TRAVIS BYRAM'S MOVIE REVIEWS

10. GREEN BOOK The retrospective rundown: Having been crowned the Academy's movie of the year less than a year ago, it only took a few seconds after Julia Roberts read the name to realize a mistake had been made. And not a La La Land / Moonlight debacle either. I've heard it perfectly described as the second installment in the Driving Miss Daisy cinematic universe. This is not to say Peter Farrelly's Green Book is terrible. The chemistry between Tony Lip (Viggo Mortensen) and Dr. Shirley (Mahershala Ali) is what keeps this engine running. But the white savior narrative (not the only Best Picture on here with that problem, either) is so glaring. Tony saves Shirley from getting beat up by white supremacists, saves him from a police investigation of a gay hook-up Shirley had in a YMCA. And, of course, Tony saves him from loneliness when Shirley is invited to Christmas Eve dinner. The onscreen friendship is palpable, but who would ever go with centering a narrative on Tony...

With the snow that's currently pummeling Virginia, it's a relief to say I was able to sleep in and miss a day of school, giving me an additional day to reflect on last night's Oscars! First and foremost: my predictions were correct! Happy to say that all my major predictions were correct, but on the technical side, I underestimated the power of Gravity ! I'm not sure if I've written this anecdote before on this blog, but when I saw the very first sneak preview trailer of it in theaters, I rolled my eyes at Bullock's constant panting and was sure it'd be ridiculous. Pass the salt because I'm eating my words...$700 million and seven Oscars later,  Gravity has turned into a true phenomenon, and had 12 Years a Slave  been released this year it surely would've taken home it's eighth prize for Picture. Jared Leto and Matthew McConaughey, both sporting an unorthodox white, took the trophies for Dallas Buyers Club , deserved entirely, which also picked...

With the Oscars being tomorrow, there's no better time than to choose and decide which films will take home the gold, and which were unjustly snubbed! I choose the films that SHOULD win a miniature statue, and the ones that WILL, for better or worst, take the trophy. BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: (Blue Jasmine, Nebraska, Dallas Buyers Club, Her, American Hustle)   Should Win: Nebraska. Her has the flashiest concept, and very well written, quirky dialogue coming out of a mousy Amy Adams and a mustachioed Joaquin Phoenix. But everything in Payne's Nebraska felt real to me, and his filmography deserves a third writing Oscar for Bob Nelson's genuinely rural sounding work. Will Win: Her. Spike Jonze is up for three awards; producing this film, writing "The Moon Song" and penning this script. This'll be the one he gets the Academy Award for. BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: (12 Years a Slave, Philomena, The Wolf of Wall Street, Before Midnight, Captain Phillips) Should/W...

The powers that be at the Academy have spoken, and these are the nine films they've chosen as the finest of the year. I have my beef with a couple picks, but I can't say there's a truly weak one in the bunch, unlike past years (here's looking at you Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close  and War Horse ). To celebrate, I chose the best quotes from each of the films, a brief 6 word review on them, and their best scenes, no spoilers I assure you. Enjoy! 12 YEARS A SLAVE BEST QUOTE: Northup : I survive. I will not fall into despair! I will offer up my talents...I will keep myself hardy until freedom is opportune. SUMMARY: Heart wrenching because it actually happened. BEST SCENE: After a certain character attempts to hang Northup unsuccessfully, Solomon simply stands there, with no help whatsoever from anyone, dangling from a noose, trying to make his feet connect with the muddy ground. It's horrifying. AMERICAN HUSTLE BEST QUOTE: Irving : She was the Picasso of ...

"Bad Grandpa" and "Lone Ranger" Oscar nominees? Tom Hanks shutout of everything?!? There are nine nominees...AGAIN?!? This morning's Oscar nominations didn't exactly provide an abundance of surprises, mostly a lot of exclusions from already established award show favorites! Without further ado, here is a full list of the Oscar nominations , and here are buzzed about movies that got COMPLETELY shut out by the Academy: SHUTOUT: Rush, Fruitvale Station, Mud, Blue is the Warmest Color, Enough Said, The Butler PICTURE: SNUBS : Where to begin? And why don't they ever use the full 10 slots?! "Fruitvale," "Prisoners," "Mud," "Blue Jasmine," "Saving Mr. Banks," "Inside Llewyn Davis" to name a few. But I was very pleased with all but "Hustle's" astonishing 10 nominations, matching "Gravity" for the most nods. What are critics seeing that I'm not? SURPRISES : I love...

I'm happy to report 2013 was another fantastic year for cinema, making the top five list and the honorable mentions a difficult but wonderful chore to select from. For me, it was not a strong year for superhero movies, (except "Man of Steel," which was underrated in my opinion) though with the likes of "The Dark Knight Rises" and "The Avengers" last year, it is pretty hard to follow up.  On this list you'll find superheroes of a different sort, men and women undergoing hardships, tight situations and impossible circumstances, some rising, some falling. It was a great year for movies with characters against unthinkable adversity. Keep in mind I'm not a professional critic, and only count movies I've seen from 1/1/13-12/31/13. I'm still heavily anticipating seeing critical favorites like "Her," "August: Osage County," "Dallas Buyers Club," "Nebraska" and "Inside Llewyn Davis." Now tha...

Looking back on my 2012 predictions....I really didn't do too shabby! I'm taking my predictions now, the snowed-in Tuesday before the nominations announcement this Thursday, where last year I got all but three right more than a month before the announcements. Hurray for being increasingly less reliable and accurate! This really is one of the hardest awards shows to call....for comedy. There are literally 25 movies that could be eligible to be put into the five slots and I wouldn't be surprised at all. This Oscar race is riDICULOUS. So don't expect too many accurate picks in comedy...or even the overstuffed drama category. My money's actually only with animated film... Bale needs a Globe for this picture alone in "Hustle" BEST DRAMA: 12 Years a Slave (all right, this and the next movie will indeed be easy to predict. But the other three are literally interchangeable as the hours pass)  Gravity Captain Phillips (you can always bank on a Hanks movie...

One of the most uncomfortable viewing experiences I've sat through is last year's gripping thriller "Compliance." Without spoiling the film, I found myself yelling at my computer screen a number of times in protest to the character's actions. "12 Years a Slave" makes "Compliance" seem like a trip to Disney World. It's going to take me a long time to recuperate after seeing this unflinchingly brutal work of art, and likely years before I even consider giving myself the thought of a second viewing. It opens with the soon to be nationally revered Chiwetel Ejiofor and a handful of other slaves in a cane field, being instructed by an unnamed master. Why not include one of the many whipping scenes as a shocking opener to this picture? Director Steve McQueen wants to put you in the shoes (or lack thereof) of a slave, being instructed to do menial work in the blazing southern heat with the impending crack of a whip alongside your back in the fore...

School is rearing its head again, but I don't mind because that means it's time for ridiculously early Best Picture predictions, in which, on September 1, I take a slightly more educated stab in the dark then my previous attempt on April 25. Despite not knowing if the number will be from five to ten, I always plan for the most and guess ten. THE RETURNING NOMINEES: Fruitvale Station (after seeing this movie and being floored by it a nomination is certain) The Wolf of Wall Street (now that the trailer's been released it seems like an even safer bet) The Monuments Men Inside Llewyn Davis Captain Phillips August: Osage County Right now, "Fruitvale" and "August" seem the only for-sure films to earn a slot, with "Fruitvale's" timely themes and "August's" powerhouse female performances. But these next four movies have nearly the same buzz, three of which I can confirm I've seen, and all of them I wouldn't min...