Cherished Cinema

Hello all.

I could not express my love for Steven Soderbergh any more than I already have (see my various entries into my personal blog and Tweets over the summer). I put off seeing this film for years, and I finally gave in during my Soderbergh-exploration last summer. One of the principle points of this project is that of determining whether or not the five Best Picture nominations were correct. Naturally, I am not asserting that my personal opinion of the nominations is greater than the Academy’s, but I always find it fun/interesting to compare my thoughts to theirs. That, of course, assumes that the Palm D’or was rightfully picked, I would not dare venture into that area.

It is hard to pinpoint exactly why I stayed away from this film for so long. I suppose that the fact that it came out when I was twelve was most likely the largest factor. That is to say that it would be atypical for a young male of that age to desire to see a film with the premise of Erin Brockovich (let alone be able to understand the film). I am sad I missed out on it for so long. Soderbergh made two great films in one year. The previous is not solely a subjective statement due to the fact that both were nominated for Best Picture and extremely well-received. I have this bizarre tendency when discussing films of Soderbergh’s; I end up talking more about Soderbergh himself than the actual film. I have a strange obsession with him. I love his style and ambition, both of which shine in all of his films. I have discussed it before in my other blog, but the sharp dichotomy in people that love or hate Schizopolis has always been fascinating to me. The reason it is so fascinating is that the groups are split between those that love film/are involved in film and those who are at best casual viewers. I am not saying that those that love film must love film and vice versa (as my previous sentence may imply), but it is an apparent , and as I have said, interesting disunion.

On the film itself, very simply put it is an outstanding “feel-good” film. Everything builds up, from the small scale stuff with what happens with her/her family to the large scale stuff that involves the lawsuit, all for the emotional climax. Unfortunately, I am unable to comment on whether or not Roberts deserved her Best Actress award due to the fact that I have yet to see You Can Count on Me or The Contender. Out of the three other performances that I have seen, Roberts definitely deserves it. As great as Roberts’ performance is in this film, I would have to say that, albeit in supporting roles, Finney and Eckhart are equally as good. This may stand out for me because of the amount of time that Roberts is on-screen and my mind begins to wander and think of other great aspects of the film. I still believe both of their performances are at least noteworthy, but as a viewer, I personally do not expect any less from Finney or Eckhart.  Soderbergh takes the viewer for a ride throughout, exploring at first Roberts’ struggles and then moving on to the grand scale problem of the townspeople. This “ride” is what leads the viewer to feel good, be uplifted, and ultimately enjoy the film.

This may end up as the number one film of the five nominees that I will eventually rule out as deserving of its nomination. I have to first finish my exploration of the year in film, but something tells me that that previous assumption is not far off. Remember, I am a huge fan of both the film and its director, so please do not think that I hope the previous to true, I simply have a hunch that it is. I only have one nomination left, a film I have not seen in at least eight or nine years. I am excited to revisit it.

Thank you for reading! `