Tag: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

2/2 Oscarweb Round-up

• How “The Wrestler” is rescuing professional wrestling. [The Independent]

• Kim Voynar on spinning against the frontrunner. [Movie City News]

• Michael Cieply writes up the Oscarcast as a production struggling to be exciting in the wake of an under-seen slate of nominees. [New York Times]

• According to Christopher Nolan at the DGA Awards, should Heath Ledger win the Oscar, his family will accept the award on his behalf. [Entertainment Weekly]

• An Italian office worker is claiming “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” was based on a story she wrote 15 years ago and she’s not happy about it. [The Hollywood Reporter]

• Nathaniel Rogers has a post-SAG podcast discussion with a few friends. The topics are too many to list here, but have a listen. [The Film Experience]

• Scorsese + Day-Lewis + Del Toro = Oscar in the very near future? [Variety]

• 10 documentaries Hollywood should make into dramatic features, including “Blessed is the Match,” similarly suggested in this space last week. [Spout Blog]

February 2, 2009
WEEKLY WRAP: ‘Slumdog,’ Sundance, Santa Barbara

It slipped my mind to do this yesterday, but here’s the week that was:

• “Slumdog Millionaire” steamrolled through the week’s precursors, taking the Producers Guild Award…

• … before landing top honours at the SAG Awards, which we live-blogged for your pleasure.

• Still on “Slumdog,” a potential smear campaign against the film was duly foiled.

• No surprise, then, that this week’s Off the Carpet column declared the race pretty much over.

• The Academy settled “The Reader” producers’ dilemma by breaking its ludicrous “three-nominee” rule.

• Meanwhile, some are wondering whether Harvey Weinstein’s tactics could harm the film’s chances, particularly in the Best Actress race.

• Away from the Oscar race, gritty urban drama “Push” cleaned up at Sundance.

• The Santa Barbara fest carried on, with an interesting screenwriters’ forum among the highlights.

• Still at Santa Barbara, Danny Boyle, Kate Winslet and this year’s six Virtuoso stars were among those celebrated.

• Could “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” really go 0-for-13 on Oscar night?

• Finally, rounding off a very “Slumdog”-flavoured week, be sure to check out our interview with the film’s brilliant craftsmen.

January 31, 2009
Life is short, etc, etc, etc…

Today’s Telegraph carries an interview with Brad Pitt that somehow manages to be simultaneously personal, honest and thoroughly unilluminating. There’s plenty of contented musing on fatherhood and Angelina Jolie if that’s your cup of tea, but I couldn’t help being somewhat disappointed by the banality of his take on “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”:

“I walked away realising that time is short,” he says, talking on a sound stage at the Warner Bros studios in Burbank, California. “I don’t know if I have a day or 10 days or 10 years or 40 years. Am I halfway or am I close to the end? I don’t know, so I have to make sure I don’t waste those moments in any kind of pettiness or bitterness or laziness, and that I surround myself with the people who are most important to me.”

Further on, he lets loose with the stunning insight that the film is “about looking back on the significant moments in your life.” Well, I’ll be. I could have sworn Eric Roth had more than that in mind when he adapted F. Scott Fitzgerald’s story, but what do I know?

I’ve always liked Brad Pitt. A lot. He’s a strong actor — even if “Button” is a million miles from his best work on screen — and a smart, funny, charismatic celebrity. Or he used to be, at least. Why then, throughout the whole “Button” publicity run, has he restricted himself to such bland, humour-starved soundbites, both in print and on camera?

It’s clear he’s in a happy place personally right now, and that’s great for him. But am I the only one tiring of the relentless earnestness, and longing for a bit of movie-star dash from the man? Some are apparently counting on Pitt’s presence to “save” the Oscar telecast, but as long as he keeps following this script, I’d look elsewhere.

January 30, 2009
Is ‘Slumdog’ score too pop?

Thanks to Nat Rogers at The Film Experience for pointing out a really worthwhile article in the Wall Street Journal, in which music critic Jim Fusilli takes a close look at this year’s nominees for Best Original Score. It’s not a category which tends to inspire much intelligent coverage in mainstream outlets, so it’s great to see someone giving the race the attention it deserves.

