In Contention

Tag: Inception

  • ‘Dark Knight Rises’ trailer attached to final ‘Harry Potter’

    Nothing much going on today, so why not toss up a good ole’ fashioned SEO-baiting post? Those of you planning to take in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2” next weekend (which I imagine is most of you), you’ll be delighted to know that, according to Superhero Hype, Warner Bros. will attach the first teaser trailer for Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight Rises” to prints of the film. Enjoy.

    Also hitting next weekend, the story says, will be the teaser poster. I don’t remember there being any teaser posters for “Batman Begins” (unless I’m mistaken), but “The Dark Knight” had that face-paint-on-a-brick-wall thing and the frosted glass Joker image. This could be where they tease the inclusion of Catwoman (and maybe a catch phrase a la “Why So Serious?”). Guessing.

    I had an exchange with a friend recently regarding the anticipation for this film. He argued that it’s at a higher fever pitch than any film since “Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace,” but I don’t feel that way. Sure, it’s huge amongst the geek set (given the blurred footage of ABSOLUTELY NOTHING that floated around two weeks ago). But I still think “Avatar” was a bigger deal. The media (not just online choir-preaching) was pushing the issue on that one pretty hard.

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  • Another barrier broken?

    Amid the barrage of critical brickbats tossed at Sunday night’s Oscar show — plus the widespread dissatisfaction with certain winners — I didn’t see much mention made of this particular milestone, but it strikes me as worthy of note, particularly a year after Kathryn Bigelow’s history-making Best Director win.

    I’m happy to say that one other category is no longer an all-boys’ club: as part of the technically robust “Inception” team, Lora Hirschberg became the first woman (to my knowledge) to win an Academy Award for Best Sound Mixing.

    Hirschberg shared the award with colleagues Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick, with whom she also scored her first nod two years ago for “The Dark Knight.” (The Cinema Audio Society has been more generous to her over years: dating back to “The Horse Whisperer” in 1998, she has amassed six nominations, if no wins, from that group.)

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  • OSCAR TALK: Ep. 55 — Special Edition! — Oscars postmortem

    Oscar TalkWelcome to Oscar Talk.

    In case you’re new to the site and/or the podcast, Oscar Talk is a weekly kudocast, your one-stop awards chat shop between yours truly and Anne Thompson of Thompson on Hollywood. The podcast is weekly, every Friday throughout the season, charting the ups and downs of contenders along the way. Plenty of things change en route to Oscar’s stage and we’re here to address it all as it unfolds.

    The 2010-2011 film awards season has finally drawn to a close. And what a ride it was. After a weekend full of parties and awards shows, Anne and I are here on the final day of coverage this season to offer our thoughts on what was. So let’s get on with it and see what’s on the docket today…

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  • TECH SUPPORT: ‘Inception’ dominates below the line

    So, the morning after a terrible prediction record at this year’s Oscars, I’ll try to make some sense of what the Academy told us, and what it means for the crafts artists we got to know along the circuit this year.

    As the evening went on, many people began to wonder if “The Social Network” would triumph in Best Picture. While Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall managed to take Best Film Editing (on their second nomination), the very deserved win for Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross in Best Original Score was somewhat surprising. The work trumped Alexandre Desplat for “The King’s Speech,” despite the latter film’s wins in the major categories. Desplat, with four nominations under his belt, could now be considered due, I think.  (Alas, Tom Hooper’s later win for Best Director removed doubts about the Best Picture winner.)

    The Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing and Best Visual Effects categories unsurprisingly went to “Inception,” making Oscar winners of Nolan’s usual crew of Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo, Ed Novick, Richard Kind, Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, and company. I congratulate them and wish them the best for “The Dark Knight Rises.”

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  • Guess again: final predictions and preferences

    “Oh Sister, I have such doubts!”

    I’m not given to quoting overwrought (if Oscar-nominated) ecclesiastical dramas at the best of times, but let’s face it, this is not the best of times. There comes a time in every Oscar-watcher’s life when he has to accept the things he cannot change — or simply stop changing the many, many things he can — and commit to some bloody predictions already.

