Breaking News from Los Angeles 6/25/09 (eonline.com):
You might think this is a Michael Jackson story, but I will let the real media sort out whether he is really dead or whether this is just a clever ruse so he can join Elvis in Bermuda.
You can read more about Michael on the 2/12/09 post titled Apples to Oscars.
This story is about Oscar. This year's Best Picture field will be expanded to 10 contenders, the Academy Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced today.
Typically overlooked genres like sci-fi, comedy and animation may get a crack at the big prize. Normally limited to 5 movies that few people have seen, this may be good news for Star Trek, Up and other popular movies that real people pay big bucks to see.
Today's announcement comes as the Academy continues to mark the 70th anniversary of "Hollywood's Greatest Year"—1939 saw the release of such classic films as Best Picture winner Gone With the Wind, along with fellow Oscar nominees The Wizard of Oz, Stagecoach, Ninotchka, Dark Victory, Love Affair, Of Mice and Men, Wuthering Heights, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and Goodbye, Mr. Chips.
If you counted 10 nominees then I used the proper amount of commas. Early on, Oscar would nominate 10 or more films for Best Picture, so we are just changing back to the way it was done back in the good old days…. Before 3-D, IMAX, color, etc.
Nominations for the 82nd Academy Awards will be announced Feb. 2, 2010, with the ceremony set March 7. Stay tuned for additional Oscar news right here.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Final Answers
Here are the Final Answers from Oscar night (see below), the ones in red were the ones I missed. 18 of 24 was pretty good, but I have done better in previous years. The best actor race was the closest, and I went with the underdog Rourke, which gave me 11 of 12 in what I consider to be the major categories.
Also of note is that all 8 of my picks for Slumdog Millionaire were winners.
It turns out that Roger Ebert is still alive, and I tied him in the "Outguess Ebert" competition. Since I technically did not "outguess" him, I lose, kind of like playing a game in a casino where the dealer or "the house" wins a tie or "a push". You should always avoid these types of games.
The online contest at Oscar.com was very enjoyable. Very enjoyable if you like technical difficulties like servers crashing and pick selections erasing into thin cyberspace. Next year I will stick to watching the show on the big screen in HDTV with some tasty snacks and the laptop computer safely powered down.
Here are some highlights of the show that I remember, that do not involve cursing at the fine people at Oscar.com, who will be appearing at an unemployment line near you:
Philippe Petit, the subject of the documentary "Man on Wire," balances an Oscar on his chin after the film won for best documentary feature. (It is unprecedented that an oscar highlight involves a non-Michael Moore documentary feature.)
Senn Penn's acceptance of the best actor award..."You commie homo-loving sons of guns", I take offense to this insult of Hollywood types. They are not commies.
Kunio Kato, accepting the award for Best Foriegn Film for Japan's "Departures" had two memorable quotes...Domo arrigato, Mr. Robato from the Styx song and Sank yu, Sank yu, Sank yu. (from Titanic?)
Hugh Jackman looked deep into Kate Winslet's eyes and sang the words every girl hopes to hear: "I would swim a sea of human excrement for you"
Jackman filled the hosting role in much the same fashion as Billy Crystal with an opening number that highlighted many of the best-picture nominees in a song-and-dance routine.
Jackman did a techno number claiming he hadn't seen "The Reader," which was somewhat of a controversial pick over "Dark Knight."
"How come comic-book movies never get nominated," Jackman sang in praise of "Dark Knight." "How can a billion dollars not be sophisticated?"
36.3 million people tuned in to watch the show, which I am sure you all remember was the exact number I predicted my "Two Weeks Until Oscar" post. I will stop typing while you scroll down and check.
OK, my exact words were "approximately 36 million." There is no push here, no "you missed it by 300,000", I got that one exactly right. You are not going to go full Ebert on me, are you? "Never go full Ebert."
The last reference was to a Tropic Thunder quote that I had to modify, so I would not upset my dozens of loyal readers.
My comments and/or predictions on the presenters were clearly wrong. It was a secret. How was I to know that everyone in Hollywood would be a presenter, as they brought them out in groups of 5, one for each nominee. Everyone except George Clooney, who was meeting with President Barack Obama, finalizing his diplomatic mission as Ambassador to Darfur. I didn't see that one coming.
Best...
-Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
-Lead Actor: Sean Penn (Milk)
-Lead Actress: Kate Winslet (The Reader)
-Supporting Actor: Heath Legder (The Dark Knight)
-Supporting Actress: Penelope Cruz (Vicky Cristina Barcelona)
-Director: Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire)
-Original Screenplay: Milk
-Adapted Screenplay: Slumdog Millionaire
-Original Score: Slumdog Millionaire
-Original Song: “Jai Ho” (from Slumdog Millionaire)
-Animated Feature: Wall-E
-Documentary Feature: Man on Wire
-Foreign Language Film: Departures (Japan)
-Visual Effects: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
-Art Direction: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
-Costume Design: The Duchess
-Cinematography: Slumdog Millionaire
-Film Editing: Slumdog Millionaire
-Sound Editing: The Dark Knight
-Sound Mixing: Slumdog Millionaire
-Make-Up: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
-Live Action Short Film: Spielzeugland (Toyland)
- Animated Short Film: LaMaison en Petits Cubes
-Documentary Short: Smile Pinki
Also of note is that all 8 of my picks for Slumdog Millionaire were winners.
It turns out that Roger Ebert is still alive, and I tied him in the "Outguess Ebert" competition. Since I technically did not "outguess" him, I lose, kind of like playing a game in a casino where the dealer or "the house" wins a tie or "a push". You should always avoid these types of games.
The online contest at Oscar.com was very enjoyable. Very enjoyable if you like technical difficulties like servers crashing and pick selections erasing into thin cyberspace. Next year I will stick to watching the show on the big screen in HDTV with some tasty snacks and the laptop computer safely powered down.
Here are some highlights of the show that I remember, that do not involve cursing at the fine people at Oscar.com, who will be appearing at an unemployment line near you:
Philippe Petit, the subject of the documentary "Man on Wire," balances an Oscar on his chin after the film won for best documentary feature. (It is unprecedented that an oscar highlight involves a non-Michael Moore documentary feature.)
