Oscar Academy Awards 2006

The official website
see
http://www.oscar.com/

The results will be announced on Mar 5.
;)


Best Motion Picture of the Year
Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Diana Ossana, James Schamus
Capote (2005) - Caroline Baron, William Vince, Michael Ohoven
Crash (2004) - Paul Haggis, Cathy Schulman
Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) - Grant Heslov
Munich (2005) - Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy, Barry Mendel

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year
Bestia nel cuore, La (2005) - Cristina Comencini (Italy)
Joyeux Noël (2005) - Christian Carion (France)
Paradise Now (2005) - Hany Abu-Assad (Palestine)
Sophie Scholl - Die letzten Tage (2005) - Marc Rothemund (Germany)
Tsotsi (2005) - Gavin Hood (South Africa)

Best Achievement in Directing
George Clooney for Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005)
Paul Haggis for Crash (2004)
Ang Lee for Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Bennett Miller for Capote (2005)
Steven Spielberg for Munich (2005)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Philip Seymour Hoffman for Capote (2005)
Terrence Howard for Hustle & Flow (2005)
Heath Ledger for Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Joaquin Phoenix for Walk the Line (2005)
David Strathairn for Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Judi Dench for Mrs. Henderson Presents (2005)
Felicity Huffman for Transamerica (2005)
Keira Knightley for Pride & Prejudice (2005)
Charlize Theron for North Country (2005)
Reese Witherspoon for Walk the Line (2005)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting RoleGeorge Clooney for Syriana (2005)
Matt Dillon for Crash (2004)
Paul Giamatti for Cinderella Man (2005)
Jake Gyllenhaal for Brokeback Mountain (2005)
William Hurt for A History of Violence (2005)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Amy Adams for Junebug (2005)
Catherine Keener for Capote (2005)
Frances McDormand for North Country (2005)
Rachel Weisz for The Constant Gardener (2005)
Michelle Williams for Brokeback Mountain (2005)

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the ScreenCrash (2004) - Paul Haggis, Robert Moresco
Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) - George Clooney, Grant Heslov
Match Point (2005) - Woody Allen
The Squid and the Whale (2005) - Noah Baumbach
Syriana (2005) - Stephen Gaghan

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published
Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Larry McMurtry, Diana Ossana
Capote (2005) - Dan Futterman
The Constant Gardener (2005) - Jeffrey Caine
A History of Violence (2005) - Josh Olson
Munich (2005) - Tony Kushner, Eric Roth

Best Achievement in Cinematography
Batman Begins (2005) - Wally Pfister
Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Rodrigo Prieto
Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) - Robert Elswit
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - Dion Beebe
The New World (2005) - Emmanuel Lubezki

Best Achievement in Editing
Cinderella Man (2005) - Daniel P. Hanley, Mike Hill
The Constant Gardener (2005) - Claire Simpson
Crash (2004) - Hughes Winborne
Munich (2005) - Michael Kahn
Walk the Line (2005) - Michael McCusker

Best Achievement in Art Direction
Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) - James D. Bissell, Jan Pascale
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) - Stuart Craig, Stephanie McMillan
King Kong (2005) - Grant Major, Dan Hennah, Simon Bright
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - John Myhre, Gretchen Rau
Pride & Prejudice (2005) - Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer

Best Achievement in Costume Design
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005) - Gabriella Pescucci
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - Colleen Atwood
Mrs. Henderson Presents (2005) - Sandy Powell
Pride & Prejudice (2005) - Jacqueline Durran
Walk the Line (2005) - Arianne Phillips

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score
Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Gustavo Santaolalla
The Constant Gardener (2005) - Alberto Iglesias
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - John Williams
Munich (2005) - John Williams
Pride & Prejudice (2005) - Dario Marianelli

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song
Hustle & Flow (2005) - Jordan Houston, Cedric Coleman, Paul Beauregard ("It's Hard Out Here For a Pimp")
Crash (2004) - Michael Becker, Kathleen York ("In the Deep")
Transamerica (2005) - Dolly Parton ("Travelin' Thru")

Best Achievement in Makeup
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) - Howard Berger, Tami Lane
Cinderella Man (2005) - David LeRoy Anderson, Lance Anderson
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005) - Dave Elsey, Annette Miles

Best Achievement in Sound
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) - Terry Porter, Dean A. Zupancic, Tony Johnson
King Kong (2005) - Christopher Boyes, Michael Semanick, Michael Hedges, Hammond Peek
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - Kevin O'Connell, Greg P. Russell, Rick Kline, John Pritchett
Walk the Line (2005) - Paul Massey, Doug Hemphill, Peter F. Kurland
War of the Worlds (2005) - Andy Nelson, Anna Behlmer, Ron Judkins

