So's Reel Thoughts

I was lucky enough to get a chance to go to the 65th Annual DGA Awards' Director Symposium with Steven Spielberg, Kathryn Bigelow, Ben Affleck, Tom Hooper, and Ang Lee. I wish I could've been more descriptive about my experience but good thing I was live-tweeting the entire event (read left to right)! I'm really honored that I got to go and sit in front of the four most revered and lauded filmmakers in the biz (ahem, Ben Affleck doesn't count). I've seen Ang Lee before when I went to a Q&A with him and Suraj Sharma for Life of Pi but man, I love him more every time I see him. I'm definitely going to do an Ang Lee marathon soon.

Check out my list of 'The Best Films of 2013!'

I'm counting my screener films to the total but only going to show the official films here.

January
1. Queen of Versailles (2012) A
2. Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry (2012) A
3. Indie Game (2012) A
4. Supercop (1992) A
5. Les Miserables (2012) C
6. The Loneliest Planet (2011) A
7. In a Year with 13 Moons (1978) A
8. The Enigma of Kasper Hauser (1974) A
9. Bernie (2011) A
10. Gangster Squad (2013) B-
11. The Impossible (2012) B+
12. The Last Stand (2013) C+
13. Hitchcock (2012) B+
14. Searching for Sugarman (2012) A
15. The Gatekeepers (2012) A
16. How to Survive a Plague (2012) A
17. Primer (2004) A
18. Just for Kicks (2005) A
19. Attenberg (2010) A
20. The Thieves (2012) B+

screeners + films in 2013 = 53

February
54. Woman is the Future of Man (2004) B+
55. The Human Centipede II (2011) A
56. 5 Broken Cameras (2011) A
57. Gone with the Wind (1939) A
58. The Stand Up Guys (2013) B-
59. Miss Conspirator (2012) D
60. Side Effects (2013) B+
61. NO (2013) B+
62. Cosmopolis (2012) B+
63. The Paperboy (2012) B-
64. 10 Years (2011) B+
65. A Good Day to Die Hard (2013) B+
66. The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) A
67. White Material (2009) B+
68. Cleo from 5 to 7 (1962) A
69. Life is But a Dream (2013) B+
70. Grandma's Boy (2006) B+
71. Man with Movie Camera (1929) A
72. Warm Bodies (2013) B+
73. Quartet (2012) B+
74. The Virgin Spring (1960) A
75. An American Crime (2007) C+

screeners + films = 85

March
86. Stoker (2013) B+
87. Face/Off (1997) A
88. Head On (1998) A-
89. Albert Nobbs (2011) B+
90. 21 and Over (2013) C+
91. The Imposter (2012) A
92. The Doom Generation (1995) A-
93. Oz and the Great and Powerful (2013) C+
94. Bedevilled (2010) B-
95. Bride of Frankenstein (1935) B+
96. Wet Hot American Summer (2001) A-
97. A Dark Truth (2013) C+
98. Anatomy of Hell (2004) C+
99. The Place Beyond the Pines (2013) A
100. Spring Breakers (2013) B+
101. The Croods (2013) B-
102. Scandal (1950) B+
103. pre-screening
104. The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013) C+
105. G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013) C+
106. Rubber (2010) B+
107. The Evil Dead (1981) B+

April
108. Trance (2013) B-
109. The Curse of the Golden Flower B-
110. Jiseul (2013) A-
111. The Girl from the South (2012) C+
112. Evil Dead (2013) B+
113. Heartburn (1986) B-
114. God Bless America (2011) B+
115. Actresses (2009) B+
116. To the Wonder (2013) B+
117. Bullitt (1968) B+
118. Holy Motors (2012) B+
119. Funny Games (1997) A
120. Submarine (2010) A
121. Dream (2008) B+
122. Oblivion (2013) B
123. Mud (2013) A-
124. Shotgun Stories (2007) B+
125. Pain and Gain (2013) B+
126. Frances Ha (2013) A