Senn Penn's acceptance of the best actor award..."You commie homo-loving sons of guns", I take offense to this insult of Hollywood types. They are not commies.
Kunio Kato, accepting the award for Best Foriegn Film for Japan's "Departures" had two memorable quotes...Domo arrigato, Mr. Robato from the Styx song and Sank yu, Sank yu, Sank yu. (from Titanic?)
Hugh Jackman looked deep into Kate Winslet's eyes and sang the words every girl hopes to hear: "I would swim a sea of human excrement for you"
Jackman filled the hosting role in much the same fashion as Billy Crystal with an opening number that highlighted many of the best-picture nominees in a song-and-dance routine.
Jackman did a techno number claiming he hadn't seen "The Reader," which was somewhat of a controversial pick over "Dark Knight."
"How come comic-book movies never get nominated," Jackman sang in praise of "Dark Knight." "How can a billion dollars not be sophisticated?"
36.3 million people tuned in to watch the show, which I am sure you all remember was the exact number I predicted my "Two Weeks Until Oscar" post. I will stop typing while you scroll down and check.
OK, my exact words were "approximately 36 million." There is no push here, no "you missed it by 300,000", I got that one exactly right. You are not going to go full Ebert on me, are you? "Never go full Ebert."
The last reference was to a Tropic Thunder quote that I had to modify, so I would not upset my dozens of loyal readers.
My comments and/or predictions on the presenters were clearly wrong. It was a secret. How was I to know that everyone in Hollywood would be a presenter, as they brought them out in groups of 5, one for each nominee. Everyone except George Clooney, who was meeting with President Barack Obama, finalizing his diplomatic mission as Ambassador to Darfur. I didn't see that one coming.
Best...
-Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
-Lead Actor: Sean Penn (Milk)
-Lead Actress: Kate Winslet (The Reader)
-Supporting Actor: Heath Legder (The Dark Knight)
-Supporting Actress: Penelope Cruz (Vicky Cristina Barcelona)
-Director: Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire)
-Original Screenplay: Milk
-Adapted Screenplay: Slumdog Millionaire
-Original Score: Slumdog Millionaire
-Original Song: “Jai Ho” (from Slumdog Millionaire)
-Animated Feature: Wall-E
-Documentary Feature: Man on Wire
-Foreign Language Film: Departures (Japan)
-Visual Effects: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
-Art Direction: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
-Costume Design: The Duchess
-Cinematography: Slumdog Millionaire
-Film Editing: Slumdog Millionaire
-Sound Editing: The Dark Knight
-Sound Mixing: Slumdog Millionaire
-Make-Up: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
-Live Action Short Film: Spielzeugland (Toyland)
- Animated Short Film: LaMaison en Petits Cubes
-Documentary Short: Smile Pinki
Sunday, February 22, 2009
2009 Oscar Picks
Here are my 2009 Oscar picks: Enjoy the show and check back in to find how I did. I will be participating in an online event on Oscar.com in group #15858 (username tjwasnock)
BEST PICTURE
Slumdog Millionaire
BEST ACTOR
Mickey Rourke in "The Wrestler"
BEST ACTRESS
Kate Winslet in "The Reader"
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Heath Ledger in "The Dark Knight"
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Penelope Cruz in "Vicky Cristina Barcelona"
BEST DIRECTOR
Danny Boyle for "Slumdog Millionaire"
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Milk
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Slumdog Millionaire
BEST ART DIRECTION
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Slumdog Millionaire
BEST FILM EDITING
Slumdog Millionaire
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
The Duchess
BEST MAKEUP
The Dark Knight
BEST MUSIC - ORIGINAL SCORE
Slumdog Millionaire
BEST MUSIC - ORIGINAL SONG
"Jai Ho" from Slumdog Millionaire
BEST SOUND MIXING
Slumdog Millionaire
BEST SOUND EDITING
WALL-E
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
WALL-E
BEST FOREIGN FILM
Waltz with Bashir (Israel)
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Man on Wire
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306
BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
Spielzeugland (Toyland)
BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM
Presto
BEST PICTURE
Slumdog Millionaire
BEST ACTOR
Mickey Rourke in "The Wrestler"
BEST ACTRESS
Kate Winslet in "The Reader"
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Heath Ledger in "The Dark Knight"
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Penelope Cruz in "Vicky Cristina Barcelona"
BEST DIRECTOR
Danny Boyle for "Slumdog Millionaire"
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Milk
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Slumdog Millionaire
BEST ART DIRECTION
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Slumdog Millionaire
BEST FILM EDITING
Slumdog Millionaire
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
The Duchess
BEST MAKEUP
The Dark Knight
BEST MUSIC - ORIGINAL SCORE
Slumdog Millionaire
BEST MUSIC - ORIGINAL SONG
"Jai Ho" from Slumdog Millionaire
BEST SOUND MIXING
Slumdog Millionaire
BEST SOUND EDITING
WALL-E
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
WALL-E
BEST FOREIGN FILM
Waltz with Bashir (Israel)
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Man on Wire
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306
BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
Spielzeugland (Toyland)
BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM
Presto
Friday, February 20, 2009
Brad Pitt vs King Kong
OK, you have seen the list of nominees. Despite leading with 13 nominations, Benjamin Button is quite likely going to win only a couple maybe only 1. B.B. would be the front runner in the visual effects category. I’ve heard it described as groundbreaking. It is not, but it should and will win.
Putting a computerized aged Brad Pitt head on a midget doesn’t compare with the movies that have won for visual effects over the years. The Wizard of Oz lost in 1939 (In the height of The Great Depression, I remind you). In 1956, the parting of the Red Sea in The Ten Commandments was memorable. 1968, 2001 A Space Odyssey took us to outer space before Neil Armstrong got to the moon. 1977, Star Wars. 1980 – 1984 was swept by anything Spielberg or Lucas (2 Star Wars movies, 2 Indiana Jones movies and E.T.). Jurassic Park, Forrest Gump, Titanic, Gladiator, and all three Lord of the Rings movies have won in the recent past. I would not consider Buttons to be groundbreaking visual effects, the T-Rex from Jurassic Park would kick his butt, so would King Kong.
