2006 Oscar Nominations

'Brokeback' cleans up where it counts!

Here they are:

Best Picture:
Brokeback Mountain
Capote
Crash
Good Night, and Good Luck.
Munich

Best Director:
Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain)
Bennett Miller (Capote)
Paul Haggis (Crash)
George Clooney (Good Night, and Good Luck.)
Steven Spielberg (Munich)

Best Actor:
Philip Seymour Hoffman (Capote)
Terrence Howard (Hustle & Flow)
Heath Ledger (Brokeback Mountain)
Joaquin Phoenix (Walk the Line)
David Strathairn (Good Night, and Good Luck.)

Best Actress:
Judy Dench (Mrs. Henderson Presents)
Felicity Huffman (Transamerica)
Keira Knightley (Pride & Prejudice)
Charlize Theron (North Country)
Reese Witherspoon (Walk the Line)

Best Supporting Actor:
George Clooney (Syriana)
Matt Dillon (Crash)
Paul Giamatti (Cinderella Man)
Jake Gyllenhaal (Brokeback Mountain)
William Hurt (A History of Violence)

Best Supporting Actress:
Amy Adams!! (Junebug)
Catherine Keener (Capote)
Frances McDormand (North Country)
Rachel Weisz (The Constant Gardener)
Michelle Williams (Brokeback Mountain)

Best Original Screenplay:
Crash
Good Night, and Good Luck.
Match Point
The Squid and the Whale
Syriana

Best Adapted Screenplay:
Brokeback Mountain
Capote
The Constant Gardener
A History of Violence
Munich

Best Foreign Language Film:
Don't Tell
Joyeux Noel
Paradise Now
Sophie Scholl
Tsotsi

Best Art Direction:
Good Night, and Good Luck.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
King Kong
Memoirs of a Geisha
Pride and Prejudice

Best Cinematography:
Batman Begins
Brokeback Mountain
Good Night, and Good Luck.
Memoirs of a Geisha
The New World

Best Costume Design:
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Memoirs of a Geisha
Mrs. Henderson Presents
Pride and Prejudice
Walk the Line

Best Documentary Feature:
Darwin's Nightmare
Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room
March of the Penguins
Murderball
Street Fight

Best Documentary Short Subject:
The Death of Kevin Carter: Casualty of the Bang Bang Club
God Sleeps in Rwanda
The Mushroom Club
A Note of Trumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin

Best Film Editing:
Cinderella Man
The Constant Gardener
Crash
Munich
Walk the Line

Best Make-Up:
The Chronicals of Narnia
Cinderella Man
Star Wars Revenge of the Sith

Best Original Score:
Brokeback Mountain
The Constant Gardener
Memoirs of a Geisha
Munich
Pride & Prejudice

Best Original Song:
"In the Deep" - Crash
"It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" - Hustle & Flow
"Travelin' Thru" - Transamerica

Best Animated Short Film:
Badgered
The Moon and the Son: An Imagined Conversation
The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello
9
One Man Band

Best Live Action Short Film:
Ausreisser (The Runaway)
Cashback
The Last Farm
Our Time is Up
Six Shooter

Best Sound Editing:
King Kong
Memoirs of a Geisha
War of the Worlds

Best Sound Mixing:
The Chronicals of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
King Kong
Memoirs of a Geisha
Walk the Line
War of the Worlds

Best Visual Effects:
The Chronicals of Narnia
King Kong
War of the Worlds

No real surprises here. Munich slides into the best picture slot, booting Walk the Line. Other than that, the choices are pretty run of the mill. Yay for Amy Adams and for The New World in Cinematography!

Quick Tallies:
Brokeback Mountain: 8
Crash: 6
Good Night and Good Luck: 6
Memoirs of a Geisha: 6 - (Cleaned up in the visual awards...)
Capote: 5
Munich: 5
Walk the Line: 5
The Constant Gardener: 4
Pride & Prejudice: 4

And many, many with 2 noms.

Now we patiently wait until Sunday, March 5 for the show!

