Oh Goodness

Where does the time go? I must post more on this blog! All's well, I just get caught up in other things. So I figured I might as well return to blogging with a bang (just as Robert Downey Jr. returned to relevance with a bang in Iron Man, or Lisa Kudrow returned to TV with a bang in the short-lived-but-brilliant The Comeback). What I mean by a "bang" is my top ten list for 2010, which is as follows (acting awards to follow):

1. The Fighter
2. The Social Network
3. The Kids Are All Right
4. Black Swan
5. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
6. Inception
7. Blue Valentine
8. Solitary Man
9. Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
10. Tangled

What are your favorites of 2010? Please comment!

Music Video

If I were to start a meme, it would be one where everybody embeds what they consider to be the best music video onto their blog. Not necessarily their favorite, but the actual "best," according to them. If anybody wants to participate, do! Just post what you consider to be the best music video. (I repeat, not your favorite. Unless you're favorite is the best. Fancy taste!)

Here's my pick for the best music video. Keep in mind this is subject to change, but at this moment, on this day, at this hour, I am choosing:

Oi

Sorry about the follow-up to those Oscar predictions. I won't be able to complete those (junior year at school keeps me busy with other things, whether they be academic or social) I do have another list for you. My favorite celebrities. Not actors or actresses or auteurs (though maybe they are on the list). But those celebrities who, for whatever inexplicable reason, you can't get enough of. Those stars who, if they're on a magazine you buy it, or if they're on a talk show you just have to watch it. Here are my three Tiers of favorite celebrities.

Tier One (Alphabetical)
Jennifer Aniston - It's probably my intense Friends devotion or my belief that she could somehow wow everyone one day if given the right script that leads me to obsess over Miss Aniston.

Penelope Cruz - It's got to be the Spanish accent and the inherent Euro-sexiness.

Andrew Garfield - I've been referring to him as my "new Anna Kendrick" for the awards season, or rather that person who I will cling to during the entire awards season because of their charms, talents, and I just always need somebody to root for (even if they don't usually win, much like Miss Kendrick last year). It's an awards season ritual of mine. In 2007, it was Ellen Page fandom. In 2008, Penelope Cruz. Then Anna and now Andrew.

Neil Patrick Harris - The hottest triple threat ever. He's, like, a 108 threat.

Anna Kendrick - The fast-talking charms of Anna Kendrick make me melt every single time. I could root for her forever.

Nicole Kidman - I have a thing for ridiculously gorgeous and talented actresses with porcelain skin, Amazonian height, delicate features, and Australian accents. What can I say?

Madonna - Nobody has shaped me pop-culturally as much as Madonna has. I made my own Madonna "discovery" in 9th grade. Last year (10th grade), sometime before that "eh" Glee episode devoted to Madge, I became slightly more obsessive and dipped much more extensively into her catalog, but still only scratching the surface of her work and her persona. This past summer, I threw myself completely into Madonna, and now it's October and I still can't get enough. This obsession is here to stay.

(Of course, in the late category, one Katharine Hepburn.)

Tier Two (The people I love but only border on "obsession" with.. alphabetical order.)

Kristin Chenoweth - Pint size fun.
Marion Cotillard - French, and crazy/repressed wife staple.
Courteney Cox - Monica! (And Gale!)
Matthew Fox - One of the few Jack fans out there.
Lisa Kudrow - Phoebe! (And Michele!)
Carey Mulligan - So close to tier one that it actually seems unfair that she's in this tier.
Evangeline Lilly - Kate Kate Kate Kate Kate.
Britney Spears - Bitch.

This is off the top of my head. Which celebrities do you just go gaga for? (Perhaps Gaga herself?)

Oscars Oscars Oscars

The Oscars seem to be on everybody's minds, from Luke at www.lukecurtis.blogspot.com to Nathaniel at www.filmexperience.blogspot.com. I thought I'd offer my two cents in more than just comment form for who I predict being nominated. These early predictions (no precursors!) are fun. Some may come true, most probably won't. That's the best thing about the pre-precursor season: nothing is set in stone. So be prepared for a lot of text and, without further ado, here they are:

Best Picture (ranked from most likely to least likely):
Toy Story 3
The Kids Are All Right
The Social Network
Inception
The King's Speech
(Tier one above, tier two below)
The Fighter
Black Swan
Love and Other Drugs
Never Let Me Go
Somewhere

We know Toy Story 3 is in if they let Up in last year. Inception I have reservations about, if only because better films may come along, but it definitely captured the zeitgeist this summer, and it is Christopher Nolan's "time." The Academy felt so bad about The Dark Knight snub that they made the field ten-wide. They aren't ignoring Nolan again. The Kids Are All Right has probably had "front-runner" status for awhile (live-action films category) and I don't see any reason why it would lose its heat. The Social Network has gotten very positive early buzz, and its director (David Fincher) has been quite the news item because of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo business. He's safe. The King's Speech is the definition of Oscar bait. Royals, Geoffrey Rush, a true story, and royals. Lots of royals. I've only heard positive things, so I think it can pull off a nomination in a ten-wide field (I mean, An Education did last year and that was certainly less bait-y.)
The Fighter depends on the reviews. With good/great reviews, then the topic (boxer! inspirational!) it's in. Black Swan is probably the most potentially polarizing film on this list, but with ardent supporters (which it seems to have, are they Academy members?) it could break through. Love and Other Drugs feels like that Chocolat nom. waiting to happen. Except Chocolat was in the top 5, so why can't Love and Other Drugs be in the top 10? Never Let Me Go is the film I actually might have the least faith in for Oscar love, but Somewhere also seems iffy, but for different reasons. I give Never Let Me Go the edge because of the cast and that haunting trailer.

