Composing Greatness: #1. Oscars 2020 Edition - "Marriage Story"

Scene from Marriage Story (2019)

Welcome to a very special edition of Composing Greatness. In this limited series, I will be looking at the five scores nominated for this year's Best Original Score category. To avoid favoritism, the list will be done in alphabetical order of composers and feature the same guidelines as the original series. This is meant to explore the music behind the great films of 2019, and provide insight into what makes each of them special and whether or not they deserved to be nominated at all. Join me all week as I listen to the music, leave some thoughts, and hopefully sway you to check out these wonderful, wonderful scores.

Review: "Jojo Rabbit" Finds the Love in Provocative Satire

Scene from Jojo Rabbit

The most incredible thing about director Taika Waititi's World War II satire Jojo Rabbit isn't the attention-grabbing choice to cast Adolf Hitler as a Harvey-esque imaginary friend, but how the film uses it. By all historical accounts, Hitler is notoriously evil - so to cast him in a quirky comedy that's drawn comparisons to Wes Anderson feels a bit tone-deaf, especially in a decade where his ideals remain unfortunately prominent. However, that is to write off what Waititi is going for with this satire. This isn't an endorsement of Hitler, but more about how his ideas of hate can consume a society not wishing to go the extra mile for empathy. He's the flamboyant sidekick, childishly taunting his enemies and encouraging protagonist Jojo (Roman Griffin Davis) to use mind control on his enemies. Waititi wants the ideas to be deconstructed in a way that draws attention to how silly they are, how they exist in a world full of delusion. It's a fine tightrope that should at least earn Waititi credit for making the boldest Oscar season movie in years. It may not have the sharpest teeth out for Nazism directly, but its choice to explore the growth of a child learning to understand the world makes this a clever tale full of heart and understanding, which the world needs more than ever.

Review: "Marriage Story" Creates One of the Most Empathetic Divorce Story Ever

Scene from Marriage Story

From under a hushed voice, Marriage Story opens with Charlie (Adam Driver) and Nicole (Scarlett Johansson) shares lists of things that they like about each other. As a montage of their life starts to clue the viewer in, there's a sense of happiness in between both of them. It's a way of appreciating the joys that they brought to each other's life, as well as the odd eccentricities that they tolerate as a charming foible. This is director-writer Noah Baumbach's introduction to the world, and the montages create an innocence in such ideas as Charlie being too energy conscious. These details play out in a way that slowly begins to suggest to those familiar with the concept as a form of therapy. As the scene cuts to the current action, Charlie and Nicole are in marriage counseling, holding letters full of compliments that they'll share with each other.

That's where the issue starts. For all of the nice things that the audience has heard, neither has told each other. It's a world of implied joy hidden under something far more complicated. It's not just a case of romantic burnout. It's one where careers have pulled them to different coasts and suddenly the charming foibles they once forgave now are like nails on a chalkboard. It's understood why the couple wants to break-up, but what makes Baumbach's new film a masterpiece is that he's empathetic to both sides, never allowing the viewer to perform vindictive acts of taking sides. This isn't one where Charlie is a rage monster or Nicole too overbearing. It's merely a story of tragic reality. Sometimes life sends people in different directions, and in this case, divorce is most tragic not because of the people involved, but the circumstances they're placed into.

Netflix Doubles Down on Baumbach with Two Excellent "Marriage Story" Trailers

Scene from Marriage Story

For the second time, Netflix looks like they're trying to get a director and writer Noah Baumbach into the Oscar race. In 2017, they released the successful The Meyerowitz Stories, which found one of Adam Sandler's most acclaimed performances in years. However, it wasn't meant to be as The Academy outright ignored it. Well, Baumbach has returned to a familiar well for his next film for the streaming service: Marriage Story. It's the story of romance in a relationship that may be falling apart. Seeing as it features Adam Driver in one of his first post-Oscar-nominated roles (Best Supporting Actor - BlacKkKlansman), it looks like this film will have an easier time getting into the conversation. Thankfully, if the trailers and release look like any indicator, it will be even easier for Baumbach and the supporting cast to join in on the fun as well. 

The "Jojo Rabbit" Teaser Promises to Satirize Hatred with Promising Results

Scene from Jojo Rabbit

A few years ago, director Taika Waititi broke out internationally with the vampire parody What We Do in the Shadows. The film spawned a TV show and lead to him directing now two Thor movies for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While he has a lot on his plate, there's nothing that sounds more appealing in his career than his next film Jojo Rabbit. For better or worse, it's a film that looks to satirize Nazism by featuring a boy who imagines his best friend is notorious dictator Adolf Hitler. It's already a staggering film by description, and it doesn't take more than brief glimpses into the imagery to find the absurd premise fairly delightful. The trailer, billed as a "satire on hate," is planning on being one of the boldest films of the fall season, and one can't help but wonder if this takes Waititi into the Oscars circles, especially if it's as off-kilter as the minute-long footage.

