In Contention

Tag: Avatar

  • Forget Best Supporting Actor — it’s time to honor Andy Serkis’ “Special Achievement”

    There has been a lot of talk this week about Andy Serkis’ stirring performance-capture portrayal of ape rebellion leader Caesar in “Rise of the Planet of the Apes.” In many quarters, writers are calling for consideration in the Best Supporting Actor category. It’s a song and dance Serkis and those of us who follow the film awards season have heard before, but I wonder if it’s the wrong approach.

    It’s important to face facts if you want Oscar recognition for Serkis. The Academy — an actor-dominated body — is not ready to hail performance-capture outside of the effects arena. Period. Two years ago, “Avatar” showed us that there was fear there when it missed out on a Best Picture win. It was admittedly one of a handful of issues that served as a stumbling block, but the sense (amplified by competing Oscar campaigns) was that a quickly advancing technique could one day render actors obsolete. Yes, it was a ridiculous fear, but it was a fear nonetheless. And for some, I’m sure it still is.

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  • ‘Dark Knight Rises’ trailer attached to final ‘Harry Potter’

    Nothing much going on today, so why not toss up a good ole’ fashioned SEO-baiting post? Those of you planning to take in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2” next weekend (which I imagine is most of you), you’ll be delighted to know that, according to Superhero Hype, Warner Bros. will attach the first teaser trailer for Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight Rises” to prints of the film. Enjoy.

    Also hitting next weekend, the story says, will be the teaser poster. I don’t remember there being any teaser posters for “Batman Begins” (unless I’m mistaken), but “The Dark Knight” had that face-paint-on-a-brick-wall thing and the frosted glass Joker image. This could be where they tease the inclusion of Catwoman (and maybe a catch phrase a la “Why So Serious?”). Guessing.

    I had an exchange with a friend recently regarding the anticipation for this film. He argued that it’s at a higher fever pitch than any film since “Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace,” but I don’t feel that way. Sure, it’s huge amongst the geek set (given the blurred footage of ABSOLUTELY NOTHING that floated around two weeks ago). But I still think “Avatar” was a bigger deal. The media (not just online choir-preaching) was pushing the issue on that one pretty hard.

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  • THE LONG SHOT: It was always you

    “Let me get this straight. The one’s about a precocious computer geek who’s also a bit of an asshole.”

    “Yeah.”

    “And the other’s about King George VI.”

    “Yeah.”

    “And King George VI has a disability.”

    “Well, he has a stutter. I mean, it’s not crippling or anything — ”

    “But it’s an obstacle that needs to be overcome.”

    “Yeah.”

    “And I assume, at the end, he does. And becomes King.”

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  • 1/19 OSCARWEB ROUND-UP: Affleck’s favorite heist films, Weinstein loves the Jets, Cameron going deep

    • Ben Affleck’s writes up his 11 favorite heist movies. [Daily Beast]

    • The Jets game was the Weinstein priority on Sunday night, not the Globes. [Page Six]

    • Dave Karger gets frisky and sticks with Hailee Steinfeld in lead for his final predictions. [Inside Movies]

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  • 12/22 OSCARWEB ROUND-UP: The reclusive Charles Portis, ‘Avatar’ most-pirated, Harvey’s holiday ‘King’s Speech’ hustle

    • On the language, cult following and press-shyness of reclusive “True Grit” author Charles Portis. [Speakeasy]

    • Mike Leigh discusses “Another Year” and why he’ll never make a superhero movie. [Movieline]

    • “Avatar” tops list of 2010’s most pirated movies. [New York Post]

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  • WEEKLY WRAP: Holiday cheer and seasonal grousing

    • Calmed by the holiday spirit, this week’s Off the Carpet column took stock of the season, and gave thanks where appropriate.

    • The Long Shot looked at the number of one-time rebel auteurs in this year’s Oscar race, and wondered if awards glory comes at the expense of creative edge.

    • Life Without Oscar highlighted a pair of mid-90s majors, one from a filmmaker who wouldn’t go unacknowledged by the Academy for long.

    • We interviewed Jeremy Renner, still basking in the glow of his first Oscar nod, and shooting for a second with “The Town.”

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  • Extended ‘Avatar’ is the home video event of the year

    The most exciting Blu-ray/DVD release of the year (perhaps more so than the Criterion release of Terrence Malick’s “The Thin Red Line”) might be the three-disc Extended Collector’s Edition of James Cameron’s “Avatar.”

