The Could've Been Contenders 2011

By Sean Knight

Another year another Oscar season is upon us. Another year another Knight Awards.  Many have claimed that 2011 has been a weak year for film, but I have to disagree.  Perhaps the Oscar baiting studio fair was disappointing, but some of the bigger budget Hollywood projects, smaller personal films, and gritty indies pushed through to provide some great moments at the cinema this year.  The variety of projects that touched me, in one way or another, in 2011 was rather striking.  It began way back in April with Duncan Jones’s unique sci-fi tale Source Code, and pushed all the way through till December with Steven Spielberg’s unabashedly sentimental and gorgeously old fashioned War Horse.  In fact, there were so many films that I really liked in 2011 that it was rather difficult to limit my top films of the year to twenty.  I easily could have gone up to thirty, possibly even forty.  My Knight Award nominations will be announced in a few hours, but I wanted to take the opportunity to throw a shout out to a few films and performances that I just didn’t have room for in my top twenty or top awards.  These are the almost could’ve been contenders and you should seek them out if you haven’t seen them.

Source Code

Dir. Duncan Jones

A couple years ago Duncan Jones burst onto the scene with the tense character driven science fiction low budget indie, Moon.  It signaled the arrival of a major new talent and he even managed to snag my breakthrough filmmaker of year Knight Award.  His follow up project, Source Code, arrived in April of 2011.  Source Code is a big budget science fiction thriller about a man who is sent back in time to relive eight minutes aboard a explosion bound commuter train over and over again until he can find the bomber.  It’s logic is completely wonky, and it’s ending may leave something to be desired, but the picture shows a wild amount of creativity and skill from director Jones.  It also boasts some solid performances from the usually wooden Jake Gyllenhaal, the subtly sexy Michelle Monaghan, and from musical theater star Michael Arden.  The film never did catch on at the box office, but this high concept thriller had bigger cojones than 99% of the Hollywood output in the early part of the year.  I hope Jones is able to move on to bigger and better things.  Hollywood is in need of a unique and risk taking talent such as his.

Beginners

Dir. Mike Mills

Beginners is a deeply personal film for Director Mike Mills who based much of the story off of his own life.  Beginners follows the story of a young man struggling to come to terms with his fathers coming out of the closet and recent death as he meets and falls in love with a young actress.  Ewan McGregor plays the young protagonist and Melanie Laurent plays the young actress and they are sweet and affectionately portrayed by the pair.  But the film belongs to Christopher Plummer who plays the recently out and deceased father.  Plummer has never been more genuine and sympathetic as he is here. And watching a man in his 80’s discover his true self for the first time is a joyous experience.  Plummer is the frontrunner to win the Oscar for Supporting Actor next month and for very good reason.  He doesn’t fall into stereotype or cliché, but instead works hard to make us understand how a man could live with a lie for so long.   It’s a liberating performance.  He barely missed making it into my supporting actor nominations as this was a very good year and competition was stiff.  A Part of me wishes that I could still plug him in, but that would come at the expense of several other good actors. 

Jane Eyre

Dir. Cary Fukunaga

This latest adaptation of the literary classic Jane Eyre plays up the gothic elements of the story.  It is gorgeously shot and carefully crafted in all areas.  The performances from Michael Fassbender and Mia Wasikowska are fiery and downright sexy, with the latter just missing for my best actress nominations.  The films pacing is it’s weakness with a somewhat meandering sensibility, but the story remains fascinating.  By playing up the darker elements, director Fukunaga elevates the material to new realms never before explored in previous adaptations.  A worthy effort and in a weaker year it might very well be a front-runner for many an award.

The Ides of March

Dir. George Clooney

It’s almost a little unfair listing this as an almost contender considering how many nominations this film did end up getting from me.  The Ides of March is impeccable filmmaking from start to finish with sharp writing, great performances, and meticulous direction.  The problem with Ides of March is that it has nothing new to say about the political system and it’s twist ending is almost unbelievable in the context of who the candidate is supposed to be based off of.  Clooney wanted to show the dirty side of politics and the dangers of idealism, and he does so winningly, but in the end I was left thinking – so what?  Still, it’s a film that deserves to be seen and many of its performances were on the bubble of a nomination from me.  Who knows, maybe it could surprise with a couple major Oscar nominations come tomorrow morning?

Warrior

Dir. Gavin O’Connor

I’m not a sports guy and I have little interest in boxing or mixed martial arts, but that isn’t to say that great movies can’t be made about them.  Warrior is on the cusp of being a great film. It certainly is great entertainment.  The story focuses on two brothers who are competing for SPARTA and their alcoholic trainer father who wants to reunite with them.  The plot is a bit contrived and doesn’t offer anything new to the table, but it’s got a lot of heart and it’s characters are real flesh and blood people that you come to care about a great deal.  Tom Hardy continues his rise as one of the great young up and coming actors as the more introverted and damaged of the two brothers.  But, it is Nick Nolte who truly shines here as the alcoholic father trying to win back his two boys.  It’s a heartbreaking performance that hits very close to Nolte’s own personal life and he slips into the character with great ease.  There is never a false moment from him.  The film is directed with a lot of skill and it is the kind of rousing entertainment that simply makes you feel good when you leave the theater.  In many ways Warrior was a great palette cleanser after last years uneven, clichéd, and downright ugly sports awards movie juggernaut The Fighter.

The Beaver

Dir. Jodie Foster

Foster’s film was met with open hostility for both its outlandish concept and for the fact that it starred the now much hated Mel Gibson.  It’s a shame really, because while The Beaver is a bit silly in its execution it features a unique script and a truly outstanding performance from Gibson.  It’s the kind of performance that if it weren’t for all the trouble surrounding his personal life, we would be looking at a bona fide Oscar contender.  I have long said that people need to separate the art from the person, but it is understandably difficult to do when someone’s personal life is so troubled and, often times, downright disgusting.  But, it is precisely because of Gibson’s troubles that he is able to look deep into his soul and pull out such a nuanced and unsettling performance.  Gibson’s slip into madness through the use of a Beaver puppet is both hilarious and frightening, but, most importantly, believable in its every turn.  The rest of the film may not have the polish of his performance, but he is worth the price of a rental alone. 

And that is that.  Tomorrow morning brings about the announcement of the Oscar Nominations.  I will be up bright and early eagerly awaiting a surprise or two.  Will You?  Stay tuned later in the day for the announcement of the 2011 Knight Award Nominations.