Review: "Avengers: Endgame" Gives the Long Goodbye in Beautiful, Messy Ways

Scene from Avengers: Endgame

If the marketing is to be believed, the impact of Avengers: Endgame is a once in a generation achievement. Over the course of 22 movies, Marvel has built a cinematic universe that has come to redefine modern pop culture and turned such esoteric properties as Guardians of the Galaxy and Captain Marvel into major icons. It's also the stick in the mud that isn't going anywhere, which can be tiresome for those not willing to put up with its three movies-a-year regiments. In fact, there's another film a few months away (Spider-Man: Far From Home) that zaps the film of certain suspense. With Disney+ also promising a half-dozen shows of various B-Level characters, what is there really to get out of Endgame that warrants it of the major acclaim and billion dollar-opening weekend?

In one sense, Endgame isn't the long goodbye that audiences are promised. Avengers: Infinity War wasn't a moment that killed off half of the cast. How could it? Black Panther was a cultural milestone in the entire superhero genre. To kill off such beloved characters (in a more cynical sense: cash cows) feel foolish. It will take years, maybe even decades (or a century) for these characters to lose their appeal. The weight of supervillain Thanos rings hollow in that way, as audiences are used to these characters surviving impossible feats. While it's true that this isn't a goodbye for 80% of characters that appear in Endgame, those that meet their end do so with the bravura that only a franchise that's existed for 11 years could achieve. Not since Harry Potter has something so weird and genre-specific culminated in something of a miracle. For the 20% that are now in the past, this film serves as a loving tribute not only to what The Avengers means as a franchise but the sacrifices that come with being a superhero.

Review: "Isle of Dogs" Proves that Anderson Can Make Garbage Beautiful

Scene from Isle of Dogs

*Note: Originally published on Optigrab

How can director Wes Anderson, a man on the verge of self-parody, continue to be one of the defining independent auteurs of modern cinema? It seemed like he reached the apex with the Oscar-winning The Grand Budapest Hotel where his lavish style was met with madcap energy and a subtle attack on his critics. It seems impossible for him to be as charming and artful without at some point stretching too far beyond the stratosphere. Thankfully, Isle of Dogs is not that. Instead, it's a reinvention of narrative, combining Japanese influence with his posh sensibilities. As much issues could lie in a film that features the white voice actors as heroes, Anderson has more on his mind that is interesting, poignant, and innovative in ways that prove he still has a lot to say, even if visually he can't get any more interesting. 

The First "Isle of Dogs" Trailer is Wes Anderson Back in His Great Old Animated Ways

Scene from Isle of Dogs

In general, one could believe that stop motion animation is an inferior art form. After all, it takes so long to get right that studios like Pixar and Dreamworks Animation just bypass the endeavor all together. However, there's something to be said for filmmakers who pull it off. In 2009, director Wes Anderson did just that with the amazing Fantastic Mr. Fox. It will be nine years since the animated world had last seen him, but the first trailer for Isle of Dogs has the familiar sense of whimsy and awe that even his live action movies have. It may seem a little disconcerting at times, but there's no denying that an Anderson animated tale can't be told any other way than stop motion. It wouldn't be quirky enough.

A24 A-to-Z: #7. "Under the Skin" (2014)

Scene from Under the Skin

In case you didn't know, A24 is one of the great purveyors of modern cinema. Since 2013, the studio has found a way to innovate independent cinema by turning each release into an event. As a result, A24 A-to-Z will be an ongoing series that looks at every release from the studio by analyzing its production history, release, criticisms, and any awards attention that it might've received. Join me on a quest to explore the modern heroes of cinema by exploring every hit and miss that comes with that magnificent logo. They may not all be great, but they more than make A24 what it is and what it will hopefully continue to be for ears to come.

Theory Thursday: "Lucy" (2014) is Underrated

Scene from Lucy

Welcome to a weekly column called Theory Thursdays, which will be released every Thursday and discuss my "controversial opinion" related to something relative to the week of release. Sometimes it will be birthdays while others is current events or a new film release. Whatever the case may be, this is a personal defense for why I disagree with the general opinion and hope to convince you of the same. While I don't expect you to be on my side, I do hope for a rational argument. After all, film is a subjective medium and this is merely just a theory that can be proven either way. 

Best Song: "Skyfall" (2012)

Scene from Skyfall

Welcome to Best Song, a new weekly column released on Sunday dedicated to chronicling the Best Original Song category over the course of its many decades. The goal is to listen to and critique every song that has ever been nominated in the category as well as find the Best Best Song and the Best Loser. By the end, we'll have a comprehensive list of this music category and will hopefully have a better understanding not only of the evolution, but what it takes to receive a nomination here. It may seem easy now, but wait until the bad years.

Review: "Hail, Caesar!" is a Kaleidoscope of Wonder

Scene from Hail, Caesar!

