The Oscars - Best Picture
 

So, which film will be chosen as Best Picture on Sunday?

'Brokeback Mountain'
'Capote'
'Crash'
'Good Night and Good Luck'
'Munich'

:confused:

Since local newscasts have already started going on about the supposed disconnect between Hollywood and middle America (without defining either of those two) by using BBM as an example, I'm betting it's a total shoe-in (or is that shoo-in). Honestly, sometimes they complain about Hollywood blockbusters and how it's all about trash, and now we have a lot of quality up for awards so now Hollywood is all about being out of touch. BBM aside (homophobics obviously condemn it without seeing it), what's out of touch about Munich or GNAGL? Anyway. (wipes froth from monitor). I think Brokeback is going to get it and that the attacks are just warming up...:rolleyes:

Of all of them, I liked BBM the most. I also enjoyed GNAGL. I hope BBM gets it, but I have a sinking feeling that lots of people in Hollywood are rallying around 'Crash'.

I can't wait for Sunday!
:)

I liked Capote best but Brokeback Mountain will win.

Except for Good Luck, and Good Night to some degree, the Academy did pretty well in picking a slate where I wouldn't have a problem with any of them winning. I can think of other worthy films, but can't complain about these.

I believe Altman is getting an Honorary Oscar this year (always a bridesmaid he's been) so that could help "Crash" since that was so Altman-derivative. Which would steam me to no end. Really "Crash" was done by Altman years ago..."Short Cuts." And better better BETTER that was. :mad:

I liked 'Short Cuts' but it was neither short nor did he cut anything from that film. It was mega-long. :D
I enjoy Altman. I liked 'Gosford Park' a lot. (But I love me my British actors.)

I wished GNAGL came out a year later or earlier, it's a fine film.

Being that I think Brokeback is the most deserving nominee, the award will likely go to Crash. (I rarely agree with the Academy's best pic choice).


I still voted for Brokeback in this poll, and in every other I'm participating in.

I'm generally wrong, but I voted for Capote. I think they'll pull the same wussy move they do so often and give the director award to the leading-but-controversial movie and then go with Capote for best picture because hey, how can that be an anti-gay statement?

The spoiler in this theory is Good Night and Good Luck, but I don't think it will be a contender for director (my bet is that he gets original screenplay) and I think it's too quirky (that b&w! It's scary!) to really stand a chance at BP, unless Hollywood gets all send-a-message-y.

Of course, I haven't seen a single one of these films.

I liked Capote best, but I think the Oscar will go to BBM. I think the Crash buzz won't amount to much. (Hope.)

I picked Capote, but I think the award's gonna go to BBM...

I was thinking about the after-Oscar spin.

If BBM wins, the neocons are going to say that Hollywood is so out of touch with most of America and that movies with gay characters are to blame for low box office numbers. If BBM doesn't win, they will say that Hollywood is rightfully rejecting the 'gay agenda' with the rest of the country.

If any of the others win, they won't say too much.

Mark my words...

:)

More controversy if Brokeback doesn't win, no doubt in my mind.

I was talking with my co-workers at the water cooler (aka Culligan machine) I think it stands to reason that BBM wouldn't have done even close to as well if the characters who played the parts of gay guys were actually gay themselves. It would most likely then have just been considered some sort of "indie" movie.

As far as it stands, I do think that Hollywood *IS* out of touch with America. Not so much the movies that it makes, but rather the actors and actresses. It seems like they make incredibly simplistic and idiotic statements when it comes politics.

I'd actually like to see how many people will be watching the Oscars. They're held on Sunday, so at least they won't be getting any competition from 24. ;)

I, on the other hand, may find myself watching my 24 (TV Show) DVDs -- I watch those so many times! I always notice details that I didn't the first time around. And watching 24 will probably be more entertaining anyhow. I guess I don't really care who wins what. I barely go to the movies anymore because by the time it is all said and done I can rent the movie for less when it comes out, or buy the movie for the same amount as my total cost of visiting the movie theater.

Anyone willing to go on record with a full slate of predictions?

Sure.

Actor - Philip Seymour Hoffman
Supporting Actor - Paul Giamatti
Actress - Reese Witherspoon
Supporting Actress - Michelle Williams
Animated Feature - Howl's Moving Castle
Directing - Ang Lee
Documentary Feature - March of the Penguins
Foreign Language Film - Tsotsi
Picture - Brokeback Mountain
Adapted Screenplay - Brokeback Mountain
Original Screenplay - Crash

I can't bring myself to care about the others (and a couple I haven't seen enough to guess). And those are predictions, not necessarily preferences.

Good idea.

Here are the nominees:

---------------------------
Best Motion Picture of the Year:

Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Diana Ossana, James Schamus

Capote (2005) - Caroline Baron, William Vince, Michael Ohoven

Crash (2004) - Paul Haggis, Cathy Schulman

Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) - Grant Heslov

Munich (2005) - Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy, Barry Mendel


Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role:

Philip Seymour Hoffman for Capote (2005)

Terrence Howard for Hustle & Flow (2005)

Heath Ledger for Brokeback Mountain (2005)

Joaquin Phoenix for Walk the Line (2005)

David Strathairn for Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005)


Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role:

Judi Dench for Mrs. Henderson Presents (2005)

Felicity Huffman for Transamerica (2005)

Keira Knightley for Pride & Prejudice (2005)

Charlize Theron for North Country (2005)

Reese Witherspoon for Walk the Line (2005)


Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role:

George Clooney for Syriana (2005)

Matt Dillon for Crash (2004)

Paul Giamatti for Cinderella Man (2005)

Jake Gyllenhaal for Brokeback Mountain (2005)

