In Contention

Tag: Christopher Plummer

  • David Poland’s Oscar underdogs … where are the ladies?

    Tilda Swinton in JuliaFor those of you bored of reading the same ever-narrowing list of names in the assorted Oscar-speculation pieces across the web, David Poland’s latest column is a slight breath of fresh air.

    Decrying the fact that many pundits are making ludicrous long-shot calls like “This Is It” for Best Picture, while ignoring more deserving contenders who could use the attention, Poland provides a list of less-hyped contenders in the top categories that he feels merit consideration.

    His definition of the term “underdog” ranges from genuinely fanciful contenders (Catherine O’Hara and James Gandolfini for “Where the Wild Things Are,” “In the Loop” for Best Picture) to names still very much in the race who  have lately lost a bit of steam (Matt Damon, Jeremy Renner and Viggo Mortensen, all in the Best Actor category).

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  • First stab at winner predictions

    Chris Pine in Star TrekI don’t offer up predictions on a given year’s Oscar winners until November, generally speaking.  And, well, it’s November.  Which is still, of course, too early to be making calls like these, since we don’t even have a nominations slate to go by, but I like to take an early stab, revisit in early December and then one more time in early January before we get the nominees.

    I asked over the weekend what readers thought would take the Best Picture crown this year, and the majority seemed to lean toward Lee Daniels’s “Precious.” It might be too easy to figure on that at this stage, but it’s difficult to argue with the early box office success and overall critical approval.

    But there are certainly other spoilers lurking and the danger of peaking early (yielding more time for competitors to take you down) is always apparent with a film like this.

    Keep reading to have a look at what I’m thinking.  Rattle off your thoughts and predictions in the comments section if you like.

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  • OFF THE CARPET: Looking at the supporting gentlemen

    Paul Schneider in Bright StarIn recent weeks we’ve been covering the performance categories in this space.  With little else of tangible interest, what else can we possibly discuss?  It’s as good a time as any to take note of what we have on our hands.  Be sure to check out our looks at Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress if you missed them.

    (Speaking of which, with the rise of “Crazy Heart” in this year’s race, it goes without saying Jeff Bridges and Maggie Gyllenhaal should be added to their respective fields as they are very much in this year’s race.)

    At first glance, the Best Supporting Actor category looks fairly established this season.  There have been, after all, a number of contenders already and plenty more to come.  But none have really stood out from the pack yet, making this race actually as up for grabs as any other.

    Possibly the most agreed-upon contender in the field has to be Christoph Waltz, who took acting honors in Cannes for his villainous portrayal in Quentin Tarantino’s “Inglourious Basterds.” Waltz has made for quite the story off-screen as well, given his latter-career lift-off.  And even detractors of the film (yours truly included) have to consider his performance a highlight of the year so far.

    If anyone gives considerable chase here it’s going to be Christopher Plummer, smartly shifted to a supporting focus for his performance as Leo Tolstoy in “The Last Station.” Plummer will have sentiment (never been nominated) and added visibility (also appearing in “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus”) on his side.

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  • The Great Performances: 1999

    Terence Stamp in The Limey1999 was a strange year.  And it’s hard to believe a full decade has slipped past since.  There were some great award-winning performances, to be sure, but there seemed to be just as many not nominated that certainly should have been.

    Ten years later, I remain stunned that Reese Witherspoon was not nominated for her brilliant work in “Election” as a pathologically ambitious, grasping social climber student doing anything it takes to head up the student council in Alexander Payne’s astute and black comedy.

    Witherspoon won the National Society of Film Critics award for Best Actress, besting eventual Oscar, LAFCA and NYFCC champ Hilary Swank in “Boys Don’t Cry.” What made Witherspoon’s work so incredible was that we all must have known a Tracy Flick during our high school days, and the actress created such an accurate depiction.

    Swank was a most deserving winner for her superb performance, winning over nominees, Annette Bening in “American Beauty,” Janet McTeer in “Tumbleweeds,” Julianne Moore in “The End of the Affiar” and Meryl Streep in “Music of the Heart” (perhaps the perennial Oscar favorite’s least accomplished nominated performance).

    Bening’s performance was brilliant, she won the Screen Actors Guild award for it, and though there seemed to be a swell of support for her as Oscar night approached, there was no denying Swank for her career-altering work.

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  • Christopher Plummer talks Tolstoy, “S&M” and his under-the-radar film career at AFI Fest

    Christopher Plummer was feted at AFI Fest Tuesday evening and I popped in for the brief toast before heading over to an unrelated Gala screening.  LA Weekly’s Scott Foundas was the moderator for an all-too-brief back and forth with the actor, who comes off as someone with whom you’d like to have a drink or 10.

