10 Actors Who Have Yet To Win An Oscar

The 85^th Oscars are so last month.  We have clearly moved on and ahead to next year.  And while there are already potential Oscar contender names being bandied about (Grace of Monaco, August: Osage County, Inside Llewyn Davies, Wolf of Wall Street, 12 Years a Slave, Saving Mr. Banks to name a few), I wanted to look at some actors who have yet to nab that elusive Oscar.  Every year, we see some of the same actors (Daniel Day-Lewis, Christoph Waltz) win yet another Oscar and some actors who receive their very first (Jennifer Lawrence, Anne Hathaway).  When will this highly acclaimed bunch of actors make to the podium to finally make their victory speech? Very, very soon, one can only hope…

 

 1) Amy Adams

4 nominations for Junebug (2005), Doubt (2008), The Fighter (2010) and The Master (2012). 

Amy Adams leads this list with 4 nominations in the past 8 years. She is in the Kate Winslet category, meaning she has to really earn her eventual Oscar. Winslet was nominated for years and years before she won her Oscar for The Reader (2008), which actually was actually a supporting role and ignored for her real leading turn in the devastating Revolutionary Road. Either way, she got that Oscar monkey off her back after 6 nominations.  I think I've figured out what she needs to do to win, get nominated in an odd number year to finally win.  She's working with director David O. Russell again so that's great sign and she also has a Janis Joplin biopic in the pipeline.  The Academy does love its biopics.

(Rest of the actors after the cut)

Around the World in Posters: Les Miserables, Lone Ranger, Hitchcock, Gangster Squad and more!

The cast of Les Miserables - Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried, Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe.

I spot Sonic the Hedgehog among the characters for Disney's Wreck-It Ralph.  This was truly the only game I ever excelled at.  

Denzel's back in another thriller with Robert Zemeckis' Flight.

The UK Quad poster for Great Expectations with Helena Bonham Carter, Ralph Fiennes, Jeremy Levine and Holliday Grainger.

New Hitchcock poster featuring the rest of the cast, Helen Mirren as his wife Alma, Scarlett Johansson as Janet Leigh and Jessica Biel as Vera Miles. 

Hey, I didn't know Bilbo Baggins had a lightsaber.  New banner from The Hobbit.

The teaser poster for the new project by Edgar Wright, The World's End, the epic pub crawl film which will obviously have Wright regulars Simon Pegg and Nick Frost.

Gangster Squad poster with a dreamy Ryan Gosling.  Can't get enough of dreamy Ryan Gosling posters.  

Teaser poster for the new Jack Reacher film with Tom Cruise.  Too simple and not too exciting.

And finally, my favorite of the bunch, the poster for The Lone Ranger with Armie Hammer as the masked hero and Johnny Depp as his sidekick.  Great design on this one.

Trailer Time: Gangster Squad, Skyfall, and Argo

Last year was the year of Ryan Gosling with three big name films and some occasional heroism on the side.  This year, he's back with an all-star cast featuring Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, Nick Nolte, Emma Stone, and Anthony Mackie in Gangster Squad, a look at the 1940s LAPD and their fight against the East Coast Mafia.  It looks explosive with the lines of good vs. bad quite blurred.  The cast alone is reason enough to tune in but the premise too looks intriguing.  Directed by Ruben Fleischer, the film releases on September 7, 2012 in the US.

Bond is back!  The first teaser for the film due to release this November came out today.  The 23rd Bond film, Skyfall, has MI6 Agent Bond facing yet another threat as he helps out as M is in trouble.  Hey, if this means more screen time for Judi Dench, I'm in.  The cast includes Daniel Craig in his third outing as Bond, Judi Dench, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Berenice Marlohe and Javier Bardem.  I watched the trailer again to see if we are ever shown Bardem's face but I think that's him at the very end.  Keeping the villain under wraps until a later date, methinks.  Oscar winner Sam Mendes is handling the directorial duties for this latest Bond film.  

Also back for third time in the director's chair is Ben Affleck after two successful well made films, Gone Baby Gone and The Town.  This latest film, Argo, has Affleck doing double duty again as director and actor playing a CIA agent who has to extract 6 Americans working at the Embassy during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis.   For me, the trailer switched to a weird comedy angle midway when Affleck's character goes to Hollywood posing as a producer of sci-fi film Argo and decides the hostages will pose as his crew.  But as the trailer assures me, this is based on a true story so it must work out somehow.  I didn't like the trailer for The Town when it came out, it gave away too much of the story but it seemed fine during the film.  Here's hoping Argo goes the same way when it releases this October.  

First Photo: Only God Forgives

Initially Nicolas Winding Refn and Ryan Gosling brought the innocuous sounding Drive which involved more than just cars and drivers and now they are teaming up for an ominous sounding Only God Forgives, which seems like a cops against gangsters story set in Bangkok.  Take a look at Ryan Gosling below.

(Photo: Yahoo)

What are the chances of him surviving this one?  Hope those Muy Thai boxing lessons help, Ryan!

Ryan Gosling: Movie Star?

The Ides of March

I've watched two movies, The Ides of March and Drive, in less than a week and instead of reviewing them separately, I'm going to blog about the star of both films, Ryan Gosling.  I'm struck by how much of the movies is dominated by Gosling's performance.  In both cases, it holds the films together.  Gosling's character in The Ides of March, Stephen Meyers, is a wide-eyed idealist who believes in the work he does to make sure his candidate gets elected into office.  The other characters in the film, especially Paul Giamatti's Duffy and Marisa Tomei's reporter Ida, exploit him for their own means.  Yet however in the end, Stephen learns a cold hard truth how what it takes to survive in the political world.  I love the scene of him finally confronting George Clooney's Mike Morris about his indiscretions.  Both of them are assuming something about each other but in that one instant you can see in his eyes when Stephen crosses over the line, there's no going back after this.  In a movie featuring George Clooney, who probably has his picture next to the dictionary definition of movie star, Ryan Gosling manages to captivate the audience with his rendition of up-and-coming campaign manager.  A truly leading man performance.