At the Movies:
2006 Academy Award Nomination Predictions

"...I think we miss that touch so much, that we crash into each other, just so we can feel something."
-Graham (Crash)

Now, just 12 hours away from the announcements of this years Oscar nominations, I bring to you my final predictions:

Best Picture:
Brokeback Mountain
Capote
Crash
Good Night, and Good Luck.
Walk the Line

Getting snubbed: Munich
Dark horse: The Constant Gardener
Should be there, but won't: Junebug

These feel like pretty safe bets; Munich could slide in there. However, its chances seem to be fading fast, as it has failed to receive enough widespread support.

Best Director:
George Clooney (Good Night, and Good Luck.)
Paul Haggis (Crash)
Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain)
Fernando Meirelles (The Constant Gardener)
Steven Spielberg (Munich)

Getting snubbed: Bennet Miller (Capote)
Dark horse: David Cronenberg (A History of Violence)
Should be there, but won't: Stephen Gaghan (Syriana)

The dark horse in this race, truly is Fernando Meirelles. I decided to do a swap in my predictions; Meirelles for Cronenberg.

Best Actor:
Ralph Fiennes (The Constant Gardener)
Philip Seymour Hoffman (Capote)
Heath Ledger (Brokeback Mountain)
Joaquin Phoenix (Walk the Line)
David Strathairn (Good Night, and Good Luck.)

Getting snubbed: Russell Crowe (Cinderella Man)
Dark horse: Terrence Howard (Hustle & Flow)
Should be there, but won't: Jesse Eisenberg (The Squid and the Whale), Alex Etal (Millions), Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Mysterious Skin)

I, just now, while writing this, changed my Russell Crowe prediction to Ralph Fiennes. Could it be a mistake? Sure. But, sometimes you have to go with your gut. That slot could also very well belong to Terrence Howard, and I feel as though I'm going to shoot myself for not shortlisting him. Oh, well.

Best Actress:
Judy Dench (Mrs. Henderson Presents)
Felicity Huffman (Transamerica)
Keira Knightley (Pride and Prejudice)
Charlize Theron (North Country)
Reese Witherspoon (Walk the Line)

Getting snubbed: Ziyi Zhang (Memoirs of a Geisha), Joan Allen (The Upside of Anger)
Dark horse: Q'Orianka Kilcher (The New World)
Who should be here, but won't: Amy Adams (Junebug)

Any of those top seven actresses could wind up with a slot. Most likely to drop off, would be Knightley (although, I believe that would be a shame), and replaced by either, Zhang or Allen.

Best Supporting Actor:
George Clooney (Syriana)
Matt Dillon (Crash)
Paul Giamatti (Cinderella Man)
Terrence Howard (Crash)
William Hurt (A History of Violence)

Getting snubbed: Don Cheadle (Crash), Jake Gyllenhaal (Brokeback Mountain)
Dark horse: Frank Langella (Good Night, and Good Luck.)
Should be there, but won't: Benicio Del Toro (Sin City)

Yes, I am leaving Jake Gyllenhaal off of my list! Is it a stupid move? Probably. But bold predictions are always fun when you can brag and say you were right and everyone else was wrong.

Best Supporting Actress:
Amy Adams (Junebug)
Maria Bello (A History of Violence)
Catherine Keener (Capote)
Michelle Williams (Brokeback Mountain)
Rachel Weisz (The Constant Gardener)

Getting snubbed: Frances McDormand (North Country)
Dark horse: Laura Linney (The Squid and the Whale)
Should be there, but won't: Thandie Newton (Crash)

Best Original Screenplay:
The 40-Year-Old Virgin
Crash
Good Night, and Good Luck.
The Squid and the Whale
Syriana

Getting snubbed: Match Point
Dark horse: Cinderella Man
Should be there, but won't: Junebug (I've been predicting this to be up there in the top five, but when it comes time to go through with it, I can't quite convince myself.)

I seriously hope the Academy has some balls and puts The 40-Year-Old-Virgin up there; it seems unlikely, but I'm sticking with it.

