With award season upon us and some controversy about political speeches, Eimear Dodd suggests that award shows might provide a platform to start a wider conversation.
Tag: movies
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Oscar Wild: Best Animated Feature Film
With the Academy Awards just around the corner, Clodagh Moriarty kicks off The City’s Oscar Wild series by taking a look at the contenders for the Best Animated Feature Film.
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Mainstream films: unexpected virtue of ignorance?
Photo by Coffee. (Pixabay) Once one of the most well-known critical theorists Theodor W. Adorno stated that culture was important to manipulate the audience. For him, films provide easy pleasure to people, giving them a false sense of reality. This theory has some valid points. Undoubtedly, some films can broaden our minds, portraying a different viewpoint than we are used to seeing in everyday life. However, we are tired of being in front of the screen, spending hours watching special effects, cheesy comedies and predictable happy-endings, all of which is far from representing our reality.
With this years Oscars, we were able to see a little bit of everything, including an off-beat, innovative film: Birdman or the unexpected virtue of ignorance, which won three golden statues. To understand a little more about it, I had a conversation with Donnchadh Tiernan, who is a filmmaker, stand-up comedian and journalist, so he knows what he is talking about. As we sat in the cafe of the Irish Film Institute sipping our americano coffees, TIernan said:
“I do not think that the Oscars has changed over the years, Birdman won because it was appealing to the masses and they have Michael Keaton. No matter how unusual the film was, the director Alejandro González Iñárritu cast Michael Keaton so he always remains in the mainstream. It is a big idea to be ignored.”
I was about to ask my next question when the outgoing actor added another comment: “What that mainstream appeals to is easy to understand. If you take it at a very basic level it is easy to understand what happens in the film. In Birdman, the events can be very funny but I think that it has something for everybody so that’s why people reacted so positively to it.” He liked the film for being “unusual” and “innovative in some ways”, but in his opinion many good films were completely left out.
Donnchadh believes that foreign language films can open our mind but, unfortunately, big producers are not interested in innovative narratives, only predictable stories which they can make lot of profits from. He says: “If each country that doesn’t speak English got to put forward two, three or four films every single year on the Oscars, obviously they would have a high quality and most of the films nominated for best foreign language would be better than any films nominated in any category.”
When Donnchadh left, an elderly man beside me had been listening to our conversation and said, “I am sick of seeing films from the Oscars, everything is so predictable.”
I did not hesitate to agree with him. It appears, the mainstream films have not changed over the years, but many of viewers are expecting something challenging.
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10 movies to get you into the Christmas spirit
It’s that time of year again, when you don’t need an excuse to laze around the sitting room watching TV all day. It’s the middle of December, which means Christmas is just around the corner and the only way to truly get into that jolly Christmas spirit is to sit back with a warm cup of tea and watch Christmas movies one after the other. If you’re too exhausted after work or college, don’t fret. The Christmas elves* at TheCity.ie have compiled a list of Christmas movie classics that are bound to get you into that merry spirit.
1) Elf (2003)
The Christmas elves unanimously decided to start the movie list with Elf – a film about a human, raised by elves, called Buddy (played by Will Ferrell). After learning that he isn’t a true elf, Buddy decides to travel to New York to find out where he is truly from and to meet his cranky father. Kids and adults alike will be amused by Buddy’s goofiness and folly while he tries to discover what it is like to be human.
2) Home Alone (1990)
This movie is truly a Christmas classic. Eight-year-old Kevin (Macauley Culkin) is accidentally left at home, while his family heads off to Paris to celebrate Christmas. Kevin is left to defend the house from two clumsy burglars, the “Wet Bandits” (played by Daniel Stern and Joe Pesci), who take the opportunity to rob empty houses during the festive season. The events that ensue will leave you crying with laughter.
3) It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
Directed by Frank Capra, It’s a Wonderful Life is a truly classic heart-warming tale about George Bailey (James Stewart), a disgruntled businessman, who decides that he has nothing else left to do in his life than to end it. Guardian angel, Clarence (Henry Travers), saves Bailey by showing him what the life would be without him.
4) Love, Actually (2003)
This irresistible, delightful movie is for the die-hard romantics. Set in London, the story follows 8 different couples and the ups-and-downs of their love lives during the Christmas season. Be careful though, you will find yourself singing ‘Christmas is All Around’. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
5) Die-hard (1988)
What’s more joyful than Bruce Willis (plays John McClane) saving Christmas from some German bad guys? Add Alan Rickman (plays Hans Gruber) to the mix and you got yourself an action-packed Christmas movie.
6) The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
A movie you can watch on Christmas and Halloween? Now that’s just cheating. Tim Burton’s spooky stop-motion animated movie follows the adventures of Jack Skellington. Jack grows tired of scaring people in Halloweentown and accidentally discovers Christmastown, which brings a new purpose to his life – he schemes to kidnap Santa and overtake Christmastown.
7) The Santa Clause (1994)
What do you do when Santa accidentally falls off your roof? Ultimately, Scott Calvin (Tim Allen) decides to take over Santa’s rounds for one night but eventually finds out that by putting on Santa’s clothes, he signed the Clause and now he must become the new Father Christmas and all the benefits that come with the title: huge belly, white hair and a long snowy beard. Scott may have a hard time getting used to the changes.
8) National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989)
Christmas at the Griswolds’ household, what could possibly go wrong? Many things, as Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) and his family learn in this painfully hilarious comedy.
9) Jingle All the Way (1996)
It’s Christmas Eve and Howard Langston (played by Arnold Schwarzenegger) is running around town trying to get the very last Turbo Man action figure for his son. Saying that Howard gets into some crazy situations would be an understatement in this action-packed family movie.
10) How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
If you’re a grumpy kind of person who hates the sound of Christmas carols and any of the exhausting festivities associated with Christmas, you might want to stick this movie on. Grinch (played by Jim Carrey), like you, would do anything to stop Christmas from coming. But if Cindy Lou Who’s (Taylor Momsen) singing doesn’t melt at least a tiny bit of your frozen heart, you are a lost cause. Go back to your murky cave you grouch!
TheCity.ie also took to the streets of Dublin to find out what Christmas movies the public love to watch over the Christmas season.
*No elves were harmed during the production of this article.
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