(Tom) Motski (Blog)

Oscars 2012: Very Early Predictions

2012-01-30T14:54:00.000-08:00

So, the Oscars nominations have been announced and I've somehow managed to miss a rather large amount of the anointed movies (The Descendants, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, The Help, Moneyball and War Horse), although some of these are yet to be released in the UK.

Of the films I named in my top eleven of last year, only three make the short list (although admittedly Black Swan featured in last years awards) but none of this comes as much of a surprise. I think "Drive" perhaps should have featured in "Best Director" or "Best Cinematography", but that never seemed likely to happen. "Marcy Martha May Marlene" however, definitely should have been acknowledged, along with it's star Elizabeth Olsen.

As an animator I'm pleased to see Andy Serkis has not been nominated for his motion capture work in "Rise of the Planet of the Apes." While Serkis is a fine actor and gives a great performance, a nomination would have denigrated all the hard work done by the animators who had to convert his movement into the physiology of an ape. Perhaps as this technology gains popularity there should be a separate category that acknowledges both actor and animators. For this reason I'm also relieved to see "The Adventures of Tintin" has not been nominated in best animation (although I found the film entertaining). If "Tintin" had been nominated "Best Animated Feature" then "Avatar" surely would have been eligible too.

The main category that seems way off is the "Best Documentary" which has a ton of great films that didn't get included. The shortlist does not include "The Interrupters", "Project Nim", "Senna", "George Harrison: Living in the Material World", "Life in a Day", "Being Elmo: A Puppeteers Journey" or "Tabloid."

Anyway, here's my very early guesses at what and who will win the major awards (predicted winners in bold, films I've seen in black, films I've not seen in blue). As there's many films I've yet to see, I've made my decisions based on general awards buzz and critical reaction.

Best Picture

The Artist
The Descendants
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
The Help
Hugo
Midnight in Paris
Moneyball
The Tree of Life
War Horse

Best Director

Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Alexdander Payne, The Descendants
Martin Scorsese, Hugo
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life

Best Actor In a Supporting Role

Kenneth Branagh, My Week With Marilyn
Jonah Hill, Moneyball
Nick Nolte, Warrior
Christopher Plummer, Beginners
Max von Sydow, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

Best Actress in a Supporting Role

Bérénice Bejo, The Artist
Jessica Chastain, The Help
Mellisa McCarthy, Bridesmaids
Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer, The Help

Best Actor in a Leading Role

Demian Bichir, A Better Life
George Clooney, The Descendants
Jean Dujardin, The Artist
Gary Oldman, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Brad Pitt, Moneyball

Best Actress in a Leading Role

Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis, The Help
Rooney Mara, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn

Animated Feature Film

A Cat in Paris, Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli
Chico & Rita, Fernando Trueba and Javier Mariscal
Kung Fu Panda 2, Jennifer Yuh Nelson
Puss in Boots, Chris Miller
Rango, Gore Verbinski

Cinematography

The Artist, Guillaume Schiffman
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, Jeff Cronenweth
Hugo, Robert Richardson
The Tree of Life, Emmanuel Lubezki
War Horse, Janusz Kaminski

Foreign Language Film

Belgium, “Bullhead”, Michael R. Roskam, director
Canada, “Monsieur Lazhar”, Philippe Falardeau, director
Iran, “A Separation”, Asghar Farhadi, director
Israel, “Footnote”, Joseph Cedar, director
Poland, “In Darkness”, Agnieszka Holland, director

Music (Original Song)

“Man or Muppet” from The Muppets, Music and Lyric by Bret McKenzie
“Real in Rio” from Rio, Music by Sergio Mendes and Carlinhos Brown, Lyric by Siedah Garret.

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

The Descendants, Screenplay by Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash
Hugo, Screenplay by John Logan
The Ides of March, Screenplay by George Clooney & Grant Heslov and Beau Willimon
Moneyball, Screenplay by Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin. Story by Stan Chervin
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Screenplay by Bridget O’Connor & Peter Straughan

Writing (Original Screenplay)

The Artist, Written by Michel Hazanavicius
Bridesmaids, Written by Annie Mumolo & Kristen Wiig
Margin Call, Written by J.C. Chandor
Midnight in Paris, Written by Woody Allen
A Separation, Written by Asghar Farhadi

Art Direction

The Artist: Laurence Bennett (Production Design); Robert Gould (Set Decoration)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2: Stuart Craig (Production Design); Stephenie McMillan (Set Decoration)
Hugo: Dante Ferretti (Production Design); Francesca Lo Schiavo (Set Decoration)
War Horse: Rick Carter (Production Design); Lee Sandales (Set Decoration)

Costume Design

Anonymous, Lisy Christl
The Artist, Mark Bridges
Hugo, Sandy Powell
Jane Eyre, Michael O’Connor
W.E., Arianne Phillips

Documentary Feature

Hell and Back Again
If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory
Pina
Undefeated

Film Editing

The Artist, Anne-Sophie Bion and Michel Hazanavicius
The Descendants, Kevin Tent
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall
Hugo, Thelma Schoonmaker
Moneyball, Christopher Tellefsen

Makeup

Albert Nobbs, Martial Corneville, Lynn Johnston and Matthew W. Mungle
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, Nick Dudman, Amanda Knight and Lisa Tomblin
The Iron Lady, Mark Coulier and J. Roy Helland

Music (Original Score)

The Adventures of Tintin, John Williams
The Artist, Ludovic Bource
Hugo, Howard Shore
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Alberto Iglesias
War Horse, John Williams

Visual Effects

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, Tim Burke, David Vickery, Greg Butler and John Richardson
Hugo, Rob Legato, Joss Williams, Ben Grossman and Alex Henning
Real Steel, Erik Nash, John Rosengrant, Dan Taylor and Swen Gillberg
Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Joe Letteri, Dan Lemmon, R. Christopher White and Daniel Barrett
Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Dan Glass, Brad Friedman, Douglas Trumbull and Michael Fink

From my predictions, "The Artist" should finish with the most awards (6), but we'lll have to wait and see. I'll hopefully reappraise my choices nearer the awards in late February when I've hopefully had time to see more of the films.

Movies to Look Out for in 2012

2012-01-24T18:15:00.000-08:00

Hi folks, I've compiled a list of movies that will (hopefully) entertain us throughout 2012. I don't know a huge amount about quite a lot of them, but I've gone for films I think have potential, based on the concept, cast, director or a great trailer (which I've embedded when available.)
Time will tell if any of these turn out to be good as the year unfolds, but hopefully I'll hit the mark with some of them. Anyway, in no particular order, here we go...

Wrong

Quentin Dupieux (AKA Mr Oizo) follows up his head exploding pscho tyre horror movie "Rubber" with this tale of a man searching for his dog.

Great trailer too, I have no idea what this is about, in a good way.

It also has William Fichtner in it, who's always great.
(more info now available on /Film)

ParaNorman
Another brilliant trailer (love the use of Donovan's "Season of the Witch") from the team that brought us the eye popping "Coraline". My most anticipated animated film this year.

Only God Forgives
The "Drive" team of Ryan Gosling and director Nicolas Winding Refn reunite for a thai-boxing gangster flick.
Yeah.
And the brilliant Kristin Scott Thomas is rumoured to be playing a matriarchal crime boss. Exciting.

No footage yet, but it might look a bit like this.

Detachment
"American History X" director Tony Kaye returns with a great cast for this school set drama.

Looper
I have very high hopes for this one. Director Rian Johnson reunites Joseph Gordon Levitt (star of Johnson's "Brick") for a futuristic mob movie. Gordon Levitt plays a young contract killer who executes targets sent back in time by mobsters in the future. While this ensures there's no evidence left by the murders, it poses Gordon Levitt a unique problem when charged with killing his future self, played by Bruce Willis.

Will Willis convince us he was once Gordon Levitt?

MS One: Maximum Security
Looks like Guy Pierce playing John McClane in space based remake of "Escape from New York". Anything about that sentence that doesn't sound great?

The Burial (or untitled, depending on who you believe)
Who knows what will happen (if anything) in Terrence Malick's follow up to the devisive "Tree of Life"(for the record, it was one of my favourite films of last year). Whatever happens, it'll look stunning.