Best Adapted Screenplay:
Brokeback Mountain
Capote
The Constant Gardener
A History of Violence
Munich

Getting snubbed: Walk the Line
Dark horse: Pride & Prejudice
Should be here, but won't: Walk the Line

Best Cinematography:
Brokeback Mountain
The Constant Gardener
Good Night, and Good Luck.
King Kong
Memoirs of a Geisha

Getting snubbed: Crash
Dark horse: Munich
Should be here, but won't: Syriana

Best Editing:
The Constant Gardener
Crash
Good Night, and Good Luck
Munich
Syriana

Getting snubbed: Capote
Darkhorse: A History of Violence
Should be here, but won't: A History of Violence

Best Art Direction:
Brokeback Mountain
The Chronicals of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Cinderella Man
King Kong
Memoirs of a Geisha

Best Cosume Design:
Batman Begins
The Chronicals of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Cinderella Man
Memoirs of a Geisha
Pride and Prejudice

Best Original Score:
Brokeback Mountain
Cinderella Man
Memoirs of a Geisha
Munich
Syriana

Best Original Song:
Brokeback Mountain
Elizabethtown
Hustle & Flow
The Producers
Transamerica

Best Sound Mixing:
King Kong
Munich
Star Wars Revenge of the Sith
Walk the Line
War of the Worlds

Best Sound Editing:
King Kong
Walk the Line
War of the Worlds

Best Visual Effects:
The Chronicals of Narnia
King Kong
Star Wars Revenge of the Sith

Best Make-Up:
The Chronicals of Narnia
A History of Violence
The New World

Best Foreign Language Film:
Joyeux Noel
Paradise Now
The Promise
Tsotsi
Bluebird

Best Documentary Feature:
Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room
Favela Rising
Mad, Hot Ballroom
The March of the Penguins
Murderball

Best Animated Feature:
Chicken Little
Tim Burton's Corpse Bride
Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit

There you have it. Check back tomorrow for the full results. It's gonna be exciting! Nominations to be announced, Tuesday, 5:30 a.m. Pacific time. I'll post them as soon as possible. And on a prejudice note: "Go, Constant Gardener"!

At the Movies: 2005 Year in Review
"Love, is a burning thing. And it makes, a firery ring ."
-June Carter Cash

...and I'm back. As promised. My 2005 year in review continues with my second 10 most favorite films of the year. Counting down, here they are, the almost greatest films of 2005:

20. Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith

The 3rd film in the Star Wars saga is the closest George Lucas has come to brilliance, in a long time. While it certainly bears its moments of awkwardness (no one could turn such a brilliant cast so sour, one would think), the film is so beautifully shot and so epically overwhelming (in the best of ways), that it would take some serious effort not to completely enjoy this film. Star Wars Episode III: The Revenge of the Sith, is a beautiful war/love opera, masterfully pictured by Lucas and David Tattersall and the entire effects team.

19. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

The fourth Harry Potter film is by far the best of the lot. Its scope alone makes it the most fun, engaging, and intriguing story yet. The Potter world was executed much better the third time around by helmer, Alfonso Cuarón (Y Tu Mama Tambien), and then amped up another level by British director Mike Newell (Four Weddings and a Funeral) in The Goblet of Fire edition. The child actors are also coming into their own, more fully embodying their complex characters.

18. Cinderella Man

The acting in this film is first class. See it for Crowe, Giamatti, and Zellweger's performances alone. It does not hurt that it is grand and powerful storytelling by an American master: Ron Howard. Cinderella Man is richer and packs a bigger punch than Howard's A Beautiful Mind, which one the Best Picture Oscar four years ago.

17. Jarhead

This is Jake Gyllenhaal's best performance of 2005, but one he is getting no credit for. With everyone talking about Brokeback Mountain-as important and as good a film as it is-Jarhead has been completely lost under the radar. Sure, this is not your typical war film, nor even can it pose as an action/adventure film, as its main characters do next to nothing. That, however, is precicely what makes it so good and so important. Ultimately, Jarhead is a great character study as well as a blunt look into our recent past, giving us a glimpse into our similar situation overseas today.

16. Twist of Faith

2005 has been hailed by some, the year of the documentary. With the great commercial success of films like March of the Penguins and Mad, Hot Ballroom, and the widespread critical acclaim for Werner Herzog's pair of docs, Grizzly Man and The White Diamond, a quite character study, like Twist of Faith is easily lost in the shuffle. It is a moving, tragic, family drama, and it is all real. Nominated for last years Academy Award for best documentary and Sundance's Documentary Grand Jury Prize, Twist of Faith is definetely one of my favorite films of 2005.

