So far, I’ve seen almost all the films of 2010’s Academy nominations for best picture, with Avatar waiting at my house… So here are the rankings I have so far.

#1 The Hurt Locker

#2 Inglorious Basterds

#3 Precious

#4 Up

#5 Up In The Air

#6 A Serious Man

#7 An Education

#8 District 9

#9 The Blind Side

* Will soon change when I see Avatar – if I had to guess – Avatar probably won’t do better than #3 because the first two are great films. In fact I’d probably say #3-7/8 are almost interchangeable.

Now the real movies are coming into my Netflix box…

So I got The Hurt Locker and wow, what a film. Obviously deserving of the best picture of the year. This is a really compelling film and probably one of the best war films of our generation. There have been many many recent war films over the past decade and this film accomplishes something every other one failed to do, make it feel real.

It accomplishes everything it wants to really well, building tension and suspense, and even when it surprises you it works every time. I think the best quality of the film is its reality: sometimes you talk about films as an escape from reality but this film puts you into what feels like an accurate reality of the war in Iraq. I think that, among many other reasons, is probably why everyone raved about this film and why it is just amazing. Speaking of which, Jeremy Renner’s performance in the lead is a great performance and probably a career changing one.

I have now seen 6 of the 10 nominees for best picture and I’d probably rank them now as…

1. The Hurt Locker
2. Precious
3. Up
4. Up in the Air
5. A Serious Man
6. District 9

An interesting “mock” documentary/teleplay is Ron Howard’s film Frost/Nixon.

I think there are points where it makes sense to be a documentary but points where they want to be a real acting out play as well, that makes things difficult. Frank Langella does a great job but did not win in the tough best actor field from 2009. However, I did like this movie and it is a good, tough story about a man who is risking everything to get an interview with the President. I like how up front he is about the reasoning, money and ratings, and it turned into much more than that in their four interviews.

Look at the pictures from last years field, only 5, and there are four other strong pictures that would definately have been a tough go for many of the 10 that were nominated this year. I guess nominating 10 is a good thing but, it also devalues it… we know the academy recognized this film as top 5 for its year.

Wow. This is a very interesting film. You can only watch it once though.

So once I exited Up in The Air, I thought wow Anna Kendrick really steals the show and Vera Farmiga is just as good. However, when you take a look at them, in the nominated for best supporting actress category, and Mo’Nique in Precious… it’s not even close. Mo’Nique gives an amazing performance as Precious’ mother in this really tough but really great film of 2009. After watching it, there’s absolutely no doubt that it should have been close for her to win.

Next is The Hurt Locker…

A short created by (then unknowns) Trey Parker and Matt Stone, Your Studio and You that I like very much.

There’s a lot of great stuff here.

The main story centers around a man, Larry Gopnik, whose life is unwraveling before his eyes. His wife wants a divorce so he can marry a widowed family friend and his entire family is falling apart. So he goes to seek help, counseling and rabbis. This is a great film and very funny, darker comedy, but funny. Especially when the second rabbi tells a story, I loved the different angles of camera work and the re-recorded voice so that it looks like the storyteller is talking for the character. The story goes on and on and where does it lead? Is nowhere an answer?

I love all of the works that I have seen from the Coen brothers far. I haven’t seen all of them but the ones I have seen I have enjoyed. One formulaic part of their films, that I’ve seen, has been to kill of at least one character in the story. I could be wrong but it tends to work at the right time.

There is a part in this movie, towards the end with about 20 minutes left, turns out to be a dream sequence but I could not stop laughing at the moment Larry wakes up. However I did enjoy this film and, if I were to rank what I’ve seen now, I’d put it between District 9 (low) and Up in the Air (highest) of the best pictures I’ve seen.However, I have still yet to see The Hurt Locker or Inglorious Basterds.

I found this to be very entertaining, the ending is mysterious but I like it. You get a type of conclusion as the film’s third act is ending, the family appears to have resolved some issues but others arise. Kind of like No Country for Old Men was an adapted ending, this was an original ending left slightly unresolved but end satisfactorily.

Coraline is a definite technical achievement and deserving of Best Animated Feature Film. This is an interesting fantasy and horror film and I would say a better achievement, in stop-motion, than the Nightmare Before Christmas because of the many different set pieces and fantasies created in this horror.

It is a very imaginative story and very good but I don’t think it will be able to beat Up!

The surprise of the animated features, The Secret of Kells, is getting a brief theatrical run but it’s not expected to beat Up! either. However, you never know with awards shows and since I’ve now seen two of the five, I’m going to try to watch them all.

9 (2009)

(photo: IMDB)

9 is a story about a group of rag dolls in a post-apocalyptic world. The leader, 1, wants them to stay hidden from danger but 9, voiced by Elijah Wood, wants them to go face the beasts in the wilderness ahead. I thought the story was alright, but it was not complex. It lacked a real depth that I think people were looking for. People have seen post-apocalyptic type dramas before, even though not in the animated medium, but I think the audience’s expectation for this film coming from a highly acclaimed 2005 animated short.

but the problems I found with this film were it was tough to establish the characters and how they were feeling. I felt like, even though there was much at stake for all the characters, they weren’t able to capture that real desperation feeling. That and there were an abundance of action sequences, which while impressive, took away from some of the true character of the film.

I would have like to experience more of the character’s universe. When visualized it is a great piece of art, their universe, but I feel like the audience doesn’t get to experience it as much as it would like to. The visuals are the best part of this film, by far. In my opinion, it’s because the story moves at such a pace that the universe can’t be explored fully.

Unfortunately, because of all these faults, it’s not even being considered for a Golden Globe for Best Animated Feature. However, that might have more to do with a very strong class of animated films this past year (Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Coraline, Fantastic Mr. Fox, The Princess and the Frog, Up) than with this film’s quality.

O Brother Where Art Thou (2000)

I liked this film and it is a period piece adventure story with some good performances. George Clooney does a great job and this was probably the start (include then The Perfect Storm) as a great decade for him that ended with Up in The Air this year.

A film loosely based on Homer’s Odyssey, it is a fun adventure that leads to a bunch of funny and similar moments.

Star Trek (2009)

I’m not a big Star Trek guy, never saw any of the older ones, so this is truly a reboot for me.

This film is an obvious accomplishment in makeup and probably will get some awards for that and the visuals. I think one of the better accomplishments is the camerawork presenting a lot of different angles and, what is becoming a good favorite of mine, a moving shoulder camera during dialogue.

It was also a good adventure and not that tough to follow. A fun adventure story and I can see why a lot of people liked it and why it could do well at the box office. I could also see why some have called it the best film of 2009.

I’m guessing there will be a sequel and hopefully it will live up to this adventure.

Many of the summer hits are coming out on DVD soon, so hopefully those DVDs will get here to see, in the snow.

Inception, the next Christopher Nolan film will be out in July 16, 2010. They came out with a recent trailer on December 28th.

This will be good. The Buzz has begun. With only 4 major films, already named the 32nd best director in history from Total Film.