The Oscars

Le Saboteur

Active member
Attila the Professor said:
I appreciate your concern for my wallet, but it's on the "wait for the library copy" list.

I was more concerned with your lost time, but if you're worried about your wallet so be it.

Attila the Professor said:
Speaking of films that bastardize the truth, I'm a little disappointed to have not caught any flak regarding my opinion on <I>Saving Mr. Banks</I>.

I have yet to see the flick, and don't know enough of the back story to comment. It was on my list of things to see, but that list quickly found itself in the trash when I realized time wouldn't allow it. I'll see it on video, but I've had The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada here since... oh, September. I should watch that one first.

Attila the Professor said:
I'm a touch curious now whether you have any similarly strong <I>Blue Jasmine</I> opinions, on the basis of its Bay Area setting.

Because...? Blanche Dubois can only be seen at 632 Elysian Fields? I can tell you that I'm eagerly anticipating San Francisco's second cinematic destruction in less than a year; otherwise, I care because the events and the aftermath of Fruitvale Station happened in my backyard. The subject matter is exhausted.

Attila the Professor said:
In any event, I don't see the real Oscar Grant's flaws as justification for him to die the way he did. Whenever I see it, I'll be interested to see whether I come down on Kenny's side of it not canonizing Grant or yours.

You’re equating distaste for a movie with somehow justifying Mr. Grant’s death; that’s poor from, Attila. If that’s the case, then I suspect then that you’ll go to pieces in very much the same manner as A.O. Scott.

Was Oscar Grant a good man? In the sense that we are all good men, with wives, husbands, children, etc., who care deeply about us, yes, he was. Did he have hopes and aspirations? Of course he did; we all do. Did he live his life in a manner that is deserving of, not only a movie, but a full-blown hagiography? Absolutely not, and if people need a movie to tell them that young black men aren’t animals, then, well, we need to be having another conversation entirely.

Grant chose to spend the final night of his life getting drunk and high on Class I pharmaceuticals, and with four of his friends (all fellow felons; a parole violation), was allegedly involved in a brawl and ‘terrorizing’ passengers on a BART car. There was no dance off. While it’s undeniable that Grant was shot in the back, he wasn’t neatly subdued; the cops had one hand, and he refused to give up the other. Why? I suspect that somewhere in the back of his mind he knew he was about to get violated back to San Quentin. Had any number of things conspired to work out differently, Mr. Grant would probably be alive today; or, would have lived long enough to become a statistic in Oakland’s murder rate. Instead, he gets to be the honored dead.

Coogler failed his subject. What could have been a wonderfully nuanced piece of work was turned into an afterschool special. Fitting St. Oscar with his Size 10 halo didn’t leave enough time to grant any humanity to the officers involved or to the nature of the events. Variety sums it up well, “Yet even if every word of Coogler’s account of the last day in Grant’s life held up under close scrutiny, the film would still ring false in its relentlessly positive portrayal of its subject. Best viewed as an ode to victim’s rights, “Fruitvale” forgoes nuanced drama for heart-tugging, head-shaking and rabble-rousing.”

What do you for fun in your neighborhoods?

<iframe width="640" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/SUaC1BZ5vTY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

A better use of your time:

<iframe width="853" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/jFWHNpfjByQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
Last edited:

Attila the Professor

Moderator
Staff member
Le Saboteur said:
I was more concerned with your lost time, but if you're worried about your wallet so be it.

Fair enough. It might not be worth the time just to be able to talk about it.

Le Saboteur said:
I have yet to see the flick, and don't know enough of the back story to comment. It was on my list of things to see, but that list quickly found itself in the trash when I realized time wouldn't allow it. I'll see it on video, but I've had The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada here since... oh, September. I should watch that one first.

That is the problem, isn't it? Any time that's spent watching a recent, untested film is time that isn't being spent on watching something older and more proven. (Here's my preferred starting place for finding proven films.) And that's only talking about film, leaving aside everything else. I figure there are at least two big reasons to spend time on current pop culture as opposed to constantly pulling off of our own personal "must engage with" lists: 1) pop culture <I>is</I> culture and thus reflects our contemporary moment (or ideas about it) in some worthwhile fashion and 2) to be able to be a part of a conversation, be it vast and public or small and intimate, about that culture. Which brings us back around to <I>Fruitvale Station</I>. (Honestly, I have nothing to say about <I>Blue Jasmine</I>, having not seen it; I was hoping to pivot away from the discussion I've blundered into as much as anything else. Though I do find artistic representations of particular places interesting, and San Francisco is as good a case study for that as anywhere.)

