The Oscars–We’re now live

In case you’re wondering, yes, as in previous years, I will be live-blogging the Oscars. This is an unusual year for us in that Kath and I have seen ALL of the nominated films, plus many of the acting performances, so we’ll actually have strong preferences this year. Swing on by and join us at 8:30 (no, I’m not planning to comment on the red carpet arrivals.)

PAD

Sure, various sites are blogging, but really, who cares about the others? This is where the action is.

8:30–Some where Dougray Scott is sitting at home watching Hugh Jackman and thinking, “That could have been my career.”

8:31–So although the smart money is on “Slumdog,” I’m thinking that “Milk” could provide an upset. Voters could see it as a chance to take a stand against Prop 8.

8:32–So is Jackman going to sing and dance? Waste if he doesn’t.

8:32–Yup, here we go. It’ll be tough to top Billy Crystal’s, though. Maybe Billy will join in.

8:34–The Craig’s List dancers?

8:35: Wow. Ann Hathway has nice pipes. I’m surprised it’s not a breakaway dress.

8:38: Well, it’s not quite as funny as Billy Crystal, but it beats the hëll out of a tap dance interpretation of “Saving Private Ryan.”

8:40: Meryl Streep flexed her muscle and Caroline promptly said, “Football!” Kathleen has trained her well.

8:41: And the award for first montage goes to: Thank you! Where’s Sally Field?

8:43: Somewhere there’s a picture of Goldie Hawn that’s incredibly old.

8:44: Best supporting actress. Will probably be: Penelope Cruz. Should be: Viola Davis. Would love it to be: Amy Adams. But Kath is pulling for Henson.

8:47: One for one in “will probably be”

8:49: At this rate the Oscar cast is going to run past midnight.

8:50: Ahhhhh…typically they award “Best supporting actor” close to “Best supporting actress.” But this year obviously they’re going to delay that because of all the drama attached to Heath Ledger.

8:53: Tina Fey and Steve Martin. Talk about your power couples.

8:54: Tina Fey serving as Steve Martin’s straight woman. Perfect.

8:55: Will probably win: Milk. Should win: WALL-E. Only two films I saw: Milk and WALL-E. What a lousy year for there not to be a film called “Cookies.”

8:56: Two for two in “will probably be”

8:58: Yes, but with all respect, if Harvey hadn’t been taken from us 30 years ago, you wouldn’t be up there, so…

8:59: Adapted screenplay. Will probably be: Slumdog. Should be: Button. Would love it to be: Frost/Nixon.

9:01: Three for three in “will probably be”

9:02: As Alan Dean Foster pointed out, it’s interesting that if you write a great novelizaton of a screenplay, you’re critically dismissed, but if you write a great screenplay version of a book, you can get an Oscar.

9:03: Oooooooooo…

9:04: It still annoys the crap out of me that two of the best movies of 2008 aren’t up for best picture: One because it was just ignored, and the other because it’s ina ghetto with other animation.

9:05 On the one hand this is taking up an insane amount of unnecessary time; on the other hand, it’s certainly entertaining to watch.

9:06: Will probably win: Wall-E. Should win: Wall-E.

9:07: And Jack Black makes a bunch of money betting on Pixar. This should take some of the sting out of Pixar’s losing that other animation award to KFP

9:08: Will probably win: Presto. Should win: I dunno. Only saw that and the one with the Octopi.

9:09: Seriously? Fracking animation short ruined my perfect record. The fact that it’s classic animation may be a commentary on all the computer animation.

9:12: This looks to be a long night. Kath is making me some nachos. World’s greatest wife.

9:15: Art direction. Will probably win: Button. Should win: Dark Knight. Would like to see win: Changeling.

9:17: At least it wasn’t Revolutionary Road. I swear, I don’t understand the attraction of that film. Two gorgeous people with a nice house, healthy kids, a good income…and they’re miserable and tear into each other. All I could think was, Geez, appreciate what you have and stop bìŧçhìņg.

9:19: So I’m five for six.

9:20: Costume design. Will probably win: Milk. Should win: Button.

9:20: No kidding. Those big costume dramas are attractive because voters readily understand them as costumes. Kathleen had that one right. So I’m five for seven.

9:22: “Very quickly…” Too late.

9:23: Makeup. Will win: Button. Should win: Hellboy.

9:24: Six for eight.

9:25: Ariel is squealing in delight because the vampire guy is up there.

9:25: Does he act better than he talks right now?

