Academy Award predictions

Academy Award Nominations came out today. This year I am resuming an old tradition of making Oscar picks. my choices are highlighted in blue.

Actor in a Leading Role -- This is a hard choice, I'm torn between Colin FIrth or a repeat by Jeff Bridges, but I'm gonna call it for Colin

• Javier Bardem in “Biutiful”
• Jeff Bridges in “True Grit”
• Jesse Eisenberg in “The Social Network”
• Colin Firth in “The King's Speech”
• James Franco in “127 Hours”

Actor in a Supporting Role --I have seen none of these performances, I'm picking Geoffrey, because this film looks amazing to me.

• Christian Bale in “The Fighter”
• John Hawkes in “Winter's Bone”
• Jeremy Renner in “The Town”
• Mark Ruffalo in “The Kids Are All Right”
• Geoffrey Rush in “The King's Speech”

Actress in a Leading Role --Okay, Natalie is the only performance I've seen here, and she was so amazing, I gotta give it to her.

• Annette Bening in “The Kids Are All Right”
• Nicole Kidman in “Rabbit Hole”
• Jennifer Lawrence in “Winter's Bone”
• Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”
• Michelle Williams in “Blue Valentine”

Actress in a Supporting Role -- Again, haven't seen anything but the previews, but I'm giving it to the kid.

• Amy Adams in “The Fighter”
• Helena Bonham Carter in “The King's Speech”
• Melissa Leo in “The Fighter”
• Hailee Steinfeld in “True Grit”
• Jacki Weaver in “Animal Kingdom”

Animated Feature Film --No Contest here, come on!

• “How to Train Your Dragon” Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois
• “The Illusionist” Sylvain Chomet
• “Toy Story 3” Lee Unkrich

Directing --Tough call, I would have liked to Chris Nolan for INCEPTION, and BlackSwan and Social Network were great, but the Oscars love the Coen brothers.

• “Black Swan” Darren Aronofsky
• “The Fighter” David O. Russell
• “The King's Speech” Tom Hooper
• “The Social Network” David Fincher
• “True Grit” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen

Music (Original Score) --I saw Social Network, and remember the music in no way, but Zimmer's score drove the action along so amazingly in INCEPTION, he has to win this.

• “How to Train Your Dragon” John Powell
• “Inception” Hans Zimmer
• “The King's Speech” Alexandre Desplat
• “127 Hours” A.R. Rahman
• “The Social Network” Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross

Music (Original Song) --I am protesting this category and not making a pick because Carrie Underwood's A Place For Us from Voyage of the Dawn Treader is way better tan any of these.

• “Coming Home” from “Country Strong” Music and Lyric by Tom Douglas, Troy Verges and Hillary Lindsey
• “I See the Light” from “Tangled” Music by Alan Menken Lyric by Glenn Slater
• “If I Rise” from “127 Hours” Music by A.R. Rahman Lyric by Dido and Rollo Armstrong
• “We Belong Together” from “Toy Story 3" Music and Lyric by Randy Newman

Best Picture --Tough category since they made it 10 nominees, if I had my way it would be Inception, but I'm thinking the academy will pick King's Speech.

• “Black Swan” Mike Medavoy, Brian Oliver and Scott Franklin, Producers
• “The Fighter” David Hoberman, Todd Lieberman and Mark Wahlberg, Producers
• “Inception” Emma Thomas and Christopher Nolan, Producers
• “The Kids Are All Right” Gary Gilbert, Jeffrey Levy-Hinte and Celine Rattray, Producers
• “The King's Speech” Iain Canning, Emile Sherman and Gareth Unwin, Producers
• “127 Hours” Christian Colson, Danny Boyle and John Smithson, Producers
• “The Social Network” Scott Rudin, Dana Brunetti, Michael De Luca and Ceán Chaffin, Producers
• “Toy Story 3” Darla K. Anderson, Producer
• “True Grit” Scott Rudin, Ethan Coen and Joel Coen, Producers
• “Winter's Bone" Anne Rosellini and Alix Madigan-Yorkin, Producers

Check back after the awards, and we'll see how I did.