15. In Her Shoes

Curtis Hanson is one of the best filmmakers working today. I was always skeptical of this film, before I saw it, but should not have been, knowing it was in his hands. Hanson connects moments in a film together better than anyone else, creating a seamless drama, always engaging, and completely enrapturing.

14. Mutual Appreciation

One of my most surprising film going experiences of '05 came at the Hawaii International Film Festival's screening of Andrew Bujalski's (Funny Ha Ha) second film: Mutual Appreciation. I was completely taken in by this film; every moment of it was entertaining and I hope that everyone gets a chance to see this enchanting, small, little film about a young musician and his friends.

13. Pride and Prejudice

First time director, Joe Wright, breaths life into Austen’s Pride & Prejudice like no other could have. Unlike many who have panned this adaptation, I have not seen the BBC mini-series version, which has been hailed with such high praises, thus I measure this film against nothing other than itself; and as I do, it resonates with me in only one way: as a striking, invigorating, heart-felt love story. Keira Knightley electrifies the screen and deserves all of the praise she has received, and then some. Donald Sutherland gives a pitch-perfect, quiet turn as Knightley's loving father. I will not say much for Matthew Macfayden's turn as Mr. Darcy, though it is tough to measure up to the dynamism Knightley brings to the screen, throughout this film.

12. Mysterious Skin

Mysterious Skin gripped me and moved me and disturbed me like no other film in 2005. The film had an acute sense of the harsh realities of the world and beautifully portrayed them through the damaged souls of two young boys, Neil (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and Brian (Brady Corbet). Gordon-Levitt's perfomance is the stuff Oscars are made of, if only people (i.e. Academy members) saw films like this!

11. Millions

I had a smile on my face from the first moment Damian (Alex Etal) began speaking until the credits rolled at the end of the film (okay, and I shed a few tears as well, but that is besides the point). This is a film that is, at once, strangely unique and all too familiar. Alex Etal gives one of the most heart-felt performances of the year by anyone, let alone a 10-year-old. Danny Boyle has made genre film after genre film and Millions is no different; this one just happens to be in the family genre, and it is no less, and actually more, outstanding, than any of his previous work. Everyone should see this movie!


With those wonderful films behind me, it can only get better from here. Bellow is the link to the Top 10 Films of 2005.

Top 10 List

I'll be back tomorrow with my last minute predictions for the 2006 Academy Awards. I will also post a full list of the nominess immediately following their announcement Tuesday morning at 5:30 a.m. Pacific Time.

Until then, happy predicting to all and to all,
Good night, and good luck...

At the Movies: 2005 Year in Review
"We cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home."
-Edward R. Murrow

With the 2006 Oscar nominations quickly approaching, I will begin my review of 2005 at the movies; first, a summation of the year in cinema, and to follow, I will reveal some of my favorite films of 2005.

* * *

2005 was an up and down year at the movies. I have heard many call it a bad year or, in nicer terms, a weak year for good films. While there were definitely a large number of thorough disappointments, such as: War of the Worlds, Rent, The Libertine, Elizabethtown, Memoirs of a Geisha, and North Country (just to name a few), there were also many, many wonderful films. I think hit or miss more accurately categorizes the year in film. There are disappointments every year, and every year, including this one, there are great films a plenty, if you look in the right places.

I also sense a great movement in the film industry towards a much more “independent” mainstream. It was definitively stamped by the victory of Million Dollar Baby (a studio film, yes, but with the grit and integrity of a film born outside the system) at last years Academy Awards. There has been an independent film community embedded just below the surface of mainstream Hollywood for decades, but only recently has it come into the forefront. It’s fascinating to watch this progress, and I will address it in the coming days, in more depth, once this years Oscar nominees are announced. But for right now: on with the show!

The following is a list of films that I really appreciated having seen, but in some way failed to excite me in a way that the true best films should and did. So, thus, the following is a list I will call, my most appreciated films of 2005 (but not the best):

The 40-Year-Old Virgin

Easily the best comedy of the year, The-40-Year-Old Virgin, delivers on every level. It’s a great romantic comedy, a great character study, and filled with fantastic performances, with none greater than Steve Carrell’s as the virgin himself. This film deserves a screenplay nomination at this years Academy Awards! One can hope, right?

