I was considering keeping a running blog of the proceedings, but to be honest, the past couple of years I’ve fallen asleep, so I didn’t want to start something I couldn’t finish.
I needn’t have worried. Granted, I haven’t seen a single one of the movies that are Oscar nominated (I’m sorry, I still can’t take “Brokeback Mountain” seriously ever since Eric Cartman dismissed all indy movies as being about “gay cowboys eating pudding”) but there was no way I was going to miss the ensembles (the women were VERY tastefully adorned for the most part, I thought), the odd moments (Jennifer Garner tripping, apparently thrown off balance by her brand new enlarged lactating breasts; Tom Hanks coming out and sure looking pìššëd øff about SOMEthing) and to see just how many categories Ariel got right in her guesses (impressively Ariel–who likewise hadn’t seen any of the films–nailed every single winner with the exception of best picture, which pretty much surprised everyone with the possible exception of Eric Cartman).
And then there was Jon Stewart. I can’t remember any time in the past where I’ve been actively pulling for an Oscar host to do well (as opposed to just hoping they won’t bore the crap out of me.) I was not disappointed. The Oscarcast has not had a host this urbane since Johnny Carson. Less smug than Steve Martin, less aggressively vaudeville than Billy Crystal, less dead than Bob Hope, Stewart became visibly more confident as the evening progressed. Best line was his comment to Steven Spielberg, director of “Schindler’s List” and “Munich”: “Speaking on behalf of Jews everywhere, I can’t WAIT to see what happens to us next.” Close second was his comment after yet another assortment of clips illustrating yet another arbitrarily selected theme: “Coming up next: Hollywood’s salute to montages.” Third was his wry observation: “For those of you at home keeping score, that’s Martin Scorsese, Zero Oscars; Three-6 Mafia, One.”
Also got a huge kick out of the Daily Show-esque attack-ad commercials that turned Academy Award lobbying into adverts evocative of such notorious election-smearing endeavors as the Swift Boat Veterans (improbably named British women claiming that Judy Dench was no Dame, with the commercial paid for by “The Committee of People who aren’t at all connected with Felicity Huffman.”)
I hate to admit I also miss the former Academy head, Jack Valenti, if for no other reason than that Robin Williams dubbed him Jack “Boom Boom” Valenti and the nickname actually stuck. You could hear the new guy sucking the energy out of the room.
Oh, and Jamie Foxx stated in the pre-show that he needs to get his bowling game in order. Jamie, if you’re reading this, both Ariel and I would be more than happy to give you pointers. Just drop me a line.
11:30. Jeez.
PAD
• 
“
“The main thing I’m afraid I remember about BROKEBACK was that I got to see Anne Hathaway (the Princess in both PRINCESS DIARIES, Ella in ELLA ENCHANTED, and the voice of Red in HOODWINKED) topless.”
What’s weird is that that isn’t even in the film. What Kim isn’t mentioning is that he was in the theater and suddenly Anne Hathaway showed up, took off her shirt, waved her breasts at him while saying, “Get a load of THESE golden globes!” and then walked out.”
Man….do I go to the wrong theaters or what….
Tru Calling was a TV show, not a comic, starring the delicious Elizha Dushku (or however it’s spelled)
But Rick, the line by itself is merely funny. What made it hilarious was that Jack knew exactly when to deliver it. Sometimes the silence is funnier than the line…
Bladestar, I think you missed the subtlety of Bill’s comment about Tru Calling. Remember, some folks blame DC’s abandonment of Fallen Angle on people waiting for the trade! 🙂
Of course, you could blame it on folks who asked for the title while afflicted with temporary dyslexia – that should have been Fallen Angel…
Tim, I see very little connection between the “liberals” of Hollywood and real liberals, people like yourself. There’s an incredible amount of do as I say, not as I do quality to many of them–it’s what keeps the tabloids knee deep in stories.
For starters, it’s hard to imagine someone who has a true liberal sensibility wanting to wallow in extravagant excess to a degree that would shame Diamond Jim Brady, but we have become used to stories of multi million dollar weddings for marriages that last for less time than the average American is engaged. Or Bar Mitzvahs and confirmations that involve hiring rock bands or homes that have more rooms than I have family members or…
I don’t begrudge them their excess. The market says they are worth what they get, after all. But I’ll bet most of them think CEOs get paid way too much (because running a company is less important than pretending to be someone else).
