2023 Oscar Nominee Catchup

The Oscar nominations were announced on January 24, and given how 2022 was a pretty stacked year for movies, it isn’t any surprise that the nominees have many worthy participants.  Last year, I started doing an Oscars catchup, where I watched the movies that I missed in theaters that received nominations in the top six categories: Picture, Director, Actress, Actor, Supporting Actress, and Supporting Actor.  I had quite a few to watch from 2022, so over the last month, I tried to see as many leftovers as I could before the 95th Academy Awards, which are set to take place on Sunday, March 5.  That being said, here are some mini reviews for what I had a chance to watch.

Charlbi Dean and Harris Dickerson in
"Triangle of Sadness"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

1) “Triangle of Sadness” - (Best Picture, Best Director: Ruben Östlund) Swedish director Ruben Östlund has become known over the years for his darkly comic satirical films, such as “Force Majeure” and “The Square.”  He now returns with his latest skewering in “Triangle of Sadness,” which tells the story of a modeling couple (Harris Dickinson and Charlbi Dean) who mingle with wealthy couples on a yacht.  Dickinson and Dean offer entertaining performances as a boyfriend and girlfriend who try to maintain their relationship despite many rocky areas, which is highlighted in the first third of the film, having them go through a couple of lengthy, entertaining arguments that show the instability of their relationship.  However, the satire becomes overbearing in the middle chapter when the story moves onto the yacht, going for very obvious targets and not saying anything groundbreaking in its social commentary.  But, the movie picks back up in the final third, when the characters become stranded on an island and must follow the new leadership of a cleaning lady, Abigail (Dolly de Leon, in an impressive breakout performance), that shows an intriguing role reversal of who has the authority.  It’s a terrific performance that makes her character known in this section of the movie, after being absent for the first two thirds, with de Leon taking full command of the film’s best segment.  The pressure that builds amongst the characters when they’re on the island makes you wish that this portion played out for more of the runtime.  Despite the lack of subtlety for a good part of the movie, Östlund provides enough humor and tension of the first and third chapters that keep the movie afloat.  “Triangle of Sadness” might not be as pointed as it seems to think, but when it works, it works.

Grade: B

Andrea Riseborough in "To Leslie"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

2) “To Leslie” - (Best Actress: Andrea Riseborough) For decades, we’ve had tons of movies that focus on a character being down on their luck and striving for redemption, so it’s gotten to the point where such a film really has to have a dynamite central performance to carry us through what we’ve seen before.  Such is the case with director Michael Morris’ filmmaking debut.  The story takes place on West Texas and follows the titular character (Riseborough) who tries to climb out of a life of squalor and alcoholism after spending all of her lottery money.  With the help of a kind motel manager (Marc Maron), Leslie takes on a job as a maid to stabilize her life.  Given how often we’ve seen this type of story, Riseborough’s performance is the main reason to see this movie.  She provides a depth to her work as she exhibits a woman who has lost everything after getting lost in her vices.  There’s a hopelessness to her that hooks you into her strife in the first half of the film, only to then present a beautiful comeback as she begins to take her life seriously and repair the damage.  Maron gives an endearing supporting performance, providing a sense of possibility for Leslie as he helps her find her footing as she attempts to improve herself.  The screenplay by Ryan Binaco brings us through the typical redemption arc, and you know where a lot of it is going, but he includes a couple of subtitles to add a little bit of layering amongst the familiar.  As a director, Morris knows how to set the mood and have us feel the isolation of his lead character, only to then show some promise to what her life can be, making this a cinematic toast to Leslie.

