by Sam Juliano
Presidents Week 2019 as always results in a full week off for area schools as a kind of winter recess. The Oscar party at the Tiger Hose Firehouse will be staged starting at 6:00 P.M., though the show itself never gets underway before 8:20 P.M. Lucille and I are greatly looking forward to seeing many friends including some site blogging regulars for this cherished annual gathering dating back 38 years. A revolt by the film community resulted in a reversal this week of the tentative plans to consign the Cinematography, Editing and two other categories to commercial breaks, which in essence was another preposterous plan in a year when AMPAS has bungled numerous decisions. Yet in each case they were overturned. J.D. Lafrance penned a terrific essay this week on The Warriors.
We saw two new releases on Thursday and Friday evenings at premium Manhattan art houses. Ciro Guerra’s Birds of Passage is a violent drug cartel drama which focuses on an indigenous community (Wayuu and Spanish language) governed by stringent traditions and spiritual beliefs. Tensions over business and family insults lead to an epic assault on a practically surreal while fortress in desert terrain in a film with gangland repercussions. Brilliantly filmed and scored, if a bit slow getting out of the gate. Christopher Honore’s deeply personal and melancholic trans-formative if doomed gay romance Sorry Angel, set in 1990’s Paris amidst the AIDS crisis brings a rare authenticity into searing relationships among bohemians who click on chance encounters and no-holds-barred physicality that ensues. This is the uneven Honore’s finest film to date.
On Saturday night we attended both the Oscar Nominated Live Action Short and Oscar Nominated Animated Short Presentations at the Claridge Cinemas in Montclair. Roughly both round-ups were equal in quality. Far from the finest years, but also solid enough to be memorable. The Irish animated short Late Afternoon and the American-Chinese One Small Step were the best of the animated and the Canadian Marguerite and the disturbing American short Skin were the best of the live action offerings.
Birds of Passage **** (Friday night) Film Forum
Sorry Angel **** 1/2 (Thursday night) Quad
Oscar nominated Live Action Shorts **** (Saturday)
Oscar nominated Animated Shorts **** (Saturday)
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Those two shorts programs must have been a lot of fun, Sam — I envy you those!
Much looking forward to seeing you and the crew next Saturday!
Oops: Sunday.
John, we had a whale of a time watching both shorts’ programs absolutely!!! Thrilled we’ll be seeing you and Pam for another Oscar show this evening!! 🙂
Though I won’t be able to attend the shindig, I’ll be following and will touch bases with you Sam. What a great week of moviegoing with the shorts, the French and Colombian films! Have a great time all!
Sam — I agree with Realthog… I envy you the two shorts 🙂
Laurie, the shorts were solid, and it’s always unique to watch them in that fashion, including all the bookends and a few runners-up. Thank you my friend!
I have no pony in this year’s Oscar shindig. None of my peeps were even nominated: Welles, Murawski; Hawke; Gosling; Riseborough; J. Smith-Cameron. Pulling for Holofcener in best screenplay category, but why has she never been nominated as best director? She’s absolutely first class.
It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (Stanley Kramer). It’s a long, long, long, long movie and I only laughed once-when a dying Jimmy Durante literally kicks a bucket down the side of a hill.
Enjoy your Oscar bash, Sam.
Mark I do hear ya. As always the Oscars are short on brains, even with a fair share of the nominees still deserving as was the case this year. Your own faves are a distinguished lot for sure! I also love Holofcener, whose independent brand has never cracked the Academy’s mainly commercial-minded veneer. Ah, Mad Mad World, eh? Well, we can’t agree on everything and I have long considered it a comedy classic, and personally am most enamored of its length. I also loved that segment you mention!! 🙂
Thank you for the well wishes, right back at ya! I’ll have a full report my friend!!
Hoping to see you guys on Sunday, if I can finish an afternoon job!!
Frank, we’d love to see you this year my friend!! Thank you!
Hey Sammy!
More busy times for me with travels to Vancouver and Little Rock in the last couple weeks. Writing from Little Rock tonight. I hope you and the family are doing well! We are strongly anticipating spring for sure. As a family we watching Groundhog Day, which was terrifically received by the kids and I’m very pleased by that. They loved it so much, we watched it two days in a row. Lol. Also, in the last couple weeks I’ve see
The Old Man & The Gun – 3/4: Charming to see Redford and Spacek here. I don’t think there is anything particularly amazing, but it’s a nice quiet film with quiet pleasures. I realized I have particularly missed Spacek over the recent years. I think she is a real treasure that has been sadly not included in film of late. We need her more.
Can You Ever Forgive Me? – 2.5/4: This one wore a little bit thin after awhile and felt a little less important than I wanted it to be. I really like McCarthy as an actress, but the film felt a little by the “books”.
Bohemian Rhapsody- 2.5/4: A very Hollywood rendition of this story. I felt like all the boxes were checked. Malek gives a really incredible performance and he was electric. the film however was not quite up to snuff. I liked seeing the performances, but I expected something with a bit more oomph.
I will be watching the Oscars on Sunday and hope that you enjoy the festivities….certainly some controversy this year my friend. 🙂
Always fantastic to hear from you my friend!!! I see you are as always on the road, and that Vancouver time sounds divine! We are gearing now for our big annual Oscar party tonight in my hometown. You will be with us in spirit. Your viewings? Hmmmm. I am actually a very big fan of the perverse CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME? and loved both key performance by McCarthy and Grant. I agree on Malek who was electrifying (his Oscar win is assured tonight) and all told I liked the film more than you did, but your issues are fair and many agree with you. I was not a fan of that Robert Redford film, but I greatly respect your appreciation of it. Alas this one of the few weeks where our taste proved disparate. But looking forward to your future viewings and wishing you and the family the best!