Christopher Plummer – Way Too Indie

2012 Oscar Winners

Dustin Jansick — Mon, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

While Hugo started off the 84th Annual Academy Awards strong but The Artist made come back later in the night. At the beginning of the award show Hugo piled on the wins in most of the technical awards such as Best Visual Effects, Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing and Best Art Direction. With the momentum it built early on, it sort of makes sense that it won the Best Cinematography award (although I thought The Tree of Life should have won).

As the night progressed and some of the bigger categories were announced is when The Artist came into the spotlight. The Artist won the top award of Best Picture as well as the prestigious Best Director award. The film received another large award when Jean Dujardin won for Best Actor. It also won for Best Score and Best Costume Design.

Thankfully, there were some upsets throughout the night to keep things interesting in what many thought to be a fairly predictable year. Arguably the biggest upset was when Meryl Streep’s name got called for Best Actress as many, myself included, expected Viola Davis to win. The people from Undefeated accepting the award for Best Documentary even sounded surprised they won that category. Most of the time Best Film Editing winner goes to win Best Picture but The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo won it instead and it was their only one of the night.

The full list of Oscar winners:
(The winners are highlighted in bold red font)

Best Picture:

The Artist
The Descendants
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
The Help
Hugo
Midnight In Paris
Moneyball
The Tree of Life
War Horse

Best Director:

Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Alexander Payne – The Descendants
Martin Scorsese – Hugo
Woody Allen – Midnight In Paris
Terrence Malick – The Tree Of Life

Best Actor:

Demian Bichir – A Better Life
Jean Dujardin – The Artist
George Clooney – The Descendants
Brad Pitt – Moneyball
Gary Oldman – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Best Actress:

Glenn Close – Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis – The Help
Rooney Mara – The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep – The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams – My Week With Marilyn

Best Supporting Actor:

Kenneth Branagh – My Week With Marilyn
Jonah Hill – Moneyball
Nick Nolte – Warrior
Christopher Plummer – Beginners
Max Von Sydow – Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Best Supporting Actress:

Berenice Bejo – The Artist
Jessica Chastain – The Help
Melissa McCarthy – Bridesmaids
Janet McTeer – Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer – The Help

Best Original Screenplay:

Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Kristin Wiig & Annie Mumulo – Bridesmaids
J.C. Chandor – Margin Call
Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris
Asghar Farhadi – A Separation

Best Adapted Screenplay:

Jim Rash, Nat Faxon, Alexander Payne – The Descendants
John Logan – Hugo
George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon – The Ides Of March
Steve Zaillian & Aaron Sorkin – Moneyball
Peter Straughan & Bridget O’Connor – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Best Foreign Film:

A Separation
Bullhead
Footnote
In Darkness
Monsieur Lazhar

Best Animated Film:

A Cat In Paris
Chico & Rita
Kung Fu Panda 2
Puss In Boots
Rango

Best Documentary:

Hell And Back Again
If A Tree Falls; A Story Of The Earth Liberation Front
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory
Pina
Undefeated

Best Cinematography:

Guillaume Shiffman – The Artist
Jeff Cronenweth – The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Robert Richardson – Hugo
Emmanuel Lubezki – The Tree of Life
Janusz Kaminski – War Horse

Best Film Editing:

Anne-Sophie Bion & Michel Hazavanicius – The Artist
Kevin Tent – The Descendants
Kirk Baxter & Angus Wall – The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Thelma Schoonmaker – Hugo
Christopher Tellefsen – Moneyball

Best Art Direction:

The Artist
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2
Hugo
Midnight In Paris
War Horse

Best Costume Design:

Anonymous
The Artist
Hugo
Jane Eyre
W.E.