9:28: Paradoxically, a montage about romance that I’m not in love with.

9:29: You know what’s weird? We’re an hour into this and I don’t recall seeing any commercials for movies.

9:30: I wonder if they’re going to bother with productions of the nominated songs.

9:31: What the hëll is stiller doing?

9:32: Okay, anyway: Cinematographer: Will probably win: Slumdog. Should win: Dark Knight. Would like to see win: Reader.

9:33: Okay, I get it. He’s riffing Joaquin Phoenix. Long way to go for that joke.

9:34: Bingo. Seven for nine.

9:37: Now I want to see the movie about the dog tracking down his family.

9:38: At first I was surprised that Jessica Beil apparently couldn’t get a date. Now why is she wearing decorative white trash bags?

9:40: Ah. A commercial for a movie. The only one thus far; appropriately it’s “The Soloist”

9:45: It took a lot of work for Judd Apatow to make a short film about comedies that was only sporadically funny.

9:46: Best short film. No clue. On the line

9:47: Kath said that Toyland had the most buzz. So I’m seven for ten, although for the most part the ones I missed were the ones I didn’t see.

9:51: Commercial for “Castle.” I’ll be watching that for the three or so episodes that get aired.

9:52: Will someone please tell Hugh Jackman that this isn’t the Tony awards?

9:53: What. The hëll? Is this DOING here?

9:54: I mean, I know he’s a song and dance man. But this is ridiculous. “One night only.” That’s how long we have for the Oscars. You can’t stop the beat, but you can bring the show to a halt.

9:56: Uhm…guys? Mama Mia isn’t up. For anything.

9:57: Well, that’s five minutes of my life I won’t be getting back. “The musical is back?” Yeah: “Chicago” proved that years ago. What’s your point?

9:58: Baz Luhrrman put that together? Okay, if they’d had Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor, it would have caught my interest.

10:00: I mean, honest to God. In what universe is the musical back? There was exactly one musical this past year, it was critically slammed, it wasn’t especially good, Pierce Brosnan embarrassed himself in it. I mean, yeah, it made a buttload of money, but go argue with Abba fans.

10:02: So I assume we’ll have five guys to give best supporting actor.

10:03: Best supporting actor. Will probably win: Heath Ledger. Should win: Heath Ledger. Could signal a major upset: Josh Brolin. Would be a hoot if he won: Robert Downey.

10:05: Downey would be great in “Shaft”

10:07: I wonder who would accept for Ledger. His ex-wife? Christopher Nolan?

10:08: Wow. His family. Okay. Eight for eleven, but I think we all saw that coming. I don’t consider this a sympathy vote; I think he would have won even if he hadn’t passed away.

10:11: Documentary. No clue. Let’s see from the clips.

10:12: Okay, pure guess based on visuals: Trouble the Water.

10:13: Boy, did his joke about gods go over like a lead balloon.

10:15: Should’ve gone with my first instinct. Saw the guy on the wire, though “Cool,” but then went with the Katrina one. Yeah, time is short: Thanks a lot, big pointless production number.

10:17: Short subject. No clue. Based on the visuals: Smile Pinky.

10:18: Okay, I’m back. Nine for thirteen.

10:18: So the wire guys sleight of hand was cute, even if he did obviously pocket the coin after the simple misdirection. But balancing the Oscar on his nose was cool. That’ll make some highlights clips.

10:21: So we’re almost through two hours…thirteen awards have been presented…and there’s eleven to go. After two hours. Oy.

10:22: It’s nice to see that they’re doing film creation basically in order. But even so, this is just dragging.

10:24: And the award for best commercial goes to: Jimmy Kimmel and Tom Cruise. Meantime now we have action films. Here’s what I’d like to see: A montage of films that just monumentally sucked. I mean ghastly. Terrible. Stuff you can’t believe was released. That would amuse me.

10:26: Visual FX; Will probably win: Button. Should win: Iron Man.

10:27: And thus does the bias against action, so deftly pointed out by Will Smith, continue. Ten for fourteen.

10:28: Sound editing: Will probably win: Slumdog. Should win: WALL-E. Would be nifty: Iron Man.

10:29: No. Kidding. Okay, well, I still think WALL-E should have taken it. The first half hour was nothing BUT sound editing. Ten for fifteen.

10:30: Okay, sound mixing. Will probably win: Button. Should win: WALL-E.

10:31: NOW Slumdog wins? Terrific. Fracking sound awards. Ten for sixteen. Ðámņáŧìøņ.