Slumdog Millionaire, the rags to riches tale, has 10 nominations and may win somewhere in the range of 5-8 of them. Which ones? Probably Best Picture, maybe director…my complete list of picks will be posted prior to the Oscar telecast.
Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor are Winslet and Ledger, you can take that to the bank. Maybe you better put in under the mattress, given the state of our banks, in this economy.
Supporting Actress is always a wildcard. Remember when Marissa Tomei won for My Cousin Vinny in 1992. I picked that one and won the contest in my local paper that year. The winner is usually surprising, but not if you know what to look for in a nominee. Are they new? Are they young? Are they hot? Examples please…
In 1992, Tomei was new young and hot. 1993, Anna Paquin – young (age 11). 1995,1997,1999, 2001 -Mira Sorvino, Kim Basinger, Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Connelly –hot, hot, hot, hot. 2006, Jennifer Hudson – new. 1990 Whoopi Goldberg – ha I tricked you, the new, young and/or hot clearly does not always work.
Marissa Tomei is back this year in The Wrestler, and she is not new anymore. She is not technically classified as young at age 44. This is sad news to me, since I will be celebrating my 45th birthday tomorrow. She is still hot as the “stripper with the heart of gold” character that we have seen before. She probably won’t win, she already has an Oscar and that counts against you in the voting, more on that later.
This comes down to a Penalope Cruz battle vs. a 10 minute scene for Viola Davis in Doubt.
The last of the “major” categories that I have not mentioned is Best Actor. Here we go, I will try to explain this as delicately as possible. Front runners are Senn Penn for Milk and Mickey Rourke for the Wrestler. Longshot is Frank Langella as Nixon in Frost/Nixon.
Langella and Penn play real people and that gets you votes. Penn’s character is a gay rights activist in California, nominated in a year of some political turmoil over gay rights in California. That gets you more votes. If you look at the academies history of presenting an Oscar to a gay character, and I am thinking specifically of Russell Crowe’s, Maximus Decimus Meridius in Gladiator, you would think that Penn would have a guaranteed win.
But in this corner, weighing 250 pounds and apparently using the same steroid dealer as A-Rod, is Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler.
Hollywood loves a riches to rags to riches story, because so many of the voters have been there and done that. Down and Out in Beverly Hills. Hard to say if Rourke can overcome the political message vote for the much loved Penn (I loved him as Spicoli, in Fast Times and Ridgemont High.). One thing in Rourke’s favor is that Penn has won before in this category, 2003 Mystic River. (He beat Bill Murray and Johnny Depp.)
Screenplays come in two types adapted and original. Original is like Wall-E, not based on any classic novel or Milk, a story written directly for the screen in the hopes of winning Oscars from political Hollywood types.
Adapted is like Benjamin Button, from a classic short story from F. Scott Fitzgerald, that Hollywood folk have been drooling over for many years and could finally make now that technology has allowed us to age in reverse. Adapted screenplays are also like Slumdog Millionaire, from the autobiography of Regis Philbin, adapted into something completely different.
There is a large group of small categories that will make or break your Oscar pool. Involving editing, sound, makeup, animation, both short and feature length, documentaries, short and feature length, cinematography, costume, and foreign language.
I will try to explain the technical process of making educated guesses for these minor categories in my next post, but here is a quick tip. Does the subject matter even remotely involve the Holocaust. Pick it.
Putting a computerized aged Brad Pitt head on a midget doesn’t compare with the movies that have won for visual effects over the years. The Wizard of Oz lost in 1939 (In the height of The Great Depression, I remind you). In 1956, the parting of the Red Sea in The Ten Commandments was memorable. 1968, 2001 A Space Odyssey took us to outer space before Neil Armstrong got to the moon. 1977, Star Wars. 1980 – 1984 was swept by anything Spielberg or Lucas (2 Star Wars movies, 2 Indiana Jones movies and E.T.). Jurassic Park, Forrest Gump, Titanic, Gladiator, and all three Lord of the Rings movies have won in the recent past. I would not consider Buttons to be groundbreaking visual effects, the T-Rex from Jurassic Park would kick his butt, so would King Kong.
Slumdog Millionaire, the rags to riches tale, has 10 nominations and may win somewhere in the range of 5-8 of them. Which ones? Probably Best Picture, maybe director…my complete list of picks will be posted prior to the Oscar telecast.
Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor are Winslet and Ledger, you can take that to the bank. Maybe you better put in under the mattress, given the state of our banks, in this economy.
Supporting Actress is always a wildcard. Remember when Marissa Tomei won for My Cousin Vinny in 1992. I picked that one and won the contest in my local paper that year. The winner is usually surprising, but not if you know what to look for in a nominee. Are they new? Are they young? Are they hot? Examples please…
In 1992, Tomei was new young and hot. 1993, Anna Paquin – young (age 11). 1995,1997,1999, 2001 -Mira Sorvino, Kim Basinger, Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Connelly –hot, hot, hot, hot. 2006, Jennifer Hudson – new. 1990 Whoopi Goldberg – ha I tricked you, the new, young and/or hot clearly does not always work.
Marissa Tomei is back this year in The Wrestler, and she is not new anymore. She is not technically classified as young at age 44. This is sad news to me, since I will be celebrating my 45th birthday tomorrow. She is still hot as the “stripper with the heart of gold” character that we have seen before. She probably won’t win, she already has an Oscar and that counts against you in the voting, more on that later.
This comes down to a Penalope Cruz battle vs. a 10 minute scene for Viola Davis in Doubt.
The last of the “major” categories that I have not mentioned is Best Actor. Here we go, I will try to explain this as delicately as possible. Front runners are Senn Penn for Milk and Mickey Rourke for the Wrestler. Longshot is Frank Langella as Nixon in Frost/Nixon.
