I sit here a little over a day away from ending 2020 and moving into 2021 and like everyone else this year I'm screaming thank the fuck for that. This year has sucked for everyone, myself included. I got dumped mid year and that sucked, though I moved on in hopes of finding better days much like we are all doing now. Barely any films have come out and theaters have been shut down for almost the whole year. The Oscars next year are going to be so weird. Most people will not have had the opportunity to see most of these films except for those launched on Netflix or other streaming services. It'll be interesting to see because as of right now, there really is ZERO buzz for this Oscars season. It's also in April so there is still months to go, but normally we have a front runner that is either getting taken down by other films or boosted into a sure thing. No one, not even I, could tell you what might get nominated right now and that's sad. I think we will end up with a good slate of films and performances but the fact that the public wasn't really involved sucks. This year sucks and I'm so happy to kiss it goodbye. I leave you with one last category for this year and it looks like it should be good, so thank fuck for that.
1966 Best Picture
A Man for All Seasons
I had been looking forward to watching this film for so long because of its win and because it had a reputation for being such a tight, well made costume drama. And it is all of that. It's about the moral steadfastness of Sir Thomas More played by Paul Scofield. He is part of the Henry VIII government and is made the Lord Chancellor but won't figure out a way for Henry to divorce Catherine and pays the ultimate price. This is a tight film that really doesn't spend any time explaining anything and just plows ahead. More is on the Council as an advisor to the King and Cardinal Wolsey advises him to find a way for the divorce. He doesn't, Wolsey is gone and More is made Chancellor and advises Henry. It doesn't last long and the Church of England schism happens and More is not onboard. More is imprisoned and then executed for this reason and that's the film. Very tight two hours as we really only get to dive into More as a person with concrete morals and ideals who is a good man. He is already a perfect being when we get to see him. He is a man that is steadfast in his morals that is completely respectable. I don't think anyone begrudges More for adhering to his faith and sticking with it. I love that the film has a good score and some good shots, but that it has such a tight story. It just goes from one scene to the next without anything else in the way. It has almost no filler and is better for it. There are also some really great comedic moments in the film like the More household butler guy talking to his wife after being fired. It's hilarious and there are a few of those moments sprinkled throughout the film even though they may get overlooked easily. The film has great acting abound and some great music to accompany that. I really just can't get over how great and succinct the film is. It's a great historic retelling of the story and it uses so many great performances to make it work. It's quite easy to see why it won.
Alfie
After watching this, I honestly can't say that I really enjoyed it that much. Alfie is played by Michael Caine and is an unapologetic womanizer who uses and discards women like they are trash. Why am I supposed to be interested in Alfie at all? Because he at the end is met with the reality of his actions and the fact that his ways have left him alone and only then does he have a change of heart about who he is as a person? As charming and suave Caine is as a person and actor, it's not enough to get me to like who Alfie is or feeling any sort of admiration for him. I don't feel like I'm missing the point of the film, either, because I understand that the change at the end of the film is all because of what we see from him during the rest of the film. So I can still not like a character no matter where he ends up and not really enjoy a film because of that reason. I think Caine does a great job as Alfie, though, and can separate actor from character. I also think the film uses the fourth wall breaking style to great acclaim even if it comes off as some kind of incel training video with Alfie discussing how to use women while actively being with them or how to get rid of them. I do think a lot of folks may like the film despite all of this and I'm probably reading too much into the character and film, but it's genuinely how I feel. It's okay in 1966 but it just comes off as shitty to me in 2020. I say watch for yourself and see what you think about this one.
The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming
Another one of those films I've wanted to see for awhile based on the name alone which has always been intriguing to me. The film is a cold war farce where a Russian submarine crew wash ashore on an island in Northeast America and a small group go onto the island to find a way to get their submarine pushed back into the sea. Absurd mayhem and hi-jinks ensue for most of the rest of the film as Alan Arkin and his little group of Russians hide out and steal cars and threaten families and avoid the townspeople hunting them. It seems rare for a film like this to get nominated in this category but here we are. I imagine that it coming out at the height of the Cold War and poking fun at both sides with a funny cast and slapstick story. This is way more accessible for everyone than something like a Dr. Strangelove and I think that helps it get nominated. I thought the film was funny and entertaining and had some good performances but it does seem a bit milquetoast as compared to the previous mentioned Dr. Strangelove, which I can't help but compare it to. Which is unfair because that is such a great and classic film. My point is that this film doesn't seem to have the heft to it that maybe it should. It plays it safe and the ending is a coming together of everyone after a standoff to help rescue a little boy showing that if we work together, we can achieve peace. A noble goal, for sure, but not everything is that easy or clear cut. This film supposedly played well over in Russia at the time and was obviously well liked here by audiences so it seemed to bridge a gap, so maybe a heartwarming ending like we got was necessary. It is a very well done film and I really enjoyed Arkin in his role as one of the few people to be level headed. Worth watching to see the comedy but there are some films in this group that just blow this one away easily.