Fusilli starts by commending the Academy for dodging the iffy qualification issues that have plagued previous races — principally the weirdly flexible criteria that allowed “Babel” in, but not “There Will Be Blood” — though I would still venture that “The Dark Knight”‘s initial disqualification scuppered its chances in the category. In any case, this year’s five nominated scores are all clearly original works, and Fusilli is generally impressed by the calibre of the competition. He is, however, not entirely convinced by frontrunner A.R. Rahman’s work on “Slumdog Millionaire”:

This year, voters will have to decide whether to recognize music that’s most memorable as catchy pop or symphonic music that illuminates story and character. Mr. Rahman’s ebullient work for “Slumdog Millionaire,” a film about a poor boy who may win a fortune on a game show, is likely the early favorite — last week, I stopped in a theater in Boston to see it again and members of the audience cheered when his name appeared in the end credits. That may not be what a film-score composer is looking for. As Mr. Elfman told me last week, “If I’m going for any reaction, the best I could possibly hope for is that they see my name and go, ‘Oh really?’ Writing a score that gets people to jump out of the chairs is a whole other ballgame.”

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January 29, 2009
1/28 Oscarweb Round-up

• Trying to get in on more of that tech action, Elizabeth Snead talks to “Benjamin Button” costumer Jacqueline West. [The Envelope]

• “Push” and “Cove” top the critics’ picks for the best of Sundance. [indieWIRE]

• Despite a nation-wide ban on Israeli products, two brave souls screen “Waltz with Bashir” in Beirut. [The Guardian]

• The Stanley Kubrick Holocaust film (and shining new ingenue) that almost was. [The Independent]

• Giving Kate Winslet shit across the pond for forgetting Angelina Jolie’s name at the Globes. [Daily Telegraph]

• The top 10 most bewildering Best Picture nominees. [Rope of Silicon]

January 28, 2009
Unlucky thirteen?

Stu Van Airsdale is cheekily posing a scenario whereby “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” converts precisely zero of its 13 nominations into victory on Oscar night.

It’s not really worth picking holes in his argument — though we could start with the fact that “Button” is nominated for Sound Mixing rather than Sound Editing, or that he doesn’t seem to consider “Slumdog” the frontrunner for Film Editing — because the article is less interesting for its specifics than for how it taps into the general indifference that “Button” seems to be facing. Has a film with such an impressive Oscar tally ever looked a less formidable competitor going into the race?

On nomination day, AwardsDaily posted a handy list of the ten previous films that have received 13 or 14 nods. Seven of them won Best Picture. Two of them (“Mary Poppins” and “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”) each took a healthy haul of five awards apiece, major acting trophies among them. The last, “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring,” was limited to technical victories, though in an odd year, with splintered support for “Moulin Rouge!” and eventual champ “A Beautiful Mind,” it wasn’t a complete non-starter — and in any case, everyone knew there was more to come.

Right now, I side with Kris in predicting a scant three trophies for “Button,” in the Art Direction, Makeup and Visual Effects field. (Unpredictably scattered as the tech categories have been in recent years, I’d be very surprised if it missed in the latter two categories, at the very least.) So, is the film set to reap an all-time low from its nomination tally? Or are we underestimating it?

As it stands, I’m starting to wonder if Taraji P. Henson may have more of a shot in the comparatively open Best Supporting Actress field than I thought earlier. Last year, Tilda Swinton eked out a victory in the same category after “Michael Clayton” fans realized she represented the film’s only shot at a major award. If voters don’t want to humiliate the season’s biggest, most-nominated film, could Henson be a similar beneficiary? Just a thought.

January 27, 2009
OFF THE CARPET: Welcome to phase two

The nominations and all their ghastly reality are behind us. The first two major guilds have spoken. “Slumdog Millionaire” continues a long, slow (too slow for Searchlight) march toward Oscar, and ironically enough, the only film to win two awards at last night’s SAG ceremony was the one a lot of people were pissed got the shaft on Thursday.

Such is the season.

