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Disc Golf Weekend

So I played 2 rounds this weekend. 20 holes at Red Oak on Saturday, and 18 at Acorn Park on Sunday.

Since I know that everyone wants to read all about my play for the weekend I won’t hold you up any further. Skins and stoke play on Saturday, skins for the event, strokes for bag tags. Sunday was just a round with Dylan so stroke only.

Saturday:

Hole 1: Drive with the Champion Beast slipped a bit and faded hard left, leaving me 75 feet or so to the pin behind a couple trees, the Firm Ridge doubles as a nice approach disc and drops to a foot away. Drop in the three, no skin as Justin sinks a 20 footer to split the hole.

Hole 2: Drive with the Ridge on this short little hole, clipped a couple trees, leaving myself about 30 feet, dropped the putt close and make the 3, pick up a skin as this little hole gave our whole group some trouble, and both Justin and Dion ended up in deep junk on their drives.

Hole 3: Drive slips off my fingers bad, leaving me very short and on a weird uphill, I pull out the Hornet and slip backwards on my release, pulling the disc way too high in the air and to the left. Scramble to get my putt close and take the 4. Dion pulls out a par and takes the skin.

Hole 4: Drive the Champion Beast to 8 feet? Take the Closest to the Pin? Sink the birdie putt and take the skin? Check, check and check.

Hole 5: Drive the Beast pin high, but the nasty crosswind hauled me way left and behind a screen of trees. Tossed the Ridge near the basket and dropped in the par. No skins as Dion makes a par as well.

Hole 6: I honestly don’t remember what happened here, I know I made par. As did Dion and Justin. It must not have been anything special, probably a decent drive, followed by a close approach and a drop in. That sounds good.

Hole 7: Nice long drive with the Beast into the open on the left, dropped the Ridge close, and nailed the putt. Solid par. Dion and Justin man up as well, and there are no skins again.

Hole 8: Drive hangs up in some brush, and my out hits another tree, made a hard run for the 3, just a bit off, missed the chains, made the short comebacker for 4, but Justin takes the skin with a 3.

Hole 9: My drive gets caught about 3 feet off the ground in a cedar tree. Weird angle for the approach, and I bail out early trying to avoid killing my hand against said tree. Leaves me a long approach that I duff, 2 putts later and I make a turrible 5. Justin is hitting his stride and makes another 3 to take the skin.

Hole 10: Drive sticks in the bush in the center of the fairway. Needed to get it about a foot higher and I’d have been ecstatic. Intstead I have no real out, and I end up on the left side of the fairway with just shy of an entire forest between me and the hole. With no other real options I try a goof tomahawk with the Hornet, and it drops to a foot away. Guess I drop in for the 4. No skins on this hole as Justin and Dion also take 4’s.

So Red Oak is different in that it is 10 baskets and 20 tee pads, so round 2 is shooting at the same baskets from different tees. I posted a 34 for the front side, and while I’m not super happy with that score, I’m not crushed. I feel like I can do better.

Hole 11: Good drive, leaves me a good approach that I drop to a foot, drop in the par and take the skin as both Justin and Dion had some troubles and Double bogey.

Hole 12: Griplocked the ESP Buzz a bit and sent it far right. Into the junk. Have a window to get out and leave it close though, drop in for the par. Justin and Dion do the same, no skin.

Hole 13: Good drive, but I’m on that same slippery weird hill, and I make the same mistake, yanking the hornet up and left, 2 putts again, and I make a bogey. Dion takes the skin with a par.

Hole 14: Drive pin high, but about 50 feet right, Drop the putt right at the base of the pin and take a par. Justin makes par as well, no skin.

Hole 15: Great drive leaves me about 50 feet to the pin, drop the approach close and make the par. Justin makes his par as well, no skin.

Hole 16: Drive my Star eagle a bit long, leaving about a 25 footer. Justin makes his Birdie, I miss and take a par. Justin takes the skin.

