Rate The Last Movie You Saw

8.5/10

Really? Fair enough if you didn't like it but I think it seems a bit harsh to describe it as Oscar bait. If it really wanted to come off as Oscar bait I think it could have been much more melodramatic and really pushed the tragic circumstances of the situation; show kids crying or something

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I'm still trying to figure out why the term Oscar bait means something negative.

Starlet (2012)
Wanta see some real porn in an indie film? This is your movie!

Link to my mini review at Mofo

Left Behind

Yuck, Nic Cage, what is wrong?!?!?!?!

Because it implies that the people responsible for making such a film care less about actually crafting a unique, resonant artwork and more about identifying common factors in films that have won Oscars before cynically replicating said factors in new films for the sole purpose of winning Oscars - Oscars that are not deserved because they are given to fundamentally hollow pieces of work that succeed less on their own merits and more because they pander to the Academy's preferences.

Lone Star -

Texas is messed-up.

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Iro's Top 100 Movies v3.0

Short Term 12 (2013) - Dennis Daniel Cretton



A 20-something supervising staff member of a residential treatment facility (Brie Larson) navigates the troubled waters of that world alongside her co-worker and longtime boyfriend (John Gallagher Jr.). This is a kind of film that really enjoy because I like when films show me something raw and real; this film delivers on that greatly. Brie Larson is incredible in this film and you can really tell she is evolving into one of the best actresses working right now, especially after her well deserved oscar from Room (2015). I also really liked all the teen actors who dwelled in this troubled treatment center and I believed most of them, especially Marcus who was great. The story in this film is at times predictable, but is still interesting to watch all these people work through their problems and acknowledge that they are not alone. There is a complexity in this that isn't often found in modern cinema, with all these deep characters just looking for meaning. There isn't a lot to say, but I just really love so much about this. One of my only gripes is that the comedy was a bit forced at times and was treating some dark things a little too lightly. Overall, this is a heartfelt film that shows you the darkness of life, but also that if you keep searching for hope that it can one day be found.

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It's only after we've lost everything that we're free to do anything.

Picnic (1955)

Excellent movie about twenty-four hours in the life of a small town in Kansas that is affected when a drifter, Hal Carter (William Holden), shows up to visit his rich college friend Alan (Cliff Robertson). But things get awkward when most of the women he meets go gaga for him, leading to some difficult encounters. Holden is smitten with Madge (Kim Novak) when he first lays eyes on her, and I don't blame him at all! She's is luminous, voluptuous, and all kinds of nice adjectives. Other characters include Madge's younger, high school-age sister Millie (a cute Susan Strasberg), local teacher and boarder Miss Rosemary (Rosalind Russell), and Madge's mom, who doesn't like Hal...she wants Madge to marry rich Alan...I guess she's hoping for some trickle down in the finance department to reach her purse, seeing as her boarding house probably isn't pulling in the bucks. Arthur O'Connell appears as Miss Rosemary's beau, who just likes to have a good time and drink a little.

By the time the picnic rolls around, Hal has ingratiated himself finely into the community, especially with all the women. Tension and passions rise, with Hal caught in the middle. The acting is all fine, with Strasberg and O'Connell almost stealing the show. Joshua Logan directs with a deft hand. Very good story of small town goings-on.





Chariots of Fire (1981)

Best Picture Oscar-winner in 1982 that was a surprise for a lot of people. being its competition were the films Atlantic City, On Golden Pond, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Reds. I'm not saying this film is better than any of those, but it's still excellent in its own right. All about runners, focusing on two in particular: the devout Christian runner Eric Liddell (Ian Charleson), and the intense Jewish runner Harold Abrahams (Ben Cross). Liddell is a missionary who is expected to accompany his sister overseas and Abrahams is unsure about his ability after losing a prelimary race. Along comes a racing coach, played by Ian Holm, to help Abrahams. Everything is leading up to the 1924 Paris Olympics.

Nicely acted film, with Cross and Charleson, along with Holm taking the top honors. Also putting in good performances are Alice Krige, Nigel Davenport, and Nigel Havers. I've never been particularly fond of racing, on film or off, but this movie totally invested me in the sport. I'm glad I saw it.