    That time has come particularly late for me this year, just a few hours ahead of the ceremony that will finally answer such burning world issues as whether Colleen Atwood will win her third Oscar tonight, or Jenny Beavan her second. I had my reasons for stalling — only this afternoon did I complete my viewing of all the short film contenders, meaning I have now seen (or at least skimmed) everything up for an award tonight save, unavoidably, “Country Strong.” (Sorry, Gwyneth, but I’m rooting for ya anyway.)

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  • The In Contention Readership Ballot

    Today’s the big day. No more Oscar Guide, no more polls, just a few choice hours left in the season and then, the 83rd annual. (And not a moment too soon.)

    I appreciate everyone participating in the daily polls this month and last, which accompanied each of our Oscar Guide entries. It offers us a nice glance at the majority opinion of how the race SHOULD go down, so I’m happy to offer up, for the second-straight year, the In Contention Readership Ballot.

    There were a handful of frisky choices this year, though not too many. Your big winners were Christopher Nolan’s “Inception” and David Fincher’s “The Social Network” (which is owed Best Picture by your estimation).  Both films racked up five of your wins.  Nothing else was close. And, interestingly enough, the film likely to walk away with the most awards tonight? It only deserves one prize in your book: Best Actor.

    Check out the ballot after the jump, and good luck to your favorites tonight.

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  • OSCAR GUIDE: Best Picture

    And so we come to the end of this year’s Oscar Guide, and the category that has been the cause of more conversation than ever this year: Best Picture. And that can’t be overstated. I can’t recall the last time the debate around a Best Picture winner was so heated, and I’m tempted to say it was, in some way, good for us all.

    There was a lot of passion around favorites this season. A LOT. In some cases, it might even be considered oppressive passion, but it’s worth it to have such strong opinions about the films we love. We may choose to convey those opinions in different ways, modest or broad, but that the pulse of film adoration is this strong at a key moment in the medium’s progression is, indeed, heartening.

    The nominees are:

    “Black Swan” (Mike Medavoy, Brian Oliver and Scott Franklin)
    “The Fighter” (David Hoberman, Todd Lieberman and Mark Wahlberg)
    “Inception” (Emma Thomas and Christopher Nolan)
    “The Kids Are All Right” (Gary Gilbert, Jeffrey Levy-Hinte and Celine Rattray)
    “The King’s Speech” (Iain Canning, Emile Sherman and Gareth Unwin)
    “127 Hours” (Christian Colson, Danny Boyle and John Smithson)
    “The Social Network” (Scott Rudin, Dana Brunetti, Michael De Luca and Ceán Chaffin)
    “Toy Story 3” (Darla K. Anderson)
    “True Grit” (Scott Rudin, Ethan Coen and Joel Coen)
    “Winter’s Bone” (Anne Rosellini and Alix Madigan-Yorkin)

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  • Just walk away: final predictions

    While Guy is pulling his hair out (I know the feeling), I’m backing off.  At some point you have to put your pencil down and step away, and so I am.

    For me, the most difficult categories to pick — and the ones I found myself flip-flopping on down the stretch — were Best Supporting Actress and Best Documentary (Feature).  Interestingly, both proved nerve-racking for completely different reasons.

    In the case of supporting actress, you have a race that felt fluid (easily a three-way sprint) coming into phase two, and a situation later complicated by an advertising hiccup from the frontrunner and the charm factor going way up for a contender in the expected Best Picture winner.  In the case of documentary feature, you have five stellar films that are — no kidding — evenly favored among the committee voters.

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  • The five categories giving me hell

    With a little over 48 hours until the big night, I find myself in an uncommon state of disarray — my crammed Oscar weekend “To Do” list includes viewing all 15 short nominees in order to make an informed dart-throw of a prediction (stickler that I am, I held out for a theatrical screening), preparing copious supplies of food and alcohol for my second annual hotel-suite Oscar party (sorry, the guest list is full) and somehow finding time to write a final predictions piece.

