Monday 30 December 2013

Tom's Theatre Shows of the Year 2013

1. True West
Written by Sam Shepard
Directed by Phillip Breen
Citizen's Theatre, Glasgow, October/November

The only show I saw twice this year. I did a write up on Sam Shepard's Q & A on the last night.



2. Arrivals and Departures
Written and directed by Alan Ayckbourn
Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, August



3. Untold Stories: Hymn and Cocktail Sticks
Written by Alan Bennett
Directed by Nadia Fall and Nicholas Hytner
Duchess Theatre, London, April



4. Time of My Life
Written and directed by Alan Ayckbourn
Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, August



5. The Low Road
Written by Bruce Norris
Directed by Dominic Cooke
The Royal Court, London, April



6. A Respectable Widow Takes to Vulgarity
Written by Douglas Maxwell
Directed by Orla O'Laughlin
Oran Mor, Glasgow, February



7. The Commission
Written by Steven Dick
Directed by Pete Collins
Oran Mor, Glasgow, March



8. How to Catch a Cat Burglar
Written by Clare Shepard and Kenny Boyle
The Old Hairdressers, Glasgow, March

9. Each of Us
Written by Ben Moor
Directed by Erica Whyman
Pleasance Upstairs, Edinburgh, August

10. O Campeao Mundo Ocidental (The Playboy of the Western World)
Written by J.M. Synge
Directed by Jorge Silva
Melo Teatro Nacional, Lisbon, May

As the production was entirely in Portuguese I can't confidently say it was top drawer, but I enjoyed the experience and it did get a standing ovation at the end of the 90 minutes.

Special Mention

The Audience 
Written by Peter Morgan
Directed by Stephen Daldry

When I was in London in April I was quoted £200 for a ticket. I thought better of paying that. Instead I saw it in Cineworld in June. I thoroughly enjoyed it and had I actually seen it in the theatre I'm sure it would have been one of the best shows of the year.

Toms Films of 2013

Here's my tenth films of the year list. If there's any big omissions on the list it's probably because I didn't see it rather than I thought it was rubbish. I didn't see as many films as I would have liked in 2013.

1. Zero Dark Thirty (UK release date 25th January)
Directed by Kathryn Bigelow
Written by Mark Boal
Starring: Jessica Chastain, Darren Clarke, Jennifer Ehle, Joel Edgerton



 2. Django Unchained (UK release date 18th January)
Written and directed by Quentin Tarantino
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Samuel L. Jackson, Kerry Washington



3. The Way Way Back (UK release date 28th August)
Written and directed by Nat Faxon and Jim Rash
Starring: Liam James, Steve Carell, Toni Collette, Allison Janney, AnnaSophia Robb, Sam Rockwell, and Maya Rudolph



4. Nebraska (UK release date 6th December)
Directed by Alexander Payne
Written by Bob Nelson
Starring: Bruce Dern, Will Forte, June Squibb, Stacy Keach, and Bob Odenkirk



5. Behind the Candelabra (UK release date 7th June)
Directed by Steven Soderbergh
Written by Richard LaGravenese
Starring: Michael Douglas, Matt Damon, Dan Aykroyd, Scott Bakula, Rob Lowe, Debbie Reynolds



6. Prince Avalanche (UK release date 18th October)
Directed by David Gordon Green
Written by Hafsteinn Gunnar Sigurðsson (based on the film "Either Way"), David Gordon Green
Starring: Paul Rudd and Emile Hirsch

 

7. Saving Mr. Banks (UK release date 29th November)
Directed by John Lee Hancock
Written by Kelly Marcel and Sue Smith
Starring: Emma Thompson,Tom Hanks, Paul Giamatti, Jason Schwartzman, Bradley Whitford, Colin Farrell



8. Gravity (UK release date 8th November)
Directed by Alfonso Cuarón
Written by Alfonso Cuarón and Jonás Cuarón
Starring: Sandra Bullock and George Clooney



9. Prisoners (UK release date 27th September)
Directed by Denis Villeneuve
Written by Aaron Guzikowski
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Viola Davis, Maria Bello, Terrence Howard, Melissa Leo, Paul Dano



10. Robot and Frank (UK release date 8th March)
Directed by Jake Schreier
Written by Christopher D. Ford
Starring: Frank Langella, Susan Sarandon, Peter Sarsgaard, James Marsden, Liv Tyler



11. Frances Ha (UK release date 26th July)
Directed by Noah Baumbach
Written by Noah Baumbach and Greta Gerwig
Starring: Greta Gerwig, Mickey Sumner, Charlotte d'Amboise, Adam Driver



12. The World's End (UK release date 19th July)
Directed by Edgar Wright
Written by Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg
Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Paddy Considine, Martin Freeman, Eddie Marsan, Rosamund Pike



13. World War Z (UK release date 21st June)
Directed by Marc Forster
Written by Matthew Michael Carnahan, Drew Goddard, Damon Lindelof
Starring: Brad Pitt, Mireille Enos, James Badge Dale, Matthew Fox, Peter Capaldi



14. The Conjuring (UK release date 2nd August)
Directed by James Wan
Written by Chad Hayes and Carey Hayes
Starring: Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga, Ron Livingston, Lili Taylor



15. Touchy Feely (No 2013 UK release)
Written and directed by Lynn Shelton
Starring: Rosemarie DeWitt, Ellen Page, Allison Janney, Josh Pais, Scoot McNairy, Ron Livingston



16. The Spectacular Now (No general 2013 UK release)
Directed by James Ponsoldt
Written by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber
Starring: Miles Teller, Shailene Woodley, Brie Larson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kyle Chandler



My previous films of the year can be found below.