Despite what some might think, probably most of my favorite people in my personal life are liberal. They treat other people with far more decency than the majority of Hollywood types I’ve run into. (And I’m not just talking actors here.). I have a hëll of a lot more respect for someone who lobbies their local government for social activism than I do for a Big Name who goes on TV to complain about how their voice is being muzzled, flies in private jets while scorning SUVs, and urges we all adopt the Kyoto agreement while maintaining her fur collection in an air conditioned apartment.
Hollywood liberal is actually an insult to liberals. They are spoiled rich people who donate to the Democratic Party, as opposed to the spoiled rich people who donate to the Republican party. Neither one represents much in the way of deep thought on the issues.
I still think that if Stewart had thrown more jabs at Bush (or any, actually) he would have had more laughs and applause from the crowd. We will never know, of course. Personally, I thought he did the right thing by keeping the point of his humor aimed squarely at Hollywood. I think where PAD disagrees with me is that I thought the crowd wasn’t as into his jokes as I was. He apparently thinks that the show business people appreciated his humor. My perception, echoed by some, was that they were quite subdued during the monologue. I wasn’t there, of course, so maybe he killed and the peals of laughter just didn’t get picked up.
I should add, since I don’t like generalizations when others do it, that there are indeed people in show business of all political persuasions who are in fact deeply committed to their causes and a credit to them. I suspect many of them are not the ones who make the most noise, judging from my observations of people in other walks of life.
“What’s weird is that that isn’t even in the film. What Kim isn’t mentioning is that he was in the theater and suddenly Anne Hathaway showed up, took off her shirt, waved her breasts at him while saying, “Get a load of THESE golden globes!” and then walked out.
I heard she does that a lot.
PAD”
The “best Anne Hathaway Golden Globes film” (at least so far) has got to be “Havoc”. (Available at Amazon for $13 and change.)
Note I am not stating that “Havoc” is a great film– just a great film to see Anne Hathaway’s breasts.
I thought it was very funny, and I enjoyed Clooney’s role in the evening, as well. I could absolutely see him as a Jack Nicholson-type at the show … can you believe it was his first time there?
Peter wrote: “What’s weird is that that isn’t even in the film. What Kim isn’t mentioning is that he was in the theater and suddenly Anne Hathaway showed up, took off her shirt, waved her breasts at him while saying, “Get a load of THESE golden globes!” and then walked out.”
And, since she wasn’t there anymore for me to hurt her feelings, I said to myself “She must be a flat-earther.”
The songs from CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY weren’t eligible as the lyrics originally were written by Dahl for the book.
Jon Stewart is getting way worse press than I’d expected. Shales royally reamed him, but Shales has never struck me as a guy that knows the funny. Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune was equally brutal I’m just stunned at how badly Jon Stewart’s opening monologue went. I didn’t realize it was possible to insult the audience more than Chris Rock did. Stewart seemed to be aiming his material at the folks at home, which is probably why the audience in the room with him seemed to be shooting him death rays with their eyes. They just hated his jokes. And you have to admit, insulting your hosts, repeatedly, and saying what they do is “out of touch” is not the best possible move. “I’m going to be pummeled later this evening,” he joked at one point. Yeah, I’d pretty much count on that. Oh well. I hope Jon enjoyed this gig. It’ll be his last.
Jeeze. Even if that’s an accurate description, it’s hardly his fault if the audience didn’t, in PAD’s words, get it. The only question is–was he funny? I say yes…though I suppose if you don’t get laughs from the attending stars you probably don’t get asked back.
Hey Tim, I just noticed I missed one of your comments. I know a few folks who thought the Ben Stiller bit was lame. It killed me. Part of it is that I’ve been doing some green screen work for the Zombie movie we’re (still) shooting or it has a certain resonance. The other part was that it reminded me of a similar (as in identical gag from AMAZON WOMEN ON THE MOON where Ed Begley Jr thinks he’s an invisible man but is actually just a naked visible one and he is playing pranks on people and laughing like its the funniest gøddámņ thing on Earth…ok, come to think of it, I was the only one laughing in the theater at that one either. So…
Just a couple of my thoughts (since I know you all couldn’t wait to read them). First off, I thought Stewart killed. He was awesome from note 1.Sure he got more comfortable but he was good from the beginning. Secondly, I liked that “Pimp” won best song. Not because I love the song (I wish the music from Walk The Line was eligible) but because it was different and variety is a great thing always. Finally, the only thing that really,really irritated me to the point of distraction was the music during the speeches, during the intros,during every single freakin’ thing.Note to Gil Cates: We don’t need that much music. Also, if you’re gonna have someone of Itzak Pearlman’s caliber, make sure his violin can be heard in the mix. The orchestra was way,way too high.
