The Recession on Saroj's blog! Hooray!

My friend Saroj held a series of guest blog posts about the recession and asked me to write about my personal take on it. Naturally, I chose the theatre as my point of focus. Check out my post here, and be sure to check out the rest of her very insightful blog.

This entry is brought to you from sunny Florida. I know you're jealous! :P

~Steven

The day after...

So I did have a last-minute Oscar prediction change that I did not post here. It was Slumdog winning for Sound Mixing, which it did. To my mistake, I decided not to jump on the Departures wagon, which many people did at the last second. So my prediction count is 17 out of 24. Eh, I've done much better before, but it is what it is.

I enjoyed the telecast of the Academy Awards with a couple of exceptions, one of those being that awful tribute to movie musicals... what were they thinking?! I did love seeing the past acting winners, but I missed the "Oscar clips" they usually show for each nominee. Otherwise, I love Hugh Jackman, I love seeing no acceptance speech cut off, I love the cohesiveness of the awards presented, I love the focus on the craft. It was a good pat-on-the-back for Hollywood and it made the general masses understand a little better what is involved in filmmaking. It was a celebration for all movies, not just those nominated. I like that.

As for the winners, I think anyone obsessed with Oscar prognostication saw no real surprises. Sure, I predicted Viola Davis to win, but Cruz was always the favorite, and she's hilarious in that movie. There were no truly undeserved wins. I don't think Slumdog deserved many (or any) of their awards, but I won't deny that it was a fairly decent movie with great direction and impressive technical aspects. I attended a party where the people who saw Slumdog said they liked The Reader better. I am one who shares that opinion. I think The Reader deserved the awards for Cinematography and especially Adapted Screenplay, both of which went to Slumdog. And I do believe WALL•E deserved many more awards (it only got the ghetto Animated Feature prize). At least Kate Winslet finally won an Oscar (!) in one of her best performances to date. Well deserved! And although I loved Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler, Sean Penn richly deserves an Oscar for his performance in Milk.

What I'm most excited about is rewatching all these movies after the fact. I can't wait to get The Reader on Blu-ray or give Slumdog a second chance or see Japan's winning movie or be inspired once again by Milk. If this wasn't a great year for movies, it was a good year at the Oscars.

Moving on...

~Steven

Oscar Predictions

Okay, so I dropped the ball in terms of writing up about all of the major Oscar nominees. But here you go: my predictions of the Academy Awards. You'll find my predictions, alternates, and preferences. I have seen all the nominees unless otherwise noted. If I make no preference, I have not seen any of the nominees (basically, I haven't seen the nominated documentaries or shorts).

Best Motion Picture of the Year
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire

Prediction: Slumdog Millionaire
Alternate: The Reader
Preference: The Reader

Achievement in Directing
David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon
Gus Van Sant, Milk
Stephen Daldry, The Reader
Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire

Prediction: Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
Alternate: David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Preference: Gus Van Sant, Milk

Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Richard Jenkins, The Visitor
Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn, Milk
Brad Pitt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler

Prediction: Sean Penn
Alternate: Mickey Rourke
Preference: Sean Penn or Mickey Rourke

Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie, Changeling
Melissa Leo, Frozen River
Meryl Streep, Doubt
Kate Winslet, The Reader

Prediction: Kate Winslet
Alternate: Meryl Streep
Preference: Kate Winslet

Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Josh Brolin, Milk
Robert Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
Michael Shannon, Revolutionary Road

Prediction: Heath Ledger
Alternate: Josh Brolin
Preference: Heath Ledger

Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Amy Adams, Doubt
Penélope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis, Doubt
Taraji P. Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler

Prediction: Viola Davis
Alternate: Penélope Cruz
Preference: Marisa Tomei

Adapted Screenplay
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Eric Roth and Robin Swicord
Doubt, John Patrick Shanley
Frost/Nixon, Peter Morgan
The Reader, David Hare
Slumdog Millionaire, Simon Beaufoy

