This summer has been tough for me because I find myself running in many directions, which leads to delays with getting to the theatre and/or writing up my reviews. However here they are finally....my Shadow Awards for the first half of the season. Settle down I know you are excited...settle ...settle!!
So here they are!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
MY SHADOW AWARDS FOR THE TOP THREE FILMS OF THE YEAR!!
IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER.
GET OUT
Directed by Jordan Peele
Screenplay by Jordan Peele
Starring by Daniel Kaluuya as Chris Washington
Allison Williams as Rose Armitage
Catherine Keener as Missy Armitage
Bradley Whitford as Dean Armitage
LilRel Howry as Rod Williams
Believe the hype. It is pretty good.
So much is right here.
First the acting is wonderful. From the newcomer Kaluuya as Chris, who is fantastic!! To even the supporting players who play the ...I guess....creepy others. Everyone gives a great performance.
The script by Peele is really strong. The trailer makes it seem like a horror film but in reality it is a thriller with just the right amount of comedy.
BABY DRIVER
Directed by Edger Wright
Screenplay by Edger Wright
Starring Ansel Elgort; Jon Bernthal; Jon Hamm: Eliza Gonzalez; Lily James; Kevin Spacey; and Jamie Foxx
The marketing for this film was way off. They tried to sell it as a Fast And Furious Film...all action.
Well do not be fooled. This is a Steve McQueen heist film. This is a Tarantino bloody and dry humor film. This is a very good romantic film. Thrown all together in a mixing bowl...stirred up and somehow it works. Great script and great direction by Edger Wright makes this all work.
Casting and performances were spot on....
Foxx and Spacey giving their best performances in years.
Newcomer Gonzalez holds her own versus the big time stars.
Hamm who gives his best performance since Mad Men...is just sinister.
However.....lets face it ...this film belongs to the leads Elgort ( who was wonderful in Fault) and James ( who I thought was underrated in Cinderella). They have great chemistry and most of the time are acting one on one with these big stars who I just mentioned. It is a lot to ask of them and they are magnificent.
Music-Then there is music. I mean it can feel like a musical or a music video. The film almost has a beat of its own. The music is fun.
THE BIG SICK
Directed by Michael Showalter
Screenplay by Emily Gordan and Kumail Nanjiani
Starring Kumail Nanjiani; Zoe Kazan; Holly Hunter; and Ray Ramono
Well..........Sometimes you find a gem......and this is one!!!
This movie is close to perfect.
The screenplay: The film follows a the relationship between Pakistanian Kumail and white girlfriend Emily. As they battle the culture differences. Then as the film moves on we deal with her illness. Then we follow Kumail's relationship with Emily's parent's Beth and Terry played by Hunter and Romano.
The script does an amazing job of being cute; yet being sad; throwing in plenty of humor. The amazing thing is it is a true story!! It just walks a tightrope seamlessly.
The Cast:
Kazan: Has a small part, but like the other movie she was in that I really liked Ruby Sparks, she again is soooo damn cute. Also, you can tell by just the trailer, she has wonderful chemistry the lead Nanjiani.
Hunter: Just a fantastic performance. She has to rollercoaster between humor and tears and just real/relevant conversations with Nanjiani. Those small conversations with Nanjiani is where she just shines.
Romano: Okay...you can tell by the trailer...it is the perfect part for him. Stumbling and bumbling on. while pleasing people and being kind and being tough. It is Ray Romano!
Nanjiani: I think he understands he is in the big leagues here with many very good actors. He plays his part very funny and dry. Almost soft. Even up against his parents (Veteran actors Anupam Kher and Zenobia Shroff). It must be odd for him...kind of acting out his own life, he pulls it off quietly.
MY SHADOW AWARDS FOR THE WORST 3 FILMS OF THE YEAR.
IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER.
CHIPS
Directed by Dax Shepard
Screenplay by Dax Shepard
Starring Dax Shepard and Michael Pena
CHIPS follows Jon Baker (Shepard) of the California Highway Patrol as he teams up with Ponch (Pena) who is an undercover FBI agent. The plot does not matter.
This is all bad:
-The comedy is not funny. Is it a comedy? I do not know.
-The plot is all over the place. It was written by Shepard. He tried to throw in too many plot points, he was allover the place.
-The filming seemed poorly edited, where the film bounced all over. I mean it was a simple film and even I got lost.... why? Why? Why Everything???!!!
-Pena who is one of my favorite actors...is awful here. He is miscast he looks silly when he is on the bike. He has no chemistry with Shepard (even in the press junket with Shepard they seem to not be on the same page).
-How far has Adam Brody fell? Really??!! Fire your agent now!!!
THE CIRCLE
Director James Ponsoldt
Screenplay by James Ponsoldt and Dave Eggers
Based on the books by Dave Eggers
Starring Emma Watson; Elar Coltrane; Glenne Hendry; Bill Paxton; and Tom Hanks
Emma Watson plays Mae, she gets hired at a big Google like company called The Circle. While being excited about this wonderful new job she begins to realize there are some irregularities at this company.
Well how fast can one fall???!!
Riding the high of Beauty And The Beast's success The Circle come to theaters. And well..it is bad.
