Enter to win at the Hollywood Gold Contest website!
Browse recent TalkBack postings
SentinelSource.com
Posted by:
Edward X. Young
The Psychic Critic
Contributing Writer
1/30/2008 3:00:11 PM
Last year this critic posed the rhetorical question, “Is Hollywood dead?” This year I must ask “Is Oscar® dead?” As of Tuesday, January 22, 2008, the date that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences® (A.M.P.A.S) announced this year’s nominees, a strike by the Writers’ Guild of America (WGA) that was expected to last less than four weeks has turned into an industry war of attrition that has gone on for nearly three months with no end in sight. In its aftermath, the deadlocked labor dispute has already virtually wiped out The Golden Globes® and The People’s Choice Awards®, reducing the usual star-studded hoopla of those annual events to meager press conferences in which the nominees and winners were unceremoniously read off a list. Other awards shows that normally precede the Oscars® seem destined to befall a similar dismal fate. The prospect for a gala telecast of the 80th Academy Awards® is dark.
Darker still is the curious collection of movies that garnered the top nominations for the Hollywood Gold. Of the prominent pictures released in 2007, there is a peculiar predominance of grim themes of betrayal, vengeance, injustice, degenerative disease, and bloodshed. What can you say of an Oscar® year where the most upbeat nominated picture is a movie about accidental teen pregnancy?
Whatever … Be sure to tune in on Sunday, February 24, 2008 to see if there even is an Oscar® telecast. However it works out, it promises to be the weirdest awards night in the history of Hollywood Gold.
3/5/2008 9:14:17 AM
Re: Movie Forum comment posted by Juan A
I didn't endorse THE SIMPSON'S MOVIE. I was surprised the Academy didn't nominate it.
The only animated feature of 2007 that I enthusiastically endorse is AQUA TEEN HUNGER FORCE COLON MOVIE FILM FOR THEATRES. Based on the late night Adult Swim series on Cartoon Network, this epic follows the adventures of a talking milk shake, carton of French fries, and a meat wad (The series creators were inspired by their childhood joy of playing with their food.) as they attempt to save the world from an apocalyptic exercise machine. The guerilla marketing campaign for the movie sparked an unintended terrorist alert in Boston. Boasting a tag line, “Bring the whole family... because children can't get into "rated R" without an adult;” it’s the shape of things to come in the medium.
Minimalist to the point of Dadaism, with no pretense of socially redeeming value, and utterly hilarious, AQUA TEEN HUNGER FORCE COLON MOVIE FILM FOR THEATRES is offensive, abrasive, iconoclastic, vulgar, revolutionary, crass, courageous, crude, rude, and lewd … I can’t say enough good things about this picture! It’s to animated feature films what punk rock was to popular music.
Of course, AQUA TEEN HUNGER FORCE COLON MOVIE FILM FOR THEATRES did not receive any Oscar nominations. If it had, the filmmakers Maiellaro and Dave Willis would not have achieved their goals.
3/3/2008 8:27:56 PM
"Eastern Promises & Southern Exposures, or,
Putting the 'Wood' Back Into 'Hollywood'"
by Mary Campbell
I listens, and I hears
Your music of the spheres:
Oh Viggo! You're so romantic!
Though blade to neck's appended
I see just you, up-ended!
Oh Viggo! You make me frantic!
Never mind your acting,
Your oeuvres are too distracting---
Oh Viggo...so dialectic!
Though thugs threaten your nethers,
You've bound my heart in tethers:
Oh Viggo! You're quite symmetric!
While you take whopping licks,
I, too, get my kicks;
Oh Viggo! You yummy hood!
May your groin-y exploits dim
The fallic phobia in film!
Oh Viggo, you're bloody good!
3/1/2008 11:50:35 PM
George,
I hear ya, I guess there's nothing wrong with righting a wrong but...I still don't get it. I understand make-up sex but for this movie (NO COUNTRY) I don't.
O BROTHER WHERE ART THOU? was defiantly more Oscar worthy than this one...
Just saying
3/1/2008 5:20:39 PM
Rebecca -- of Sunnybrook Farm? Javier Bardem being put up for Best Supporting Actor is just a trick that produers have used since at least the time of "All About Eve," when Anne Baxter refused 20th Century-Fox's attempt to put her in the Supporting category to improve both her and Bette Davis' chances of bringing home the gold. (Baxter got her Best Actress nod, and drew enough votes away from Davis to deny that diva her third Oscar. Thus, Bette in one of the all-time great screen performances was trumped by Judy Holliday, whose performance seen now, almost 60 years later, can almost NOT be beleived -- and I was there!)
The great Rosalin Russell refused her studio Colubmbia's offer to enter her in the Best Supporting Actress category for "Picnic" (again, I was there) on the basis that she was a lead, not a supporting player. Three years later, she got nominated for "Mame." Al Pacino was surprised when Paramount put him up for a Supporting Actor in the first "Godfather," when he had more screen time than did Marlon Brando, who was put in the lead categroy (and won). Paramount didn't want a rerun of the Baxter scenario. It also hoped Pacino would win the Supporting Actor trophy, but he was beat by John Houseman.
