Why Sandra Bullock Is So Winning the Oscar

Remember way back at the beginning of Oscar season (circa last September) when everyone was predicting that precocious pixie Carey Mulligan would be Oscar’s latest ingenue princess for her turn as a precocious-pixie high school student involved with an older man in An Education?

Then critical opinion slowly turned in Meryl Streep’s favor, and she became a sure thing to finally pick up her third statue from the Academy for impersonating Julia Child (or as she says, our idea of Julia Child) in Julie & Julia.

Suddenly, there’s no stopping Sandra Bullock. Previously a big box-office star with zero Oscar potential (sort of like Meg Ryan before her), thanks to The Blind Side, Bullock has become the woman most likely to ruin Mulligan’s and Streep’s night and make the trip to the podium on March 7 to accept the prize for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role.

Here’s why:

She’s humble (or shrewdly modest). Bullock has never really seemed to care about silly things like awards and industry accolades. And now that she’s picking up every one in sight, she’s still insisting that her Oscar chances are nil. “I’m so not winning an Oscar,” she recently said at the the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, where she received yet another one of those accolades, the American Riviera Award for her influence on film. “Nine times out of ten, I always pick who’s going to win. And I already know who’s going to win. I’m not going to say, but nine times out of ten, I’m right.” Just in case, Sandy, prep your speech. This is going to be a one-in-10 off year.

She can laugh at herself. Most A-list stars wouldn’t be caught dead anywhere near the Razzie Awards. (Though Halle Berry did drop by several years back to pick up her Worst Actress prize for Catwoman.) This year, Bullock is nominated for Best Actress for All About Steve, her 2009 critically savaged comedy that was sandwiched between The Proposal and The Blind Side. She’s already asked the Razzie organizers to save her a seat. If they bestow the honor upon her, she wouldn’t miss it for the world.

She’s generous (and not afraid to let everyone know it). Not that Bullock wouldn’t have donated money to the earthquake relief efforts in Haiti anyway (and her $15 million-per-film salary will quickly recover the expense), but giving $1 million is not the sort of thing that Oscar can just ignore.

She’s a great kisser. Oscar may feel a little guilty about making Meryl Streep wait another year for Oscar No. 3, but after Streep and Bullock’s ice-breaking onstage kiss at the Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards, it won’t sting so much for Streep this year when she once again has to put on her good-loser face. Who knows? Maybe Bullock will blow her a kiss from the podium or call her onstage for an encore. Who wouldn’t stay up past midnight for that?

Source:trueslant.com/

Oscar beckons for Weta team

The visual effects team of nearly 1000 based in Wellington that helped bring the alien world of Avatar to life has put the movie on a path to Oscar glory.

The film received nine Oscar nominations, including for best picture. Nine New Zealand film industry figures are also Oscar nominees.

Weta Digital workers were behind Avatar and District 9 – two out of the three films nominated for the best visual effects award.

The Weta Digital team of Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R Jones are collectively nominated for the best visual effects Oscar for Avatar.

Weta Digital's Matt Aitken has been nominated for the company's visual effects work on Neill Blomkamp's and Sir Peter Jackson's science-fiction thriller District 9.

Sir Peter could also add to his Oscar collection if the low-budget alien film wins best picture.

Other Kiwis who got the Oscar nod include Avatar set director Kim Sinclair for best art direction and sound recordist Tony Johnson for best sound mixing. Both were part of team nominations.

Weta's Mark Sagar has already won a Scientific and Engineering Oscar at the "geek version" of the awards for Avatar.

Wellington producer Finola Dwyer will also be at the glitzy Oscar ceremony, with her British film An Education, which is up for three awards. Sir Peter's The Lovely Bones was nominated in only one category, with Stanley Tucci getting a nod for best supporting actor.

Kiwi director Jane Campion's film Bright Star also got one nomination – Australian Janet Patterson for best costume design.

Yesterday, three men who worked on Avatar for Weta Digital talked of the hard work paying off.

Visual effect supervisor Wayne Stables said 950 staff had worked long days for three years on the film.

"I don't actually think that we're that surprised really at all [with the nomination]. It's a huge body of very high quality work. We're very proud of the work that we all did on it."

Eric Saindon and Guy Williams also supervised visual effects teams on Avatar.

Mr Williams said it had attracted a lot of workers to Weta Digital, and added to the company's fast-growing reputation.

Director James Cameron had showed the Weta workers some early images of Avatar without the visual effects about three years ago.

