In Contention

Tag: Beyonce Knowles

  • New AMPAS invitees include Sorkin, Hooper… and Beyoncé

    The annual announcement of the new members invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences — the latest batch of industry pros we get to blame for next year’s Oscar results — is a moment that always prompts as much satisfied head-nodding as bewildered head-scratching.

    The latter action isn’t always in response to unworthy choices (though I imagine many will deem the inclusion of, say, relatively unproven comedian-turned-movie-star Russell Brand premature), but more to the tardiness of others: every year, I find myself surprised that so-and-so wasn’t already a member. Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the first time they’ve been asked — not everyone accepts the invitation.

    I’m surprised, for example, that one of this year’s most esteemed Oscar champs, screenwriter Aaron Sorkin, is only now being brought into the fold. He’s one of a number of 2010 winners on this year’s list of 178 newcomers, including directors Tom Hooper and Susanne Bier, documentarian Charles Ferguson, writer David Seidler, editor Angus Wall, short filmmaker Luke Matheny and “The King’s Speech” producers Iain Canning and Gareth Unwin. A host of this year’s nominees are also joining, among them actors Jesse Eisenberg, Jennifer Lawrence, John Hawkes and Jacki Weaver, as well as female writer-directors Lisa Cholodenko and Debra Granik.

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  • Nothing good can come of this

    I tend to avoid reporting on projects at the pre-production stage, since they so often don’t pan out — if they were ever more than rumors to begin with. But it’s for that very reason that I bring this to your attention: if I mention it, that’ll hopefully put the hex on it ever happening. From the Guardian:

    Russell Crowe looks set to take a leading role in A Star Is Born, a remake of the classic Hollywood melodrama about a fading, drunken superstar who finds himself eclipsed by a younger model. The former Gladiator star is reportedly in talks to appear alongside Beyoncé in the Warner Bros production.

    Not horrific enough for you? Well, Nick Cassavetes (“My Sister’s Keeper,” “John Q,” “The Notebook”) is reportedly in the director’s chair. Uh, bring it on.

  • Grammy nods for ‘Basterds,’ Giacchino… and Steve Martin

    UpI’m always interested to see what cinematic musical achievements the Grammy Awards single out for recognition each year, largely because their pop sensibilities are so different (and their eligibility criteria so much looser) from those of the Oscars that they may as well exist on different planets.

    Last year, for example, they selected “The Dark Knight” as the year’s best score, though it didn’t manage a nomination from the Academy. A similar shaming shows up this year, as the Grammys show the respect for Bruce Springsteen’s “The Wrestler” theme that the Academy’s music branch did not.

    An earlier cut-off date means a few late-2008 titles show up here, including “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “Milk,” “Slumdog Millionaire” and “Cadillac Records” — a song from the latter counting for one of Beyonce’s field-leading 10 nominations, incidentally. (I won’t even say anything about the non film-related categories.)

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  • SUNDAY CENTS: ‘Obsessed’ impressed

    ObsessedAmerica liked it and they put a ring on it.

    Beyonce’s new thriller “Obsessed” topped the domestic box office this weekend with $28.5 million, adding another impressive performance to the budding actress’s career. Impressive box office performance that is.

    Whether or not Beyonce truly and gracefully inhabits the character of a woman forced to kick ass when some other crazy bitch starts stalking her man, I can’t be certain. This should easily make $70 million+ from a $20 million budget so all involved have just gotten a nice bonus.

    Despite gunning for the same target audience, Universal’s “Fighting” also performed admirably and earned $11.4 million for third place. You can’t accuse them of not being straight to the point and enough males or teens must have thought that a movie called “Fighting” had to be bad ass and worth their $10. Channing Tatum’s career lives to fight another day.

    Actual star power enters the fray at number four with “The Soloist.” Joe Wright’s once-Oscar hopeful earned $9.7 million, which is okay but not enough to justify moving out of the 2008 season. Even though audience reaction is bound to be positive, I just don’t see the legs being great here and a sub-$30 million finish won’t have anybody remembering these folks when ballots are due next year.

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  • Again, uh…

    Following yesterday’s thrilling/indifferent/perplexing (adjust according to age) revelation that Robert Pattinson is a likely presenter at Sunday’s Academy Awards, Sasha Stone has excavated some further hints as to who to expect on stage — and it seems Beyoncé Knowles, “High School Musical” tweens Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens, as well as young “Mamma Mia!” duo Amanda Seyfried and Dominic Cooper could all be in the mix.

    Beyoncé is a bona fide megastar and has been a regular fixture at the Oscars for some years now, so that at least makes sense. But what’s with the excessive pandering to the (pre)teen demographic? Do that many of them really watch the Oscars? Maybe they do — I’m just asking.

    But isn’t the inclusion of one pretty-but-sexually-unthreatening vampire a sufficient nod to the demographic? Efron on his own could be bearable, but let’s not kid ourselves into pretending that Hudgens, Seyfried and Cooper are movie stars just yet.

    With names like these, perhaps the whole “secret presenters” thing was just a ploy to avoid scaring us off.