Le Saboteur said:
You’re equating distaste for a movie with somehow justifying Mr. Grant’s death; that’s poor from, Attila.

I apologize, sincerely. Though I do still find the claim that he would have died in some other (presumably unnatural) manner anyhow to be a bit besides the point.

Le Saboteur said:
Was Oscar Grant a good man? In the sense that we are all good men, with wives, husbands, children, etc., who care deeply about us, yes, he was. Did he have hopes and aspirations? Of course he did; we all do. Did he live his life in a manner that is deserving of, not only a movie, but a full-blown hagiography? Absolutely not, and if people need a movie to tell them that young black men aren’t animals, then, well, we need to be having another conversation entirely.

I dunno, I'd imagine there are those that do need a movie to tell them that. But as I gestured towards in my initial response, I initially <I>wasn't</I> interested in the film because I assumed it would be a simple story about an idealized man who gets gunned down. In short, I assumed it was in the line of films like <I>The Blind Side</I> and <I>The Help</I>, simplistic stories about race relations that don't treat their characters with much complexity. I heard that it wasn't quite so cut-and-dry or as "relentlessly positive" as the <I>Variety</I> account that you endorse renders it, and so I became interested.

Which is to say: I'm sympathetic to, and basically agree with, the premise from which you are arguing, but as I haven't seen the film itself, I am in no position <I>whatsoever</I> to argue against you.

Your factual objections are definitely relevant, though, and I urge anyone who has seen the movie already to take them into consideration. The title alone suggests that the filmmakers were interested in presenting the film as an account of true events.

I'll be happy to return to the subject in the event that I go against your well-taken advice and still end up seeing the film. :hat:

Le Saboteur said:
A better use of your time:

<iframe width="853" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/jFWHNpfjByQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

So I hear! I added it to my Netflix queue within the past week.
 

Joe Brody

Well-known member
Attila the Professor said:
Speaking of films that bastardize the truth, I'm a little disappointed to have not caught any flak regarding my opinion on <I>Saving Mr. Banks</I> . . .

I'll agree with on that one. After I saw the trailer for Saving Mr. Banks, I had to go back and read how it really happened. Serious re-invention -- and I bet the article was the inspiration or the starting point for the project.

As for Blue Jasmine, I just thought it was painful.

Captain Phillips, entertaining and well done.
 
Last edited:

Pale Horse

Moderator
Staff member
Prisoners. Helluva Movie. Watched it for the Cinematography bent...came away with so much more.
 

Moedred

Administrator
Staff member
Here's my take on the pretentious stuff I wish I'd skipped this year:

Great Gatsby - fun cliffs notes to assigned reading, but not particularly memorable.

The Butler - good primer on civil rights, but 20+ unnecessary minutes of Oprah drinking, griping, and feeding her fish. Meanwhile the Cuban Missile Crisis landed on the cutting room floor. Also, completely fabricated: it's like if there once was a real shrimp fisherman whose name they changed to Forrest Gump and made history revolve around him.

Captain Phillips - not a Bourne fan, so it seemed like just more shaky cam to distract from a flimsy plot.

Blue Jasmine - Cate Blanchett is a chameleon and like in Hanna, I didn't know she was in it until the end credits. She goes to SF and it's full of Jersey guys (according to that famous New Yorker cover they are practically next door when seen from Manhattan). But Woody Allen does not treat women well in real life or on screen. We've seen it all before.

Mud - Sorry Pale, too tedious. The reason it's regarded as a fable is because Matthew McConaughey is (spoiler) impossibly rescued from the muddy Mississippi in the middle of the night by an underwater scavenger who happened to look up.

Place Beyond the Pines - 3 stories of diminishing quality.

Fruitvale Station - saw this because a friend is an Oakland cop. Even with all the fabrications, nothing happens until the YouTube footage. When he dumped his weed into the bay I wanted to know what happened to the sea turtle who probably ate the plastic bag. Justice for turtle! Million turtleneck march!

Before Midnight - maybe these three should be seen together. Okay but talky and critic proof.

Spectacular Now - also critic proof like 500 Days of Summer. Neither holds a candle to Perks of Being a Wallflower.

Company you Keep - Standard stuff. Shia worked with Redford and can check that off his list.

Fifth Estate - Euro disco colors and design and people looking at screens.

