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  • Well, it sure sounds pretty

    If, like me, you’re writhing in frustration at not having seen “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” yet, here’s some minor compensation — you can listen to it instead. The score, that is.

    As you’re surely aware, it’s by Alexandre Desplat, who happens to be my favourite modern composer. That his only Oscar nomination thus far has come for his comparatively unadventurous work on “The Queen” is a shamefully inadequate testament to the creative breadth of his oeuvre.

    His balancing of romanticism and minimalism in “Birth” made for the greatest score of the decade, in my opinion, while the snubbing of his lush, culturally expansive score for “Lust, Caution” was just one of numerous ways in which the Academy’s music branch proved themselves unfit for purpose last year. I could go into his equally gorgeous work on “The Beat That My Heart Skipped,” or “Girl With a Pearl Earring,” or “A Self-Made Hero,” or several other titles, but time is of the essence.

    Anyway, suffice to say that his “Button” score sounds as layered, intelligent and seductive as you’d expect from Desplat — I can’t imagine the music branch turning a blind eye (or ear) to him this time. I only listened to a little, as I want to experience it in its entirety for the first time in the context of the film… I’m pedantic that way. But if you’re so inclined, check it out on the film’s BAFTA For Your Consideration site.

  • Is Vera Farmiga about to go big?

    I love Vera Farmiga.

    I realize that means nothing to you, and I should remain more analytical and level-headed on this site. But we all have our favorites, and Ms. Farmiga is one of mine. Whether cheekily stealing scenes in “Breaking and Entering” or fearlessly carrying the searing “Down to the Bone,” she has an unusual onscreen empathy and intelligence that has long reminded me of pre-stardom Cate Blanchett, which is about the highest compliment I can pay.

    Since surprising virtually everyone by taking the 2005 LA Critics’ Best Actress award for “Down to the Bone,” she has seemed on the cusp of big things, but things haven’t quite clicked into place. She should have been an Oscar contender the next year for her precise, sexually calibrated turn in “The Departed,” but she somehow slipped by unnoticed amid the testosterone-charged ensemble. Oscar rumblings have been heard again this year for “Nothing But the Truth,” but the film doesn’t seem to be generating much heat.

    So I was excited to learn today that she’s landed her most mainstream lead role to date: a romantic comedy opposite George Clooney, no less. “Up in the Air” will be the third feature from this year’s surprise Best Director nominee, Jason Reitman, which makes for an intriguing match-up of talent all round. Variety reports as follows:

    Story centers on a human resources exec whose only joy in life comes from the prospect of notching his millionth frequent-flyer mile, a goal he pursues with zeal as the rest of his life falls apart because he is constantly on the road.

    Farmiga will play a businesswoman who develops a romantic relationship with Clooney’s character through meetings in airports and hotels around the country. Reitman adapted the screenplay from Walter Kirn’s novel of the same name.

    (more…)

  • ‘Notorious’ poster

    Not to be confused with the one by Hitchcock. (Just in case you thought that was Cary Grant in the poster.)

    Anyway, a little over two months since the trailer appeared for George Tillman Jr’s biopic of the Notorious B.I.G., comes this rather uninspired poster. It’s set for release in the January wasteland (in time for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, if I’m not mistaken), which isn’t the best omen. Still, it’s a great subject for a film, and that cast is promising. We’ll see.

  • POLL: Is Heath Ledger a lock to win Best Supporting Actor?

    We really need a new poll this week.  That “Wrestler” query has run its course (the majority of you thinking, no, the film won’t suplex its way into the Best Picture line-up).

    This week, inspired by Guy’s post below, I figured we’d ask a question that has been on everyone’s mind for a few months now: Does Heath Ledger have the Best Supporting Actor Oscar sewn up for his performance in “The Dark Knight?”

    So…let us know in the sidebar poll!

  • Ledger: is it written?

    When running through the list of contenders of next year’s Academy Awards, most will agree that there are no safer bets than Heath Ledger picking up a Best Supporting Actor nomination for “The Dark Knight.” He’s been locked in for the best part of the year… no argument, no dissent, no negotiations.

