I could be optimistic and say "things could be worse." But the Calvin (of "Calvin & Hobbes") inside me rages on with "they could be a whole lot better, too!" Until the next lifetime (or at least a revolutionary overthrow of the all things status quo in this one), we'll have to accept that fact that 99 times out of 100 a masterpiece like Inland Empire stands absolutely no chance of any mainstream recognition whatsoever. With this in mind, there were a small handful of pleasant surprises regarding this morning's announcement of the nominees (The least among them being the fact that, of my original predictions, 24 out of 30 were correct. For a non-EW employee, that's not bad...).It's bad enough I talk about the Oscars this much, so there's no way in hell I'm whoring myself out enough to reprint the actual nominees here. You can find them in all their gluttonous glory here.
Things Oscar has done right so far...
- No Best Picture nomination for Dreamgirls. I haven't even seen the film yet, but a nomination here would have been the result of nothing more than deliberately inflated hype. A small victory, but nonetheless...
- No Best Director nomination for Bill Condon. See above.
- Letters from Iwo Jima for Best Picture. Easily my favorite of the five nominees, and the one I'll be putting my full weight behind until February (sorry, Scorsese).
- Mark Wahlberg for Best Supporting Actor. I predicted his nomination back in my original lineup, but had since become less sure of his chances. After his turn in The Departed, he can consider his Marky Mark sins atoned for.
- Children of Men for cinematography.
Things Oscar has done wrong...
(note: in reality, this list would be about half a mile in length, so I'm going to limit myself to those poor decisions made out of those that were ever even remotely likely to happen in the first place)
- Jack Nicholson snubbed for The Departed.
- Leonardo DiCaprio nominated...for the wrong movie.
- The fact that ANY nominations were given to the shitstorm that is Blood Diamond.
- Poseidon nominated for Best Visual Effects over The Fountain. The most artistic and groundbreaking (not to mention convincing) special effects of the year passed over for some of the most flimsy and wretched. Pass me the paper bag.
- No love for Steve Carell. Yeah, a nomination for his vocal work in Over the Hedge was out of the question (if Ellen didn't get it for Finding Nemo, no one ever will), but being the very best (read: least cute) thing about Little Miss Sunshine should have given this brilliant man some recognition. I've been holding back the vitriol on this ridiculous caricature of an indie flick for some time, simply hoping that any steam it accumulated would at least partially transfer over to the former 40-year-old virgin. No luck. That I expected doesn't make it any less depressing.
- No posthumous nomination for Robert Altman. Sure, his direction of A Prairie Home Companion wasn't remotely close to that of the likes of Nashville or The Player, but with his departure so close behind, I was damn near sure they'd take the opportunity to provide a weepy atonement for their many, many sins.
- No Best Director nomination for Alfonso Cuarón. I'm far from a Children of Men supporter, but his direction wasn't just top notch: it was mind-blowing, possibly even better than that of David Lynch's in Inland Empire.
So at least we're not completely drowning in boring banalities. Yet. Until next time, I leave you with our neighborhood friendly Middle America representative, whose feelings on the Hollywood folk are pretty spot-on in this particular instance...
"Look, pa! It's the 9:25 flight to Hollywood!"
"Yep, son. On that plane are the people who fill our lives with blockbuster movies.. moronic situation comedies... awards shows where awards shows win awards....get my gun, boy."
5 comments:
You didn't post a review, and I was curious... And my hunch was right that you'd mention it now...
What are your precise thoughts regarding Letters from Iwo Jima? It's my favorite movie of the year, and although I know that it's much loved by the vast majority of critics, including the "elite" ones (you and your comrades at Slant), I was wondering to what level did your appreciation for it extend?
I do plan on writing a review for Letters; I only first saw it this past weekend, and schoolwork is hell as usual. But, to be brief, I came fairly close to loving it (if I re-made my top ten it would likely make it), so much that I'm convinced to go back and give Flags another go around. In short, I love how Clint approximates classic, "simple" filmmaking practices in search of more complex truths, and Letters is one of the most directly-cutting, unifying films by an American filmmaker since 9/11. It's a film that destroys the barriers of us vs. them that overwhelm a population during wartime, and effortlessly exposes the waste of conflict on any level.
My biggest disappointment was the snub of Lady in the Water for Best Original Score. Of course nominating that shitstorm score for the Good German by Thomas Newman seems to be right up the Academy's alley. Man, am I mad!!! Anyways, I agree with most of your done right/wrong choices.
I want to comment on how much Im looking forward to your review of Letters. It sounds like you liked it about as much as I did and I would love to hear your thoughts.
I love your blog.
Yeah, as much as I think Alan Arkin was the only nomination LMS deserved, you know I love me some Carrell -- and especially in that movie. If it weren't for him, it'd be yet worse. Somehow, and I don't know how, he's able to bring a gravity to the audacious mediocrity. Is that too silly an oxymoron? I don't really think so in light of that film.
My biggest harumph would probably be no Vera Farmiga nod. The whole Supporting Actress category is a joke. Right behind that is the lack of Daniel Craig (Bond) & Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat or Talledega Nights). My you're-crazy-to-think-that'd-even-be-considered pick would have to be John C Reilly in TN.
stafan: Thanks for the compliment, I'm flattered. As for Lady in the Water, I can't say I recall its score well in particular, but that's a common thing for me until the second or third viewing with most films. I didn't dislike it, and considering that I was very warm to the film, that probably goes for Howard's score as well. It is true, those that are nominated are generally the loudest, whether that's a good thing or not from one example to the next.
Schoolwork is rather insane right now, so I can't make any promises, but I hope to have something written for Letters in the very near future (along with some others I've been meaning to catch up on...oy).
ryland: I didn't think much of Alan when I saw the film (I certainly didn't dislike him though, nor any of the actors...), but knowing my friends I'll probably have to sit through it again at some point in the near future. Too bad about Vera; I saw The Departed a second time and found Nicholson to be much better than I'd remembered, but she is as deserving as any of her male costars. Same for Craig, Cohen, and yes, JCR, who is as crucial to the delivery of every joke as lead man Will is (he was my favorite thing about Chicago, and is - I think - a terribly underrated character actor, as often as he is used).
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