Oscars Reaction

It has taken a few days but I have finally stopped reeling from the Oscars Nominations announcement for long enough to make a reaction post. Here are my thoughts on some of the nominees alongside who I want to win and who I think will win.

In case you missed them first time round, look out for links to my full reviews for some of the nominees!

Best song

'Alone Yet Not Alone', Alone Yet Not Alone
'Happy', Despicable Me 2
'Let It Go', Frozen
'The Moon Song', Her
 'Ordinary Love', Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom

My only solace with this years nominations was that Taylor Swift was not nominated for the Best Song Oscar.

Despicable Me 2

Who I want to Win: 'Happy', Despicable Me 2

Who will probably win:I can't choose between 'Ordinary Love'and 'Let It Go' ; personally I couldn't understand the fuss that Frozen got and I found the soundtrack to be screechy rather than inspiring but considering it's mainstream success an Academy win will hardly be surprising. 

Best Costume Design

The Great Gatsby 

12 Years a Slave
American Hustle
The Grandmaster
The Great Gatsby
The Invisible Woman

Who I want to win: The Great Gatsby

Who will probably win: American Hustle; I can't really understand the extensive nominations that American Hustle received (*cough* $$$ *cough*) and from the way they are leading the nominations a part of me thinks they are going to lead the way with the wins too. Can't imagine how. (*cough* $$$ *cough*)

Best Original Screenplay

American Hustle
Blue Jasmine
Dallas Buyers Club
Her
Nebraska

American Hustle

Who I want to win: Dallas Buyers Club

Who will probably win: Potentially Dallas Buyers Club but if not then I suspect American Hustle or Blue Jasmine; Another film that I just could not understand the hype circus around... But it dabbles with mental illness so of course people will lap it up, I call it the 'Silver Linings' effect.

Best Adapted Screenplay

12 Years a Slave
Before Midnight
Captain Phillips
Philomena
The Wolf of Wall Street

Captain Phillips

Who I want to win: The Wolf of Wall Street... But I wouldn't be entirely unhappy if Captain Phillips took the crown

Who will probably win: 12 Years A Slave. Because slavery.

Best Supporting Actress

Sally Hawkins, Blue Jasmine
Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle
Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave
Julia Roberts, August: Osage County
June Squibb, Nebraska

Sally Hawkins in Blue Jasmine

Who I want to win: Sally Hawkins, Blue Jasmine. Now, I may not have liked the film but I thought Hawkins was astounding in it.

Who will probably win: This is the category that caused my stress palpitations upon announcements because I just can't, can't, can't get the hype that surrounds Jennifer Lawrence. A cleverly marketed PR dream, everyone seems to have fallen for her kooky 'i'm so normal' facade whilst ignoring the fact she is a relatively mediocre actress. I'm still not over her unjust win of the best actress award last year (the award that most definitely should have gone to the phenomenal Quvenzhané Wallis for her breathtaking performance in Beasts of the Southern Wild), and I just know she will be the undeserving winner again when, in all honesty, she shouldn't even be nominated. Can't think why she was... (cough* $$$ *cough*)

Best Supporting Actor

Jared Leto in Dallas Buyers Club

Barkhad Abdi, Captain Phillips
Bradley Cooper, American Hustle
Michael Fassbender, 12 Years a Slave
Jonah Hill, The Wolf of Wall Street
Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Now, this was an interesting one as I loved The Wolf of Wall Street and Jonah Hill gave a great performance in it, sure. But an Oscar worthy performance? His nomination was perhaps the biggest shock inclusion for me. I'm in no way saying his performance was bad or even anything less than great but it was also just what I expect when watching such a high quality blockbuster. I thought Oscars were for performances that go above and beyond, not the high quality expectation that we behold of A-List actors. 

Who I want to win: Barkhad Abdi, deserves attention for the way he was able to steal the scene away from legendary actor Tom Hanks, however in my heart I truly believe it should go to  Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club - simply an outstanding performance.

Who will probably win: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club. Dear God, I hope so.

Best Actress

Amy Adams, American Hustle
Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine
Judi Dench, Philomena
Meryl Streep, August: Osage County

Emma Thompson has been unforgivably snubbed.