Hole 17: Another outstanding drive, and as I go for the approach with the Ridge, I griplock the crap out of it, leaving myself about 50 feet right. 2 putts to put it in and I make a bogey. Justin and Dion bogey as well, no skin.

Hole 18: My Hornet turns a bit early on my drive, leaving me about 30 feet of uphill putt to try and keep pace with Justin who dropped it to about 3 feet. I make a run at it, but just miss the chains and have to settle for a par. Justin makes his drop-in and takes the skin.

Hole 19: My Drive goes too far right and ends up in the trees, I have no real opening as there are small branches all across my field of vision, so I go for blind hope and throw the Hornet as hard as I can, somehow I don’t hit anything until a bush about 40 feet short of the pin catches and holds me, 2 putts from there and I make a bogey. Justin and Dion make Par so no skin.

Hole 20: Another pretty good drive, leaves me about where I was after my 2nd shot on 10. On the left edge of the fairway with about a million trees between me and the hole. I try to catch lightning a 2nd time with another tomahawked Hornet, and instead I leave myself way right and in the woods. 2 putts later and I make a bogey. Justin pulls out a par to win his 5th skin, and take me by 1 shot on strokes so he gets my bag tag which was number 3. I beat Dion so I end up with the 7 Justin just picked up.

Back 10 was 34 as well. I’m still not happy with that score, I feel like I can do better, a couple missed putts here and there really did me in.

Sunday

The Easter Bunny came to my house and delivered to both me and Dylan new Latitude 64 Rivers. Since I have the impulse control of a crack addicted monkey and Dylan is the same. We had to get out yesterday and play. It helped that the weather was gorgeous. So after a nice Easter dinner at Jamies Grandparents house, followed by a nice nap in the recliner while the Twins won, Dylan and I hit Acorn for a quick loop. The place was packed and the round took us a lot longer than normal, but it’s always a good time out there, so what the hell.

Hole 1: They moved the pin here back to the summer placement and I drove it perfectly for the winter placement, putting it 3 feet from the old pin. Instead I have about 60 feet to go as I am way left, and I drop it close for the drop in 3.

Hole 2: Toss the Star Eagle low it takes a nice skip and I think I’m good so I bend down to get my bag. When I look up I see my eagle rolling back down the little incline and across the path into the crud. WhaFuck???? Not happy about this little turn of events, I have no angle to put it close, and end up taking a 4.

Hole 3: Drive goes nice and long, but I leak a bit left, and hit some trees before I can fade back. Leaving a weird shot trying to make it close, but I manage to get it close enough to drop in the par.

Hole 4: Drive the Ridge to 2 feet. Check. Sink the Birdie? Check.

Hole 5: Decided to try the River here as this is kind of a tunnel shot and my normal driver likes to weave a bit. The throw comes off ym fingers smooth as silk, but way too low. Grounds up about 60 feet from the pin, another close approach and a drop in putt for the par.

Hole 6: Last time here I took a 7. And not one of those put it in 2 water hazards and killed a duck kind of 7’s either, just got it into the woods and couldn’t get it out. 7’s make me very sad. Plus the group of like 8 guys with a total of 10 discs and a Coors Light home draft keg decided to let us play through, so with a crowd of onlookers, I toss what has to be the best backhand drive I’ve thrown in a while, great snap and pretty good distance out of my beat up DX Valkyrie. Leaves me about 60 feet right of the pin, another up and in for par.

Hole 7: Drive the Champ beast about pin high, 60 feet or so left, up and in for par.

Hole 8: Champ beast again, leave it about 40 feet left and short. Drop it close and in for the par.

Hole 9: Good drive to the rock. A group of like 8 people have waved us through as they are standing around the stagnant water trying to find a disc. Instead of moving out of the line of fire, most of them are still standing there not really paying attention. I bail a bit on my throw and nail a tree. Leaving over a hundred feet for the approach I again, bail the throw and bit trying to make sure I don’t hit the idiots. And 2 putts later at the back summer pin I make a 5.

