Features
Year after year, the original song category tends to prove that something is broken in the music branch of the Academy. But to be fair, that’s a bit of a half-truth overall, as the original score field has begun to loosen up a bit and allow for newbie talent to get a foot in the […]
OSCAR GUIDE: Best Music (Original Song)
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 11:11 am · February 22nd, 2010
Filed in: Daily
OSCAR GUIDE: Best Supporting Actress
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 2:03 pm · February 3rd, 2010
This year’s Best Supporting Actress race made for, in many ways, one of the most wide open categories of the major nominees. While three of the contenders seemed fairly locked in place, the other two slots appeared up for grabs, and there was no shortage of deserving contenders waiting to fill out the field. Contenders […]
Filed in: Daily
Calling the longshots
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 5:47 pm · February 1st, 2010
So this Steve Pond piece, titled “How Oscar Could Surprise — and Scare — Us,” is what we like to call hedging our bets. It’s a chance to address some bubble matters so that we have something to point to and say, “Look, I toldja!” (Is that officially trademarked by Nikki Finke yet?) Anyway, I […]
Filed in: Daily
1/14 Oscarweb Round-up
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 8:03 am · January 14th, 2010
• Buzz Aldrin, Willie Nelson and more comment on the accuracy of a number of the season’s contenders. [Variety] • Peter Jackson and Stanley Tucci talk “The Lovely Bones.” [FearNet] • Brooks Barnes Q&As “The Hurt Locker” writer Mark Boal. [The Carpetbagger]
Filed in: Daily
Steve Pond on Oscar’s “broken” song category
Posted by Guy Lodge · 4:42 pm · January 12th, 2010
The Best Original Song race gets an awful lot of stick for its wonky voting system and sometimes questionable musical judgment — problems that have lately converged to scupper the hopes of many well-regarded contenders, with last year’s snub of Bruce Springsteen’s “The Wrestler” raising particularly widespread ire. I’ll start, however, by saying a few […]
Filed in: Daily
ASC nominees
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 12:18 pm · January 11th, 2010
“Avatar” continues its guild steamroll with a mention from the ASC today, a mention I frankly didn’t think the film would get. Then again, the guild is typically kind to digital photography where AMPAS is not (examples are “Collateral” and “Apocalypto”), so I wouldn’t say it’s a slam dunk in this category for Oscar. Then […]
Filed in: Daily
Narrow their options
Posted by Guy Lodge · 8:31 am · January 11th, 2010
Well, this is one way of getting around public indifference to a film. Snapped in London’s West End by Ultra Culture:
Filed in: Daily
ASC on the way
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 5:06 pm · January 8th, 2010
Along with the WGA, the American Society of Cinematographers will also be announcing nominees Monday. Guesses as to which way they’ll go? I’d say the safest bet is Robert Richardson and his work on “Inglourious Basterds.” He often gets his due from the guild (eight nominations) even when he doesn’t from the Academy (five nominations). […]
Filed in: Daily
PGA announces nominees, goes sci-fi
Posted by Guy Lodge · 6:13 am · January 5th, 2010
The most striking thing about the slate of nominees unveiled this morning by the Producers Guild of America is a heavy genre slant: all three of 2009’s acclaimed science-fiction mega-hits made the cut in the top category. Of course, that’s not all that surprising coming from the producers, whose appreciation of financial success tends to […]
Filed in: Daily
SUNDAY CENTS: Happy Blue Year
Posted by Chad Hartigan · 10:49 am · January 3rd, 2010
*All historical figures cited are adjusted to today’s dollars. Okay. What kind of fairy dust is James Cameron sprinkling in his films? Subliminal messages perhaps? There’s no other explanation. “Avatar” is the number one movie again this weekend, raking in $68.3 million, off 10% from last week. It becomes the first film to spend three […]
Filed in: Box Office · Sunday Cents
Neither here nor there, BUT…
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 10:24 am · January 2nd, 2010
…I just realized that only two films have held the pic slot above the Best Picture predictions in the right sidebar all year long. Those two films? “Amelia” and “Nine.”
Filed in: Daily
OSCAR TALK: Ep. 16 — ‘Nine’ stumbles, so cui bono? Plus ‘Avatar’ as frontrunner and forecasting the films of 2010
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 10:42 am · January 1st, 2010
Welcome to the first installment of Oscar Talk of 2010 and, indeed, of the new decade. Oscar Talk is your weekly kudocast between yours truly and Anne Thompson of Thompson on Hollywood. It’s been two weeks since we dug into the Oscar race in this space. Here’s what’s on the docket today: • Rob Marshall’s […]
Filed in: Oscar Talk
Karger goes out on a limb for ‘The Messenger’
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 9:52 am · December 31st, 2009
In the last week or two, the buzz for Rob Marshall’s “Nine” has, undeniably, plummeted. It took a while for it to get to that point. The first screening was held nearly a month and a half ago in New York, after all. But enough goodwill and a certain lazy expectation that the below-the-line elements […]
Filed in: Daily
12/31 Oscarweb Round-up (NEW YEAR’S EVE EDITION)
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 8:02 am · December 31st, 2009
• Tom O’Neil serves some crow up to a few colleagues while failing to understand that his prize pony needed a few films to underwhelm in order to be in the position it’s in. [Gold Derby] • David Poland crunches the “Avatar” numbers yet again. The film is still…almost…breaking records. [The Hot Blog] • Neill […]
Filed in: Daily
THE LONG SHOT: Four to the floor
Posted by Guy Lodge · 4:13 pm · December 30th, 2009
“It might as well rain until September,” wrote Carole King in her jaunty 1960s ditty of that title, an ode to summertime breakup blues that may as well have been composed for the autumnally-activated awards season. Swap September for December, and you have an apt description of the approach many studios and Oscar-watchers alike take […]
Filed in: The Long Shot
12/30 Oscarweb Round-up
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 8:40 am · December 30th, 2009
• Weinstein scales back the “Nine” expansion in the wake of low box office, bad reviews. [Reuters] • “Avatar” effects guru Joe Letteri sure is making the rounds. Next stop: Steve Pond. [The Odds] • On Oscar’s consistent rule changes. [Variety]
Filed in: Daily
12/29 Oscarweb Round-up
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 8:58 am · December 29th, 2009
• John Campea talks to “Avatar” star Stephen Lang. [AMC Entertainment] • Scott Feinberg spotlights 50 performances that “shoulda been contendas” in the 2009 Oscar race. [And the Winner Is…] • Nikki sez Warner Bros. has broken the studio’s own domestic box office record by crossing $2 billion across the States. Wowsers. [Deadline Hollywood Daily]
Filed in: Daily
OFF THE CARPET: A spade is a spade
Posted by Kristopher Tapley · 11:10 am · December 28th, 2009
Oscar ballots are being mailed to AMPAS members today. So now is the time to pay attention to the buzz, as most ballots are returned within the first couple of weeks (which says everything you need to know about how much time and care is put into the process by voters). However, it’s somewhat amazing […]
Filed in: Off the Carpet
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