Oscar Winners are in!

[Eric T. Jones]

us.imdb.com/features/rto/2007/oscars

Best Picture
Babel (SHOULD WIN)
The Departed (#2 pick)
Letters from Iwo Jima (WILL WIN)
Little Miss Sunshine
The Queen

Best Director
Clint Eastwood- Letters from Iwo Jima
Stephen Frears- The Queen
Paul Greengrass- United 93
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu- Babel (SHOULD WIN)
Martin Scorsese- The Departed (WILL WIN)

Best Original Screenplay
Babel (SHOULD WIN)
Letters from Iwo Jima
Little Miss Sunshine
Pan's Labyrinth
The Queen (WILL WIN)

Best Adapted Screenplay
Borat (WHAAAAAAAT?)
Children of Men (#2 pick)
The Departed
Little Children (WILL AND SHOULD WIN)
Notes on a Scandal

Best Cinematography
The Black Dahlia
Children of Men (SHOULD WIN)
The Illusionist (#2 pick)
Pan's Labyrinth (WILL WIN)
The Prestige (apparently "muddy" is synonymous with "best")

Best Editing
Babel (SHOULD WIN)
Blood Diamond
Children of Men (#2 pick, though I would have said "sound")
The Departed
United 93 (WILL WIN)

Best Art Direction
Dreamgirls (WILL WIN)
The Good Shepherd (...)
Pan's Labyrinth (SHOULD WIN)
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
The Prestige (I think you meant "The Illusionist", AMPAS)

Best Costume Design
Curse of the Golden Flower
The Devil Wears Prada (SHOULD WIN)
Dreamgirls (WILL WIN)
Marie Antionette
The Queen

Best Original Score
Babel (#2 pick)
The Good German (#3 pick)
Notes on a Scandal (SHOULD WIN)
Pan's Labyrinth
The Queen (WILL WIN)

Best Makeup
Apocalypto (#2 pick)
Click
Pan's Labyrinth (WILL AND SHOULD WIN)

Best Sound
Apocalypto
Blood Diamond (haven't seen)
Dreamgirls (WILL WIN)
Flags of Our Fathers (haven't seen)
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

Best Sound Editing
Apocalypto
Blood Diamond
Flags of Our Fathers
Letters from Iwo Jima (WILL WIN)
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

Best Animated Feature
Cars (WILL WIN)
Happy Feet (haven't seen)
Monster House (haven't seen)

While I've disagreed with Steve Rhodes lately, I'm bound to take his word for it that "Monster House" is a good movie. Perhaps I should rent it and find out for myself. The Academy should have taken "A Scanner Darkly" seriously, though; that is the Best Animated Film of the Year.

"The Prestige" sticks its rear into some very unwanted places. Its murky and muddy cinematography makes one question how it could have possibly replaced "Babel". As well, how did "The Prestige" replace "The Illusionist" in Best Art Direction? Perhaps it was an error on the part of the Academy's voters. See both films; "The Illusionist" clearly had more to remember and more to praise in that department alone.

It disappoints me that "The Illusionist" isn't receiving the attention it deserves- nor are "Children of Men" OR "Little Children"- but my second pick, "Babel", should win nearly everything it's nominated for.

At least no "World Trade Center" garbage to be found.

"Blood Diamond" I still have very little interest in seeing.

Besides Best Picture, one category that I can agree with the Academy on is Best Original Score. All 5 are excellent scores. While "The Illusionist" should have been there, a similar score from the same composer (Philip Glass) is for "Notes on a Scandal".

Not listed is the Best Original Song category. "Dreamgirls" takes a whopping 3 out of the 5 nominations. The surprise is, of course, that it didn't get nominated for Best Picture. Neither did last year's Musical/Comedy Golden Globe winner "Walk the Line", and I felt the Academy made wise choices both times.

Another surprise is a nomination for "Click". Didn't see that one coming, even if it was a make-up nomination. "Apocalypto" has amazing make-up jobs in the extremely disgusting piercings and very, very graphic fatalities (Gibson manages to make it just a notch below NC-17). However, "Pan's Labyrinth" has one particular gruesome effect that I'm still scratching my head about. The rest of the visual effects are too darkly lit to really find exquisite detail.

It's wrong that "The Good Shepherd" got any nominations. I will admit the transition shots from stock footage to set were interesting, though, but it takes more than that for good art directing. At least it wasn't nominated for Best Make-Up- because there wasn't any. Well, not for aging, anyway.

"The Queen" is a critics' favorite. While I'm not putting it in the same high place they are, I still don't think it's overrated. It's a calm, subdued, non-manipulative contemporary history piece, and I wish more movies were like it.

