MOVIE OF THE WEEK/OSCAR WATCH: Precious

What a heart-wrenching film! It really succeeds because it's so raw. Nothing is "prettied up" in the movie. Precious' life is as bad as it gets (16 with 2 kids by her father, one who is retarded, she's obese, illiterate etc etc). Definitely not for the lighthearted. As far as Oscar buzz goes, "Precious" is currently a lock for nominations for Best Picture, Actress, Supporting Actress and Adapted Screenplay. The other strong possibility is Best Director. The highlight for me was definitely Mo'Nique's performance. As a comedian, she played the evil Mary Jones so well, it's actually scary. If she doesn't win Best Supporting Actress at the Oscars, then something's really wrong.

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OSCAR WATCH: SAG Awards

This is really late. But there's not much to report. The only suprise was Sandra Bullock, who is really picking up steam in the Oscar race. At this point, she seems to be on course for the Academy Award. The winners...

Best Ensemble
Inglourious Basterds (pictured above)

Best Actress
Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side

Best Actor
Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart

Best Supporting Actor
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds

Best Supporting Actress
Mo’Nique, Precious

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OSCAR WATCH: SAG Predictions

This one's coming a bit early, as I'll be travelling for the next 2 days. The 16th Annual Screen Actors Guild awards will air on TNT and TBS on Saturday Jan 23rd at 8pm ET.

Best Ensemble
Inglourious Basterds

Best Actress
Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia

Best Actor
Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart

Best Supporting Actor
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds

Best Supporting Actress
Mo’Nique, Precious

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OSCAR WATCH: BAFTA Nominations

The nominations for the BAFTA awards have been announcement and as expected, they've been a lot kinder to "An Education". Here is the full list:

Best Picture
An Education
The Hurt Locker
Avatar
Up in the Air
Precious

Best British Film
An Education
Fish Tank
In the Loop
Moon
Nowhere Boy

Best Actress
Audrey Tautou, Coco Before Chanel
Saoirse Ronan, The Lovely Bones
Carey Mulligan, An Education
Gabby Sidibe, Precious
Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia

Best Actor
Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart
George Clooney, Up in the Air
Colin Firth, A Single Man
Andy Serkis, Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll
Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker

Supporting Actor
Alec Baldwin, It's Complicated
Christian McKay, Me and Orson Welles
Alfred Molina, An Education
Stanley Tucci, The Lovely Bones
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds

Supporting Actress
Anne-Marie Duff, Nowhere Boy
Vera Farmiga, Up in the Air
Anna Kendrick, Up in the Air
Kristin Scott Thomas, Nowhere Boy
Mo’Nique, Precious

Best Director
James Cameron, Avatar
Neill Blomkamp, District 9
Lone Scherfig, An Education
Kathryn Bigelown, The Hurt Locker
Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds

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Cheesiest Movie Quotes

We've all seen movies where they say things and you think "Oh Come On!" or "Did he/she really just say that?". Here's a cool youtube vid that compiles many of those great quotes. Enjoy.

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MOVIE OF THE WEEK: Sherlock Holmes

This was another one of those really fun films. It had everything - humour, action, romance and of course, mystery. Robert Downey Jr completely owned his role. It was perfect for him, as he is just so charismatic. Jude Law was also good as his bumbling sidekick. I can't really think of anything else to say, but if you're looking for a good time at the movies, go watch "Sherlock Holmes".

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OSCAR WATCH: Golden Globe Awards

Round 2 is over and the dust has settled. I did surprisingly well tonight, predicting 10 of the 14 winners. The Oscar Best Picture race is officially between Avatar and The Hurt Locker. James Cameron and ex-wife Kathryn Bigelow will be duking it out for 4 possible combinations for Director and Picture - a Bigelow sweep, a Cameron sweep or a split either way. Sadly, Carey Mulligan will be a spectator come Oscar time as it is clear that Best Actress is all about Streep and Bullock this year. Hopefully her fellow Brits will give her the recognition she deserves at the BAFTA awards. Here is the full rundown of the winners:

Best Picture (Drama)
Avatar (pictured above)

Best Picture (Comedy/Musical)
The Hangover

Best Actor (Drama)
Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart

Best Actor (Comedy/Musical)
Robert Downey Jr., Sherlock Holmes

Best Actress (Drama)
Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side

Best Actress (Comedy/Musical)
Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia

Best Supporting Actor
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds

Best Supporting Actress
Mo'Nique, Precious

Best Director
James Cameron, Avatar

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OSCAR WATCH: Golden Globe Predictions

Now on to Round 2 and it's a big one - The Golden Globes. I have altered my choices slightly from my Critics Choice predictions, though I am still predicting Clooney to take this one. Avatar won't make as much of a mark here, since there are no technical awards. The 67th Golden Globe Awards will air tomorrow night at 8pm ET on NBC.

