Mr. Turner
Amazing cinematography and great acting. Too damn long at 2.5 hours, and not enough plot. The Internet seems to feel it is relatively historically accurate, which makes it educational. That does not make it interesting. 90 minutes would have been about right. But, as I say, beautiful to look at.
Spongebob Movie
I like Antonio Banderas. Everyone else associated with this movie should be ashamed of themselves. There's a writer's credit, and I know it was written, but I'm not going to mention the writers because, perhaps, if everyone forget this film, they might work again someday. Rotten Tomatoes awards it an unbelievable 75% critic score: I don't think it is as funny as any edition of the TV show I ever watched. How it topped the box office, taking in $50 million the first weekend, I will never understand.
Academy Award Nominated Shorts
Once again this year, if you're lucky, you can see all the nominated live action and animated shorts at a nearby arthhouse. In my case, the Shattuck in Berkeley. My picks: Boogaloo and Graham, live-action story of two boys and their chickens in Belfast during the Time of Troubles, and Feast, the cartoon played before Big Hero 6, which features the culinary adventures of a rescue dog named Winston. The Animated Shorts always feature some "commended" but not nominated cartoons, into which category I would definitely place Duet, which I loved. There are some very sad nominees in both categories, and some very weird ones, which is par for the course. As "chicken is the canvas upon which great chefs paint their masterpieces," "short films are the clay on which filmmakers practice their creativity."