan Skarsgård, and Joely Richardson.  All three I’ve seen and appreciated in many other roles, and once again delivered impressive performances.

Fincher’s style, which I’m a big fan of, is once again front and center.  The rich photography helps us keep track of the intricate plot, the camera angles drive up the interest and the suspense, and the soundtrack’s techno up-tempo perfectly underscores the whole movie (are Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross Fincher’s new musical muses?).  Finally, the screenplay is well written, although not having read the book, I cannot say how it dealt with the original story itself.

The Bottom Line: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a great action thriller movie that should please not just the fans of Stieg Larsson’s novel, but every cinephile out there.  Don’t miss it, especially if you’re a David Fincher fan.

Grade: 9

The ocean’s weather system

Deep below the surface, the ocean has its own weather. Huge eddies like this one, spotted by NASA's Terra satellite last December in a photo released last week, show the turmoil that lurks underwater.

Rather than wreaking havoc like terrestrial storms, though, these ocean whirlwinds draw nutrients up from the deep, nourishing blooms of microscopic marine life in the otherwise barren open ocean.

From New Scientist.

Rethinking dieting

Scientists are discovering that the way we’ve all been told to plan and carry out our weight loss plans might be totally wrong:

Everything you know about dieting is wrong, say US scientists who have devised a new formula for calculating calories and weight loss that they hope will revolutionize the way people tackle obesity.

[…] Current standards in the United States, where two thirds of people are overweight or obese, advise people that cutting calories by a certain amount will result in a slow and steady weight loss over time.

But that advice fails to account for how the body changes as it slims down, burning less energy and acquiring a slower metabolism, researchers told the American Association for the Advancement of Science meeting in Vancouver.

The result is a plateau effect that ends up discouraging dieters and sending them back into harmful patterns of overeating.

As an example, researcher Kevin Hall offered up his large vanilla latte, purchased at a popular coffee shop. When he asked, the barista told him it contained about 240 calories.

“The notion was if I drank one of these every day and then I replaced it with just black coffee no sugar, then over the course of a year I should lose about 25 pounds, and that should just keep going,” Hall told reporters.

“People have used this sort of rule of thumb to predict how much people should lose for decades now, and it turns out to be completely wrong.”

Hall, a scientist with the US National Institutes of Health, said his work aims to “come up with better rules and better predictions of what is going to happen when an individual changes their diet.”

There’s a lot more at Raw Story.

I’m in Dilbert’s corner

Today’s Dilbert strip was a really good one:

Christie cockblocks gay marriage

At the end of last week, New Jersey’s legislature legalized same-sex marriage in spite of the Governor’s threat to veto the legislation.  He did that in no time:

The Republican governor returned the bill to the Legislature, saying he wants voters to decide whether New Jersey changes the definition of marriage. Democratic lawmakers say it's a civil rights issue that shouldn't be put up for a public vote. Lawmakers have until the end of the January 2014 legislative session to override the veto.

Of course, wanting the people to vote on the issue is ridiculous because (1) you don’t put people’s civil rights to a majority vote – in America of all places, and (2) it’s what conservative politicians (with hopes for higher office…) turn to whenever they don’t get their way with the courts or the legislature.

The legislature has now until January 2014 to attempt to override the veto, but unless they get a supermajority in this fall’s elections, that seems unlikely, given that the vote was close and too many “yeses” would be needed to succeed.

Too bad.  Just after Washington became the 7th state in the nation to embrace marriage equality, New Jersey could have been number 8.  That honor might now go to Maryland instead.

More at Towleroad.

Dame Judi’s sad news

The Daily Mirror reported over the weekend that Dame Judi Dench might be going blind:

The James Bond Star, 77, has been diagnosed with macular degeneration which can lead to blindness.

In a deeply moving interview, Dame Judi said her sight is already so bad she cannot see faces in front of her and friends have to read scripts to her so she can learn her lines.

But she said she is determined not to let the condition beat her and hopes recent treatment has stopped the progressive decline.

She confessed: “I can’t read scripts any more because of the trouble with my eyes.

"And so somebody comes in and reads them to me, like telling me a story.

"It’s usually my daughter or my agent or a friend and actually I like that, because I sit there and imagine the story in my mind.

