Oscar Picks 2013!!!

Ok folks, the moment has come...  It's Oscar time!  For me, this is bigger and more important to me than the Superbowl (I'm not a big sports guy, so I could care less about that game).  Some years are better than others, but no matter what, I always have my thoughts on who should win.  This year, I am posting this so you ALL can see what I think and why.  So without further adieu... And I think just for fun (so you all read to the end) I will post them in order of importance from the ones nobody cares about to the ones you do... that way you can read the whole blog... lol 

JOSH'S OSCAR PICKS for 2013! (Technically 2012 movies, but the Oscars are tonight... lol)

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM - 
No idea... lol.  I didn't see any of them, therefore I can't give a prediction.
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT -
Again... No idea...
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE - 
Nope... didn't see any of these either... lol.  I'll catch these someday on Netflix

This concludes the categories I have no idea about... thank you for your patience... lol


BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM - Amour

(Spoilers... but not for the movie itself)  Since I will NOT be picking this for my Best Picture winner, I figured it at least deserves to win for Best Foreign Language Film.


BEST SOUND EDITING - Skyfall

Great James Bond movie.  Great action movie... sounded great to me... lol


BEST SOUND MIXING - Les Miserables

Come on people... they sang everything LIVE while filming.  THAT deserves this Oscar.


BEST ORIGINAL SCORE - Life of Pi

Again... this was NOT my favorite movie of the year, but it did have some pretty incredible music.


ORIGINAL SONG - Skyfall, by Adele

There seems to be no stopping this song.  While doing "Little Mermaid Jr.", the kids were ALWAYS asking if they could use this song as a warmup... If it is good enough for the kids, its good enough for me... lol


COSTUME DESIGN - Les Miserables

I think this picture says it all...


VISUAL EFFECTS - The Avengers

Considering this is the ONLY nomination for one of my favorite movies of the year, I am happy to pick this for best Visual Effects.  I know that some of you will think that Life of Pi deserves it more for its realistic tiger, that tiger would get crushed by the Hulk... 'nuff said...


ANIMATED SHORT FILM - Paperman

BEAUTIFUL, touching short film.  Brilliant mix of CGI and hand drawn animation.  Well deserved winner!


PRODUCTION DESIGN (AND MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING)... I'm getting lazy with the pictures... lol.  - Les Miserables

The scope of this film was perfect.  Lots of amazing locations.  And they REALLY must have wanted the makeup and hairstyling Oscar considering how many times they had the camera RIGHT IN the faces of the actors.  What the heck, I'll give it to them.


ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY - Moonrise Kingdom

This was SUCH a great movie!  One of my favorites of the year (I thought it deserved to get nominated for best picture... but oh well).  The Academy would be STUPID to not give this the Oscar for best original screenplay.


ADAPTED SCREENPLAY - Silver Linings Playbook

I actually really liked this movie.  This one was a hard choice between all the nominees, but I really liked the writing in this movie more than the other ones.  Therefore, it wins my pick.


CINEMATOGRAPHY - Life of Pi

Even though a LOT of it was CGI, it was a beautifully shot movie.


FILM EDITING - Argo

In what other movie (not counting Titanic) could you KNOW the ending, and still be on the edge of your seat for the last 45 minutes NOT KNOWING how they are going to make it?  Thank you Argo for almost giving us a heart attack.



NOW FOR THE GOOD STUFF!!!!!!


BEST ANIMATED FEATURE - Wreck-it Ralph

I loved this movie the first time I saw it.  And now that I have seen it a couple more times, I like it even more.  The voice acting was PERFECT.  The story was great.  And the animation was as good as I have ever seen.  I loved the little nuances and inside jokes in this movie.


BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS - Anne Hathaway

Sorry Anne, I had to.  She's got this award locked up.  This picture just reminds all of us where she came from... lol


BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR - Robert De Niro

This was another tough category for me...  It was a toss up between De Niro and Christoph Waltz... but De Niro won the coin toss.  No matter what, he did a really great job in Silver Linings Playbook, and he deserves the win... it has been a while...


BEST ACTRESS - Jennifer Lawrence

Again, kind of a no-brainer for this one.  She was great in the movie, and deserves to win this one.


BEST ACTOR - Daniel Day Lewis

Duh!  Nobody else even comes CLOSE to this award.  Here comes ANOTHER Oscar Mr. Lewis!


BEST DIRECTOR - BEN AFFLECK!!!

THIS IS THE BIGGEST OSCAR SNUB SINCE SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE BEAT SAVING PRIVATE RYAN!!!  To say I am PISSED that he didn't even get NOMINATED is an understatement.  Mr. Affleck, you deserve this win more than anybody else.  You have come far my friend.


