'The Railway Man' First Trailer

colin firth is one of my faves. the film itself is not generating buzz on the festival circuit. i don't care. if colin's in it it is a must see.

it is based on a bestselling memoir by eric lomax. Firth plays Lomax, a man who was captured in Signapore and forced into a Japanese POW camp, where he was made to work on the Thai-Burma Railway. Kidman plays his wife, who wants to get to the bottom of her husband's suffering and Skarsgard is a fellow survivor of the ordeal.

'Arthur Newman' Opens April 26th

colin firth and emily blunt togeter is a bit of heaven.

Oscar Memories 2011

Oscarbation: 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy' Featurette

oscar bait coming nov.18

Oscarbation: It's a Wrap

the royals win...the zietgeist goes down down for the count. the critics and pundits are in a bitter snit. they say the academy embarrassed itself. they say 20 years from now the history of oscar will see the taint of their selection. i say 20 years from now the film will be remembered well and the current critics and pundits will not be remembered. i say the right choice was made with 'the king's speech' coming out on top. i think now it was not a true race. i believe the pundits tried to create a race. 'the social network' is a 2010-2011 film...a zietgeist. the king will reign for years to come.

colin was a lock. sandra had the key and opened the lock and charmingly awarded mr. firth his oscar after using her charm and personality to give each nominee his due as only she could. her 3-4 minutes on the stage were the best minutes of the night. she showed all the charm ms. hathaway could not throughout the proceedings. ms. hathaway has all the charm of a meat clever. what was all her bowing and kowtowing about? why was she kissing ms. bullocks buttocks? she will never be a sandra bullock. she is crass with a smile.

james franco got lousy reviews as host. he's james franco what did they expect? he is an independent spirit. he was himself. i say good for him. he kowtowed to no one. he doesn't have too. he's an amazing talent.

i hope melissa leo is aware that her phony and crass acceptance speech will show forever on you tube? i did not think it possible but her oscar acceptance was more over the top than her 'the fighter' performance. she won i get it. now just make her go away. helena and/or amy you were robbed. 

otherwise all was good. 'inception' was rewarded in the tech categories it deserved.  'social network' won editing which was deserved and score which it did not. 

the natalie portman and christian bale wins were expected and worthy. between them and colin the acting awards were 3/4 right on. 

it's now in the history books and before we know it it all begins again.

here's to the films of 2011. may you be as good as 2010 which in fact was a remarkable film year.

And The Oscars Go To...

Best Picture: The King’s Speech
Best Actress: Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Best Actor: Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
Best Director: Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech
Best Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network
Best Original Screenplay: David Seidler, The King’s Speech
Best Animated Feature: Toy Story 3
Best Supporting Actress: Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Best Supporting Actor: Christian Bale, The Fighter
Best Editing: Angus Wall, Kirk Baxter, The Social Network
Best Cinematography: Wally Pfister, Inception
Best Original Score: Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, The Social Network
Best Art Direction: Alice in Wonderland
Best Costume Design: Alice in Wonderland
Best Visual Effects: Inception
Best Make-Up: The Wolfman
Best Sound Mixing: Inception
Best Sound Editing: Inception
Best Song: We Belong Together, Toy Story 3, Randy Newman
Best Documentary Short: Strangers No More
Best Live Action Short: God of Love
Best Animated Short: The Lost Thing
Best Foreign Language Film: In a Better World, Denmark
Best Documentary: Inside Job

to be continued

BAFTA's Tomorrow

colin firth won the bafta last year for 'a single man' as he should have. will he repeat his win this year for the king's speech'? i think so.

the bafta's are awarded tomorrow in london

'The King's Speech' Takes Top SAG Award

'the king's speech' is on a roll and now heads toward oscar night as the front runner. just weeks ago 'the social network' seemed unstoppable. but since the pga, the dga and now the sag has gone royal everything is in turnaround. a lot of pundits thought 'the fighter' might take ensemble cast award tonight. they were wrong. i was right. the king, his therapist and their supporting cast ruled. so now we move on to the last stretch toward the oscars. it's a race for sure but the royals are now ahead by a pretty long nose. but the sag's sometimes get ahead of themselves. remember just three years ago when christie and cotillard upset the betting odds.

i've been on the firth and portman bandwagon for weeks now and tonight they prevailed.

the winners of the 2010 sag awards are

for film

Best Ensemble: “The King’s Speech”
Best Actor: Colin Firth, “The King’s Speech”
Best Actress: Natalie Portman, “Black Swan”
Best Supporting Actor: Christian Bale, “The Fighter”
Best Supporting Actress: Melissa Leo, “The Fighter”
Best Stunt Ensemble: “Inception” (presented on the red carpet)

and in television

Best Actress in a TV Movie or Miniseries: Claire Danes, “Temple Grandin”
Best Actor in a TV Movie or Miniseries: Al Pacino, “You Don’t Know Jack”
Best Ensemble in a Comedy Series: “Modern Family”
Best Actress in a Comedy Series: Betty White, “Hot in Cleveland”
Best Actor in a Comedy Series: Alec Baldwin, “30 Rock”
Best Ensemble in a Drama Series: “Boardwalk Empire”
Best Actress in a Drama Series: Julianna Margulies, “City Island”
Best Actor in a Drama Series: Steve Buscemi, “Boardwalk Empire”
Best Stunt Ensemble: “True Blood”

