Wednesday Video Spotlight: Making of Terrence Malick’s Oklahoma film “To the Wonder,” releasing Friday in theaters and on VOD
Bartlesville-bred Terrence Malick’s latest film, “To the Wonder,” is releasing Friday in some U.S. theaters as well as via Video on Demand. The film’s release on VOD ensures that the film will be able to reach those who do not live near a theater showing the film and can be accessed via multiple on demand outlets.
“To the Wonder” is a romantic drama centered on an American man (Ben Affleck) who reconnects with a woman from his hometown (Rachel McAdams) after his relationship with a European woman (Olga Kurylenko) falls apart. It was filmed in the Bartlesville and Pawhuska areas of Northeast Oklahoma and showcases Oklahoma’s natural beauty. The film participated in the Oklahoma Film Enhancement Rebate program provided by the Oklahoma Film & Music Office.
The film is showing at 7 and 10 p.m. Friday at the Bartlesville Community Center, 300 SE Adams Blvd. For information, go to www.bartlesvillecommunitycenter.com.
The film opens April 26 at Tulsa’s Circle Cinema (www.circlecinema.com) and May 9 at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art (www.okcmoa.com).
Look for my review of “To the Wonder” on Friday.
-BAM
Oklahoma City Museum of Art to show classic Universal monster movies Thursday-Sunday at Film Preservation Festival 9
The Oklahoma City Museum of Art will get classically horrific Thursday-Sunday as it screens several Universal monster movies in its Noble Theater, 415 Couch Drive.
In partnership with the University of Central Oklahoma film studies program, the museum is presenting Film Preservation Festival 9: Universal Monsters. Celebrating Universal Pictures’ centennial and their invention of the Hollywood studio “monster movie,” this series features 35mm film prints, the medium on which the films were born.
The festival begins with a special showing of “The Phantom of the Opera” (1925), featuring live musical accompaniment by Wally Brown on the Steinway piano, at 7:30 p.m. Thursday.
It continues with screenings of “Frankenstein” (1931) at 5:30 p.m. Friday; “The Bride of Frankenstein” (1935) at 8 p.m. Friday; “The Invisible Man” (1933) at 5:30 p.m. Saturday; and “Dracula” (1931) at 8 p.m. Saturday.
The festival concludes on Sunday with a 3-D double feature of “It Came from Outer Space” (1953) at 12:30 p.m. and “Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954),” at 3 p.m. Sunday. According to a news release, 3-D glasses will be included with admission.
“The Universal horror films are among the most beloved and iconic films in American film history. Featuring career defining performances by Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi and Lon Chaney, top-notch production values and special effects, and witty, literate scripts, the Universal monster movies have continued to exert a powerful hold over our collective imaginations and play a seminal role in contemporary popular culture,” said Dr. John Parris Springer, University of Central Oklahoma, in a news release.
The Film Preservation Festival celebrates the history of motion pictures and is one of the museum’s longest-running annual programs. It began in 2002 when the Noble Theater opened with the Library of Congress National Film Preservation Tour that visited all 50 states.
“Now that film exhibition is exclusively digital, it’s rare to see movies on 35mm film,” said Museum Film Curator Brian Hearn in the release. “This program celebrates celluloid as a medium and shows film as it was originally intended to be seen. We want to share the theatrical experience with new generations and those who still appreciate it.”
For more information or tickets, call 236-3100 or go to www.okcmoa.com.
-BAM
What to do in Oklahoma on March 31, 2013: Watch “Amour” at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art
Today’s featured event:
Watch Austrian auteur Michael Haneke’s Oscar-winning drama at 2 p.m. today at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art’s Noble Theater, 415 Couch Drive.
Jean-Louis Trintignant and Academy Award-nominated actress Emmanuelle Riva play a long-married Parisian couple whose relationship is put to the test when her health rapidly declines after a stroke. The harrowing drama was nominated for five Oscars and received the best foreign language film award.
To read my 3-star review, click here.
For more information, go to www.okcmoa.com.
For more events, go to www.wimgo.com.
-BAM
What to do in Oklahoma on March 1, 2013: Hear Kyle Dillingham play a free lunchtime show at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art
Today’s featured event:
Hear Kyle Dillingham, University of Central Oklahoma Ambassador in Residence and renowned violinist/vocalist, play a free show from noon to 1 p.m. today at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, 415 Couch Drive.
