Johnny Simmons

Well, ‘tis the day. It’s been a year since I’ve been blogging and though I wasn’t planning on doing anything but it’s probably only fitting that I take a few moments from my busy mundane schedule to thank the people who’ve kept me afloat this year, both directly and inadvertently whilst seeing how the blog has evolved [hate that word].

               

My first score of posts or so were quite dubious in quality. That much is obvious. Still, I did manage to make some surprisingly accurate Oscar nomination predictions, despite all the wrong grammar and stuff. I did like the post on nine screenplays of the decade, even though it was more snap judgemen than careful analysis. It took me four months to get my first comment, although to be fair I only did fifteen posts during that period. So on May 12, Nathaniel R. obliged to start the ball rolling on my Broadway Transition Piece.

 

So, June came and I got my first follower via Movie Mania who became a regular commenter. June was a good month, it being my birthday and all, I met Alex in Movieland, one of the better bloggers around I'm still confounded that he's not popular. I'm even more confounded that he's only 23. Anahita, a very bright British girl was also an important person I met in June. One of the most unaffected and fun bloggers we'e lost her on the blogosphere to Oxford, but she's a treasure. Well June saw the end of Michael Jackson and my introduction to The Kid In the Front Row

       

So, on to July. I got involved in Film For the Soul's exurcsions into the decade giving them two reviews which were quite flawed [grammatically, and otherwis]. It's a pity the sight has come to standstill. Through Anahita, I met Emma another thoroughly British and youthful blogger. Strangely, a huge surge of visitors came for a completely random post on To Kill A Mockingbird, which only goes to show how weird people are. Lovely that RC noticed my post on the underrated Duplicity. RC is another really good blogger who often gives some insightful pieces or some random tidbits. Hello too to Tommy Salami, who is nothing if not an original blogger. Anahita gave me an intereview of sorts, where I waxed on about really random stuff in some horrid prose. But it was fun.

     

The summer was ending and I met some good ones, mB: who is simulatenously smart and funny, CS, Rasco,  Chase Kahn, Farzan, Sage and Joe. I hit what we could call my stride in September, came across a host of blogs and received some followers. Some consistent, some not but all important, like Jeffery, Kurtis, Tom, Rae, James: an unusally concise reviewer, Michael Parsons: who is very meticulous, but never annoying,   Dezmond, Lolita, Crazy Cris, Jude and Danny King: like Anahita, Danny has no airs in his review. He's clear, he's opiniated but respectful and he's a good thing on the blogosphere. Even if he does like Hilary Swank too much.

       

A random post turned into a debate on Meryl Streep. We all know my thoughts on that one; then on to looking at 1999 a GREAT year in film.

 

Then Quentitn Tarantino changed my blog, forever. Well not exactly, due to my [lukewarm] review I met Univarn who has turned into a stalwart on my blog. He's fun, irreverant and posts quite often. Other than Alex, I don't know who else has been such a consistent visitor.

                  

Well the year has passed, and I've met quite a few more people than I've highlighted above. The Mad Hatter has become a regular commenter, and his blog is one of my favourites right now. Jose, whom I met late in the game, quickly becoming another favourite of mine as is M.Carter. Nick is officially the smartest person that I know of online and also one of the most respectful blog hosts, I joined LAMB who have been a huge help, I met a teenaged girl who was making strides of her own on the internet, check her out. And dozens of others. Check my sidebar, the blogs there really are worth your time. And to the 58 people following, whoever you are. Don't feel miffed if I didn't give you a mention. It's just my laziness.

                         

      

Jason Reiteman is a director I’ve always wanted to like. His debut Thank You For Smoking made my top ten of the year even though it was a flawed film, but I just could not be a fan of Juno regardless of what Ebert and thousands of others claimed. This season’s laurels have been thrown left and right at his Up In the Air – a film I was uncertain of going into it. The film centres on George Clooney’s Ryan, a man who hopes to attain ten million flyer miles whilst doing his job – firing people. He meets a female version of himself in Vera Farmiga while juggling with the new ingénue at his office played by Twilight star Anna Kendrick. This is Up In the Air.

