In Contention

Category: Daily

  • All hail the Bagger

    As anyone who follows the ever-growing, ever-working and ever-sniping world of Oscar blogging knows, no one does it with more wit, insight or eloquence than the New York Times’ David Carr — or, as he chooses to be known for the next couple of insane months, The Carpetbagger.

    Unlike the witless Harold Robbins novel for which he is named, however, The Carpetbagger has serious smarts. A seasoned media journalist and author (check out his superb memoir, “The Night of the Gun,” if you haven’t already), he treats film awards season as the intricate political labyrinth that it is, but with a fine, ever-present sense of irony. Okay, I’m gushing, but he’s special.

    So it’s a thrill to see him make his entrance on the 2008 derby — at the sensible starting point of late November, unlike us year-round lunatics — with an extensive introductory column, and a brand-new logo:

    The column is a great catch-up session for those just tuning into the race now, laying out most of the big contenders and their occasionally bumpy journeys thus far. A lot of it is familiar territory to regular awards-watchers — Weinstein vs. Rudin on “The Reader,” the Cinderella story of “Slumdog Millionaire,” Kate Winslet’s two-pronged awards attack — but it’s economically assembled, with admirable attention to detail. (Did you know that Winslet has size 11 feet? Before reading this, I didn’t.)

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  • Thanks for waiting

    Sorry for ducking out yesterday — it was a Saturday of multiple distractions. Normal service to resume shortly.

    In the meantime, for your listening pleasure, here’s “O… Saya,” the sensational A.R. Rahman/M.I.A. cut from the “Slumdog Millionaire” soundtrack. It won’t get anywhere near Oscar night, of course — though I’m brazenly predicting that the film’s exuberant Bollywood-inspired closer, “Jai Ho,” will not only be nominated for Best Original Song, but will win.

    Still, close your eyes, listen to this and imagine M.I.A. on the Kodak stage instead of, say, Miley Cyrus or  whatever drek they choose to nominate instead.

  • 11/29 Oscarweb Round-up

    Slim pickings today, but then what did you expect? Think of this as your leftover turkey sandwich.

    • The estimable Michael Wilmington goes to bat for “Australia” in a big way. [Movie City News]

    • Meryl Streep discusses her “career renaissance.” Uh, when did her career ever fade? [Los Angeles Times]

    • Simon Hattenstone talks to Benicio Del Toro, concludes he’s “Hollywood’s finest mumbler since Brando.” [The Guardian]

    • Here’s a refreshingly un-PC list: the top 10 movies (and TV series) that made us want to smoke. [Premiere]

    • Jeff Wells looks into the mysterious disappearance of Sean Penn from Wayne Kramer’s “Crossing Over.” [Hollywood Elsewhere]

    • David Poland chats to two extraordinary ladies: Michelle Williams and Kristin Scott Thomas. Our interview with the latter will appear next week, by the way. [The Hot Blog]

    • John Campea digs into that old chestnut — the iffy movie careers of the “Friends” cast — but curiously fails to mention “The Opposite of Sex” or “The Good Girl.” C’mon, credit where it’s due. [The Movie Blog]

    • Well, at least “In Bruges” has won something. [Irish Times]

  • WEEKLY WRAP: ‘Button,’ ‘Reader’ screen… uncertainty reigns

    • After a false start, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” was finally unveiled, to considerable applause… but is it too chilly?

    • Maybe. In his gutsy early predictions, Kris names “Slumdog Millionaire” the one to beat.

    • InContention readers, however, are less sure.

    • In a week of revelations, “The Reader” also screened — but the response on these pages was ambivalent.

    • Not everyone agrees, however. Which has us asking where this leaves Kate Winslet’s Oscar chances.

    • Amid the confusion, this week’s Off the Carpet column drew the conclusion that 2008 simply isn’t a vintage year.

    • Onto surer things, we wondered whether Heath Ledger is the inevitable winner of this year’s Best Supporting Actor Oscar. Your answer? A resounding yes.

    • Mapping out some alternative possibilities in the Best Documentary Feature race.

    • An interview with with “Changeling” scribe J. Michael Straczynski.

    • Just in case you hadn’t heard the name “Benjamin Button” enough this week, we were treated to the film’s score.

    • On the other side of the pond, meanwhile, “Mamma Mia!” continues to break records. Does BAFTA beckon?

