2012 Oscar Checklist – Part 3: Macaw or Muppet

Today’s checklist is all about the best song category. The Academy has been tinkering with the music branch’s nominating procedure for the last few years which has resulted in only two nominees this year. I’m not saying something else should have been here because original songs in films have been weak for ages. It’s a little strange though. It’s also not terribly surprising that both songs are from kid’s films.

Sophomoric Slump: “30 Minutes or Less” Review

Is the phrase “sophomoric sophomore slump” redundant? Unfortunately, that’s what comes to mind when thinking about director Ruben Fleischer’s follow up to Zombieland. Fleischer’s second feature, 30 Minutes or Less, is infinitely more infantile than his debut. On the plus side, the actors are funny.

Opening Weekend: A Little Help From My Friends

Glee hits the big screen. Emma Stone empowers the help. Jesse Eisenberg and Aziz Ansari rob a bank. And Death’s design gets even more complicated.

Opening Weekend: Old…New…Borrowed…Blue…

I know, I know, the weekend has come and gone, but it was a crazy week. Better late than never, right? But, if you’ve been paying attention, then you can probably guess what movie I saw.

The Trouble with Quibbles: 2011 Oscars

It’s that time of year again, Oscar season. Bryan is a bundle of nerves, bursting with fruit-flavor and jonesing for any and all obscure nominations he can find, like a junkie going through withdrawals. I can just picture him now, mouth agape in abject terror as he sits in front of his computer, desperately trolling the interwebs for that last short that’s alluded him. And I take comfort in that. Is that wrong?

Requiem for a Fanboy – A Poster Prelude

[Editor's note: Stay tuned for Bryan's complete Top 20 posters of 2010.]

One of my favorite things about movies, theater, concerts–any event that needs to be advertised–is the poster. They have to sell something, an entire 90-minute event summed-up with one picture. While the specific qualities and purposes for the posters are often very different, the goal is still the same: to catch someone’s eye and make them remember it. With movies, the process is in overdrive.

Review: The Social Network

On its base level, David Fincher’s latest film is about how Mark Zuckerberg replaced a long, shameful walk home after a pathetic ego-bursting date with a pathetic stroke of the keyboard. It’s the analog date turned digital. It’s also about twins (literal and metaphorical), codes (ethical and computer), and networks (all kinds). The movie also manages to be both biopic and thriller, legal drama and parable, comedy and tragedy. The Social Network can be read however you want, because the film is filled with many ideas and details that only enrich the allure of a film already crammed with great acting, extremely memorable dialogue, and top-notch technical skill.