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Japanese is a foreign language to him, but Vietnamese filmmaker Tran Anh Hung was able to surpass all cultural and language barriers to bring the Japanese novel “Norwegian Wood” to the big screen. In 1994, Hung first read the popular novel by Japan’s Haruki Murakami in its French translation and felt and intimate connection with the love story.
It’s been a great couple of years for Ryan Gosling who has turned in outstanding performances in projects ranging from the dark drama “Blue Valentine” to the comedy “Crazy, Stupid, Love.” In “Drive,” he’s again touring the dark side, playing a Hollywood stuntman and mechanic who makes extra cash as a getaway-car driver.
Declaration of War” (La guerre est déclarée), France's foreign-language film submission for the Oscars, has the merits of lightness and inventiveness. The director, ValérieDonzelli, freely expresses herself through whichever tool she finds most useful in each particular moment, whether it is comedy in a tragic situation, magical realism, insertion of a song she wrote herself, or a cut to abstract images outside of the scene.
Since “50/50” was released into theaters in September, it has racked up an impressive string of accolades, including a Golden Globe nomination for best motion picture (comedy or musical) and a National Board of Review award for best original screenplay. Written by Will Reiser and directed by Jonathan Levine, the movie walks a fine line between drama and comedy, creating a truly moving viewing experience.
George Clooney is a great actor, but he’s even more impressive as a director. Each of his previous directorial efforts – “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind,” “Good Night, and Good Luck” and “Leatherheads” – has been outstanding, and “The Ides of March” is just as solid.
In The Land of Blood and Honey, written and directed by Angelina Jolie, focuses on the relationship between Danijel (Goran Kostić), a Bosnian-Serb soldier, and Ajla (Zana Marjanović), a Bosnian Muslim. Aside from a handful of largely forgettable films (Welcome to Sarajevo, Behind Enemy Lines, and Savior come to mind), the wars of 1992-1995 in the former Yugoslavia have received limited attention from Hollywood.
“Moneyball,” director Bennett Miller’s fascinating biopic about Oakland Athletics manager Billy Beane was a critical hit in theaters. Now, it seems primed for an Oscar run. The movie is up for multiple honors at both the Golden Globes and Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, and these ceremonies have a good track record of predicting Oscar nominees.
Michel Hazanavicius wrote and directed “The Artist.” He had been planning to make this film for more than 10 years, and producers refused to work with him because Hazanavicius had his heart set on filming a silent, black-and-white movie. The idea sounded anachronistic and bizarre. Finally, Thomas Langmann took a risk and agreed to invest in the film, becoming its producer. To the fortune of audiences worldwide, “The Artist” was finally released in late 2011. It is a project Hazanavicius loved and stayed devoted to for more than a decade, and in the end he created a work of exceptional beauty.