tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post3477796535094080617..comments2024-03-17T10:11:46.952-04:00Comments on Film Experience Blog: Oscar Symposium Lift Off. (But AMPAS Won't Fly)NATHANIEL Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11597109147678235399noreply@blogger.comBlogger59125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-77892457313502623152009-02-19T10:26:00.000-05:002009-02-19T10:26:00.000-05:00Great article! Some other opinions on the Blockbu...Great article! Some other opinions on the Blockbusters of 2008: <A HREF="http://tr.im/gzQF" REL="nofollow">http://tr.im/gzQF</A>. Feedback is more than welcome!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-7289511538775904412009-02-18T19:34:00.000-05:002009-02-18T19:34:00.000-05:00Mike i wrote about the Sally Hawkins snub at lengt...Mike i wrote about the Sally Hawkins snub at length already (you can read that and the interview I had with her <A HREF="http://filmexperience.blogspot.com/search/label/Sally%20Hawkins" REL="nofollow">here</A>). We don't go into it in the symposium.NATHANIEL Rhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11597109147678235399noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-77476246903510201012009-02-18T18:56:00.000-05:002009-02-18T18:56:00.000-05:00I enjoyed reading this.I agree that Rachel Getting...I enjoyed reading this.<BR/><BR/>I agree that Rachel Getting Married was a good film, although I had issues with the editing (the lenghty wedding scene, in particular), and felt the multicultural theme was somewhat contrived. I did, however, appreciate the superb acting of Hathway, DeWitt, Irwin, and Winger-who created a fascinating character with limited screentime.<BR/><BR/>I disagree that Dustin Lance Black's screenplay portrayed Harvey Milk as a saint. I felt he was very human, displaying admirable qualities, as well as flaws.<BR/><BR/>My top 5 films of the year are Milk, The Wrestler, I've Loved You So Long, Happy-Go-Lucky, and The Reader.<BR/><BR/>And I, too, would appreciate reading your opinions on the Sally Hawkins snub in the Best Actress category. That was whack.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-29622507675657822122009-02-18T16:10:00.000-05:002009-02-18T16:10:00.000-05:00Also, I don't think Ernest Borgnine or James Camer...Also, I don't think Ernest Borgnine or James Cameron or half the cinematography branch (the very same that gave Memoirs of a Geisha Best Cinematograhy and is yet to acknowledge Christopher Doyle) was ever gonna vote for Rachel, whether they watched the screener or not.Y Kant Goran Ritehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03058411467996289416noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-76478991683042055622009-02-18T16:04:00.000-05:002009-02-18T16:04:00.000-05:00To Anonymous at 9:32Thanks for that! From that tra...To Anonymous at 9:32<BR/>Thanks for that! From that trailer alone, there's no beating Broken Embraces as my film of 2009.<BR/><BR/><BR/>Also, I enjoy any Oscar symposium that denigrates the Oscars (in fact, I don't think you guys are doing enough of that - Ed in particular, pick up your game! I know you can do better). And Karina is somone who pisses me off regularly - I think I've sworn off reading SpoutBlog more often than any other blog - but I keep coming back for more. For someone who is so intelligent and articulate, it's entirely unfortunate that she's so often wrong about things, though I have to say I agreed with more of what she said here than all the other contributors. (Even though I thought Penn was note-perfect in Milk and Jenkins was excellent in Burn After Reading, but better in The Visitor. Also, for me McDormand was best in show.)<BR/><BR/>Meantime, Ed is without reservation one of my favourite online critics and someone who I generally agree with, so it pains me to acknowledge that he just recommended Gran Torino and now I have to actually watch it. And I'll never buy the argument about that-Woody-Allen-movie-where-his-stand-in-and-the-only-principal-character-with-depth-and-empathy-in-a-bevy-of-charming-photogenic-idiots-is-a-complex-beautiful-intelligent-intriguing-woman being misogynist, no matter how many perfectly intelligent people try to argue that. But I am willing to forgive these things because Ed brings the total of people who have tapped into the striking brilliance of André (Wild Reeds!) Téchiné's The Witnesses to 2. I feel vindicated in no longer being the only person in the world who has it in their Top 5 of the year (though for me it was a 2007 release).Y Kant Goran Ritehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03058411467996289416noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-57585292416526791122009-02-18T14:36:00.000-05:002009-02-18T14:36:00.000-05:00By the way, if we're going to start discussing the...By the way, if we're going to start discussing the wonderfully wicked ensemble of <I>Burn After Reading</I>, I have to state that John Malkovich wins "best in show."Nick M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/12566330717380805279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-71388480543676556132009-02-18T14:33:00.000-05:002009-02-18T14:33:00.000-05:00"I've Loved You So Long" was excellent, and Kristi..."I've Loved You So Long" was excellent, and Kristin Scott Thomas should have been nominated over half of what this sorry best actress field is this year. At least half.