Almost three months ago, I described how our cinematographers bring movies to life, by lensing the director’s vision, the actors’ performances, the production designer’s and the writer’s mood, just to begin. In the absence of these talented individuals, there would truly be no cinema.
Like most people, this is my favorite of the Oscar crafts categories. I was very happy when Anthony Dod Mantle triumphed last year, even though he was barely on my radar post-TIFF, where “Slumdog Millionaire” premiered. So what has emerged since our last assessment?
From the Toronto and Venice Film Festivals, not a whole lot seems to have changed in the category. While “Precious” and “Up in the Air” seem to have been the biggest gainers, they still don’t seem to be obvious candidates here. Then again, you have to keep an eye on Best Picture contenders, so I’d still consider DPs Andrew Dunn and Eric Steelberg for their work.
Tom Ford’s “A Single Man” also performed quite well at Venice. Many have praised the look of the film, so it would be foolish to rule out Eduard Rau. On the other hand, Javier Aguiressarobe’s lensing of “The Road” did not receive the praise I suspected it might, with most acclaim going to Viggo Mortensen’s performance. Even so, I’ll keep my eye on this title until it is released in theaters.
A contender whose vehicle has shifted since I last covered this category in July is Robert Richardson. While Martin Scorsese’s “Shutter Island” has been delayed until next year, Quentin Tarantino’s “Inglourious Basterds,” on the other hand, has made a considerable splash. Richardson had many chances to show the scope of his talent on this project. I wouldn’t rule him out.
With Venice and Toronto behind us, the time has come to re-evaluate where the race stands in the crafts categories.
*This is the first installment of “The Long Shot,” a new weekly Oscar column from Guy Lodge here at In Contention.
You might have noticed this morning’s round-up reverted back to “Oscarweb.” The big late-summer festival trilogy wrapped up with Toronto’s kudo-dishing over the weekend and on the other side, we face the long haul. The season is officially here. You ready?
“Make me look good.” While this might seem a vain phrase, in the context of a movie, makeup cannot only make an actor “look good” but it can capture the character and transform the performer, providing invaluable assistance in reaching the “truth” in the portrayal.
A few weeks ago I analyzed the Best Sound Editing category, which awards the creation and integration of artificially created sound effects. Today, we look at sound mixing – the overall composition of all the elements of a movie’s soundscape into a singular soundtrack. The re-recording mixers, who do this work during post-production, are rewarded alongside the production sound mixer, who captures the sound on set.
Boy, the “Where the Wild Things Are” items are coming fast and furious this morning. I didn’t plan it this way, I swear.
Many of you have already spotted an interesting trend in a number of 2009 films this year: the proliferation of the number nine.
I’ve always been aware that actress Penélope Cruz was somewhat ubiquitous and certainly a hard worker. She’s also intensely focused on her craft, more so than you might naturally expect. When I interviewed her for a 
Sets 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.
It’s a few days old, but I only just found this nugget buried at the tail of a (rather good) David Poland 
Best 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.