    Many people seem to believe that a win is equally inevitable. He’s certainly the one to beat, with a mighty combination of factors in his favour — the sentimental appeal of honouring a sorely-missed star (whom many feel should have won for earlier work), a universally-praised performance well on its way to iconic status, and a clear chance to acknowledge the highest-grossing film of the decade thus far. It helps that the category isn’t exactly teeming with strong contenders this year.

    But is he actually unbeatable? Jeff Wells doesn’t think so:

    Almost every New York journalist I’ve spoken to over the past week or so seems to believe that “Dark Knight”‘s Heath Ledger is more or less a lock to win the Best Supporting Actor Oscar. He’s favored, of course, but my Ray Walston antennae tells me it’s no done deal. I’m not feeling a blitzkreig momentum, and I’m sensing that “Revolutionary Road”‘s Michael Shannon, who appears in only three scenes but delivers a wham-bam effect like no other supporting performance in any other film this year, may have a shot at stealing it away.

    Wells isn’t the only one exercising caution. In a slightly curious (to me, at least) take on the frontrunners in the acting categories, Awards Daily’s Sasha Stone runs down the category as follows:

    Heath Ledger seems to be the frontrunner but I have my doubts on a posthumous Oscar win, followed by Michael Shannon for “Revolutionary Road,” Ralph Fiennes for “The Reader” or “Duchess,” Robert Downey, Jr. for “Iron Man” (could win), John Malkovich for “Burn After Reading” or “Changeling.”  James Franco or Emile Hirsch or Josh Brolin for “Milk,” can’t decide – this is the year’s most wide open category at the moment.

    (more…)

  • ‘Reader’ revealed

    Stephen Daldry’s “The Reader” has begun it’s big Oscar season reveal after behind-the-scenes drama has defined the film for a number of months. Dare I say it — given the circumstances — but the effort feels rushed. It’s an oddly disorienting narrative that takes some time settling into an emotional groove, but when it does, it packs affecting punch.

    The weird thing is it feels like the last 123 minutes have transported me back to the mid-1990s. This is a film that recalls the heyday of Harvey Weinstein’s grip on this time of year, perhaps in atmosphere more than quality. It should be no surprise, then, that Anthony Minghella is one of the producers attached. There are echoes of his work throughout, and really, Daldry might be the only filmmaker with the right doses of prestige and dramatic flavor to take up Minghella’s mantle.

    I’ll get into more later, but I have to mention Nico Muhly’s exemplary score and exquisite photography from Chris Menges and Roger Deakins, both credited. Stand-out particulars.

  • ‘Button’ reviews run hot and, well, cold

    UPDATED: Slow on the uptake again, the Hollywood Reporter finally offers the unqualified rave we’ve been awaiting. Gushing praise in all departments, including a big thumbs-up for Pitt (“his most impressive outing to date”). Blanchett, meanwhile, “illuminates the screen.” No issues with digital or emotional aloofness to be found.

    EARLIER: A couple of days ago, in the midst of his generally positive take on “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” Kris mentioned that the work felt “strangely cold.” It was an observation rather than a criticism, and Kris suspected he may be in a minority.

    Well, reading the first few reviews, it would appear that he isn’t. Todd McCarthy’s near-rave for Variety describes the film as “richly satisfying” but also “emotionally cool,” blaming the film’s extensive CG work for a slightly distancing effect:

    Fincher spends 13 minutes short of three hours telling this unique man’s life story, and the time goes by easily, with no sense of dawdling, waste or indulgence. The film evinces a sure hand that maintains narrative confidence, steadiness of tone and a mature awareness of the temporal nature of life’s opportunities and the fleeting quality of happiness.

    Still, for what is designed as a rich tapestry, the picture maintains a slightly remote feel. No matter the power of the image of an old but young-looking Benjamin, slumped over a piano and depressed about his fading memory and life; it is possible that the picture might have been warmer and more emotionally accessible had it been shot on film.

    McCarthy also appears to share Kris’ view that Cate Blanchett is the more dominant presence in the film:

    In all his physical manifestations, Benjamin is a reactor, not a perpetrator, and Pitt inhabits the role genially, gently and sympathetically. Blanchett’s Daisy is the more volatile and moody one and, after bluntly revealing the selfish impetuousness of Daisy’s youthful self, the thesp fully registers both the passion and insecurity of the mature woman.