The King's Speech' ****stars

a story of friendship and trust. two men from two different classes come together and damn what a bond is formed. the evolving friendship is told and directed so well by tom hooper that we are just swept along through it's ups and downs and we are never let down.

colin firth is brilliant as the stammering king george vi his king is brilliantly supported by geoffrey rush as the non royal friend and teacher lionel logue. the bond they form is at first trying but grows for the lifetime of both men in real life. a wonderful helena bonham carter returns to a 'quieter' role as the king's wife later to be known as the queen mum when daughter elizabeth becomes queen. jennifer ehle radiates as the wife of logue.

the rest of the supporting cast truly support with wonderful performances each. no one misses a beat.

colin firth deserves the oscar this year as he did last year ('a single man") and perhaps this year the academy will hand it to him. he is quite amazing and has grown so much over the past few years. well the reality is it's the parts he's getting. they are better and he makes them better still.

i see a definite oscar nom for rush and quite possibly another for bonham carter. picture, director and screenplay are a lock.

go see 'the king's speech' as it may well win the oscar for best picture. my vote is heading in it's direction fast and furiously.

If It's Christmas It's 'Love Actually'

spend another holiday season with 'love actually'

Oscarbation: 'The King's Speech'

it's getting praise and winning prizes on the festival circuit.so is colin. maybe the oscar he should have won last year is now within reach.

in wide release

the trailer

teaser

Oscarbation: The King’s Speech Wins Big at Toronto

oscarbation 2010-2011 has officially begun

Happy Birthday Colin the Great

i am one of those who personally feel colin was robbed of the oscar this past season for 'a single man'. oddly enough the more i read the more i notice how many officiendos and film lover's agree with me. so up next it's 'the king's speech'. the film and mr firth are being widely praised and lauded at the massive amount of film festivals now happening. so maybe colin will get what he was robbed of this past season by giving the oscar in 2010 to the 'sentimental' favorite last time out. we'll see.

here's a clip from 'the king's speech

 

'A Single Man' on Blu Ray and DVD: ***1/2 stars

one of the best films of 2009 finally gets it's dvd/blu ray release. tom ford's first directorial effort seems effortless. he is and wins 2009's best first directorial effort. we can only hope for more. he certainly gave each supporting player his due including the wonderful matthew goode and nicholas hoult. he gave julianne moore the best role of her career so far but oscar snubbed her. penelope cruz, whom i adore, in 'nine' over julianne in this? ... i think not!

but the major kudos go to colin firth. damn what a brilliant performance. the BEST LEADING MALE performance of 2009. he lost the oscar to the oft nominated jeff bridges for all the wrong reasons. but oscar is known for this. john wayne in 'true shit' anyone? (are they really remaking that piece of crap?)

anyway back to mr. firth. he plays george who is preparing for the last day of his life. in often few words but with glances and gestures and his eyes, damn those eyes, he says more than any words could say. just watch him in the scene where by a phone call he is told of his lover's death. not a word. not a single word. colin's face says it all. sometimes words just don't matter. this is one of those times.

his performance is classic. it raises him above most of his piers. finally the brilliant mr. firth gets his role of a lifetime, and oscar be damned.

Colin's Acceptance Speech

Santa Barbara Film Festival This Weekend

The tributes will be as follows:

Outstanding Performance of the Year – Colin Firth
Kathryn Bigelow - Director of the Year
Modern Master Award – Jim Cameron
American Riviera - Sandra Bullock
Virtuoso Award – Emily Blunt, Carey Mulligan, Saoirse Ronan Gabourey Sidibe, Michael Stuhlbarg
Cinema Vanguard – Vera Farmiga, Peter Sarsgaard, Stanley Tucci, Christoph Waltz


Some of my favorites being honored:

'Love Actually'

Number 12. We all need a romantic film to sit at home and eat a huge bowl of popcorn while watching. The last years have been devoid of a great guilty pleasure films. The 50's and 60's had them opening weekly. And good ones. Very few recent romantic films will stand the test of time. 'Love Actually' has and will well into the future.

With Colin Firth, Keirs Knightly, Hugh Grant and Emma Thompson to name a few of the wonderful ensemle cast you just can't go wrong.

I love this movie and this is the perfect time of the year to rush out and rent it. I promise you that you will actually fall in love with this film.






HOW BEAUTIFUL IS KEIRA KNIGHTLY???


THE STILLS:









MY FAVORITE MOMENTS: