In Contention

Category: Daily

  • Foreign film news and notes — 40 films so far

    Anne Dorval in I Killed my MotherANOTHER UPDATE: Thanks to emails for keeping me on track here, but there are some titles I failed to mention.  The number is up to 40 now.

    EARLIER: Anne Thompson is reporting that Denmark has submitted “Terribly Happy.”  And Nat has Mexico’s entry as “Backyard.”  Make it 31 films.

    STILL EARLIER: Guy is so much better at keeping track of this stuff than I am. But some things of note recently:

    Serbia has switched it’s entrant from “Here and There” to “Sveti Georgije ubiva azdahu” (“St. George Shoots the Dragon”).

    “Ded na Si Lolo” will represent the Philippines and Canada has selected “I Killed My Mother.”

    indieWIRE is keeping a nice list of films going, but generally speaking, no one does this category better than Nat Rogers at The Film Experience.

    One newsy-ish item: There is talk of “London River” potentially being the Algerian entry. More than 50% of the film is in French, so it’s possible (and would make a handsome nominee, in my opinion).

    Full list of submitted titles after the jump.

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  • Gordon Gekko 2009

    Michael Douglas on the set of Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps

    (Courtesy: Daily Mail)

  • ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’ set to open AFI

    Fantastic Mr. FoxAFI Fest kicks off on October 30 and runs for about a week.  Generally it’s catch-up time for me as a number of the festival circuit flicks make it a requisite Fall stop, but the opening and closing Galas tend to be first-looks for the most part.

    Last year “The Soloist” ultimately bowed out of the closing night slot when the film’s release date was suddenly shifted into 2009.  Scott Rudin and company came to the festival’s aid with a digitally projected, slightly unfinished “Doubt,” which was ultimately a bigger get than the previously scheduled film.

    This year it looks like Rudin is back in the AFI mix with Wes Anderson’s “Fantastic Mr. Fox,” which has been chosen as the opening night Gala.  I’ll be covering AFI Fest next month, but Guy will likely have an initial take on the film from the London fest a week or so prior.

  • 9/24 Oscarweb Round-up

    Colin Firth• Adam Dawtrey on the rebirth of Colin Firth. [The Guardian]

    • In honor of “A Serious Man,” Nathan Englander picks the top five Jewish films from the 1970s.  Why not the 1960s?  You know, when the Coen film is set? [Film in Focus]

    • Not Oscar related, but most desired remake: “The Goonies.” [Daily Telegraph]

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  • Ben Stiller instrumental in getting ‘The Cove’ in at Tokyo?

    Ben Stiller at the premiere of The CoveBen Stiller has been vocal about his support for the dolphin slaughter documentary “The Cove.” This I knew, but until I actually read through the Ric O’Barry interview we linked in this morning’s round-up, I didn’t realize he played a key role in getting the film a screening at the Tokyo International Film Festival, but that’s just what happened.  According to O’Barry:

    The Tokyo Film Festival has a green theme this year, but they weren’t showing “The Cove.” Ben Stiller and his friends, who have been supportive of the film, called up and complained about how unfair this was. The Japanese people have a right to know. Now there are four to five Japanese distributors fighting over the film.

    Did I miss this nugget?  I knew festival brass had given in and allowed the film to screen (offering the limp excuse that the line-up hadn’t been finalized and that the decision was never final — remember, the fest has a “green” theme this year).  But I didn’t realize Stiller got involved.  Good on you, guy.

  • Singled out…seriously

    Okay, so “A Serious Man,” “A Single Man,” something has to give, right?  I haven’t seen the latter, but I imagine it’s an apt title.  However, if I’m honest, the Coen brothers’ title doesn’t really say much about the film, nor is it really representative (in my mind, at least) of it’s penetrating, expertly rendered themes.  It doesn’t really work on any level for me, actually.

    So my question is this: What are the odds on getting a title change, boys?  Both films are going to be in play this Oscar season so it’s fine to recognize that and steer clear of the confusion, but really, I think you can do better.

    It’s releasing next month, so probably no dice.  But, you know, just one guy’s opinion on a slow news day…

  • Mulligan, Renner, Daniels, Sidibe, Neustadter, Webb to receive Hollywood film fest awards

    Jeremy Renner in The Hurt LockerThe Hollywood Film Festival has become just another stop on the awards campaign trail these days, various publicists getting in the ears of festival directors to make sure their clients get their (in most cases deserved) props as the season takes hold, amping up the exposure, etc.  So with that in mind, the list of award recipients for this year’s Hollywood Film Festival have been announced.

    Carey Mulligan and Jeremy Renner will receive the Breakthrough Actress and Breakthrough Actor awards, having made an impact in “An Education” and “The Hurt Locker” respectively.  Mulligan seems a cinch for a lead actress Oscar nomination, while Renner, in the typically more competitive lead actor category, may be somewhat on the bubble.

    Lee Daniels will receive the Breakthrough Director Award for “Precious,” while the film’s star, Gabourey Sidibe, will received the New Hollywood Award.  Both deserve any and every awards notice they will get this season.

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  • Behind the scenes of ‘Nine’

  • 9/23 Oscarweb Round-up

    Hugh Jackman at the 81st annual Academy Awards• Hugh Jackman speaks out on his Emmy win and whether he’d return as Oscar host. [Vulture]

    • “A Serious Man,” Colin Firth the big winners in a Toronto critics poll. [indieWIRE]

    • Mary Pilon sits down with activist and star of “The Cove,” Ric O’Barry. [Speakeasy]

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  • Sorry for the lulls

    With Guy taking a much-deserved vacation and me crisscrossing the country (back West in San Fran now), consistency has been an elusive goal. Apologies.