Best Achievement in Sound Editing
King Kong (2005) - Mike Hopkins, Ethan Van der Ryn
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - Wylie Stateman
War of the Worlds (2005) - Richard King

Best Achievement in Visual Effects
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) - Dean Wright, Bill Westenhofer, Jim Berney, Scott Farrar
King Kong (2005) - Joe Letteri, Brian Van't Hul, Christian Rivers, Richard Taylor
War of the Worlds (2005) - Pablo Helman, Dennis Muren, Randy Dutra, Daniel Sudick

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
Corpse Bride (2005) - Tim Burton, Mike Johnson
Hauru no ugoku shiro (2004) - Hayao Miyazaki
Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005) - Steve Box, Nick Park

Best Documentary, Features
Darwin's Nightmare (2004) - Hubert Sauper
Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (2005) - Alex Gibney, Jason Kliot
Marche de l'empereur, La (2005) - Luc Jacquet, Yves Darondeau
Murderball (2005) - Henry Alex Rubin, Dana Adam Shapiro
Street Fight (2005) - Marshall Curry

Best Documentary, Short Subjects
God Sleeps in Rwanda (2005) - Kimberlee Acquaro, Stacy Sherman
A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin (2005) - Corinne Marrinan, Eric Simonson
The Life of Kevin Carter (2004) - Dan Krauss
Mushroom Club, The (2005) - Steven Okazaki

Best Short Film, Animated
Badgered (2005) - Sharon Colman
The Moon and the Son (2005) - John Canemaker, Peggy Stern
The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello (2005) - Anthony Lucas
9 (2005) - Shane Acker
One Man Band (2005) - Mark Andrews, Andrew Jimenez

Best Short Film, Live Action
Ausreißer (2004) - Ulrike Grote
Cashback (2004) - Sean Ellis, Lene Bausager
Síðasti bærinn í dalnum (2004) - Rúnar Rúnarsson, Þórir Snær Sigurjónsson
Our Time Is Up (2004) - Rob Pearlstein, Pia Clemente
Six Shooter (2005) - Martin McDonagh

;)

just some random thoughts ...
;)

(1) congrats to Brokeback Mountain and Crash ... ;) ...
I think the Best Film will be a tough fight between these two ...
... hmmm, a lot of things will influence the final outcome ... incl. the media, beliefs, regrets, etc ...

(2) From the Best Foreign Film category, we learn a good lesson ...
i.e., you need a good story telling (and if possible, a good message) to touch and move people ... ;)
well done ... you may read my reviews on Joyeux Noël (France), Sophie Scholl (Germany) and Paradise Now (Palestine) in this board ...

Italy should be happy ... ;) ...
FYI, this is the "replaced" film ... not their original submission ...

(3) Best Animation, will it simply go to Howl's Moving Castle?

good luck! (and good night?!) hee hee

I want to congratulate the Academy for its strong and respectable nominations for Best Picture. I feel that all of the nominee films are great and worthy of consideration. Good job!!! It's been a long, long, long time, I can't remember the last time I felt this good about the slate for best picture. Perhaps there is hope after all.

Ah how I love the Oscars for the sole purpose of complaining about them. Congrats to Terrence Howard the surprise nominee for Hustle and Flow, a film that I now have to go out and see. Russell Crowe was denied again, although for once Paul Giamatti wasn't, so about damn time he gets some recognition.

Now for a complaint, the best picture race is always a tricky bird. Roughly 13 or 14 films I would have easily been happy with being nominated, and of those only two did get nominated (Munich and Crash). Which means that the other three I disagree with. Good Night and Good Luck as well as Capote were overrated, and Brokeback Mountain is overhyped. I would for once like to see Academy members have a memory that lasts longer than a month and give the award to Crash, by far the best film nominated. What my other complaint is that the nominees for best picture are exactly the same as the best director race, how extremely boring. I thought that for once David Cronenberg might get recognized, or at least have one or two odd ball choices. I don't think Bennett Miller did anything fantastic, but then again I found the film overall overrated.

Not surprising my pick for best actor was left out of the running (poor Pierce Brosnan), but the nominees are generally pretty good and with the exception of Howard not surprising. The actress race is even less shocking, and at least my two favorite performances of the year were selected (Knightley and Witherspoon). I was a little disappointed that Mickey Rourke wasn't nominated for Sin City in the supporting category (laugh if you will but I really thought he could pull it off). The foreign nominees are garbage as usual, no nominations for The World, Weeping Meadow, or Nobody Knows, which were the three foreign films on my top ten. But like I say every year (and every presidential election) the voting process has to change, the bylaws for foreign films are absolutely retarded and need to be seriously modified, lest more garbage get rewarded (Nowhere in Africa anybody?).

