MR. Awards ’14

With all the Oscar predictions appearing in movie blogs, me not being very skilled at predicting things, and the Oscars being right around the corner, I decided to create my own awards! The bottom line is that I’ll hand out my choices for BESTs of last year’s movies and performances, and though my choices are a bit limited due to the quite small number of 2013 releases I’ve seen but there’s enough to hand out some great Mettel Ray Awards this time of the year.

Before I get to my 16 awards I have to mention that though most go hand in hand with the Academy Awards, I have added couple of my own awards in the mix to spice things up. I also have to mention that I haven’t seen Captain Phillips, Nebraska, August: Osage County, any documentaries nor two blogger favorite foreign movies The Hunt and Blue Is the Warmest Color. Also, I do not care for animation this year as I think Frozen was pretty much the only good one to come out in 2013 anyway.

There’s no doubt that the most talked about man last year as well as in the beginning of this year is Matthew! He has emerged as this amazing leading man and has left his rom-com days behind him – thank god – and for this, he is the most outstanding member of the movie world in 2013!

Using Kanye West’s song in the trailer was probably the best idea ever, so who ever came up with that, congrats, you’re a genius. And despite my growing dislike for American Hustle, I have to admit, the trailer is good and better than the movie for sure.

Some of the songs from the movie still haunt me and I hum McConaughey’s Money Chant almost every day now. That being said, anybody remember the soundtrack for Spring Breakers?, because I do and I remember it being as crazy as the movie itself and I liked it a lot!

Was there any questions what movie would win the CGI award because Gravity doesn’t only stand out with the extensive use of CGI but its amazing use. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty was a surprising one though, I really enjoyed how much it added to Mitty’s life.

*hums the Money Chant* – should I say any more? I think it’s enough and well, Uma Thurman’s appearance in Nymphomaniac is still the most memorable thing from the movie and I have to applaud her for being on the screen for such a small amount of time and yet, stay that embedded in my brain.

I think I haven’t mentioned Nick Robinson’s performance in The Kings of Summer enough.. though I have done it several times before. I just keep remembering him and I guess it means mentioning him until everybody knows his name.

I knew I was going to like Lupita Nyong’o in 12 Years of Slave before I even saw the movie and I was so right – the scene at the end was heartbreaking and I can’t imagine it being like that without Lupita. Margot Robbie in The Wolf of Wall Street was as great and it was a difficult choice between these two ladies.

No way I was going to state Jared Leto’s performance in Dallas Buyers Club the best among the supporting actors because Jonah Hill was in fire in The Wolf of Wall Street. He was just the right amount of sidekick and crazy and everything I wanted, though I think having the image of him jerking off in my brain isn’t the best thing ever.

I saw two amazing performances from two great actresses this year and though Judi Dench in Philomena reminds me so much of my grandmother that it emotionally hurts me, Cate Blanchett in Blue Jasmine was still the best. Tackling so many different emotions and delivering such a believable performance deserves awards.

Yes, this is and will remain the greatest battle for Best Actor because it is between two great actors and it seems everybody has to choose a side – and tough I appreciate DiCaprio’s work in The Wolf of Wall Street, Matthew McConaughey gave everything he had in Dallas Buyers Club and I took it, I took it all in and I applaud him for that.

When it comes to chemistry it’s not all about romance and making-out and jumping in between the sheets, it can also be a chemistry of friendship and the best way to understand it is to watch Dench and Coogan in Philomena. For some reason, that kind of connection is so priceless that the kind of friendship chemistry that DiCaprio and Hill had just somehow doesn’t match up.

The idea, the simplicity, the ease, the fundamental statement about technology all that helped to create Her and its script – and sometimes the idea itself is just so strong that everything that evolves around it just amplifies it. Yes, the runner-ups have great scripts as well but Her wins because it has so much unsaid power behind it.

As far as adaptions go, I can’t really tell which one is better because I don’t know the original sources but I do think that sometimes stories that are a little bit more simple, have a better impact. Yes, The Wolf of Wall Street as a whole was a phenomenal experience, but if you think about it, Philomena was as great and the story really touched me a lot.

This will again be a battle or at least I think it will be because it was a battle for me. I thought Cuaron directing Gravity would be something I’d remember and love forever but then Jonze’s Her came and somehow it took over. I can’t explain it and I can’t really understand myself but I think that it doesn’t really matter in the long run, both of these movies are the best of the best.

What does matter is what will take home the grand prize and though I have given many other movies the MR. Award over The Wolf of Wall Street, the overall big picture, all its bits and pieces all wrapped in one, wins it all. The thing is, Gravity and Her are a much better fit for Academy Awards (or maybe American Hustle – oh lord, help us) but the reality is that The Wolf … should be the Best of 2013!