William Hurt for A History of Violence (2005)


Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role:

Amy Adams for Junebug (2005)

Catherine Keener for Capote (2005)

Frances McDormand for North Country (2005)

Rachel Weisz for The Constant Gardener (2005)

Michelle Williams for Brokeback Mountain (2005)


Best Achievement in Directing:

George Clooney for Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005)

Paul Haggis for Crash (2004)

Ang Lee for Brokeback Mountain (2005)

Bennett Miller for Capote (2005)

Steven Spielberg for Munich (2005)


Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen:

Crash (2004) - Paul Haggis, Robert Moresco

Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) - George Clooney, Grant Heslov

Match Point (2005) - Woody Allen

The Squid and the Whale (2005) - Noah Baumbach

Syriana (2005) - Stephen Gaghan


Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published:

Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Larry McMurtry, Diana Ossana

Capote (2005) - Dan Futterman

The Constant Gardener (2005) - Jeffrey Caine

A History of Violence (2005) - Josh Olson

Munich (2005) - Tony Kushner, Eric Roth


Best Achievement in Cinematography:

Batman Begins (2005) - Wally Pfister

Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Rodrigo Prieto

Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) - Robert Elswit

Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - Dion Beebe

The New World (2005) - Emmanuel Lubezki


Best Achievement in Editing:

Cinderella Man (2005) - Daniel P. Hanley, Mike Hill

The Constant Gardener (2005) - Claire Simpson

Crash (2004) - Hughes Winborne

Munich (2005) - Michael Kahn

Walk the Line (2005) - Michael McCusker


Best Achievement in Art Direction:

Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) - James D. Bissell, Jan Pascale

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) - Stuart Craig, Stephanie McMillan

King Kong (2005) - Grant Major, Dan Hennah, Simon Bright

Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - John Myhre, Gretchen Rau

Pride & Prejudice (2005) - Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer


Best Achievement in Costume Design:

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005) - Gabriella Pescucci

Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - Colleen Atwood

Mrs. Henderson Presents (2005) - Sandy Powell

Pride & Prejudice (2005) - Jacqueline Durran

Walk the Line (2005) - Arianne Phillips


Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score:

Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Gustavo Santaolalla

The Constant Gardener (2005) - Alberto Iglesias

Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - John Williams

Munich (2005) - John Williams

Pride & Prejudice (2005) - Dario Marianelli


Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song:

Hustle & Flow (2005) - Jordan Houston, Cedric Coleman, Paul Beauregard ("It's Hard Out Here For a Pimp")

Crash (2004) - Michael Becker, Kathleen York ("In the Deep")

Transamerica (2005) - Dolly Parton ("Travelin' Thru")


Best Achievement in Makeup:

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) - Howard Berger, Tami Lane

Cinderella Man (2005) - David LeRoy Anderson, Lance Anderson

Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005) - Dave Elsey, Annette Miles


Best Achievement in Sound:

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) - Terry Porter, Dean A. Zupancic, Tony Johnson

King Kong (2005) - Christopher Boyes, Michael Semanick, Michael Hedges, Hammond Peek

Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - Kevin O'Connell, Greg P. Russell, Rick Kline, John Pritchett

Walk the Line (2005) - Paul Massey, Doug Hemphill, Peter F. Kurland

War of the Worlds (2005) - Andy Nelson, Anna Behlmer, Ron Judkins


Best Achievement in Sound Editing:

King Kong (2005) - Mike Hopkins, Ethan Van der Ryn

Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - Wylie Stateman

War of the Worlds (2005) - Richard King


Best Achievement in Visual Effects:

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) - Dean Wright, Bill Westenhofer, Jim Berney, Scott Farrar

King Kong (2005) - Joe Letteri, Brian Van't Hul, Christian Rivers, Richard Taylor

War of the Worlds (2005) - Pablo Helman, Dennis Muren, Randy Dutra, Daniel Sudick


Best Animated Feature Film of the Year:

Corpse Bride (2005) - Tim Burton, Mike Johnson

Hauru no ugoku shiro (2004) - Hayao Miyazaki

Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005) - Steve Box, Nick Park


Best Foreign Language Film of the Year:

Bestia nel cuore, La (2005) - Cristina Comencini (Italy)

Joyeux Noël (2005) - Christian Carion (France)

Paradise Now (2005) - Hany Abu-Assad (Palestine)

Sophie Scholl - Die letzten Tage (2005) - Marc Rothemund (Germany)

Tsotsi (2005) - Gavin Hood (South Africa)


Best Documentary, Features:

Darwin's Nightmare (2004) - Hubert Sauper

Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (2005) - Alex Gibney, Jason Kliot

Marche de l'empereur, La (2005) - Luc Jacquet, Yves Darondeau

Murderball (2005) - Henry Alex Rubin, Dana Adam Shapiro

Street Fight (2005) - Marshall Curry


Best Documentary, Short Subjects:

God Sleeps in Rwanda (2005) - Kimberlee Acquaro, Stacy Sherman

A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin (2005) - Corinne Marrinan, Eric Simonson

The Life of Kevin Carter (2004) - Dan Krauss

The Mushroom Club (2005) - Steven Okazaki


Best Short Film, Animated:

Badgered (2005) - Sharon Colman

The Moon and the Son (2005) - John Canemaker, Peggy Stern

The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello (2005) - Anthony Lucas

9 (2005) - Shane Acker

One Man Band (2005) - Mark Andrews, Andrew Jimenez


Best Short Film, Live Action:

Ausreißer (2004) - Ulrike Grote

Cashback (2004) - Sean Ellis, Lene Bausager

Síðasti bærinn í dalnum (2004) - Rúnar Rúnarsson, Þórir Snær Sigurjónsson

Our Time Is Up (2004) - Rob Pearlstein, Pia Clemente

Six Shooter (2005) - Martin McDonagh

I'll list my predictions and the ones I'd be voting for, which mostly coincide. We saw everything except a very few (no foreign language, only some of the docs, no docs shorts.)