More Malick dinosaurs?

Knights of Badassdom
This could be awful... but the trailer won me over. A very geek friendly cast (alumni from"Game of Thrones", "Community", "Firefly"etc) seem perfectly at home in this role-playing-gone-wrong-com. Like the end of "Role Models" but with real magic.

Stoker
Chan-wook Park (Oldboy) directs Nicole Kidman, Matthew Goode and Mia Wasikowska in his first Hollywood movie. An interesting proposition in itself, but it's also a return to the vampire genre in which he made the atypical horror "Thirst", one of the most inventive additions to the undead canon in recent years.

Alas, Kidman's unlikely to be playing the vampire...

Moonrise Kingdom
Perhaps it's more of the same from Wes Anderson, but that's what I want from a Wes Anderson film. From the brief clip of Jason Schwartzman in the trailer, there could be a few surprises in store and I can't wait to see the character he's playing (Looks like a cross between a priest and Robert Duvall's Colonel Kilgore in "Apocalypse Now"). Ed Norton and Bruce Willis are also exciting additions to the Anderson stable. Thankfully, Bill Murray is back too.

Gravity
Alfonso Cuaron (director of "Children of Men" and responsible for that long take.) returns to reality based science-fiction. This looks to be a tense sci-fi with a heavy burden on the shoulders of Sandra Bullock and George Clooney playing a survivors left adrift in space by a devastating satellite accident. Very little about the plot is known, so my description above might be off the mark, but Guillermo del Toro has seen sections of it and called it "mind-blowing". Bullock also claims all the actors performed without make-up so it'll be interesting to see what difference this makes to the look of the film.

This image is unlikely to represent the "mind-blowing" Gravity

Marcy Martha May Marlene
Not really a film I'm anticipating, as I've already seen it, but it hasn't had it's official UK release yet, so it should be on this list. A great exploration of the effects of spending time in a cult and how the experience lingers. Elizabeth Olsen and John Hawkes are the stand out performers in this excellent film.

Red Lights
Sigourney Weaver's psychologist investigates Robert DeNiro's psychic. I don't know a whole lot more than that, but if the promising cast (featuring "Martha Marcy May Marlene" revelation Elizabeth Olsen and the ethereally eyed Cilian Murphy) are given a decent story, this should be worth a watch.
(More info now available at /Film)

Ripley takes on psychic DeNiro.

Neighbourhood Watch
A comedy about suburban dads forming a neighbourhood watch group. Not too exciting? What if those dads are played by Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill and the I.T Crowd's resident mega geek Moss (Richard Ayoade)? And what if that neighbourhood watch group discover a plot to destroy the world? Sounds good to me.

Will Ayoade ditch his trade-mark accent for an American one?

Young Adult
This is another one that won me over with it's trailer. Directed by Jason Reitman from a Diablo "Juno" Cody script, Theron looks very entertaining as a woman returning to her home town to steal back her (now married) High School sweetheart. I've also heard Patton Oswalt puts in a scene stealing performance, which is great news for fans of his 5 second films.

Seven Psychopaths
Another film I know very little about. What I do know is that it's directed by Martin McDonagh who made the brilliant "In Bruges" and features a sensational cast of some of the most interesting acotrs out there. Colin Farrell stars, but the cast also includes Woody Harrelson, Sam Rockwell, Tom Waits, Christopher Walken, Abie Cornish and "Precious" stand out Gabourey Sidibe.
Pretty cool name too.

Blimey

Safety Not Guaranteed
A film I've only recently become aware of, it's a time travel comedy starring Mark Duplass and Aubrey Plaza. Plaza plays a reporter who is assigned to find and interview a man who has posted a newspaper ad that appeals for someone to go time travelling with him. Is the man really a time traveller, or just delusional?

It's had some great early reviews that bill it as a comedy with real heart, which in most years is unfortunately often a rarity.

Robot and Frank

This sounds fantastic. A comedy set in the near future, Frank Langella plays an ex-jewell thief who is cared for by a robot. You can watch a clip here.

And the obvious ones...

The Avengers
What comic book fan wouldn't have this on their must-see list? In Joss Whedon the film has a director used to balancing ensemble casts and my hopes are high.

Prometheus
Ridley can't get it wrong can he? Sir Scott ventures back into "Alien" territory for this quasi-prequel.
The trailer is mouth-watering.

The Dark Knight Rises
As with "Prometheus" this could either be a triumph or the biggest let down of the year. The trailer grabbed me though and I've heard great things about the prologue that ran before "Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol." Fingers crossed bat-fans.

Django Unchained
I love western's and I love (most) Tarantino, so I hope this lives up to it's billing. Tarantino's "Southern" is set to address racism in the era of the cowboy, with Jamie Foxx as the titular character. The supporting cast look great, including roles for Christophe Waltz, Kurt Russell and Sasha Baron Cohen, while Leonardo DiCaprio plays the main villain.

I wasn't sure if this was out this year or next, but I'm also looking forward to Danny Boyle's "Trance"

Oh and some film called "The Hobbit"

Films of the Year 2011

2012-01-02T07:05:00.000-08:00

Hi folks, it's just about time for my FILMS OF THE YEAR 2011. I said I'd switch to a top five this year, but it turned out that involved too much decision making... so top eleven for twenty eleven it is.

Thankfully, there's not so many U.S. films awaiting release in the UK this year (The notable ones being "War Horse", "The Descendants", "Young Adult", "The Muppets", "A Dangerous Method" and "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close"), so the list should have less obvious omissions than last year. I've been sticking to the official U.K release dates, which means films that we're high on some 2010 lists have faded in my mind a little and have probably ended up lower on my list than maybe they should have been.

It's been a good year and the overall quality has been pretty high, with a diverse range of movies that I hope I've reflected in my list. Feel free to ridicule my choices, they've not been made objectively, but chosen in terms of my enjoyment and the emotional impact they had on me. So, in a very loose order here's the list.

Top 11 for 2011

11. Hugo

It's been a year of movies about film making and this one by Martin Scorcese really shows the early magic of cinema. It really tugs at the heart strings throughout, with talented (and more importantly, not annoying) child actors holding their own against the likes of Sir Ben Kingsley and Ray Winston.

Mixing a tale of friendship and family with early, wildly inventive film making, the story manages to balance the two elements remarkably well, combining them into a satisfying whole. I'm not sure how well it's gone down with the intended children's audience, but I imagine it has enough charm for all ages. The 3D worked well, but as with most films in which it is well utilised, it's subtle and I'm not sure how much it added.

10. The Tree Of Life

Certainly the most divisive film of the year, I can fully understand how many people hate this film. Meandering and slow, it can sometimes seem like it's going nowhere, but it also manages to have some perfect moments that are both beautiful and emotional.

It's at it's best when it is reflects memories of youthful confusion, pain and anger. The parents are not rendered in a realistic manner, more as child-like impressions of adult hood, turning them into caricatures that enhance the best and worst effects of their parenting.

I found the creation of the universe section enthralling, but I'll admit the dinosaurs don't really work, except to highlight the film's theme of the struggle between grace and nature. It does have a lot of problems, most will hate it, but I think it's worth a watch.

9. Black Swan

It's been a long time since I watched it early this year, but I remember it being a compelling watch. It has great performances throughout the core cast, with Portman justly winning last year's Oscar. The film evokes the vividness of a Dario Argento giallo horror, but has more coherence and drive, with added Aronofsky unease.

8. The Artist

Incredibly charming throughout, "The Artist" manages to capture your attention without the need for spoken dialogue. Like "Hugo", it's another movie about film making and echoes the storyline of "Singin' in the Rain", but re-imagined as a traditional silent movie. It strives for authenticity and even uses the extremely narrow for modern cinema 4:3 aspect ratio, which is a bit of a culture shock. Without dialogue the film can focus purely on visual storytelling, which leads to incredibly creative exposition.

