Films get so little respect and theater runtime these days that I failed to recognize some of this year’s Golden Globe nominees, such as “Elle,” “Miss Sloane,” “Loving” and “Rules Don’t Apply.”
Fine, “Elle” is a foreign film and could get by me and Michigan’s limited arthouse theaters, but what about the others?
You don’t know me, but scratching my head at a movie title is a rarity. I normally see every film nominated except one or two (and those are usually the early California/New York releases).
During my Golden Globes party, I eventually learned the above films were movies I had planned to see but missed.
Missing out on an anticipated film is a new bummer for me. Here I am, rushing to see Woody Allen’s “Café Society” before it disappears, only to witness it spread to a few more theaters and get an extended release run while “Loving” (directed by the satisfying Jeff Nichols of “Take Shelter” and “Mud”) comes and goes.
My point is that the Oscars are going to have many films the average moviegoer will not know, so why not pick the best I-Don’t-Know films of the year instead of ones with “buzz” starring the new “it” guy/gal. (Honestly, is Alicia Vikander of “Ex Machina” that good of an actress, or were they exposing her for her neutrally-diverse appearance by placing her in every film of 2015?)
Best films of the year, according to quality and originality? I’d rather talk about one overlooked (or already-forgotten) film: “Swiss Army Man.”
If Leonardo DiCaprio can finally get his statue for lying around in pain in “Revenant” (compared to his numerous, larger-than-life performances in films like “Aviator,” “Revolutionary Road” and “Shutter Island”), then the multitalented Daniel Radcliffe deserves it for lying around as a dead body in “Swiss Army Man.”
He’s multitalented not just because he’s funnier than the “Weekend at Bernie’s” version of dead, but he is witty, honest and believable. (Look up “What If,” “Horns” or what you can about his theater work in “Eqqus” if only for his performance. And have you ever seen him rap Blackalicious’ “Alphabet Aerobics”?)
Directors Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert also deserve a Charlie Kaufman-type nod for at least original screenplay. (Kaufman carries the frizzy hair and brain behind “Being John Malkovich” and last year’s “Anomalisa” – snubbed for best animated film.)
Alright. I know what you’ve been thinking. Dan Kwan, Daniel Scheinert, Daniel Radcliffe and I’m a Dan myself. But there’s no God Dan bias going on here. Don’t you understand?
“Swiss Army Man” succeeds in illuminating a philosophy where flatulence acceptance cures loneliness.
Aside from the former Harry Potter being judged merely by his wand (e.g., “Eqqus”), I’d also like to see the underrated Greta Gerwig get some buzz or an Oscar acknowledgment. Not for her miscast, waste-of-talent spot in the flat “Jackie,” but for “20th Century Women.”
Have I seen it? No. (Release date Jan 20.) But I did rush out to see Kelly Reichardt’s disappointing “Certain Women” during its barely-two-week release. (I much rather recommend Reichardt’s “Night Moves” or “Meek’s Cutoff.”)
Whether we catch Gerwig’s performance or not, she’s been unique enough in her career (“Baghead,” “Greenberg,” “Maggie’s Plan”) to finally get some credit, even if the Oscars are playing DiCaprio catchup.