"We got really excited about it. We came out of it and thought `This is going to be an amazing film. I hope we get it [Oscar]."

Source:stuff.co.nz/

Oscar Nominations: Hitler's pissed off about Star Trek

Star Trek, Director J.J. Abrams widely acclaimed "reboot" of the popular television and movie science fiction series, was widely expected to be one of ten Oscar "Best Picture" nominees. Instead it was snubbed for the competition, causing a loud, Worldwide outcry from Star Trek fans. The movie was marketed as "Best Picture Material."

Still, it didn't win. Avatar, Hurt Locker, District 9, and the surprise entry, The Blind Side, were named to compete for Oscar, Best Picture.

What happened and why Star Trek didn't get a nominations is anyone's best guess. But one thing is clear: Hitler's not happy. Just as he was unhappy about a number of life's happenings, lets just say he was more than a little worked up about Star Trek's miscue:


Stay tuned.
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Source:sfgate.com/

Oscar winners of old worth watching again

Turner Classic Movies is kicking off its "31 Days of Oscar" campaign on Monday. It's just what it sounds like — a nonstop, commercial-free marathon of Oscar-winning (or at least nominated) movies on the classic Hollywood cable channel. Give this year's Academy Award contenders a few decades and perhaps they'll be on TCM's playlist, too. Thirty-one days is a lot of couch time for anyone, so Times film critic Steve Persall suggests 10 movies from TCM's lineup that remind him of this year's Oscar contenders. Warm up those DVRs for these selections to kill time before this year's Oscars telecast airs on March 7. You can find the entire schedule at tcm.com.

Feb. 2, 3:15 p.m.

Sergeant York — The flip side of The Hurt Locker, with best actor Oscar winner Gary Cooper, above, as a pacifist sharpshooter turned reluctant war hero.

Feb. 7, 8 p.m.

81/2 — Federico Fellini's Oscar winner for best foreign film inspired the musical Nine, with its creatively blocked director (Marcello Mastroianni) confronting the women in his life.

Feb. 10, 2:30 a.m.

Tender Mercies — Jeff Bridges' country music has-been in Crazy Heart could be the illegitimate son of Robert Duvall's Mac Sledge. Duvall earned a best actor Oscar, and his appearance in Crazy Heart makes this connection even clearer.

Feb. 13, 5:45 p.m.

Roman Holiday — The first time I saw Carey Mulligan in An Education, she brought memories of the gamine beauty of Audrey Hepburn, below with Eddie Albert, left, and Gregory Peck, in this best actress Oscar winner.

Feb. 19, 2:15 p.m.

Forbidden Planet — In order to truly appreciate the special effects in Avatar, revisit this 1957 nominee, featuring a crew of astronauts (including Leslie Nielsen when he acted seriously) in an alien world.

Feb. 20, 8 p.m.

Close Encounters of the Third Kind — Steven Spielberg's notions of alien contact with Earthlings are much more benign than District 9. At least Spielberg put the creatures in a mothership, above Wyoming's Devil's Tower, with enough fuel to return home.

Feb. 22, 6 a.m.

The Stratton Story — Think football player Michael Oher had it tough in The Blind Side? Try being a major league baseball pitcher after losing an leg in a hunting accident. James Stewart, above with June Allyson, is terrific in this fact-based sports drama.

Feb. 23, 2:45 p.m.

The Awful Truth — In order to fully appreciate how (500) Days of Summer reinvents the romantic comedy, check out this 1937 gem starring Cary Grant and Irene Dunne, above.

Feb. 25, 3:15 a.m.

Mrs. Brown — Emily Blunt's portrayal of Young Victoria is a fitting companion to Judi Dench's Oscar-winning turn as the British monarch in old age.

Feb. 26, 12:15 a.m.

The Dirty Dozen — Wouldn't you love to see a war movie teaming Lee Marvin's convict commandos with Brad Pitt's Inglourious Basterds? Just try to not cry when Jim Brown takes a Nazi bullet in the back.

Steve Persall can be reached at persall@sptimes.com or (727) 893-8365. Read his blog, Reeling in the Years, at blogs.tampabay.com/movies

Source:tampabay.com/

Good Morning Oscar, Jan. 29: Mourning Miramax

In this morning’s roundup of Oscar news ‘n’ notes from around the web, it’s a day for planning the Oscars, predicting the nominees and saluting Miramax Films.

