In Contention

Category: Daily

  • Sight & Sound names ‘Social Network’ best of 2010

    It’s been five years since an American film topped the annual poll of venerable British film mag Sight & Sound, and even longer since a major studio picture took the honor. So congratulations are in order to “The Social Network,” which received the most votes across the selection of 85 international critics invited to submit their top five films of 2010, following in the footsteps of “Brokeback Mountain,” “Hidden,” “4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days,” “Hunger” and “A Prophet.” (The last-named film appears again in this year’s list, thanks to the votes of critics who came to it later.)

    That David Fincher’s film should have won out in a poll traditionally dominated by world arthouse cinema suggests it could well be the most-favored title in next month’s avalanche of US critics’ awards, positioning it as the discerning voter’s alternative to more milquetoast bait in the Oscar race. “The King’s Speech,” of course, doesn’t even come near the magazine’s Top 12 (usually a Top 10, extended due to ties); indeed, of all films even remotely in the Oscar conversation, only “Another Year” and “Winter’s Bone” (surfacing in some interesting places, that one) feature.

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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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  • Taking questions for Oscar Talk

    Totally dropped the ball on this yesterday (of course), but maybe you guys are lurking and can squeeze a few queries in before Anne and I get to the podcast.  PLEASE KEEP IT TO ONE QUESTION, and as usual, stray from stuff we’ve already covered.

  • Tell us what you thought of ‘The King’s Speech’

    Opening in theaters today is “The King’s Speech,” largely considered the frontrunner for this year’s Best Picture Oscar and an audience charmer since it first bowed at Telluride (where I saw and greatly enjoyed it).  I also talked to the film’s director, Tom Hooper, and stars Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush at the time, so I guess that deserves another link.  Guy, however, had a different take at London fest.  But now the jury’s out on public perception.  Tell us what you thought if you get around to giving it a look this weekend.

  • 11/26 OSCARWEB ROUND-UP: The hairy task of ‘Tangled,’ Britain’s Oscar potential, Julianne Moore a best bet?

    • Steve Pond chats with “Casino Jack” star Kevin Spacey. [The Odds]

    • Rebecca Keegan writes up the hairy task of creating Rapunzel in “Tangled.” [24 Frames]

    • Marc Lee thinks it’s looking up for Britain at the Oscars this year. [Daily Telegraph]

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  • Tell us what you thought of ‘Love & Other Drugs’

    By request.  Also opening this holiday spread is Edward Zwick’s “Love & Other Drugs.” I wasn’t the biggest fan of the film when I saw it last month, and Anne had similar misgivings when we discussed it on Oscar Talk.  But give us your take in the comments section below.

  • 11/25 OSCARWEB ROUND-UP: Dubbing ‘Tangled,’ ‘King’s Speech’ discourse, Portman talks the trade

    • How did Rapunzel become “Tangled?”  Directors Nathan Greno and Byron Howard set the record straight. [Inside Movies]

    • Peter Sciretta posts alternate, unused poster artwork for “Inception.” [/Film]

    • Jenelle Riley talks “The Fighter” with the film’s prickly star, Christian Bale. [Backstage]

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  • From ‘Snow White’ to ‘Tangled’: Disney’s 50 toon features

  • Listen to Owl City’s ‘To the Sky’ from ‘Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole’

    The Warner Bros. screener pack arrived yesterday afternoon and I immediately noticed an original song contender on the sleeve for Zack Snyder’s “Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole.” I hadn’t yet seen the film so I popped it into the player last night to see where and how the track was utilized.

    Owl City’s “To the Sky” is a poppy ditty used mid-way through the film as part of a montage and is then reprised as the first cue on the closing credits.  Even in a slim pickings race like the one we’re seeing unfold this year, I’d say it doesn’t have much of a shot at a nomination, but it’s an eligible contender nevertheless so it deserves a mention here.

    I quite liked the film, by the way.  Snyder’s vision and cinematic sense really stands out, even if his penchant for slow motion begins to grate after a while.  When he saves it for unique dramatic instances, it has a real impact.  But regardless, the animation is gorgeous and I’d have loved to catch it in the theater.

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  • Tell us what you thought of ‘Tangled’

    It seems forever ago that I offered my positive thoughts on Disney’s “Tangled,” which hits theaters today.  I’m happy to see the film being met with such critical approval, but I’d love to hear your thoughts, too.  So if you give it a look over the holiday, come on back here and give us your take.  And if I can get my butt into gear on it, I’ll try to have a lengthy interview with the film’s legendary composer, Alan Menken, some time soon, perhaps tomorrow for an added Thanksgiving treat.