One of the big reasons that directors Joel and Ethan Coen continue to resonate is because they are not limited to a genre in the ways that others are. If they want to make a heist film, they make The Ladykillers. If they want to make a stoner film, they make The Big Lebowski. Their credentials feature an endless barrage of genre-shifting cinema that somehow manages to remain consistently entertaining. With their latest Hail, Caesar!, they seem to take that advice too literally and end up producing a comedy that isn't just a period piece, but a western, musical, bible epic, noir, and even an earlier period piece. To simply explain the film to someone is to suggest that what Hail, Caesar! is is actually films within films (though not in the Inception way) in their loving ode to the power of film and why they are just as tangible to audiences as religion.

The First "Hail Caesar!" Trailer Has Way Too Many Recognizable Faces to Fail

George Clooney

Among the directors that I anticipate every new release the most with, directors Joel and Ethan Coen are at the top. For starters, their track record is very impressive with most of their great work still coming out (though that's not to discredit everything else from the past 30 years). With their last film, Inside Llewyn Davis, they brought another masterpiece to the world in the disguise of a folk singer with a cat. This time around, they give us a loving ode to Hollywood's golden era with an all-star cast in the film Hail Caesar. While it's been awhile since they tackled the moving pictures (1991's Barton Fink), it's nice to see them return with a more slapstick attitude about it. At least, that's what's implied by the first trailer.

Review: "The Avengers: Age of Ultron" is Bigger and Louder in the Best Ways Possible

In 2015, cinema has reached an oversaturation of comic book movies to the point that even the very best are suspect to consistent criticism. But the question is raised: what makes a great comic book movie? Is it the ability to mold itself into high art, or is it to stick to the stylized universes of which these stories take place on a page? It seems harder than ever to distinguish between the two, especially with director Joss Whedon's The Avengers: Age of Ultron, which is his swan song from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In a way, it is high art and style shoved into one film with uneven results that are at times too stuffed. However, Whedon once again puts out a challenge to everyone else by showing how to make a comic book movie that can have depth and still be extremely exhilarating.

Review: 'Under the Skin' is a Meditative Journey into this Majestic, Isolated World

Scarlett Johansson

Every now and then a film comes along that is so unnerving and ambiguous that it is impossible not to recognize. With striking visuals and a template of sound that stings the subconscious, art house films have had a rocky track record with getting their points across. With that said, director Jonathan Glazer's Under the Skin is one of those bizarre films that will likely crawl into your memory and implant itself. It is a sci-fi film, but only in the broadest sense of the word and does little to explain what is going on. It is a visceral exploration of humanity and isolation in ways that scenes of elaborate dialogues aren't likely to achieve. To a large extent, this is a film that challenges you to meditate and recognize the beauty and connectivity that makes this world so beautiful.

Review: "Her" is a Complicated and Poignant Analysis of Love

Joaquin Phoenix

Originally publishes here

Director Spike Jonze has made a career out of pushing visual aesthetics into visceral new levels of pleasure. His mind-bending tales challenge social commentary in some of the most profound ways possible with simple tweaks to familiar formulas. In fact, it is hard to even consider him a science fiction director simply because his tales feel real. He is working on levels above the average filmmaker, and that is one of the many reasons that his latest Her feels like the most honest depiction of a computer-to-human relationship. By humanizing the circuits, he unlocks the mysteries of love and codependency while also exploring why technology may better our lives, but it will also isolate us in delusional bliss.

The Trailer for Spike Jonze's "Her" Suggests the Year's Strangest Romantic Couple

Joaquin Phoenix

It will be tough for me to disassociate anything Joaquin Phoenix does from The Master, if only for the fact that it was the inspiration for launching The Oscar Buzz. With that established, I will admit that maybe my frenzy was a little too enthusiastic during the past season and while yes, Daniel Day Lewis didn't deserve it, I still stand by my belief that Phoenix is if not one of the best, one of the most ambitious performers currently working. Just check out how he sabotaged his career for satire in the discriminating underrated I'm Still Here. Even his poise at this year's Oscars ceremony suggests someone thinking outside the box. That is why, more than anything, it is exciting news to see that he has a new film, and it is with director Spike Jonze called Her.

The "Hitchcock" Trailer Shows the Acting Fields Filling Up Fast

Anthony Hopkins

Today saw the release of the trailer for what has long been considered "the other Alfred Hitchcock film." That's right, first the HBO film The Girl directed by Julian Jarrold and starring Toby Jones and Sienna Miller focusing on Hitchcock's relationship with Tippi Hedron (Miller) and more specifically The Birds. Now comes the less inspired title Hitchcock, directed by Sacha Gervasi and starring Anthony Hopkins, Helen Mirren, and Scarlett Johansson focusing on the making of Psycho. Despite the dueling banjos aspect of these two films, buzz has been around Hopkins and his portrayal, which is pretty uncanny in the trailer. However, is the film capable of landing more credibility than this?