Man, Was I Surprised By Non-Stop!

It's not like the filmmakers broke new ground with this movie... rather, they put together a fun, action-filled experience in much the same style as old genre flicks like Air Force One. If you've ever seen that movie, you know being compared positively to it can only mean one thing... Non-Stop is pretty awesome!

Liam Neeson had already found his new niche with the advent of Taken back in 2008, but to be honest, I never really got a whole lot of enjoyment from the attempts that came after. Unknown was extraordinarily awful, and while I did enjoy The Grey to some degree it would seem Taken 2 left a bad taste in everyone's mouth. So I went in to see Non-Stop pretty much holding my breath. My expectations couldn't've been lower. And somehow I came out the other side with a big old smile on my face.

Essentially what you need to know is:

1) They got the action just right... there was a certain fight in a bathroom that was both surprisingly cool and weirdly funny at the same time... and a certain moment with a gun toward the end of the film that I'm gonna remember for a long long time (it could've been bad cheese, but instead it was good).

2) The film was very well cast... obviously Liam Neeson's been doing this for a while and he's really beginning to develop a nack for his own brand of fun/funny but good action... Julianne Moore was just a very welcome surprise and once I saw her doing her thing before the flight I knew there was going to be at least a small amount of quality to this film... add in Scoot McNairy, Michelle Dockery, Corey Stall, and the Oscar winning Lupita Nyong'o and you've got yourself a pretty well rounded group of performers.

3) The cheese was not too cheesy... this film lived on action and awkward cheesy wit... but sometimes that can work against a movie... this is a good example of the cheese factor giving the movie a boost and welcome applause rather than boos.

4) The mystery really stays a mystery until you absolutely need to know... and then, when the reveal does take place, I promise everything that has happened that seemed unlikely for one reason or another really does make sense... it may seem outrageous at times, and the reveal is not of the earth shattering variety, but it absolutely works for what kind of movie this wants to be... and is.

I'm not afraid to say it, I really like Non-Stop!

The Gold Rush: A Conversation About Oscars, Part 2

THIS IS PART 2 OF THE GOLD RUSH 2014, AN ANNUAL OSCAR CONVERSATION BETWEEN FRIENDS. TO READ PART 1 VISIT THE SILVER SCREENING ROOM HERE.

TO CONTINUE READING PART 2, JUST GO RIGHT AHEAD AND READ:

March King: I also think Frozen steps up and returns the Best Animated Feature award to Disney. The Wind Rises was good, but not good enough. It would've had to be another Spirited Away, and it just didn't bring that same level of vibrance. The Croods was cool, but just barely misses "Oscar worthy" in my mind.

Silver Screener: Not that I'd know! I only saw Frozen. But I do agree that it's probably going to win.

MK: Wow. You missed a pretty good year for animation bud. When Pixar misses the category all together, the other studios tend to step up their game.

SS: Did Pixar have something this year? Monsters University, right?

MK: Yup. Not good enough Pixar.

SS: Look, I don't think Monsters Inc. is all that, either.

MK: It didn't win. But I actually do love that one.

SS: ANYWAY…

MK: So there was another noteworthy snub... Spike Jonze. Yes he was nominated for Original Screenplay, but not for Director... even though his movie Her is up for Best Picture.

SS: Yeah, but there are up to ten slots for Picture and only five for Director, so something's gotta give. I wish that something was Alexander Payne, but ALAS.

MK: David O. Russell, Alexander Payne, and Martin Scorsese all should've given way for someone else.

"Sorry guys. Give me just five seconds and I'll be out of your hair."

So for me that really only leaves two candidates standing in the Directing category...

SS: Yup yup: McQueen and Cuarón.

MK: Between them... it's sort of tough for me, just because I love both of these guys' films so much. Past and present. But I gotta go with Alfonso Cuarón on this one. Even though I think 12 Years a Slave ultimately wins the big award.

SS: And I get that. Cuarón should've been nominated for Children of Men, he does great visual work with Gravity, but man -- McQueen knocked it out of the park. The visuals, the ensemble, the editing. Everything in 12 Years a Slave just clicks so perfectly.

MK: But Gravity became so much bigger because of Cuarón's vision. It truly became an event. Something you can't experience the same way at home.

SS: And I give Cuarón credit for that, but personally, for me, that kind of limits it. Akin, almost, to THIS IS CINERAMA being a showcase for a new format. Gravity can only really endure on the big screen.

MK: Actually, I may have it backwards now that I think on it. Steve McQueen gets Director, but Gravity gets Best Picture. That would certainly make a statement about the state of Hollywood. “What's necessary for film to survive further down the road.”

SS: That certainly *would* shake things up! Everyone would lose their Oscar pools!

 

Damnit! I always get these things wrong!

(Laughs.)

MK: I know right? But I already lost mine anyway. I always get too sentimental about these things. I'd probably put Her on an Oscar pool even though I know... I know...

SS: Yeah, you gotta separate your head from your heart. Like, I'd LOVE for Blue Jasmine to win Original Screenplay and Supporting Actress, but it's not gonna happen.

MK: Because the Oscars are based on a big old conglomerate of opinions. But it will win in one very very crucial category...

SS: YEEEEEESSSSS CATE THE GREAAAAAAAT!

MK: We love you Cate! You really do deserve this.

SS: Amy Adams was great too but CAAAAAATE!

MK: No, I know. Best Actress is a great category. But Cate! Ooh... and Lupita Nyong'o in 12 Years for Supporting Actress too. That’s my pick anyway.

SS: I think Jennifer Lawrence may win.

MK: ...Again?

 

Oh no. Not another tie.

SS: Or....A TIE

MK: ...Is that possible??

SS: To quote Tilda Swinton in the shoulda-been Best Picture winner of 2008, "Anything is possible."

MK: "Anything is possible." I think that's a pretty good theme for this year's Oscars. And a pretty good way to close out this year’s Gold Rush. In 2013 we saw bigger than life realities and minuscule, tender moments that touched us more than any crazy super hero action sequence ever could. We saw game changing event films and art house instant classics... and we saw a few less than desirable movies take home box office successes, but such is the industry.

SS: Couldn't have said it better myself. And with, for once, a tight race for Best Picture, 2013 is a true GOLD RUSH.