OSCAR NIGHT 2011 | 127 Hours

A large part of any movie experience is determined by the expectations set before hand. I roughly knew the story of Aron Ralston who got his hand pinned between a fallen boulder and a canyon wall and had to make some pretty tough choices in order survive; but I hadn't read any reviews or recaps before going to see it, so my expectations were uninformed. I expected a large portion of the screen time to be in set up (getting to the point of being stuck) and a significant amount of scenes of what was happening in the real world when they finally learned he was missing. Nope. It was much more like Tom Hank's Cast Away where one man carries the entire film for most of the two hours. Only unlike Cast Away where Hanks could move about the island and explore new adventures, Jame's Franco's Ralston is stuck in a fixed position within a narrow canyon. The impressive part of 127 hours is that it works. The constantly changing camera angles and video diary make his journey of mental and physical determination through over 5 days of pain and starvation a captivating tale.

Two interesting bits of trivia regarding the video diary from IMDB:

Aron Ralston filmed a daily video diary while he was stuck in the canyon; the footage has only been shown to close friends and family and is kept in a bank vault for safety. Before shooting began both James Franco and director Danny Boyle were allowed to view the footage in order to accurately portray the events in the movie.

The camcorder used by James Franco in the film was the actual one Aron Ralston used when he was trapped in Blue John Canyon.

127 Hours is an intense, emotional real life story that is not for the squeamish and earns the number 11 spot on my list of 25 movies to see before Oscar night 2011 bumping down The Fighter. What did you think of the movie?

RANKING of OSCAR 2011 MUST-SEES (so far):

1. The King's Speech
2. True Grit
3. Winter's Bone
4. Black Swan
5. The Social Network
6. The Town
7. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
8. Inception
9. Toy Story 3
10. How to Train Your Dragon
11. 127 Hours
12. The Fighter
13. The Kids Are All Right
14. Animal Kingdom
15. Alice in Wonderland

OSCAR NIGHT 2011 | The King's Speech

I could handle Bellatrix as Queen Elizabeth, and Dumbledore as King George V seemed quite natural, but I just couldn't get past Wormtail as Churchill.

I'm usually not much of a fan for stuffy stories about royal families. With my blue-collar roots, I prefer the struggles of the common man more than watching the privileged class "struggle" with the difficulties of being elite. However, this tale is told in a very non-grand fashion and King George VI and Queen Elizabeth are portrayed as an ordinary couple thrown unwillingly into the spotlight when his brother King Edward VIII renounces the crown to be with his true love.

Queen Elizabeth sums it up nicely when she reminds her husband how she had rejected his marriage proposals twice before finally accepting the third time. She didn't want the fame of royalty and living in the public eye, but she figured he had such a "lovely stammer" that they would leave them alone. The plot reminds me of the quote from Shakespeare's Twelfth Night:

Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them.

This engaging story of being thrust into greatness is told well with exceptional visuals and superb acting. The chemistry between the three main characters is delightful as they share witty quips and keen perspectives. Their exchanges are charming and fun to watch as all three communicate so much emotion through their facial expressions and reactions.

The King's Speech is a classic Best Picture picture and earns the number one spot on my list of 25 movies to see before Oscar night 2011. Although, to be honest, I would rather watch True Grit, but that's just my bias for a good western showing through.

RANKING of OSCAR 2011 MUST-SEES (so far):

1. The King's Speech
2. True Grit
3. Winter's Bone
4. Black Swan
5. The Social Network
6. The Town
7. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
8. Inception
9. Toy Story 3
10. How to Train Your Dragon
11. The Fighter
12. The Kids Are All Right
13. Animal Kingdom
14. Alice in Wonderland

OSCAR NIGHT 2011 | The Social Network

I kind of worship at the altar of intention and obstacle. Somebody wants something. Something's standing in their way of getting it. They want the money, they want the girl, they want to get to Philadelphia — doesn't matter. And if they can need it, that's even better.

Aaron Sorkin shares this quote in an interview with Esquire Magazine that nicely sums up the plot in The Social Network where we meet several characters, based on real people, who have some fairly strong intentions. What makes the film so intriguing is when intentions collide becoming obstacles for other people's intentions. The dialog is sharp, fast-paced, and witty - a lot like The West Wing. The opening scene, where Zuckerberg's girlfriend dumps him, is a cutting verbal melee of sarcastic jabs and assaults.

I enjoy debate, and I relish this kind of rapid-fire, attack parlance which fills the entire film. The frame work of the movie is a series of flashbacks filling in the details of two lawsuits: one from the Winklevoss twins and the other from the co-founder of Facebook, Eduardo. The jumping timeline keeps things exciting, and the relentless pacing requires the audience to be very active viewers.

I "liked" the movie (sorry, had to be done) quite a bit. It ranks pretty high on the list of 25 movies to see before Oscar night 2011. The way I finally sorted out the top five was to use my wife's criteria of how badly do I want to see that movie again. I challenged myself to consider if these five were all playing on the TV at the same time, what channel would I flip to. With that criteria, The Social Network landed number four. Up next, The King's Speech.

RANKING of OSCAR 2011 MUST-SEES (so far):

1. True Grit
2. Winter's Bone
3. Black Swan
4. The Social Network
5. The Town
6. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
7. Inception
8. Toy Story 3
9. How to Train Your Dragon
10. The Fighter
11. The Kids Are All Right
12. Animal Kingdom
13. Alice in Wonderland

What did you think of the movie? Would love to read your thoughts in the comments section.