Phase two is a different game altogether. Everyone has renewed life. “Frost/Nixon” and “The Reader” are going to be happy to be there, while Focus and Paramount really think “Slumdog”‘s perch isn’t as water-tight as it could be. Then again, that SAG ensemble victory had to burst one or two of thsoe balloons keeping their spirits afloat.

The races of interest to me are lead actor, where a truly deserving Mickey Rourke goes toe-to-toe with an inarguable Sean Penn (maybe a fight to both their deaths as Frank Langella tip-toes past them and nabs the big prize?) and Best Supporting Actress, suddenly there for the taking as Kate Winslet has vacated the field in favor of dashing the hopes of the leading ladies who were all set to duke it out.

Could Penelope Cruz (so dashing and sweet here in Santa Barbara last night) suddenly be the favorite once more? Or is this just the moment Viola Davis has been waiting for? Better yet, could Taraji P. Henson, probably the biggest charmer of the bunch, switch ont he after-burners and leave everyone in the dust?

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January 26, 2009
‘An incredible time to be alive’

Is there anyone out there with a beating heart who doesn’t like Taraji P. Henson? Wherever you stand on “Benjamin Button,” it’s hard not to be happy for her. A humble, hard-working character actress who has soldiered through a lot of films well beneath her abilities, she has finally made good on that stunning “Hustle and Flow” promise and is inching her way onto the A-list.

She probably isn’t going to be heading to the podium on Oscar night, but Henson is the kind of actor for whom a mere nomination can make a world of difference. Moreover, it’s her positivity and humility in interviews like this that is doubtless winning her a lot of fans this awards season:

“It’s an incredible time to be alive. And it’s definitely an incredible time to be Taraji P. Henson. I’m blown away,” she said. “I have moments where I’ll call my publicist and be like ‘Is this all really happening? Are you sure they’re not going to call back and say we made a mistake?’”

Endearingly, she’s apparently as excited by Barack Obama’s inauguration as she is by the prospect of meeting her idol, Meryl Streep, at tomorrow’s SAG Awards. Good for her, I say. (On another note, can she really be 38 years of age? Who’d’a thunk it?)

January 24, 2009
Guessing the weekend’s guilds

I’ve been giving my picks out to various aggregators this weekend but haven’t bothered with a post of my own. Go figure.

I feel like the only sure thing at the SAG is Heath Ledger’s victory in the Best Supporting Actor category, but while everyone else is banking on Sean Penn and Kate Winslet in the leading categories, I’m inclined to say Mickey Rourke and Meryl Streep will throw their respective wrenches in the works.

Winslet is probably sitting pretty for a supporting actress victory, while I can’t think of a valid reason to be against “The Dark Knight” in the new stunt ensemble category. So…

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role: Mickey Rourke in “The Wrestler”
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role: Meryl Streep in “Doubt”
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role: Heath Ledger in “The Dark Knight”
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role: Kate Winslet in “The Reader”
Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture: “Milk”
Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in Motion Pictures: “The Dark Knight”

I won’t be around when the awards actually go down, but I’m sure Guy will be covering.

(PGA thoughts after the jump.)

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January 24, 2009
What will win the PGA?

Tonight, we will receive our biggest precursor pointer to date, as the Producers Guild of America becomes the first of the guilds to make its final pronouncement.

In case you’ve forgotten, the five films vying for the PGA’s top honour are “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “Frost/Nixon,” “Milk,” “Slumdog Millionaire” — and the one nominee to fall foul of Oscar voters, “The Dark Knight.”

“Slumdog Millionaire” appears to be the safest bet, even if its producer, relative newcomer Christian Colson, is less of an industry insider than his fellow nominees. (After all, the field includes such popular figures as Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall, and previous winners Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, Bruce Cohen and Dan Jinks.)

But with “Slumdog” hurtling towards all-but-inevitable victory on Oscar night, not having missed a single stop on the awards trail so far, that shouldn’t matter. It’s by far the most well-liked film in contention, as well as being a profitable indie with a scrappy-fighter backstory. I doubt the PGA will resist.