“Jeeze. Even if that’s an accurate description, it’s hardly his fault if the audience didn’t, in PAD’s words, get it.”
Here’s the interesting thing: While I hear TV critics spouting off–people who were, as far as I’m concerned, prepared to hate him no matter what–I’m hearing precious little negativity from the actual attendees. The only comment I’ve read was from Spielberg who said he thought Stewart had done brilliantly.
PAD
I thought Stewart did just fine. He was a little cool starting out, but he got better as the time went by. What I really did like was that he tried hard to not make it “John Stewart Presents the Academy Awards”, but he did the job as host to keep things moving.
Tommy Raiko: “Can you name any other original songs from 2005 movies that should’ve been nominated that weren’t?”
‘So Long And Thanks For All The Fish’ comes to mind. And what, we didn’t have any tiny-tots numbers from animated children’s movies to fill out the roster? Also, I think a song from “The Producers” was specifically crafted for the 2005 film version…
Brian Czako: “It seemed to me that the audience wasn’t on [Jon Stewart’s] side for a good part of the opening.” And most of the ceremony, too. I’ll echo some of Bill’s sentiments here, in that I think most of the American audience was enjoying Stewart’s humor (I know I did, as did the people I watched the Oscars with and most of the people I talked with today), but the majority of the Kodak Theater audience was most assuredly not. Matt Adler called it: Hollywood takes itself way too seriously. He got a lot more confident as the night went on; you could tell Stewart knew he was scoring hits with the average Joe, but you could also tell he knew he was not getting an overly warm welcome from his immediate audience in the KT. Kind of a hard line to walk for funny, so I can’t really blame him for taking what some have called the ‘bland, middle of the road approach.’
(I have to say that I think Tom Shales is full of šhìŧ. So are most other TV critics. Given the bottom-of-the-barrel new programming ABC was promoting during the commercial breaks [‘Miracle Workers’?!? WTF? Didn’t NBC try this a year ago, but it was called ‘Three Wishes’?], I’m given to think that anyone who makes a living writing about the state of American television really shouldn’t take anything that comes out of their own mouth seriously, given what’s going in.)
I lean slightly toward liberal by inclination, but I’m a moderate by trade, thus I appreciated Stewart’s tack of insulting everybody. He called Hollywood’s overestimated opinion of itself on to the carpet (I loved that back-from-the-break bit about Scientology, as well as the “…and they were never problems again” line), and he snuck in a few jabs at Republicans, too. I direct your attention to when Stewart asked the audience “do you think if we pulled down this giant Oscar statue, peace and democracy would reign over the land?” That struck me as a pretty dead-on targeting of the Bush administration. In all, I thought Stewart did a great job, especially for a first timer, and I do hope he gets invited back next year. Perhaps he could tag-team with George Clooney, as the entire world seems set to groom him to replace the aging Jack Nicholson?
The three things that really pushed my buttons about this year’s awards: (1) The rampant cutting of winner’s speeches. Why can’t the ceremony run as long as it needs to? And how in the nine hëllš do you justify cutting the Best Picture winner’s speech, particularly when it’s a surprise win? What, we can stack the show with needless montages, to the point where it becomes so self effacing that the show’s host is compelled to riff on it, but we can’t spare an extra thirty seconds for the Best Picture winner? Seriously, the montages were cool and all, but were they really necessary? Mad props for a montage to film noir, but WHY? Did film noir die when I wasn’t looking? Speaking of…
(2) They left a bunch of people off the ‘In Memoriam’ montage, including those who passed in the past few weeks. I’m glad they did away with the specific memorials to the ‘big stars,’ but there’s a bunch of really obvious people who got left out… none of whom I can remember at the moment, due to lateness of the hour. For as many whose contributions needed to be remembered, the reel seemed much shorter than it should’ve been this year.
