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I think these things have kind of run their course, but I thought it worth pointing to the Reel Geezer review of Clint Eastwood’s “Gran Torino.” I can’t help but wonder whether Lorenzo’s opinion is going to be shared enough within the Academy to warrant that Best Picture nomination I hinted at earlier this week (a possibility others have picked up on ever since). But personally, I think Marsha nailed it on the head with her thoughts on the film early in the review.
Sigh…anyway, have a look:
15 responses so far
1 1-14-2009 at 8:15 pm
James D. said...
Wow, I usually agree with Lorenzo more than Marsha, but how can he like this film? Unfortunately, your predictions about Gran Torino sneaking in are starting to look very possible.
2 1-14-2009 at 8:23 pm
John said...
COMPLETELY agree with Marsha. I felt like I was losing my mind. Except for Clint, the acting was awful.
3 1-14-2009 at 10:00 pm
Matthew Lucas said...
God I hope more Academy members think like Lorenzo on this one. I’ve been pulling for this one all along.
4 1-14-2009 at 11:00 pm
D said...
Their review of TDK tells me all I need to know about them. Clueless. Fucking clueless.
5 1-15-2009 at 12:09 am
The InSneider said...
I hate to say it but Tapley beat me to the punch on this. Why are we still talking about the Reel Geezers? I mean, c’mon, seriously. They’re funny in an senior-citizens-say-the-darndest-things kinda way, but Really? Reelly? Isn’t the gimmick getting a little, um, old? I’d forward these videos to my grandma because she might appreciate their point of view a little bit better, not to mention get a kick out of their back and forth (which is better than The Ben’s, btw), but they don’t really influence or do anything else for me personally. I don’t mean to be mean, I just don’t think I’m the target audience. Call me crazy, but in all honesty, I’m more anxious to hear what Ben Lyons thinks about a movie.
6 1-15-2009 at 12:18 am
The InSneider said...
That said, the review is certainly worth a look because the Academy is obviously an older crowd and I think Clint’s films directly appeal to them. Guys who grew up on Eastwood movies tend to see a little bit of themselves in his characters, and perhaps GT struck a nerve as it made audiences confront their own prejudices, regardless of age. I really liked the film and the natural supporting performances by the Hmong cast. I saw Frost/Nixon with an Academy/Guild crowd and I might’ve been the youngest person in the theater. Everyone seemed to love it and Langella’s performance, myself included. Just sayin’, if I’m him, I’m pulling for DiCaprio and Pitt to get in over Clint and Jenkins so I can have the old fogey vote to myself and hope Mickey and Sean split even. Alas, I am not Frank Langella, nor am I crook, although many will accuse of me stealing precious seconds of their life by making them read this comment.
7 1-15-2009 at 12:22 am
D said...
“Alas, I am not Frank Langella, nor am I crook, although many will accuse of me stealing precious seconds of their life by making them read this comment.”
LMFAO…well played, sir!
8 1-15-2009 at 1:29 am
Guy Lodge said...
Marsha actually makes some pretty sharp points here.
The free ride this film is getting has to stop — if (God forbid) it lands in the Best Picture race, it would be the most embarrassing nominee since “Airport.”
9 1-15-2009 at 4:52 am
Jilda said...
Hmm, this proves that there may be just as many old people that DON’T support it…you know if people LOVED Clint Eastwood, the old one, wouldn’t AMPAS have supported him in the past more.
10 1-15-2009 at 5:43 am
Ben M. said...
Well, they are academy members so it is somewhat useful, my guess is Gran Torino is in the top ten mix but probably won’t grab a nod.
Personally I really liked the film, and while I wouldn’t nominate it for BP, some of the films I would choose (like The Class and Man on Wire) has no shot whatsoever, so since Wall-E, Frost/Nixon, The Wrestler, and Slumdog Millionaire are the only major oscar contenders that I liked more this year I wouldn’t have a problem if it managed to surprise.
11 1-15-2009 at 6:29 am
Bryan said...
Marsha’s point about Eastwood being more interested in his own performance than anyone else’s really gets to the bottom of this. If the Academy nominates him for best actor, they are patting him on the back for ignoring his other actors (my God, Christopher Carley is Awful!) in an effort to get some more gold.
12 1-15-2009 at 10:17 am
Speaking English said...
“Their review of TDK tells me all I need to know about them. Clueless. Fucking clueless.”
They actually had really, really good points about what makes that film deeply flawed. The incoherency, the self-aggrandizing. They didn’t feed into the delusion like some other billion people…
13 1-15-2009 at 1:36 pm
D said...
Speaking English,
I’m referring more to their comments on what Batman allegedly “should be.” Coming from the guy who wrote Batman ‘66, that’s not exactly what I’d call an authority on the character. He’s fucking clueless. And she’s clueless altogether about the character because she’s taking his word for it that what he says is how the character should be.
14 1-15-2009 at 1:49 pm
D said...
BTW,
The Dark Knight has plenty of flaws. But so does Slumdog Millionaire yet the old geezers loved that one and ignored the same problems in it that pop up in TDK. Wonder what that could be?
Incoherence was not a flaw unless you have a 5 second attention span and can’t pay attention to what’s presented. The movie was easy to follow, including the action scenes. Now Batman Begins had difficult to follow action scenes but they corrected that problem for the most part. The biggest flaw in TDK is that it turns into a big action cliche from the time the Joker leaves the hospital to the time he has his final conversation with Batman. It’s around a 20 minute stretch of the film and it feels lazily done to me.
15 1-16-2009 at 3:10 pm
Matthew Lucas said...
Embarassing Guy? Nah…this would be one of their best moves in years. The fact that this film has been so ignored on the precursor circuit is appalling…and I think that in the future the film will be appreciated for the great work that it is.