This week: Gorgeous animation, Oscar winners, Oscar nominees & women in peril
2014 PG Animated Adventure ComedyGolden Globe Nominee: Best Animated Feature
Director:
Daytime Emmy winner Jorge R. Gutiérrez (as Jorge R. Gutierrez)(El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera)Writers:
Jorge R. Gutiérrez (as Jorge R. Gutierrez) (Brandy & Mr. Whiskers), Emmy winner Douglas Langdale (as Doug Langdale) (Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness)Plot: Manolo, a young man who is torn between fulfilling the expectations of his family and following his heart, embarks on an adventure that spans three fantastic worlds where he must face his greatest fears.
Produced by:
| Guillermo del Toro | ... | producer |
Diego Luna does the dialogue for both English and the Spanish dubbing versions of the film. Indie writer/director Paul Chart ('American Perfekt') worked with Gutierrez on a final re-write just before production began. The original title of the story was, "El Matador", changed to, "Day of the Dead", changed again to it's current, "The Book of Life".
Review: I didn't hear much about this film until the Golden Globe nominations came out so I finally caught a full trailer. This film looks beautiful. Though I'm not Mexican, I still love Dia de Los Muertos and find the face makeup beautiful. This film looks beautiful. I'm looking forward to watching this and seeing if it also deserved an Oscar nomination.
Rating: TBD
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2014 R Drama Music
3 Oscar wins: Best Supp Actor (JK Simmons), Editing, Sound Mixing
Director:Damien Chazelle
Writer: Damien Chazelle
Stars: Miles Teller, J.K. Simmons, Melissa Benoist
Plot: A promising young drummer enrolls at a cut-throat music conservatory
where his dreams of greatness are mentored by an instructor who will
stop at nothing to realize a student's potential.
Review: This movie blew me away. It was full of tension, incredible performances, crazy amazing sound editing & soundtrack, and the best ending to a film I've seen in years. Simmons completely deserved his Oscar win for this. I'm so glad the art house took over the Oscars this year. Films like this have trouble getting funding so it's great to see awards that bring press and more money to this films. This was original but also realistic. I went to music school and had a really tough professor that made students cry and switch their major. There was even a thrown music binder or two. No physical assault though it;s still works for this film & these characters. I'm also blown away by Simmons & Teller's musical talents. Teller has been playing drums since he was 15 and studied 4hours a day 3X a week to get up to par for this film. Simmons used to play piano and took lessons to be able to play in this film. Such a strong film.
Rating: Epic
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2014 Drama
Oscar nominee: Best Supporting Actor (Robert Duvall)
Director:
David Dobkin
Plot: Big city lawyer Hank Palmer returns to his childhood home where his father, the town's judge, is suspected of murder. Hank sets out to discover the truth and, along the way, reconnects with his estranged family.
Review: I love law films & RDJ so I'm looking forward to the court scene aspects of this film. My husband lieks father son movies. Seems to be a good father son movie for bonding time. We'll see ifthe OScar nomination was deserved or if it's just going to a Hollywood oldie but goodie.
Rating: TBD
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2014 SuspenseDirector:
Rowan Joffe
Plot: A woman wakes up every day, remembering nothing as a result of a traumatic accident in her past. One day, new terrifying truths emerge that force her to question everyone around her.
Review: This movie seems like Memento meets Premonition. Memento is my favorite film, and I loe the concept. I haven't heard anything good about this film unfortunately, but I'm refraining on commenting on that til I see it for myself.
Rating: TBD
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2015 HorrorDirector:
Adam MasseyWriter:
Jason JuravicFilming Locations:
Sudbury, Ontario, Canada
Plot: After the traumatic loss of her mother, a teenaged girl tries to uncover the dark secrets behind her new home, in spite of her father's disbelief.
Review: I'm happy to see Cosgrove in a more adult role and to see Butler in film when I've only see him on TV. However, this doesn't seem like anything original to me. Also, how can a teenager afford to live in a house?
Rating: TBD
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