Les Miserables (Jo***)

At long last, the movie musical of 2012 has arrived, and to my dismay, the film only managed to just pass. Here is a musical known the world over, with music as iconic as any Broadway has to offer, yet Tom Hooper (our director) has in many ways failed to live up to the unparalleled hype surrounding the premiere. There is nothing terribly wrong with Les Miserables, but there is nothing terribly good, either.

The film follows the Broadway arrangement to a near T, with the occasional lines of dialogue added in - most likely to cater to a wider audience not familiar with the non-stop singing the show generally provides. For the sake of time, I will assume everyone is fairly familiar with the plot, so we can simply jump into a more critical review.

The film's one true strength is the cast, as nearly every actor carries their own, with particular praise to Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, and Eddie Redmayne. We have heard the Oscar buzz surrounding Hathaway's brief performance for some time, and yes, she delivers, but did she only take the part in hopes of winning gold? 'I Dreamed A Dream' occurs in one continuous take, and Anne surely jumps from emotion to emotion, sure to win hearts of audience members all over. Hugh Jackman, likewise, delivers a strong performance, with his first 10 minutes of the film some of the strongest of his career. It is Eddie Redmayne, surprisingly, that steals the show, with a purely naturalistic style of acting and true power behind every moment he is on screen. Personally, he was the true star of the film for me.

Acting aside, my main flaw with the film is found with the camera work. I had heard poor reviews going in, but their arguments were truly justified. People go to the cinema for the escapist qualities it provides; able to transport them into a world unlike their own. Hooper, however, finds himself lost in the cinematic translation. Many of the songs are done in one continuous shot, solely as a closeup on the actor's face. This heavy-handed approach is too much for a film already overflowing with emotion. We do not need to see every tear drop to feel the actor's work - body language can sometimes be just as powerful, though it is lost as we instead have uncomfortable shots of faces that seem never ending.

The musical on stage has a smooth flow and timeless feel, but the film seems to fall back on this version a bit too much. Again with cinema, there is the power to jump through time and space, and there was undoubtedly a lot of creative choices that could have been made with the story's execution. Instead, the film becomes predictable and formulaic only because of it's already iconic structure.

I know this film is expected to rake in Oscar nominations come Awards season, but I personally believe it only deserves a small handful. There is nothing terrible about the film, but the faults are blatant enough to strike a chord. Russell Crowe, paired against Broadway stars like Jackman, sings like a drunk karaoke singer. Not terrible, but not on par with the other actors of the film. Helena Bonham Carter and Sasha Baron Cohen are lazily typecast as the inn keepers, bringing nothing new to their respective roles. Samantha Barks, reprising the role she played on stage as Eponine, is effective but alarmingly thin - to the point of being distracting. Her waist is one that will defy science for years to come, I'm sure.

Les Miserables could have been the film of the year, but as with all films built up by hype - the realization will never match the expectations. I know many people have found this film to be everything they hoped for and more. Myself, I think the hype has killed the film I dreamed...

(Awards potential: Best Actor (Jackman), Best Supporting Actress (Hathaway), Best Supporting Actor (Redmayne), Best Editing, Best Costume Design, Best Art Direction, Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing)

The Perks of Being a Wallflower (Jo***)

The pains and joys of high school has been a focus in film for decades - perhaps best captured by the John Hughes films of the 1980's. The Perks of Being A Wallflower attempts to explore the life of one character as he transitions through his first year of school - and generally is a success, though the film often falls victim to a generic story arch.

We meet Charlie, the film's hero - a freshman in school with absolutely no luck at making friends, until he somewhat awkwardly meets two high school seniors (committed performances by Emma Watson and Ezra Miller) and the three quickly become inseparable. Charlie learns the meaning of friendship, love, loss, and self-discovery.

Directed by Stephen Chobsky, the source novel's author, there is undoubtedly a clear vision for the film, and the actors all are wholly committed to the performances. There is much to admire in the film, but there is never a time when I felt Chobsky truly took risks with his story. Of course his novel was successful enough to be optioned as a film, but the film doesn't take risks of its own. It is in no way boring, or poorly-made. It is just fine, in general.

There has been a lot of passion from audience members who are familiar with the story - and some have boldly called this the best movie of the year. While I won't put it past them that the story has merits and the film is a solid piece of filmmaking, to call it revelatory is in no way accurate. The actors make the most of their roles, with Miller and a surprising Paul Rudd delivering solid performances. Beyond that, Wallflower is just another addition to the self-discovery section of the high school drama genre.

(Awards potential: Best Supporting Actor (Miller), Best Adapted Screenplay)

Django Unchained (Jo****1/2)

Quentin Tarantino is on a roll. From the outlandish success of Inglourious Basterds comes Django Unchained, a spaghetti-western style film set in the deep South, where slavery was the economy of the time. While not a perfect film, Tarantino definitely employs all his cinematic tricks to create one of the more visceral and iconic films of the year.

Set a few years before the Civil War, Dr King Shultz (the ever-perfect Christoph Waltz), a bounty hunter, seeks the slave Django (Jamie Foxx in one of his better performances) to help identify a band of outlaws only he would recognize. The two quickly become a team, eventually working their way south to help buy Django's wife from a plantation owner, the eccentric and colorful Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio).

The film uses subtitles, music, and camera tricks to recreate the looks of spaghetti westerns and blaxsploitation films from the 1970's. This blending of genres, as well as an eclectic soundtrack mixing modern and classical scores, makes Django something we have never seen; a Tarantino-style film with a much more apparent directorial style (if that's even possible from Tarantino).