No - grainy full screen plodding docudrama.

Disconnect - kinda good but works with or without technology, so it doesn't make it's case.

Recommended: 42, Jobs, Way Way Back, Much Ado About Nothing. A great year for horror and suspense: Mama, Conjuring, Prisoners. And the Schwarzenegger movies that bombed were pretty good, though sadly lacking in catchphrases. Gravity should win best picture simply for convincing older moviegoers to show up and pay for the 3D upgrade.
 
Last edited:

Pale Horse

Moderator
Staff member
I was going to watch 12 Years a Slave, until I found out the screenwriter also wrote Undercover Brother.
 

kongisking

Active member
Pale Horse said:
Prisoners. Helluva Movie. Watched it for the Cinematography bent...came away with so much more.

Watched it to support Hugh Jackman's dramatic career choices...came away with even more respect for him than I already did.

Him not getting nominated for that performance is disgustingly unfair.
 

Joe Brody

Well-known member
Moedred said:
Captain Phillips - not a Bourne fan, so it seemed like just more shaky cam to distract from a flimsy plot.

Flimsy plot is right. If this news story had happened in the 1990's, it would have been adapted to a made-for-cable movie.

Moedred said:
Place Beyond the Pines - 3 stories of diminishing quality.

True, true, but there were some genuine moments, so I cut it some slack.

Moedred said:
Spectacular Now - also critic proof like 500 Days of Summer. Neither holds a candle to Perks of Being a Wallflower.

I actually read the book (if you can call it that) for Perks, and didn't think a whole lot happened -- and I didn't think much of the film. It's a toss-up for me between Spectacular and Perks. Didn't see 500 Days.
 

Le Saboteur

Active member
Pale Horse said:
Pale's Oscar Ballot


My preliminary ballot can be found over here. Of course, it probably won't change.

It should also be noted that my picks aren't necessarily personal, they're educated guesses on what will win.
 

Pale Horse

Moderator
Staff member
Le Saboteur said:
My preliminary ballot can be found over here. Of course, it probably won't change.

It should also be noted that my picks aren't necessarily personal, they're educated guesses on what will win.


I see you chose the white man's burden for best picture nod. I may have been bold to promote Gravity over some of the others. I haven't seen 12 Years a Slave, but I suspect it may be too heavy at this stage of the game. (Of course, that didn't stop Shindler's List) If I see it prior to March, I may change mine. Of all the entries I do think that while many we're good and entertaining, the is a rather unimpressionable bunch. That's why I went toward Gravity. It's the Sesame Street one of the bunch that isn't like the others. I think Gravity will sweep most of the technical awards, but is it strong enough to win the top? Hard to say.

You've also seen Capt'n Ego, which I haven't. Did that influence your Edit/Supp Actor choices too? And have you seenThe Grandmaster? Did you pick DBC over Bad Grandpa, as I did, solely because of the rationale that there's no way in hell, the Academy will give a man with a broken ***** an Oscar?

It'll be interesting to see how this plays out. Unlike the passion I had for the donkeys in the superbowl, I'm far less concerned with the winners as I am with how much I got to see this year. Here's a subjective bias on how I think I'll do with the percentage reflecting my confidence:

Best Original Song 99%
Best Actor in a Supporting Role 99%
Best Actress in a Leading Role 95%
Best Animated Feature 95%
Best Makeup 95%
Best Original Screenplay 95%
Best Visual Effects 95%
Best Foreign Language Film 85%
Best Original Score 85%
Best Picture 85%
Best Sound Editing 80%
Best Sound Mixing 80%
Best Cinematography 75%
Best Director 75%
Best Live Action Short Film 70%
Best Actor in a Leading Role 70%
Best Art Direction 70%
Best Film Editing 65%
Best Actress in a Supporting Role 65%
Best Adapted Screenplay 60%
Best Animated Short Film 60%
Best Documentary Feature 50%
Best Costume Design 50%
Best Documentary Short Subject 30%

Rationale provided upon request.
 

Le Saboteur

Active member
Pale Horse said:
That's why I went toward Gravity. It's the Sesame Street one of the bunch that isn't like the others. I think Gravity will sweep most of the technical awards, but is it strong enough to win the top? Hard to say.

Pro tip: Your system memory absolutely hates it when you have 176 browsers open. So, it almost goes without saying that I lost the post I was in the midst of writing.

