In Contention

Tag: Body of Lies

  • Cinema Audio Society nominees

    Cinema Audio Society awardThe five contenders for the 2009 Cinema Audio Society (CAS) Awards are:

    “The Dark Knight”
    “Iron Man”
    “Quantum of Solace”
    “Slumdog Millionaire”
    “WALL-E”

    So this is the second “Defiance” snub that has surprised me so far, following Eduardo Serra coming up short with the lensers earlier today.

    “The Dark Knight,” “Iron Man” and especially “WALL-E” were certainly expected, but the show of support for “Slumdog Millionaire” indicates the deep industry love this film has going for it.  I wouldn’t necessarily expect this to translate to a Best Sound Oscar nomination, given the fates of films like “Finding Neverland,” “Crash,” “Babel” and “Into the Wild,” Best Picture frontrunners that scored with CAS but missed with AMPAS (though “Wild” is something of an anomaly there).

    Then again, “Slumdog” is a much more craftily conceived piece of filmmaking than those efforts.  I thought the sound was amazing, personally.  So perhaps this could be the first year since 2003 that the guild matches the Academy’s picks 5/5.

    The inclusion of “Quantum of Solace” is particularly interesting, though.  “Casino Royale” had a solid showing in the 2006 guild circuit, scoring with the art directors, costume designers, sound editors and even the visual effects artists.  But the mixers in the CAS gave it the cold shoulder where a lot of us thought the film had its best shot.  That the Society would tip its hat to the sequel is somewhat telling, I’d say.

    With that in mind, I’d be tempted to predict this quintet for Oscar as well.  The only Edward Zwick movie to miss a CAS nomination and turn up in the Academy’s tally was “Legends of the Fall” in 1994.  So there is still hope for mixing legends (and branch favorites) Anna Behlmer and Andy Nelson.  But the duo also have two other contenders in play: “Australia” and “Cloverfield,” which might be leaving their colleagues with too many choices.

    There are a number of other possible surprise nominees in the mix, all of them featuring respected sound mixing talent.  Add to the aforementioned “Australia,” “Defiance” and “Cloverfield” (my pick for the best work here in 2008) “Body of Lies” and “Valkyrie,” and you’re still looking at a number of possibilities.  And let’s not forget another Best Picture frontrunner, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” strong in this arena in a number of sequences.  But I would have expected a mention here if it was in the cards for Oscar.

    Like I said, this is a smart list to bet on, with “Defiance” as the spoiler.

  • 11/11 Oscarweb Round-up

    Marisa Tomei in The Wrestler• Peter Bart worships at the alter of Brian Grazer and Ron Howard. [Peter Bart]

    • Tom O’Neil reports on the 14 animated features submitted for toon consideration this year… [Gold Derby]

    • …and he interviews “Changeling” psycho Jason Butler Harner inside Hannibal Lecter’s prison cell deep in the bowels of the Hollywood Museum. [Gold Derby]

    • Jeffrey Wells has his “Eureka” moment regarding “Frost/Nixon.” [Hollywood Elsewhere]

    • Kim Voynar has the right idea about exploring issues of nudity in films, but picks the wrong example to kick it off.  Uh…Marisa Tomei DOES play a stripper. [Movie City News]

    • Russell Crowe talks his 50 lb. “Body of Lies” weight gain across the pond. [Daily Telegraph]

    • Five picks for a black James Bond. [New York Daily News]

    • Despite “W.” having come and gone, Christopher Campbell kicks around Josh Brolin’s Oscar chances. [Spout Blog]

    • Lev Grossman talks to “Watchmen” artist Dave Gibbons. [Time]

  • TECH SUPPORT: Best Sound Editing — Volume One

    Tech Support at In Contention Swoosh.  Bang.  Grunt.  Clink.  Crash.

    These sorts of sounds can add a lot to a film’s mood and plot even though they are not recorded during filming and have to be created and mixed in later on.

    The individuals who create these effects are rewarded for their efforts in the category of Best Sound Editing.  The category used to be called Best Sound Effects Editing, which, in my opinion, is a better name.  Supervising sound editors and their teams are generally the individuals rewarded here.

    This category used to only have three nominees but was expanded to five two years ago.  This makes the category somewhat more difficult to predict, though there are five films this year that really strike me as frontrunners.