You have to want the Oscar, as Julie Christie found out this year. Christie had been going around Hollywood dissing the Academy Awards as being personally meaningless to her and as over-hyped merchandising rthat had gotten out of control in the 42 years since she won her Oscar. She was on the campaign trail thumping the tub, she said, only to get recognition for Sarah Polley and her movie, "Away From Her." Not a good campaign strategy. Leading players are so desperate for an Oscar and the recognition it brings that, unlike Rosalind Russell, they want to be listed in the supporting category. Thus, you have Jamie Fox's ridiculous Supporting Actor nomination for "Collateral" in 2005 when HE WAS IN THE ENTIRE RUNNING TIME OF THE FILM but for one scene featuring Tom Cruise. It was a stunt to get him an Oscar nod, and it worked. The Academy should be ashamed of itself.
In 1962, there was heavy criticism of the listing of Montgomery Clift and Judy Garland for Best Supporting Oscars (they both were nominated) as they were lead players. It was viewed as a stunt that denied recognition to actual supporting actors, for whom the category was created belatedly in 1937 (eight years after the first Oscars were awarded). Now, this stunt -- which picked up with Jack Nicholson's multiple post-Best Actor Oscar nods in the Supporting Actor category (including one win, for "Terms of Endearment") -- is the norm.
Javier Bardem is a very fine actor and the Academy wanted to give him an Oscar, but they would not for Best Actor. Best Actor/Actress trophies, like Best Picture and Diretor, are considered infinitely precious in a way a supporting award is not. He had gotten one Best Actor nod (considered an honor in and of itself, particularly for a "foreign" actor) for "Before Night Falls" and should have been nominated for "Mar Ardentro/The Sea Inside" in 2005 but was not.
The Academy also doesn't like to reward performances in "genre" pictures (Gene Hackman and Denzell Washington's Best Actor wins are exceptions).... so entering Bardem as Best Actor was out. Entering him as Best Supporting Actor was the shewed move, as it guaranteed him a nod and, as his sweep of all the awards shows, the Oscar.
The Academy Awards are intensely political, and this political campaign -- unlike Christie's -- was brilliantly waged. Bardem got his "make up" Oscar, as George Roy Hill has subbed such awards (for Night Falls & Sea, when he probably should have taken home the Best Actor trophy), and the Academy got to recognize a brilliant actor.
Now, what will the Academy do about Mathieu Amalric, who was "robbed" -- as was Bardem for "Sea" -- of recognition for what might have been the best peformance by any actor, in "Le Scaphandre et le papillon"?
3/1/2008 12:55:35 PM
Wait - I know. Ed X. seems to have Endorsed The Simpsons movie. I attempted a bizarre form of critical commentary somewhat akin to Sardonism or Sarcasm - bit it back fired.
My bad. Thanks again Ed for the wonderful insight.
-- Juan
3/1/2008 11:49:53 AM
I must elect Edward X. Young by PROXY to vote for me this year. Ed's insights over the years have prompted me to trust his opinion as kindred to my own.
As they say, however, the proof is in the puddin'. Reference the fact that Ed X. did not in any way shape or form endorse The Simpson's movie.
Again, Hat's off to Ed X. Break a leg Ed!
--Juan A.
2/29/2008 10:55:02 AM
Rebecca, the Oscars for the Cohen Bros. & NO COUNTRY FOR SLOW MEN falls into the category of the "Make up Oscar." The Cohen Bros. should have won the Oscar for FARGO, but didn't. Academy voters like to right wrongs from the past, and in n 2008, barring a strong enough contender (P.A. Anderson and his film THERE WILL BE BLOOD just isn't/wasn't good enoug), this was the year to make up the oversight. Last year, Martin Scorcese was given a makeup Oscar and a career Oscar, in one, for what was one of his worse films.
Several years ago, Roman Polanski was given a version of the Make-Up Oscar, not so much as a slight (although one could argue that he should have won for CHINATOWN, except for the fact that Francis Ford Coppola, who beat him that year, made a comparable classic with GODFATHER II) for an overlooked film, as the blighting of his career by the sex scandal that drove him from Hollywood. It was more of a career award for a career that might have been.
After FARGO, none of the Cohen Bros.' subsequent movies, save O BROTHER WHERE ART THOU? was strong enough to justify awards for them, who are among the most distinct of Hollywood filmmakers. So, this was their year. It has little to do with merit.
2/29/2008 10:49:01 AM
Ed, what did you win your Oscar for? I can't find you it in the IMDB database. Was it for short subject?
2/29/2008 10:48:03 AM
Question for Edward X. Young, Psychic Critic
Re: His pick for Best Actress, Marion Coitillard
Can she play the balalaika?
2/29/2008 10:45:47 AM
Viggo Mortenson's performance in "Eastern Promises" gives a whole new meaning to the term "Full Frontal Nudity". In Viggo's case, it should be called "Full Fore & Aft Nudity." Donald Sutherland who starred in the best filmed nude scene ever according to Stephen Spielberg in "Don't Look Now" said male full frontal nudity was ridiculous as the male private parts were silly looking things. Yes? It certainly is distracting, yes, to see Mr. Mortenson nude with everything out there dangling in the breeze fore & aft for so many minutes screen time. Won wonders how he wasn't injured by falling down so many times or maybe got a burn from an arc lamp used to light his bum. Good performance but maybe we all better off not seeing Mr. Mortenson for the religion he is or isn't.