Technically, the film is a marvel, and the actors are all top notch. DiCaprio breaks away from his long stretch of criminally-burdened characters to play something completely new. While not the absolute best performance of his career (Gilbert Grape, The Aviator), this is something that should cause people to start talking about when he will finally win his first Oscar. Waltz, of course, carries the film in stride and reminds us why we love Tarantino so much for discovering him in the first place. Samuel L Jackson, though, is the true star of the film. Playing an elderly house slave and only appearing in perhaps 1/4th of the film, he undoubtedly steals every scene he shares and demonstrates some of the most manipulative and fiery acting of the year.

The film is brutally violent, and is in no way a film meant for a broad audience. Though nearly 3 hours long, there is never a dull moment in the plot, and the story keeps the audience entertained all the way to the end. Again, not perfect, but remains a gem in this truly remarkable Holiday lineup of great movies!

(Awards potential: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor (DiCaprio, Waltz, Jackson), Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design, Best Editing, Best Makeup, Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing)

The Impossible (Jo*****)

There has been no more moving film this year than The Impossible, a true story about one family whose idyllic vacation is transformed into a week of tragedy and unimaginable horror amidst the 2004 tsunami. Yes, this is dark material and the film does not shy away from the bitter truths of the event, but here is a film that is an absolute joy to watch. A testament to the power of cinema and the great talent in the industry, The Impossible is easily one of the year's best. 

With very little setup, we learn about this family. Maria and Henry, two parents raising 3 sons in Japan, have picked the Asian coast to spend their Christmas holiday. The trip, though, is soon interrupted by the sudden wave that completely destroys the resort and separates the family. In one of the film's most horrifying scenes, we see Maria (played by Watts) being swept along by the waves like a rag doll, with debris and glass shards pummeling her body under water as she tries to reach her son. 

Though the family is all alive, they are separated by miles, each eventually ending up at a local hospital overrun with the victims. Maria and her son, Lucas, witness the countless people lost and injured while in the hospital - Maria falling ill due to her severe injuries from the initial wave. Henry (McGregor) has survived with his two youngest sons and stay behind in hopes to locate the rest of their family, alive or dead. 

The film is totally dependent on the cast, and here is the film's true strength. As the father, McGregor brings an unparalleled grief to his role. There is no doubt this is his best performance to date, and easily one of the best male leads of the year. There is one scene where he manages to get hold of a phone to call his family at home, and his sudden outpouring of emotion is so brutally honest and poignant, it is simply heartbreaking. Naomi Watts, one of Hollywood's most talented actresses, has truly outdone herself. Through her eyes, we see absolute terror and the dramatic weight, and her commitment to every single scene makes it hard to remember she is simply acting. Though much of her performance takes place in a hospital bed, she singlehandedly creates the film's heart. Could she be the new Best Actress frontrunner? I have no reason to doubt. And Tom Holland, the oldest son, what a breakthrough! Why this young actor hasn't received more credit for this role, I don't know. Here is a performance that is challenging both physically and emotionally, and he manages to breathlessly navigate the story. 

I have nothing but praise to give this film. I understand some of the criticisms regarding this film focusing on a white family in the midst of an Asian disaster. That makes no difference. This is a story of love, humanity, and passion. The Impossible is definitely a 'do-not-miss!'

(Awards Potential: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress (Watts), Best Actor (McGregor), Best Supporting Actor (Holland), Best Original Screenplay, Best Visual Effects, Best Makeup, Best Original Score, Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing)

Beasts of the Southern Wild (Jo*****)

What a marvelous little film this turned out to be. Released smack - dab in the middle of the year, here is another shining example of the power of cinema and the creativity of films. Despite the numerous rereleases, sequels, and remakes Hollywood is pumping out, Beasts of the Southern Wild is a nearly flawless example of all that is right with cinema today. No recognizable actors, filmmakers, or plot devices, yet here is a movie that is truly a work of art.

Set in an almost apocalyptic New Orleans, a small group of people live in the 'Bathtub,' a makeshift town barricaded from civilization by levees. Here, a community is developed, and we meet Wink and his daughter Hushpuppy. We are not watching this film to follow a story, rather to drink up a setting so vividly captured through film that it virtually tangible. The Bathtub is just a collection of broken down shacks and tents, but to Hushpuppy, her entire world is filled by it. She is not your typical child for a film, with her head full of daydreams of a better world. She is fierce, determined, and molded by her oftentimes brute father. He may not be nurturing in the way we expect of a single parent, but through him, she learns all that is necessary to survive.

The story is difficult to explain, so perhaps it's best to watch it, instead. I can talk about the marvels of the film itself, though- so beautifully filmed and scored, this is a movie with so many rivets and intricacies they could definitely go overlooked. The smallest details of a father teaching his daughter how to fish with her hand, to the preparations Bathtub goes through to prepare for a storm, or Hushpuppy attempting to document her life through cardboard drawings...

And then to the cast, itself. All newcomers to film, the two leads are simply unparalleled in their acting abilities. Dwight Henry as Wink brings such a strong presence to the screen, that even in scenes he is absent from he is never far from the forefront of the story. And Quvenzhane Wallis, the 5 year-old Hushpuppy. Simply put, this girl is a force of nature. Easily one of the strongest child performances I have ever seen and one of the most honest portrayals I have seen all year. Can the Academy bring themselves to nominate a Kindergartner for Leading Actress? It would be a momentous occasion, but how fulfilling a nomination it would be.

I can't fully describe my feelings about Beasts of the Southern Wild. Perhaps there were minor aspects that threw me off or perhaps dwindled too long. All I know is that here is a movie so complete in its concept and so full of passion, that any flaws simply disappear by the time the credits begin to role.

(Awards potential: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress (Wallis), Best Supporting Actor (Henry), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Editing, Best Cinematography, Best Original Score)