Comments on: Buzzing Oscar http://newcritics.com/blog1/2007/01/29/buzzing-oscar/ culture blogging for the good of the planet Mon, 08 Sep 2008 19:02:09 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: Ralph http://newcritics.com/blog1/2007/01/29/buzzing-oscar/#comment-635 Ralph Fri, 16 Feb 2007 21:01:17 +0000 http://newcritics.com/blog1/2007/01/29/buzzing-oscar/#comment-635 I think there should be rules like nobody should be allowed to comment on a film they have not seen. With that being said, I will only comment of the films Ive seen. I thought the Departed was a very good film - not great. Much better than any film he's done since Good Fellas. I was on the edge of my seat for the second half of the film, and that doesn't happen very often. Not a true mob movie though, since it's really about cops. A- Little Miss Sunshine has no business being on the Best Picture Oscar list. The little girl is right out of central casting - the misfit ugly kid who is just too adorable! It's a fun little farce with good comic acting but that's it! It's sure aint no Sideways or Annie Hall. B The Illusionist. I am amazed that anyone can call that film a masterpiece. Sure, it looks beautiful, the costumes are nice...most of the acting is OK, but Norton is too stiff. His illusions are way too CGI to be believable in the 19th century. The best part of the film is saved for the last few minutes which leaves you scratching your head. Not very satisfying. C+ Forget the Illusionist, Pan's Labyrinth the masterpiece. It's a touching, dark, violent, and depressing film - and also brilliant. The same film under an American director would probably have a happy ending. Thank goodness Tim Burton had nothing to do with it. Should win Best Foreign Language film. A The Last King of Scotland. Forest Whitaker deserves an oscar for his complex performance. B Stranger Than Fiction was fun, but not nearly as smart as Eternal Sunshine or Science of Sleep. It's sort of Charlie Kaufman light. B- Apocalypto was, of course, a very violent and brutal film. Many people have panned it simply because Mel Gibson directed it. But it was also very thrilling and entertaining. B The Black Dahlia must be one of the worst films to come out all year, and, even for DePalma, a major embarassment. Convoluted, unconvincing, overwrought, terrible casting... Hard to believe this is the same director who made The Untouchables and Carlito's Way. The only major film I can think of that's worse than Black Dahlia? Pearl Harbor. Oh, Josh Harnett's in that one too. Bad sign. D I think there should be rules like nobody should be allowed to comment on a film they have not seen. With that being said, I will only comment of the films Ive seen.

I thought the Departed was a very good film - not great. Much better than any film he’s done since Good Fellas. I was on the edge of my seat for the second half of the film, and that doesn’t happen very often. Not a true mob movie though, since it’s really about cops. A-

Little Miss Sunshine has no business being on the Best Picture Oscar list. The little girl is right out of central casting - the misfit ugly kid who is just too adorable! It’s a fun little farce with good comic acting but that’s it! It’s sure aint no Sideways or Annie Hall. B

The Illusionist. I am amazed that anyone can call that film a masterpiece. Sure, it looks beautiful, the costumes are nice…most of the acting is OK, but Norton is too stiff. His illusions are way too CGI to be believable in the 19th century. The best part of the film is saved for the last few minutes which leaves you scratching your head. Not very satisfying. C+

Forget the Illusionist, Pan’s Labyrinth the masterpiece. It’s a touching, dark, violent, and depressing film - and also brilliant. The same film under an American director would probably have a happy ending. Thank goodness Tim Burton had nothing to do with it. Should win Best Foreign Language film. A

The Last King of Scotland. Forest Whitaker deserves an oscar for his complex performance. B

Stranger Than Fiction was fun, but not nearly as smart as Eternal Sunshine or Science of Sleep. It’s sort of Charlie Kaufman light. B-

Apocalypto was, of course, a very violent and brutal film. Many people have panned it simply because Mel Gibson directed it. But it was also very thrilling and entertaining. B

The Black Dahlia must be one of the worst films to come out all year, and, even for DePalma, a major embarassment. Convoluted, unconvincing, overwrought, terrible casting… Hard to believe this is the same director who made The Untouchables and Carlito’s Way. The only major film I can think of that’s worse than Black Dahlia? Pearl Harbor. Oh, Josh Harnett’s in that one too. Bad sign. D

