“Joy” had scenes. And while some of them were very good, I’m not sure that it’s actually a movie, though.

“Joy,” the latest film by David O. Russell is a biopic that proudly displays a big asterisk on the “bio” part. It tells the true story of Joy Mangano (Jennifer Lawrence), an overworked, single mother who created the Miracle Mop and became a millionaire.

Now this is the kind of story David O. Russell loves: somebody who is constantly held down by their insane mess of a family. And that is what ultimately hurts Russell at certain points: he is constantly standing in his own shadow.

By this point, David O. Russell has earned a good reputation in Hollywood after years in creative jail. In 2010, “The Fighter,” about a boxer being held down by his crazy family, was his well deserved comeback. He followed it up with the equally fantastic “Silver Linings Playbook,” about yet another person trying to escape their demons. Between “American Hustle” and “Joy,” it feels like David O. Russell keeps trying to remake “Silver Linings Playbook” while forgetting everything that is so great about it.

People really don’t like “Joy.”

The reviews for “Joy” have been harsh. I am not saying that this film doesn’t deserve that scorn, but it feels like people might have been kinder to it had not come with the added baggage of the Russell/Lawrence team.

It isn’t a complete disaster.

“Joy” is partially saved by some phenomenal performances. Once again, Russell shows that he can bring out the best in Jennifer Lawrence. She has matured greatly as an actress. Sometimes, it seems like she is too young to play this role, but it works in her favor. She seems completely out of place as a woman who has to deal with her parents’ divorce while also sorting out her own. It also helps that she has a great scene partner in Bradley Cooper.

During one scene, she has to go on QVC and convince the world both that they should buy this mop, and that she is an ordinary woman from Long Island, and not a movie star. For a second there, I really did think that mop was the greatest thing in the world.

The film then loses track of everything, including the other characters.

This is why “Joy” can’t be “The Fighter,” “Silver Linings Playbook,” or even “Flirting With Disaster” (a great film from early in Russell’s career): it completely abandons every other character.

Russell is typically so skilled at fleshing out giant ensembles. Here, it just feels like every character is meant to service Joy and their internal lives don’t matter. Early on in the film, Joy’s father (Robert De Niro) is shown as a broken mess of a man. He ruins Joy’s wedding and joins a dating service for widows and widowers, even though he is neither. He is never given a moment of redemption, even though by the end his sins are completely absolved. Sure, this movie is called “Joy” but the story would have been much richer had those who helped Mangano achieve success actually been given her due.

And finally, the mop ends up not being that interesting.

After truly selling me that the Miracle Mop really was important, “Joy” lost me when it suddenly turns into a drama about patent law.

In the end, “Joy” feels like the product of complete creative control. Sometimes, that can be a good thing (see: “The Hateful Eight”). While “Joy” has its redeeming qualities, it feels like a good argument for directors actually reading the notes studio executives give them.

Mine’s bigger. Image via Mockingjay.net

As I settled into my seat for a late Sunday afternoon showing of Mockingjay Part 1, I looked at the crowd seated around me and realized how much power this franchise really has.

Young Adult is typically associated with “screeching sixteen-year-old girls.” That is essentially what the Fault In Our Stars screening I went to looked like. Instead the Mockingjay audience was mix of screaming sixteen-year-old girls, fathers bonding with their sons, couples on dates, and chatty older ladies. So, it is possible to make a blockbuster without pandering to the lowest common denominator.

Mockingjay Part 1 is the weakest of the franchise so far, but that is still to say that it was entertaining, and hey, it was kind of a relief that it was under two and a half hours long. The Hunger Games hit a franchise high with Catching Fire. It was the effect of having less exposition and more world building. Mockingjay leaves off not far from when Catching Fire ended. Chosen One Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) is captured by the resistance in District 13. After being informed that her home of District 12 is destroyed, she finds reason to lead them against the evil government. If I had one major complaint about the series, its that the dystopian government sometimes feels more like a faceless entity that’s protected by dudes dressed like Daft Punk. I understand the idea of keeping things mysterious but if you have Donald Sutherland as the bad guy, you might as well take advantage of it.