Hole 10: Trying the river again on this tunnel hole. Nice smooth drive up. I think the confidence that this disc will go nice and straight is helpful, I don’t need space for it to go left and right. Leave myself about 5 feet with a bunch of trees, drop it close and bang home the par.

Hole 11: Very nice drive puts me in the opening, my approach with the Ridge hangs a bit and fades father left that I wanted, leaving me about 30 feet. Slam it home for the par.

Hole 12: Another hole that lately has been giving me some trouble as I want to work the disc out left to right and there really isn’t the space to work a throw like that so I decided to shoot the River again and try and run it straight up the gap. Still leaked a bit lef,t but far less than before and I end up with a pretty nice drive that leaves me about 50 feet, drop it close and make the par.

Hole 13: Nice long drive leaves me up on the hill about 40 feet away, but with a tree blocking the straight line approach. Drop it close and make the three.

Hole 14: I decide to try and shape a line with my Ridge here, Don’t get enough on it to turn it right, and it fades into the trees on the left about 30 feet short. Again no good approach for the duesce, so I drop it close and take my 3.

Hole 15: Drive starts out looking really nice, but I got it a bit high and clip a dead branch, dropping straight down and leaving me about 90 left of the pin. I griplock my approach into a tree, and still have about 50 feet, 2 more shots and I’m in with a bogey.

Hole 16: Nice drive, leaves me at the top of the hill, about 60 feet away. Again I griplock the Ridge and have to scramble back for a 4.

Hole 17: Good drive pin high about 40 feet right, putt falls just short, and I drop in for the par.

Hole 18: Good drive, slip a bit on the approach and leave it about 50 feet short and left. Let go of my putt and think it is golden. Turns out it falls just a bit short of the winter pin, and I drop in to finish with a bogey.

Overall I shoot a 59 or +5 which is a personal best at Acorn. I felt like it was probably the best round I have ever played. I was putting my shots more or less where I wanted to, and other than the 5 on 9, which I blame the idiots who stood pretty much where I wanted to throw and stared like I was asking their drunk and or stoned asses to solve for x when I asked them to move I didn’t really have a blow up hole. A couple 4’s that I think I could improve on, and I really only made 1 putt longer than about 15 feet. I dropped a lot nice and close, but I still need to start making those long putts a bit more consistently.

Guess it’s back to the practice basket in the front yard for a while more. I think I’m finally found the putter I’ll be using for a while in my old Surly Challenger. It just feels right in my hand, and I’m more consistent with it in terms of getting it close and not having much in the way of roll-aways. Now to start turning those 30 footers that I leave close into 30 footers I make.

I don’t typicallly blog much, so I don’t know why I even bothered to create this thing, but it’s here. If I ever feel like communicating with the outside world or sharing what few thoughts I do have, I guess this is where I’ll do it.

Best Picture Nominee: The Fighter

For those who have no idea what I’m talking about:
Based on the true story of “Irish” Mickey Ward (Mark Wahlberg), a welterweight boxer with a pretty lackluster career. While he once showed promise, he’s become little more than a “stepping-stone” for other boxers on their way up. Flanked by his mother-slash-manager (Melissa Leo) and his older brother-slash-trainer (Christian Bale), he’s able to get fights fairly regularly–but his family is more interested in splitting the purse than actually helping his career at all.

When he falls in love with a cute bartender (Amy Adams), he starts to realize that his family may not have his best interests in mind. In particular, his drug-addicted half-brother (who’s only claim to fame in the boxing world is once knocking out Sugar Ray Leonard) constantly skips practice and important family functions, simply because he’s too drugged out of his mind. He was once the “next big thing”, but blew his chances and is now resigned to just living out his old life vicariously through his younger brother.

Mickey gets a new trainer and manager, which drives a wedge in-between his family–especially when he starts winning matches. But he has to find a balance between family and career if he wants a shot at winning it all.