Grade: B+

Angela Bassett in 
"Black Panther: Wakanda Forever"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

3) “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” - (Best Supporting Actress: Angela Bassett) Director Ryan Coogler had a massive undertaking for his superhero sequel, having to change course for the production after the passing of his lead performer, Chadwick Boseman, in August 2020.  Despite this huge hurdle, Coogler gives us a movie that, although flawed, provides an emotional and entertaining followup to his worldwide smash.  The story takes place after the death of King T’Challa, with the nation of Wakanda having to defend their home against the underwater kingdom of Talokan.  Leticia Wright, who portrays Shuri, T’Challa’s sister, moves up from being mostly comic relief in the first movie to giving a moving performance that provides a layered look at loss, grief, and family.  She’s supported by a strong, poignant performance from Bassett as Wakanda’s Queen Ramonda, mother of Shuri and and the late T’Challa.  Given the movie’s length, the screenplay by Coogler and Joe Robert Cole introduces a lot of new characters and comic-book lore, making it seem like it’s trying to do too much, which throws off the pacing from time to time.  There are long stretches between certain storylines, with a couple of them feeling out of place because of them intending to connect with present and future Marvel Studios TV series, such as the plot threads involving Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) and Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne).  When the movie has direct focus on the tension between Wakanda and Talokan, it’s much more compelling.  As Coogler did with the first film, he does what he can to go above the typical Marvel Cinematic Universe visuals and offers something more in tune with his filmmaking talents.  This movie may have its flaws, but given what Coogler and his team were facing, you have to commend what they were able to pull off.

Grade: B

Judith Ivey and Claire Foy in
"Women Talking"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

4) “Women Talking” - (Best Picture) Based on Miriam Toews’ 2018 novel of the same name, writer-director Sarah Polley returns behind the camera 10 years after her last film, telling the story of a group of women in a Mennonite colony who must decide whether or not to leave the only home they’ve ever known once they find out that several of the men have been assaulting the women in their sleep.  The cast offers superb work as they portray a group of women who must work through their conflicting opinions on the actions that they should take, with Rooney Mara, Claire Foy, and Jessie Buckley being at the forefront, giving impassioned performances as they disclose what they’ve been through and how they wish to move forward.  Ben Whishaw also gives a terrific performance as a teacher in the community who has suffered significant losses, and whom the women choose to take the minutes of the meeting, being unable to read and write themselves.  Polley’s screenplay captures the meeting with much of the detail that’s present in the source material, showing the carefulness that the women must use in making their decision, but also the urgency with which they must make a commitment.  In addition, you’re given plenty of insight into the characters themselves, their relationships with each other, and the way in which their faith and community have shaped their views on the choice that they must make.  As a director, Polley’s able to navigate the difficult subject matter to bring us a film that shows the troubled pasts of the characters, but also the resilience that they build up to finally gain their freedom.  “Women Talking” may be hard to watch at times, but it’s an example of how, even in an oppressive situation, hope can prevail.

Grade: A

During a Family’s Getaway, Some Unwelcome Visitors Arrive

Abby Quinn, Nikki Amuka-Bird,
Dave Bautista, and Rupert Grint in
"Knock at the Cabin"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com

Paul Tremblay has become a reliable author over the years when it comes to the horror genre.  Between his novels like “The Cabin at the End of the World” and “Survivor’s Song,” and his short-story collections like the superb “Growing Things,” he’s developed chilling narratives that impact you with their themes every bit as much as they entertain.  He has a talent for crafting scenarios that pull you right in and have you wanting to turn page after page.

His novel “The Cabin at the End of the World” now gets the film treatment from M. Night Shyamalan with “Knock at the Cabin.”  Equipped with terrific performances and a strong adherence to the source material, Shyamalan brings us one of his best movies yet.

Seven-year-old Wen (Kristen Cui) is vacationing with her adoptive parents Eric (Jonathan Groff) and Andrew (Ben Aldridge) at a remote cabin.  One day, four strangers named Leonard (Dave Bautista), Sabrina (Nikki Amuka-Bird), Adriane (Abby Quinn), and Redmond (Rupert Grint) break into the cabin and take the family hostage.  Leonard and his group tell their captives that the family must sacrifice one of their own in order to prevent the apocalypse.

Cui, Groff, Aldridge, and exemplify their characters’ unbreakable love for each other as their lives become tested in a most unimaginable way.  We see the care and trust that they’ve built amongst themselves over the years, showing a family that displays an unwavering strength during this momentous period.  They do whatever they can to protect each other, offering an effective emotional core to the film.  This is an engaging trio of performances as we see their characters’ fear give way to their resilience.

