THE
RAMBLING THOUGHT AWARDS by
Mo Shaunette
Above: BB-8 in “Star Wars: The Force
Awakens.” Photo ©Walt Disney
Studios Motion Pictures and Lucasfilm Ltd.
For
the past few years, my year-end round-up has been a place for summarizing
movies I saw the past year or stray observations I didn’t get around to
sharing. This year, I decided instead to write an impromptu awards list,
going through a handful of general ideas about what I liked best about this
past year.
Keep in mind, however, that due to my time machine being broken, I
haven’t yet seen every movie that came out in 2015. I’m trying my best
here, guys. So, without further ado, get your snacks ready and place your
bets on my opinions now, because this is the Mo’s Unexpected List of Favorite
Things Awards 2015!
Favorite
Actor in a Leading Role: Taron Egerton (“Kingsman: The Secret Service”)
“Kingsman”
was another winner for Matthew Vaughn and Jane Goldman—and one that hit
theaters in the cinematic dead zone known as February. Part of what made
the movie work was the commitment of the actors, all of whom clearly had a ball
in this love letter to/send-up of James Bond.
However, Taron Egerton shined the brightest as Eggsy Unwin, a talented
street hoodlum who learns how to be a gentleman spy. Mr. Egerton sold
both Eggsy the punk kid and Eggsy the master secret agent, all while never
losing his easygoing charm and humanity. He may not have many films under
his belt, but because of this one, he’s got a bright future ahead of him.
Runners Up: Abraham Attah (“Beasts of No Nation”), Matt Damon (“The
Martian”)
Favorite
Actress in a Leading Role: Phyllis Smith (“Inside Out”)
Turning
the abstract personification of sadness into a lead role was a risky
prospect. Yet Pixar pulled it off, in no small part because of the
actress chosen to play the little blue emotion. Phyllis Smith managed to
play Sadness as both a constant, self-pitying buzzkill and a sensitive soul
trying to do her best at a gloomy job.
Credit also has to be given to the animators who infused Sadness with
life. But this is an actor’s award, and in 2015, Ms. Smith was funny,
annoying, depressing, human, and gave me the feels like you wouldn’t believe.
Runners Up: Charlize Theron (“Mad Max: Fury Road”), Melissa McCarthy
(“Spy”)
Favorite
Actor in a Supporting Role: Paul Bettany (“Avengers: Age of Ultron”)
I’ll
be the first to admit that “Age of Ultron” had its problems (including cut
corners in storytelling, messy subplots, a hit-or-miss villain, and a romance
that’s barely set up and evaporates just as soon as it arrives). However,
if there’s anything writer/director Joss Whedon should be commended for, it’s
his characterization of the Vision, one of the stranger iconic Marvel
superheroes.
By transforming J.A.R.V.I.S., Tony Stark’s robotic butler, into the
next-generation Vision, Mr. Whedon not only gave us a familiar anchor to the
Christmas-colored robot, but a chance to witness a great performance from Paul
Bettany. Despite entering the story in the third act, Mr. Bettany left
quite the impression as an android possessed with ultimate faith in and love
for humanity—and a thoughtful mind and a sense of humor to boot.
It’s tough to ask audiences to bond with a character who looks
ridiculous and isn’t even human, but Mr. Bettany pulled it off. Truly, he
was worthy.
Runners Up: Sylvester Stallone (“Creed”), Idris Elba (“Beasts of No
Nation”)
Favorite
Actress in a Supporting Role: Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Riley Keough, Zoë
Kravitz, Courtney Eaton, Abbey Lee (“Mad Max: Fury Road”)
I
came into “Fury Road” with minimal expectations. Imagine my surprise,
then, not only at the film’s masterful world-building, but the complexity of
its cast. It would have been easy to let the wives (or ex-wives) of the
tyrannical Immortan Joe be quiet and passive players, drifting through the
story without agency or personality (becoming, as writer Kelly Sue Deconnick
would put it, “sexy lamps”). Yet through
strong writing and stronger acting, the Splendid Angrahad, Capable, Toast the
Knowing, Cheedo the Fragile, and the Dag became the driving force of the story,
even if they didn’t get to drive any of the movie’s marvelously monstrous
cars.
“Fury Road” was elevated from the pretty-but-hollow action feature it
might have been to the rich and fulfilling cinematic experience it became
because of the wives’ determination, compassion, resourcefulness, fear, and
faith. Witness them.
Runners Up: Jennifer Jason Leigh (“The Hateful Eight”), Evangeline Lilly
(“Ant-Man”)
Favorite
Screenplay: Drew Goddard (“The Martian”)
In
"The Martian,” there was no three-act structure and no character arc—there
was just astronaut Mark Watney’s struggle to survive being stranded on
Mars. Making that story into an engaging 141 minutes was tough, but much
like the characters in “The Martian,” everyone behind the scenes of the film
showed up to work and did their god dang jobs, including screenwriter Drew
Goddard.
Mr. Goddard already proved his chops with his collaborations with Joss
Whedon (including co-writing and directing 2012’s “The Cabin in the Woods”) and
had a banner year shepherding “Daredevil” to Netflix. But with “The
Martian,” he stepped up to a different kind of sci-fi storytelling and knocked
it out of the park. Here’s hoping that “The Martian” becomes the launch
pad for the next step in his career.
