In Contention

Tag: Bright Star

  • Prepping for Telluride

    36h annual Telluride Film FestivalTomorrow morning I’m on a plane at 10:30 to the mountains of Colorado and the 36th annual Telluride Film Festival.

    This will be my first trek to the fest, which has always been, by many accounts, the most coveted detour of the fall festival season.  They keep it small.  The vibe is meant to be intimate, definitely an antidote to Cannes or Toronto, where the media frenzy stretches on for a week and a half.  Here we get four days in the refreshing thin air, and there are a number of films I’m looking forward to.

    The line-up used to be a tightly guarded secret.  It was a leap of faith.  You land, get the schedule, and then you know.  But news travels fast in a town like this, so more and more, the secrecy of Telluride’s schedule has leaked out over the years.  This year is no different on that front.

    “Up in the Air” from director Jason Reitman is way at the top of my list.  Something about the project is tugging at me, and that USA Today interview with the director yesterday did a lot to fan the flames.  Reitman had great success with “Juno” when he took it to Telluride in 2007, so he’ll be looking to duplicate that again as Paramount primes its Oscar pony.

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  • It’s not so dire, Mr. Friedman

    Shohreh Aghdashloo in The Stoning of Soraya MObviously Hollywood Reporter gossip hound Roger Friedman hasn’t been reading our Contenders section, or else he’d know there are plenty of lead actress hopefuls out there, not the dearth he apparently perceives.

    Friedman rattles off 12 contenders in a recent piece titled Shortage of “Best Actresses in the Coming Oscar Season,” but he misses some key possibilities.  Abbie Cornish in “Bright Star,” for one, who didn’t necessarily impress me much, but could certainly be in the hunt.  “Precious,” meanwhile, is considered a ripe opportunity for supporting contender Mo’Nique, but lead Gabourey Sidibe could certainly find her share of notices.

    Gwyneth Paltrow in “Two Lovers” and Zooey Deschanel in “(500) Days of Summer” are two extreme longshot contenders whose films have already been released, but Penelope Cruz deserves to be in the discussion for “Broken Embraces,” surely, as does Tilda Swinton in “Julia.”

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  • TECH SUPPORT: Best Art Direction — Volume I

    Michael Gambon in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood PrinceSets and props can create a time period, an era or simply the feel of a scene.  And the individuals involved in this process are awarded by the Academy in the category of Best Art Direction.

    Ironically, the art director of a film is not recognized here. Rather, the production designer – the art department and design head – is awarded alongside the set decorator, who is in charge of the props and overall dressing of the set.

    Like Best Costume Design, which I covered a few weeks ago, this category has a tendency to reward period pieces. Even so, fantastical features do tend to show up more often, with nominees frequently overlapping the two genres, seen in a winner such as “Pan’s Labyrinth.”

    John Myrhe has triumphed in this category for both of his collaborations with Rob Marshall, and I fully expect him to earn his fifth nomination this year for “Nine.” Recreating the Italy of Federico Fellini will put his talents to the test.

    Janet Patterson has found herself a three-time nominee for her costume work. This year, she is also acting as production designer of Jane Campion’s “Bright Star.” Every indication we have from the film so far is that both her work and the film will be the sort that this branch will embrace.

    Sarah Greenwood has managed two nominations in recent years for collaborating with Joe Wright, both for “Atonement” and “Pride & Prejudice.” With “Sherlock Holmes,” she will once again be recreating a period England, albeit on a much larger scale. If the film proves popular, I fully expect Greenwood to be in the hunt.

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  • Paul Schneider: Someone get this guy a movie

    Paul Schneider in Bright StarAt one of the countless awards show this past Oscar season, Meryl Streep took to the stage to accept an award, announce a clip from “Doubt,” something, I can’t remember, but somewhere along the way she mentioned her respect for actress Viola Davis and exasperatingly belted, “Someone get her a movie!”  The indication, of course, was that Davis is clearly an actress with chops who has been grinding away at supporting role after supporting role and, if given the chance, could light up the screen in a leading role.

    To many of us who’ve been feeling the same way for a number of years, a big, “Thank you,” was all we could say to that.

