In Contention

Tag: The King’s Speech

  • Weinsteins announce release dates for winter bait

    Harvey Weinstein has never been one to put much faith in the length of Academy voters’ memories, so as usual, he’s favoring a late-year release plan for his presumed awards contenders — the prospects of which I was discussing only the other day.

    Thanks to Coming Soon’s Ed Douglas for pointing out the newly announced release dates for his holiday-season prestige slate. You won’t be surprised to hear that it’s November and December down the line: “My Week With Marilyn” is first to go forth on November 4, followed by “The Artist” on November 23, “Coriolanus” on December 2, “W.E.” on December 9 and “The Iron Lady” on December 16.

    You can read as much or as little into this schedule as you like, though it’s worth noting that none of them are bowing as late as last year’s Weinstein Company property “Blue Valentine,” the perilously tardy post-Christmas release of which was widely blamed for a meager awards showing — with more time for glowing critical buzz to build, Ryan Gosling and writer-director Derek Cianfrance could arguably have stood a better chance of joining Michelle Williams in the nominee circle.

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  • New AMPAS invitees include Sorkin, Hooper… and Beyoncé

    The annual announcement of the new members invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences — the latest batch of industry pros we get to blame for next year’s Oscar results — is a moment that always prompts as much satisfied head-nodding as bewildered head-scratching.

    The latter action isn’t always in response to unworthy choices (though I imagine many will deem the inclusion of, say, relatively unproven comedian-turned-movie-star Russell Brand premature), but more to the tardiness of others: every year, I find myself surprised that so-and-so wasn’t already a member. Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the first time they’ve been asked — not everyone accepts the invitation.

    I’m surprised, for example, that one of this year’s most esteemed Oscar champs, screenwriter Aaron Sorkin, is only now being brought into the fold. He’s one of a number of 2010 winners on this year’s list of 178 newcomers, including directors Tom Hooper and Susanne Bier, documentarian Charles Ferguson, writer David Seidler, editor Angus Wall, short filmmaker Luke Matheny and “The King’s Speech” producers Iain Canning and Gareth Unwin. A host of this year’s nominees are also joining, among them actors Jesse Eisenberg, Jennifer Lawrence, John Hawkes and Jacki Weaver, as well as female writer-directors Lisa Cholodenko and Debra Granik.

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  • An open letter to James Franco

    Dear James,

    So you don’t think much of the Academy. That’s okay. A lot of us don’t. And after the outcome of last night’s awards — in which capping an inevitable Best Picture Oscar for the safe, stolid stylings of “The King’s Speech” with that extraneous Best Director win for a worried-looking Tom Hooper was roughly akin to dipping Wonderbread in milk for maximum squishiness — I suspect even a lot of movie buffs who don’t make a year-round sport of henpecking the Academy’s choices are on your side.

    Your antipathy towards the Academy may be rooted in different disappointments than those of the blogging majority. We know for starters that you don’t much rate “The Social Network,” the 2010 title most clearly destined to fill the blank in many a “How did _______ lose?” whine-fest between awards geeks in years hence.

    But Lord knows your own pony was even more cruelly treated by voters: when the film’s artsy death-rattle of a theme song couldn’t even beat a rushed Randy Newman Xerox of a Pixar jingle that everybody forgot he already won for in 2001, it was clear the once-so-buzzy “127 Hours” had been reduced to a phantom presence in this year’s race.

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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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  • OFF THE CARPET: Sun came up

    Steven Spielberg couldn’t have put it more concisely during his presentation of the Best Picture category last night.  To paraphrase, he noted that whichever films did not happen to win Best Picture this year would join the ranks of numerous classics of the medium.

    Was it preemptive damage control?  I hope not.  Why be apologetic?  Was it lecturing?  Maybe a bit, and I think a great many needed to hear it again (unfortunately).  But it felt so incredibly inside baseball that it was probably completely unnecessary.  After all, a very popular film won Best Picture this year.  It seems silly to address a media concern (albeit one shared by plenty of cineastes).

    Ultimately, the season ended where many thought it might, going way back to the early days of September.  Some held out hope that David Fincher could take the lead in his field on respect and admiration alone, but Best Picture and Best Director will always be a better bet in lock-step.  The real post-show discussion focused on the ceremony itself, which was, mercifully, a short affair this year.  Just over three hours.  But they were three kind of excruciating hours.

