My Thoughts on Oscar Nominees

Part of me wants to write full reviews of "The King's Speech" and "The Fighter" - not to mention "The Social Network," "Inception," "The Kids are Alright," and "Toy Story 3" (my review of True Grit is below) - but the Oscars are tomorrow and I have to work on some school work at some point today.

What I will do, though is provide you with brief blurbs on each of the movies listed above, and give you my apologies that I did not attempt to see Black Swan, Winter's Bone, or 127 hours before Feb 27th. Some of those movies just seemed to dark for me, and for the other, I just ran out of time. Forgive me?

I will ALSO provide you with my votes for the main Oscar races. Oh yeah, baby, now you're about to increase your chances of winning your office Oscar pool by about 7.6%. (Or you would have been, had I submitted this prior to the weekend)

The King's Speech: I thought this movie was phenomenal. I loved so much about it, for more reasons even just that Collin Firth was in it. This was a chance for him to not play a buffoon, but instead to come to the screen with gravitas and heart - and he brought it!. Similar to last year's "A Single Man" - for which Firth received his first best actor nod - Firth is allowed to express his emotion and really stretch himself. I also loved the relationship between Bertie and his wife (the terrifically poised Helena Bonham Carter), and between him and Lionel, his speech therapist. I learned about England and WWII, and enjoyed watching someone overcome a limitation. Five microphones out of five.

The Fighter: Standout performances from Christian Bale and Melissa Leo make this movie for me. I thought the story was great  - the tension that Micky Ward feels as he tries to become his own man, torn between his love for his brother and his family and the love and support of a woman. I also loved that this story (like King's Speech) was based on a true story. Watching the Ecklund and Ward family come apart and then come together was exciting and moving, and I was surprised at how little I minded the boxing aspect, even though sometimes I had to close my eyes. Five half-shirts and shots of scotch out of 5.

The Social Network: If this is how it all really happened, then wow. The problem is, because it is based on "real events" it makes people think that this IS really how it all happened - rather than one perspective on the cah-ray-ziness that is the Facebook story. I thought that the supporting cast in this movie was particularly strong. I don't much care for Jesse Eisenberg, because I felt like he was so wooden in the movie and I think that doesn't ring true for me. However, as a whole, great film, worth watching, and will get you thinking about your use of the web in general, and facebook for sure. Three friend requests out of five.

Inception: Loved it. Memento is one of my favorite suspense movies, and Inception was like it for the way that Christopher Nolan bent time and space to create alternate realities. I enjoyed this movie a lot, but in my mind it does not reach the heights overall of The Fighter or The King's Speech. Leonardo DiCaprio continues to be enjoyable as an actor and a friend of mine and I were saying that he is becoming so versatile that we think his real acclaim (in terms of awards etc) won't be until later in life. He is like a Henry Fonda or a Robert DeNiro, great and notable in their youth, but outstanding in their adulthood (Little Fockers not withstanding). Very entertaining and for sure worth your $$ at the Redbox. Four levels out of five.

The Kids are Alright: Outstanding acting and a dramatic and interesting plot elevated this movie to an Oscar nomination. Annette Bening and Julianne Moore were really excellent as a married couple, and I think portrayed a very realistic view of what marriage can be, in all the ups and downs. Their fights, in particular, we so realistic that by the time we got to them, and to the subsequent slow reconciliation, I was right there along with them. I didn't love the adultery theme/aspect of the movie. I think it would have been equally as strong without it, with just the tension of the sperm dad in the family, but then again, I could do will less adultery in movies in general. Four bottles of wine out of five.

Toy Story 3: It was a sweet movie that managed somehow to both capture the imagination while also providing closure for anyone who is going through a transition that involves leaving something/someone dear behind. I can't say it was my favorite movie of the year (or the best picture winner) but it was delightful and I loved it. 3-D didn't add much for me, but it was used appropriately. Four big babies out of five.

And now on to my pics to "win it all" - acknowledging that I have not seen all the movies/performances nominated - - - these are just my opinions, based on what I did see. Oh, and only for the categories for which I really understand the meaning (i.e. I don't know what art direction is, so I'm not listing a prediction here).

Best Picture: The King's Speech
Best Actor in a Leading Role: Colin Firth (esp. after last year's nom, I think they'll give it to him)
Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Christian Bale
Best Actress in a Leading Role: Annette Bening (though I suspect there could be upsets here)
Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Melissa Leo (though I want Hailee Steinfeld to win)
Cinematography: Inception (though I would have nominated The Fighter)
Costume Design: Alice in Wonderland
Director: Tom Hooper for the King's Speech (going with it, though David O.Russell (the fighter) is my close second
Editing: The Fighter
Music (original score): Inception
Writing (adapted screenplay): Social Network by Aaron Sorkin (that dialogue was wicked good)
Writing (original screenplay): The King's Speech by David Seidler

There ya have it friends! What are your pics for the awards? What did you think of the movies above?