Best Picture (Drama)
The Hurt Locker

Best Picture (Comedy/Musical)
The Hangover

Best Actor (Drama)
George Clooney, Up in the Air

Best Actor (Comedy/Musical)
Daniel Day-Lewis, Nine

Best Actress (Drama)
Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side

Best Actress (Comedy/Musical)
Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia

Best Supporting Actor
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds

Best Supporting Actress
Mo'Nique, Precious

Best Director
Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker

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OSCAR WATCH: Critics Choice Awards

This is why I don't bet. From my predictions, I got 11 right and 13 wrong, which is less than 50%...BUT, I got 5 of the 6 important ones right. Now that I have a better idea of where the buzz is in the various categories, I should hopefully do better with my Golden Globe predictions tommorrow. The big winner was The Hurt Locker winning Best Director and Best Picture(pictured above) while Avatar swept the 6 more technical categories. Also noteworthy is Inglourious Basterds winning Original Screenplay, Supporting Actor and Best Ensemble, while Up In the Air only picked up a win for Original Screenplay. The biggest shocker for me was the tie between Sandra Bullock and Meryl Streep for Best Actress, as I was sure it was going to be a showdown between Meryl and Carey. Based on what happened tonight, The Hurt Locker is the frontrunner, right ahead of Avatar and Inglourious Basterds, which seems to have overtaken Up in the Air. And the winners were...


Best Picture
The Hurt Locker

Best Actor
Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart

Best Actress
Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia AND Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side

Best Supporting Actor
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds

Best Supporting Actress
Mo'Nique, Precious

Best Director
Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker

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OSCAR WATCH: Critics Choice Predictions

Roll out the red carpet, it's awards time! We have the Critics Choice Awards tommorrow and then the Golden Globes on Sunday. Here are my predictions for the Critics Choice Awards, tune in tommorrow on VH1 at 9pm ET to see how it all goes down!

Best Picture
The Hurt Locker

Best Actor
George Clooney, Up in the Air

Best Actress
Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia

Best Supporting Actor
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds

Best Supporting Actress
Mo'Nique, Precious

Best Director
Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker

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MOVIE OF THE WEEK: Bright Star

I don't really know how to explain this film. It has to be seen to understand the experience. It is based on the 3-year romance between poet John Keats and Fanny Brawne and the movie really plays like a poem. It is beautifully shot, well-acted, well-costumed and the script combined with the score makes it quite lyrical. It's very subtle and understated, so it won't appeal to everyone. One of the most telling examples of this is that, there is no sex in the movie, but it still remains deeply romantic. I didn't know much about John Keats before, but I immediately googled him after the movie. As I said, most people would find it too "artsy" but even if it doesn't fire up your emotions, I think you can appreciate the excellence of its cinematic craft.

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OSCAR WATCH: Avatar

Well, James Cameron waited 10 years to develop the technology required of this film, and it was well worth the wait. This film is a visual masterpiece. Throughout the entire film, I was just in awe (imagine if I had seen it in 3D!). The depth and scope of the fictional world of Pandora is breathtaking. It is so intricate and rich, that you would think they were filming a real place, rather than computer-generated images. Speaking of CGI, the motion-capture technology used to create the Na’vi completely blew my mind. Now I really understand when they say certain movies are “ahead of its time” because the film was out-of-this-world. Zoe Saldana is getting some late Oscar buzz and I can definitely see why. She did a great job creating this Na’vi persona, beautifully blending human-like English speech and emotions with alien nuances. While she’s just a possibility in the acting categories, Avatar will be a heavyweight contender in the other main categories. I have now seen all of the “big five” (Avatar, Up in the Air, Precious, The Hurt Locker and Inglourious Basterds) and I think this will be narrowed down to Avatar, Up in the Air and The Hurt Locker when awards season really heats up with the Golden Globes next week. The Best Picture winner will depend on the mood of the voters as the 3 main contenders each bring something unique to the table.