May
127. The Man on the Moon (1999) C+

128. Days of Being Wild (1990) B+

129. Iron Man 3 (2013) B-

130. The Great Gatsby (2013) B+

131. All of Me (2013) A

132. Crystal Fairy (2013) B

133. Goodbye World (2013) B-

134. Peeples (2013) C+

135. Our Vinyl Weighs a Ton (2013) A

136. Harry Dean Stanton: Partly Fiction (2013) A

137. Valley Girl (1983) B+

138. Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) A

139. Europa Report (2013) A

140. Before Midnight (2013) A

141. Fast & Furious 6 (2013) A

142. All Together Now (2013) C

143. Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer (2013) A

144. Forty Years from Yesterday (2013) A

145. The East (2013) B-
146. After Earth (2013) C+

June
147. The Crash Reel (2013) A
148. Nobody's Daughter, Haewon (2013) B+
149. The Drug War (2013) B+
150. Now You See Me (2013) B+
151. The Acting of Killing (2013) A
152. His Girl Friday (1940) A
153. Virgin Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors (2000) A
154. Short Term 12 (2013) B+
155. Chasing Ice (2012) A
156. Good Will Hunting (1997) A-
157. This is the End (2013) B+
158. The Bling Ring (2013) B+
159. Ain't Them Bodies Saints (2013) B+
160. The American Revolution: The Evolution of Grace Lee Boggs (2013) A
161. You're Next (2013) B+
162. Fruitvale Station (2013) B+
163. The Spectacular Now (2013) A
164. Man of Steel (2013) B-
165. Only God Forgives (2013) B+
166. Delivery (2013) B+
167. The Conjuring (2013) A
168. Venus Vs. (2013) A
169. Lesson of the Evil (2013) B
170. Dormant Beauty (2013) C+
171. The Way, Way Back (2013) B+
172. World War Z (2013) B+
173. The Heat (2013) B-
174. Rust and Bone (2012) A
175. Paris is Burning (1990) A
176. Monsters University (2013) A
177. Starlet (2013) A-

July
178. Byzantium (2013) C+
179. Prince of Broadway (2008) A
180. Take Out (2004) A
181. The Idiots (1998) A
182. Breaking the Waves (1996) A
183. Pacific Rim (2013) B+
184. L'Avventura (1960) B+
185. Vic + Flo Saw a Bear (2013) B+
186. GriGris (2013) A-
187. Dirty Hands: The Art & Crimes of David Choe (2008) A
188. Outside Satan (2011) A
189. The Life of Jesus (1997) A
190. Blackfish (2013) B+
191. Upstream Color (2013) A
192. Red 2 (2013) B-
193. The Grandmaster (2013) A-
194. Lilya 4-Ever (2002) A
195. Breathe In (2013) B+
196. The Wolverine (2013) B-
197. My Blueberry Nights (2007) C+
198. Maelstrom (2000) A
199. As Tears Go By (1988) A
200. Prince Avalanche (2013) B+

August
201. Blue Jasmine (2013) A
202. Eros (2004) B-
203. Ashes of Time (1994) C+
204. Like Someone in Love (2012) A
205. 2 Guns (2012) C+
206. Room 237 (2012) A-
207. Incendies (2010) A
208. Paradise: Love (2012) A-
209. Elysium (2013) B-
210. Kick-Ass 2 (2013) C+
211. Paradise: Faith (2012) A
212. Cutie and the Boxer (2013) A
213. Suspiria (1977) B+
214. Shaun of the Dead (2004) B-
215. The World's End (2013) A
216. Hot Fuzz (2007) A
217. Goodbye, Dragon Inn (2004) A-
218. Carrie (2013) C+
219. The Holy Mountain (1973) A
220. Laurence Anyways (2012) B+
221. Santa Sangre (1989) B+
222. Side by Side (2012) A

September
223. El Topo (1970) B+
224. Blue is the Warmest Color (2013) A
225. 12 Years a Slave (2013) A
226. Riddick (2013) C
227. The Chronicles of Riddick (2004) B+
228. The Butler (2013) B-
229. Great Expectations (1998) C
230. Salinger (2013) B-
231. The Family (2013) B-
232. Dreams (1990) A
233. My Neighbor Totoro (1988) A
234. Enough Said (2013) B-
235. Ponyo (2008) A
236. Polytechnique (2009) A
237. Murder Party (2007) B
238. Ben-Her (1959) A
239. Bad Lieutenant (1992) A-
240. Senna (2010) A
241. Night on Earth (1991)
242. Rush (2013) B+
243. Teorema (1968) B+