Outrageous that Emma Thompson wasn't even nominated for her role in Saving Mr. Banks as to me she would also be the worthy winner!

Who I want to win: Judi Dench, Philomena

Who will probably win: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine. Well, you could basically see her brain screaming 'Oscar' throughout her entire performance...

Best Actor

Christian Bale, American Hustle
Bruce Dern, Nebraska
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf of Wall Street
Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave
McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club


A crying shame that Tom Hanks was snubbed for his Captain Phillips performance. Totally unacceptable.

Could 2014 be Leonardo DiCaprio's year?

Who I want to win: Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf of Wall Street. It's been a long time coming, please God please just give the man an Oscar. ANY Oscar!

Who will probably win: Admittedly, Leo faces tough competition this year with Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club, or Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave, being my bets to win.

Best Director

Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity
Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave
Alexander Payne, Nebraska
David O Russell, American Hustle
Martin Scorsese, The Wolf of Wall Street

Paul Greengrass is not even nominated for his brilliant work in encapsulating the claustrophobic and terrifying ordeal of Captain Phillips yet Steve McQueen has a nomination for his much-too-long, lack-of-a-time-scale injustice of 12 Years a Slave. Right.

Martin Scorsese on set

Who I want to win: Martin Scorsese, The Wolf of Wall Street - the guy makes a three hour long film that feels like fifteen minutes, if that doesn't warrant an award then I don't know what does.

Who will probably win: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity. As long as it isn't McQueen I will be relatively happy.









Best Picture

12 Years a Slave
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Gravity
Nebraska
Philomena
The Wolf of Wall Street

Gravity

Who I want to win: The Wolf of Wall Street. But if Dallas Buyers Club or Captain Phillips win it wouldn't be a total loss


Who will probably win: Gravity. Or 12 Years a Slave perhaps.... Although I wouldn't be shocked if American Hustle did (*cough* $$$ *cough*)



So, there we have it. Now we just have to keep counting down the days until March 2nd to find out the results - I'm hoping that I am about 95% wrong with my predictions but we will have to wait and see!

Let me know who you are backing this year!

Love,

THE WOLF OF WALL STREET

Me on The Wolf of Wall Street red carpet

The Wolf of Wall Street was without a doubt my most anticipated film of 2014, and as a life-long fan of Leonardo DiCaprio you can only imagine how thrilled I was to attend the London premiere for the film last night! Although unfortunately director Martin Scorsese wasn't in attendance at the premiere, nor did my luck extend to actually meeting the God that is Leonardo DiCaprio, I had a brilliant time and couldn't believe that one of the biggest stars on the planet, one of my idols, was stood just a mere two feet away from me.

On top of all of the excitement of the night, I am pleased to say that The Wolf Of Wall Street lived up to my expectations and then some as Scorsese and DiCaprio united for the fifth time to make yet another cinematic masterpiece.

Based on the true story of Jordan Belfort (DiCaprio), The Wolf of Wall Street documents Belfort's corrupt rise to a multi-millionaire stockbroker who lives a life of sex, drugs and excess. By 1998 the FBI are on Belfort's case with suspicions of security fraud and money laundering, which leads the film to a climactic and unpredictable conclusion.

Leo & Margot introducing the film at the premiere

At three-hours long, The Wolf of Wall Street managed to hold the same high-quality throughout with powerhouse performances, great direction and an intense and entertaining narrative, all cleverly matched with comedic undertones that made the 180 minute run time fly by. Every scene is fast-paced and exhilarating to watch and the audience are not given the opportunity to get bored or lose interest in the story as just when you think that it might be starting to die down, Scorsese throws in another curveball; be it an unexpected scene of DiCaprio writhing around on the floor, off his face on drugs, or a sudden party with booming music and such extravagance and shenanigans it would put Gatsby to shame. 

All in all, the film is a steady flow of entertainment and shock tactics as Scorsese steps out of his comfort zone to make a film almost incomparable to his other major crime movies through the heavy use of black comedy and glossy cinematography; making The Wolf of Wall Street shiny and artificial-looking, miles away from Scorsese's usual gritty thrillers but appropriately reminiscent of Belfort's lifestyle. 

