Review - Mission: Impossible -- Rogue Nation

In an age when cinephiles continue to bemoan the glut (and the fiscal success) of unoriginal populist entertainment, I feel it's important to remember not all unoriginal populist entertainment is created equal. There's that which is dumb, lazy or poorly made, and there's that which is so well executed it truly entertains despite its familiarity. Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, the fifth in the series of Tom Cruise vehicles which had plateaued at 'mediocre' until Brad Bird's 2011 entry Ghost Protocol, falls comfortably into the latter designation.

Thankfully, you don't need to have followed the previous globe-trotting exploits of super spy Ethan Hunt (Cruise, barely aged since his first M:I outing in 1996) and his Impossible Mission Force, IMF, to enjoy Rogue Nation. You don't even need to follow this one all that closely. In a franchise whose primary draw is its star and his daring-do, story details erase themselves from one's memory as readily as the famously self-destructing messages that send Ethan on his next mission, should he choose to accept it. Which he does, of course.

Review - Avengers: Age of Ultron

Like the return of the swallows to Capistrano or the swarming of the Monarchs from Mexico, the arrival of spring each year is announced with almost natural periodicity by the flocking of moviegoers to the new episode of Marvel Studios' comic book superhero spectacular! Studio head Kevin Feige could probably set his own watch to the volume of ticket receipts pouring in, having masterminded the most lucrative business model in the industry; An interconnected series of lean, lighthearted action films that play to the people's love of Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Captain America (Chris Evans), the mighty Thor (Chris Hemsworth), the Incredible Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and an ever growing cast of other costumed do-gooders.

All signs would suggest that the fandom's appetite to see Earth's mightiest heroes teaming up again would be as insatiable as it was the first time they hit the big screen together in 2012's box office champ The Avengers. Writer-director Joss Whedon returns for this hotly anticipated sequel, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and wastes no time in giving the public what it wants, kicking off the super-squad's newest adventure with that 'money shot' you've already seen a hundred times in the trailers and TV ads:

Review - American Hustle

American Hustle opens, as one might expect from a movie about scammers and con-artists, with a con job; But not a con job that has anything important to do with the plot. The con job in question is a man's toupée. Spending several meticulous minutes brushing on paste, applying the shabby tuft of a hairpiece, and then elaborately combing over his side hair so that every follicle is in precisely the right place, this man, Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale), is attempting to con the world at large into believing that he has no bald spot.

American Hustle, the latest from writer-director David O. Russell's career reinvention as a helmer of madcap character pieces, can itself be described like that toupée: A tangled, messy, unruly concealment of a script littered with bald spots, and yet we can't help but stare in enjoyment at the sight of it. That wig, however insubstantial, is a lot more fun to watch than a head of real hair.

Review - The Avengers

The summer movie season officially kicks off with The Avengers, Marvel's grand culmination of its last four years of superhero movies, skillfully assembled by fanboy idol Joss Whedon from four distinct Marvel franchises into one fantastic whole.

We – that is to say, those of us who've been keeping up with Marvel's steady output of summer superhero spectacles since 2008 – already know the cast: Robert Downey Jr. as ego-maniacal billionaire Tony Stark (Iron Man), Chris Evans as quintessential soldier Steve Rogers (Captain America), Chris Hemsworth as hammer-wielding Norse god Thor, Jeremy Renner as enigmatic archer extraordinaire Clint Barton Hawkeye, Scarlet Johansson as expatriate Russian super spy Natasha Romanov (Black Widow), and Samuel L. Jackson as cycloptic S.H.I.E.L.D director Nick Fury. Replacing Edward Norton as Bruce Banner is Mark Ruffalo, whose ease with playing “laid back” makes a smart juxtaposition with the green ball of rage that it The Hulk.

One Category at a Time: Supporting Actor

What more is there really to say about this category? Or any acting category for that matter? The same four performers have won the BFCA, Golden Globe, and SAG awards and will all probably continue on to take the Oscars.

There's only one possible scenario I can envision in which Christian Bale does not win this; a bona fide sweep for The King's Speech. If the voters really are as lazy as that when they have their ballots in hand, and vote for the film in every category, Geoffrey Rush can ride that pony all the way to podium. But that's not gonna happen. Performances are one thing that Academy members will vote for based on their own merits, rather than the merits of the film. That, or they vote for whichever star they like, and the way Bale's been walking the rope line and charming his way through the circuit, I can't see him not winning this. It also helps that his performance is by far more complex and fully realized than Rush's good-humoured but comparatively thin one.

Oh yeah, John Hawkes, Jeremy Renner, and Mark Ruffalo are all nominated too, but they're just along for the ride, which is too bad because they delivered some of the finest performances of the year, all of them making my own top five. Renner had us on edge all the way, Hawkes nailed nastiness and goodness all at once, and Ruffalo made easy-going look so much easier than it truly is! I really wish any of them could have won something this year, but you can't derail Bale!

Will win: Christian Bale, The Fighter
Runner-up: Geoffrey Rush, The King's Speech

Should win: Mark Ruffalo, The Kids Are All Right
Should have been nominated: Ed Harris, The Way Back

My Award nominations: Supporting Actor

Best Supporting Actor:

CHRISTIAN BALE in The Fighter:
I can't fault Bale for stealing the show away from its own central character, Micky Ward, because he just steals it so well! He delivers a memorable portrait of drug addiction, blind selfishness, and staunch denial that stem from years of living with unfulfilled dreams. He plays brilliantly off of his costars, as they play brilliantly off of him.

MICHAEL FASSBENDER in Fish Tank:
This is a slippery, tightrope-walking performance that constantly shifts and wiggles around in our mind. It's easy for us to love Fassbender's character at first, and it's still hard for us not to love him as the film's sticky sexuality starts to play itself out. It's simultaneously bold and understated work from one of the finest actors working.

ED HARRIS in The Way Back:
In an age where awards are naturally attracted to performances that live by flash and overt displays of emotion, it's so satisfying to behold a settled, sincere performance that's more emotive because it's so understated. Harris' lived-in portrayal of Mr. Smith is as calm but layered as any performance I've seen this year.

JEREMY RENNER in The Town:
The live wire of The Town's sprawling ensemble, Renner makes you tighten your grip on your armrest every time he's on screen. The unpredictability of his performance pays off in numerous and surprising ways, from the tensely soft-spoken conversation he has with Affleck and Hall, to his comedic final actions in the climactic shootout.

MARK RUFFALO in The Kids Are All Right:
Ruffalo's performance is relaxed and naturalistic, slipping into the character with a disarming ease that misdirects us from his own insecurities, namely his reluctance to truly grow up and start the family he wants but lacks the commitment to create. His crushing final scenes perfectly convey his character's vulnerability and regret.

Just missed: John Hawkes, Winter's Bone