Academy Award 2006 Nomination Comments

From: Goodman, Richard
Sent: Wednesday, February 01, 2006 9:35 AM
To: 'John Dobbin'
Subject: RE: Academy Awards

See, I have the exact opposite opinion.  I think that the Oscars are getting back to basics.  This year is dominated by acting pinnacles and "message" movies.  I think the Academy is tired of being seen as predictably anointing the current year's epic period movie and wants to make a bold statement to show what they are about.  The slate of nominees is saying that they are about great acting, about important social issues and quality films.  That said, I have only seen about half the major nominees (Crash, Munich, Walk The Line, Cinderella Man, Pride & Prejudice) because they didn't seem entertaining enough to get me into the theatre.  (Other comments below)

-----Original Message-----
From: John Dobbin
Sent: Tuesday, January 31, 2006 11:51 AM
To: Goodman, Richard;
 Subject: Academy Awards

        You know, this is finally the year the Academy lost touch. Not only haven't I seen pretty much any of the nominated films, I didn't really want to see any of them. I can't remember a year with a worse slate of films nominated.

1. Best Picture: "Brokeback Mountain," "Capote," "Crash," "Good Night, and Good Luck," "Munich."

        Saw none. The only one I found even remotely intriguing was Munich, and I was worried that would be preachy. What was the combined gross of these films?   

 

About $50 million for each except Capote.  Hey John, want to go see the gay cowboy movie together?  Maybe wear our cowboy hats to the theatre?
 
2. Actor: Philip Seymour Hoffman, "Capote"; Terrence Howard, "Hustle & Flow"; Heath Ledger, "Brokeback Mountain"; Joaquin Phoenix, "Walk the Line"; David Strathairn, "Good Night, and Good Luck."

        Only Walk The Line held any interest for me, and that obviously didn't motivate me to see it.  

 

The acting was great and I enjoyed the drama, even though I could care less about Johnny Cash.  Terrence Howard was phenomenal in Hustle & Flow as well as Crash.  By rights he should win but I think it will be the Capote guy.

3. Actress: Judi Dench, "Mrs. Henderson Presents"; Felicity Huffman, "Transamerica"; Keira Knightley, "Pride & Prejudice"; Charlize Theron, "North Country"; Reese Witherspoon, "Walk the Line."

        Again, only Walk the Line held any interest. I'm actually quite delighted that Reese Witherspoon now gets to put Academy Award nominee after her name in perpetuity.  

 

Actually, she has a good chance of putting Oscar winner next to her name.  I'd guess her only real competition is Felicity Huffman. Keira did a great job and it was a fun movie but it's too soon for her.

4. Supporting Actor: George Clooney, "Syriana"; Matt Dillon, "Crash"; Paul Giamatti, "Cinderella Man"; Jake Gyllenhaal, "Brokeback Mountain"; William Hurt, "A History of Violence."

        Nothing I wanted to see here.   

Did you ever think you'd see Matt Dillon on a list like this?  He did good though.  In fact, everyone here was good (I'm assuming about the gay cowboy performance) with the weakest being maybe Paul Giamatti but this is a makeup for not nominating him for Sideways which is why I also think he'll win.

5. Supporting Actress: Amy Adams, "Junebug"; Catherine Keener, "Capote"; Frances McDormand, "North Country"; Rachel Weisz, "The Constant Gardener"; Michelle Williams, "Brokeback Mountain."

        Even less I wanted to see here.  

 

Haven't seen any of these. 

6. Director: Ang Lee, "Brokeback Mountain"; Bennett Miller, "Capote"; Paul Haggis, "Crash"; George Clooney, "Good Night, and Good Luck"; Steven Spielberg, "Munich."

        Geez, it's the same damn movies again.  

 

George Clooney- nominated for director, actor and producer. Guy's had a good year.  Gotta see the other movies before I can make a call. 

7. Foreign Film: "Don't Tell," Italy; "Joyeux Noel," France; "Paradise Now," Palestine; "Sophie Scholl _ The Final Days," Germany; "Tsotsi," South Africa.

        Oddly, I watched part of Joyeaux Noel on the plane back from France. Not enough to claim I saw it, but still.

8. Adapted Screenplay: Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana, "Brokeback Mountain"; Dan Futterman, "Capote"; Jeffrey Caine, "The Constant Gardener"; Josh Olson, "A History of Violence"; Tony Kushner and Eric Roth, "Munich."

        Again with the same movies.

9. Original Screenplay: Paul Haggis and Bobby Moresco, "Crash"; George Clooney and Grant Heslov, "Good Night, and Good Luck"; Woody Allen, "Match Point"; Noah Baumbach, "The Squid and the Whale"; Stephen Gaghan, "Syriana."

        I'd like to see Match Point.  

 

No you wouldn't.  You'd hate it if you hated Derailed. 

10. Animated Feature Film: "Howl's Moving Castle"; "Tim Burton's Corpse Bride"; "Wallace & Gromit in the Curse of the Were-Rabbit."

