An animated Best Picture: Why in the world not?

Allow me to warn you now: Though I won't mention it every day, this marks the beginning of my own personal campaign, just in case anyone's listening, to get a Best Picture Oscar nomination for Brad Bird's "Ratatouille." Not Best Animated Picture (which, with "Persepolis" out there it might not even win anyway), but the best darn movie of the year.

Before we delve into the history, let's take a look at this year. Personally, I have four of the five slots filled for what I consider to be the best movies of this year: "No Country for Old Men," "Juno" (which I just gushed about yesterday, if you care to scroll back), "American Gangster" and, yes, "Ratatouille."

It's all open for the fifth slot, with two strong contenders up this week (and not "The Golden Compass," though I am hoping that one doesn't somehow just suck): Mira Nair's "The Namesake," which I'm expecting to get from the Netflix today, and Jon Carney's "Once," which is being screened this Sunday at the Douglass Theater by the Macon Film Guild (so be there!). Still to come with high hopes are "I'm Not There," "There Will Be Blood" and perhaps a few other surprises.

But, of course, this is all about the charms of "Ratatouille." For perspective, here's what I had to say shortly after watching it for the first time:

"Ratatouille," the story of Remy, the rat who just wants to cook, is much more "Babe: Pig in the City" than "Babe" in tenor and tone. And that's just fine by me. ...

But then, and in wonderfully abrupt fashion, director Brad Bird injects "Ratatouille" with another element we've been missing in animated flicks for a long time: Magic. I had seen the best nine minutes of "Ratatouille" beforehand on YouTube, but that still didn't take away from the thrill of discovery when Remy first scampers up the rooftop to find Paris in front of him. It's a vista that would make Hayao Miyazaki smile broadly. ...

And next, from when he's looking down on the kitchen at Gustave's with his guardian angel, the late Gustave (Brad Garrett), to when he falls through the window and lands in the chaotic kitchen's sink, it's as exhilarating as any animated sequence since "Fantasia." And no, I'm not exaggerating here; it's just that good. ...

So, in the end, how good is "Ratatouille"? Well, Brad Bird directed my single favorite animated flick in "The Iron Giant," and I have a strong feeling that, once I see "Ratatouille" a few more times, it will hold almost as lofty a place in my heart. If you haven't seen it, do so right away. ...

Very high praise, I concede, but having watched it twice now I stand by every word, and would only add that Peter O'Toole as the dour food critic Anton Ego is thoroughly deserving of a Best Supporting Actor nomination (though the award should just be given now to Hal Holbrook for his incredible work in "Into the Wild.")

And let me just state for the record that anyone who doesn't think "cartoons" are worthy of such high praise just watches movies in an entirely different way from me, and I dare say doesn't get nearly as much enjoyment from them as I do. "Ratatouille" is both entertainment and art of the highest order. 'Nuff said.

There have been two animated Best Picture contenders in the past, and a third that certainly should have been in the game.

In 1992, the nominees were: "Beauty and the Beast," "Bugsy," "JFK," "The Prince of Tides" and "Silence of the Lambs." Though "Silence" was a darn fine flick, I was rooting for "Beauty and the Beast" to win in this era before animated movies even had their own category.

In 1996, we had "Apollo 13," "Babe," "Braveheart," "Il Postino" and "Sense and Sensibility." Though winner "Braveheart" certainly had its visceral charms, "Il Postino," "Sense and Sensibility" and, yes, "Babe" were all better movies. I understand that "Babe" is just too sappy for many people, but it remains one of my favorite flicks, and would have been a worthy Oscar winner.

And, in 2005, a strong year for movies, Brad Bird's "The Incredibles" certainly should have been a contender. The nominees were "The Aviator," "Finding Neverland" (wtf!), "Million Dollar Baby," "Ray" and "Sideways." I would have taken "The Aviator" off of that list (certainly at least over winner "Million Dollar Baby"), but would still submit that Bird's flick was better than any of them.

So, will "Ratatouille" get the same shaft? The short answer is probably, but I'm still hoping it backs in to at least get nominated for Best Picture. It's got my vote, which, as far as I know, doesn't yet count for too much at all.

An early contender for favorite movie of 2008?

When I first saw the preview for Michel Gondry's "Be Kind Rewind" on the big screen (in front of "Margot at the Wedding," I believe), it just made me smile and laugh from start to finish. I'm a little skeptical still that they can sustain the gag - Jack Black and Mos Def (huzzah!) remaking all the movies at a video store after the tapes get "magnetized" and erased - for an entire movie. But it's clear that Gondry just loves making movies, and it looks like this flick is infused with that spirit. Here's the poster (click to view much larger) for what should be a very fun flick, set to come out, I think, in January. Enjoy, and have an entirely bearable Tuesday.