Shopgirl

A film like this could have so easily staggered right into the ordinary, but right from the beginning, it delved into something much more interesting and dynamic, than a popcorn, love-triangle, romantic comedy. The characters are all real, and completely against stereotype. And on a side note: Somebody please give Claire Danes a more prominent roll than this!

Hustle & Flow

Craig Brewer and Terrence Howard are truly geniuses at work, in this Memphis tale of a pimp and the loves of his life: his women and his music. If Terrence Howard does not get an Oscar nomination for this performance, something is seriously wrong. Hustle & Flow is alive, and exciting, and inspiriring like no other film I have seen this year.

King Kong

Peter Jackson solidifies himself as the god of all things epic. He has an amazing sense of story and action and nobody controls a large set of characters as he does; and he does it with such pristine likeability. I’ve certainly never heard someone say one of his films was not worth seeing, and this one, I believe, is his best yet. My one wish for him, is that he finds a better editor. Not that his shots are not cut together properly, but his films could defintely use some better pacing techniques.

Batman Begins

Am I a Tim Burton fan? Yes. He is absolutely, without a doubt, one of the greatest minds in American cinema. However, his Batman films are subpar compared to this brilliant, epic, gritty take on the caped superhero by Christopher Nolan. Batman Begins peers deep into the depths of the man behind the mask, Bruce Wayne; he is played with such a careful balance of gritty-everyman-undertone and larger-than-life superhero stature by the never-more-underated, Christian Bale.

Me and You and Everyone We Know

This year we were given many gifts from the Sundance Film Festival of '05. Me and You and Everyone We Know cuts to the very heart of what makes independent filmmaking so exciting. It's fresh, original, awkward, hilarious, heartbreaking, and ulitmately, most importantly, truthful. Miranda July's characters are brilliant and well rounded, while simultaneously, tragic and confounded. I did not have more fun at the movies this past year than I did watching Me and You and Everyone We Know. There is a little bit of everyone in all of us!

Match Point

Woody Allen is back! And he is back with a fervor. He has released not one, but two good films in one year. In the Spring he released Melinda and Melinda, a great two for the price of one treat, staring the glamorous Radha Mitchell in double roles as, Melinda and Melinda. Then, in December, he brought us Match Point, a step up from the ever-enjoyble previous film, and a step into much darker territory. He directs this searing, upper class British drama, with a calm, subdued, tenderness. The subtlety pervades (for the most part) through the screen, despite the devious, backstabbing characters that inhabit the world of Match Point. Sadly, the film looses its might, in the moments leading up to its climax, with some wayward performances, by normally spot on actors and actresses, particularly Ms. Johansson.


Tomorrow, I will begin my countdown towards the ten best films of the year, naming numbers 11-20. I will also reveal my final predictions for the Academy Award nominations, due out bright and early Tuesday morning (5:30 a.m. Pacific Time).

Until then,
Good night, and good luck.

The Ten Best:
2005’s most important occurrences/events/products, for better or for worse.

"Corruption is our protection. Corruption is what keeps us safe and warm. Corruption is why you and I are prancing around here instead of fighting each other for scraps of meat out in the streets. Corruption is why we win."
-Danny Daulton (Syriana)

10. For Better: Bright Eyes: I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning

I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning, is not just the best CD released in a year of mixed emotions, but one softly screaming the anthems from within a dying majority of Americans. It’s youthful cynicism is both sharp and poignant while displaying an utter understanding of a world turned upside down. Oh, and it’s also insanely entertaining. Every track is worth a listen; not just once, but twice and three times and then over and over again ‘till you’re repeating the words all day long in your head. And in case politics in music ain’t your thang…there’s some great lines and songs about love, loss and troubles (for better or for worse) with the opposite sex.

The best tracks, in my arrogant opinion, are: Landlocked Blues, Lua, Road to Joy, We Are Nowhere and It’s Now.

9. For Worse: Still Fighting for Oil

While the fact that the United States military is fighting a war based on lies is nothing new, the fact that we are still fighting it, all the way into 2006, is significant. And awful, and repugnant, and shameful, and catastrophically isolating our nation from the rest of the world, and so on and so forth…

I will say only one more thing on this subject. Hopefully, most of you have this already figured on your own. It goes like this: Every single thing uttered by this administration (that includes Fox News and its contributors) about the war in Iraq, from its conception, until now, has been, and forever will be, a lie. That includes the current mantra spewing from their mouths, claiming we are winning the war. Read the paper, any paper, in the morning, and read every article regarding the war in Iraq and tell me if it sounds like we are winning. You don't even have to read the entire article; you can probably get away with just reading the death toll.

