VoML Guide to the 85th Academy Awards - Part 2

Best Actor



Joaquin Phoenix in The Master





1. Joaquin Phoenix, The Master - In 2010, I'm Still Here released and with it came questions about whether Phoenix had mentally gone off the rails or if he was just acting like it.  Either way, most agreed that he would never work again.  Nobody has ever worked so hard at dynamiting their career.  Then there are the disparaging (and probably true) comments he made about the awards process which many felt would spell the end of his major award nominee days.  Seeing his name among the Oscar nominees this year is the biggest validation of his supreme talent.  Possibly the greatest working actor today, Daniel Day Lewis, went out of his way to mention him in his SAG award speech.  Joaquin Phoenix gave his most prodigious performance yet in The Master and he deserves this award.  This is his 3rd total nomination.
2. Daniel Day-Lewis, Lincoln - We don't get to see nearly enough of DDL as we should.  Once every couple years he gives an iconic performance, only to drop away and immerse himself in his next role.  Creating a character from scratch is hard but so too is resurrecting a national treasure, and making yourself fit perfectly inside the shadow they cast without straying outside those lines and portraying a caricature.  Should he win this award, it'll be well-deserved.  This is his 5th total nomination, he has 2 wins (Actor for My Left Foot and There Will Be Blood).
3. Bradley Cooper, Silver Linings Playbook - Cooper's most meaty role to date gets his first nomination.  Jennifer Lawrence has gotten most of the attention this awards season but Cooper was just as good.  Let's hope that David O. Russell pulled something out of Cooper that we can expect to see more of.  If so, this won't be his last Oscar shot.
4. Denzel Washington, Flight - We've come to expect certain things from Denzel; he's as solid as they get.  Denzel portrayed a heroic airliner pilot with a serious substance abuse problem.  Flight was ok, I seem to have enjoyed it more than many critics but Washington (as well as the opening 20 minutes) is the main reason to see this film.  This is his 6th total nomination, he has 2 wins (Supporting Actor for Glory, Actor for Training Day).
5. Hugh Jackman, Les Misérables - Jackman is one of the most likeable actors in the business and "Les Mis" earns him his first nomination.  The role of Jean Valjean has been played by countless actors in countless renditions of this musical; Jackman succeeded in making the role his own.

Best Actress

Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty

1. Jessica Chastain, Zero Dark Thirty - The Best Actress race comes down to Chastain and Lawrence.  While both were great, I was a bigger fan of Chastain's quietly determined performance.  Her transition from green CIA rookie to supremely confident vet was palpable.  With a number of film-elevating performances in 2011 and 2012, she deserves the recognition and probably the win.  This is her 2nd total nomination in as many years.
2. Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook - Lawrence carries all the momentum into the Academy Awards after winning the SAG award over Chastain.  She also won the Golden Globe and Independent Spirit Award but her and Chastain did not go head to head.  Lawrence's role called for a "bigger" performance which usually wins over subtle, and her chemistry with Cooper made the film as affecting as it was.  Whoever takes the Oscar will have earned it.  This is her 2nd total nomination.
3. Emmanuelle Riva, Amour - Riva's performance was heartbreaking, from the first symptom of declining health through every level of mental and physical degeneration.  It was a dignified performance and a well-earned first Academy nomination for this French actress.  She's the oldest person to be nominated for an acting Oscar.
4. Naomi Watts, The Impossible - In the wake of a catastrophic tsunami while on vacation with her family, Watts' Maria desperately searches for her husband and youngest children while striving to preserve the health of her eldest child.  The helplessness visible in her eyes as the tidal wave approaches as well as the strength she shows for her son's sake really ground the film emotionally.  This is her 2nd total nomination.
5. Quvenzhané Wallis, Beasts of the Southern Wild - For a 6 year old to take on a role like that of Hushpuppy and really hold such an arresting film together is outstanding.  It's an amazing feat for her, the youngest Academy Award nominee ever.

Best Supporting Actor

Philip Seymour Hoffman in The Master

1. Philip Seymour Hoffman, The Master - This is his 4th total nomination, he has 1 win (Actor for Capote).
2. Christoph Waltz, Django Unchained - This is his 2nd total nomination, he has 1 win (Supporting Actor for Inglourious Basterds).
3. Robert De Niro, Silver Linings Playbook - This is his 7th total nomination, he has 2 wins (Supporting Actor for The Godfather Part II, Actor for Raging Bull)
4. Tommy Lee Jones, Lincoln - This is his 4th total nomination, he has 1 win (Supporting Actor for The Fugitive).
5. Alan Arkin, Argo - This is his 4th total nomination, he has 1 win (Supporting Actor for Little Miss Sunshine).