Langella and Penn play real people and that gets you votes. Penn’s character is a gay rights activist in California, nominated in a year of some political turmoil over gay rights in California. That gets you more votes. If you look at the academies history of presenting an Oscar to a gay character, and I am thinking specifically of Russell Crowe’s, Maximus Decimus Meridius in Gladiator, you would think that Penn would have a guaranteed win.
But in this corner, weighing 250 pounds and apparently using the same steroid dealer as A-Rod, is Mickey Rourke in The Wrestler.
Hollywood loves a riches to rags to riches story, because so many of the voters have been there and done that. Down and Out in Beverly Hills. Hard to say if Rourke can overcome the political message vote for the much loved Penn (I loved him as Spicoli, in Fast Times and Ridgemont High.). One thing in Rourke’s favor is that Penn has won before in this category, 2003 Mystic River. (He beat Bill Murray and Johnny Depp.)
Screenplays come in two types adapted and original. Original is like Wall-E, not based on any classic novel or Milk, a story written directly for the screen in the hopes of winning Oscars from political Hollywood types.
Adapted is like Benjamin Button, from a classic short story from F. Scott Fitzgerald, that Hollywood folk have been drooling over for many years and could finally make now that technology has allowed us to age in reverse. Adapted screenplays are also like Slumdog Millionaire, from the autobiography of Regis Philbin, adapted into something completely different.
There is a large group of small categories that will make or break your Oscar pool. Involving editing, sound, makeup, animation, both short and feature length, documentaries, short and feature length, cinematography, costume, and foreign language.
I will try to explain the technical process of making educated guesses for these minor categories in my next post, but here is a quick tip. Does the subject matter even remotely involve the Holocaust. Pick it.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
One Word
I have just one word for you. IMDb. OK, here are some more words now.
Has this ever happened to you? You are watching a movie that you rented, or on HBO, or a DVD that you borrowed from a friend because they thought is was really good, but it really sucked and one of the following things happened: A - You see an actor and you can’t remember his or her name . B - You see an actor that you remember from another movie, who co-starred with an actor that you can’t remember, or 3 - You see an actor from a movie, who was in another movie that you can’t remember either the name of the other movie or the name of one of the costars of the other movie, or Z – one of the infinite number of more complicated scenarios where, because you are getting old, you can’t remember something, pertaining to the movie that you are thinking about.
One word, IMDb.
I know what you are thinking. Tom, you are an idiot, IMDb is not a word, no four-letter word I’ve ever muttered starts with only 3 capital letters. If that is what you were thinking then you would technically be correct. It hasn’t actually made it into the Oxford English Dictionary, but where I come from; it is already an official word.
Let me give you an example. We are at a family gathering during Thanksgiving, Christmas or Fourth of July watching a movie . After 15 – 20 minutes of debating that the Spaniard, Inigo Montoya, from The Princess Bride (1987), was in a TV series as either a doctor, lawyer, or FBI special agent, someone eventually solves the brain-racking dilemma, not by figuring out the correct answer, but by simply saying one word. IMDb.
Someone then proceeds to click on the Internet Explorer Favorite bookmark at the nearest PC or laptop and in a few quick clicks the answer is found. Type in Princess Bride in search and look for the cast, oh yeah, Mandy Patinkin was his name, click on that. He was the doctor in Chicago Hope, and he was an FBI special agent in 47 episodes of Criminal Minds, and he may have been a lawyer in one episode of Boston Legal and/or Law and Order, and a commercial for Viagra or blood pressure medication. A couple hours pass by as we learn that Mandy Patinkin also played Detective Sam Francisco in Alien Nation with James Caan who starred in Elf with Will Ferrell etc., etc., etc., ... followed by a review of the entire script of Princess Bride quotes such as:
Fezzik: Why do you wear a mask? Were you burned by acid, or something like that?
Man in Black: Oh no, it's just that they're terribly comfortable. I think everyone will be wearing them in the future.
And…
Vizzini: HE DIDN'T FALL? INCONCEIVABLE.
Inigo Montoya: You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
Now it is one thirty in the morning. INCONCEIVABLE!
CAUTION: IMDb, like U-tube or Facebook, can be addictive. Use in moderation.
The point is, IMDb is used as a word in our family, just like a real word that you would find in a good dictionary, like Google or Biodiesel. New words make their way into the dictionary all the time, even an abbreviation like dis, to disrespect, is in the dictionary now. IMDb is technically an abbreviation, for Internet Movie Database, and imho, it is one of the top ten sites in the World Wide Web.
It takes a while for a word to become “official.” The word Google has been around since at least 1999, when some people claimed it was the word of the year. I think the runner up was Y2K. It took seven more years until it was officially recognized as a verb.
Dateline - June 29, 2006
Google Now A Verb In The Oxford English Dictionary
Gary Price reports that "Google" is now officially a verb in the Oxford English Dictionary. Google already is a verb in some other dictionaries, but the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is considered the most authoritative dictionary of the English language.
Google as a verb is defined in the dictionary as; To use the Google search engine to find information on the Internet. To search for information about (a person or thing) using the Google search engine.
So there you have it. IMDb is not a word yet, but It is terribly convenient. I think that everyone will be saying it in the future.
Here is a list of the 81st Annual Academy Award Nominees for all 24 categories, brought to you by the good folks at IMDb, Visited by over 57 million movie and TV lovers each month!