Sandy Cohen reports on preparations for the Oscar show, which Adam Shankman says will feature “the most complicated automated set the Oscars have ever had.” He and co-producer Bill Mechanic also offer that the show will feature “dancing for straight guys” (Shankman’s phrase) and fun presenters, and that it’ll be “funnier, shorter and more inclusive” than past shows. New producers, you know, always say that their Oscar shows are going to be shorter. Their shows never are. (Associated Press via Yahoo! News)

Academy members who live in New York now have a place to go on Oscar night: GILT in the New York Palace hotel, where AMPAS is throwing its annual New York Oscar celebration. The evening, open to members on the east coast, will include cocktails, then a “multi-course Oscar-themed dinner” and viewing party. The Manhattan soiree has been an Academy tradition since 1990. (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences)
(Photo of 2006 New York Oscar party by Paul Hawthorne/Getty Images)

Richard Roeper predicts the Oscar nominees, after taking a shot at the Academy for not ditching the early-morning announcement in favor of a one-hour special on E!, complete with remote cameras in the homes of potential nominees. He figures “Star Trek” gets a Best Picture nod instead of “District 9,” and Penelope Cruz represents “Nine” with a Supporting Actress nomination. I agree with him on the majority of his picks, but like him I hope that the Academy doesn’t prove to be quite this predictable. (Richard Roeper & the Movies)

A variety of writers salute Miramax on the occasion of its passing:

David Poland: “they brought - along with New Line and Orion and Gramercy/October - the idea of heavy-duty marketing and publicity to smaller films.” (The Hot Blog)

Kris Tapley: “how ironic that, as the latest and greatest in independent cinema looks for distribution and attention in the snowy hills of Sundance, the studio that made the fest in some ways and, indeed, blazed the trail for independent cinema throughout the 1990s, finds itself closing up shop.” (In Contention)

Richard Lawson: “will stand in history as the great drum beater of the modern independent film movement.” (Gawker)

Sasha Stone: “they changed the way the Oscars rewarded films.” (Awards Daily)

Melena Ryzik: “a haven for boundary-pushing and Oscar-winning films.” (The Carpetbagger)

David Edelstein (in a rare tribute that includes the post-Weinstein brothers Miramax): “You are a symbol of a movement hit hard by a collapsing economy and the rise of ‘event’ pictures that were never a part of your mandate.” (New York)

Josh Tyler: “They changed the game for everyone, and for a brief point in time, they were the center of Hollywood’s universe.” (Cinema Blend)

Chris Hewitt takes an entertaining Monty Pythonesque approach: “what have Miramax ever done for us?” (Empire Online)

The 15 best Miramax films, courtesy of Rob Hunter and Cole Abaius: “Kids,” “The Crying Game,” “Bob Roberts,” “Heavenly Creatures,” “Pulp Fiction” … Number one is “Trainspotting.” (Film School Rejects)

Source:thewrap.com/

Farewell, Miramax: Oscar Will Never Be the Same

As Sharon Waxman has pointed out, the Thursday shuttering of Miramax marks the end of an era in independent film, the demise of a company that brought us “the movies that defined the latter part of the 20th century.”

But in the world of awards, the death of Miramax means more than that. Over the past 25 years, no studio has dominated the Oscars the way Miramax did, in ways both good and bad.

Harvey and Bob Weinstein’s company revolutionized awards season, turned Oscar campaigning into a contact sport, infuriated rivals, led to new Academy campaign regulations, caused a change in the Best Picture rules … and, along the way, did a very, very good job of winning Oscar nominations and taking home statuettes.

They landed Oscars for Michael Caine, Daniel Day-Lewis, Quentin Tarantino, Anthony Minghella, Gwyneth Paltrow, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Renee Zellweger, Neil Jordan, Billy Bob Thornton, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, and many more.

Including Roberto Benigni, recipient of what screenwriter William Goldman famously called “the scummiest award in the Academy’s history.”

Miramax pushed the boundaries and reaped the rewards – and if they left disgruntled rivals complaining about their tactics, you’d hardly expect any different when, for instance, an indie company gets as many Oscar nominations as Warner Bros., Universal, 20th Century Fox, Sony and Disney (its parent company) combined, as they did at the 2002 Oscars.

“Miramax has gone at the whole idea of campaigning in a way that just hadn’t been seen before,” said Bruce Davis, the Academy’s executive director, a few years ago. “They see it as a competitive sport, and look for every edge, every angle. And they’re not the only ones responsible, because the others have felt the need to step up and match them.”

