Five of Nine, So Far

I have seen five of the nine Best Picture nominees. If the Academy was still kickin' it old school and only had five nominees I'd be set. That rule change a few years ago, when it first changed to ten then changed to a range of 5-10 based on vote totals, has made it a lot more work to see them all before Oscar night. I'm going to try my darnedest to see them all, but I think there will be one or two that I don't get to (although the Broadway downtown might open up the chance for me to see Amour).

Argo was released way back in October and I saw it opening weekend with Emily. I didn't write a post about it then, but I loved it.  It was tense and wonderfully shot with excellent acting. Ben Affleck is the bomb and deserves all the accolades he receives.

I shared my love for Lincoln when I saw it on Thanksgiving.

I've also shared my obsession with Les Miserables, having seen it three times.

Last week I knocked out Silver Linings Playbook and Zero Dark Thirty. I was pleasantly surprised with Silver Linings Playbook, not knowing that Bradley Cooper had that in him. It was funny and real and fun. Zero Dark Thirty is a very different movie. It's kind of exhausting. Not in a bad way, but in a way that makes you appreciate the work that went into capturing Bin Laden. While I like Jessica Chastain, I feel her co-star, Jason Clarke, has been severely overlooked during this awards season. His role was tricky, having to be a man who tortures people but is not looked at as being ruthless and mean. It's a tough line to walk and I think he did it expertly, while I feel like Chastain was pretty run of the mill in this role.

I'm not going to wait to state my favorite until I see Django Unchained and Life of Pi. I've  still got a month til the awards are handed out.