    Ever since “Monsters, Inc.” scored here in 2001, animated films, particularly those of Pixar, have fared very well.  I’d be very surprised if Andrew Stanton’s “WALL-E” failed to continue that trend.  Sound effects are key to any animated film so many of the sounds have to be created.  There is nothing to be captured while filming because, well…there is no filming!  For Stanton’s effort in particular, the sound effects were especially pivotal given the minimal dialogue.

    Jon Favreau’s “Iron Man” was another summer film where the sound effects were crucial to the film.  The explosions, clanks of armour and numerous experiments of Downey all required sound manifestation.  A huge hit and critically respected, the film in really depended on its sound editing and it flowed perfectly into the visual sights.  I’d be quite surprised if it didn’t get nominated here.

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  • Updated predictions, but…

    …no column this week.  Seriously, what’s there to discuss?  The expected box office miss for “Body of Lies?”  The expected critical approval of “Happy-Go-Lucky” (which makes some strides this week)?  But I know people get ancy if the predictions aren’t updated, so I am here to be your savior.  Not a lot of shifting and sliding but some notable indications here and there.

    A quick note, however, regarding the “up” and “down” arrows you see on the charts each week.  It seems a few folks have been confused about their actual meaning, so let me reiterate that here.  Just because a contender has an arrow next to his or her name does not mean he or she has positive or negative buzz.  The arrows simply indicate that an entry has risen or fallen on the chart since the last update, and a rise or fall can be the result of any number of factors on the chart that might have nothing to do with the contender in question.  Keep that in mind.

    Here are this week’s updated predictions:

    Main Category Charts
    Technical Category Charts
    The Contenders
    Oscar Prediction Archives

  • 10/13 Oscarweb Round-up

    Marc Forster• Robert Abele gets Josh Brolin to reveal his inner ‘W.’ [The Envelope]

    • Tom O’Neil gnaws on the Oscar potential of Anne Hathaway in “Rachel Getting Married.” [Gold Derby]

    • Peter bart makes a lot of presumptions and assumptions about the craven mentality of duel performers in a given Oscar season. [Peter Bart]

    • Vulture kicks off this year’s Oscar Futures with pro on “Milk,” con on “W.” [Vulture]

    • Alonso Duralde studies the work of Leonardo DiCaprio as “Body of Lies” releases into cinemas. [MSNBC]

    • Brad Brevet does the same, but draws the conclusion that DiCaprio has never quite hit it out of the park. [Rope of Silicon]

    • Scott Bowles, meanwhile, draws up an obit on the box office performance of “Body of Lies.” [USA Today]

    • Jeff Dawson goes in depth with “Quantum of Solace” helmer Marc Forster. [The Times]

    • Lauren Schuker digs into the global investments on Oliver Stone’s “W.” [Wall Street Journal]

    • Larry Charles chooses his 28 most subversive comedians. [Entertainment Weekly]

  • 10/6 Oscarweb Round-up

    Toby Jones• Choire Sicha talks to Ellen Burstyn about “W.” and her new memoir. [Los Angeles Times]

    • A year later, Jeffrey Wells still very much hearts “Things We Lost in the Fire.” [Hollywood Elsewhere]

    • Peter Knegt profiles “Rachel Getting Married” screenwriter Jenny Lumet. [indieWIRE]

    • David Gritten corners the Coen brothers across the pond. [Daily Telegraph]

    • John Anderson details the Iraq war film as risky business with Ridley Scott tackling the subject in “Body of Lies.” [New York Times]

    • Doing more press for the Brits than Stateside these days, Oliver Stone chats it up with Oliver Burkeman. [The Guardian]

    • The diversity that is character actor Toby Jones. [Los Angeles Times]

    • Steve Daly talks with a Bill Maher-less Larry Charles. [Entertainment Weekly]

    • More fuel for the “‘Gran Torino’ is Eastwood’s last performance” fire. [Reuters]

  • TECH SUPPORT: Best Sound Mixing — Volume One

    Tech Support at In Contention“Wait a minute, wait a minute.  You ain’t heard nothing yet!”