Best Makeup:

Albert Nobbs
Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows Pt. 2
The Iron Lady

Best Original Score:

Ludovic Bource – The Artist
Alberto Iglesias – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Howard Shore – Hugo
John Williams – The Adventures Of Tintin
John Williams – War Horse

Best Original Song:

“Man Or Muppet” – The Muppets
“Real In Rio” – Rio

Best Sound Editing:

Drive
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Transformers: The Dark Of The Moon
War Horse

Best Sound Mixing:

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Moneyball
Transformers: The Dark of The Moon
War Horse

Best Visual Effects:

Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Pt. 2
Hugo
Real Steel
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Transformers: The Dark of the Moon

Best Documentary (Short Subject):

The Barber Of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement
God Is The Bigger Elvis
Incident In New Baghdad
Saving Face
The Tsunami & The Cherry Blossom

Best Visual Short Film (Animated):

Dimanche
The Fantastic Flying Books Of Mr. Morris Lessmore
La Luna
A Morning Stroll
Wild Life

Best Short Film (Live Action):

Pentecost
Raju
The Shore
Time Freak
Tuba Atlantic

2012 Independent Spirit Award Winners

Dustin Jansick — Mon, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

The Artist won big at the 2012 Film Independent Spirit Awards by taking home most of the major awards such as Best Feature, Best Director, Best Male Lead and Best Cinematography. In fact, it won every award it was nominated for except for Best Screenplay. We will see tomorrow night if The Artist can win Best Picture for both the Independent Spirit Awards and The Oscars, something that has not been done since 1987 with Platoon.

I ended up doing pretty well with my predictions this year. Out of the total of 13 unannounced awards I got 9 of them correct, which is about 69% accuracy. Although this year there will likely be a lot of cross-over winners between the Spirit Awards and the more mainstream awards, it was great to see independent films get the recognition they deserve.

The full list of Independent Spirit Award winners:
(The winners are highlighted in bold red font)

Best Feature:

50/50 – Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Ben Karlin
Beginners – Miranda de Pencier, Lars Knudsen, Leslie Urdang, Jay Van Hoy, Dean Vanech
Drive – Michel Litvak, John Palermo, Marc Platt, Gigi Pritzker, Adam Siegel
Take Shelter – Tyler Davidson, Sophia Lin
The Artist – Thomas Langmann, Emmanuel Montamat
The Descendants – Jim Burke, Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor

Best Director:

Mike Mills – Beginners
Nicolas Winding Refn – Drive
Jeff Nichols- Take Shelter
Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Alexander Payne – The Descendants

Best First Feature:

Another Earth
In The Family
Margin Call
Martha Marcy May Marlene
Natural Selection

Best Male Lead:

Demian Bichir – A Better Life
Jean Dujardin – The Artist
Ryan Gosling – Drive
Woody Harrelson – Rampart
Michael Shannon – Take Shelter

Best Female Lead:

Lauren Ambrose – Think Of Me
Rachel Harris – Natural Selection
Adepero Oduye – Pariah
Elizabeth Olsen – Martha Marcy May Marlene
Michelle Williams – My Week With Marilyn

Best Supporting Male:

Albert Brooks – Drive
John Hawkes – Martha Marcy May Marlene
Christopher Plummer – Beginners
John C. Reilly – Cedar Rapids
Corey Stoll – Midnight In Paris

Best Supporting Female:

Jessica Chastain – Take Shelter
Angelica Huston – 50/50
Janet McTeer – Albert Nobbs
Harmony Santana – Gun Hill Road
Shaileen Woodley – The Descendants

John Cassavetes Award:

Bellflower
Circumstance
Hello Lonesome
Lovers of Hate
The Dynamiter
Pariah

Best Documentary:

An African Election
Bill Cunningham New York
The Interrupters
The Redemption of General Butt Naked
We Were Here

Best Foreign Film:

A Separation
Melancholia
Shame
The Kid With A Bike
Tyrannosaur

Best Cinematography:

Bellflower
The Off Hours
Midnight In Paris
The Artist
The Dynamiter

Best Screenplay:

Footnote
The Artist
Win Win
Beginners
The Descendants

Best First Screenplay:

Another Earth
Margin Call
Terri
Cedar Rapids
50/50

Robert Altman Award: (Given to one film’s director, casting director, and its ensemble cast)

Margin Call
Director: J.C. Chandor
Ensemble Cast: Kevin Spacey, Paul Bettany, Jeremy Irons, Zachary Quinto, Penn Badgley, Simon Baker, Mary McDonnell, Demi Moore

Piaget Producers Award: (Award given to a producer)