    Before I can check off that last task, however, I actually have to settle on some final predictions — and despite the presence of solid frontrunners in most key categories, this year is giving me more trouble than most. For a race that, only a couple of weeks ago, seemed smothered in blanket affection for a single film, other possibilities have opened up that unusually equalize the possibilities of both a titanic sweep and a widely splintered share-a-thon.

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  • How ‘Salt’ could surprise and win Best Sound Mixing

    I stopped researching somewhere in the 1970s, but as far as I can tell going back that far, the Best Sound Mixing (formerly Best Sound) category has never included more than three Best Picture nominees. In a number of cases there were two, a great many years saw one and often enough, there were none.

    So there’s a theory worth addressing. But before I get to that, first and foremost, the safe money in the category is on “Inception.” However, there should be a bit of pause because the film did not resonate with the Academy enough to land two key nominations (Best Director and Best Film Editing) and it flew over many heads. But it’s the loud blockbuster of the bunch and ought to be considered the frontrunner.

    That having been said, when you think of the reality of the Oscars, the winner ballots are largely filled out in blocks of support, sometimes even mandated from on high (no joke). So there are six Best Picture nominees that aren’t represented in the Best Sound Mixing category, and the last thing in-house supporters of those films will want to do is check off a box for a competitor and add to another film’s momentum. The only vote that wouldn’t put wind in anybody else’s sails? “Salt.”

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  • TECH SUPPORT: Final analysis, part two

    Yesterday we began our final look at the 10 crafts categories.  Check out part one here.  Today, the conclusion.  Meanwhile, you can find my final predictions in all categories here.

    Best Music (Original Score)

    Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, despite their atypical approach to film music composition, are very much contenders in this race. Having won the BFCA award and Golden Globe for their work on “The Social Network,” they must be taken seriously. The fact remains, however, that this is not a typical Oscar-winning score.

    Alexandre Desplat has had an amazing run since he broke onto the American scene in 2003 with “Girl With a Pearl Earring.” Four Oscar nominations later, it seems he is poised to win his first statuette for another Colin Firth film, “The King’s Speech.” Being behind the Best Picture frontrunner is a huge advantage. Moreover, its subtle elegance managed to win the BAFTA. Even so, a win is hardly assured as subtlety is actually not frequently awarded here.

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  • TECH SUPPORT: Final analysis, part one

    So this is it. Over the last seven-plus months here at Tech Support, we have tried to illuminate and analyze the craft races as they unfolded. On Sunday, the winners will be revealed, ushering some new faces into Oscar’s club.  And indeed, I expect the vast majority of the winners to make their first trip to the podium.

    I’ll be breaking down each field in a two-parter.  Check back tomorrow for the final five categories, but for now…

    Best Art Direction

    As is the case in many categories, “The King’s Speech” is, to me, the safe bet for the win here. A royal period piece and likely Best Picture winner would be difficult to beat in any year. But in all fairness, this is in many ways not a typical “royal” winner in a category where style triumphs over substance.

    Production Designer Eve Stewart (11 years after her first nomination for “Topsy-Turvy”), along with set decorator Judy Farr, immaculately filled many of the film’s sets (despite late-breaking news of one location) with intimate details that feel very much in tune with the characters. A guild win also shows industry support.

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  • The top 10 shots of 2010: part two

    In case you missed part one of this year’s top shots column, be sure to catch up before digging into the final five selections today.

    As I mentioned yesterday, it wasn’t exactly a banner year for singular images from films in 2010. And that’s certainly not a crime. But more to the point, what I learned as I set about writing this piece was how deeply my personal experience of the year was reflected in my ultimate selections. It may have been tough to find what felt right for the list, but in some ways, the intensity of that digging ultimately illuminated the year’s work for me all the more.