Actor-Leading
Will win (and would vote for) Philip Seymour Hoffman

Actor-Supporting
Will win- Jake Gyllenhaal
Would vote for- Paul Giamatti

Actress-Leading
Will win (and would vote for) Reese Witherspoon (though Felicity was great)

Actress-Supporting
Will win- Rachel Weisz
Would vote for-Amy Adams

Animated Feature
Will win (and would vote for) Wallace and Gromit

Art Direction
Will win- Memoirs of a Geisha
Would vote for- Good Night and Good Luck

Cinematography
Will win- Brokeback Mountain
Would vote for- Brokeback Mountain

Costume Design
Will win (and would vote for) Memoirs of a Geisha (but why wasn't Capote nominated?)

Directing
Will win (and would vote for) Brokeback Mountain

Documentary Feature
Will win (and would vote for) March of the Penguins (but if a suprise win for Darwin's Nightmare comes along I would not be surprised.)

Film Editing
Will win- Crash
Would vote for- Walk the Line

Foreign Language Film
Will win- Tsotsi
I didn't see any of these, unfortnately.

Makeup
Will win (and would vote for) Narnia

Original Score
Will win (and would vote for) Brokeback Mountain

Original Song
Will win- "In the Deep" from Crash
Would vote for- "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" from Hustle and Flow

Best Picture
Will win- Brokeback Mountain
Would vote for- Capote

Best Short Film, Animated
Will win- The Moon and the Sun
Would vote for- Badgered

Best Short Film, Live Action
Will win (and would vote for) The Runaway (and if Cashback wins I will go on a rampage.)

Best Sound Editing
Will win (and would vote for) King Kong

Best Sound Mixing
Will win (and would vote for) Walk the Line

Best Visual Effects
Will win (and would vote for) King Kong

Best Screenplay, adapted
Will win- Brokeback Mountain
Would vote for- Capote

Best Screenplay, original
Will win- Crash
Would vote for- The Squid and the Whale

Heheh, I was actually going to start an "official" LoT Oscar Pool, prizes and all (with a tip of the hat to Alex Stroup, not that he invented such things) ... but, well, let's just say one of life's sad events intervened.

Everything's cool now, but it's too late to put together any sort of - well - gambling. As of today, Oscar day, I still have not managed to see either Transamerica or Capote. Very bummed about the latter ... but if you don't get me your screener, I can't vote for your movie! (OK, I don't get to vote, but I am reliant on Academy screeners to see most of the nominated films ... I too don't get to the movies as much as I used to, and am perfectly content to wait for the much less expensive DVD experience that seems to be merely months away from theatrical release.)


But out of touch or not, I revel in the fact that this is an Academy Awards "Quality Film" year. This is hardly the first such year, but they are few and far between.

Happy Oscar Night Everyone. :iSm:

The only two categories that I have seen all of the films are the Feature Animation and the Animated Shorts. (Go figure)

I chooose Howel's Moving Castle but I think Wallace and Gromit will win. (And it was really a great film and deservs the oscar.)

Animated shorts - first of all, what happened to the Ceiling Fan film? That was my choice! With that one not on the list, I will pick Badgered as a winner. However, I suspect The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello will be the winner. I actually hope the John Canemaker film doesn't win.

I read Newsweek at the airport and their pick for the animated short was "9"

I would be okay with Jasper Morello winning, but as you know, I loved both Badgered and the Fan and the Flower.

Donna

NA, you really liked Wallace and Grommit that much? Maybe it was because I saw it on an airplane, but I thought it was just OK. I watched Corpse Bride the other night, and that was just good. I've never heard of the other nominee.

I've finally seen Corpse Bride, but no other nominated movies. I have Wallace and Grommit, but haven't had time to watch it yet. Doesn't stop me from making predictions!

Performance by an actor in a leading role:
Philip Seymour Hoffman - easy call.

Performance by an actor in a supporting role:
A bit harder, but I'm going to go with Paul Giamatti. Could go to Clooney, but I think that's an outside chance.

Performance by an actress in a leading role:
Felicity Huffman. Academy loves a gender bender. Possibililty of Resse Witherspoon if they feel Walk the Line needs recognition.

Performance by an actress in a supporting role:
Toss-up between Catherine Keener and Frances McDormand, but I think Keener has the edge. No way it will go to Michelle Williams.

Wallace and Gromit really left me flat. There were some clever sequences but overall just "meh."

I thought Corpse Bride was horrible, so obviously the only choice, in my view, is Howl.


iSm, what do you mean I didn't invent it? People may have done them for yeras before me but I've applied for a patent anyway ("A method for making people care about who wins the Best Sound Editing Academy Award"). Once I get it approved (because the USPTO approves all applications without a second look, apparently), I'll be expecting the $0.50 checks to flow in from around the country.

Dammit! hit post too soon. (Boris is trying to help with the predictions.)

Best animated feature of the year:
Wallace & Grommit in the Curse of the Were-Rabbit. Corpse Bride is too much like NBC and Howl's Moving Castle is too Japanese.

Achievement in art direction:
Good Night and Good Luck or Memoirs of a Geisha. I'm going with Good Night and Good Luck.

Achievement in cinematography:
This one goes to Memoirs of a Geisha.

Achievement in costume design:
I have no flippin' clue, but I'm picking Mrs. Henderson Presents.

