It Begins Again.

Having taken a few weeks off from the movie-going (the last thing I saw was "No Country For Old Men" for a second time about three weeks ago) it's once again time to get back to the cinema. This is a big weekend. "I Am Legend" is released wide and "Juno" and "The Kite Runner" make their Seattle debuts. (Yes, I am back from Florida. Yes, I want to go back right now.) The heavy Golden Globe favorite "Atonement" is on my weekend plate as well. Then the next couple of weeks it's really going to get crazy, what with "The Savages," "Sweeney Todd," "Walk Hard," "Charlie Wilson's War," and most importantly "There Will Be Blood" hitting theaters. There are a few others I want to see as well but it's hard to remember so many. It is that time of year though. The time of year when all of the studios drop most of their award contenders making it nearly impossible to see even half of them. Jerks. Plus I still have to rent some things that I've missed such as "La Vie en Rose," "Black Book," "Waitress," and "Talk to Me." Yes, it'll be daunting but I am just that crazy.
This has already been a year filled with incredible movies. Films that would normally be shoe-ins for my top 10 in another year may not even make my top 20. It's just been (in the words of Chazz Michael Michaels), "mind-bottling." That's alright though.
I could rant about the Golden Globe nominations, but I think I've done enough ranting about the errors made during awards season over the years. I will say this. "Across the Universe" nominated for best musical or comedy, but no "Knocked Up," "Superbad," or "Hot Fuzz." Apparently three genuinely hilarious and well-made films are no match for a pretentious meandering musical. Also, where's the love for "The Assassination of Jesse James"? Oh well, I do have to give them credit for recognizing "No Country For Old Men." They definitely got that one right. Also up for best drama is the remaining movie I am most excited about, Paul Thomas Anderson's "There Will Be Blood." All of the early reviews state that it will please fans of his previous work ("Hard Eight," "Boogie Nights," "Magnolia," and "Punch-Drunk Love"), but that it's vastly different from anything he's made before. In other words, he's going in a new direction and those who haven't taken a shine to his previous films may just love this one. So with that I leave you with the latest trailer for Anderson's epic starring Daniel Day Lewis and Paul Dano (the unsung hero of "Little Miss Sunshine").