October
244. Don Jon (2013) B+
245. Gravity (2013) A
246. Hannah and Her Sisters (1986) A
247. Escape from Tomorrow (2013) C+
248. You Make Me Feel So Young (2013) B+
249. Captain Phillips (2013) B+
250. Why Don't You Play in Hell (2013) A
251. Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988) A
252. The Tillman Story (2010) A
253. A Field in England (2013) A
254. The Borderlands (2013) B+
255. Martyrs (2008) A
256. Movie 42 (2013) C+
257. Deep Red (1975) A
258. Tenebrae (1982) B+
259. The Day He Arrived (2011) A
260. The Counselor (2013) B-
261. Trick 'r Treat (2007) A
262. The Fake (2013) A
263. The Grand Central (2013) B-

November
264. Ender's Game (2013) A-
265. Aziz Ansari's Buried Alive (2013) A
266. Child's Pose (2013) B
267. Rabies (2010) A
268. Tom at the Farm (2013) B+
269. Nebraska (2013) B+
270. We are the Best (2013) A
271. Saving Mr. Banks (2013) B+
272. Blue Ruin (2013) A
273. Big Bad Wolves (2013) A
274. The Wind Rises (2013) A
275. In Bloom (2013) B+
276. Gloria (2013) A
277. The Sacrament (2013) C+
278. Like Father, Like Son (2013) A
279. The Past (2013) A
280. Manakamana (2013) B+
281. Borgman (2013) A
282. Jodorwsky's Dune (2013) A
283. Moebius (2013) B+
284. Her (2013) A
285. Inside Llewyn Davis (2013) B+
286. Thor: The Dark World (2013) A
287. My Dog Killer (2013) B+
288. Kill Your Darlings (2013) B+
289. We Steal Secrets: The Story of Wikileaks (2013) A
290. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)
291. Dallas Buyers Club (2013) A
292. Oldboy (2013) C+
293. Computer Chess (2013) B+
294. The Great Beauty (2013) B+

Decemeber
295. The Punk Singer (2013) A
296. Paradise: Hope (2013) A
297. Everybody Street (2013) A-

I'm pretty sure I watched more after this but lost my planner and lost track. So pretty sure I watched over 300! Thanks everyone. 2013 was great! Check out my list for 'The Best Films of 2013!'

Primer (2004, Shane Carruth)

Aaron: [talking about being inside the device] God, everything is so different in there. You feel how cut off you are, you know? It's this entirely separate world, and you encompass most of it. And the sound... Isn't the sound different, on the inside? It's like it's singing. I guess you can't hear it on the outside. I had this dream in there.
Abe: About what?
Aaron: I was on, or near, the ocean and, uh, I just kept hearing the surf. It was so uneventful, at night, when the tide kept coming in and out.
Abe: Yeah.
Aaron: Yeah

I'm definitely late on this review but like I say, better late than never! Kim Jee-woon, the South Korean filmmaker behind A Tale of Two Sisters, The Good, The Bad, The Weird, and I Saw the Devil has made his first U.S. debut film, The Last Stand. When the trailer first came out, it seems apparent that this was THE genre Kim Jee-woon should do considering he is a firecracker when it comes to action films. But with every director that goes to Hollywood, they lose some control over their overall vision. And in The Last Stand, it is no different.

Hitchcock (2012, Sacha Gervasi)

Alfred Hitchcock: I will never find a Hitchcock blonde as beautiful as you.
Alma Reville: Oh, Hitch. I've waited thirty years to hear you say that.
Alfred Hitchcock: That, my dear, is why they call me the Master of Suspense.