2/29/2008 10:26:29 AM
Re: Movie Forum comment posted by Rebecca
Dear Rebecca: I concur with you completely on your observation "No Excuses for Old Men." Your bandwagon syndrome certainly applies to the Coen Brothers. I've found their films largely enjoyable -- but extremely highly overrated, ever since I first encountered them personally at the New York Film Festival in 1984, where they were hyperbolically praised for BLOOD SIMPLE: probably the public moment that started their bandwagon rolling. (I recall the Coens as being a little too self-assured at the time.)
They gave the Best Picture Oscar to NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN (and it was the best of the films in that category of nominees); but was it "a masterpiece," as some critics have called it? Hardly! As almost every other picture Oscar-nominated this year (or most any year), it was flawed, albeit interesting.
I think the only picture with any Oscar nominations this past year that approached the title of "masterpiece" was SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET: “There Will Be Blood -- and Singing!” What a courageous, unique and challenging effort from Tim Burton. And look what that got from the Academy -- a measly Art Direction award.
The two most original, imaginative and remarkable pictures of 2007 got absolutely no recognition from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences: GRINDHOUSE and AQUA TEEN HUNGER FORCE COLON MOVIE FILM FOR THEATRES. (I'm not joking. Have you seen them?) These are the movies that mattered -- the ones that will be remembered and cherished by fans long after all the Oscar winners of 2008 are only dimly recalled as answers to trivia questions. (And that day will probably come before the end of the year!)
As far as movies featuring men with sexy guns, try as they might, nobody has ever been able to do it like Sam Peckinpah. Just recall THE WILD BUNCH, PAT GARRETT & BILLY THE KID, and especially BRING ME THE HEAD OF ALFREDO GARCIA. NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN has no place on the shelf next to those iconic macho classics. I really like Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh -- but he's no Warren Oates -- or even a Strother Martin. Bloody Sam's ghostly legacy blows the Coen's, as well as all other pretenders to Peckinpah's empty throne, right out of the water, like they were being shot to pieces by William Holden behind a tripod-mounted Maxim machine gun.
2/29/2008 4:56:56 AM
I was so confused by the overwhelming response to NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN that I blogged about it on my site (http://reds-world.com). Critics and the Academy are raving about how amazing it is...but did anyone see the movie I saw?
What I saw was “NO EXCUSES FOR OLD MEN.” It was long, slow, uninteresting and meaningless. I suppose if you like that sort of thing, then watching this movie is a great way to spend your time.
I really tried to love it and I even watched it again after it won the Oscar, but I still couldn't love it or even care enough to hate it. It didn't enhance my life, challenge me to think in a new way, entertain me or impact me at all. But with it winning the Oscar, I've started to wonder if I'm missing something that is so obvious to others.
Or is it the "bandwagon mentality" that occurs when a movie wins an award which make everyone speak highly of it? - No, that can't be it because critics were raving about it long before the Oscars. So what am I missing? I don't get it?
True, men with guns are sexy and tossing coins is a good way to make decisions, I don't deny these facts. But there was no seeming point to it and no character that I cared about in the story. So how does that make for a great movie? (I will admit that it was fun, after the movie to talk with my friend about some invisible meaning of the characters names and the dream, but that's not worth an Oscar in my opinion.)
So, please tell me, what is there to love about this movie? Or is it so "artistic" that it's not supposed to be understandable by the average viewer. Look, it was filled with great actors and, of course, "the enigmatic Coen brothers" so there's no excuse for it not to be a moving experience? But it wasn't.
See, the thing is, I didn't hate the movie, I was just bored by it. And worst of all it didn't even put me to sleep.
I go to the movies to be entertained, to be moved but this movie did neither for me.
P.S. And another thing, how is Javier Bardem a Supporting Actor...such as the movie was, he carried it, yes? Doesn't he deserve a Leading Actor credit?
2/29/2008 2:27:27 AM
Congratulations! You're the only critic that got it right! I'm talking about Javier Bardem's hair in NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN. In the other reviews I've read, some called it a "Prince Valiant hairstyle." Some called it "the Dorothy Hamill Wedge." Some called it "a Moe Howard bowl cut." But it's not any of those. You called it "a Johnny Ramone hair-do." And of course, the movie is set in 1980 -- when The Ramones were in their prime! Gabba, Gabba! Hey! Ho! Let's go!
2/28/2008 5:23:25 PM
Viggo Mortenson gave a very fine performance as the Russian "gangster" in EASTERN PROMISES, but I do not feel that he "out-acted" Daniel Day-Lewis in THERE WILL BE BLOOD. Then again, I think Viggo would have done a fine job as the oil man in that film, and Day-Lewis would have shone as the Russki in E.P.
That's the problem with the Oscars. As Humphrey Bogart said, awards are meaningless, unless all the actors in question played Hamlet.
2/28/2008 5:20:29 PM
Nicole Kidman was the first thespian to ride a rubber nose and a chiselled butt to the Best Actress Oscar. I swear, she will be the last!
2/28/2008 11:03:38 AM
Javier Bardem provided fine entertainment in "No Country for Old Men." He also appears to have a delightful devil-may-care personality. However, I feel that his co-nominees for Best Supporting Actor received short shrift in that Bardem was not really challenged in his portrayal . It was the way the Coens structured the role, plus the nutty hair. Many other actors could have portrayed Chirugh equally as well and gotten a nomination. I am truly looking forward to seeing Edward X's portrayal of Dr. Maitland in "Sea of Dust"
2/28/2008 10:37:34 AM
Gee, I never noticed before now how much Ed Young looked like Tilda Swinton...and you never see them in the same room together....Hmmm.