Runners Up: Quentin Tarantino (“The Hateful Eight”), Rick Famuyiwa
(“Dope”)
Biggest
Breakthrough: Amy Schumer (“Trainwreck”)
Since
2013, Comedy Central’s “Inside Amy Schumer” has been one of the channel’s best
outputs: a sketch comedy series that takes a hilarious look at politics,
relationships, and women in the 21st Century—all of it coming from the mind of
its creator and star. Ms. Schumer is whip smart and tack sharp, and with
“Trainwreck,” her debut as both a leading actress and a screenwriter, she
proved herself as a singular, brilliant voice in Hollywood.
Her work was bolstered by her collaboration with Judd Apatow, whose
observations on relationship dynamics and suburban culture mixed well with Ms.
Schumer’s raunchy sensibilities and views on everyday life. True, the
movie’s story relied on formula (a hard-partying thirty-something falls for a
doctor in her first serious relationship ever), but it subverted expectations
by never judging Amy (the character, not the actress) for drinking, smoking, or
having sex.
“Trainwreck” was an unconventional story about growing up, and Amy
Schumer made it heartfelt and hilarious. I can’t wait to see what she
does next.
Runners Up: The cast of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” Ryan Coogler
(“Creed”)
Favorite
Revival of a Nostalgia Property: “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”
I’m
not sure if there’ll ever be a time when we can judge “The Force Awakens” on
its own merits. It’s not only a “Star Wars” movie and a part of the most
influential series in film history; it’s a 135 minute, 200 million dollar
apology for the prequel trilogy.
And yet…I think it worked. It walked a familiar path, sure, but
rather than be a throwback to an older time, it used a familiar template to set
the stage for a new story, another chapter in a galaxy we love. The new
cast was outstanding (I dare you to not fall in love with Daisy Ridley, John
Boyega, and Oscar Isaac), the old guard put on a fine show (making Han Solo a
mentor figure was a stroke of genius), the blend of practical and CGI effects
made the movie look lived in and worn but also sleek and modern, and the emotional
stakes felt real.
More than that, “The Force Awakens” set up bigger and better things to
come. December of 2017 can’t arrive soon enough.
Runners Up: “Mad Max: Fury Road,” “Creed”
Biggest
Misfire: “Fant4stic”
2015
also turned out some stinkers, many of which I didn’t see because, well, I
don’t get paid to see bad movies. The likes of “Pixels,” “Mordecai,”
“Pan,” or “The Ridiculous 6” may have been worse, but luckily for both me and
them, I gave all of them a hard pass.
“Fant4stic,” however, I sat through, and it was terrible. I know I
already wrote an entire recap of the damn thing, but it’s just so bad it
fascinates me. The film is not even terrible enough to be compared to a
horrific car wreck that you can’t look away from—viewing it is more like
watching sped-up footage of a corpse decaying.
Runners Up: “Jurassic World,” “Spectre”
Favorite
Performance by Something Inhuman: BB-8, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”
Just
look at him! He’s so cute!
Runners Up: Ultron (“Avengers: Age of Ultron”), Ted Clubberlang (“Ted
2”)
Favorite
Director: Quentin Tarantino, “The Hateful Eight”
Quentin
Tarantino has said that he considered making “The Hateful Eight” into a play. It’s not hard to see why. The film was
certainly built like a play, with its two-act structure, slow-burn story, and
emphasis on character and atmosphere above visceral action (at first).
However, “The Hateful Eight” still worked as a movie because it was just
so bloody cinematic. Mr. Tarantino sold us a tense, violent western; what
we got was that, plus a narrative about the power of story as a tool of
communication, intimidation, deception, and malice, delivered by a filmmaker
with both the guts to go to dark places and the brains to pull it off.
There isn’t another film like “The Hateful Eight,” and there certainly
isn’t another filmmaker like Quentin Tarantino.
Runners Up: George Miller (“Mad Max: Fury Road”), Ridley Scott (“The
Martian”)
Favorite
Picture: “Mad Max: Fury Road”
Are
you surprised? Is that your surprised face I’m somehow seeing through
this computer? I shouldn’t, because if you know me, you know that I’ve
had difficulty not talking about “Fury Road” for the past few
months. Why? Because it goes far above and beyond what’s expected
of an action movie.
Creative, brutal action? Check. Engaging, multi-dimensional
characters? Check. A well-realized world expressed through art
design over direct dialogue? Check. A female action lead who
doesn’t fall into the two-dimension cliché of the gruff, emotionless love
interest? Check. An unexpected feminist
message that smacks you in the face and makes no apologies about it?
Check.
“Fury Road” upends so many expectations that it may just be the new gold
standard for how action movies, sci-fi movies, and nostalgia revivals—all of it
from, amazingly, the director of “Happy Feet.” “Fury Road” is a better
action movie than we deserve, and my favorite film of 2015.
That’s it for my awards list (which totally wasn’t a loose framing
device for me to give stray observations about some movies I liked). Hope
you had a good 2015 and here’s to 2016, where we’ll see a new team of
Ghostbusters rise, find out if video game movies can ever succeed, and watch
more superhero movies than you can shake a stick at.
See you next year!
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