Achievement in directing:
Ang Lee for Brokeback Mountain. *IF* best picture goes to Brokeback, this will go to Clooney.

Best documentary feature:
March of the Penguins.

Best documentary short subject:
uh? I have no idea what these are about. I'll pick God Sleeps in Rwanda.

Achievement in film editing:
Crash gets a token award.

Best foreign language film of the year:
The only one I've heard of is Paradise Now, and there's no way in hell that will win. I'll go with Tsotsi.

Achievement in makeup:
Narnia.

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score):
Brokeback Mountain.

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song):
The Academy goes "edgy" with "It's hard out here for a pimp."

Best motion picture of the year:
Capote.

Best animated short film:
One Man Band. (Since Pixar doesn't have a feature this year.)

Best live action short film:
Random guess: The Last Farm.

Achievement in sound editing:
King Kong.

Achievement in sound mixing:
Walk the Line.

Achievement in visual effects:
The Chronicles of Narnia.

Adapted screenplay:
Might go to Brokeback Mountain.

Original screenplay:
I think it will be Good Night and Good Luck, but there's an outside chance it could go to Crash.

Here are my picks. I'm not sure how I'll do with them this year. Not too many sure things this year... I did see 'Constant Gardener' last night and was blown away by it. Amazing flick.
----------------

Best Motion Picture of the Year:
Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Diana Ossana, James Schamus

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role:
Philip Seymour Hoffman for Capote (2005)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role:
Reese Witherspoon for Walk the Line (2005)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role:
George Clooney for Syriana (2005)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role:
Rachel Weisz for The Constant Gardener (2005)

Best Achievement in Directing:
Ang Lee for Brokeback Mountain (2005)

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen:
Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) - George Clooney, Grant Heslov

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published:
Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Larry McMurtry, Diana Ossana

Best Achievement in Cinematography:
Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Rodrigo Prieto

Best Achievement in Editing:
Munich (2005) - Michael Kahn

Best Achievement in Art Direction:
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) - John Myhre, Gretchen Rau

Best Achievement in Costume Design:
Pride & Prejudice (2005) - Jacqueline Durran

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score:
Brokeback Mountain (2005) - Gustavo Santaolalla

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song:
Transamerica (2005) - Dolly Parton ("Travelin' Thru")

Best Achievement in Makeup:
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005) - Howard Berger, Tami Lane

Best Achievement in Sound:
King Kong (2005) - Christopher Boyes, Michael Semanick, Michael Hedges, Hammond Peek

Best Achievement in Sound Editing:
King Kong (2005) - Mike Hopkins, Ethan Van der Ryn

Best Achievement in Visual Effects:
King Kong (2005) - Joe Letteri, Brian Van't Hul, Christian Rivers, Richard Taylor

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year:
Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005) - Steve Box, Nick Park

Best Foreign Language Film of the Year:
Paradise Now (2005) - Hany Abu-Assad (Palestine)

Best Documentary, Features:
Marche de l'empereur, La (2005) - Luc Jacquet, Yves Darondeau

Best Documentary, Short Subjects:
God Sleeps in Rwanda (2005) - Kimberlee Acquaro, Stacy Sherman

Best Short Film, Animated:
One Man Band (2005) - Mark Andrews, Andrew Jimenez

Best Short Film, Live Action:
Six Shooter (2005) - Martin McDonagh

Little bit of liveblog action here:

Watching E! right now. Ryan Seacrest looks like he had his eyebrows done and his foundation looks a little too light. Mizrahi is hysterical, but not much of an interviewer...

Naomi Watts borrowed the Haunted Mansion bride's dress for the Oscars...

Mizrahi is horrible. I've changed the channel.

Keira Knightley is absolutely stunning. Beautiful. And she's only 20! Wow.

Eric Bana, Clooney, Heath... hot hot hot.

:)

Agreed. But I'm keeping the channel where it is. He's getting some A list interviews. Which is always good.

Michelle Williams' dress is ugh-ly!

I can't wait for the go fug yourself girls to report on the red carpet wear!

good luck Brokeback Boys.:snap:

Jessica Alba looks really great, too.

Sandra Bullock... not so much. Nice dress, though...

Clooney for Supporting Actor.
:) Nice nice speech!

his speech was indeed great.

helped me get through the tears:(

W&G for Animated Feature :)

Blech. So far 0 for 2 in the categories I made predictions for.

They had to use Catherine Keener's entire performance in Capote for her clip.

Whee! I'm doing as miserably as usual in my predictions! I've learned it doesn't matter whether I see the films or not - I'm never going to win the pool.

Penguins for Doc. :)

Brokeback for Score.

I'm ill.

Best Picture:
Craaaaaaaaaaaaaasssssssh!
:(

ouch.

feels like the backdoor got slammed in my face.

:( Well, I was wrong then. Sorry about Brokeback not winning. I've not seen Crash, but, I remember how often The Academy picks the wrong film for best picture.:mad:

Glad that PSH won for Capote, so richly deserved. :D

Felicity Huffman got screwed. :(

I watched Walk the Line on the plane last night, Johnny Cash was not a boring man, he was many things, but boring was not one of them. And Reese as June, well, she was pretty, but she was not June to me. Oh well, so I'm not President of the Academy.

Ang Lee won a well deserved award and gave a beautiful acceptance speech. So did Rachel Weisz, she was the first of anyone to even acknowledge the Academy.

At least the acceptance speeches thanking everyone down to their first grade teacher and the school janitor were minimal.

I thought Jon Stewart tanked and Meryl Streep and Lily Tomlin were a riot in their presentation schtick for Altman.

Donna

You think ML?
I was feeling pretty good for a great number of thigns that Brokeback was acknoledged for.

