PS: You'll notice that the last category is different than last time. In order to keep this from becoming stagnant, there will be at least one (if not two) categories that are switched out each month. Replacing Cameo Performance this month is Cinematography.
Best Film (Theaters): Toy Story 3
Pixar knocked it out of the park again with their first three-quel, bringing their first animated classic full circle. With a story that felt more necessary in terms of dramatic action than Toy Story 2, bolstered by an even greater sense of mortality than in most of the previous Pixar features, Lee Unkrich's film became, deservedly, the biggest box office hit of the summer since Iron Man 2, raking in $226 million in just two weeks. So while this may be goodbye to Woody and Buzz, it's also intriguing to see where Pixar goes from here.
Runner Up: Please Give
Best Film (DVD/Rental): Three Colors: Red
The final chapter of Kielslowski's Three Colors trilogy combines the best of the previous two installments: Blue's emotional complexity and White's more accessible tone and brisker pacing. The result, combined with the knockout ending that beautifully ties it all together, is a brilliant achievement that examines the way we connect and relate to each other, whether directly or indirectly. Led by nice, subdued performances from Irene Jacob and Jean-Louis Trintignant, Red is, for me, far and away the strongest of the trilogy, and a perfect ending to a unique trilogy about modern life and human relationships.
Runner Up: All That Jazz
Best Director: Louis Malle - Elevator to the Gallows
Though I have a few minor problems with the screenplay to Malle's classic noir, it's hard to fault his direction, moving between moments of tension (the brilliant elevator escape sequence) and silent contemplation (Jeanne Moreau) wandering the dark, rainy streets of Paris. Aided by the cinematography, which makes brilliant use of Paris at night to create a sense of claustrophobia, it's easy to understand why the original French title of the film is sometimes translated as "Frantic".
Runner Up: Krystof Kieslowski - Three Colors: Red and Bob Fosse - All That Jazz
Best Male Performance: Roy Scheider - All That Jazz
From the countless times we hear Joe Gideon say "It's showtime!", to the overhead shot of him waving his arms in the air as he wanders through a hospital boiler room, it's a performance expressed beautifully in both words and in physicality. It's also a reminder of what it requires to make a successful reimagining of Fellini's 8 1/2: the central figure must be detailed after the person directing the film, not simply a recreation of the Marcello Mastroianni embodiment. Fosse understand this, and as a result, Scheider is able to create an entirely new, yet equally compelling man caught in creative and personal crisis.
Runner Up: Russell Brand - Get Him to the Greek (no, seriously)
Best Female Performance: Rebecca Hall - Please Give
Catherine Keener may have been given top billing and is feeling more and more like Nicole Holofcner's screen alter ego, but it's Hall who (quietly) runs away with the show. As Rebecca (they couldn't have changed the character name...?), Hall creates a gentle, quiet, totally likable character whose emotions unfold gradually and with lovely nuance. In several key scenes, it's Hall's presence that helps the film ease into its most moving moment/s, without every becoming sappy. Like the rest of the ensemble, Hall gives a performance that feels "natural" and yet still manages to generate emotion.
Runner Up: Jeanne Moreau - Elevator to the Gallows
Best Screenplay: Ghost World
A perfect example of a "where to I go with my life now?" story done right, this adaptation of the graphic novel may not always be best served by its leads (Johannson kind of mumbles through some of her lines), but as an examination of post-high school uncertainty and the conflict of "If I'm not going to college, do I really have to grow up?" it's a gem. Bolstered by a deservingly nominated (at the Golden Globes, at least; screw you, AMPAS) supporting turn by Steve Buscemi, Ghost World may be centered on an aimless protagonist, but it is anything but aimless.
Runner Up: Please Give
Best Ensemble Cast: California Suite
The film may not have aged well, and the last half is certainly a few big steps below the first, but it's hard to deny the talents of the cast. Unfortunately, the material best matches the talent in the segments revolving around Alan Alda/Jane Fonda and Maggie Smith/Michael Caine. Relying almost entirely on dialogue (and walking...lots of walking), these two segments are both funny and brutal, and gradually chip away at the characters' exteriors. The last two segments don't fare as well, but the cast is certainly trying as hard as they can, even as the material seems determined to work against them.
Runner Up: Moonstruck
Best Cinematography: Paris, Texas
Wim Wenders' critically hailed Cannes winner didn't completely win me over (spots of it are in dire need of an editor, and certain story details are just annoying; who leaves a kid outside by a drive-through bank ALL NIGHT?), but it's hard to fault the gorgeous cinematography, which in the first hour features one of my favorite shots of all time; an orange-hued sunset that looks as though it was preceded by a thunderstorm. The film also makes brilliant use of neon colors and lights, especially green. Along with Natassja Kinski's wondrous supporting turn, it's the cinematography that helps moments of this (slightly) overrated indie hit reach moments of brilliance.
Honorable Mention(s): Performers
Though one of these performances would fit squarely into the cameo category, the other really doesn't, and I wanted to give both of them just a few lines.
First is Rose Byrne in Get Him to the Greek, who displays a surprising knack for comedy, despite probably being best known for her dramatic work opposite Glenn Close on FX's Damages. As Jackie Q, pop star and ex-girlfriend of Aldous Snow (Russell Brand), Byrne finally gets to show her funny side, the best example of which are her two spoofs of over-sexed pop music. Don't you love it when pretty people are funny?
Second is I am Love's Flavio Parenti, who's on here for a slightly less positive distinction. As Edoardo, Parenti is really the only character in Luca Guadagnino's overwrought attempt at melodrama who feels like a real person, and is the only person who we have any feelings towards, because he's built on character traits and not themes. Had the film lived up to its full potential, this could have been an amazing performance, but for it's simply the only worthy aspect in an otherwise over-the-top exercise in indulgence.
Honorable Mention(s): Performers
Though one of these performances would fit squarely into the cameo category, the other really doesn't, and I wanted to give both of them just a few lines.
First is Rose Byrne in Get Him to the Greek, who displays a surprising knack for comedy, despite probably being best known for her dramatic work opposite Glenn Close on FX's Damages. As Jackie Q, pop star and ex-girlfriend of Aldous Snow (Russell Brand), Byrne finally gets to show her funny side, the best example of which are her two spoofs of over-sexed pop music. Don't you love it when pretty people are funny?
Second is I am Love's Flavio Parenti, who's on here for a slightly less positive distinction. As Edoardo, Parenti is really the only character in Luca Guadagnino's overwrought attempt at melodrama who feels like a real person, and is the only person who we have any feelings towards, because he's built on character traits and not themes. Had the film lived up to its full potential, this could have been an amazing performance, but for it's simply the only worthy aspect in an otherwise over-the-top exercise in indulgence.That's all for now. See you at the end of July.
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