Why it’s nominated:
Although it’s fueled by powerful performances–specifically by Bale and Leo–the Fighter also packs a big cinematic punch through strong efforts in the directing and cinematography. The film has a great energy throughout, cutting “footage” of the documentary that HBO is making about Bale’s character, with the goings-on of the family boxing business in their living room, and even filming the boxing sequences in a retro VHS style a la Pay-Per-View 90s telecasts.

Mark Wahlberg is passable in the lead role, but the character of Mickey is far too reserved to really be standout. Which works, because it seems like that’s kind of the point–even though he’s in the ring, Mickey’s never really the star of his own show. Amy Adams is likewise great in an otherwise remarkable role–and she stands out mostly because this salty, steely-eyed working class girl is so different from her normal roles. Melissa Leo’s role is showier than both of those, and borders on overacting sometimes, but she plays the many shades of the mother hen very well.

But the stand-out of the pack is Christian Bale. He simply becomes Dicky Eklund in a way that not many actors can. And I’m not just talking about his trademark weight-loss (seriously, is anyone else starting to get worried for this guy’s health?). That’s only a part of his dedication to the role of the crack-addicted older brother. During the credits, they show footage of the two actual brothers, and it’s simply amazing how spot on Christian Bale portrayed his role. But it’s not just a matter of impersonation–it’s a performance you really have to see to believe.

Why it’s this low:
The story does get pretty predictable at times. There aren’t any real surprises here, folks. It’s exciting to watch everything unfold, even though you could probably guess everything that’s going to happen before it does.

In addition, sometimes it seems like Christian Bale is almost too good. He’s so stand-out amazing as Dicky, it almost overshadows everything else accomplished in the film. That sounds almost like those faults you say in job interviews (“my biggest weakness is that I just work too hard”), but Bale’s performance truly does steal the show. But it’s still really entertaining to watch him run away with it.

Why it’s this high:
I may have mentioned this before, but Christian Bale is really good in this movie.

And to a certain extent, it seems like the filmmakers knew that, and made the parts with him in it shine as bright as possible. A real highlight is the sibling relationship between Mickey and Dicky–it slowly becomes the focus of the film, and Mickey’s struggle with helping his brother with his problems, and whether he’ll let him do the same for him.

Chances of winning:
If anything wins on Sunday except The Kings’ Speech, it’ll be an upset. But The Fighter has been building momentum recently–and right now may be the top contender to TKS for the big prize. It’d be a come-from-behind victory for sure…but that seems to be this film’s strong suit thematically. We’ll just have to wait and see.

Best Cinematography

Should be here: Shutter Island, 127 Hours

Both of these entries would be a fine addition to this line-up…which is almost without a weak link. Although these two films are pretty different visually, their cinematographers both constructed claustrophobic worlds full of conjured realities and characters slowly edging toward inward insanity.

Woah, sorry. Those are big words. But just know this: those films were pretty.

“The King’s Speech” (Danny Cohen)

It looks…kinda like an HBO TV movie. There’s nothing here visually that really screams out nominate me. Part of that may be due to the fact that the subject matter doesn’t really lend itself to grandiose masterpieces for a cinematographer. Cohen did well with what he had, making the world of King George seem staid, cramped, and frustrating–and the office of Lionel Logue seem spacious and inviting.

But it kinda looks like an HBO TV movie.

“The Social Network” (Jeff Cronenweth)

(Rowing Scene)

This film sort of proves what I was just saying about The King’s Speech–there wouldn’t seem to be very much going on visually. But Cronenweth’s camera lens takes a “people sitting in rooms talking” movie to a whole other level. It’s quite a feat that you don’t notice until after reflecting on the movie–you have no idea why you just thought that these people typing on computers looked so visually arresting, but he manages to do it. He also gets a chance to do some fancy photography tricks with the amazing Tilt-Shifted rowing sequence shot on location in the River Thames (embedded above).

