In Contention

Tag: Clint Eastwood

  • First set of winner predictions

    Clint Eastwood in Gran TorinoBefore the holiday I thought I’d make my first calls on the year’s Oscar winners.  Bear in mind we don’t even have a list of nominees yet and anything can happen.  I think around this time last year I was predicting “Into the Wild” for across-the-board wins and it only managed two nominations at the end of the day, so, grain of salt and all that.  I just like to go on the record around this time, so here we go:

    Best Picture: “Slumdog Millionaire”
    Best Director: Danny Boyle, “Slumdog Millionaire”
    Best Actor: Clint Eastwood, “Gran Torino”
    Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
    Best Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger, “The Dark Knight”
    Best Supporting Actress: Viola Davis, “Doubt”
    Best Adapted Screenplay: “Slumdog Millionaire”
    Best Original Screenplay: “Milk”
    Best Art Direction: “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
    Best Cinematography: “Defiance”
    Best Costume Design: “The Duchess”
    Best Film Editing: “Slumdog Millionaire”
    Best Makeup: “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
    Best Music – Original Score: “Defiance”
    Best Music – Original Song: “The Wrestler”
    Best Sound Editing: “The Dark Knight”
    Best Sound Mixing: “The Dark Knight”
    Best Visual Effects: “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
    Best Animated Feature Film: “WALL-E”
    Best Documentary Feature: “Man on Wire”
    Best Foreign Language Film: “Captain Abu Raed”

  • You can’t stop what’s coming

    John Wayne in True Grit (left) and Clint Eastwood in Gran Torino (right)

  • 11/25 Oscarweb Round-up

    David Fincher• Jeff Wells is a fan of “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” but he’s not sure it’s a Best Picture slam dunk for this reason or that.  I’d be inclined to agree with him if that guild screening on Saturday hadn’t gone over so well. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

    • Meanwhile, Tom O’Neil takes a (probably unfair) swipe at David Fincher’s Q&A etiquette.  It’s true, he’s not the sort to get all cerebral for you like a pet monkey, and it’s true, that chilliness might affect him and the film, but don’t all the greats share these traits? [Gold Derby]

    • An ambitious list: the top 100 movies based on books. [The Movie Blog]

    • Wow, a feature on the return of an Oscar blogger.  But I guess the Bagger is that special breed that deserves the copy.  Call it blogger envy. [Thompson on Hollywood]

    • Having actually seen the film now, Dave Karger jumps on the gravy train for Clint Eastwood’s performance as a Best Actor contender.  Mostly he’s reporting everything we told you in our script review a few months back, though.  Gruff character but with a great arc that’ll leave them crying, etc., etc. [Entertainment Weekly]

    • T.L. Stanley joins the tiny chorus of “Australia” cheerleaders.  Maybe it’s not that tiny, but I haven’t heard from them much this week. [Gold Rush]

    • John Horn, meanwhile, features director Baz Luhrmann. [Los Angeles Times]

    • Patrick Goldstein dissects “Frost/Nixon” scribe Peter Morgan. [The Big Picture]

  • Eastwood to receive yet another accolade, this time at Santa Barbara Fest

    Clint EastwoodThe press release, in part:

    Clint Eastwood has been selected to receive the Santa Barbara International Film Festival’s highest honor, The Modern Master Award, it was announced by SBIFF Executive Director Roger Durling. The Tribute will take place on Thursday, January 29, at the historic Arlington Theatre.

    The Modern Master Award is the highest honor presented by SBIFF. Established in 1995, it was created to honor an individual who has enriched our culture through his/her accomplishments in the motion picture industry. Past Modern Masters recipients include Michael Douglas, Peter Jackson, Jodie Foster, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Sean Penn, Jeff Bridges, Diane Keaton, George Clooney, Will Smith, and Cate Blanchett.

    Comments SBIFF Director Roger Durling, “Clint Eastwood is inarguably one of our greatest directors, one of our greatest producers and one of our greatest actors ever – to call him a Modern Master is simply an understatement.”

