Daniel Day-AWESOME

[trinityvixen]

As the folks who were there all day with me yesterday know, I'm throwing my support behind There Will Be Blood for Best Picture. What made it remarkable was that it was the first movie without one really likable character I really enjoyed. If you can keep me mesmerized for two hours and forty minutes with sparse dialogue and really, really important silences, you've got my vote.

But, alas, I predict the Best Picture Oscar will go either to Juno (a.k.a. the "quirky comedy that could!" throw-away) or No Country For Old Men (a.k.a. the "lack of dramatic completion = WIN!" victory). If Daniel Day-Lewis doesn't take Best Actor, however, oooooh, am I gonna be pissed. Probably not as pissed as I would be if, say, fucking Atonement took Best Picture, but still. He was good. Yes. Can't say more, don't...want...spoil-making!

Comments

[kent-allard-jr.livejournal.com]

One thing that may keep Daniel Day Lewis from winning an Oscar: He already has one from My Left Foot (1989).

As I said, I suspect No Country for Old Men might get the award as a sop to the Coen brothers.

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

The other nominees couldn't touch him, though. Not one was in a movie so perfectly shaped around his performance that it lived or died on it the way There Will Be Blood only captivated for having Daniel Day-Lewis in the role. Johnny Depp was great in Sweeney Todd and I hear faboo things about Viggo Mortensen in Eastern Promises, but neither movie features their roles as the reason for the movie's being (Sweeney Todd is only equally important as Mrs. Lovett, I'd argue).

And, not surprisingly, we were both right. DDL got the Oscar, but so did No Country for Old Men. Now let us pray that no other rambling, no-ending movie then Coens put out is ever having to be sopped to again.

I drink your milkshake!

[anirien.livejournal.com]

I dunno, I found HW pretty sympathetic. I just saw it last night with my sisters. I am curious: did you find it as funny as we did? (Not all of it obviously, but certain scenes definitely seemed to be going for morbid black comedy.)

From what I've heard DDL is the front runner for Best Actor and there's apparently a lot of buzz around "No Country for Old Men". But who knows? Pre-Oscar predictions are never 100% correct.

I've seen all the best picture noms now and I actually don't have a particular favorite. They were all interesting in their own way, though I don't think any of them make my personal list of favorite movies. Though I totally agree with you on "No Country for Old Men", it left me feeling very "meh". I actually liked "Atonement", at least after I processed it. The soundtrack was nifty. But overall I don't have a particular favorite.

Re: I drink your milkshake!

[viridian.livejournal.com]

Dude, trinityvixen and I were laughing and squeeing like fiends at the end of There Will Be Blood. There were just HILARIOUS things in there.

Re: I drink your milkshake!

[anirien.livejournal.com]

Oh glad to know we weren't the only ones. Our audience laughed for some stuff but they seemed to be a little hesitant to find things funny. My sisters and I were pretty much rolling on the floor. We spent the entire car ride home going "I drink your milkshake!" (Strangely enough I was drinking a milkshake at the beginning of the movie.)

Re: I drink your milkshake!

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

OMG I laughed so hard at things in There Will Be Blood. Things that weren't even supposed to be that funny, like DDL beating the kid to death with the bowling pin. Granted, his line immediately after was supposed to be funny, but I seriously got a fit of mad giggles over him chasing the kid around and then bashing his smug head in. Because that kid creeped me out more than DDL ever would, could, or did.

Atonement just felt rehashed. There was somethign there that might have been an AMAZING thing to dwell on--the consequences of Briony's actions. Instead, she never has to confront the wronged man or the alienated sister. If just ONE of them had been around, it would have made the publishing of the novel important. But since they weren't...who's left to confront her and make her atone? Who is there to accept her apology and sanctify her making-right with true forgiveness? No one. No satisfaction in that for me, alas.

Re: I drink your milkshake!

[anirien.livejournal.com]

As far as I'm concerned there are few things funnier than someone being beaten to death with a bowling pin. Especially after having "I drink your milkshake!" shouted at them repeatedly. But than, I have a morbid sense of humor.

I guess the thing with Atonement is that Briony can never really atone for what she did and that's why it takes her so long to actually write the book. Because she can never really make it better. It's an interesting concept, especially when you realize that the whole movie to that point has been her book, fictionalizing the story. It's not the most satisfying ending though, but than again look at No Country.... Was it some sort of trend this year?

Re: I drink your milkshake!

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

The fact that Briony never has to face anyone she's harmed takes all the sincerity out of the novel-as-penance. The scene imagined in the novel where she meets with her sister and the guy was good, and that's the sort of thing that provides drama to what is otherwise merely a tragic love story. Because that one scene was more tense and tragic than the rest of the movie combined. It dealt with consequences. We saw all of the guy's hopes of ever being vindicated go right out of the window. How he had to restrain himself from actually committing a crime and killing the girl who'd ruined his life. That shit was fabulous. The rest? Meh.

The no-ending thing is so lame. I mean, yeah, you can spot the endings of Juno and Michael Clayton a mile off, but that's no excuse to approve any movie that ended before any conclusion at all could be reached.

Re: I drink your milkshake!

[anirien.livejournal.com]

Well Michael Clayton could have ended much more... unhappily, I suppose. There are the occasional unresolved or endingless movie that I enjoy but overall I'd rather have a plot that is both deep and ties together into something that makes sense. Sadly it doesn't happen very often.

[viridian.livejournal.com]

I will cry if No Country gets it. That's two hours of my life I wish I could get back. D:

[kent-allard-jr.livejournal.com]

Damn :(

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

If not for the ending, I might not have minded. They could have tacked on with a hard splice the ending from There Will Be Blood and I'd've just as soon accepted that as the ending they gave.