Christmas and New Year rolled into one.
My Christmas wasn't a very merry one. New Year will most likely be the same.
I've had a bit of thought about what I want to do after next year.
It drives me crazy getting old.
This dream isn't feeling sweet, we're reeling through the midnight streets. And I've never felt more alone, it feels so scary getting old.
I'll be spending even less time here. I don't feel bad about that at all. This should be the way.
I have quite a few resolutions, which I have written in my diary but will not be sharing here.
I don't know if I have the diligence, dedication and determination to fulfill them, however.
But I've run out of time, I have no choice but to turn over a new leaf.
Looking back on this year, I don't think I've learnt much from school. But I've learnt quite a bit outside, elsewhere. The world is not in our books, it's out there.
This year, there are a lot of things I want and have to do. No more wasting time, this is my last chance.
School starts day after tomorrow.
I can only hope that I will take myself seriously this year.
This blog post's title is a reference to the award-winning-song-it's-destined-to-be from Disney's Frozen, as well as a subtle reminder for myself to let go of last year's Oscar snub for Rise of the Guardians. No, I have not gotten over it yet. *cries*
But another awards season is rolling around, and it's time to pay attention to a new set of animated feature films. Sigh.
Also, I've noticed that my readership has expanded somewhat since commenting on articles on Rookie, so if you got to this blog from there, HI! And please let me know what you like or don't like about my blog via the comments.
I watched Frozen on Thursday with my dad and we were both blown away by how great it was. It started off with a musical number and had some pretty good plot twists though being me I spotted them a mile away. The music was amazing, particularly the score by Christophe Beck. I expected Olaf the talking snowman to be annoying (you can blame/thank Shrek's Donkey for that) but he was funny and we rolled around in our seats laughing. I didn't really appreciate the trolls and I was disappointed by the lack of a big company number as a finale. But all in all, really beautiful animation, even though I like the ice animation in Rise of the Guardians better. (Because I'm BIASED, remember?) Also, Elsa seems like the Disney version of Jack Frost. The music deserves nominations in Best Score and Best Song, with at least one win for Best Song. The voice acting was top notch, and the singing even better. Also, brownie points for being the first female to direct a full-length Disney animated feature film as well the sole writer of the entire screenplay. You go, Jennifer Lee. This is easily the best animated film of the year.
As a reward for reading the review, here's the video for "Let It Go", just in case you haven't seen it yet. And even if you have, watch it again because Idina Menzel. (Defying gravity, anyone?) Best viewed in full screen and in 1080p HD.
As a side note, I think the only reason why I pay so much attention to the animation category is because that's pretty much the only Academy award category in which I have watched all the nominated films.
Here are some of the awards and the nominees so far. Yes, I was incredibly biased in choosing which awards to display.
Annie Awards: Best Animated Feature
A Letter to Momo (GKIDS - Japanese)
Despicable Me 2 (Illumination/Universal)
Ernest & Celestine (GKIDS - French)
Frozen (Disney)
Monsters University (Pixar)
The Croods (DreamWorks)
The Wind Rises (Studio Ghibli)
Golden Globe Awards: Best Animated Feature Film
The Croods
Despicable Me 2
Frozen, also nominated for Best Song
(The Wind Rises was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film)
Satellite Awards: Best Animated or Mixed Media Film
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 (Sony)
The Croods
Epic (Blue Sky/20th Century Fox)
Ernest & Celestine
Frozen
Monsters University
Turbo (DreamWorks)
The Wind Rises
P.S. I just realised Rise of the Guardians won the Satellite Award last year, this makes me happy.
I am in total agreement with the statement that this has actually been a pretty weak year for animation, most of the releases were sequels. (Pixar, I'm looking at you.) Especially in comparison to last year, where the best animated feature race was actually a proper race with many strong contenders. This year, it looks like Frozen's gonna take home the award without any competition. But anyway, this is an Oscar noms prediction, not an Oscar win prediction. So here, assuming that there will be five.
Locks:
Frozen (Disney)
Monsters University (Pixar) Just because they're Disney and Pixar, but this round, Disney definitely deserves it.
The Croods (DreamWorks) I seriously doubt they'll snub Jeffrey Katzenberg two years in a row.