Normally I would agree with you, but I find the entire Best Picture field to be really, really unimpressionable. I thought about seeing Gravity, but that lasted about five minutes. I couldn?t shake the sense of Open Sea in Space, and that relegated it to a rental. Sure, it?s science fiction, but it?s still very? uh, humanistic in its characterization. In fact, that might be an overarching theme with all of this year?s nominees.

I have a hard time seeing Gravity sweeping the technical awards as well. Nothing against that slice of universe Cuaron shepherded into being, but a.) I foresee another year where the Academy wants to spread the love as it were and b.) the other nominees did those little things that much better based on the various pictures, VFX breakdowns, articles and trailers I?ve sat through.

Have I seen the The Grandmaster?* Yes. Three times. The Blu-ray sits in front of my teevee as I type this. How?! It?s not out until March! I practically reside in Chinatown. ?nuff said.

*- I have the 130-minute international cut.

WKW is one of my favorite directors working anywhere, and under his direction Phillipe La Sourd has turned in a phenomenal record of Ip Man?s later years. The interplay of light and dark and shadows to capture movement is not only gorgeous, but an expression of meaning. It?s seriously phenomenal stuff and I?ve given it an extra viewing just to take in the cinematography. Of the movies nominated for Best Cinematography The Grandmaster seems to be the only one with an actual style. For the lack of a better frame of reference, the other participants are simply documenting the onscreen action.

Ditto for William Chang Suk Ping?s costuming. The Great Gatsby is the logical choice, but, even as much as I enjoyed the adaptation, a lot of it still seems very costume-y. Nothing looks particularly impressive about 12 Years a Slave and the seventies sucked, so American Hustle is best forgotten about. How good could the costumes be for something called The Invisible Woman?

Chang Suk Ping?s costuming has always been sublime (reference: In the Mood for Love), but with The Grandmaster he?s really elevated his craft. In a rather daring move, all of the principle male players are clad in black or similarly dark colors. Normally that would leave the audience completely confused, but through patterns, materials, and style he manages to still make every character stand out from the crowd. I could go on, but this interview from the The New York Times says almost everything I would.


Nothing this year has managed to inflame my passions like previous years, but I am definitely interested in seeing how all of this plays out! I'll return to this a bit later. I'm still miffed at losing my earlier post.

Yub Nub!
 

Moedred

Administrator
Staff member
I'm not gonna see the rest of these until spring. But just a few more:

The Counselor - Ridley Scott's follow-up to Promehteus. I saw the director's cut and some of the dialogue seemed to never end. But a couple of scenes will surely find their way onto the internet. Cameron Diaz on Javier Bardem's Ferrari looks like a scene from Caddyshack 3. And if you enjoyed Brad Pitt's death scene in Meet Joe Black, whoa. I'm going to start carrying my Leatherman again.

Don Jon - Brisk, short, if you've seen the trailer, WYSIWYG. JGL is a Jersey guy with a porn addiction. He beats it. ;)
Interesting how this and the former movie make conservative arguments against adult entertainment and illegal immigration.

All is Lost - He's on a boat! Hour 2: he's on a raft! Sometimes if a movie's dull I start to wonder if the whole point was a junket for the filmmakers. Yup, the credits list "our favorite Baja restaurants." Someone should edit in scenes of Tom Hanks in his container ship ignoring Robert Redford.

About Time - Excellent. Here's your alternative to Spectacular Now.
 

kongisking

Active member
Le Saboteur said:
I couldn?t shake the sense of Open Sea in Space, and that relegated it to a rental. Sure, it?s science fiction, but it?s still very? uh, humanistic in its characterization.

It doesn't have laser beams or aliens in it, instead being a very personal character-driven drama set in outer space. Hence, it looks boring. despite the general word being that it is a very intense and riveting thriller?
 

Le Saboteur

Active member
kongisking said:
It doesn't have laser beams or aliens in it, instead being a very personal character-driven drama set in outer space. Hence, it looks boring. despite the general word being that it is a very intense and riveting thriller?

I...uh, what?

9XkJoPT.gif


I thought I was pretty clear, but let's try this again. I disagree with Pale's assertion that Gravity is the Sesame Street of this year's nominations. Outside of the overarching genre of science fiction and location, it shares a common thread of humanizing a fringe element of society. In this case, female scientists. If you're looking for commonality throughout the ten nominees, that might be it. Anything else and you're trying to divine meaning from something that isn't there.