I can bitch a little more, but I'll just remained patiently tuned to the awards so that I can change my bitching from what did or didn't get nominated to what won.

p. s. My goal of seeing all best picture nominees BEFORE the nominees were announced was successful, might be a small accomplishment, but it's the first time I've been able to do it.

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Originally posted by wpqx

(i) Ah how I love the Oscars for the sole purpose of complaining about them. ....

(ii) Now for a complaint, the best picture race is always a tricky bird. ... Good Night and Good Luck as well as Capote were overrated, and Brokeback Mountain is overhyped.

(iii) The foreign nominees are garbage as usual, no nominations for The World, Weeping Meadow, or Nobody Knows, which were the three foreign films on my top ten. ...

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hee hee ...

(i) in the entertainment world, any news is good news ... ;PPP

(ii) like tabuno, i have no qualms over the 5 Best Films ... since you chose different descriptions (i..e, "overrated" and "overhyped"), i presume there is a difference (pardon my english) ...

do you mean the following?!
"overrated" means bad, not worth the high ratings ...
"overhyped" means that it is still excellent, but because of too much publicity and expectations, one does not get as much out of it (in relative terms) ...

(iii) "The World" was not submitted by China, but instead "The Promise" (by Chen Kaige) was ... you might find it interesting to note that the majority of the Chinese do not think that "The World" is the best film of the year ...

"Nobody Knows" was submitted last year by Japan but missed out in the nominations ... this year, "Blood and Bones" was submitted (you may read my review in the forum too)

"Weeping Meadow" ... i can't recall ...

Anyway, to be fair, I have watched 3 out of the 5 nominees ... while I will NOT deny that they are probably "safe" options and NOT necessarily the best film from the country (because different nationalities will have different taste and some best films will be "lost in translation"), I have to defend that the 3 films (Merry Christmas, Sophie Scholl and Paradise Now) are actually "very well told" stories with "very good messages" ... taking into account the age/taste/beliefs/etc of voting members in the Academy, I do not think it is surprising that they like the films ...


If you want ... I could probably try explaining why "The Promise" (China), "Perhaps Love" (HK), "The Wayward Cloud" (Taiwan), "Blood and Bones" (Japan), "The Tin Mine" (Thailand), Days of Santiago (Peru), etc did not make it ...


As for Tsotsi, reviews seem to be great. I am not sure about Italy's Don't Tell.

;)

[QUOTE]wpqx posted:
my pick for best actor was left out of the running (poor Pierce Brosnan)...I was a little disappointed that Mickey Rourke wasn't nominated for Sin City in the supporting category (laugh if you will but I really thought he could pull it off).[ /QUOTE]

You have two good points. I loved Pierce's performance in The Matador that combined both humor and drama (always a difficult mix) along with creating a sympathetic bad guy (again not always an easy performance). Thanks for reminding me of Mickey Rourke, he's been overlooked and out of the spotlight for many years as Bruce Willis has had much of the limelight that took away much of the focus on Rourke.

Sorry about the overhyped comment. But I believe that had Brokeback Mountain not been made out to be such a monumental achievement, then perhaps it would sit better in my esteem. I had a similar reaction to Crouching Tiger, which also was given near mythical status by the time it was in general release.

I realize the errors involved with the foreign film race, and over the next few months more films will be coming out, but I still stand by the fact that nearly every year the best foreign film not only doesn't win, but isn't even nominated, and more often not even eligible to be nominated. And yeah Herzog not even being in the top 15 for Grizzly Man seemed ridiculous.

I'm in the process of revamping all of my old Oscar complaints right now. I was writing a book/journal of alternate Oscar picks year by year for the four major categories, and after three years of work I lost all of it, so the process of rebuilding is a slow one to say the least.

Hey to all,


after FINALLY watching all the 5 films in the category ...
my VOTE goes to ...

Best Motion Picture of the Year
Shld win ... Brokeback Mountain (2005)
May win ... Crash (2004) ... becos lots of voters may relate more to LA and the issues involved ...


Like previous years, I am usually more keen on a few categories ...

