Well, it's past the New Year's, which means it's now officially 2023. It also means that 2022 is over, and we can fully look back at everything that had happened in the past year. Which in this case means we can look at the films that I made up that were deemed worthy of competing for the top prize in one of my fictional film awards, in this case the Awards for Motion Picture Services (or AMPS for short).
Last week I had picked out three finalists for a vote, the winner of which would take the final slot among the Best Picture nominees. And I want to thank you all that had voted in the poll. This is my 13th year of running these polls, and this was by far the most number of responses that I had in any of them. Of course, part of that was the fact that for most of the vote there were two films that were in a direct tie, which led me to seek out additional voters to break the tie. In the end there was one film that came out on top by just one vote, and that film will join the four other pre-determined films as the Best Picture nominees for the AMPS ceremony honoring the films of 2022, which will be presented after the break.
But first...here are the previous nominees that I had presented. (I skipped 2009-2010, 2014, and 2018),
2008 2011 2012 2013 2015 2016 2017 2019 2020 2021
=====
The Abel the Able-Bodied Rabbit Holiday Special
Rated PG-13
109 minutes
Abel the Able-Bodied Rabbit was the animated protagonist of the surprise box-office hit Able the Able-Bodied Rabbit in Executive Hijinks (which captured the final Best Picture nominee vote in 2020). Now the buff bunny returns with his furry friends in another biting satire into corporate culture. Having become established as a high-ranking executive, Abel is eager to help organize the holiday gift drive for the local orphanage sponsored by his company. However, he is shocked to find out that the gift drive was canceled by the board of governor's in order to secure Christmas bonuses for their administrative leadership, of which Abel is included. While Abel is able to continue the gift drive using his own Christmas bonus, he is determined to seek out the individual responsible for its cancellation. Meanwhile, little did he know the board of governor's were targeting him for his use of the Christmas bonus in a manner that benefits the little critters. The two sides are set on a path to collide in an explosive climax. Would it ruin the holidays?
=====
A Journey through Chinese History: The Legend of Yue Fei (Jin Zhong Bao Guo)
Rated R
256 minutes
The latest epic entry in the annals of A Journey Through Chinese History celebrates the life of one of China's greatest heroes who is also one of China's most tragic figures. Born to a family of farmers, Yue Fei joined the army in his youth, proving to be an exceptional soldier in strategy as well as combat. His training years coincided with one of the greatest catastrophes to strike the Song dynasty, as their capital Bianjing was invaded and the emperor was captured by the army of the rival Jin dynasty, led by the Jurchen people of the northeast. The remnants of the government was forced to flee south, but Yue Fei was able to drive the enemy back. Inspired by a phrase tattooed on his back swearing loyalty to the country, Yue Fei launches a counter-offensive against the Jin army. However, there was a cabal of officials that sought to negotiate a peace treaty with the Jin, chief among them the prime minister Qin Hui, who had been captured with the original empire but escaped under mysterious circumstances. Their demands for Yue Fei to withdraw to allow negotiations to move forward went unheeded, but that would have serious consequences for Yue and his family.
=====
The Not-So-Serious and Totally True Account of the Absurd Life of Ms. Mayzie Mays
Rated R
91 minutes
From the studio that produced the Abel the Able-Bodied Rabbit films comes an outrageous animated film honoring the life of a great educator, who may or may not have actually existed. Mayzie Mays was born to a family of African American sharecroppers in the deep south in 1883. Her early life was a difficult one, full of poverty and farm work, not to mention a rape when she was only 16. Yet she was able to gain an education from her kindly old neighbor Mr. Crockett, with the encouragement of her supportive parents. She went on to go to college where she became trained as an educator. However, given the Jim Crow laws at the time she was relegated to teaching in an all-black school located in a one-room schoolhouse with students more focused on farm work than their education. With these difficult circumstances she is has to do everything she can to make sure the next generation can get the education they need to succeed, but without forgetting the comedy.
=====
The Seeds of Life
Rated R
138 minutes
Fresh from her Best Supporting Actress victory at the L Awards, the third and most prestigious of the three fictional film awards, superstar Audrey Woodson heads another film highlighting a cause that is near and dear to her heart: environmentalism. In a distant, dystopian future, trees have become virtually extinct with the exception of localized gardens accessible only to the ultra-wealthy. The rest of the population must rely on artificial photosynthesis that are insufficient to supply the demand from overpopulation. One day, a young girl named Jill comes across a dying man who reveals that he had stolen a few acorns from an exclusive garden, and implores her to carry them to a band of environmental revolutionaries, where they can use them to raise new generations of trees. Hopeful for a better life, Jill sets off on a dangerous journey, but she must contend with agents of the ultra-rich desperate to retrieve the acorns.
=====
The Young Artist
Rated PG
86 minutes
The Young Artist is the surprising smash hit of the year, finishing as the number one box office hit. Starring award-winning actress Diane Pye and Bianca Slaton who made her debut in Wayside School: The Cloud of Doom the year before, it tells the story of young Anna Cobb, a ten year old girl living in England during the Victorian Era. She has a love of art for which her parents discover that she possesses a prodigious proficiency. They go out and hire the enigmatic and stern art teacher Maggie Forrest who works Anna hard in order to further develop her art skills. Anna rebels against Maggie's strict instruction and does what she can to preserve her sense of fun. Can she succeed in that quest? Or is Maggie going to win out and make Anna into a great artist at the expense of her childhood?
--------------------------------------------
Here we are, the five nominees for Best Picture for AMPS 2022. Post what you think about the films in the comments, and I'll post the winners on January 15.
No comments:
Post a Comment