I know it didnt win Best Picture, that seemed to be such political category.
Right before I read what you said, I was thinking how pleased I was that the movie had recieved recognition.

Director is what counts, right?

Even though I saw nearly none of the films this year it was obvious that competition was pretty stiff. (no stiff jokes)

Even though I didn't see Capote, the win that I felt best about was Philip Seymour Hoffman for Best Actor. He's incredible in whatever he's in and it's obvious he deserves an Oscar.

Some very good speeches, and I really enjoyed Jon Stewart. Much better than some others I could mention. The beginning with all of the others getting out of hosting was funny.

I admit it, I loved all the genre montages. :)

I couldn't believe that the pimp song won! :eek: The other songs sucked anyway, and I never like what wins that category, so it was cool to see. And like Jon said, they were the most excited people there up to that point. I love when you can see the winner is elated. Witherspoon and Hoffman were obviously very emotional.

Enjoyable broadcast...now I wish we had time to see all those movies.

yes, i was happy it did receive some Oscar nods... i think what i meant was more from disappointment at not seeing the cast and crew up on the stage to take Best Picture.

i just don't recall a movie that ever touched me as much as this did - and had hoped for a sweep. i had my hopes to high.

(and i think saying "backdoor" was funny);)

Well, at least I was right about Brokeback not winning best picture. I think they did pull the old switcheroo where they give the controversial film the director's award. I can't believe they gave it to Crash, though.

And Felicity Huffman was totally robbed.

I thought Jon Stewart was pretty damn funny. I haven't laughed at the Oscar telecast in a long time.

Brokeback was robbed!!!!

But then...
It was nice, but kinda no-other-way-possible that it won for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay. And it was a pleasant surprise that it won Best Score. But seeing as the great nominated performances were, in most cases, rightfully outshined by others, I was really disapointed that it didn't win the Cinematography award and especially that it lost Best Picture to "Crash."


Crash!!!. Some of you may know me as one of the staunchest defenders of that film, but it was frankly a distant runner up to most of the other nominees and a zillion miles from even being in Brokeback's league. Grrrrrr.



As for the show .... not too bad. Jon Stewart was amusing, and the proceedings seem to flow along nicely. Not enough fasion faux pas, though there thankfully was that weird giant thing on Charlise Theron's shoulder. WTF?


:iSm:


(BTW, good work on your predictions, G.C. )

Thank you, iSm. :) Not bad this year. I won our Oscar Party pool, but being the one who made everyone join in, the win is kinda not that great. :D

I can't tell you how bummed I am about BBM not winning Best Pic. I had a strange feeling that it was going to 'Crash' but I just couldn't make myself believe it.

Well, a love story about two gay men didn't win Best Picture. That just leaves an opportunity for someone else to do it. I hope lots of people try.

Got to bed way too late. I'm barely awake now...

Ugh.

:)

I disagree with Jon Stewart. He did not seem tasteful or classy at all. His performance seemed to be the epitome of "horrible" when he couldn't even make the Hollywood types laugh when he basically went after mainstream America about Hollywood being "too liberal, a place of atheism, sex, etc." or whatever it was that he said. It was dismal. I remember watching some awards from WAY back when, and it seemed like past hosts had a lot more class.

I take back what I said earlier about the movies. When I heard that song about how hard it is to be a pimp, it just seemed like things have gone downhill. I think that most of American families would find that offensive. If I had children, I certainly would not want them listening to crap like that.

At least someone with talent won something... Witherspoon is excellent!

Anyhow, there were rarely any pans across the audience, but the couple of times there were, it seemed like there were quite a few empty seats! So, while GC may be right about what Conservatives would say about the awards, it wasn't without merit or validity. A lot of people just don't care!

Hollywood... I don't know what to think of it!

"It's tough to be a pimp" *SIGH*

Overall here's my take on the Oscars.

I loved the intro film. Steve Martin and Clooney were hysterical. Funny stuff.

John Stewart didn't bug me. I thought he was just okay. I think the problem was that he delivered his schtick as if everyone watches the Daily Show. Not everyone does. And it totally felt like not everyone in the audience tunes in to Comedy Central... His pacing was rather slow, but he did make me laugh a couple of times.

To pair up the president's speech with the in memory of section was a bad idea. It sllllooowed everything down...

Clooney's speech was great. He loosened things up early on.

Naomi Watts' dress was stinky.

Keira wins as Best Dressed in my book. Followed by Ms. Alba.

Lily Tomlin and Meryl Streep win Best Presenters. I laughed all the way through. They should do a movie together now.

Now, is Joaquin Phoenix in a coma? He could smile once in awhile. :D

Loved the campaign commercials. 'Judi Dench put my eye out in a bar fight.' Funny shtuff!

Still grumpy about 'Crash' but I'll get over it.

Will Farrell and Steven Carel were funny. Ben Stiller was sorta funny. His bit went on for too long.

Poor Lauren Bacall. But it did seem that a few people had probs with the teleprompter...

(Oh, and George Clooney and Eric Bana are hot hot hot.)
:)

Did you see the interview with him after the Oscars? That was bloddy brilliant. Essentially, "I knew everyone was thinking it anyway, so why not just say it"

:rolleyes: Agreed.

They were beautiful.. but I felt that Keira was dressed too old.
But here's my question, has she had a stroke? She wasnt walking so great, and we felt she memorized her piece, and just lost her place.

A tad too old, yes. Then again, I had no idea she was only 20. Wow. So very talented. I liked her necklace.

I'm not sure if she had a stroke or not. Weird to see her thrown off...