Chad Burris – Mosquita y Mari
Sophia Lin – Take Shelter
Josh Mond – Martha Marcy May Marlene

Truer Than Fiction Award:

Where Soldiers Come From
Hell and Back Again
Bombay Beach

Someone to Watch Award: (Award given to the director)

Simon Arthur – Silver Tongues
Mark Jackson – Without
Nicholas Ozeki – Mamitas

2012 Independent Spirit Award Predictions

Dustin Jansick — Mon, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

We are only 23 days away from hearing the winners of the 2012 Independent Spirit Awards so I thought I would give a shot at predictions who those winners will be. The Spirit Awards are a little be harder to predict than the Oscars because they do not tend to follow as many patterns nor does it have as wide of an audience. This year has a chance to be closer to the outcome of the Oscars than any other year with The Artist being the favorite at both shows. Christopher Plummer and A Separation also could be set to win both a Spirit Award and Oscar. In addition to picking the winners for each category I gave some insight as to why in the “Notes” section under the categories.

Tune in on Saturday February 25th to IFC and see how well I did (or did not do).

The full list of Independent Spirit Award predictions:
(My prediction for the winners are highlighted in bold red font)

Best Feature: (Award given to the Producer)

NOTES:
I would be completely shocked if The Artist did not win as it seems like the strongest of the bunch. However, you have to go all the back to 1987 for the winner of this category to be the same film that wins Best Picture at the Oscars. Since it is the front runner to win the Oscar, history may repeat itself and some other film may win. If that were the case, I think Drive has a good chance as well as The Descendants.

Best Director:

Mike Mills – Beginners
Nicolas Winding Refn – Drive
Jeff Nichols- Take Shelter
Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Alexander Payne – The Descendants

NOTES:
This is tricky because the winner of Best Director is typically the same as the Best Feature. So if you get one wrong you will probably get both wrong. I am sticking with The Artist (Michel Hazanavicius) as the frontrunner with Alexander Payne for The Descendants as my second pick.

Best First Feature: (Award given to the director and producer)

Another Earth – Directed by Mike Cahill; Producers: Mike Cahill, Hunter Gray, Brit Marling, Nicholas Shumaker
In The Family – Directed by Patrick Wang; Producers: Robert Tonino, Andrew van den Houten, Patrick Wang
Margin Call – Directed by J.C. Chandor; Producers: Robert Ogden Barnum, Michael Benaroya, Neal Dodson, Joe Jenckes, Corey Moosa, Zachary Quinto
Martha Marcy May Marlene – Directed by Sean Durkin; Producers: Antonio Campos, Patrick Cunningham, Chris Maybach, Josh Mond
Natural Selection – Directed by Robbie Pickering; Producers: Brion Hambel, Paul Jensen

NOTES:
My bets are on Martha Marcy May Marlene winning this award. Natural Section did win at SXSW Film Festival and Another Earth won awards at the Sundance Film Festival so they have pretty good odds of winning as well. Margin Call is already taking home the Robert Altman Award so I think their recognition ends with that.

Best Male Lead:

Demian Bichir – A Better Life
Jean Dujardin – The Artist
Ryan Gosling – Drive
Woody Harrelson – Rampart
Michael Shannon – Take Shelter

NOTES:
With George Clooney out of the race I think Jean Dujardin is a shoo-in. Ryan Gosling and Michael Shannon will likely accept the nomination as their win since they were snubbed from the Oscars this year.

Best Female Lead:

Lauren Ambrose – Think Of Me
Rachel Harris – Natural Selection
Adepero Oduye – Pariah
Elizabeth Olsen – Martha Marcy May Marlene
Michelle Williams – My Week With Marilyn

NOTES:
I think this will be close between Michelle Williams (who will probably not be taking home an Oscar this year) and Elizabeth Olsen (who was not nominated for an Oscar). I am picking Michelle Williams, who lost last year’s award to Natalie Portman.

