Oscars blog 2011

James' Oscars blog 2011

The 83rd annual Academy Awards. Hosted by James Franco and Anne Hathaway. A night of some big surprises, a few sad errors in winners and a night for Britain to triumph!

The 3 hour marathon began with hosts Franco and Hathaway sending up some of the best films of the year in a funny montage - nice to see Inception being the main theme for this. The presenters seemed very natural - well, Hathaway was any way - Franco looked a little wooden for the majority of the time. The important thing was that fresh young blood revitalised this year's Oscars and made for one of the less tedious awards ceremonies in memory.

Original screenplay went to The King's Speech - the big contender in this category being Inception; adapted screenplay went to the film that has put Facebook back on the map - The Social Network, a film that would go on to scoop 3 of the awards at the ceremony.

Inception, joint with The King's Speech in winning 4 awards, bagged the technical awards - Nolan's snub as director is still bewildering - Visual effects, Sound Mixing, Sound Editing and Wally Pfister's cinematography all triumphed for arguably the best film of the last 12 months. It was a great shame to see Roger Deakins walk away empty handed, and True Grit in general, for a beautifully shot film.

Short live action film was won by God of Love, short animated film though it should have been the quite excellent Day and Night from Pixar was actually awarded to The Lost Thing. The 4 nominated Best songs were all performed excellently during the ceremony and Randy Newman took the award for the heartfelt We belong together from the brilliant Toy Story 3. The animated masterpiece also rather unsurprisingly bagged the best animated film - any other year without Pixar's influence the sublime How to Train Your Dragon would have won this. John Powell's stunning score lost out to Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross' irritating experimental score for The Social Network. This was one of the only awards of the night where I found myself getting angry.

Makeup was awarded to Rick Baker for his realistic work on The Wolfman, Foreign language film went to the Danes for In a better world. The Social Network picked up Best Editing - no real surprise there. Strangers no more took Documentary short subject and the infamous Banksy lost out in Documentary feature to Inside Job.

Costume design bagged a second Oscar for Tim Burton's mish mash of a film, Alice in Wonderland. Its other award of the evening was for Art Direction, an award I thought would certainly have gone to The King's Speech.

Onto the biggest awards of the night, Melissa Leo picked up Best actress in a supporting role for her role in The Fighter - her speech contained the only "Fuck" of the night! Actor in a supporting role went to Christian Bale also for The Fighter. Shame to see Geoffrey Rush not winning this for The King's Speech.

Everyone expected David Fincher to get Best Director for The Social Network but I'm happy to say that Tom Hooper received the award for The King's Speech. It wasn't until the last 20 minutes of the ceremony that The King's Speech found its feet. For a moment it was looking as if The Social Network might bag most of the big awards.

Actress in a leading role went to a fairly heavily pregnant, emotional and beautiful Natalie Portman for her haunting performance in Black Swan. The Oscarshave done away with the sycophantic nomination process of getting 5 actors and actresses to come out on stage and sing the praises of the nominees. This time Mr Cool Jeff Bridges awarded Natalie Portman with the golden statue. Actor in a leading role was the biggest given of the ceremony. Colin Firth triumphed for Britain with his portrayal of King George VI in The King's Speech bagging the award. His speech as always was one of the highlights. Sandra Bullock awarded Colin with the Oscar.

Finally, after a night of lots of glamour and some beautiful stage scenery with backdrops from classic Oscar winning films, The King's Speech beat the odds and won its 4th award - the most important - for Best Picture.

Overall, a night of surprises, loads of glamour and some great achievements for two of the most deserving recipients - Inception and The King's Speech.

The 83rd Academy Awards - February 27th 2011

My blog begins here. My predictions are highlighted in red. The winners will be in blue.