Compared to the last two installments, Mockingjay has much less action. Sometimes, this is for the better, and sometimes not. For one thing, Mockingjay seems a lot more interested in teaching lessons about how political propaganda is made in that regard, they are speaking my language. On the other hand, it is a little off-putting when two hours worth of buildup leads to a rescue mission that looks like a mix of Zero Dark Thirty and Call of Duty. That is to say it is about as fun as watching your friend play a video game. It doesn’t feel like they put too much thought into splitting Mockingjay into two parts: rather than restructure the story accordingly, it feels like they literally sliced it down the middle.

The first part of Mockingjay also manages to play to all the franchise’s strengths. Mainly, its expanding world and its characters. Mockingjay focuses more on the possible love between Katniss and Gale (Liam Hemsworth) than the possible love between Katniss and Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) which is too bad, because Gale is kind of boring and its fun to see the short guy get the girl. Lawrence gives us a new reason to call her America’s Sweetheart. At one point, she sings the song “The Hanging Tree” and it seems like she would make an amazing addition to a hypothetical O Brother, Where Art Thou? sequel. Mockingjay also shows what makes Katniss stand out amongst a see of bland YA characters: she’s bold enough to fight and scream until she gets her way, but she is also compassionate enough to risk her own life in order to save her sister and her stupid cat.

Lawrence is lucky enough to work with an ensemble of fine actors. It is great to see Elizabeth Banks’ Effie Trinket get a little more screen time and get to do something a little more than read names. It is always fun to see when a person with so much power loses all of it. Same goes for Harrelson, who deserves his own McConaissance at this point. And of course, there is Philip Seymour Hoffman who as always can convey so much just with a shrug of his shoulders. We are all so lucky to have had him around for as long as we did.

Each Hunger Games installment has largely focused on a certain aspect of media manipulation. The Games themselves are basically Survivor taken to its natural extreme. Mockingjay is about a propaganda war. District 13 hires a film crew to follow Katniss around and turn her into a hero with the magic of editing and music. Mockingjay often has a fun movie-within-a-movie quality to it. One of the propaganda videos that we see looks no different than an actual trailer for The Hunger Games. It is sound editing, not actual heroism, that can change the world.

Despite all of the parts of Mockingjay Part 1 that I enjoyed, I still feel like I only watched half a film. Mockingjay spends a lot of time setting things up only to tell us we have to wait one more year. There is nothing wrong with ending on a cliffhanger (the original Lord of the Rings trilogy was good at that), but it is unsatisfying when absolutely nothing gets resolved. I am excited for the next half, but I also feel like with the “To Be Continued…” sign plastered in between them, half of the momentum has been killed.

Brain Farts From The Edge 

• Woody Harrelson is definetly the Rust Cohle of this movie.
• Part of me wishes that Alfonso Cuaron could have directed this. Francis Lawrence does a great job, but I think it could have benefited with some more long takes. Plus, those burned out cities reminded me of Children of Men.
• The Hunger Games: Where your young children will learn about genocide and mass graves for the first time!
• Three words: Not enough Tucci.
• Is Team Peeta a thing? If so, I am on that. Once again, Gale is boring.
• This line made me laugh really hard for some reason: “If you’re having dinner stop having dinner.”
• Natalie Dormer is great. HOW DARE YOU SUBJECT HER TO A SKRILLEX HAIRCUT.
• Movie cats ranked: Inside Llewyn Davis > Gone Girl > Mockingjay Part 1
• Cats are kind of useless, so I guess it’s nice to say that there’s one cat who actually managed to make a difference.
• Lots of dead, decomposing bodies, explosions, and gunfire. Rating? PG-13.
• Actually, the best Hunger Games movie is Snowpiercer.
• Good job, Effie. Katniss really is the best dressed rebel in history. Suck it, Che Guevara.