                              

I wonder if I’m a flawed critic, but then again – who isn’t?. I didn’t think I’d like this going in. Clooney is not a draw for me and other than Farmiga I didn’t really love the whole idea of this film. Up In the Air is the perfect example of a film whose ostensible merits are lost on me. I didn’t expect to be blown away by Clooney’s performance, and I wasn’t. I know that George Clooney only plays George Clooney so I could let that ride, because that’s how it goes. However, I cannot discern even any attempt at layering the character like he attempted in Michael Clayton, which I didn’t like very much either. For the first three quarters of the film we’re led to believe that Ryan is the ultimate bachelor as he mitigates the point of marriage and children. Towards the end after an epiphany, which is altogether too artificial, he reaches out to the woman in his life, and fails. But I can’t care that he’s crush because I’ve seen no change in the character. His face looks sad, but there’s never that personal feeling. That's because Clooney doesn't even look like he's trying Ryan doesn’t really change and the subtlety that the role seems to call for is lost on Clooney.

But on to the women. I mentioned Farmiga was my biggest draw and I was disappointed. Certainly she’s the best thing in the film, but even as she creates Alex as this ultra snazzy and smart woman I can’t deny the fact that she’s obviously acting. It’s the same problem I had with Ellen Page’s Juno. I see an actress acting, and not a person. Mind you with Farmiga it’s better, but still not all there. It’s only until the second half that I distinguish any authentic life in the character and by then the film is so disinterested in her uniqueness that it’s all for naught. Certainly, I may be a bit harsh on her because I expected so much, but this is not as good a performance as she can do. I will admit that her final scene is better than any prior scene. But though it’s enough to make me forgive I can’t forget what went before.

                                          

However the most mind boggling element has to be the much lauded Ann Kendrick. I’m in the minority on this one, but I don’t care. Whereas Farmiga and Page were fair to good examples of actors acting, Kendrick doesn’t even do that much for me. It’s an example of a girl trying to act – and failing horribly. That breakdown scene in the airport still confounds me a day and a half later at its insanity Kendrick’s crying makes me cringe, and not from the reality of it – but from the ridiculousness of it all which strikes me as so contrived. Something is probably lost on me, but I really don’t understand how she has turned into the runner up [albeit a distant one] of the supporting race which actually has more to offer than Mo’Nique’s powerhouse turn. 

            

What exactly is it about Up In the Air that makes it a film of the times? Is it because it deals with unemployment? It’s not the first film that asks us to root for the hero who is actually quite despicable but Up In the Air doesn’t even seem to realise that Ryan is despicable. In Thank You For Smoking at least Eckhart knew he wasn’t perfect, that was the whole point of it. When Alex shows her colours I don't feel anything. Why should I? I've spent the entire film feeling that there was no value to this relationship, and Reiteman does nothing to make me rethink that. That pithy final montage of Ryan returning to his ways plays and we can feel Reiteman trying to pull at heart strings – but there’s nothing there to pull. And that scene with the unemployed just feels so peripheral and superfluous. Were we really supposed to be buying that BS Ryan was selling about the goodness of being fired?
         
Up In the Air works as a pleasant, if uninspired film, but above that I really can't feel like the rest of the population. It just leaves me, unmoved. Reiteman has done his least impressive piece for me here.

                       

C- [D+?]

    
Speak up. What are your thoughts on UP IN THE AIR?

We’ve had lists of five, and we’ve had lists of ten. People are looking forward to what’s new in 2010. So, I’ve joined the conversation and am unveiling the films that I’m most looking forward to in this year. There are a couple that could have made the list, seeing that it’s so huge and all. Why not fifty right? But even though The Mad Hatter does have Kick-Ass in his five, I’m not really here or there on that. And you’d think I’d be anticipating Toy Story 3, but at the moment: nothing. I do hope that Hoodwinked 2 does better than its predecessor in terms of audience love, since the original was subtly funny, if flawed. I almost had Green Zone here, I do like Matt Damon and Amy Ryan, but something's telling me no. So, none are on my list. Take a look at the first ten.

