'Death by Cinema': Part 4 - "Slumdog Millionaire' & "Frost/Nixon"

"Slumdog" is another visually compelling film, with beautiful images of beauty and beautiful images of ugliness -- of both the landscape and human variety on both counts. For its sassy exterior and slight substance, I give it the Sarah Palin Award.

I was afraid our impressions of "Frost/Nixon" would suffer from it being the final film of the night. But it proved to be a gripping -- if unfortunately fictionalized -- account of the 1977 Nixonversations.

After nearly 14 hours, 2-1/2 buckets of popcorn, three hot dogs, two oddly cooked pizza-like food products, several vats of Diet Coke, busted knees and battered buttocks, we took our leave of the theater.

My rankings: Milk, The Reader, Frost/Nixon, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Slumdog Millionaire

'Death by Cinema': Part 3 - "The Reader" & "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"

Next up was "The Reader" starring Kate Winslet. This subtly complex and compelling movie -- based on a German novel of the same name -- gets shortchanged by the shorthand "Holocaust Film" tag. Some have criticized it as a nasty piece of revisionist work, but I think this oversimplifies the piece. I'm more inclined to agree with this take.

Plus, any movie in which Kate Winslet disrobes is worthwhile in my book -- even if it may be her last time.

Speaking of stunning visual spectacles, "Benjamin Button" is certainly that. The film is a gorgeous experience with stellar perfomances from Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. It is, however, slighter than its nearly three-hour running time deserves.

Gludial update: sore. Knees: crushed against the seat in front.

'Death by Cinema': Part 2 - "Milk"

The first film of the day was the best. "Milk" inspired the political activist in me. What a story, what a man -- and Sean Penn was simply astounding. Admittedly, the whole approaching-40-and-unsure-about-what-to-do-in-life vibe at the opening struck a chord as well.

Sign of the times: After, I overheard two high-school age males talking about the movie and specifically the gay sex scenes. One said, "Yeah, that was amazing. It made me a little uncomfortable at times, but, y'know." The context made it clear he was not saying the man-on-man love was wrong, just that it made it uncomfortable -- but that it was his problem, not theirs.

As an activist can tell you, two steps forward and one step back is a helluva lot better than one step forward and two steps back.

'Death by Cinema': Part 1

One day. Five movies. Do my wife and I have the gludial fortitude and attention span to sit through the 5 nominees for the Best Picture Oscar in one long day? We're at our local AMC to find out.