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-65719303417203841202009-02-18T13:59:00.000-05:002009-02-18T13:59:00.000-05:00I'm ecstatic that Juliette Binoche was mentioned f...I'm ecstatic that Juliette Binoche was mentioned for her incandescent performance in Flight of the Red Balloon. Definitely my top female performance of 2008.bubbahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17098397358871088386noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-5962551314732646922009-02-18T13:48:00.000-05:002009-02-18T13:48:00.000-05:00You have a point. Still, it was a particularly fan...You have a point. Still, it <I>was</I> a particularly fantastic year for French movies -- not to forget the lovely Musee d'Orsay double bill of <I>Flight of the Red Balloon</I> and <I>Summer Hours</I> too (though I know that one hasn't officially come out yet Stateside). Those five would make for an awesome Best French Film category...tim rhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11893294970751318226noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-6731753411563778662009-02-18T13:41:00.000-05:002009-02-18T13:41:00.000-05:00i'd never thought of that, Tim, but why couldn't t...i'd never thought of that, Tim, but why couldn't the foreign film roster have more than 5 nominees... i mean, apart from the fact that that's the most any category has but there was a time when there more in best pic. so...<BR/><BR/>although in some ways i do like the one film rule because other wise nobody would ever be able to get past France which still sees a lot of movies opening in America (even if they only play the coasts) compared to any other country.NATHANIEL Rhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11597109147678235399noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-32513693729983591342009-02-18T13:32:00.000-05:002009-02-18T13:32:00.000-05:00I agree with Karina that Slumdog and Ben Button ar...I agree with Karina that <I>Slumdog</I> and <I>Ben Button</I> are the two really grim nominees this year, for encasing their Gumpian story arcs in virtually opposite but equally indigestible style packages. (They're the cinematic equivalents of a bad coke high and then a colossal barbiturate overdose -- presented as a double bill, the combo would probably kill an elephant.) As such, they're the least interesting movies by two directors I often love, but given the choice I'll be less cross with a Boyle win, as he's clearly an excellent bloke, and seems faintly bewildered about all the attention <I>SM</I> has attracted. Whereas Fincher wants Oscars baad and his film reeks of inflated attention-seeking.<BR/><BR/>No one wants to talk about <I>Frost/Nixon</I> because it's just thoroughly mediocre -- no more, no less. I don't think it should cause any more offence than <I>The Queen</I>, which was every bit as jerry-rigged, and I'll take Langella's performance over Mirren's, personally. (Which is not to say it's up to the level of Penn's or Rourke's, but it's easily worth a nomination, salvaging all the best moments out of that script.)<BR/><BR/><I>The Reader</I> is getting a lot of vitriol chucked at it, but I've yet to read a full-scale attack on the movie (or Winslet) that doesn't wilfully distort what they're trying to do. David Denby doesn't like it much, and neither do I as it goes along, but we'll both admit the surprising eroticism of the early David Kross scenes, and the cinematography is almost needlessly terrific. It goes wrong, but not completely wrong. So I'm in the camp of myeh on that one too.<BR/><BR/>As for <I>Milk</I>, we can't ask it to be all things to all people. My colleague on the Telegraph has written a terrific blog about it <A HREF="http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/sukhdevsandhu" REL="nofollow">here</A>, which I feel does the movie real justice without ignoring its compromises and limitations. It's a two cheers kind of film, but still way, way above the level of these other nominees, and approximately 16 times better than <I>Gran Torino</I>, too.