(3) The anti-Academy flak over the surprise “Crash” win. I’m sorry “Brokeback Mountain” didn’t win. I really am. I wanted it to win, if only to challenge people about their own preconceptions. But I don’t think the Academy made a mistake in giving the nod to “Crash”. Here’s why: “Brokeback” is a movie – a love story – that dealt with two homosexual men and the intolerance they faced. “Crash” is a movie that dealt with a whole bunch of people, and how they were cogs in the intolerance of our ENTIRE SOCIETY. Please understand: I am in no way trying to denigrate “Brokeback”. I haven’t seen the film, but I will. The subject matter of “Crash” was, I feel, more all-encompassing and more relevant to the average moviegoer. With the caveat that I haven’t seen “Brokeback”, I feel that the message of “Crash” had a broader reach, and possibly a better execution, and thus deserved the win. I don’t think it’s because the Academy is secretly a bunch of homophobes; that trope is just so much shrill and mindless bleating. Could it be that maybe, just maybe, the Academy actually picked an honestly better film?
Me: “‘Crash’ is a movie that dealt…”
Wow. Bad tense use. I can only pull a Gary Larson and say It Was Late And I Was Tired.
Every year, it seems, the same things are said about the Oscar telecasts. From “it was too long” or “the host wasn’t good”. I don’t understand though, why the most important aspect of this event is never (or barely ever) discussed.
The Thank You’s!
For many artists, this is their night. Perhaps the biggest nod towards their work, that they’ll ever receive (and from their peers no less) in their life. Yet, as they are handed this statuette and are about to express their emotions over this presentation…
… they’re herded off the stage with speed, most times in mid sentence.
What’s the point? Who gives a crap about montages and overblown ridiculous unnecessary song and dance numbers. This is their night. Allow them some decency and respect, as they accept this reward for their achievement.
Ratings? It’ll still have ratings. People will ALWAYS tune into watch stars and celebrities. Most of the public are enamored over watching and looking at the glamour and glitz.
Just remember, no matter how you break it down, this is still only just an awards show.
“The Oscars are a Joke, and all the films that they nominated were among the worst Hollywood has turned out in decades.”
I assume Rob, that you made this comment because you saw all the films, and didn’t like them, right? I mean, you wouldn’t actually criticize something that you hadn’t seen….. right?
And as for the movies nominated, I saw them all, and enjoyed them all.
I have NO idea why so many in the press and online have said that “they haven’t seen any of the films”, or “why nominate movies no one has seen”?
??
Don’t know about you, but they played in theaters near where I live and I had no problems getting there, buying a ticket and seeing them.
They were well done, fascinating stories.
I was entertained
and got my money’s worth.
And who can ask for more?
Tommy Ralko asks:
Here’s the thing. Can you name any other original songs from 2005 movies that should’ve been nominated that weren’t?
Here’s five, right off the top of my head:
“So Long and Thanks For All the Fish” from “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.” (performed by Isobel Griffiths with Hilary Summers, RSVP Voices and Kemi Ominiyi, written by Joby Talbot, Garth Jennings and Christopher Austin.)
“There’s Nothing Like a Show on Broadway” from “The Producers.” (Performed by Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick, written by Mel Brooks.)
“Wunderkind” from “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.” (Written and performed by Alanis Morissette.)
“Winter Light” from “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.” (Written abd performed by Tim Finn.)
“Do The Hippogriff” from “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.” (performed by “The Weird Sisters,” written by Jarvis Cocker, Jason Buckle and Stuart Cassells.)
That said, my favorite of the nominated songs won, and the only un-nominated songs I’d have had beat it are “So Long, And Thanks For All the Fish” or “Winter Light.”
There were only three nominees this year because of a change in the rules that requires a certain percentage of the total nomination pool to make the final list of nominees (similar to the rule that often limits the Best Animated Feature Oscar to three nominees).
Oh, and I thought Jon was great from start to finish. Bring him back next year!
(And yes, I looked up the songwriters in the above, but I remembered the songs right off the bat, and that’s what’s important.)
>The Pink Panther
I can only hope you were fortunate enough to be at a Sellers retrospective?
>And who can ask for more?
Uh, how about having Hokeywood stop putting out those godawful remakes [see above] and ‘re-imagining’ and start concentrating on NEW stories? It isn’t as though there aren’t countless novels or short stories out there begging to be made. Consider the success of STAR WARS and ask yourself what could be done with today’s technology in putting Smith’s [literally inter-galactic] LENSMEN series to the screen for example?
“The Thank You’s!
For many artists, this is their night. Perhaps the biggest nod towards their work, that they’ll ever receive (and from their peers no less) in their life. Yet, as they are handed this statuette and are about to express their emotions over this presentation…
… they’re herded off the stage with speed, most times in mid sentence.”