(2nd)BEST DIRECTOR (for real) - David O. Russell

I am picking him ONLY because two of the nominees don't deserve to even be nominated (Haneke and Zeitlin), didn't love one of the movies (Life of Pi), and think someone new deserves to win (sorry Mr. Spielberg).


AND THE MOMENT YOU HAVE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR...

BEST PICTURE - Argo

Hands down, my favorite movie of the year... and THAT is saying something.  This film was the most well rounded, entertaining film I have seen in a LONG time.  This was by far the easiest category for me to pick.  If you haven't seen this, SHAME ON YOU!  Go out and buy this movie right now.  It is fantastic.  And even though Ben Affleck won't be going up there to pick up his best director award (he's gotten quite a few anyway), he WILL be going up to pick up his Oscar for Best Picture... with Clooney too... lol!!!






So there you have it.  My Oscar pics for the year.  We will see how well I did after they air tonight.  But no matter what... go out and see a movie! 

Do You Hear the People Sing?... Because I sure did!!!

Alright folks...  You've waited... You've counted down the days until there was only "One Day More"... and now the time has come... Les Miserables has been made into a movie musical!!!

Let me begin this review with a warning...


***** THIS REVIEW WILL HAVE SPOILERS****


Sorry to be so blunt about it, but I can't give a proper review without spoiling a bunch of stuff... But in all honesty, if you haven't seen the stage show, or don't already know the story, THAT IS YOUR OWN FAULT!!!  That being said...  On with the review!!!

Let me start out by saying this about Les Miserables...  I FRICKEN LOVED THIS MOVIE!!!  Was it perfect?  No.  Were there things I would have changed?  Of course.  But on the whole, this movie was so good, the problems were few and far between.

THE GOOD:

I was FLOORED by how faithful the movie version was to the brilliant stage version of the story.  Never in a million years would I have thought that someone would have the guts to REALLY film the whole thing without spoken dialogue.  For those of you wondering... this movie is about 99% singing!!!  They did not dumb it down for the every day moviegoer.

Tom Hooper was the man behind this movie.  I was a huge fan of the last movie he directed (The King's Speech), so I had high hopes that he would deliver the goods this time around as well.  Honestly, I can't imagine ANYONE else doing as good a job with this material.  The creativity he gave his cast to explore the characters they were portraying was just what needed to be done.  It made sure that these actors really gave everything they had... and it TOTALLY worked.  The fact that he made the decision to NOT pre-record all the music was wonderful.  I would have hated it if it were just a carbon copy of every other version of Les Miserables that was out there.  I honestly think every movie musical from here out should follow this idea.  It makes for a better movie, with better performances.

Hugh Jackman - When rumors first started circulating several years ago that there was going to be a filmed version of one of my favorite musicals, I immediately thought the ONLY person who could play Jean Valjean was Hugh Jackman.  His casting made me a very happy man, and HOLY CRAP was I happy with his performance.  I could feel the inner turmoil inside his head after the Bishop (played perfectly by the ORIGINAL Jean Valjean, Colm Wilkinson) sent him on his way with all of his silver.  The tears were real, and flowing... and the whole thing was done with maybe ONE camera shot.  His voice was just right for MOST of the show... Only one minor issue with one of his songs... Bring Him Home felt a little strained for him...

Anne Hathaway - Everyone is, and will be talking about how great a job she did as Fantine.  And I have to agree with them.  She really did shine in this role.  I have been a fan of hers for a long time now, and her portrayal of Fantine in this movie made me like her even more.  Her short time on the screen was as close to perfect as you could ever ask for.

Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter - First off... I am NOT a fan of Helena Bonham Carter.  That being said, her chemistry with Sasha Baron Cohen was awesome!  You could tell that the two of them really had fun playing off each other.  Between the two of them though, I was MUCH more impressed with Sacha...  His singing was exactly what it needed to be, and his characterization was perfect.

Samantha Barks - Wow... Playful when she needed to be, and emotional when she needed to as well.  For someone who has heard "On My Own" performed AT LEAST a thousand times, she knocked it out of the ball park.  Sadly though, I have to admit that I was chuckling a bit during the song in the movie NOT because of her, but because of the almost literal camera shots taking place behind her (when you see it, and think about it, you might laugh a little too).