    (more…)

  • Out and about

    Mostly silence on my end today.  I’m pushing the Oscar column to tomorrow due to a screening of “The Reader” this morning.  Might as well get one more under my belt before tackling an update.  This time next week “Gran Torino” will be out of the way, then it’s up to Sony when they want to drop the curtain on the season’s offerings.  As far as I know, no “Seven Pounds” screenings have been announced.

    I’ll touch base briefly with a “Reader” reaction around noon-ish, then back again in the evening.

  • Consider this

    Okay, so I’m not really advocating it. But this has to be one of the best FYC ads I’ve seen so far this season. Whatever other failures “W.” can claim, marketing is not one of them:

  • The docs you aren’t considering

    Whenever an awards shortlist is announced, people will inevitably spend as much time, if not more, pondering its omissions as they will its inclusions. And so it has been this week, in the wake of the Academy’s announcement of the 15 titles shortlisted for Best Feature Documentary.

    Some are curiously kvetching that Bill Maher’s sporadically amusing but ultimately pedestrian “Religulous” got slighted, instead of commending the Academy for looking beyond the obvious. Others (including yours truly, admittedly) are puzzled that the excellent “Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired” didn’t make the cut, while some are surprised that last year’s winner in the category, Alex Gibney, was frozen out this time. (Well, had “Gonzo” been half the film “Taxi to the Dark Side” was, he might not have been.) And then there’s “American Teen” and “Bigger, Faster, Stronger” and … well, you get the idea.

    The conclusion to draw from this is twofold. First of all, in this category, name recognition isn’t always a deciding factor. Second of all, and more simply, the shortlist is, even with these high-profile exclusions, a markedly strong one. Boiling it down to fifteen titles was clearly a harder task than one might have guessed.

    I’m not sure enough people are recognising the breadth and the depth of the competition in this category. Amid the various reactions I’ve read to the shortlist, I’ve noticed the same small handful of contenders coming to the fore: “Standard Operating Procedure” from previous champ Errol Morris, “Encounters at the End of the World” from the long-slighted Werner Herzog, Sundance victor “Trouble the Water,” and the film widely deemed the one to beat, “Man on Wire.”

    I’m less convinced. Yes, they’re all highly acclaimed conversation pieces. (Well, almost — Morris’ film appears more polarising than the rest.) Yes, they all have enjoyed comparatively prominent releases. But, like the notoriously wilful Best Foreign Language Film category, this category doesn’t always reward a high profile. For every time they’ve embraced a populist frontrunner like Michael Moore, they’ve ignored a supposed shoo-in. Just ask, well, Errol Morris and Werner Herzog — both previously snubbed for some of their most lauded work.

    (more…)

  • Day of rest

    Washington Redskins

  • Oh you crazy gangsters

    If you can’t rub ’em out, sell ’em out.

    The notorious Camorra crime syndicate is selling bootlegged DVDs of “Gomorrah,” the film that mercilessly exposes its activities and is Italy’s hopeful in the foreign-language Oscar race.

    Camorra members may not like being scrutinized on the bigscreen, but apparently business must go on.

    (Courtesy: Variety)

    Check out my interview with “Gomorrah” author and screenwriter Roberto Saviano here.

  • Another ‘Button’ trailer

    Sorry if this is turning into “Benjamin Button” weekend, but what else are people talking about?

    Here’s a new international trailer, and I must say it’s the most coherent and full-bodied one I’ve seen so far. It’s interesting that this one places for more emphasis on the Benjamin/Daisy romance than previous efforts — particularly in light of the growing buzz around Cate Blanchett’s performance. (Seriously, why are some people surprised? She’s Cate friggin’ Blanchett — of course she’s going to be awesome.) Anyway, enjoy:

  • 11/23 Oscarweb Round-up

    WALL-E• Variety moves deeper into the awards season features world with a Golden Globes preview. [Variety]

    • Within said preview, yours truly spotlights actors and actresses straddling the line between comedy and drama this season. [Variety]

    • Patrick Goldstein says make the Oscar nod announcement a prime time event like the Grammys. [The Big Picture]

    • The 20 greatest movie car chases.  “The Dark Knight” should be higher, but it’s hard to argue with #1. [The Times]