"American Gangster:" American classic

Anyone who visits here from time to time already knows that I often get way too excited about movies, way too long before they even approach the multiplex.

Why? Well, first because I just love reading and writing about movies, but second because, when I manage to believe all the hype I do my minuscule part to create, it makes it just that much more sweet when it turns out to be true.

It happened once this summer with "Ratatouille," which was even better than I could have imagined. And now it's happened with "American Gangster," a flick which it seems like I've been excited about for three years now and is so good that it's knocked Brad Bird's delightful movie right out of the top spot.

I tell you all that as a lead-in to this warning: This won't be a review as much as a rave, because I loved just about every minute of Ridley Scott's best movie yet (and I say that as someone who hasn't always liked his movies as much as the rest of the world; "Blade Runner" is just as good as everyone claims it is, but "Gladiator" was average at best in my book.)

So, what's so great about "American Gangster," for the few people out there who haven't seen it yet (it took in a rather whopping $46.3 million at the box office in week one.)

What I liked most was the pacing. As we're introduced to the slowly converging paths of heroin kingpin Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) and do-gooder cop Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe), Scott wisely keeps the scenes to no more than a couple of minutes each, and moves fluidly between the two worlds. Until the inevitable bullet barrage that brings it all crashing down, Scott never resorts to the shaky jump-cuts that the kids who have followed him use to substitute for real urgency, instead just letting the story unfold at it own pace. The final effect, while not quite - as Washington Post critic Stephen Hunter said - making its 2:20 seem like 40 minutes, is still a rousing tale very well told.

And just as much credit for that goes to screenwriter Steven Zaillian, who has worked with Scott previously on "Hannibal" and also managed long ago to write and direct another of my favorite movies, "Searching for Bobby Fischer." He and Scott make it clear through their actions rather than any way-too-wordy speeches that what bonds Lucas and Roberts is their moral code, even if they use that to rather different ends. It's what makes the ending, which still manages to be a bit jarring, easier to swallow.

But no great American gangster flick (and yes, I will go so far to put this one in the same arena with the first two "Godfather" movies or any of the great '30s movies and believe it will be able to hold its own) would be complete without its own "Is this the end of Rico?" moment. Scott's is admittedly rather cheesy, but it just worked for me. Spoiler alert: If you haven't seen the movie, skip this sentence: For Lucas' character, being cuffed on the steps of his church, with his family being herded back inside so they won't have to watch, is just as ignominious an end as dying in the gutter.

Before I end this admittedly one-sided love letter to "American Gangster," a word or two about the casting is in order. At its center this is a very elaborately constructed movie about two men, and they will indeed square off again in February on Oscar night. By a nose, I'd have to give the edge to Denzel, who will certainly be taking home the first Best Actor statue he deserves, rather than awarded to make up for past omissions.

But the supporting cast as well was full of pleasant surprises. Idris Elba of "The Wire" makes an early appearance as one of Frank's rivals, and another HBO vet, John Hawkes, who played Sol Star on "Deadwood," is here as one Roberts' key recruits in his anti-drug crusade. Others who make the most of little screen time (and who I always like to see) include Jon Polito, Carla Gugino, Joe Morton (wearing the world's cheesiest wig) and, in one of his best appearances outside of the movies of Spike Lee, Roger Guenveur Smith as Lucas' cousin and connection to the heroin that would build his empire.

Actors who have for years now only annoyed me on the big screen, Cuba Gooding Jr. and T.I., also manage to turn in solid performances (perhaps a fork in the road and a return to the right direction for Mr. Gooding, who is sensational as rival gangster Nicky Barnes.) And finally, a word of apology to Ruby Dee, who plays Lucas' mother: I thought you had died shortly after your husband, the great Ossie Davis, as happens with so many devoted couples, but I was certainly happy to find out I was wrong this time.

If none of this convinces you to go see this one, there's probably nothing else I can say, so I'll just cut this off and head out to see "Into the Wild." Peace out.

"Bee Movie": Much abuzz about nothing

I apologize for that not-terribly-clever headline, but I offer it to kind of prove a point: It's about as funny as most of what you'll encounter in Jerry Seinfeld's "Bee Movie."

Which is a real shame, 'cause for the first fifteen minutes or so it's thoroughly charming and, more importantly, funny. Life in the hive, dominated by the leviathan Honex corporation (producing, of course, honey), makes for a rapid succession of very funny jokes about the life span of bees, working for your whole life, etc. With a lot more focus this could have been a kind of bee "Office Space," but alas it was not to be.

