Must-See of the Month:
Plot
Summary: In order to get convictions within the world of New Jersey
powerbrokers and mafia, FBI agent Richie DiMaso employs con man Irving
Rosenfeld and his partner Sydney Prosser to pull off their greatest scheme yet (based
on a true story). Filmmakers: After what was
essentially a letdown with I Heart Huckabees
(though, I like it alright), following his breakout works Flirting with
Disaster and especially Three Kings,
writer-director David O. Russell has been on a roll with The
Fighter and Silver
Linings Playbook (both receiving multiple Oscar nominations, and winning
acting awards). American Hustle looks like it could be his best yet, with
certainly his best cast. He is working again with composer Danny Elfman
and production designer Judy Baker.
New to the team is cinematographer Linus Sandgren
(Promised Land).
Cast: The film stars Bradley Cooper,
Christian
Bale, and Amy
Adams. Jennifer
Lawrence and Jeremy Renner
co-star. Robert
De Niro, Jack
Huston, Michael
Pena, Elisabeth
Rohm, Colleen
Camp, Louis
C.K., Dawn
Olivieri, and Alessandro
Nivola feature in support. Expectations:
American Hustle boasts maybe 2013’s most impressive cast, and David O. Russell
is one of today’s top directors. This film has all the potential in the world
to be amazing (and likely will be great). However, it looks very theatrical as
well with goofy costumes, hair & makeup, and accents (to fit the period),
but stylistically it makes sense as this is about the work of a master con man
and his biggest con. I think it is very likely that this will be among the five
best films of 2013, and thusly Oscar nominations should abound. Trailer: Here. Review: Here.
Worth Checking Out:
Plot
Summary: A week in the life of
young musician Llewyn Davis, as he tries to find his place in 1961 Greenwich
Village’s folk music scene. Filmmakers: Writer-director
auteurs the Coen Brothers are among the best American filmmakers not only
working now but of all-time. They won Oscars for Best Picture, Director(s), and
Writing for No
Country for Old Men. Since that film, they have continued to churn out
great, challenging films (Burn After
Reading, A
Serious Man, and True
Grit). They are working with fantastic people on this, including:
cinematographer Bruno
Delbonnel (who is probably my favorite D.P. working today, notably he shot Amelie, A
Very Long Engagement, and Harry Potter and the
Half-Blood Prince), production designer Jess Gonchor
(who is a frequent collaborator, designing four previous Coen Brothers’ films),
and executive music producer T-Bone Burnett
(who previously worked with the Coen Brothers on O Brother, Where Art Thou?
and The Ladykillers).
Cast: Oscar Isaac
stars, with Carey
Mulligan, Justin
Timberlake, Adam
Driver, Stark
Sands, John
Goodman, Garrett
Hedlund, Alex
Karpovsky, and F. Murray
Abraham in support. Expectations: Inside
Llewyn Davis feels like a love letter to folk music, and much of the film is
devoted to great musical performances. But, it is also a character drama, and
the Coen Brothers make probably the most interesting and unique character films
right now. It won the Cannes Film Festival Grand Prize by the Jury this year
and has played to nothing but high praise across the festival circuit. It is
probably not going to be for everyone, but fans of the Coen Brothers should
certainly be very happy. On a side note, it will be interesting to see how the
film looks without their normal D.P. Roger
Deakins, though Bruno Delbonnel is just as great. His style lends itself to
a much more color desaturated look, which should play well into the nostalgic
feeling that the film is sure to evoke. Trailer: Here. Review: Here.
The Wolf of
Wall Street (Martin
Scorsese) – Drama – Dec 25
Plot
Summary: The true story of Jordan Belfort, a wealthy stockbroker who
lived a lavish lifestyle only to crash back down to Earth spectacularly
involving things like crime, corruption, and the federal government going after
him. Filmmakers: This is the latest film
from Martin Scorsese, who needs a strong drama after the letdown that was Hugo
(yes, I realize people liked it, but let us be honest with ourselves the film
is not as good as some make it out to be and like The
Artist it is trumped up by its ability to play on the nostalgia of cinema’s
past to great effect; the narrative itself outside the gooey nostalgic feeling
is only marginal). Scorsese is reteaming with his Boardwalk
Empire collaborator Terence Winter on
the film, Winter scripting it, as well as composer Howard Shore
(who scored Hugo) and production designer Bob Shaw (who
designed Boardwalk Empire’s first season). Cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto
(Argo)
is working with Scorsese for the first time. Cast: Speaking
of frequent collaborators, Leonard
DiCaprio is starring for Scorsese for the fifth time. Jonah Hill
and Matthew
McConaughey co-star, while Cristin Milioti,
Jon Bernthal,
Margot Robbie,
Jon Favreau,
Ethan Suplee,
Spike Jonze,
Kyle Chandler,
Shea Whigham,
Rob Reiner,
Joanna Lumley,
and Jean
Dujardin feature in support. Expectations: Let
me start out by saying that there is a rumor that Paramount Picture is not happy
with Scorsese’s cut of three hours and is hoping he can trim it down (to my
guess about 140 minutes). Thus, there is a possibility that this will get
delayed until 2014. But, as far as I know, it is still scheduled at present for
Christmas day. The Wolf of Wall Street looks amazing. The trailer is one of the
best of the year. It looks like a grand spectacle of entertainment mixing great
performances with a compelling narrative, which just happens to be pretty
similar to that of a gangster film (the rise and inevitable fall), something
Scorsese does very well. It will likely be one of 2013’s five best films (along
with Gravity,
12 Years a Slave, American Hustle, and either Inside Llewyn Davis or Short
Term 12 – I have yet to see the Coen Brothers’
film, but hear great things). However, there is also some concern regarding the
film. Scorsese original cut was longer and R-rated. The film is now shorter
(relatively) and PG-13, which means Scorsese’s original vision has been subdued
– but to what extent? Trailer: Here. Review: Here.
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