Best Motion Picture of the Year
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Richard Jenkins for The Visitor
Frank Langella for Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn for Milk
Brad Pitt for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke for The Wrestler
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Anne Hathaway for Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie for Changeling
Melissa Leo for Frozen River
Meryl Streep for Doubt
Kate Winslet for The Reader
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Josh Brolin for Milk
Robert Downey Jr. for Tropic Thunder
Philip Seymour Hoffman for Doubt
Heath Ledger for The Dark Knight
Michael Shannon for Revolutionary Road
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Amy Adams for Doubt
Penélope Cruz for Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis for Doubt
Taraji P. Henson for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Marisa Tomei for The Wrestler
Best Achievement in Directing
Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire
Stephen Daldry for The Reader
David Fincher for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard for Frost/Nixon
Gus Van Sant for Milk
Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen
Frozen River: Courtney Hunt
Happy-Go-Lucky: Mike Leigh
In Bruges: Martin McDonagh
Milk: Dustin Lance Black
WALL·E: Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter, Jim Reardon
Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: Eric Roth, Robin Swicord
Doubt: John Patrick Shanley
Frost/Nixon: Peter Morgan
The Reader: David Hare
Slumdog Millionaire: Simon Beaufoy
Best Achievement in Cinematography
Changeling: Tom Stern
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: Claudio Miranda
The Dark Knight: Wally Pfister
The Reader: Roger Deakins, Chris Menges
Slumdog Millionaire: Anthony Dod Mantle
Best Achievement in Editing
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button : Angus Wall, Kirk Baxter
The Dark Knight : Lee Smith
Frost/Nixon : Daniel P. Hanley, Mike Hill
Milk (2008/I): Elliot Graham
Slumdog Millionaire : Chris Dickens
Best Achievement in Art Direction
Changeling: James J. Murakami, Gary Fettis
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: Donald Graham Burt, Victor J. Zolfo
The Dark Knight : Nathan Crowley, Peter Lando
The Duchess : Michael Carlin, Rebecca Alleway
Revolutionary Road : Kristi Zea, Debra Schutt
Best Achievement in Costume Design
Australia : Catherine Martin
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button : Jacqueline West
The Duchess : Michael O'Connor
Milk (2008/I): Danny Glicker
Revolutionary Road : Albert Wolsky
Best Achievement in Makeup
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button : Greg Cannom
The Dark Knight : John Caglione Jr., Conor O'Sullivan
Hellboy II: The Golden Army : Mike Elizalde, Thomas Floutz
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button : Alexandre Desplat
Defiance : James Newton Howard
Milk (2008/I): Danny Elfman
Slumdog Millionaire : A.R. Rahman
WALL·E : Thomas Newman
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song
Slumdog Millionaire : A.R. Rahman, ("Jai Ho")
Slumdog Millionaire : A.R. Rahman, ("O Saya")
WALL·E : Peter Gabriel, Thomas Newman("Down to Earth")
Best Achievement in Sound
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button : David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce, Mark Weingarten
The Dark Knight : Ed Novick, Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo
Slumdog Millionaire : Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke, Resul Pookutty
WALL·E : Tom Myers, Michael Semanick, Ben Burtt
Wanted : Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño, Petr Forejt
Best Achievement in Sound Editing
The Dark Knight : Richard King
Iron Man : Frank E. Eulner, Christopher Boyes
Slumdog Millionaire : Tom Sayers
WALL·E : Ben Burtt, Matthew Wood
Wanted : Wylie Stateman
Best Achievement in Visual Effects
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button : Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton, Craig Barron
The Dark Knight : Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Timothy Webber, Paul J. Franklin
Iron Man : John Nelson, Ben Snow, Daniel Sudick, Shane Mahan
Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
Bolt : Chris Williams, Byron Howard
Kung Fu Panda : John Stevenson, Mark Osborne
WALL·E : Andrew Stanton
Best Foreign Language Film of the Year
Der Baader Meinhof Komplex (Germany)
Entre les murs (France)
Revanche (Austria)
Okuribito (Japan)
Vals Im Bashir (Israel)
Best Documentary, Features
The Betrayal - Nerakhoon : Ellen Kuras, Thavisouk Phrasavath
Encounters at the End of the World : Werner Herzog, Henry Kaiser
The Garden (2008/I): Scott Hamilton Kennedy
Man on Wire : James Marsh, Simon Chinn
Trouble the Water : Tia Lessin, Carl Deal
Best Documentary, Short Subjects
The Conscience of Nhem En : Steven Okazaki
The Final Inch (2009): Irene Taylor Brodsky, Tom Grant
Smile Pinki : Megan Mylan
The Witness from the Balcony of Room 306 : Adam Pertofsky, Margaret Hyde
Best Short Film, Animated
Maison en petits cubes, La : Kunio Katô
Ubornaya istoriya - lyubovnaya istoriya : Konstantin Bronzit
Oktapodi : Emud Mokhberi, Thierry Marchand
Presto : Doug Sweetland
This Way Up : Alan Smith, Adam Foulkes
Best Short Film, Live Action
Auf der Strecke : Reto Caffi
Manon sur le bitume : Elizabeth Marre, Olivier Pont
New Boy : Steph Green, Tamara Anghie
Grisen : Tivi Magnusson, Dorthe Warnø Høgh
Spielzeugland : Jochen Alexander Freydank
Has this ever happened to you? You are watching a movie that you rented, or on HBO, or a DVD that you borrowed from a friend because they thought is was really good, but it really sucked and one of the following things happened: A - You see an actor and you can’t remember his or her name . B - You see an actor that you remember from another movie, who co-starred with an actor that you can’t remember, or 3 - You see an actor from a movie, who was in another movie that you can’t remember either the name of the other movie or the name of one of the costars of the other movie, or Z – one of the infinite number of more complicated scenarios where, because you are getting old, you can’t remember something, pertaining to the movie that you are thinking about.
One word, IMDb.
I know what you are thinking. Tom, you are an idiot, IMDb is not a word, no four-letter word I’ve ever muttered starts with only 3 capital letters. If that is what you were thinking then you would technically be correct. It hasn’t actually made it into the Oxford English Dictionary, but where I come from; it is already an official word.
Let me give you an example. We are at a family gathering during Thanksgiving, Christmas or Fourth of July watching a movie . After 15 – 20 minutes of debating that the Spaniard, Inigo Montoya, from The Princess Bride (1987), was in a TV series as either a doctor, lawyer, or FBI special agent, someone eventually solves the brain-racking dilemma, not by figuring out the correct answer, but by simply saying one word. IMDb.
Someone then proceeds to click on the Internet Explorer Favorite bookmark at the nearest PC or laptop and in a few quick clicks the answer is found. Type in Princess Bride in search and look for the cast, oh yeah, Mandy Patinkin was his name, click on that. He was the doctor in Chicago Hope, and he was an FBI special agent in 47 episodes of Criminal Minds, and he may have been a lawyer in one episode of Boston Legal and/or Law and Order, and a commercial for Viagra or blood pressure medication. A couple hours pass by as we learn that Mandy Patinkin also played Detective Sam Francisco in Alien Nation with James Caan who starred in Elf with Will Ferrell etc., etc., etc., ... followed by a review of the entire script of Princess Bride quotes such as:
Fezzik: Why do you wear a mask? Were you burned by acid, or something like that?