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Prefer ... Heath Ledger for Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Don't mind ... and may win ... Philip Seymour Hoffman for Capote (2005)

Why?
becos I feel that Heath has a tougher role given that the character has fewer expressions and lesser range of emotions and fewer lines ...
Philip has done an excellent job too, but his character is given the "luxury" of more lines/words, more expressions, and more range of emotions ...
But seriously, I am okay with either ...


Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen
Crash (2004) - Paul Haggis, Robert Moresco

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published
Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Larry McMurtry, Diana Ossana


This category is tough ...
I have yet to watch Tsotsi and Don't Tell, so my opinions are only about the other 3 ...

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year
Joyeux Noël (2005) (France)
- overall very nice theme, however, one has to immerse in the film to appreciate the various subtleties involved ...

Paradise Now (2005) (Palestine)
- the first quarter or half is kind of slow, but the ENDING scene will remain after one leaves the cinema ... the overall message is also thought provoking ...

Sophie Scholl - Die letzten Tage (2005) (Germany)
- people like to celebrate an undaunted person, it is pretty much a one person show ... but the pacing is good ...

rgds
Heng

Quote:

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wpqx:

I don't think Bennett Miller did anything fantastic, but then again I found the film overall overrated.

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I agree on that; I still can't see what's so great about Miller's directing in Capote, and I think the original Richard Brooks/Robert Blake 1967 movie about this material, In Cold Blood. is better. However, all the interest in the movie is due to Philip Seymour HOffman's preformance, and it is a good one. And even though I didn't really like Matador, I will agree with you that Pierce Brosnan is very good in it and I don't know anyone else who could have done it as well. The Academy seems to like a clever, "wow" kind of schtick, like somebody immitating some real person in a spot-on way, or a man pretending to be a woman or vice versa or pretending to be a disabled person. I prefer a performance that has energy and intensity, inwardness, that perhaps makes you identify with or strongly react to the character and forget that it's acting (with Hoffman you never really do I'm afraid), that makes you care about the experience being depicted and moves you;and since I was most moved by the "over-hyped" Brokeback, I would like it if Heath Ledger's "imploded" performance won (I think for periods you do forget he's acting), but that's not likely to happen. and why should it? Ledger is young. Let him turn in some more performances as good as Giammati's or Hoffman's have been.

I can well understand wpqx, turning against an over-hyped film. Crouching Tiger is a good example. Therre are many. I thought Sideways was hugely overhyped. However I am deeply moved by Brokeback so I don't care about the hype and I think a lot of the hype is due to the fact that people just are blown away by the movie as I am. There are plenty who aren't, but they aren't necessarily in the majority. The Brokeback thread on this site has gotten twice as many hits as any of the other Now Playing threads right now. Still, I can understand your reaction very well and often have it myself. Just bear in mind that overhyping ceases to matter when you happen to love the movie involved in the hype, but when it fails to blow you away, it becomes annoying.

In a way the Oscars are all about hype and not much else. They themselves are the ultimate hype.

The truth is that there is not really a great masterpiece film made every year. But when there is one, nine out of ten times the Academy doesn't even know it exists. They don't know from Jia Zhang-ke, and they didn't nominate Haneke's Caché and Wong's 2046. They overlooked Grizzly Man....and so on and on. Personally, I do not like Munich, though I agree it is a movie from 2005 that anyone has to watch, and I will be horrified if it wins. I also think Crash tries too hard to be significant and doesn't deserve to be rewarded for its obviousness. So I don't want to see the Oscars, I'll just see later what happens, even though I might like watching Jon Stewart.

____________________________________________

A friend of mine who has a good success rating at Oscar prediction has sent me his list:

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78th Academy Awards

[From a friend of CK]

PROJECTED OSCAR WINNERS:
Best Picture: Brokeback Mountain
Best Actor: Philip Seymour Hoffman for Capote
Best Actress: Reese Witherspoon for Walk the Line
Best Supporting Actor: Paul Giamatti for Cinderella Man
Best Supporting Actress: Rachel Weisz for The Constant Gardener
Best Director: Ang Lee for Brokeback Mountain
Best Original Screenplay: Paul Haggis and Robert Moresco for Crash
Best Adapted Screenplay: Larry McMurty and Diana Ossana for Brokeback Mountain
Best Cinematography: Rodrigo Prieto for Brokeback Mountain
Best Editing: Michael Kahn for Munich
Best Art Direction: James D. Bissel and Jan Pascale for Good Night, and Good Luck.
Best Costume Design: Colleen Atwood for Memoirs of a Geisha
Best Original Score: John Williams for Munich
Best Makeup: Howard Berger and Tami Lane for The Chronicles of Narnia:The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe
Best Sound: Paul Massey, Doug Hemphill and Peter F. Kurland for Walk the Line
Best Visual Effects: Pablo Helman, Dennis Muren, Randy Dutra, and Daniel Sudick: Wallace & Gromit in the Curse of the Were-Rabbit
Best Foreign Film: Paradise Now
Best Documentary: March of the Penguins

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I'm outta the running for predicting this year's Oscars because I haven't seen any of the Best Pic nominees, nor many of the other supposed "big" movies like March of the Penguins.