The thank yous are the parts that really bore me. Yeah, every once in a while someone says something interesting. But to hear that, we have to sit through 100 other people who need to thank their Mom, their Dad, their significant others, each one other co-workers (individually), on and on and on.
It is a great moment. *For them*. It’s a great *personal* moment. When so many people in a row get up and thank a list of people I’ve never heard of, I just can’t care.
“The thank yous are the parts that really bore me. Yeah, every once in a while someone says something interesting. But to hear that, we have to sit through 100 other people who need to thank their Mom, their Dad, their significant others, each one other co-workers (individually), on and on and on.
It is a great moment. *For them*. It’s a great *personal* moment. When so many people in a row get up and thank a list of people I’ve never heard of, I just can’t care.”
This then, is probably the best argument to NOT telegast the Oscars or any other award show.
I mean if you or anyone tuning in doesn’t give a dámņ to hear the person’s speech and thank you’s, then what the hëll’s the point to watch the show?
Perhaps the best way to watch the Oscar Award Show is DON’T watch it. Watch instead, one of the many films and works that have been nominated this year, rather than the “boring” speeches.
After all, this ISN’T about you or any of the viewing audience, it’s about the artists being recognized for their work by their peers.
Uh, how about having Hokeywood stop putting out those godawful remakes [see above] and ‘re-imagining’ and start concentrating on NEW stories?
Well, let’s not throw out the baby with the bathwater. There ARE some good remakes (and let’s not forget, THE MALTESE FALCON was a remake of a remake!). I’m looking forward to the new HILLS HAVE EYES.
Maybe they should remake movies that weren’t all that great the first time around, or at least could have used a bigger budget (or any). All the Roger Corman movies spring to mind.
Here’s the interesting thing: While I hear TV critics spouting off–people who were, as far as I’m concerned, prepared to hate him no matter what–I’m hearing precious little negativity from the actual attendees. The only comment I’ve read was from Spielberg who said he thought Stewart had done brilliantly.
I wouldn’t expect to hear overt negativity from the attendees–everyone says that Letterman bombed but I don’t remember any of the stars out and out saying he did–but I think you’re right that Shales and co were itching to say that Stewart bombed. He’s come too far too fast, in their estimation, and he isn’t deferential enough.
Ebert thought he did great, gave him a rave review, so opinions are by no means unanimous.
One aspect of Ang Lee’s nomination and win that I’m surprised hasn’t been mentioned more in connection with BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN (at least in THIS blog) is Lee’s directing THE HULK.
Could this possibly influence a future Hulk movie?
“The Fabulous Hulk”
“Puny human! Hulk make over!”
Let’s also keep in mind that on the Daily Show, Stewart skewers the media (particularly the “news” media) at least as much as he does politicians. I’m not especially surprised that journalists (excuse me, “journalists”) might be itching to take him down a peg.
And I used to like Tom Shales, years back. I wonder what happened.
TWL
Shales seems like a very bitter guy. Ebert seems to be having a good time. It shows.
I heard this morning on the radio Hanks WAS mad. Apparently he was ticked because they were playing the theme from Forrest Gump when he walked out and this irked him, because he had “moved on from that role”..
C’mon Tom. I love you FOR that role. You won an Oscar fot it. Get over it.
OH and I can’t believe I forgot to mention Meryl Streep and Lily Tomlin earlier! I thought they were the best, most obviously comfortable with who they are, presenters out there that night … and mostly because they ad-libbed I believe!
Maybe they should remake movies that weren’t all that great the first time around, or at least could have used a bigger budget (or any). All the Roger Corman movies spring to mind.
I think King Kong proved that sometimes, the version made a shoestring is actually better than that huge budget version.
“The Pink Panther
I can only hope you were fortunate enough to be at a Sellers retrospective?”
Thats the main problem with that role. No matter how good Steve Martin is, he will never, ever be Peter Sellers. Not that he isn’t just as funny, he just isn’t Sellers. And thats the problem with the remakes of good movies. You remember all the good moments, and they never get them quite right the second time.
Also, remake of a remake nontheless, I hated the Maltese Falcon. Made no sense to me.
And I am sure I will hear about that..
Everytime I see the trailer for the Steve Martin Pink Panther movie, only one word goes through my head: “Why?”