Best Supporting Male:

Albert Brooks – Drive
John Hawkes – Martha Marcy May Marlene
Christopher Plummer – Beginners
John C. Reilly – Cedar Rapids
Corey Stoll – Midnight In Paris

NOTES:
Being that Christopher Plummer is pretty much a lock to win the Oscar, it only seems fitting he will win a Spirit Award as well. Albert Brooks is the definite dark horse here. John Hawkes won this exact award last year so I doubt he would get it two years in a row. I am glad to see Corey Stoll get the nomination for Midnight In Paris but there is little chance he will win.

Best Supporting Female:

Jessica Chastain – Take Shelter
Angelica Huston – 50/50
Janet McTeer – Albert Nobbs
Harmony Santana – Gun Hill Road
Shaileen Woodley – The Descendants

NOTES:
I believe Shaileen Woodley will pick up the one of my predicted two awards for The Descendants. Although, I will be rooting for Jessica Chastain to win for not only her role in Take Shelter, but she has a terrific year for her roles in The Tree of Life and The Help.

John Cassavetes Award: (Given to the best feature made for under $500,000; award given to the writer, director, and producer)

Bellflower – Written and directed by Evan Glodell; Producers: Evan Glodell, Vincent Grashaw
Circumstance – Written and directed by Maryam Keshavarz; Producers: Karin Chien, Maryam Keshavarz, Melissa M. Lee
Hello Lonesome – Written and directed and produced by Adam Reid
Lovers of Hate – Written and directed by Dee Rees; Producer: Nekisa Cooper
The Dynamiter – Writters: Matthew Gordon and Brad Ingelsby; Directed by Matthew Gordon; Producers: Kevin Abrams, Matthew Gordon, Merilee Holt, Nate Tuck, Amile Wilson

NOTES:
This is a tough category to predict but I want to say Circumstance will win. The other won to consider would be Lovers of Hate.

Best Documentary: (Award given to the director)

An African Election – Jarreth J. Merz, Kevin Merz
Bill Cunningham New York – Richard Press
The Interrupters – Steve James
The Redemption of General Butt Naked – Daniele Anastasion, Eric Strauss
We Were Here – David Weissman, Bill Weber

NOTES:
I do not think there is a clear winner here. I will pick Bill Cunningham New York as the winner but really The Interrupters and We Were Here have equal shots.

Best Foreign Film: (Award given to the director)

A Separation – Asghar Farhadi
Melancholia – Lars von Trier
Shame – Steve McQueen
The Kid With A Bike – Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne
Tyrannosaur – Paddy Considine

NOTES:
2007 was the last time that the same film won an Independent Spirit Award and an Oscar for this category. A Separation is pretty much a given that it will win the Oscar but with contending films like Melancholia and Shame that is tough to say here. Both of those films were robbed of any Oscar nominations so it would be nice to see them get a win here. I thought hard about this and ended up going with A Separation to win but I think Melancholia has a shot for the reasons above.

Best Cinematography:

Joel Hodge – Bellflower
Benjamin Kasulke – The Off Hours
Darius Khondji – Midnight In Paris
Guillaume Schiffman – The Artist
Jeffrey Waldron – The Dynamiter

NOTES:
It is tough to go against The Artist in any category this year but I am going with my gut that Darius Khondji will win for Midnight In Paris. This category is only a race between those two.

Best Screenplay:

Joseph Cedar – Footnote
Michel Hazanivicius – The Artist
Tom McCarthy – Win Win
Mike Mills – Beginners
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon & Jim Rash – The Descendants

NOTES:
I am guessing The Descendants will win it’s second award with this and The Artist will play as the backup here.

Best First Screenplay:

Mike Cahill & Brit Marling – Another Earth
J.C. Chandor – Margin Call
Patreck DeWitt – Terri
Phil Johnston – Cedar Rapids
Will Reiser – 50/50

NOTES:
It would be a shame if 50/50 went home empty handed especially since the host this year is Seth Rogen who co-stars in the film. Based on real life events of Will Reiser I think he will take home the award for this. The Sundance standout Another Earth may also have a decent shot.

2012 Golden Globe Award Winners List

Dustin Jansick — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 01:38:19 +0000

Ricky Gervais returned as the host for the 69th Golden Globe Awards offending attendees with a beer just as he did last year. Although, this year he was a little more tame with his jokes, he proved he was worthy of being a repeating host.