        Howl's Moving Castle was actually released? Why don't I remember this.  

"Because you're an idiot?" I think it was just in the E Street theatre. 

 

Not that I would have seen it, but still. I guess I could see Corpse Bride, but I feel no real compulsion. What about Chicken Little? I assume W&G are a shoo in here given the Academy's love affair with that crap.  

 

Yes, they are, because they are awesome. 

11. Art Direction: "Good Night, and Good Luck," "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire," "King Kong," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "Pride & Prejudice."

        I could see King Kong and maybe Harry Potter. Don't think I'd love either one though.

12. Cinematography: "Batman Begins," "Brokeback Mountain," "Good Night, and Good Luck," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "The New World."

        Hey! I saw Batman Begins! No desire to see the rest of these.

13. Sound Mixing: "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," "King Kong," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "Walk the Line," "War of the Worlds."

        Obviously, I loved Chronicles, and actually, setting aside Geisha, I could see all the films in this.

14. Sound Editing: "King Kong," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "War of the Worlds."

        I've always been hard pressed to differentiate this from the previous category.  

 

What I don't understand is how they sometimes go to different movies in the two categories. 

15. Original Score: "Brokeback Mountain," Gustavo Santaolalla; "The Constant Gardener," Alberto Iglesias; "Memoirs of a Geisha," John Williams; "Munich," John Williams; "Pride & Prejudice," Dario Marianelli.

        Ooops, back to those same movies I don't want to see.  

 

But you buy music scores even if you haven't seen the movies, right?  Don't you have a favorite film score composer? 

16. Original Song: "In the Deep" from "Crash," Kathleen "Bird" York and Michael Becker; "It's Hard out Here for a Pimp" from "Hustle & Flow," Jordan Houston, Cedric Coleman and Paul Beauregard; "Travelin' Thru" from "Transamerica," Dolly Parton.

        Wow. How sad that there are only three nominees. Didn't Rent have some new material for the movie.  

 

The scary part is that the Hustle & Flow song deserves to win but can the Academy pick a winner with "pimp" in the title?

17. Costume: "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "Mrs. Henderson Presents," "Pride & Prejudice," "Walk the Line."

        Charlie! Another film I saw!

18. Documentary Feature: "Darwin's Nightmare," "Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room," "March of the Penguins," "Murderball," "Street Fight."

        How odd that I sort of wanted to see a couple of these. Didn't Penguins outgross all the Best Picture Nominees?  

 

I don't see how it can't win.  Who would vote against penguins? 

19. Documentary (short subject): "The Death of Kevin Carter: Casualty of the Bang Bang Club," "God Sleeps in Rwanda," "The Mushroom Club," "A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin."

        I never expect to have seen or heard of these.

20. Film Editing: "Cinderella Man," "The Constant Gardener," "Crash," "Munich," "Walk the Line."

        Again.....

21. Makeup: "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," "Cinderella Man," "Star Wars: Episode III _ Revenge of the Sith."

        I saw 2 of three in this category!  

 

What Oscar caliber makeup was there in Narnia? Wasn't Star Wars all digital effects, not makeup?  Unless they mean the burnt Anakin part at the end.

22. Animated Short Film: "Badgered," "The Moon and the Son: An Imagined Conversation," "The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello," "9," "One Man Band."

        I never expect to have seen or heard of these.

23. Live Action Short Film: "Ausreisser (The Runaway)," "Cashback," "The Last Farm," "Our Time Is Up," "Six Shooter."

        I never expect to have seen or heard of these.

24. Visual Effects: "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," "King Kong," "War of the Worlds."

        I could see myself seeing every film in this category.  

 

King Kong's one guaranteed win.  I think.... 

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

From: John Dobbin

Sent: Wednesday, February 01, 2006 10:06 AM
To: Goodman, Richard
Cc: vdobbin

Subject: RE: Academy Awards

> See, I have the exact opposite opinion.  I think that the Oscars are

> getting back to basics.  

 

        Back to the past that never existed? Can you think of another year where every nominee was not only a drama, but a serious drama? I was trying and I couldn't, but I didn't look back at old nominee lists. Heck, the lightest movie on this list is probably Brokeback Mountain, and I don't hear too much about people coming out of that with a smile on their face. I'm actually a little surprised March of The Penguins wasn't nominated for Best Picture, since it seems to be the type of movie that would balance out the seriousness of the other nominees.

 

> This year is dominated by acting pinnacles and "message" movies.  

 

        Yep. I just feel like the messages in the movies are probably a little heavy-handed. I can't imagine Good Night and Good Luck was subtle, Munich might have been based on the differing opinions you and Mike had about it. I think the Academy looked at the message and forgot that a message movie should be finely crafted and possibly shocking in it's own right, without asuming the viewer is too stupid to get it.

 

> I think the Academy is tired of being seen as

> predictably anointing the current year's epic period movie and wants

> to make a bold statement to show what they are about.  