Nathan Lee says Munich matters and I trust him.

Brokeback is a film I'll love for the filmmaking
(the story? hmm, I just don't know)
Lost love among cowboys.
A hard pill to swallow for me.

I love Ang Lee and I love cameraman Rodrigo more.
(DP on Alexander &Frida)
The man's an ace cinematographer.
If he doesn't win I'll be angry unless Wally Pfister takes it.

Mr. Phoenix?
Reese?
You won't see me complaining if either wins, but I am concerned that there weren't any more amazing acting jobs in Hollywood.

I mean, this is the best of the bunch?

There's nothing more "wow" than this?
This is the cream of the crop?

You can bet on Hoffman winning for best actor.

The show will be worth watching for Stewart.

He's gotta be better than Silly or Whoppy.

Originally posted by Chris Knipp

The truth is that there is not really a great masterpiece film made every year. But when there is one, nine out of ten times the Academy doesn't even know it exists. They don't know from Jia Zhang-ke, and they didn't nominate Haneke's Caché and Wong's 2046. They overlooked Grizzly Man....and so on and on. Personally, I do not like Munich, though I agree it is a movie from 2005 that anyone has to watch, and I will be horrified if it wins. I also think Crash tries too hard to be significant and doesn't deserve to be rewarded for its obviousness. So I don't want to see the Oscars, I'll just see later what happens, even though I might like watching Jon Stewart.

Precisely.

I'll be watching because my wife and daughter want me to, and I already watched tonight's Miami Festival films during press screenings. Not that I care a whole lot...but I'm rooting for King Kong to win Art Direction and Sound, A History of Violence for Adapted Screenplay, Howl's Moving Castle for Animated Film, The New World for Cinematography, Cinderella Man for Editing, and Brokeback Mountain for everything else, including Best Picture.

I hope I'm not watching but out doing something else. I was going to be going out to see Fateless or Night Watch with a friend, but it seems he may not be free. I am invited to an Oscar night party, but begged off because I can't stand the drawn out tedium of it all or how lousy I feel if something I dislike or think little of wins big. I'm with you on Brokeback and I guess the odds are good.

I am happy to see that Crash win its Best Picture Oscar tonight, it was my second favorite movie of 2005 after North Country as well as the three technical awards for Memoirs of a Geisha my third favorite movie of the year.

It was a very split-up year for the Academy Awards which had looked like they might be something of a sweep for Brokeback Mountain. Was there a Brokeback backlash? It certainly feels that way to this fan. Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Director isn't bad, but still, Crash for Best Picture was a surprise, and goes against popular polls, which favored Brokeback for Best Picture by 13 pomts, and even Jake Gyllenhaal was a small five points over Clooney in the polls for Best Supporting Actor. I guess Crash's winning for Best Original Screenplay was a harbinger of doom in beating out stuff as good, smart, topical, entertaining, and heartfult as Good Night, and Good Luck; Match Point; The Squid and the Whale; and Syriana. Go figure. Well, if that's the way they feel. . . I guess as Manohla Dargis said in her feisty pre-Oscars Q & A,, Crash gave the Academy's mainly white L.A. resident members the satisfaction of believing in certain fantasies and false platitudes:

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Manohla Dargis:
There are a few obvious reasons why Crash connected with the Academy. First, Los Angeles, where most of Academy members live, is a profoundly segregated city, so any movie that makes it seem like its white, black, Asian and Latino inhabitants are constantly tripping over one another has appeal. If nothing else it makes Los Angeles seem as cosmopolitan as, well, New York or at least the Upper West Side. Second, no matter how many times the camera picks out Oprah Winfrey on Oscar night, the Academy is super white. Third, the Academy is, at least in general terms, socially liberal. You see where I’m going, right? What could better soothe the troubled brow of the Academy’s collective white conscious than a movie that says sometimes black men really are muggers (so don’t worry if you engage in racial profiling); your Latina maid really, really loves you (so don’t worry about paying her less than minimum wage); even white racists (even white racist cops) can love their black brothers or at least their hot black sisters; and all answers are basically simple, so don’t even think about politics, policy, the lingering effects of Proposition 13 and Governor Arnold. This is a consummate Hollywood fantasy, no matter how nominally independent the financing and release. I also think it helped the film’s cause that its distributor sent out more than 130,000 DVD's to the industry, insuring easy viewing.