“Inception” (Wally Pfister)

(Trailer)

Chris Nolan’s partnership with Wally Pfister has only grown stronger with each subsequent film–and Inception is without a doubt the most visually impressive effort to date. The film is set chiefly in dream worlds–and Pfister gives each world a unique color and feel all its own. And even though the things going on in them are larger-than-life, to the point of the impossible, the grounded visual style gives them a much greater weight. It’s the kind of imagery that cinematographers dream of having (no pun intended), and Pfister soars with them.

“True Grit” (Roger Deakins)

In my opinion, there is no greater master in the field of cinematography than Roger Deakins. The man just knows how to shoot a camera. He’s the go-to guy for the Coen Brothers, so it was no surprise that they chose him for their latest offering: True Grit. It’s also not surprising that he turned in a true masterpiece of cinematography. I’ve never been this enthralled by two specks off in the distance of the frame since Lawrence of Arabia. But his crowning achievement from this movie has to be the opening shot of a dimly-lit porch during a snowstorm that slowly fades to reveal a dead body (picture above…couldn’t find a video for it). Originally planned as four or five shots, Deakins made a go at doing it in one long shot, and as it turns out that’s the take they used–and it’s just a rare perfect shot of cinema.

And it’s a good thing too. Although I think there was better work done this year, Deakins has never won an oscar, and many feel that it may be his time. And there’s not a better film for him to win it for, in my opinion.

“Black Swan” (Matthew Libatique)

(Trailer)

Black Swan is frimbazeling insane. I can’t wait to write about this movie in the top 10, but suffice to say it’s got some of the most impressive camera-work I’ve ever seen. From the intimate staging of Nina’s apartment, to the wide-open ballet halls filled with dancers Matthew Libatique shoots with such certainty, it’s easy to slip into the world of the film. Of specific note are the on-stage ballet scenes, with the camera fixed closely on the actors’ face, twirling around the alongside them, puts the viewer in the shoes of the dancer rather than the spectator.

Will Win: True Grit

Could Win: King’s Speech

Should Win: Black Swan…although it’s hard to vote against Deakins. I really do want to see him given his due.

Best Picture Nominee: The King’s Speech

For those who have no clue what I’m talking about:
Spoilers for those who know nothing about WWII History.

Colin Firth is King George the VI, who’s lived with a stammering speech impediment since he was a kid, and now as the second-in-line for the throne is forced to speak to the nation on radio. When he’s unable to do it, his wife (Helena Bonham Carter) takes him to an unorthodox speech therapist (played by Geoffrey Rush), who helps him to overcome his problem. The stakes become higher when his father dies and his older brother abdicates the throne–right as the Prime Minister declares war on Hitler. It’s all build-up to his first speech as king, trying to convince an Empire that he’s able to lead them against unspeakable evil.

Why it’s nominated: If you didn’t read what I just wrote, let’s recap: It’s got 1) Royalty, speaking in a 2) funny accent, who 3) overcomes a disability (but not anything really crippling or gross). Oh, and 4) it’s set during World War II.

Game, set, match. The academy eats this stuff for breakfast

Why it’s this low:
Am I the only one who read that description and was surprised this was nominated for an Oscar, and not an Emmy? Seriously, it sounds like a half-way decent HBO TV movie–but are you sure you want to release this theatrically, you guys?

And honestly, it’s better than most HBO TV movies. But compared to the other 8 amazing theatrical films that were nominated this year, it’s really not up to snuff. It’s shot rather plainly, the story is pretty straightforward, and the stakes are fairly vague.

Why it’s this high:
Like I said, it’s actually pretty good for an HBO TV movie. The cast is great; Colin Firth does a good job, and Geoffrey Rush in particular is really fun to watch.

But honestly, the only reason it’s at #9 for me is because The Kids are All Right was so annoying.

Chances of winning:
There aren’t a whole lot of things in life that are sure things.

But The King’s Speech winning the Best Picture Oscar is probably one of them.