In all seriousness, didn’t anyone raise a red flag during production that this could never, ever under any circumstances be as successful as the original? The two movies they made after Sellers’ death were complete and utter bombs. Steve Martin is a very talented comedian, but he needs to stop working with Robert Simmonds.
I hated the Maltese Falcon. Made no sense to me.
Then by all means avoid THE BIG SLEEP.
Check out Mark Evanier’s blog for an account by someone who was there and says that Stewart’s jokes went over much better than it seemed on TV.
The songs from CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY weren’t eligible as the lyrics originally were written by Dahl for the book.
Mostly. However, “Wonka’s Welcome Theme” (or “Willy Wonka’s Theme”, as I misidentified it earlier) is credited to screenwriter John August and composer Danny Elfman. This demented puppet show theme song is not part of the score, nor is it adapted in part from Dahl’s book, like the four ensuing Oompa-Loompa songs. It was even nominated for a Grammy in the Best Song Written For A Movie, TV, or Other Visual Media category this year, losing out to Josh Groban’s “Believe” from 2004’s The Polar Express. Indeed, it could’ve been nominated.
-Dave O’Connell
P.S. Tom Petty’s “Square One” (from Elizabethtown) is the other song from that category that would’ve also been eligible for this year’s Oscar.
The songs from CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY weren’t eligible as the lyrics originally were written by Dahl for the book.
Mostly. However, “Wonka’s Welcome Theme” (or “Willy Wonka’s Theme”, as I misidentified it earlier) is credited to screenwriter John August and composer Danny Elfman. This demented puppet show theme song is not part of the score, nor is it adapted in part from Dahl’s book, like the four ensuing Oompa-Loompa songs. It was even nominated for a Grammy in the Best Song Written For A Movie, TV, or Other Visual Media category this year, losing out to Josh Groban’s “Believe” from 2004’s The Polar Express. Indeed, it could’ve been nominated.
-Dave O’Connell
P.S. Tom Petty’s “Square One” (from Elizabethtown) is the other song from that category that would’ve also been eligible for this year’s Oscar.
The songs from CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY weren’t eligible as the lyrics originally were written by Dahl for the book.
Mostly. However, “Wonka’s Welcome Theme” (or “Willy Wonka’s Theme”, as I misidentified it earlier) is credited to screenwriter John August and composer Danny Elfman. This demented puppet show theme song is not part of the score, nor is it adapted in part from Dahl’s book, like the four ensuing Oompa-Loompa songs. It was even nominated for a Grammy in the Best Song Written For A Movie, TV, or Other Visual Media category this year, losing out to Josh Groban’s “Believe” from 2004’s The Polar Express. Indeed, it could’ve been nominated.
-Dave O’Connell
P.S. Tom Petty’s “Square One” (from Elizabethtown) is the other song from that category that would’ve also been eligible for this year’s Oscar.
“Maybe they should remake movies that weren’t all that great the first time around, or at least could have used a bigger budget (or any).”
Or, how about an electronic ‘face-lift’? Not a ‘remake’, but a retouching where it needs it. Consider 633 SQUADRON. A tribute to the WW II Mosquito squadrons. Even with the needless romance, one of the better war films around. Go on, tell me the scenes in the attack on the fjord base didn’t influence Lucas in his Death Star trench sequence. But, oh God, those ‘ordinary effects by Billy’ … Now if one were to leave the film untouched, save for setting the computer kids loose on sharpening the image, and then redoing all those effects and air combat scenes to today’s CGI standard instead of plastic models, I’d pay to see that.
Starwolf…that’s a cool idea. Some of the homemade stuff I’ve seen–THE PHAMTOM EDIT spings to mind, as well as some of the very convincing fake trailers–have had a real level of ability. It would be a blast to see people fixing up some of the older films (so long as the originals remain available).
>Everytime I see the trailer for the Steve Martin Pink Panther movie, only one word goes through my head: “Why?”
As Mr. Cranky put it “I suspect money was involved somewhere along the way.”
When Kiyoshi ‘Tora-san’ Atsumi died, there were no more TORA-SAN movies. When Peter Falk eventually passes away, there will be no more Columbo. Since Jeremy Brett died, I am not aware of anyone trying to make more Sherlock Holmes movies/episodes.
Sometimes, a certain actor/actress becomes so perfectly identified with a character, that they ARE the character and no one else need apply.