    We in the press will finally be getting a look at “Gran Torino” in a little over a week, by the way. In fact, Monday screenings of Oscar hopefuls will push the “Off the Carpet” column to Tuesdays for the next two weeks. I’ll post a reminder of that on Monday.

    But with this news in mind, I find myself, more and more, seeing the Best Actor race as Sean Penn vs. Clint Eastwood. Penn’s performance has the power to be his second Oscar, in my view, and Eastwood’s role is going to rip a few hearts to shreds. Mickey Rourke is phenomenal in “The Wrestler,” but I’m beginning to sense that his award will be the nomination. A pat on the back and a “welcome home.”

  • 11/19 Oscarweb Round-up

    Kate Beckinsale• David Poland misses the stylistic point of “Revolutionary Road.” [The Hot Blog]

    • Anne Thompson is on the right track, though. [Thompson on Hollywood]

    • Dave Karger digs into the Oscar prospects of the elusive “Seven Pounds.” [Entertainment Weekly]

    • Pete Hammond covers the week in screenings, much of which you’ve already read here.  But he gets more second-hand gossip that Clint Eastwood knocks it out of the park in “Gran Torino.”  Press-at-large screenings start in two weeks. [Notes on a Season]

    • Michael Ordoña talks to Nicole Kidman and Baz Luhrmann (the L.A. Times are getting the royal Fox treatment lately) about “Australia.” [The Envelope]

    • Tom O’Neil talks “Nothing But the Truth” with star Kate Beckinsale. [Gold Derby]

    • Someone call the medic, Grandpa is hearing voices. [Peter Bart]

  • Ether

  • 11/17 Oscarweb Round-up

    Nicole Kidman in Australia• Jeffrey Wells has kind words for “Bigger, Stronger, Faster” and spends some time with director Chris Bell. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

    • Nathaniel Rogers talks with “Happy-Go-Lucky” star Sally Hawkins. [The Film Experience]

    • David Poland talks to the “Slumdog” crew. [The Hot Blog]

    • Ben Lynfield goes deep on “Waltz with Bashir” across the pond. [The Independent]

    • Eastwood calls Jolie “a fine actress hampered by beauty.” [Daily Telegraph]

    • Might the gyrations on Wall Street affect what we want to see in the cineplex? [MSNBC]

    • Danny Boyle talks his Mumbai undertaking with the Gray Lady. [New York Times]

    • Here’s a random list: the top 10 most accessible foreign films of the last decade. [Spout Blog]

    • Donna Freydkin spends some quality time with Nicole Kidman. [USA Today]

    • Guillermo Del Toro’s five favorite films. [Rotten Tomatoes]

  • Eastwood/Spielberg team up with Peter Morgan on ‘Hereafter’

    Peter MorganThe day-to-day deal signings and rumored particulars that end up in the trades are generally no interest to me.  I like to wait until we get a little further down the road, but this project really caught my attention.

    Peter Morgan is sure to leap further toward the head of the writing class this year with “Frost/Nixon,” so his involvement in a DreamWorks project with Steven Spielberg and Clint Eastwood above the line is exciting to say the least.  (Though having said that, I never can shake the opinion of one Oscar-nominated writer/director last year who told me of Morgan’s play: “If I knew all I had to do to make a successful play was have characters front and center spouting off exposition, I’d have been writing plays a long time ago.”  I liked the play, but I find it difficult to argue with that criticism.)

    Anyway, enough catty asides.  Here’s the news from Variety on “Hereafter”:

    Clint Eastwood is in talks to direct the supernatural thriller “Hereafter” for DreamWorks.

    Company, led by principals Steven Spielberg and Stacey Snider, picked up the spec penned by “Frost/Nixon” scribe Peter Morgan in March when it was still a part of Paramount Pictures. DreamWorks held onto the project as part of its separation pact with the Melrose studio and has been wooing Eastwood to board the project for months.

    Plot details are being kept under wraps, but it is described as in the vein of “The Sixth Sense.”

    Kathleen Kennedy is producing.