    Those words from Al Jolson forever changed filmmaking in 1927, ushering in “talkies” and bringing about the beginning of the end of the silent film era.

    The Academy Award for sound mixing recognizes the artists who fashion a film’s audio side.  It must be distinguished from Best Sound Editing, which is the integration of artificially created sound effects into the mix.  Mixing is the blending of those effects, along with dialogue, music and any other noise captured during filming.  The Oscar awards the sound re-recording mixers in this category, who do the blending, as well as the production sound mixer, who captures the sounds on the set.

    Blockbusters, action flicks, war films and musicals usually do particularly well in this category, given the extent to which the sound tends to draw attention to itself in these sorts of films.  It’s somewhat difficult to project the category this far in advance, however, as the sound mixers for many of the films are difficult to pinpoint; mixing is one of the last tasks done on a film.  But that’s not going to stop me from trying to handicap potential contenders!

    Jon Favreau’s “Iron Man” is the sort of film that has virtually everything this branch normally goes for.  The film is filled with action and high-profile sound work.  Plus, it kicked off the summer blockbuster season with not only lots of dough for producers, but also lots of raves from critics.  Veteran Oscar winner Christopher Boyes is in charge of this crew.  I’d say a nomination is quite likely.

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  • Page to Screen has officially closed

    Sorry for the column to go out with a whimper like that, but the more things piled on, the less time I had to read William Monahan’s “Body of Lies” and offer up the final column.  I’m seeing the film on Monday, so by now it’s a bit moot, so I just wanted to note that this season of Page to Screen came to a close with Brian’s review of Peter Buchman’s “Che” two weeks back.

    I’m thinking about revamping the column next year, perhaps taking it back to it’s source material commentary roots (a concept that has been lifted elsewhere in the interim, as we went the script review route for the last two years).  But I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.

    We hope you’ve enjoyed the reviews and gathered some helpful insights along the way.  If you want to read back over our series of seven screenplay reviews this season, have a look here.

  • New ‘Body of Lies’ stills

    Body of Lies

    Check out the rest over at the film’s buzz page.

  • 9/25 Oscarweb Round-up

    The Godfather• Jeffrey Wells talks with legendary Oscar-winning lenser Gordon Willis about “The Godfather Restoration.” [Hollywood Elsewhere]

    • Talia Shire discusses same with Alex Simon and Terry Keefe. [The Hollywood Interview]

    • Nikki Finke shits herself with weird fury over the Condon/Mark Oscar news from yesterday, finally admits she has testicles. [Deadline Hollywood Daily]

    • Patrick Goldstein responds to it all, giving that nut-bird credence as a result. [The Big Picture]

    • Tom O’Neil thinks Will Smith would be a fantastic Oscar host.  Naaahh. [Gold Derby]

    • Lynette Rice gets the rumors started with Ricky Gervais as a possibility. [Entertainment Weekly]

    • Roger Moore could care less about his Bond legacy. [The Independent]

    • Michael Moore’s election year freebie. [New York Times]

    • Three films that broke through the “chick flick” barrier. [Test Pattern]

    • Spike Lee and “Miracle at St. Anna” own the local paper this week, starting with a big overview/interview from Tom Roston… [Los Angeles Times]

    • …then a spotlight on hottie starlet Valentina Cervi… [Los Angeles Times]

    • …and finally, John Horn takes the opportunity to wonder whether audiences will care about WWII films this season, with four films yet to come. [Los Angeles Times]

    • Scott Bowles gets a first look at Ridley Scott’s “Body of Lies.” [USA Today]

    • 10 literary classics to turn into blockbusters. [Spout Blog]

  • DiCaprio and Scott start talking ‘Lies’

    Leonardo DiCaprio in Body of LiesThe LA Times’ Chris Lee has reported an interesting story about Ridley Scott’s upcoming “Body of Lies,” but the best anecdote is right at the top:

    “If I’m going to get down to brass tacks, there’s no rules,” Scott exclaimed, sitting on the sun-drenched deck of his West Hollywood production company. He was speaking hypothetically about his willingness to use torture to extract information from a suspected terrorist — a pivotal plot point in the knighted British director’s political thriller “Body of Lies”…

    “If I want to get the information out of somebody, I have to do it,” Scott continued. “And it makes it a lot easier if that person put a bomb in a square or blew up a bunch of kids. I’d definitely take a cricket bat to him.” He glanced over at DiCaprio for confirmation. “Right?”

