Saving Mr Banks review

 Number 488 on the top 1000 films of all time is the biographical drama 'Saving Mr Banks.'

Saving Mr Banks tells the true story of famed Mary Poppins author P.L Travers (Emma Thompson) in the latter stages of her career. Resisting Walt Disney's (Tom Hanks) requests to turn the Mary Poppins books into films for years, Travers finally relents after her dire finances are revealed. She travels to LA to oversee the process. Flashbacks also show her childhood growing up in Australia as well as her troubled relationship with her alcoholic father Travers Goff (Colin Farrell.) B.J Novak, Jason Schwartzman, Paul Giamatti and Ruth Wilson co-star.

As I'm sure you are sick of hearing by now, I am generally not a fan of biopics or period dramas. This is particularly true of films like Saving Mr Banks where I have no interest in the subject matter. I've never given Mary Poppins a second thought beyond it being an entertaining film. I did not expect to enjoy Saving Mr Banks, but I'm glad to say I was proven wrong.

Much of that was down to Emma Thompson's absolutely delightful portrayal of P.L Travers. She really proved why she is a double-Oscar winning actress. Although Disney heavily lobbied for Thompson to receive what would have been her fourth Oscar actress nomination, she ultimately ended up being nominated for the BAFTA best actress award. Either way, she was great as the Mary Poppins author. I loved her portrayal of the author as this uptight, prim-and-proper, no nonsense Brit who soon clashes with the more laidback and easy-going Americans.

Despite that, we see her icy veneer begin to melt as she is worn down by the executives at Disney. This includes Walt Disney but also by her chauffeur Ralph (Paul Giamatti,) screenwriter Don DaGradi (Bradley Whitford,) and composers Richard and Robert Sherman (Jason Schwartzman and B.J Novak.) The actors all had great chemistry together and, despite my general grumpy old manness, I couldn't help but smile along at their antics. This was especially true with Paul Giamatti who was truly endearing as Travers' chauffeur Ralph. Despite Travers' initial hostility, Ralph's optimism never waivers, making him one of the best characters in the film.

Yet beyond the humour and warmth, there was some strong emotional depth. This was saved for the flashback scenes to Travers' childhood where we see her mother Margaret (Ruth Wilson) desperately trying to keep their family and marriage together while her father Travers (Colin Farrell) battles against his alcoholism. Like many alcoholics, he isn't an inherently bad person, but somebody who has just dug himself into a hole. Despite how his actions drive Margaret to the absolute edge, Travers still absolutely adores him. All credit to Colin Farrell for this portrayal.

I said earlier that although Disney lobbied for this film heavily at the Oscars, it was ultimately only nominated for the Best Original Score. This was a well-earned nomination, as the musical numbers were some of the best moments of the film.

Saving Mr Banks really surprised me as a film. Just like the initially icy PL Travers was worn down by American enthusiasm and optimism, so was I. And I'm all the better for it.

Top ten times the Academy got it wrong

 By now you should that I have some hot takes about the films that appear on IMDB's top 1000 films of all time. You can check out my lists on some of the most overrated films ever.  But the hot takes don't stop there, as I will be counting the top times that the Academy got it wrong whether that's awarding or even nominating a film or an actor or actress. This list is in no order but chronology.

Dances with Wolves (1990)

Number 333 on the top 1000 films is Kevin Costner's epic Western 'Dances with Wolves.' Yet that isn't its only accolade for it also won the 1991 Best Film Oscar.

Yes, you read that correctly. It beat the likes of Goodfellas and Awakenings to win the Academy's most prestigious award. How? This three-hour long film is beyond tedious. Costner's wooden performance did nothing to help matters at all. And to all the critics saying it contains a white saviour complex, I challenge you to stay awake long enough to provide evidence of that. If it were up to me, then I would award the Oscar to Awakenings. Both Robert De Niro and Robin Williams excelled in that.

JFK (1991)

Oliver Stone's epic political thriller ranks 306 on the top 1000 films of all time. It focusses on the investigation following the assassination of John F. Kennedy.

Again, it stars Kevin Costner. Again, it is a three-hour snooze-fest. Thankfully, it didn't receive a Best Picture Oscar, but it was still nominated. Why? It is a bloated, over-long, unfocussed affair that is bursting to the brim with absolutely anything that is related to the Kennedy case. It quite rightly lost to the Silence of the Lambs, but it shouldn't have been in the running in the first place.

The Thin Red Line (1998)

Terrence Malik directed this Vietnam war-film to 694th on the top 1000 films and to a Best Picture nomination. But just like JFK, I am puzzled as to why it was nominated.

It is just plain pretentious. Malik seemed more interested in philosophising and arty camerawork than in telling an interesting story. It's a war film, right? So, why don't we see any war happening?

It is also unfocussed with too many cameos and not enough main characters. It ultimately lost to Shakespeare in Love, but I think its fellow nominee Saving Private Ryan explored the theme of war much more effectively.

Crash (2004)

Paul Haggis' Crash ranks 383rd on the top 1000 films.

Crash won the 2005 Best Picture Oscar. And I am definitely not alone in thinking this was the wrong decision. The concept was admirable - an exploration of race relations in Los Angeles, but the execution left a lot to be desired.

Crash was a contrived, convoluted mess that rushed and over-simplified its key themes and ideas. The far simpler Brokeback Mountain should have won instead. But Hollywood just wasn't brave enough to celebrate a film about two gay cowboys.

Michael Clayton (2007)

Michael Clayton ranks low on the top 1000 films at 977th. It stars George Clooney who plays a fixer un-masking a cover-up at his New York law firm.

Michael Clayton received a number of Oscar nominations including Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor/Actress. I don't think it deserved any of them.

It was a clinically, cold film which is severely lacking any heart. Although that does make sense since it is about lawyers. George Clooney's lacklustre performance did little to help things.