Black Swan, Little Fockers, The Dilemma, Country Strong 4 Mini-reviews

Okay, welcome to 2011, and seeing we are in the middle of January already, I am hear by foregoing my New Years Resolutions. I'm going to be my same old rotten nasty self all year.

Moving on, I'm now going to give you my review of the 4 movies I've seen so far this year. SPOILER ALERT: If you are planning to see any of the four movies named in the title, you may want to stop now, I might give away plot elements you don't want to know. In particular, Black Swan and Country Strong. If you continue now, don't be mad at me for giving things away.

I'll start with LITTLE FOCKERS-- For the third installment in this series Ben Stiller sticks with the familiar. There is really nothing new or surprising here. If Stiller's comedy is something you enjoy, you won't be disappointed. If your tastes run in different circles, stay away. The addition of Jessica Alba is nice for the men, sorry girls, no real eye candy for you, unless you're into Owen Wilson. 2 1/2 stars on a 4 star scale

BLACK SWAN-- Natalie Portman is amazing in this film, as is Mila Kunis. All the praise for the acting is well deserved. Given that, it is a very dark film, with a tragic ending. I think Portman's character could have been just as strong even if the film had had a happier ending. I was not disappointed with the film, until the ending. I was however a bit freaked out at parts of it. NOT a family film, and not for the fain of heart. 3 1/2 stars.

THE DILEMMA-- The movie, out of all 4, perhaps confused me the most. With a cast featuring Vince Vaughn, Kevin James and Queen Latifah you would expect a film full of laughs, and probably a lot of slapstick; a light fluffy film. This movie is surprisingly much heavier than that. There are funny moments, mostly when Latifah is on the screen. But for the most part it is a kind of serious film. And this is my problem...I don't think Vaughn or James are good enough actors to pull off a heavy film. I know Steve Martin, and Robin Williams have been able to tackle more serious roles, but Vaughn and James just aren't ready for it. I would have enjoyed this more if they had stuck to their comedy guns, and just made this a funny film, forget the heavy message. Or conversely, if you want to handle the topics of this film seriously, get Tom Hanks and George Clooney, or even Matt and Ben, and make it a straight out serious film. Either way, it would have been a better film. 2 Stars.

COUNTRY STRONG-- A movie about an alcoholic country singer trying to make a comeback is bound to be a bit heavy, but the ads do not prepare you for the very unhappy ending. The ads show Gwyneth Paltrow giving a strong performance and strutting off stage...happy ending right?..No, she goes back stage and has a bad mix of drugs and alcohol...sad ending. Cheers to Paltrow for becoming a decent country singer. But overall, a very depressing movie. 2 1/2 stars.

My top 25 most played songs for 2010

2010 marked the year my music listening changed. I got my iPod, and things will never be the same. At midnight on Dec. 31 I reset the count for all the songs on the iPod, but not before printing the list of my 25 most played songs. I will not explain the songs, just list title, artist and # of plays. They are listed from 1-25. (Don't laugh at all the GLEE music, I love that show,)

1. Jar Of Hearts / Christina Perri / 103
2. To Sir With Love/ Glee Cast / 38
3. Any Way You Want It,Lovin' Touchin' squeezin' / Glee Cast / 34
4. Run Joey Run/ Glee Cast/ 33
5. Is That So Wrong / Julianne Hough/ 33
6. Don't Stop Believin' (regionals version) / Glee Cast / 32
7. Mine / Taylor Swift / 31
8. Total Eclipse of The Heart / Glee Cast / 30
9. Faithfully / Glee Cast / 30
10. Comfortably Numb/ Pink Floyd / 30
11. Bohemiam Rhapsody / Glee Cast / 29
12. Over The Rainbow / Glee Cast / 29
13. Highly Strung (video version) / Orianthi & Steve Vai /29
14. Right / The Weekend Forecast / 29
15. Dream On / Glee Cast /28
16. I Dreamed A Dream / Glee Cast/ 28
17. Love Reign O'er Me / The Who /28
18. 40 Dogs (Like Romeo & Juliet) / Bob Schneider / 27
19. Sometimes A Beggar / Caedmon's Call / 27
20. She / Caedmon's Call / 27
21. Notice Me / Alexa Ray Joel / 26
22. Another One Bites The Dust / Glee Cast / 25
23. Feeling Good / Katie Stevens / 25
24. Wild Horses / Katie Stevens / 25
25. Circle the Drain / Katy Perry / 25

