Contenders for the 2014-2015 Awards Season

So with Gone Girl kicking off the official awards season earlier this month, I have created a guide to what movies to see if you're interested in awards shows, or if you just like to see good movies. I can't promise that every movie will deliver, but each has potential. The movie title is listed, along with the plot, and nominations it could possibly receive. (Note: Only major nominations, so picture, director, and the four acting categories. No technical nominations.)

 The Grand Budapest Hotel (March 28)
Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe, Jeff Goldblum, Bill Murray, Harvey Keitel
The adventure of Gustave H, the famed concierge at the Grand Budapest Hotel in Europe and his lobby boy who becomes his most loyal friend. After being framed for the murder of his lover and sent to prison, he and his lobby boy conspire to break him out and catch the real killer. All set to the backdrop of the hotel system in Europe during the Nazi invasions of upcoming WWII.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- Wes Anderson, Best Actor- Ralph Fiennes, Best Original Screenplay

The Fault in Our Stars (June 6)
Starring: Shailene Woodley, Ansel Elgort, Laura Dern, Sam Trammell, Nat Wolff, Willem Dafoe
The love story between Hazel Grace Lancaster and Augustus Waters, two teenagers who met in a cancer support group. Hazel, bound to an oxygen tank, is depressed and has almost given up hope, until she meets Augustus, an optimistic cancer survivor in remission, who shows her how to love life again, and not let her illness define her.

Possible Nominations: Best Actress- Shailene Woodley, Best Adapted Screenplay

Boyhood (August 15)
Starring: Ellar Coltrane, Lorelei Linklater, Ethan Hawke, Patricia Arquette
The life of a young man named Mason, from age 5 to age 18, as he navigates adolescence, a dysfunctional family, and struggles to choose between the influences of his divorced parents his protective mother and easygoing father. Mason finally has to split and figure out who he really is.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- Richard Linklater, Best Supporting Actor- Ethan Hawke, Best Supporting Actress- Patricia Arquette, Best Original Screenplay

 The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby (September 12)
Starring: James McAvoy, Jessica Chastain, William Hurt, Isabelle Huppert, Bill Hader, Viola Davis
The tragic romance between Conor Ludlow and Eleanor Rigby, a couple who fall madly in love, but split when Conor wakes up to find Eleanor has left and abandoned him. After he searches and finds her, he finds a much different girl than the one he knew, and tries to reclaim a love and pick up the pieces of a past that's too far gone.

Possible Nominations: Best Actress- Jessica Chastain

 Gone Girl (October 3)
Starring: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Carrie Coon, Neil Patrick Harris, Kim Dickens, Tyler Perry
After his famous wife Amy disappears and is presumed dead, Nick Dunne is thrown in the center of a mass media circus surrounding her disappearance, and immediately becomes the prime suspect in her disappearance and suspected murder. However, Nick is adamant he had nothing to do with it, and struggles to maintain his innocence as details of their rocky marriage are revealed through Amy's diary. Based on the record-breaking best-selling novel.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- David Fincher, Best Actor- Ben Affleck, Best Actress- Rosamund Pike, Best Supporting Actress- Carrie Coon, Best Adapted Screenplay

The Judge (October 10)
Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Robert Duvall, Vera Farmiga, Vincent D'Onofrio, Billy Bob Thornton
Big city lawyer Hank Palmer returns to his small hometown after the death of his mother, only to find that his estranged father, the longtime respected city judge has been accused of a hit-and-run murder. The two must reconnect and put their pasts behind them, if they are to work together to clear his name.

Possible Nominations: Best Supporting Actor- Robert Duvall

Whiplash (October 10)
Starring: Miles Teller, J.K. Simmons, Paul Reiser, Melissa Benoist, Austin Stowell
Andrew Neyman is a promising young drummer, who enrolls in one of the most prestigious jazz schools in the nation, overseen by the respected band director Terence Fletcher. However, Andrew and the other new students realize how far their teacher will go, when he stops at absolutely nothing, even resorting to physical and emotional abuse, to have the greatest studio band.


Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Actor- Miles Teller, Best Supporting Actor- J.K. Simmons, Best Original Screenplay

 Fury (October 17)
Starring: Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf, Logan Lerman, Michael Peña 
As the Allies make their final push in the European Theatre of WWII, a battle-hardened army sergeant named Wardaddy commands a Sherman tank and her crew on a deadly mission behind enemy lines. Out-numbered and out-gunned, they face overwhelming odds in their heroic attempts to strike at the heart of Nazi Germany. (Entirely fictitious)

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- David Ayer, Best Actor- Brad Pitt, Best Supporting Actor- Logan Lerman

Birdman (October 17)
Starring: Michael Keaton, Edward Norton, Emma Stone, Naomi Watts, Zach Galifianakis, Amy Ryan
A washed up movie star, famous for playing the classic superhero known as "Birdman", is cast in a revival of his character's adventures in a Broadway play. He must throw away his ego in order to reclaim his past glory. Michael Keaton is cast in this parody and satire of his own "Batman" fame and disappearance from the screen after the films.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- Alejandro González Iñárritu, Best Actor- Michael Keaton, Best Supporting Actor- Edward Norton, Best Supporting Actress- Emma Stone, Best Original Screenplay

 St. Vincent (October 24)
Starring: Bill Murray, Melissa McCarthy, Naomi Watts, Chris O'Dowd, Jaedan Lieberher
A young boy struggling to cope with his parents' divorce and moving to a new town, finds an unlikely friend and protector in his misanthropic, loudmouthed, and hedonistic war veteran of a neighbor. Vincent takes the boy under his wing, against the wishes of his protective mother, and shows him how to appreciate life through very unconventional methods.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Actor- Bill Murray, Best Supporting Actress- Naomi Watts, Best Original Screenplay

 Nightcrawler (October 31)
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Bill Paxton, Rene Russo

After he is rejected by many of the city's news companies, Lou Bloom decides to start his own freelance crime journalism in L.A, and discovers the underground crime in his city. He fights corruption as he quickly learns that the juiciest stories are the ones where someone has to get their hands dirty.

Possible Nominations: Best Actor- Jake Gyllenhaal

Interstellar (November 7)
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Michael Caine, Casey Affleck
After a second Dust Bowl leaves the United States' food supply scarce and the world in danger, an engineer and single father joins a group of explorers to utilize a new wormhole to travel out of our Solar System. Leaving his heartbroken daughter behind, and not knowing when or if he'll ever return, he sets off to try and find a new world for humans to inhabit.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- Christopher Nolan, Best Actor- Matthew McConaughey, Best Actress- Anne Hathaway, Best Supporting Actress- Jessica Chastain

 The Theory of Everything (November 7)
Starring: Eddie Redmayne, Felicity Jones, Charlie Cox, Emily Watson, David Thewlis

Stephen Hawking is a brilliant physician, who can see patterns and solve problems like no one else can. He balances his work with science with his relationship with his fiancé Jane, until both are threatened when he is diagnosed with a motor neuron disease, which leaves him in a wheelchair and unable to utter a single word. With his new wife (and some technology)'s help, he is able to communicate his ideas to the world.


Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- James Marsh, Best Actor- Eddie Redmayne, Best Actress- Felicity Jones, Best Adapted Screenplay

Foxcatcher (November 14)
Starring: Steve Carell, Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffalo, Vanessa Redgrave
Jon du Pont, is a troubled multimillionaire who invests in an Olympic wrestling team known as "Team Foxcatcher". Suffering from undiagnosed paranoid schizophrenia, he takes an unhealthy interest in Mark Schultz, a young wrestler and takes him under his wing. Until one fateful night when everything changes, and his obsession goes too far. Based on the incredible and shocking true story.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- Bennett Miller, Best Actor- Steve Carell, Best Actor- Channing Tatum, Best Supporting Actor- Mark Ruffalo, Best Original Screenplay

