I have now seen all nine films nominated for best picture at this year’s Oscars. You can read individual reviews of each of them on this blog and, ahead of the forthcoming razzmatazz of the awards ceremony, here are my final thoughts on the contenders.
The three best movies are by directors who understand the visual grammar of cinema to the point that images speak louder than words.
In the case of The Artist there is no dialogue at all, unless you count the title cards. Martin Scorsese’s Hugo is so memorable because of the amazing production design that brings the automaton and Parisian station to life. This supports the pseudo-religious view expressed by the young protagonist that we are all part of one enormous mechanism .
Both movies pay affectionate homage to silent movies in recognition of cinema as a painterly and visionary medium.
The other truly great film on the short list is Terrence Malick’s The Tree Of Life,. It too is visually stunning but the lack of linear narrative makes it the type of movie that wins more supporters at artier festivals like Venice, Berlin or Cannes.
I personally expect The Artist to triumph but would like to see Scorsese or Malick win as best director.
Max Von Sydow as the mute 'renter' in Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close'
The three weakest movies on the list are War Horse, Moneyball and Midnight In Paris. Of these, Spielberg at least shows he hasn’t entirely lost his touch in the epic scenes although the sappy sentimentality overwhelms the more poetic moments. Moneyball is well acted but is only great if you are crazy about baseball. Woody Allen’s was feted as a return to form but is little more than a soppy cinematic love letter to Paris.
There were superior movies to these in 2011; my selection to replace these three duds would be Drive, We Need To Talk About Kevin and Shame. The snubbing of Steve McQueen’s superb movie and Michael Fassbinder’s searing performance demonstrates that sexually explicit content is a turn off for the board members.
In the middling to fair section, The Descendants is an attractive vehicle to prove that George Clooney can act but not an especially memorable movie. The Help is an amiable movie to ease the guilt over America’s racial past (and present) but Driving Miss Daisy was a far superior film on a similar theme. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close has been unfairly savaged by many critics who are probably still waiting for the definitive 9/11 drama.
Ironically, one of the best characters in Stephen Daldry’s movie is Max Von Sydow as The Renter who doesn’t speak a single word. His nomination as best supporting actor speaks volumes about this year’s Oscars where silence is golden again but sex is still taboo.