  • Karger narrows it to eight

    For this week’s edition of Entertainment Weekly, Dave Karger has boiled down the Best Picture race to a mere eight horses. The no-surprises list reads as follows:

    1. “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
    2. “Slumdog Millionaire”
    3. “Frost/Nixon”
    4. “Revolutionary Road”
    5. “Doubt”
    6. “Milk”
    7. “The Dark Knight”
    8. “Australia”

    Nothing much to comment on, really. Karger remarks that, in the wake of “Milk”‘s rapturous critical reception, he would now move it further up the chart. Meanwhile, he considers dropping “Australia,” presumably in favour of one of his runners-up, “The Reader” or “Gran Torino.”

    However you shake it, though, it still makes for a pretty yawnsome list of the usual suspects. He’s probably right, of course. But is it too late to jazz up the competition with a fresh contender? “The Wrestler?” “Happy-Go-Lucky?” Hell, I’ll settle for “WALL-E” at this point. Go on, Academy, surprise us. Please.

  • ‘The International’ to kick off Berlin

    Screen International reports that Tom Tykwer’s latest, “The International,” has been named the opening film of next year’s Berlin Film Festival. The thriller, starring Clive Owen and Naomi Watts (now there’s a good pairing), will have its word premiere at the fest, screening out of competition on February 5.

    The trailer’s been out for some time, but if it passed you by, check it out below. Looks smart, slick and star-propelled, if hardly a reinvention of the wheel. I’d love to see Tykwer return to the heady formal ambition of “Run Lola Run” or the criminally underrated “Heaven” (Cate Blanchett’s best performance right there, folks), but after the disappointingly overcooked “Perfume,” I can’t blame him for playing it safe here.

    Meanwhile, with this and the recently previewed “Duplicity” marking back-to-back corporate thrillers for Owen, I wouldn’t mind seeing this fine actor take on something a bit more challenging. Solid-looking stuff nonetheless.

  • Early winner predictions, part 2: Yours and mine

    Well, Kris was brave enough to stick his neck out and venture some winner predictions, so I thought I’d follow up on that — with the strict caveat that, while nobody knows anything, I frequently know even less.

    So my own predictions are after the cut. I don’t think them informed enough to place on a main page, but in the interests of diversity (and maximum egg-on-face potential), there they are. I was interested to see that, judging from the impressive response to Kris’ initial post, you readers and I are of a like mind in several areas. I specifically waited until after I’d drawn up my own foolhardy picks before looking at yours, and was surprised by some of the parallels that emerged.

    So let’s take a look at how you voted, shall we? I see some enterprising commenter on Kris’ post has already collated the data and drawn up percentages, and short of drawings up bar graphs and pie charts, I wouldn’t want to compete with that kind of specificity. (Seriously, I wouldn’t.) But even without getting mathematical, some trends are clear.

    In the top category, I expected to be in a significant minority picking “Milk,” but you have it breathing hotly down “Benjamin Button’s” neck as the frontrunner, with 11 and 13 votes respectively. A mere two of you side with Kris in picking “Slumdog Millionaire,” which, obtuse creature that I am, makes it the smarter choice in my mind. And yet, thrilled as I would be to see Team Boyle onstage come Oscar night, I can’t quite go there. Right now, “Milk” ticks too many boxes: dazzling reviews, emotionally charged, politically relevant, a more accessible effort from a long-revered filmmaker. It makes almost too much sense to me.

    Things are less tight in Best Director, where David Fincher enjoys over half your votes, with Danny Boyle and Gus van Sant (my choice) neck-and-neck for second place.

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  • Goldstein singles out ‘Gran Torino’ scribe

    After being kept under wraps for so long, word is finally starting to emerge on Clint Eastwood’s presumed awards contender, “Gran Torino.” Dave Karger already expressed his approval of Eastwood’s performance a few days ago, and now Patrick Goldstein also gives the film a firm thumbs-up.

    Calling it “a heartfelt portrait of human redemption,” Goldstein also suggests that it “couldn’t (be) a nicer swan song” for Eastwood’s acting career, as has widely been reported. What he seems most impressed by, however, is the film’s screenplay — and he’s shocked to discover it’s a fledgling feature effort by unknown writer Nick Schenk:

    The script was so well crafted and understated (and the credits went by so fast) that after seeing the picture, I immediately called Bill Gerber, one of the film’s producers, to find out which one of the many A-list screenwriters who must always be knocking down Eastwood’s door had penned the story. “Are you sitting down?” Gerber asked. He had quite a surprise. The writer, Nick Schenk, who lives in Minnesota, had never sold a feature script in his life. In fact, the only writing work Schenk had done was for “BoDog Fight,” a mixed martial arts TV show, a game show called “Let’s Bowl” and some comedy sketches collected in a DVD called “Factory Accident Sex.” (“That title doesn’t exactly help my career, does it?” Schenk jokes.)