The Imitation Game (November 21)
Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Keira Knightley, Matthew Goode, Mark Strong
The true story of Alan Turing. Turing was a mathematician who was approached by the British government during WWII to attempt to crack Enigma, the unbreakable code the Nazi's used for all communications. Breaking it would give the Allies a great advantage, and Turing teamed up with four other mathematicians to build the world's first computer to crack it.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- Morten Tyldum, Best Actor- Benedict Cumberbatch, Best Supporting Actress- Keira Knightley, Best Adapted Screenplay

 Wild (December 5)
Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Gaby Hoffman, Laura Dern
Based on the memoir of the same name by Cheryl Strayed, recounting her 1,100 mile solo hike. After her mother, with whom she was incredibly close, passes away, and her marriage fizzles Cheryl turns to a life of heroin abuse and promiscuous sex. She decides she needs to get away from her life, and finds herself on an incredibly journey of self-discovery.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Actress- Reese Witherspoon, Best Supporting Actress- Laura Dern, Best Adapted Screenplay

 Inherent Vice (December 12)
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Josh Brolin, Katherine Waterston, Reese Witherspoon, Benicio del Toro

In 1970, the peak of the hippies and the stoners, a inept alcoholic and drug-addicted detective Doc Sportello is approached by his ex-girlfriend. She wants him to help her find her rich business magnate boyfriend, who she believes has been captured for ransom. He investigates, only to find he's in much deeper than he assumed.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- Paul Thomas Anderson, Best Actor- Joaquin Phoenix, Best Supporting Actor- Josh Brolin, Best Supporting Actress- Katherine Waterston, Best Adapted Screenplay

Mr. Turner (December 19)
Starring: Timothy Spall, Paul Jesson, Dorothy Atkinson
J.M.W Turner is undeniably one of the greatest artists of the impressionist movement that struck Great Britain. Chronicling the last quarter of his life, as he struggles with blindness and a country who thinks he should retire, the history of the country through the lens of the eccentric artist.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- Mike Leigh, Best Actor- Timothy Spall, Best Original Screenplay

Into the Woods (December 25)
Starring: Emily Blunt, James Corden, Meryl Streep, Anna Kendrick, Chris Pine, Johnny Depp
In a fictional universe where all the Grimm fairy tales coexist, two characters appearing as minor characters in many of the stories finally get their own. The Baker and his Wife have been cursed childless by a witch, and must reverse the curses she placed on fractured versions of fairy tale characters if they hope to have a family. Based on the Broadway musical.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Actress- Emily Blunt, Best Supporting Actress- Meryl Streep, Best Supporting Actress- Anna Kendrick, Best Adapted Screenplay

Unbroken (December 25)
Starring: Jack O'Connell, Domhnall Gleeson, Garrett Hedlund
The incredible true story of Louis Zamperini, the town delinquent who turned into an Olympic athlete, setting numerous records in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. He went into the Air Force during WWII, where his plane crashed into the ocean and he survived at sea for 47 days, only to be captured and spend the rest of the war tortured brutally in a POW camp in Japan. Based on the best-selling non-fiction book.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- Angelina Jolie, Best Actor- Jack O'Connell, Best Supporting Actor: Domhnall Gleeson, Best Supporting Actor- Miyavi, Best Adapted Screenplay

 American Sniper (December 25)
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Sienna Miller
The true story of US Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, known as the most lethal sniper in American history. Based on the autobiography Kyle wrote about his tour in Iraq, it displays the horrors of war, and the remorse felt from 225 claimed kills (160 of which are confirmed). It also tells the story of his early adulthood and life as a husband and father, and his struggle with PTSD after returning home. Based on the book.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- Clint Eastwood, Best Actor- Bradley Cooper, Best Supporting Actress- Sienna Miller, Best Adapted Screenplay

Big Eyes (December 25)
Starring: Amy Adams, Christoph Waltz, Krysten Ritter, Jason Schwartzmann, Danny Huston
Walter Keane rose to national fame after he arose as the artist of a multitude of paintings with big eyed characters, that quickly became the first commercial success of the art movement in the 60s. However, his wife Margaret painted every single one, and he took credit for them, robbing her of the recognition and forcing her to paint and lie for years.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- Tim Burton, Best Actress- Amy Adams, Best Supporting Actor- Christoph Waltz, Best Original Screenplay