    I watched the nearly three-hour film this weekend and found it, without a doubt, a better, more fully realized experience than the film we saw in theaters a year ago.  Some of the material was already included in a “special edition” theatrical re-release in August.  Those elements mostly include bits and pieces here and there that certainly fill the film out a bit.

    However, in the early moments of the extended edition (which has been on shelves since Tuesday), we’re met with a sequence set on a ruined earth that provides a visual effects feast different than the rest of the film.  I loved this stuff mostly for the character-building moments provided for Sam Worthington’s Jake Sully.

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  • CINEJABBER: Way out in the water, see it swimming

    Catch up with the idea behind these weekend posts here.

    The photo to the right represents the early haul on screeners this year.  Usually this time of year I find myself delighting in second and sometimes third viewings of this or that, but oddly enough, I still have some catch-up to do.

    I’m glad the documentary field has been narrowed down, so I can focus on a smaller group, but there are even a number of films from earlier in the year that I haven’t bothered to put in the player yet.  What is it?  Laziness?  Lack of interest?  Too busy?  I don’t know.  My mind is gone.

    It’s a weirdly sluggish year on the whole as advertising has held off until late November/early December for the most part.  This time last year we still had three films to see.  With “TRON Legacy” going before junket press in the last few days, we’re left with just one film to bow: “True Grit.” So Jeff Bridges gets to crash the Oscar party two years in a row.

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  • 11/17 OSCARWEB ROUND-UP: The death of Oscar bait, ‘How Do You Know’ nails a PG-13, Moore and Levi on ‘Tangled’

    • Guest blogging for Nathaniel Rogers, Michael C. writes up the apparent death of “Oscar bait” as it pertains to Best Picture winners. [The Film Experience]

    • Steve Pond chats with “The Kids Are All Right” writer/director Lisa Cholodenko. [The Odds]

    • James Cameron discusses his inspiration for “Avatar” (it won’t go away) in an extended collector’s edition clip. [MTV Movies Blog]

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  • OFF THE CARPET: Dolla billz, y’all!

    A reader comment got me thinking on box office and Oscar as the usual blockbuster and genre fare led the way in ticket sales this weekend.  It dawned on me that pickins might be extra slim when it comes to representing populist filmmaking in 2010’s Best Picture crop.

    Box office and finding room for ratings-friendly titles have long been assumed considerations in the decision to expand the Best Picture category to 10 nominations last year. One year after Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight” nearly reached “Titanic”-level numbers and was snubbed of a Best Picture nomination, there were suddenly five more spots to be filled, widening the net.

    Academy members had seven films to choose from the $100 million-plus club in 2009 that had any legitimate excuse for being in the conversation. They were: “Avatar,” “The Blind Side,” “District 9,” “The Hangover,” “Inglourious Basterds,” “Star Trek” and “Up.” And some would consider “The Hangover” and “Star Trek” to be a stretch.  As such, they missed, and the other five made it.

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  • 11/4 OSCARWEB ROUND-UP: Sit-down with Swinton, ‘Megamind’ using social gaming, Elise on ‘For Colored Girls’

    • Pete Hammond talks “I Am Love” with dark horse Best Actress contender Tilda Swinton. [Deadline]

    • How DreamWorks Animation is using social gaming to boost “Megamind.” [Hollywood Reporter]

    • Meet the characters of “Morning Glory.” [MakingOf]

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  • 10/28 OSCARWEB ROUND-UP: Youngest Best Actresses, seeking Oscar journos, Cameron readies ‘Avatar’ sequels

    • AMPAS and mtvU launch the third annual “Oscars Correspondent Contest” for college journalists. [Oscars.org]

    • Across the pond, Stuart Heritage counts down the ways “Rabbit Hole” could be an Oscar bet for Nicole Kidman. [The Guardian]

    • The Durst family predictably threatens to sue over “All Good Things.” [Deadline]

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  • 10/20 OSCARWEB ROUND-UP: ‘Complete Metropolis’ coming to TCM, buzz for Leo, Cameron on the usual talking points

    • Jeffrey Wells reminds of the forthcoming TCM airing of the restored “Metropolis” and one hour documentary “Metropolis Refound.”  I’ll…be…there. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

    • Steve Pond conveys positive word on Christian Bale and (as reported for months here) Melissa Leo’s performances in “The Fighter” from ShoEast. [The Odds]

    • Naomi Watts on “Fair Game,” Valerie Plame and politics in Hollywood. [HitFix]

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  • SUNDAY CENTS: Photo finish!

    *All historical figures cited are adjusted to today’s dollars.

