TRAVIS BYRAM'S MOVIE REVIEWS

I remember so clearly seeing the brief, hyperventilating trailer in the summer movie season of "Gravity," thinking very polarizing thoughts. Then I saw the full-length trailer, I warmed up a little to the idea of Bullock and Clooney in space. By the time this film came out, the buzz around it was deafening, not only from the critics singing it the best technical achievement since "Avatar," saying they should go ahead and just give it the Oscar come February, but from my peers, where the FAQ was "Have you seen 'Gravity' yet?" Let's start this out by saying "Gravity" is worth the hype, in some ways more than others. Will it get nominated for Best Picture? 100%. Will it win? Probably, though "12 Years a Slave" is eyeing the prize as well. "Gravity" is one of the more technically perfect movies I've seen in a very long time. The only movie to come out in recent years to match the accomplishments with 3D would hav...

I'm going to shock a few people with this opener: besides "Fantastic Mr. Fox" I've never seen a Wes Anderson film. Feel free to take some time to gasp, I know, it's surprising.  No "Rushmore," no "Royal Tenenbaums," nothing.  I myself find it a little puzzling, but a quick analysis on IMDb clears things up a little, they're all rated R up to "Fantastic Mr. Fox."  If this film is any indication of Anderson's work, I know for sure he'll become my new favorite director. He already is, but I suppose it isn't fair to judge on one film alone.  But based on his trailers, a theme is steadily approaching in my mind, full of quirkiness and men wearing tweed jacket, and Owen Wilson.  Like Scorsese and Tarantino, I see Anderson reuses many of his stars, and the Rotten Tomatoes ratings don't lie, you know, he's fairly acclaimed.  I'm reviewing one of his best rated films, and one of my favorite animated films, because...

As a movie critic walks out of a theater, he has to think hard of how much he enjoyed the movie, but mostly, what the majority of people do reading reviews, think of the bad parts to warn patrons of the cinema.  As I walked out of Alexander Payne's "The Descendants," I realized I couldn't find anything wrong with it.  It really is one of the best films of the year. We begin by seeing Matt King's (excellently portrayed by a subtle, defeated George Clooney) wife water skiing happily on a motor boat.  The next scene we hear Matt's voice giving us the intro to his life, the work that consumes him, his profane little girl who wants to be anything but, and his other little girl, who really isn't little anymore, a rebellious, headstrong teen named Alex, played with devastating confidence by Shailene Woodley, who will hopefully no longer be solely associated with that stupid teen pregnancy soap opera.  Most importantly, we see King's wife in a coma.  We...

A wide variety of films are up for Best Picture this year, including one that got some pretty bad reviews, cough cough, "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close."  I take a look at what will win and (IMO) what should win: BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: (The Ides of March, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Hugo, The Descendants, Moneyball) WILL WIN: While "TTSS" got this award at the BAFTAs, last year's winner Aaron Sorkin has got it again this year for "Moneyball." SHOULD WIN: Moneyball.  It deserves it because it made an odd topic like baseball statistics seem interesting, and the character development is top-notch. BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: (The Artist, Midnight in Paris, Margin Call, A Separation, Bridesmaids) WILL WIN: Midnight in Paris. SHOULD WIN:  Midnight in Paris.  It really doesn't get any more original from the mind of Woody Allen, who most likely won't even be there to accept it. BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: (Christopher Plummer, Nick Nolte, ...

Host Ricky Gervais proved tamer and even funnier this time around with the 69th Golden Globes held last night!  The night had a few surprises, but at the end here's what I really got: George Clooney, Octavia Spencer and Christopher Plummer are definitely winning Oscars this year after victories at both the Globes and the Critic's Choice Awards.  Also "The Artist," which I just saw, will most likely be taking home Best Picture.  Really the only wild card is Best Actress.  Meryl Streep won best actress in a drama last night for her outstanding role in "The Iron Lady" and Viola Davis won Best Actress for "The Help" on Critic's Choice Awards night.  Two very deserving ladies, I can't wait to see how it'll end up. THE COMPLETE LIST: DRAMA FILM: The Descendants (though I'd like to think this might win, "The Artist" pretty much has Best Picture on lock) ACTRESS: Meryl Streep- The Iron Lady ACTOR: George Clooney- T...

It's that time of year again, when critics announce their ten favorite films of the year!  I'm unfortunately at a disadvantage, for the year of 2011 I only saw about 20 movies in the theaters, where pro-critics see about 80-90 movies.  2011 was a GREAT year for cinema, truly marking some of the best movies I've seen a while.  You got movies about Marilyn Monroe, a man trying to find his coma-stricken wife's lover and a whole lot of movies about Paris.  Go figure.  Here are my top five films of the year, some others that didn't quite make the cut, and some movies I wished I just hadn't seen.  I plan on seeing other 2011 films before Oscar season, like "The Artist," "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" and "The Iron Lady," but since I'll be seeing them in 2012 they won't necessarily count for this list. 5.   MONEYBALL Just like with last year's "The Social Network" Aaron Sorkin writes another incredible scr...