7. Bridesmaids

The best American comedy of the year has a lot of heart but it's also consistently funny, with a great central performance from Kristen Wiig. She's manages to play "quirky" without becoming too frustrating or annoying, which is a rare talent. The rest of the cast are great too, with the "I.T Crowd's" Chris O'Dowd appearing in one of the few male roles in this refeshingly female oriented film.

6. Captain America

My guilty pleasure this year was "Captain America: The First Avenger". It was great to see a period super hero film and it's World War 2 setting really set it apart, creating an "Indiana Jones"feel to the movie. Chris Evans manages to make this symbol of American patriotism sympathetic to a global audience and you really root for him. Hayley Atwell provides the perfect acerbic foil to his earnestness and Tommy Lee Jones steals every scene he's in as a grizzled General.

The effects are on the whole excellent, with Evans hulking frame convincingly shrunk down in the pre-Captain scenes, but the "Red Skull" looks too rubbery to be taken too seriously. Hugo Weaving's performance thankfully makes up for this and he's menacing throughout, mimicking Werner Herzog's flat, weary accent.

I was already looking forward to next year's Marvel super hero ensemble "The Avengers" and "Captain America: The First Avenger" makes me even more excited by the prospect.

5. Drive

Nicolas Winding Refn's "Drive" gives Ryan Gosling a platform to give a stand out Clint Eastwood-like performance in this stylish movie. Low on dialogue and high on great soundtrack choices, this film is a modern western with Goling's "Driver" filling the role of the lone gunman.

At times the film's styling can come across as a little cold, but this juxtaposes brilliantly with moments of extreme violence and emotion, best summed up by the beautiful but then shockingly violent elevator scene. The trailer gave away too much plot and so there weren't many surprises lying in wait for me, but it was still compelling watch, just don't expect a whole lot of actually driving in "Drive'.

4. Blue Valentine

The second film to star Ryan Gosling on my list, he gives far warmer performance than in "Drive" in this atypical romance. A brilliantly acted film that details both the start of a relationship and further down the line once they're married and the early optimism has faded. Both Gosling and Michelle Williams give emotional performances as both the young lovers and tired married couple, with genuine chemistry between the pair. The time between the two periods is subtly but convincingly conveyed, with minor changes in dress, personality and hairline. With his unkempt thinning hair, the older version of Gosling seems to have based his look on Nicolas Cage in "Raising Arizona."

3. Submarine

It's been over a year since I saw it at Brighton's Cinecity film festival, so I'm struggling to remember all of the details again. The film deals with the travails of growing up, viewed through the eyes of the pop-culturally obsessed young Welshman Oliver Tate. Like Blue Valentine, the film features the beginning of a relationship and a troubled marriage, but this time features the young protagonists first relationship and the marital discord of his parents. Richard Ayoade's debut feature is very funny, has great style and is beautifully shot, but it's main advantage is it's emotional clout. The cast are excellent, from the two young leads Craig Roberts and Yasmin Paige, to the gifted character actors Sally Hawkins, Noah Taylor and Paddy Considine, who plays a sleazy mystic life coach.

2. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

The reason I've waited so long to write this list is because I was giving myself a chance to see this. I've been shielding myself from any plot information from either the books or the original film, so I could just appreciate this as a work on it's own.

So with no knowledge going in, I thought this was a gripping thriller with a brutal storyline that doesn't seem to have been toned down in it's Hollywood conversion. I don't think it's as good as Fincher's "The Social Network" or "Se7en", but he's still crafted a tight whodunnit, with unease and suspicion strewn throughout, although the ending is slightly anti-climatic. His leads are both excellent, Daniel Craig is as good as you'd expect, while Rooney Mara as the titular character really convinces too. It's a pretty exposing role to play and she's not found wanting.

Trent Reznor's score is a perfect fit as you'd have expected from the excellent trailers, although the Bond-like intro sequence set to his and Karen O's rendition of "Immigrant Song" seems a little too glamorous for the subject matter. This is a minor quibble though and I'm now eagerly awaiting Fincher's take on the rest of the trilogy.

(NB: My brother who's a fan of the original Swedish film, was less impressed, feeling it didn't add enough to warrant the remake, so I'm not sure how well this version will go down with fans of the series.)

1. Hanna

I never expected "Hanna", to be my favourite film of the year, but having now watched it twice, I'm convinced of it's quality. A film that definitely deserved far more praise and success than it got, it seems to have slipped under the radar a bit. Directed with great skill by Joe Wright (a name more commonly associated with the period dramas "Atonement" and "Pride and Prejudice"), it manages to be a fantastically well-balanced action thriller, with all it’s elements weighing in equally to make a fully rounded film. It's a unique blend of espionage, conspiracy and fairytale, that combine to create an offbeat coming of age tale. Fantastically paced, beautifully shot and acted with great conviction, it has a diverse talented cast.

Saoirse Ronan is great as the lead, conveying Hanna's wide-eyed wonder at a world she has grown up isolated from, whilst also convincing us that she could defeat adversaries twice her size. Eric Bana plays the stoic father perfectly and Cate Blanchett creates an obsessive villain with depth, but the film's scene stealers come in the form of Tom Hollander and Jessica Barden. Hollander plays the whistling bleach-blond German psychopath Isaacs, who has a camp menace far removed from his recent bumbling performances in "Rev" and "In the Loop". In contrast, Barden brings some of the best comedic moments of the film playing Sophie, Hanna's equivalent in age, but a celebrity obsessive who's motormouthed teenage spiel is almost as confusing to the audience as it is to Hanna. The film's sense of humour is a major asset, lightening the tone at just the right points instead of allowing it to become too angst ridden.

The soundtrack is another string to it's bow, with a brilliant propulsive score from "The Chemcial Brothers" that works just as well in the contemplative moments as it does in the high tempo action sequences. A top quality blend of all the film making elements, I highly recommend you check it out.

Worthy Mentions
Not quite on the main list...
Melancholia, Another Earth, Take Shelter, 13 Assasins (best battle scene of the year), True Grit, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, 127 Hours, Midnight in Paris (for once, a proper Woody Allen return to form), Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes, Never Let Me Go, The Fighter, Fast Five, Super 8, The Skin I Live In, Kill List (most tense film of the year), X-Men First Class (if there'd been more time to add a little polish to the script this could have been great), We Need To Talk About Kevin (which had my favourite first half hour of the year - a visceral montage of imagery spanning the past and present), The King's Speech, Attack the Block, Animal Kingdom, Tyrannosaur

Worth a watch
Fun films worth a look -
Rango (my favourite animation of the year), Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (more of the same, but with more explosions and cross dressing), The Adventures Of Tintin: The Secret Of The Unicorn (not a fan of it's design or mo-cap, but it's not as "uncanny valley" as I thought it would be and it's a fun adventure), Fast Five (just because Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is awesome in it.)

Disappointments
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy - I had far too high expectations for this film, so it was bound to fall short. I wasn't a fan of the first half, but felt it grew as it went on.
Thor - Mostly enjoyable, but cluttered with needless characters like the "Warrior's Three" that caused problems with the tone and pacing.
The Ides of March - Usually films dealing with political elections move at a break-neck pace that reflects the crammed schedules of the politicians and aides, but this has a languid pace that drains the film of urgency.
Source Code - I had high hopes after Duncan Jones' debut "Moon" but this seemed fairly run of the mill in comparison.

Better than I thought...
The Future - I hated seventy percent of it, but the final thirty percent made sense of the preceding section and I ended up appreciating the film.

Also...
These films are awaiting release in the U.K, but I saw them at preview screenings, so I thought I'd write my thoughts on them. Some of them might make next years list...
Marcy Martha May Marlene - A look at life in a cult and it's lingering effects, definitely check it out.
Carnage - A bit uneven and stagey, but entertaining.
Coriolanus - Worth watching just for Ralph Fiennes performance in his directorial debut.
Shame - Not as good as McQueen's debut "Hunger", but still has great sequences.

The ones that got away...
I'm still annoyed I missed these -
A Separation, The Deep Blue Sea, Margin Call, The Descendants,Troll Hunter, Beginners, The Interrupters, Jane Eyre, Tangled, Biutiful, Meek's Cutoff, TT: Closer to the Edge, Neds, Moneyball, Weekend, Sleeping Beauty, Crazy Stupid Love, The Guard, Rubber, Incendies, 50/50, My Week with Marilyn, Senna, The Inbetweeners Movie, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol

Hope you enjoyed reading my breakdown, Happy New Year!

