at 24fps

Films I have yet to see, which could end up on this list:

• 127h
• True Grit
• Winter’s Bone
• Biutiful
• Rabbit Hole
• Blue Valentine

It isn’t.

I’ve read so many reviews and comments that claim the film is hard to understand. It really isn’t. It’s a mindfuck, for sure. But the film itself is easy to follow. In fact, the characters may even spend a bit too much time explaining what is happening.

It’s hard to get your head around the subject matter - this is some heady, messed up stuff - but it is not hard to understand. I liken it to Memento, another great Chris Nolan film. That movie is a bit confusing at the very beginning, but the structure of the film is quickly revealed. Again, it’s a mindfuck, but it’s not hard to follow.

Inception is not an overly fantastic film - it has its flaws. But at least it’s something a bit challenging and refreshing. It’s not a sequel, it’s not a horror movie, and it’s not a sappy chick flick - the usual suspects of the summer season. It’s a decent action movie with an interesting plot. It’s well-acted, well-shot, and well-directed. And I enjoyed it thoroughly.

If you can’t follow, you are either not paying attention, or you are better-suited to sit through Step Up 3D or another movie where you are not required to think. Those films have their merits, and I love shutting off my brain sometimes, but don’t go to a film billed as a heady thriller and then complain when you have to use your brain a tiny bit.

I’ve got my outline done, and I’m ready to roll.  I don’t care what the outcome is, as long as I finish. It will be worth it. Right?

I have to eat a bit of humble pie. I complained about Avatar being nominated for a Golden Globe a while back, before seeing the film. That was a bit dumb. After watching the film, I regret writing what I did.

I think Avatar is an important film. I do not think the story is original (*cough* Pocahontas *cough*), I think there are some terribly cheesy lines and wooden acting, and I think the thinly veiled criticism of US/World environmental policy is almost laughable.

However, the special effects and 3D technology made the film absolutely breathtaking. Seeing it in IMAX 3D was a phenomenal experience. It might be the only way to see it. The advances in technology that James Cameron has been a part of since he started making movies are nothing short of revolutionary. These newest advancements will raise the ire of many film fans who will now be inundated with 3D everything, for better, but mostly for worse.

But Cameron did something important with his film - he used 3D sparingly. He used it to enhance what was happening on the screen, not to have the 3D image be the centrepiece. Many directors and studios will miss that very important point, and cross that important line.

Movie theatres now have a huge cash chow - 3D tickets have a huge premium, and they continue to soar. 3D TVs are being released, along with 3D-capable Bluray players and video game systems. It’s supposed to be the next big thing.

For the incredible 3D experiences that will be few and far between, we can thank James Cameron.

For the rest, we can blame the studios for trying to cash in and letting artistic merit go to the wayside yet again in the quest for the almighty moviegoer dollar.

I wasn’t overly surprised by the nominations for this year’s Golden Globes as a whole… but there were definitely some that stood out like a sore thumb.

Sandra Bullock

First and foremost, we have Sandra Bullock. Now, I love Speed as much as the next person (“There’s gum on my shoe. Gum.”), but Sandra Bullocks acting always leaves much to be desired. Excepting, maybe, her role as a uppity, racist bitch in Crash, she’s mostly turned in flat, forgettable, one-note performances.

And 2009 was no different than any other year in Bullock acting: two predictable, fairly cheesy movies in the The Blind Side and The Proposal. We’ve seen her play these characters before, and they’re no better this time around. Yet, they both garnered her a Golden Globe nomination.

Yep, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association have nominated her not once, but twice this year.  She gets the nod in both major acting categories, Drama and Musical/Comedy. I find it very hard to believe that there weren’t any other performances worthy of nominations to replace at least one of her nominations.

Meryl Streep

Listen, we all love us some Meryl Streep… but once again we have an actress with two nominations. This time, it’s in the same category.  Streep is an incredible actress, but it’s a bit ridiculous that the HFPA have ignored many other great female performances and nominated someone who has already been nominated umpteen million times.

She may deserve it for one of these comedies, but my heart tells me that there was someone else just as deserving for at least one her noms.

Avatar

Of course, I haven’t seen this film yet, so I cannot make any real comments about the film.  I guess I just get annoyed when films that haven’t even opened (and ones that really don’t look that great) get nominated over films from earlier in the year that really deserve some attention and love.

James Cameron just may have gone and made an incredible film with a terrible trailer.  And maybe I will enjoy the heck out of Avatar when I finally do see it.  But there are a lot of other films on my list that I will be seeing before I settle in and watch this sci-fi epic that clocks in at 2h42m.  I didn’t even enjoy the trailer, so we’ll see how it goes.

This blog will serve as a companion to my new twitter account, @at24fps.  I’ll be Tweeting and Tumbling about movies at twenty-four frames per scecond.