Two winners from 2012 - Silver Linings Playbook and Les Miserables

5/25/13, Silver Linings Playbook, Best Actress, 2012

I had heard such good things about Silver Linings Playbook I was really looking forward to it. I was not disappointed. It doesn't fit neatly into any normal categories, although it's classified as a romantic drama-comedy (that pretty much covers everything, doesn't it?). Patrick Solitano, Jr. (Bradley Cooper) struggles with bi-polar disorder, his broken marriage, his superstitious, the new woman in his life, and his compulsive, sports-obsessed father. Tiffany Maxwell (Jennifer Lawrence) who is dealing with her own issues, including her guilt over the recent death of her husband. Tiffany seems to get Patrick in a way that nobody else does or can and tries to get him to think about things other than his estranged wife. She asks him to participate in a competitive dance competition that she has always wanted to do. Reluctantly, and mainly because she is bribing him with the hope of delivering letters to his wife, he acquiesces. I think that when movies look at mental illness, they run the risk of oversimplifying it, being too maudlin, or poking fun at those suffering from it. I liked the way the Cooper and Lawrence portrayed their characters' anxieties, ticks, compulsions and insecurities. Robert DeNiro played Patrick Solitano, Sr. and his relationship with his son was fairly believable, and the irony of his own superstitious behaviors (verging on obsessive) seems to be lost on him. Jackie Weaver is Patrick Jr.'s mother, who doesn't always do what is technically/medically the right thing, but she tries to do the best for her son. I enjoyed the film, with its quirky and tender sensibilities. All four major cast members were nominated for Academy Awards, with Lawrence winning for Best Actress. There is a moment in the film where Tiffany takes Patrick Sr. head on, challenging his 'theory' that Pat needed to be in the room for their beloved Philadelphia Eagles to win; Tiffany doesn't back down and recites the results of every game that has been played where Pat was with her, or should have been with her. I would think that must have been a little intimidating as an actress to go toe to toe with Robert DeNiro, but she didn't back down at all. The Best Actress category was a full slate of talent, and I really thought it would be between Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty (who was my favorite), Lawrence and Emmanuelle Riva in Amour (I have not seen that yet). I was happy Lawrence won and I think she will continue to do really good roles (sorry, I have not seen The Hunger Games). If you have not seen Winter's Bone, you should, she was nominated that year for Best Actress as well, it was very different from what you might expect.

5/25/13, Les Miserables, Best Supporting Actress, Best Sound Mixing, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, 2012

I may be one of the last souls on earth not to have seen Les Mis, and I only watched Les Miserables because it was on my damn list. I will say it was a belatedly recognized Chanukah present to myself that I didn't go see this in the theater because I would have been Une Miserable. I love Victor Hugo's story and have seen a couple of the dramatic (i.e. NO SINGING) versions and enjoyed Anthony Perkins as the single-minded Javert. It was long, about 45 minutes longer than it needed to be. There were times when I thought the singing was really good, powerful, evocative, even soul stirring. There were just as many times where it sounded strained and pained, and I don't just mean Russell Crowe. Anne Hathaway won the Best Supporting Actress as Fantine, and I'm still holding with my pick of Sally Fields as Mary Todd Lincoln in Lincoln. Helen Hunt was nominated for her role as sex surrogate Cheryl Cohen-Greene in The Sessions, and I think for the sheer riskiness of the role, I mean, a sex surrogate for an almost totally paralyzed man, come on, who takes that job? She did an incredible job, but the movie was not as big and splashy as Lincoln and Les Miserables, so she probably didn't have a chance in hell. It's a good movie, and you should check it out. Jackie Weaver, from the above-described Silver Linings Playbook was good, but I don't think it was on the same plane as the other nominees. Anyway, back to the movie, see it if you must (you probably already have), but I think you will be fine if you don't. See Tom Hooper's The King's Speech instead (Helena Bonham Carter is great).