Pixar's latest Oscar contender,
Ratatouille, is an interesting story of a rat who wants to be a chef, a man who can't cook and how they become a team. The animation and voice work are, of course, top notch. The characters and voice acting are also well done. However, I felt that the movie lagged a bit in the middle. And I just wasn't that into it. Maybe I'm prejudiced against rats.
Surf's Up, another Oscar nominated animated film, this time from Sony, follows a penguin who longs to be a great surfer. The film is set up like a documentary, with the film crew interviewing friends, family and rivals of the main character, Cody. I really enjoyed this device, something I don't think I've seen in an animated film before. There were many parts where I laughed out loud, especially at the young penguins. But I didn't really feel the connection between Cody and his idol. Cool animation, though.
La Vie En Rose is a biography of sorts of French singer Edith Piaf. Her life was anything but easy. However, she managed to find a way to turn her voice into greatness. Star Marion Cotillard ("A Good Year") is amazing. She falls into Edith and never lets us go. Even when Edith is ailing, the brightness in Cotillard's eyes still shines. I enjoyed the look of the film. It often made me depressed. But my one complaint is that the film is in French, which is okay. I don't mind subtitles. But Edith's songs are not translated. Sure, you can feel the music, but she sings so often, I would very much have liked to know the words to the songs.
I would not have picked
Michael Clayton for a Best Picture nominee. It's good, but I don't think it's that good. George Clooney ("Ocean's 13") turns in a performance where I felt he was actually acting instead of just playing himself. Clooney plays the title role, a fixer for a large law firm. He gets sent in to clean up a mess and things just spiral out of control. Tilda Swinton ("The Man from London") and Tom Wilkinson ("Cassandra's Dream") also give excellent performances. But the movie is too long. Too long.
I caught
Brubaker on AMC one morning and was immediately sucked in. Robert Redford ("Lion's for Lambs") stars as a warden who poses as an inmate to discover the corruption at the prison farm of which is about to take over. Then he tries to change stuff. And all the people who were benefiting from the corruption don't like it. You know where this is going. It's still good. May or may not be based on a true story. I wasn't really clear on that part.