BEST PICTURE

Black Swan

The Fighter

Inception

The Kids Are All Right

The King's Speech - WINNER

127 Hours

The Social Network

Toy Story 3

True Grit

Winter's Bone

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

Javier Bardem - Buitiful

Jeff Bridges - True Grit

Jesse Eisenberg - The Social Network

Colin Firth - The King's Speech - winner

James Franco - 127 Hours

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Christian Bale - The Fighter

John Hawkes - Winter's Bone

Jeremy Renner - The Town

Mark Ruffalo - The Kids Are All Right

Geoffrey Rush - The King's Speech

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

Annette Bening - The Kids Are All Right

Nicole Kidman - Rabbit Hole

Jennifer Lawrence - Winter's Bone

Natalie Portman - Black Swan -winner

Michelle Williams - Blue Valentine

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Amy Adams - The Fighter

Helena Bonham Carter - The King's Speech

Melissa Leo - The Fighter

Hailee Steinfeld - True Grit

Jacki Weaver - Animal Kingdom

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

How To Train Your Dragon

The Illusionist

Toy Story 3 -winner

ART DIRECTION

Alice in Wonderland

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I

Inception

The King's Speech

True Grit

CINEMATOGRAPHY

Black Swan

Inception

The King's Speech

The Social Network

True Grit

COSTUME DESIGN

Alice in Wonderland

I am Love

The King's Speech

The Tempest

True Grit

DIRECTING

Darren Aronofsky - Black Swan

David O'Russell - The Fighter

Tom Hooper - The King's Speech -winner

David Fincher - The Social Network

Joel and Ethan Cohen - True Grit

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Exit Through The Gift Shop

Gasland

Inside Job

Restrepo

Waste Land

DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT

Killing In The Name

Poster Girl

Strangers No More

Sun Come Up

The Warriors of Qiugang

FILM EDITING

Black Swan

The Fighter

The King's Speech

127 Hours

The Social Network - winner

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

Biutiful (Mexico)

Dogtooth (Greece)

In A Better World (Denmark)

Incendies (Canada)

Outside The Law ((Hors-La-Loi) (Algeria)

MAKEUP

Barney's Version

The Way Back

The Wolfman -winner

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE)

John Powell - How To Train Your Dragon

Hans Zimmer - Inception

Alexandre Desplat - The King's Speech

A.R.Rahman - 127 Hours

Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross - The Social Network

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SONG)

Coming Home (Country Strong)

I See The Light (Tangled)

If I Rise (127 Hours)

We Belong Together (Toy Story 3) -winner

SHORT FILM (ANIMATED)

Day and Night

The Gruffalo

Let's Pollute

The Lost Thing

Madagascar, carnet de voyage

SHORT FILM (LIVE ACTION)

The Confession

The Crush

God Of Love

Na Wewe

Wish 143

SOUND EDITING

Inception - winner

Toy Story 3

Tron: Legacy

True Grit

Unstoppable

SOUND MIXING

Inception - winner

The King's Speech

Salt

The Social Network

True Grit

VISUAL EFFECTS

Alice in Wonderland

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I

Hereafter

Inception - winner

Iron Man 2

WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY)

127 Hours

The Social Network - winner

Toy Story 3

True Grit

Winter's Bone

WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY)

Another Year

The Fighter

Inception

The Kids Are All Right

The King's Speech

The History of The Oscars - Best Picture

1927 - Wings

1928 - The Broadway Melody

1929 - All Quiet on the Western Front

1930 - Cimarron

1931 - Grand Hotel

1932/33 - Cavalcade

1934 - It Happened One Night

1935 - Mutiny on the Bounty

1936 - The Great Ziegfeld

1937 - The Life of Emile Zola

1938 - You Can't Take It With You

1939 - Gone With The Wind

1940 - Rebecca

1941 - How Green Was My Valley

1942 - Mrs Miniver

1943 - Casablanca

1944 - Going My Way

1945 - The Lost Weekend

1946 - The Best Years of our Lives

1947 - Gentleman's Agreement

1948 - Hamlet

1949 - All the King's Men

1950 - All About Eve

1951 - An American in Paris

1952 - The Greatest Show on Earth

1953 - From Here to Eternity

1954 - On The Waterfront

1955 - Marty

1956 - Around the World in 80 Days

1957 - Bridge on the River Kwai

1958 - Gigi

1959 - Ben Hur

1960 - The Apartment

1961 - West Side Story

1962 - Lawrence of Arabia

1963 - Tom Jones

1964 - My Fair Lady

1965 - Sound of Music

1966 - A Man for all Seasons

1967 - In The Heat of the Night

1968 - Oliver!