Eddie Redmayne - HOLY CRAP!!!  Where did this guy come from?  Good lord does this guy have some serious singing chops!  Seriously, this guy MADE the movie for me (even more than Anne Hathaway).  His rendition of "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" is BY FAR the best I have ever heard... and I have heard a LOT.  It was both haunting and COMPLETELY heartbreaking.  But my favorite line he sings isn't even from that song... When he sings "I was born to be with you" in the song "One Day More", I was hooked.  It's just a quick line, but it really was perfection.  If you need proof, just listen to it below...  The line is at about the 1:05 mark.  (listen to the whole song though... it's pretty awesome...)  Also, I have linked his AMAZING rendition of "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables"... It's pretty amazing.

One Day More

Empty Chairs at Empty Tables


Now...


 THE NOT SO GOOD:


Russell Crowe - **Oh Russell... you tried SO hard to fit in with all of these musical theatre people...  You did as much of the role as you could without having to sing like the rest of them... but when you DID have to sing, you just couldn't keep up.**  Ok... I will say that his characterization of Javert was pretty spot on.  You knew that he was genuinely upset that Jean Valjean was able to escape his clutches every step of the way.  The confusion on his face was completely evident when he COULD have killed Valjean but didn't, instead letting him go.  The only logical decision at that point was to kill himself, which he did.  I give him credit for trying, but with all of the outstanding talent in this film, he just couldn't compete.

Amanda Seyfried - To begin with, it would have taken a lot for me to even like this character...  I just never have liked Cosette (sorry to all of my friends who either like Cosette, or have maybe even played her).  That being said, she did NOT help with my lack of caring about her.  And again... it was because of the singing...  Seriously... she sounded like an OLD recording of Snow White, being sped up to sound like the Chipmonks.  Her vibrato was grating and annoying, and I just wanted it to stop... lol.



THE REST:

This was just a beautiful movie.  The cinematography was spectacular (although, I think they could have used a few less close up shots).   The minor cuts to the score were not missed.  Is this my favorite movie of the year?  MAYBE...  To me it is probably a toss up between Les Miserables and The Avengers (what can I say, I'm a nerd)... but looking towards the future, I think I will end up watching Les Miserables a lot more...  It is as close to a perfect movie musical as you can ask for.

FINAL VERDICT:  I easily give this a 9.5 out of 10...  Which if you ask me, is just about as good as it gets!!!

GO SEE THIS MOVIE!!!  Bring some tissues (it's not a feel good movie).  And don't be surprised by the amount of singing!  Like I said, it is about 99% singing with maybe a half dozen spoken sentences in the entire movie (which is almost 3 hours long).

Good lord... I am FAILING at this... lol

Well, at least my intentions were good. Heck, I was even listening to the soundtrack for this blog while I was writing my last one. I just didn't make this blog a priority. I NEED to work on that. How will I ever get through my list of over 200 shows if I don't buckle down and write about them. Oh well. At least I have some really good things to say about this show. It is a musical that I hold VERY near and dear to my heart.

 Where do I start with this show... I know a lot of people who groan at the mere mention of this show. They immediately think of "Tomorrow" and how annoying that song can be. I am NOT one of those people. I had the extreme pleasure of playing Oliver "Daddy" Warbucks about 7 years ago (2005). It wasn't even on my radar of shows I was planning on doing at the time. I thought it was a little weird for a 26 year old guy to play SUCH an iconic part, which was WAY out of my age range. However, I got a phone call asking me to come to the last night of auditions. All I was told was that they had me in mind for a part, but they wouldn't tell me what it was. When I showed up, and they told me what I was reading for I was flabbergasted. I pretty much knew that I would EVENTUALLY play the part, but not this early in my acting career. Fast forward 8 weeks or so, and I was performing the part that would become one of my absolute favorite roles to play... And it still remains one of the VERY few parts I would play at a moments notice. I loved every second of this show.

Now, for my ACTUAL review... I'm pretty much going to do this in three parts... Original soundtrack, the movie (1982), and the TV movie (1999)...

Soundtrack - I LOVE this soundtrack, except for one HUGE thing... I am not a fan of Andrea McArdle (Annie) at such a young age. She was WAY too much of a belter for such a vulnerable part. It worked for her when she got older, but not for this part. I KNOW how much controversy this could cause, and I am ok with that. I stand by my opinion. Other than her belting, this soundtrack is great. I especially love "N.Y.C." (what can I say... I'm selfish... lol), and I will ALWAYS wish I could be an orphan just so I could sing "You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile". I can't even listen to that song without getting a HUGE grin on my face.