    One last bit of excitement before the summer ends and Tapley starts posting random Redskins photos on Sundays. We have a dead heat race for the top spot at the box office, but estimates are handing the crown to “The Last Exorcism.” If it does, indeed, win the weekend, it will be the first time Lionsgate has had two consecutive number one films.

    The official estimate is $21.3 million, which puts it just a fraction behind the $23.1 million debut of “Exorcist: The Beginning” on this same weekend of 2004. It’s also a smidge behind the $24.5 mil debut of Lionsgate’s similar looking 2009 shocker, “The Haunting in Connecticut,” but let’s remember that this is a no budget endeavor with no recognizable actors that the studio had to market with smarts and Eli Roth’s name.

    Incidentally, they couldn’t use Roth’s name to market his own movie, “Hostel Part II,” to a debut past $9.5 million, but the man can’t win them all. Now we just sit back and wait for the inevitable porno knock-off called “The Last Circumcision.”

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  • FRIDAY FORECAST: End of the Road

    *All historical figures cited are adjusted to today’s dollars.

    It’s the last full weekend of the summer, the last weekend of me being 27, and the last weekend for Friday Forecast on InContention. A time of introspection. A time of reflection. A time of paying another $20 to see those blue things in 3D again. I can’t wait to not see it again… for the first time.

    The dog days of August are notoriously tough on the multiplex as kids start heading back to school so don’t expect any Oscar nominations for this week’s crop of films. Leading the pack is “The Last Exorcism” from Lionsgate. This could be the first time in that company’s history that one of its films takes the top spot away from another one of its films. A low budget faux-documentary, Lionsgate picked up distribution rights and has sold it fantastically with sharp trailers and posters.

    Exorcism is a foolproof box office meme, with Sony able to milk a $37.3 million debut for “The Exorcism of Emily Rose” in September 2005. That film had some movie stars and a true story hook, while Lionsgate is definitely no Sony, but we should still be looking at a strong opening for the film. Something like $18 million, but if Lionsgate can get some stories printed about audience members puking, then you can bump that up to $22 million.

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  • ‘Avatar: Special Edition’ trailer

    You didn’t think you were out of the 2009 awards season woods yet, did you?  No way.  James Cameron and 20th Century Fox are gonna squeeze the “Avatar” cash cow until the milk stops flowing, surely.  And with a big junket for “Avatar: Special Edition” in Los Angeles yesterday, and a new just-released trailer, it seems August 27 is the new “Avatar Day” with the theatrical re-release, including more footage, set to bow.  Check out the teaser trailer on the jump.

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  • COMIC-CON: Wrapping it up…are we getting through?

    My Comic-Con experience ended a bit sooner than I expected this morning when I woke up and decided whatever was on the Sunday docket wasn’t as fetching as a three-hour ride in traffic back to LA. That’s how exhausting the convention was this year.

    Here’s the thing. We all know Comic-Con and its 125,000-plus attendees form nothing more than a marketing bonanza in this day and age. No need to preach down to those who were there if you decided to remain back on your high horse and wait it out. You’re not enlightened. We get it. The event’s roots had a completely different shade and Hollywood has invaded the territory. But at the same time, as Hero Complex’s Geoff Boucher shrewdly pointed out before Saturday’s Warner Bros. presentation, Comic-Con — or comics, in general — has also invaded Hollywood.

    So what we have is a symbiosis that plays right into the hands of studio marketing chiefs. No one can fault businessmen for making business decisions, but I think it would be worth it for Comic-Con brass (whoever they are) to take stock of what’s happening here. A craven desire to sell as many passes as possible, secure as many big names as possible and bloat the festivities with dubious material has taken things far from where they started, yes. But the thing is so stressful, people are stabbing each other!

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  • Ebert versus the third dimension

    By now, you may have read Roger Ebert’s lengthy nine-point diatribe against 3D in Newsweek — it has certainly generated a substantial amount of online conversation in the last few days.

    On the face of it, as a declared 3D agnostic myself, I should be pleased with the article: when a “Clash of the Titans” proves the technology a potential artistic liability as emphatically as “Avatar” suggests the opposite, 3D needs to be both argued for and argued with.

    I fear Ebert, however, has slightly let the opposing side down: his piece is impassioned and sincere, but for every viable point he makes — and there are several — there’s another that is short-sighted, obstinate or just tautological: however much you may agree, it’s difficult to accept “it adds nothing to the experience” and “it’s a waste of a dimension” as separate claims in a serious argument, as opposed to simple whining.

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