The Sand Pebbles
Did not realize this would be a just over three hour epic. At the time the film came out, some of the reviews had mentioned it in the same breath as the British epics (you know the ones) and how this was a similar war epic. This film is about Steve McQueen's character who is an engineer sailor guy who is in China and gets assigned to a gunboat that has some issues. The Chinese fellows on board basically do everything while the actual Navy guys do nothing and McQueen just wants to monitor and repair the engine. He makes enemies and friends on the ship all against the backdrop of the US and other nations' involvement in China in the 20's while they were trying to figure out their own country. I actually really enjoyed this film a lot more than I had initially thought. I think a lot of that is due to the subject matter of the film. We almost never see this time in history from a US perspective and see how our involvement in China in the 20s sparked that country. It was fascinating to see the country and all the racism and how badly the Navy guys treated the locals while some went above and beyond helping them. McQueen carries the film just fine even if it is a bit of an uneven performance. He still has that gravitas and commanding presence to overlook any flaws. I also appreciated that the film had a very good pace to it. It's three hours long, but it sucked me in and moved well from scene to scene. It helps that there are a lot of action scenes, whether outright violence and actual battles, or even just a trip to a local bar or a boxing match between one of the Chinese workers and a sailor. The scenes keep moving and you come to root for McQueen who is just concerned with doing his job and not all into demeaning the Chinese. Yeah, he's still a bit racist in the film but that's part of the messaging of the film. Watching it now, I don't quite see the allusions to the Vietnam War, but it's there and was one of those things noted in many reviews whether for better or worse. It was also just how the US was in those days trying to act like an imperial nation. This is a really interesting film and one setting and time that I'd wish we see more of in general. This was one of the biggest winners at the box office this year and that's a big reason why it's nominated. A big war epic with a charismatic lead and a plot that reminds people in 1966 about a more timely war, well it was going to get on. It's nice to see that even though this film is really remembered at all these days, it's still a strong, entertaining film in its own right.
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
This is Mike Nichols' debut film and it's so brilliant that he decided to follow it up with The Graduate. He has become one of my favorite directors because of this project and I only wish I had more of his films to watch. Many consider this to be one of the greatest plays that was put to film and I agree. It's so intense that I felt like I needed a drink afterwards. The cinematography won an Oscar for black and white and it is amazingly framed and shot. The acting is what makes the film legendary and it has some all time greats from Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton and Sandy Dennis and even George Segal. The first film to have it's whole cast nominated for acting and they all earn it. If you don't know what it is about, I feel like it's better to go in cold like I did. I knew it was one of those wordy, volatile relationship plays that got filmed. But it is so much more than that. The subtext in this film could fill another film or three. Basically it's about a middle aged couple who are so temperamental who invite a younger couple over for night cap after a party. When I say intense, it is intense! Taylor and Burton are at each other's throat, sometimes literally and they drag the young innocent seeming couple deep into their depravity. I love dark films about flawed people. I have found this out recently when looking at all my favorite films even though it was always true. I think I connect more with those stories and enjoy them way more than something simple and feel good. But I also know I love a good, intimate play that throat punches you from the start and doesn't let up until the end. I know know of these types of films are coming and I'm pumped for that. But this was I think one of the first forays into those plays on film that were all the rage in the 50s and 60s. I also think it's pretty dope that this film helped challenge and end the Production Code in a way. This would never had been made before that was thrown out and this film debuted on stage just before that era ended and many people said it wouldn't and couldn't be made. This got made because it was especially wanted on the big screen and people realized how outdated the Code was. This wasn't directly responsible but it certainly helped. I want to point out again how amazing the actors were in this film because it's one of those things that you want to get the best out of everyone in a film and this knocked it out of the park. If you watch this and don't want a drink or a cigarette or something after, then you are doing it wrong. It's a great film that has only grown on me since I watched it and I can't recommend it enough.
Happy to be done with this and moving on in every way. But it's a very good group of films. I get why people like Alfie. I'm not much of a fan of that kind of misogyny and womanizing behavior and I am far from any kind of SJW. I just think it's a bad look and celebrating it even with deeper social issues nestled into the film is not that great. I do appreciate the performances and what it tries to do but I didn't like it. The Sand Pebbles is a really interesting war epic. I like getting to see historical times that aren't done to death. We never see anything from China in the 20s as far as the US is concerned. So that was refreshing. And McQueen is pretty great and the film is really entertaining. I enjoyed it a lot. The Russians is hilarious at times. I love Arkin's performance and it's a cool look into the Cold War era of thinking that we should give peace a chance. A really overlooked film today, it's worth checking out. A Man for All Seasons is a good Oscar winner. A tight costume drama that doesn't get bogged down in any extraneous plots. It marches forward with it's single story and we are all better for it. Great acting and just a wonderful film. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? though is absolutely brilliant and amazing and is my easy winner for Best Picture. It's so damn intense you need a drink or five after watching. Some all time performances coupled with great story and direction make this a classic I'm glad I finally got to watch it and can now add it to my list of favorites. So a final fuck you to 2020 and a happy new year to everyone out there - even if you are reading this in June of 2029.
Oscar Winner: A Man for All Seasons
My Winner: Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
A Man for All Seasons
The Russian Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming
The Sand Pebbles
Alfie
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