The Movie (1982) - Now... even more controversy... First, the good.  Carol Burnett is a GENIUS in the role of Miss Hannigan.  She is perfect EVERY SECOND she is on the screen.  Now... for my problems with this one...  My biggest problem with this movie is that the producers/director made a HUGE mistake by deciding not to stick to the original show.  They wanted a bigger, more adventurous ending, so they changed it.  In doing that, they created two pretty major characters that aren't even in the musical... Punjab and Asp (yes, it was pretty racist... but I guess they figured nobody cared).  I didn't care for the new stuff AT ALL, which is why this is probably my least favorite version of the show... which leads me to...

The TV movie (1999) - This is probably the most unknown of all the versions out there (at least the ones I'm reviewing), however, it is probably my favorite of the three.  It pretty much sticks to the plot and songs of the stage show.  The girl who played Annie (Alicia Morton) did a really good job, and doesn't get the credit she deserves for this performance.  She doesn't belt it (when it doesn't need to be belted), and she just seems to "get" the character.  I loved Victor Garbor as Daddy Warbucks, and Alan Cumming and Kristen Chenoweth are pretty much spot on.  I wasn't as much of a fan of Kathy Bates as Miss Hannigan, but she does an ok job (nobody can beat Carol Burnett). 
 ***Fun Fact***  The youngest orphan (Molly) was played by Sarah Hyland... who grew up to play Haley Dunphy on "Modern Family"...

All in all, there are good things about all of these versions of the show, but no matter the flaws in the recordings/movies... this is a REALLY fantastic show.  I would give it a 9.5 out of 10... 

Next show I review will be...  Annie Get Your Gun!  Hopefully, it won't take as long this time... lol

Thanks for reading, and don't forget to comment and discuss!  

Another day, "Another Pyramid", another show... lol

Hey everyone... The latest show I am reviewing is one that I have listened to only a couple times over the last 12 years or so (basically since it first came out). In listening to it again this week for the blog, I remembered WHY I only listened to it a couple times... I'll get into the reasons later though... For now, here you go.

This is what MTI (Music Theatre International) says about the show. "Elton John and Tim Rice's AIDA is a contemporary musical take on a grand classic tale of the timeless bond between an enslaved Nubian princess and an Egyptian soldier. As forbidden love blossoms between them, the young lovers are forced to face death or part forever. Together, they set a shining example of true devotion that ultimately transcends the vast cultural differences between their warring nations, heralding a time of unprecedented peace and prosperity." Here's what I say about it... MOST of the show is a snooze-fest. I'm just not a fan of this show. HOWEVER, there are a couple really good songs that are GREAT for auditions, or small performances... Most notable are "My Strongest Suit" and "Easy As Life". On the soundtrack, they are performed by the always brilliant Sheri Rene Scott, and TOTALLY under utilized Heather Headley. This show just has too many flaws for me to totally enjoy it. For a show that takes place in ancient Egypt, I don't like the rock opera style of the music. All in all, I would give this show a 6 out of 10... I didn't like the show as a whole, but with a couple standout performances, and a couple pretty good songs, they earned that 6... lol. Next show on my list is one I REALLY am excited to put in my two cents worth... because I have been IN the show, and it still stands as one of my favorite shows I have ever been a part of... ANNIE!!!

Sorry for the delay... lol

Hey everyone. Sorry for the delay in blogs. Honestly just got carried away in doing other things. Next one won't take as long. For this installment of my Broadway musical blog, I am going with a show I have been avoiding for a long time... "A Chorus Line". But just because I hadn't given it a chance before doesn't mean I didn't do my research this time around.

This is what Wikipedia said about the show... "A Chorus Line is a 1975 musical about Broadway dancers auditioning for spots on a chorus line. With nineteen main characters, it is set on the bare stage of a Broadway theatre during an audition for a musical. The show provides a glimpse into the personalities of the performers and the choreographer as they describe the events that have shaped their lives and their decisions to become dancers." Now for this show, because I KNOW how a LOT of people consider it to be one of their favorites, I wanted to give it the best chance I could... which meant using as many resources as I could get my hands on. I ended up listening to both the 1975 original cast recording AND the 2006 revival cast recording. I also broke down and watched the 1985 movie version... My verdict without explaining why (yet) is that the show is just alright. Now, before people jump down my throat for this assessment, let me explain why. Not surprisingly, I had heard most of the songs before actually LISTENING to the soundtrack. I have been to enough auditions, recitals, and musical revues that it would be hard NOT to have heard them. Having said that, it really didn't sway my opinion of the show, if anything, listening to the whole show made me appreciate the songs more. I think my main problem with the show is a pretty simple one, and it TOTALLY explains why so many people adore this show. I just didn't connect with ANY of the characters in the show. I'm willing to bet that the people who love this show as much as they do have at least one character that they COMPLETELY identify with. Whether it is the aging dancer who just wants her one last chance, the young person just trying to figure out their sexuality, or any of the other characters in the show... I just didn't have that connection. That being said... the show itself is pretty good. I MUST take this opportunity to give props to composer Marvin Hamlisch, who recently passed away. He wrote some pretty memorable music, and he will be missed. In each recording there were some songs that I liked better than in the other one... The best example is the song "Sing". In the original, the girl (Kristine... who isn't supposed to have a good voice) belts out the incorrect notes with such gusto, that you totally understand why she has relied so heavily on her dancing ability. They even have the line "What I lack in pitch, I sure make up in power". In the revival, there is NO belting. She doesn't accentuate the lack of singing ability as much as she SHOULD have... It just didn't work in the recording. And they COMPLETELY missed the ball by not having that song in the movie. The part was played by Nicole Fosse... the daughter of the legendary Bob Fosse and his equally talented wife Gwen Verdon. With his dance ability, and his wife's comedic timing, the song could have been a home run with such a great genetic line. Sadly, it wasn't meant to be. All things considered about this show, I would give it a 7 out of 10... I will listen to it again, but I don't see it becoming a part of my normal rotation. Next show on my list... Aida.