2/27/2008 12:18:27 PM
This year's Oscars were well-deserved, but the ceremony has outlived its usefulness.
2/26/2008 7:02:11 PM
All the nominated movies were good.
Some better than others, and the 80th Academy Awards brought out the best in every one of them.
I hope the 81st show will have all that this one did.
I loved it!
Hooray for Hollywood!!
George Vreeland Hill
2/26/2008 1:37:55 PM
You usually give a lot of attention to Nicole Kidman in your annual Oscar columns -- whether she's nominated or not. Didn't you think she was diabolically funny in the black comedy MARGOT AT THE WEDDING as the emotionally pernicious free radical who destroys her sister's nuptials? Yet nobody nominated Nic for this superb performance. Even the Independent Spirit Awards nominated Jennifer Jason Leigh (for playing Nicole's sis in the flick), but gave no nod to Nic! It seems like BOTH Nicole Kidman AND Jodie Foster are getting ignored.
2/26/2008 12:54:00 PM
We fans of the Psychic Critic are breathless awaiting his commentary on not only the awards but the ceremony itself. Jon Stewart was pretty pitiful and the rhythym [SIC?] of the show was terrible due to the constant commercials. Unlike the old days when the Oscar ceremony tried to approximate a variety show, with its godawful but amusing in a terrible way over-the-top production numbers, the show now seems to be filler between commercials. With the pitiful ratings (worst Oscar viewership ever) are teh Academy Awards doomed to be shown on the USA Network, where they probably belong?
2/26/2008 10:21:49 AM
Where is the follow up to this year's Oscars? I was looking forward to it. Mother of mercy, is this the end of Rico?
-- Tummy
2/24/2008 9:32:11 PM
I was disappointed that J.K. Simmons did not score a Supporting Actor nomination for Juno. Considering his past catalogue of morally corrupt characters, it was so refreshing to see him in such a sweet, charming role. His scenes were the best of that film.
2/24/2008 1:00:16 PM
I would have nominated Linda Blair for Best Supporting Actress in THE POWDER PUFF PRINCIPLE, but alas, I'm not a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences (AMPAS). Shame on AMPAS for denigrating fun pictures and building up loathsome dreck like ATONEMENT, pretentious twaddle that is only good for giving theater patrons hemorrhoids.
I honestly think movies like ATONEMENT and AWAY FROM HER are a conspiracy between Hollywood executives and upholstery trade, as these type of "chick flicks" likely generate big business for upholsterers. Think about it: While watching these snooze-fests, theatergoers' behinds bite down into their seats, seeking some purchase so the poor spectator connected to said bottom doesn't slide down to the greasy sticky theater floor after nearly passing out from sheer boredom!
-- Johnny B.
2/24/2008 12:49:53 PM
Re: Viggo's spectacular nude scene in "Eastern Promises"
Funny, he don't look Russian.
2/24/2008 12:47:47 PM
Why has the Academy been so disrespectful of the great Steven Spielberg as of late? We've had to hear Scorcese Scorcese Scorcese for the past several years until that runt finally got fobbed off with a totchke but what of the real Big S: Spielberg Spielberg Spielberg?
I think he should be nominated every year. New awards should be created by the Academy and given to Steven Spielberg. Without Steven Spielberg, you really WOULD be right, Mr. Ed Young: HOLLYWOOD WOULD BE DEAD. Truly.
I'm looking forward to the new Indiana Jones and am hoping that The Trial of the Chicago 7 doesn't tack too far to the left. (And shouldn't Anthony Zerbe be cast as William Kuntsler? What's this Hollywood obsession with that fat slob Philip Hoffman?)
2/24/2008 12:40:04 PM
Which cinema has-been will be given the thankless task of introducing the "In Memoriam" sequence of stiffs tonight, culminating in a healthy round of spontaneous applause for that degenerate druggie, Brokeback Ledger? Usually, it's some former star whose career is on the skids. Has Sandra Bullock done it yet?
P.S. Who's Sheldon Rothfarb -- your press agent?
2/24/2008 12:52:19 AM
Jodie Foster is an inspiration to every aspiring thespian. Despite the fact that SHE NEVER TOOK ACTING LESSONS, Jodie won two Best Actress Oscars before she was 30-years-old! For all struggling actors (like myself), who never had the opportunity to attend any of the elite acting academies, Jodie stands as a beacon of hope. If I ever start feeling down after too many fruitless cattle-calls, I just remind myself: Look what Jodie did! Jodie restores my faith and helps me be THE BRAVE ONE whenever I audition.
2/22/2008 1:13:31 PM
Jodie Foster should have been nominated for an Oscar for "The Brave One" but her brave act of coming out of the closet as a lesbian likely cost her a nom. Shame on Hollywood! We here at the 313 (Manchester) salute her and hope her honesty doesn't cause career suicide.
2/22/2008 1:06:12 PM
Trying to dissect the relative worths of this year's motion picture crop is about as emotionally remunerative and esthetically pleasing as squeezing the trapped gas out of dead seagulls at Hampton Beach. Once again, Edward X. Young is right: Hollywood is Dead.
