The Oscars have come and gone this year, and every year there is something that surprises or at the very least pleases me. This year, while I wasn't particularly shocked with any of the awards, I was pleasantly surprised with a couple. In the Short Feature category, I was pleasantly surprised to see "West Bank Story" win. For those that haven't seen this short, I implore you to go check it out on iTunes. If you have ever seen "West Side Story", you will enjoy this short. And the director's message of peace is not only applicable to the situation in the middle east, but to the world in general.
I was also pleasantly surprised with the tribute and lifetime achievement award for Ennio Morricone. This composer got his start composing music for the old Italian westerns, also known as "spaghetti westerns", like "A Fist Full of Dollars". In fact, this famous score was Ennio's first. In all, the composer has created over 400 film scores, but has never won an Academy Award. I was glad that he was allowed to express himself in his native Italian during his acceptance speech, and it was nice to see Clint Eastwood translating. I am not a big fan of Celine Dion, but I really was impressed with her performance of the new song that Ennio had composed. Very well done.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Monday, February 19, 2007
"Man of the Year" Review
Robin Williams' election-time movie is coming out on DVD tomorrow, so I thought that this was a good point to post my review of the movie. This movie appeared, in a slightly edited form, in my local newspaper, The Telegraph-Herald.
------------------------------cut here------------------------------
It would be easy to use clichés like “ripped from the headlines” and “art imitates life” to describe “Man of the Year.” Tom Dobbs, a political satirist in the vein of Jon Stewart or Bill Maher, points out nightly the foibles of our democracy to much comic effect. During a Q&A session before one of his shows, an audience member suggests that Dobbs should run for president. Initially dismissing the notion, Dobbs comes to believe that this could be the best way to give the democratic process a kick in the seat. He announces his candidacy for the presidency, and the campaign tour begins.
Meanwhile in Silicon Valley, Delacroy Systems has been awarded a government contract to deploy a high-tech computerized voting system. But, unbeknownst to the world, there is a glitch in the system. A glitch that programmer Eleanor Green has discovered. Being the diligent employee that she is, she emails the CEO of the company, Mathias Hemmings, and tells him about the implications of this glitch. But with the election looming so close, Hemmings has no intention of jeopardizing the bottom line by addressing this minor problem. The decision is made; "the perception of legitimacy is more important than legitimacy itself." When the election night results start to mimic the glitch, Eleanor has to make a decision that will not only affect her, but an entire nation.
Barry Levinson and Robin Williams return to the roots of their first collaboration nearly twenty years ago, the critically-acclaimed “Good Morning, Vietnam,” with “Man of the Year.” Williams’ performance as Armed Forces Radio DJ Adrian Cronauer, which earned him a Golden Globe award as well as Oscar and BAFTA nominations, proved to the world that not only was he a funny guy, but he could do serious, as well. Just as in “Vietnam”, Levinson manages to mix Williams’ trademark stream-of consciousness comedy wit with the seriousness of a political drama. Williams is able to take hold of scenes like the political debate between Dobbs, Senator Mills, played by Canadian-born David Ferry, and incumbent President Kellog, portrayed by David Nichols, and turns them into frenetic showpieces that are part comic routine, part political diatribe.
Behind the scenes of Dobbs’ political campaign are Jack Menken, his manager, played by Christopher Walken, and Eddie Langston, Dobb’s head writer, played by Lewis Black. Black, whose day-job as political commentator for Comedy Central mimics the movie, seems to be right at home here. And Walken’s seasoned manager Langston helps to show the thin line between entertainment and reality, as he quips that he's going to be the first manager of the President of the United States to an interviewer.
But anyone looking for a comic satire will find more than they expected with “Man of the Year”. I will not condemn a movie for the marketing decisions that the studio makes, but I think that Universal is doing a disservice not only to the viewers, but to the vision of the filmmakers by selling this as a comedy. Like Levinson’s “Vietnam,” the third act of the movie takes on a very serious tone. Dobbs’ wrestling with his moral decision to take the presidency is played along side Hemmings’ malicious attempts to find and silence Laura Linney’s socially challenged programmer Eleanor Green. While the suspense at times feels a bit out-of-place in the first two acts of the movie, I found myself drawn into it by the third act. Jeff Goldblum is wonderfully creepy as Delacroy’s corporate lawyer Alan Stewart. While his black-and-white loyalties may be a bit of a slap in the face to the viewer, it’s oddly comforting to know that there are no ambiguities about his, or Hemmings’, motives.
Levinson’s film style moves from pseudo-documentary to standard drama so fluidly that you will probably never know the difference. The points at which he chooses to make these switches are well timed, and fit each situation. There is nothing jarring about the stylistic differences, and it helps to support the legitimacy of what’s happening on-screen.
The relationship that eventually develops between Dobbs and Green at first seems forced, and out-of-the-blue. What in the beginning seems like a nice person just being a nice person is soon replaced with almost blind devotion, as Dobbs chooses to believe what Green is telling him, even in the face of almost overwhelming evidence to the contrary. But, upon further reflection, it is a credit to the character of Tom Dobbs, as it becomes clear that he has a true gift for sorting the rhetorical chaff from the wheat, so to speak. And while their relationship still seems a bit forced, it helps to create a satisfying payoff at the end of the movie.