I wish it wasn’t so, because there’s many more worthy nominees this year–but any of them will have to pull a pretty big upset to take the prize from The King’s Speech.

Best Score

What’s missing: Tron Legacy

I mean, seriously. Can you imagine Daft Punk showing up to the oscars? In helmets? The album was so-so as an album, but really soared as a soundtrack. There were some really kickass tracks.

And seriously. Daft Punk at the Oscars.

What’s nominated:

“The King’s Speech” (Alexandre Desplat)

Ohai, remember this one?

Like the film, the score is pretty, but kinda pedestrian–featuring mostly classical-sounding frolicky piano melodies. It’s nice background music–but not much else. Alexandre Desplat is coming off a few other wins for this score, and since the film itself seems to have a lot of fans in the academy, they may just be content to mark their vote in this category as well.

“127 Hours” (A.R. Rahman)

127 Hours is pretty much a one-man-show, so the music is obviously an important part of filling out the film. And A.R. Rahman doesn’t disappoint. Whether it’s a soft cue put over a quiet reflective moment, or frantic strings and guitar over an intense dramatic beat, the score is always in perfect harmony with the imagery. It’d be nice for it to get some recognition–but it’ll be hard without a strong best picture frontrunner, as well as the biggest box office winner of year.

“How to Train Your Dragon” (John Powell)

We already covered how I feel about this movie–and that feeling carries over to the score as well. John Powell has been toiling away in the trenches of Dreamworks for a while, and it seems like that time has paid off; the melodies in this soundtrack are incredibly well-crafted, and appropriately match the scale of the film. Again, it’s really nice for this score to get the recognition of a nomination, but that’s likely where it’ll end for this nominee.

“Inception” (Hans Zimmer)

BWWWWAAAAAAAAAAAH!

This might be the best score of Hans Zimmer’s very storied career. He crafted a kinetic, bombastic, instantly iconic score for what turned out to be the blockbuster of the year. Equally as complex as the movie it was made for, it’s able to hit quiet, introspective moments just as well as the gutteral drones that made the score famous. This is a pretty wide-open category, and Zimmer’s honestly got a shot at the statue–albeit an outside one.

“The Social Network” (Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross)

Written by Nine Inch Nails leader Trent Reznor (in partnership with longtime producer Atticus Ross), the soundrack to The Social Network is one of the few scores that I would say are worth the price of admission alone. Combining electronica and industrial with some sparse traditional piano and orchestral pieces, Reznor and Ross have created a strange hybrid: the soundtrack that’s equally or maybe even more enjoyable as an album than as background music in the film.

But in the film, this soundtrack is key to what makes the Social Network great. It takes a well-shot, well-scripted, well-acted film, and adds a dark, textured layer on top of it, that makes the whole film feel different. The seemingly odd choice of Reznor for composer was a risk that really paid off for the film. It’s already led Reznor to a Golden Globe–hopefully it’ll lead him to Oscar as well.

Will Win:It’s probably a toss-up between Social Network and King’s Speech. So I’ll go with my heart and predict Reznor for Social Network.

Could Win: Inception.

Should Win: Social Network.

Best Picture Nominee:

The Kids are All Right

WARNING: If you don’t like [MOD EDIT:] holosexuals, you might not like this movie! Or this review!

DOUBLE WARNING: I’m also breaking my own spoilers rule in the very first entry. I’ll ruin this story for those of you who haven’t seen it.

For those who have no clue what I’m talking about:
Two children (Mia Wasikowska and Josh Hutcherson) who were raised by a Lesbian couple (Annette Bening and Julianne Moore) meet their sperm donor father (Mark Ruffalo), who turns out to be different than what they expect. When their biological father enters their life, he becomes entwined in their family drama, and even starts to cause more than a little drama of his own.

Why it’s nominated:
This movie has pretty great performances all across the board. I’m always a fan of Mark Ruffalo, and he super believable in the role that he’s done a million times before: the almost-middle-aged mumbly slacker that doesn’t take anything too seriously. Julianne Moore and the kids are also great, but Annette Bening is the stand-out performance here as the sometimes-controlling-and-withholding, sometimes-warm-and-personable, bitchy-only-when-she-drinks-red-wine Lesbian mother Nic.