Best Director
Christopher Nolan, Inception
David Fincher, The Social Network
David O. Russell, The Fighter
Mike Leigh, Another Year
Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan

Nolan has the whole "it's his time," as does Aronofsky. Nolan is probably the safer bet because his film has been released, grossed close to $700 million, and permeated pop culture. Black Swan probably won't come anywhere near $700 million (ah, in a perfect world!), but Darren Aronofsky can't be denied this many times.. can he? David Fincher seems to be a no-brainer, but Mike Leigh and David O. Russell are more long shots. Mike Leigh has pulled off this feat before (Vera Drake) where he gets nominated but his film doesn't, and given the warm reception Another Year has received, he might be safer than the film itself. And David O. Russell soars or sinks based on the reviews of The Fighter. Positive, he's probably in, negative, he's probably out.

More predictions in the coming days. What are your thoughts on my predictions so far?

Catching Up

So remember that "most anticipated of 2010" list I made? Here's a round-up of the films I've seen, and the new order for "most anticipated" now that I have seen some of the films and my opinions have changed due to trailers, buzz, etc.

Eat Pray Love - B (Tied for number 10 on the former list) A solid Julia Roberts vehicle, but doesn't scratch the surface of the psychological problems and inner journey author Elizabeth Gilbert took to emerge a new woman.

Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World - A- (Number 9) A smart and eye-poppingly fresh take on a graphic novel I never had the fortune of reading. Cera is stellar as he tries to play against type as a womanizer, and the supporting cast (Culkin, Kendrick, etc.) is killer.Inception - B+ (Number 3) A big concept that isn't always as stable as Nolan would want it to be, but can't-miss-cinema nonetheless. Cotillard is radiant in her ever-growing niche of an abused wife, Mal.

The Kids Are All Right - A (Number 2) A film I went into with high expectations, and it didn't disappoint at all. Career best work from Annette Bening, Mark Ruffalo, and Josh Hutcherson. It treats what could have been trivial plot points with unmatched sincerity and originality.

And now to revise the list.. the previous list looked like:

10. Never Let Me Go / Eat, Pray, Love
9. Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World
8. My Own Love Song
7. How Do You Know
6. The Social Network
5. Burlesque
4. Rabbit Hole
3. Inception
2. The Kids Are All Right
1. Love and Other Drugs

And the new list looks like:

10. 127 Hours
9. Fair Game
8. How Do You Know
7. Somewhere
6. Burlesque
5. Love and Other Drugs
4. Rabbit Hole
3. Black Swan
2. The Social Network
1. Never Let Me Go

Agree or disagree? Sound off in the comments, please!

Susan Sarandon... EO?

The EGOT, the combination of having won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony. This Sunday, Susan Sarandon may be one step closer to completing her EGOT, as she's nominated for an Emmy in a little-buzzed-about category, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie for the HBO telefilm You Don't Know Jack. Her competition includes Brenda Vaccaro (randomly an Oscar nominee) also for You Don't Know Jack, Catherine O'Hara and Julia Ormond for Temple Grandin, and Kathy Bates for Alice. Assuming Syfy doesn't win acting awards, it's a four-way race between the You Don't Know Jack girls and the Temple Grandin girls who aren't Claire Danes.
I haven't seen either movie (no HBO!), but they were both supposed to be pretty good. Susan has the edge here because Catherine and Julia probably play second and third fiddle to Claire Danes, who the movie (presumably) showcases. And while You Don't Know Jack presumably showcases Al Pacino, we all know what Susan Sarandon can do in limited roles. Also, she's been nominated for multiple Emmys before and she has never won, and these kinds of things do factor in (unless you're, say, Richard Burton at the Oscars). She's been a revered, hard working actress for decades now.. surely an Emmy cannot be that hard to take?

And the "G" and the "T" shouldn't be that hard for her to win, either. Her stage work on Broadway is limited. Granted she didn't get a Tony nomination for last season's Exit the King, it's not much to fret over. If supplied with the proper vehicle, a Tony could be hers in no time. And winning a Grammy means doing an audiobook (easier if it's for the kiddies). So, by Sunday, Susan should be halfway through her EGOT.

What do you think of Susan's chances at the Emmys? Please be kind, we're big fans over here.

Black Swan

Black Swan may or may not be a major Oscar contender.. You can never tell with Darren Aronofsky. It's probably obvious that, if the ten-wide field had existed, The Wrestler would have been included in the line-up, but it's harder to say if Requiem for a Dream would have made it on Oscar's short(but a little bit longer)list of 10 nominees. I mean, Chocolat was in their top five, so...

What do you think of the trailer? I haven't really been looking forward to this, but due to the "eh" trailer of Love and Other Drugs (previously named my "Most Anticipated of 2010") and this much more awesome and intriguing trailer for Black Swan (missing from my most anticipated list), I'm sad that this wasn't previously on my radar! I'm looking forward to it now (Ballerinas! Natalie! Insanity! Mila!?), are you?