National Treasure: Book of Secrets

A very entertaining, if slightly ludicrous sequel starring Nicholas Cage, John Voight and Helen Mirren. Does the plot really matter? Nicholas Cage is the son of John Voight and they are treasure hunters. The film opens with the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Nicholas Cage's Great-Great(?)grandfather is shot by a Confederate agent for refusing to de-code the code which would lead them to a golden city created by Native Americans in the Wild West. However, a descendant of the Confederate agent appears and claims that in fact the old man was the leader of the plot to assassinate Lincoln, and produces a page torn form the diart of John Wilkes Booth (keeping up?) as proof. The code is discovered hidden on that page. Two hours later, after several chases and journey through the Statue of Liberty (in Paris) Buckingham Palace, the Oval Office, Mount Rushmore all the while being pursued by various nasty baddies, we end up in the City of Gold. This is pure entertainment, and not so bad for that - maybe this type of film will never win Oscars - but they are good fun. Rating 7/10

This year's Oscars

Here is the full list of winners at the 80th Academy Awards, which have been held in Los Angeles.
Best picture: Winner - No Country For Old Men; Nominations: Atonement, Juno, Michael Clayton, There Will Be Blood
Best director: Winners - Joel and Ethan Coen, No Country For Old Men Nominations: Julian Schnabel, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly; Jason Reitman, Juno; Tony Gilroy, Michael Clayton; Paul Thomas Anderson, There Will Be Blood
Best actor: Winner - Daniel Day-Lewis, There Will Be Blood. Nominations: George Clooney, Michael Clayton; Johnny Depp, Sweeney Todd; Tommy Lee Jones, In the Valley of Elah; Viggo Mortensen, Eastern Promises
Best actress Winner - Marion Cotillard, La Vie en Rose; Nominations: Cate Blanchett, Elizabeth: The Golden Age; Julie Christie, Away from Her; Laura Linney, The Savages; Ellen Page, Juno
Best supporting actress: Winner - Tilda Swinton, Michael Clayton. Nominations: Cate Blanchett, I'm Not There; Ruby Dee, American Gangster; Saoirse Ronan, Atonement; Amy Ryan, Gone Baby Gone
Best supporting actor: Winner - Javier Bardem, No Country For Old Men. Nominations - Casey Affleck, The Assassination of Jesse James...; Philip Seymour Hoffman, Charlie Wilson's War; Hal Holbrook, Into the Wild; Tom Wilkinson, Michael Clayton
Best foreign language film: Winner - The Counterfeiters (Austria). Nominations -Beaufort (Israel); Katyn (Poland); Mongol (Kazakhstan); 12 (Russia)
Best animated feature film. Winner - Ratatouille. Nominated - Persepolis; Surf's Up
Best adapted screenplay. Winner - No Country For Old Men. Nominated - Atonement; Away from Her; The Diving Bell and the Butterfly; There Will Be Blood
Best original screenplay: Winner - Juno. Nominated: Lars and the Real Girl; Michael Clayton; Ratatouille; The Savages
Best music (score) Winner - Atonement. Nominated - The Kite Runner; Michael Clayton; Ratatouille; 3:10 to Yuma
Best music (song) Winner - Falling Slowly - Once (performed by Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova). Nominated - Happy Working Song - Enchanted (performed by Amy Adams); Raise It Up - August Rush (performed by Jamia Simone Nash and Impact Repertory Theatre); So Close - Enchanted (performed by Jon McLaughlin); That's How You Know - Enchanted (performed by Amy Adams)
Best documentary feature: Winner - Taxi to the Dark Side. Nominated - No End in Sight; Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience; Sicko; War/Dance
Best documentary short subject: Winner - Freeheld La Corona (The Crown). Nominated - Salim Baba; Sari's Mother
Best visual effects: Winner - The Golden Compass. Nominated -Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End; Transformers
Best cinematography: Winner - There Will Be Blood. Nominated - The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford; Atonement; The Diving Bell and the Butterfly; No Country For Old Men
Best art direction: Winner - Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Nominated -American Gangster; Atonement; The Golden Compass; There Will Be Blood
Best animated short film: Winner - Peter and the Wolf. Nominated: I Met the Walrus; Madame Tutli-Putli; Meme Les Pigeons Vont au Paradis (Even Pigeons Go to Heaven); My Love (Moya Lyubov)
Best short film: Winner - Le Mozart des Pickpockets. Nominated: At Night; Il Supplente Tanghi Argentini; The Tonto Woman
Best costume design: Winner - Elizabeth: The Golden Age. Nominated - Across the Universe; Atonement; La Vie en Rose; Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Best make-up: Winner - La Vie en Rose. Nominated - Norbit; Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
Best sound mixing: Winner - The Bourne Ultimatum. Nominated - No Country For Old Men; Ratatouille; 3:10 to Yuma; Transformers
Best sound editing: Winner - The Bourne Ultimatum. Nominated - No Country For Old Men; Ratatouille; There Will Be Blood; Transformers
Best film editing: Winner - The Bourne Ultimatum. Nominated - The Diving Bell and the Butterfly; Into the Wild; No Country For Old Men; There Will Be Blood