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No hard feelings about Supporting Actors Oscars, though. Clooney gave his all, and Rachel Weisz was the most dynamic and glittering of the candidates in her category. For Capote, Hoffman was a logical prediction for Best Actor, the Academy typically favoring Phillip's brilliant schtick over the heartfelt feeling of Joaquin Phoenix's and Heath Ledger's performances. In terms of general feeling, Ang Lee's choice was the right one and he gave an acceptance speech that was a model of dignity and warmth. Reese Witherspoon feels right as a choice too for Best Actress.. I can't say how many will follow in the groove of why Crash was chosen, or how many will see and ultimately how many will finally live to remember that film. Tsotsi is a surprise for Best Foreign Film, another one that was behind two others in the polls I have seen. I'm glad the mellow, musical Hustle and Flow beat out Crash and Transamerica for Best Original Song. March of the Penguins and Wallace and Gromit made sense as choices for doc and animation; no surprises there. For big King Kong fans, it at least scored big in the effects. Everything nominated for Best Original score was heavy and schmaltzy, so who cares that Gustavo Santaolalla's for Brokeback won out over John Williams, John Williams (yes, he scored both geishas and Israaeli hit men this year), or Alberto Iglesias or Dario Marianelli. Since I've given Manohla an inordinate amount of space, I might as well give her the last word:

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while the Oscars are reliably irritating and often just plain stupid – and boring and silly and wrong – sometimes they draw attention to worthy films and give a boost to equally worthy filmmakers.

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Yeah, sometimes. But not enough.

In the "reliably irritating" aftermath of comments on "terrible decisions" made by the Academy this year as a friend just put it, I forgot to mention something the Human Rights Campaign just emailed me about in a letter headed THE 2006 ACADEMY AWARDS CELEBRATE GLBT-FRIENDLY FILMS, and it's true: this was quite an amazing Hollywood year for gayness, with Capote, Brokeback Mountain, and Transamera all dealing with gay experience, even if the only sexy one is BM. But there I go being picky again. The Human Rights Campaign people know that's not the way to go for social progress. Things work in small increments but this year was a leap forward and there's something to be glad about.

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Tonight America honored three films that portrayed gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender characters with compassion and honesty. Capote, TransAmerica, and Brokeback Mountain each brought gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender stories to movie theaters, the front pages of newspapers, and, most importantly, the everyday conversations of millions of Americans this year.

All across the country, these stories are touching lives and changing minds. . .

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This, for some of us, is a very big value in this year's nominations, and indeed it is very much an honor just to be nominated. Some of the best are those nominated, but not given the big prize.

Great stuff Chris.

That Dargis bit is priceless.

My gut feeling is that the Academy is (for the most part) right this year.

But without having seen the major films I'm not really in a position to say anything.

Crash winning best picture is definitely a surprise.
I've gotta check that film out.
There's an awesome picture of Haggis & Jack Nicholson in our paper today.
I clipped it out- Jack looks like he was having a great time.

Congrats Reese. My favorite film of hers is the Oliver Stone produced Freeway. If anybody here hasn't seen that then rent it ASAP. It's a modern twist on "Little Red Riding Hood" with Kiefer Sutherland as the wolf.

How was Jon Stewart?
Working for the man prevented me from seeing the show.

What the hell kind of broadcast was that last night? On the one hand, you've got the Academy trying to promote film (attendance is down) by showing clip after clip of how great they used to be; followed by Jon Stewart slamming them with "I think we're out of clips. Can anyone send us clips? We'll take anything, even Beta-max will do." That wasn't very funny to most of the people in the crowd. It may be funny to fans of Jon Stewart (I happen to like his "Daily Show") but from the opening monologue, he bombed, big time. The only thing funny about the opening was seeing Billy Crystal and Chris Rock in a tent together. They have to bring Crystal back. This is ridiculous.

Several people warned (during the pre-show) including Joel Siegel at ABC predicting correctly that Crash would take best pix when everyone else predicted Brokeback. The critics are having a field day, comparing the choice of Crash with the 1952 Best Picture "Greatest Show on Earth!" (about the corniest film ever made this side of Iowa).