]]> By: Rohn Jay Miller http://newcritics.com/blog1/2007/01/29/buzzing-oscar/#comment-223 Rohn Jay Miller Tue, 06 Feb 2007 02:41:09 +0000 http://newcritics.com/blog1/2007/01/29/buzzing-oscar/#comment-223 I've seen all the best picture nominees, and as the kind of person who would normally get behind a movie like "The Departed," of "The Queen," I have to say if I was an academy voter, hands down I would vote for "Letters From Iwo Jima." How this movie is getting overlooked by "important" critics is beyond me, but if you thought Gallipoli or Bridge Over the River Kwai were important movies, trust me, "Letters From Iwo Jima" is all of those, and much more. The last movie that suprised me with how it hit me this hard was "The Pianist." Absolutely the picture of the year. I’ve seen all the best picture nominees, and as the kind of person who would normally get behind a movie like “The Departed,” of “The Queen,” I have to say if I was an academy voter, hands down I would vote for “Letters From Iwo Jima.” How this movie is getting overlooked by “important” critics is beyond me, but if you thought Gallipoli or Bridge Over the River Kwai were important movies, trust me, “Letters From Iwo Jima” is all of those, and much more.

The last movie that suprised me with how it hit me this hard was “The Pianist.”

Absolutely the picture of the year.

]]> By: Slappy http://newcritics.com/blog1/2007/01/29/buzzing-oscar/#comment-167 Slappy Fri, 02 Feb 2007 17:57:57 +0000 http://newcritics.com/blog1/2007/01/29/buzzing-oscar/#comment-167 Departed? Please. Since the Sopranos, a mob movie has to be more than a cast of cartoon characters to impress me. Scorcese has really lost his touch. I still want my money back for Gangs Of New York. Good Shepherd: They honestly tried to make a great movie. Rare these days. Is very good. Not a classic but bold and interesting. Still, a documentary on the real people behind the CIA would probably be more interesting. But still a very good movie. Stranger Than Fiction: I LOVED Eternal Sunshine and I really liked this. If you like one, you'll like the other. Quirky, fun, thoughtful, interesting, daring. This is what you described as a "thrill ride." At least for me. I also saw The Fountain this year. I can't decide if I like it or not. If it was good or not. Is it me or the movie? I wanted to see this movie mainly out of curiosity. The commercials and trailer don't give away the whole movie. I'm not sure the movie gave away the whole movie. If I am much wiser 20 years from now and I decide then that this movie was crap, I will still appreciate it for its attempt. Blood Diamond: Is there more to this movie than what I saw in the commercial? I doubt it. Oscars: The only thing more boring than celebrities is fashion. But I've seen The Benchwarmers about 300 times this year thanks to my boys, 7 and 2 years old. Everything is so much better than it really is when you're a kid. Are kids dumb or are adults just full of hate? Departed? Please. Since the Sopranos, a mob movie has to be more than a cast of cartoon characters to impress me. Scorcese has really lost his touch. I still want my money back for Gangs Of New York.

Good Shepherd: They honestly tried to make a great movie. Rare these days. Is very good. Not a classic but bold and interesting. Still, a documentary on the real people behind the CIA would probably be more interesting. But still a very good movie.

Stranger Than Fiction: I LOVED Eternal Sunshine and I really liked this. If you like one, you’ll like the other. Quirky, fun, thoughtful, interesting, daring. This is what you described as a “thrill ride.” At least for me.

I also saw The Fountain this year. I can’t decide if I like it or not. If it was good or not. Is it me or the movie? I wanted to see this movie mainly out of curiosity. The commercials and trailer don’t give away the whole movie. I’m not sure the movie gave away the whole movie. If I am much wiser 20 years from now and I decide then that this movie was crap, I will still appreciate it for its attempt.

Blood Diamond: Is there more to this movie than what I saw in the commercial? I doubt it.

Oscars: The only thing more boring than celebrities is fashion.

But I’ve seen The Benchwarmers about 300 times this year thanks to my boys, 7 and 2 years old. Everything is so much better than it really is when you’re a kid. Are kids dumb or are adults just full of hate?