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  • 2/28 OSCARWEB ROUND-UP: Aftermath

    • Drew McWeeney writes a lot of words explaining why he doesn’t watch the Oscars. [Motion/Captured]

    • Nikki Finke reminds who the “In Memoriam” sequence passed over. [Deadline]

    • Oscar ≠ A-List. [The Wrap]

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  • ‘King’s Speech’ wins four Oscars, including Best Picture…

    …and the sun will still rise tomorrow.  Full list of the winners at The Circuit.  We’ll be back tomorrow to put a bow on the season.  Feel free to carry over conversation from the open thread here.

  • Indie Spirits, HBO and Weinstein party down on Oscar eve

    Yesterday was a bit of a whirlwind.  The Indie Spirits was a lovely affair, though they really need to figure out the show aspect because it kind of fell apart this year.  I didn’t see it on television so maybe it was edited into shape, but in the room, it just felt like chaos.

    I spoke to Aronofsky — for the first time since he finally made my list, he noted.  The guy is paying attention.  I wished him the best of luck tonight but he shrugged it off, knowing much of anything beyond Natalie Portman winning just isn’t in the cards.  Nevertheless, it’s been a long, wonderful journey for the film, especially when you look at those box office numbers.

    Mostly I was stoked to see an old college buddy, “Cold Weather” producer Brendan McFadden.  He and director Aaron Katz are still working on that werewolf buddy cop script we told you about recently, and there’s a western in the cards, too.  Here’s hoping those ambitious projects take off.

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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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  • BOX OFFICE: ‘King’s Speech’ holds on in the top 10…

    …and is poised to have a good night.

    (Courtesy: Exhibitor Relations)

  • Big night for ‘Black Swan’ at Spirit Awards

    Kris was on the scene at the Independent Spirit Awards today, and will, I’m sure, have some first-hand commentary to add later. For now, let me lead the cheers for “Black Swan,” which finally had its moment in the sun this awards season.

    Two years after its sort-of-sibling “The Wrestler” nabbed the top prize, the surprise crossover hit took four awards, including Best Feature and Best Director for Darren Aronofsky — the third Spirit win of his career, though his first for directing.

    The only other multiple winner of the ceremony was fellow Best Picture Oscar nominee “Winter’s Bone,” which took a well-deserved brace of supporting trophies for John Hawkes and Dale Dickey — the film’s only reward for a field-leading haul of seven nominations. “Exit Through the Gift Shop,” meanwhile, was a popular victor in the Best Documentary category.

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  • CINEJABBER: The light bulb’s getting dim

    Catch up with the idea behind these weekend posts here.

    Well.  Here we are.  It’s probably going to be kind of difficult to use this weekly open thread for anything other than Oscar chatter, given tomorrow’s festivities, but here’s the space nevertheless.

    The Oscar Guide has been another lovely success this year and I thank everyone for the discussion and voting.  It’s come to be a nice way, for me, anyway, to fully consider things during phase two while ticking off the calendar days, eyes on the prize the whole way.  Tomorrow I’ll post what would essentially be the In Contention readers’ ballot, the results of our daily polls.  You can dive back in and revisit the categories here.

    Today brings the Independent Spirit Awards, moving back to the beach in Santa Monica after trying downtown out for a year.  I’ll be on hand, but it will be TV-delayed, so if you want the winners first hand, follow me on Twitter.  Show begins at 2pm PT.

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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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  • WEEKLY WRAP: ‘Twas the week before Oscar

    • We made you wait for it this year, but finally: Kris’s Top 10 Shots of 2010, parts one and two.

    • This week’s Off the Carpet column surveyed where the season has brought us thus far, and began tying the loose ends…

    • …culminating later in Kris’s final Oscar predictions of the 2010 season.

    • Guy’s final Long Shot column of the season celebrated the season’s losers, while calling for a return to movie talk away from the subject of awards.

    • Our Oscar Guide feature stepped it up, covering Best Director, Actor, Actress, Foreign Language Film and Film Editing.

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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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  • OSCAR GUIDE: Best Directing

    Coming down to the wire, the race for Best Directing remains a very close one. Earlier in the year the prevailing wisdom was that a split could be in the cards, with the Oscar-bait frontrunner more likely to win Best Picture and the zeitgeisty competition likely to see its talented helmer finally noticed.

    Then things changed a bit, with the zeitgeisty choice pulling ahead as a Best Picture possibility, which left supporters feeling even more strongly that its director would find himself in the winner’s circle. At the end of the season, we’re back to that original thought process in some quarters, while in others, the anticipation of Oscar bait going hand-in-hand is taking hold.

    The nominees are:

    “Black Swan” (Darren Aronofsky)
    “The Fighter” (David O. Russell)
    “The King’s Speech” (Tom Hooper)
    “The Social Network” (David Fincher)
    “True Grit” (Ethan Coen, Joel Coen)

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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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