“I’ve got what my ma had, macular degeneration, which you get when you get old.”

[…] And she has no plans to retire. She said: “As long as there is a possibility of working I’m not going to retire because if I retire nothing will work any more and it’s hard enough as it is.

“I’m very conscious that I’m in the minority in that I love what I do. How big is the number of people who are running to work to do a job that they like? And how lucky to be employed at it – how incredibly lucky.”

Very sad news.  I hate the thought of Ms. Dench not being able to dazzle the silver screen with her amazing performances any longer.

However, the Washington Post reports she apparently clarified that her statements were overblown, and added this today:

“In response to the numerous articles in the media concerning my eye condition — macular degeneration — I do not wish for this to be overblown,” Dench said in a statement to Reuters. “This condition is something that thousands and thousands of people all over the world are having to contend with. It's something that I have learnt to cope with and adapt to — and it will not lead to blindness.”

Let’s hope.

The Artist

This year’s front runner to win the coveted Best Picture Oscar is a wonderful throw back to the early, silent days of Hollywood, when all that could be used to make an audience emote were moving images.

For me, it was also a nice jab at modern Hollywood that said, See, you don’t always need millions of dollars in visual effects to make a good movie!

Synopsis: Hollywood’s number one movie star suddenly finds himself at a crossroad with the advent of sound: join the revolution and start making “talkies” or stick with silent films and risk losing your fans to the newest fad in town.  He choses the latter and is faced with the harsh reality of losing his fame and fortune.  A young new star offers him a second chance.  Will he take it?

Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo do a wonderful job as the stars of yesterday and tomorrow.  Great performances from both.  The cinematography is spectacular, as is the soundtrack, the only aural cue in the whole film.  And the screenplay is as perfect as it gets, telling a rounded story, with a complete arc, using absolutely no words.

Beautiful the final touch, when Dujardin says the only words in the whole movie, and we understand why he felt wary about going into talkies.  Obviously, his strong foreign accent wouldn’t have allowed him to become the huge star he was.

The Bottom Line: The Artist is a well-rounded film that should make audiences fall in love with “serious” films once again.  Direction, acting and screenplay are perfect and any movie lover should make it a point of watching it.

Grade: 9

Madonna scores her 38th

That’s the number of Ms. Ciccone’s singles that have reached the Top Ten on the Billboard Hot 100 throughout her career.

It’s the all time record, by the way, surpassing The Beatles, Elvis, Elton John, and the King of Pop among others.

From Chart Rigger:

Madonna's lead MDNA single "Give Me All Your Luvin'" jumps up from #13 to #10, thus becoming her 38th Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. This puts her even further ahead of The Beatles, who racked up 34 Top 10s, and Michael Jackson, who had 28. Ye Olde Vampyre's last Top 10 single in the States was "4 Minutes," which peaked at #3 in 2008.

Too bad I can't stand that lame song...

Two good friends

This video is diabetes-inducing sweet:

Rhea Before Titan

Craters appear well defined on icy Rhea in front of the hazy orb of the much larger moon Titan in this Cassini spacecraft view of these two Saturn moons.

More details at NASA.

The Wedding Dance

This wonderful video brought unstoppable tears to my eyes, hoping to someday experience this kind of happiness:

Whitney Houston

One of the greatest singers who ever lived, who possessed one of the most magical and mystifying voices to ever grace one’s ears, and who sadly just left us last Saturday.

The Greatest Love of All

All At Once

I Will Always Love You

I Look To You

The 2012 BAFTA Winners

The BAFTA ceremony was this past Sunday, and I totally forgot about it, since I watched the Grammys instead.  Anyway, here are the winners (indented) with comments:

BEST FILM

• THE ARTIST - Thomas Langmann
  Well deserved.  Haven’t seen Drive yet nor Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, but The Artist is great.
• THE DESCENDANTS - Jim Burke, Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor
• DRIVE - Marc Platt, Adam Siegel
• THE HELP - Brunson Green, Chris Columbus, Michael Barnathan
• TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY - Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Robyn Slovo

