Based upon actual events, awards juggernaut Paul Haggis' new film "In The Valley of Elah" tells the story of a man searching for his son's murderer and ends up re-examining his beliefs about war. Haggis keeps the film very low key, with everything quiet and seeming to be a shade of grey. While some might say he beats you over the head with his message, I felt that it was very well presented, which is what I said about "Crash" and look at what happened there. Needless to say, this film probably has no shot at getting a BP nom, unless the rest of the major contenders crumble. The screenplay is good and worthy of a nomination, but not amazing. Tommy Lee Jones delivers yet another amazing performance like in "The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada" without the charm and happiness. He doesn't smile once while grieving for his son and balancing his increasing distrust with an institution he has lived by for years. While I would love to see him get in, I feel the performance is too bland when compared to what's been seen of Daniel Day-Lewis in "There Will Be Blood" and Philip Seymour Hoffman in "Before the Devil Knows You're Dead". Charlize Theron could actually slide into a Supporting nom even though she is obviously the female lead. Her performance is so collected and controlled, which has allowed for her to earn an undeserving nod for "North Country".Awards Possibilities:
Best Director-Paul Haggis
Best Screenplay
Best Actor-Tommy Lee Jones
Best Supporting Actress-Charlize Theron
Best Cinematography
Best Film Editing
Best Original Song
Next: "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" or "Into the Wild"
1 comment:
we basically have the same thoughts about movie. Can't wait to see what u thought of Jesse James.
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