Did anyone else catch this? Towards the end of the broadcast, I think for screenplay adapted (not sure) you could hear the Director in the booth talking over the nominees. He said something like 'Okay, okay here we go.' It was funny.

:D

An interesting observation I heard on why Crash might have won it: Crash won the SAG award for best cast. So it seems to be a favorite within the acting community (thanks to its ensemble cast), and actors make up a large block of acadamy votes.

Ralphie's sister, who is in the Academy, thinks that may be part of it. She also thinks that voters like films shot in LA, about LA etc. She said that there was also some negative buzz for BBM because it was shot in Canada, you know a non-LA place... (She voted for 'Brokeback' from what I hear.)

I *loved* the campaign spoofs! They were probably the highlight of the show for me.

BT and I both liked Jon Stewart as host a lot, but nationally we seem to be in the minority.

Keanu Reeves needs to lighten up on the downers already. Somnolence, thy name is Keanu.

I loved Reese Witherspoon's speech. I'm not a huge Reese fan, but she actually seemed like a real person. I loved her thanking her parents. I also remember thinking "what a pretty, tasteful dress!" and, again, I'm apparently in the minority.

Charlize Theron was a walking disaster, from her woman-eating bow to her frizzed out beehive.

Naomi Watts's dress looked like one of my cats had eaten a tutu and thrown it back up.

I'm not a big fan of enormous stones dangling from earlobes. Less is more. Less is less likely to get ripped off your head by snagging on Naomi Watts's dress.

Why is Michelle Williams getting raves for her dress? I thought it was hideous, although the color was nice and looked good on her.

Felicity Huffman looked like she was wearing formal overalls. Not a fan of the vertical-straps-as-bodice look.

Jessica Alba did look very nice. Full points there.

Loved the penguins and the bow ties!

I'm a little mixed on Kiera Knightly. I think Ponine's right. The dress itself was lovely, but too old for her.

When will Nicole Kidman go red again? And why was she doing a Keanu impression? Her dress wasn't bad, though.

Ludacris cleans up nicely.

ummm....can't remember anything else. Except that Meryl Streep is a living goddess.

I have no idea. Maybe it was where she was sitting. Her dress did stand out. Lots of camera time for that dress. Everyone was raving about how she lost all of her pregnancy weight. I think what bothered me also was the red red lipstick she had on. Too much.

I don't know if it was nerves, or if he was trying to adjust his style to the less-niche audience, but I thought Stewart's delivery was a bit off. Maybe he's just too used to reading everything as in "news caster" mode. I thought some of his lines were hillarious, though.

I think it's great that Philip Seymore Hoffman won. I recently read one reviewers top-5 favorite PSH movies, other than Capote. Seeing the list (I'd seen 4 of the 5), reminded me just how talented of an actor he is, and just how memorable his roles always are.

I haven't seen 'Crash', and I'm sure it's a fine film, but I feel like the Academy (once again) wussed out and went with the less controversial film. We are all fairly comfortable talking about racism, etc, but gay cowboys? I was a little pissed at the outcome.

With apologies to GC- I do watch the Daily Show, and Jon, while a bit more restrained than usual, was adorable.

The only dresses I really noticed were the bad ones. I swear, Charlize's bow got bigger every time I saw it. Even without the bow, the dress was awful.

I remember that Keira looked absolutely stunning....but I swear, right now I'm thinking "she wore a dress?" ;) She is easily the hottest chick in Hollywood right now.

All the jokes about Clooney being hot were awesome, as were his reactions. I used to be annoyed by Clooney for some reason (I never watched ER) but I dig him now. I think he's more good looking now than he was 10 years ago.

Restrained is a good word for it. He needed to be unleashed, imho. He seems to get funnier and funnier the more he feeds off of laughs and applause. Without it, he stumbles.

And I apologize for spelling his first name wrong for the last 1000 posts. Jon Jon Jon Jon...
:D

I wasn't sure about his character in 'Flawless' until I saw it a couple of times. You're right, he's a fine actor. Very good at what he does. Good for him.

I quite agree. I never saw but an episode or two of ER and never cared for him, but now, I like him a whole lot. I think I started to warm to him with the ultra silly, but oh so fun Intolerable Cruelty and Ocean's Eleven.

Back to the Oscars, why of why did the Academy voters award the Oscar to The Moon and the Son? The most depressing animated short of the bunch.

Donna

I started really liking Clooney when I saw 'O Brother Where Art Thou?'. I thought he was so funny and cuuute. :)



Sorry for the million posts, y'all. The Oscars are like the Super Bowl to this girl, I tell you what.
:)

I thought Clooney gave a fine acceptance speech. It's refreshing to hear someone accept an Oscar and not thank everyone including their plumber. I also appreciated his point that, while Hollywood may be "out of touch with the mainstream", sometimes that's a good thing. I couldn't agree more. I have little faith in mainstream America to do what is best for the country.

I thought Stewart was great but I understand that if you aren't a fan of his already, he can take a little time to warm up to. I remember not linking the Daily Show the first few times I watched it but gradually growing to love Stewart as time went on.

I loved the opening, including the gay cowboy montage. And it was great to here Colbert doing the voice overs. I also loved when Stewart, talking about the popularity or remakes, mentioned "Walk the Line" as being "Ray" with white people. Jamie Fox got a good laugh out of that. :)

Overall, I wasn't surprised by any of the awards. I had previously heard that the SAG awards suggested that Crash was going to win. I was glad to see BBM get the awards that it did. Overall, not the worst Acadamy Awards I have seen.

I used to absolutely dispise him, until I saw the same movie. He was perfect, and the hairdresser in me adored his obession with his hair and hair prods.:D

He seems to be moving in the opposite direction of Brad Pitt- he has morphed from a pretty-boy lothario to intelligent, mature actor who can laugh at himself and his crazy industry. Pitt used to be like this, choosing roles that were offbeat and against type, but I've been very disappointed with him these past few years.