With lines like “the free world will now be led by a comedian,” “Man of the Year” is a movie that comes at the right time, with the right message. That message is clear: if you want something changed, change it. And don’t ever settle for less than what you truly believe in.
It would be easy to use clichés like “ripped from the headlines” and “art imitates life” to describe “Man of the Year.” Tom Dobbs, a political satirist in the vein of Jon Stewart or Bill Maher, points out nightly the foibles of our democracy to much comic effect. During a Q&A session before one of his shows, an audience member suggests that Dobbs should run for president. Initially dismissing the notion, Dobbs comes to believe that this could be the best way to give the democratic process a kick in the seat. He announces his candidacy for the presidency, and the campaign tour begins.
Meanwhile in Silicon Valley, Delacroy Systems has been awarded a government contract to deploy a high-tech computerized voting system. But, unbeknownst to the world, there is a glitch in the system. A glitch that programmer Eleanor Green has discovered. Being the diligent employee that she is, she emails the CEO of the company, Mathias Hemmings, and tells him about the implications of this glitch. But with the election looming so close, Hemmings has no intention of jeopardizing the bottom line by addressing this minor problem. The decision is made; "the perception of legitimacy is more important than legitimacy itself." When the election night results start to mimic the glitch, Eleanor has to make a decision that will not only affect her, but an entire nation.
Barry Levinson and Robin Williams return to the roots of their first collaboration nearly twenty years ago, the critically-acclaimed “Good Morning, Vietnam,” with “Man of the Year.” Williams’ performance as Armed Forces Radio DJ Adrian Cronauer, which earned him a Golden Globe award as well as Oscar and BAFTA nominations, proved to the world that not only was he a funny guy, but he could do serious, as well. Just as in “Vietnam”, Levinson manages to mix Williams’ trademark stream-of consciousness comedy wit with the seriousness of a political drama. Williams is able to take hold of scenes like the political debate between Dobbs, Senator Mills, played by Canadian-born David Ferry, and incumbent President Kellog, portrayed by David Nichols, and turns them into frenetic showpieces that are part comic routine, part political diatribe.
Behind the scenes of Dobbs’ political campaign are Jack Menken, his manager, played by Christopher Walken, and Eddie Langston, Dobb’s head writer, played by Lewis Black. Black, whose day-job as political commentator for Comedy Central mimics the movie, seems to be right at home here. And Walken’s seasoned manager Langston helps to show the thin line between entertainment and reality, as he quips that he's going to be the first manager of the President of the United States to an interviewer.
But anyone looking for a comic satire will find more than they expected with “Man of the Year”. I will not condemn a movie for the marketing decisions that the studio makes, but I think that Universal is doing a disservice not only to the viewers, but to the vision of the filmmakers by selling this as a comedy. Like Levinson’s “Vietnam,” the third act of the movie takes on a very serious tone. Dobbs’ wrestling with his moral decision to take the presidency is played along side Hemmings’ malicious attempts to find and silence Laura Linney’s socially challenged programmer Eleanor Green. While the suspense at times feels a bit out-of-place in the first two acts of the movie, I found myself drawn into it by the third act. Jeff Goldblum is wonderfully creepy as Delacroy’s corporate lawyer Alan Stewart. While his black-and-white loyalties may be a bit of a slap in the face to the viewer, it’s oddly comforting to know that there are no ambiguities about his, or Hemmings’, motives.
Levinson’s film style moves from pseudo-documentary to standard drama so fluidly that you will probably never know the difference. The points at which he chooses to make these switches are well timed, and fit each situation. There is nothing jarring about the stylistic differences, and it helps to support the legitimacy of what’s happening on-screen.
The relationship that eventually develops between Dobbs and Green at first seems forced, and out-of-the-blue. What in the beginning seems like a nice person just being a nice person is soon replaced with almost blind devotion, as Dobbs chooses to believe what Green is telling him, even in the face of almost overwhelming evidence to the contrary. But, upon further reflection, it is a credit to the character of Tom Dobbs, as it becomes clear that he has a true gift for sorting the rhetorical chaff from the wheat, so to speak. And while their relationship still seems a bit forced, it helps to create a satisfying payoff at the end of the movie.
With lines like “the free world will now be led by a comedian,” “Man of the Year” is a movie that comes at the right time, with the right message. That message is clear: if you want something changed, change it. And don’t ever settle for less than what you truly believe in.
Hello, world!
Okay, so call me late to the party. I've tried to keep blogs on multiple sites, like MySpace and the website the I write for, Inside Mac Games, but it's no fun trying to keep them all up-to-date, and I usually end up just not posting anything.
So, as of today, this is my blog. All of my thoughts (however mundane, useless, or otherwise) will be posted here, and only here. So, come back and visit for a while, and take in an entry from Pixelback Writer's Guide to the Galaxy!
So, as of today, this is my blog. All of my thoughts (however mundane, useless, or otherwise) will be posted here, and only here. So, come back and visit for a while, and take in an entry from Pixelback Writer's Guide to the Galaxy!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)