Professor X, or rejected member of Creedence Clearwater Revival? Image via Total Film

“Must be some kind of…hot tub time machine.”

Most prequels are not necessary, because a lot of stories are a lot better if you know a lot less about the characters and the world. As Patton Oswalt said, “I don’t want to know where the stuff I love comes from. I want to love the stuff that I love.”

Enter X-Men: Days of Future Past, a cross between a sequel and a prequel that justifies its existence by being the most consistently entertaining blockbuster released so far this summer. It succeeds in bringing back the feel of the original X-Men movies while expanding the universe greatly. I have always been a big fan of X-Men, partly because its built-in allegory works so well. It is one of the darkest of all superhero stories yet as a movie franchise, it does not try too hard to be gritty.

Days of Future Past is a prequel and a sequel that’s also a sequel to the prequel called First Class. That sums up just how wildly confusing franchise storytelling has become. Days of Future Past does right where First Class went wrong. By not truly introducing the most interesting conflict and character developments until the very end, First Class suffered from the same problems that plague most prequels. However, the whole of Days of Future Past, not just the last ten minutes, are interesting.

As the title might suggest, Days of Future Past is set in both the past and the future. In the future, mutants have been nearly completely wiped out thanks to Sentinels, which are robots that can compete with mutant powers. In the future, mutants don’t fight each other anymore, because everyone is just fighting to stay alive. Like humans, mutants will also put aside their differences in the face of a bigger problem. In the future, Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) is sent back into the past to stop the war from happening. Wolverine is sent back to the 1970s, where he has his past body, but his future consciousness. Basically, Wolverine has to follow the same rules that John Cusack has to follow in Hot Tub Time Machine.

Nobody gives the X-Men movies enough credit for gathering some incredibly solid ensembles. A movie that gives us both Michael Fassbender and Ian McKellen playing the same character should be celebrated. Days of Future Past sees the return of some great X-Men from past movies, but also introduces some great new characters. Peter Dinklage steps out of Tyrion Lannister’s armor for long enough to portray Dr. Bolivar Trask, the scientist who designed the Sentinels.

Days of Future Past seems to have a really strong understanding of each mutant’s place in this universe. For instance, Days of Future Past pulls an Iron Man 3 by taking away one of its heroes’ powers. Here, it is Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) who is suddenly left without his ability to control people’s minds. Without this power, we see the terrible weight one must carry when they can read and control everybody’s thoughts. Meanwhile, we get more of a glimpse of Mystique’s (Jennifer Lawrence) backstory as well as her importance in the world of the X-Men. Days of Future Past proves its worth as a sort-of-prequel by giving backstory to characters we probably didn’t know could be so interesting.

The latest X-Men installment sees Bryan Singer reclaim the director’s chair from the likes of Matthew Vaughn and Brett Ratner. Some parts of Days of Future Past are so good that they made me feel like a kid again, wide-eyed and ready to become obsessed with X-Men and X2. The best scene in the movie shows the world through the eyes of Quicksilver (Evan Peters), who is known for his super speed. It is funny and even a little bit awe-inspiring. I will not spoil it much more, but I will say that it literally looks like a comic book come to life. More comic book movies should aspire to look exactly like this one scene.

Sure, Days of Future Past is not without its problems. While it does not take too much time explaining the rules of the world, the time travel becomes a little bit too convoluted in just a few instances. Sometimes, it relies a little too heavily on action movie cliches. If you don’t believe me, just look at the tracking shot of a bunch of guys sitting at a table and looking at a map in order to plan a heist. Sometimes, some cliches are needed though, and they just look kind of quaint just as long as the whole plot isn’t centered around them. Days of Future Past is the film I didn’t realize would cure my cynicism, because it gave me back at least some faith in big budget filmmaking. It might not be as smart as it thinks it is, but there’s no harm in encouraging more movies that at least have a single thought about topics as big as Civil Rights and the implications of time travel.