2/22/2008 1:02:57 PM
Keira Knightley went through the entire running time of Atonement without once donning a bra. This is the first such performance by a superstar since Faye Dunaway went braless in Network 30 years ago. Surely some kudos are due.
-- Tummy
2/22/2008 12:07:36 PM
Viggo Mortensen might not win the Oscar; but he sure deserves -- just for that fight scene alone, in the steam bath in EASTERN PROMISES. What a hottie!
2/22/2008 11:48:36 AM
The Hollywood stuffed shirts will probably hand the Hollywood Gold to Disney/Pixar's RATATOUILLE; but I say "Rats to that!" Every hipster knows the Best Animated Feature Film of the Year is AQUA TEEN HUNGER FORCE COLON MOVIE FOR THEATRES. "Bring the whole family ... because children can't get into 'rated R' without an adult."
2/22/2008 11:35:36 AM
To Ed Ferruggia...good news. My screenplay has sold and Brad and Angelina have agreed to star in it. I'll save a seat at the premiere for you...way in the back!
To Melinda, wondering if Jodie Foster's coming out has hurt her in Hollywood. Quite doubtful, Mel. Hollywood has known Jodie was gay for 20 years. What she did have the temerity to do is turn 40...and in Hollywood when you turn 40 you are two steps closer to becoming soylent green. And if you are under 30, you will have no idea what that means!
2/21/2008 11:29:28 AM
Dan Acon writes a diatribe against the Hollywood movie industry and the commercialized Oscar process in which he wields a knife to the rotting flesh of the ancient bloated whale with the passion of an insider who has seen the disgusting innards of the behemoth and wishes for the courage and strength to cut his way out of the belly of the beast.
But alas, noble soul, the flesh is weak and indeed the spirit is unwilling, and the bloated Hollywood whale swims in a black sea of like minded creatures.
The rot Acon sees is the metastisis of a dying Europe that once led the way in film, but which now wallows in socialist angst and has spread its disease to America, a once fresh young beauty that is passing its middle age crisis and facing the truth of advancing age. If there is a quote in modern film that best summarizes the movie industry and society, it is by Jack Nicholson's henchman near the conclusion of The Departed: "It's a nation of rats." Hollywood was always evil and corrupt, society has just caught up. The plastic facade of looking good to make money has spread from Hollywood to the society at large. So from where will you find the source of your long sought after Renaissance? Certainly not in the musings of old men calling upon the young to do better. Hazard Zet Forward my friend.
2/21/2008 11:11:19 AM
I did not see either "Away from Her" or "Juno," but I do plan on seeing the former but not the latter. I have read that "Juno" is just a cute piece of Hollywood filmmaking and that the screenplay creates a world that no one outside of Hollywood lives in or has ever thought of living in, that is, it is a Hollywood screenwriter-on-the-make’s idea of life. The girl (Juno?) who gets pregnant suffers no consequences at all from her actions, and at the end of the movie, everything is tidily wrapped up. It's just a feel-good flick that is a platform for slick TV-style wisecracks and pseudo youth slang.
The Psychic Critic attacks Sarah Polley for injecting politics into her film (since Julie Christie is an anti-war activist for the past 40 years, the authorship of these comments might be questioned), i.e., commenting on the burning issue of our day that the 2008 Presidential campaign will turn on and that has effected our relations with Canada and the rest of the world, but what about the political choices of "Juno"? From what I've read, Juno (if that's her name) goes into an abortion clinic, sees that the gals there are sad, then -- chipper as ever -- bounces out and decides to have her baby. This is not politics? Perhaps this is a politics more in line with the Psychic Critic's point of view.
I am sympathetic to pro-life people. I don't think abortion is quite the lark that pro-choice people like to make it out. But teenage pregnancy has real consequences. It deeply effects a girl's life. Ideal upper-class adoptive parents, either as a couple or singly, aren't there for most girls to pick and choose. Reading the reviews, there is no real…what can you say. Real what? This is just slick, packaged entertainment, geared towards making money.
Hollywood has always trucked in films that are, frankly, garbage, that have little to do with life as lived. That is why most people once they mature no longer patronize movies, unless it is an art film like "Away From Her." At least Sarah Polley is interested in making art and in saying something about the human condition, not focused on making TV sit-coms passing for movies geared towards making money and advancing a slick Hollywood career.
The Psychic Critic should be more forthcoming about his own political prejudices and how they effect his reviews. After all, we the readers are not psychics. Kudos to Carla Colby for blowing the whistle.
2/21/2008 9:38:15 AM
ED, Although you are probably correct about Sarah Polley and AWAY FROM HER, I don't think it lessens the effect of the film just because The Iraq War and George W Bush are criticized. It is a very important issue and is talked about very often and in the public consciousness and probably someone with Alzheimers could be aware of. Many,many people are very critical of Bush's policies particulary concerning his invasion of Iraq and the consequences. This issue however doesn't detract from your knowledge of movies and your overall analysis.
2/21/2008 1:09:42 AM
Addressing the Movie Forum comments from Carla Colby: You’re mistaken about the authorship of BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN; ‘twas based on a short story by Annie Proulx not Alice Munro; but that’s an honest mistake. You’re hyperbolic in your praise for Sarah Polley; her feature filmmaking debut is hardly a “stellar achievement.”