Leonardo DiCaprio gives another winning performance

Unsurprisingly, Leonardo DiCaprio gives yet another show-stopping performance as the corrupt, anti-hero Jordan Belfort and proves that over years in the industry he hasn't lost his sense of humour as he delivers some brilliantly hilarious scenes, which you can just tell were performed with good banter and Leo's tongue firmly in his cheek. DiCaprio's voiceover carries the film as it keeps the audience up to speed with what is going on and even though you may know absolutely nothing about stocks or Wall Street, the voiceover cleverly tells you just enough for you to understand the criminal activity that is making them so rich, without being patronizing or taking up too much time.

Despite DiCaprio's powerhouse performance, the relatively humble supporting cast held their own and were just as fascinating to watch as the leading man. Shunning the possibility of fading into the background against a Hollywood superstar, Margot Robbie, who played Belfort's long-suffering wife Naomi, Jonah Hill, playing Belfort's best friend Donnie, and the rest of Belfort's various friends, foes and accomplices helped bring The Wolf of Wall Street to another level of entertainment. The entire cast had a great connection which showed through their on-screen rapport as the expletive-ridden dialogue bounced between the characters as though they weren't actors portraying a character but old friends for whom the conversation came naturally and realistically.

My only criticism of The Wolf of Wall Street comes with the film's very final moments. The few scenes prior are a pulse-pounding mix of violent, domestic disputes, suspenseful 'will-he-won't-he' interrogations and a wicked turn of events which all feels like it is leading up to a mind-blowing climax that in fact turns out to be a little bit underwhelming. Being based on a true story leaves Scorsese relatively powerless when it comes to how Jordan Belfort's story ends, however, the ending felt a little bit sudden and left me wanting more. A want that was only intensified when the film's credits started rolling without any of your closed-caption summaries of what became of Belfort and the rest of the characters that are typical (and expected) of film's that are based on true life stories.

All in all, The Wolf of Wall Street is an exciting, entertaining and exhilarating watch. A three-hour action-fest that is full of excessive lifestyles, great performances and big laughs, ensuring that Scorsese and DiCaprio are back exactly where they belong: firmly at the top of the game.

★★★★✯

The Wolf of Wall Street is out nationwide from 17th January!

Stay tuned for reviews and follow me on twitter if you fancy it!

Related Article: The 5 Oscars Leonardo DiCaprio Should Have Won By Now

Love,

I may not have met Leo, but here is me walking past him on the BBC News!

The 5 Oscars Leonardo DiCaprio Should Have Won By Now

One of many Internet memes

Leonardo DiCaprio is one of this generation's most respectable actors. Having worked in Hollywood since he was a teenager, he made himself a household name after playing Jack Dawson in the 1997 blockbuster Titanic.

However, after nearly 25 years in the industry where he has played everybody from King Louis XIV to Jay Gatsby, from the mentally ill to a teen heartthrob, from a drug addict to President Hoover... DiCaprio is yet to get his hands on a prestigious Oscar.

As the unofficial eighth wonder of the world, DiCaprio's struggle for his talent to be acknowledged by the Academy has become somewhat of a novelty over time, with many a hilarious meme being made to document his strife.

With the 86th Academy Awards looming, I take a look back at the five Oscars Leonardo DiCaprio should have won by now.

(Warning: Some of the clips may contain spoilers!)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: as Arnie Grape in What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)
Yes, DiCaprio's Oscar's Award Cabinet should have received it's first addition in 1994. That is twenty years ago! Leonardo DiCaprio's performance as Gilbert Grape's mentally handicapped brother was astounding, with many originally believing that the young actor genuinely had a mental disability. Although DiCaprio was nominated for Best Supporting Actor, forming the film's sole nomination at the Oscars, he lost out to Tommy Lee Jones in The Fugitive - thus beginning a long and unjust relationship between Leonardo DiCaprio and the Academy.