    I remembered this moment today when I sat down to commit my thoughts on Jane Campion’s “Bright Star” to print, because while the film, with its moody lingering and awkward emotional disconnect (it did not affect me in the slightest), doesn’t work on a number of levels, it most certainly announces, once again, that actor Paul Schneider is ready for some intrepid producer or director to take a chance on him.

    It’s unfair to say that Schneider (who, full disclosure, attended my alma mater and shares some mutual acquaintances with your humble host) hasn’t had a chance at a leading role.  After all, his big coming out party was David Gordon Green’s (also a fellow alum) “All the Real Girls” in 2003.  In that film Schneider showed real promise, but it was perhaps muted given the independent setting and the fact that co-star Zooey Deschanel took off, while Schneider kept grinding out solid background work.

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  • Apparition logo

    Bob Berney and Bill Pohlad’s new distribution company got a new name last week.  You’ve read all about it.  Today at a screening of “Bright Star” (which did not work for me — at all — but more on that next week), I saw this image on the front of the press notes.  I imagine it will be the new logo, but I don’t know.  It’s either brave to have a brand this confusing at first glance or really stupid.  I haven’t decided yet.  Plus, the logo implies a reflection, not an apparition, which should, I don’t know, appear more ghostly or something.  What do you think?

    Apparition

  • TECH SUPPORT: Best Film Editing — Volume I

    (from left) Leonardo DiCaprio and Michelle Williams in Shutter IslandBest Achievement in Film Editing.  It’s a difficult phrase to define.  To a large extent, excellence in film editing can be editing which blends into the film, allowing the director’s vision, screenwriter’s story and actors’ performances to shine without interference.  But equally, a film that stands out as a showcase for flashy but motivated construction deserves recognition as well.

    What is certain, however, is that in the absence of editors, our films would all be more than three hours long, largely incoherent and/or tremendously boring.

    This category has historically displayed a strong correlation to the Best Picture line-up.  Last year marked a return to a typical situation – four of the five films nominated for Best Film Editing were also nominated for Best Picture, with the fifth being an action film.

    From 2005 through 2007, however, things were a bit shaken up with a two-to-five ratio.  At the end of the day, however, Best Picture contenders, thrillers and actions films always do quite well here.

    The other genre that frequently finds a home in this category is musicals.  Cutting dance numbers coherently and blending between dialogue and songs consistently clearly impresses this branch.  In light of this, I’d call “Nine”’s Claire Simpson the early favorite.  A past winner for “Platoon,” she returned to the game after a 19 year absence two years ago with “The Constant Gardener.”  Barring the film flopping, I’d say Simpson is good to go.

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  • Apparition will release ‘The Young Victoria’ Stateside

    Emily Blunt in The Young VictoriaBob Berney’s new outfit is filling out nicely, having acquired “Bright Star” out of Cannes, announcing plans to release Terrence Malick’s “The Tree of Life” in 2009 last week and now, snatching the domestic rights to Jean-Marc Vallee’s “The Young Victoria.”  Anne Thompson has the scoop:

    Over the weekend, Apparition closed a U.S. distribution deal for Toronto Film Festival closer The Young Victoria, starring Emily Blunt in what could be her breakout role carrying a movie as the youngest British monarch. As is typical these days, the new distrib run by Bob Berney and backer Bill Pohald did not put up a minimum guarantee, but rather beat out several competitors (including Miramax, Overture and Roadside Attractions) by committing to $4.5 million in P & A and a 250-screen release. Appariiton will open the movie November 13.

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  • Berney/Pohlad’s Apparition to release Malick’s ‘Tree of Life’

    (from left) Bob Berney and Bill PohladWe can all stop using “Unnamed Bob Berney/Bill Pohlad Company” to classify the domestic distribution of Jane Campion’s forthcoming “Bright Star.”  Apparition, as the new indie distributor is calling itself, had something of a coming out party today announcing the new moniker and, the real newsy item, that Terrence Malick’s “The Tree of Life” will be one of the films domestically released under its banner.

    Bob Berney is one of the good guys, so I was pretty bummed when Picturehouse closed up shop last year, not least of all because it was one more death knell for indie cinema but because a smart guy didn’t have a ship to steer.  The news of a new company, with partner Bill Pohlad, was good enough for me, but only Campion’s film (acquired at Cannes) was in the mix.