<BR/><BR/>Finally, I reckon <I>The Class</I>, <I>A Christmas Tale</I> and <I>Secret of the Grain</I> are <I>all</I> excellent movies, and it's Oscar's fault for not allowing multiple nominees from one country, perhaps expanding the category to more like a dozen movies while they're at it. Still, at least they haven't saddled us with the wan and negligible <I>I've Loved You So Long</I>, like the Baftas did.tim rhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11893294970751318226noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-46827387932463647872009-02-18T13:10:00.000-05:002009-02-18T13:10:00.000-05:00I think this film was a very good year. The five b...I think this film was a very good year. The five best picture nominees all had something to offer and they could have made a riskier choice in place of The Reader, but all this symposium really says is that you all have diverse tastes and that's how the movie world is. Some of you thoguht In Bruges was great, some of you didn't. Some of you loved Burn After Reading, some of you didn't, some of you felt Rachel Getting Married was great, again, there was opposition. Honestly, as a body of people you don't really have anything to say about what's wrong with the academy's picks. You would all cancel each other's picks out if you were voting members of the academy, and the broad consensus picks would win: so what's all your kvetching and extreme negativity about? <BR/><BR/>you all found something to like in the picks, whether it was In Bruges' nomination, Penn's probable win for Milk, Mike Leigh's script for Happy-Go-Lucky, Melissa Leo's nom for Frozen River, Michael Shannon's nom for Revolutionary Road, Anne Hathaway for Frozen River, etc. So stop whining. <BR/><BR/>Seriously, if you who loved Rachel Getting Married but couldn't convince a hand-picked set of critics at your own roundtable that you invited them to that it was worthy, then how can you blame the academy?<BR/><BR/>For the record, I thought this was an excellent year. I loved Wall-E, The Class, I could appreciate the risks of Rachel Getting Married even if I found it lacking in a coherent storyline, I lvoed Frost/Nixon, Gran Torino, Slumdog Millionaire, I liked Sean Penn's performance even if I found the film to have dragged on a little, I loved In Bruges, Burn After Reading, Be Kind Rewind, and found something to appreciate in Iron Man and Quantum of Solacesophomorecritichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14320637485303592977noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-20782626236699822552009-02-18T12:47:00.000-05:002009-02-18T12:47:00.000-05:00Isn't it snobbier to assume they have seen every f...Isn't it snobbier to assume they have seen every film, yet they simply have horrid, conformist taste?Nick M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/12566330717380805279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-29118588101781416752009-02-18T12:36:00.000-05:002009-02-18T12:36:00.000-05:00Again, you don't know what they've seen and haven'...Again, you don't know what they've seen and haven't seen. What they've chosen could just mean that's what they like the best. Question their poor tastes maybe, but making the leap that they just didn't see the "right" films reeks of snobbery. Sorry, but that's how your work reads tonally, and it's pretty consistent.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-23522019832191739572009-02-18T12:27:00.001-05:002009-02-18T12:27:00.001-05:00davey -- can we move away from the notion that not...<B>davey</B> -- can we move away from the notion that not rooting for a particular movie is "snobbery"? or that it's somehow wrong to expect a voting body with so much power to see a lot of movies (and not just the ones with multi-million dollar campaigns) before they vote?<BR/><BR/> I don't see that I've been that mean to <I>Slumdog</I> here though slumdog fans seem to disagree. I've only been very vocal at my displeasure that people seem so unreasonable about what it's good at and what it's not good at. The abundant awardage is merely underlining this. People seem to have no concept that their love for it does not make it a great film on every single level. Did it need a costume design award and acting prizes?<BR/><BR/>i mean christ. How can a backlash not happen when its supporters are so unreasonably unwilling to think of any other movie?<BR/><BR/><B>noecito</B> i like the Reader but i didn't want the symposium to become about the reader. and as i've expressed before it's weird to become a defender of it because i don't love it or anything.NATHANIEL Rhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11597109147678235399noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-88760252533408359402009-02-18T12:27:00.000-05:002009-02-18T12:27:00.000-05:00- Replace "nonplussed" for "unenthused" there then...- Replace "nonplussed" for "unenthused" there then.