Man in Black: Oh no, it's just that they're terribly comfortable. I think everyone will be wearing them in the future.
And…
Vizzini: HE DIDN'T FALL? INCONCEIVABLE.
Inigo Montoya: You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
Now it is one thirty in the morning. INCONCEIVABLE!
CAUTION: IMDb, like U-tube or Facebook, can be addictive. Use in moderation.
The point is, IMDb is used as a word in our family, just like a real word that you would find in a good dictionary, like Google or Biodiesel. New words make their way into the dictionary all the time, even an abbreviation like dis, to disrespect, is in the dictionary now. IMDb is technically an abbreviation, for Internet Movie Database, and imho, it is one of the top ten sites in the World Wide Web.
It takes a while for a word to become “official.” The word Google has been around since at least 1999, when some people claimed it was the word of the year. I think the runner up was Y2K. It took seven more years until it was officially recognized as a verb.
Dateline - June 29, 2006
Google Now A Verb In The Oxford English Dictionary
Gary Price reports that "Google" is now officially a verb in the Oxford English Dictionary. Google already is a verb in some other dictionaries, but the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is considered the most authoritative dictionary of the English language.
Google as a verb is defined in the dictionary as; To use the Google search engine to find information on the Internet. To search for information about (a person or thing) using the Google search engine.
So there you have it. IMDb is not a word yet, but It is terribly convenient. I think that everyone will be saying it in the future.
Here is a list of the 81st Annual Academy Award Nominees for all 24 categories, brought to you by the good folks at IMDb, Visited by over 57 million movie and TV lovers each month!
Best Motion Picture of the Year
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Richard Jenkins for The Visitor
Frank Langella for Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn for Milk
Brad Pitt for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke for The Wrestler
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Anne Hathaway for Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie for Changeling
Melissa Leo for Frozen River
Meryl Streep for Doubt
Kate Winslet for The Reader
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Josh Brolin for Milk
Robert Downey Jr. for Tropic Thunder
Philip Seymour Hoffman for Doubt
Heath Ledger for The Dark Knight
Michael Shannon for Revolutionary Road
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Amy Adams for Doubt
Penélope Cruz for Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis for Doubt
Taraji P. Henson for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Marisa Tomei for The Wrestler
Best Achievement in Directing
Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire
Stephen Daldry for The Reader
David Fincher for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard for Frost/Nixon
Gus Van Sant for Milk
Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen
Frozen River: Courtney Hunt
Happy-Go-Lucky: Mike Leigh
In Bruges: Martin McDonagh
Milk: Dustin Lance Black
WALL·E: Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter, Jim Reardon
Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: Eric Roth, Robin Swicord
Doubt: John Patrick Shanley
Frost/Nixon: Peter Morgan
The Reader: David Hare
Slumdog Millionaire: Simon Beaufoy
Best Achievement in Cinematography
Changeling: Tom Stern
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: Claudio Miranda
The Dark Knight: Wally Pfister
The Reader: Roger Deakins, Chris Menges
Slumdog Millionaire: Anthony Dod Mantle
Best Achievement in Editing
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button : Angus Wall, Kirk Baxter
The Dark Knight : Lee Smith
Frost/Nixon : Daniel P. Hanley, Mike Hill
Milk (2008/I): Elliot Graham
Slumdog Millionaire : Chris Dickens
Best Achievement in Art Direction
Changeling: James J. Murakami, Gary Fettis
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: Donald Graham Burt, Victor J. Zolfo
The Dark Knight : Nathan Crowley, Peter Lando
The Duchess : Michael Carlin, Rebecca Alleway
Revolutionary Road : Kristi Zea, Debra Schutt
Best Achievement in Costume Design
Australia : Catherine Martin
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button : Jacqueline West
The Duchess : Michael O'Connor
Milk (2008/I): Danny Glicker
Revolutionary Road : Albert Wolsky
Best Achievement in Makeup
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button : Greg Cannom
The Dark Knight : John Caglione Jr., Conor O'Sullivan
Hellboy II: The Golden Army : Mike Elizalde, Thomas Floutz
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button : Alexandre Desplat
Defiance : James Newton Howard
Milk (2008/I): Danny Elfman
Slumdog Millionaire : A.R. Rahman
WALL·E : Thomas Newman
Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song
Slumdog Millionaire : A.R. Rahman, ("Jai Ho")
Slumdog Millionaire : A.R. Rahman, ("O Saya")
WALL·E : Peter Gabriel, Thomas Newman("Down to Earth")
Best Achievement in Sound
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button : David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce, Mark Weingarten
The Dark Knight : Ed Novick, Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo
Slumdog Millionaire : Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke, Resul Pookutty
WALL·E : Tom Myers, Michael Semanick, Ben Burtt
Wanted : Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño, Petr Forejt
Best Achievement in Sound Editing
The Dark Knight : Richard King
Iron Man : Frank E. Eulner, Christopher Boyes
Slumdog Millionaire : Tom Sayers
WALL·E : Ben Burtt, Matthew Wood
Wanted : Wylie Stateman
Best Achievement in Visual Effects
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button : Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton, Craig Barron
The Dark Knight : Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Timothy Webber, Paul J. Franklin
Iron Man : John Nelson, Ben Snow, Daniel Sudick, Shane Mahan
Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
Bolt : Chris Williams, Byron Howard
Kung Fu Panda : John Stevenson, Mark Osborne
WALL·E : Andrew Stanton
Best Foreign Language Film of the Year
Der Baader Meinhof Komplex (Germany)
Entre les murs (France)
Revanche (Austria)
Okuribito (Japan)
Vals Im Bashir (Israel)
Best Documentary, Features
The Betrayal - Nerakhoon : Ellen Kuras, Thavisouk Phrasavath
Encounters at the End of the World : Werner Herzog, Henry Kaiser
The Garden (2008/I): Scott Hamilton Kennedy
Man on Wire : James Marsh, Simon Chinn
Trouble the Water : Tia Lessin, Carl Deal
Best Documentary, Short Subjects
The Conscience of Nhem En : Steven Okazaki
The Final Inch (2009): Irene Taylor Brodsky, Tom Grant
Smile Pinki : Megan Mylan
The Witness from the Balcony of Room 306 : Adam Pertofsky, Margaret Hyde
Best Short Film, Animated
Maison en petits cubes, La : Kunio Katô
Ubornaya istoriya - lyubovnaya istoriya : Konstantin Bronzit
Oktapodi : Emud Mokhberi, Thierry Marchand
Presto : Doug Sweetland
This Way Up : Alan Smith, Adam Foulkes
Best Short Film, Live Action
Auf der Strecke : Reto Caffi
Manon sur le bitume : Elizabeth Marre, Olivier Pont
New Boy : Steph Green, Tamara Anghie
Grisen : Tivi Magnusson, Dorthe Warnø Høgh
Spielzeugland : Jochen Alexander Freydank
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Apples to Oscars
There is a game called Apples to Apples, which consists of two sets of cards. A green card has an adjective or description on it like "Cute," "Awful," "Scary," "Entertaining," "Talented," "Freaky," or "Ugly."The red cards have nouns like "Waterfalls," "The CIA," "George Washington," or "Mad Cow Disease."
