For this week’s issue of EW (out today) I was asked to put together a status report on this year’s Best Picture race. Read the full post.
Nov 28
2008
04:02 PM ET
The top 8 Best Picture contenders?
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Good list. The only one that raises questions is ‘Australia.’ You could probably replace it with ‘Wall-E’. Also take a look at “The Wrestler” starring Mickey Rourke. This film will definitely raise some eyebrows.
Lastly, never count out Clint Eastwood with ‘Gran Torino’. I think he’s not only going to grab best Actor, but also best Director for it. And naturally, this film will almost assuredly be up there for best picture. Laugh now, but don’t be surprised when the critics go crazy. This won’t be the first time Ol’ Clint’s done this. ‘Million Dollar Baby’, anyone?
Milk is a definite lock. It’s a beautiful film (well acted and well directed). So far, Milk and the Dark Knight are the only major Oscar films that are accessible to the public (perhaps Slumdog). Of the two, Milk is infinitely better. The Dark Knight is a solid film, but Milk is able to challenge you both intellectually and emotionally. Also, I feel like there is more depth to the characters in Milk. I felt an emotional connection to each of the categories, and it was certainly more relevant today.
australia was offensively boring. NO chance for any major nominations.
i think The Reader is really going to surprise.
Milk is Best Pic and Director for sure. It’s a very classy film.
Slumdog Millionaire was awesome! Danny Boyle should get a nom for sure.
I’ve read countless reviews stating that Milk is a pretty conventional biopic. Of course, I’m sure Penn is great, but most comments about the supporting cast is that they’re all good, but none exactly revelatory. Which basically puts it in the same boat as TDK, where one performance grabs the attention, while the rest provide more-than-able support. I’m certain willing to believe that Milk may be the more “challenging” film of the two, but I doubt it has any more pure emotional punch. As for relevance, Prop 8 certainly renders Milk topical, but TDK’s emphasis on public wiretapping, unpopular “heroes”, terrorist policies, etc., certainly make it palatable in today’s cultural climate. Again, I’m not necessarily arguing that it win Best Picture, only that it not be underestimated. And the film deals in chaos, which, when conveyed effectively, should never rest in a too-tidy package. It’s only bloated if you can’t handle a film that’s over two hours; virtually every scene is crucial
Don’t sleep on “Rachel Getting Married” it is one of the best review movies of the year. Jonathan Demme is beloved in Hollywood, this is a great comeback for him ( The Academy loves a comeback) , and he led many actors to Oscar nominations ( and wins).
Dark Knight deserved not only the nomination but to win as well. But my guess is it will go to “Milk”. Like a previous post said, it will be Hollywood’s way of sticking their hands in their ears and spitting on the majority of voters in California who passed Prop. 8. Hollywood has always been pro-homosexual, and will use their power in the media to continue to promote this lifestyle choice by awarding every Oscar available to “Milk”. It’s enough to make a life-long movie lover like me stop going to the theaters. I hate my hard earned money going to a bunch of intolerant bigots who hate freedom of choice, freedom of speech and freedom of religion.
Australia isn’t even in the top 8. Not only did it have a lousy weekend at the box-office, it received terrible reviews. Box-office doesn’t really mean a whole lot in regards to Oscar nominations, though. Plenty of movies that performed poorly at the box-office have received Oscar noms.
I also think that “Frost/Nixon” and “Revolutionary Road” are shaky. RR might get in, a la “Atonement” last year, but it looks (sight unseen) like the type of movie that might just barely get into the top 5.
“The Dark Knight” is at least in the top 3 right now. The box-office and the reviews are amazing. The only downside is that it’s a superhero movie, which the Academy has yet to embrace. But in the past decade, they nominated all three of the “Lord of the Rings” films for Best Picture and even awarded the last one the top prize (with a clean sweep, no less). Yeah, it’s true that the were more like the classic epics that the Academy likes, but “The Dark Knight” was transcendent of the hero genre.
Why all the animosity towards Australia? Just because it didn’t perform so great at the box office as the dumb “Four Christmases” doesn’t mean its not a good movie.
WHERE IS WALL-E?????????
The only problem with many on your list is that all the films are not released “wide” and therefore people in smaller towns like mine have to wait for DVD or after the announcements for the film to come to town.
That is why your #8 and it was not great has a better than even chance against a movie the “voters” will not see or want to see such as “Slumdog.”
That is why the best movie does not always win but often the most expensive. The odd thing about Australia is that it did not have a memorable score like “Out of Africa” did. It did have “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” in it and the question is why?
Heloise
“as for Wall*E…manipulative, simplistic dreck. Ironic that “we” were all being chastised for becoming complacent, spoon-fed simps by this ridiculous film…and yet the very act of us reclining in our stadium seats and stuffing ourselves with gargantuan quantities of popcorn was a HUGE disconnect”
*facepalms*
I’m so sick of this argument.
First of all, the movie has a message; love. Yes, there’s social commentary, as you will find social commentary in many animated masterpieces (ever hear of a little filmmaker called MIYAZAKI?) Manipulative? What’s wrong with telling kids, hey, maybe it’s not okay to sit around all day, eat like pigs and screw up the planet? There ARE people like that out there; all they do is sit and watch TV. My Aunt is a prime example. She weighs about 350 lbs, has type 2 diabetes and just sits all day. This is becoming more and more prevalent. So what’s wrong with saying thats not OK?
PS- No one is sticking a gun to your head and making you eat that popcorn.