Oscar Buzz: Movie Reviews

The husband and I were lucky enough to get quite a few gift cards to different movie theaters for Christmas and have made it our mission to see most of the movies with Oscar buzz this year. These are the movies on our list: Milk, Frost/Nixon, The Wrestler, Revolutionary Road, Doubt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Reader, Slumdog Millionaire & Gran Torino.

We have officially crossed the last 3 off our list, so only 6 more to go! Here are the reviews of the 3 we have seen so far.

First up, The Reader. Synopsis from imbd.com:

Post-WWII Germany: Nearly a decade after his affair with an older woman came to a mysterious end, law student Michael Burk re-encounters his former lover as she defends herself in a war-crime trial.

I really liked this movie. The story was extremely interesting and the acting top notch. My only complaint was that the middle was very slow, I wish that they had spent more time delving into what happened at the end of the movie or even spiced up the middle with flashbacks. Overall, absolutely worth seeing.

Now for Slumdog Millionaire. Synopsis from IMBD.com:

The story of the life of an impoverished Indian teen Jamal Malik, who becomes a
contestant on the Hindi version of "Who Wants to be A Millionaire?", wins, and
is then suspected of cheating.

This was my favorite movie of the year. The way the story was told was very original, the acting was first rate and it was heartwarming, gut wrenching and funny at different times throughout the movie. When a movie can successfully do all of those things it always goes to the top of my list. I really believe it deserved its win at the Golden Globes and as of right now, I hope it does the same at the Oscar's. I reserve the right to change my mind after I see the other nominated movie ;)

And last but not least, Gran Turino. Synopsis from IMBD.com:

Disgruntled Korean War vet Walt Kowalski sets out to reform his neighbor, a
young Hmong teenager, who tried to steal Kowalski's prized possession: his 1972
Gran Torino.

This movie was also fantastic. Clint Eastwood is a genuine bad ass, even at his old age. The acting from the other characters (namely the Hmong neighbors) was a little spotty though. Apparently none of them had acted before, so I can understand why they are certainly overshadowed by a veteran like Eastwood. I don't think that this movie should win best picture, or even be nominated. I just don't think it was up to par with some of the other films, but most certainly worth seeing. It was hilarious and dramatic, and since this is supposedly Eastwood's last acting role, see it just for that.