The Fighter (2010)

David O'Russell's biographical sports-drama ranks in as 408th on the top 1000 films.

This film follows the lives of two boxing brothers played by Mark Wahlburg and Christian Bale. Melissa Leo plays their mother and she won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar. Although she was good, I would argue her co-star Amy Adams, who was also nominated, was even better. Amy Adams should have won instead.

She was the one redeeming feature in a film that I didn't care for at all.

Argo (October 2012) 

Ben Affleck's directed this biographical history thriller to the 445th place on the top 1000 films, as well as the Best Film Oscar.

Don't get me wrong. This is a fine film, but is it really Oscar-worthy? Is it better than its fellow nominees like Django Unchained, Life of Pi, Silver Linings Playbook or Zero Dark Thirty. I'm not sure about that. Sure, it's thrilling enough, but then the tension dissipates in an overly-sentimental conclusion.

And while Ben Affleck is a good director, he is a rather wooden actor. Argo definitely would have been better if it had a different performer in the lead role.

Lincoln (November 2012)

Steven Spielberg's biographical drama ranks as 836th on the top 1000 list. It also netted Daniel Day-Lewis his third Best Actor Oscar win.

I haven't seen My Left Foot, but I can attest that he was magnificent in There will be Blood. Does the same magnificence transfer over into Lincoln? I'm not so sure. It certainly doesn't help that the film is 150 minutes long with a massive cast. 

Daniel Day-Lewis stars as Abraham Lincoln, but I'm really not sure that his performance was Oscar-worthy. It lacked the same depth that I've seen in his other roles. I would have much rather seen Denzel Washington win his third Oscar for Flight, but we know that the Academy loves a biopic.

Captain Phillips (2013)

Paul Greenglass' Captain Phillips ranks as 302nd on the top 1000 films.

Tom Hanks stars as the eponymous Captain Phillips - a shipping captain taken prisoner by Somali prisoners.

Captain Phillips was nominated for a number of Oscars including Best Film, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor, but not Best Actor. It was a brilliant performance, so why wasn't Tom Hanks nominated. This has to be one of the most egregious snubs in Oscar history. In Captain Phillips, Tom Hanks plays an everyman who becomes an unlikely hero. The Academy loves a biopic, so why wasn't Hanks nominated?

Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)

Being released in 2022, EEAAO is seven years too late to feature on the 2015 edition of the top 1000 films of all time. However, it still swept the Oscars winning Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Original Screen, Best Editing and Best Supporting Actress.

I take issue with the Best Supporting Actress win. Jamie Lee-Curtis won this Oscar for the role of IRS inspector Deirdre Beaubeidre. While Michelle Yeoh and Key Huy Quan were well-deserving of their Oscar-wins, I can't say the same for Jamie Lee-Curtis. She was good, but definitely not Oscar-worthy. It didn't have the depth I would expect to see from an Oscar performance. I would argue that her co-star Stephanie Hsu, who was also nominated for the same role, should have won the award instead.

Have I missed out anything? Gone with the Wind? Shakespeare in Love? Tommy Lee Jones in the Fugitive? Don't worry. A second list will be coming soon enough. 

Captain Phillips review

 Number 302 on the top 1000 films of all time is the biographical action thriller Captain Phillips.

Based on the true story of the Maersk Alabama hijacking, Captain Phillips follows the tale of the eponymous titular character played by Tom Hanks - a merchant sailor whose ship is attacked and captured by Somali pirates led by Abduwali Muse (Barkhad Abdi.) When the plan goes wrong, Muse then takes Captain Phillips hostage.

If I could describe this film in one word? Intense. From the start to the finish, it was edge of the seat stuff. And a lot of that was down to how well Paul Greengrass paced the film. With thrillers, pacing is absolutely everything and some of them fall flat due to bad pacing. There is the tendency to draw out the scene setting or the denouement usually leading to the climax being rushed and unsatisfying. That was not the case here.

The film opens with Captain Phillips speaking with his wife Andrea (Catherine Keener) about their home and family life. They talk about the rapidly changing world and how their children will fit in and that's it. That's all we needed to see. The simple ending was complimented by the simple ending where *spoiler alert* Captain Phillips is rescued by the US navy and breaks down in tears. This left plenty of time for a brilliant rest of the film. 

Captain Phillips and his crew fend off one assault by the Somali pirates only for them to return later and board the ship. Some quick-thinking tactics see the pirates being chased into the lifeboat only for them to kidnap the captain and hold him hostage to safeguard their escape. These peaks and troughs really made the fil nail-bitingly tense. I know this was based on a true story where nobody died, but it was difficult to see how any of Captain Phillips' crew could come out of this alive. 

Least of all, Captain Phillips himself. Tom Hanks gave a magnificent performance which really showcases his talents as an actor. In one scene he is kissing his wife goodbye, in another he is trying to talk down Muse and in another he is breaking down in tears. By the end of the film, both the character and the actor have been put through the ringer. And it was an absolute travesty that he was not nominated for an Oscar. 

Barkhad Abdi was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar. This was his first acting role and it was a hell of a debut. Muse is the quiet, but thoughtful leader of the pirates. He is smart enough to lead an attack on the Maersk Alabama, but also unpredictable and scary enough to control the more volatile members of his crew.  He has enough nuance to stop him from being a cliched villain. He justifies himself by saying he is only a fisherman wanting to stay in control of his destiny instead of relying on unwanted help from the Americans. Abdi very much earnt his Oscar nomination. But to not nominate Hanks as well? Terrible.

This really was a great film. It was edge-of-the-seat action, but with real heart. Abdi was fantastic as the villainous Muse, but not nominating Hanks for Best Actor has to be one of the biggest snubs in Oscar history.