Brain Farts From The Edge (SPOILERS)

• If we are on the topic of Hot Tub Time Machine, I could just hear “Once in a Lifetime” by The Talking Heads playing as Wolverine walked back into Xavier Academy in the present day.
• Speaking of which, Hot Tub Time Machine is a great movie that deserves more respect than it gets.
• This movie made the 70s look cool.
• Some people don’t like it, but I enjoy alternate looks at well known historical events. I like how they fit Magneto into the JFK assassination.
• I loved the Zapruder-type footage they showed as onlookers filmed the events happening in Paris.
• Days of Future Past explores a lot of the same themes as First Class, yet somehow manages to explore them in a much more complicated and interesting way. It also carries a much bigger emotional impact. I will attribute that once again to character development that doesn’t just occur in the last ten minutes.
• Now, I think it’s time to go dust off those old X-Men comics hiding in my attic.

Some elements of a film become so iconic that they transcend the film itself. You don’t even have to see the film in order to know what it is.

And then, there are other items from those same films that are rightfully forgotten because they are ordinary and fairly forgettable. My friends, these are the kind of items you can find on eBay.

This week’s selection includes many of those, plus an amazing item from a James Cameron film not called Titanic and something sort of involving Jennifer Lawrence.

Once again, come down the rabbit hole with me for this week’s roundup of movie memorabilia on eBay:

A Christmas Story

I have watched A Christmas Story so many times, yet I don’t remember this being in the film at all. If you buy this and use it, nobody will be able to immediately identify it with A Christmas Story. The leg lamp, if it still exists, would be the one you want.

Aeon Flux

I have no idea what a Bregna Carrier System is, but I am angry that this item reminded me that this movie exists. I never saw Aeon Flux, but I remember watching the horrible trailers for it when it first came out in 2005. Look it up. It makes Frances McDormand look like a cross between Galadriel and Peppermint Patty. And for some reason she is glowing. It’s hilarious.

Aliens

Do I want hand drawn sketches from one of the greatest action movies of all time? Do I want hand drawn sketches from one of those most insanely insane directors of all time? If it has Aliens and Ripleys, and no blue people, then I’ll take a peak.

The Beaver

I don’t know what this is. Also, I have never seen The Beaver. I just know it’s about Mel Gibson talking to a beaver hand puppet who is probably anti-Semitic, too. There is only one hand puppet I like, and his name is Franklin Delano Bluth.

Dazed and Confused

I can never get enough of “FAH Q,” or the fact that it was used by a future Oscar winner. I just wish they also sold “Soul Pole” as part of this package.

Jurassic Park

A lot of Jurassic Park props get sold on eBay on a daily basis. Jurassic Park is basically the dinosaur version of Titanic.

North by Northwest

Buy this item as a piece of nostalgia. Relive the good ol’ days when smoking was so ubiquitous that every inanimate object in the world could be turned into a lighter.

Pirates of the Caribbean 

Cannibal island skull? Here I thought Pirates of the Caribbean was a family movie.

Rio Lobo

Only $30 for a shot glass that John Wayne drank fake alcohol out of on the set of an old western? That is an outrage. An item this precious should be priceless. It would be a dream to drink (or fake drink) with The Duke.

Silver Linings Playbook

This is great. The scene where Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence go on a date at the diner is one of my favorite scenes in a film that is made up of great scenes, and it gets me every time when Jennifer Lawrence says, “it can still be a date if you order Raisin Bran.” But why did the user write “Jennifer Lawrence” in the title for this item? Come on! This was Bradley Cooper’s Raisin Bran! Also, this is the first and last time you will ever see a cereal box in a glass container like it is a diorama in the Museum of Natural History.

What I found when I Googled “Oscars Drinking.”

Now that I am 21, I am officially old enough to condone drinking. It’s about time.