In a way, the Weinsteins built their company with awards: landing Oscars for films like “My Left Foot,” “The Crying Game” and “The Piano” gave the company credibility with actors and filmmakers, who saw it as a place that knew how to follow through.

By early 1990s, Miramax had become the most aggressive Oscar campaigner in the game – not only sending out screeners, but hiring consultants and working all aspects of the game. Sometimes they were too aggressive: an overly elaborate package containing the videocassette of “Il Postino” cost them two Oscar tickets when the Academy found it unseemly.

For the 1994 Oscars, the year of Miramax’s “Pulp Fiction,” they won 22 nominations, a dozen more than their new parent company, Disney, and five more than the second-place studio, Paramount. In the Best Supporting Actress and Best Original Screenplay categories, they had four of the five nominees; in Best Director, they had three of the five. (They won in the first two categories, lost in the third.)

Two years later, Miramax won a Best Picture award for “The English Patient,” during a year when four of the five nominees (all but “Jerry Maguire”) were indies, and the prize went to the one that looked least like an indie.

At the 1997 Oscars, the Miramax film “Good Will Hunting” went head-to-head with a James Cameron juggernaut, “Titanic,” and Harvey Weinstein tried his best to play the gutty little underdog: “If Jim Cameron is saying size matters, then we at Miramax are saying less is more,” he told CNN.

The following year, Miramax came out on top in an epic Oscar battle with DreamWorks. The latter studio’s film, Steven Spielberg’s “Saving Private Ryan,” had been the frontrunner for most of the year, while Miramax positioned its lighter “Shakespeare in Love” as the alternative for those who didn’t feel “Private Ryan” was top-drawer Spielberg.

When writers began pointing out that “Ryan” never quite lived up to the promise of its remarkable opening D-Day sequence, fingers were pointed at Harvey for spreading that angle; when campaign spending reached record levels, DreamWorks chief Jeffrey Katzenberg blamed Harvey.

“There is no question that the extraordinary campaign Miramax has run in support of ‘Shakespeare’ has caused us to do more on behalf of ‘Ryan’ than we had initially planned,” he said to the Los Angeles Times.

After a campaign that was rumored to have cost the two studios as much as $15 million each, “Shakespeare” scored the upset victory. As one of the film’s five credited producers, Harvey Weinstein took the stage and delivered an acceptance speech, whereupon he became the first best-picture winner in years to be played off by the orchestra before he’s finished talking.

Three months later, the Academy’s board of governors passed a new rule that said no more than three producers would be credited on a Best Picture nominee.

Miramax went head-to-head with DreamWorks again the next year, when Weinstein had “The Cider House Rules” and Katzenberg had “American Beauty.” This time DreamWorks won, after the companies spent so much money that host Billy Crystal turned it into a joke, as he introduced a man who’d been given a reward for finding lost Oscar statuettes.

“Willie got $50,000 for finding the 52 Oscars,” he said. “Not a lot of money when you realize that Miramax and DreamWorks are spending millions of dollars just to get one.”

That race required some finessing—and, perhaps, some misreprentation – on the part of Miramax.

“American Beauty,” the frontrunner, was tough stuff, dealing with anomie, voyeurism, pedophilia, homosexuality and other undercurrents running through suburbia.

Source:thewrap.com/

Family's Oscar dream for star.

A TOWY Valley couple will be keeping their fingers crossed when the Oscar nominations are read out next week — because their niece Carey Mulligan is among the favourites to walk away with the Best Actress Award.
Twenty-four-year-old Carey has already been nominated for a Bafta for her role in An Education and is in the running for the Orange Rising Star award.
And if industry experts are to be believed, her name will also be on the Oscar shortlist when that is unveiled next Tuesday.
But despite being on the verge of becoming one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, Carey has not forgotten her roots and was in the Towy Valley over the festive period to see relatives.
Her mother Nano was born and bred in Llandeilo, and Carey's aunt and uncle, Haulwen and David Booth, said the Hollywood star was a huge fan of the area.
"She was back visiting her grandmother over the festive period and you would never tell she was one of the most up-and-coming stars in Hollywood," said Mr Booth.
"She visits quite regularly because she has got quite a lot of family in the Llandeilo and Llangadog areas."
Carey's late grandfather, Denzil Booth, is a former deputy head teacher of Ysgol Tregib, while grandmother Nansi is a former head of Welsh and geography at Ysgol Maes yr Yrfa.
"We've all got our fingers crossed for her, she's already done superbly," said Mr Booth, who lives in Gwynfe.
"It's wonderful that someone with links to the area has done so well."