1969 - Midnight Cowboy

1970 - Patton

1971 - The French Connection

1972 - The Godfather

1973 - The Sting

1974 - The Godfather Part II

1975 - One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest

1976 - Rocky

1977 - Annie Hall

1978 - The Deer Hunter

1979 - Kramer Vs. Kramer

1980 - Ordinary People

1981 - Chariots of Fire

1982 - Gandhi

1983 - Terms of Endearment

1984 - Amadeus

1985 - Out of Africa

1986 - Platoon

1987 - The Last Emperor

1988 - Rain Man

1989 - Driving Miss Daisy

1990 - Dances with Wolves

1991 - The Silence of the Lambs

1992 - Unforgiven

1993 - Schindler's List

1994 - Forrrest Gump

1995 - Braveheart

1996 - The English Patient

1997 - Titanic

1998 - Shakespeare in Love

1999 - American Beauty

2000 - Gladiator

2001 - A Beautiful Mind

2002 - Chicago

2003 - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

2004 - Million Dollar Baby

2005 - Crash

2006 - The Departed

2007 - No Country for Old Men

2008 - Slumdog Millionaire

2009 - The Hurt Locker

2010 - ?

Best Oscar moments

The History of the Oscars - The Best Moments

With the 83rd ceremony upon us in a matter of hours (8.00pm American time, Sunday Feb 27th 2011), I thought it would be good to get the Oscar talk going with some classic moments from the ceremony over the years. The Oscars is a chance to look at the glam, the sophisticated and the brilliance of Hollywood, its actors and actresses and the amazing movies brought to our attention year on year. There have been some debatable winners and losers of the prestigious golden awards over the years, but these are indisputably some of its best moments.

Firstly, one of the most deserving awards went to Spielberg for his monumental work on Schindler's List, still the director's best work to date. Just look at that standing ovation.

Next, Jack Nicholson appears truiumphant in the year that One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest picks up Best Picture by winning the Best Actor gong.

Cuba Gooding Jr picks up his award for Jerry Maguire and enjoys the moment!

The legendary James Stewart receiving an honorary Oscar from the just as legendary Cary Grant.

Saving the best till last, here is the brilliant moment that Charlie Chaplin received an honorary Oscar for his outstanding contribution to film. One of the longest standing ovations in memory.

Check back to Film Fanatic shortly for more Oscars buzz ahead of the 83rd Academy Awards.

James Bond in review - Die Another Day (Lee Tamahori, 2002)

"Still you jest, defiant to the last. Your people have abandoned you, your very existence denied!"

There are those Bond fans who see the latest Bond film as the embodiment of fantasy and entertainment and those who wish to see a realistic portrayal of Fleming’s hero with all the attributes we’ve come to expect. With the promise of something bigger and better once again in addition to the fact that Bond would be celebrating 40 years on the screen, Die Another Day was perhaps the most highly anticipated film in the series, and in November 2002 the disappointment filled the screen and enraged the most ardent of fans. Bond is essentially about both fantasy and integrity as an action adventure. By throwing everything into the mix, Die Another Day loses credibility after the first half an hour and becomes a farce in the same vein as Moonraker.