For such a great movie year, these nominations are somewhat disappointing. They could have picked way better movies in some of the categories, but most of them are still quite good.

[Skywalker]

What the HELL is Dead man's sh- I mean Chest doing w/ oscar nominations?!

and few details that you failed to mention
- An Inconvenient Truth is up for 2 nominations, Best Documentary Feature and Best Song (Mellisa Ethridge)
- Dreamgirls has got a 3 in 5 chance of winning best song
- no snakes on a plane for best song T-T

[Eric T. Jones]

I'm glad "Pirates" didn't get another Best Actor nomination. Speaking of, that category is probably the only one that I haven't seen any of (Blood Diamond, Venus, Half Nelson, The Pursuit of Happyness, The Last King of Scotland); I went to the theaters a whopping 61 times last year, and although some were double-viewings, 2005 carry-overs and revival showings of classic films, it was enough for me to be familiar with almost all the awards slate for once.

I did mention the Best Original Song nomination sweep for "Dreamgirls"- I just didn't list all the nominees.

[panama]

Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio, "Blood Diamond"; Ryan Gosling, "Half Nelson"; Peter O'Toole, "Venus"; Will Smith, "The Pursuit of Happyness"; Forest Whitaker, "The Last King of Scotland."

power to Will Smith! This brotha definatly deserves to win.

[kenny]

Where's a best picture nomination for "Children of Men?"
Or best sound?
Damn Oscars.

At least we have a few nominations that were WELL deserved. (Like for cinematography. "Children" DEFINITELY deserves it.)

[Eric T. Jones]

"Babel" was one of the few the Oscars missed out on for Cinematography, but with "Children of Men" and "The Illusionist", it's all good. "Children of Men" should definitely NOT go home empty-handed (and neither should "Babel" or "The Illusionist" and its atrociously-low amount of nominations (one)).

I may see "The Last King of Scotland" and "Venus"; want to save "The Pursuit of Happyness" for when my family goes out to see a movie, as it just seems more appropriate that way. "Half Nelson" I half-noticed in Cinearts and skipped it.

Personal Best Picture ranking:
1. Babel (***1/2)
2. The Departed (***1/2)
3. Little Miss Sunshine (***1/2)
4. Letters from Iwo Jima (***1/2)
5. The Queen (***)

I really don't expect "The Departed" to win; the Academy's been repeatedly criticized for snubbing Scorsese, but feel they're immune to it. Possibly a Best Director, which will fume up many conspiracy theorists as they already have been with the Globes and last year with Ang Lee's win for "Brokeback Mountain". If "Babel" wins, it just might be perfect fodder for these flamers, but I still want it to win because it really is the best of the 5. [the Scorsese snubs are, with my rating: Taxi Driver (***), Raging Bull (**), Goodfellas (haven't seen), Gangs of New York (**), The Aviator (***1/2)]

A "Little Miss Sunshine" win just might have me cheering like a, um, little miss sunshine, if only for the fact that the Academy gave it to a laugh-out-loud comedy for once (it does have some tragic turns, but they're quickly turned into opportunities for deliciously dark humor).

Also, I forgot to mention-

Ennio Morricone, the composer for such wonderful Sergio Leone films as the "Dollars" trilogy, "Once Upon a Time in the West", and the best score ever from the best composer ever, "Once Upon a Time in America" (which didn't get nominated because 1. the film was cut up and butchered, and appeared on many Worst of the Year lists (years later, the original cut was on many Best of the Decade lists) and 2. the proper paperwork wasn't filed) is FINALLY getting the recognition he deserves with a special Honorary Oscar.

[Skywalker]

admin said:

I really don't expect "The Departed" to win; the Academy's been repeatedly criticized for snubbing Scorsese, but feel they're immune to it.

haha you wanna say that again?

few notes from the oscars
- Pan's labyrinth won many awards... but not best foreign film
- Departed won, get over it
- Dead Man's S*** got an oscar... how dare they...
- Inconvnient truth sweeps it's 2 awards
- The Royalty sweep the best acting categories
- THEY PLAYED THE UNTOUCHABLES THEME!!!!!
- IT'S THOSE MUTHAF***IN SNAKES ON THAT MUTHAF***IN PLANE!!! in shillouette!
- Ellen Degeneres wasn't all that bad
- Al Gore... getting cut off just as he was announcing his candidancy... brilliant


I think that's it

[Eric T. Jones]

Yeah, my predictions started to change, but right when there was that thunderous applause during Scorsese's nomination, I knew what would win Best Director and Best Picture.

The Academy was tired of being predictable, I guess.

They flipped at the chance to give a real comedy (and a funny one at that) Best Picture, but "The Departed" is an excellent film.

Full post:

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