Dillingham and vocalist/upright bass player Brent Saulsbury, both of the band Horseshoe Road, will perform the free show as part of the Arts Council of Oklahoma City’s Art Moves program.
They will play at the OKC museum today before heading out on a U.S. Department of State-sponsored world tour.
As previously reported, after auditioning last spring in St. Louis, Horseshoe Road was selected from more than 300 groups nationwide for American Music Abroad’s 2013 program with a 35-day world tour beginning March 10 in Washington, D.C.
“We are so thrilled to find out that we’ll be sharing Oklahoma symphonic and roots music with the people of Korea, Taiwan, Burma and Russia,” said Dillingham in a news release. “It’s quite an honor to represent our country, along with our great state.”
American Voices administers the American Music Abroad program on behalf of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. The American Music Abroad program is designed to communicate America’s rich musical contributions to the global music scene as it fosters cross-cultural communication and people-to-people connection to global audiences.
For more information, go to www.artscouncilokc.com. For more events, go to www.wimgo.com.
Check out this video of Dillingham playing “Orange Blossom Special”:
- BAM
Kyle Dillingham & Horseshoe Road plan home-state performances today and Friday before American Music Abroad tour
Kyle Dillingham (Photo by Paul Hellstern, The Oklahoman Archives)
Before heading out on a U.S. Department of State-sponsored world tour, University of Central Oklahoma Ambassador in Residence and renowned violinist Kyle Dillingham is planning two home-state performances: this afternoon in Edmond and at noon Friday at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art.
Dillingham will give an exclusive High Tea Concert from 3 to 5 p.m. today at UCO at the International House, 912 Chowning Ave. in Edmond.
Modeled after the traditional Taiwanese High Tea ceremony, music fans are invited to come enjoy a cup of high mountain tea and light snacks from 3 to 4 p.m., then hear a world-class performance from 4 to 5 p.m.
Admission is free to all UCO students, faculty members, staff, and the public, but reservations are required due to limited seating.
To make reservations, contact Alvin Teh, International House manger by email at ihouse@uco.edu.
Dillingham and fellow Horseshoe Road band member Brent Saulsbury will perform this afternoon what the band will share with the world, including a performance of Callen Clarke’s specially commissioned arrangement of a traditional Taiwanese song, which they’ll perform with the Taipei Symphony Orchestra while in Taiwan. The afternoon wouldn’t be complete without favorite Horseshoe Road tunes like “Faded Love” and “Orange Blossom Special.”
As a special guest, UCO pianist and Taiwanese native, Ivan Wong, will join Dillingham today for some of the Taiwanese repertoire, as well as some Horseshoe Road favorites.
The exclusive High Tea event is sponsored by TAP Architecture, the Sovereignty Symposium, University of Central Oklahoma Centre for Global Competency, BancFirst, Inter-City Violin Studios and Glasser Bows.
Dillingham also will give a free solo performance from noon to 1 p.m. Friday at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, 415 Couch Drive. Friday’s lunchtime performance is part of the Arts Council of Oklahoma City’s ongoing program Art Moves, presented by Devon. For more information, go to www.artscouncilokc.com.
As previously reported, after auditioning last spring in St. Louis, Dillingham and his band Horseshoe Road were selected from more than 300 groups nationwide for American Music Abroad’s 2013 program with a 35-day world tour beginning March 10 in Washington, D.C.
“We are so thrilled to find out that we’ll be sharing Oklahoma symphonic and roots music with the people of Korea, Taiwan, Burma and Russia,” said Dillingham in a news release. “It’s quite an honor to represent our country, along with our great state.”
American Voices administers the American Music Abroad program on behalf of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. The American Music Abroad program is designed to communicate America’s rich musical contributions to the global music scene as it fosters cross-cultural communication and people-to-people connection to global audiences.
-BAM
Movie review: Oscar-nominated live-action short films, playing this weekend at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art
“Buzkashi Boys”
“Henry”
A version of this review appears in Feb. 8′s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman. 3 1/2 of 4 stars. To read my review of the Oscar-nominated animated short films, click here.
Movie review: Oscar-nominated live-action short films
Uniformly brilliant but stylistically diverse, the contenders are capable of transporting viewers into all sorts of new and unfamiliar places, whether real and imagined.