Back when the nominees were announced at the start of the month — doesn’t that seem a long time ago? — Kris suggested that “The Dark Knight” was the “likely winner.” It made perfect sense at the time: these are producers, after all, so they value financial prowess as much as artistic achievement. (Previous PGA nominees include “Harry Potter and the Sorceror’s Stone” and “My Big Fat Greek Wedding.”)

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January 24, 2009
After cooling off a bit…

Yesterday the Academy displayed just what a fractured organization they are, championing a small film like “Slumdog Millionaire,” for which I applaud them, but snubbing “The Dark Knight,” one of the best reviewed films of the year and a titan at the box office. All day I was asking, ‘How?’ All day I wondered just how out of touch this organization truly is and what a major overhaul is needed.

Call it ageism if you must, but we I think we need new blood in there. I have been covering the Academy Awards for more than 20 years and have had my share of disappointments and shocks over that span of time. One would think I’d get used to it.

I remember the rage when “Ghost” was nominated for Best Picture and when Roberto Begnini won Best Actor. That anger and shock was nothing like I felt yesterday morning at 8:30 Ontario time.

I could not speak. I closed my office door and quietly raged, trying to make sense of it. Reading the other reactions helped ease the wound (I take it personally you see when my films are snubbed) and tried to see the good in the nominations this year. And as Guy astutely points out, there is some good.

Melissa Leo in “Frozen River” made the cut, as did Richard Jenkins for “The Visitor.” Both deserved, both terrific performances. “Wall-E” grabbed a screenplay nod, as well as sound nominations, and “Slumdog Millionaire” did very well indeed, with 10 nods. “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” lead the pack with 13 and Brad Pitt finally got a nomination for Best Actor — long overdue. Mickey Rourke and Marisa Tomei made the list for “The Wrestler” and all four major actors from “Doubt” are nominees.

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January 23, 2009
January winner predictions

Onward. I bet Fox Searchlight wants this phase two to go by as fast as possible.

Best Picture: “Slumdog Millionaire”
Best Director: Danny Boyle, “Slumdog Millionaire”
Best Actor: Sean Penn, “Milk”
Best Actress: Kate Winslet, “The Reader”
Best Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger, “The Dark Knight”
Best Supporting Actress: Penelope Cruz, “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”
Best Adapted Screenplay: “Slumdog Millionaire”
Best Original Screenplay: “WALL-E”
Best Art Direction: “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
Best Cinematography: “The Dark Knight”
Best Costume Design: “The Duchess”
Best Film Editing: “Slumdog Millionaire”
Best Makeup: “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
Best Music (Original Score): “Slumdog Millionaire”
Best Music (Original Song): “WALL-E”
Best Sound Editing: “WALL-E”
Best Sound Mixing: “WALL-E”
Best Visual Effects: “The Cuious Case of Benjamin Button”
Best Animated Feature Film: “WALL-E”
Best Foreign Language Film: “Waltz with Bashir”
Best Documentary (Feature): “Man on Wire”
Best Documentary (Short Subject): “The Witness — From the Balcony of Room 306”
Best Short FIlm (Animated): “Presto”
Best Short Film (Live Action): “New Boy”

Tally:
“Slumdog Millionaire” — 5
“WALL-E” — 5
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” — 3
“The Dark Knight” — 2
“Defiance” — 1
“The Duchess” — 1
“The Reader” — 1
“Vicky Cristina Barcelona” — 1

(Those are all probably dead wrong, but eh, we’ll see how the season develops from here.)

January 22, 2009
81st annual Oscar nominations announced, ‘Button’ leads with 13, ‘Dark Knight’ snubbed in Best Pic

Weinstein is back. (As are comments…sorry for the delay there.)

The short reply is the easy reply: the Academy has embarrassed itself this day. Seven nominations across the tech branches and a tip of the hat for Heath Ledger will be the Oscar legacy of “The Dark Knight.” The director — shunned. The writers — shunned. The film as a Best Picture nominee, pulling this crusty membership out of irrelevance? A pipe dream.