Because this flick thinks it has to be a lot more than that, our hero, Barry B. Benson (voiced with less than his usual smugness by Mr. Seinfeld) has to leave the hive, and that's where things fall apart. As my mind often does when movies start to lose its attention, I drifted to other movies I've had a beef with, in this case Tim Burton's thoroughly unnecessary "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," but in reverse. What they both lacked after brilliant openings, as "Bee Movie" left the factory and Burton's "Charlie" went into it, was almost any sense of wonder at all.

Now, I understand that (with big help from Larry David and others) Mr. Seinfeld created a sitcom that was "about nothing," and managed to make a very funny one at that. To make an entertaining 90-minute animated movie about nothing, which he tried to do here, would be no mean feat, but despite being intermittently funny throughout it really doesn't even come close.

What's the big drama once our hero Barry leaves the hive? A lawsuit, and believe it or not, it's even less compelling on screen than you could possibly imagine it would be, despite the best efforts of John Goodman as the opposing attorney. Barry, of course, also meets and becomes smitten with a florist voiced by Renee Zellweger, who I'll return to later with, I'm warning you now, some venom.

First, a word about the overall look of "Bee Movie" which, again outside of the hive, is just depressingly generic. If you've seen Miyazaki's "Kiki's Delivery Service" (and if you haven't, why not), try not to think too much about young Kiki soaring over Miyazaki's majestic landscapes of Europe as you watch Barry and the "pollen jockeys" flying over the CGI, paint-by-numbers version of what is somehow supposed to be New York City in "Bee Movie."

What this newfangled animation does to scenery, however, is far less destructive than what it does to people, specifically poor Ms. Zellweger as the florist Vanessa. As animators try to make their human characters more real, it just gets more and more perverse, in this case turning Vanessa's face into what Ms. Zellweger's looks like each time directly after she's sucked off the pounds put on for a "Bridget Jones" movie. Not pretty. It doesn't help that Vanessa's voice and mannerisms just make you want to choke her and end it all.

So, as you can tell, I really didn't care too much at all for "Bee Movie," but before I go I'd like to offer a special note of encouragement to the very young lady who, as her mother informed us before the movie started, was enjoying (or not) her first moviegoing experience with this one. Take heart, young one, because there are much better flicks than "Bee Movie" out there for you to behold. For a start, have your mom rent "Ratatouille" next Tuesday to see what a wonder great animation can really be, though you might want to have her fast-forward through the rather scary opening sequence.

As for me, there's a hopefully much better movie in my immediate future, with a screening of Ridley Scott's "American Gangster" at noon. Peace out.

A great movie weekend in Macon

I realize that means it's at least as great a movie weekend everywhere else too, but a surprise, belated entry has me particularly psyched about the offerings in my little corner of the world.

So, in chronological order, here's what I'll be watching (except maybe the last one) and, if you check back throughout the weekend, I promise, reviewing here:

1. Bee Movie
This isn't the movie I most want to see this weekend, but due to the fact that it's playing on a gazillion screens it's the easiest one to catch before I have to go work today. I think I'd be more excited for this one if we hadn't been inundated with those "Dol-Bee" ads for what seems like three years now. After all, Jerry Seinfeld is a savagely funny guy, and it's much easier to get amped for animation when there's not a glut of it on the big screen, so here's hoping this sucks a lot less than I'm fearing.

2. American Gangster
Until I saw how few screens it's getting at my multiplex, due surely to it's length, among other factors, I was sure this would be the big winner at the box office this weekend. Denzel, Russell and gangsters ... what could be better? For my money, very little. I actually managed to do my senior thesis at Catholic University for a class in political film on something along the lines of "The Social Ramifications and Parallels of Early Gangster Films," which, even though I worked quite hard on it, always felt like a bit of a con. The reviews I've seen so far say this is a pretty by-the-numbers gangster flick, but I still suspect I'm gonna like it a lot.

3. Into the Wild
And here's the wild card late entry, and a flick that many readers of this site have been urging me to see for some time now. My father rather unintentionally spoiled the end of this one for me, which I would be more upset about if every review I've read since hadn't done the same thing. Jon Krakauer's "Under the Banner of Heaven" is one of the best books I've ever read, so I'm sure he delivered a rousing tale here about Christopher McCandless' trip down Thoreau's path, and by all accounts Sean Penn put a stirring visual cherry on top, so count me very psyched for this one too.

4. Across the Universe
I'll definitely need some persuading to drive a half hour to see this one in Centerville. I just love the Beatles far too much to see their songs sung by the likes of Eddie Izzard and, God forbid, Bono. If you've seen this one and there's something to recommend it that I'm just missing, please feel free to let me know.

And there you have it. A busy weekend for me at the movies. Here's hoping you have at least a fairly great one too.