                                       

BEST ACTOR: as Jim Carroll in The Basketball Diaries (1995)Fast-forward a mere two years and once again DiCaprio has given another Oscar-worthy performance. This time in The Basketball Diaries, a true life story of Jim Carroll, an unbeatable High School basketball star who falls into the harrowing world of drug addiction. Aged just nineteen, DiCaprio gives a powerful and hard-hitting performance in his first major lead. Unbelievably, the brilliant film was snubbed by the Oscars in it's entirety and didn't receive a single nomination. Nicolas Cage won the Best Actor award for his role in Leaving Las Vegas but I maintain that DiCaprio's performance in The Basketball Diaries was better than that of Cage and all the other nominee's performances put together. (Too much?)

 BEST ACTOR: as Howard Hughes in The Aviator (2004)

I am being ruthless here because if I were in charge of dishing out the Oscars I would have given old Leo one for every film he has ever made, however, it is undeniable that he should have won Best Actor for his portrayal of Howard Hughes in the Martin Scorsese biopic The Aviator. Howard Hughes suffered terribly with OCD and DiCaprio gives a sensitive albeit brutally realistic performance displaying these signs - initially starting with minor things, such as the size of his peas, and ultimately leading to the above scene. The film itself won five Oscars, but sadly none of them went to Leo, who was at the very least nominated for the coveted Oscar but lost out to Jamie Foxx for his performance in Ray Charles. Booooo!

BEST ACTOR: as Danny Archer in Blood Diamond (2006)

Ah, in this alternate reality DiCaprio's awards cabinet would be straining under the weight of all those Oscars by now! Two years after The Aviator he took on the role of a corrupt diamond smuggler Danny Archer, but most importantly he took on the notoriously difficult South African accent and won! The accent was the only thing he won though as yet again Leo's efforts got him nominated in the 79th Academy Awards but.... Well, you know how it goes by now. Forest Whitaker took home the golden statuette for his role in The Last King of Scotland, which is a good film but come on, poor Leo just can't catch a break!

 BEST ACTOR: as Frank Wheeler in Revolutionary Road (2008)
Last but certainly not least on the list is the outstanding reunion of Leo & Kate in this emotional, high-tension drama Revolutionary Road. The two actors carry the film with ease in this fairly simple story of a young couple who are coming to terms with their personal problems whilst raising two children. The beauty of this film is that nothing spectacular happens in the actual story - there are no explosions or fancy effects, there aren't massive twists and turns - it is just the very organic and raw story of a couple who have fallen out of love with each other and Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio's performances, as demonstrated above, are stronger than ever. Revolutionary Road was nominated for three Oscars in total, but surprise surprise Leo was snubbed and didn't even receive a Best Actor nomination (the award for which went to Sean Penn in Milk). Winslet was also snubbed and was equally deserving for Academy recognition for her role as April Wheeler, but as she actually won the Best Actress Oscar for her role in The Reader this same year, I guess we can't be too picky!


So there we have it: five great films.
Five great performances.
One great actor
and zero Oscars.

And now, with Leonardo Dicaprio's newest film The Wolf of Wall Street due for release later this month, there are whispers that perhaps 2014 will be his year; could his 35th film be ~the one~?

Well... It is nice to hope but let's be frank, with his track record and all of the phenomenal performances that have already been snubbed it looks like our Leo  might not ever get his hands on one of those prestigious gold statues, but don't worry Leo - you will always be an Oscar winner to me </3

Love,

10 Films To Look Forward To In 2014

After all the great films 2013 brought us it is time to take a peek into the future to see what big-screen beauties the next 12 months have in store. Here are the 10 films that I am most looking forward to:

1. The Railway Man
Release Date: January 10th

You have probably already seen this film being heavily advertised as it just misses the 2013 releases boat. It is unlikely there will be a dry eye in the house as this true story of a World War 2 Victim who sets out to find the people responsible for his torture is played out on the big screen. With Colin Firth as the star you just know that The Railway Man will ooze sophisticated talent with emotional performances.

2. 12 Years a Slave
Release Date: January 10th
January 2014 just looks doomed to be an upsetting month film-wise with another highly anticipated true life story, which is already expected to clean up at the Oscars in March. Following the likes of Django Unchained, 12 Years a Slave is the first film to explore slavery in America from the slave's point of view, promising a sensitive and unforgettable story of the fight many African-Americans faced for both survival and freedom during this period.