Show #3... And it's an OBSCURE show!!!

Hey everyone. Sorry for the delay in getting these blogs done every day. This last week has been pretty crazy. That being said, I still listened to another Broadway soundtrack, and today's show is one that I doubt ANY of you have heard of. It is called "70, Girls, 70".

This is what Wikipedia says about the show... "The musical is based on the 1958 play Breath of Spring by Peter Coke. The plot concerns a group of larcenous old folks who steal furs from various New York City stores with the intent of using the proceeds from their resale to buy their Upper West Side retirement hotel, the New Sussex Arms, which is slated to be sold to developers." Basically... old people want to save their retirement home from being destroyed, so they resort to crime to try and raise the money to save it. To say this is an obscure show is an understatement. I had never heard of the show before I got a hold of the soundtrack, but I LOVED it. As much as "13 The Musical" had some questionable material for the age of its actors, this show had just as many risque jokes, and this time I thought it was adorably cute. There is just something about people of the elderly persuasion singing about how people are always asking if they still "do the deed". As much as it would seem gross to hear them singing about it, they never actually describe anything (the song is called "Do We")... and I thought it was adorable. And as for the singing on this album... you understand from the first verse of the first song that these people are "old". This recording was done in 1971, and it sounds better to me than last weeks recording of "42nd Street". I would LOVE to see this show actually performed locally, but I don't think it will ever happen. It is too obscure a show for theaters to take a chance with... PLUS, it could be tough to find a bunch of 70+ year olds with LOTS of energy to do this show. I'm not saying its impossible, but it would be tough. All in all I loved this recording. The songs were catchy, the story sounds fun, and I couldn't stop smiling as I was listening to it. If you are able to find a recording of this gem of a show, give it a chance. You will love it. I'd give "70, Girls, 70" an 8 out of 10... Next show is another one that I have just been putting off listening to... "A Chorus Line"... And since I have two different recordings of it (original 1975 cast, and 2006 cast), I have to listen to both... Oh goody (this "oh goody" is oozing with sarcasm if you couldn't tell... lol). See ya next time.

Day 2 of "A Musical a Day"... "42nd Street"

Look everyone... Day two, and I have listened to another show. Today's show is "42nd Street".

For those interested, here is the synopsis according to Tams-Witmark (performance license holders for this show). "This is the story of hard work, being in the right place at the right time, talent and love. FORTY-SECOND STREET is a celebration of Broadway and the people involved in shows. It focuses on aspiring chorus girl Peggy Sawyer, and takes us along her journey." OK... what did I think of it. Well, I wasn't all that impressed. I totally understand that this is a "tap" show. And that when watching it, you get to see some awesome tapping. That being said, I couldn't appreciate the amount of "tapping" that you had to hear on the recording. I would have much preferred to hear JUST the music in the background, and not the tapping of feet. My other problem with this recording is the performers themselves... I just didn't enjoy their voices... They seemed to ALL be singing WAY TOO LOUD. Maybe that was the style they were going for, but I didn't like it. Although a couple of the tunes were kinda catchy ("We're in the Money", "Lullaby of Broadway", and "Shuffle Off to Buffallo") nothing else was very memorable for me... Then again, I had already known those songs. I totally get that most (if not all) of the music in this was written in the late 1920's and early 1930's, there are some great songs and shows that came out of that era. This one just doesn't do it for me. All in all... I'm not a fan. I'd give "42nd Street" a 6 out of 10. Next time... a REALLY obscure show... "70, Girls, 70"...