Year: 2012

Director: Malik Bendjelloul

Cast: Rodriguez, Steve Segerman,

Country of Origin: Swedish/British

Rating: PG-13

Time: 86 mins

Searching for Sugar Man is a mesmerizing portrait and hunt for the mysterious American musician named, Rodriguez. Two Cape Town fans try to uncover if Rodriguez in fact did commit the most horrific public suicide on stage by pulling the trigger or setting himself on fire to waves of boo's or if he is in fact alive. Rodriguez's soulful social injustice songs screamed of heartbreak louder than any Bob Dylan song ever could but no one in the U.S. ever heard of him. A wanderer of the dingy dirt roads of Detroit, Michigan, Rodriguez, sang in street bars and shadowy corners with his back turned to the audience so only his voice could be heard. A woman traveled across seas with a boot leg version of Rodriguez's cd to South Africa, where in the midst of apartheid, Rodriguez's voice fueled South Africans' own revoution which made him a bigger musical influence to them than The Rolling Stones. All of which even Rodriguez wasn't aware. Then one day he disappeared.

So, how does one find a man who has no full name, no home, and no friends? With only ghost whispers on the street, where do one even begin? The quest to find him was beyond one of the greatest challenges ever face by music journalist, Craig Bartholomew Strydom. Without any leads, he resorted to find an ounce of a clue in between his lyrics and punctuation. And the pay off makes even the dead crawl out of the worm swamped coffin and into a tap dancing frenzy. It presents the dazzling journey through the tumbleweeds of the music industry and down to the mystery hole where the money goes to die. Searching for Sugar Man is an uplifting and unconceivable account of the man behind the shadows of the night. And it is only until you finally lay your eyes on him, will you be sure that who you're gaping at is not a ghost but a real man. A

p.s. Rodriguez is now slated to play at Coachella 2013!

She Done Him Wrong (1933, Lowell Sherman)

Serge Stanieff: I swear I shall make you happy. I shall die to make you happy.

Lady Lou: Mmm, but you wouldn't be much use to me dead.

This has got to be the longest vlog I've done for far, but it's worth it! I compiled 10 films that are coming out in 2013 that are on my MUST WATCH LIST! Please take some time out of your busy schedule to watch the whole thing as I am the scatterbrain mess that I am when it comes to these most anticipated films.

The Last Stand

(2013, Kim Jee-woon)

Grade: C+

Gangster Squad was pushed back several months which meant extra time for tons of promotions. Maybe because of the theatre shooting, the studios felt the need to put an annoying amount of trailers and posters up all around town. Whatever the case, these beautiful black and white stills from the set are the best thing to come out of their promotional campaign.

Gangster Squad

(2013, Ruben Fleischer)

Grade:B-

I used to be all for award season with its blitzy glamour but after The King's Speech won at the 2011 Academy Awards, I was obviously not happy. Cinema is about taking risks, showing the true essence of the human condition, no matter how frightening that image might be. But the Academy are a conglomerate of old white people that don't want to take that leap of faith anymore. Naturally, this year Steven Spielberg's oscar bait, Lincoln scored a whooping 12 nominations leading the pack of other more great and worthy opponents. So, like I always do, I'm going to pick who I would ideally want to win and who I know are probably going to win. For those that I don't think I'm apt to judge I'm going to put N/S for not sure. Here we go!

