Oscar Bits and Bites

In his excellent Grantland piece, Wesley Morris draws an eerie parallel between Trayvon Martin and Oscar Grant, but more to the point, Ryan Coogler’s film. It calls to mind what is, I think, the difference between an objective film review (if there is such a thing) and a critic who gets or cares about the bigger picture. Says Morris:

The reaction to the movie trumps ambivalence about how it was made. To some extent, what’s upsetting people is that Coogler has crafted a gentle portrait of a man we know will die at movie’s end. In the aftermath of the Zimmerman trial, that empathetic gentleness suddenly feels crucial. It feels like a tonic. I saw the film for a second time last Friday, and I left with a long face. There was no one for me to comfort this time. Those weeping around me had brought their own shoulders to cry on.

Spike Lee’s Kickstarter is already up to:

But of course, the haters are out in force. Steven Soderbergh has contributed $10,000. Anyone who contributes is putting in a vote to say: we support Spike Lee making this movie and we’re putting our money where our mouth is. In short, WE are the producers. What could be wrong with that?

Hailee Steinfeld in the new Romeo and Juliet – poster and trailer here.

David Thomson calls Blue Jasmine the best film Woody Allen has ever made (I would say it’s his best since Crimes and Misdemeanors).

First look stills for Diablo Cody’s Paradise.