Granted, AWAY FROM HER is an admirable effort from such a young tyro, frequently poignant, tastefully avoiding the maudlin; but yet it’s a flawed film. The problem is that youthful Canadian actress-turned-screenwriter/director Sarah Polley is also a self-proclaimed left-wing political activist, who can’t seem to keep her artistic and political passions separate -- and thereby avoid the pratfalls of propagandistic proselytizing.
In AWAY FROM HER, a by and large very faithful adaptation of Alice Munro’s story “The Bear Came Over the Mountain,” Polley, in one very awkward scene, has Alzheimer’s Disease patient Fiona (played by Julie Christie), who can’t even remember her husband of over 40 years, suddenly apropos of nothing begin pontificating about the Iraq War and criticizing US President George W Bush’s policies. (It was a cheap shot, Sarah! And furthermore, there’s no such scene in Alice Munro’s story!) If only Polley could have kept her pinko politics out of her project, she probably could have achieved perfection and possibly won an Oscar.
I’ll grant that 29-year-old Polley has a lot of talent. Her sensitive and elegant directorial style is evocative of the films of Atom Egoyan, who directed young Polley the actress in THE SWEET HEREAFTER and EXOTICA. But she still has a lot to learn.
Sarah Polley should consider herself lucky that she got an Academy Award nomination for her screenplay adaptation AWAY FROM HER, which might still be the best movie about Alzheimer’s Disease yet; but the Academy members won’t remember her when they cast their votes for Oscar Night.
2/20/2008 11:29:54 PM
Has the Academy got something against Jodie Foster these days? She's currently doing the best work of her career, yet getting totally ignored at Oscar time. She was fantastic in THE BRAVE ONE; and the movie was great, too, but got nary a nomination. Likewise, last year, the brilliant bank heist adventure INSIDE MAN (the "real" Best Picture of the Year) got totally dissed with no nominations at all for anything or anyone, including Spike Lee for Best Director and Jodie Foster for Best Actress. True, Jodie won two Oscars long ago for THE ACCUSED in 1989 and SILENCE OF THE LAMBS in 1992. But does that mean she should never get nominated again? Doesn't it seem conspicuous that Jodie has never again gotten an Oscar nomination ever since she officially came out of the closet?
2/20/2008 12:07:23 PM
I beat Michelle Pfeiffer out for "Roller Boogie" and the sow still snorts about it. I'm soooooooo happy she did not get nominated for "Hairspray." Mickey is a witch!
2/20/2008 10:34:50 AM
My favorite movie of the year was GRINDHOUSE. But it didn't get nominated for nothing!
2/19/2008 11:19:45 PM
Angelina Jolie was robbed! She should have got a Best Actress Oscar nomination for A MIGHTY HEART.
2/18/2008 12:45:30 PM
Your Critic is right on the money for:"TRANSFORMERS" The Movie!
As a Practical and CGI Indie Filmmaker; I found the CGI incredible and the most realistic to this day. The Robots had "mass" and appeared to be in the same scene and atmosphere with their human counterparts. In additional effort each were virtually lit with lighting to match the human actors lighting on screen which added to their realism. The difference between Good CGI and Bad CGI is TIME. It took 35hrs per frame to render Transformers, if that is any reference. The story was never distracted by subpar effects. An A+++ in my book and setting the bar for quality the rest of the movie industry needs to take notice.
Thanx; Rob Roy
Wits'-End Entertainment
2/16/2008 10:35:08 AM
I;d like to read some more e-mails from Ed Ferrugia and Alan Carter . I find there repartee amusing
2/15/2008 11:09:18 AM
Your "Psychic Critic" makes a point of citing 29-year Diablo Cody for her feature film screenwriting debut, JUNO, "the Critic's Pick and Prediction" to win the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. And certainly it's a refreshing surprise to see a young woman (especially a tyro) as front-runner in the race for this award.
So how come he didn't also at least acknowledge multitalented, 29-year-old Sarah Polley (Oscar-nominee for Best Adapted Screenplay), who not only wrote, but also directed AWAY FROM HER? It's more than an outstanding feature film directorial debut; it's a stellar achievement from the young actress-turned-filmmaker. AWAY FROM HER tells the story of a couple inseparable for over 40 years, whose marriage is devastated when the wife no longer has any recollection of the time spent with her loving husband. Adapted from a story by Alice Munro (who also wrote the story that inspired BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN) it's the best and most emotionally moving movie about Alzheimer's Disease ever filmed.
Only 28-years-old at the time she filmed AWAY FROM HER, young Polley provides the screenplay and directs legendary actress Julie Christie to her first Oscar-nominated performance since AFTERGLOW (1997).
How come your Psychic Critic predicts an Academy Award for Christie; but doesn't foresee any Hollywood Gold in the immediate future for Sarah Polley?
2/14/2008 7:48:11 PM
I just saw Frank Langella playing an old writer in Starting Out in the Evening and let me tell you it was the outstanding male performance of the year. Better than Roger Clemens on the stand yesterday in D.C. but that was a farce and Langella was brilliant in a terrific little drama. The Oscars make a major mistake every year in overlooking someone and I think Langella should be given an alternative Oscar some day. Maybe he will be honored for playing Richard Nixon next year. I didn't see him on Broadway in the role but I hear he got graves I mean raves. (Am I thinking of Dracula? LOL!) Thank god Jack Nicholson and Warren Beatty (btw whatever happened to Warren Beatty?) passed on playing Nixon so Langella could have a chance to shine. And maybe take home the gold next year.