2010 Year End Top 5s

So sorry to be late on all my year end and New Year blogs, but they are coming now!!! I blame Verizon, and pre-Christmas storms for the lack of internet access, but I am back. Today I will present you with my top 5 Movies, albums, and songs of 2010. Enjoy, comment, let me know what you think. (please note, I am counting down from 5 to 1 in each category)

MOVIES:
5) The Runaways-- A dark biopic of the 70's girls group that gave us Joan Jett, Cherie Currie, and Lita Ford. Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning shine as Jett & Currie respectively. You don't really get much of Ford's story, due to an ongoing rift between Jett & Ford. You do see the dark side of the music industry and how people hungry for money play on the dreams of young musical hopefuls. Well worth the rental money, but NOT a family film.
4) Voyage of the Dawn Treader-- The third installment of C.S. Lewis' Narnia Chronicles is a beautiful adaptation of my favorite of the books. I hope it does well enough to keep the series going. It would be a shame to stop them here. Oh, and even the 3D is pretty cool, and I am not a 3D fan.
3) Secretariat-- Incredible acting by Diane Lane and John Malkovich make this real life story a must see film. Hoping the Academy gives it a chance. A great family film (as is Dawn Treader if I forgot to say so).
2) Social Network-- Another real life story of the founding of Facebook. Not a family film, but excellent acting, and a must see for all us Facebook junkies.
1) Inception-- After three viewings, I may be beginning to really get what's going on...or I might be totally off. The idea is amazing, the acting is great, and neat effects... You gotta see it more than once just to catch all the twists.

ALBUMS:
5) Katy Perry: Teenage Dream-- Katy's sophomore pop outing is good fun pop. While most critics are liking the first half, the more bubble gum half, and not embracing the deeper songs of the second half, I am the opposite. I like it when Katy puts a little thought into the lyrics. Favorite songs are Circle the Drain (foul language aside, it is a dark look at dealing with a drug addict as a boyfriend and very well done song) and Who Are You Living For?... a good question for Miss Perry.
4) Santana: Guitar Heaven-- Carlos and the band cover many rock classics, joined by some of today's top rock vocalists. Almost every song is amazing, I especially like Riders on the Storm, featuring the original Doors keyboardist Ray Manzarek, with vocals by Chester Bennington.
3) Jars of Clay: The Shelter-- Jars is easily the most consistently great band in Christian music, and on this release they are joined by many other great artists. Get on your headphones, put the album on and be ready to be blessed.
2) Still Running: One-- This is my friend Jenna Reed's band, but it really has earned this spot. a great indie feast of magically tunes that will stick in your head, and make you think. Check my older blogs fo a full review. Everyone I've played it for agrees it's amazing.
1) Taylor Swift: Speak Now-- Over 1 million copies sold in the first week, it has to have something going for it. Great melodies, well sculpted lyrics, and a performer who will wrap you around her finger...unless of course you prefer Kanya...to each his own, I loved this album.

SONGS:
5) Crystal Bowersox: Mason-- American Idol runner-up released her debut just 11 days before Christmas. This love song caught my attention, and bumped She & Him right off my top 5. I love the image "I want to be your mason, baby, I want to build a lie with you" Crystal is gonna go somewhere.
4) Katy Perry: Who Are You Living For?-- Katy looks at priorities, and who or what is important to you. Always a good question, not sure Katy has the right answer at the moment, but still agood song.
3) Taylor Swift: Back to December-- Instead of the typical "The guy dumped me & messed me up" this is a "oops, I hurt the guy I really liked & now I'm sorry". If a girl had written this for me, I'd take her back.
2) Still Running: Robert Immolation-- A beautiful, yet darkly disturbing song, and one of 11 great songs on his album. Again, check out my older blog for the review of the album, and where to order it.
1) Christina Perri: Jar of Hearts-- This song invaded my iPod after it was featured on So You Think You Can dance this summer, and it would not let go. As you will see in a future blog, it held the top plays on my iPod last year. It is now getting airplay, and is sure to be the start of a huge career as Christina is recording her first full album even now.