 A Most Violent Year (December 31)
Starring: Oscar Isaac, Jessica Chastain, David Oyelowo, Albert Brooks, Catalina Sandino Moreno
A crime drama set in NYC in 1981, the city's most violent year in history. Centered on the lives of an immigrant and his lower-class family, as he tries to expand their business and opportunities in America. However, the rampant destruction and violence threatens to suck them all in.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Actor- Oscar Isaac, Best Actress- Jessica Chastain, Best Supporting Actor- Albert Brooks

Selma (January 9)
Starring: David Oyelowo, Oprah Winfrey, Tom Wilkinson Tim Roth, Carmen Ejogo, Cuba Gooding Jr.
The story of Martin Luther King Jr, and his work with President Lyndon B. Johnson to spearhead the African-American Civil Rights Movement in America, and the historic march Dr. King led from Selma, Alabama to the state's capital, Montgomery.

Possible Nominations: Best Picture, Best Director- Ava DuVernay, Best Actor- David Oyelowo, Best Supporting Actor- Tom Wilkinson, Best Supporting Actor- Tim Roth, Best Supporting Actress- Oprah Winfrey, Best Supporting Actress- Carmen Ejogo

Still Alice (January 15)
Starring: Julianne Moore, Kristen Stewart, Alec Baldwin, Kate Bosworth, Hunter Parrish
Alice is a cognitive psychologist and practices with her husband. They're happily married and have three kids, all adults. She has everything, until she can't remember their names. Alice is diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's disease. Her family struggles to help her while she's slipping away.

Possible Nominations: Best Actress- Julianne Moore, Best Supporting Actress- Kristen Stewart

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Avengers 2: Age of Ultron Trailer+Review

Avengers: Age of Ultron

 Starring:
Robert Downey Jr- Tony Stark/Iron Man
Chris Evans- Steve Rogers/Captain America
Scarlett Johansson- Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow
Mark Ruffalo- Bruce Banner/The Hulk
Chris Hemsworth- Thor
Jeremy Renner- Clint Barton/Hawkeye
James Spader- Ultron
Elizabeth Olsen- Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch
Aaron Taylor-Johnson- Pietro Maximoff/Quicksilver
Samuel L. Jackson- Nick Fury
Cobie Smulders- Maria Hill
Paul Bettany- JARVIS

So I think everyone can agree that this will be the biggest movie of 2015. The Avengers made well over a billion dollars worldwide and is the 3rd highest-grossing movie in both the country and the world. Marvel very slowly built up to their first team film, introducing us to Iron Man, The Hulk, Cap, and Thor in their own movies, and teasing us Black Widow, Hawkeye, Nick Fury, and the agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. in supporting roles. There have been four movies in Marvel Phase Two, which closes with Avengers: Age of Ultron. Iron Man 3 saw Tony Stark suffering from PTSD after the first film and he built hundreds of Iron Man suits. Thor: The Dark World (the awful movie it was) introduced us to the Infinity Stones, and The Collector. Captain America: The Winter Soldier saw Cap and Black Widow realize that S.H.I.E.L.D. had been compromised, and they had to shut down the whole force that built the Avengers. It also introduced us to Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, two superheroes genetically engineered by the villains, and brainwashed to be evil. Lastly, there's Guardians of the Galaxy, while a fun movie, didn't really do anything except explain the Collector and the Infinity Stones more, which become more prominent in Phase Three.

What do we see in the trailer? Ultron. Who is Ultron? Ultron is a sentient version of one of Tony Stark's Iron Man suits. He tried to improve every one (as seen in IM3) and now this one can walk, talk, and has a bone to pick with his creator. We see him first as a very broken-looking prototype threatening the Avengers, and then we see him in the final shot, saying "There are no strings on me." With the ominous song from Pinocchio playing in the background for the whole trailer, and Ultron even singing along, the character's tone is clearly set. Ultron is not a puppet, he has no strings. And Tony and the Avengers, they feel they have the strings. But he's going to turn the tables. Marvel is famous for its forgettable villains, nowhere near the memorability that Heath Ledger's The Joker, or Michelle Pheiffer's Catwoman have gone down in cinematic history. All they have to brag about is Loki, and it looks like James Spader's legendary voice is being put to great use here.