As expected The Artist ended up with the most wins with three (including Best Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical and Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical). But The Descendants was a close second with two big wins (Best Motion Picture — Drama and Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama).

On the TV side of the awards no one show dominated and there were some surprises, namely Kelsey Grammer winning as Best Actor in a Drama and Matt LeBlanc getting a win for Best Actor in a Comedy. Game Of Thrones, Modern Family and American Horror Story each walked out with a win while Boardwalk Empire and Breaking Bad sadly going home empty handed.

The full list of Golden Globe film winners:
(The winners are highlighted in bold red font)

Best Motion Picture – Drama:
The Descendants
The Help
Hugo
The Ides of March
Moneyball
War Horse

Best Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical:
50/50
The Artist
Bridesmaids
Midnight in Paris
My Week With Marilyn

Best Director:
Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris
George Clooney – The Ides of March
Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Alexander Payne – The Descendants
Martin Scorsese – Hugo

Best Actress – Drama:
Glenn Close – Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis – The Help
Rooney Mara – The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep – The Iron Lady
Tilda Swinton – We Need to Talk About Kevin

Best Actor – Drama:
George Clooney – The Descendants
Leonardo DiCaprio – J. Edgar
Michael Fassbender – Shame
Ryan Gosling – The Ides of March
Brad Pitt – Moneyball

Best Actress – Comedy or Musical:
Jodie Foster – Carnage
Charlize Theron – Young Adult
Kristen Wiig – Bridesmaids
Michelle Williams – My Week With Marilyn
Kate Winslet – Carnage

Best Actor – Comedy or Musical:
Jean Dujardin – The Artist
Brendan Gleeson – The Guard
Joseph Gordon-Levitt – 50/50
Ryan Gosling – Crazy, Stupid, Love
Owen Wilson – Midnight In Paris

Best Supporting Actress:
Berenice Bejo – The Artist
Jessica Chastain – The Help
Janet McTeer – Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer – The Help
Shailene Woodley – The Descendants

Best Supporting Actor:
Kenneth Branagh – My Week with Marilyn
Albert Brooks – Drive
Jonah Hill – Moneyball
Viggo Mortensen – A Dangerous Method
Christopher Plummer, Beginners

Best Foreign Language Film:
The Flowers of War (China)
In the Land of Blood and Honey (USA)
The Kid With a Bike (Belgium)
A Separation (Iran)
The Skin I Live In (Spain)

Best Screenplay – Motion Picture:
Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris
George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon – The Ides of March
Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash – The Descendants
Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin – Moneyball

Best Original Score – Motion Picture:
Ludovic Bource – The Artist
Abel Korzeniowski – W.E.
Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross – The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Howard Shore – Hugo
John Williams – War Horse

Best Animated Feature Film:
The Adventures of Tintin
Arthur Christmas
Cars 2
Puss in Boots
Rango

Best Original Song – Motion Picture:
Hello Hello – Gnomeo & Juliet, music by Elton John, lyrics by Bernie Taupin
The Keeper – Machine Gun Preacher, music and lyrics by Chris Cornell
Lay Your Head Down – Albert Nobbs, music by Brian Byrne, lyrics by Glenn Close
The Living Proof – The Help, music by Mary J. Blige, Thomas Newman, Harvey Mason Jr.; lyrics by Mary J. Blige, Harvey Mason Jr., Damon Thomas
Masterpiece – W.E., music and lyrics by Madonna, Julie Frost, Jimmy Harry

Cecil B. DeMille Award:
Morgan Freeman

The full list of Golden Globe television winners:

Best Drama Series:
American Horror Story
Boardwalk Empire
Boss
Game of Thrones
Homeland

Best Comedy Or Musical:
Enlightened
Episodes
Glee
Modern Family
New Girl

Best TV Movie/Miniseries:
Cinema Verite
Downton Abbey
The Hour
Mildred Pierce
Too Big to Fail

Best Actress – Drama:
Claire Danes – Homeland
Mireille Enos – The Killing
Julianna Margulies – The Good Wife
Madeleine Stowe – Revenge
Callie Thorne – Necessary Roughness

