Invictus / Up In The Air

Two films i've seen this week turn out to have scooped up a fair few Golden Globe Nominations, which were announced today. And rightly so, i'd say. Up In The Air (out Jan) stars George Clooney (so i just about managed to get the gist of the film as it took place somewhere in the background of his undiminishing hotness) as one of life's pathological commitmentphobes. Ryan Bingham manages to stay firmly disconnected from anything meaningful by constantly flying around America for work, which incidentally is as a kind of travelling salesman of career death: he's employed by spineless corporate pricks to fire their staff for them. For him, home is up in the air and his religion the quest of frequent flyer miles, elite status and little or no baggage. But one such trip with an earnest 23-year old upstart, err, shakes things up a bit. no, he doesn't get it on with her - that comes in the shape of Gillian Anderson look-alike Vera Farmiga (up for a nomination), a liaison which also throws him off course. What's great about this film is its unexpectedness and wit. The gender roles blur, which i like. no one comes off rosily, which i like too. It's sharp, funny, sexy, and has moments of genuine emotion thrown in.

Directed by Clint Eastwood Invictus (out Feb) stars Matt Damon (understated and excellent and err buff - he plays a Rugby captain) and Morgan Freeman (who shouldn't get the best actor gong tho - I'm rooting for Colin Firth in Tom Ford's A Single Man, possibly one of the most stylishly slick films i've ever seen) playing Nelson Mandela. In the wake of apartheid Mandela tries to unite his country by getting them fired up in support of Springbok, the SA national Rugby team (formerly very much associated with white South Africans), in the year when they were hosting the world up (1995) but didn't stand a hope in hell of winning. Surprisingly enthralling (given the fact that Rugby players could shove a ball up their arse as part of the game and i'd be none the wiser about whether they were playing by the rules or not) and once again, involving more than a little tear jerkery. this is the second sporting film i've seen in as many weeks that i've really enjoyed. what the fuck is up with me? I'm crying like a maniac and i'm into films about competitive sport. there's definitely something in the water. can someone TAKE IT OUT?