Shall we dance - The vertical expression of a horizontal desire...

I remember seeing “Shall we dance” in a cinema in Brazil, right back in 2004 when it was released. After seeing the movie, it made me want to just get up and dance. And this is one thing that I found admirable about it, the fact that it got me so into the action, that I really wanted to be part of it.

Case 39 - Be careful who you rescue

“Case 39” is one of those movies that captivated you from the beginning… and may just leave you disappointed in the end. Renee Zellweger is the last actress I expected to see in the role of a social assistant. She plays the role of Emily Jenkins, a woman very good at her job that tries to save a 10 year old girl (Jodelle Ferland) from a family that seems to abuse her.

The Notebook - Does love really conquer all?

One person can never call himself a true romantic movie passionate unless he sees “The Notebook”. Even if romantic movies have never been my thing, unless they are spiced up with some good jokes, this is one movie that I have learned to appreciate because of the passion between Allie Hamilton (Rachel McAdams) and Noah Calhoun (Ryan Gosling).

This is, in fact, a story about 2 people that are madly in love with each other but they have to face some social differences. Eventually, Allie’s parents manage to separate the 2 since Noah came from a rather poor family. Even after years of separation, love letters where exchanged but Allie gets engaged to someone closer to her social status. But how can you be happy with a person when you are crazy about someone else? And when destiny brings Noah and Allie face to face again, is there any way to repress feelings?

I like this story because it seems so real… and it’s a story about a couple that faces problems which exist even in our modern society, even if they come in different forms. So, which voice is powerful? That of love or who you are in the eyes of the world?

Precious - Best Adapted Screenplay

Now this is a movie which is pretty hard to digest. In fact, some scenes are quite shocking and disgusting and it may determine a lot of people to just turn off the computer or TV. “Precious” is not a movie that everyone can understand. It is the drama of all dramas.

At the Oscar Awards, “Precious” took home two golden statues: one went to Mo’Nique for Best Actress in a Supporting Role and the other one was for the Best Adapted Screenplay from the novel “Push” by Sapphire. I cannot say that “Precious” is impressive as much as it is shocking. In fact, I think I have not heard the word F**K so many times in one movie since I last watched “Casino”. The movie tries to teach us that life is precious. And Precious is the name of our heroine: Claireece Precious Jones (Gabourey Sidibe) which has to endure a life in which most people would have killed themselves.

Raped by her father which left her pregnant twice and mentally abused by her mother, Mary (Mo’Nique), Precious is living a nightmare. School is her only refuge but her second pregnancy got her expelled. However, she starts following classes of a special alternative school, with people that, for one reason or another, were rejected by the modern society. With a teacher (Paula Patton) that fully confides in her, Precious starts to see that inside her she can find the power to take life into her own hands and that she alone is to decide what should happen next. This is the shocking life of Precious, a 16 year old girl who grew up in Bronx…

Mad Money - Money makes the world go round...

…Or was it love? Anyway, this movie really got me thinking about that saying “Money does not buy happiness”. If you loved movies like “The Italian Job” or “Ocean’s Eleven”, you will most likely enjoy this one as well. Sure, there is no George Clooney or Matt Damon and no kiss kiss bang bang action but it does show the story of a master plan to steal money without anyone noticing.

Diane Keaton, Katie Holmes and Queen Latifah play the roles of Bridget, Jackie and Nina, three women that end up working in a bank just to make a decent living. These women come up with an ingenious plan to steal money from the Federal Reserve Bank, money which was about to be destroyed anyway because the bills are worn out. The women plan to steal enough money to make a decent living… but, as you can imagine, they get greedy and decide to get some extra cash just have a bit more than a regular life. It really has you thinking about how greedy human nature really is. How far would you go to live the life you’ve always wanted?

