Week of January 15 - 21 (Rhoades)

Tropic Overview

All Six Films at Tropic Cinema Received Oscar Nominations

Reviewed by Shirrel Rhoades

Film Critic, Key West Citizen

Now that the 88th Academy Award nominations have been released, Tropic Cinema has locked in its film lineup to make sure you get a chance to see them (they are all nominated), as well as bringing back a previous film that turned up on the Oscar list.
 

 Coming back to Tropic screens is “Room,” the story of a mother and son being held prisoner by a dangerous pervert. Despite that grim storyline, the film is surprisingly magical. Not only did Brie Larson get a Best Actress nod, the film garnered three others nominations including one for Best Picture. Times calls it “a soul-stirring feel-good weepie.” And New York Magazine explains that it “transmutes a lurid, true
-crime situation into a fairy tale in which fairy tales are a source of survival.”

Holding over is “The Big Short,” the financial farce with Ryan Gosling, Steve Carrel, Brad Pitt, and Christian Bale. It has claimed five nominations, with Best Picture among them. The Ooh Tray describes it as “a movie with a conscious but no heroes …” And La Jornada says, “The overall comedic tone of the film make this a success, even if it’s acid and dark.”

“Carol” stays in place too. Surprisingly, this stylish 1950s romance between two women got edged out of the Best Picture list. Nonetheless, it picked up six nominations, including Best Actress for Cate Blanchett and Best Supporting Actress for Rooney Mara. Fort Worth Weekly calls it “a heartening romance for our time as well as theirs.” And Flick Filosopher opines, “Flawless in every way: sumptuous visually and emotionally.”

Also holding over, “The Danish Girl” gives us Eddie Redmayne as an early sex-change pioneer. It too missed out on Best Picture, but nonetheless received four nominations, including Best Actor and Best Actress.  Cinema Movil says, “The powerful performances by Redmayne and Vikander get the message of solidarity with the transgender community across very clearly.” And JWR succinctly adds, “Someone has to be first.”

“Joy” hangs around another week. This is a comedy about the woman who invented the Miracle Mop. Hollywood darling Jennifer Lawrence accounted for its solitary Best Actress nod. Clarin sees it as “the fable of the rise of a self made woman, an ode to entrepreneurs, with an idealized heroine and an explicit message.” And Excelsior says, “This melodrama highlights the importance of believing in yourself.”


“Brooklyn” also stayed over on Tropic screens. A beautiful film about an Irish lass who comes to America to find her future, it received three Oscar nominations: Best Picture, Best Actress, and Adapted Screenplay. The New Republic notes, “‘Brooklyn’ at heart is a women's picture, that staple of mid-century cinema in which a woman must choose her path in life, and the film adapts the genre's traditions splendidly.” And Film-Forward.com concludes, “It mixes open-hearted sentimentality with star Saoirse Ronan’s sublimely subtle performance.”

All told, these six films represent 23 Academy Award nominations, ranging from Best Picture to Best Cinematography. You’ll want to see them before the gala Oscar party at the Tropic on February 28. Right?

srhoades@aol.com