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A ROTTEN TOMATO/OSCAR WATCH: A Serious Man

Films by the Coen Brothers are usually polarizing. You either love it or hate it. This was yet another venture into their dark humour, but this time I just didn't get it. It was like they were having their own private joke and you are just left feeling awkward. In fact, this movie lost me from the opening scene and I couldn't wait for it to end. Strange that my first "Rotten Tomato" would be one of this year's Oscar contenders, but I have to disagree with the critics on this one. This film just feels so self-indulgent, that I doubt it will be able to amass enough votes to pick up many nominations (although it seems to be a front-runner for Original Screenplay).

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OSCAR WATCH: It's Complicated

Well, this one isn’t really a serious Oscar contender for Best Picture, but it got a Golden Globe nomination, so it’s noteworthy enough. The best chances at Oscar glory are Supporting Actor (Baldwin) and Original Screenplay, but it's unlikely. Ironically, Streep eliminated her own chances for a nomination, due to her superior performance in "Julie and Julia", for which she has basically secured an Best Actress nomination, if not the win. This film was a pleasant surprise. I thought it would be just another “run-of-the-mill” romantic comedy, but it actually had a pretty good story behind it. Like “(500) Days Of Summer”, this movie (as you can guess from its title) tried to show how complex love and relationships are. It was a delight from start to finish, with Meryl Streep her usual wonderful self and John Krasinski providing his great comedic timing as well. Add well-known funnyman Steve Martin in the mix and you get some truly hilarious moments. This movie has everything you want from a romantic comedy, with lots of laughs and those “aww” moments too. So if you like romantic comedies, I recommend “It’s Complicated”.

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MOVIE OF THE WEEK: Brothers

I thought I wasn't going to find a new "Movie of the Week", but at the last minute I found one - "Brothers". This film shined where I thought "Up in the Air" lacked the most. Whereas I found "Up in the Air" to be just "one-note", "Brothers" was engaging, with the film building up like a crescendo towards the climax at the end. Once again this film was powered by a strong cast, who were able to effectively portray the wide range of emotions that war can cause. I mean, imagine sending your husband off to war, where he dies, only to find out later that he's actually still alive! People (including me) were surprised by his Golden Globe nomination, but Tobey Maguire really does a good job at showing the trauma-induced changes to one's personality and relationships upon returning home from war. There are scenes in this movie that really build some serious tension and you find yourself going through all the emotions with the characters. In addition, the screenplay allows for good character development, so you can really understand what all the characters are going through and are able to sympathize with them. Overall, a surprisingly good film, definitely worth a watch.

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OSCAR WATCH: Up in the Air

Wow, what a disappointment. After all the hype, I expected to be blown away. Unfortunately, I was far from impressed. Throughout most of "Up in the Air", I was wondering "Am I watching the right movie?". The film was just so monotone. Though it picked up in the end, I felt like everyone was just "going through the motions". I am still trying to think of something that I liked about the movie that merits some of it's Oscar buzz. None of the actors stood out to me, the screenplay was pretty average, costume design was none-existent (my Dad even pointed out that the characters were wearing the same tie), the cinematography was forgettable, but wait...the score was good! So overall, a very average movie. It actually upsets me that this film is possibly the front-runner for Best Picture, as I wouldn't even put it among the 10 nominees! As usual, I will highlight the potential nominations for this film (regrettably). George Clooney will be nominated for Best Actor and there will also be Supporting Actress nods for Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick. Furthermore, Jason Reitman will be nominated for Best Director and the screenplay will be nominated. You may think I shouldn't say "will", but trust me, it will definitely get these 6 nominations. Maybe this movie just went straight over my head, so you should watch it yourself and form your own opinion.

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COMING SOON: Valentine's Day

Huge cast and reminds me so much of "Love, Actually". Also features Taylor Swift, Taylor Lautner, Joe Jonas, Queen Latifah and George Lopez.

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