I don't know, but seeing the clips from all the nominees made me drool. I really need to find more occasions to watch animated shorts. It's one of my favorite formats and yet I so rarely see any.

I personally have no faith in Hollywood elites to do what is right for America. Politically, it seems like all of the Hollywood celebrities are simpletons.

• Cameron Diaz saying that the election of President Bush would lead to the legalization of rape?
• Michael Moore saying that Americans are the stupidest people on the planet?
• Sean Penn stating that Bill O'Reilly and Howard Stern are greater threats to America than Osama Bin Ladin?

Michelle Malkin wrote a book about all these unhinged people. I trust mainstream America more than Hollywood. Far more. Hollywood is in a dream world. I want Hollywood to entertain me. Not to spew moronic statements about political situations which fans then buy in to.

Oh well. I guess in a way their child-like political statements do entertain me. For a good laugh, I like to read the Barbra Streisand "Truth Alerts".

But I'd be happier if they'd just Shut Up And Sing! :p

and I forgot to say earlier... How thrilled was I for Wallace and Grommit?!?!
I *adored* the mini bow ties...

I felt so good for those two men, whom I feel did get a 'body of work' prize. Regardless, I was so happy for them, and they looked very pleasantly surprised and elated.

Though I never did figure out who they were to state , or show, was the voice of Wallace.

*Side note.. when Crash won best pic.. they scanned the audience, and we say a whole bunch of cast stand up and applaud..
Does anyone know who the group of people were that stood in the balcony? They panned to them deliberatly, but who were they?

Ok, who has a recording of the show?

I missed the first half hour, including Stewart's opening everything and Clooney's already-famed acceptance speech ... and a glitch later on caused me to miss Witherspoon's also well-received acceptance. Grrr.

I knew I should never go to an Oscar party if I ever want to actually watch the Oscars. (But, well, at least zapppop and I won Best Costume for our gay cowboy outfits.)

I'd be happier if we talked about the films and the clothes and not about the political leaning of actors following an awards show.

I hate those Hollywood elite types who spew political rhetoric, too!

Ron Silver, Sonny Bono, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ronald Reagan... what were they thinking?


...and since I don't want this thread to end up in the Daily Grind, my .02 on the show:

Jon Stewart - mostly played too safe for my taste, and was just a tad boring (and HiDef was not his friend).

The acceptance speeches - snoozarama again, though Clooney was super-cool and I dug Canemaker thanking his life partner (though I was the only one in the room who knew who Canemaker was).

Lauren Bacall - made me sad.

The actual awards - I have long since given up on caring who score the awards in the big 8 - my own choices are almost always divergent from the Academy's.

I, too, was elated at Nick Park & Steve Box winning for W&G. They so deserved it as the film was wonderful. Peter Sallis was shown, albeit only briefly. He was the elderly man with the red vest (I think it was red) the camera panned only for a few moments. Sallis actually took to the stage for the BAFTA award a few weeks back, he's in his 80's and was rather unsteady on his feet. I suspect that was part of why he did not make the stage last night. I think it was wonderful of Park and Box to bring him along to acknowledge his contribution to the magic and appeal of W&G by his vocal art.
Which is considerable if you ask me.

Here is a picture of Peter Sallis, must be about 10 or so years back. Genial fellow to be sure.

Huzzah for them for pointedly mentioning hand-drawn animation over cg, especially considering the "presenters" of their award.

Favorite Fashions
 

Well, my favorite part about the Oscars is always the fabulous gowns. I always have to choose my favorite "package" (ie: hair, make up, jewels, etc.).

My pics for this years awards go to:

Michelle Williams for bold color, great style, terrific hair and fabulous 1930's classic styling. I think she looked supremely beautiful.



Salma Hayak. Well, she's abut the hottest woman on the planet and the hottest woman at the Oscars. I mean, I would marry her! But, her hair and dress were both stunning. I could NOT stop looking. And, I believe my husband must've been thinking MAGNAFICATION!



And, Uma Thurman looked absolutely stunning!!! She's got such a great figure, thin but with hips and breasts and curves and so tall and lovely. She's looked gorgeous and ethereal!



Other notables were:

Reese Witherspoon's dress fit her style perfectly. It was a bit 1960s Barbie and Reese looks great in good 60's styling.


Keira Knightly - although the dress was a bit too overpowering for her immature body.



Jennifer Aniston was simple, pretty and elegant. She pulls of simplicity better than just about anyone.

While I loved the color of J Lo's dress, she always looks like her clothes are just a tad too tight for her. She always looks a bit stuffed into her clothes.



Jessica Alba and Hillary Swank both looked deformed in their dresses. And, Is Dolly Parton soaked in formaldehyde each night? YUCK!

Okay we need some pictures - here are some of the outfits I find noteworthy:

MIchelle Williams:



Salma Hayek (Loved her - hair flips and all)



Ziya Zhang



Charlieze Theron



Helena Bonham carter



Jennifer Lopez



Keira Knightley

I'm with you all the way... and yes, they panned to him, he was a row in back of the person it "seemed" they were focusing on. I knew the guy I was looking at had to be too young.
It was a wonderful tribute to his contribution, and a wonderful way to end a year that cost them so very much, but has repaid them in so many different ways.




*** NA and Euro.. you two crack me me up.. you must have been writing those at the same time! :snap:

Brokeback was robbed!

Did anyone else find the music played over the acceptance speaches to be extremely annoying?