Best Picture
Beast of Southern Wild

Zero Dark Thirty

Amour

Argo

Life of Pi

Les Miserables

Lincoln Silver Lining Playbook

Django Unchained

Who I want: Zero Dark Thirty

Who will win: Lincoln

Best Actress
Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty

Jennifer Lawrence - Silver Lining Playbook

Emmanuelle Riva - Amour

Quvenzhane Wallis - Beasts of Southern Wild

Naomi Watts - The Impossible

Who I want: Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty

Who will win: Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty

Best Actor

Bradley Cooper - Silver Lining Playbook

Daniel Day-Lewis - Lincoln

Hugh Jackman - Les Miserables

Joaquin Phoenix - The Master

Denzel Washington - Flight

Who I want: Joaquin Phoenix

Who will win: Daniel Day-Lewis

Best Supporting Actor
Phillip Seymour Hoffman - The Master

Robert DeNiro - Silver Lining Playbook

Alan Arkin - Argo

Tommy Lee Jones - Lincoln

Christoph Waltz - Django Unchained

Who I want: Phillip Seymour Hoffman - The Master

Who will win: Phillip Seymour Hoffman - The Master or Tommy Lee Jones - Lincoln

Best Supporting Actress
Sally Field - Lincoln

Anne Hathaway - Les Miserables

Jacki Weaver - Silver Lining Playbook

Helen Hunt - The Sessions

Amy Adams - The Master

Who I want: Amy Adams - The Master

Who will win: Anne Hathaway - Les Miserables

Animated Feature Film

Frankenweenie

The Pirates! Band of Misfits

Wreak-it Ralph

ParaNorman

Brave

Who I want: Wreak-It Ralph

Who will win: Frankenweenie

Cinematography

Django Unchained - Robert Richardson

Anna Karenina - Seamus McGarvey

Lincoln - Janusz Kaminski

Life of Pi - Claudio Miranda

Skyfall - Roger Deakins

Who I want: Lincoln - Janusz Kaminski

Who will win: Lincoln - Janusz Jaminski

Costume Design

Anna Karenina - Jacqueline Durran

Les Miserable - Paco Delgado

Lincoln - Joanna Johnston

Mirror Mirror - Eiko Ishioka

Snow White and the Huntsman - Colleen Atwood

Who I want: Anna Karenina - Jacqueline Durran

Who will win: Lincoln - Joanna Johnston or Snow White and the Huntsman - Colleen Atwood

Directing
Amour - Michael Haneke
Beasts of Southern Wild - Benh Zeitlin
Life of Pi - Ang Lee
Lincoln - Steven Spielberg
SIlver Lining Playbook - David O. Russell

Who I want: Amour - Michael Haneke
Who will win: Lincoln - Steven Spielberg

Documentary Feature

5 Broken Cameras

The Gatekeepers

How to Survive a Plague

The Invisible War

Searching for Sugarman

Who I want: The Invisible War/How to Survive a Plague
Who will win: The Gatekeepers

Documentary Short

Inocente

Kings Point

Mondays at Racine

Open Heart

Redemption

N/S

Film Editing

Argo - William Goldenberg

Life of Pi - Time Squyres

Lincoln - Michael Kahn

Silver Lining Playbook - Jay Cassidy and Crispin Struthers

Zero Dark Thirty - Dylan Tichenor and William Goldenberg

Who I want: Zero Dark Thirty- Dylan Tichenor and William Goldenberg
Who will win: Argo - William Goldberg or Zero Dark Thirty - Dylan Tichenor and Willian Goldenberg

Foreign Language Film
Amour
NO
War Witch
A Royal Affair
Kon Tiki

Who I want: Amour
Who wil win: Amour

Makeup
Hitchcock - Howard Berger, Peter Montagna, and Martin Samuel
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - Peter Swords King, Rick Findlater, and Tami Lane
Les Miserables - Lisa Westcott and Julie Dartnell

Who I want: The Hobbit
Who will win: The Hobbit

Music (Original Score)
Anna Karenina - Dario Marianelli
Argo - Alexandre Desplat
Life of Pi - Mychael Danna
Lincoln - John Williams
Skyfall - Thomas Newman

Who I want: Anna Karenina - Dario Marianelli
Who will win: Anna Karenina - Dario Marianelli

Music (Original Song)

Before My Time - Chasing Ice, Music and Lyric by J. Ralph

Pi's Lullaby - Life of Pi, Music by Mychael Danna; Lyric by Bombay Jayashri

Suddenly - Les Miserable, Music by Claude-Michel Schönberg; Lyric by Herbert Kretzmer and Alain Boublils

Everybody Needs a Best Friend - Ted, Music by Walter Murphy; Lyric by Seth MacFarlane

Skyfall - from Skyfall - Music and Lyric by Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth

Who I want: Pi's Lullaby - Life of Pi, Music by Mychael Danna; Lyric by Bombay Jayashri
Who will win: N/S

Short Film (Animated)