10:34: Film editing. Will probably win: Slumdog. Should win: Dark Knight.

10:35: Okay, back on track. Eleven for seventeen. Stupid technical awards.

10:36: In less than ten minutes we’ve blown through more awards than we did in the previous 45.

10:41: Seven awards to go. Average of five minutes per award, 35 minutes; we might hit 11:30.

10:42: They should have had someone French present this award. Or bring back Steve Martin and have him putting on his French accent from the Pink Panther films.

10:43: I saw Jerry Lewis as Applegate in “Ðámņ Yankees” on Broadway. He was great.

10:44: Oh yeah. I forgot about “The Nutty Professor” connection. Eh. Still should’ve been Steve Martin.

10:46: To think that when he and Dean Martin split up, the popular wisdom was that Martin would thrive and Lewis would vanish into obscurity. Guess in the long-term competition, Lewis won.

10:50: Nominated score. Will probably win: Slumdog. Should win: WALL-E. Should’ve been nominated: Iron Man. And Speed Racer.

10:53: I love the way she says the names. “Alejandra”

10:54: Twelve for eighteen. Yeah, well, y’know what? My definition of “best” is what I’d most want to put on when I’m driving. Definitely Speed Racer.

10:56: Oh, for the days when the Academy was going nuts trying to figure out how to mount “Oh Canada”

11:00: Interesting that they combined those two songs. That never would have occurred to me. Will probably win: Jai Ho. Should win: Jai Ho. Best combo: Jai HO and Down to Earth

11:01: Hard to ignore a song that keeps you in the seat during the credits. Thirteen for nineteen. Anybody know what “Jai Ho” actually means?

11:03: Kath informs me it means “Victory,” with the longer version meaning “May You be Victorious”

11:06: Good evening to the world. Okay: No clue about this. Will guess from the visuals.

11:07: I was trying to type “Waltz with Bashir.” Ah well. Thirteen for twenty.

11:08: I swear, I don’t know how I’d sit through this if I weren’t blogging. This makes it pass much faster.

11:10: Best actor is going to be really interesting. If Mickey Rourke wins, then I think Slumdog is probably a lock. If Sean Penn wins, Best picture is a question mark.

11:11: I forgot about the dead zone. Be interesting to see the reaction when Heath Ledger hits the screen. She’s…singing with it? Not sure how I feel about that.

11:15: Did they miss Heath Ledger? Did I miss him? I think taking the extra time for Newman was nice, and I’ve decided I liked the sing along. Took me about a minute.

11:18: Oh. He passed away in January of 2008, so he would have been in last year’s montage. That’s right.

11:19: They’re giving director before lead actors? Interesting. Of course, if they were doing it in true production order, best director would have been right after screenplay. So: Will probably win: Slumdog. Should win: Milk. would be nifty: Ron Howard.

11:20: Okay then. Fourteen for twenty one. Which means that if “Milk” wins it’s more of a political statement than a genuine belief as to what’s the best.

11:25: So the ONLY montage that wasn’t full sized on screen was the In Memoriam? That’s screwed up.

11:26: And the winner for most smoking hot working of a gown: Sophia Loren. Winner of the “crap, why did I have to stand next to Sophia Loren award: Shirley McClaine.

11:27: Best actress. Will probably win: Kate Winslet. Should win: Kate Winslet. Be nifty if she did: Angelina Jolie

11:30: Merl Chreep? Who the hëll is Merl Chree…oh. Sorry. I can’t help but think that right now she’s studying and memorizing the accent for future use.

11:31: Fifteen for twenty-two. The kicker is that the producers tried to position her for best supporting because they figured she’d have a better chance. What a hoot.

11:33: And now as we stare down the barrel of best actor, we find ourselves asking about the presenters the same question we had for Battlestar Galactica for ages: Who will the final five be?

11:35: Final five. Let’s see: Jack Nicholson, I would think.

11:36: Maybe Dustin Hoffman.

11:37: Oh well. Didn’t get any of them right. Should’ve twigged to Hopkins. And Kath figured Brody.

11:38: Michael Douglas has had some work done.

11:39: Best actor. Will probably win: Sean Penn. Should win: MIckey Rourke. Would really like to see win: Frank Langella.

11:42: If nothing else, Mickey Rourke would give the most interesting speech.

11:43: Sixteen for twenty-three. With Penn beating out sentimental favorite Mickey Rourke, I think that means best picture could flip either way.

