02.23.09
81st Academy Award Winners
Despite my gut feelings that “Departures” and “La Maison en Petits Cubes” would end up winning, I managed to score 18/24 correct predictions which, if you think about the overall predictability of the Oscars this year, is pretty lame. Actually, its embarrassing really, lol. But me predicting correctly is not what its all about, is it? And it sure as hell doesn’t matter now.
So I have finally watched the Oscar telecast in its entirety and I am impressed, more than I thought I would be anyway. Yeah, the musical numbers were mostly cheesy, John Legend was pretty awful, hearing Zac Efron of all people saying “And the Oscar goes to…” really got under my skin…..but it was a classy affair, and the sense of unity and camaraderie really gave it a feeling I am not used to – a feeling I quite enjoyed. Bravo to the producers.
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02.22.09
Review: “Must Read After My Death”
To witness the disintegration of the American Dream without the veneer of comfort that fiction offers is to watch “Must Read After My Death,” a haunting documentary by Morgan Dews. Families who appear to live on the edge of cloud nine who are actually freefalling into an inevitable demise are those that can be traced throughout entertainment’s historical timeline, but watching such a family knowing that the story is true allows it to take on a far more chilling atmosphere.
When director Morgan Dews’ maternal grandmother Allis passed away in 2001, she left behind eight-millimetre homemade films, Dictaphone records and photographs, in the hundreds. Using those selected fragments of his family’s history, Dews assembled something of an intimate, haunting collage of a family breaking apart, showing each crack, frayed edge and tear with the glue holding it together slowly but surely failing.
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Independent Spirit Winners ‘09
Film Independent gave out their Indie Spirit Awards last night, giving them to the best films 
produced for under $20 million – of which most of my favourite films of the year were made for.
The Wrestler, my second favourite film of last year under only Paranoid Park which was a Spirit Nominee last year, winning Best Picture is fantastic – an award it should have been in contention for at a few other awards ceremonies, but anyway. Just saw “The Visitor” for the first time last night, isn’t Richard Jenkins fantastic? In fact, the entire film is.
To see Tom McCarthy take home Best Director over the likes of Jonathan Demme, Courtney Hunt, Ramin Bahrani and Lance Hammer is something indeed. Oscar hopefuls Mickey Rourke and Melissa Leo won in their respective categories, as did Penelope Cruz. I wonder, are the rumbles that Leo may perhaps overtake Winslet and win the Oscar validated at all?
Other awards went to Man on Wire, The Class, Milk and Synecdoche, New York, and yet again I recall that the Independent Spirit Awards are just about my favourite awards in the world. With the winner list below, it’s easy to see why.
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02.21.09
Fataculture’s Oscar Predictions
With the 81st Academy Awards soon to become a distant memory, I suppose it’s that time of the
year for me to publish my final predictions. Now, call it a lack of inspiration, a disinterest as a result of association with equally disinterested people, absence of a “favourite” out of the Best Picture nominees – I’m having a little trouble mustering interest in this year’s Oscars even as we head down the Oscar corridor and right into the final chapter of this year’s race. Is it the predictability of the (three hour and fifteen minute) affair? I am not so sure. I, for one, am having trouble predicting anything at all right now – even with the help of the leaked Oscar “winners.” Nice one, loser.
The closer I get to Sunday, last minute second-guessing reminds me that A) no one knows anything and B) the entire thing shouldn’t be taken all too seriously. A certain level of naïveté certainly makes following the Oscar race more enjoyable. Besides, this year – no matter how boring one finds the race, I haven’t felt for one second that everything is set in stone.
There’s Rourke vs. Penn, Winslet vs. Streep, Cruz vs. Davis, Ledger vs. Ledger – no matter how you slice the acting categories, chances are that the Golden Guy is going to someone who deserves it. But, save for Ledger and “WALL-E” for Animated Film, I am not convinced anything can be called a “lock.”
I don’t want to call what I am feeling “indifference” because it isn’t – its basically that there are enough people and films in contention that, no matter who wins, I won’t lose any sleep. On Oscar nomination morning, I spent enough time trying to understand how Sally Hawkins, Gomorrah and Bruce Springsteen were snubbed. I don’t think I have the energy to do any more deciphering, so I won’t. All I know is, either Slumdog will sweep – or it won’t (duh) and I am really hoping for the latter.
Below, my final Oscar predictions sans commentary because all I could say has already been said and by someone more interested than myself. Please feel free to add your predix/thoughts in the comment section; it’s the only way this might not feel so pointless.
My predictions are in order of how the awards will be handed out, thanks to a tip from Cinemascope (who provided us with an entire list of how everything would go down last year, but this year the presenters are being kept under wraps, so it’s a little less interesting).