    No release date has been set for Malick’s film yet, but the film is surprisingly expected to receive a 2009 bow.  There was confusion for a while in some quarters that Summit Entertainment would be releasing the film in the US, but that company was only ever involved with the international release, I believe.

    Full press release after the jump.

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  • OFF THE CARPET: Whittling further as convention flees

    Max Records in Where the Wild Things AreAnother month, another step closer to the awards season.  As the summer winds down and the industry slowly begins to square itself with the off-season’s bombshell Oscar news, the picture becomes a little clearer.  Kind of.

    Universal Pictures, in a move speculated upon endlessly by now, shuffled two of its contenders — Paul Greengrass’s “Green Zone” and Joe Johnston’s “The Wolf Man” — off to 2010.  As Anne Thompson shrewdly noted in a recent item, the decision likely has everything to do with a numbers game.  The studio has experienced a rocky two quarters this year and things aren’t necessarily looking up.  Some think, in the case of “The Wolf Man,” the shift was made to avoid another box office misfire in 2009 (as by now, with push after push, the film is beginning to smell fishy).  Others say the “Green Zone” shift had a lot to do with “The Hurt Locker”‘s release pattern.

    Whatever the case, the evacuations change the Oscar landscape ever so slightly, giving us just a few more talking points in the vacuum of August before we have anything of value worth discussing when the fall festival season hits in less than a month’s time.

    Universal is now left with two critically divisive, commercially dubious titles in Michael Mann’s “Public Enemies” and Judd Apatow’s “Funny People” to hawk for awards consideration, effectively (if you’re asking me, though I realize no one is) taking the studio out of the game this year — or, at the very least, making the hill steeper.

    But taking note of the studio awards landscape, it doesn’t seem to me that anyone else is on surer ground.  As I look out at the many contenders and the campaigns being prepared for them, it appears the entire industry will be dealing with unconventional approaches and product to go along with the new changes in the Best Picture category (and all the headache that comes with them) this season.

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  • TECH SUPPORT: Best Costume Design — Volume I

    (from left) Ben Wishaw and Abbie Cornish in Bright StarMovie stars are often given much attention for the fashion that they sport off-screen. Seldom does the on-screen attire garner as much publicity.

    Nevertheless, the Academy Award for Best Costume Design recognizes those talented men and women who design the threads actors wear on screen. Not only does this work add to the elegance and authenticity of the film, but it can also express the character and the period, mood and setting of the piece.

    For the last three years, this category has chosen films which have highlighted the extravagant attire of the upper class from centuries ago. Period films almost always triumph in this field and, in fact, garner the vast majority of nominations, though a spot or two is usually reserved every year for a fantasy effort.

    This is also a category which tends to reward designers who have been around a long time, with most nominees every year having been in the race before, although a spot or two is almost always reserved for a newcomer as well. And unlike many other crafts categories, the costume branch does not seem averse to nominating a film which scores in few if any other places.

    The most likely nominee this year, if not the most likely winner (sight unseen, of course), might be Janet Patterson for “Bright Star.” This Jane Campion effort was very well received at Cannes in May and the crafts look exquisite. Patterson, who landed two of her three previous nominations for Campion collaborations (“The Piano” and “Portrait of a Lady”), looks likely to return to the race after 12 years. I’d be surprised if she failed to be nominated.

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  • WEEKLY WRAP: Comic-Con, a taste of ‘Avatar’ and ‘Alice’

    Comic-Con• Comic-Con was the week’s big story, with 25 minutes of footage from “Avatar” its major talking-point so far.

    • Meanwhile, the rather less glitzy sci-fi of “District 9” wowed the crowds.

    • And Gary Oldman slipped some unexpected news about the next Batman installment.

    • Good week for trailers, as both “Alice in Wonderland” and “Bright Star” offered a crazyglimpse of their goods.

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  • 7/22 Web Round-up

    Charlotte Gainsbourg in Antichrist• John Campea rattles off a list of the six movies he’d love to see but that will never happen. [The Movie Blog]

    • Patrick Goldstein translates Bob Weinstein’s classified in search of a new assistant. [The Big Picture]

    • Chloe Fox talks to “The Ugly Truth” star Gerard Butler about “mixing the rough with the smooth.” [Daily Telegraph]

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  • ‘Bright Star’ trailer

    Yahoo! Movies had the exclusive.  Here’s the embed. Bad call on the narration:

  • Catching up with the ten

    Abbie Cornish in Bright StarIt slipped my mind to update the Oscar nomination predictions I made in early June, which were looking sorrily outdated with a scant 5 Best Picture nominees. (What a difference a month makes!)