8. For Worse?: Supreme Mishaps and Evangelistic Lawyers

Now, I can’t seem to absolutely decide if the whole Supreme Court nominee debacle is for better or worse. We went from one crazy lady, Harriet Miers, who we knew thought the world of President Bush-now that doesn’t give me much confidence-and whom we knew absolutely nothing else about, to a well known, moderately conservative judge. We will never know what Harriet Miers would have brought us, and seemingly, at first glance, we could have done much worse than Alito, thus maybe I should switch my ‘for worse’ to ‘for better.’

But wait, not so fast…if not for the debacle, which was the 2000 election, and the further misrepresentation of the values of this country in the election of 2004, we would not even be placing a moderately-conservative, litigating-Christian judge on the highest court in our land. So, not only is it definitely ‘for worse’ but its all the more awful because the majority of Americans believe as I do, that our government should not take away any choices from us as individuals, as it expresses in the every article of our fine constitution (okay, maybe not every article).

Oh, and not only that, but he got, not just one, but two appointments. ‘He” being, George Bush, our president. I don’t particularly like to address him formally. Due to his constant abuse of our language, why bother—will he even know the difference? (And plus, I have heard he does not read. True statement.)

I realize this was a harsh diatribe, but it needed to be said by someone, as we Americans feel our civil liberties slipping away.

7. For Better: The Sundance Movies and my First Trip to Park City

Every year, Sundance provides us (the general film going community) with a few small, endearing (The Station Agent), sometimes frightening (The Blair Witch Project), and always emotional pictures. Typically, I, and others, can catch a some of them at our local art house or film festival, once they have made their rounds at more prominent festivals.

This past year, I was fortunate enough to attend the festival and take in a whole bunch of films right in the electrifying confines of Park City, Utah. Throughout most of the year, Park City is a quaint mountain town, bringing in a few snowboard enthusiasts, but otherwise remaining isolated from the hustle and bustle of its neighbor, Salt Lake City. However, for ten days in late January, Park City receives an exciting injection of organized chaos in the form of, young and old, small-time Hollywood players, looking for their big break.

The 2005 Sundance Film Festival, stressing its independent filmmaking roots, provided festivalgoers with a great time and a long list of much appreciated films. Fortunately, for those who missed the event, an enormous amount of these small, but great pictures, survived the week and made it to local cinemas. The following are the ones dearest to me; the 10 best:

Brick (2005) - Joseph Gordon-Levitt

10. The March of the Penguins
tie. The Ballad of Jack and Rose
9. The Chumscrubber
8. Saving Face
7. Murderball
6. Hustle & Flow
5. Brick
4. Me and You and Everyone We Know
3. Twist of Faith
2. The Squid and the Whale
1. Junebug

Junebug: Ben McKennzie, Amy Adams | The Squid and the Whale: Owen Kline, Jesse Eisenberg

6. For Better: Self Plug—My first CD and Live Performance

Full Speed Aheadis the title of my first, self-produced CD. It contains 8 original songs on an acoustic guitar. I have not yet managed to get them uploaded, so, I suppose you’ll have to trust me that its decent. As soon as its available for a listen, I’ll certainly bring another post. This has been an exciting accomplishment for me, and I just thought I would share. The end.

5. For Better: An Uncertain Future

2005 has been a year of uncertainty, for me, as well as for our country. The chance for things to get better and to get worse and then better again, yet not knowing exactly where I or our nation will be in the coming days, months, and years, is frightening, yet ultimately exhilarating. It is what makes life, and life in America, so great; anything is possible at any moment. So for better, are all of the uncertainties of 2005.

4. For Worse: Natural Disasters and National Failures

In the aftermath of the tragic events in the South Asian island nations caused by one of the worst Tsunami’s ever to reach landfall, one might hope that America, “the biggest and brightest of them all”, might be better prepared for a disaster of its own.