  • Symphony

    Examining themes of faith, family and fortunes, “A Serious Man,” is a film about consequences, both unwarranted and equitable and a meticulously crafted film that demands a second viewing to soak up all the puzzle pieces and clues. It’s a picture you need to meditate on, but breathtaking is really the word for it. It starts out rather humdrum and unremarkable, but as the story builds, lilts, exhales and then crescendos, it’s like an incredible orchestra firing on every cylinder, virtuoso notes and vibratos being held just thusly.

    From Rodrigo Perez’s all-out rave of the Coen brothers’ “A Serious Man.”

  • 9/22 Oscarweb Round-up

    Jane Campion• Peter Bart takes note of two of the season’s leading ladies of the Oscar circuit, unlikely rivals Jane campion and Kathryn Bigelow. [BF Deal Memo]

    • Eugene Hernandez on the Oscar marathon. [indieWIRE]

    • Bilge Ibiri compares “The Insider” to “The Informant!” [Future of Classic]

    (more…)

  • ‘Where the Wild Things Are’: the video game

  • Sony Classics (busy, busy) also nabs ‘Get Low’

    (from left) Robert Duvall and Sissy Spacek in Get LowJust an hour maybe after I finished writing about why I had to take Robert Duvall out of the lead actor predictions (his film, “Get Low,” didn’t have a distributor yet), the news drops that someone has taken a bite: Sony Pictures Classics.

    Talk about priming the stable with ponies.  Sheesh!  Here’s the release, in part:

    Sony Pictures Classics announced today that they have acquired the North American rights for Aaron Schneider’s debut film, GET LOW. Schneider previously received an Academy Award for Best Live Action Short for his film, TWO SOLDIERS. The film is a co-production between Zanuck Independent, David Gundlach Productions, Lara Enterprises and TVN and produced by Dean Zanuck and David Gundlach. Chris Provenzano (THANK YOU, GOODNIGHT) and C. Gaby Mitchell (story by credit on BLOOD DIAMOND) penned the script…

    “GET LOW is one of the great films about the American South. Brilliantly written, directed and shot, GET LOW has career best performances from Robert Duvall, Sissy Spacek and Bill Murray. This is the kind of independent film the American audience loves to embrace. We are thrilled Dean and Aaron have chosen us as their partner,” said Sony Pictures Classics.

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  • PGA goes to 10

    In a move entirely expected, the Producers Guild has expanded its tally of nominated films to 10, just like AMPAS.  Key quote from the release:

    “The PGA board approved the expansion of our Best Produced Picture category nominations to support our colleagues at the Academy, but also because we feel it better represents the unprecedented diversity of films being produced today,” said PGA President Marshall Herskovitz in a statement.

    Sure.

    The PGA nominees will be announced January 5, four weeks before the Oscar announcement. The awards ceremony will take place January 24.

    Your thoughts?

  • POLL: What did you think of Matt Damon in ‘The Informant?’

    It’s been a LONG time since our last poll (and that “Avatar” trailer intriguingly split the readership right down the middle).  So I figured this weekend’s biggest awards-flavored release, “The Informant!,” was a good point of entry.

    One of our loyal readers asked in the Sunday Cents column whether Matt Damon’s performance had enough steam to make it into Oscar contention once the rest of the field has shown itself, and I think that’s a fair enough question.  I personally think it’s the actor’s best work to date and will have more than enough gas to get him there, but I’d like to know what readers thought of the work in general.

    So have your say in this week’s sidebar poll.  What did you think of Damon’s performance?  Expand further in the comments section if you like.

  • Sony Classics nabs ‘Lebanon’

    LebanonSamuel Maoz’s debut film “Lebanon” already won the Golden Lion in Venice and was probably on track to be a foreign language film contender before Sony Classics stepped up to the plate.  Now the trajectory seems all the more refined, and at the end of the day, SPC could wind up with three films in the mix (along with “A Prophet” and maybe “The White Ribbon”).

    The press release, in part:

    Sony Pictures Classics announced today that they have acquired all US rights to the Israeli film, LEBANON from Celluloid Dreams. The film is written and directed by Samuel Maoz, a co-production between Metro Communications and Ariel Films and produced by David Silber, Ilann Gerard and Benjamina Mirnik. This is Maoz’s first feature film.

    LEBANON joins the classic body of films and the growing collection of recent Israeli films in which filmmakers look at experiences of young people at war and try to make sense of it. Set almost entirely inside an Israeli tank, four young men set out on a mission in what turns out to be a trip filled with fear, anxiety and ultimately death and the revelation of what makes life worth living. Recently included in the recent Toronto Film Festival where the film played to great acclaim, LEBANON will also be included in the prestigious New York Film Festival.

    “LEBANON is of those important films that will last forever in the marketplace. We are honored to be bringing LEBANON to the American public,” said Sony Pictures Classics.

  • 9/21 Oscarweb Round-up

    Paul Bettany in Creation• Zooey Deschanel is off the market. [CNN]

    • “Creation”: “One of the most robust defenses of atheism and agnosticism ever to appear in a mainstream film.” [The Guardian]

    • The 10 principles of hybrid distribution. [indieWIRE]

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