11:46: I find it interesting that they’ve totally done away with bringing up the orchestra to play people off. On the one hand I always thought it was rude. On the other hand, you wind up running late. Great speech by Penn. Absolutely great, from the slam at the gay haters to the shout out to Rourke.

11:47: I remember this guy. He played the guy in the office of tax clerk at the end of “Blues Brothers.” The one who stamped “received” on the receipt. I wondered whatever happened to him.

11:50: Okay, THIS is an interesting montage. Starting with films that are nominated this year and then showing films that were thematic precursors. I just wish we hadn’t had to wait three hours and twenty minutes to get to an interesting montage.

11:52: Best film. Will probably win: Slumdog. Should win: Milk. Be nifty: Frost/Nixon.

11:53: Final tally: Seventeen for twenty-four. I was right on everything I’d actually seen except for the dámņëd sound awards. A closing montage of what’s coming up in 2009: Good idea. Of course, a lot of them are comedies and action flicks and therefore will be MIA from next year’s awards.

Boy, is this awards show going to be pilloried in the press. Presentations that seemed like good ideas in theory but just inflated the running time. Acceptance speeches that went on and on. A half hour overtime. Hugh Jackman trying to do Billy Crystal stuff when he’s much more at home with the Tonys. Tina Fey and Steve Martin giving us a glimpse of what the awards would be like if the right people were hosting. If I hadn’t been blogging I’d likely have fallen asleep by now.

122 comments on “The Oscars–We’re now live

  1. Stupid idiot Kim Metzger said: Ask Katherine what she thinks about the idea.

    I meant Kathleen, of course. I apologize. It WAS late at night.

    And Peter had told me to NEVER mention Katherine on this blog.

  2. I couldn’t see the Oscars (here, it airs on a paying channel I don’t have -and don’t want anyway). But just a few comments:

    Anne Hathaway’s “pipes” are no surprise for those who saw her in “Ella Enchanted”. She does a nice version of “Somebody to Love” in that movie.

    And why always mention France when talking about Jerry Lewis? It’s true that some critics here thought the movies he _directed_ were good, but that was in the sixties, more than _forty_ years ago. Nowadays, ask the younger generations about him, and they think you’re talking about Jerry Lee Lewis (although the younger generation wouldn’t even know about “Great balls of Fire”). Meanwhile, today, he’s more popular in his native country (thanks to the Telethon) than in France. How things change.

  3. Overall, I actually enjoyed the show. I’m still bitter that the movies most people watched were barely nominated and that two fine films critics and audiences loved were only given token awards–it’s amazing that The Dark Knight got another Oscar after it’s obligatory win for Heath.

    One thing I liked that others seemed to hate, the multiple announcers for the acting awards. I think that was original and brilliant and it heightened the tension while giving each nominee a very special spotlight. It could only be better if the mini-speeches were written by the actors themselves (or their appointed ghostwriters.) Next year, I’d like to see the mini-speeches for every nominee. Yeah, it would make the show longer but I really liked that part!

    @Robert

    I’m not saying that movies should get nominated strictly because they make money (I hated Transformers too, by the way. Michael Bay’s films are abominations.) There must be a way to recognize films that have cinematic merit but that were also widely popular with the general public. Even though it would make the show longer, there should be awards for films in basic genres. Best comedy, best drama, best action…something like that. And then best picture can be a culmination of top vote getters or something.

  4. The thing that annoyed me most about the acting award presentations was that they eliminated the clips, which would have given exposure to little-seen movies like Frozen River, The Visitor, and Rachel Getting Married. The latter two in particular are two of the best movies of the year (and Jenkins and Hathaway absolutely deserved to win), but, without the clips, no one who was unfamiliar with them before the awards show is going to remember (or care to remember) them after the show. Instead, we got a bunch of actors and actresses babbling on about how wonderful the nominees are, which is pretty much meaningless.

    And anyway, it violated the “show, don’t tell,” rule.

  5. Byron: It’s amazing that The Dark Knight got another Oscar after it’s obligatory win for Heath.
    Luigi Novi: Not when you consider that it was a technical one. Genre films generally have a much easier time winning those.

  6. 8:30–Some where Dougray Scott is sitting at home watching Hugh Jackman and thinking, “That could have been my career.”

    I’m sorry but that was too dámņ funny and the only thing that sucked was having to explain it to my wife and co-workers the next day. Ðámņ comic book industry in jokes

  7. dave w.:
    Speaking of Heath.
    Let’s be honest.
    Die=oscar.
    Didn’t die=no oscar.