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02.18.09
Trailer and Online Ticket Giveaway: “Must Read After My Death”
The first time I heard about Morgan Dews’s documentary “Must Read 
After My Death,” Marilyn Ferdinand had just seen it at the Chicago International Film Festival in ’08 and called it “remarkable culling of thousands of hours of audio and video records spanning decades made by an unconventional and unhappy family.” James Rocchi said, “As Dews cuts and re-cuts home movies and photographs over the words and score; the end effect is as mesmerizing as it is uncomfortable.” It’s been on my mind ever since, and now its coming to cinemas on the 20th of Feb in NYC and the 27th in Los Angeles, as well as screening online via Gigantic Releasing’s website for $3. I have ten completely free guest passes to watch “Must Read After My Death” in its entirety online, right now. If you find yourself interested, drop me an email at nikplowman@yahoo.com with your name and email address and you are good to go. First ten emails get passes. I should have a review up soon. [trailer via LiC]
Two words: “Stimulus Package”
There’s been that Gump/Button comparison parody that I wanted to post a while ago but could not get my computer to comply that seems to have been taken down, then Josh Horowitz parodied a few of the Oscar nominated films and gets his head dunked into a toilet by Dev Patel and Frieda Pinto, and now this, “The Uncler,” a parody of “The Wrestler” with Uncle Sam and Alyssa Milano which might just be the funniest of the bunch. Well, no, it is the funniest. For me. [LiC]
Review: “Katyn”
Nominated for Best Foreign Language film at last year’s Academy Awards, Andrzej Wajda’s anthological “Katyn” addresses the systematic extermination of some 15, 000 Polish military officers carried out by Stalin’s Red Army in an isolated, bleak forest in 1940; the blame for which was conveniently thrust upon the Nazi regime by the Soviets.
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Trailer: ‘Lorna’s Silence’
Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne’s “Le Silence de Lorna” (Lorna’s Silence, or The Silence of Lorna, which ever way you choose to slice it), which played at the Cannes film festival last year like their Palme d’Or-winning L’Enfant and Rosetta, opens via Sony Pictures Classics on the 15th of May 2008 in the United States. Glenn Kenny thought it to be just as nuanced and “deeply moving” as L’Enfant, which I found to be an exceptional film on every level. He went on to say, “Their approach to storytelling isn’t as Bresson-inflectedly-idiosyncratic as some might tell you. Which is my hifalutin way of professing that Lorna is an entirely accessible film, one that moviegoers who like a nice juicy tale ought not be scared of.” That wet my appetite. But then the ever endearing Jeff Wells was “close to enraged by the actions of Arta Dobroshi’s main character in La Silence de Lorna. Which means I felt strongly irked by the Dardenne brothers’ screenplay. Which means, despite the feeling and focus that went into it, that I didn’t care for the film. At all.” Lorna’s Silence then went on to win Best Screenplay at said festival. Take that as you may.
And because I don’t want to only post a million trailers, check out the trailer for Lymelife, which won the critics award at Toronto last year – looks like Emma Roberts is growing up? Awesome.
02.15.09
Trailer: ‘Gigantic’ & Other Stuff
I am aware of the fact that the trailers for “Sin Nombre,” a Sundance critical hit, “Inglorious Basterds,” Quinton Tarantino’s latest that is set to open on August 21st that may or may not play at Cannes this year, and “Tokyo!,” a three part triptych that played at Cannes last year, have surfaced over the past week or so, but I wonder if those trailers are aware that I have been too busy to give them any attention at all? Other than those three, I’ve seen the trailers for “Observe and Report,” with a hilarious Anna Faris and who cares who else, “Mermaid,” the Russia’s entry for Best Foreign Film this year, and a particular indie that premiered at Toronto last year that The Playlist adored starring Paul Dano and Zooey Deschanel titled “Gigantic.” Out of all of those, the latter impressed me the most. It opens in the U.S. on the 3rd of April and I hope it isn’t one of those precious, madly in love with itself indies that tick me off. You can see it below, and tell me, yay or nay?
Also, I realise I haven’t reviewed anything in a while – and that isn’t because I haven’t seen anything. So, basically, out of the following films, which (if any) would you like me to review first?
The Reader, Waltz with Bashir, Changeling, The Duchess, Love Songs, Defiance, The Secret of the Grain, Katyn (opens next Wednesday in NYC), Still Life, Valkyrie and Burn After Reading (saw that ages ago, still would like to review it someday though). Everything else I’ve seen doesn’t open for a while BUT, hopefully, by then I will have more time on my hands. Maybe.
02.09.09
BAFTA Winners
For such a randomly more-often-than-not surprising award body, the staleness of the awards race this year has rubbed off onto the BAFTAs too. I’m pretty sure there will be a whole lot of correlating going on between the BAFTA winners and the Oscar winners later this month, as is anyone else. One thing this awards season has done that I could say holds any value in my own life is that its making rekindle the idea I once had about being an actor and/or a filmmaker and/or a screenwriter (lol, whatever, right?). Unfortunately, I was unable to watch the show live as I have for many, many years in the past thanks to a Geography test, but with a little help from my good friend YouTube, I had that rectified as soon as I got home [with the help of InContention].
