In just three short weeks the 84th Annual Academy Awards will take place in California at the Kodak Theatre.
Most of the films that are nominated this year I have seen, but only a few, I feel, should’ve been nominated.
If you’re looking for a dazzling film that will leave you bewildered and in awe at the end, then the film you want to see is “My Week With Marilyn,” starring porcelain faced Michelle Williams, who takes on the role of disheveled, immature and attention-hungry Marilyn Monroe. Williams takes on the drug-crazed superstar’s world with passion, drive and intensity.  Her portrayal singlehandedly makes the film a winner, which is why I was shocked that it was not nominated for best picture and “The Descendants” was.
The Descendants, starring George Clooney and newcomer Shailene Woodley, is a depressing film with the main concept being forgiveness.
Clooney takes on the role of Matt King, a wealthy businessman living in the paradise of Hawaii with his wife and daughters. He’s blown away when he receives the news that his newly estranged wife has been in a boating accident and is comatose. He then must take on the role of father and mother in parenting his teenage daughter and her little sister.
Clooney’s performance wasn’t bad, but it also wasn’t necessarily Oscar worthy.  I thought that he was rather dull.
After the shock of the boating accident, Clooney’s daughter drops a bombshell. His wife has been unfaithful to him. After emotionally trying to comprehend not only his wife’s past, but also her present, Clooney sets out with his family in tow to find his wife’s lover and to get answers.
This film was too ordinary for me, too realistic, and it seemed to drag on forever. It is basically a film about a modern-day family going through modern-day hardships. Nothing in the film bedazzled me, and quite frankly I felt myself nodding off into a deep sleep most of the time. If you’re fighting to stay awake during a film it’s not one with Academy Award potential. It’s simply just another film.
I also felt like the majority of the acting was horrible. Although this is her first film, Woodley’s acting was very scattered. At times she was too intense and it seemed as if she was trying too hard, then there would be times when she seemed a bit aloof and lifeless.
Alexandra, Woodley’s character in the film, is a teenager with a drinking problem and a discipline problem. She can’t seem to get over her mother’s affair and is spiraling out of control. I thought the concept of her character was a little too harsh, and made it seem like  every teenager is troubled and angry.
The one actor that seemed to have the most potential was, oddly enough, newcomer Amara Miller, who portrayed Clooney’s lost and distraught younger daughter.
Miller took on the role quite well and was very good at showing emotion that came off as genuine and not fake. Her scenes didn’t seem pushed or over the top. Her acting seemed natural, and if anyone in the cast deserves an award it would be her.
For a film that is two hours long, it was not dramatic enough. It dealt with the same issues and the same sob story over and over again, boring the audience.
Although I have more negative comments than positive, I do like the idea of a broken family coming together over tragedy and trying to find forgiveness within each other, and the idea that time spent with your family in the end is more valuable than time spent at work. The movie was good, but it was not great.
“The Descendants” has been nominated for best picture, best film editing, and best directing.  Clooney is nominated for best actor.
The Academy Awards will air on ABC on Sunday, Feb. 26 at 4 p.m.