          

This will most likely not be completed, but I’m including it just in case. Charlotte Bronte’s novel is one of the better pieces of its time, and even though it’s had a few incarnations on screen I’ve not seen any, and now’s as good a time to do a film version as ever. I always harboured hopes that Joaquin Phoenix and Kate Winslet would star in an Ang Lee directed version of this, but I suppose that’s down the drain – and they are too old. I remember Westick back from when I cared about Gossip Girl, and he does have potential. This could be good. Maybe.

       

Michael Douglas and Susan Sarandon are the draws here, obviously. This hasn’t been released here, and as far as I know it hasn’t been released in the US either.I'm not sure if it veers more into comedy or drama but it concerns the protagonist coming to grips with the crap he's done in his life. Not exactly riveting stuff, but still. It's Douglas. Honestly, I'm not too hot on him but the added presence of Susan Sarandon and Mary Louise Parker does help..

I was not a big fan of the last Nanny McPhee fan but it is Emma Thomspon and it at least warrants a place in the top 40. And with Ralph Fiennes and Maggie Smith, it may be lightweight but it's going to be good. I have a feeling it will be better than the first, which doesn't say much...but still. Maggie Gylenhaal also stars who has been coasting along for some time with me. I'm still looking for her to wow me, this probably will not be it. Still, we'll see.

Well, it's Jude f***ing Law. What do you expect? Repo Men is a science fiction film about a man who buys a heart in the near future who is unable to finish making payments. He thus goes on the run before it's taken. Obviously Jude is the draw here, but I'm getting some Gattaca flashbacks which would be cool because I love that movie. Forrest Whitaker is always cool when he plays the sidekick, which he looks like here, so his involvement doesn't hurt.
                       

Robert Duvall, Bill Murray and particularly Sissy Spaceck are the draws here. It's a film based in the 1930s about a man who threw his own funeral. Interesting enough. I'm not sure if it's more drama or comedy, but with this cast and the somewhat dubious premise my interests are peaked. It's been a while since Sissy wowed us in In the Bedroom. Let's see what she has up her sleeves next.         

The film stars James Franco and Natalie Portman, too young up and comers I'm actually quite keen on. It's a fantasy comedy from medieval times centring on a lazy and arrogant prince who must go on a quest toe save his father's kingdom. The plot sounds less than riveting, but I suppose the dialogue will be snazzy. The presence of Zooey Deschanel doesn't hurt any either. Hopefully, it doesn't disappoint. 

A comedy with Diane Keaton and Rachel McAdams. Joy. I don't know, I'm really hoping that this turns out to be good because Diane deserves a good role. I'm not too fond of Rachel McAdams. The film centres on two feuding TV anchors [Harisson Ford and Keaton] and the aspiring producer who tries to salvage the situation [McAdams]. Patrick Wilson and Jeff Goldblum costar. I'm worried. It could be good, it could be bad...but Harisson Ford seems weird at the moment. Maybe, just maybe, it could be good.

A true story. Rachel Weisz stars as a woman who uncovered a scandal in post-war Bosnia involving The United Nations and America. It's generic, I know, and I hated North Country which sounded vaguely similar. But Rachel Weisz has a charm which cannot be manufactured, so hopefully she'll elevate the material  and perhaps the film may even surprise. The presence of Monica Belucci and the legendary Vanessa Redgrave only makes this that more interesting

And another true story. Julia Roberts stars as a woman who decides to get more out of her life. It sounds oddly schmaltzy, but it's Julia. In fact, it's more than just Julia. Throw in Javier Bardem, Viola Davis, James Franco and Billy Crudup, and you've got a party. I expect to be entertained at least, and who knows maybe it could turn into something really poignant. I have complete faith in Ms. Roberts.

