The OAO 77th Annual Academy Awards Thread

[Guest Posada20]

Foreign film was crappy as A Very Long Engagement with the lovely Audrey Tautou (Don't jump on the bandwagon downhome, I see you have Amelie) wasn't even nominated.

The foreign films nominated were fine, but it is a sin that we didn't have HoFD or AVLE in there. Engagement is an outstanding film, I can't wait to own the DVD!

 

Audrey Tautou, oh yes...

Off topic

 

I knew it! Going over your list, it seems like that we have the same taste in women and movies. I know you like Scarlett & Keira and so do I, do you like Katie Holmes also? I also like Dominique Swain, she was in the Lolita remake which you got recently.

[Downhome 0]

Yep, I like Katie Holmes a lot, as well as Dominique Swain. Especially Homes though, she was great in Pieces of April, a highly underrated film in my view. I know many critics liked it, but you hardly ever hear people talk about that on in conversations about film. I've met very few people in real life who have ever seen it.

[The Czech Republic 0]

Yep, I like Katie Holmes a lot, as well as Dominique Swain. Especially Homes though, she was great in Pieces of April, a highly underrated film in my view. I know many critics liked it, but you hardly ever hear people talk about that on in conversations about film. I've met very few people in real life who have ever seen it.

...I'd fuck her?

[DMann2003 0]

ah well, as much as I wanted to see Martin win, I can't be upset with MDB (too much)

 

Hopefully "The Departed" is real good and Marty gets up there again...and promptly loses to Eastwood for "Flags of Our Fathers" :-(

[DMann2003 0]

Hey Bob just curious, because you never posted a review of Hillary Swank's SNL show, what'd you think of Finese's Morgan Freeman on WU? I thought it was funny and dead on myself.

[Vern Gagne 0]

From his days on In Living Color. I never thought, Jamie Fox would ever win an Academy Award.He was deserving, but he's come along way in a relatively short period.

[Guest El Satanico]

I just hope Foxx's post Oscar career doesn't go the way of Mira Sorvino, Tomeii, Cuba, Halle and Hillary Swank prior to MDB.

 

I'm sure there's more out of nowhere Oscar winners that disappeared, but that's all off the top of my head.

[Guest Vitamin X]

Tomei has done great, but not noticeable work since her win.

 

Cuba Gooding though, that man needed the $80 Chris Rock sent him.

[godthedog 0]

they could've made any number of choices that i'd be happy with in the major categories, just because the list of nominees this year was so competitive, but i'm pretty damn satisfied.

 

i didn't LOVE 'baby', but i'm very happy with the recognition that it's getting. i'm more happy with the recognition 'sideways' is getting for its nominations, & i didn't expect it to win anyway. 'the aviator' was, flat out, not a very good movie. 'baby' was. scorsese did not deserve to win this year. neither did clint, technically speaking, but clint did a lot more to earn it.

 

i watched them on & off with a friend of mine, and when 'eternal sunshine' won best screenplay we both screamed, jumped up & down and hugged each other.

[Guest Vitamin X]

Ha, the same thing happened with myself and my mom watching the Oscars. The second we saw that it was up against the Aviator my mom said "oof. Tough luck on this one."

 

I liked Charlie Kaufman's nervous "Oh god that makes me nervous" speech when he looked at the camera.

[Yuna_Firerose 0]

 

Aww... he's wearing a 'Gonzo' pin in honor of Hunter S. Thompson. *sigh* Such a great author will definetly be missed.

[Ted the Poster 0]

Meh. Thompson was okay as an author. Some of his stuff made him seem like a fucking extremist nutjob though.

[Jingus 0]

I accidentally slept through the whole show, which is too bad, cuz the results look pretty damn good. Don't really have any major complaints overall. I'm particularly glad to be able to say the phrase "Academy Awards-winning actress Cate Blanchett and writer Charlie Kaufman". And does anyone else find it really fucking weird that the chick from The Next Karate Kid has become a TWO-TIME, TWO-TIME, TWO-TIME Oscar winner?

[Slayer 0]

Someone told me what happens at the end of MDB

 

I laughed

[Slayer 0]

EDIT: I don't know what is airing where, but I'll probably be seeing one of the non-MDB best movie nominees tonight

[2GOLD 0]

Tomei has done great, but not noticeable work since her win.

 

Cuba Gooding though, that man needed the $80 Chris Rock sent him.

 

Not really, he sadly made tons of money off "Snow Dogs".

And I still don't know how that happened.

 

As for the Oscars, meh. Kaufman won, the two and three seed in actor didn't get nominated, and Beyonce sang too many damn songs.

 

And as people expected, Chris Rock was extremely tame and will probably never get to host this thing again.

[Black Lushus 0]

was their the slightest bit of tension between Sean Penn and Chris Rock or was it just jokes?