2010 Update
The ones I caught up with I missed last year...
Exit Through The Gift Shop (Brilliantly entertaining), Splice, Tron: Legacy, Catfish (After hearing so much hype, I was a little disappointed)

The ones I didn't..
Green Zone, Let Me In, Easy A, The Town, Buried, Mesrine, Robin Hood, Greenberg, Piranha 3D, Another Year, The Killer Inside me, Perrier’s Bounty, Centurion, Cyrus, Heartless, Cemetery Junction, Fish Tank, Made in Dagenham, The Ghost Writer

Business Mouse!

2011-12-01T07:40:00.000-08:00

Business Mouse has arrived on Channel4.com as part of their new Comedy Blaps comedy showcase. I was supervising animator and editor for the the three episode mini-series, which was created by Modern Toss.

Animated in a style inspired by classic cartoons like Top Cat, it features the adventures of the inept Business Mouse and his bumbling associates as they invest in a variety of unlikely schemes.

Business Mouse is a launch title for Comedy Blaps, Channel 4's new online video website that aims to showcase and develop new comedy talent. Episodes have been released weekly on the custom Comedy Blaps site and on Youtube and Vimeo.

Business Mouse was also on the Creative Review Blog

Films of the Year 2010

2010-12-21T20:05:00.000-08:00

Hi folks, it's the end of the year, so I thought it was time for my FILMS OF THE YEAR 2010. Like last year, it was actually quite hard to find a top ten, so maybe I'll switch to a top five next year (down to a mixture of not going to see enough films and going to see crappy films when I did go). Not that I didn't see a lot of films that I really enjoyed and admired, but you want these lists to be compiled of ones you loved.

Many of the films I thought would be on this years list (Never Let Me Go, Black Swan, True Grit, 127 Hours, The Fighter) are out in the US already, but have slipped into next years scheduling for the UK. So I can't put them in this list, but I will probably have forgotten about them by the time it gets to December next year so they might miss next years...

Anyway, feel free to ridiucle my choices, but here it goes (in a kind of order that's open to change at any moment)...

1. Inception

I think the hype surrounding it's supposed intelligence is starting to go against it, but taken as an event movie, I don't think it disappoints and I loved it. Yeah there's some dodgy plot holes here and there, but as an intelligent (in it's blockbuster field) action adventure, with spectacular visuals and a stunning (and often overwhelming) score by Hans Zimmer, it surely ranks as one of the best of the year. I rarely go to see a film twice at the cinema, but I made an exception here. I think that was almost a joke...anyway...

2. The Social Network

A fantastic blend of extremely talented people, this film is hugely impressive. David Fincher's restrained direction, Aaron Sorkin's witty dialogue and Trent Reznors energetic soundtrack combine with a great cast to produce a film that defies it's dry subject matter to become a must see movie. I'd recommend this to anyone and everyone.

3. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans

Nicolas Cage, Werner Herzog, lizards and break dancing spirits, what's not to love? Cage is in crazy mode (in a good way) and gives a hugely watchable performance. Constantly entertaining, it's hard not to love Herzog's non-remake/remake about, in his own words "the bliss of evil."

4. Four Lions

Perfectly balanced for such controversial subject matter, this is a triumph from Chris Morris. Creating funny but believable characters, he manages to make us laugh without ever making the act of terrorism a joke.

5. Kick-Ass

A great twist on the super hero story, with another fun Nicolas Cage performance. The film starts as a realistic view of what would happen if a normal person donned a costume to fight crime, but ends as a wish fulfillment fantasy romp. This switch in direction annoys some people, but you have to admit it's great fun and has some of the best filmed fight sequences I've seen in years. It's nice to see the director Matthew Vaughn not over using the shaky cam and delivering sequences that you can follow.

6. A Prophet

I saw this right at the beginning of the year, so my memories a bit light on details, but this is a gripping look at Europe's organised crime through the eyes a young convict climbing to the top. A fantastic performance from the lead Tahar Rahim, which includes one of the most visceral killings I've seen on screen in a long time. It also has my favourite final scene in any film this year (I won't ruin it for you).

7. Toy Story 3

A fitting end to the trilogy, it delivers on nearly every level and is one of the most emotionally fulfilling films of the year. Still very funny, it's comedic moments balance out the tear jerking ones.

8. A Single Man

I really enjoyed this slick debut from director Tom Ford. Colin Firth is brilliant, and brings emotional depth to a stylised film that may have lacked warmth without his performance. Also, it really made me want to wear a suit more often.

9. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

I didn't love this film as much as I'd hoped but it's still a fast paced exciting film experience. I could have done without some of the strict adherence to the comic visuals of the excellent graphic novels, as I feel the mediums should play to there individual strengths, but found the cast, humour and action sequences more than made up for this. Kieran Culkin steals the film as Scott's flatmate Wallace, while Brandon Routh reappears from the Superman wilderness in a great comic turn.

10. How To Train Your Dragon

Mainly on the list as it's such a surprise package, it's not quite Pixar, but not far off. The film is brimming with charm and it was apparently spectacular in 3D (which is easy to believe from the soaring dragon rides). I'm still kicking myself for not seeing this at the cinema.

Also...

I'd liked to have had The King’s Speech and Animal Kingdom on this list, but I saw them in previews at Cinecity and they will only go on wide release next year.

Worthy Mentions
Not quite on the main list...
Down Terrace (Brighton based black comedy), The American (a stylish look at familiar character types), Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (strangely uplifting), Nowhere Boy (interesting view of a young Lennon), Winter’s Bone (great performances in a gritty story. What's with the squirrels though?), Shutter Island (get's better and better as it goes along), The Kids are All Right (very close to being in the top ten, it's a top notch family comedy), Up in the Air (some great scenes in this enjoyable dramedy) ,The Illusionist (beautiful but slight), Of Gods and Men (an interesting look at religions role in society), Monsters (looks great for the budget)

Disappointments
These are mainly films I enjoyed, but weren't as good as I'd hoped...
Iron Man 2 (enjoyable but cluttered with references), Harry Brown (some great scenes, like the gun dealer, but too morally and politically simplistic for me) , The Expendables (disappointing, except Stallone's fleeting erotic glance over at Arnie), The Wolfman (a bit of a mess except for the fantastic Hugo Weaving), Predators (not bad, but should have made more of it premise),
Youth in Revolt (more French Cera needed), I’m Still Here (An interesting start but wears very thin by halfway through), Monsters (only the last third, which fails to add tension when events escalate), Enter the Void (I was with it for the first hour and a half, but ended up hating it by the end. I know your heading for the light!!! Just go there!)

The ones that got away...
I'm still annoyed I missed so many of these -
Exit Through The Gift Shop, Splice, Green Zone, Let Me In, Easy A, The Town, Buried, Mesrine, Robin Hood, Greenberg, Piranha 3D, Another Year, The Killer Inside me, Perrier’s Bounty, Centurion, Cyrus, Heartless, Cemetery Junction, Fish Tank, Made in Dagenham, The Ghost Writer, Tron: Legacy (although I'll see it next week, along with Catfish)

Hope you enjoyed reading my breakdown, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Another Castle

2010-12-21T17:44:00.000-08:00

Well, this isn't great timing, but I helped organise an exhibition called Another Castle, which has just closed it's doors after two successful weeks. Held at Brighton's A&E Gallery, the exhibition was a celebration of twenty five years of video games. Some of my work also featured in the show; two A2 art prints, an ISS Pro 98 "Decham" England shirt and an animation about my brother and I playing video games when we were younger.

I've got some photos I'll post later but you can see small versions of the prints below.


"Solid Shhnake" (Metal Gear Solid)

"A Fistful of Materia" (Final Fantasy VII)

We should soon have the prints for sale on our website (http://www.another-castle.co.uk/), so I'll keep you posted.

We're hoping follow this show up with another exhibition in spring next year, which I'll try and write about earlier next time...