But really the reason this is nominated is the fact that it’s a movie about lesbians, and an “unconventional” family–but not one of the characters has a hint of prejudice, or anything indicating that this is less than normal. It doesn’t bludgeon the audience with the fact that “Hey! These people are Lesbians! And they’re normal! See? they have dysfunctional families too!”, it’s content to just merely show that, and not push it any further.

Why it’s this low:
Despite the great performances, the movie as a whole is kind of annoying.

For one thing, I never quite bought that Julianne Moore was ever really in love with Annette Bening. Which maybe is kinda the point, because about halfway through, she sleeps with Mark Ruffalo. Yep. She turns her back on 20+ years of not being into dudes, and in fact being MARRIED to a woman…to sleep with Mark Ruffalo? I mean, the fact that Bening is sometimes kind of a withholding bitch is held up as the reason she cheated–and the fact that the lesbians like to watch Gay (as in dudes) porn together is held up as the reason that she’s attracted to dudes (Which is like…really? They kind of gloss over this in the movie as if this is something that EVERYONE already knows that lesbians secretly love. Am I the only one who feels like that’s maybe not true? I mean, I have to admit, the amount of conversations I’ve had with lesbians on the subject of gay [as in dudes] porn is exactly 0, so I’ll admit I’m not an expert).

Anyway, that sort of dominates the whole second half of the movie. Not just the sex, but the fallout from it: the lying, the finding out, the heartbreak and feeling of betrayal of the family when they find out, etc. And it honestly doesn’t feel right. It’s like they came up with the basic concept(Lesbian couple’s kids meet their sperm donor dad), and then didn’t have any idea where to go with it. So they just decided to make it about cheating, and cram that whole other movie into the second half of the movie they already had. As a result, the ending feels rushed, and it ends up very unfulfilling.

And separate from all of that…the kids name is Laser. I’ll wait and let that sink in for a second.

His name is LASER.

Which sounds like it should be awesome, but it’s not. It’s annoying. There’s not a hint of irony about his name being LASER. In fact, at one point Mark Ruffalo calls him “Laze”, and he replies, not missing a beat, “um, it’s LASER”. Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you took your name so seriously, LASER. Obviously you do, since you prefer to be called by your full name, LASER. Not “Laze” or “Zer” or even “Lazy”. You’re LASER. Get it right.

Why it’s this high:
All of that said, I still kinda liked the movie, even though I only watched it because it was nominated. When it came out earlier in the year, I thought it looked trite and predictable and not really worth my time. I wasn’t entirely right on all counts, but if I were a member of the Academy, it would would never have occured to me to nominate it for best picture.

Also Julianne Moore gets naked, so if you’re into that sort of thing, well there you go.

Chances of winning:
Far outside shot. This film’s not quite as far off the radar as some of the nominees, but it would be a huge surprise for it to win in any of the categories it’s nominated (Best Actor – Mark Ruffalo, Best Actress – Annette Bening, Best Original Screenplay, as well as Best Picture). The academy has come close to honoring gay-friendly movies with the big prize (Brokeback Mountain was notoriously the favorite to win in 2005, when Crash came from behind to win it all), so it’s possible that their white liberal guilt will catch up to them this year.

Don’t bet on it, though.

Best Animated Film

What’s missing: Despicable Me, Tangled

I haven’t seen Despicable Me, but I’ve heard it’s great. I saw Tangled, and enjoyed it (althought the songs were super-meh. They were trying to be classic disney musical numbers like Lion King or Beauty and the Beast, and they just weren’t), but to be honest, since there’s only 3 nominees this year…I think they picked the right ones.