2/14/2008 7:41:19 PM
Re: Beer Bellies in Motion/Keira Knightley
Then it's a gift!
2/13/2008 9:57:47 PM
I am sincerely impressed by Daniel Acon's writing style and obviously deep insight into the creation of films and of the film industry. I definitely agree about the excessive materialistic element which has been progressively increasing not only in the film industry but also in other areas of entertainment business including Music and Professional Sports.
2/13/2008 5:24:45 PM
Re: Keira Knightley
Can she play the balalaika? She's an artist!
2/13/2008 3:10:03 AM
Unfortunately talking about the Oscar's is like talking about any other lobby sponsored by massive economic interests. Like any social microcosms we have the peer pressure groups that channel and funnel style and message content then we have the sacrificial token groups that are only acknowledged out of simply keeping the "ghetto in the ghetto". Fine actors and directors have fallen into this trap for many years but to be part of the Big Brother machine leaves you only two choices... to be at the top of the pecking order or... to be a starving artist. Idealism is for dreamers and choice of expression in the film machine is a liberty that can reduce you to serving tables at some crusty diner where wanna be’s are given the bitter coffee of defeat.. The hypocrisy of MR. Michael Moore and his fat belly that can feed a good number of homeless is reluctantly and shamelessly rewarded. The Oscars are the power of Hollywood but do not depict the heart of film. Opportunity was golden in the hay days of early film development , to be appreciated for one’s endeavors meant to have brought an innovative contribution to the film community in any of the multiple fields of the industry. The deconstructive clout of the modern academy enhances the herding of style and concept under a single “cupola”. Monothematic direction of product and packaging is muffled by easy taste messages garnished with grand production values. What would have Orson Wells, Kubrick, Ford, Truffaut, Fellini and other directors seen in the selective commercial standards of the Academy? I think isolation and the creation of an alternative pole of judgment and vision would have been the answer. Monotheism can be of a religious or philosophical nature to placate one’s inner fears of the unknown. Giving oneself to a single authority is the negation of freedom and we willingly desire comfort of acceptance through a higher opinion.
The standing ovations to Hollywood mummies is not what film is about. Yes the quality and production value of some pictures that make it to the academy is stunning but always
packaged to please the lobby of Hollywood. I think that the Oscars has become a show just like any other prime time soap or drama."LOST in the Oscars" on the lavish island of Hollywood where plastic surgery has replaced the toil and soul of the individual artist and performer. A new renaissance is needed, product of a deep introspection that still has to come. And the Oscar goes to.........The Accademy!
2/12/2008 3:00:35 PM
Well, another year has passed and Mr.Young has somehow nailed it again , that is his critiques . I must say my favorite performance was by by Daniel day Lewis , great stuff, really intense ! However I also especially enjoyed NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN . I believe Peckinpah himself would have enjoyed it very much also.It's sort of like an updated Wild Bunch flic. Thanks again Mr. Young for another provocative, extremely well written commentary on cinema , keep up the good work !
2/8/2008 1:30:57 PM
Down here in sunny Florida, we go to the movies to get out of the sun. And the heat. And the humidity. I always look forward to anything Ed Young writes because with each writing comes cool, fresh, invigorating breezes of humor, intelligence, articulation, appreciation for his topic, knowledge of his subject, and enthusiasm for each undertaking. Whether it's late in October (wink,wink) or New England's frigid February, Mr. Young has his finger on the pulse of the movie industry, et al.
But just now, I'd like to comment on his Super Bowl statement by saying, "How 'bout dem Giants!" Oh, my gosh, the last five minutes of that game was a nailbiter to be remembered long into the future. By the end of that game, I was as exhausted as the players on the Champion SuperBowl winning team! 'Who'd a thunk it?'
Ed, you're wonderful. I love your vocabulary! Somewhere some English teachers are reading your material with huge smiles on their faces. Nice to see the language the way it's supposed to be used.
Thanks for everything you write!
Audre'
St. Petersburg, Fl
2/8/2008 11:03:27 AM
I think that Edward Young's review was very interesting and well written, and I do understand that the Oscar nomination for "Juno" is about teenage pregnancy,but the film does not glorify teen pregnancy and the acting by Ellen Page was great!
2/7/2008 10:50:29 PM
You "Beer Bellied" fanatics should forget about Keria Knightley! She wasn't so hot in ATONEMENT anyhow; and furthermore, the movie wasn't that great; its entire strength hung on its one memorable scene, the extended single moving-camera shot in Dunkirk. If there's any top young actress that has been robbed of an acting Oscar nod, it's Amy Adams. She's versatile and prolific (five pictures in the past year!), charming and absolutely adorable. The Golden Globes gave Amy a nomination for playing Princess Giselle in ENCHANTED, the most delightfully funny family film of the year, (Take the kids! I highly recommend it!); and her performance as the beleaguered Congressional aide in CHARLIE WILSON'S WAR was also award-worthy. (She stole the thunder from Julia Roberts in that flick!) Amy can make you laugh and cry -- and she can sing and dance, too! (She's slated to sing one of the Oscar-nominated songs from ENCHANTED at the Academy Awards show!) This multi-talented and beautiful blue-eyed redhead is poised for super stardom. Amy Adams is the next Nicole Kidman!