<BR/><BR/>- I'll for one be quite disappointed when Kate Winslet wins for "The Reader." My love of her in general isn't enough to blind me for an Oscar win for an awful performance, and a "career win" isn't worth that kind of tarnish.<BR/><BR/>- If that's all true about Harvey Milk, then I don't think that the screenplay did him justice. Now if the goal was never to portray his demons or saint him, then mission accomplished. It's not a bad film by any means, but I think a more evenhanded treatment of his life would have served his legacy better than a hagiography would (and I know already, this film didn't do that to the extent that other biopics in the past have).<BR/><BR/>- At the end of "Slumdog", everything isn't all "honky dory" with the characters. Yes, there's the hope of renewal now that Jamal's found Latika and won that money, but who really knows what lies in store for them. There's the hope of a happy ending, but just with any story, and especially a story set in that impoverished background, there aren't easy answers for these two, and just throwing some money at the problem isn't always the answer. I actually liked that Jamal was never in this for the money, but that he had greater aims in mind, re: love.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-19801834631736710212009-02-18T12:16:00.000-05:002009-02-18T12:16:00.000-05:00@ Davey: Sorry, but this is a personal pet peeve:n...@ Davey: Sorry, but this is a personal pet peeve:<BR/><BR/><I>nonplussed: put at a loss as to what to think, say, or do</I><BR/><BR/>Unless that is in fact what you meant, in which case: apologies!<BR/><BR/>W/regards to Milk: I just watched the documentary and he was almost MORE likable in that, I thought. But I really didn't think that he was presented as outrageously saintly in the movie... obviously it's a very positive portrait. But I also think that it's more a film about the movement than about the candidate (as Harvey, I'm sure, would have said).<BR/><BR/>@ Glendon: I love her, but I'll be disappointed. I don't see the necessity of a career-reward Oscar at the age of 33. She's done phenomenal work, obviously, but I don't think either April or Hanna was anywhere close to the best performance of the year. But c'est la vie, I suppose.<BR/><BR/>@ Janice: Funnily, I was just thinking about Moulin Rouge vs. Slumdog the other day, after rediscovering the former... I agree with Nat that the problem is that Moulin Rouge doesn't try on any level to be real. With Slumdog they show you all of this terrible stuff which is supposed to shock and horrify you but it's really only in the service of the fairy tale. I found it manipulative and thought it trivialized the reality of life in the slums because in the end everything's hunky dory, and that was my problem with it.Morgan Leigh Davieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06169474357427079835noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-26213762195333600502009-02-18T12:07:00.000-05:002009-02-18T12:07:00.000-05:00I cannot believe all of you hated The Reader. It's...I cannot believe all of you hated The Reader. It's great!!!<BR/>I've enjoyed the first part of the symposium but I have the vague feeling you go to the movies expecting too much (or forgiving too little). I mean, a movie has to be a complete disaster to deserve my hate (e.g. One hour photo)<BR/>We have to believe in the magic in movies!!<BR/>(fairy moment ended)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-31726143964093812992009-02-18T11:29:00.000-05:002009-02-18T11:29:00.000-05:00I'm glad that there was some equity with how "Slum...I'm glad that there was some equity with how "Slumdog Millionaire" was discussed. Nate's treated it with such snobbery on here, so it was nice to hear reasoned views of why its fans appreciate it to the level that they do and how it's hardly disposable fare that no one will remember down the road. Yay Ed and Kris (ugh, now I feel all dirty congratulating those two for their kudos).<BR/><BR/>It's also fairly pompous to suggest that voters just "didn't see enough" films this year. Until you poll its 6,000 or so members or have access to their Academy screenings roster/Netflix ques, you don't know what they watched and didn't. They really could have watched "Rachel Getting Married" way back when in the fall and hated it. Shit happens. See "The Reader" for proof of that.<BR/><BR/>The stuff at the end about the "santification of Harvey Milk" was really interesting. I had no idea that the guy went to bathhouses and was a closet Republican? Is that right? I haven't seen the doc on him and know nothing about him beyond "Milk", so seeing Sean Penn's haloed interpretation of him did leave me a bit cold. But I won't go into a death match against him for Rourke either, b/c I was fairly nonplussed with him too. My pick is Frank Langella, though it's too bad that the panel reduced his stellar glimpse of Nixon as a "Muppet voice." But that's how it goes sometimes.