I absolutely love going to the movies; I love choosing a film and getting excited about it, watching an actor's particular interpretation of a character, the special atmosphere in the cinema and discussing the movie afterwards with friends. As we are now in the midst of Oscar season, and everyone is asking about which movies will win the most awards, I thought it would be a good time to go and see some of these biggest movies that are currently on offer. I personally prefer to see films for myself first, before knowing if they have won an award or not, as I like to form my own opinions, watch the movie with my own critical mind, and not be persuaded by others. After all, these awards are totally subjective; most of the time they are completely meaningless and the way that a movie can affect a person is not reflected at all by the titles it has accumulated.
Three of the biggest films on everyone's lips at the moment are 'LA LA LAND', 'Jackie' and 'Manchester by the Sea'. I had such different feelings about each movie, it's actors and stories, and it's definitely true to say that each one is incredibly unique and not like the others. I wanted to write my thoughts about these movies here in a blog post, as if I was talking with my friends about them, and I would love to start a discussion and hear what your experiences of these movies were in the comments below.
LA LA LAND
Starting off with the movie that I watched first out of the three and perhaps the one I was most anxious to see because of everything that I had heard about it, I have to say at the outset that I was not enamoured with this film and didn't particularly enjoy it. Maybe it was because of the incredible hype that this movie has built up or because of the star studded cast (actors whom I have huge respect for in other roles), I was left simply underwhelmed.
The plot of the movie is one that has been done many times over; a struggling actress and a handsome jazz musician, working in dead-end jobs whilst trying to pursue their passions, meet in LA and fall in love. However, love cannot fulfil their artistic dreams and they must ultimately choose which life paths to take; to continue to follow their desires or to be together.
This is a movie from the musical genre, and while it is often refreshing to see a different style of storytelling on the blockbuster screen, I felt that the soundtrack to this movie was pretty poor. I applaud Ryan Gosling for learning the jazz piano from scratch for this role - yes, the hands are always his and were not superimposed - and it does sound OK (for an actor who is not a musician), but he could not make up for the repetitive and 'corny' theme song, nor for Emma Stone's sub-par singing. I always find it such a shame in a musical type of movie, when they try to train very famous actors to sing or play musical instruments for the roles, instead of just casting one of a thousand un-known actors that are all out there looking for work, who CAN sing AND act AND play instruments. I guess in these instances, when directors are looking for awards, it becomes more important to have the famous names. Perhaps I am biased in this opinion because I am a musician, but this is an issue that seems important to me to talk about.
I have seen some unbelievable praise across social media for this movie, and it is true that it is a kind of 'crowd-pleaser'; some said that it can 'change your life!' and others want to see it again and again. It reminds me of when the silent movie, 'The Artist', came out a few years ago and everybody was incredibly excited by the new-old genre returning then too. Perhaps the same is happening with 'LA LA LAND' - it's not so much the movie that is the hit, as the fact that it is something new and different.
Jackie
'Jackie' is a fascinating re-telling of the historic assassination of JFK, told from the point of view of his wife, Jackie Kennedy. I find that the reenactment of historical events in movies can be quite tricky to get right, especially when they are hugely character profile based films. However, I felt that this movie really did the story justice, and I certainly learnt so much about Jackie and about what happened that I really never knew.
I absolutely have to spend a moment mentioning the wonderful performance and portrayal of Jackie by Natalie Portman. I have watched a couple of interviews with Portman about the movie and her role, and when asked if she knew much about Jackie before this movie and what she did to prepare for it, she said that she really didn't know anything about her except for the obvious points, but that she watched Jackie's infamous tour of the White House (which is on YouTube, by the way) over and over to pick up all of the subtle nuances of this character. After seeing Jackie, I watched this YouTube video of the real Jackie for myself and I could not believe how amazing a job Portman had done - they are almost the same person! From the delicate accent, to facial expressions and bodily gestures, Portman captured the beauty and elegance of this character in one of the most tragic and emotional moments in her life. I found her work pure magic.
There was a lot that I didn't know, and had never really considered, about the time surrounding the assassination of JFK - particularly straight after it. Although, as always with movies of this nature, I am sure there was a lot that they could not cover in this film, I also feel that I gained a real insight into what happened. I absolutely recommend going to see this movie, even if only to remark on the beauty Portman's performance.
Manchester by the Sea
And so to end with my absolute favourite of all three movies! 'Manchester by the Sea' is an outstanding film, definitely more in the indie genre than the normal blockbuster stuff that usually fills the Oscars. I don't think I have ever seen a movie that somehow combined such raw and sad emotion with such a beautiful humour - I laughed and cried many times in equal measure - and this gave me so much joy.
The movie deals with family issues, fitting into society, tragedy and death. It is the story of a man in Massachusetts who is faced with some difficult decisions to make when his brother dies and he is left as guardian to his nephew. However, this man has a tragic past, of which we are told slowly and bit-by-bit, through reflections and flashbacks, throughout the movie. I would suggest that, like me, you do NOT watch a trailer or read anything about this movie before going to watch it (I am trying to be sparing with this review!). I found myself totally caught up by the movie as it was revealed to me, surprised by my own raw emotions and I am sure this is partly why I know it will really stay with me. I am so happy that I did not know at all what to expect from the story.
I wanted to talk a little bit about the humour in the film, as I think it is essential to how the movie really strikes you, touches you. It is the type of humour that we can understand only in a very ordinary sense - little things that might happen to us every day, the things that 'perfect' movies might cut out or correct, things that we never mention but when you see them you can so relate and they really do tug at your heartstrings. Even in some of the most powerfully emotional moments in this movie, it found a way to include this humour and that was truly amazing.
If you are looking for a couple hours escape from the grim state of the world at the moment, I say you HAVE to go and see this movie. It is one of those films that I would think is really meant to be seen in a cinema too - during the movie I could feel the atmosphere in the theatre, the people around me going through the same emotions that I was; everybody was so involved in it and that is so RARE in a movie. This movie, with it's fantastic performances and direction, definitely has my vote!
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