Prediction: Slumdog Millionaire
Alternate: The Reader
Preference: The Reader

Original Screenplay
Frozen River, Courtney Hunt
Happy-Go-Lucky, Mike Leigh
In Bruges, Martin McDonagh
Milk, Dustin Lance Black
WALL•E, Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon, Pete Docter

Prediction: WALL•E
Alternate: Milk
Preference: WALL•E (I have not seen Happy-Go-Lucky)

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
Bolt
Kung Fu Panda
WALL•E

Prediction: WALL•E
Alternate: Kung Fu Panda
Preference: WALL•E (I have not seen Bolt)

Best Documentary Feature
The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)
Encounters at the End of the World
The Garden
Man on Wire
Trouble the Water

Prediction: Man on Wire
Alternate: Trouble the Water

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year
The Baader Meinhof Complex, Germany
The Class, France
Departures, Japan
Revanche, Austria
Waltz With Bashir, Israel

Prediction: The Class
Alternate: Waltz With Bashir
Preference: I’ve only seen The Class, but it is fantastic

Achievement in Art Direction
Changeling
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Duchess
Revolutionary Road

Prediction: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Alternate: The Dark Knight
Preference: The Duchess

Achievement in Cinematography
Changeling
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire

Prediction: Slumdog Millionaire
Alternate: The Reader
Preference: The Reader

Achievement in Costume Design
Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Duchess
Milk
Revolutionary Road

Prediction: The Duchess
Alternate: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Preference: The Duchess or Milk (I have not seen Australia)

Achievement in Film Editing
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire

Prediction: Slumdog Millionaire
Alternate: The Dark Knight
Preference: Milk

Achievement in Makeup
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Hellboy II: The Golden Army

Prediction: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Alternate: The Dark Knight
Preference: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original Score)
Alexandre Desplat, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
James Newton Howard, Defiance
Danny Elfman, Milk
A.R. Rahman, Slumdog Millionaire
Thomas Newman, WALL•E

Prediction: Slumdog Millionaire
Alternate: WALL•E
Preference: WALL•E (I have not seen Defiance)

Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original Song)
“Down to Earth,” WALL•E
“Jai Ho,” Slumdog Millionaire
“O Saya,” Slumdog Millionaire

Prediction: “Down to Earth”
Alternate: “Jai Ho”
Preference: “Down to Earth”

Achievement in Sound Editing
The Dark Knight
Iron Man
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL•E
Wanted

Prediction: WALL•E
Alternate: The Dark Knight
Preference: WALL•E

Achievement in Sound Mixing
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL•E
Wanted

Prediction: WALL•E
Alternate: Slumdog Millionaire
Preference: WALL•E

Achievement in Visual Effects
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Iron Man

Prediction: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Alternate: Iron Man
Preference: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Best Animated Short Film
La Maison en Petits Cubes
Lavatory – Lovestory
Oktapodi
Presto
This Way Up

Prediction: Presto
Alternate: La Maison en Petits Cubes
Preference: I’ve only seen Presto, which is hilarious, and This Way Up, which is strange, so I’d go with Presto

Best Documentary Short Subject
The Conscience of Nhem En
The Final Inch
Smile Pinki
The Witness – From the Balcony of Room 306

Prediction: The Conscience of Nhem En
Alternate: The Witness – From the Balcony of Room 306

Best Live Action Short Film
Auf der Strecke (On the Line)
Manon on the Asphalt
New Boy
The Pig
Spielzeugland (Toyland)

Prediction: Spielzeugland (Toyland)
Alternate: The Pig

Predicted Number of Wins:
Slumdog Millionaire – 6
WALL•E – 5
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – 3
The Class – 1
The Conscience of Nhem En – 1
The Dark Knight – 1
Doubt – 1
The Duchess – 1
Man on Wire – 1
Milk – 1
Presto – 1
The Reader – 1
Spielzeugland (Toyland) – 1

I don't see a Slumdog clean sweep like some people are thinking. It'll be the big winner, but it will not sweep. And there's no way Benjamin Button, a tech marvel and nomination leader, will go home empty-handed. I do predict that WALL•E will be the runner up at Oscar night since it's so beloved, but The Dark Knight will have only one consolation prize for losing out in the Best Picture lineup.