Over the past few years, the short film contests have become my favorite Academy Award races.
While the contenders tend to be uniformly brilliant — it’s remarkable how potent narratives can become when their creators are working in a 30-minutes-or-less format — they typically have little else in common. The Oscar-nominated short films often are capable of transporting viewers into all sorts of new and unfamiliar places, whether real and imagined.
And isn’t that what movies should do?
This year’s Academy Award-nominated live-action short films come from all over the world, and their makers are fearless and forceful in pulling audiences into gripping narratives that are both specific and universal.
Set in war-torn Somalia, “Asad” centers on a young boy (Harun Mohammed) who must choose between sailing into a traditional career as a fisherman or taking up automatic weapons and following his brother into modern-day piracy. While many of his neighbors in his small village believe Asad has been cursed with bad luck, aged fisherman Erasto (Ibrahim Moallim Hussein) predicts the boy will someday make an impressive catch. Writer/director Bryan Buckley’s coming-of-age fable has a surprising and blessedly uplifting ending made all the more poignant by the credits, which reveal that the cast is made up of Somali refugees and asylum seekers.
Another story about poor, war-weary boys pondering their futures — unfortunately, not one film in this category is told from a female perspective — “Buzkashi Boys” vividly depicts life in present-day Afghanistan. Shot on location in Kabul, the sobering story trails best friends Ahmad (Jawanmard Paiz), a daring orphaned street urchin, and Rafi (Fawad Mohammadi), the reserved but rebellious son of a stern local blacksmith (Wali Talash). While both dream of riding to glory in the national sport of Buzkashi – a brutal polo-like game played on horseback and incorporating the carcass of a slain goat — Rafi must balance his boyhood ambitions with his responsibility to continue the family business.
On the other end of the age spectrum, Gérard Poirier gives a compelling lead turn in “Henry” as an elderly pianist whose life turns tumultuous when his wife suddenly disappears. Although it quickly becomes clear where the French-Canadian drama is going, filmmaker Yan England manages to maintain an air of mystery that enhances the heartrending emotion.
From an emotional standpoint, the New York family saga “Curfew” is the standout in this race. Writer/director Shawn Christensen also stars as Richie, a suicidal former drug addict who has just slit his wrists when he gets a call from his estranged sister Maggie (Kim Allen). Maggie desperately needs a babysitter for her precocious 9-year-old daughter Sophia (Fatima Ptacek), whom Richie hasn’t seen since she was a baby. Between the strong performances and the impromptu Talking Heads dance party at a dingy bowling alley, “Curfew” is unforgettable.
But it faces stiff competition from the category’s most inventive entry, the thoughtful Dutch sci-fi drama “Death of a Shadow.” In a steampunk afterlife, Nathan (Matthias Schoenaerts), a soldier who died in World War I, is unwillingly employed by creepy collector (Peter van den Eede) to capture the shadows of 10,000 dying people. If he fulfills his mission, Nathan hopes to get the chance to reunite with Sarah (Laura Verlinden), the compassionate beauty he met just before he left the mortal coil. Writer/director Tom Van Avermaet’s twisty tale keeps you guessing while delving into big issues like life, death and love.
As part of its Oscar Tune Up, the Oklahoma City Museum of Art is showing all five nominated live-action short films at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday at its Noble Theater, 415 Couch Drive. For more information, go to www.okcmoa.com/see/films.
The 85th Academy Awards will air at 7:30 p.m. Sunday on ABC, with the live Oscar Red Carpet beginning at 6 p.m. Plan to tune in to my annual Oscars live blog Sunday night here on BAM’s Blog.
“Asad”
“Death of a Shadow”
“Curfew”
-BAM
Movie review: Oscar-nominated animated short films, playing this weekend at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art
“Maggie Simpson in ‘The Longest Daycare’”
“Adam and Dog”
A version of this review appears in Feb. 8’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman. 4 of 4 stars. To read my review of the Oscar-nominated live-action short films, click here.
Movie review: Oscar-nominated animated short films
All five nominees in this year’s race tell their tales without words — and none are needed to make them compelling cinema.
Once again, silence is golden among the Oscar-nominated animated short films.
After four of the five contenders on last year’s slate were dialogue-free affairs, all five nominees in this year’s race tell their tales without words — and none are needed to make them compelling cinema.
