I don’t give a crap about Oscars with this. It’s going to be a classic.
BobMcBob
When you say the film won’t even get anywhere close to 10 oscars; are you saying that you’re hearing the film is bad or that David Fincher’s work will continue to get unregonized by the academy?
The latter…in part. But can you see Button being a Titanic or a Ben-Hur? I certainly can’t.
Joseph
Well it’s really about time for another good old-fashioned sweep, whether it be 6 or 10 Oscars. I’m just a bit tired of films not winning any more than 4 ever since 2003…
Joseph
EDITED to say Best Picture winners… because I am aware “The Aviator” took 5.
Frank Lee
David Fincher is wonderfully talented, but this material doesn’t seem compelling to me. It doesn’t resonate. Why adapt this Fitzgerald story in 2008? We live in a time when people are desperately trying to hold on to their youthful looks, but how does that square with this storyline? The movie doesn’t seem to comment on our times. It skirts the specifics of our times without being universal.
par3182
i feel like i’ve pretty much seen the entire movie with that trailer
EDR
“The movie doesn’t seem to comment on our times.”
Worst excuse I’ve ever heard for not making a movie. This is going to be A-M-A-Z-I-N-G.
Frank Lee
Remember “The Truman Show”? At a time when millions in our culture are willing to humiliate themselves to be on television, Peter Weir made a movie about a man who is forced against his will, or even his knowledge, to be the star of a television series. And we were expected to feel angry about his predicament, though it was the invention of the filmmakers and had no correlation to our culture. It seemed like an allegory, but there was nothing to attach the allegory to. This movie looks the same. If the filmmakers expect us to feel angry about the protagonist’s unfair predicament, the movie is sunk.
Still my 2nd most anticipated film this year, only after WALL-E.
Guy Lodge
“But can you see Button being a Titanic or a Ben-Hur? I certainly can’t.”
Agreed, Kris. Eassentially, Titanic, Ben-Hur and Return of the King all swept the board for the same reason: because they were popular phenomena with gargantuan box-office. I think “Button” looks wonderful, but surely too eccentric to have the same across-the-board appeal.
And Joseph, I must disagree on the sweep issue – I like how the Academy’s been spreading the wealth lately. The technical awards, in particular, have been more thoughtfully distributed, instead of simply falling victim to juggernaut thinking. I hope it continues.
Jamie
What kind of a budget does Button have? I worry about a situation in which gets huge critical acclaim but fails to make back a significant investment and gets “box office failure” attached to it.
Joseph
To Guy:
I know what you mean, but can you honestly say you don’t miss the big ol’ sweeps of the 90s? Almost every year there was a big juggernaut picture that swept the board, and I really miss that. I would have a problem if the films weren’t deserving, but piling 9 extremely well deserved Oscars on “The English Patient” or 11 on “Titanic” made it so much fun and gave the films the immense heft of recognition they deserved.
I only miss sweeps that were wholly deserved. Basically, I don’t miss the sweeps.
Mr. Gittes
Perhaps Button will be wholly deserved. I dunno…it’s certainly made an impression on me.
Mr. Gittes
Edited: It has certainly made an impression on me…okay.
Guy Lodge
Nope, Joseph, I disagree in every respect. To me, sweeps make for really extremely watching, not least because they strip any sense of suspense from the evening.
More importantly though, I think they are very rarely deserved, particularly when you start looking at individual categories. To borrow from two of your examples, giving “Titanic” Best Cinematography over “Kundun,” or “The English Patient” Best Costume Design over “Portrait of a Lady” is lazy, herd-mentality voting, pure and simple. But to each his own.
Comments
22 responses to “Now that it’s in English…”
So good… can’t wait.
More than ten Oscars…you heard it here first.
Not even close. But you’re on the record.
I don’t give a crap about Oscars with this. It’s going to be a classic.
When you say the film won’t even get anywhere close to 10 oscars; are you saying that you’re hearing the film is bad or that David Fincher’s work will continue to get unregonized by the academy?
The latter…in part. But can you see Button being a Titanic or a Ben-Hur? I certainly can’t.
Well it’s really about time for another good old-fashioned sweep, whether it be 6 or 10 Oscars. I’m just a bit tired of films not winning any more than 4 ever since 2003…
EDITED to say Best Picture winners… because I am aware “The Aviator” took 5.
David Fincher is wonderfully talented, but this material doesn’t seem compelling to me. It doesn’t resonate. Why adapt this Fitzgerald story in 2008? We live in a time when people are desperately trying to hold on to their youthful looks, but how does that square with this storyline? The movie doesn’t seem to comment on our times. It skirts the specifics of our times without being universal.
i feel like i’ve pretty much seen the entire movie with that trailer
“The movie doesn’t seem to comment on our times.”
Worst excuse I’ve ever heard for not making a movie. This is going to be A-M-A-Z-I-N-G.
Remember “The Truman Show”? At a time when millions in our culture are willing to humiliate themselves to be on television, Peter Weir made a movie about a man who is forced against his will, or even his knowledge, to be the star of a television series. And we were expected to feel angry about his predicament, though it was the invention of the filmmakers and had no correlation to our culture. It seemed like an allegory, but there was nothing to attach the allegory to. This movie looks the same. If the filmmakers expect us to feel angry about the protagonist’s unfair predicament, the movie is sunk.
Still my 2nd most anticipated film this year, only after WALL-E.
“But can you see Button being a Titanic or a Ben-Hur? I certainly can’t.”
Agreed, Kris. Eassentially, Titanic, Ben-Hur and Return of the King all swept the board for the same reason: because they were popular phenomena with gargantuan box-office. I think “Button” looks wonderful, but surely too eccentric to have the same across-the-board appeal.
And Joseph, I must disagree on the sweep issue – I like how the Academy’s been spreading the wealth lately. The technical awards, in particular, have been more thoughtfully distributed, instead of simply falling victim to juggernaut thinking. I hope it continues.
What kind of a budget does Button have? I worry about a situation in which gets huge critical acclaim but fails to make back a significant investment and gets “box office failure” attached to it.
To Guy:
I know what you mean, but can you honestly say you don’t miss the big ol’ sweeps of the 90s? Almost every year there was a big juggernaut picture that swept the board, and I really miss that. I would have a problem if the films weren’t deserving, but piling 9 extremely well deserved Oscars on “The English Patient” or 11 on “Titanic” made it so much fun and gave the films the immense heft of recognition they deserved.
I miss that. :(
I only miss sweeps that were wholly deserved. Basically, I don’t miss the sweeps.
Perhaps Button will be wholly deserved. I dunno…it’s certainly made an impression on me.
Edited: It has certainly made an impression on me…okay.
Nope, Joseph, I disagree in every respect. To me, sweeps make for really extremely watching, not least because they strip any sense of suspense from the evening.
More importantly though, I think they are very rarely deserved, particularly when you start looking at individual categories. To borrow from two of your examples, giving “Titanic” Best Cinematography over “Kundun,” or “The English Patient” Best Costume Design over “Portrait of a Lady” is lazy, herd-mentality voting, pure and simple. But to each his own.
* extremely dull watching, I meant.
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