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  • The Streep question

    Meryl Streep in DoubtWill she be nominated for a performance Todd McCarthy and even our own Kris Tapley found underwhelming? Of course she will, because all due respect to both, they are wrong.

    I finally saw “Doubt” this week, and as other critics are making clear, Streep does some of her best work in the film. Whether or not she will win is another question, and the chances of that are becoming less each day as we hear more and more about Kate Winslet, who will become the Streep-esque actress of her generation, if she already is not.

    Watching Streep at work in “Doubt” I was amazed at her choices and how correct they always were. She chooses to portray this nun as an Old Testament type, no spoil the rod for her, hell, whack the kid in the head when he slouches, punish them when necessary, and always believe you are acting in their best interests. She is never wrong in the film, at least her character never believes she is wrong, and that sense of righteousness is what makes her character so terrifying. Stalking the halls looking for trouble, wanting to find it, she brings to the part a ferocity that is alarming in its intensity, wholly right for the role. And of course it’s a different take than Cherry Jones gave us on stage.

    Has any actor portrayed Hamlet the same? Or Romeo? Or Richard III? Or let’s go modern and ask about Brando’s Kowalski compared to Treat Williams on TV or Alec Baldwin on stage?  Streep chose a different interpretation, a quieter one that works for the cinema because unlike the stage, the camera misses nothing…NOTHING!

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  • 11/28 Oscarweb Round-up

    • David Poland is still in two minds about “Benjamin Button,” but agrees with Kris that “Slumdog” is the one to beat. [The Hot Blog]

    • Kim Voynar, meanwhile, surveys the Best Picture contenders, and is as confused as the rest of us. Interesting point about the potential impact of current events on “Slumdog,” though.  [Movie City News]

    • One Richard on another: with the adaptation of “Revolutionary Road” looming large, Richard Price offers his impressions of Yates. [The Guardian]

    • William Friedkin on the shifting makeup of the movie cop. [The Guardian]

    • Under the threat of the actors’ strike, Screen International calls for a meeting of minds. [Screen Daily]

    • Amid the mixed reactions to “Australia,” Susan King concludes that we still need the epic. [Los Angeles Times]

    • Al Pacino pips Dakota Fanning for the top gong in Lou Lumenick’s holiday-appropriate Turkey of the Year awards. [New York Post]

    • And, keeping it seasonal, a selection of notable DVD releases, in time for your Christmas wishlist. [New York Times]

  • Word

    Roger Ebert has written an eloquent and impassioned response to what he sees as the demise of film criticism as an artform, prompted by the depressing news that the Associated Press has posed a 500-word limit on all entertainment-related articles, including all reviews and think pieces:

    Why do we need critics? A good friend of mine in a very big city was once told by his editor that the critic should “reflect the taste of the readers.” My friend said, “Does that mean the food critic should love McDonald’s?” The editor: “Absolutely.” I don’t believe readers buy a newspaper to read variations on the Ed McMahon line, “You are correct, sir!” A newspaper film critic should encourage critical thinking, introduce new developments, consider the local scene, look beyond the weekend fanboy specials, be a weatherman on social trends, bring in a larger context, teach, inform, amuse, inspire, be heartened, be outraged.

    Exactly, sir. And 500 words just doesn’t cut it. Hell, the reviews I write here are twice that, more often than not. 500 words is an exam question answer. 500 words is an eight-grade book report. 500 words is not usually an adequate space in which to stimulatingly engage with, dissect, and reassimilate a work of art. Chances are anyone who finds longer pieces too challenging doesn’t read reviews anyway.

    I don’t need critics to tell me whether to see a film or not. I have my own instincts for that. I need critics (good ones, at any rate) to test and expand my understanding of the film after the fact. A great critic, be it Pauline Kael, David Denby or Ryan Gilbey, offers an interpretation that, whether it contradicts or consolidates my own, reveals alternative possibilities within the work at hand. If you limit their imaginations to a paltry word limit, you limit those of their readers too.

    Of course, if all you want from a film review is a star rating, you’re probably not reading this. If you are, I encourage you to read Ebert’s full piece here.

