It’s a question with no precise answer and no particular set of rules attached to it. Loosely, a biopic tells the story of life, usually one of both triumph and failure and, of course, accomplishment.

Think Chaplin or Ray, standard bio-films that follow the life of their “great” subjects from childhood to death, going over all of the big moments while sure to add a couple “poignant” small moments many viewers didn’t already know about. Sometimes these films bookend their subjects’ lives with elderly collections of the past or last will and testaments (remember Milk, if you can).

Others work are framed in a similar fashion, only under a thinner scope, i.e. the significant event/achievement said subject lead/started/was part of. Think Patton, which begins with his victory in North Africa than Sicily than Normandy, charting his WWII command as a filter through which to study his life. In a (slightly) similar way does Lawrence of Arabia unfold, quickly checking off the historical moves in which he becomes a British military officer so as to concentrate on his brilliant tactical leadership of the Arab Revolt of 1916 and its aftermath. Sticking with the war hook, another easy example (from a much more complicated angle) is Schindler’s List.

All this to reiterate the titular question: what is the art of telling the story of a true life? How can one capture the awe of something, and someone, that really happened?

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By Jordan Raup

12 Angry Men, Citizen Kane, and The Maltese Falcon, aside from being classics, each have one thing in common: all of these films are directorial debuts. Some of my favorite films in recent years fall under this category. Look at City of God, Gattaca, Synecdoche, NY, Amores Perros, Gone Baby Gone, and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Cary Fukunaga’s debut Sin Nombre is a striking addition to this category.

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By Jordan Raup

Jody Hill’s directorial debut, The Foot-Fist Way, features Danny McBride as a struggling karate instructor trying to work out some serious issues in his life. Hill’s most recent feature, Observe and Report, takes that basic concept, replacing McBride with Rogen and karate with mall copping and manages to take it to a whole other level. That level includes rape, murder, vomit, serious drug addiction, and extended full frontal nudity (not the good kind). For the majority of film-goers this will not be funny and actually be rightfully offensive. The minority, equally surprised this film was ever made by a major studio, will experience a unique moment in cinema.

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RopeOfSilicon has posted a piece of teaser art from the Martin Scorsese’s new film Shutter Island starring Leonardo DiCaprio. It was scanned out of the Berliner Zeitung newspaper as part of a story about TMG/Concorde, the film’s distributor. Check it out below (click for hi-res):

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I’m willing to bet money you can’t find a person that agrees with all the Best Picture wins in the last 10 years, even 5 years. Everyone has favorite films each year that don’t win, let alone get recognized (see Children of Men, The Third Man, Vertigo). Then there are films fortunate enough to get nominated but couldn’t secure a win. These are not snubs in all cases, sometimes the winners are well deserved (see The Godfather Part II, One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest and No Country For Old Men). Here are the Top 25 Best Picture Nominees That Didn’t Win:

25. There Will Be Blood (2007) (nominated) - No Country For Old Men (winner)

Paul Thomas Anderson’s adaptation of an Upton Sinclair novel about a greedy oil prospector does more than just retell the story. It paints a sprawling, vivid image with much credit going to Daniel Day-Lewis and his flawless performance.

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UPDATE: The list below was written in January of 2009. I suggest checking out our new list, 65 Must See Movies of 2010. Click the image below to see:

So 2008 is over, come on, it’s time to move on. Here are 50 great reasons to go to the theater this year:

January

My Bloody Valentine 3-D (Jan 16^th)

Synopsis: After surviving a fatal accident that claimed the lives of five of men in a mine shaft, Harry Warden performed a horrific killing spree on Valentines night in the town of Harmony, killing 22 people before he was shot to death.

Why You Should See It: Early screening reports have said there is more sex, limbs, and buckets of blood than one can handle. The 3-D gimmick is the only reason this is on my list. If implemented right it should be a great time at the movies.

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