3. The Wolf of Wall Street
Release Date: January 17th
Leonardo Dicaprio is back on the big screen in the form of this three-hour reunion between himself and Martin Scorsese. Another true-life story, The Wolf of Wall Street is set to be the big one of 2014, an entertaining (We've all seen the clip of Dicaprio's questionable dancing!) tale of crime and corruption that has had buzz around it for over a year already. Three hours is a long time to keep an audience entertained, but if any duo could get away with it it's Leo & Scorsese.

4. The Book Thief
Release Date: February 26th
An adaptation of Markus Zusak's bestselling book of the same name, The Book Thief tells the heart-wrenching story of Liesel, a young girl living with a foster family during Nazi Germany. This film has everything you could ask for and the faultless cast and beautiful narrative is sure to make The Book Thief the dark horse of 2014. Trust me when I say that this is not one you will want to miss!

5. A Long Way Down
Release Date: March 7th
Nick Hornby, author of Hugh Grant classic About A Boy, is having another of his brilliant books adapted for the big screen. A Long Way Down follows Hornby's typical themes of wit, heart and honesty in the story of four suicidal people who form a surrogate family after meeting on New Years Eve. The relatively humble cast of mostly unknowns is irrelevant and I have faith that this film will end up in the same league as About A Boy in no time.

6. The Inbetweeners Movie 2
Release Date: August 2014
Find me one person who isn't excited for the Jay, Will, Neil and Simon reunion ! Having first made their name in the popular Channel 4 TV series, The Inbetweeners were the focus of a surprisingly successful feature film back in 2011. The plot of the second film is still under wraps, all we know is that some of it is set in Australia... No matter what, i'm sure it will be hilarious!

7. Noah
This is no doubt going to be the biggest epic of 2014. Russell Crowe and Emma Watson lead the star-studded cast in the belated interpretation of the Biblical character Noah (as in Noah's ark). No matter what, this is sure to be at the very least visually stunning but as Russell Crowe's first major role since Javert in Les Mis, we can all look forward to the fact that at least he won't be singing!

8. Maleficent
I'll admit that I was much more excited for Disney's rendition  of Sleeping Beauty from the villain's perspective before I saw the full trailer released a few weeks back. Angelina Jolie is as hauntingly beautiful as I had imagined in the role of the evil Maleficent but it was Elle Fanning's absolutely atrocious attempt at an English accent that took my excitement levels down a few notches. I am sure it will still be an incredible watch but if somebody's accent is so bad that it can be annoying in a minute-long trailer, what chance does a 135 minute film have? Either way, I'm excited to give it a go!

9. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1
Release Date: 21st November
Uh-oh, will the third installment of The Hunger Games trilogy be a total misrepresentation  à la film number one? Or a total work of genius as seen in film number two? Well, with original director Gary Ross completely out of the picture for Mockingjay my bets (and hopes) are on the latter! Inconspicuously split into two parts, Mockingjay is the final book of the trilogy and I can't really see how splitting the story into two films will work. Following in the footsteps of  the Harry Potter and Twilight series, and no doubt in order to make some extra dolla from the relatively short franchise, this two-part finale will be the make or break of the film. Can they really drag it out without adding a lot of irrelevant fluff to the story? We will have to wait and see.

10. Madame Bovary
The 21st century film adaptation of Gustav Flaubert's most famous book has been the bane of my film-life. Originally billed for 2013 release I quickly read the book to prepare myself, release has now been moved to 2014 but other than the one production still released (above) there has been little news on how it is going. Mia Wasikowska stars as Emma, the beautiful and unfaithful wife of a small-town doctor, but it is the supporting roles that have me most excited. One of my favourite actors, Ezra Miller, is set to make a long-awaited return to film as Leon Dupuis and lovable Paul Giamatti is on board as Monsieur Homais. The question is by no means whether or not Madame Bovary will be a great film, the cast and narrative alone already tells me yes, it is more a question of when will it ever be released?? So keep your fingers crossed for 2014 and yes, I know that it will be worth the wait!

And there we have it, my top 10 films for 2014 which only prove what a great year 2014 is already shaping up to be! And on top of the above, I am sure we will find many other hidden gems along the way.

Stay tuned for reviews on these films and then some and follow me on twitter if you fancy it :)

Love,