So, the Oscars are over for another year and we can now get back to obsessing over summer blockbusters for the next few months. Before that, however, a few thoughts to leave you with. All in all it ran the way it had been predicted, although there were a few surprises, not least the fact that all four acting awards went to Europeans (how that must have hurt), the Coens brothers walked away with six awards between them, Sweeney picked up the Oscar for Best Production Design (justified but unexpected), and PT Anderson left empty-handed after having created a film for the ages (There Will Be Blood picked up two in total), as did Diving Bell And The Butterfly and Roger Deakins (perhaps undone by having two nominations). Bourne, on the other hand, won three awards. My favourite winners of the night were Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, for Best Original Song (Falling Slowly) from Once. I loved their speech, I loved the audience's reception to their victory, and I loved the fact that they allowed Marketa back in stage to finish what she had to say. I'm not how that happened but I'm sure glad it did. (My second favourite speech belonged to Javier Bardem.) Congrats too to Brits Suzie Templeton and Hugh Welchman who won the Short Film (Animated) category with their version of Peter & The Wolf.The Winners
BEST PICTURE
No Country for Old Men
BEST DIRECTOR
No Country for Old Men Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
BEST ACTOR
Daniel Day-Lewis in There Will Be Blood
BEST ACTRESS
Marion Cotillard in La Vie en Rose
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Javier Bardem in No Country for Old Men
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Tilda Swinton in Michael Clayton
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Juno Written by Diablo Cody
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
No Country for Old Men Written for the screen by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
The Counterfeiters Austria
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Taxi to the Dark Side Alex Gibney and Eva Orner
ANIMATED FILM
Ratatouille Brad Bird
ART DIRECTION
Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Art Direction: Dante Ferretti Set Decoration: Francesca Lo Schiavo
CINEMATOGRAPHY
There Will Be Blood Robert Elswit
COSTUME DESIGN
Elizabeth: The Golden Age Alexandra Byrne
DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
Freeheld Cynthia Wade and Vanessa Roth
FILM EDITING
The Bourne Ultimatum Christopher Rouse
MAKEUP
La Vie en Rose Didier Lavergne and Jan Archibald
MUSIC (SCORE)
Atonement Dario Marianelli
MUSIC (SONG)
Falling Slowly from "Once" Music and Lyric by Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova
SHORT FILM (ANIMATED)
Peter & the Wolf Suzie Templeton and Hugh Welchman
SHORT FILM (LIVE ACTION)
Le Mozart des Pickpockets (The Mozart of Pickpockets) Philippe Pollet-Villard
SOUND EDITING
The Bourne Ultimatum Karen Baker Landers and Per Hallberg
SOUND MIXING
The Bourne Ultimatum Scott Millan, David Parker and Kirk Francis
VISUAL EFFECTS
The Golden Compass Michael Fink, Bill Westenhofer, Ben Morris and Trevor Wood
14 comments:
I really wish Diving Bell had have taken something. I think Deakins most likely had his votes split, but Elswit was still a worthy recipient. I'm still really surprised Blood didn't take pic; personally, I was rooting for No Country, but was shocked by its win.
So happy Cotillard took Actress, and I really rather wish Depp had have won. It was the riskiest performance of the bunch and he owned it. Day-Lewis' performance will go down as one of the greats though, whereas I think Sweeney is sadly to be relegated to the realm of cult masterpiece - people on the whole really haven't cottoned on to its brilliance.
Swinton over Blanchett was a huge surprise, and as happy as I am Swinton is now an Oscar winner, I wish it were for a better part in a better film (Clayton, I think, is great but overrated).
On the whole though, pretty good. One thing though - how the hell did Transformers not win visual effects?!
I'm not sure how Jesse James or Diving Bell didn't win anything.
Deakins lost out by being too good and too prolific. I can't believe he hasn't an Oscar to his name. (Maybe they'll wait till he's 98 before giving him one!)
And don't get me started on Depp v DDL.
Not sure about Swinton myself. She's a great actress but that role didn't, IMHO, deserve an Oscar. She was good, no question, but little gold man good...