  • New ‘Torino’ poster, original song and other WB FYC updates

    Warner Bros. Pictures\' Gran TorinoI was just perusing the Warner Bros. awards site and was greeted with an array of updates I wasn’t aware of.  First and foremost, there is the new “Gran Torino” poster image to the left here (click for a slightly larger image).  I dig it as much as the first poster, maybe even a little more.

    Second, in the “for your consideration” section for the film I noticed there is an original song in play, written by Jamie Callum.  I have no idea what it’s called yet, but it’s worth keeping an eye on given how painfully weak that race is this season.

    It’s also interesting that Warners is apparently choosing not to push any actor for awards consideration outside of Clint Eastwood.  I would have expected at least a modest push for Bee Vang, who has a great role opposite Eastwood for much of the script.

    I also noticed that Dave Johannson has been added to Nick Schenk with a “story by” credit.  The film’s IMDb page also reflects this.  Apologies if this was already out there, but it’s the first I’m hearing of it.

    Over on the “Dark Knight” side of things, you get a nice sampling of James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer’s kick-ass score, as well as a similar rundown of FYC declarations and even a link to the screenplay.  Very cool.  Soon there will be a “score” section and a “making of” section, but right now there’s a section with scattered images from the film, most of them new to my eyes.  I love this one:

    Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight

    Check out the rest at the official Warner Bros. 2008 awards website.

  • 11/6 Oscarweb Round-up

    Leonardo DiCaprio• David Poland sees the passage of Proposition 8 in California as a marketing opportunity for Focus Features and “Milk”… [The Hot Blog]

    • …before running down the “short race” that is the Oscar season of 2008. [Movie City News]

    • Tom O’Neil and Pete Hammond keep on digging at Dave Karger’s predictions. [Gold Derby]

    • Ari Folman talks “Waltz with Bashir.” [The Guardian]

    • Kevin Days reports on the vintage autos used in Clint Eastwood’s “Changeling.” [Los Angeles Times]

    • More chatter about the Best Picture potential of “The Dark Knight.” [Test Pattern]

    • Martyn Palmer talks “Titanic” with Leonardo DiCaprio and the star’s desire to purge himself of the image the 1997 blockbuster molded for him. [The Times]

  • Rousing Best Actor race shaping up

    Brad Pitt in The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonIn a year I maintain to be disappointing, I must confess that the sprint to the finish is looking more and more exciting all the time, with an exceptional crop of actors vying for Best Actor nominations. This could very well be the year that Clint Eastwood wins an acting Oscar, or that the previously washed-up Mickey Rourke wins for “The Wrestler.”

    At this writing I have 12 actors who could potentially land in the field of play, though in fairness, four of the films have not been widely seen and I am going on the buzz and speculation within the industry right now.

    There seems to be a lot of belief that Richard Jenkins, a wonderful character actor who has been around forever, could land a nomination for “The Visitor.”  He came back into the public eye as the dead father in HBO’s critically acclaimed “Six Feet Under” and has been working consistently ever since.  This year he did a nice job as the heart and soul of the Coen brothers’ “Burn After Reading.”  If the studio can mount a decent campaign and keep him in the minds of the voters, he may nab a nomination.

    But he could easily be left out. Remember Michael Douglas in “Wonder Boys”? After the film’s November re-release for awards consideration helped him win the Los Angeles Film Critics Association award for Best Actor, everyone was stunned when he failed to land a nomination with the Academy.

    (more…)

  • 11/2 Oscarweb Round-up

    James Franco• After a third go, Jeffrey Wells is still in the tank for “Che,” claiming that you have to do some homework on the subject before coming into the film. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

    • Steven Zeitchik writes up the Oscar season from the most played-out perspective in the book: biopics. [The Hollywood Reporter]

    • Chrissey Iley chats it up with Leonardo CiCaprio. [The Guardian]

    • Meanwhile, Elizabeth Day goes toe-to-toe with Clint Eastwood. [The Guardian]

    • Michael Ordoña is a busy bee this weekend, first tackling a one-on-one with Viggo Mortensen… [Los Angeles Times]

    • …then chatting with Edward Zwick about his new film “Defiance.” [Los Angeles Times]