The only movie that Oscar snubbed last night appeared to be Munich. This is the second time Speilberg has been shut out with a nominated film (the first being The Color Purple, nominated eight times and winning none). He wasn't smiling very much. Nor was anyone else in the front section. I'm afraid that Stewart will go down with Rock and Letterman as the horrible three that ruined the telecast for those of us who used to be fans.

While I was pleased to see Kong win some technical awards, I was rather puzzled with how the Academy jumped from film to film. There were no clear winners and yet, every film had something to claim. No surprises in actor, direction, or animation; Clooney was a good choice, seeing he nearly died for his part. Reese seems a bit too schmaltsy for her own good. When asked backstage if she would do another "Blonde" movie now that she is a serious actress, she replied: "No one's asked!"

The best line from Stewart all evening was "6 pack, Oscar one; Scorsese, zero."

The best Oscar moment was seeing Robert Altman win his recognition long over due.

Being able to see the AA in high definition was cool. (That adds the Olympics and the Superbowl to the big three in high def this year). I highly recommend the service.

The best Oscar commercial? Clearly the M. Night Shyamalan American Express commercial where he experiences the "Twilight Zone" type luncheon, seeing the bizarre and weird in everything.

Well time for the self proclaimed authority to weigh in on the broadcast.

I missed the first two hours or so, so only found out after the fact who won for animated, as well as the supporting acting Oscars. Few surprises ever come in those categories. Nick Park won yet another Oscar (what is that 12 now?) and as Clooney said his Oscar for acting was to shut him up for his other categories, but did anyone really think Good Night and Good Luck would win?

I adamantly disagree with the Academy's choice of Hoffman for best actor. For far too many years now the Academy just awards actors immitating someone famous, and I never thought Hoffman's performance was anything more than an immitation. Nothing like the "real" acting he did in Happiness, Magnolia, or Boogie Nights. Of the nominated actors Heath Ledger was by far the best, and if nothing else his performance deserved an Oscar for just for what a tremendous year he had.

I completely agree with Witherspoon. She was my pick for best actress a long time ago, and despite strong work from Kiera Knightley (in a much better film) and Naomi Watts (unnominated), I still opted for Witherspoon.

The director race I really didn't care about. How boring was it to have the same five nominees as the best picture category. I didn't feel strongly about any of the choices, but I don't object to Ang Lee's Oscar. He did an admirable job. As for the final award, I am most enthusiastically surprised. I didn't think Crash had a chance of winning, but it WAS the best film nominated, and aside from a duo of personal (completley unnominated films) it was my favorite film of the year.

Overall decent work from the Academy. And congrats to Three 6 Mafia, who may have changed their song for the performance, they still were more exciting than every other extremely boring acceptance speech.

Twenty years from now, young film buffs will be scratching their heads wondering how such a contrived, schematic movie won two major Oscars over the likes of Brokeback Mountain, Capote, and others that weren't even nominated. Dargis' comments are welcome. I used to think the Academy couldn't sink lower than giving best picture to A Beautiful Mind. Think again.

Oscar--wow!--I couldn't agree with you more. I too was really horrified by the adulation lavished on Beautiful Mind. That at least tugged at the heartstrings. Trash--I mean Crash (even the title isn't original at all!) is derivative and frankly, hard to remember.

wpqx--liked what you said about Heath. He did have a wonderful year. The whole issue of "actor-y" acting in films is a big one--film acting ought to be understated. Hoffman's performance in Magnolia might have been hammy but it had a lot of genuine feeling and realness in it that Capote didn't. Others strongly disagree, but I don't theink the direction in Capote was so good, so I'd rate Brokeback over it on that score. But even Brokeback was very conventional, even though I loved it and am deeply moved by the story.

The best movie of the year? It probably wasn't one of those.

For me, more original filmmaking can be found in The Beat That My Heart Skipped, 2046, or Caché.

But for personal reasons, Brokeback Mountain is my emotional favorite and it's also a landmark film and a fine one.

I just can't remember Crash very well at all. I can remember Short Cuts....

I don't understand the Crash hating. I loved the film when it came out, and thought most of the members here were in a similar esteem. Crash had a stronger emotional impact on me than Brokeback. I do believe A Beautiful Mind was a worthless best picture choice as well, but Gladiator was far worse. I do agree there were more original completely unnominated films this year, but that always happens. I say count it as a plus if the Academy nominates one film from your top ten, and even a greater blessing if that one film actually wins. This was the case with Crash, so overall I'm happy.

Personally though, I wish The Squid and the Whale would have gotten the best original screenplay Oscar, I thought it was the best written film of the year. Ironically the best original screenplay category is usually better than the best picture race, such was the case last year with the Eternal Sunshine win.