Blinklife: How to Twitter

2010-08-03T02:45:00.000-07:00

Hi folks, long time no post. I was working on doing some more specific blogging and started two blogs which I never actually launched. hmm

Anyway, to get back into the swing of things, here's an animation I did at work with local comedian Stephen Grant. It's about Twitter (I'm also on Twitter... follow Motski to follow me)

Death Metal Cockrel

2010-01-25T08:31:00.000-08:00

It's Monday, time for some fun.

I was just gonna call it death metal cock, but I thought that might be miss construed...

Blinklife

2010-01-24T10:16:00.000-08:00

Here's an animation I did at work that was written and voiced by Brighton comedian Stephen Grant.

There's two more you can see at http://blinklife.tv

Go on, have a look.

Muscle Rave!

2010-01-24T10:12:00.000-08:00

That Arnie really knows how to party.

Uncle Grandpa!

2010-01-17T04:03:00.000-08:00

This is awesomely amazing.

Welcome to 2010

2010-01-10T03:36:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to wish everyone a belated Happy New Year. This is my favourite video of the year so far and also how I imagine the rest of the year might turn out.

Motski's 2009 Film Review

2009-12-30T15:35:00.000-08:00

Hiya folks, seeing as it's the end of the year and all, I thought I'd announce my FILMS OF THE YEAR 2009. It was actually quite hard to find 10 films that I'd feel worthy of the list (through a mixture of not going to see enough films and going to see crappy films when I did go) so the list has been left quite open to ridicule, but here goes (in no particular order)...

1. Star Trek
The most enjoyable film of the year. A great cast and a fast paced storyline blew the cobwebs away and created a tight, punchy blockbuster. The action sequences never failed to put me on the edge of my seat and always managed to dispel my disbelief, which rarely happens to me anymore. I didn't even mis the mighty Shatner too much.

2. Synedoche New York
Some will hate, but I loved it. Bewildering and captivating in equal measure, it's a very emotional film that you will either be dragged into and be affected by or you'll find it confusing and self-indulgent(I'd hope most people will be dragged in)

3. District 9
Up there with Star Trek in the blockbuster stakes. Great pacing and character development created a thrilling film that also greatly benefited from it's South African setting. It also had some of the most believable visual effects of the year despite a relatively small budget. I'm looking forward to seeing the films lead, Sharlto Copley, in the A-team next year.

4. The Wrestler
A real shame that Mickey Rourke didn't get and Oscar for this touching but unsentimental film. Darren Aronofsky also deserves plaudits for his least showy direction to date, which prefectly suited the story.

5. In the Loop
A fantastic ensemble cast banter hilariously, making the political system more worrying by the minute, but at least very funny.

6. Let the Right One In
Atmospheric, thoughtful and restrained but still with enough shock and gore to please hard-core horror fans. A vampire film for those who do and don't like them.

7. Fantastic Mr. Fox
Ambitious animation full of quirks and imagination that I think will reward repeat viewers. I especially liked the use of "cussing" and "cuss" to replace all the expletives.

8. Zombieland
My guilty pleasure of the list. Great fun, an on form Woody Harrelson and a fantastic cameo...

9. Up
Should be on this list for the first ten minutes alone, but I thought it was great throughout, with spot-on comedic timing and real emotional pull.

10.Moon
A great performance by Sam Rockwell and clever use of a small budget makes this one of the best Sci-fi films of recent years. It also had a great poster.

Honourable mentions:
Broken Embraces, Gran Torino, Frost/Nixon, Drag Me to Hell, Coraline, Gamorrah, Where the Wild Things Are, Looking for Eric, Down Terrace, Milk

Films I didn't see/should have seen/meant to have seen that I heard were very good -
Hurt Locker, Bright Star, An Education, A Serious Man, Bronson, Fish Tank, Mesrine 1 and 2.

Slight Disappointments...

Inglorious Basterds - Really enjoyable, yet not the more focused return to form I'd hoped for. Less dodgy casting (Eli Roth does not convince as "The Bear Jew") and more self restraint would have made a tighter film, but then again that's probably not what QT intended.

Watchmen - Possibly the best adaptation you could do in the time allocated, but still missing far too much to feel satisfying. The disastrous casting of Matthew Goode ruins the murder mystery element of the storyline that could have helped the films narrative backbone(although to be fair to Goode, he could have been asked to play the role that way). Perfect Rorschach from Jackie Earle Haley.

Avatar - Visually stunning (although it doesn't quite live up to the photo realistic hype) and impeccably made, but the story was a bit too straight forward and predictable for my liking.

Public Enemies - I'm a big fan of Manhunter and Heat, so I had high hopes for Michael Mann's latest. It was an enjoyable look at John Dillinger's lifestyle, but unfortunately I found it a bit emotionally cold and it failed to fully engage me.

The Men Who Stare at Goats - Some very funny flashback sequences, but it failed to maintain the laugh count, while also not fully exploring the darker elements of the story.

Disappoinments

Transformers 2
Wolverine Origins
The Spirit.
Terminator Salvation

Movember!

2009-12-06T07:25:00.000-08:00

I took part in this years Movember (growing a moustache to raise money for the Prostate Cancer Charity) and this video documents my progress through November.

Motski Movember 2009 from Tom Matuszewski on Vimeo.

To donate to the cause please click here.

Chaos Labs Episode 4 (The final one, which features my arm)

2009-12-06T07:14:00.000-08:00

Hi folks, this is the final episode of Chaos Labs, which includes the most animation and as a bonus my arm feeding a lert a crisp. Keep your eyes peeled for that exciting scene!

Chaos Laboratories Episodes 1-3

2009-11-29T13:21:00.000-08:00

For your viewing ease, I have gathered the first three episodes of Chaos Labs and out them onto one easy to view page. Enjoy!

Episode 1

Episode 2

Episode 3

You See some Odd Things on the Train...

2009-10-28T04:01:00.000-07:00

Mmmm Lovely Mash

2009-09-30T03:50:00.000-07:00

Empire's put together a list of their top 50 movie mash ups and I've posted some of my favourites below. (I haven't watched all of them yet, only the top 10, so I may post more..)

When Harry Stalked Sally

Scary Poppins

Watchmen Parod-E

If you want to check out the full list click here.

This is Not Photoshopped

2009-09-30T03:22:00.000-07:00

It's from a film called The Beaver, directed by Jodie Foster. No, I'm not joking.

wer-wer-windows 386!

2009-09-30T02:27:00.000-07:00

You may have all seen the new Microsoft 7 Party promo, but things weren't always so wholesome at Bill Gates towers, they used to create edgy pop cultural referencing videos like this -

(This is quite long, but worth it. For the impatient skip to 2:40 for the best bit, but you'll be missing out)

Thanks to Verity for showing me terrifying video and thanks to Windows for making it.

I genuinely love this.

Russian Dolls Lose Weight with Milk Consumption

2009-08-18T14:38:00.000-07:00

I wish that'd work for me. Ahh well, back to the rice cakes...

Anyway here's a bizarre and very funny video shown to me by uber "video-teller-abouter" Rosie Miles. It's highlights the problems you encounter being a Russian Doll...

Originally seen here http://dekku.nofatclips.com/2008/12/must-drink-more-milk-russian-dolls.html

Pentastic

2009-08-18T14:24:00.000-07:00

Cheekily I'm posting something old off Geekologie in order to make it look like I've actually posted something in the last month (when in fact I haven't..shh).

Anyway, this looks to be the ultimate pen and I really would like one for my birthday/christmas, if anyone's struggling for ideas.

The Color Picker pen by Jinsu Park allows you to write in any colour using the pen's colour sensor. Hold the sensor up to a colour, then push the button and it mixes the right amounts of red, green and blue to make your chosen hue. Genius!

So genius it's actually still only a conceptual design...

QUIZAGEDDON!

2009-07-12T16:44:00.000-07:00

Just a reminder that the pub quiz that I run with Mr Jamie Marchant, the QUIZAGEDDON, returns tomorrow at the Druids Arms in Brighton. So if you can make it along at 8:30ish that'd be super.

Send me a message if you need more info.