Bond returns to the mission after bedding Miranda Frost in the ice palace

Madonna’s title theme and resulting cameo are one of many misfires with Bond 20, to give it its original and actually more appealing name. The credits however, whilst teasing some kind of torture sequence rather than giving it to us on a plate, are actually quite cleverly designed by Daniel Kleinman. The idea of Bond for once being captured on a mission is also an appealing and well conceived one, even if he would look far more dishevelled than that after 14 months. The film goes downhill from here with the introduction of the Aston Martin ‘Vanish’, the CGI which really is the worst thing to ever appear in the Bond series because of how totally unnecessary it is, and nonsense dialogue for an otherwise beautiful, dynamic Halle Berry. Giving her the name Jinx was the nail in the coffin for the character.

Hands down the worst Bond moment ever - the day that Bond almost did die

There are some great nods here and there to past Bond films – the best are the ones that are not forced in your face. The scene with John Cleese’s Q interacting with Bond is actually one of the more enjoyable moments in the film. Seeing Rosa Klebb’s shoe, the jet pack and the acrostar jet are great little memories of 40 years. A villain with shards of diamonds embedded in his face and an action sequence devised totally around lasers then completely undermine any of the great moments.

In a scene supposed to rival Ursula Andress in Dr No (it doesn't), Jinx emerges from the water to meet Bond

Die Another Day should have been a great balance of fantasy and intrigue. In moments this is achieved and Pierce Brosnan gives a largely charismatic performance as 007 but the 40th anniversary should have given us a film to remember and should certainly have given us a great swansong for Brosnan. As Michael Madsen’s Falco orders, “You put your house in order” and bring us back to basics Bond. It seemed that despite fan opinion, James Bond would return to die another day. Cubby may have been turning in his grave at the CGI and crass dialogue but as we approach the 50th anniversary, all we can say is thank the lord for Daniel Craig and Casino Royale.

James Bond in review - Quantum Of Solace (Marc Forster, 2008)

"I don't give a shit about the CIA or their trumped up evidence; he's my agent and I trust him!"

It was never going to be an easy task following up the unexpectedly brilliant Casino Royale, Daniel Craig's Bond debut, with the 22nd official outing in the series. Bond's heart has been broken by the woman he loved, he has been betrayed by a criminal organisation to which he has only one lead and, perhaps the toughest of all, Craig must show that's he's not a one 'Bond' hit wonder by pushing the envelope in the series' first direct narrative sequel.

Bond and Camille walking purposefully through the desert

Taking the helm on Solace is German-born Marc Forster, a director with a keen eye for character and making locations characters of their own. Solace is, in many respects, unlike any other Bond film in the series. The film is set to breakneck pace (blink and you'll miss the action) with the shortest run time of the series and the most abrupt, dynamic editing techniques are deployed. Craig's Bond is seeking vengeance and going against authority - it's Licence to Kill with Craig instead of Dalton. In fact, it's much more than that. Daniel Craig is yet to totally convince Judi Dench's ever steely M that he can be trusted out in the field; that his emotions won't interfere with his job. The pressure is definitely on Craig to nail his second performance as Bond after a decidedly brilliant debut and needless to say he surpasses expectations.

Bond and Greene fight to the death in the burning Hotel Perla De Las Lunas in the desert

Bond is essentially a bleak character by Fleming's pen and Craig personifies this better than perhaps any of his predecessors in the role. He has his brutal moments - stabbing a contact in Port au Prince and surveying him as he slowly dies, disarming MI6 guards in a lift or dispatching M's aide Mitchell in a dramatic chase. Paradoxically, we feel for this lonely character in his reflective moments - holding a dying Mathis in his arms, shielding Camille from a burning hotel. Bond is still a conflicted soul. As Camille delicately supposes, he is still imprisoned by his thoughts and feelings for Vesper.

"Take a deep breath, you only need one shot. Make it count."

In many respects, Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace work brilliantly as an introduction to 007. We have seen the violent side of the character, we have seen the brief moments of solace and comfort and we now have the chance, with Bond 23 around the corner, to see a more playful side to Craig's Bond. As a stand alone film Solace succeeds in its own merits boasting stunning locations and some fine dialogue but more importantly, as a sequel and a character progression it is a vital addition to the series. James Bond, we 'need you back'.