    Some of the discussion was dedicated to Plummer’s memoir, “In Spite of Myself,” and a little bit of “The Last Station” thrown in here and there as well.

    I grabbed a couple of quick videos of the event. iPhone vids, mind you, so no 1080p detail going on here, but decent audio. Here’s Plummer discussing his work developing and performing the “character” of Mike Wallace in Michael Mann’s “The Insider,” which leads to discussion of his role in Michael Hoffman’s Tolstoy biopic, which will likely land the actor his first ever Oscar nomination, for Best Supporting Actor.

    Two more quick vids after the jump.

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  • ‘Fish Tank,’ ‘Woman Without Piano,’ ‘Ajami’ honored at AFI

    AjamiLife came calling earlier this week, so unfortunately I wasn’t able to make it to as many AFI Fest screenings and events as I had hoped.  I did catch Terry Gilliam’s “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus,” however (a bizarre, confusing misstep with a wonderful performance from Heath Ledger) and “Everybody’s Fine” (D.O.A.).

    I also caught the tribute to Christopher Plummer, who makes it known that he doesn’t want to discuss “The Sound of Music” in interviews, but given the tribute setting, poor Scott Foundas had to bring it up, right?  After some mumbling, Plummer finally shouted, with an uncomfortable smile, “Why did you ask me that?!”  I thought said tribute could have run a little longer than 20 minutes, but it was a modest event plugged in just before the festival screening of “The Last Station.”

    Anyway, the festival has announced this year’s New Lights Competition award winners, a designation that “was created to acknowledge and honor vital, groundbreaking films by first and second time feature filmmakers from around the world,” according to AFI. Andrea Arnold’s “Fish Tank” and Javier Rebello’s “Woman Without Piano” shared the honor.

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  • OFF THE CARPET: Looking at the leading gentlemen

    Colin Firth in A Single ManWe’ve taken concentrated looks at the lead actress and supporting actress categories in recent weeks.  Now let’s turn our attention over to the fellas.

    Behind the Best Picture race, of course, the lead actor competition is perhaps the most hotly anticipated award of a given Oscar telecast.  Movie stars are born, Hollywood staples are rewarded and careers leap to the next level.  It makes for an intriguing annual state of the union as it pertains the the film industry’s talent roster.

    This year, one of Hollywood’s brightest stars finds himself right at the front of the conversation.  George Clooney is likely to end up with his third acting Oscar nomination, for Jason Reitman’s “Up in the Air,” and he’ll owe much of that to Reitman’s powerful work on the page.

    Clooney doesn’t give his best performance to date in the film.  But the material is so cleverly built around his persona that one can’t blame the actor for saddling up to a role that fits like a glove.  And there is something to be said for the bravery of taking one’s image on like that.

    Colin Firth, meanwhile, has caused a critical stir with his leading performance in Tom Ford’s “A Single Man.” He has already won the Venice Film Festival’s acting honor and has been tapped for another at February’s Santa Barbara Film Festival.  He is pitch-perfect in the film, giving a refined performance of nuance and gesture.

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  • Enter AFI

    AFI FestI haven’t had a chance to preview/write-up AFI Fest due to some a dizzying weekend and family obligations, but I should probably do that with the festivities entering a fourth day.

    “Fantastic Mr. Fox” kicked things off last week and with the festival moving from the Arclight on Sunset to the historic Chinese Theatre on Hollywood, there is, I’d wager, a glitzier vibe to things this time around.  The galas are coming fast and furious, the most recent being a big spread for “Precious” last night.

    Speaking of which, at an after party for the film at the Chateau Marmont, Oprah Winfrey was on hand to introduce singer Mary J. Blige, who performed original song contender “I Can See in Color” to a standing-room-only crowd.  It was the first time the tune had been performed publicly.

    Tonight I’ll finally cross paths with “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus,” one of a slew of films I hope to catch up on at the fest. The only big reveal for me will be “Everybody’s Fine,” which screens tomorrow night and could instantly put Robert De Niro in the thick of the Oscar hunt (more on that in today’s Off the Carpet column).

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  • WEEKLY WRAP: Foxes, festivals and foreign contenders

    Fantastic Mr. Fox• The 53rd annual London Film Festival kicked off with Wes Anderson’s “Fantastic Mr. Fox” — we reviewed it here.

    • Speaking of festivals, the AFI Fest unveiled its own complete lineup, with “Fox” and “A Single Man” as its bookends.

    • This week’s edition of The Long Shot considered the extensive possibilities for black, gay and female filmmakers in this year’s awards race.

    • With actors like Meryl Streep and Christopher Plummer straddling lead and supporting territory this year, we addressed the awards category shuffling that may lie ahead.