Nothing improves an American past time quiet like alcohol. Since tonight’s Oscars could go on for over four hours, drinking would definitely help make the show go by faster. Given the predictable nature of awards shows and Hollywood celebrities in general, a fun drinking game isn’t hard to come up with.

Here is The Reel Deal’s official drinking game for the 2014 Academy Awards. For even more alcoholic fun, check out the last one I put together back in 2012. In order to win The Reel Deal Oscars 2014 Drinking Game, you must drink every time:

• Somebody thanks their manager in their speech.
• Somebody thanks their agent in their speech.
• Somebody goes over the time limit while making their speech.
• Somebody makes a joke about Meryl Streep.
• The camera pans over to Meryl Streep, and she looks absolutely charming.
• There is a montage about old movies to fill time.
• Somebody makes a joke about how it is raining in LA.
• A winner tells their children to “go to bed” in their speech.
• Leonardo DiCaprio doesn’t win.
• Somebody makes a joke about quaaludes.
• Jack Nicholson is in the audience wearing sunglasses.
• Jack Nicholson looks generally confused, as if he is not sure if he is at the Oscars or a Lakers game.
• Somebody makes a joke about the hairstyles in “American Hustle.”
• Somebody makes a joke about how old Bruce Dern and June Squibb are.
• Jennifer Lawrence does something awkward and relatable. She’s just like us!
• Somebody uses their speech to promote a cause. Take an extra shot if it’s about gay rights, Ukraine, or Russia.
• Matthew McConaughey says “alright, alright, alright.”
• Matthew McConaughey says something weird and zen in his acceptance speech, probably involving other planets.
• Uncomfortable Woody Allen reference.
• Mickey Rooney is there for some reason.
• When Kevin Hart shows up, or if somebody makes a joke about how Kevin Hart is in every movie now.
• A joke about how director Steve McQueen is also in “Bullitt.” (NOTE: This will probably never happen. But I wish it would.)
• Every time they perform a nominated song, and there is a general sadness in the air because that song isn’t “Please Mr. Kennedy.”

May your Oscar party be as crazy as this one:

I miss these guys.

Last night’s Golden Globes ceremony was filled with surprises. Frankly, a night of surprises is much better than a night where everything goes according to plan.

While a lot of talented people and deserving films and TV shows went home empty handed, it was a pure joy to see Matthew McConaughey take on his Wooderson persona while finally being awarded for his recent career renaissance. In just a few seconds, all of those years he spent in rom-com limbo were virtually forgotten.

While Tina Fey and Amy Poehler might not have been as good as they were last year (though that Clooney line from the opening monologue killed it), they are still Tina Fey and Amy Poehler so their presence alone makes me happy enough. The Globes are not as exciting as the Oscars, but it sure is fun to see Emma Thompson stand on stage barefoot while many winners actually looked genuinely surprised when their names were called.

Read below for a detailed breakdown of some of the highlights of the night. Here is what I liked, what I didn’t like, and what I still don’t have definite feelings about:

What I Liked

Leonardo DiCaprio- I was really rooting for Oscar Isaac in this category, even if he really didn’t stand a chance. However, Leo’s performance was a seriously incredible feat in so many ways. He pulled off feats of physical comedy that few skilled comedians could ever pull off as well as he did. While the Globes have no direct impact on the Oscars, they are one of the early important awards shows and often set the mood for the rest of the season. I would not be surprised if this “Leo Needs to Win an Oscar” campaign grows bigger and louder in the weeks to come.

Spike Jonze- Jonze won for “Her.” His win was a very welcome surprise. “Her” was everything a great screenplay should be: equal parts funny and sad, with a strong hint of honesty thrown into the mix. “Her” felt like it Jonze’s most personal effort yet, while it also thought up one of the most plausible portrayals of the future on film. Oh, and it is a beautiful look at love in the 21st century. Sometimes, you just have to look into the future in order to understand the present.