Best Supporting Actress

Anne Hathaway in Les Misérables

1. Anne Hathaway, Les Misérables - This is her 2nd total nomination.
2. Amy Adams, The Master - This is her 4th total nomination.
3. Helen Hunt, The Sessions - This is her 2nd total nomination, she has 1 win (Actress for As Good as It Gets).
4. Sally Field, Lincoln - This is her 3rd total nomination, she has 2 wins (Actress for Norma Rae and Places in the Heart).
5. Jacki Weaver, Silver Linings Playbook - This is her 2nd total nomination.

Best Director

1. David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook - This is his 2nd directing nomination.
2. Ang Lee, Life of Pi - This is his 2nd directing nomination, he has 1 win (Brokeback Mountain).
3. Steven Spielberg, Lincoln - This is his 7th directing nomination, he has 2 wins (Schindler's List and Saving Private Ryan).  Schindler's List also won Best Picture.
4. Michael Haneke, Amour - This is his 1st nomination.
5. Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild - This is his 1st nomination.

Who I want to win: Zero Dark Thirty, Phoenix, Chastain, Hoffman, Hathaway, Russell.

Who I think will win: Lincoln, Day-Lewis, Lawrence, Waltz, Hathaway, Spielberg.


-PSon



VoML Guide to the 85th Academy Awards - Best Picture

This is the first year that I’ve seen every single film, not only for best picture but for every major acting category, best director, and even the live action and documentary shorts. I'll say it now since I won't get a chance in the Best Picture section, The Master was the best film I saw this year.  In fact, prior to the nominations I said I would never watch the Oscars again if The Master wasn’t nominated, which of course happened, but I talked myself down from the ledge once Joaquin and PSH got their respective nominations. I never would have stopped watching. I love movies, and while I seldom agree with the Academy's decisions, it is great to watch actors be rewarded and occasionally show real emotion.

Best Picture

The Great

The last time Kathryn Bigelow was on stage at the Academy Awards, she walked away with two Oscars.  By not awarding Bigelow a Best Director nod for Zero Dark Thirty, the Academy ensured that history will not repeat itself.  It's a shame because Bigelow was the front-runner in my book.  The team behind The Hurt Locker has once again given us a tense film concerning the war on terrorism.  Combining Bigelow’s antecedent effort and the depiction of the search for and assassination of Osama Bin Laden was enough to make me extremely excited for this film.  The ensemble cast was quietly one of the best of the year.  In addition to my favorite for Best Actress, Jessica Chastain, the film stars the eternally underrated Jason Clarke (Lawless, Chicago Code), Joel Edgerton (Warrior, Animal Kingdom), Kyle Chandler (Friday Night Lights, Super 8), Chris Pratt (Parks and Recreation, Moneyball), Mark Strong, James Gandolfini, and Mark Duplass. Going into a film convinced that it will be your favorite film of the year often ends in disappointment, however I walked out of the film with those feelings affirmed.

More than almost any other filmmaker, David O. Russell is a director of outstanding performances.  Christian Bale and Melissa Leo won Oscars and Amy Adams earned a nomination for their work on The Fighter (my favorite film of 2011).  Silver Linings Playbook is the first film since 1981’s Red to earn nominations in all four acting categories.  Ostensibly about a man’s struggle to overcome his inner demons and regain the life he once had, Silver Linings Playbook delves into the tragedies and monotonies that cause people to lose their mental capacity and how companionship and support can play a role in getting it back.  This was a film very close to Russell's heart (his son suffers from a mood disorder); every bit of that passion made it to the screen.

This year’s resident little film that could, Beasts of the Southern Wild, is at its foundation, a coming of age story.  Hushpuppy (played by best actress nominee Quvenzhané Wallis) and her father Wink (Dwight Henry) reside in a community called "The Bathtub", located outside the levees of New Orleans.  The combination of a community threatening storm and Wink's declining health threaten to tear Hushpuppy's world apart.  As the community recovers, Hushpuppy learns about survival, comraderie, and the strength of the human spirit.  Fittingly, with little in the way of resources and a cast of inexperienced actors, director Benh Zeitlin superbly composes a virtual mythical hero's journey with his 6 year old protagonist.  Keeping up with the egregious slights, the exceptional score, which greatly contributed to the film's emotional resonance, was not nominated.