Each person gets a set of red cards and each will take a turn as judge to decide the winning answer.The judge turns over a green card and players must play a red card from their hand that they believe will line up with the word on the green card or (more importantly) will appeal to that round's judge. The judge then decides which red card best fits the green card and the one who played the winning red card wins the round.
In the examples of green card adjectives listed above, the correct red card play in all cases would be "Michael Jackson."
In one game the following scenario actually occurred. The green card category was "Depressing," and no one had a Michael Jackson card, so they had to look for a second choice. In one players hand, a red card was, I kid you not, "The Great Depression." The judge of the round picked a different winning card, something that was apparently, to them, more depressing than the Great Depression. This ties into the Oscar's how?, you might ask.
Members of the Academy represent actors, animators, directors, composers, musicians, writers, makeup artists, hairstylists, public relations specialists, and foreign documentary filmmakers. They are the judges who vote on the major awards, and we are the holders of the red cards. We clearly cannot accurately predict what will happen when we play our Kate Wins-a-lot card or our Heath Ledger card, but we think that we have a reasonable chance at winning, just as we are almost positive that The Great Depression was most likely a depressing time.
Predicting Oscar's top picks has become a huge part of the awards-season fun. It's the one time of year when your average movie-goer becomes a Hollywood pundit... and often are as accurate as the so-called experts.
Among the factors to consider: What films have been cleaning up at the year-end critics associations banquets, the Golden Globes and the guild awards (Directors Guild, Screen Actors Guild, etc.)? Which studios have been running the best campaigns? Which actors have impressed audiences and industry folk alike with stellar performances? Most importantly, who has been snubbed countless times for quality work and is "due" to win with a mediocre performance?
All of these are things to consider when making picks. Sure, you can pick who you like, or who you think will win, but that really doesn’t matter - does it? Unless you are a Hollywood hairdresser and you get an actual vote. The winners will be announced and some will be expected, but occasionally you will wonder, What were they thinking?
And now you know who “they” are, a hodge-podge collection of “judges” including Michael Jackson, who don’t really care what you think.
Each person gets a set of red cards and each will take a turn as judge to decide the winning answer.The judge turns over a green card and players must play a red card from their hand that they believe will line up with the word on the green card or (more importantly) will appeal to that round's judge. The judge then decides which red card best fits the green card and the one who played the winning red card wins the round.
In the examples of green card adjectives listed above, the correct red card play in all cases would be "Michael Jackson."
In one game the following scenario actually occurred. The green card category was "Depressing," and no one had a Michael Jackson card, so they had to look for a second choice. In one players hand, a red card was, I kid you not, "The Great Depression." The judge of the round picked a different winning card, something that was apparently, to them, more depressing than the Great Depression. This ties into the Oscar's how?, you might ask.
Members of the Academy represent actors, animators, directors, composers, musicians, writers, makeup artists, hairstylists, public relations specialists, and foreign documentary filmmakers. They are the judges who vote on the major awards, and we are the holders of the red cards. We clearly cannot accurately predict what will happen when we play our Kate Wins-a-lot card or our Heath Ledger card, but we think that we have a reasonable chance at winning, just as we are almost positive that The Great Depression was most likely a depressing time.
Predicting Oscar's top picks has become a huge part of the awards-season fun. It's the one time of year when your average movie-goer becomes a Hollywood pundit... and often are as accurate as the so-called experts.
Among the factors to consider: What films have been cleaning up at the year-end critics associations banquets, the Golden Globes and the guild awards (Directors Guild, Screen Actors Guild, etc.)? Which studios have been running the best campaigns? Which actors have impressed audiences and industry folk alike with stellar performances? Most importantly, who has been snubbed countless times for quality work and is "due" to win with a mediocre performance?
All of these are things to consider when making picks. Sure, you can pick who you like, or who you think will win, but that really doesn’t matter - does it? Unless you are a Hollywood hairdresser and you get an actual vote. The winners will be announced and some will be expected, but occasionally you will wonder, What were they thinking?
And now you know who “they” are, a hodge-podge collection of “judges” including Michael Jackson, who don’t really care what you think.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Two Weeks until Oscar 2009
This is the place where you will find my annual Oscar predictions, movie reviews, fun bits of Hollywood trivia and hopefully an entertaining look at the world of movies according to Tom.
Due to the tough economic conditions, it appears that my local paper, The Olympian, is not running its annual Pick the Winners competition, with the grand prize of 104 Regal movie tickets ( 2 tickets a week for a year.) But over the next two weeks I will be entering several online contests, including my own group OscarKing at Oscar.com, where even loyal readers who have an ABC, ESPN or Disney username and password can join and challenge the King! My final picks will be posted shortly before showtime.
