Fulla Oscar Filmy Goodness

I’ve already talked about a few of this year’s Oscar nominations (somewhere over here) so here’s my thoughts on a few more as valid as any criticism of another person’s hard work (i.e. probably not much).

Phantom Thread
In A Nutshell:- The difficulties of living with an artist
Any Good? I’m often in two minds about Paul Thomas Anderson’s work. I enjoyed Boogie Nights and Magnolia but felt that both were too long while I struggled to get into The Master and Inherent Vice. There was something about Phantom Thread that drew me in and held my attention though. It’s a combination of the performances, with Daniel Day-Lewis’ oddly compelling and strangely inflected Reynolds Woodcock as the standout, the look and feel, the pacing and ultimately the compex shifting relationship between Woodcock and Alma, the woman who loves him. It’s one of those films that I found myself thinking about afterwards - always a good sign. And I’ve decided that i will now order every breakfast like Reynolds Woodcock.*

I, Tonya
In A Nutshell:- Equal parts comic and tragic retelling of knee-smashing, ice-skating incident
Any Good? I, Tonya occupies a similar sort of territory to The Big Short - giving a comedic spin to a story based on factual events. Margot Robbie is great as Tonya Harding but the most compelling performance is from Allison Janney as Tonya’s frankly monstrous mother (with a special mention for Paul Waller Hauser as the delusional “bodyguard”/friend of the husband). It’s a mixture of mock documentary with more straightforward scenes but with occasional breaking of the fourth wall to comment on the action. The only slight oddity is the almost complete lack of Nancy Kerrigan from the film - it feels like she should have been more of a character.

Lady Bird
In A Nutshell:- Quirky young girl struggles with relationship with mother and desire to move away to college
Any Good? It’s got a strong cast and Saoirse Ronan and Laurie Metcalf give believable performances to create a realistically antagonistic mother-daughter relationship. There was something about this film that I just couldn’t get into though - I found myself clock-watching after a while, never a good sign. It’s a well made film but it just didn’t fully engage me for some reason.

There you go. That may be of some help. Or it may not. Those are the two main options here, really. 


*A great name for a cat.