The Film Fanatic Review of 2010
Part 4 - October - December

OCTOBER

Buried (Dir: Rodrigo Cortes) IMDB rating 7.5/10; opening weekend gross UK: £820,631 - Ryan Reynolds in claustrophobic drama.

Made in Dagenham (Dir: Nigel Cole) IMDB rating 7.0/10; opening weekend gross UK: £674,059 - No, it's not the story of the life of helium voiced Stacey from the X Factor and I'm A Celebrity, it's actually a dramatization of the 1968 Ford Car plant strike in Dagenham.

Back To The Future (Dir: Robert Zemeckis) IMDB rating 8.4/10; opening weekend gross UK: £461,194 (based solely on box office receipts on special 25th anniversary re-release this year) - I was so happy to get to see this classic on the big screen. It still looks fresh and is still so intelligent to audiences today.
Despicable Me (Dirs: Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud) IMDB rating 7.6/10; opening weekend gross UK: £3,664,376

The Social Network (Dir: David Fincher) IMDB rating 8.2/10; opening weekend gross UK: £2,486,454 - Pitching a film centering around the genesis of social network phenomenon Facebook was always going to raise eyebrows but the passion for the story shows in the storytelling. One of the most favourably received films by the critics this year and one of the year's most intelligent films.
Vampires Suck (Dirs: Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer) IMDB rating 3.3/10; opening weekend gross UK: £1,089,339 - You'll need an Alka Seltzer or two for the dull headache if you manage to sit through 2 hours of this parody tripe. The Twilight source material isn't great on its own merits so this must surely be painful to watch. "Some sagas just won't die!" They've said it themselves - give it a rest with the self promoting parodies.

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (Dir:Oliver Stone) IMDB rating 6.4/10; opening weekend gross UK: £3,084,007

Life As We Know It (Dir: Greg Bedrlanti) IMDB rating 5.8/10; opening weekend gross UK: £2,262,970

The Death And Life Of Charlie St. Cloud (Dir: Burr Steers) IMDB rating 5.4/10; opening weekend gross UK: £1,299,236 - Another attempt for Zac Efron to play somebody who doesn't prance around as a supposed heartthrob to millions of adoring young girls.

Paranormal Activity 2 (Dir: Tod Williams) IMDB rating 6.1/10; opening weekend gross UK: £3,764,722 - More of the same of what made the 2007 original so chilling.

Red (Dir: Robert Schwentke) IMDB rating 7.2/10; opening weekend gross UK: £1,662,472

Legend Of The Guardians: The Owls Of Ga'Hoole (Dir: Zack Snyder) IMDB rating 7.1/10; opening weekend gross UK: £737,444

Alpha And Omega (Dirs: Anthony Bell and Ben Gluck) IMDB rating 4.3/10; opening weekend gross UK: £643,425

Easy A (Dir: Will Gluck) IMDB rating 7.3/10; opening weekend gross UK: £277,975

Saw 3D (Dir: Kevin Greutert) IMDB rating 5.8/10; opening weekend gross UK: £3,600,083 - "The final chapter" promises the film's tagline - we can only hope!

Burke And Hare (Dir: John Landis) IMDB rating 6.2/10; opening weekend gross UK: £942,894

The Kids Are All Right (Dir: Lisa Cholodenko) IMDB rating 7.4/10; opening weekend gross UK: £411,960 - A strong contender for Best Film at the 2011 Oscars.


NOVEMBER

Due Date (Dir: Todd Phillips) IMDB rating 7.0/10; opening weekend gross UK: £2,346,089

Jackass 3D (Dir: Jeff Tremaine) IMDB rating 7.3/10; opening weekend gross UK: £1,696,909 - Another series that has surely had its day already - and it's using the 3D gimmick.

