I'm not as down on it as this. I liked Norton and Keaton at times. Galafinakis had some decent comic relief but way rare.

I know the artboners are raging at full throb over the no cut look of the film but the whole ****ing thing felt like those scenes in West Wing where they're tracking through the halls the whole time to give the feel of uptempo stress and urgency. So the whole time I'm watching this thing I'm waiting for Toby and Sam to give a rapid fire back and forth summarizing the whole Shia Sunni thing on their way to the shitter. Maybe CJ Craig comes in with a snappy one liner about the press and their insipid simplicity. But whatever.

tl;dr overblow by raging artboners. Felt like Sorkin. Sorkin blows.

I was able to finally check this out this week. I thought it was great and I'd probably vote it best picture, if I had a vote.

No kidding. This has been a pretty bad year for movies, relatively speaking.

This movie however was exceptional. The one take thing is way down on my list of assets this film had. It had rich characters brought to life by nuanced performances. It had a tight script that drove the action well while giving you some key moments to breath and catch up. It was visually stunning. It had a clear story and character arcs, but left just enough up to the imagination of the viewer. It managed to be a sweeping comment on the role of art and the artist while staying watchable, relatable, and entertaining throughout.

Michael Keaton and Edward Norton at their best with a great supporting cast. It was a huge step forward for Emma Stone as well.

My second favorite best picture of the year nominee is probably Selma and it's a distant second.

This movie has convinced Hugh Jackman to play Wolverine until he dies

Well I didn't hate Birdman. I loved Birdman. But I wanted to use this opportunity to post my top ten list for 2014.

1. Boyhood
2. Whiplash
3. Birdman
4. Ida
5. Wild
6. The LEGO Movie
7. Two Days, One Night
8. Timbuktu
9. Guardians of the Galaxy
10. Song of the Sea

Man, I really didn't like Boyhood. Thought it was boring and contrived. The ambling, slice of life storytelling felt totally false. The only cool thing to me was that it was filmed over 12 years which made the screenplay even less forgivable. That's not true. I also liked Ethan Hawke.

Of course, I know I'm in the minority on this one.

I'm guessing that for as false as you found the storytelling I found it as much true. I saw a lot of myself and the people I grew up with in that film.

What no American Sniper? Are you a Commie?

I didn't see it. I'll wait til it streams on Netflix. It SEEMS like a movie that I would find morally & politically reprehensible so I don't want to spend money on it, but I also have a small feeling that there's some nuance that a lot of people are dismissing.

But as to your post: Selma isn't on my top 10 either, but that doesn't mean I don't see the effects that white supremacy has and continues to have on our country.

My favorite ChiefsPlanet poster, ever, in a nutshell.

Just silly that this movie won best picture.

It was OK, but it's best achievement was the slick editing, and it wasn't even nominated for that.

Typical elitist Hollywood snob garbage.

Interstellar, Boyhood, Gone Girl and St. Vincent were all better films than Birdshit.

But it was a FIIIILM! About ACTINNNNNG! And ACTOOOOOORS!!!! GIVE IT THE GOLD MOTHER****ER! AND LET SEAN PENN DO THE GIVING!

Disgusting.

It has nothing at all to do with "elitist.

It has to do with the thousands of Academy voters that live and work in the business having a different appreciation of film than people who work outside of the business.

Uh huh. And lots of Academy voters don't even watch every film that's nominated for certain awards.

The show is a big farce. Like most awards shows, not surprisingly.

But at least we got to hear that zany tune "Glory" again! Oh boy! Thanks for cramming that PC garbage down our throats.

It's simple then: Don't watch.

Look, Birdman wasn't my favorite film of the year. Not even close. But I totally get WHY it won. It's fresh and original. I didn't personally identify with it, because I'm not an actor, screenwriter, performer or creative. It was a film for "those" people. And I think if I had the eye to look at it that way, I would probably have liked it a whole lot more. And I DID like it; I just didn't LOVE it.

I thought Foxcatcher was a better film. Yes, it was slow. It was deliberate storytelling, and I think making it a faster paced film would have ****ed the whole vibe up. I thought it had better acting than Birdman, too, from everyone in a starring role. BUT, I get why it didn't get nominated. Hell, I thought Whiplash was better, too, but that's because I identified with it more as a musician. I get why it didn't win, too.