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The Oscars (Academy Awards, Oscar, BAFTA, Golden Globes etc)

I just got back from American Sniper and it was... frustrating, to say the least.

Well, anyway I've seen all the nominees for Best Picture now and here's how I'd rank them:

1. The Grand Budapest Hotel
2. Whiplash
3. Boyhood
4. Birdman
5. The Imitation Game
6. Selma
7. The Theory of Everything
8. American Sniper

The last two really don't deserve to be nominees. The first four would all be very deserving winners (though I don't think any of them are the best film of the year). Boyhood will win and I'm happy with that.
 
DominicCobb said:
7. The Theory of Everything
8. American Sniper

The last two really don't deserve to be nominees.
Click to expand...

I know people who have seen 'The Theory of Everything' and thought it was excellent, plus many positive reviews from critics I trust. But from the trailers I've seen it looks like a schmaltzy piece of sh*t :-D and I'm not all that keen on seeing it. Care to tell us why it didn't work for you?
 
Well, it is good I guess. It's not bad, per se, but it's just not much more than good.

My big issue with it is that it could have been so much better. Stephen Hawking is such an interesting person with interesting ideas but his whole story is boiled down to a love story about a guy and a girl, and the guy has ALS and is super smart or something. His theory of everything? Mentioned like twice. Never explained. And it's not even a great love story.
Stephen moves off with a different woman and he gets a divorce from his wife. But the filmmakers want to make it clear that the two still love each other or some bullshit with a closing montage of their life together.
Anyway, it's all annoyingly conventional and pretty boring. Not the thing Best Picture nominees are made of.

Eddie Redmayne is fantastic, though.
 
^ That was exactly what I thought it would be like. I'll skip this one I think, thanks :).

Is it just me or is the best-picture list a bit sub-standard this year. I really wanted to see all the nominees last year and they were a good representation of the best films IMO. This year I only want to see half of them and loads of great films are missing, such as 'Interstellar' and 'Guardians of the Galaxy'. Not that I expected GOTG to get anything, the Academy largely ignored Star Wars afterall ;-).
 
[MENTION=14507]DominicCobb[/MENTION], what did you think of The Imitation Game? I saw it last night, and while I enjoyed it at the time, I had the niggling feeling I was being played. The movie felt too neat, narratively speaking, and something just felt really safe about the whole endeavour. I initially gave the movie the benefit of the doubt (amidst a niggling feeling of 'Oscar Bait' syndrome), but sure enough, the writers made up most of the central emotional beats of the film, and fabricated many of the film's sources of conflict. Perhaps the greatest examples of this were:

1) Suggesting that Turing was autistic.
2) Suggesting that Turing was a Spy for the Russians.
3) Fabricating major plot elements, like the conflict with his superior officers, the letter to Churchill, the impact of the hormonal medication on his intelligence, calling his computer 'Christopher' etc etc

Ultimately, I accuse this film of being disingenuous. Alan Turing's story is incredible enough without adhering to almost every cliché of the drama genre and not trusting the audience to be invested in a true telling of Turing's story. Therefore, I hope this movie wins nothing. End of rant.

I would be happy with any of Birdman, Grand Budapest or Boyhood taking the Major Awards.
 
Yeah, it was sort of a weak year, especially in comparison to last. There's still some good stuff. Budapest, Whiplash, and Boyhood are all must sees (as is Birdman I think but I notice you've seen that). Even still, I'm not nearly as passionate about the race as last year.

Though, of course, last year my favorite was the winner (12 Years a Slave) and this year my favorite (Interstellar) isn't even in the race, which I think is a travesty that can only be explained by how divisive the film has been.

By the way, Star Wars did get 10 Oscar nominations including Best Picture. And I love Guardians but it is not nearly as good as Star Wars.
[MENTION=8922]njvc[/MENTION], you know, it's interesting I had a somewhat similar experience. I was enthralled while watching it, but after the fact, think about it, the film has left me somewhat empty. I appreciate it as a really entertaining work with some fine technical prowess behind the camera and some great acting in front of it so I struggle to define it as any thing less than a really good movie.