While Bautista has had many opportunities to show his comedic talents in movies like the “Guardians of the Galaxy” films and the recent “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery,” he’s also succeeded in darker roles like his superb one-scene appearance in “Blade Runner 2049” and his chilling, villainous supporting turn in “Dune.”  So, it’s great to see him in a role where he’s able to exercise this side of his talent even more.  Here, this is a performance that begins with a friendly side to Leonard as he tries to gains Wyn’s trust in the opening scene, with Bautista then exhibiting his character’s deep sense of regret at what he has to do, while also showing Leonard’s acknowledgement of this being the only way to do it.  This is a magnetic performance that shows someone who’s trying to keep calm under pressure after being given an unfathomably momentous task that he must see carried out.  There’s a sense of heartbreak in him, showing that he has some care for the family and what happens to them, while also trying to guide their decision in a direction that would spare the world.

Aside from Bautista, the other three members of Leonard’s group are given a chance to show their talents.  Like Bautista’s character, Amuka-Bird, Quinn, and Grint all express their characters’ pain in knowing what they have to do.  There’s an intensity to all of them as they attempt to reason with the family to have them make the sacrifice, showing them trying to contain their panic as time runs out. 

While the screenplay by Shyamalan, Steve Desmond, and Michael Sherman may falter a bit near the beginning with some awkward dialogue, the rest of the script creates an adaptation that takes what was impactful about the book and translates it to the screen in an accomplished way.  The writers know what they had to omit while still keeping all of the novel’s biggest moments for a lean, thought-provoking 100-minute movie.  It follows the same flow as the book, with Leonard and Wyn meeting each other in the opening minutes, and then having the main scenario unfold.  Just like in the book, we get flashbacks peppered throughout the main story that build on the relationship between Eric, Andrew, and Wyn, showing how much of a bond they have and investing us in their ordeal.  While this is an adaptation that’s mostly faithful to Tremblay’s novel, Shyamalan, Desmond, and Sherman make a couple of changes that don’t feel unnecessary in the least, but instead let us see the themes of the story from a new angle.

The cinematography by Jarin Blaschke Lowell A. Meyer utilizes the claustrophobic setting of the cabin, just as the former did with the enclosed environment of Robert Eggers’ “The Lighthouse.”  With most of the film taking place inside the cabin, Blaschke and Meyer do a fine job in capturing the tightness of the cabin, despite the main area feeling rather spacious.  And, as is typical with Shyamalan’s films, Blaschke and Meyer use long takes that capture memorable character moments and let them play out uninterrupted to have us experience their full impact, particularly a pivotal scene with Leonard near the film’s end.

 

One of the highlights from Blaschke and Meyer’s work comes at the beginning with the scene between Leonard and Wen, with the characters building their trust in each other during the buildup of apprehension that something terrible is about to take place.  With out-of-focus backgrounds that help us focus more on the characters, close-ups that get tighter and tighter, and a transition to titled angles, Blaschke and Meyer’s camerawork captures the unsettling prelude to the eventual meeting of the family and these strangers.

While Shyamalan went through a rocky period with his filmography for several years, he’s slowly been getting back into the groove that made him a distinctive voice when it came to the horror and thriller genres.  As with his best movies, “Knock at the Cabin” displays his talents for getting an abundance of creepiness out of the scenarios that he films, while also evoking committed, emotional performances out of his cast to have us feel the weight of what’s happening to their characters.  Between his penchant for creating an unsettling atmosphere and the way in which he frames everything, Shyamalan exhibits his grasp on the sense of dread that permeates Tremblay’s novel, having a tight hold on us as we watch the family traverse an unthinkable situation.

With his latest film, Shyamalan reminds us that he can be a great filmmaker when he doesn’t let his bad instincts get in the way, and that he still has the ability to have us come knocking to see what he has in store.

Grade: A-