The Oscars may be worth watching this Sunday, if only to see host, Hugh Jackman sing and dance as Wolverine (in my wildest dreams). During the never ending speeches and commercial breaks, feel free to switch over to the following double bill.
Gangs of New York (2002) - Martin Scorsese's historical drama about 1860s gang warfare is like a technical manual on film making. Yet, it failed to win any of the 10 Oscars that it was nominated for. Daniel Day-Lewis's chilling performance as Bill 'The Butcher' Cutting alone makes the movie worth seeing; it is a harbinger of his Oscar winning turn, five years later, as Daniel Plainview in the excellent There Will Be Blood.
Body of Lies (2008) - Leonardo DiCaprio's performance in Gangs of New York was overshadowed by Day-Lewis but he went on to perfect the look of tense frustration in the midst of chaos in Scorsese's The Departed and Blood Diamond in 2006. I imagine this ability served him well in Revolutionary Road, which I would still rather not see, but I believe DiCaprio's other 2008 film, Body of Lies, completes the 'frustration in action' trilogy. Watch DiCaprio battle terrorists and CIA red tape in Ridley Scott's condemnation of an American over-reliance on technology in war, executed from an armchair.
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