Pre-writing
The Social Network
1.Funny
2.Oscar worthy
3.Familiar story
4.Great dialogue
The King's Speech
1.Firth's performance
2.Relationship between the King and Lionel
3.Intriguing plot
Toy Story
1.Emotional ending
2.New interesting characters, funny
3.Personal connection
4.Family film
True Grit
1.Incredible cinematography
2.dialogue
3.Hailey Steinfeld's acting
Inception
1.A mind game
2.Incredible plot
3.Hard to follow the first time
Winter's Bone
1.Slow plot
2.Lead role by Jennifer Lawrence
3.strange world they live in
4.many drug references
1.Social Network
The screenplay for this film is incredible. Not only is the dialogue (specifically between Mark and the Winklevoss brothers) hilarious, but the creation of the court case surrounding Facebook made me want to continue watching. There were a lot of memorable lines, "I'm 6'3'' 220 and there's two of me" and "Dating you is like dating a Stairmaster". What I noticed about Mark Zuckerberg (fantastic acting by Jesse Eisenberg), other than his hilarious punch lines and never ending knowledge, was that he was into ‘tricking’ others and creating something big. He was not out to make money, in fact, he was offering to give some of it away.
The use of depth perception was used in a clever way. The filmmakers did a good job of focusing on Mark's face, but fading out the background (lawyers, the Winklevoss brothers) which often showed his lack of care for them. This is a movie I could watch over and over again because of the incredible plot, soundtrack, and acting, unlike Winter’s Bone where it left me feeling like seeing it once was enough.
2.True Grit
Overall, this was a beautiful movie. The cinematography, music, and scenery were incredible. Young actress Hailee Steinfeld (Mattie Ross) sure proved herself as being possibly the next big thing. The way she played Mattie was fantastic. Steinfeld was bold and mature, which suited Mattie’s character well. While the plot was similar to many other westerns, Ethan and Joel Coen always amaze me. Not because they’re from Minnesota, but overall the film was wonderful. I think either The Social Network or True Grit will win Best Picture, without a doubt.
3.Inception
All I can say is wow. This movie was without a doubt, one of the most brilliant movies I’ve ever seen. No wonder director Christopher Nolan spent 10 years creating the script. Inception is set in a number of intricate and complicated dreams, each one relating to another. I found it hard to follow, but that must mean they did a good job because I know many people walked out of the theater saying that they had to see the movie again. It was mind-blowing. As always, Leonardo DiCaprio never fails to impress me and Ellen Page surprised me. Known for her role as the pregnant teenager in Juno, she definitely impressed me with her acting chops. It was a tough choice for me to pick #1-3, but overall I believe it is worthy of receiving Best Picture.
4.The King's Speech
I had a difficult time with choices three and four. While both films were amazing, I felt Inception held the mind-blowing effect, one that The King’s Speech did not. The reason I put The King’s Speech at #4 though is because the movie is too stereotypical for a royal movie. It was filmed the same way, uses the same type of classical music for the background of the scenes, and the actors play their parts too traditional. The King’s Speech was more of a drama about a royal son has a stutter and his journey to overcome it and become king. Colin Firth did a wonderful job though. He certainly should be awarded individually at the Oscar’s. This movie was moving, but I do not believe it deserves Best Picture.
5.Toy Story 3
As a senior in high school going off to college next year, this movie hit home. Although I don’t see Toy Story 3 as a top runner for Best Picture, I do think this was yet another fantastic movie made for the series by Disney-Pixar. This movie certainly ended the Toy Story series in a positive way. While the end of the movie was emotional, the movie as a whole still labels the movie as “childish”. I’m going to be completely honest though and say that the scenes with Lotso turning into a psycho were quite scary. Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, and Joan Cusack did a wonderful job with the voice over’s and the animation was intriguing as always.
Though I saw this movie twice and each time I thought it was a ‘feel-good movie’ whereas with my first 4 picks, I walked out of those movies thinking ‘Wow. That was incredible’. It’s an enjoyable film for the entire family, but again, not Oscar-worthy. It was worth a nomination though.
6.Winter's Bone
While Winter’s Bone has a very strong female lead performance by Jennifer Lawrence, I found the plot to be dry. Lawrence was the only one who I felt held the movie together to make it somewhat enjoyable. Halfway through the movie, I found myself thinking ‘What is happening right now and when will some type of climax begin?’. Maybe I’m into more into action or comedies, but the strong lead is the only thing this film has going for it, compared to Oscar-worthy film’s such as The Social Network and True Grit. The cinematography was interesting though, the use of an eerie lighting gave the film a rough or gritty appearance. The cinematic elements made it feel like a documentary which was fascinating at some points.
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