2011's Nominees: Part 12 of 12

THE WAY BACK

1 Nomination:

  · Best Makeup

Director: Peter Weir
Cast: Jim Sturgess, Dragoş Bucur, Mark Strong, Ed Harris, Colin Farrell, Gustaf Skarsgård, Saoirse Ronan

 
This is a really good movie. I've written about it here, so I won't rehash my comments on it, but suffice to say that it is easily the best of the three films in its category, and so I am logically deducing that it will win the Oscar, whether or not the makeup itself is better than the others. While I am discussing this film, though, I ought to mention that I think it's a little odd that a film from Peter Weir did not garner a little more awards buzz. He is not a flashy filmmaker, but his films are always really strong and The Way Back is no exception. 

Will Win: Makeup
Might Win: N/A
My Rating: #20 out of 50

BARNEY'S VERSION

1 Nomination:

  · Best Makeup

Director: Richard J. Lewis
Cast: Paul Giamatti, Rosamund Pike, Dustin Hoffman, Scott Speedman, Minnie Driver, Bruce Greenwood, Mark Addy, Rachelle Lefevre

 
This picture is a hot, hot mess. There are a lot of reasons for this. The biggest problem is the directing. The film is an epic story—entire lives in the span of 150 minutes. But the filmmaker appears to have decided to make both a comedy and a drama. It isn't that these two genres cannot co-exist, it is that Richard J. Lewis cannot make them co-exist nicely in his movie. So the film is serious and then silly without warning. The whole thing is very confusing. This goes for the acting. Mark Addy, for example, is in a completely different film from Minnie Driver. The best thing about this movie — aside from the adorable boy who played Barney's son (Can you date me, please?) — is, and I can't believe I am saying this, Dustin Hoffman. He is absolutely delightful in this movie from the moment he is onscreen until the moment he leaves the movie. I don't think I've liked Hoffman in a movie this much in a long time. It was really great to see him in this. The movie, on the other hand: avoid. It's awful. 

Will Win: N/A
Might Win: N/A
My Rating: #44 out of 50

THE WOLFMAN

1 Nomination:

  · Best Makeup

Director: Joe Johnston
Cast: Benicio Del Toro, Anthony Hopkins, Emily Blunt, Art Malik, Geraldine Chaplin, Hugo Weaving, Antony Sher

 
Hahahaha. Yeah. This was bad. I saw the film's third-act twist about twenty minutes into the picture and every other twist a mile away. Its tone is relentlessly bleak and self-important. The ravenous wolf/tiger/lion/dog imagery pervades the picture like a leitmotif but more like a heavy-motif. And as for the central love story, the two don't really fall in love in the film. Instead we are supposed to know that they ought to fall in love in the film and therefore accept that when they show us they are in love that they must be. The film cannot be bothered with actually telling us a love story in addition to its spooky shots of the moon and an almost obsessional number of shots of silver weaponry (silver evidently kills werewolves: who knew?). Still, the Academy did right by this. The makeup in this film (and in all the nominated films) is superb. 

Will Win: N/A
Might Win: Makeup
My Rating: #50 out of 50