If I was a Robot I'd apparenly Kill and Infiltrate

2009-07-12T16:40:00.000-07:00

A quick bit of fun that can end up lasting for ages...

Get Your Cyborg Name

Jason Bought a Hatchet

2009-07-01T06:44:00.000-07:00

Fantastic video sent to me by Chloe Bell

Ooh this looks good...

2009-06-18T16:27:00.000-07:00

The latest from HBO. It's called Bored to Death and features Jason Schwartzman playing a private detective/writer/alcoholic/Jason Schwartzman , so should be entertaining if you're a Wes Anderson fan. Sam from Cheers also stars, so they'll hopefully be some awesome Ted Danson action to.

Comes out in the States this September, so dunno when we'll get a chance to see it, but have a look anyway below.

Living in the Future: Scary.

2009-06-05T05:54:00.000-07:00

Saving the Earth from global warming using a giant massive SUN SHIELD!!! WHAT!?

I can't help but think that making reductions to our emissions here on Earth might be easier. Having said that, a massive shield would be super cool, but I'd want it to deflect asteroids and destroy invading alien fleets to.

The Amazing Sara Carlson Hates the Past

2009-06-03T09:54:00.000-07:00

Laurie found the best dancer in the world on Graham Linehan's blog. Compelling. Look out for the weird chicken flapping bit and frequent moon walking.

Look for Sara Carlson on youtube to find other 80's oddities, I recommend the disturbing One Night.

McBess

2009-06-03T09:40:00.000-07:00

Great new video by McBess, that he also wrote and performed the music for. Clever fella.

Have a look at some more of his beautiful retro toon work here.

(720): o shit let me call u back theres a hamburger in my pocket

2009-06-03T06:26:00.000-07:00

Rosie found this amazing website Texts From Last Night documenting loads of drunken texts. You can find out how to put a shirt on upside down (not inside out) and you can stay tonight but you'll have to bath with grandpa.

Look here.

The Beatles: Now Even Cooler

2009-06-03T06:21:00.000-07:00

Have a look at this awesome promo by Pete Candeland for the new Beatles Rockband Game.
Exciting huh?

Cheers to Laurie for bringing this to my attention.

Mutant Ninja Paper Genius

2009-06-02T06:31:00.001-07:00

Cut and fold your own Krang and odd looking robot carrier thing. Yay!

Click here for the PDF to print out.

Hope it Works

2009-05-19T16:48:00.000-07:00

Combining two things that are individually awesome (like barbequing banana whilst wrapped in bacon) often makes them even more awesome (or at the very least, no less awesome than when they were apart). So needless to say, Woody Allen combined with Larry David should = Divine Genius. Trailer looks good, cast looks good, so fingers crossed...

Does look like it could get a bit soppy towards the end, but I'm hoping Larry will screw that up just through pure negative thought and social ineptitude.

By the way, if you were confused, you wrap the banana in the bacon and then barbeque it (preferably with a spicy/fruity marinade), you don't barbeque the bacon after wrapping yourself in bacon.

Synecdoche, New York

2009-05-15T10:29:00.000-07:00

Not a full review as such, just a reaction. The film is everything, and it's made me feel null. This is in spite of the fact that it should make we want to live my life fully, not wasting time over analysing and recording events (like I'm doing now). It both vilifies art and highlights it's importance and our need for it. I suppose my mistake was going to see it on my own...

However, if you just get on with your life and hate navel gazing, you will probably find this film tedious and frustrating.

Anyway everyone should see this film, but not many people will enjoy it. Well done Mr. Kaufman. 9/10

(Might have to do all reviews like this, I haven't written about Le the Right One In, Wolverine or Star Trek yet :-/)

Mega Shark vs Giant Octopus

2009-05-13T10:05:00.000-07:00

Does exactly what it says on the tin.

Spider-Keyboard-Cat-Fail

2009-05-12T05:32:00.000-07:00

Not as a big a fan of the keyboard cat as most, but this one has Spiderman and failing to, so I thought it worthwhile.

Beam me up JR

2009-05-12T05:30:00.000-07:00

Dallas/Star Trek mashup. Mmm nostalgia.

Snatch Wars

2009-05-08T06:14:00.000-07:00

Another credit to Jamie here for finding this. Brick Top and Vader merged seamlessly in a cross between Snatch and Star Wars.

Scrabulous

2009-05-07T17:10:00.000-07:00

Awesome Scrabble adverts made by French animation studio Wizz. Very Nice. As you can see I've embedded all three cos I couldn't choose between them.

Italian Spiderman

2009-05-07T17:05:00.000-07:00

Ahh, Italian Spiderman, where have you gone? Well apparently off to make a full film version, available to watch on the web from the 22nd May, woo! Until then, why not watch the trailer again, or if your new to the Italian Spiderman phenomenon, watch the trailer and then the 10 episodes currently available online.

Awww hehehe

2009-05-07T13:02:00.000-07:00

For some reason this sends me into fits of giggles. Yes giggles. Looks at his little face!

I want a Loris! or a slow loris, whatever it's called, hadn't heard of one before today.
Good spot Rosie :-)

Graped in the Mouth

2009-05-04T05:56:00.000-07:00

Jamie showed me this hilarious (used non-ironically) video the other day.

I don't think I can say anything to prepare you for the graping your about to get...

Scary

2009-04-30T07:25:00.000-07:00

I never thought I'd find Paulo DiCanio as terrifying as this, but the Umbro England shirt advert that has him cutting up a full English brekky while staring at you, really freaks me out.

Good Clean Illogical Fun

2009-04-28T18:22:00.000-07:00

Have a go on this amazing (or amazingly creepy) trek yourself site and turn yourself into a Vulcan(or Kirk/Uhura/Eric Bana)!

The result of my attempt lies below. I've had trouble embedding it, so I've posted a jpg. still version (that looks crap) witha link to the much cooler moving speaking version below...

http://www.trekyourself.com/?mId=30020583.3

Educational Fun

2009-04-28T08:11:00.000-07:00

Awesome website to help raise awareness of male cancer for the charity Everyman, by drawing penis' online. Have a go, but beware the ink runs out. I was half way through colouring in a penis drawing and it ran out, leaving my masterpiece unfinished. It also started to make me feel ill after a while. You'll know why when you see the thing in the top left hand corner...

WARNING (It's more than a bit rude to those easily offended, so if that's the close don't click the link. I won't be held responsible)

http://www.cockadoodle.co.uk/

Thanks to Rosie for finding this.

Henson's 11

2009-04-23T12:04:00.000-07:00

Great mash-up of Oceans 11 and the Muppets...

David Wilson

2009-04-23T11:26:00.000-07:00

This is a stunning new video created by my friend David Wilson for the song "We Got Time" by Moray McLaren. Very clever stuff.

Oh, and click here for a great behind the scenes look at how it was made.

"Gifted"

2009-04-23T11:08:00.000-07:00

A great video by Three Legged Legs for "Gifted" which features Kanye West, Santigold, & Lykke Li. It's a song off an album made by N.A.S.A. (It actually is, it's not a joke)

Newswipe Should Not End

2009-04-16T17:40:00.000-07:00

Watching this weeks Charlie Brooker's Newswipe, I again realised that the show is the most important and informative show the BBC is currently airing. It consistently rounds up the weeks most important news, cutting through the crap and giving us proper expert views. This show should be permanently on air, with a far more prominent slot then 10:30 on a Wednesday on BBC Four. Surely it could at find a home on BBC2, nearer 9?

Anyway I recommend you watch it next Wednesday or iPLayer it now.(Oh and it's repeated at 11:20 on a Sunday Night)

There's only two left, so soon I'll have to go back to believing what the evening news tells me...

More Lonely Planet...

2009-04-14T10:44:00.000-07:00

Hmm... is the joke wearing a bit thin? Not sure if anything's gonna beat Jizz in My Pants, but this is pretty good. I like it more than the boat one anyway.

LSD

2009-04-14T10:39:00.001-07:00

A very odd animation set to the ramblings of someone who's on LSD. I could say more but it would only spoil the fun.