Pale Horse said:
Did you pick DBC over Bad Grandpa, as I did, solely because of the rationale that there's no way in hell, the Academy will give a man with a broken ***** an Oscar?

Yes, but only in part. I initially selected The Lone Ranger because the makeup team did a stellar job in creating a highly believable Old Tonto. It took a few minutes to sink in that was indeed Msr. Depp underneath the makeup. Unfortunately, after that initial wow moment I think it becomes too noticeable*. You're paying attention to the wrong parts of the production, and it's supposed to be seamless.

* -- Which shouldn't be counted as being part of the group thinking that The Lone Ranger was a terrible movie. Quite the contrary, in fact. It was very entertaining, but ultimately a very average movie because of all the hands involved.

Bad Grandpa was primarily knocked out, because it's very obvious that, if that's not Johnny Knoxville, then somebody is indeed wearing makeup. I think it's the hairline, but something about it seemed very 'off.' There's also the huge mental roadblock of saying/typing/whatever the Academy Award winning Johnny Knoxville.

Dallas Buyers Club, on the other hand, garnered my vote because of how well they masked Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto. When I finally got around to trying to figure out what the movie was about, it didn't dawn on me that that was Matthew McConaughey until a couple of viewings of the trailer. Of course, I didn't realize that Viggo Mortenson was the lead in Eastern Promises until halfway through the movie so...

Oh, and kong...

large.gif
 

WilliamBoyd8

Active member
I remember a movie I saw some time ago where a woman was credited as "costume designer".

The film was a war move and all of the characters (men) wore standard army uniforms.

:)
 

kongisking

Active member
Le Saboteur said:
I...uh, what?

9XkJoPT.gif

I was disgruntled by the implication that you thought Gravity looked cliche and boring just because it was a small-scale drama using the tride-and-true "survivor story" premise. One, it's remarkably intense despite the intimate nature, and two, this is a movie that, if you see it on just a home video screen, you very well may fail to properly appreciate it's technical achievements.

Three, I've grown extremely sick of the "if it's an old formula, its bad" philosophy. I don't care if it's a beat-for-beat retelling of The Three Little Pigs: if it's good, it's good and deserves an audience. I personally think the "if it's an old formula, its bad" people are what resulted in John Carter getting grossly unfair negative reviews from many, hurting it's chances of getting an audience.

If anything, I was replying in annoyance because such snobbishness seems immensely out-of-character for you, Sab.

Le Saboteur said:
Oh, and kong...

large.gif

"Non-verbal threat! Threatening! I'm being threatened!"

In seriousness, Eastern Promises is a fantastic film.
 

Pale Horse

Moderator
Staff member
Le Saboteur said:
I...uh, what? ... I initially selected The Lone Ranger because the makeup team did a stellar job in creating a highly believable Old Tonto. It took a few minutes to sink in that was indeed Msr. Depp underneath the makeup. Unfortunately, after that initial wow moment I think it becomes too noticeable*. You're paying attention to the wrong parts of the production, and it's supposed to be seamless.

Que Vanity Fair and their break down of the $250.00 total budget for makeup for Dallas Buyers Club.

That's not a typo. 250 bucks for 28 days of makeup for the whole cast.

That fact alone makes me root for it more.
 

Moedred

Administrator
Staff member
Dallas Buyers Club - starts great, a guy with no filter and nothing to lose overcomes his biases. Then it repeats and begins to resemble The Odd Couple or Bosom Buddies. Another biography with fact issues, hard to cheer for composite characters and hiss the FDA which is always, always wrong. And The Band Played On tells this story better.

Blue is the Warmest Color - The French Nymphoaniac. Girl meets girl, loses girl. It's 3 hours! Not for me though, I sometimes read subtitles at 2x speed, and rarely had to slow down here.

Charlie Countryman - Shia in the land of Eastern European Bond villains. One takes a cue from the Lego movie and Krazy glues Ron Weasley to another guy. Promising until it uses the same old American abroad scare tactics. Eurotrip remains the most accurate depiction of travel. Bombed, though no fault of Shia's, who gives 100%. Even took acid to "research" an ecstasy scene, oops.
 

Pale Horse

Moderator
Staff member
Pale Horse said:
I see you chose the white man's burden for best picture nod. I may have been bold to promote Gravity over some of the others. I haven't seen 12 Years a Slave, but I suspect it may be too heavy at this stage of the game.


Rationale provided upon request.

13-24. Better than I've done in the past, but still missed some of the biggies.
 
Top