  • TECH SUPPORT: Best Original Song

    Tech Support at In ContentionAs I said a few weeks ago, I would not analyze the last “tech” category until the eligible entries had been announced. Now that the Academy has named 49 finalists for Best Original Song, and with the BFCA and HFPA rattling off their list of nominees (though they are, admittedly, not great predictors), the time seems appropriate to have an in depth look into the category.

    It’s a good mantra to say “there are no locks” in this field. Since the rules were changed three years ago, forcing voters to watch the songs in the context of the movie, some surprises have certainly been in store.  Nonetheless, there are two titles this year I’d be very surprised to see miss the cut.

    The first is Bruce Springsteen’s title track for Darren Aronofsky’s “The Wrestler.” One of the most deserving winners ever in this category (for “Streets of Philadelphia”), his ends credits track seems poised to bring him his third Oscar nomination. In addition to the song perfectly fitting the film, it is also simply a great tune.

    I expect Springsteen to battle it out for the win with “Down to Earth,” the “WALL-E” tune from Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman.  Now here is a film whose performance in the precursors has absolutely shocked me (albeit in the best way possible). Gabriel has yet to have a hit with the Academy but he’s never written anything that was so Oscar friendly before either. And while Newman has yet to be nominated for a song, he’s never had a song in contention before and he’s also yet to win for his portfolio of classic scores.

    Admittedly, both these tunes only play at the end of the movie, over the credit roll. This seems to have become a disadvantage in recent years. But I still would be surprised if either title failed to make the cut when all is said and done.

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  • Looking for comedy in the awards world

    Over at his OscarWatch column, Dave Karger recently asked a question that has been bothering me for some time regarding this year’s awards race.

    Namely, how the hell are the Golden Globes going to fill out the ballot in the Comedy/Musical races?

    Best Actress looks solid enough. So far, we have two clear-cut frontrunners — Sally Hawkins and Anne Hathaway — in the Actress category, though I wonder if they will wind up placing Hathaway in the drama field, where I think she belongs. Meryl Streep will inevitably get cited for “Mamma Mia!” and I feel confident that Emma Thompson will grab a deserved nomination for “Last Chance Harvey.”

    Karger thinks Sarah Jessica Parker could round out the list, though I might look at Beyonce Knowles in “Cadillac Records” (much as the thought of her playing Etta James upsets me) or Rachel Weisz in “The Brothers Bloom” as alternative filler nominees. (The Globes don’t mind elevating supporting roles when there’s a paucity of contenders, though Weisz is a legitimate lead, in my opinion.)

    It’s the Best Actor category that’s really problematic. From what I can see, Dustin Hoffman has this in the bag for his endearing autumnal turn in “Last Chance Harvey” — not just because it’s a lovely performance, but because I can barely think of any competition for him. With the news that Josh Brolin has (rightly, I think) been denied comedic classification for “W.,” Karger thinks the other nominees might pan out like so:

    I’d also make the case for Paul Rudd, who anchors the current hit Role Models with his signature deadpan delivery, and Ghost Town‘s Ricky Gervais, who was brilliant in a sophisticated comedy that nobody saw. The HFPA could go the more obvious route with Get Smart‘s Steve Carell or Hancock‘s Will Smith, but here’s hoping they’ll think out of the box and recognize another understated humorist: Michael Cera from Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist. We can dream, right?

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  • Bond song battle goes on… and on

    Alicia KeysI’m taking yesterday’s news that Alicia Keys is the “top contender” to sing the theme song for “Quantum of Solace” with a grain of salt. I’ve had my eye on this story for a while, and since initial frontrunner Amy Winehouse became a hazy prospect, any number of names have been thrown into the pot.

    First it was (God help us) Beyonce. Then the Bond producers were apparently “set on” Leona Lewis. Then Duffy, a soul revivalist in the Winehouse vein, began dropping hints that she had the gig. Then Duran Duran. (You tell me why.) Then Annie Lennox. Even Jack White’s name has been bandied around. Now Keys.

    The Keys rumour appears moderately more credible than some of the others, but if so, she strikes me as an odd choice. All the best Bond themes (“Goldfinger,” “You Only Live Twice,” “Nobody Does It Better,” since you asked) project a sense of danger, sex appeal even, amid the lush arrangements. Keys’ edgeless, uber-earnest R&B just doesn’t fit the bill, to my mind.

    The names put forward so far suggest that the producers are looking for more of a throwback sound after the last two attempts at modernising the formula (Chris Cornell’s oddly dated-sounding “You Know My Name” and Madonna’s plain dismal “Die Another Day”) didn’t exactly set the world alight. The arrival of the Bond theme used to be an event in itself – the amount of press over this installment’s vocalist suggests the producers are trying to recapture that level of anticipation.

    You’d expect the year’s most discussed movie song to be a cinch for an Oscar nomination, whoever lands the gig, but history suggests otherwise. Only three Bond themes (“Live and Let Die,” “Nobody Does It Better,” and – ugh – “For Your Eyes Only”) have ever been nominated, all unsuccessfully. But with the slate of Best Song contenders this year looking sparser than usual, and “Casino Royale” having given the franchise a major boost in cred, the odds of a nomination look better than usual. The producers should therefore be especially canny about who they choose.

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