Tom's Films of 2012

Tom's Films of 2011

Tom's Films of 2010

Tom's Films of 2009

Tom’s Films of 2008

Tom’s Films of 2007

Tom’s Films of 2006

Tom’s Films of 2005

Tom’s Films of 2004

Thursday 10 January 2013

Oscar Predictions

Here are my predictions for this afternoon's Oscar nominations. I'll update it later with what I got wrong and right.


Best Director
1.Steven Spielberg (Lincoln)
2.Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty)
3.Paul Thomas Anderson (The Master)
4. Ben Affleck (Argo)
5.David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook)

2 out of 5. I thought Kathryn Bigelow was a shoo-in.

Best Picture
1. Lincoln
2.Zero Dark Thirty
3. Silver Linings Playbook
4. The Master
5. Argo

4 out of 5.

Best Foreign Language Film
1.Austria, Amour
2.France, The Intouchables
3.Denmark, A Royal Affair
4.Chile, No
5.Norway, Kon-Tiki

4 out of 5

Best Documentary Feature
1.This Is Not a Film
2.Chasing Ice
3.The Imposter
4.Searching For Sugar Man
5.5 Broken Camera

2 out of 5

Best Animated Feature
1. Brave
2. Frankenweenie
3. ParaNorman
4. Hotel Transylvania
5.Wreck-It-Ralph

4 out of 5

Best Actress in a Leading Role
1. Naomi Watts (The Impossible)
2. Marianne Cotillard (Rust and Bone)
3.Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty)
4. Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook)
5. Quvenzhane Wallis (Beasts of the Southern Wild)

4 out of 5

Best Actor in a Leading Role
1. John Hawkes (The Sessions)
2.Daniel Day Lewis (Lincoln)
3. Bradley Cooper (Silver Linings Playbook)
4.Denzel Washington (Flight)
5.Jaquin Phoenix (The Master)
4 out of 5

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
1.Kerry Washington (Django Unchained)
2.Anne Hathaway (Les Miserables)
3. Helen Hunt (The Sessions)
4.Amy Adams (The Master)
5.Sally Field (Lincoln)

4 out of 5

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
1.Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained)
2.Scoot McNairy (Killing Them Softly)
3.Alan Arkin (Argo)
4.Tommy Lee Jones (Lincoln)
5.Phillip Seymour Hoffman (The Master)

4 out of 5. I knew Scoot McNairy was a wildcard.

Best Original Screenplay
1. Mark Boal (Zero Dark Thirty)
2.Quentin Tarantino (Django Unchained)
3.Paul Thomas Anderson (The Master)
4.Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola (Moonrise Kingdom)
5.Michael Hanke (Amour)

4 out of 5

Best Adapted Screenplay
1. Chris Terrio (Argo)
2. Stephen Chbosky (The Perks of Being a Wallflower)
3. David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook)
4.Tony Kushner (Lincoln)
5. Lucy Alibar & Benh Zeitlin (Beasts of the Southern Wild)

4 out of 5

Best Production Design
1. Dan Hennah & Ra Vincent (The Hobbit: A Unexpected Journey)
2. David Crank, Jack Fisk & Amy Wells, (The Master)
3. Rick Carter, Jim Erickson & Peter T. Frank, (Lincoln)
4. Eve Stewart (Les Miserables)
5. Sarah Greenwood and Katie Spencer (Anna Karenina)

4 out of 5

Best Cinematography
1. Wally Pfister (The Dark Knight Rises)
2. Claudio Miranda (Life of Pi)
3. Janusz Kaminski (Lincoln)
4. Roger Deakins (Skyfall)
5. Ben Richardson (Beasts of the Southern Wild)

3 out of 5

Best Film Editing
1. Dylan Tichenor and William Goldenberg (Zero Dark Thirty)
2. Peter McNulty and Leslie Jones (The Master)
3. Fred Raskin (Django Unchained)
4. Michael Kahn (Lincoln)
5. William Goldenberg (Argo)

3 out of 5

Best Visual Effects
1.Life of Pi
2.The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
3.The Dark Knight Rises
4.Prometheus
5.Skyfall

3 out of 5

Best Costume Design
1. Jacqueline Durran (Anna Karenina)
2. Paco Delgado (Les Miserables)
3. Eiko Ishioka (Mirror Mirror)
4. Joanna Johnston (Lincoln)
5. Sharen Davis (Django Unchained)

4 out of 5

Best Makeup and Hairstyling
1. Hitchcock
2. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
3. Les Miserables
4. Lincoln
5. Men In Black 3

Only 3 nominees so 3 out of 3, although I had 5 guesses.

Best Original Score
1.John Williams (Lincoln)
2.Jonny Greenwood (The Master)
3.Alexandre Desplat (Argo)
4.Michael Danna (Life of Pi)
5.Dan Romer, Benh Zeitlin (Beasts of the Southern Wild)

3 out of 5

An overall score of 65 out of 90 nominations correct.