And I saw it coming. I saw this sense of rigid stupidity and ignorance coming, but I just…I didn’t have the heart to predict against the grain. I bought into the hype. I thought the Academy could be a fresh organization. Clearly, it cannot. And it proves as much year after year after year.

“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” was the lead nomination hog with 13 mentions. Likely Best Picture winner “Slumdog Millionaire” was not far behind with 10, two of those nominations coming in the Best Original Song category.

Yes, the music branch proved to be a bunch of bumbling fools yet again, ignoring a solid track from a gifted rocker just like they did last year. You read it right: the Boss got the shaft.

“Milk” matched “The Dark Knight”‘s number of eight and, of course, found its way to Best Picture contention. But it also popped up surprisingly in the costume design field. Meanwhile, some singular thinking were to be had — like “Frozen River” and “In Bruges” finding recognition for their respective original screenplays (though at the unfortunate expense of Woody Allen). Or Michael Shannon, the lone acting nominee for “Revolutionary Road,” and a hell of a deserving bid. Hearing his name brought the broadest smile to my face.

And in an act of defiance against a supporting category campaign, the Academy recognized Kate Winslet as a lead in “The Reader,” which cock-blocked her performance in “Road.”

This all brings us to the elephant in the room: “The Reader” was the film to steal the Bat’s thunder, not “Gran Torino” like I expected, not “WALL-E” as others had hoped. And I think we all knew it was coming once Stephen Daldry’s name was called. A pornographic account of a sympathetic Nazi, rushed through post-production and ultimately a sloppy piece of drama, rightly abandoned by its initial producer at a crucial time on the basis of principle on one hand, politics on the other — this is one of the Academy’s five Best Pictures of the year.

These people should have their cards taken away. This member-for-life shit has to go because you end up with crotchety fools that have no idea what good cinema is, let alone a care about how their organization’s choices will be looked upon in the future. Years from now, “The Reader” will be a blip on the map of film obscurity. “The Dark Knight” will live on in infamy as one of the year’s titans, both a popular blockbuster and a critically acclaimed work of art.

What an absolute tragedy.

(More, plus the nods, after the jump.)

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January 22, 2009
Last minute thoughts

Like I said, I’m on the record. I’ve given some left-field choices (as have you). But here are some lingering thoughts bouncing around inside my tired old head this evening:

1) I think we’re going to see tomorrow, finally, that “Rachel Getting Married” is nothing more than a critical fave. Personally, I liked it enough, but all the “one of the year’s best” talk was dubious to say the least. A SAG ensemble nod would have kept me quiet. Talk about a place it could have made a stand. And that WGA snub was just one more smack by the industry, in my view. Maybe it’s just like one voter told me: “I couldn’t stand these people.” Anne Hathaway, step up for the film’s consolation nod.

2) “Gran Torino,” “Gran Torino,” “Gran Torino.” I can’t say it enough…this film is creeping up. It’s possible it came on too late and Clint missed the timing this time out, but, like I’ve said…watch it. Personally I think it’s a bigger threat than “The Reader.” A bad-ass white guy kicking kids off his lawn or a porno about a sympathetic Nazi. Which film is going to resonate more with the Academy? You tell me.

3) Everyone says, in varying degrees, that everything from “The Dark Knight” to “Frost/Nixon” to “Milk” are on the bubble. But here’s a radical idea: what if the weak link is the film many have called cold and removed? “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” sure does have a lot of guild support…but so did “Dreamgirls.”

4) Could one of the biggest stories tomorrow be the snubbing of Brangelina? Some think he’s out, some think she’s out…but what if they’re both out? Eesh.

5) Better yet, might the biggest shock of the day be a “Man on Wire” snub in the documentary feature category? All I’m saying is films dominated by preexisting footage can struggle here sometimes.

Then again…maybe I’m off my rocker. But there you have it.

I’ve only made one prediction alteration, FYI, and that’s swapping “Slumdog Millionaire” for “Quantum of Solace” in the sound editing field. The latter was just an arbitrary choice to reflect the mixers’ feelings, but I’m thinking of a sweeper possibility there and I like the advenurous choice of “Slumdog” more than “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.” But really, that category lately? Flip a coin.