I was unaware (until now) of those inaccuracies and, while they annoy me, I suppose they're not really surprising. These kind of things always happen with biopics and I don't like letting that get in the way of my evaluation of them as movies. A good movie's a good movie whether the stuff in it happened or not, but it does annoy me and it is rather disingenuous.

I'm a little concerned with the way his
suicide
and homosexuality is downplayed, and I think that probably accounts for the emptiness of the film, as it's lacking some of the emotional depth it could have had. But on the whole I still see it as an enjoyable and well made film.
 
Was looking forward to buying and watching 'Boyhood' but the UK Blu-Ray has zero special features. Not paying full price for some rushed for the Oscars release :-(.
 
What was wrong with American Sniper? I have not seen it, but there was a story in the paper recently interviewing Iraqi war vets, and how impressed they were with the way it portrayed everything (both the war and back home).
 
TV's Frink said:
What was wrong with American Sniper? I have not seen it, but there was a story in the paper recently interviewing Iraqi war vets, and how impressed they were with the way it portrayed everything (both the war and back home).
Click to expand...
Wow, where to start? There's a lot wrong with the film.

First of all, the biggest criticism it's been getting is that it is pro-war. Now, I don't necessarily think that's true, but it definitely is a bit too rah-rah 'Murica for my tastes. The US soldiers are portrayed as 100% heroes, while the Iraqis (terrorists and civilians) are portrayed as evil, which I think is somewhat problematic.

Along those lines, the main character, Chris Kyle, is treated far too reverentially. There are moments, hints of serious psychological issues, but they are never truly explored.

The war scenes are sort of interesting. Unfortunately a lot of that stuff plays out like an action movie (complete with an arch nemesis for Kyle that feels like a Bond villain) which I think was inappropriate.

There's not much of a flow between the scenes, and little momentum. This tends to be a problem with biopics, and it really hurts here, especially the at home scenes, which tend to be pretty bad thanks to lackluster dialogue and Sienna Miller's lousy acting.

I could keep going but even thinking about this movie makes me annoyed. It could have been great. But, instead, probably the only good thing about it is Bradley Cooper's performance. Everything else ranges from bland to just plain bad. Not recommended.
 
^ Again, that was my impression of it from the promotional material. Thanks again Cobb. Think I'll skip this one too.

The nominated films that I actually want to see like Inherent Vice, Selma & Whiplash aren't showing in my neck of the woods :-(.
 
Kirestananderson01 said:
here are my predicts and personal picks (Top Categories). EDIT: Let's see how I did...
Click to expand...

Looks like you failed.
 
w00t! "Mad Max: Fury Road" gets 10 nominations! Including Best Picture and Best Director.
 
Had a surge of nerd power and decided to break down the nominaions lists...

The full list of nominations:

BEST PICTURE
The Big Short
Bridge of Spies
Brooklyn
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Room
Spotlight

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Bryan Cranston, Trumbo
Matt Damon, The Martian
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
Eddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Cate Blanchett, Carol
Brie Larson, Room
Jennifer Lawrence, Joy
Charlotte Rampling, 45 Years
Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Christian Bale, The Big Short
Tom Hardy, The Revenant
Mark Ruffalo, Spotlight
Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies
Sylvester Stallone, Creed

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Jennifer Jason Leigh, The Hateful Eight
Rooney Mara, Carol
Rachel McAdams, Spotlight
Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl
Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Anomalisa
Boy and the World
Inside Out
Shaun the Sheep Movie
When Marnie Was There

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Carol
The Hateful Eight
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Sicario

COSTUME DESIGN
Carol
Cinderella
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant

DIRECTING
The Big Short
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Room
Spotlight

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Amy
Cartel Land
The Look of Silence
What Happened, Miss Simone?
Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom

DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
Body Team 12
Chau, beyond the Lines
Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah
A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness
Last Day of Freedom

FILM EDITING
The Big Short
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Spotlight
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Embrace of the Serpent
Mustang
Son of Saul
Theeb
A War

MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
Mad Max: Fury Road
The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed out
the Window and Disappeared
The Revenant

ORIGINAL SCORE
Bridge of Spies
Carol
The Hateful Eight
Sicario
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

ORIGINAL SONG
“Earned It,” Fifty Shades of Grey
“Manta Ray,” Racing Extinction
“Simple Song #3,” Youth
“Til It Happens To You,” The Hunting Ground
“Writing’s On The Wall,” Spectre