I can't decide which was more annoying- the music drowning out the overlong speeches, or the overlong speeches...

I'm going to have to disagree with NA and E about Michelle Williams dress. Easily the ugliest thing I've seen in a while. Selma Hayek is beautiful, but it looks like her boob actually inverts where her nipple should be in that pic. Zhiya Zhang looks amazing. Charlize looks like she got tangled in her dress, but it would be hard for me to ever think she looked bad. Reese's dress was my favorite, so classy. Uma did look quite divine.

As far as the actual Oscars, I missed a great deal of them, and the only film I'd seen was Crash. I thought Crash was ok bordering on semi-good, but if that was the best movie of the whole year I'll be pretty sad.

I only saw a bit of Jon, which was sad becasuse he's the whole reason I wanted to watch. He did seem a bit off his game to me though. And I LOVE Jon.

Yup. I mean, The Bow That Ate Charlize was probably the scariest, but Michelle Williams dress was just ugly. Hate the wide neck, hate the boob pancake ruffles, hate the weird belt thing, and now that I've seen the back I hate that weird Y-shaped patch arcoss the butt. The whole thing screams scary polyester to me, even if that's not what it's made of.

And I hated what Uma was wearing, but that's so often the case that it's hardly worth noting. Her hair was great, but the dress was so mish-mosh. And every time I saw her I was reminded of Lucky Charms and the horseshoe marshmallows.

And Helena Bonham Carter was inexplicably wearing bad stripper shoes. I mean, the dress was bad enough - not totally awful, but a little prom-y for the Oscars. But the shoes! Somewhere a half-naked woman named Candi can't find her shoes.

Oh, the Oscars are my Super Bowl too, but I haven't been able to post until now. And I'm running out the door so more to come later, probably, but I really only have one thing to say:

Oh, Paul Haggis. Your film is a hammer, not a mirror? Truer words were never spoken.

I love this article from the Washington Post.

Pretty scathing:

Did anyone catch the acceptance speech for the 'Crash' Best Pic win? A female producer stepped up to the mike at the very end and thanked her husband and her wife. No joke. I want the 411 on that...

Wow, that's some terrible writing.

She was rushing to finish as the "get the hell off the stage" music began and said "wife" instead of "daughter".

Ha ha. So much for the lesbian polygamy rumors. :D
Source

They usually don't cut off the final speech with music unless it's really, really long. I remember the speech for 'Schindler's List' to be mega-long.

Love Ang Lee's quote here:

And the Crash producer had to speak the entire time because Paul Haggis had previously embarassed himself on worldwide television, and precluded his fellow winning screenwriter from speaking, by rambling on and on incoherently through intense nervousness - and then proceeding to ramble about his intense nervousness.

Contrast that, if you will, with Ang Lee's eloquent, beautiful, substantive and gracious acceptance speech for best director ... and you have, if I may be so bold, yet another example of the ways in which Brokeback Mountain outshines Crash in class and style and quality.


Bah to the Academy. But business as usual, if you look at most of the Best Picture choices through the years.

Who is the academy? How do they choose them?

Membership in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is by invitation only. The Academy sends out invitations to a very limited number of qualified members of the film community once a year. Membership in the Academy normally fluctuates between 6,000 and 6,500 voting members.



Candidates for membership are proposed by current Academy members and then voted on by committees consisting of prominent representatives of the Academy's 14 branches - directors, screenwriters, documentary filmmakers, etc.

A candidate normally has the backing of at least two members of the branch for which he/she may qualify. Candidates must receive an endorsement by the appropriate branch executive committee before their name is given to the Board of Governors for its approval.


The Academy has tightened their entrance standards, with only the most impressive candidates invited to join the distinguished group. Academy Award nominees, if not already members, are automatically considered for membership (but not guaranteed an invitation to join).


The majority of the members are from the United States of America, however membership is not limited to U.S. citizens. Members remain eligible to vote until they have passed on or opted for retired (non-voting) status.

SOURCE: The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

As long as I remain enough of an Academy "member" to keep getting free screeners, I'm cool with not being able to actually vote.

But, ya know, if I ever got an invitation to "upgrade" my AMPAStatus, I would probably not refuse.

A couple of thoughts.

I haven't seen Crash, so I cannot compare (I wonder how many people posting that BBM was "robbed" have seen Crash?). I HAVE seen BBM and enjoyed the film. While it is bold in its theme/storyline, it has quite a number of flaws. If it were not for the hardcore theme, it would be, at best, a mediocre movie. Should the theme be enough to win "Best Picture"?

Did Helena Bonham Carter look in the mirror before she left? WTF was up with that hair.

I do not watch The Daily Show, but I still got Jon Stewart. While I enjoyed most of his shtick, he seemed ill-prepared. He didn't seem to fit in. The show needs the comic relief, but somebody a little better prepped.

The "commercials" were hilarious. I think they could have done much more with them.

I am definitely the woman in this family: I was MUCH more into the dresses than Susan!

How do you get the screeners? Can one sign up for this somewhere?

While I don't remember who said it (it might have been the after show), I thought someone alluded to becoming a member automatically if you win an Oscar?

When the theme is uncommon and daring, I think so. When it is trying to chip away at long held perceptions of a certain group of people, I think so.

I've seen all the films for Best Picture and most of them that were nominated in other categories. 'Crash' should have came in 6th in line for Best Pics. (BBM, GNAGL, Capote, Munich, Walk the Line, Crash...)

But, it's over now. I'm slowly getting over the fact that it didn't win. Kind of like a non-Steelers fan two days after the Super Bowl. (The Steelers won, right?)

:)

correct.

and maybe if you wear your wife's Oscar gown around town after the telecast too. LOL