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  • OSCAR TALK: Ep. 6 — Foreign, animated, ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox,’ Plummer and more

    Oscar TalkWelcome to the sixth installment of Oscar Talk, a weekly awards-centric kudocast featuring yours truly and Anne Thompson of indieWIRE’s Thompson on Hollywood.

    As we move further into the season, there is finally substantial grist for the mill.  Here’s what we’re discussing today:

    • With 65 countries locked in for consideration in this year’s Best Foreign Language Film category, Anne and I offer up rough expectations for the eventual nominees and spotlight a handful of pics we hope to catch very soon.

    • As the animated feature film category seems ebb and flow with contenders the last few weeks, we talk about how the category might shake down and discuss Wes Anderson’s “Fantastic Mr. Fox,” playing the London Film Festival and set for an AFI Fest bow next month.

    • “Where the Wild Things Are” opens today, so Anne and I (of like minds on the film) offer our thoughts.

    • Making good on last week’s tease, we discuss Oren Moverman’s “The Messenger,” starring Ben Foster, Woody Harrelson and Samantha Morton.

    • And finally, we get into a late-comer to this year’s Oscar landscape, Christopher Plummer, suddenly looking at a campaign in the supporting actor category for “The Last Station” and the lead actor category for “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus,” plus a debate on his classification in the former.

    We ran a little long today (and got into some fights along the way), but have a listen to this week’s podcast below.  And, as always, you can subscribe to Oscar Talk via iTunes here.

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  • 10/16 Oscarweb Round-up

    Carey Mullian in An Education• Nathaniel Rogers weighs in on Christopher Plummer’s upcoming whirlwind campaigns. [The Film Experience]

    • John Hiscock sits down with 2009’s “it” girl, Carey Mulligan. [Daily Telegraph]

    • Enter a contest to design the actual one-sheet for Lars Von Trier’s “Antichrist.” [CHUD]

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  • Category shuffling gets complicated

    Meryl Streep in It's ComplicatedIt’s been interesting to note that many of the conversations concerning the Oscar race that I’ve had with people lately revolves around category placement for a number of the year’s contenders.  It was a topic Anne and I addressed directly in Friday’s Oscar Talk, in fact.

    There tends to be dueling ideologies on this, as well as what makes a performance a lead and what makes it supporting.  But purely from a marketing standpoint, it’s understandable that sometimes studios might play the landscape of the picture for an array of acting shots on goal rather than perhaps be true to the realities (that are, again, subjective) of the role within the narrative.

    We mentioned the anticipated classification of Marion Cotillard and Vera Farmiga in the lead actress category for “Nine” and “Up in the Air” respectively in the podcast, but as Pete Hammond points out in a recent Notes on a Season item, the category musical chairs are taking place elsewhere, too.

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  • Confirmed: ‘The Last Station’ goes to Sony Classics

    (from left) Helen Mirren and Christopher Plummer in The Last StationA few days ago there were whispers on the winds that “The Last Station” had been picked up by a specialty division with a number of art house releases primed for the season.  All signs pointed to Sony Pictures Classics.

    Today we get a confirmation (and I’ve independently verified) that, indeed, the film is a new awards hopeful in the Sony Classics stable.  This has been the natural fit, in my view, since I saw the film at Telluride.

    So, expect lead acting campaigns for Christopher Plummer and Helen Mirren, the latter being a definite possibility.  Also, I’m sure supporting campaigns for James McAvoy and Paul Giamatti will be in store, odds on the former more than the latter.

    And cngrats to Michael Hoffman for finding a home for his film, a tight, warm, well-made piece of work that deserves a look if only to see these wonderful actors working off of one another.

    Thge film will hit theaters in limited release on December 23.

  • ‘Last Station’ to Sony Classics?

    (from left) Helen Mirren and Christopher Plummer in The Last StationObviously the only thing Pete Hammond can mean when he writes the following:

    Helen Mirren, Christopher Plummer, James McAvoy and Paul Giamatti are going to try to shake up the awards season. Look for their new film, “The Last Station” — written and directed by Michael Hoffman and based on the final months in the life of Leo Tolstoy, which premiered sans distribution at the Telluride Film Festival on Sept. 4 — to be released by the specialty division of a major studio (with a slew of other art house contenders already this year including three more Best Actress possibilities) and opened in December in order to qualify for the Academy Awards.

    …is that Sony Pictures Classics is moving in for the kill here.  No other specialty division has a “slew” of titles, let alone a “slew of other art house contenders,” so it’s probably a safe assumption that Michael Barker and Tom Bernard made the leap.

