Every once in a while, you see a series of trailers that convince you that a movie will be fantastic. Sometimes this holds to be true, and sometimes it doesn’t. Sometimes, you convince yourself that a film is going to be amazing based on the trailers alone. And then, when the critics support your belief by giving the movie high praise, you head into that movie thinking that you are about to see something exceptional. I thought Todd Haynes (
Far From Heaven, I’m Not There) was about to strike gold with
Carol. He had the players. With apologies to Jennifer Lawrence, Cate Blanchett (
Blue Jasmine, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) is the current leading lady in Hollywood. When I first heard Blanchett’s soothing voice-over speaking to an unidentified character during a trailer filled with drama, strife, and unpopular decisions involving the leads, I couldn’t help but be engrossed. I don’t know who created this trailer, but this individual should have directed
Carol rather than Haynes because they brought more drama to a two-minute snippet than Haynes brought in two hours. This isn’t an exaggeration. The trailer is THAT good, and the movie is THAT disenchanting. Blanchett’s dramas are heavy, and she is at her absolute best when she plays a character who is lost in her confusion. So why wasn’t
Carol the movie of the year?
Continue reading Carol (2015) →
Joy is the epitome of a very average movie with a standout lead performance. Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle) will most definitely earn her fourth Academy Award nomination (third for Lead Actress) in five years for her role as the title character. Still, she does not have a chance to win. I think she would have had a shot had the movie been better received with critics and audiences, but it likely would not have been enough to knock off favorites Brie Larson (Room), Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn), or Charlotte Rampling (45 Years). Lawrence and Cate Blanchette (Carol) likely will be the final two nominations, with Carey Mulligan (Suffragette) having an outside chance to spoil.
The closer that each of my reviews is to awards season, the more unconventional they become. For the past four or five years, I’ve tried to see as much as I can. If a movie gets nominated in one of the big six awards, I will see it regardless of how I feel about it. Sometimes this can be a painful experience, but it’s part of what I’m trying to do. So, before I get into my review of The Danish Girl, I want to talk about the Best Actor Academy Award nomination category. In a year where male lead performances have fallen short of the caliber they have achieved in recent years, the battle for Best Actor comes down to two individuals. These include Eddie Redmayne (