Although none of this year’s Academy Award short-film candidates are as transcendent as 2012 winner “The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore” or last year’s Pixar effort “La Luna,” the overall field for 2013 is the strongest in years.
As usual, the diversity of the nominees is striking. Although Pixar is noticeably absent from the race — while “La Luna” competed in 2012’s animated short category, it didn’t make it into theaters until last summer’s bow of the Academy Award-nominated feature “Brave” — “Paperman” provides plenty of old-school Disney magic.
Set in the mid-20th century, the black-and-white story of two office workers who meet-cute on a train platform and reconnect through a flock of paper airplanes folds more romance, charm and imagination into seven minutes than can be found in a whole herd of humdrum feature-length romantic comedies. “Paperman” previously showed in theaters with Disney’s Oscar-nominated animated feature “Wreck-It Ralph.”
Running just 1 minute and 40 seconds, “Fresh Guacamole” may be the shortest film ever nominated for an Oscar, but writer/director PES (AKA Adam Pesapane) packs in plenty of clever and quirky visuals as an unseen chef transforms playing dice, Monopoly pieces, Christmas lights and other inorganic items into an unusual cinematic serving of chips and dip.
The venerable animated series “The Simpsons” shows its smarts with “The Longest Daycare,” featuring the animated brood’s youngest member, Maggie. After she is enrolled in the Ayn Rand Daycare Center but denied access to its plush area for gifted children, the pacifier-sucking tot gets tangled in a battle of wits and wills with a fellow toddler, one with a penchant for smashing butterflies. The five-minute caper was given its initial theatrical release with “Ice Age: Continental Drift.”
Although stop-motion animation has reached renewed levels of popularity, few of the puppet-driven tales can match the eccentric originality of the relationship drama “Head Over Heels.” After many years of marriage, Walter and Madge literally can no longer see eye to eye: They’ve grown so far apart that he lives on the floor while she resides on the ceiling. When Walter tries to rekindle their romance, it disturbs the strange equilibrium of their household and forces them to decide how far they are willing to reach out to save their marriage. British filmmaker Timothy Reckart deserves kudos for not falling back on easy answers with his touching clay-crafted short.
The most emotionally resonant and visually striking of the nominees, “Adam and Dog” marks the directorial debut of Disney animator Minkyu Lee. Set in the Garden of Eden, his poignant and painterly meditation on companionship, jealousy and devotion traces the initial meeting between the first man and his best friend.
As part of its Oscar Tune Up, the Oklahoma City Museum of Art is showing all five nominated animated short films at 5:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 12:30 p.m. Sunday at its Noble Theater, 415 Couch Drive. For more information, go to www.okcmoa.com/see/films.
The 85th Academy Awards will air at 7:30 p.m. Sunday on ABC, with the live Oscar Red Carpet beginning at 6 p.m. Plan to tune in to my annual Oscars live blog Sunday night here on BAM’s Blog.
“Head Over Heels”
“Paperman”
“Fresh Guacamole”
-BAM
Oklahoma City Museum of Art names E. Michael Whittington new president and CEO
From Sunday’s The Oklahoman.
Oklahoma City museum of art names new president
Former executive director of the Monterey Museum of Art in California, E. Michael Whittington will join the Oklahoma City museum on April 8.
He will join the museum on April 8, according to the museum’s announcement.
“The search committee and board of trustees could not be more excited to bring Mr. Whittington’s energy, expertise and knowledge to the Oklahoma City Museum of Art,” said Frank Merrick, chairman of the Oklahoma City Museum of Art’s board of trustees, in the news release. “We look forward to his assistance in expanding the scope and outreach of the museum.”
In addition to an extensive background in art history and museum management, Whittington demonstrates strength across both the strategic and operational dimensions of business, according to the release.
Since 2005, Whittington has served as the executive director of the Monterey Museum of Art in Monterey, Calif. While in Monterey, he launched a capital campaign to fund special exhibitions, grew museum attendance more than 100 percent and increased museum memberships and overall growth in support of the Monterey Museum of Art.
“I’m excited by the opportunity to work with the talented board and staff of the Oklahoma City Museum of Art,” said Whittington in the release. “While I’ll certainly miss California, I’m honored to be a part of Oklahoma City’s amazing growth.”