The Big Bang Theory- I normally don’t like to wish ill on anybody, but I tend to reserve most of my anger in life for “The Big Bang Theory.” I am glad that it didn’t win anything. While this show is an easy target, it deserves all of the scorn it gets, as it barely has a funny bone in its body. It seems weird that it keeps getting nominated for things despite the fact that the best show about nerds is “Community.” With stale one-liners and laugh track throughout, “The Big Bang Theory” seems like it belongs in a bygone era. TV has progressed so much in recent years, and “The Big Bang Theory” seems to be bringing it back into the past.

Diddy- He really is his character from “Get Him to the Greek.” Please get this guy in more comedies.

What I Didn’t Like

U2 Wins An Award- It’s about time Bono won something! I haven’t seen “Mandela” yet or heard “Ordinary Love” (note: I can already tell from the title of it alone that I will probably hate this song), so maybe my hatred for Bono is clouding my judgement. Or maybe I am just upset that “Please Mr. Kennedy” didn’t win. That was the last chance that song had, given that it is not eligible for an Oscar. Few people could ever write a song that is as cheesy as it is catchy. My feelings about the winner of this category can best be summed up by this Tweet:

American Hustle: I am not trying to put “American Hustle” down here. In a strong category, it may have been the weakest film. After a second viewing, some of the film’s weak points began to show. Mainly, it loses momentum, which makes the film feel even longer than “The Wolf of Wall Street,” despite being an hour shorter. Also, it is not fair to consider it as a comedy. It is a fun, entertaining drama. I wrote more about it in an article for PolicyMic. #shameless #self #promotion #isweariwillneverputahashtaginapostagain

Jennifer Lawrence: No offense to Mrs. Lawrence. She was great, if a little miscast, in “American Hustle.” However, the Best Supporting Actress award belonged to June Squibb for her performance as a loud, proud matriarch in “Nebraska.” The cemetary scene has been the one that most people have been talking about, and for good reason. However, her greatest moment is when she defends her husband Woody (Bruce Dern) against his entire family. It’s a moment that actually made me want to stand up and cheer.

Tatiana Maslany- No offense for Mrs. Wright, but Tataina Maslany’s performance in “Orphan Black” is unlike any on television right now. Maslany plays multiple characters, all with different personalities, who often have to talk to each other, and it is always believable. It is one of the most demanding performances I have ever seen, and Maslany always pulls it off. Luckily, “Orphan Black” is still young, and there is still time to give Tatiana Maslany every award ever.

How Do I Feel About This?

Brooklyn Nine-Nine- Much of the hatred towards “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” seems to be unfounded. It is a solid comedy that quickly recovered from a weak first few episodes, and its win for Best Comedy was a welcome surprise. In a short amount of time, the show has already created a strong sense of familiarity amongst its characters, and it includes a few standout performances, especially from Terry Crews, Stephanie Beatriz, and Andre Braugher. However, the show hasn’t even been on for a full season. “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” still needs time to progress and mature even further. It has yet to stand on the sturdy foundation that “Parks and Recreation” has spent six seasons building. It is not that “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” doesn’t deserve to win, it is just that this honor seemed a little premature. But hey, anything is better than another victory for “The Big Bang Theory.”

Woody Allen- That montage of all of his films really made me want to drop everything and have a Woody Allen marathon. However, the fact that he didn’t show up made the Cecil B. DeMille honor that he received just a little less special. Maybe it was believable in the 1970s that he wouldn’t come to Los Angeles, but Allen has now shot films in London, Paris, Rome, and San Francisco, so we know that he’s not afraid to leave New York anymore. It probably wouldn’t have been too much effort on Woody’s part if he had at least submitted a pre-taped thank you. Instead, we got a bizarre speech from Diane Keaton, wearing her “Annie Hall” outfit sans hat. Her speech was like that scene from every movie where a character tries really hard to distract the bad guy while somebody tries to stop the bomb from going off.