    • Andrew O’Hehir wonders what’s behind the cult of “WALL-E.”  Me too, frankly. [Beyond the Multiplex]

    • Peter Bart dishes on the kudos season of chaos, but if he’s finally getting to Thursday’s botched “Button” screening, surely it’s time to put that story to bed, right? [Peter Bart]

    • Speaking of “Button,” Karina Longworth is down on the film. [Spout Blog]

  • For your consideration: ‘The Dark Knight’

    For Your Consideration: Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight

  • ‘Button’ drops (UPDATED with audio)

    Taraji P. Henson in The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonUPDATED (5:30 p.m.): Alright, now that I’m home and away from the shuffle, I can unfold some further thoughts on this.  Judging by the mood of the room — mostly guild members and industry types, a lot of press folks have decided on the 6:00 screening — the verdict is a big thumbs up.  Lots of positive thoughts dished about all around.

    I spoke briefly with Kathleen Kennedy, who has seen this project go up and down, back and forth for 18 years.  We talked about the visual effects in the film and how refreshing it is that this innovative work came within such a cerebral and affecting story.  “Jurassic Park” (which she also produced) has held the industry effects crown for 15 years, and now, a new leap forward.  Though director David Fincher has said from the start that he and his crew weren’t particularly sure whether they could pull it off, Kennedy took solace in her filmmaker’s professionalism.

    “When you bring in a director like Steven [Spielberg] or David [Fincher], you trust their instincts when it comes to that stuff,” she said.  “They come along with this giant tool box and they know which tool to use for this or that.”

    I also chatted with Eric Roth for a good while, screenwriter-to-screenwriter type stuff.  He really did work wonders with this story, and picking his brain for the reasons behind this decision or that can be a lot of fun.  One of the odd reactions I took away from the film, however, was that the work felt strangely cold.  I wasn’t sure whether I meant that in a good way or a bad way, and surely, people were crying their eyes out over this thing, so I might be in a minority.  Perhaps it’s my youthful cynicism, who knows, but I thought Fincher brought an arm’s length approach to the emotions in the film and I wanted Roth’s reaction to that.

    Of course, Roth doesn’t particularly agree with my take.  Indeed, he was right in the middle of telling me how the bathroom was filled with sobbers after the screening when a beautiful young lady walked up to us and told him how much the movie had affected her.  But he took my comment in stride.

    “Fincher is the kind of director that brings you right up to the point of sentiment and then brings it back,” he said.  “There’s something to be said for that I think.”

    (More, plus audio of tonight’s Q&A, after the jump.)

    (more…)

  • Let’s try this again…

    I’m off to the rescheduled “Benjamin Button” screening this afternoon, so here’s hoping the digital equipment at the Paramount Theater is up to snuff.  Better yet, let’s hop ethey actually got a print together (probably not).

    I’ll report back around 2:30 PST or so.  But there are a few opinions on the film already out there, some positive, some negative, some mixed.  Could “Slumdog Millionaire” really be pulling into the poll position?  It’s the one film that seems to capture the hearts of everyone.

    Anyway, stay tuned…

  • 11/22 Oscarweb Round-up

    Tilda Swinton• Jeffrey Wells hangs with the “Revolutionary Road” crew in the Big Apple. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

    • Ditto Glenn Kenny, who moderated the post-screening Q&A. [Some Came Running]

    • David Poland waxes on about how much he thinks “Revolutionary Road” fails, and judging by his charts, clearly hasn’t seen “Australia” yet. [Movie City News]

    • Steve Gaydos reports on a Rod Lurie event at UCLA for “Nothing But the Truth.” [Thompson on Hollywood]

    • Peter Sciretta talks to Pixar honcho John Lasseter. [/Film]

    • Pete Hammond thinks there’s a hex on Paramount screenings because of a couple of snafus of late, reports from a “Doubt” reception. [Notes on a Season]

    • Which songs will get the ole’ Oscar shove for “High School Musical 3?” [Gold Derby]

    • Simon Hattenstone meets with the “contradictory” Tilda Swinton. [The Guardian]

    • Eugene Hernandez and Peter Knegt debate the documentary shortlist. [indieWIRE]