 

        Low TV ratings? This slate does make Jon Stewart the perfect host, since he too seems to have lost his sense of fun lately.

 

> The slate of

> nominees is saying that they are about great acting, about important

> social issues and quality films.  That said, I have only seen about

> half the major nominees (Crash, Munich, Walk The Line, Cinderella

> Man, Pride & Prejudice) because they didn't seem entertaining enough

> to get me into the theatre.  (Other comments below)

 

        So these are great films that nobody wants to see? I see. Silly me, I thought a great movie was something people wanted to see that delivered a message while entertaining the viewer.

 

> About $50 million for each except Capote.  

         Ah. See, this is where Penguins would have been good again. Put a legit boxoffice hit on the list.

 

> Hey John, want to go see the gay cowboy movie together? 

> Maybe wear our cowboy hats to the theatre?

        We have cowboy hats?

 

> The acting was great and I enjoyed the drama, even though I could

> care less about Johnny Cash.  

 

        I did sort of want to see this, but for some reason I couldn't really see it when it was out. Hey, maybe you know, was Reese nominated previously? I was thinking maybe she was nominated for Man in the Moon.

 

> Terrence Howard was phenomenal in Hustle & Flow as well as Crash.  By rights he

> should win but I think it will be the Capote guy.

 

        I actually think Philip Seymour Hoffman is a really good actor, so I haven't got much issue with this. I just don't want to see the movie.

 

> Actually, she has a good chance of putting Oscar winner next to her name.  I'd

> guess her only real competition is Felicity Huffman.

 

        Which will continue the trend of rewarding performances nobody saw.

 

> Keira did a great job and it was a fun movie but it's too soon for her.

 

        Fun? I think not!

 

>         Nothing I wanted to see here.    Did you ever think you'd

> see Matt Dillon on a list like this?  He did good though.  

 

        I'm happy for Matt. He seems like a good guy.

 

> In fact,

> everyone here was good (I'm assuming about the gay cowboy performance) with the > weakest being maybe Paul Giamatti but this is a makeup for not nominating him

> for Sideways which is why I also think he'll win.

 

        I think the Gay Cowboys are gonna sweep the acting.

 

> 5. Supporting Actress: Amy Adams, "Junebug"; Catherine Keener,

> "Capote"; Frances McDormand, "North Country"; Rachel Weisz, "The

> Constant Gardener"; Michelle Williams, "Brokeback Mountain."

>

>         Even less I wanted to see here.  Haven't seen any of these.

 

        I'd like to see Michelle Williams win. I have to think that would tick off Katie Holmes. (I wrote this minutes before your email arrived, Vicky)

 

> George Clooney-

> nominated for director, actor and producer. Guy's had a good year. 

 

        Too good. He'll win nothing!

 

>         I'd like to see Match Point.  No you wouldn't.  You'd hate

> it if you hated Derailed.

 

        Really? The characters aren't plausibly fooled? I'd think it was at t better acted.

 

> I assume W&G are a shoo in here given the

> Academy's love affair with that crap.  Yes, they are, because they

> are awesome.

 

        Just making sure you were hanging on my every word.

 

> 14. Sound Editing: "King Kong," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "War of the Worlds."

>

>         I've always been hard pressed to differentiate this from the

> previous category.   What I don't understand is how they sometimes

> go to different movies in the two categories.

 

        Because the mixer is well liked and the editor isn't. Duh!

 

>         Ooops, back to those same movies I don't want to see.   But

> you buy music scores even if you haven't seen the movies, right? 

 

        I don't buy scores of movies I liked!

 

> Don't you have a favorite film score composer?

 

        Are there composers other than John Williams and Danny Elfman?

 

> The scary part is that the Hustle & Flow song deserves to win but

> can the Academy pick a winner with "pimp" in the title?

 

        Sure! Remember when the songs in this category were actual hits?

 

> 18. Documentary Feature: "Darwin's Nightmare," "Enron: The Smartest

> Guys in the Room," "March of the Penguins," "Murderball," "Street Fight."

>

>         How odd that I sort of wanted to see a couple of these.

> Didn't Penguins outgross all the Best Picture Nominees?  I don't see

> how it can't win.  Who would vote against penguins?

 

        People who care more about the handicapped.

 

>         I saw 2 of three in this category!   What Oscar caliber

> makeup was there in Narnia?

 

        I'm guessing Tilda Swinton. Possibly the centaurs.

 

> Wasn't Star Wars all digital effects,

> not makeup?  Unless they mean the burnt Anakin part at the end.

 

        No idea here.

 

> 24. Visual Effects: "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch

> and the Wardrobe," "King Kong," "War of the Worlds."

>         I could see myself seeing every film in this category.  

> King Kong's one guaranteed win.  I think....

 

        Really? See, I thought this was where Narnia shined it was so good you almost believed the animals could talk. Not that I saw King Kong, but....