I still like that "United States of Whatever" song to. Is that bad? Too late anyway, I bought the CD years ago...

I'm the "T" in "I.T" Sucker!

2009-04-14T10:31:00.000-07:00

Mr T knows his Virtualization. I've watched this corporate film(?) five times now and I still don't understand what he's talking about... or how he ended up agreeing to do it. Still, I suppose it's healthier than a Snickers bar.

Also we get to find out the kind of job Hey Arnold/Stewie will do when they grow up. Bonus.

Remember: "Intelligence in the network is for suckers"

"Tastes like chicken"

Bush's Doggy Christmas

2009-04-14T10:06:00.000-07:00

Okay this is quite old, so I hope I'm not the only one who completely missed this. Personally, I'm still having trouble readjusting my world view to believe that this actually does exist and I'm not just going barmy.

Anyway here's a clip of a film about George Bush's dogs, Barney and Miss. Beazley, at Christmas, featuring the former US President himself along with a cameo from our very own former PM Blair.

If this idea has already grabbed you, you might as well go straight for the whole film by clicking here.

New LSM Website

2009-04-07T10:33:00.000-07:00

As most of you know, I work at a animation and new media company called LSM and we've recently launched our new website, which I designed along with my workmate Matt Keen. The website also has our new showreel. Please have a look and let me know what you think :-) (even the bad feedback...)

NEW LOOK LSM WEBSITE CLICK HERE

Batman on an Elephant

2009-04-07T10:31:00.000-07:00

I've not had a great day, but at least this put a smile on my face.

Dancing with the Star Wars

2009-04-03T10:03:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Jamie for sending me this. Personally I'm impressed by the mobility of the Chewbacca dancer, so they'd get my vote.

Mmm Bacon

2009-04-03T09:57:00.000-07:00

Now everything can taste like bacon with Bacon Salt, the bacon flavour seasoning. It's even vegetarian :-) I can't wait to get mine.

http://www.baconsalt.com/

Git Gob

2009-03-28T08:13:00.000-07:00

Crazy animation by Phillips Eddolls

Toy Fight (But Good)

2009-03-26T13:51:00.001-07:00

Here's an amazing stop motion (although obviously embellished with computer goodness) fight between Bruce Lee and Iron Man. But all is not what it seems...

Wes "American Express" Anderson

2009-03-25T11:48:00.000-07:00

In the never ending battle to be regarded as the best director with the surname "Anderson" working in Hollywood today, Wes Anderson always does pretty well.

Admittedly beating Paul W.S Anderson (Aliens vs Predator, Resident Evil, good when your drunk films like Death Race) isn't that hard, but Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights, Magnolia, There Will Be Blood) is a tough cookie.

So in honour of this never ending struggle, I'm posting this old American Express advert he did. Although this doesn't mean he beats Paul Thomas Anderson...

Rabbit on Camel War Action

2009-03-25T11:36:00.000-07:00

If you stick out the early rolling text (or you skip along) you will be rewarded with Shit Cat One, a trailer for an animated series where Rabbits are at war with Camels. Not in a kiddie way though, in a full on war is violent and nasty way.

As much as I'm glad that someone made this war oddity, I still have to ask that all important question: why did they feel the need to make a Rabbit vs Camel war series with a name about rubbish cats?

Maybe I'll never know. Or maybe I should look it up on Google, but I'm to lazy to. Ah well, I kind of enjoy the mystery anyway.

Batman - The Documentary

2009-03-24T16:25:00.000-07:00

Quite an old one, but still fun. This animated documentary flies in the face of conventional wisdom and explains to us why the Batman is actually pretty lame. If you're geek you'll find this very funny ( I reckon ), if not you probably won't get past the first 3 minutes, cos this is one looong parody...

Batman's Gonna Get Shot in the Face | Movies & TV | SPIKE.com

Hmm.... is this good? Probably.

2009-03-23T15:47:00.000-07:00

This a viral for the new Jared Hess film Gentlemen Broncos about a young writer having his great idea stolen by a washed out author.

The character in the viral is played by Flight of the Conchord's Jermaine Clement and is like a mix between Garth Marenghi and Sanchez in Darkplace. Well I think so anyway, but have a look yourself...

Good? Or possibly stealing the success that should have been Marenghi's..... hmm

I'm ashamed of it but...

2009-03-19T03:15:00.000-07:00

...I love advertising.

Weird Kid

2009-03-16T16:33:00.000-07:00

Don't know if everyone already knows about this guy, but he's got the odd kind of genius that tends to come from a lack of self awareness.

His views on Rihanna...

and his review of Watchmen (again I'm being slack, I went to see it at the imax on the release date, but I felt a well thought out review needed a bit of time...)

Benjamin Button (Formerly Motski's Oscar Watch Part 5)

2009-02-28T10:37:00.000-08:00

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Okay, I failed. I didn't make it too all the Oscar nominated films and I didn't review this one before the ceremony... (or any where near it) but then again it didn't end up winning any of the major awards it was up for so maybe it didn't hurt my review of the Oscars too much... and it's probably out on DVD soon anyway.
but enough of my excuses...

Benjamin Button is a charming, interesting and highly enjoyable film, but perhaps the premise promised more. The concept of a man growing from an old baby into a young man is handled brilliantly to begin with, especially through it's exceptional special effects that only infrequently fail to convince. His early years move along apace and Brad Pitt plays the part with the child-like innocence needed. As he grows older/younger the pace slows to explore his romance with Kate Blanchett's Rose and the quirks of his aging process take a back seat.

Blanchett plays her role with gusto, but at times isn't the most likable character as Benjamin struggles to win her heart. When they inevitably do get together, the film hits perhaps it's least interesting point, with Button's age stabling out around this point. The anticipation of his de-aging will be handled in the final chapter of the film, also lessens the impact of this scene.

SPOILERS

This leads me on to my biggest disappointment. I assumed that as Button began life as an old baby, he'd end it as an adult baby. I was looking forward to seeing some kind of gross weird looking man child. Unfortunately he just turns back into a kid and then into a baby. Not as dramatic as I'd hoped, or as disturbing. The special effects team could have had a chance to fully round off the film with a bizarre creation and director David Fincher could have added a memorable dark moment that would have helped the film stand out from the usual romantic fair.

SPOILERS END

There are also a few cringe-worthy moments of sentimentalism involving a kingfisher which distract from rather than enhance the atmosphere. The subplot of the man hit by lightening however is very funny and offers regular bouts of laughter.

Overall Benjamin Button is a likable and good hearted film, but lacks the edge that I hoped David Fincher would lend the tale. 7/10

Democracy is Fun

2009-02-27T07:37:00.001-08:00

Politics can put a smile on your face can't it?
Thanks to Mr. Laurie Rowan for that one.

I'm in STREET FIGHTER!

2009-02-20T08:27:00.000-08:00

This is amazing. I make a great Sagat.

Have a go yourself at -
http://www.becomestreetfighter.com/

(btw I Photoshopped myself a tan so that my face would fit better. My tip of the day.)

WHAT!? WHY!? WHEN!?

2009-02-19T10:10:00.001-08:00

How did I not know this existed? Michael Jackson makes Eddie Murphy look a lot buffer than usual. Eddie Murphy makes Michael Jackson look more like a woman. Disturbing.

DAMN!

2009-02-13T10:38:00.000-08:00

That Black Freighter is too wide, but I don't know how to solve the problem at the moment, my apologies for the mess.

BLACK FREIGHTER WOO!

2009-02-13T10:14:00.001-08:00

Here's the first look (in fully animated form any way) at The Black Freighter, made to coincide with the Watchmen film. The Black Freighter is intertwined within the main narrative in the graphic novel, but was dropped from the film due to fears of making the picture too long and complicated. Thankfully it has been made as accompanying animation that may well be included in the DVD of Watchmen when it's released.

Looks like The Black Freighter section of the Watchmen project is on target anyway from what I can see here... let's hope the film works out too...

Sexually Abused Dogs

2009-02-13T06:40:00.000-08:00

A slow burner, until you get to the dog rape. Yes, dog rape.

Cool Watchmen game... well Minutemen anyway...