[Slayer 0]

Penn apparently forgot that Spicoli was just a character he played several years ago

[Black Lushus 0]

Sean Penn really appeared to be wacked outta his mind last night...or is that normal for him these days?

 

anyway, unfortunantly for Rock, I'm pretty sure Penn could waste him...

[Slayer 0]

EDIT: Damn IMDB no hotlinking

 

Might as well make use of the space

 

My g/f just called and said she wants to wait until DVD to get/see Finding Neverland, which means we can see Sideways or Aviator tonight

[Hank Kingsley 0]

Slayer, go with Sideways.

[CBright7831 0]

I just hope Foxx's post Oscar career doesn't go the way of Mira Sorvino, Tomeii, Cuba, Halle and Hillary Swank prior to MDB.

 

I'm sure there's more out of nowhere Oscar winners that disappeared, but that's all off the top of my head.

Here is Foxx's upcoming schedule:

 

Damage Control (2007) (announced)

Miami Vice (2006) (pre-production) .... Det. Ricardo Tubbs

Jarhead (2005) (filming) .... Sgt. Siek

Stealth (2005) (post-production) .... Lt. Henry Purcell

 

http://imdb.com/name/nm0004937/

[CBright7831 0]

Folks, thanks for making this thread successful.

 

We'll see you all next year.

 

[Guest Vitamin X]

EDIT: Damn IMDB no hotlinking

 

Might as well make use of the space

 

My g/f just called and said she wants to wait until DVD to get/see Finding Neverland, which means we can see Sideways or Aviator tonight

Either is a good choice. Out of the 5, I enjoyed Sideways the most, but Aviator was a damn good movie as well.

 

You should probably still see MDB though, even if you already know what happens at the end. It's only fair.

[Ripper 0]

EDIT: Damn IMDB no hotlinking

 

Might as well make use of the space

 

My g/f just called and said she wants to wait until DVD to get/see Finding Neverland, which means we can see Sideways or Aviator tonight

Either is a good choice. Out of the 5, I enjoyed Sideways the most, but Aviator was a damn good movie as well.

 

You should probably still see MDB though, even if you already know what happens at the end. It's only fair.

I don't see how you like Aviator more than Million Dollar Baby. Well, I can see how you would, but not at the amount that you do. I personally think MDB was abetter movie, now that i have FINALLY seen both, and aviator...while good...was a litttle...ehh.

[Slayer 0]

Final decision is Aviator

 

We'll wait for the DVDs for Sideways and Neverland

[Guest Vitamin X]

EDIT: Damn IMDB no hotlinking

 

Might as well make use of the space

 

My g/f just called and said she wants to wait until DVD to get/see Finding Neverland, which means we can see Sideways or Aviator tonight

Either is a good choice. Out of the 5, I enjoyed Sideways the most, but Aviator was a damn good movie as well.

 

You should probably still see MDB though, even if you already know what happens at the end. It's only fair.

I don't see how you like Aviator more than Million Dollar Baby. Well, I can see how you would, but not at the amount that you do. I personally think MDB was abetter movie, now that i have FINALLY seen both, and aviator...while good...was a litttle...ehh.

Everyone's entitled to their own opinion I guess, but personally out of the 5 nominated, I enjoyed Sideways the most by far. Aviator was second, Ray 3rd, then MDB, and finally Finding Neverland.

 

Oh and Slayer you should really still try to see Sideways if you get a chance, though I'm not sure what you'd think of it, if it'd be your cup of tea. My first impression after seeing The Aviator was "Whoa.. that was fucking weird, but it was good." whereas I was just gushing about Sideways and immediately starting recommending it to most people I know.

[Guest Vitamin X]

Also, here's some reviews of the show last night for some who missed it. I'm glad to see I wasn't alone in my opinion of Hilary Swank last night.

Rock Makes for Steady Oscars

 

By Sarah Hall

 

Chris Rock contends that straight men don't watch the Oscars (news - web sites). Nielsen Media Research begs to differ.

 

Per the data compilers, some 33 million households tuned in Sunday to watch the 77th Annual Academy Awards (news - web sites), putting the show's average audience at 41.5 million viewers and making it easily the most watched awards show of the year. (Like that was ever in doubt.)

 

For a recap, NBC's 2005 Golden Globes telecast averaged 16.8 million, CBS' 2005 Grammycast averaged 18.8 million, CBS' CMA Awards coverage drew 18.5 million, and CBS' 2005 People's Choice Awards managed just 9.9 million.

 

All told, an estimated 70 million viewers watched all or part of Sunday night's Oscars, and while they may not admit it, we're willing to bet at least some of those viewers were men of the hetero persuasion.

 

Despite a slight down tick from last year's Oscar ratings, when 43.5 million viewers tuned in to watch The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King make Academy Award history, ABC posted its best ratings among adults in the 18 to 34 demographic in three years--precisely the result Rock was hired to achieve.