Let Me In (Dir: Matt Reeves) IMDB rating 7.4/10; opening weekend gross UK: £488,172 - Considering the sublime original from Sweden, Let The Right One In, has only been with us for about 18 months, Cloverfield director Matt Reeves has given us a fairly premature remake.


Another Year (Dir: Mike Leigh) IMDB rating 8.0/10; opening weekend gross UK: £355,626


Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (Dir: David Yates) IMDB rating 7.9/10; opening weekend gross UK: £18,319,721 - One of the biggest film openings of the year as the franchise gradually makes for its end. Part 1 of the final chapter is engaging, beautifully shot and captures the spirit of the final Potter novel brilliantly from the start to that cliffhanger ending. Roll on July 2011!Skyline (Dirs: Colin and Greg Strause) IMDB rating 4.6/10; opening weekend gross UK: £2,332,170

Guzaarish (Dir: Sanjay Leela Bhansali) IMDB rating 7.2/10; opening weekend gross UK: £171,027

Unstoppable (Dir: Tony Scott) IMDB rating 7.1/10; opening weekend gross UK: 7.1/10; opening weekend gross UK: £1,714,871

London Boulevard (Dir: William Monahan) IMDB rating 6.4/10; opening weekend gross UK: £577,224

The American (Dir: Anton Corbijn) IMDB rating 6.6/10; opening weekend gross UK: £411,707

The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest (Dir: Daniel Alfredson) IMDB rating 6.9/10; opening weekend gross UK: £219,259

Machete (Dirs: Ethan Maniquis and Robert Rodriguez) IMDB rating 7.2/10; opening weekend gross UK: £90,423


DECEMBER

Megamind (Dir: Tom McGrath) IMDB rating 7.3/10; opening weekend gross UK: £2,827,502 - Dreamworks' second animated hit of the year after the fantastic How To Train Your Dragon.

Monsters (Dir: Gareth Edwards) IMDB rating 6.5/10; opening weekend gross UK: £348,577


The Warrior's Way (Dir: Sngmoo Lee) IMDB rating 6.3/10; opening weekend gross UK: £105,389

The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader (Dir: Michael Apted) IMDB rating 6.7/10; opening weekend gross UK: £2,460,118 - More of the same safe adaptations of C S Lewis' childrens stories.


The Tourist (Dir: Florian Henckel Von Donnersmarck) IMDB rating 6.0/10; opening weekend gross UK: £1,341,143 - Nonsense pretending to be intrigue starring Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp. Not been the best year for Johnny.

Somewhere (Dir: Sofia Coppola) IMDB rating 6.7/10; opening weekend gross UK: £125,581

No Problem (Dir: Anees Bazmee) IMDB rating 4.3/10; opening weekend gross UK: £114,652

Tron: Legacy (Dir: Joseph Kosinski) IMDB rating 7.5/10; opening weekend gross UK: £1,970,692 - Tries to be groundbreaking in an imitation of the 1980s original but is best summed up as a headache inducing ball of neon lights and a few chases. Good soundtrack however.
Burlesque (Dir: Steve Antin) IMDB rating 6.1/10; opening weekend gross UK: £425,931

Animals United (Dirs: Reinhard Klooss and Holger Tappe) IMDB rating 4.9/10; opening weekend gross UK: £307,409

Fred: The Movie (Dir: Clay Weiner) IMDB rating 2.1/10; opening weekend gross UK: £257,133 - How anyone can sit through 90 minutes of this hell is beyond me!



2010 has been a varied bag. My favourite film score of the year is 100% John Powell's sumptuous How To Train Your Dragon. Listen to the swelling beats of Test Drive and Romantic Flight whilst watching the film's dazzling flying sequences and let your spirits soar.

My favourite films of the year (in no particular order):

Inception
Toy Story 3
Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 1
How To Train Your Dragon
Shutter Island

Until 2011.............