Possibility: The Wind Rises (Studio Ghibli)
I actually doubt this, I just don't want the others to have a place on the list.
Leaving:
Epic (Blue Sky/20th Century Fox)
Despicable Me 2 (Illumination/Universal)
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 (Sony)
And possibly Walking with Dinosaurs and the two GKIDS films (A Letter to Momo, Ernest & Celestine) to pick up the scraps. I have a feeling that there might only be three nominations this year.
Whoa, this article actually took a lot longer to write than I thought it would.
References: Whoa, check it out! I'm learning how to cite other sources! ~ Indiewire: For Oscar nom predictions. ~ SFGate: For further reading. ~ Various Wikipedia articles UPDATE (17th January 2014): I WAS WRONG. Pixar is losing its mojo, but Frozen will still win.
{14th January 2013} A fan letter for Rise of the Guardians. To the lovely person who took the time to read this letter,
Hello. My name is Rachel, I am 15 years old and I come from Malaysia. In case you don't know where that is, it is a country in South East Asia. I am writing regarding the beautiful animated film that is Rise Of The Guardians.
Maybe none of you will read this, but I just want everyone involved in the production of this film to know how much I appreciate the love and effort that they put into this film. I may just be one person, but I am pretty sure that I am not alone in thinking this.
This is the first time I cried while watching a movie. And what is truly amazing is that I wasn't crying because I was sad, I was crying because I was so happy. Yes, this film made me shed tears of pure joy. This was the part where Jamie started believing in Jack Frost. Maybe it was partly due to Alexandre Desplat's score, which was beautiful in every way imaginable, but all I know was that Jack Frost's moment of recognition touched me in so many ways. All his life, nobody knew he existed, nobody cared about him, and the only thing he wanted so badly was to be believed in. Somehow, I can relate to that. Feeling alone in this world, and never receiving any attention or any form of recognition from anyone. And when Jack Frost and Jamie faced each other and looked at each other, I don't know why but it was just so moving I teared up and cried right there in the theatre, which I have never done. I was just so happy for Jack, he waited for so long to receive even just a tiny shred of recognition, and he finally received it. It was pure cinematic magic.
Seriously, I have no idea what the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is doing, excluding Rise Of The Guardians from the nominations for Best Animated Feature. In my most humble opinion, this film is an epic classic that deserves that Oscar (as well as any other awards) way more than all the other movies combined.
So once again, thank you, thank you, and thank you for making the most beautiful film I have ever seen, animated or live-action. It has made me once again believe in magic, hope, wonder and fun, things I have forgotten and stopped believing in as I grew up. It has made me believe that one day, we will all get our happy ending, one way or another. No other film has made me feel as much as I did as the Rise Of The Guardians. Somehow, I have a feeling that DreamWorks has found the magic that several other animation studios have lost. I sincerely hope that there will be a sequel for this movie, because I am really looking forward to seeing Jamie, Jack, Tooth, Bunny, Sandy, North, and maybe even Pitch on the big screen again. And once more, from the bottom of my heart, thank you.
{P.S. 19th & 23rd July 2013}
In March, I received the Guardians of Childhood books as a birthday present. (To be honest, I requested for it specifically.) At first I was a bit hesitant. A 16 year old reading a children's book isn't really considered "cool". But I thought, whatever. I wanted to read it, so I did.
And I loved it. (The series is now among my favourite books of all time.)
When I first wrote this letter, it was to thank the filmmakers who made the film. I never thought of thanking the creator of the world. Now, I can't believe I never thought about it until now. Thank you Mr Joyce, Thanks to you, I know I'm no longer alone at night. Thanks to you, I will always see the world with my eyes open in wonder, and let my mind wander and imagine. Thanks to you, I will never give up, I will keep on hoping, I will keep on believing that tomorrow will be a better day. Thank you.
Thinking about Mary Katherine and Jackson, I think they're very lucky to have a dad who loves them so much. And I'd like to think that wherever she is, MK would be proud of the things her dad's given the rest of us. Hope, belief and wonder. Thank you all. When I write a letter thanking someone for something they have done, it's because that something brought me out from a deep dark hole and shined a bright light into the vast emptiness of my life, that something cheered me up, brought me happiness, inspired me and became a part of my dream.