We also see the Hulkbuster armor. Who knows why Iron Man and the Hulk are fighting, but it looks awesome. Iron Man is definitely the fan favorite, and seeing him suit up like this is incredible to watch. Marvel has been teasing an upcoming Civil War (I won't spoil that, so you'll have to look it up) that will happen at the end of this film, and being familiar with the subject material, this looks like Civil War to me. What disappoints me is the lack of good screen time in the trailer besides RDJ and The Hulk. Black Widow is very prominent (also very telling after many people backed her after Captain America 2) which is great, as is Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. Who knows if they'll become heroes (I think they have to eventually) but in the trailer, they're the bad guys. A lot less Thor (thank you...) and less Hawkeye, which is unfortunate because I really enjoy the character, even though he's always the guy left behind.

Anyways, this looks like it will be a fantastic movie, and I'm definitely excited!

Transformers: Age of Extinction Review

Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Stanley Tucci, Nicola Peltz, Peter Cullen, John Goodman, Kelsey Grammar, Jack Reynor, Ken Watanabe, Li Bingbing, T.J. Miller, Frank Welker

By now, everyone's heard of Transformers: Age of Extinction. This is the fourth installment in Michael Bay's series based on the Hasbro toys. And each one gets bigger and bigger. This is the biggest movie of 2014 worldwide, with revenues at $1.08 billion. However, in the US, it's only fourth, and grossed significantly less than the other movies. Franchise fatigue? The original Transformers was incredibly well-received, with good reviews and audience approval. The second? Well, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is considered one of the worst movies ever made, and most people (including myself) hated it. The third one, Transformers: Dark of the Moon redeemed the franchise for many, even crossing the billion dollar mark. But with an 18% approval rate on Rotten Tomatoes (a horrible 5% with top critics) and 53% with audiences, this fourth installment is being hailed as the worst movie of the year. Michael Bay even made this half Chinese, and filmed most of it in China, which is where most of the money has been made (Yes, this is the biggest movie of all time in China) so I guess he's given up on American audiences. So am I going to be like everyone else and give this an awful review? No! I actually liked this movie a lot. Does it mean it's good? Heck no, this is a bad movie. So let's get into the details of what worked, and what didn't work.

I can only fully review this movie if I go character-by-character, and *WARNING* spoilers ahead. First, the human characters. Mark Wahlberg plays Cade Yeager, the single father of Tessa (Peltz) and a struggling inventor. He's self-employed, doesn't make any money, and they lose their house, and cannot pay for her college. Until he finds one Optimus Prime. This movie is attempting at a completely fresh start, with all new actors, and mostly new transformers. Gone is Shia LaBeouf, and I don't think anyone has a problem with that. Wahlberg does a pretty good job playing Cade, but he overacts a little too much in scenes. His daughter is probably the best female lead in the series yet, but with the past leads being Megan Fox and Victoria's Secret model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, the latter of which had zero acting talent. They really set up her relationship with her father pretty well, and you buy that they're father and daughter. Stanley Tucci is the comic relief in this movie, and he plays a business executive trying to harness the transforming capabilities of the robots to create his own robots. He overacts extensively, but its to hilarious results. A lot of the scenes are ridiculous, and a lot of the dialogue is pretty flat, but it makes for loads of laughs. The really good acting performance, is Kelsey Grammar as the villain. He's a very convincing antagonist, and is probably the least over-the-top of all the actors. No Oscars are going to be won by this movie.

