Scattered Frames: The Contenders – Part II

February 16, 2015

Hi! It’s me again, this time with the second serving of short and sweet reviews about some of this year’s main award contenders. Enjoy!

Begin Again: A pleasant film that’s so restrained that it borders on bland and a musical that strangely features very little music. Failed to excite me but at least it’s entertaining and Mark Ruffalo and Keira Knightley do share a wonderful chemistry. 3/5

Deux Jours, Une Nuit: Marion Cotillard gives the best female performance of the year in this simple but harrowing story by the Dardennes. A depressed woman must convince her coworkers to give up their bonuses so she can get back to work. Sure, it’s repetitive but it’s in that repetition where we really get to know Sandra and damn it, we really want her to get that freakin’ job back! Gripping stuff. 4/5

Annie: Much has been said about the fact that Annie is now black, instantly making her “cooler” or something but, regardless of color, this is a shitty film. A musical filled with people who can’t sing, but not in the endearing way of Everyone Says I Love You. The writing is horrid and an air of incredible stupidity pervades throughout. Cameron Diaz hams it up to the nth degree and is the only source of fun. 1.5/5

Relatos Salvajes: The Argentinian entry for the ‘Foreign Film’ Oscar (and possible victor) is not excellent throughout but when it flies, it soars. This dark comedy about giving in to our animal urges and losing control features great writing and some winning performances. Incredibly fun. 4/5

Category : Film Reviews, Scattered Frames

Tags : 2014, 2015, academy awards, adam levine, adam levine hot, adam Levine lost stars, adam Levine naked, annie, award contenders, award nominees, begin again, black annie, blog, bloggers, blogging, bobby cannavale, cameron diaz, can a song save your life, cannes film festival, catherine keener, critic, damian szifron, dardenne brothers, depression films, deux jours une nuit, film, film blog, film rating, film recommendation, film review, films, golden globe, golden globes, hailee steinfeld, hard knock life, james corden, jamie foxx, jean pierre et luc dardenne, john carney, keira knightley, keira knightley singing, Leonardo sbaraglia, little orphan annie, lost stars, marion cotillard, mark ruffalo, movie, movies, musical film, oscar, oscars, quvenzhané wallis, relatos salvajes, review, ricardo darin, rose byrne, Tags: committed to celluloid, two days one night, wild tales, will gluck

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12 thoughts on “Scattered Frames: The Contenders – Part II”

Mr Rumsey on February 16, 2015 at 11:45 pm said:

I also enjoyed Begin Again but have yet to see Cottilard’s new film despite being a big fan of hers!

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fernandorafael on February 17, 2015 at 5:59 pm said:

She’s superb in it! I would be so happy if she pulled an upset!

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Keith on February 17, 2015 at 5:17 am said:

Good stuff. “Two Days, One Night” finally opened up close by. Really looking forward to seeing it on Thursday. As for Annie, I just can’t make myself watch it. It has looked horrible from the beginning.

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fernandorafael on February 17, 2015 at 6:02 pm said:

Thanks, Keith! Cotillard’s film and performance are something special. Hope you enjoy!

I had a faint glimmer of hope for Annie but yep, it was as awful as it seemed.

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Abbi on February 17, 2015 at 5:34 am said:

I am embarrassed to say that I haven’t seen any of these but Two Days, One Night is no on Amazon Prime so i need to check it out soon.

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fernandorafael on February 17, 2015 at 6:03 pm said:

You should! It’s really good. You could do without Begin Again and Annie, but Relatos Salvajes is another must-see!

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Andrew on February 17, 2015 at 1:10 pm said:

Agree with you 100% on Cotillard’s performance. Just WOW!

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fernandorafael on February 17, 2015 at 6:07 pm said:

Right?! So good.

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AndyK on February 20, 2015 at 1:13 pm said:

I really enjoyed Begin Again, it was better than I expected. Two Days, One Night had a good central performance from Cotillard, but the plot was so implausible, I think this was a missed opportunity.

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Beer Movie on February 25, 2015 at 4:50 am said:

Two Days One Night is brutal. In a good way I guess. Is so realistic in its depiction of depression. Cotillard is easily the best actress in the world if you ask me.

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