Bad Education

I got this film out on DVD rather than watching it at the cinema - there are pluses and minuses to watching on DVD.

This film by Pedro Almodovar and starring the talented Gael Garcia Bernal is supposedly autobiographical. I'm making no further assumptions about Slmodovar's life - this is strong stuff. Bernal plays both a man and a woman/transexual and the movie is the story of how two boys were affected by the abuse they received at a Catholic boys school. Both are scarred by the treatment they receive from the Father Principal of the School, but their lives turn out very differently. The story begins as the two are reunited when one (Enrique) is a film maker and the other an actor ('Angel') who has a screenplay written by (he says) himself. Enrique reads the play and finds he is one of the characters featured. As with all Almodovar's films there is a lot of confusing movements backwards & forwards in the story, it is a thriller, full of suspense and highly erotic content. He is very good at exploring relationships and depicting people on the edges of society - the misfits, the abnormal - or perhaps extraordinary characters. Many of his characters are ruthless in their desire to achieve everything for themselves - ammoral as well as immoral. A thought provoking film. Rating: 8/10

The Diving Bell and The Butterfly

The remarkable and moving film of the last months of the Editor-in-Chief of Elle magazine, Jean-Dominique Bauby played magnificently by Mathieu Almaric.

Mr Bauby wakes up from a coma as a result of a massive stroke. His brain is functioning perfectly, but he is totally paralysed and unable to talk. The hospital is determined to rehabilitate him and they set about establishing a means by which he can communicate. A very cumbersome and time consuming (but effective) eye blinking alphabet is set up, and by this means he dictates a book that is published shortly before his death.

The film is almost entirely shot through the eye of Jean-Dominique, (his right eye is sewn up to prevent infection) we rarely get to see the effects of the cerebrovascular accident, but he (and we) can see the shock on the faces of his family and friends when they see him for the first time. He gets about in a wheelchair, but never recovers more than minimal movement.

What a remarkable, and strangely uplifting film - and yet again why is it that European cinema comes upon with more interesting (but inevitably less commercial) films? Rating 8/10

Juno

A very above average movie about teenage pregnancy. Starring Ellen Page as the eponymous Juno, and Michael Cera as the surprised father Bleeker. The film opens with the feisty (almost aggressive) Juno finding out she is pregnant after a very much pre-planned one night stand with Bleeker - who is extremely geeky and nerdy and obsessed with running. Juno is like a whirlwind. She tells her father & stepmother (the wonderful Allison Janney) rejects the abortion route and then sees an advert by childless couple Mark (Jason Bateman) and Vanessa (Jennifer Garner), and decides they will adopt her baby. In many ways this couple mirror Juno and Bleeker - Mark has his head in the clouds and isn't ready to grow up Vanessa is desperate to be a real adult - and a mother. Juno is 16 going on 35, Bleeker is 16 going on 10. Juno is like a whirlwind in this couple's lives, and the pregnancy is smooth from Juno's viewpoint, but far from straightforward for Mark, Vanessa, Bleeker,and Juno's father and stepmother.