]]> By: Tom Watson http://newcritics.com/blog1/2007/01/29/buzzing-oscar/#comment-155 Tom Watson Thu, 01 Feb 2007 00:42:55 +0000 http://newcritics.com/blog1/2007/01/29/buzzing-oscar/#comment-155 Couple of quick notes: - I rarely get to see the contenders in the theater these days (unless they happen to be animated or Lord of the Rings types). I did see the Queen and loved the performances, especially Mirren's. - This for the first time, most of the nominees are already on video - the process has been sped up; indeed, I can get several on my VOD set-top box and will watch ahead of time. - Lance is right: the show has eclipsed reportage on the movies now. Sure, it bumps the video revenue over time - but for the here and now, it's the show everybody cares about (I don't - it's stilted and poor entertainment, generally). Couple of quick notes:
- I rarely get to see the contenders in the theater these days (unless they happen to be animated or Lord of the Rings types). I did see the Queen and loved the performances, especially Mirren’s.
- This for the first time, most of the nominees are already on video - the process has been sped up; indeed, I can get several on my VOD set-top box and will watch ahead of time.
- Lance is right: the show has eclipsed reportage on the movies now. Sure, it bumps the video revenue over time - but for the here and now, it’s the show everybody cares about (I don’t - it’s stilted and poor entertainment, generally).

]]> By: sean http://newcritics.com/blog1/2007/01/29/buzzing-oscar/#comment-146 sean Tue, 30 Jan 2007 02:11:54 +0000 http://newcritics.com/blog1/2007/01/29/buzzing-oscar/#comment-146 They usually call the summer the dumb season at the movies, but they should bookend it with the late fall/winter season too. Sure there's bound to be something worthwhile floating around during the holidays, but it's also the time when the studios foist their blurb-addicted beached whales, prestige pics, and Oscar hopefuls on an all-too-suspecting general public. Morning shows kick up the buzz, Variety and Entertainment Weekly strike up the band, and people debate the nominations like they are doctrine. How is Leonardo in The Departed? He's fine. But he ain't one-fifth of what Tony Leung was in (the original) Infernal Affairs. Neither is the movie itself. Scorsese might have been "a great director" long ago, now he's just shrewd, calculating film historian desperate for affection from people he probably loathed 30 yrs ago. Which of the nominees should you rush out and see? Certainly not Babel, which is just Paul Haggis' Crash gone global, with three times the helium. The Queen is competent, a nice nuanced Helen Mirren performance, occasionally moving, all-too-obvious. Maybe Letters From Iwo Jima? Just look at Best Actress: there's the aforementioned Miss Mirren (who will win), Judi Dench, who has some nasty fun with her spinster history teacher in Notes On A Scandal, (pure Ken Russell camp), Kate Winslet (plenty of by-the-book yearning in another sick-soul-of suburbia movie) Penelope Cruz who holds her own in a softheaded movie by a former enfant terrible, and Meryl Steep who's pretty good until the movie tries to "humanize" her with crocodile tears. Five performances, none of which come anywhere close to Laura Dern's in Inland Empire a taxing, off-putting, genuinely experimental movie that no one's seen. With the exception of a few cinematography noms, and the doc mention for Iraq in Fragments, the Oscars is as usual, a bust. Hope that helped. They usually call the summer the dumb season at the movies, but they should bookend it with the late fall/winter season too. Sure there’s bound to be something worthwhile floating around during the holidays, but it’s also the time when the studios foist their blurb-addicted beached whales, prestige pics, and Oscar hopefuls on an all-too-suspecting general public. Morning shows kick up the buzz, Variety and Entertainment Weekly strike up the band, and people debate the nominations like they are doctrine.
How is Leonardo in The Departed?
He’s fine. But he ain’t one-fifth of what Tony Leung was in (the original) Infernal Affairs. Neither is the movie itself. Scorsese might have been “a great director” long ago, now he’s just shrewd, calculating film historian desperate for affection from people he probably loathed 30 yrs ago.
Which of the nominees should you rush out and see? Certainly not Babel, which is just Paul Haggis’ Crash gone global, with three times the helium. The Queen is competent, a nice nuanced Helen Mirren performance, occasionally moving, all-too-obvious. Maybe Letters From Iwo Jima?
Just look at Best Actress: there’s the aforementioned Miss Mirren (who will win), Judi Dench, who has some nasty fun with her spinster history teacher in Notes On A Scandal, (pure Ken Russell camp), Kate Winslet (plenty of by-the-book yearning in another sick-soul-of suburbia movie) Penelope Cruz who holds her own in a softheaded movie by a former enfant terrible, and Meryl Steep who’s pretty good until the movie tries to “humanize” her with crocodile tears. Five performances, none of which come anywhere close to Laura Dern’s in Inland Empire a taxing, off-putting, genuinely experimental movie that no one’s seen.
With the exception of a few cinematography noms, and the doc mention for Iraq in Fragments, the Oscars is as usual, a bust. Hope that helped.

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