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM

• TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY - Tomas Alfredson, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Robyn Slovo, Bridget O'Connor, Peter Straughan
  Jeez, I actually haven’t see any of these!!
• MY WEEK WITH MARILYN - Simon Curtis, David Parfitt, Harvey Weinstein, Adrian Hodges
• SENNA - Asif Kapadia, James Gay-Rees, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Manish Pandey
• SHAME - Steve McQueen, Iain Canning, Emile Sherman, Abi Morgan
• WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN - Lynne Ramsay, Luc Roeg, Jennifer Fox, Robert Salerno, Rory Stewart Kinnear

OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER

• TYRANNOSAUR - Paddy Considine (Director), Diarmid Scrimshaw (Producer)
• ATTACK THE BLOCK - Joe Cornish (Director/Writer)
• BLACK POND - Will Sharpe (Director/Writer), Tom Kingsley (Director), Sarah Brocklehurst (Producer)
• CORIOLANUS - Ralph Fiennes (Director)
• SUBMARINE - Richard Ayoade (Director/Writer)

DIRECTOR

• THE ARTIST - Michel Hazanavicius
  Well deserved win.  I really hope he takes home the Oscar next month too, because he really took a chance with this movie and it paid off big time.
• DRIVE - Nicolas Winding Refn
• HUGO - Martin Scorsese
• TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY - Tomas Alfredson
• WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN - Lynne Ramsay

DOCUMENTARY

• SENNA - Asif Kapadia
• GEORGE HARRISON: LIVING IN THE MATERIAL WORLD - Martin Scorsese
• PROJECT NIM - James Marsh, Simon Chinn

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

• THE ARTIST - Michel Hazanavicius
  Again, well deserved, although I feel bad for Allen.
• BRIDESMAIDS - Annie Mumolo, Kristen Wiig
• THE GUARD - John Michael McDonagh
• THE IRON LADY - Abi Morgan
• MIDNIGHT IN PARIS - Woody Allen

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

• TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY - Bridget O'Connor, Peter Straughan
  As I said, I haven’t seen this movie, so it’s hard to judge.
• THE DESCENDANTS - Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash
• THE HELP - Tate Taylor
• THE IDES OF MARCH - George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon
• MONEYBALL - Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin

FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE

• THE SKIN I LIVE IN - Pedro Almodóvar, Agustin Almodóvar
  I think this was an upset, since Almodóvar’s movie didn’t get glorious reviews, at least in the US.
• INCENDIES - Denis Villeneuve, Luc Déry, Kim McCraw
• PINA - Wim Wenders, Gian-Piero Ringel
• POTICHE - François Ozon, Eric Altmayer, Nicolas Altmayer
• A SEPARATION - Asghar Farhadi

ANIMATED FILM

• RANGO - Gore Verbinski
  I can’t wait to see this movie.  It just feels so out of the ordinary in the animation canon.
• HE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN - Steven Spielberg
• ARTHUR CHRISTMAS - Sarah Smith

LEADING ACTOR

• JEAN DUJARDIN - The Artist
  I like Clooney and he was excellent in The Descendants, but I’m glad Dujardin took this, and I hope he wins the Oscar as well.  Clooney already has one and it’s always nice to see the Academy stretching beyond the confines of Hollywood.  Also, Dujardin was awesome in this movie.
• BRAD PITT - Moneyball
• GARY OLDMAN - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
• GEORGE CLOONEY - The Descendants
• MICHAEL FASSBENDER - Shame

LEADING ACTRESS

• MERYL STREEP - The Iron Lady
  Obviously for me this was the sweetest surprise, for several reasons.  First, Meryl is Meryl, so hands down she’s always the best.  Second, she played a British iconic figure and it’s nice to see the Brits acknowledge that she did a great job.  Finally, it might spur more Academy members to vote for Meryl for her long overdue third Oscar next month.  Love Viola Davis, but I’m really rooting for Meryl.  Always.
• BÉRÉNICE BEJO - The Artist
• MICHELLE WILLIAMS - My Week with Marilyn
• TILDA SWINTON - We Need to Talk About Kevin
• VIOLA DAVIS - The Help

SUPPORTING ACTOR

• CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER – Beginners
  Greatly deserved.  And the sweep continues…
• JIM BROADBENT - The Iron Lady
• JONAH HILL - Moneyball
• KENNETH BRANAGH - My Week with Marilyn
• PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN - The Ides of March