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  • 9/14 Web Round-up

    Christopher Plummer• Overture angles for the domestic rights to Antoine Fuqua’s “Brooklyn’s Finest,” perhaps giving a leg up to Ethan Hawke in the Best Actor race. [Variety]

    • Is Charles Darwin too controversial for American multiplexes? [CHUD]

    • Christopher Plummer at 80, busy as ever. [The Toronto Star]

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  • TELLURIDE: ‘The Last Station’ premieres to the world

    (from left) Christopher Plummer and Helen Mirren in The Last StationMichael Hoffman’s “The Last Station,” adapted from Jay Parini’s novel about the last days of famed Russian author Leo Tolstoy, has been on my radar for quite some time.  There seemed to be an air of awards potential around Christopher Plummer, who stars as a dwindling Tolstoy, and Helen Mirren, as his fiery wife, Countess Sofya.

    The film had its world premiere tonight here in Telluride in front of a packed audience.  The line was out the door and around the block, partly because it’s opening night, partly because of the fact that Helen Mirren is on-hand (though, as it turns out, not until later tonight).  But those hoping to hear a nice chat with the actress after the film weren’t disappointed for long:  Hoffman had Vladimir Tolstoy in tow, overseer of the Tolstoy estate, and a number of other Tolstoy family members as well.

    But first, the film.  It’s a delightful effort with bright comedic spots throughout, but it’s also thematically resilient in its depiction of a relationship, 48 years on, nearly torn apart by diverging philosophies on religion, property, etc.  It’s a touching exploration of love in its many forms.  “Yes, love is hard,” Hoffman said after the screening.  “You want to do what you need to do, they want to do what they need to do, but I don’t know what else to do.”

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  • THE LISTS: Top 10 performances from Michael Mann films

    Russell Crowe in The InsiderWith the forthcoming release of Michael Mann’s “Public Enemies” (review) dominating — quite impressively, I might add — the publicity circuit this week, all eyes are on Johnny Depp.  An Ulmer Scale X factor for this character study posing as a summer blockbuster, Depp’s performance is sure to draw champions and detractors alike for its delicate, internalized particulars.  But of one thing we can be certain: the work is of a piece with Mann’s typically detailed approach to character.

    Mann’s collaborative process with his actors typically involves something called “character acquisition,” a tightly-conceived regimen, of sorts, that gives his films’ characters the authentic touch that makes his work so novel.  Many times these details won’t even be discussed in the overall narrative, but their background impact on the performer is unmistakable.  Take, for instance, the photos of the childhood home of Tom Cruise’s hitman Vincent in “Collateral” that Mann brought to the actor’s attention, merely by way of more fully developing the character’s clearly complicated formidable years.

    The result of this hard work has been a slew of captivating, at times career-best performances from some of the most accomplished actors working today.  A Michael Mann production represents the opportunity to go deeper with a performance and perhaps even learn more about the craft.  Will Smith has frequently discussed his collaboration with Mann as the most rewarding experience of his professional life.  And, as Javier Bardem once told me, “When Michael Mann invites you to his party, you don’t turn him down.”

    So with that, a collective representing the best performances to come from Mann’s 10 feature films to date seemed the best way into this week’s installment of The Lists.  It’s a very personal list, of course, as yours would be.  There are three performances from one film, none from two, and a pair of unconventional supporting turns to shake things up.  After going back through the director’s work last week in preparation for the list, even I was surprised my #1 choice was left standing, but regardless of order, see this as a way to compliment a true actor’s director.

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  • REVIEW: “Up” (***1/2)

    UpWatching Pixar Animation grow and develop as a studio has become almost more fascinating than experiencing one of the company’s many creative films unfold on screen. Beginning with an industry leap in 1995’s “Toy Story” and eventually moving into its daring own with 2008’s “WALL-E,” the studio has, at the very least, shown a desire for creative progression.

    This naturally brings us to “Up,” the next evolution in Pixar’s insistence on growing up while maintaining the heart of a child. With its focus on relationships and the harsher realities of life, the film might well be the studio’s most human production to date. While claims that the film is a high mark for emotional resonance might be a touch over-stated, “Up” is nevertheless a sterling entry in the studio’s impressive streak of hits.

    The film’s unlikely hero is 78-year-old balloon salesman Carl Fredricksen, and a few moving early moments set the scene: Carl met his wife Ellie as a child, and being the shy sort, was immediately taken by her lust for life. They married, they endured loss (a single frame reveals an apparent miscarriage) and they vowed to one day travel to the exotic Paradise Falls made famous by their childhood hero, explorer Charles F. Muntz.

    But, as the poet said, the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry. That brutal fact is creatively depicted in the consistent smashing of a giant savings jar for this or that fiscal emergency and eventually, life has passed the couple by, their dreams left unrealized, and when the narrative catches up to Carl following this brief montage, we see that loss weighing heavily in the form of a rather disagreeable disposition.

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