    Ok, so which actor deserved it then?

    Phillip Seymor Hoffman? Maybe. Good role, deep role, but not one that had you thinking about the character after the movie was done. It was all Meryl Streep and Hoffman was just the “reactionary role” to Streep’s character.

    Josh Brolin? Maybe, but just barely. Like Hoffman, you weren’t talking about him after the movie. This movie was all Sean Penn and, like Hoffman’s character, Brolin’s was the “reactionary role” to Penn’s.

    Robert Downey, Jr.? No way. Not a chance in hëll. He created a hilarious character, but not one that was truly Oscar-worthy.

    Michael Shannon? Um, who??? I admit, I know nothing of this movie or this actor or the role he played. No buzz, no award.

    The thing is, after Dark Knight was done, people kept talking about Ledger and his portrayal. There was an immediate Oscar buzz for this role. It had nothing to do with Ledger dying, and everything to do with the fact that he freakin’ nailed it. Yes, he too was the “reactionary role”, but you were drawn into his insanity and he kept people on edge throughout the movie.

    Most important of all: People kept talking about him after the movie. Sometimes days, weeks and even months after, and it had zip to do with his death and everything to do with his acting. Name me another supporting actor that illicited that type of commentary.

    Heath Ledger flat out DESERVES this Oscar. Period.

  8. Well, most Americans probably didn’t know who Massimo Troisi was. Not exactly the best example to use to underline your theory.

  9. I’d heard several people commenting in various movie columns and blogs their feelings that, even had Ledger not died, he would’ve been nominated and would’ve won. Besides, when you consider there’s only been one posthumous acting Oscar prior to this (but several posthumous nominations), it would seem that dying doesn’t necessarily mean an Oscar win.

    Also, has anyone else envisioned The Joker, in whatever alternate universe he may exist in, finding out a dead actor won an Oscar for playing him, and then he (Joker) starts laughing his butt off — in tribute?

    Finally, for those who missed it, here’s Jack Black’s explanation for how he makes his money doing animated films:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HxTv8oljkO8

  10. Byron wrote:
    “Sean Penn probably did an amazing job (and I love how his win sticks it to the anti Prop 8 crowd)….”

    How does Penn’s win actually stick it to the anti Prop 8 crowd? It was a given that a very liberal Academy would pick Penn’s performance to win. It’s not always about who actually deserves to win, but many times what agendas the voters want to push.

  11. Kim Metzger: Also, has anyone else envisioned The Joker, in whatever alternate universe he may exist in, finding out a dead actor won an Oscar for playing him, and then he (Joker) starts laughing his butt off — in tribute?
    Luigi Novi: Sort of. In today’s issue of the New York Post a cartoon ran showing Ledger as the Joker, sitting on a couch with Jesus and I think either God or Moses, enjoying the Oscar telecast.

    The style appears to me to be that of Sean Delonas, the Chimp-Stimulus bill cartoon artist, which is bolstered by the fact that the concept appears crude in its execution. Not only is there no “point” or “punchline” to the cartoon that involves any type of insight or irony that had to be thought out, but Ledger as the Joker enjoying the show, as it is rendered in the cartoon, instead of just showing Ledger, seemed grotesque, rather than reverential.

    You can see it at: http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/4547/22309delonasledger.jpg

  12. PAD said: In what universe is the musical back? There was exactly one musical this past year, it was critically slammed, it wasn’t especially good, Pierce Brosnan embarrassed himself in it. I mean, yeah, it made a buttload of money, but go argue with Abba fans.
    —-
    Um, not true.

    “High School Musical 3” was released in 2008. There were also a few others that got NO attention whatsoever, such as “Were the World Mine”.

    “Mama Mia” was just happened to the biggest and highest profile film of the bunch. And I also enjoyed it for what it was.
    —-
    Yeah, not a great year for musicals but there were some good ones, though Mama Mia! wasn’t one of them (the touring company I saw was good, though).

    The best I saw in 2008 were Repo! The Genetic Opera and Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog. 2007 was good, though, with Hairspray, Enchanted and Sweeney Todd. The new Fame and Jekyl and Hyde are due this year and then we may be inundated next year with Aida (yuck), Carousel, Company, The Color Purple, Footloose, Hairspray 2, In the Heights, My Fair Lady, and Wicked all scheduled – so if even half of them are actually released, still, a bumper crop.