There are a lot of problems with this movie:
-The film basically tries to create drama about Big Brother watching and the dangers it can create as Big Brother expands its grasp on your own life. When in reality it is already happening. Which makes the film seem dated, and with absolutely no drama, They try to make Bailey (Tom Hanks-Who is only in this film for like 10 minutes) and Stenton (Patton Oswalt) as the bad guys. However in reality they are just running a business that everyone else is doing already. They are just expanding. Yes there are ramifications from what their company is doing. But that is a slippery slope. Like blaming Facebook for that Facebook murder. Then it is up to the public to make that decision of how much they want a company to poke in to their personal business, by not being part of the company. So in reality...aren't we the bad guys? Again it is dated.
-Emma Watson is just bad here. I do not know if she is just miscast or a victim of a dated and ridiculous script. She is breaking by constantly shifting from a British twang to an American twang, I often thought...Where is she from??!! At one point she goes kayaking because that is what she does. However it looks like she has never rowed a kayak before. In fact she looks silly.
Speaking of silly, the script has her in the middle of the night stealing a kayak and going kayaking without a life vest...I have no idea why!!! Of course she runs into a storm...just odd and silly...because we are being sold that she is intelligent.
-Karen Gilan plays Annie, Mae's best friend, who helps Mae get a job at The Circle. We watch her slowly have a breakdown. And only Mae seems to care. Annie looks like a mess, no one helps but they help Mae with her parents medical condition. Really? This girl looks like a mess and no one is reaching out??!!
I can keep going on but this film is just an odd dated mess. I know the book was popular, so I imagine a lot of the book subplots were left out of the movie.
EVERYTHING EVERYTHING
Directed by Stella Meghie
Screenplay by J.Mills Goodloe
Based on the book by Nicola Yoon
Starring Amanda Stenberg; Nick Robinson: and Anika Noni Rose
Stenberg plays Maddy, a teenager who has lived her life secluded in her house because of a rare disease. If she comes in contact with certain germs she will die. Things get interesting however when Nick, played by Robinson, moves into the neighborhood.
There is a lot wrong here....
The plot is just awful....
No spoilers here but when the big reveal is announced here (which I saw coming a mile away) it is just treated as a regular thing, nothing bad. NOOOO....they should lock this crazy person up!!
Then there are holes like ....well screw it, this movie is so bad I will spoil....Clearly this girl has not been outside but she has an ID to fly???!!
Or let 2 high school kids rent a place with no adults??!!
Or a High school kid saying...I will just go to NY????!!!
Then throw in just numbingly bad performances by all three leads. Just piss poor acting. They almost seem like they were all just reading their lines.
Then ...the two main leads Stenberg and Robinson have no chemistry ...so casting is even bad here.
Yes I know this movie is not made for me. This movie is made for teens...but teens cannot be that stupid to believe this mess.
THE SHADOW AWARD FOR BEST ACTRESS SO FAR THIS YEAR
Good year so far for women in film:
Kate Mara in Megan Leavey
Diane Lane in Paris Can Wait
Emma Watson in Beauty And The Beast
Kristen Long In Personal Shopper
Jessica Chastain in The Zookeepers Wife
Anne Hathaway in Colossal
However the best performance by a female this year is Gal Gadot as Diana/Wonder Woman.
Gadot is fantastic and looks the part. You cannot help but love her. She delivers her lines in such a monotone voice...it is hard to tell if she is just being funny or her reactions to our world is just funny.
I would go as far as saying she is perfect. She must look the part/act the part/and be physical enough to be believable in this part and she succeeds in every faction.
THE SHADOW AWARD FOR BEST ACTOR SO FAR THIS YEAR IN FILM
Like the ladies there are many good performances by men in a lead role so far:
Keanu Reeves in John Wick 2
Ansel Elgort in Baby Driver
Colin Farrell in The Beguiled
Sam Elliot in Hero
Michael Fassbender in Alien Covenant
However the best performance by a male so far this year is clear....James McAvoy as Dennis/Patricia/Hedwig/Kevin Wendell/Crumb/Barry/Orwell/Jade in Split. Playing so many different personalities. You see part of it in the trailer. Creepy and sad. Over the top often. So good.
THE SHADOW AWARD FOR BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A FILM SO FAR THIS YEAR.
Two films brings us the best performances by an actress in a supporting role so far this year:
Jon Hamm in Baby Driver
Kevin Spacey in Baby Driver
Luke Evans in Beauty And The Beast
Kevin Kline in Beauty And The Beast
But...I go back to Beauty one more time for best supporting role by:
Josh Gadd as Lefou he steals the film. He is hilarious with great comic timing and he can sing!! Just watch the song Gaston and he wins hands down!!
THE SHADOW AWARD AS BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE SO FAR THIS YEAR!
Not many candidates at the half way mark for best supporting actress so far:
Lily James in Baby Driver
Holly Hunter The Big Sick
Elena Kampouris in Before I Fall
But my number one is clear, and yes she could be in the lead role here but playing against McAvoy it has to be supporting and she holds her own. Anya Taylor-Joy here, as Casey, you can actually see her thinking. Watch her eyes in this part!! Her eyes say sooo much. Sometimes while she is watching you see her eyes watering. It is such a difficult part because she has to play off a huge character, with multiple personality. She is a star!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THE SHADOW AWARD FOR BEST NEWCOMER IN A FILM SO FAR THIS YEAR:
Just a few options:
Dafne Keen in Logan
Chelsea Lane in Phoenix Forgotten
But clearly Daniel Kaluuya as Chris Washigton in Get Out just shines above all newcomers!! He is the everyman. Dude ruuuuun!!
BEST MOVIE POSTER AND FILM I AM MOST EXCITED FOR:
ENOUGH SAID!!!!
From the shadows as always thanks for your time.
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