    • Sam Adams, meanwhile, talks to “Milk” star James Franco. [Los Angeles Times]

    • The stars share their thoughts on the 2008 election. [Premiere]

  • Helmers of the English language, the best and why: part one

    David CronenbergMy recent article on Clint Eastwood drew an excellent response from Nathaniel Rogers (a regular commenter) that led me to this article. In that piece, I make clear my admiration for Eastwood, his artistry and the fact I believe him to be among the three finest directors working in movies. I stand by that, because I do not feel every film a director makes needs to be a masterpiece, as long as they are growing and continually trying to reach for something new.  Even the greatest of artists fail, and in fact they learn more from failure than they ever do success.

    Before the knives are drawn and tossed my way I will remind all that this is my list, just an opinion. I have selected what I believe to be the finest 10 directors working in the English language (five today, five tomorrow). I am positive that there will be disagreement, but that’s what keeps the world turning. Bear in mind that one film does not a genius make, and that a body of work (at least four films) was essential for the list.

    With that, the filmmakers…

    (more…)

  • On Eastwood: for the haters

    Clint Eastwood in Gran Torino18 months ago I began researching my book “Clint Eastwood: Evolution of a Filmmaker” after signing a three book deal with Greenwood Press in the United States. This was it, my life-long goal, writing books on film and getting paid to do it. Eastwood was my choice, a director I greatly admire, but who I found along the way is not exactly admired by all. In fact there are some who are openly hostile towards Eastwood and his films, as we have found in recent days.

    What I admire, beyond the sheer artistry and the deceptive simplicity of his films, is the manner in which he forged his directing career, using his stardom to get the films he wanted to make into production. Yes he would agree to a fourth Dirty Harry IF the studio agreed to fund “White Hunter Black Heart,” his thinly disguised study of John Huston and the shooting of “The African Queen.”  Et cetera.

    Studying Eastwood’s films, I watched an artist growing, always taking new chances, fearless of a challenge, and with each new film, learning.  Even when the film tanked, there was a lesson to be learned. Eastwood himself says the lesson of the terrible “The Rookie” was simply, “Never make a film because you are bored and have nothing to do…ever.” As far back as his first film, “Play Misty for Me,” the talent was most evident as was the courage. Imagine Eastwood, the world’s biggest box office star, known for kicking ass as Harry Callahan, pitching to the Universal brass his love story “Breezy” with William Holden and Kay Lenz.

    Even I remember the shock of seeing “Bird” knowing it was directed by Eastwood and being stunned by the style of the film, the brilliance of the lead performance and the powerful story being told.

    But moving beyond his past accomplishments, which I’ve covered at length in this space before, I have to say I have been looking forward to both of Eastwood’s films this year, and have little doubt he will find himself in the Oscar race again.

    (more…)

  • 10/26 Oscarweb Round-up

    Luke and Brie are on a First Date• Tom O’Neil ponders Angelina Jolie’s Oscar hopes yet again… [Gold Derby]

    • …and rather pointlessly takes a shot at Sean Penn. [Gold Derby]

    • Peter Bart is charmed by Clint Eastwood’s development through the years. [Peter Bart]

    • Eastwood, meanwhile, offers up 12 key influences on his life in movies. [Entertaiment Weekly]

    • Peter Sciretta takes a look back at Paul Thomas Anderson’s short film “The Legend of Dirk Diggler.” [/Film]

    • Condon and Mark tap Roger Goodman to helm the 81st annual Oscar telecast. [The Hollywood Reporter]

    • Gaynor Flynn spends some time with Debra Winger, assumed by some to be a shoo-in nominee for the worst five minutes of “Rachel Getting Married.” [The Independent]

    • Howard Feinstein talks “Synecdoche, New York” with the haunted and brilliant Charlie Kaufman. [indieWIRE]

    • Ditto Rachel Abramowitz. [Los Angeles Times]

    • Harrison Ford is crowned best movie President for his performance in “Air Force One.” [Reuters]

    • Mark Blankenship digs into the differences between “Billy Elliot” on stage and screen. [New York Times]

    • Karina Longworth has some nice remarks about our old friend Chad Hartigan and his feature debut “Luke and Brie are on a First Date,” currently playing the Hamptons Film Festival. [Spout Blog]

  • WEEKLY WRAP: ‘Button’ rises, ‘Torino’ surfaces, ‘Doubt’ swoops

    Apologies for the slightly delayed wrap. Much to discuss this week — here are the highlights:

    • With some formerly hot prospects now off the radar, this week’s Off the Carpet column surveys the landscape, and concludes that things look good for “Benjamin Button.”