Whittington received a master’s degree in art history from the University of Florida in Gainesville and a bachelor’s of art in anthropology from the University of West Georgia in Carrollton. He has served as a guest speaker for various organizations across the country and authored an assortment of papers.
He will succeed Glen Gentele, who left the Oklahoma City museum in April 2012 after three years as its president and CEO. Gentele recently was named the new director and CEO of the Orlando Museum of Art in Florida.
At the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, Gentele followed longtime director Carolyn Hill, who retired at the end of 2008 and died in May 2010 at the age of 72.
-BAM
A dozen romantic DVDs for Valentine’s Day
“Moonrise Kingdom”
A version of this column appears in Wednesday’s Life section of The Oklahoman.
Romantic movies offer ideal entertainment for a Valentine’s Day at home
Column: For fans of unconventional romantic comedies, 2012 was an excellent year, with films like “Moonrise Kingdom,” “Safety Not Guaranteed” and “Ruby Sparks” challenging or elevating the standard tropes of the genre, one that Hollywood all too often abuses.
For fans of unconventional romantic comedies, 2012 was an excellent year.
Not only did David O. Russell’s “Silver Linings Playbook” earn eight Oscar nominations, but films like “Moonrise Kingdom,” “Safety Not Guaranteed” and “Ruby Sparks” challenged or elevated the standard tropes of the genre, one that Hollywood all too often abuses.
While “Silver Linings Playbook” is still playing in theaters, the others are available on DVD, Blu-ray or streaming video, which is good news for couples who want to celebrate this year’s midweek Valentine’s Day with cinematic romance.
My sixth annual list of my favorite films appropriate for Valentine’s Day home viewing is conveniently categorized so that lovebirds of every feather can find the ideal movie treat for Valentine’s Day. For an extended list, check back here at BAM’s Blog on Thursday.
“The Philadelphia Story”
Romantic comedies
Both men and women can appreciate a movie that tugs the heartstrings and tickles the funny bone:
“The Philadelphia Story” (1940): Katharine Hepburn, Jimmy Stewart and Cary Grant get entangled in a love pentagon in this unforgettable screwball comedy.
“Moonrise Kingdom” (2012): One of Wes Anderson’s best films chronicles the romantic angst of preteen eccentrics Sam (Jared Gilman) and Suzy (Kara Hayward), who decide to run away together. Anderson and Roman Coppola will contend for the best original screenplay Oscar when the Academy Awards are handed out Feb. 24. If you want to see it on the big screen, which I highly recommend, the Oklahoma City Museum of Art will show the film at 7:30 p.m. Thursday as part of its Oscar Tune Up; for more information, go to www.okcmoa.com.
“Safety Not Guaranteed” (2012): One of my top 10 films of last year follows a cynical aspiring journalist (Aubrey Plaza) assigned to investigate a would-be time traveler (Mark Duplass) who has published a classified ad seeking a companion for his adventure.
“Ruby Sparks”
Bittersweet treats
Some of them end happily, others teeter on tragic, but love is what makes the world go ‘round in these emotional mixed bags:
“Casablanca” (1942): Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman give up their passionate love affair to save the world from the Nazis. Sigh. A classic.
“Once” (2007): An Irish street musician (Glen Hansard) and talented Eastern European immigrant (Marketa Irglova) make beautiful music together, but she has a husband and he has a girlfriend. Will they become a duet or go their separate ways? Not only did the movie win a best original song Oscar for the gorgeous theme “Falling Slowly,” the new stage adaptation has earned Tony, Grammy and Drama Desk honors in the past year.
“Ruby Sparks” (2012): Paul Dano stars as an emotionally arrested novelist who writes a story about his free-spirited dream girl (his real-life girlfriend Zoe Kazan, who wrote the script) and is shocked when she magically appears in his kitchen.
“Tangled”
Family-friendly fare
If you and your sweetie are snuggled on the couch with youngster or two, you can still enjoy a romantic movie that’s appropriate for the whole family:
Most of the Disney “princess” movies: The ones with my favorite heroines include “Mulan,” “Aladdin” and “Tangled.”
“The Princess Bride” (1987): Westley (Cary Elwes) refuses to let pirates, a prince or even death come between him and his Princess Buttercup (Robin Wright).
