Category: Film

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Greatish Performances #23

Dan Seeger

#23 — Michael B. Jordan as Adonis Johnson in Creed (Ryan Coogler, 2015) I don’t begrudge Sylvester Stallone the victory lap he got to take for his seventh performance as the hangdog Philadelphia boxer Rocky Balboa. While he’s perpetrated a great many heinous acts on moviegoers (he didn’t just star in Rhinestone, Cobra, Over the Top, and Cliffhanger; he also helped write them!), there’s something appealing, even charming, about his unlikely perseverance in the business. There might have been a little more sourness had the Academy Award nomination he received actually turned into a win, but, as was the case … Continue reading Greatish Performances #23

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Now Playing: 10 Cloverfield Lane

Dan Seeger

10 Cloverfield Lane is the feature directorial debut of Dan Trachtenberg, and it credits John Campbell, Matthew Stuecken, and Whiplash filmmaker Damien Chazelle as crafters of the story and screenplay. And yet the name that looms over it is that of producer J.J. Abrams. This could be understandably explained by the studio’s enthusiasm to the film to the contributing creator who presided over the all-time top grossing film at the domestic box office, even if he achieved that particular inside-the-park home run after starting on third base. Instead, 10 Cloverfield Lane feels like it belongs to Abrams because it adheres to his … Continue reading Now Playing: 10 Cloverfield Lane

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Auer, Bateman, Halperin, Nelson, Newley

Dan Seeger

Bad Words (Jason Bateman, 2014). The feature directorial debut of Bateman has a nifty story hook and an admirable nasty streak. It’s especially nice to see Bateman fully tap the vein of dark consternation that pulses through his best, smartest comedic work. Unfortunately, the screenplay by Andrew Dodge also relies on a adult-child friendship that feels patently phony and is also fairly hackneyed for this sort of dark comedy. That there are a few slightly more clever notes played between Bateman and Rohan Chand (playing a more appropriately-aged rival in a national spelling bee that Bateman’s disgruntled adult has pushed … Continue reading Auer, Bateman, Halperin, Nelson, Newley

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#OscarsSoWhat

Dan Seeger

At least the Oscars still have a capacity to surprise. Thankfully, those surprises sometimes mean they’re moving in the right direction, that there’s a prevailing need to try and get it right, to make certain that the sheen remains on the most prestigious award in film. Alicia Vikander has the kind of breakout year in which she can make the claim of providing exemplary support in a number of films, so she wins the award the corresponds with that achievement, the title etched on the base of the trophy far less significant than the four digits that place it in … Continue reading #OscarsSoWhat

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From the Archive: Capote

Dan Seeger

The Academy Awards ceremony that took place ten years ago was a mess of mixed emotions. It anointed Crash as Best Picture, which many consider to be one of the worst choices for the Academy’s top prize in recent decades (I maintain the real worst choice in my lifetime is A Beautiful Mind, though The Revenant seems primed to become my new choice for that dubious category) and strained to honor a couple movie stars in the acting categories by awarding George Clooney and Reese Witherspoon Oscars for mediocre work. But then, Ange Lee won his first directing Oscar, entirely … Continue reading From the Archive: Capote

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Twenty Performances, or Infinite Best

Dan Seeger

Following tradition, the epilogue to the countdown of the top films of the year brings me to a consideration of the most exemplary acting performances of the same span of time. If I’d been in possession of one of Actors Branch Academy Awards nominating ballots, knowing then what I know now, this is how I would have filled it out. BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE 1. Jason Segel, The End of the Tour 2. Michael B. Jordan, Creed 3. Matt Damon, The Martian 4. Steve Carell, The Big Short 5. Mark Ruffalo, Spotlight Besides Damon, I diverge pretty strongly … Continue reading Twenty Performances, or Infinite Best