The Good

Argo provides Ben Affleck's best shot at an Oscar to date.  He did not receive a Best Director nomination, which usually means the film won't win.  Award season has been kind to Argo which should indicate it has a good shot.  While I liked it, I wasn't as enthralled with this as the three films above.  In fact, I'm a bigger fan of his previous two films, Gone Baby Gone and The Town.

Lincoln was a good film and very well may win this award but will probably be remembered more for being a Daniel Day-Lewis Best Actor vehicle.  The sheer amount of great actors at some point became a huge distraction for me.  A Steven Spielberg film used to be a very exciting event for me, but emotion inducing swells of music mostly just fill me with annoyance.

Quentin Tarantino is a masterful filmmaker.  He cannot help but make entertaining films, occasionally he makes a great film.  Visually, Django Unchained looked great, the acting was superb (everyone without the initials QT), the music was good, and the dialogue was snappy.  Chalk up another in the entertaining category. 

I read Life of Pi early in my college years, I'm not sure I was willing or ready to truly understand it.  I wanted to see the film but had no idea how they would adapt it to the screen.  I must say Ang Lee did as perfect a job as could have been done. 

The OK

I was positively terrified to see Amour.  As you can imagine, I'm not a fan of death and viewing the decay of a person's mental and physical capacities is about the worst subject matter there is.  While this was a good film, I was more invested and frankly more emotionally crushed by the short montage at the beginning of Up than I was of Amour.

For me, Les Misérables, Tom Hooper's follow up to Best Picture winner The King's Speech, didn't pack as big an emotional punch as the great films this year.  What did I like?  Hooper made a great decision by recording the actors actually singing on set, Hathaway and Jackman were outstanding, and Hooper succeeded in giving an epic feel.

More to come...

-PSon

The Other Steve McQueen

The 1981 IRA hunger strike, sex addiction, and American slave trading in the 1800s; these are the subjects of the first three feature length films by British director Steve McQueen. Don’t get him confused with the American born, 60s-70s era actor of the same name and long-time “King of Cool”. To passionate film geeks, McQueen has already done enough to escape any confusion. Both of the director’s first two films, 2008’s Hunger and 2011’s Shame, pulled off the seemingly impossible feat of making stunningly beautiful films out of grimy subject matter. He also wrote both films, as well as Twelve Years a Slave, a film set to release later this year.

The starring role in every McQueen film to date has gone to British actor Michael Fassbender, whose career has exploded in the past few years. In Hunger, Fassbender played Bobby Sands, the leader of the aforementioned IRA hunger strike, who becomes a martyr following his death by starvation. His sometimes fiery but often understated performance elevated the film from a visually entrancing work of art to a truly engrossing character study of a man. The film centers on the final 6 weeks of Sands’ life, and details the inhumane treatment (imposed by both others and self) the imprisoned endured in the pursuit of being classified as political prisoners rather than criminals. The film’s entirety is not devoted to Sands; we view the physical and psychological impact on prison staff as well as family members of those involved. In Shame we see Fassbender as Brandon, a successful advertising executive imprisoned by his own sexuality. Unable to satiate his own sexual desires, Brandon’s descent and immersion into deeper and deeper levels of deviance and perversion make it impossible for him to carry on a relationship without a moral or monetary transaction. Brandon’s sister Sissy (played by Carey Mulligan), unreliable and damaged in her own way, comes back into his life and for better or worse threatens to uproot his lifestyle. McQueen paints Brandon as a very clean individual on the surface. The film looks gorgeous; Brandon’s appearance, apartment, office, and hangouts all give off an air of perfection. Calling him a non-sadist Patrick Bateman isn’t accurate, in the end we see that Brandon is more victim than Lothario.