2009-02-13T04:32:00.000-08:00

An 8-bit introduction to the world of Watchmen.

http://www.minutemenarcade.com/uk/

Holy Keanu!

2009-02-13T03:47:00.000-08:00

My friend Rosie hyper ventilated after finding the website of artist and illustrator Alejandra Vernon (http://www.avernon.com/), who seems to see Keanu Reeves as some kind of prophet. She even gives a good review to the Lake House :-/

(http://www.amazon.co.uk/product-reviews/B000HWXQGQ/ref=cm_cr_pr_link_next_2?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=0&pageNumber=2&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending).

So the only question left to ask is whether a holy Keanu should be called Jeanu or Je-Reeve...

Motski's Oscar Watch Part 4

2009-02-10T15:46:00.000-08:00

Hi folks, a little delayed as usual, but here my next review, this time it's...

Frost/Nixon

I must admit I was not expecting to enjoy Frost/Nixon. Something about an Oscar nominated film by Ron Howard seemed awfully safe and unexciting. However I have been proved wrong (as often happens).

Frost/Nixon is a riveting film built on powerful performances from the leads, Michael Sheen and Frank Langella. Both actors are exceptional in their roles, in fact when Michael Sheen first speaks, he nails Frost's nasal drawl so well it's hard to fight back a chuckle. The voice effected for Langella's Nixon could never claim to be so faithful, but it is his performance that is the main draw. While Frost's smarmy chat show host takes time to warm to, Nixon is immedietly engaging. Direct and funny, Langella does much to humanise the characature allowing us understand the mentality behind his decision making.

The film is sharp and trim, building to the finale interview with little excess. The faux documentary interviews that intersperse the narrative give gravitas to the situation and add an awareness of the interview's importance to the American public. These interviews also give extra time for the excellent supporting cast to shine ( a cast that includes Sam Rockwell, Kevin Bacon and Toby Jones in the small but memorable role of Swifty Lazar).

Despite this I have to admit I was a little disappointed by the somewhat two-dimensional role offered Rebecca Hall. Little explanation is given of who her character was or what she did for a living, other than that she flies first class and is Frost's love interest. It seems a bit of a waste of a talented actress who impressed in The Prestige and Vicky Cristina Barcelona, especially in such a male centric story.

This is a minor quible however, as the film is an engrossing character study of the struggle between two men at very different stages of their career. 8.5/10

Coming soon... A review of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

2009-02-08T16:24:00.000-08:00

Motski's Oscar Watch Part 3

Hi folks, I'm slowly catching up, this week...

Milk

One day I hope they make a film entitled "Milk" about the history of those "Got Milk?" ads that appear on the back of American comic books, but for now Gus Van Sant's new film will have to do and I have to admit it covers a much worthier topic.

Milk charts the story of Harvey Milk (Sean Penn), the first openly gay man elected to U.S public office, and his SPOILER tragic death. Filmed in an intimate often semi-documentary style, Milk is involving and highly entertaining, managing to match Harvey's personal relationships and humour with the further reaching implications of his election.

Although Penn is fantastic and wholly believable in the lead role, the whole cast is great, especially James Franco who gives a restrained emotional performance.

Despite this praise, I did feel that the film lost momentum towards the end, loosing pace just as we reach the critical moment. Josh Brolin's role as Dan White SPOILER Milk's killer, is also not given enough screen time, with his frustration not reaching the boiling point I expected before he took such extreme action.

In the end, Van Sant's film offers an entertaining and highly watchable look at an important part of the U.S.A's recent history. 8/10

Coming soon... A review Frost/Nixon and this week I'll be watching The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

2009-02-04T15:49:00.000-08:00

Motski's Oscar Watch Part 2

Hi folks, I've been a bit lame updating my Oscar Watch post, so I''ll endeavour to catch up in the following days.

The Wrestler

I'm going to state this right from the start, this is my favourite of the films I've seen so far this year. This compelling and touching film follows Mickey Rourke's weary wrestler (Randy "The Ram") trying to come to terms with retirement and old age. I don't want to write one of those reviews that details the plot in too much detail, so I won't, but I do want to highlight how tight the story is kept, with Darren Aronofsky's direction showing great economy and restraint. Toning down his usually highly stylised camera work and bereft of the type of relentless soundtrack featured in Requiem for a Dream, this is an earthier film, which I was extremely disappointed not to see at least nominated for Best Director.

The Academy has however recognised Rourke and Marisa Tomei with nominations for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress. Rourke's performance is nuanced and entirely believable, mirroring his own well documented struggles with fame, fortune and fall from grace. It's a role he was born to play and along with his role in Sin City, it's great to see him hitting his stride again after a long hiatus. It would be a great shame if this role did not earn him an Oscar triumph.

Tomei is also fantastic in her supporting role, coming close to matching Rourke's performance and I imagine that she will also be in the reckoning when the winners are announced.

Overall this is a cohesive beautifully balanced film that I highly recommend. It also ends at exactly the right point, which is not a pleasure to be found in many a film. 9/10

Coming soon... Reviews of Milk and Frost/Nixon and next week I'll be watching The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

2009-02-04T10:34:00.000-08:00

Superman is a dick. Evidence found here -
http://superdickery.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=28&Itemid=45&limitstart=2

Super Broker Shuffle

2009-01-29T10:00:00.000-08:00

If they can rap, why can't I?

On a lighter note: The Spirit...

2009-01-28T18:00:00.000-08:00

Despite outlining my plans to spend the month watching Oscar nominated/worthy films, I'm also likely to watch the usual trashy popcorn flicks.

So the first film I actually saw this month was Frank Miller's solo directorial debut (after working with Robert Rodriguez on Sin City) The Spirit.

I'd like to say I went into the cinema with high hopes, but I'd heard rumbling that the film was a bit of a stinker... and on the whole it is. Plodding and clunky, The Spirit could do with some major editing and much much better dialogue. However it does have it's moments (the foot scene) and undoubtedly has the best looking cast of the year (Scarlett Johansson, Eva Mendes and Paz Vega amongst others) so it's worth a DVD watch. I'd say the ideal viewing conditions would be on a night in with friends when you just wanna watch something fun and your not going to pay too much attention to dialogue (which is truly awful throughout) or plot. The sexy cast and ludicrous cartoon violence would be well matched with alcohol and frivolity, rather than serious concentrated viewing.

As a fan of Frank Miller's comic output, I hope this film is a blip and that he gets the chance to redeem himself, but in the end I can't give it more than a 5/10 (only half an hour into the film some of my friends wanted to leave, if that's any indication to it's quality.)

Motski's Oscar Watch Part 1

2009-01-28T17:25:00.000-08:00

Hi folks, it's Oscar season again and I'm endevouring to catch all of the biggins before the big day, so I though I'd give you my lopsided views on what I've seen.

First up is...

Slumdog Millionaire
Which I felt was very good, but not excellent. Essentially your standard boy meets girl fairy tale, but with a vibrant Indian based twist. Dev Patel (off of Skins) was far better than I imagined in the lead role of Jamal (mostly nice and restrained) and the rest of the casting was spot on. Using the Who Want to be a Millionaire? show format to link the disparate elements of Jamal's past was clever and well integrated, but fequently less compelling than the flashbacks themselves. These flashbacks offer involving, exciting and often disturbing insights into life growing up in India's slums. Overall, it's an extremely well crafted piece of film making (the cinematography is uniformly stunning), but don't expect too many suprises...

It seems to have ended up as the Best Picture front runner, but I'd give it a 7.5/10
(If you've visited India however, you'll probably want to whack another 1.5 to that score. Friends I watched it with who've been to India absolutely loved it.)

Coming soon... The Wrestler, Milk and Frost/Nixon.
(I've actually already seen The Wrestler and Milk, but I thought breaking up the reviews would make for easier comprehension. Frost/Nixon's up next week...)

2009-01-28T16:57:00.000-08:00

Probably the best duet ever. Except it would be probably be better if Jackson sang the whole thing.

Wilkins Coffee

2009-01-28T16:50:00.000-08:00

Kermit was a bit of a dick before Miss Piggy made him get all loved up and schmalzy.