Hurricane Katrina enlightened us unto some very troubling, yet important issues in our country. Sure, we knew we had a poverty problem in the U.S., but did middle and upper class America really grasp it until we saw the victims of the washed city of New Orleans pictured on our television screens. I know I was in shock at the time.

The other important note Katrina brought to us, is our vulnerability as a nation. Are we prepared to handle a natural or human attack on our soil? It does not seem so. Now, it’s easy to blame Bush and Nagin and other government officials for their slow response to the disaster. And it’s true that it was a bi-partisan effort that dropped the ball in the aftermath of the flood. BUT, lets think about this for just longer than a second and maybe come up with a better answer than: George Bush doesn’t care—which may very well be true…possibly—but lets give him the benefit of the doubt and say he does care.

So, why then would there be such a slow response, to get people into that submerged city and help those people in need? Money? No. I’d say America has plenty of that and there is no problem with just adding it to the tab Bush has been running since 2000. Hmmm, so could it be manpower? Did we not have the troupes to send in to help? Well…no, but they are fighting our worthy cause over in Iraq. We can’t count on our noble military, when we have wrongly deployed them to another country. So that wasn’t the answer. Oh, wait, I know who could have helped; our National Guard should have been immediately flying into New Orleans. After all, that’s precisely what they are here for: to save us in case of an emergency. So, just as George Bush was picking up the phone to call our National Guard into New Orleans, he remembered that he had deployed most of them overseas. Oh, shit! So, we have no one here to defend us at home?

Isn’t that scary!?

3: For Better: Politics at the Movies in 2005

In a year absent of Michael Moore, the film industry marched out an array of quiet, subtle, poignant, and best of all, wonderful pictures of semi-fiction, imparting sharp commentaries on our nation and the world. While I am probably leaving out some, these are the 8 best:

8. Good Night, and Good Luck.
Clooney co-stars and directs this elegant tale of the “Red-Scare”, taking aim at the quality and validity of our television news, past and present
7. Brokeback Mountain
It should go unsaid that the widespread appreciation for this film is a step in the right direction for a society struggling to maintain itself as free, just, and equal.
6. Munich
Spielberg’s most searing and unrelenting film to date (including Schindler’s List), recounts the Israeli governments’ retaliation to the brutal kidnapping and murder of their country’s 1972 Olympians by a group of Palestinian terrorists called Black September.
5. A History of Violence
A harsh, honest look at our culture’s obsession with guns and violence. And also, lets think about what draws us, the audience, so strongly to this dark film.
4. Crash
Crash examines humanity with an intricate, brutally honest, interwoven plot, filled with complex characters from diverse backgrounds. Its most important, and often overlooked theme, I believe, is the idea that the world over, we are all one; that we are all interconnected.
3. Syriana
Clooney and Soderberg produce this haunting take on the global oil situation. It’s a wildly confusing plot, yet simultaneously forceful and emotional; it does not take sides but merely shows us how bleak things are, while we continue to rely on foreign oil.
2. Capote
Capote takes an invigorating look at the downfall of one of the most brilliant gay figures in American pop culture history. Rarely arising in conversations about this film is its willingness to sympathize with the felons and take a stand against their execution and the death penalty.
1. The Constant Gardener
Taking on the pharmaceutical companies with urgency and love! The best love story of the year and the best political film of the year.

2. For Worse: Thursday, January 20, 2005

This one will be short. If you don't know what happened on January 20, 2005, or if you cannot make an educated guess, then stop being apathetic!

If that was harsh, my apologies. But seriously, stop! If you still don't know what I am speaking of, Google the date yourself. It'll be the start of your emergence from apathy. Wait. Okay. Hold on. I'll give you a hint before you go do your search. It all started with the first Tuesaday in Novemeber, the previous year (2004). Okay. Got it. If not, now you can go do your search.

1. For Better: America

I would like to thank America and its founders for allowing this to be possible. "This", I realize, is vague, but I mean it to be. I would also like to thank George W. Bush, for not reading this website and for being strong and resolute, in the toughest of times, no matter how many times he may be wrong. There is one thing for sure about him: he loves his job. I think I know that.

And finally, I would just like to say, for all my rants and raves and betters and worsts, I believe, at the end of it all, the betters slightly outway the worsts.

America,
Good night, and good luck...