On the heels of the 2013 movie preview, I realized I forgot to mention Twelve Years a Slave. Being that I may be more excited for this one than any other, I decided it deserved more than a comment under the preview. Thinking further, Steve McQueen is extremely underrated for the incredible work he’s done. At this early point in his film career, he’s made 2 outstanding films. When you take the artful way he’s filmed his other feature length works in combination with the cast and subject matter of Twelve Years a Slave, it’s easy to see why I think McQueen will be acknowledged come award season. Twelve Years a Slave is an adaptation of the 1853 memoir of Solomon Northup, a black man born free in New York who was deceived, drugged, kidnapped, and subsequently sold into slavery in Washington D.C., later being transported to Louisiana where he remained a slave for 12 years. The underrated Chiwetel Ejiofor stars as Northup. The film also will feature Fassbender, Brad Pitt, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Giamatti, Sarah Paulson, Paul Dano, Michael K. Williams (The Wire’s Omar), Garret Dillahunt, Scoot McNairy, Alfre Woodard, Taran Killam, and Beasts of the Southern Wild’s Quvenzhané Wallis and Dwight Henry. I don’t think it is a stretch to say this film promises to be epic in nature, a distinct departure from McQueen’s works to date.

-PSon

2013 Movie Preview

A year ago, I remember reading/listening to 2012 movie preview columns/shows and I was sure that 2012 was going to be the best movie year of my lifetime. After all, on the slate were films from almost every well regarded director working today (Spielberg, Nolan, Whedon, Tarantino, O’Russell, Wes Anderson, Paul Thomas Anderson, etc…) as well as films from up and coming directors who made waves with their first or most recent offerings (Hooper, Bigelow, Dominik, Apatow, Affleck, Rian Johnson, etc…). Whether or not these films hit or missed depends on the person. I tend to think most of those directors made very good films and this was a great year for movies. Here are a few reasons why I think 2013 could be even better:

Before Midnight once again reunites Before Sunrise and Before Sunset stars Ethan Hawke (Jesse) and Julie Delpy (Celine), this time in Greece. I don't want to say too much about the first two installments but taken as one piece of art, Richard Linklater's trilogy is as ambitous as they get. While there's not a lot to spoil, it is nice to experience the beginnings and endings on their own terms. The films are basically a chronicle of the serendipitous meeting between an American man and a French woman and their subsequent relationship. Each film takes place in less than a 24 hour period where these two humans do what humans do, interact. Yes, this is a very simple idea. In the wrong hands, there would have been no need for sequels but Linklater perfectly captures the birth of a relationship and the beautiful progression and fluidity of conversation. It doesn't hurt that Hawke and Delpy agreed to do each of these films over the course of two decades. These films couldn't have flourished without their chemistry and wouldn't have worked with anybody else picking up the parts.

While 2012 was the year that seemingly resurrected McConaughey from his rom-com grave, I predict 2013 will be the year where he earns his first major acting nomination. In 2012 he gave us silver-tongued male revue owner Dallas in Magic Mike, a cop doubling as a sociopathic hitman for hire in Killer Joe, and Danny Buck, the motivated district attorney looking to take down Jack Black’s title character in Bernie. Originally I intended to write about Mud, Jeff Nichols’ follow up to Take Shelter which was one of my favorite films from 2011. McConaughey plays an escaped prisoner who evades bounty hunters with the help of two teenage boys. The film also stars Reese Witherspoon, Sam Shepard, and Michael Shannon. IMDB lists 3 other 2013 films starring McConaughey in various stages from pre-production to post-production that look like great films on paper. Martin Scorsese’s next project The Wolf of Wall Street, Dallas Buyers Club (the film where Matthew notoriously lost 30 pounds to play an AIDS patient), and Thunder Run which depicts the April 2003 assault on Baghdad.

Oscar Isaac is my new favorite actor… or one of them. About a month ago I watched 10 Years, which chronicles a group of former classmates at their 10 year reunion. Isaac plays Reeves, a singer-songwriter with a recent hit. A scene late in the movie requires him to karaoke his own song. Instead of karaoke, Reeves grabs a guitar from the bartender and puts on an actually moving live performance. During the run-up to this scene when it became apparent classmates would make him sing, I furiously googled his name to see if he actually had any singing experience. Turns out Isaac played lead guitar and sang vocals for a band prior to graduating from Juilliard School. Yes, THE Juilliard School. One thing 10 Years convinced me of is that I want to see Oscar Isaac and a guitar together again. Then a link to the trailer for Inside Llewyn Davis was sent to me:

Did I forget to mention that this is a Coen Brothers film? Oh yeah, it also reunites Isaac with Drive costar Carey Mulligan. Well now you know.