Kung Fu Panda (2008)

Awesome animated film from DreamWorks. Jack Black voices Po, a Panda who works with his dad at their restaurant, but daydreams of being part of the Furious Five, a group of Kung Fu masters who live at the top of the nearby mountain with their master, Shifu. All of these characters are various animals; Shifu is a mouse or rat (I'm not sure which) voiced by Dustin Hoffman; Tigress is, um, a female tiger voiced by Angelina Jolie; Monkey is a monkey voiced by Jackie Chan; Mantis, guess what he is, is voiced by Seth Rogen; Viper is voiced by Lucy Liu; Crane is voiced by David Cross. Tai Lung is a villainous panther voiced by Ian McShane. The story is very involving and the animation is super. I was glued to the tube from beginning to end. Now I can't wait to see the next two.

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"Miss Jean Louise, Mr. Arthur Radley."

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang -

Have I ever mentioned how frustrating it is to watch something that you know you should like but just don't?

Iro, that day where you mentioned you didn't love any movies from 2005, I was about to ask if you perhaps liked that one... perhaps not.

And also, on another more general note... Am I the only one not loving that Short Term 12 film?

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (Bekmamtov, 2012)



I have a confession to make: I liked this film. The premise is stupid but the action sequences and the way characters are handled are relatively above average, for a low-budget hybrid film.

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That's a great answer.

Now, can someone explain why Spotlight is more Oscar bait than The Revenant?

I really enjoyed the first Avengers, but I now think part of it was the novelty of having all of these superheroes together. This felt like too much; the excitement feels nullified in a world where anything is impossible. The movie is also way too long. I do love the cast, and there's enough fun moments to be entertained.

I disagree that Spotlight is Oscar bait, mostly because of the performances. When I think bait, I think of physical transformations or huge explosions of loud acting. Spotlight only has one of these (that bad Ruffalo "YOU LET IT HAPPEN" speech that they show in front of all the awards), while something like Joy was nonstop explosions and The Danish Girl was sold on Eddie Redmayne being a woman. It also doesn't check off any of the traditional "bait" story boxes, like World War 2 or a smaller war for independence, oppressing racial or sexual minorities, or making movies about making movies. The fact is that Oscar Bait is defined more often by a perceived "undeserved win" than by actually being Oscar bait (see Forrest Gump, The King's Speech, American Beauty, etc.)

All true. But it is a competition. No one blames Usain Bolt for doing the right thing in training. The Oscars (and their importance) are a result of the history of the C20th.

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I'll second. Thought it was pretty overrated.

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Letterboxd

You mean yesterday? On further reflection I figure that The Proposition and The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada might fit the profile, though "love" might be a stretch. Speaking of which, if I gave Short Term 12 a does that also count as "not loving" it?

The common answer regarding Spotlight seems to be that, since it's based on a true story that concerns an important/relevant sociopolitical issue, then the Academy picked it on its merit as an important work of social commentary more so than because it's an entertaining or artistically unique/accomplished film. It's an Important Film, if not necessarily a Great Film. This is also reflected in its extremely conventional style of film-making, which seems designed to be as bland as possible so as not to distract in any way from the (important) story being told - such a factor contributes to it being seen as a "safe" choice for Best Picture and, by extension, a solid example of Oscar bait. Those are the reasons why Spotlight would come across as a seemingly more blatant type of Oscar bait compared to The Revenant, though I don't necessarily think that it's more Oscar bait than The Revenant - rather, I'd say that The Revenant is on the same level but going in a very different direction.

There are many different ways in which Oscar bait can manifest (more than you listed, anyway), but I wouldn't say that the "undeserved win" is the primary definition of Oscar bait. Consider the films that seem custom-built to win but just...don't for whatever reason (here is a recent listicle that names a few examples of unsuccessful Oscar-baiting films). They get lost to the sands of time rather than unfavourably remembered as wrong choices.

Making good films (or at least winning films) seems a little more complex than running, especially when a race is won by whoever crosses the finish line first (a single event that can be objectively observed) and a filmmaking award is won on the basis of votes (which are entirely up to the voters' extremely subjective collective discretion).

What bothers me most about the term Oscar bait is how people don't apply it to films they like. If a biopic comes out that cinephiles like than all of a sudden it is doing something "different". If people would apply it across the board to high production value dramas with big name actors that would be fine. The favorites always seem to get exempt though.