  13. PAD said: In what universe is the musical back? There was exactly one musical this past year, it was critically slammed, it wasn’t especially good, Pierce Brosnan embarrassed himself in it. I mean, yeah, it made a buttload of money, but go argue with Abba fans.
    —-
    Um, not true.

    “High School Musical 3” was released in 2008. There were also a few others that got NO attention whatsoever, such as “Were the World Mine”.

    “Mama Mia” was just happened to the biggest and highest profile film of the bunch. And I also enjoyed it for what it was.
    —-
    Yeah, not a great year for musicals but there were some good ones, though Mama Mia! wasn’t one of them (the touring company I saw was good, though).

    The best I saw in 2008 were Repo! The Genetic Opera and Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog. 2007 was good, though, with Hairspray, Enchanted, Zombie Love and Sweeney Todd. The new Fame and Jekyl and Hyde are due this year and then we may be inundated next year with Aida (yuck), Carousel, Company, The Color Purple, Footloose, Hairspray 2, In the Heights, My Fair Lady, and Wicked all scheduled – so if even half of them are actually released, still, a bumper crop.

  14. In today’s issue of the New York Post a cartoon ran showing Ledger as the Joker, sitting on a couch with Jesus and I think either God or Moses, enjoying the Oscar telecast.

    The style appears to me to be that of Sean Delonas, the Chimp-Stimulus bill cartoon artist, which is bolstered by the fact that the concept appears crude in its execution. Not only is there no “point” or “punchline” to the cartoon that involves any type of insight or irony that had to be thought out, but Ledger as the Joker enjoying the show, as it is rendered in the cartoon, instead of just showing Ledger, seemed grotesque, rather than reverential.

    I don’t know if the artist could have rendered Ledger in a way that would have been recognizable. look at his God–looks nothing like the man!

    Actually, Luigi…I kind of like that cartoon! Has a sort of Fabulous Furry Freak Bros vibe going on there. (Should have been Fat Freddie’s Cat at their feet though.)

  15. I fully believe that Ledger would have won either way. His death added poignancy, not bonus points. But his supporting turn as the Joker was Oscar bait whether dead or alive.

    Which you have to admit is pretty impressive. When Ledger’s casting was first announced, there was widespread fan second guessing over the casting of what was seen as a pretty-boy Australian actor. And when those pictures leaked, the make-up was roundly dissed and dismissed as looking terrible. One hopes that eventually fans will wait to see the results on the screen before rendering decisions.

    PAD

  16. Could someone explain to me why, when the In Memoriam section was aired, someone put a camera on one of The Amazing Kreskin’s old pendulums instead of just showing the faces and names of those who died this year? And what idiot forgot George Carlin, Patrick McGoohan, Eartha Kitt and førfûçkšákë HEATH LEDGER? He DIED in 2008! Queen Latifah’s singing was gorgeous, but as soon as they started naming names the camera should have cut to one screen and STAYED on it. I couldn’t read half the names of those who passed because of that fûçkìņg swinging camera.
    And Peter Gabriel had every right to be pìššëd. “Yeah, Pete, we’d love to have you sing your song from WALL-E, only we’re going to sandwich it between two unrelated songs from SLUMDOG–one of which will win, anyway–so I’m afraid we can only give you 60 seconds to, uh, do your thing. Love you, babe!”

  17. And what idiot forgot George Carlin, Patrick McGoohan, Eartha Kitt and førfûçkšákë HEATH LEDGER? He DIED in 2008!

    The others have already been mentioned, but Ledger was actually in last year’s In Memoriam.

    I’d also read that Scheider wasn’t in last year’s due to it being so close to the date of the Oscars.

  18. Really glad Slumdog win, that was my favourite movie of 2008 and of all the best pic noms. (I generally liked them all for various levels). Benjamin Button was very good, esp. visual effects and makeup and a cool story, just overly long and kind of sappy. Frost/Nixon also very good, I just love seeing Richard M. Nixon on screen in any sort of way, and Langella was fantastic and I loved seeing Frost come into his own throughout the movie. I was surprised how much I was emotionally affected by The Reader, even if Winslet’s character is a very terrible person, it’s interesting how there is still an emotional connection between these two people over years. And it took some nice story zigs where you thought it would zag. Milk was… just a biopic. Nothing spectacular about it, by-the-numbers (minus some decent performances) and the bit with the wheelchair kid felt really contrived. It’s pretty okay, but nothing much more.

Comments are closed.