Adam and Dog - Minkyu Lee

Fresh Guacamole - PES

Head over Heels - Timothy Reckart and Fodhla Cronin O'Reilly

Maggie Simpson in "The Longest Daycare" David Silverman

The Paperman - John Kahrs

Who I want: The Paperman
Who will win: THe Paperman

Production Design

Anna Karenina - Sarah Greenwood (Production Design); Katie Spencer (Set Decoration)

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - Dan Hennah (Production Design); Ra Vincent and Simon Bright (Set Decoration)

Les Misérables -Eve Stewart (Production Design); Anna Lynch-Robinson (Set Decoration)

Life of Pi - David Gropman (Production Design); Anna Pinnock (Set Decoration)

Lincoln - Rick Carter (Production Design); Jim Erickson (Set Decoration)

Who I want: Anna Karenina

Who will win: Les Miserables

Short Film (Live Action)

Asad Bryan Buckley and Mino Jarjoura

Buzkashi Boys - Sam French and Ariel Nasr

Curfew -Shawn Christensen

Death of a Shadow (Dood van een Schaduw) - Tom Van Avermaet and Ellen De Waele

Henry - Yan England

N/S

Sound Editing

Argo - Erik Aadahl and Ethan Van der Ryn

Django Unchained - Wylie Stateman

Life of Pi - Eugene Gearty and Philip Stockton

Skyfall - Per Hallberg and Karen Baker Landers

Zero Dark Thirty -Paul N.J. Ottosson

Who I want: Skyfall - Per Hallberg and Karen Baker Landers

Who will win: Argo - Erik Aadahl and Ethan Van der Ryn

Sound Mixing

Argo - John Reitz, Gregg Rudloff and Jose Antonio Garcia

Les Misérables - Andy Nelson, Mark Paterson and Simon Hayes

Life of Pi -Ron Bartlett, D.M. Hemphill and Drew Kunin

Lincoln - Andy Nelson, Gary Rydstrom and Ronald Judkins

Skyfall - Scott Millan, Greg P. Russell and Stuart Wilson

Who I want: Skyfall - Scott Millan, Greg P. Russell and Stuart Wilson

Who will win: Argo - John Reitz, Gregg Rudloff and Jose Antonio Garcia

Visual Effects

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton and R. Christopher White

Life of Pi -Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Rocheron, Erik-Jan De Boer and Donald R. Elliott

Marvel's The Avengers - Janek Sirrs, Jeff White, Guy Williams and Dan Sudick

Prometheus - Richard Stammers, Trevor Wood, Charley Henley and Martin Hill

Snow White and the Huntsman - Cedric Nicolas-Troyan, Philip Brennan, Neil Corbould and Michael Dawson

Who I want: Life of Pi

Who will win: The Hobbit

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

Lucy Alibar & Benh Zeitlin - Beasts of the Southern Wild

Chris Terrio - Argo

Tony Kushner - Lincoln

David O'Russell - Silver Linings PLaybook

David Magee - Life of Pi

Who I want: Tony Kushner - Lincoln

Who will win: Tony Kushner - Lincoln

Writing (Original Screenplay)

John Gatins - Flight

Mark Boal - Zero Dark Thirty

Django Unchained - Quentin Tarantino

Moonrise Kingdom - Written by Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola

Amour - Written by Michael Haneke

Who I want: Mark Boal - Zero Dark Thirty

Who will win: Mark Boal - Zero Dark Thirty

The Enigma of Kasper Hauser (1974, Werner Herzog)

Opening Caption: Do you not then hear this horrible scream all around you that people usually call silence.

I've decided to start another segment to So's Reel Thoughts, the youtube channel. Instead of trying to hash out lengthy film reviews for particular films that already have their designated audience, I'm going to do a first reaction video to the films. Hopefully this will be one of many to come.

Here's my review of Zero Dark Thirty. I was hoping that when I went to this screening at the DGA that Kathryn Bigelow and Jessica Chastain would be there but sadly, they weren't. But I'm hoping I can catch another Q&A with them this month! *fingers crossed. Zero Dark Thirty was incredibly powerful and probably my second favorite film of 2012 below Amour. It opens everywhere January 11th so please go see it.