In light of that, bad enough when they decide on an utterly unnecessary remake of a perfectly good film such as THE IN-LAWS and then lose sight of much of what made it such a good filmin the first place, but when they have the nerve to try to fit someone else into such an iconic character’s [as Seller’s Clouseau] shoes, that’s just unforgivable.
Yes, Hades hath indeed frozen over. There WAS a very good remake – Spielberg’s WAR OF THE WORLDS. But this had two advantages remakes generally do not have. 1 – Spielberg. 2 – It was a whole lot closer in execution to the novel than the admitedly fun 50s version. ie not about the military and scientists, but just one guy trying to stay alive long enough to get back together with loved one(s) while in the midst of utter chaos and a situation that’s far beyond his ability to grasp.
Instead, remakes are genrally somebody’s idea of how to make money by cashing in on a known property but using today’s hot names instead, and often at the expense of the wonderful chemistry that worked so well in the original, or – as in the case with ROLLERBALL – completely forgetting the whole subtext of the story.
“Everytime I see the trailer for the Steve Martin Pink Panther movie, only one word goes through my head: “Why?””
According to the figures from Box Office Mojo, Martin’s Pink Panther has made just about the same amount of money that Seller’s version did. Martin’s got some $69 million (and counting), compared to Sellers’ $10.8, million adjusted for inflation using the CPI to 2004 dollars would be about $66 million.
I just thing the Inspector was miscast. I’d rather have seen Kevin Klein as Cleuseau, and Martin as his crazy boss. I’m guessing Martin wanted the Seller’s role for himself, without considering if he had the ability to carry it off. Klein can be over the top goofy funny, or straight-man funny. Cleuseau is straight man funny, not something Martin does well.
>I just thing the Inspector was miscast. I’d rather have seen Kevin Klein as Cleuseau, and Martin as his crazy boss. I’m guessing Martin wanted the Seller’s role for himself, without considering if he had the ability to carry it off.
I haven’t seen the movie, but I immediately had the same thought when I saw Kline was involved with the project.
THE IN-LAWS is an especially terrible example of a remake, since the only thing that made it great was the chemistry between Arkin and Falk. The exact same script with anyone else wouldn’t work, as we saw.
Can you imagine Monty Python and the Holy Grail with a new cast? Wanna bet some Hollywood suit isn’t right now wondering if it would work?
I do disagree that there is no need for a new Sherlock Holmes. The character has worked with many different actors, though Brett was excellent.
There WAS a very good remake – Spielberg’s WAR OF THE WORLDS.
Please tell me you are joking.
>Can you imagine Monty Python and the Holy Grail with a new cast?
There was. It was called “Dude, Who Stole My Car?”
One aspect of Ang Lee’s nomination and win that I’m surprised hasn’t been mentioned more in connection with BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN (at least in THIS blog) is Lee’s directing THE HULK.
Could this possibly influence a future Hulk movie?
“The Fabulous Hulk”
“Puny human! Hulk make over!”
Brokeback Avengers?
“I wish I knew how to quit you, Iron Man…”
“THE IN-LAWS is an especially terrible example of a remake, since the only thing that made it great was the chemistry between Arkin and Falk.”
The script was a big part of it, too. Consider that, in the original, we really don’t know for sure about Falk’s character until the end. We suspect, sure, but he does a great job of throwing us off. Remember that dinner scene? In the remake, which I wisely avoided, all data points to the character’s true nature being made clear right off the bat, thus eliminating the major is he or isn’t he [crazy] side plots of the original.
Bill Mulligan asks: Can you imagine Monty Python and the Holy Grail with a new cast? Wanna bet some Hollywood suit isn’t right now wondering if it would work?
Ever hear of a little play called “Spamalot”?
One aspect of Ang Lee’s nomination and win that I’m surprised hasn’t been mentioned more in connection with BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN (at least in THIS blog) is Lee’s directing THE HULK.
Somewhere, I seem to remember reading a press release or something talking about how Avi Arad sent Ang Lee a congratulations about the nomination, joking that Hulk 2 was still available or something… (On the other hand, I also seem to remember Ang Lee saying something about how Brokeback Mountain was a very therapeutic project for him after the stresses of Hulk.
Ever hear of a little play called “Spamalot”?
Oh yeah? Well…well…I totally forgot about that! And it makes my point look stupid! So there!
Jon Stewart bombed so hard that they passed on having him come back next year. It would be to costly to build the fallout shelters needed.
Only one man can save the Oscars, and that man is
DAVID CHAPPELLE!