Shane Carruth wrote, directed, and stars in this film, the first since his 2004 debut, Primer. Primer is simply a masterpiece. It's the quintessential film about time travel, one that you must watch more than once to even begin to grasp what you just saw. The real beauty is that Carruth is a genius, but he respects his audience enough not to explain more than what needs to be explained. It's a very tight script that benefits greatly from a lack of exposition. Upstream Color is Carruth's follow up.  Here's the IMDB synopsis, "A man and woman are drawn together, entangled in the life cycle of an ageless organism. Identity becomes an illusion as they struggle to assemble the loose fragments of wrecked lives." God yes.

My love for Joseph Gordon-Levitt began with his role in Rian Johnson's high school, murder mystery noir, Brick. Well, you might begin to trace it back to The 10 Things I Hate About You, but after Brick there was no denying that this kid had talent. He's been silently proving it ever since. I would go as far as to call him this generation's Tom Hanks. Don Jon's Addiction marks the beginning of his directorial career. Levitt also stars in this film alongside the likes of Julianne Moore, Scarlett Johansson, and Brie Larson. JGL even managed to dig up Tony Danza. Levitt plays the title character, a lothario with a debilitating porn addiction tries to gain more meaning from his life while navigating two relationships with very different people.  Steve McQueen's Shame delved into similar territory, perhaps there's light at the end of this tunnel.

Alexandre Moors directs his first feature length film in Blue Caprice, a depiction of the Beltway sniper killings from 2002. The principles, John Mohammad and Lee Boyd Malvo are played by Isaiah Washington and Tequan Richmond. Reviews from Sundance were very positive, here's a piece from the great Sundance column written yesterday by Grantland's Wesley Morris:

A movie about two black men on a killing spree could go all kinds of wrong. But this one operates with a moral chill that doesn't identify with these two or even gratuitously humanize them. The movie is actually timid about politics. I don't recall hearing Muhammad's last name, and there's no mention of his radicalist embrace and perversion of Islam. Instead, the film creates one of the most chillingly becalmed portraits of insanity I've seen. Washington doesn't rant or rave, but his keel is usually uncomfortably uneven, like a man who doesn't know that his fly is always down. Richmond might say a dozen words the entire movie, but the way he reroutes his steeliness from self-protective innocence to evil is a kind of silent-movie master class.

This is Moors's first feature, and he works with rich, terrifying, documentary-like meticulousness. A lot of the shots are saturated with color and hauntingly framed. Like Spike Lee's Summer of Sam and David Fincher's Zodiac, it finds the sort of dread that knots your stomach, often, mercifully, by showing you very little of the murders but enough to fear what you know is coming. The film's iconic images involve the car itself, a 12-year-old cobalt Chevy Caprice that Muhammad and Malvo rigged for their spree — the way it drifts along I-95, its taillights glowing a satanic red; the insinuating way it sits in parking lots and near gas stations, almost breathing, almost alive; the manner in which we see Malvo slither from the backseat into the dark trunk to aim his military rifle through the small hole they've bored. You see him do this in detail only once. But you watch him mount the gun and hear him coordinate with Muhammad when to shoot, and your blood goes cold knowing they performed this ritual at least 13 times. I saw this movie close to midnight two days ago and I've been uneasy ever since.