1 Year Down 2 to go (Bucket List update)

Well a little over a year ago I published my Bucket List in preparation for the world ending in 2012 (the whole December 2012 Myan calendar thing). I have given you periodic updates through this year. Now with a little under two years left, I am updating and revising my bucket list. The original post text will be blue, with revisions in red.

Steve's Bucket List:

1} Finish writing my novel and get it published. This is a long-time goal, and now the end of the world is just giving me motivation to work faster. I have some big plans in the works in this area, keep watching here and on facebook for more, and for how you can help make this dream come true.

2}Take a guitar lesson from Orianthi. She is the amazing guitarist from the Michael Jackson THIS IS IT movie, and to just spend an hour learning from her would be amazing. She is busy touring with Adam Lambert, but I'm sure she'll get back to me after the tour. I'll be checking in with her on Twitter after the holidays, sure she'll respond this time.

3} Spend a month traveling in England and Ireland. I figure it would take at least a month to find all the historical, but not touristy spots. Still waiting for financing...come on LOTTO!!!

4} Star in, or direct a movie with Zooey Deshanel. Maybe my friend Beau could produce it. She is one of my favorite actresses, and I'd love to work with her. Talks are still delayed by me having no way to contact Zooey, she doesn't Twitter enough...might need to switch to Rachel Nichols, she has responded to multiple tweets, and seems cool. Well, Zooey has started tweeting more, but has yet to respond to me, and Rachel is still responding, so I am hereby officially changing this to "Star in, or direct a movie with Rachel Nichols. Also to get bucket list down to 10 items, I am combining #8 in here, and adding have lunch/coffee with Rachel Nichols, since she responds more than Ashley Greene.

5} Spend a day at the park with just my kids and my parents. Sounds easy enough, but if you understood my family situation, you'd know this is probably the wildest thing on my list. Still no progress to report here.

6} Write a song with Taylor Swift. I'd let her sing it, since my voice would make people pray for the end of the world. plus with her singing it would be a sure hit. New album out, big huge world tour in the works for next year, plus Jake is kinda in the way now, so not looking good, but still hopeful.

7} Get together and hang out for at least part of a day catching up with as many of my Facebook friends as I can. Since my Toyota friends I can see any time, I won't count those, sorry. This is where I can report the most progress: In October I hooked up with my friend Beau who I hadn't seen since college, we hung out before the U2 concert. This month I have has lunch with my friends Adam, and John, both from my KLoRD days who I hadn't seen in 14 or 15 years. Very good time catching up on all accounts. Looking forward to more meetings soon. In a bit of a slump here, but will be making a New Years resolution on this front, keep a watch here for that.

#8 (becoming part of #4)} Have lunch or dinner with Ashley Greene (from Twilight). Her character is so sweet, and from what I hear, she is too. See #4 above (although I'd still keep the Ashley option open)

The new #8 (formerly 11)}To see a sunrise and sunset on every continent. Well, could probably skip Antarctica. Still stuck on North America...as with England trip, waiting on financing...Come on lotto!!!

9} Spend a month on tour with U2. Maybe get invited up onstage by Bono. U2 will be touring US again this year...hoping to get a chance to talk with them about the options.

10} Take a dance lesson from one of my favorite Dancing with the Stars pros, either Lacey Schwimmer, Chelsie Hightower, or Julianne Hough. Things not looking great here, Lacey hasn't been spending as much time in her dad's Redlands studio lately, or at least not tweeting about it.

A Christmas gift for you, my friends.

During the advent season in 1987 I wrote a Christmas story. For many years it has been hidden away in storage. I recently unearthed it, and have polished it up a little. I am now going to share it with you my friends. Read and enjoy:

Christmas Dreams

The snow blew in soft wisps against the oaken stable. The old cart horse slept on a bed of hay. A small light glowed in the window of a nearby house. Inside the house the cart driver sat in his chair rocking, trying his best to keep warm in the cold Pennsylvania winter.