This has been an odd Oscar year for sure...

~Steven

Steven on the Oscar Nominees: Actress in a Supporting Role

This is the first of a series of posts I’m putting together on my thoughts on this year’s Oscar nominations. Thoughts, my opinions of the performances, my personal favorites, and anything else I have to offer.

And the nominees are...

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Amy Adams in Doubt
Penélope Cruz in Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis in Doubt
Taraji P. Henson in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Marisa Tomei in The Wrestler

In Doubt, Amy Adams portrays Sister James, a young and naïve nun whose confession gets the movie rolling along. Although she gives the least emotional punch out of the Doubt quartet, Adams pulls her weight. After all, she was Oscar-nominated for a similar role in Junebug and should have made it for Enchanted. What she does, she does well, so no complaining here. However, this is not an award-winning role, especially when you put her up against Viola Davis, who gives a more memorable performance in the same film.

Penélope Cruz thoroughly shines in Vicky Cristina Barcelona. For me, she was the saving grace of the film. Whenever she’s on the screen, the movie is one thousand times better. Her Maria Elena is so fiery, passionate, and entirely crazy. There’s some heavy scenery chewing for sure, but it’s very calculated, smart, and, above all, hilarious. Cruz gives an entertaining performance through-and-through.

Viola Davis’s Mrs. Miller (wasn’t it “Mrs. Muller” on Broadway?) is as messy and sloppy as anything, but she doesn’t care as long as her son gets through school. It is Doubt’s pivotal role and Davis doesn’t back away from it. You know you’re seeing something special when someone actually upstages Meryl Streep. She has the shortest role of all the nominees in this category, but who can forget the image of Viola Davis with tears streaming down her eyes, snot dripping down her nose, quietly but relentlessly fighting for her son, even if it means trading one type of abuse for another? Sure, a lot of it comes from John Patrick Shanley’s writing, but the movie would fall flat if you don’t have a great actress in this role. And no, the movie doesn’t fall flat.

Taraji P. Henson’s Queenie ages normally in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, but she probably has the biggest heart out of the nominated roles. She takes care of the elderly, mothers a computer-generated (and Oscar-nominated) Brad Pitt, and never thinks twice about what she believes is right. Yes, she probably leaves the least impact out of all the nominees in this category, but it doesn’t mean that you don’t want her for your own mama. While I thought the standout supporting performance in Benjamin Button was Tilda Swinton’s, Henson has done a fine job as well.

And that leaves us with Marisa Tomei and her performance as Cassidy and/or Pam in The Wrestler. Tomei is nude for probably one-half of her performance, and even though she plays an aging stripper, I don’t think anyone would complain about watching her gyrate and lap-dance in this film. Who knew she still has a rockin’ body? Marisa Tomei is so raw and so real in The Wrestler; she lives and breathes in this role. It’s an unbelievable performance from start to finish. Tomei’s first Oscar was not a fluke. She is a wonderful actress, and this performance would convert any of the non-believers. Although she won an Oscar for a flashy role, Tomei proves that a great, subtle performance reads just as strong.

My pick: Marisa Tomei in The Wrestler

Other thoughts: All five ladies and performances are strong, so I wouldn’t be upset with any of them winning. Tomei is probably the dark horse to win with Cruz and Davis grabbing what was once Kate Winslet’s award for the taking (her supporting performance in The Reader was nominated in the leading category). So if any of those three win, I’d be happy.

Soon to come: The other acting races and, of course, Best Picture!

Thoughts? Comments? Debates? Threats? Let me know!

~Steven