Source:thisissouthwales.co.uk/

A.R.Rahman’s back in Oscar Race With Tamil song Na na

Indian musician A.R. Rahman’s first Hollywood film Couple’s Retreat has won him a place in the Oscar shortlist yet again for Best Original Song.
The Tamil song Na na has been shortlisted for nomination in the original song category for the 82nd Academy Awards. The number is special for Rahman as it also marks his six-year-old son Alim’s debut as a singer.
The song will be competing with 62 other songs from eligible feature-length motion pictures for nomination, which will be announced February 2, reported the official website of the Academy awards.
Na Na was written by Rahman along with rapper Blaaze and Vivian Chaix and sung by the trio along with Alim, Clinton and Dominique. The musician, who had created history by becoming the first Indian to win two Oscars, is in the running for the coveted prize for the second consecutive year.
Last year his composition Jai ho had won the top prize in the Best Original Song and Rahman had taken the trophy for Best Soundtrack for his compositions in the film Slumdog Millionaire.
Directed by Emmy-nominated Peter Billingsley, Couple’s Retreat revolves around four couples trying to reconnect with each other through a tropical island vacation. The film stars Vince Vaughn, Kristin Davis among others.

Source:screenindia.com/

Anne Hathaway to announce Oscar nominations

Actress Anne Hathaway has been chosen to announce the Oscar nominations on February 2, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said on Tuesday.

Hathaway will join Academy President Tom Sherak at the early morning event, that signals the start of the most important stage in the awards season, culminating in the Oscar ceremony on March 7.

Hathaway was nominated last year for the best actress Oscar for her role in Rachel Getting Married.

Source:sify.com/

Oscar's Ad Rules Impact Big Sponsor

It’s a marvelous bit of synchronicity: the biggest advertiser on last year’s Oscar show is running an ad campaign featuring the voice of the favorite for this year’s Best Actor award.

A match made in heaven, right?

Wrong.

Instead, the fact that “Crazy Heart” star Jeff Bridges is the voice of Hyundai could cause a problem for the automaker, which bought four-and-a-half minutes of commercial time on last year’s show.

Or maybe it’d just be a problem for ABC, which can allow Hyundai to purchase ads this year but would have to position those ads carefully to avoid running afoul of AMPAS rules.

Since the show was first televised in the 1950s, the Academy has always had tight restrictions governing the commercials that can be shown on the Oscar telecast. Although the rules have been loosened slightly in recent years, the Academy still makes it difficult for advertisers to use ads featuring any of the show’s nominees, performers or presenters.

According to the Academy’s director of communications, Leslie Unger, sponsors are permitted to use nominees in their ads, but only if at least one hour elapses between the ad and the announcement of the nominee’s category. If the nominee is also a presenter, the same gap must occur between the ad and his or her appearance on the show.

The rule also applies to presenters and performers: no commercial spots featuring participating stars (even in voiceover) can run within an hour of that star’s appearance on the Oscar show. The purpose, says Unger, is ""to maintain a clear distinction between ad content and show content."

Hyundai took over from longtime automobile sponsor General Motors last year, and according to TNS Media was the largest single advertiser on the 2009 Oscar show. If the company wants to retain that presence on the upcoming show, it either needs to run non-Bridges ads or slot all of its commercials into the first half of the show, before the Best Actor category comes up.

And if Bridges is also booked as a presenter and appears earlier in the broadcast, ABC is going to have to do some fancy footwork to find safe places for those ads.

But at least Hyundai wouldn’t be restricted the way Coca-Cola was back in 1986, when it tried to buy time on the Oscars for an ad that featured the song “Ghostbusters,” a nominee for Best Original Song that night.

The Academy reportedly told Coke that they could air the spot only if they also aired four more commercials, each one set to the music of a different nominee: “Let’s Hear It for the Boy,” “Footloose,” “I Just Called to Say I Love You” and “Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now).”

Coke declined; considering that every single nominee that year had been a Number One hit, the cost of such a move would likely have been astronomical.

This year’s rules governing ads on the Oscar show are the same as they were for last year’s show, which was the first after AMPAS loosened its restrictions on movie ads.

Until then, ads for films had been completely banned. “If you’re selling [movies] at the same time that you’re honoring the art, it blurs the message,” AMPAS executive director Bruce Davis once told me, admitting, “We’re a little prim about this stuff.”