This movie is definitely one with an unexpected ending (hmmm… that is why I’m writing about it, isn’t it?). Aside from the genius master plan that a desperate woman can come up with, this movie deserves a good round of applause because of the 3 charismatic actresses that play the leading roles. I mean, you just gotta love Queen Latifah…

Alice in Wonderland - Purrrrfect

I have been meaning to write this post on Monday but with all this fuss around the Oscar Awards I did not get the chance to share my experience from seeing “Alice in Wonderland” 3D. Since I had seen the cartoons when I was a child, I remembered pretty much of the action so the main reason why I went to see this movie was because of the 3D effects.

When I was a child, I was always scared by the Cheshire Cat from this story and I thought things would be different now that I was all grown up. WRONG! Tim Burton has managed to create a Cheshire Cat which is both lovely and creepy at the same time and if you will ask the people that have seen “Alice in Wonderland” which was their favorite character, most of them will tell you it was the cat. Johnny Depp manages to impress once again with the Mad Hatter role. In fact, every actor in this movie manages to play the role perfectly. However, “Alice in Wonderland” would have never had the same impact on me if I hadn’t seen it in 3D. Even if it does not leave you with the same WOW impression that “Avatar” does when it comes to special effects, this movie sends a special message to its audience: why shouldn’t you have the courage to act in real life just like you do in your wildest dreams?

“Alice in Wonderland” is still an amazing movie for the entire family no matter what critics have to say. It brings us to a world of fantasy where we forget about ourselves for a while. The action of this movie takes us to a wonder world, where Alice (Mia Wasikowska) has been chosen to fight the Jabberwocky, a horrible creature which represents evil and all that is ugly and once this creature is dead, the reign of terror of the Red Queen (Helena Bonham Carter) will end and the White Queen (Anne Hathaway) will make sure that peace is once again brought to Wonderland. A lovely way to spend a Sunday afternoon indeed!

And the Winners are...

1.) Best Picture: The Hurt Locker
Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier & Greg Shapiro.

2.) Actor in a Leading Role: Jeff Bridges
Crazy Heart.

3.) Actor in a Supporting Role: Christoph Waltz
Inglourious Basterds.

4.) Actress in a Leading Role: Sandra Bullock
The Blind Side.

5.) Actress in a Supporting Role: Mo'Nique
Precious: Based on the novel "Push" by Sapphire.

6.) Animated Feature Film: Up
Pete Docter.

7.) Art Direction: Avatar
Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg (Art Direction); Kim Sinclair (Set Decoration).

8.) Cinematography: Avatar
Mauro Fiore.

9.) Costume Design: The Young Victoria
Sandy Powell.

10.) Directing: The Hurt Locker
Kathryn Bigelow.

11.) Documentary Feature: The Cove
Louie Psihoyos & Fisher Stevens.

12.) Documentary Short: Music by Prudence
Roger Ross Williams & Elinor Burkett.

13.) Film Editing: The Hurt Locker
Bob Murawski & Chris Innis.

14.) Foregin Language Film: The Secret in Their Eyes (El Secreto de Sus Ojos)
Directed by Juan Jose Campanella.

15.) Makeup: Star Trek
Barney Burman, Mindy Hall & Joel Harlow.

16.) Music (Original Score): Up
Michael Giacchino.

17.) Music (Original Song): Crazy Heart "The Weary Kind (Theme form Crazy Heart)
Music and Lyrics by Ryan Bingham & T Bone Burnett.

18.) Short Film (Animated): Logorama
Nicolas Schmerkin.

19.) Short Film (Live Action): The New Tenants
Joachim Back & Tivi Magnusson..

20.) Sound Editing: The Hurt Locker
Paul N.J. Ottosson.

21.) Sound Mixing: The Hurt Locker
Paul N.J. Ottosson & Ray Beckett.

22.) Visual Effects: Avatar
Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham & Andrew R. Jones.

23.) Writing (Adapted Screenplay): Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire
Screenplay by Geoffrey Fletcher.

24.) Writing (Original Screenplay): The Hurt Locker
Written by Mark Boal.