  • Under the radar: ‘What Doesn’t Kill You’

    Quite why the Yari Group has chosen the mid-December maelstrom to unload “What Doesn’t Kill You” is something that escapes me. Brian Goodman’s debut film was warmly received at Toronto and then seemingly disappeared from people’s memories altogether, only to resurface now with this rather enticing trailer. But with such a late arrival, it seems to me that a small-scale endeavour like this risks getting lost in the crush.

    All the more frustrating, then, that from where I’m standing, it looks really rather good, in a lean, no-nonsense kind of way. It’s yet another entry in the ever-growing subgenre of Boston crime stories, but appears to have some genuine grit and conviction. It’s inspired by Goodman’s own experiences, and is co-written by Donnie Wahlberg. (Who knew?)

    I’m excited to see such an evidently expansive role for the wonderful Mark Ruffalo, while Ethan Hawke apparently continues his interesting career trajectory from baby-faced heart-throb to scuzzy character actor. Reviews are on the mark so far: Variety calls it “a fine example of traditional American storytelling,” while the Hollywood Reporter believes it to be a career high for both Ruffalo and Hawke. No mean feat, that. Count me in.

  • Kate Winslet: going for broke?

    I’m getting so many mixed messages about “The Reader,” I don’t know what to make of it anymore. Some concrete reviews would help, but the embargo is obviously still in place. I admit I’m unfamiliar with the intricacies of the business, but I’m not sure how beneficial it is to withhold word on a late arrival with see-sawing buzz. (I think Nat Rogers summed it up well by giving the film a citation for “Weirdest Foreplay of 2008.”)

    As we know, Kris wasn’t entirely persuaded by the film, dropping it from a couple of key categories on his chart, and declaring Kate Winslet an “outside shot” for Best Supporting Actress. Winslet, of course, is the film’s most-discussed contender, with many anticipating dual nominations for her come January.

    Tom O’Neil was hearing opposing voices yesterday, and now Dave Karger has weighed in. Humming quite a different tune from Kris, he calls the film “a definite top-10 Best Picture contender,” and Winslet’s performance “amazing.” (Can anyone remember the last time Karger really disliked a contender? I’m just asking.)

    He does, however, smell blatant category fraud, an issue Kris didn’t really have a problem with. But with the Weinsteins dodging lead categories entirely — campaigning both Winslet and co-star Lena Olin for Best Supporting Actress, and both and David Kross and Ralph Fiennes for Best Supporting Actor — Karger smells a rat:

    Now, other movies, like Crash and Babel, have tried this tactic before with some success. But those two were indisputably ensemble films, whereas The Reader, which spans five decades, clearly has two main characters: one shared by Kross and Fiennes and the other played entirely by Winslet. Obviously, the all-supporting decision is meant to keep Winslet from competing against herself (she’s up for Best Actress for Revolutionary Road), but now that I’ve seen in print, it does seem a little disingenuous.

    If the Weinstein Co. had placed Kross in the Best Actor category (he has much more screen time than Fiennes), there would have been at least one official lead to speak of. Still, if the Academy follows the campaign directives, it’ll turn out to be a smart move, since Winslet’s amazing performance in The Reader should be a sure thing for a supporting nomination.

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  • Clint Eastwood growls through the opening of Best Original Song contender

    Gran TorinoI like Clint.  I really do.  I’m sticking up for him against all this timidity regarding his “cranky old guy” performance in “Gran Torino” because I know the role is something special.  Despite considering his recent string of success to be the most overrated era of any filmmaker’s career, I’m glad he’s out there making movies.  In the face of sudden disgust with his latest film, “Changeling,” I went to bat for him and even thought it to be his best work in quite a while.

    Basically, I’m no Clint basher.  But even I have to stop and wonder why the hell he’s singing in the opening verse of this Best Original Song contender for “Gran Torino.”  Suddenly I have the ole’ Adam Sandler sketch in my head: “There all gonna laugh at you!”

    Have a listen…if you dare (apologies for the crude recording…had to do it manually and I’m knee deep in holiday packing):

    [display_podcast]

  • Grace

    A little something to get you in the spirit. (Remember Christina Ricci’s cool days? I miss those.)

    No holiday for me, of course — lousy unthankful non-American that I am. So I’ll be holding fort around here for the next few days, while Kris takes a well-deserved breather. It’ll be quieter than usual, but feel free to keep me company.