But in recognition of declining ratings and a tough economy that caused ABC to cut ad rates on the telecast, the Academy’s board of governors voted to allow each studio to buy a single movie ad, provided that it be a newly-created spot advertising a movie that had yet to be released.

The result was Oscar-telecast ads for “The Proposal” and “The Soloist.”

In other Oscar advertising news, while the audience will likely be bigger, the ad rates won’t.

The cost of a 30-second spot is running between $1.3 million and $1.5 million, according to ad buyers who spoke to Ad Age. This is essentially the same price that ABC charged for ads last year, down from a high of $1.82 million in 2008.

If, as expected, higher ratings result from the interest in “Avatar” and other boxoffice hits that might make the expanded slate of 10 Best Picture nominees, ABC will be able to raise the rates for the 2011 Oscar show.

The Academy allows about 30 minutes of advertising during the three-and-a-half hour Oscar show, significantly less than most sporting events or prime-time television programs. Unlike, say, a sporting event, an Oscar show that runs long does not add additional commercials.

(Above: Jeff Bridges with wife Susan at November's Governors Awards. AMPAS photo by Michael Yada.)

Source:thewrap.com/

Tracking the awards: A list of movie awards leading up to the Oscars

With movie awards season now in full swing, the Iraq war film "The Hurt Locker" is an early frontrunner, according to an award tracking survey by The Associated Press. But honours have been spread around to a number of movies as well. Jason Reitman's uber-relevant "Up in the Air," in particular, continues to win across multiple categories. And then there's James Cameron's "Avatar," another major heavyweight, particularly at the box office.

A lot could still change before the Academy Awards on March 7. In between, the Broadcast Film Critics Association, Hollywood Foreign Press Association, Screen Actors Guild, Producers Guild, Directors Guild and the Film Independent organization all dole out awards.

A summary of the top film honours so far, in alphabetical order:

"(500) DAYS OF SUMMER"

Picture: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

Actor, Joseph Gordon-Levitt: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

"AVATAR"

Picture: Golden Globe nomination (for drama), New York Film Critics Online

Director, James Cameron: Golden Globe nomination

Original Score, James Horner: Golden Globe nomination

Original Song, "I See You" by James Horner and Simon Franglen: Golden Globe nomination

"BAARIA"

Foreign Language Film: Golden Globe nomination

"THE BEACHES OF AGNES"

Documentary: National Society of Film Critics, Los Angeles Film Critics Association, co-winner

"THE BLIND SIDE"

Actress, Sandra Bullock: Golden Globe nomination (drama), Screen Actors Guild nomination

"BRIGHT STAR"

Supporting Actor, Paul Schneider: National Society of Film Critics (co-winner)

"BROKEN EMBRACES"

Foreign Language Film: Golden Globe nomination

"BROTHERS"

Actor, Tobey Maguire: Golden Globe nomination (drama)

Original Song, "Winter" by Brothers: Golden Globe nomination

"CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS"

Animated Film: Golden Globe nomination

"CORALINE"

Animated Film: Golden Globe nomination

Top 10: American Film Institute

"THE COVE"

Documentary: National Board of Review, Los Angeles Film Critics Association (co-winner)

"CRAZY HEART"

Actor, Jeff Bridges: Los Angeles Film Critics Association, Golden Globe nomination (drama), Screen Actors Guild nomination

Score: Los Angeles Film Critics Association

Original Song, "The Weary Kind (Theme From Crazy Heart)" by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett: Golden Globe nomination

"DISTRICT 9"

Screenplay, Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell: Golden Globe nomination

Production Design: Los Angeles Film Critics Association

"DUPLICITY"

Actress, Julia Roberts: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

"AN EDUCATION"

Ensemble: Screen Actors Guild nomination

Actress, Carey Mulligan: National Board of Review, Golden Globe nomination (drama), Screen Actors Guild nomination

"EVERYBODY'S FINE"

Original Song, "I Want to Come Home," by Paul McCartney: Golden Globe nomination

"FANTASTIC MR. FOX"

Animated Film: New York Film Critics Circle, Los Angeles Critics Association, Golden Globe nomination

Actor, George Clooney: New York Film Critics Circle

Production Design, Nelson Lowry: National Society of Film Critics

"JULIE&JULIA"

Picture: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

Actress, Meryl Streep: New York Film Critics Circle, Screen Actors Guild nomination