If you follow the Oscars closely, then you are aware of the marketing genius of this group of Hollywood insiders. Rather than caving in to the masses and rewarding films that people have already watched and enjoyed, they choose to nominate and reward films that nobody except French film festival attendees have watched, in the hopes of tricking people into thinking that these movies are good. Then you line up in January to watch as many Holocaust Era / European Costume Drama movies starring Kate Winslet and /or Meryl Streep as you can stomach, before the big show.
In 1998, 57.2 million viewers watched Oscar crown Titanic, a popular movie that did very very well at the box office despite the fact that everyone already knew how it was going to end. Last year was the lowest rated ceremony ever with 31.7 million viewers, most of whom were watching because the is a very good chance of seeing reruns of Superbowl commercials. No Country for Old Men won for best picture, despite only being seen by Robert Redford and 3 Frenchmen. It went on to post about 75 million in U.S. box office sales.
Here is my first series of predictions, and they involve the actual Oscar telecast. Approximately 36 million people will watch as semi-successful movies like Benjamin Button and Slumdog Millionaire compete against movies we've never seen. Next year, in 2010, we will see popular stars such as Tom Hanks, Johnny Depp, and Julia Roberts nominated along with many blockbuster films, because in economic times such as these, even the Hollywood elite are hurting.
The people at Oscar want you back, and they have a surprise this year just for you. They are not going to tell you who the presenters are in the hopes that people will place huge Vegas wagers on who will show up to hand out the little golden guy. Place your money on Hanks, Depp and Roberts and double down on the duo of Clooney and Pitt coming out together.
Hugh Jackman is hosting the show, which is great if you like X-men or if you like the watching current reigning People Magazine's "Sexiest Man Alive." Last year, of the 31.7 million viewers, 31.699999 million were women, so this may be good for the ratings. (I like X-men.)
The next few posts will discuss some of the different catagories, with special emphasis on the major awards, such as Best Animated Feature and Best Foriegn Language Film. I like Wall-E and Waltz with Bashir, and when I say I like them, what I mean is I think they will win. I actually fell asleep during Wall-E, briefly waking up during the 5 minute action scene near the end. Kung-Fu Panda and Bolt were highly entertaining, so needless to say, they will lose.
If you read my other blog, my Wheel of Fortune Blog, you will understand my passion for game shows, which makes Slumdog Millionaire my sentimental favorite for Best Picture, WAIT! that is not my final answer. I will use my lifelines, such as Roger Ebert, (if he is still alive), Tom O'Neil, and those two guys named Ben on ABC's movie review show "At The Movies" to help me with my choices, coming soon to a blog near you.
So mark Sunday, February 22 on the calender for the 81st Academy Awards, Hollywoods biggest carbon neutral night, at the Kodak Theatre, because even in these uncertain economic times, we slumdogs love to watch the millionaires.
Due to the tough economic conditions, it appears that my local paper, The Olympian, is not running its annual Pick the Winners competition, with the grand prize of 104 Regal movie tickets ( 2 tickets a week for a year.) But over the next two weeks I will be entering several online contests, including my own group OscarKing at Oscar.com, where even loyal readers who have an ABC, ESPN or Disney username and password can join and challenge the King! My final picks will be posted shortly before showtime.
If you follow the Oscars closely, then you are aware of the marketing genius of this group of Hollywood insiders. Rather than caving in to the masses and rewarding films that people have already watched and enjoyed, they choose to nominate and reward films that nobody except French film festival attendees have watched, in the hopes of tricking people into thinking that these movies are good. Then you line up in January to watch as many Holocaust Era / European Costume Drama movies starring Kate Winslet and /or Meryl Streep as you can stomach, before the big show.
In 1998, 57.2 million viewers watched Oscar crown Titanic, a popular movie that did very very well at the box office despite the fact that everyone already knew how it was going to end. Last year was the lowest rated ceremony ever with 31.7 million viewers, most of whom were watching because the is a very good chance of seeing reruns of Superbowl commercials. No Country for Old Men won for best picture, despite only being seen by Robert Redford and 3 Frenchmen. It went on to post about 75 million in U.S. box office sales.
Here is my first series of predictions, and they involve the actual Oscar telecast. Approximately 36 million people will watch as semi-successful movies like Benjamin Button and Slumdog Millionaire compete against movies we've never seen. Next year, in 2010, we will see popular stars such as Tom Hanks, Johnny Depp, and Julia Roberts nominated along with many blockbuster films, because in economic times such as these, even the Hollywood elite are hurting.
The people at Oscar want you back, and they have a surprise this year just for you. They are not going to tell you who the presenters are in the hopes that people will place huge Vegas wagers on who will show up to hand out the little golden guy. Place your money on Hanks, Depp and Roberts and double down on the duo of Clooney and Pitt coming out together.
Hugh Jackman is hosting the show, which is great if you like X-men or if you like the watching current reigning People Magazine's "Sexiest Man Alive." Last year, of the 31.7 million viewers, 31.699999 million were women, so this may be good for the ratings. (I like X-men.)
The next few posts will discuss some of the different catagories, with special emphasis on the major awards, such as Best Animated Feature and Best Foriegn Language Film. I like Wall-E and Waltz with Bashir, and when I say I like them, what I mean is I think they will win. I actually fell asleep during Wall-E, briefly waking up during the 5 minute action scene near the end. Kung-Fu Panda and Bolt were highly entertaining, so needless to say, they will lose.
If you read my other blog, my Wheel of Fortune Blog, you will understand my passion for game shows, which makes Slumdog Millionaire my sentimental favorite for Best Picture, WAIT! that is not my final answer. I will use my lifelines, such as Roger Ebert, (if he is still alive), Tom O'Neil, and those two guys named Ben on ABC's movie review show "At The Movies" to help me with my choices, coming soon to a blog near you.
So mark Sunday, February 22 on the calender for the 81st Academy Awards, Hollywoods biggest carbon neutral night, at the Kodak Theatre, because even in these uncertain economic times, we slumdogs love to watch the millionaires.
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