    How can I not be grateful for that? In the final analysis, perhaps a year that isn’t so obvious, without such a bevy of possibilities for this collective, yields a more measured and perhaps passionate consideration of the year in visual storytelling. Not to be highfalutin.  Anyway, I hope you enjoy the conclusion. Let’s dive in…

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  • ‘King’s Speech’ art direction hits the wall

    By now you’ll have heard that the most celebrated set in “The King’s Speech,” that of Lionel Logue’s shabbily spartan office, was also used in a video by British gay porn producers UK Naked Men — which I’ve since discovered is called “Snookered,” and is readily available online. (Click at your own risk — decidedly NSFW/C.)

    As Kris pointed out yesterday, the folks steering “The King’s Speech” will be grateful this embarrassing news nugget wasn’t unearthed a few weeks ago, as opposed on the last day of Oscar voting. Still, I imagine a number of Academy figures are now crossing fingers in the hope that the film doesn’t emerge victorious in what appears to be a tight three-way race for Best Art Direction.

    The news spread rapidly across the internet yesterday, leaving ripples of laughter in its wake — but aside from its amusement value, the situation does raise interesting questions about how people define award-worthiness in this particular craft field, and how aware they even are of what went into the work they’re voting for.

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  • 2/22 OSCARWEB ROUND-UP: Nolan praises snubbed editor, the year’s best film titles, belated Oscar winners

    • Reporting from Saturday night’s ACE Eddies, Carolyn Giardina passes along Christopher Nolan’s appreciative comments of his Oscar-snubbed editor, Lee Smith. [Hollywood Reporter]

    • If there were an Oscar for film titles… [New York Times]

    • Anne Thompson chats with “The Social Network” cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth. [Thompson on Hollywood]

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  • OFF THE CARPET: Heading into the home stretch

    I’m watching CNN’s report of the on-going situation in Libya as I write these comparably pointless words. The “real world” seems so unique, so foreign after having our head in the awards season clouds since September. Now, six months in, victory lane is a mere six days away. And man, it’s been a marathon.

    So let’s dive in one more time.

    The journey for “The Social Network” has been a fascinating one. And now, with wins for Best Film Editing, Best Adapted Screenplay and, potentially, Best Director coming, some are arguing an upset by the film in the Best Picture race is still in the cards. It would be delightful, but it would be considerably more surprising than the moment a number of pundits point to as a bellwether shocker in the Academy’s recent history: “And the Oscar goes to…‘Crash.’ Whoa.”

    Most, however, seem to agree that “The King’s Speech” has it in the bag, and I think that’s sound. The only question is, to what extent has it won over the Academy? Anywhere from three to 11 wins makes perfect sense.

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  • Prediction conundrum of the day

    You may have heard Anne and I get into it over the design categories in Friday’s Oscar Talk.  For costumes, she maintained that the great (and deserving) Colleen Atwood is likely to win for “Alice in Wonderland.” Yet, as best I can tell, the only true fantasies to win the award — ever — are “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” (a bona fide sweeper) and “Star Wars” (I’m considering “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” a period entry).  And no Tim Burton film has won here when nominated, unfortunately.  I’m thinking “The King’s Speech.”

    She also contended that Tim Burton’s film and “Inception” are more likely to win Best Art Direction than the period frontrunner.  You know where I stand on what’s deserving, but I don’t think the Academy at large is savvy enough to go there.  History is on the side of “Alice in Wonderland” when you consider the fact that no Tim Burton film nominated for Best Art Direction has ever lost (going all the way back to my beloved “Batman”).  So suddenly I’m leaning in that direction more than I was for costumes.  Additionally, fantasies have historically fared better here than in Best Costume Design.

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  • BOX OFFICE: ‘Swan,’ ‘Speech’ cross $100 million

    The headline says it all. The two films join “Toy Story 3,” “Inception” and “True Grit” as the only Best Picture nominees to reach that mark this year. “The Fighter” has slowed too much to get there and a re-release of “The Social Network” didn’t go as well as planned in that regard.

    (Courtesy: Exhibitor Relations)