“Shrek” (2001) and “Shrek 2” (2004): Grumpy ogre Shrek (voice of Mike Myers) and his Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) discover that their love isn’t based on society’s rules of beauty. And that’s OK.
“Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time”
Action-packed romance
If you enjoy your romance mingled with a hefty dose of adrenaline, consider yourself locked and loaded with these films:
“The Terminator” (1984): Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn) travels across time to save Sarah Conner (Linda Hamilton) from the Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger). He travels across time for her! Now that’s romantic.
“Desperado” (1995): It’s got Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek falling in love between all the flying bullets, so this actioner offers everyone someone quite nice to look at.
“Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time” (2010): Based on the popular video game, this swords-and-sandals epic hearkens back to the Saturday matinee romps of old, pairing Jake Gyllenhaal as an orphaned boy who is adopted by a king and becomes his father’s fiercest warrior and Gemma Arterton as a spirited princess entrusted with a magical dagger that can alter time.
-BAM
Movie review: Oscar-nominated animated short films, playing at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art
“Paperman”
“Fresh Guacamole”
A version of this review appears in Friday’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman. 4 of 4 stars. To read my review of the Oscar-nominated live-action short films, click here.
Movie review: Oscar-nominated animated short films
All five nominees in this year’s race tell their tales without words — and none are needed to make them compelling cinema.
Once again, silence is golden among the Oscar-nominated animated short films.
After four of the five contenders on last year’s slate were dialogue-free affairs, all five nominees in this year’s race tell their tales without words — and none are needed to make them compelling cinema.
Although none of this year’s Academy Award short-film candidates are as transcendent as 2012 winner “The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore” or last year’s Pixar effort “La Luna,” the overall field for 2013 is the strongest in years.
As usual, the diversity of the nominees is striking. Although Pixar is noticeably absent from the race — while “La Luna” competed in 2012’s animated short category, it didn’t make it into theaters until last summer’s bow of the Academy Award-nominated feature “Brave” — “Paperman” provides plenty of old-school Disney magic.
Set in the mid-20th century, the black-and-white story of two office workers who meet-cute on a train platform and reconnect through a flock of paper airplanes folds more romance, charm and imagination into seven minutes than can be found in a whole herd of humdrum feature-length romantic comedies. “Paperman” previously showed in theaters with Disney’s Oscar-nominated animated feature “Wreck-It Ralph.”
Running just 1 minute and 40 seconds, “Fresh Guacamole” may be the shortest film ever nominated for an Oscar, but writer/director PES (AKA Adam Pesapane) packs in plenty of clever and quirky visuals as an unseen chef transforms playing dice, Monopoly pieces, Christmas lights and other inorganic items into an unusual cinematic serving of chips and dip.
The venerable animated series “The Simpsons” shows its smarts with “The Longest Daycare,” featuring the animated brood’s youngest member, Maggie. After she is enrolled in the Ayn Rand Daycare Center but denied access to its plush area for gifted children, the pacifier-sucking tot gets tangled in a battle of wits and wills with a fellow toddler, one with a penchant for smashing butterflies. The five-minute caper was given its initial theatrical release with “Ice Age: Continental Drift.”
Although stop-motion animation has reached renewed levels of popularity, few of the puppet-driven tales can match the eccentric originality of the relationship drama “Head Over Heels.” After many years of marriage, Walter and Madge literally can no longer see eye to eye: They’ve grown so far apart that he lives on the floor while she resides on the ceiling. When Walter tries to rekindle their romance, it disturbs the strange equilibrium of their household and forces them to decide how far they are willing to reach out to save their marriage. British filmmaker Timothy Reckart deserves kudos for not falling back on easy answers with his touching clay-crafted short.
The most emotionally resonant and visually striking of the nominees, “Adam and Dog” marks the directorial debut of Disney animator Minkyu Lee. Set in the Garden of Eden, his poignant and painterly meditation on companionship, jealousy and devotion traces the initial meeting between the first man and his best friend.
As part of its Oscar Tune Up, the Oklahoma City Museum of Art is showing all five nominated animated short films at 5:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and Feb. 22-23 and 12:30 p.m. Sunday and Feb. 24 at its Noble Theater, 415 Couch Drive. For more information, go to www.okcmoa.com/see/films.
“Adam and Dog”
“Head Over Heels”
“Maggie Simpson in ‘The Longest Daycare’”
— BAM