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02.08.09
Jai Ho v.s O…Saya
Apparently, Fox Searchlight have chosen their favourite child and cast aside its other. What I mean by that is, apparently AMPAS members received a campaign CD that featured only two of its three nominated musical entities – original song “Jai Ho” and the original score. “O…Saya” nowhere to be found. While Jai Ho may be the defining track from Slumdog Millionaire (it is at least that “feel good” song that folks would award, methinks), featured at the end with the big Bollywood shout out display, I don’t think it’s the best song nor is it my favourite. And that’s not just because I am head-over-heels, madly in love with all things M.I.A. Of course, Fox are trying to get a handle on the voting ways of those who dared to snub the Boss. Who knows, maybe the entire thing will backfire and “O…Saya” will triumph regardless. LOL, who the hell am I kidding. Download “O…Saya” here, and “Jai Ho” here and/or tell me which is your favourite.
WGA Winners
Slumdog Millionaire, at this point, is a gross understatement. Last night, it picked up the WGA award for Best Adapted Screenplay beating Frost-Nixon, The Dark Knight, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Doubt. Dustin Lance Black’s script for “Milk” rightfully snatched the Best Original Screenplay award. Seeing as “Milk” is the only film from the WGA nominees for Original Screenplay that went on to score an Oscar nomination, I guess we could have seen that coming too. As much as I would love to see “Happy-Go-Lucky” and “In Bruges” getting Oscar attention – their only chance sadly – if/when “Milk” beats them both, you won’t see me displeased. Important winners below, everything else at Awards Daily.
Best Original Screenplay: “Milk,” by Dustin Lance Black
Best Adapted Screenplay: “Slumdog Millionaire,” by Simon Beaufoy
Best Documentary Screenplay: “Waltz with Bashir,” by Ari Folman
Best Writing in a Dramatic Series: “Mad Men,” by a whole bunch of people
Best Writing in a Comedy Series: “30 Rock,” by a whole bunch of [awesome] people
02.03.09
81st Oscar Nominee Luncheon
One random thing I love about the Oscars are the nominee luncheon photos. Not sure why exactly, but there’s always been something about them that fascinated me. Perhaps it’s the sifting through a row of very ordinary faces to find that one gleaming star smile, seeing whose in attendance and who isn’t, and so on. It’s a time wasting thing. This year, Meryl Streep, Brad and Angelina and Philip Seymour Hoffman were not in attendance – for whatever reasons – and I think it stripped the photo of some of the qualities I love about them. Basically, what we have here is like the main photo of a high school yearbook where some of the most popular kids aren’t in it, and a bunch of nobodies are sort of spaced around one central popular kid. Regardless, can I just say how stunning Kate Winslet, Anne Hathaway and the support actress nominees look? You could say that makes up for those who are missing, more or less. It may be a boring Oscar race – even with the uncertainty surrounding the actress categories and who might win – but it sure offers some of the best looking nominated actresses in a while. [AwardsDaily]
02.01.09
You Can’t Stop What’s Coming…
By now, the DGA’s, the Annie’s and the USC Scripter Award have been handed out, and I am pretty sure at this point that if “Slumdog Millionaire” had been up for any animation awards, it would have one them too. Or maybe not, 
considering that “Kung Fu Panda,” and not “WALL-E,” took home 10 trophies – including Best Animated Film, bettering the win of “Ratatouille” just last year. I was just as surprised as anyone to find out “Panda” was actually a good movie featuring pretty stunning animation, but this…this is a change of pace and it’s good to see awards love not focused solely on the flavour of the [past few] month[s]. I still do not see how WALL-E could end up not winning Best Animated Feature, so I guess we could shrug this off – even though the winner of Best Animated Film at the Annie’s has gone on to win in the same category at the Oscars all but once. In a month’s time, it will be all but twice. [THR]
The DGA and the USC Scripter award, like most award bodies this year, bought whatever “Slumdog” was selling, and tipped too. Having won the SAG for Best Ensemble, the PGA and now the DGA award for Danny Boyle, if any other film took home the top prize at the Oscars at the end of this month, I’d be very surprised. I think what we have here is what some like to call a “lock,” and I don’t think that is too far off the mark. I still think the DGA should have gone to Gus Van Sant. Meanwhile, Ari Folman won the DGA for his animated documentary, “Waltz with Bashir” over James Marsh’s “Man on Wire.” Luckily, the two aren’t up against each other in the same category at the Oscars – and right now, both are the favourites to win Best Foreign Film and Best Documentary Feature respectively.