<BR/><BR/>Can't wait to read the next installments. Despite my snark, I'm very sincere about that.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-62994948354932306132009-02-18T11:23:00.000-05:002009-02-18T11:23:00.000-05:00I'll certainly take Karina and Ed's cinema-savvy, ...I'll certainly take Karina and Ed's cinema-savvy, thoughtful opinions over the myopic, Oscar-filtered marketing catchphrases masquerading as opinions that other members of the panel (past and present) might use. <BR/><BR/>Also, can there be a moratorium placed on members giving out such sarcastic honors as "the Manohla Dargis award," simply because a panelist names a few movies that didn't have a multi-million dollar Oscar campaign. <BR/><BR/>I know this is an Oscar symposium, but the non-nominated films mentioned are legitimately used to illustrate the cinematic landscape of 2008.Nick M.https://www.blogger.com/profile/12566330717380805279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-4183511595379833792009-02-18T10:23:00.000-05:002009-02-18T10:23:00.000-05:00Re: Frost/NixonAt least once a day for the last we...Re: <I>Frost/Nixon</I><BR/><BR/>At least once a day for the last week, I've been in a situation where the other four nominees have been named, in whatever context, and this is always "the fifth one". During the first day of the symposium, I had to go to the IMDb just to remember what "the fifth one" was in fact titled. That is how much impression it left on me.<BR/><BR/>And that is why I, at least, couldn't be bothered to bring it up.Timhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09491952893581644049noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-51294420805400640452009-02-18T09:32:00.000-05:002009-02-18T09:32:00.000-05:00"Broken Embraces" Teaser trailer: http://www.youtu..."Broken Embraces" Teaser trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fXiuFG0soUAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-45609397203127375832009-02-18T09:19:00.000-05:002009-02-18T09:19:00.000-05:00janice well in terms of stock characters that gene...<B>janice</B> well in terms of stock characters that generally works better for me when there's some degree of understanding on the part of the actors and directors that they are playing 2 dimensional archetypes. There can be joy in that but it's all about stylization.<BR/><BR/>people like to say that Slumdog is a fairytale (which it is) when they're excusing its unreality (i mean the plot is ridiculous although it's played straight so credit for that) but i don't think it's trying to come off like a fairytale with that gloss of grit (i realize that's a contradictino but there you go) the blood, the violence, the shit. etcetera<BR/><BR/><B>anon 7:48</B> bang bang you're dead. SLUMDOG has a body count. I'm feeling more confident about my "sweep" prediction right now.<BR/><BR/><B>dave</B> i do think that's the case. nobody wanted to talk about frost/nixon. what is there to say?<BR/><BR/>that's the crux of the problem isn't it? Thus the symposium is shorter this year :( an uninspired Oscar yearNATHANIEL Rhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11597109147678235399noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-39372343876159021252009-02-18T08:29:00.000-05:002009-02-18T08:29:00.000-05:00I'm just going to be a contrarian here and say I h...I'm just going to be a contrarian here and say I had no problem with Karina's comments (what's with the hate?); just part of the rich texture of an interesting conversation (and NO, I had not even heard of the girl outside of the symposium, thank you.)<BR/><BR/>It's about opinions, folks.<BR/><BR/>Nathaniel, it was interesting to me that your succinct description of Slumdog (which I admit right now I have not seen and make no judgements upon) sounded as though it could have been somone else's description of Moulin Rouge, which you (and I both) - fast pace, colorful, stock characters, in love with itself, etc. So, what makes one work for you and not the other? That's something I'm curious about, I guess, because I find the "what one person loves and what one doesn't" interesting. (This year I hated - or at least was sorely disappointed with - Australia, but I know folks who dislike Moulin Rouge who love Australia. Go figure.)Janicehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08049113750769117163noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8256060.post-62226617544188443492009-02-18T08:05:00.000-05:002009-02-18T08:05:00.000-05:00Oh and Tim is my favorite too. He's brill.Oh and Tim is my favorite too. He's brill.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com