I missed Charlize Theron's 2003 Oscar performance in Monster partly because of the subject matter (woman serial killer), I wasn't interested in seeing it. Reese Witherspoon's acting as well as singing performance combined with the politically correct, non-controversial role of sympathetic partner, wife, supporter of Johnny Cash it seems like an unbeatable presentation on screen. Yet, for all the screen time, the focus of the movie really appeared to be Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash and June Carter almost had more of a strong supporting role rather than the major, primary performance as Charlize Theron did in her recent 2005 starring role in North Country . For a pulling out all the stops, dramatic gritty performance, Charlize seemd to really present a brilliant piece of acting, even more so than Reese Witherspoon and her acting/singing.

With Reese Witherspoon, I'm reminded more of Julia Roberts win for Erin Brockovich (2000) or perhaps Sally Field for Places in the Heart (1984). Even the sensitive and subtle performance of the Chinese actress Ziyi Zhang as a Japanese Geisha in Memoirs of a Geisha clearly was a performance feat of high value and difficulty worthy of a best actress award.

I understand your personal bias to those films and therefore their performances, but I wasn't particularly moved by Charlize Theron's performance, and her accent that seemed to fluctuate in every scene. As for bad accents let's not mention Geisha. As far as acting in that film goes, Gong Li should have been up for a supporting actress Oscar (she was certainly better than Frances McDormand in North Country). Ms. Theron was much better in Monster, and even if I wouldn't have her as my pick for 2003, I certainly am not disappointed by her selection.

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wpqx posted:

I understand your personal bias to those films and therefore their performances, but I wasn't particularly moved by Charlize Theron's performance, and her accent that seemed to fluctuate in every scene. As for bad accents let's not mention Geisha. As far as acting in that film goes, Gong Li should have been up for a supporting actress Oscar (she was certainly better than Frances McDormand in North Country).

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I'm fasincated by your focus on accents. While I believe I have a decent hear for accents, I've never really been challenged on the topic and I don't boast of having any background or experience with accents. I can understand how an apparently false accent could ruin an entire movie. Yet, I didn't really pick up any obvious or off-putting accent problems in either of the two movies you mentioned, especially, Geisha, which personally I feel I would have some real experience knowing someting about. Could, if you please, expand on what your background and qualifications are in terms of picking up accent variations in movies. Curious.

My ear's honestly. There is a distinct pattern of speech for people in Northern Minnesota. People talk very similarly in Canada as well, just as people in the South have a very distinct vocal quality. Ms. Theron fluctuated between a neutral American midwest accent for some scenes and a Northern accent for others. It made the performance uneven at parts. I think she did have a very emotional role, and she did her job well enough, but accents are an all or nothing job so if you do it, do it right. I personally found the film too contrived and manipulative though and would rather like to dismiss it entirely.

As for Geisha perhaps it was more a complaint of broken English. Zhang Ziyi speaks in the film like she can't speak English and had to learn all her lines phoenetically (spelling?). There is none of the vitality and beauty of her words that she carries in many of her Asian films. Then again I heard that many people in China complained about her Mandarin in Crouching Tiger, so perhaps I'm not a particular judge. I recognize that we each have our personal tastes, but I'm sorry to say that two of your three favorite movies of the year I would say were two of the weakest I saw. Then again you may very well say the same about Sin City, Serenity, or Pride and Prejudice films that I particularly loved and felt deserved more Oscar attention (although I can't say I'm surprised Sin City and Serenity were ignored).

btw I'd like to pat myself on the back for pointing out the merits of Reese Witherspoon's performance long before she became a favorite for an Oscar.

I would agree Theron did well emotionally but the movie was too simplistic, making all the men creeps at the begining so their transformation at the end was not prepared for. Not one of the best of the year in my opinion either. I also would agree that although I disliked Sin City, it might have had Oscar attention because if the intensity of its visuals and its effects. I don't know what nominations it got if any. Can't comment on Geisha but would have gone if at least more than one major critic had liked it, but that was not the case. I think there were many Chinese complaints about Crouching Tiger. I thought it over-rated, not really beter than a lot of other marshal* arts movies that came berfore; he just got the mainstream American attention because the time was ripe and the promotion was good.



*Sorry, martial. Thanks, wpqx.

Well took awhile to get back, but a few quick comments.

Sin City had no nominations of any kind.
I couldn't find a favorable review of Geisha either.

and since Chris has so frequently pointed out my misusing the word its, then I should say its "martial" arts not marshal. Just repaying you in kind.