PRODUCTION DESIGN
Bridge of Spies
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant

ANIMATED SHORT FILM
Bear Story
Prologue
Sanjay’s Super Team
We Can’t Live without Cosmos
World of Tomorrow

LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
Ave Maria
Day One
Everything Will Be Okay (Alles Wird Gut)
Shok
Stutterer

SOUND EDITING
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Sicario
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

SOUND MIXING
Bridge of Spies
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

VISUAL EFFECTS
Ex Machina
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
The Big Short
Brooklyn
Carol
The Martian
Room

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Bridge of Spies
Ex Machina
Inside Out
Spotlight
Straight Outta Compton

Condensed "all unique films nominated" list, starting with 'Best Picture' nominations (Excluding animated, song and foreign language categories):

BEST PICTURE
The Big Short
Bridge of Spies
Brooklyn
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Room
Spotlight

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Bryan Cranston, Trumbo
Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
Eddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Cate Blanchett, Carol
Jennifer Lawrence, Joy
Charlotte Rampling, 45 Years

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Sylvester Stallone, Creed

CINEMATOGRAPHY
The Hateful Eight
Sicario

COSTUME DESIGN
Cinderella

MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed out
the Window and Disappeared

VISUAL EFFECTS
Ex Machina
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Inside Out
Straight Outta Compton

Crib list of films that make up the bulk of the major nominations in alpha order:

45 Years
The Big Short
Bridge of Spies
Brooklyn
Carol
Creed
The Danish Girl
Ex Machina
The Hateful Eight
Inside Out
Joy
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Room
Sicario
Spotlight
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Steve Jobs
Straight Outta Compton
Trumbo

^ I've only seen 7 of them so far :sad:.
 
TM2YC said:
ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Click to expand...
20 actors, all white. Just an observation (not original to me).
 
Of those movies you collated TM2YC I've seen 15. Movies I still need to see: 45 Years, Brooklyn, and Carol. Movies I haven't seen but don't really care to (they look like empty Oscar-bait drecks): The Danish Girl, Joy, Trumbo.

I'm most disappointed that Star Wars couldn't sneak in to the Best Picture race. I'm most happy that Mad Max did. Otherwise, a fair set of nominees. Not perfect, but nothing outrageous.
 
WHOAT? No Mark Hamill in best supporting role?
I'm out. ;)
 
DominicCobb said:
Movies I still need to see: Brooklyn
Click to expand...

I've only heard great things about that movie but sadly I missed it too and it's not on DVD before the awards :mad: (The day after).

DominicCobb said:
Movies I haven't seen but don't really care to (they look like empty Oscar-bait drecks): The Danish Girl, Joy, Trumbo.
Click to expand...

'Joy' I don't like the look of. 'The Danish Girl' sounds really interesting but has got some mixed reviews. Trumbo I very much want to see.

Here is my pick (Not prediction) so far (Based on the very few I've seen) ;-)...

BEST PICTURE
Mad Max: Fury Road

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs

ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Shaun the Sheep Movie

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Mad Max: Fury Road

COSTUME DESIGN
Mad Max: Fury Road

DIRECTING
Mad Max: Fury Road

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Amy

FILM EDITING
Mad Max: Fury Road

MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
Mad Max: Fury Road

ORIGINAL SCORE
Star Wars: The Force Awakens

PRODUCTION DESIGN
Mad Max: Fury Road

SOUND EDITING
Mad Max: Fury Road

SOUND MIXING
Mad Max: Fury Road

VISUAL EFFECTS
Mad Max: Fury Road

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
The Martian

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Straight Outta Compton

^ 10 wins for Mad Max! (Yeah like the Academy would be that cool). But seriously, if they don't give the 'Film Editing' and 'Directing' awards to George Miller and Margaret Sixel for Fury Road, then the world has gone to hell in a hand basket.
 
Just got back from seeing 'Creed'. My fist reaction? Those Oscar nominations are some f**king rascist sh*t!

- How could Michael B. Jordan not even be nominated for best Actor?!?

- How can Ryan Coogler not even be nominated for best original screenplay and Director?

ryan-coogler-michael-b-jordan-creed.jpg
 
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