oscars

The Oscars are tonight. You already probably knew about that though. All through middle and high school, I loved watching awards shows from beginning to end. I loved the glamor and formality of it and I really couldn't have cared less who actually won, I just wanted to see the spectacle.

Now that I'm older and jaded, I just want to see the best/worst dressed list and maybe watch a few of the sketch/joke highlights on youtube. I still don't care who wins. I don't have much faith in what a panel of people thinks is "best". Taste is subjective and ask almost any group of people about art and the consensus on what's "best" will most likely be what ever is least offensive (most bland and boring).

All that being said, because I have opinions and I matter, here's my review of the Oscar nominated films that I've seen and who I think will/should win.

Django Unchained - I like Quentin Tarantino films but I didn't think this was one of his best. Two men being forced to beat each other to death was hard to watch but the scene where the man was ripped apart by dogs had me in tears, which had never happened in a Tarantino film before. It was hard for me to laugh at his quippy writing after that. I feel that those scenes were to help the audience understand the main character's desire for vengeance and perhaps find the cartoonishly bloody finale enjoyable, but it just made me feel drained and I couldn't get back into the movie.

Les Misérables - This movie was long and it felt long too. I didn't care if any of the character's lived or died, I just wanted this movie to be over with. I've never seen the play before this or read the book and I thought most of the song lyrics weren't very good. The only part I enjoyed was the "I dreamed a dream" song. Anne Hathaway killed it.

Life of Pi - This is the film I think should win. It's a unique and beautiful film with a simple story that you can make as complex as you'd like.

Lincoln - This is the film I think will win. It has good acting and writing. And it's as boring and bland as films come.

Zero Dark Thirty - I liked this movie. It wasn't flashy. I liked seeing the political side of the search for Bin Laden and the actual execution of the plan.