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

• OCTAVIA SPENCER - The Help
  Greatly deserved.  And the sweep continues…
• CAREY MULLIGAN - Drive
• JESSICA CHASTAIN - The Help
• JUDI DENCH - My Week with Marilyn
• MELISSA MCCARTHY - Bridesmaids

ORIGINAL MUSIC

• THE ARTIST - Ludovic Bource
  Totally deserved given that the musical score really carried the movie along and was almost a character in itself.
• THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO - Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross
• HUGO - Howard Shore
• TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY - Alberto Iglesias
• WAR HORSE - John Williams

CINEMATOGRAPHY

• THE ARTIST - Guillaume Schiffman
  Greatly deserved.  I’ve always been a sucker for black and white photography.
• THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO - Jeff Cronenweth
• HUGO - Robert Richardson
• TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY - Hoyte van Hoytema
• WAR HORSE - Janusz Kaminski

EDITING

• SENNA - Gregers Sall, Chris King
  I honestly don’t even know what this Senna is.  Sorry.
• THE ARTIST - Anne-Sophie Bion, Michel Hazanavicius
• DRIVE - Mat Newman
• HUGO - Thelma Schoonmaker
• TINKER TAILOR SOLIDER SPY - Dino Jonsater

PRODUCTION DESIGN

• HUGO - Dante Ferretti, Francesca Lo Schiavo
  Another movie I can’t wait to see.  It must be visually splendid.
• THE ARTIST - Laurence Bennett, Robert Gould
• HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS – PART 2 - Stuart Craig, Stephenie McMillan
• TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY - Maria Djurkovic, Tatiana MacDonald
• WAR HORSE - Rick Carter, Lee Sandales

COSTUME DESIGN

• THE ARTIST - Mark Bridges
  Deserved, of course.
• HUGO - Sandy Powell
• JANE EYRE - Michael O'Connor
• MY WEEK WITH MARILYN - Jill Taylor
• TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY - Jacqueline Durran

SOUND

• HUGO - Philip Stockton, Eugene Gearty, Tom Fleischman, John Midgley
  No comment on the winner.  Rather, how was The Artist even nominated in this category to begin with??
• THE ARTIST - Nadine Muse, Gérard Lamps, Michael Krikorian
• HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS – PART 2 - James Mather, Stuart Wilson, Stuart Hilliker, Mike Dowson, Adam Scrivener
• TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY - John Casali, Howard Bargroff, Doug Cooper, Stephen Griffiths, Andy Shelley
• WAR HORSE - Stuart Wilson, Gary Rydstrom, Andy Nelson, Tom Johnson, Richard Hymns

SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS

• HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS – PART 2 - Tim Burke, John Richardson, Greg Butler, David Vickery
  At some point I really have to watch this whole saga.  I assume it was well deserved.  Who knows how much of the vote was influenced by the fact that the saga’s author is British though.  Sort of the same thing that goes on at the Oscars, isn’t it?
• THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN - Joe Letteri
• HUGO - Rob Legato, Ben Grossman, Joss Williams
• RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES - Joe Letteri, Dan Lemmon, R. Christopher White
• WAR HORSE - Ben Morris, Neil Corbould

MAKE UP & HAIR

• THE IRON LADY - Marese Langan
  Meryl’s coif deserved this prize in and of itself.
• THE ARTIST - Julie Hewett, Cydney Cornell
• HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS – PART 2 - Amanda Knight, Lisa Tomblin
• HUGO - Morag Ross, Jan Archibald
• MY WEEK WITH MARILYN - Jenny Shircore

SHORT ANIMATION

• A MORNING STROLL - Grant Orchard, Sue Goffe
• ABUELAS - Afarin Eghbal, Kasia Malipan, Francesca Gardiner
• BOBBY YEAH - Robert Morgan

SHORT FILM

• PITCH BLACK HEIST - John Maclean, Gerardine O'Flynn
• CHALK - Martina Amati, Gavin Emerson, James Bolton, Ilaria Bernardini
• MWANSA THE GREAT - Rungano Nyoni, Gabriel Gauchet
• ONLY SOUND REMAINS - Arash Ashtiani, Anshu Poddar
• TWO AND TWO - Babak Anvari, Kit Fraser, Gavin Cullen

ORANGE WEDNESDAYS RISING STAR AWARD

• ADAM DEACON
• CHRIS HEMSWORTH
• TOM HIDDLESTON
• CHRIS O’DOWD
• EDDIE REDMAYNE

Overall, a few surprises that keep the Oscar’s most watched races up in the air it seems.  Super glad for Meryl’s win.