"THE HANGOVER"

Picture: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

Top 10: American Film Institute

"THE HURT LOCKER"

Picture: National Society of Film Critics, New York Film Critics Circle, Los Angeles Film Critics Association, Boston Society of Film Critics, Golden Globe nomination (drama)

Ensemble: Screen Actors Guild nomination

Director, Kathryn Bigelow: National Society of Film Critics, New York Film Critics Circle, Los Angeles Film Critics Association, Golden Globe nomination

Actor, Jeremy Renner: National Society of Film Critics, Screen Actors Guild nomination

Screenplay, Mark Boal: Golden Globe nomination

Top 10: American Film Institute

"INGLORIOUS BASTERDS"

Picture: Golden Globe nomination (drama)

Ensemble: Screen Actors Guild nomination

Supporting Actor, Christoph Waltz: National Society of Film Critics (co-winner), New York Film Critics Circle, Los Angeles Film Critics Association, Golden Globe nomination, Screen Actors Guild nomination

Supporting Actress, Diane Kruger: Screen Actors Guild nomination

Director, Quentin Tarantino: Golden Globe nomination

Screenplay, Quentin Tarantino: Golden Globe nomination

"THE INFORMANT!"

Actor, Matt Damon: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

Original Score, Marvin Hamlisch: Golden Globe nomination

"IN THE LOOP"

Screenplay: New York Film Critics Circle

"INVICTUS"

Actor, Morgan Freeman: National Board of Review (co-winner), Golden Globe nomination (drama), Screen Actors Guild nomination

Supporting Actor, Matt Damon: Golden Globe nomination, Screen Actors Guild nomination

Director, Clint Eastwood: National Board of Review, Golden Globe nomination

"IT'S COMPLICATED"

Picture: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

Ensemble: National Board of Review

Actress, Meryl Streep: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

Screenplay, Nancy Meyers: Golden Globe nomination

"JULIE&JULIA"

Picture: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

Actress, Meryl Streep: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

"THE LAST STATION"

Actress, Helen Mirren: Golden Globe nomination (drama), Screen Actors Guild nomination

Supporting Actor, Christopher Plummer: Golden Globe nomination, Screen Actors Guild nomination

"THE LOVELY BONES"

Supporting Actor, Stanley Tucci: Golden Globe nomination, Screen Actors Guild nomination

"THE MAID"

Foreign Language Film: Golden Globe nomination

"THE MESSENGER"

Supporting Actor, Woody Harrelson: National Board of Review, Golden Globe nomination, Screen Actors Guild nomination

Top 10: American Film Institute

"NINE"

Picture: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

Ensemble: Screen Actors Guild nomination

Actor, Daniel Day-Lewis: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

Actress, Mario Cotillard: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

Supporting Actress, Penelope Cruz: Golden Globe nomination, Screen Actors Guild nomination

Original Song, "Cinema Italiano" by Maury Yeston: Golden Globe nomination

"OF TIME AND THE CITY"

Nonfiction Film: New York Film Critics Circle

"PRECIOUS"

Picture: Golden Globe nomination (drama)

Ensemble: Screen Actors Guild nomination

Actress, Gabourney Sidibe: Golden Globe nomination (drama), Screen Actors Guild nomination

Supporting Actress, Mo'Nique: National Society of Film Critics, New York Film Critics Circle, Los Angeles Film Critics Association, Golden Globe nomination (drama), Screen Actors Guild nomination

Top 10: American Film Institute

"THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG"

Animated Film: Golden Globe nomination

"A PROPHET"

Foreign Language Film: National Board of Review, Golden Globe nomination

"THE PROPOSAL"

Actress, Sandra Bullock: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

"SERAPHINE"

Actress, Yolande Moreau: National Society of Film Critics, Los Angeles Film Critics Association

"A SERIOUS MAN"

Actor, Michael Stuhlbarg: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

Original Screenplay: National Board of Review, National Society of Film Critics

Top 10: American Film Institute

"SHERLOCK HOLMES"

Actor, Robert Downey Jr.: Golden Globe nomination (comedy or musical)

"A SINGLE MAN"

Actor, Colin Firth: Golden Globe nomination (drama), Screen Actors Guild nomination

Supporting Actress, Julianne Moore: Golden Globe nomination

Original Score, Abel Korzeniowski: Golden Globe nomination

Top 10: American Film Institute

"SUGAR"

Top 10: American Film Institute

"SUMMER HOURS"