I'm not surprised this film has been lined up for so many awards - it is quirky, but thoughtful and is sensitively drawn - without the sentimentality usual for American films about teenagers and their families. Rating? 8/10

Winners of the British Academy Awards

Best filmWinner: Atonement - Also nominated: American Gangster; The Lives of Others; No Country For Old Men; There Will Be Blood
Best British film: Winner: This is England - Also nominated: Atonement; The Bourne Ultimatum; Control; Eastern Promises
Leading actor: Winner: Daniel Day-Lewis - There Will Be Blood - Also nominated: George Clooney - Michael Clayton; James McAvoy - Atonement; Viggo Mortensen - Eastern Promises; Ulrich Muehe - The Lives of Others
Leading actress: Winner: Marion Cotillard - La Vie En Rose - Also nominated: Cate Blanchett - Elizabeth: The Golden Age; Julie Christie - Away From Her; Keira Knightley - Atonement; Ellen Page - Juno
Supporting actor: Winner: Javier Bardem - No Country For Old Men - Also nominated: Paul Dano - There Will Be Blood; Tommy Lee Jones - No Country For Old Men; Philip Seymour Hoffman - Charlie Wilson's War; Tom Wilkinson - Michael Clayton
Supporting actress: Winner: Tilda Swinton - Michael Clayton - Also nominated: Cate Blanchett - I'm Not There; Kelly Macdonald - No Country For Old Men; Samantha Morton - Control; Saoirse Ronan - Atonement
Director: Winner: No Country For Old Men - Joel Coen, Ethan Coen - Also nominated: Atonement - Joe Wright; The Bourne Ultimatum - Paul Greengrass; The Lives of Others - Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck; There Will Be Blood - Paul Thomas Anderson
Original screenplay: Winner: Juno - Diablo Cody - Also nominated: American Gangster - Steven Zaillian; The Lives of Others - Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck; Michael Clayton - Tony Gilroy; This is England - Shane Meadows
Adapted screenplay: Winner: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly - Ronald Harwood - Also nominated: Atonement - Christopher Hampton; The Kite Runner - David Benioff; No Country For Old Men - Joel Coen/Ethan Coen; There Will Be Blood - Paul Thomas Anderson
Film not in the English language: Winner: The Lives of Others - Also nominated: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly; The Kite Runner; Lust, Caution; La Vie En Rose
Animated film: Winner: Ratatouille - Also nominated: Shrek the Third; The Simpsons Movie
Carl Foreman award for special achievement by a British director, writer or producer in their first feature film: Winner: Matt Greenhalgh (writer) - Control - Also nominated: Chris Atkins (director/writer) - Taking Liberties; Mia Bays (producer) - Scott Walker: 30 Century Man; Sarah Gavron (director) - Brick Lane; Andrew Piddington (director/writer) - The Killing of John Lennon
Music: Winner: La Vie En Rose - Christopher Gunning - Also nominated: American Gangster - Marc Streitenfeld; Atonement - Dario Marianelli: The Kite Runner - Alberto Iglesias: There Will Be Blood - Jonny Greenwood
Cinematography: Winner: No Country For Old Men - Roger Deakins; Also nominated: American Gangster - Harris Savides; Atonement - Seamus McGarvey; The Bourne Ultimatum - Oliver Wood; There Will Be Blood - Robert Elswit
Editing: Winner: The Bourne Ultimatum - Christopher Rouse - Also nominated: American Gangster - Pietro Scalia; Atonement - Paul Tothill; Michael Clayton - John Gilroy; No Country For Old Men - Roderick Jaynes
Production design: Winner: Atonement - Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer - Also nominated: Elizabeth: The Golden Age - Guy Hendrix Dyas, Richard Roberts; Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - Stuart Craig, Stepheanie McMillan; There Will Be Blood - Jack Fisk, Jim Erickson; La Vie En Rose - Olivier Raoux
Costume design: Winner: La Vie En Rose - Marit Allen - Also nominated: Atonement - Jacqueline Durran; Elizabeth: The Golden Age - Alexandra Byrne; Lust, Caution - Pan Lai; Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street - Colleen Atwood
Sound: Winner: The Bourne Ultimatum - Kirk Francis, Scott Millan, Dave Parker, Karen Baker Landers, Per Hallberg - Also nominated: Atonement - Danny Hambrook, Paul Hamblin, Catherine Hodgson, Becki Ponting; No Country For Old Men - Peter Kurland, Skip Lievsay, Craig Berkey, Greg Orloff; There Will Be Blood - Christopher Scarabosio, Matthew Wood, John Pritchett, Michael Semanick, Tom Johnson; La Vie En Rose - Laurent Zeilig, Pascal Villard, Jean-Paul Hurier, Marc Doisne
Special visual effects: Winner: The Golden Compass - Michael Fink, Bill Westenhofer, Ben Morris, Trevor Wood - Also nominated: The Bourne Ultimatum - Peter Chiang, Charlie Noble, Mattias Lindahl, Joss Williams; Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - Tim Burke, John Richardson, Emma Norton, Chris Shaw; Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End - John Knoll, Charles Gibson, Hal Hickel, John Frazier; Spider-Man 3 - Scott Stokdyk, Peter Nofz, John Frazier, Spencer Cook
Make-up and hair: Winner: La Vie En Rose - Jan Archibald, Didier Lavergne - Also nominated: Atonement - Ivana Primorac; Elizabeth: The Golden Age - Jenny Shircore; Hairspray - Judi Cooper Sealy, Jordan Samuel; Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street - Ivana Primorac, Peter Owen
Short animation: Winner: The Pearce Sisters - Jo Allen, Luis Cook - Also nominated: Head Over Heels - Osbert Parker, Fiona Pitkin, Ian Gouldstone; The Crumblegiant - Pearse Moore, John McCloskey
Short film: Winner: Dog Altogether - Diarmid Scrimshaw, Paddy Considine - Also nominated: Hesitation - Julien Berlan, Michelle Eastwood, Virginia Gilbert; The One And Only Herb McGwyer Plays Wallis Island - Charlie Henderson, James Griffiths, Tim Key, Tom BasdenSoft - Jane Hooks, Simon Ellis; The Stronger - Dan McCulloch, Lia Williams, Frank McGuinness
The Orange Rising Star award (voted for by the public); Winner:Shia LaBeouf - Also nominated: Sienna Miller; Ellen Page; Sam Riley; Tang Wei
Academy Fellowship: Sir Anthony Hopkins
Outstanding British contribution to cinema; Barry Wilkinson