Here’s the official site.

Another one joins the fold

Even though this will likely only be temporary, like it happened in Maine, today Washington became the 7th state in the nation to approve same-sex marriage legislatively:

Gov. Chris Gregoire will, late Monday morning, sign into law legislation that will make Washington the seventh state to legalize civil marriage between same-sex couples.

[…] The marriage equality bill cleared the State House of Representatives Wednesday by a 55-43 vote.  The State Senate passed it a week earlier on a 28-21 vote.  Four Republican state senators and two GOP house members joined most Democrats in voting for the legislation.

[…] Opponents have until June 6 to collect 120,577 valid voter signatures to force a referendum vote on marriage equality in this November’s election.

The legislation is scheduled to go into effect on June 7, but would be held in abeyance if a referendum is to be held.

This is great news, except for the part about the signatures collection effort, of course.  Unfortunately, it looks like our opponents will be successful in forcing a November vote, which isn’t good news because until now no similar initiative ever failed.

Here’s what Seattle’s Archbishop, a foe, had to say:

“The truth is that gradually, religious faith and religious points of view are being pushed out of discussion in the public square, as if the sacred truths by which we live are irreverent and outdated,”

And to that, I say, Yes, your views are outdated and they should be pushed out of the public square whenever you try to push your religious views on other people who don’t share them.  Keep your sermons to your church pulpit, thank you very much!!

From SeattlePI.  More at Towleroad.

The voice is back

Here’s Adele’s fantastic performance of Rolling in the Deep from last night’s Grammys:

Loved it when she modified the lyrics to say “You could have had this all.”  Yes, girl, you tell him!!

The 54th Grammy Awards – Winners

Although the news of Whitney Houston’s sudden death cast a somber veil over the proceedings, the night belonged the Adele, who won every single award she was nominated for, including the top three.

Adele won Best Record, Song, and Short Form Music Video for Rolling in the Deep, Best Album and Pop Vocal Album for 21, and Best Pop Solo Performance for Someone Like You.

The other major award of the night, Best Pop Duo/Group Performance went to Tony Bennett & Amy Winehouse for Body and Soul, while Bon Iver took home the Best New Artist prize.

The ceremony was long (3.5 hours!!) but went by quickly, zipping along with performance after performance.  Overall, it was a nice show, but less impressive than last year’s ceremony, likely because of the acts:

• Bruce Springsteen opened the show with his new song, which I’m not a big fan of, even though I seriously hope it helps Obama win his reelection campaign.
• LL Cool J’s opening prayer for Whitney, followed by a brief clip of her singing I Will Always Love You on the Grammys stage, was beautiful and touching.
• Bruno Mars, whose songs I generally like, was rocking too hard, although his performance exuded sex appeal from beginning to end.
• Bonnie Raitt & Alicia Keys’ tribute to Etta James was very nice.  Two very talented ladies.
• Chris Brown, absent from the Grammys since he beat up Rihanna, performed several times during the night and even won an award.  Although he seems talented, he’s not my cup of tea, and he seemed to have too good of a time after what he did not very long ago.  Judging from some comments I’ve read, I’m not the only one who feels that way.
• Jason Aldean & Kelly Clarkson’s duet was nice too.  Such powerful voices and enough chemistry were however blemished by the sudden malfunction of Aldean’s microphone.  Too bad.
• Speaking of Rihanna, was she lip synching?!?  I thought that was a huge no-no at the Grammys, but she clearly messed up her lines and pulled the microphone away from her mouth when her voice was still loud and clear, and more than once.  A bad performance for her usual fluffy song.
• Rihanna also sang with Coldplay’s Chris Martin, whose great (live) voice clearly overpowered hers.
• Sir Paul McCartney sang his nice new ballad with a strong, deep voice and Taylor Swift displayed her young charm with her catchy and thoughtful Mean, while Katy Perry’s performance was fairly cool, but the song didn’t thrill me.
• Finally came the moment everyone was waiting for.  Gwyneth Paltrow introduced Adele, who sang Rolling in the Deep with a clear and strong voice.  Unlike the many performers who tried to dazzle with elaborate dance numbers, intricate sets, and visual effects, Adele sang with a few backup singers and musicians, her voice always front and center.  It was a beautiful performance, which received the night’s longest standing ovation.