Foreign Language Film: National Society of Film Critics, New York Film Critics Circle, Los Angeles Film Critics Association

"UP"

Animated Film: Golden Globe nomination

Original Score, Michael Giacchino: Golden Globe nomination

Top 10: American Film Institute

"UP IN THE AIR"

Picture: National Board of Review, Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association, Golden Globe nomination (drama)

Actor, George Clooney: National Board of Review (co-winner), New York Film Critics Circle, Golden Globe nomination (drama), Screen Actors Guild nomination

Supporting Actress, Anna Kendrick: National Board of Review, Golden Globe nomination, Screen Actors Guild nomination

Supporting Actress, Vera Farmiga: Golden Globe nomination, Screen Actors Guild nomination

Director, Jason Reitman: Golden Globe nomination

Screenplay, Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner: National Board of Review, Los Angeles Film Critics Association

Top 10: American Film Institute

"WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE"

Original Score, Karen O and Carter Burwell: Golden Globe nomination

"THE WHITE RIBBON"

Foreign Language Film: Golden Globe nomination

Cinematographer, Christian Berger: National Society of Film Critics, New York Film Critics Circle, Los Angeles Film Critics Association

"THE YOUNG VICTORIA"

Actress, Emily Blunt: Golden Globe nomination (drama)

Source:AFP

Hyundai and Oscar on a Collision Course?

Wednesday afternoon, I wrote about the Academy’s rules on advertising during the Oscar show, and how the restrictions governing commercials that feature Oscar nominees could affect Hyundai if the auto manufacturer bought commercial time on the show, as it did in 2009.

At the time, I didn’t know if Hyundai, whose ads use uncredited voiceovers from all-but-certain Best Actor nominee Jeff Bridges, was planning to once again be an Oscar sponsor.

The Academy referred me to ABC for sponsorship questions … ABC said they couldn’t release the names of any sponsors, and referred me to Hyundai … and, late in the afternoon, a Hyundai spokesperson confirmed the company’s plans.

Hyundai will be the exclusive automotive sponsor of the 82nd Academy Awards, and will run nine ads during the show. And yes, those ads will feature Bridges’ voiceovers. A company spokesperson said he was unaware of any potential conflicts.

But if AMPAS plays by its rules, conflicts are virtually inevitable. Academy restrictions on commercials featuring nominees (live or voiceover) specify that the ads can run, but they must be separated by one hour from the point in the show when the nominee’s category is presented.

And if that nominee is also a presenter, the ads must run an hour away from his or her other appearance as well.

With the Oscar show typically running 13 acts, which means it includes a dozen commercial breaks, it would be extraordinarily difficult to fit nine ads into the show and still leave an hour between those ads and the presentation of Best Actor.

Maybe the Academy will treat this situation differently because Bridges is offscreen and uncredited (though it’s obviously him). Maybe a different kind of compromise will be made.

However it plays out, $12.5 million (the ballpark figure for what Hyundai’s ads likely cost) is powerful incentive to make things work.

Source:thewrap.com/

Prytania Theatre, in a partying mood, gets its Oscar showcase going early

The nominations for the 2010 Oscars won't be announced until Tuesday (Feb. 2), but the Prytania Theatre is getting an early jump on its annual Academy Awards Showcase.

For the past two weeks (and continuing through Thursday, Jan. 21), the Uptown moviehouse has been showing the awards-season darling "Up in the Air." Starting today, the series cranks up in earnest, with five best-guess Oscar contenders slated to screen during the next five weeks.


Mo'Nique appears in a scene from 'Precious,' a role that won her the 2010 Golden Globe and SAG Award for supporting actress.The schedule:

"Invictus," starring Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon in a feel-good historical drama about South African president Nelson Mandela's unconventional approach to healing his nation. Starts today.
"A Single Man," starring Colin Firth as a man who, after the death of his partner, attempts to go about his everyday business. Starts Feb. 5.
"Nine," the big-name musical -- starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Penelope Cruz, Kate Hudson and a million others -- about a filmmaker juggling his personal and professional lives. Starts Feb. 12.
"The Hurt Locker," starring Jeremy Renner in an Iraq war drama about a U.S. bomb squad and its reckless new leader. Starts Feb. 19.
"Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire," starring Gabourey Sidibe and Mo'Nique in a harrowing drama about an abused Harlem teen who, amid a life of misery, finds a thread of hope. Starts Feb. 26.

Source:nola.com/