Kristin Reviews Best Picture Contenders for 2009

This is the first year in which the format of a nominee was a critical factor in its award-worthiness. While there are always films that are more impressive or entertaining projected on a large screen in a theater than they are on a television screen at home, Avatar is the first Best Picture nominee that is only a potential Best Picture if seen in 3D, either as a digital or IMAX presentation. Cameron’s script, while definitely fun and filled with action and humor, is not the highlight of this picture (and, rightfully, was not nominated for a screenwriting award). 3D Avatar is more than just a story unfolding on a screen – it’s an experience. The non-3D version, though, is just Cameron’s unremarkable script, a collection of adequate, but not stellar, performances, and some pretty cool special effects – a fairly average sci-fi movie with an annoying tree-hugger message – certainly worthy of all the technical awards it was nominated for, but definitely not the same movie the folks in the 3D auditorium down the hall are watching.

So, while I would argue that 3D Avatar is worthy of a Best Picture nomination, I have to say that it is the spectacle and the emotional response to that spectacle that make it worthy – not necessarily the story or the performances or the overall impact of the two. The question, then, becomes “What factors should be taken into account when selecting a Best Picture?” If Avatar is only the Best Picture when exhibited in digital 3D, does that still make it the Best Picture of the year?

Two Best Picture nominees this year will be high on my Top 10 list specifically for the level of pure intensity they brought to the screen. Both are flawless in execution, delivering edge-of-your-seat, holding-your-breath, nerve-constricting suspense with minimal actual action.

The first is The Hurt Locker, which is a different type of war movie than we’re used to. Although it does contain action, the primary focus is on moments of cautious, still, silent determination. The tension comes not from what is happening, but from what could happen. The camerawork and editing keep the audience in a claustrophobic shell; like the characters, we are never provided enough information to feel it is safe to relax and let out our breath, and, consequently, I felt exhausted as the credits began to roll, as if I, too, had been out there in the bright sun and dust, surrounded by potential hazards. I’m not sure it’s a movie I’m eager to watch again, but the experience remains with me even weeks later.

The second is Inglourious Basterds, which is, without question, my favorite Quentin Tarrantino film to date. It is difficult to know where to begin in praising Basterds. The movie is a masterpiece. Tarrantino delights in blatantly defying screenwriting and movie-making conventions, and Basterds is no exception. Tarrantino manages to draw viewers in and maintain boiler-like tension through scenes that any filmmaking instructor would insist are far too long and dialogue-heavy. While the film feels as if it has been filled with brutal action, a second look reveals that it contains very little violence or physical conflict; most of the scenes, in fact, depict characters sitting and talking. Basterds is written and edited so tightly, there is not a single moment, a single shot, a single line of dialogue, or a single scene that does not belong. This makes it worthy of all the Oscars it is nominated for, but, most specifically, it would be a true shame if it did not win at least the Original Screenplay award.

On the opposite end of the spectrum is the baffling inclusion of the Coen brothers’ A Serious Man in both the Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay categories. While Joel and Ethan Coen have produced some brilliant cinematic work, they are not failproof. I found myself wondering, as the end credits for A Serious Man began to roll, if Academy members actually watched the film, or if they simply nominated it because of its pedigree. Watching A Serious Man was like sitting through a sequence of scenes that never completed a single movie, as if several scripts about a set of characters had been taken apart, thrown in the air, and reassembled without any thought as to how well the pages actually flowed from one to another. If anything, A Serious Man’s Best Picture nomination is evidence that ten nominees is too many. And, should the film’s screenplay win in its category, I will be extraordinarily disappointed.

Other Best Picture Nominees:

The Blind Side: I don’t believe this movie would have been nominated for Best Picture if there had not been ten nominees. While it is entertaining, it simply does not compete in the same league with Avatar, The Hurt Locker, and Inglourious Basterds.

District 9: D9 had many strong points, and I enjoyed it, but the inconsistency that led to the first half being shot like a documentary, and the second half being shot like a regular feature film, was a flaw that would eliminate it from my own Best Picture and Best Screenplay criteria.

An Education: This was a well crafted, well written, well acted little piece of drama, but I would hesitate to say it belongs in the Best Picture category. Nothing about it jumped out at me and said, “I’m THAT good.”

Precious: I did not see Precious.

Up: I loved Up. I’m not embarrassed to admit it. This was one of my favorite movies of the year, and the only one I’ve seen more than once (in fact, at last count, I think I was at five). I’ve seen it in 3D and 2D and on DVD and feel it holds up well in all formats. It managed to make me cry three times and also make me laugh so hard I had to gasp for breath. Although I realize it is unlikely, and I feel there are other strongly worthy films in the category, I would be delighted to see Up win Best Picture. There is no question that it will win Best Animated Feature.

Up in the Air: I liked Up in the Air, although I was slightly surprised by all the attention it’s garnered. It is definitely well crafted and written, and the performances are all excellent. I think some of the other nominees are more impressive overall, but I think it’s appropriate that Up in the Air got the nomination.