    DiCaprio clamped his lips together, averted eye contact and almost imperceptibly shook his head no. Awkward moment, anyone? The hard-charging director suddenly reversed course. “Never let me be the head of any counter-terrorist organization,” Scott said, chuckling.

    Lee has apparently seen “Body of Lies,” by the way, judging by his descriptions.  He calls the film “a deliberate throwback to Nixon-era conspiracy thrillers, films that spotlighted American political skulduggery and corruption…The film offers plenty of other visceral stimulation as well, tautly paced around shootouts, car chases and lushly photographed explosions courtesy of cinematographer Alexander Witt.  Big ideas too.”

  • ‘Body of Lies’ poster

    Cinematical is calling this poster image of Ridley Scott’s upcoming “Body of Lies” an exclusive, but I guess I could’ve gone down to the Warner lot any time last week and snapped a shot of the giant banner that’s hanging out on Olive and called it the same thing. It’s been there for a few days now.

    Anyway, here it is in all it’s slick glory:

    Warner Bros. Pictures' Body of Lies

  • WB fall preview…nothing for ‘Gran Torino’

    Rope of Silicon beat us to the punch and posted the new shots from Warner Bros. Pictures’ fall preview press kit. There are new shots from “Appaloosa,” “Body of Lies” and “Yes Man,” among others. Then you get to the one we’re all foaming at the mouth for in anticipation, Clint Eastwood’s “Gran Torino,” and there’s nothing. Just this bit of prose:

    Clint Eastwood stars in the drama “Gran Torino,” marking his first film role since his Oscar-winning “Million Dollar Baby.” Eastwood also directs the film in which he plays Walt Kowalski, an iron-willed veteran living in a changing world, who is forced by his immigrant neighbors to confront his own long-held prejudices.

    Wow. Thanks, WB.

    Anyway, I especially dig this new “Appaloosa” image:

    (from left) Viggo Mortensen and Ed Harris in Appaloosa

  • New ‘Body of Lies’ trailer drops

    The latest trailer for Ridley Scott’s “Body of Lies” is a giant step up from the first crack Warner marketing took at it.  It simultaneously injects complexity and amplifies the scale of the pic.  The concentration on the DiCaprio/Crowe dynamic is certainly front and center here, showing us more of the material Crowe has to chew on.

  • So I guess that’s ‘Body’ not ‘House’

    The new trailer for “Body of Lies” has dropped, and it seems they’ve stuck with the original David Ignatius title rather than the switch to “House of Lies.” It looks like a nice mix of Ridley Scott’s work and his brother’s brand of cinema as well. Russell Crowe looks to have a solid role.

    I’ve had this script for months now but have never found the time to give it a read. Soon, I guess.

    Have a look (kudos to Awards Daily):

    httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUkk9MsWrFA

    And in Quicktime here.

  • OFF THE CARPET: 2008, a year in advance

    Another year, another set of wins…and another look ahead at what’s in store NEXT year.

    It’s never too late to take a long gander at what we might see dominating the film awards landscape in 365 days, and with that in mind, I’ve been doing my usual mulling over the possibilities for a few weeks to put together the sadly thorough examination of the 2008-09 award season that follows. Let’s get into it. There are some major considerations to take into account. right off the top.

    Like Leonardo DiCaprio, for instance, who is set to be the entertainer of the year. With performances in “Body of Lies” (Ridley Scott) and “Revolutionary Road” (Sam Mendes), DiCaprio is working with a duo of awards-proven talent this year. Perhaps that will work against him, much like it did in 2006, and no major Oscar success will come knocking. But we’ll wait until we see the performances. Each of them could be enticing.

    This year’s Best Picture Oscar victor Scott Rudin is back again, by the way, with “Revolutionary Road,” recently inherited by Paramount Vantage and probably one of the true “frontrunners” this far out that we could put our finger on. The only other film in Vantage’s arsenal is Edward Zwick’s “Defiance,” which could simply be a commercial success, but might find its way to multiple nods like “The Last Samurai” and “Blood Diamond” in recent years.

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