 

Turns out, like the ceremony itself, reviews of the telecast were a mixed bag.

 

The show kicked off with a standing ovation seemingly in support for first-time host Rock, who stirred up controversy prior to the ceremony with his aforementioned dig at the award show's target audience during an interview with Entertainment Weekly.

 

If the live audience was representative of viewers at home, Rock's opening monologue--a hit-and-run affair mocking everyone from President Bush (news - web sites) to Jude Law to Cuba Gooding Jr. to Nicole Kidman to Michael Moore to his Pootie Tang-playing self--initially drew laughs, then polite giggles, then the occasional chuckle to avoid uncomfortable silence, as Rock neared the 10-minute mark.

 

"Chris Rock struggled to be provocative," opined the New York Times. But the Associated Press said "Rock scored big" and gave the usually stodgy affair "a needed pick-me-up, presiding over the broadcast with saucy finesse."

 

But one critic's "saucy finesse" is another's "mean-spirited" attack.

 

"Though a brilliant and caustic stand-up comedian, Rock's stint as an Oscar host was strangely lame and mean-spirited," said the Washington Post. The sentiment was echoed by the New York Daily News: "Rock was neither edgy nor funny enough, and some of his remarks were considered mean enough to prompt a rebuttal--by no less than Sean Penn." (In one of the night's edgier moments, Penn took the stage as a presenter, apologized for his "compromised sense of humor" and defended Law as "one of our finest actors." Rock later made light of Penn's remarks.)

 

While Salon.com described the evening as "Oscar on life support," the Drudge Report offered the contrasting view that the show was "Back from the dead."

 

Ohio's Marion Star newspaper declared that Rock's hosting made for "an enjoyable, special night," but the Salt Lake Tribune posited that "if they give Oscars for boring, this year's telecast wins big."

 

The New York Post put it simply: "Chris doesn't rock." The Boston Globe said, "Rock got the show rolling, but it never hit the fast lane."

 

As for the vaunted format tweaks--i.e., presenting some of the lower-key trophies in the audience or via the onstage "firing line" (in which all nominees in certain categories were brought up en masse before the winner was announced)--critics weren't overwhelmed.

 

"All the little stylistic changes...couldn't save the show from devolving into the overblown TV event it always wants to be," said the Los Angeles Times. "[Rock] shook things up about as much as could be expected when you've got a five-second delay on your script, and a movie career--his own namely--to think about."

 

But the criticism directed toward Rock and the ceremony in general was nothing. Gossip blog Defamer.com took aim at Million Dollar Baby's Hilary Swank, maligning her Best Actress acceptance as "one of the worst speeches in the history of spoken language."

 

Ouch.

 

Whether a toned-down Rock made for a memorable or bland evening, the telecast proved satisfactory for ABC, posting more than decent ratings in what was considered an unappealing race between little-seen films and avoiding dreaded indecency fines.

 

Meanwhile, though Rock was on his best behavior onstage, there was no telling what the remainder of the night held for the comedian once he was out of the FCC spotlight.

 

"The rest of the night, I'll be doing various drugs," he joked. (We think.)

 

What exactly was the dialogue between Sean Penn and Chris Rock there? I missed Rock making light of Penn's remarks, but was well aware of what he said in the beginning of the show about Law, which I kind of felt was a little unfair to Jude since he is a great actor, but Penn kind of took it a bit too seriously.

[Ravenbomb 0]

was their the slightest bit of tension between Sean Penn and Chris Rock or was it just jokes?

I dunno, maybe he didn't get that Rock was kidding?

 

 

Well, I was 1 for 2. There's always The Departed.

[cabbageboy 0]

Ok I just saw Million Dollar Baby today and the first 90m or so was real good....and then the last half hour of it absolutely fucking sucked. This film much like Kill Bill 2 had a final 30m that just sucked the life clear out of it. Would anyone care to address this in particular that pissed me off to no end:

 

What the fuck happened to the bitch that crippled Hilary here? I mean, they just act like she retained her title and Hilary jobbed even though she did a BLATANT cheap shot in between rounds. They never even refer to her again in the film actually. It seems to me that if a boxer did a blatant cheap shot in between rounds and crippled his/her opponent that would be grounds to strip said boxer of the title, be banned for life, and likely even arrested. Yet for the remainder of the film Hilary's mom and even Eastwood go around saying "You lost, etc." to her....thing is she DID NOT lose! At the least she would have won by a DQ due to that bullshit cheap shot, and I have to wonder if the ref would be within his rights to award her the title.

 

Yet in the film the bitch never gets a comeuppance, never is shown being drug away in chains, never shown on ESPN being stripped of the title, and so on. It really pissed me off and combine this with the last half hour being excruciating with Hilary dying in a rehab center, it made me simply detest the film by the time it was over, when at the 90m mark it was headed towards easy ***1/2 to **** territory.

Comments?