Other Films

The World's End - The new Edgar Wright film with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost.  Also, Martin Freeman, Rosamund Pike, and the always solid Paddy Considine (see Dead Man's Shoes).
OldBoy - Spike Lee remakes Chan-wook Park's brutal revenge thriller.  While skeptical, I'm intrigued to see what Lee can possibly add to this masterpiece.  Starring Samuel L. Jackson, Josh Brolin, Elizabeth Olsen, and Sharlto Copley.
A Good Day to Die Hard - Die Hard is a classic, I'll see any John McClane vehicle no matter how much further each subsequent installment strays from reality.
Kick-Ass 2 - The first was a gritty take on superhero movies, I'm interested to see what the second one can add.  Also, Jim Carrey for Nic Cage seems like a fair trade.
Evil Dead - Another remake, just watch the red band trailer.
Sin City: A Dame to Kill For - Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez direct.  Rourke, Owen, Alba, Willis, Dawson, and King return. 
Elysium - Neill Blomkamp's follow up to 2009's District 9, the film that came out of nowhere and put Blomkamp and Sharlto Copley on the map.  Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, and Copley costar.
Star Trek Into Darkness - The long teaser came out a few months ago but so far I've only been able to see it in theaters.  One thing the film is sure to be is visually stunning.  Check out the official trailer.
Man of Steel - Zack Snyder does Superman with Henry Cavill, Russell Crowe, Amy Adams, Kevin Costner, Michael Shannon, Diane Lane...
Only God Forgives - Drive star and director, Ryan Gosling and Nicolas Winding Refn reunite for a film set in Thailand.
This is the End - Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen direct this apocalyptic comedy.  Just look at the cast and watch the trailer.
Pacific Rim - Giant robots protect Earth from aliens.  Directed by Guillermo del Toro, Charlie Hunnam, Ron Perlman, Charlie Day, and Idris Elba (The Wire's Stringer Bell) star.
Captain Phillips - Paul Greengrass directs Tom Hanks in this film about the 2009 hijacking of a US cargo ship by Somali pirates.
The Place Beyond the Pines - Ryan Gosling as a motorcycle stunt driver who also engages in the occasional criminal activity.  This sounds familiar, I'm in.
Ain't Them Bodies Saints - Editor David Lowery's feature length debut starring Rooney Mara and Casey Affleck.  Affleck as a prisoner who escapes and sets out on a journey to reunite with his wife.
World War Z - The book, a must read for fans of zombies and the apocalypse.  The initial trailer was wildly disappointing (fast zombies?????) but I'll likely still be there on opening night to see this Brad Pitt vehicle.
To the Wonder - Terrence Malick, Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams, Javier Bardem...  Enough said.
After Earth - It has become increasingly hard to stay a M. Night Shayamalan apologist, which I am.  I'm holding out hope that his steady decline is more temporary insanity than full on descent into madness.  Centuries after Earth was abandoned, a father and son (Will and Jaden Smith) crash-land on Earth, the son must head out on his own to save himself and his dying father.
Trance - The new Danny Boyle film starring Rosario Dawson, James McAvoy, and Vincent Cassel.
Runner, Runner - Ben Affleck, JT, Gemma Arterton, and Anthony Mackie star in this gambling thriller.

Sequels in which my interest level ranges from slightly more than apathetic towards to fairly excited about: Iron Man, Anchorman, The Hobbit, The Hunger Games, The Hangover, Fast and Furious, 300, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

Also, Jurassic Park and Top Gun in IMAX 3D.

-PSon

The Boys are Back

After almost 3 years on the shelf, the sports/movie/man-love blog that you didn't know was gone is back.  That's right, finally.  Frankly, we just have too much to say regarding things nobody cares about and we need these things forever displayed on the internet lest we forget what morons we were, are, and will forever be.  God Bless.

-PSon

Childhood dream leads to QB vert record for Tebow

-PSon

VoML Postfilm Mini-Report: Rudo y Cursi (2008)

TOP BILLED ACTORS
Gael Garcia Bernal, Diego Luna, Guillermo Francella, Dolores Heredia, Adriana Paz, Jessica Mas, Salvador Zerboni, Tania Esmeralda Aguilar

DIRECTOR
Carlos Cuaron

3 MAJOR THEMES

1. Sibling Rivalry
   
2. Living the Dream
   
3. More Money, More Problems
   

BREAKDOWN
While Rudo y Cursi was directed by Carlos Cuaron, whose brother Alfonso helmed the great Y Tu Mama Tambien which also starred Bernal and Luna, the two movies are markedly different. Rivalry is a theme throughout both but in this film the two play brothers, Tato and Beto, who work on a banana farm and dream of success in their respective passions, singing and gambling. The two are also very adept soccer players and are discovered by a scout while playing a local league game. Their skill as soccer players and instant celebrity provides them an opportunity to pursue their true passion, but may also come with harsh realities for both.

The film was enjoyable, mostly because of the chemistry and overall likeability of the two leads. It's a little funny to think that people with the physical builds of Luna and Bernal could succeed as world class athletes but the film at first does a good job of showing reaction shots of fans rather than the actual plays the two make. When action scenes are finally shown, they are more comical than anything (see Tato's celebration dance) but I suspect they were meant to be that way. The ending was tense and kept me guessing the entire time. I would say that this is a must see for fans of the two leads but also enjoyable for fans of film in general.

I WILL GIVE…-PSon