The Departed

I finally got to see it. I've been annoyed for years that Scorsese didn't win the Oscar for best director for "Gangs of New York", my favorite movie of his. I was glad to see him finally win for this movie but I was certain it couldn't be as good as Gangs. Now that I've seen it I'm not sure, I still like Gangs better but Departed might be the better movie. Everyone in it was brilliant, especially DiCaprio. He is really coming into his own as an actor as he ages, this one and Blood Diamond have been his best work by far at the grand old age of 33. Matt Damon was also good but not as good as his Bourne character, a role he seems to have been born for (pun intended).

And of course Jack Nicholson was Jack, need we say more? Mark Wahlberg & Martin Sheen weren't spectacular but certainly not bad either. They really didn't have enough screen time to shine too much, especially Wahlberg who got his role severely cut even though he was a key character.

It was long, I'm not sure how long but it kept my attention every minute, the movie never seemed to slow down at all and went through many plot twists, especially at the end. I really can't say anything about the plot without giving too much away and it's the kind of movie you have to see without knowing what it's all about. All I will say is that DiCaprio & Damon were the stars and their characters were the opposite sides of the same coin but in a very unusual way. Scorsese clearly liked this strange connection between them, the similarities and differences, because he would constantly switch back and forth, showing both their lives in parallel.

A very interesting concept and done well, would anyone expect less from Scorsese? I would definitely say this was worthy of the Oscar.

SICKO

Michael Moore's new movie opened yesterday, I hope everyone goes to see it, health care is the worst crisis we face in America today.

Here's his site:
An Awesome First Night for "Sicko"

And here my friend Long Live the Village Green does a review:
Long Live the Village Green

Because Darcy's been sick for the past 14 years I've had a lot of experience with health care. She gets Medicare and Medi-cal, do I have horror stories? You bet, but none are as bad as the people she's emailed with who have had the same lung disease. All those people had private insurance and not one of them got approved for a lung transplant. Some fought hard and finally got one, some just gave up and died, when you have a fatal lung disease it can be hard to get yourself into the fray. One did OK because she was rich, she signed a guarantee of payment with the hospital then hired her lawyer to sue the insurance company, after which they were happy to insure her.

I haven't seen the movie, Darcy's been sick all day, we never get out to the movies any more. We'll see it on DVD.

The Oscars

I love the Oscars and this year all my favorite people won but I forgot they were on and only saw the last hour or so of it, damn, I usually watch the entire thing and Darcy puts up with it. Also, this was a year where I didn't see ANY of the movies, very disappointing. Unfortunately Darcy has just been too sick most of the year.

I love that Al Gore's movie won, now if only he'd run for president. I was also really pleased to see Jennifer Hudson win for best supporting actress in “Dreamgirls”, talk about a dream come true. I don't watch American Idol but I do like the idea of an ordinary person getting a shot at stardom and Jennifer is the perfect example of that, and man, is she sexy!! Forget those skinny, bony models, I'll take a full figured woman any day.

Forest Whitaker is an actor I've liked for many years who has never gotten much recognition it seems, so it was great to see him win. And he seemed like it was quite an emotional moment for him, I hope he enjoys every minute of it. Helen Mirren is worthy of an Oscar as well, but the high point of the evening was Martin Scorsese, I was so happy to see him win. I thought he'd been robbed several times, especially losing with "Gangs of New York" to "Chicago." Chicago was fun but what the hell was the Academy high on THAT year? Most will say Scorsese's older movies were better, but I still think Gangs of New York was his best.

Of course, I can only talk about the people since I haven't seen the movies themselves, sigh. I'll probably see them all on DVD.

The Oscars

The Academy

My Top Ten Movie List

Yes, I'm the kind of guy who keeps a top ten movie list, even have it on my Palm so I can revise it as needed. They are in no particular order except Casablanca which definitely takes the number one position:

1-Casablanca
The only movie I've seen more than 3 times, I can watch this one all the time and never get tired of it. When AFI did the top 100 movie lines of all time 6 of them came from Casablanca. No need to name them, we all know what they are. This is the most classic of movies.

2-Last of the Mohicans
So well done many scenes gave me chills and the last ten minutes are some of the best movie making ever done, entirely without dialogue yet I was riveted.

3-Braveheart
I liked this movie so much I actually went out and got books on Scottish history to read. At least half the movie is true, which is pretty good for Hollywood, the other half is simply not known. Few records of William Wallace survived, most of what people think they know came from a ballad created centuries later. But he really did throw the Brits out of Scotland and was its military leader for a few months, and he really was drawn and quartered by Edward Longshanks.

4-Spirited Away
I love animated movies but this should not be looked at as one, it really stands in a category all it's own. It's a wonderful, mythic tale of a girl who learns she is both brave and resourceful, and done with amazing imagery and fantastic ideas. Miyazaki is a film maker like no other and all of his work should be seen differently than other movies, and Spirited Away is his best.

5-Maltese Falcon
What can I say, I'm a Bogart fan. This is the classic film noir detective movie, the one that created and defined the genre and with a top notch cast. Hard to get better. "You're good, you're awful good."

6-Pollock
I can't tell you how upset I was that this movie got such little recognition, it only got one Academy Award for Supporting Actress when it should have gotten Best Movie and Best Actor as well. Ed Harris was remarkable both in front and behind the camera, a true masterpiece.

7-Bladerunner
I don't think I need to say much about this one, it too is a Classic with a terrific cast. Harrison Ford's best role and the set design has been adopted by just about every sci fi movie since then because it was so well done and struck a deep chord about how all of us feel the future will look.

8-Kill Bill 2
A pure act of genius by Quentin Tarantino. This was every kung fu movie and every comic book I've ever seen done perfectly. The plot was assembled just right, the dialogue brilliant. In most movies I'm mentally rewriting parts of it in my head where they could have done it better but not with this movie. Even the music was genius and I hope everyone who saw it noticed his use of it. But Tarantino's greatest talent is his ability to make an actor great. Who else could make Michael Madsen a top notch actor and David Carradine brilliant. Carradine should have paid Tarantino for this role.

9-Return of the King
This is just about the most perfect movie ever made. I read Lord of the Rings first as a teenager then reread 3 times since then, the problem with movies about books like that is they can never match the vision I already have in my head about it, but Peter Jackson not only matched it but improved on it. And despite the fact that I knew the story quite well I was still on the edge of my seat as the war, and Frodo and Sam's journey, all reached a crescendo.

10-Sin City
The only movie more overlooked than Pollack. With this movie Robert Rodriguez takes his place as one of the modern greats, alongside Tarantino and Jackson. This is the most original movie I've ever seen, have the critics forgotten that movies are an art form? They must have or they could not have failed to recognize that this movie is art in it's highest form, pure genius. It's film noir on steroids and acid, visually powerful and unique with great performances from all involved, especially by Mickey Rourke as Marv. This should have won best picture for that year or at the very least have been nominated, and Rodriguez should have gotten Best Director. Everyone should see it but beware that it's very bloody.