2/7/2008 6:11:13 PM
I think Ed Young has got it tagged.
2/7/2008 9:27:04 AM
Bring a very avid Bob Dylan fan and connisseur of his songs. I was really knocked by the film I'M NOT THERE and the particular creative expression of different aspects of his life under the direction of Todd Haynes which I saw at the opening at the New York Film Festival. I was esoecially impressed by the performance by Cate Blanchett as the Bob Dylan of 1966 during his tour of England at his highest level of creativity also fueled by his intense drug use at that point. I even was able to speak to Cate after the movie and discuss hos it felt for her acting as Bob Dylan, being a woman. She definitely deserves an award as Best Supporting Actress.
2/6/2008 11:29:31 PM
Johnny Depp should win the Oscar, Ed, for his great change-of-pace as a song & dance man.
2/6/2008 9:50:06 PM
It truly was a strange film year, and Ed has a grand vision of it all in seeing how Oscar is struggling to stay alive and serve a meaningful purpose in directing Hollywood's vision and existance.
2/6/2008 7:35:34 PM
Lots of stuff happening this year concerning the Oscars. You can expect the strike to be settled before the oscars actually occur. This will make it the most watched non-sporting event of the year. The built up fan craving for fashion, awards and high school gossip will finally get whetted.
What is more intriguing is the bifurcation of Hollywoods films. On one level is the large money making tent poles. These films are usually sequels and they make gobs of money. Don't expect Hollywood to shy away form making more and more of these money printers. The bean counters for the Hollywood overlords will demand it, but they don't have the 'art' side of this commercial enterprise. This is reserved for the boutique divisions of the big studios. All of the Best Pic noms are from these smaller, specialty divisions, except maybe MICHAEL CLAYTON.
This is the new Hollywood. Large commercial films make large amounts of money, and the smaller, arty films garner all the recognition. The old art versus commerce is simply getting more pronounced.
2/6/2008 7:20:55 PM
Yo, Beer Bellies! I see what you're saying about Keria. But I have a question for you: Can she play the balalaika?
2/6/2008 8:23:45 AM
Ed's usually right on - I enjoy looking for his picks every year. Ed's become part of the Oscar Season routine for me. Thanks for spending the time to do all this Ed.
2/5/2008 2:04:18 PM
THERE WILL BE BLOOD was a bunch of pointless blather, but Daniel Day Lewis was excellent. Thanks for the tip that it was John Huston's water magnate in CHINATOWN he was channeling. There was something in the voice I recognized but good not place. Great performance in a mediocre film.
2/4/2008 11:41:24 PM
Ed Ferruggia, thanks for the shout out. Just FYI, I've already scratched your name off the invite list when my movie premieres. Ha!!
2/4/2008 7:30:03 PM
Keira Knightley was robbed! She should be competing with Julie Christie in the Battle of the Laras. Knightley played Lara in the 2004 TV version of "Dr. Zhivago" while Christie was Lara in David Lean's classic 1965 film. There should be a write-in vote allowed, like for Bette Davis in 1934 for "Of Human Bondage."
2/4/2008 12:15:14 PM
Let’s set movies aside! This past NFL season delivered more action, drama, suspense, and all-around great family entertainment than you could find inside any movie theatre. Super Bowl XLII was the greatest (and most cinematic) championship game in the history of professional football. Although I (your SentinelSource film critic) am a deracinated New Yorker with a soft spot in my heart for the hometown teams of my youth, over the past decade, I’ve stood in awe and admiration of the New England Dynasty. Nevertheless, I think even die-hard New England Patriots fans must agree that The New York Giants gave the Best Performance of the Year.
2/4/2008 12:10:05 PM
I don't give a hoot which one of those five films nominated for the top prize wins the Hollywood Gold. The brilliant Tim Burton's macabre musical SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET is the Best Picture of the Year!
2/1/2008 12:15:03 AM
I'd first like to congratulate Edward X Young on another well-written and interesting discussion and selection of Oscar nominees. The film that has made the largest impact on me and moved me the most this past year is LA VIE EN ROSE- La Mome, with an outstanding and authentic performance by Marion Cotillard as the legendary and emotionally fragile French singer Edith Piaf who has been a long time favorite of mine. The film is even more poignant for me for the scenes when she learns that her lover, the boxer Marcel Cerdan has been suddenly killed in a plane crash and she becomes very upset and terribly grieved. I too suffered a staggering loss when my beloved THEA suddenly passed away from massive cardiac arrest at 53. I agree with ED that Marion Cotillard really deserves the award for Best Actress.
1/31/2008 7:56:59 PM
E X Young scores another round of insightful film reviews and Oscar predictions, drawing upon a wealth of film industry history. I agree wholeheartedly that No Country for Old Men is a sensational modern western that creates an unforgettable iconic villain.
Yes, it was a wierd year wasn't it, with a graphic throat slashing musical that everybody loved?
I might give that Best Actor award to Daniel Day Lewis because his work is always great and There Will Be Blood is no exception. The film is flawed, a bit too long and preachy, reminding me a bit of an old Alan Carter screenplay, but Lewis delivers another blow out performance!
1/30/2008 4:03:14 PM
Where is this year's commentary? I'm looking forward to it.
-- Tummy