  • Stephen King’s top 10 films of 2010

    Entertainment Weekly columnist (and a dabbler in fiction) Stephen King is the first out of the gate this year with a top 10 list, beating the usual early likes of Peter Travers et al to the punch.

    King’s lists are always, shall we say, unique.  They generally lean toward the populist and make it rather obvious year in and year out that the author couldn’t possibly have seen everything there was to see in a film year.  And as you might imagine, genre fare is usually dominant.

    This year is no different.  Of COURSE this is his top 10 list.  Makes perfect sense.  And while his #1 couldn’t have been more predictable (given what he likes and what he’s written about the film), I wonder — was the original even on his radar?  (Answer: Nope.)  Anyway, check back Friday for Oscar Talk and an announcement regarding this year’s top 10 list (mine and Anne’s).  King’s full list (dug up courtesy of /Film) after the jump.

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  • Videos du jour

    A number of videos have been making the rounds this week, so I figured I’d consolidate.  Starting with Facebooking Aaron Sorkin’s sharp dialogue:

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  • 11/24 OSCARWEB ROUND-UP: Kunis on her ‘Machinist’ impression, Hammer talks twinning, bad boy celebrity

    (Ended up unexpectedly taking the day off yesterday.  Not that I’m complaining.)

    • Anne Thompson talks to “Secretariat” star Diane Lane. [Thompson on Hollywood]

    • Mila Kunis on dropping to a bony 95 pounds for “Black Swan.” [E! Online]

    • Dave Karger, meanwhile, wonders if the actress can score an Oscar nod alongside co-star Natalie Portman. [Inside Movies]

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  • ‘Brighton Rock’ trailer

    I’m not sure who at The Guardian called Rowan Joffe’s new adaptation of “Brighton Rock” a “masterpiece,” as this new trailer boasts they did — I like to think they were talking about Graham Greene’s still blood-fresh source novel instead. From where I’m standing, Joffe’s directorial debut, which I reviewed out of the London Film Festival last month, stands as one of the year’s most bewildering disappointments: from its fundamental misread of the text to its tonally scattered ensemble to its egregiously aggressive score. Still, it apparently found enough fans to scoop four BIFA nominations, so there’s no accounting for taste. I’d almost lay money on a 2011 Oscar nod for Best Art Direction, too — that is, if a US distributor ever steps forward. It hits UK screens in February, just in time for BAFTA eligibility.

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  • AMPAS pays tribute to Jeremy Thomas

    It’s not as formal an honor as one of the Governors’ Awards they dished out last week, but nonetheless, Thursday will find the Academy still in a laudatory mood as they cross the Atlantic to celebrate the career of boundary-busting British producer Jeremy Thomas. AMPAS is holding a Thomas tribute evening in London, with Keira Knightley, Stephen Frears and Cannes festival director Thierry Fremaux among those taking part.

    It’s heartening to see the Academy acknowledge a globally-minded career that has largely been dedicated to shepherding milestone films most of their voters wouldn’t touch with a bargepole: Nicolas Roeg’s “Bad Timing,” David Cronenberg’s “Crash” and “Naked Lunch,” Nagisa Ôshima’s “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence,” Jonathan Glazer’s “Sexy Beast” and so on.

    He’s still busy, to: two of his productions, “Essential Killing” and the superb “13 Assassins,” were in competition at Venice in September, while 2011 will see him renew his partnership with Cronenberg for the eagerly awaited (by me, at least) “A Dangerous Method.”

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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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  • Listen to Avril Lavigne’s ‘Alice’ from ‘Alice in Wonderland’

    It’s slim pickings in the original song category this year. I didn’t even get around to featuring anything last week and diving back in today, I see there’s just not much to choose from.

    So I’ll go with Avril Lavigne’s “Alice” from Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland.” It’s on the furthest outskirts of contenders for a variety of reasons, not least of them being that it’s simply a credits cue and isn’t used in the film, so that won’t really light the branch’s fire in the screening stage of the process.

    Apparently Lavigne approached Disney to contribute to the film. Personally, it drives me (and my ears) nuts. But it’s one of the qualifying tracks in the hunt so it deserves its moment along with the rest.  Have a listen to “Alice” after the jump, and as always, keep up with the Best Original Song category via our dedicated page here.

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  • Bears repeating

    Some at the reception were disturbed to see The Wrap’s Sharon Waxman, in her trademark blunt style, grilling folks, notebook in hand, about Chasen’s murder. Finally, this cross-section of the film community not only mourned the loss of a friend but of a way of working, a civilized discourse, and the arrival of a more tabloid sensibility in Hollywood coverage, especially of Chasen’s violent death.

    From Anne Thompson’s report of Ronni Chasen’s funeral yesterday.