Tea Time

A Documentary film by Alexandra Moskalenko. This short movie is about the Blackheath Tea Hut, a facility that has sat on the edge of Blackheath on the A2 at Shooter's Hil since 1924. This area was riddled with highwaymen a century or more ago, and now this tiny building is open around the clock, and around the year (closed for Christmas though) and serves a varied community of locals and passers by, come rain come shine.

The director makes no contribution at all, the customers and staff do all the talking, interspersed with film of the area (with customer voiceovers) and film of the customers who treat it as a meeting place and open air community centre.

I found it fascinating, as the contributors spoke candidly, even therapeutically, about their lives, and how the Hut helped them and raised their sense of well-being.

Of course the Hut is not universally popular - the Blackheath Society wants it closed - it is (in their opinion) an eyesore, attracts the wrong elements, is a magnet for litter and degrades the environment. Their main concern was the 24 hour opening, something that has been happening for over 30 years. I reckon it would a great shame to end this institution.

This film is not on general release - but the original two showings have been extended to 6 - so get to the Greenwich Picturehouse to see this wonderful 'reality' picture. Rating: 8/10

The Golden Compass

Starring Nicole Kidman and Dakota Blue Richards, with Ian McKellan as the voice of a giant armoured polar bear. Frankly I'm not a fan of fantasy adventure movies - Harry Potter leaves me cold, and these child orientated stories rarely do it for me. The film is based on Philip Pullman's novels - all based on the notion that there are dozens of parallel universes in existence and they are connected in some way. The universe he has created is populated by people who have external souls called daemons in the form of some creature. In this episode Lyra a teenager who is the possessor of a golden compass that can tell the truth to the right person. She will undermine the authority of the sinister magisterium. I have to say that it was about half an hour in that I almost lost the will to live - I was just confused by the premise upon which this is all based. For reasons I couldn't quite understand there was a lot of traipsing about snowy wastes, a battle between giant armoured polar bears, vast numbers of children were encarcerated within a scientific establishment seeking to forcibly part them from their daemons before they stopped changing shape (keep up) whilst Daniel Craig in something slightly more than a cameo role was doing experiments in some isolated laboratory. Maybe I just don't buy the simplicity of the good versus evil thing that is depicted here - but this wasn't exciting, nor truly fantastical enough, nor adventurous enough. It's a bit rubbish really. Rating 5/10