 Now on to the transformers. There really aren't any Decepticons in the movie which is a little disappointing. The lone one is Galvatron, or Megatron reincarnated. If you can't recall from every past film, Megatron dies, and in the next movie, he's back to life. Usually by very stupid ways, so I'm glad this reincarnation actually makes sense. But I'm a little disappointing they have to rely on this single villain, and a character can't just stay dead. Optimus Prime is a little less leader-like than he is in previous films. The Autobots are less memorable than the previous films. Bumblebee, an audience favorite and easily recognizable by just about any fan, is barely in it. Instead we get Hound, voiced by John Goodman. He's funny, but he's no Bumblebee. The transformer with no allegiance is Lockdown, who is very good as the robot villain. He's nowhere near Megatron or even the Sentinel from the last film, but his face turns into a laser cannon which is pretty sweet to see. Now onto the Dinobots. We have Grimlock, the Tyrannosaurus Rex in the spotlight of every media ad. I wish I could say the Dinobots were as awesome as they should've been. But sadly, they appear for the last 10-15 minutes of the movie and do very little. Grimlock is menacing, except he's punched by Optimus and then turns into basically Optimus' dog, and he lets him ride on his back and does pretty much nothing except carry him around and do what he says. The Dinobots could've, no would've, saved this movie for me.

Now that I've analyzed the characters, let's talk about the aspects that worked and didn't work for this movie. First off, Michael Bay. Michael Bay is known for being sexist and racist in his movies, with the very stereotypical black Autobot twins in Revenge of the Fallen (who unsurprisingly didn't return) and now we add to this list Ken Watanabe's very stereotypical Japanese samurai transformer. The other robots tell him things like "keep your eyes open" and the fact that it was just so blatantly racist was funny for a second, but it's pretty shocking that a director can just put racism in a movie in this era, just not with human characters, and for some reason it's okay. As for sexism, Michael Bay has improved from the days of Megan Fox leaning over a car while "Sexual Healing" is heard in the background. Also, as anyone should know by now, Michael Bay's characters are not very bright. And this girl is pretty dumb. Also, explosions, explosions, explosions. Man, does Michael Bay love explosions. Everything explodes with just a simple tap. There's even a napalm explosion that makes the whole street burst into flames. But with Bay's famous slow-mo (used almost every 15 minutes) everyone but one guy survives it! These characters just cannot die. They're thrown from cars, fall from buildings, and half of the predicaments they're in are because of their own stupidity!! But they somehow stay alive!

The final aspect of this movie I'd like to go over is the setting. We start out in Texas (Texas, USA onscreen in case anyone is challenged geographically), and suddenly after Optimus and Cade have their alliance, they must go on the run, first to Chicago (again Chicago, USA) for no real reason, and then the most ludicrous of a setting change...Hong Kong, China. Stanley Tucci wants to detonate this thing called "The Seed" which was detonated in the Age of the Dinosaurs and coated them in metal (Hence the Dinobots, and the name "Age of Extinction") and he needs to detonate in the most populated city in the world...which is...not Hong Kong, last time I checked. This is so obviously trying to appeal to Chinese audiences. This is legitimately a Chinese-American film. Michael Bay literally had Chinese studios help pay for the movie. It has a Chinese name and Chinese version. And guess what? It may have been a disappointment in America, but it's made over half a billion in China, becoming the biggest film of all time in China. No surprise, but I find the whole thing pretty sad.

So how did I enjoy this awful movie? I stopped seeing it as the serious action movie it was intended to be. I swear, unless you enjoy bad movies, that is the only thing you can do to get through this. And sometime along the way, you too will laugh at the awful script (I'm pretty sure the script wrote itself, because no human adult could've written something so terrible) stereotypical characters, the product placement well over 200 products are placed at random times in the movie, and they're very obvious. I'm starting to wonder if no one in Hollywood would pay for this movie, and Michael Bay had to get help from companies and other countries...anyway come join the club who's seen the (unfortunately) biggest movie of the year, and if you have, I'm sorry that you wasted 3 hours of your life at this movie, when you could've done so many other things. One thing I heard in a review for Revenge of the Fallen was that it "technically qualifies as a movie because it was filmed on a camera." And boy, does this apply for the fourth installment as well.

