2013 End Of The Year Awards- Best Film- Her

"Sometimes I think I have felt everything I'm ever gonna feel. And from here on out, I'm not gonna feel anything new. Just lesser versions of what I've already felt."

It's a tough call, but I'm going with writer/director Spike Jonze's masterpiece for Best Film. Her offers a unique and thought-provoking form of social commentary with a futuristic twist. Theodore (Joaquin Phoenix) is a socially awkward and lonely man, who's searching for a companion, so he trusts and falls in love with an operating system with artificial intelligence.

Samantha (voiced by Scarlett Johansson) is Theodore's girlfriend, and Theodore forms a deep bond with the new love of his life. Through Theodore's eyes, Jonze provides an inside look for the modern world's troubling dependance on technology.

Remember the scene towards the end, where Theodore panics after Samantha disappears? Theodore pours everything into Samantha to feed his obsession, and Theodore fights the need for human contact and social interactions, so Theodore can't handle the thought of being alone in the world, if Samantha leaves. After all, Theodore had a few dates with Samantha, and Theodore agreed to Samantha's suggestion for a surrogate to fix intimacy problems in their relationship. 

Her features a sweet, moving, and sentimental love story, and Her is loaded with underlying messages. Jonze's quirky sense of humor is good for a few laughs, the cast is top notch (my only complaint is we don't see enough of Rooney Mara here), and you can make an argument for Joaquin Phoenix deserving a spot in the Best Actor category for the Academy Awards.

Well, that's it for 2013 End Of The Year Awards. It's my first year with the awards, so there's a good chance I'll add some new categories for the 2014 awards. As always, I hope everyone enjoyed this new post series, and I'll do my best to start on movie reviews again in the coming weeks!

2013 End Of The Year Awards- Most Overrated Film- American Hustle

**This post contains spoilers**

Wait a minute. Ten Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture. The next American classic?

Let's start with Christian Bale's Oscar nomination for Best Actor. Bale's Irving Rosenfeld? it's a good performance, but an Oscar worthy performance? I don't think so. On top of that, if we're comparing Bale to this year's list of nominees and the winner, Matthew McConaughey, Bale is stuck in the third or fourth spot for the rankings. Need some more food for thought? Here's one name for you: Robert Redford. You can make a legit argument for Redford as a noticeable snub at the Oscars this year, and if you take the time to watch All Is Lost, you'll see why Redford deserved a spot in the Best Actor category.

And let's be honest, if we're comparing American Hustle's Irving to Bale's outstanding career as an actor, Irving doesn't deserve a spot in the top three (in no particular order, American Psycho, The Machinist, The Fighter) for Bale's best performances.

I'll give credit where credit is due. Jennifer Lawrence was on top of her game, as the schizophrenic livewire, Amy Adams deserves praise for her performance, Bradley Cooper is a suitable fit for Richie, and Jeremy Renner proved he's still capable of being one of the best actors in Hollywood, as the devoted Mayor with a good heart. Also, Robert De Niro's cameo during the meeting with Sheik Abdullah (Michael Pena) is a great shocker.

Still, American Hustle didn't win one Academy Award this year. Why? Because American Hustle is not a great film. A star-studded cast, featuring former Oscar winners and Oscar nominees, and the trio of David. O Russell, Lawrence, and Cooper rode the huge wave of momentum from Silver Linings Playbook. On top of that, Jennifer Lawrence is a hot commodity for young actresses with a bright future, so you had to expect a massive hype train for American Hustle.

I don't hate American Hustle. Hell, there's a good chance I'll buy the movie on DVD somewhere down the line, but the final product doesn't justify the hype or any grandiose expectations. 

In the end, American Hustle received a whopping ten Academy Award nominations, but there's a good chance we'll forget about this one in another three or four years. Of course, if someone mentions the name American Hustle, you'll know what they're talking about right off the bat. But we're not going to remember American Hustle as one of the all-time greats, and a decorated Oscar winner that deserves unquestioned praise and recognition.

Trouble With The Curve (2012)

Gus Lobel (Clint Eastwood) is a legendary baseball scout, who works for the Atlanta Braves. But Gus’ vision problems and old school mentality might cost him his job. Tom Silver (Matthew Lillard) is the slimy kiss-ass, and he works on the same scout team with Gus. Tom sees an easy opportunity to get rid of Gus, and move up the corporate ladder, but Gus’ long time friend and superior, Pete (John Goodman) comes up with a plan to save Gus’ job.

In an attempt to provide some much needed company and assist him in his scouting duties, Pete urges Gus’ busy daughter, Mickey (Amy Adams) to join him on a scouting trip to North Carolina. Reluctant at first, Mickey eventually agrees to join Gus on the scouting trip, but some old emotional wounds from a troubled childhood could ruin a happy bonding experience. Along the way, Gus and Mickey run into Johnny (Justin Timberlake), a pitcher, who was forced into a scout job for the Red Sox after a career-ending injury. Gus and Johnny share a trusted friendship, and Johnny slowly develops feelings for Mickey.

The rocky relationship between Mickey and Gus becomes more of a problem as the days go by. Plus, Gus’ opinion could have an influence over Johnny, as both men scout a potential number one draft pick (Braves have the #2 pick, Red Sox have #1) named Bo Gentry, a young powerhouse slugger.

Clint Eastwood delivers another entertaining perfromance as the angry codger, and Amy Adams provides the strongest performance from the supporting cast. Although, next to Clint Eastwood, Adams receives the most screen time, and the increased exposure gives her a boost here. Lillard and Goodman could’ve gained the upper hand for the better performances in this film, but Lillard’s character doesn’t receive a significant amount of screen time until the very end, and you’ll only see Goodman every now and then.

But Justin Timberlake doesn’t deserve any credit for the acting. Timberlake can’t act, and as usual, a more talented cast carries him throughout this film. I’ve seen it in other Timberlake films (Amanda Seyfried from In Time, Cameron Diaz in Bad Teacher, Jesse Eisneberg and Andrew Garfield in The Social Network, etc.), and I still can’t believe he’s coasting off of his fame for being a singer and the popular guy in N Sync.

Trouble With The Curve will give sports fans an inside-look at the inner workings of an MLB team, but the fantastic chemistry between Amy Adams and Clint Eastwood is the driving force behind this film. The inside info stuff for MLB isn’t that special, because I’ve seen in it other sports films, and if you want to know more, you can always turn on MLB network or ESPN. And more importantly, other sports films (i.e. Moneyball) provided a more thorough and in-depth inside-look for the business side of pro sports.

Trouble With The Curve is an average and formulaic Hollywood sports drama. This film is full of predictable mushy moments, but I really enjoyed the duo of Adams and Eastwood, and without them, Trouble With The Curve could’ve been a lot worse.

Final Rating: 5/10