Living alone in the country made it hard for the man to get wood for his fire. In past times he would travel to town with his horse, buy wood and haul it back in his cart. He would burn enough wood to keep warm, and the rest he would carve; he made toys for the children, salt and pepper shakers for the women or birdhouses for the men. He would then travel into town to sell his creations, and with the money he would buy more wood. Around the beginning of November he would start working on his Christmas ornaments. These always sold well, and made for large wood purchases. Each year, exactly three weeks before Christmas, he would begin work on the nativity scene for the church building in town. For two solid weeks he would work from sun-up until long after dark carving the figures of the holy family. Then a week before Christmas he would hook the horse up to the cart, load the nativity set in and head for the church. Everyone in town loved his work, and his nativity scene was the talk of the town.

But about a year ago his fingers began to feel the bite that so many older hands feel. As his joints hardened and the arthritis began to twist his fingers, his carving became less precise, and people began buying less and less of his work. Three weeks before Christmas, he went to town to buy the wood for the nativity scene, and the wood to keep him warm until Christmas. The money was short, and he was not able get enough wood.

He was determined to carve a nativity scene to better all his previous ones, so he cut back on his heating rations. He painfully worked on Joseph, stopping often to rest his stiff joints. Then he began work on the Virgin Mary. As he was putting thee finishing touches on the face, a spur of pain shot through his hand, causing his knife to slip and make a scar across the beautiful face.

The man knew he had to start over, so he took a large piece of wood off his heating wood pile, and began again on Mary. But the man could not bring himself to throw the scarred Madonna into the fireplace, and so his pile of wood dwindled rapidly. His mistake also cost him time, so he stayed up later and got up earlier to get the work done.

The next day was the day he was to bring his nativity scene in to town. Everyone would be waiting; for even though they knew his carving had gotten rougher, they also knew that the love he put into his nativity scene would make it a piece of beauty. He sat in his chair, rocking and holding the wooden baby Jesus in his lap. The wooden child was almost perfect, except the face remained uncarved. As the man rocked, he slowly fell asleep.

As he slept, he began dreaming. He saw himself as a child, running with the sheep on his farm. He saw a Christmas morning when he was ten and he had found a sheepdog puppy under the family Christmas tree. Next he saw his baptism into the church on a Christmas Eve when he was thirteen. Then he was shown a picture he had seen many times of Jesus standing at the door and knocking.

The man got up and opened the door in his dream, and Jesus came in. “My faithful follower,” the Lord said, “you have served me well, and it is your time to rest. Come unto me, and I will give you the rest you so richly deserve.”

“But Lord,” the man replied, holding up the unfinished carving of the Christ child, “My work is not done. The Church needs a nativity scene, and it is not yet finished.”

Love shone from the face of Christ as He drew the man to Himself and repeated the words He had said many years before, “It is finished.” And the man went to be with the Lord, leaving his carving behind.

The next morning the horse woke in the cold air, knowing somehow that he would not be making the planned trip into town.

In the town the crowds gathered around the church to wait for the man to bring his nativity scene. As time passed, and it became apparent that he was not coming, a group of men decided to ride out to the man’s house to see what was wrong.

When they reached his house they knocked, and after a few minutes with no answer, they tried the door. It wasn’t locked, so they walked in, and found the man sitting in his chair. In his cold, lifeless hands he grasped the most beautiful, perfectly carved statue of the baby Jesus they had ever seen. The face shown out with a love and power beyond anything ever before captured by an artist. The nativity seen was brought to the church, and became a permanent part of the church’s Christmas decorations. The man was buried on Christmas Eve, in the churchyard he had loved for so long.

Written during advent 1987

Copyright Stephen J. DeVries, 2010

Dino-Boy's Adventure

As you may or may not know, I have written a children's book. It was never a huge success and did not make me rich, but it is something I'm rather proud of. If you are interested in a copy, I now have figured out how to take money through paypal, and am offering copies for $6.00 including postage. If you are interested in a copy, click below to order. Copies will be autographed at your request.

Autographed to whom?