    • “The Soloist” withdrew as the AFI fest opener; their loss is “Doubt”‘s gain.

    • With a trailer for “Gran Torino” finally emerging, we wonder if Clint Eastwood is the real frontrunner for Best Actor.

    • The Gotham Independent Film Awards unveiled the season’s first set of nominees — good news for titles like “Ballast” and “The Visitor.”

    • More impressions from the London Film Festival, including hot foreign-language contender “The Class.”

    • Still in London, we caught up with “Happy-Go-Lucky”‘s superb Best Supporting Actor contender, Eddie Marsan.

    • This week’s edition of Tech Support put Art Direction in the spotlight.

    • We were in a listmaking mood this week, rounding up some of the most scandalously unnominated actors of this era …

    • … while John Foote reminisced over his personal favourite movie moments.

    • And finally, who should host the Oscars? Our answer may surprise you.

  • ‘Gran Torino’ trailer drops at Apple

    Click on the angry badass to check it out:

    Clint Eastwood in Gran Torino

  • Is Clint Eastwood going to win his first acting Oscar?

    Clint Eastwood in Gran TorinoI’ve been mulling this over for a few weeks now, and though we all know it’s foolish to sit back and predict Oscar winners when the race is still developing a clear slate of nominees, I keep coming back to the amount of sense it makes for Clint Eastwood to take the gold this year for his upcoming leading performance in “Gran Torino.”

    Let’s look at the obvious factors first: competition. There is no agreed upon, media-charming performance going into the season that either has forged, or is expected to forge the kind of undeniable mass appeal that Jamie Foxx did in 2004, the last time Eastwood had a shot at an acting prize.

    Of the contenders most anticipate to be in play, only Sean Penn’s portrayal of Harvey Milk has the on-paper swagger, while Leonardo DiCaprio (despite generating considerable heat — I’ve heard one person say “it’s one of the best performances I’ve ever seen”) could spoil the party if he can push past the pretty boy image that fellow hopeful Brad Pitt will face.

    Mickey Rourke is the odds-on favorite heading into November for a nomination, but despite the brilliance of the performance and the film, there is the sense that the nod will be the reward. An Indie Spirit Award is probably in the cards, and if so, promises to be the usual kiss of death.

    Frank Langella, to round out my own predicted five, faces an uphill battle in gaining an Oscar to go along with his Tony for the same performance. Even with plenty of positive assessments, the potential to underwhelm is out there, in the open, and waiting to keep “Frost/Nixon” an also ran in multiple areas.

    Benicio Del Toro could be a real threat if the film finds the traction necessary to move into serious play, but it probably won’t be the event that Eastwood’s efforts will be. And the only other performance that really shouts for attention is Josh Brolin’s work in “W,” a film that could be yesterday’s news sooner than later.

    Then there is the chatter flying around that “Gran Torino” will be our last opportunity to see Eastwood perform on the screen, a swan song to his career as an actor. If so, what better way to cap off a hell of an autumn run than with a statue for his nearly six decades of achievements in front of the camera?

    The film will be emotional, and given the particulars of the script, the portrayal is sure to prove heartbreaking. It could be the stiff upper lip of an awards season that finds itself competing with the election year, a note of hope and even a demand for sacrifice.

    So I’ll just put it out there now: Clint Eastwood is going to win the Oscar for Best Actor come February. From where we sit right now, it just makes sense. But that’s the thing about “right now.” It changes.

    We’ll see…

    Have your say. Who do you predict to win the Oscar for Best Actor this year?