Drive

On the other end of the spectrum, Gosling also starred in Drive, a movie so exhilarating and thrilling that kept us on the edge of our seats wondering what was going to happen next.  Gosling's character "the Kid" or the "Driver" is a man of a few words instead letting his actions speak for him.  When he does speak though, he is clear on what he means.  With an pulsating retro soundtrack, the story takes us from the Driver's solitary existence of him and his cars to being involved with his neighbor, Irene (Carey Mulligan), and her son.  He becomes emotionally entangled and it's hard for him to walk away when their lives are placed in danger when Irene's husband returns home from prison.  What follows is a chain of events set up so that no one character is safe, no one can be trusted.  But we do know this, we trust the Driver.  The director, Nicholas Winding Refn, and Gosling are to make another film together and hopefully it'll be another thrill ride like Drive.  Lastly, we have to discuss the Driver's "driving attire", the gloves and the golden scorpion jacket.  Not everyone can pull that off but it works well on Gosling.

Crazy, Stupid, Love

But wait, there's more!  The Ides of March and Drive weren't Gosling's only films of the year.  He also had a surprise summer hit in Crazy, Stupid, Love where he plays a ladies man who helps Steve Carell's character turn his life around after his divorce.  The film was hilarious and for once, it was nice to see Ryan not play a heavy loaded character whose backstory could fill a whole book.  I wish occasionally the serious actors like Leonardo DiCaprio or Daniel Craig would try their hands at a comedy or a lighter role once in a while.  Of course, Gosling played his role as seriously as he would any other role which makes it all the more better and funnier.

But despite all his success in 2011, Ryan Gosling couldn't garner an Oscar nomination for either of his movies.  As I mentioned in my Oscar nominations' reaction post, he is still young and he was previously nominated before for Half Nelson and I'm pretty certain he's going to get the opportunity again to win.  Until then, we can just appreciate the earnestness of his recent performances.

Lars and the Real Girl

P.S.- If you have time, consider renting Lars and the Real Girl, my favorite of Ryan Gosling's performances.  Extremely endearing and touching!  

Movie Review: Crazy, Stupid, Love

What is the reason why we watch rom-coms? Over the years, there is a certain pattern of predictability to them that we've come to expect. Same reason why I may chose to watch a movie like Notting Hill a weekend when you've got nothing to do is because they are like comfort food.

But once in awhile there comes a movie that throws all the rules out and presents you with something quite original.  Crazy, Stupid, Love is that movie.  I can't remember when I had such a good time in the theater (read: laughed out loud at actual jokes). This a movie that you have to watch with an audience because the audience reactions to what goes onscreen are just as entertaining.


Crazy, Stupid, Love is about the dissolution of a marriage, not something you'd expect in a rom-com but it works here.  Julianne Moore's character Emily opens the film by asking for a divorce and the film moves ahead to show us how they both handle the separation.  Steve Carrell's character Cal is a bit of sad sack at the beginning, who's completely thrown for a loop by this announcement and suddenly takes to hanging out a trendy bar where he clearly is out of place.  Jacob (Ryan Gosling) notices him and decides to take him under his wing to make be a man again. Here comes the fun part of the movie, the sequences of Carell's makeover are very well-done comically.  He then emerges a new man and tries to win back his ex-wife.  It doesn't go very well, bad for him and funny fodder for us. And, oh yeah, Jacob also meets his match in Hannah (Emma Stone).

There are other sub-plots running through the film that tie itself very neatly to the ending. I don't want to reveal anything here, it will ruin your viewing pleasure.  Though I must say, it was quite impressive, I never saw it coming.  I was so engrossed in the film. The movie has effortless performances by its starcast in particular Carell and Gosling. You'd never think them to be a team together, but it totally works here. Gosling is usually such a serious actor otherwise, one would never think to find him in a movie like this. But he really commits to his role. I really enjoyed this film and I'd say if you're only going watch one rom-com this year, watch this one!

PS-My funniest scene of the film, the girls in the audience actually gasped out loud at this. Ryan Reynolds, you have officially been dethroned for best movie abs by Ryan Gosling! Sorry, but look at them.  



Directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Recqua; Written by Dan Fogelman; Cinematography by Andrew Dunn; Edited by Lee Haxall; Music by Christophe Beck and Nick Urata

Rating:

Trailer Time: New Year's Eve, Battleship and Drive

In the grand tradition of big star casts from Love Actually, He's Just Not Into You and Valentine's Day comes the trailer for New Year's Eve where "there will be more celebrities than rehab"! Trailer quote, not mine and yes, that was Robert De Niro snuck in at the end of the trailer.

I can't believe they actually made a movie out of Battleship. This just goes to show you never say never! Starring Liam Neeson, Alexander Skarsgard and Taylor Kitsch (Tim Riggins!!!), the movie is set to release next May.



The red-band trailer for Ryan Gosling's next feature, Drive, has been drawing a lot of buzz. It's been long since a non-sequel, not based on previous material has had much success so all eyes will be on this for sure. Carey Mulligan and Brian Cranston (Breaking Bad) co-star.