A Tribute to: Adam Baldwin

Adam Baldwin has been in a number of movies over the span of my lifetime. But I'll be honest, I've kind of loved him since he starred with Matt Dillon in "My Bodyguard" in 1980. In case you've never seen this movie (and shame on you...) http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi3216966937/. 

"Tiffani, you were six," you might be thinking, and OK, you're right, I didn't see it in the theater - but I remember it vividly from TV in my elementary/middle-school-ish years. And thus I fell in love. Baldwin's character was the strong silent type, wounded, holding onto a secret.

He has had a productive career since then, gotten lots of work throughout the years. My particular favorites are small roles in Independence Day, and cameos on shows like Bones and NCIS. He's one of those actors that I see in little places and think, "Golly, I wish he'd get some regular work." Meanwhile, I apparently wasn't watching any Josh Whedon TV programs, since had recurring roles in both Angel and Firefly.

He's been on Chuck (the story of a regular guy who becomes a spy) since its beginning about 3+ yrs ago. He plays Commander Casey, a former army soldier who now is a spy for the CIA. As Casey, Baldwin is gruff, funny, tough, and soft. He plays the role with just the right amount of comedic gravitas and tough guy power. Its like My Bodyguard all over again.

Don't get me wrong, I think Zac Levi, as Chuck, is adorable, goofy and good-natured - and if I got the chance to hang out with him, I think he'd be a pretty cool, regular dude. But everytime Baldwin gets a chance to be on camera, I go back to my childhood and fall in love again.

If you haven't done so yet, check out Chuck on NBC on Mondays. Even more - if you haven't seen it, queue up My Bodyguard on Netflix and enjoy a great story and Adam Baldwin doing what he does best - right at the beginning of when he was doing it.

(Oh, and in case you were wondering, no, he's no relation to those other Baldwins)

Discomfort and Blessing

From the morning reading of the Daily Light, January 7: Thus says the LORD: "I remember you, the kindness of your youth, the love of your betrothal, when you went after Me in the wilderness." I will remember My covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish and everlasting covenant with you. I will visit you and perform My good word toward you. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. (Nehemiah 5:19; Jeremiah 2:2, Ezekiel 16:60; Jeremiah 29:10-11)

Recently I sent a text message to a young friend of mine on his birthday. In the text I said, "Excited to see what the Lord has in store for you this year!"

His reply: "Thanks Tiff. My guess would be discomfort or really just opposite of what I would typically want! :)"

I laughed at his reply - as he had intended and reflected with him how that has often been my experience, but not necessarily the general rule.

This morning as I read the scriptures listed above, I was both encouraged and frustrated. Encouraged because I know those scriptures to be telling the truth. I know God loves me and thinks his good word toward me. I believe that God is keeping his covenant with me. And I trust that His plans will bring me to a good end, not an evil one.

I was frustrated because I can remember how often my will, the future and the hope that I want for myself, has not been fulfilled. And it made me think of that text message from my young friend.

This morning as I encounter the world, and God in the world, I want to remember that much of walking with Christ is about my attitude toward my experiences. Like little Much Afraid, who met the Great Shepherd's will with fear and trembling at first and later with acceptance and joy, I need to continually place my trust in the Shepherd's love for me. Trusting him is the only way that I can agree with what the prophets wrote thousands of years ago.

However, I don't have to let is be uncomfortable or the opposite of what I want. The Scriptures tell us that if we seek God, we will come to know him, we will find him - that if we obey God, he will love us and show himself to us. The real question for me is, what do I value more - God and his love for me, or my secret hopes and plans? If I was being honest, its most often the latter. I value my hopes and plans and hope that in God's love for me, he will provide them. But this kind of conditional love is out of sync with the Gospel, which tells us simply to love God and then love others. The chief end of man, the catechism says, is to glorify God and enjoy him forever. If that is really true, then my attitude is the only thing that separates my experience of God as a cruel taskmaster who wants to humiliate me from my experience of God as a benevolent father who is using every encounter as a teaching experience.

Reflecting on her experience living and writing "Hinds Feet on High Places", Hannah Hurnard said, "Everything around me seems to have been designed to emphasize this lesson. I have been brought to a place where all God's creation appears to be uttering things in a language which only becomes clearly audible and understood by hearts that have been learning in the school of suffering. It is the language which one begins to spell out in one's innermost soul when one is on a cross to which self is being transfixed by nails of pain and anguish of heart."

All humans will suffer. That is evident around us in so many ways. But as a follower and lover of God, my best response is to believe that these sufferings (or in some cases, just these little discomforts or denials of my hopes/expectations) are truly good. Can I meet God's path with acceptance and joy? Can I believe in 2011 that God really is working toward my good, to give me a hope and a future - even though that future may not look as I had expected or planned or intended? Can you?