    Anyway, if only to get with the 10-strong program, it was time for a midsummer tidy, so my updated predictions can be found here.

    Aside from doubling my Best Picture ranks, I’ve limited myself to mild tweaks elsewhere — after all, with most of the big players still unseen, I’m as clueless now as I was before. As I said back in June, I believe in having fun at this early stage in the game, so I’ve retained a few wildcard inclusions and omissions.

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  • ‘Bright Star’ poster

    Where is the poster creativity these days?  This, the ghastly “Funny People” one-sheet, the rather uninspired “An Education” art work, I can’t take it anymore:

    Bright Star

    (Courtesy: Vulture)

  • TECH SUPPORT: Best Cinematography – Volume I

    Saoirse Ronan in The Lovely BonesLIGHTS…CAMERA…you were probably waiting for the word “action,” no? Action is, after all, what many individuals go to a film to see. But the “lights” and the “camera” in this classic phrase bring a film beyond a book or a radio show…and capture the “action.”

    The individuals who paint the images of cinema with light and composition are rewarded in the Oscar category of Best Cinematography. Cinematographers are pivotal in the making of any film and it is thus unsurprising that directors often continuously work with the similar camera heads.

    Like many cinephiles, I must say this is my favorite of the so-called “technical” categories and I eagerly anticipate the race every year.  This year is no exception.

    Australian D.P. Dion Beebe might seem to be leading this year’s lenser race with his third collaboration with Rob Marshall, the musical adaptation “Nine.” Despite not being cited by the Academy for some of his more innovative work (see Michael Mann’s “Collateral”), Beebe has been previously nominated for 2002’s “Chicago” and won the Oscar in 2005 for “Memoirs of a Geisha.” “Nine” will give him the opportunity to pay homage to Federico Fellini while also capturing sprawling musical numbers, a feat this category tends to reward.

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  • ‘Bright Star,’ ‘Precious,’ ‘Informant’ and 19 more to play TIFF

    Matt Damon in The Informant!The Co-Directors of the Toronto International Film Festival took to the stage this morning at the first of three summer press conferences to begin announcing the slate of films that will comprise this, the 34th annual Toronto International Film Festival.

    This morning’s announcement of 22 titles brought some pleasant surprises, as well as some expected announcements.

    The Opening Night Gala will be Jon Amiel’s “Creation” featuring Paul Bettany as Charles Darwin and Jennifer Connelly as his wife.

    There were several Gala Presentations announced, among them “Get Low,” a film featuring the great Robert Duvall as Felix Breazeale, a backwoods eccentric who exiles himself from society for more than 40 years. Bill Murray and Sissy Spacek co-star with Oscar winner Duvall.

    As expected, Lee Daniels’s festival circuit hit “Precious” will land in Toronto, already an Oscar contender, as well as “The Invention of Lying,” directed by Ricky Gervais and Matthew Robinson.

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  • TECH SUPPORT: Kicking the tires on a new season

    Daniel Day-Lewis in NineToday marks the beginning of a fourth year of Tech Support here at In Contention. Over the past four years, we’ve sought to bring the otherwise under-reported crafts categories and crafts artists the attention they seldom receive, despite their enormous contributions to the art of cinema.

    This year, we plan on looking at nine of the categories – Art Direction, Cinematography, Costume Design, Film Editing, Makeup, Original Score, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing and Visual Effects – twice thoroughly between now and the morning the nominations are announced. Best Original Song will be previewed once, when we have a better idea of eligible contenders.

    I will be offering the analysis of these categories but Kris will also be joining me for the first time this year with Tech Support features and interview pieces throughout.

    Last year, a contemporary film – “Slumdog Millionaire” – managed to triumph in five of the 10 categories, a truly remarkable achievement, while “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” unsurprisingly took three others.  (Meanwhile, the year’s blockbuster “The Dark Knight” managed one.)  It will be interesting to see whether this year will be seen as having tech sweepers like “Millionaire” and “Button” or a greater spreading of the wealth, as we saw in 2007, when eight different films shared the 10 crafts awards!

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