  • 11/27 Oscarweb Round-up — THANKSGIVING EDITION

    • EW rounds up eight memorable Thanksgivings at the movies. “The Ice Storm” wins for me. No contest. [Entertainment Weekly]

    • Anne Thompson on the indies hoping to score in the acting races. [Variety]

    • Dave Karger lays out the Oscar prospects for “Milk” and “Australia.” [Entertainment Weekly]

    • Todd Martens reports on some alternative Best Original Song contenders. Yay for Jenny Lewis. Boo for Mariah Carey. [Los Angeles Times]

    • Miyazaki’s “Ponyo on the Cliff” has an English-language voice cast. Step up Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon and Tina Fey. [The Guardian]

    • Some Oscar predictions from the ever-perspicacious pen of Nick Davis. [Nick’s Flick Picks]

    • And Brad Brevet weighs in with some updated picks of his own. [Rope of Silicon]

    • A.O. Scott calls “Milk” a “marvel.” I’m starting to think we might have our winner here. [New York Times]

    • Uh, so apparently TomKat are remaking “Last Tango in Paris.” April Fools’ Day was, like, eight months ago, but whatever. [SpoutBlog]

    • Finally, just to cheer you up on your day of gratitude, Hollywood is doomed. [Forbes]

    Sorry, I made it as festive as I could. Happy Thanksgiving, y’all.

  • First set of winner predictions

    Clint Eastwood in Gran TorinoBefore the holiday I thought I’d make my first calls on the year’s Oscar winners.  Bear in mind we don’t even have a list of nominees yet and anything can happen.  I think around this time last year I was predicting “Into the Wild” for across-the-board wins and it only managed two nominations at the end of the day, so, grain of salt and all that.  I just like to go on the record around this time, so here we go:

    Best Picture: “Slumdog Millionaire”
    Best Director: Danny Boyle, “Slumdog Millionaire”
    Best Actor: Clint Eastwood, “Gran Torino”
    Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
    Best Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger, “The Dark Knight”
    Best Supporting Actress: Viola Davis, “Doubt”
    Best Adapted Screenplay: “Slumdog Millionaire”
    Best Original Screenplay: “Milk”
    Best Art Direction: “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
    Best Cinematography: “Defiance”
    Best Costume Design: “The Duchess”
    Best Film Editing: “Slumdog Millionaire”
    Best Makeup: “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
    Best Music – Original Score: “Defiance”
    Best Music – Original Song: “The Wrestler”
    Best Sound Editing: “The Dark Knight”
    Best Sound Mixing: “The Dark Knight”
    Best Visual Effects: “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
    Best Animated Feature Film: “WALL-E”
    Best Documentary Feature: “Man on Wire”
    Best Foreign Language Film: “Captain Abu Raed”

  • Sigh

    Screen Daily delivers the bewildering news:

    Day one sales of “Mamma Mia! – The Movie” have beaten “Titanic”‘s record, to become the fastest selling DVD of all time in the UK. Sales reached 1.669 million units, following its launch on November 24.

    The previous record for day one DVD sales was held for 10 years by James Cameron’s Titanic. It sold 1.1 million units on its first day of release in 1998 in the UK.

    This is just the latest milestone in a truly staggering journey for the film that has already seen it become the second-highest grosser of all time in the UK, again breathing down the neck of “Titanic.” Meanwhile, with a worldwide cume of other $560 million, it is handily the highest-grossing musical of all time. Words fail me.

    I sense at this point that BAFTA will be unable to ignore the homegrown phenomenon. (Hell, people are making similar demands on AMPAS regarding “The Dark Knight.” Better film, but try telling that to the 1.6 million Brits who rushed out to the DVD store this week.)

    So I’m officially predicting right here that “Mamma Mia!” will be nominated for Best British Film come January. I’m also banking on a Best Actress nom for Meryl Streep, whether in place of or alongside “Doubt.” (BAFTA permits actors to be nominated twice in a category.) Julie Walters, as I mentioned earlier, looks like an inevitable Best Supporting Actress candidate.

    Finally, I’d count on a scattering of craft nods — sound, costume design and music. (Again, BAFTA’s curious rules make it eligible in this category — “Chicago,” “Walk the Line” and “Dreamgirls” all made it.) And hell, why not throw Amanda Seyfried into the mix for their Rising Star Award?

    So, that makes seven BAFTA nominations. I’m just saying. Forewarned is forearmed.