The Oscars 2015

Please see below my educated guesses.

Mejor Película Birdman - Birdman
Mejor Director Alejandro G. Iñárritu - Birdman
Mejor Actor Eddie Redmayne - La Teoría del Todo
Mejor Actriz Julianne Moore - Siempre Alice
Mejor Actor De Reparto J.K. Simmons - Whiplash: Música y Obsesión
Mejor Actriz De Reparto Patricia Arquette - Boyhood: Momentos de Una Vida

Mejor Película Animada - Los Boxtrolls
Mejor Guión Original - El Gran Hotel Budapest
Mejor Guión Adaptado - El Código Enigma
Mejor Película De Habla No Inglesa - Ida
Mejor Diseño De Producción - Interestelar
Mejor Fotografía - Birdman
Mejor Vestuario - Maléfica
Mejor Montaje - Boyhood: Momentos de Una Vida
Mejores Efectos Visuales - El Planeta de los Simios: Confrontación
Mejor Maquillaje Y Peluquería - El Gran Hotel Budapest
Mejor Cortometraje Animado - Buenas Migas
Mejor Edición De Sonido - El Hobbit: La Batalla de los Cinco Ejércitos
Mejor Mezcla De Sonido - Whiplash: Música y Obsesión
Mejor Banda Sonora - Interestelar
Mejor Canción 'Glory' - Selma: El poder de Un Sueño
Mejor Documental - Citizenfour
Mejor Cortometraje - The Phone Call
Mejor Corto Documental - White Earth

Gabriel Ripstein’s debut film “600 Miles” wins first feature award at Berlin

Gabriel Ripstein’s debut film was awarded the first feature award at Berlin’s 65th Film Festival. Although this is Gabriel’s first film, he has been around the film industry for quite some time. He is the son of one of Mexico’s most celebrated Directors, Arturo Ripstein. Although Arturo Ripstein has mainly worked in the Mexican film industry, his son Gabriel ventured to the north (like his other fellow directors: Cuarón, Del Toro and Iñárritu), to tell a story that touches upon the relationship between Mexico and the US, as well as some other subjects.

The award comes with a €50,000, which is to be split between the producer and the director of the winning film.

I have not seen the film yet, but the trailer sure looks promising.

Guillermo Del Toro’s Crimson Peak

Yesterday, Guillermo Del Toro debuted the trailer for his new film, Crimson Peak. The film stars Tom Hiddleston, Mia Wasikowska and Jessica Chastain. It is a great little treat for fans of horror. Although this is a Hollywood film, it seems that Del Toro managed to infuse some of the characteristics he usually reserves for his efforts made in Spanish. This new films seems to have some more thought-provoking elements combined with big entertainment, and it also looks like it will be very scary.

Objective views on film?

When I decided to revive my blog, I went back and read some of my previous posts. In doing so, I realized that some of the views I had a couple of years ago were not in line with the views I hold now. It was not only a question of having similar shades within the same general view, in some particular cases, my views were diametrically different.

I know people change over time, and my opinions and thoughts now are different from the ones I had five or ten years ago. Nevertheless, I had the misguided belief that somehow my views on film were more solid and stable than my whimsically prone thoughts. I do not mean that my thoughts are whimsical, but somehow I held my views on film to a higher standard.

This is something I should have known. I have seen clues in my experience as an audience. In my younger years I just to watch all the new releases at the theater rarely making an exception. Nowadays, I am a bit more selective in what I decide to watch, either at home or at the theater. I thought this was due to my lack of free time, and that certainly has something to do, but maybe the most important reason is that my views on film do change. I now know this.

Reading Scott Tobias’ piece “When once isn’t enough” at The Dissolve put into words some of these thoughts I was having.

The Midnight Coterie of Sinister Intruders

Yesterday’s post about “The Midnight Coterie of Sinister Intruders” was very well-received by some of the readers of this blog. Needless to say, this made me very happy and I kept thinking about the trailer. I even watched it again a couple of times marveling at how it captured the essence of a Wes Anderson film while managing to be extremely funny. It is like a film lover’s dream. The only drawback is that is not a feature film.

Doing some research about the short-film, I stumbled upon a very detailed technical making-of piece by the Director of Photography, Alex Buono. It is a very detailed account of the process, and it also contains a couple of interesting side stories about working with SNL.

In doing my research, I also found out that this team was the same team behind the short film “Djesus Uncrossed”, which you can watch below. “Djesus Uncrossed” tries to do to Tarantino, what “The Midnight Coterie of Sinister Intruders” does to Wes Anderson. Although it has some equally brilliant moments, I think it feels more disconnected and does not reach the audacious execution of “The Midnight Coterie of Sinister Intruders”.

Wes Anderson and horror

With the recent Oscar nominations, I thought it would be appropriate to look back at a wonderful send-up SNL did of what a horror movie directed by Wes Anderson would look like. I am a big fan of horror film, and Wes Anderson would probably the Director I would least expect to make a horror film. That being said, I would really love to see The Midnight Coterie of Sinister Intruders.

Regarding the Oscars, I think the award for best Director is between Richard Linklater and Alejandro González Iñárritu.