• The In Memoriam clip was really nice and when, right after the clip of Whitney Houston, Jennifer Hudson started singing her rendition of I Will Always Love You, it felt eerie.  That backlit figure, so tall and slim, topped by an eruption of hair, reminded me so much of Whitney herself, I thought for a second that the news of her death weren’t true, and that she was there onstage.  Hudson did a beautiful job though, often holding back the tears that clearly threatened to overpower her.  Her commanding voice expertly and somberly paid tribute to a legend of the music world.
• Finally, Nicki Minaj’s performance of Roman was impressive but also felt a little weird.

The thing I didn’t like was that after the final award was announced and Adele movingly accepted her 6^th Grammy of the night, instead of closing the show, letting her have her moment in the spotlight, McCartney, Springsteen and a bunch of other musicians got onstage for a final, rousing performance that I found overlong and overproduced.  Too bad.

Adele still ruled over the music world for a night, after ruling over it for much of the past year.  Go girl!!

Click here for a full list of the winners.

In Memoriam

Whitney Houston (1963 – 2012)

I read the news of her passing Saturday night and my world stopped for a second.  Whitney Houston has been one of my favorite singers ever since I can remember listening to music.  Her voice was simply perfection, a crystal clear, soaring marvel that cast a spell over me and never let go.  Couple that with a stunningly beautiful figure and features and you have the makings of a superstar.

I always followed her through the years and bought all her albums, even those that weren’t that great, just because listening to her voice was so satisfying, everything else was secondary.

Needless to say, I was extremely saddened when it finally became clear that her gorgeous instrument had been ravaged by years of drug and alcohol abuse, particularly during her turbulent and abusive marriage to Bobby Brown, with whom she had her only child, Bobbi Kristina.

Her last attempt at a comeback a couple years ago, I Look To You, wasn’t a bad album, but suffered from the inevitable comparisons to her earlier work.  And when she went on tour, and had to sing live, and had to sing the hits from her catalogue that made her a superstar, the critics and the fans, myself included, were aghast and the audience was largely disappointed.

Now that she’s gone, all the criticism and all the gossip matter no more.  One of the greatest artists to ever walk among us is gone.  Many singers have followed in her path, chief among them Mariah Carey, but Whitney was unique.  There’ll never be another Whitney.

From The New York Times:

From the start of her career more than two decades ago, Ms. Houston had the talent, looks and pedigree of a pop superstar. She was the daughter of Cissy Houston, a gospel and pop singer who had backed up Aretha Franklin, and the cousin of Dionne Warwick. (Ms. Franklin is Ms. Houston’s godmother.)

Ms. Houston’s range spanned three octaves, and her voice was plush, vibrant and often spectacular. She could pour on the exuberant flourishes of gospel or peal a simple pop chorus; she could sing sweetly or unleash a sultry rasp.

[…] But by the mid-1990s, even as she was moving into acting with films like “The Bodyguard” and “The Preacher’s Wife,” she became what she described, in a 2009 interview with Oprah Winfrey, as a “heavy” user of marijuana and cocaine. By the 2000s she was struggling; her voice grew smaller, scratchier and less secure, and her performances grew erratic.

Here’s her Wikipedia page, and her official website.

R.I.P. Whitney.  I will always love you.

Gloria is back!!

I always liked Gloria Estefan’s energy and voice, and her latest song (and accompanying video) are just sparkling with energy!!

Lisa’s sister

Apparently one of da Vinci’s apprentices painted his own version of the Mona Lisa while the master was creating his masterpiece.  That work has now been found in Spain’s El Prado:

The earliest copy of Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece, Mona Lisa, has been found in the vaults of a Spanish museum, looking younger and more ravishing than the original.

[…] Museum officials said it was almost certainly painted by one of Leonardo da Vinci's apprentices alongside the master himself as he did the original.

[…] Painted alongside the original, historians say it gives another insight into what the model for one of the world's most famous paintings actually looked like.