Rating: 0.5/5 stars

Gone Girl Review

Starring: Ben Affleck, Rosamund Pike, Neil Patrick Harris, Carrie Coon, Tyler Perry, Kim Dickens

The year's first "true awards contender" has arrived in the form of Gone Girl directed by David Fincher. Those who know Fincher from his previous works, of which include Se7en, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Zodiac, and Fight Club, know he can delve into dark territory. And fans of Gillian Flynn's bestselling novel know how dark the material truly is. Flynn writes the screenplay, so every twist and turn from the book is in the movie. I'm surprised at how well the ad campaign has hidden the twist. Gone Girl centers on the marriage of Nick (Affleck) and Amy (Pike) Dunne. Amy disappears and all the evidence found points to Nick murdering her, and the media instantly turns against him. Told from Nick's perspective in the present as he retains his innocence, and Amy's perspective through diary entries and voiceover from the past, the secrets and lies they have told throughout their union are revealed.

Every single thing about this movie is pieced together incredibly well. From Rosamund Pike's voiceover, to Fincher's directing, to the fantastic score, everything fits together seamlessly. The real star though, is Flynn's sharp script. As a fan of the book, I can identify that she did disregard certain aspects of the book, but the trivial things she leaves out or changes only build the intensity, and make for a shorter runtime (the movie is almost 3 hours). The cast is incredible in their roles. There is actually only so much I can say without revealing the twist, because this has to be a spoiler-free review. Ben Affleck is great as Nick. Cold and calculated, you're never really sure with him. You want to believe he didn't kill her, but with his lies and the amount of evidence produced, you can't help but second-guess yourself. Carrie Coon plays his twin sister, and she is great as well. Tyler Perry and Neil Patrick Harris play small but key supporting roles, and both are fantastic. Kim Dickens plays the detective investigating Amy's suspected murder, and the scenes that she has with Affleck are incredible to watch. The real revelation of the cast is Rosamund Pike. As Amy, she is spectacular in every sense of the word, and to watch her and listen to her voice narrate her marriage, is never anything but interesting, as well as intense. She's absent for a lot of the movie (at least in present time) but her presence is felt through the entire movie. Amy is in control of Gone Girl and that's how she would've liked it.

The one thing you learn from Nick and Amy, is how not to act in a relationship. The two destroy each other in various ways, and basically ruin each others' lives when they're together. It gets to a point where their marriage is so bad, that people can actually suspect that Nick killed her, and have evidence to support it. But Amy isn't without fault. She drives him to the point of no return, and instead of nurturing his wounds, she encourages them. Both of them constantly manipulate and play with each other, and seeing what they are capable of doing is shocking and a little unnerving. This is a relationship pushed to the extreme. At one point, Nick asks Amy why they do what they do, and why should they keep it up? Amy replies "Because that's marriage." The way the twist is handled is excellent. People who haven't read the book will be totally taken by surprise, and it definitely changes everything in the movie. The final 2/3 feel like an entirely different film, with an entirely different set of actors.

The way the media swarms around Nick and places Amy on a pedestal is another point the movie criticizes. In far too many real-life situations, one side is the only one that's heard. That's the side the media presents. In Gone Girl, there are three sides to the story: His, Hers, and the Truth. Nick's side of the story is the regular guy, with an unhappy marriage to a real piece-of-work for a wife. Amy's side is the oppressed wife under the thumb of her controlling husband. The media spins this into: Nick was controlling, Amy was truly terrified, and he killed her. It's disturbing how this movie will make you question how much of the news you see is actually the truth, and not whatever sells. Speaking of selling, this movie is doing fabulously at the box-office, and my theater was packed. As for awards, I think it's a safe bet for a Best Picture nod, and Rosamund Pike is a lock for Best Actress. I wouldn't be surprised at other nominations too because everything succeeds, from the performances, to the music, to Rosamund Pike's costumes, and the camera angles. Is it the best movie of the year? I'm not sure, but it is one spectacular and thrilling ride.

Rating: 5/5 stars