What’s nominated:

The Illusionist

No, this isn’t the movie with Edward Norton (“Aww, you got this one? I told you to rent the GOOD movie set in the 1800s about Magicians.”). It’s a hand-drawn 2D animated French film, set in Europe in the 1950s. The star is an elderly stage magician who’s starting to become obsolete, with rock stars taking up all his big stage shows. He’s forced to start playing smaller and smaller venues: fringe theaters, garden parties, bars, when he meets a young girl in a small village completely enamored with his act.

In her village, electricity’s just starting to arrive, it’s not really the modern era yet. So to her, everything is still magical. When he pulls a coin out of her ear, she thinks he really popped it out of thin air; when he buys her new shoes, and reveals them from a handkerchief, she believes that’s magic as well. And when she follows him to the city, he keeps up the illusion–sneaking out to work at night jobs so she still thinks everything she recieves is magical.

It’s a really sweet story, and visually impressive not only because of the beautifully done hand-drawn animation or the watercolor painted backgrounds, but also because there’s barely any dialogue throughout the entire 80 minute running time. Some of it’s translated into english, but most of it’s just gibberish. It’s sort of like watching a movie in Simmish for an hour and a half–and yet somehow heartwarming instead of aggravating.

Toy Story 3

Don’t lie. All of you saw this movie. If you have kids and you didn’t, you’re clearly a bad parent. If you don’t have kids and you didn’t, you’re clearly either a cheapass or you don’t have a soul.

It’s a perfect end to a franchise, filled with trademark Pixar wit and heart–maybe more than usual. It’s the only trilogy I can think of that really fulfills what you always thought was true as a kid–the newest one really is better than the last. They somehow managed to pump more emotion and heart into each one, while still maintaining the right amount of humor and charm that they’re so well known for.

Be honest. You cried, didn’t you?

How To Train Your Dragon

When I went to see this movie, I wasn’t realistically expecting much. There was a part of my heart that hoped it would be good, but I couldn’t really figure out why. I was never super fascinated with dragons, I’d never seen 3D that was really motivated or actually contributed anything to the movie, and in addition, it was from DreamWorks. The Anti-pixar. They pump out two movies a year, cram them full of celebrity voices, and they know they’ll make a ton of money from them even if it’s a piece of crap, so there’s no incentive to try that hard. There had been a few good movies that fell through the cracks, but overall, they were always the

Well, another one fell through the cracks. This movie was great. And like I can’t put my finger on what exactly made me hope it would be good, I can’t say exactly what makes me feel like I’m eight years old again every time I watch this movie.

At it’s core, it’s a story about friendship. Hiccup (Jay Baruchel) and Toothless the dragon come from different worlds that hate each other, but they need each other to survive. And by the end of the movie, the boy and the dragon literally can’t fully function apart from each other.

The characters are endearing, the animation is emotive, the 3D actually contributes to the experience in a very real, very visceral way, the soundtrack soars higher than the dragons do, and OMG DID I MENTION THERE’S DRAGONS?

Seriously, this movie is great.

Will Win: Toy Story 3
Could Win: Umm…let’s not kid ourselves. Toy Story 3 is gonna win.
Should Win: I may be the only one that thinks this…but How To Train Your Dragon.

As you may or may not know, the Oscars are coming up soon. In just over 10 days, in fact. What a coincidence–10 days, 10 best picture nominees. What a coincidence indeed. The sort of coincidence that seems to beg for something to be done about it.

So here’s what I’m doing about it. For the next 10 days, I’ll post a blog entry each day featuring my thoughts on a Best Picture nominee–starting with my least favorite, and ending with the best one. I’ll include why it’s nominated, what I liked, what I didn’t, and what it’s chances are at the big prize. And along the way, I’ll also include my thoughts on a different category each day.

And I’ll do my best to avoid spoilers for those who want to check out the movies eventually. If I veer away from this, I’ll make sure to mark the titles appropriately.

So tomorrow, I’ll start things off with my least-favorite BP nominee “The Kids Are All Right” followed by my thoughts on the “Best Animated Feature” category.