The copy has been part of the Prado collection for years but officials said they did not realise its significance until a recent restoration revealed hidden layers.

The artwork features the same female figure, but had been covered over with black paint and varnish.

Two years ago, to get the copy ready for a da Vinci exhibition to be held in Paris this year, tests were done and restorers discovered something hidden under the black coat.

When the black covering was removed, a Tuscan landscape very similar to the one in the original emerged.

The Prado painting was long thought to be one of dozens surviving replicas of the masterpiece made after Leonardo's death but it is now believed to have been painted by one of his key pupils, Francesco Melzi, working alongside the master.

[…] Ms Mozo said the underdrawing of the Madrid replica was similar to that of the original, which suggests both were begun at the same time and painted next to each other, as the work evolved.

More at the Daily Mail.

FOUR MORE YEARS!!

If anyone needs a reminder of the amount of work President Obama has gotten done and the reasons to re-elect him, watch this:

Midnight in Paris

What a wonderful little gem Woody Allen’s latest work of love has turned out to be!!

Synopsis: a screenwriter is trying to write a novel when, during a vacation with his fiancé in Paris, suddenly finds himself transported to a different reality that will radically change his outlook on life.

Where to begin singing the praises of this beautiful film?  Perhaps from the Golden Globe winner and Oscar nominated screenplay, written by Allen himself.  It tells a sweet, romantic story with ease and flow, making us smile and laugh, and our hearts feel light and nostalgic.  Who hasn’t dreamed at times of living in other, “better,” times?

The cinematography is so warm and rich, it made me want to get a ticket for the next flight out to the French capital.  The period costumes and art direction are absolutely phenomenal and the score fits the movie like a glove.

The sprawling cast (Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Michael Sheen, Kathy Bates, Marion Cotillard, and Adrien Brody are among the recognizable faces) is overall very good.  Wilson embodies Allen’s archetype effectively and efficiently.  The only problem is that he’s not a great actor, just a good one, but he’s good enough to replace Allen, who himself wasn’t a memorable thespian.  McAdams is actually the one that left me coldest, although maybe that’s because she was quite good at playing the cold, disaffected fiancé.

The Bottom Line: Midnight in Paris movie was a joy to watch and “live” from the first longing frames to its joyful conclusion.  Allen directed another great film that is a love note to Paris as well as cinema and the glorious artists of the past.  Bravo!!!

Grade: 9

Coal Miner’s Daughter

Sissy Spacek has been one of my favorite actresses since seeing her in Carrie many years ago.  Since she won her only Oscar for Coal Miner’s Daughter, I had to check it out.

Synopsis: the life of country singer Loretta Lynn is examined from her early teens as the oldest daughter of a poor but proud family to her reaching superstar status.  In between, lots of joy and pain, a husband and many children, fans and fame.

Spacek plays Lynn to perfection.  I don’t really know Ms. Lynn, her singing style, or her mannerisms, but I can tell that Spacek thoroughly deserved her Oscar.  On top of a great performance, she also sang all the songs herself!!

She’s supported for part of the film by Beverly D’Angelo as Patsy Cline, while a very youthful Tommy Lee Jones plays her husband Doolittle Lynn, the biggest supporter of her career and the one who really pushed and allowed her to become a big country star.

The script is linear and paints a very vivid picture of a woman that went from living a stark life to being very wealthy and successful.  The movie wouldn’t be what it is without Spacek’s performance, but every technical aspect is very good too, from costumes to art direction, to the very bleak and rich photography.

The Bottom Line: Coal Miner’s Daughter, as many biographical movies about music legends, might not feel satisfying for everyone, but it’s certainly a well made film that tells an extraordinary story with details and care.  Spacek is spellbinding.

Grade: 8

“Are you supposed to just die when you're 40?”

Via Boy Culture comes this reminder of Madonna’s take on female artists’ aging:

"What, are you supposed to just die when you're 40?...You're just supposed to just kind of, you know, put yourself out to pasture?..."

The twist is that she said that in 1993, and that now people are saying precisely the things she thought they would say about her back then, that she’s too old to do what she’s doing and should retire, that it doesn’t befit a woman her age.

Well, if last Sunday’s Super Bowl halftime show was any indication, I’d say the old girl still has it!!