Enjoy the morning.

January 21, 2009
It’s the second movie

When Sid Ganis and Forest Whitaker step up to the podium tomorrow morning to read the list of this year’s Best Picture nominees, I think we’re all going to be listening hard to the second movie announced. Assuming “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” is locked in (which some might argue that point believe it or not), the next film announced will be either “The Dark Knight,” “Doubt” or “Frost/Nixon.” And if the latter happens to slide out of contention, the second movie called will be “Gran Torino.”

January 21, 2009
TECH SUPPORT: Final preview special, part two

This is part two of my last glance at the year’s tech category contenders. For part one, click here.

Best Music (Original Score)
Now here is a category where there are no locks. Nonetheless, considering the success of their films and scores in awards season to date, A.R. Rahmen (for “Slumdog Millionaire”) and Alexandre Desplat (for “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”) seem solid bets.

Thomas Newman, despite only having a BAFTA nomination to his credit so far in the awards season, often scores when the precursors don’t coming calling so I think he’s in for “WALL-E.” Alternatively, he could get in for “Revolutionary Road.”

The rest of the Golden Globe nominees strike me as facing challenges. Clint Eastwood has performed well this season with “Changeling” but I am doubtful he will ever be embraced by the music branch. James Newton Howard’s compositions for “Defiance” may be lost with his film while Hans Zimmer’s Globe citation for “Frost/Nixon” seems more like a tribute to the composer, a Globe favorite.

I would actually wager that Zimmer and Howard have a better opportunity with their fantastic “The Dark Knight” collaboration. Zimmer has been campaigning hard. Even so, I’m skeptical the duo will score. Co-composers receiving Oscar nominations is extremely rare. (Though, in all fairness, so is co-composing.)

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January 21, 2009
All eyes on left field

The nominations announcement is, oh, 18 hours away (yeah, we count minutes at this stage). Even though I’m well on the record as being a prognosticative pussy this year, I can’t shake the feeling that we’re in for our share of surprises. I doubt I’m alone.

You can go back over Oscar history and write a whole book on the nominations that blind-sided everyone. Sometimes the contender in question might have popped up briefly during the season, though they were forgotten in due time. Other times, they simply manifested from thin air and smacked Oscar watchers in the face. But they’re always there, lingering, waiting to plant that seed of doubt in the viewer the next year. And the year after that.

It’s enough to pull your hair out.

Earlier today, John posted an interesting thought about Benicio Del Toro’s chances in the lead actor category, which followed a recent musing on Woody Allen’s chances as a lone director nominee. This is the kind of stuff I’m talking about.

So with that in mind, I’ve collected a brief list of four contenders that I legitimately think could pop up tomorrow and join that lineage. Some of them are certainly more plausible than others, but none of them, I feel, are terribly out of bounds. I don’t have the cojones to predict them, of course. But this is what I’m thinking.

(By the way, if I DO happen to change any of my predictions at the last minute tonight, I’ll be sure to offer a post indicating as much.)

My thoughts on the left field…

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January 21, 2009
TECH SUPPORT: Final preview special, part one

Five months of Tech Support reach their climax on Thursday morning.

This Canuck is, like the rest of the world, celebrating a new American President today. The fact remains, however, that a new set of Oscar nominees will greet us tomorrow and I can’t help but share my final thoughts on the categories.

This is the first part of my review, including the categories of best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best Film Editing and best Makeup. We’ll chart the final five fields later today, so be sure to check back.

Best Art Direction
Starting with the most difficult category, there is only one film I would give the title “lock,” and it’s “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.” I’d be stunned if Donald Graham Burt’s exquisite sets failed to make the cut.

I suspect that Michael Corenblith is a solid bet for his detailed and realistic sets for “Frost/Nixon.” If “American Gangster” could get in last year, I would surprised if Corenblith did not score, especially considering his past success when working with Howard. James Murakami also seems a solid bet for “Changeling” for what were detailed and memorable designs of 1920s Los Angeles. His guild and BAFTA nominations suggest people remember the work.

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January 21, 2009