This could go horribly wrong. It stars Keira Knightley, Sam Worthingotn and Eva Mendes. I'm not sure which title they're going with. It is the story of a married couple [Knightley, Worthington] who spend a night apart trying to resist temptation. I read the script which seemed good the first time, but the second time felt a little too heavy handed. I'm not sure, I should give it a third read. It has potential, but Mendes and Worthington to a degree are giving me doubts. We'll see...

I'm not always one to go into random celebration over blog related happenings. I'm not deluded enough to think that I've made that unmalleable mark on the world with this blog [as yet :)], but on Friday it would have been one year since I've been blogging here, and it makes me somewhat giddy. Sure, my early posts were not very good, but my first post was title Favourite TV Moments of 2008, so I'm going to to take a look at my favourite moments of 2009 in this post. Obviously. Hence, the name. I should warn you, this is mine and only my list. So it'll be strange.

              

Weird? I am a fan of Amy Poehler, she's arguably the most talented member that SNL had in the last few years and she's incredibly adept at acting. Last Spring when Parks & Recreation made it's debut it was something a clunker. The series was not gelling immediately, but when Season Two premiered in the Fall it was definitely heading places and it's turned into one of the best things on NBC sometimes even surpassing giants 30 Rock and The Office on occasion. Hopefully the writers keep up the good work and keep giving Amy something to do. And hopefully Emmy rewards her with a nod. But that probably won't happen. We'll see.

                  

I didn't watch the Tony's, but hearing that Ms. Harden had her Tony meaning that the Emmy is the only thing keeping her from being a triple crowner made me oddly happy. And the fact that Geoffrey Rush was also headed that way only increased the glee. Sure, it may not have been such a pivotal moment. But I never promised you logic in the list. Did I?

       

Come on. How could he not make the list? I've tuned out of Idol [hopefully forever] but Lambert was a crap-load of fun last season. It's undeniable that he is particularly talented with one of the best voices this show has scene. But what makes him list-worthy is that he was so damned fun to watch. And that duet with Alison Iraheta [who was another noteworthy person, that season] was off the chain.

       

I'm glad that Lea Michele has grown vocally since Spring Awakening, it's nice seeing Lynch and Morisson doing good work...but the highlight of Glee was Chenoweth's guest appearance. She sang Carrie Underwood, she sang Liza Minellia and she sang Heart. Talk about variety. And she nailed it, of course. It's nice seeing the love for Glee, but it's even better seeing love for lovely Ms. Chenoweth.

     

#6: The Emmy Awards and Kristin Chenoweth

Yes, Kristin makes another appearance, but it was such a deserved Emmy and with the cancelling of Pushing Daisies it was a giant f*** you to ABC. And then with the wins of Jessica Lange and Glenn Close it only made me happier.

The Office had some of its best moments in this one hour episode as we finally saw that guy and that girl get married. An episode of pure fun and funny. What more do I need?

The television sure was wrought with MJ news and the culmination was this service with all those performances. Fitting for the death of a king and all.

Univarn hates this show. So do many. I love it. I told you, there'd be truth...but no logic. The cliff-hanger of sorts at the end of Season 5 was something, but the entire episode was so controlled and soooooooooo riveting and their best finale since Season 2. It was awesome. Really. It was.

       

It's not that I really liked the whole hoopla and West's ridiculous. If this had been done to someone else it would have been funny. You know if this happened to say, Amy Winehouse she would destroy him: and then it would be funny. It was only sad, because Taylor Swift is a child and Kanye West is inane. And power to Beyonce for her graceful turn and letting Taylor have her moment. Of course now, the world cannot escape her. Blame Kanye West.

I can't say I loved the Oscars - Slumdog Millionaire eviscerated any chance of that. But Kate Winslet and Penelope Cruz had some nice speeches. And that entire Best Actress presentation with the five winners vs the five nominees was sweet. But Hugh stole the show. The opening number and that tribute to the musicals was tremendously entertaining, in a somewhat spotty show he was the highlight.
               
So how crazy am I? What's missing? 
               
PS. I'm seeing The Lovely Bones and Up In the Air tonight.