And I'm with you on the VFX front. How did Transformers not win. The work is spectacular. Whereas that in The Golden Compass... well, just look at those polar bears. Yikes.
I know. Jesse James and Diving Bell should have at the very least taken a token technical prize apiece. A crying shame.
Deakins not having an Oscar is positively ridiculous. As you say though, he's so prolific (as his two nods here testify), when it comes to prizegiving, I guess it just doesn't work in his favour.
DDL was brilliant in that film, there is absolutely no question whatsoever. But watching the clips of the Best Actor nominess, I *still* got chills from Depp's Epiphany snippet. I have no idea what the guy will have to do if he's every going to take one home.
Swinton I adore, but I agree entirely. I felt that about all of the acting noms for Clayton - great, great performers, all of whom have had better roles in better films and given better performances. Blanchett's performance was stunning, a total immersion and a bold one at that.
Even if I hated Transformers (I don't - I think it's a great big stupid delight with which I have a lot of fun), I'd still feel exactly the same. The work there is basically the best example of visual effects I've ever seen.
It's funny, I felt the same thing when they showed the Epiphany clip. Whenever I see it, it makes me want to see the film there and then. I was surprised too that he didn't present anything.
I loved it when they rang through the 79 Best Picture winners. It started off so well, but there's some real howlers when they get to the 80s and 90s. Not necessarily bad films (although some certainly are), just embarrassing choices...
I haven't seen the ceremony (yet), but it's obviously a lot more fun that our "César"!!
Anyway, i'm so happy for Marion Cotillard. She really deserves everything that is happening, all those prizes, it's wonderful!
As you two, i don't understand why Depp didn't have it, but you said it so much better than i do!
And as you said, i'm amazed (and glad, even proud!) by the number of awards that went to european people: the four acting awards (!!!!!), but also the little french short movie (Le Mozart des Pickpockets), and of course the Once song, wonderful. Oh, and i'm glad for Dario Marianelli too...
Now, we just have to wait next year!
ps: nothing about the last Lost episode?
Been caught up with other stuff today but will have my Lost thoughts up either later or tomorrow at the latest. Again, it's another mindblowing episode which seems to point to some very strange stuff to come in the near future. I see time travel or at least some stuff about holes in time coming...
What does Depp have to do to actually win an Oscar?? Gutted Diving Bell didn't win anything either. I didn't watch the ceremony, but judging by the round ups I've read I didn't miss a lot. Hopefully my copy of Once will be sitting in the postbox when I get home, and I can finally wallow in its brilliance to cheer myself up a bit :D
Depp's day will come. And remember, he's working with Michael Mann next, playing a legendary, real life gangster...
I've spent the day with Falling Slowly playing on a loop. So pleased it won.
I think some of the biggest howlers for me are post-millennial: Gladiator, A Beautiful Mind, Crash... like you say, not bad films, but not really BP material either. Except Crash. I actually think that is a bad film...
I agree about seeing Sweeney and having to see it immediately - tasting blood and wanting more. I'm gonna have to go again before it leaves Aussie cinemas. At least now it's only six weeks til the R1 DVD...
Six weeks? That's really scary. Though not as scary as A Beautiful Mind and Crash winning the BP Oscars. I still have nightmares about the latter...
Oh, and I'm not a Gladiator fan, either.
I know, it's nuts. Though it opened there two months ago now, so by the time it's out it'll be about three and a half months, which is pretty standard I suppose. I'll be ordering me the two disc deluxe version to tide me over til the R4 release :P
Crash. Man. Joke.
And finally!! Someone who agress about Gladiator! I like the film - it's a solid period action flick. But BP worthy? No way. I'd forgotten about Shakespeare in Love winning too. Ah, well...
A real-life character? Surely a nomination at the very least is in the bag, then...
As a classics student, it's my prerogative to sit around watching films like Gladiator and point out historical inaccuracies to anyone who cares or, even better, anyone who doesn't care. It's a hard life :D
And I bet there are a load in Gladiator.
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