Best Actor – Drama:
Steve Buscemi – Boardwalk Empire
Bryan Cranston – Breaking Bad
Kelsey Grammer – Boss
Jeremy Irons – The Borgias
Damian Lewis – Homeland

Best Actress – Comedy or Musical:
Laura Dern – Enlightened
Zooey Deschanel – New Girl
Tina Fey – 30 Rock
Laura Linney – The Big C
Amy Poehler – Parks and Recreation

Best Actor – Comedy or Musical:
Hugh Bonneville – Downtown Abbey
Idris Elba – Luther
William Hurt – Too Big to Fail
Bill Nighy – Page Eight
Dominic West – The Hour

Best Actress – TV Movie/Miniseries:
Romola Garai – The Hour
Diane Lane – Cinema Verite
Elizabeth McGovern – Downton Abbey
Emily Watson – Appropriate Adult
Kate Winslet – Mildred Pierce

Best Actor – TV Movie/Miniseries:
Alec Baldwin – 30 Rock
David Duchovny – Californication
Johnny Galecki – The Big Bang Theory
Thomas Jane – Hung
Matt LeBlanc – Episodes

Best Supporting Actress – TV Series:
Jessica Lange – American Horror Story
Kelly MacDonald – Boardwalk Empire
Maggie Smith – Downtown Abbey
Sofia Vergara – Modern Family
Evan Rachel Wood – Mildred Pierce

Best Supporting Actor – TV Series:
Peter Dinklage – Game of Thrones
Paul Giamatti – Too Big to Fail
Guy Pearce – Mildred Pierce
Tim Robbins – Cinema Verite
Eric Stonestreet – Modern Family

Beginners

Dustin Jansick — Mon, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Beginners is a semi-autobiographical film written and directed by Mike Mills about how to find love in relationships. It is also about how much ones upbringing influences their lives as an adult. A young man must deal with his father recently being diagnosed with cancer and come to terms that his 75 year old father is just now coming out-of-the-closet.

Oliver Fields (Ewan McGregor) is a graphic designer whose parents were married for 44 years before his mother passed away. At the time of his mother’s death his father Hal (Christopher Plummer) announced that he was gay. Hal confessed that he has been gay since he was thirteen but when Oliver’s mother asked him to marry him he said yes. Oliver accepts his father’s confession just fine but has a harder time accepting that his parents had a loveless marriage for so long.

Oliver is sad and lonely when he finds out that his father now has cancer so he seeks out companionship from his dog. His luck is about to change when he attends a costume party and meets a girl. Even though he was trying to put on a happy face for the party she could tell that he was sad behind the costume. The two connected immediately despite the fact she has laryngitis which prevented her from being able to speak that night, forcing her to write down her words to him.

The girl he met is Anna (Mélanie Laurent), a French actress who happened to be passing through town. Because she is an actress she has learned to read people very well, which is likely the reason why the two hit it off so strongly. Oliver has a history of failed relationships but he is hoping this one will be different.

Beginners frequently flashes back to his childhood with interactions with his mother. Through these flashbacks you understand why he acts they way he does. Oliver experiences similar situations as a child as he does as an adult. One example is as a child his mother would pretend to shoot him and he would act dead, Anna also pretends to shoot him as well. These are subtle correlations but they explain his personality and influences of his upbringing.

In Oliver’s mind, he is always comparing the present to his past. Such as whom the president was when his father was born and who it is now. Because his profession is drawing he remembers the small details in people. He remembers what Anna’s face looks like when she is happy or what it is like when she is crying. He can recall exactly what her eyes, feet and ears look like.

Ewan McGregor had the head role but his character is not the most memorable, to no fault of his own. Mélanie Laurent kept reminding me of a French Penelope Cruz; she was witty, seductive and genuine. But the standout performance in Beginners goes to Christopher Plummer. He did an amazing job playing the man with a delightful outlook on a new lifestyle while he approached death from battling cancer.

The performances from the cast in Beginners outshine the story itself. The storyline is sluggish, not because of the non-linear structure or the lack of an antagonist but from the lack of depth. I still found myself rooting for the characters even though ultimately the story falls short. Because it if there is one thing Beginners has, it is character.