Oscar Geeking

[cinagel]

Well what do you know....I'm actually excited this year about the Ocsar noms.
Probably because its the most diverse set of films nominated since Moulin Rouge and Lord of the Rings were up against each other. While I don't agree with ALL the nominations I have to admit, at least its a diverse group! And finally the geek crowd got some shout outs with Avatar, District 9, Inglorious Basterds, and Up...To be honest I'm rooting for District 9 which was probably the best film I saw all year. But I know it has a snowballs chance in hell. Seriously though, It really showed what a powerful medium Sci Fi can be with tackling current issues. And it never got overly shmaltzy or preachy. Don't get me wrong. I LOVED Avatar and thought it was a fantastic ride and a great piece of Sci-fi , art design, and fantasy. But subtley is not in James Cameron's vocabulary. That and I'll admit it, I loved the gritty darkness of District 9. But what to you expect from someone who has a horror film blog?
 Chances are best picture  is going to go Avatar, Precious, or Up in the Air but eh, at least its an interesting race!
Oh...and I do believe this is a first time a woman was nominated for best director (correct me if I'm wrong).And I believe its the first time a woman nominated for best director really has a good chance of walking away with it. Katheryn Bigelow is nominated for The Hurt Locker. I'd also like to point out she directed one of the best vampire films ever made, Near Dark.  I hope she kicks their asses. ;D

I'm also rooting for Christoph Waltz from Inglorious Basterds to get Best supporting Actor. His performance was insanely good. And while I think Inglorious Basterds was a great film (And in my top 5 for the year) I really think I wouldn't have enjoyed it as much if he was not in it. SO hope he gets it. And Its nice to see Coraline get a Nom as well...because Coraline was really fantastic and never got the audience it deserved...and had Keith David in it. I can say the same for Princess and the Frog too.
And I'll admit..I'm SO pulling for Sherlock Holmes for best Original Score. I LOVED that score!! It won't win it but I really think it was the best score I've heard in a long while. I loved it enough that I am still considering snagging the whole thing on iTunes.
I haven't seen any of the best costume nominees. It looks like the usual line up of frock-u-mentaries that are usually nominated and nothing too exciting (Except for possibly Parnassis since That's a Terry Gilliam film).
As you can see, I have a knack for pulling for the underdog at the Oscars. At least I'm pulling for SOMETHING this year. The last three years the noms were so boring I really didn't even bother watching the show.
I'm such a nerd

Comments

[karlyl.livejournal.com]

Nah, there have been at least 3 other women nominated for Directing, but I don't think have won. Sofia Coppola for Lost in translation was the last one I remember for nomination.

While Avatar was a decent movie, I just think it winning would be overrated? Cameron is not that great a storyteller and I think a best picture has to have it all. I wouldn't be surprised if he gets director though, with all the hoopla about the way he filmed it and everything. :/

I don't really watch either, but you're right, Sci fi is really showing out this year, which is great! :D

[cinsangel.livejournal.com]

Thanks Trish, I had a feeling I was wrong about her being the first.:)

As with Avatar, it may get it simply because it was popular, kind of like how Titanic won it. I figured out of all the geek movies nominated Avatar really is the only one that stands a chance even though District 9 and Inglorious Basterds are superior, in my opinion. But i get the feeling all those films will cancel eachother out and they'll give it to a drama like usual.

But its nice to see SciFi get a little Oscar Sugar!

[cure-marine.livejournal.com]

Much love to Sherlock Holmes! XD

[bevinbaka.livejournal.com]

Bigelow is the fourth woman to be nominated for Best Director. Out of approximately 410 total nominations in history, I think that is appallingly sad. I hope she takes it. Cameron already has an Oscar, and yeah, I've heard Avatar is a masterstroke in terms of the mechanics of making a film, and making a new kind of film, I'd just really like to see someone else take that award. I think it'll probably take Best Picture just because of its innovation, but I really want Bigelow to take Director.

Having said that, I'd also love for Basterds to get recognition, too, since I honestly think it's one of-- if not the-- best movie Tarantino's made. I have to say I'm rooting for Colin Firth to take Best Actor-- I only recently heard about A Single Man, but I hear he's phenomenal in it, and it seems like a really haunting, interesting, visual movie from a first-time director who's normally a very famous designer whose name I cannot recall. But yeah. And hell yeah for Pixar finally being up in the Best Picture category! It's about damn time! I commented the other day about how they may as well rename the Best Animated Feature award the Pixar Award and be done with it, so yeah for that! Maybe this'll free up space for some real contention between Coraline, The Fantastic Mr. Fox, and.... Up? Are you kidding me? It's up for both?? The Secret of Kells was good and holy cow the art design was GORGEOUS, but I'd like to see Coraline take that one.

And I'd really like to see Precious take something, Best Actress or Supporting Actress. Haven't seen it, but I hear both ladies were really powerful and I'm happy they're both up there.

I have to say, I'm thrilled at the level of diversity in this year's nominations.

Edit: Tom Ford is the man who directed A Single Man.

[cinsangel.livejournal.com]

I agree with you on pretty much all fronts. I really do hope she take it. I haven't seen The Hurt Locker but I've heard nothing but great things about it. I do find her resume facinating. She has mostly directed what some would call "guy flicks" like Near Dark, K-19 The Widowmaker, and even The Hurt Locker. Its unexpected and really delightful to see a woman doing those types of films.
Avatar may take it this year because every once in a while Oscars tend to award best picture to a popular movie like Titanic or Lord of the Rings...though I do believe LOTRs deserved it. So Avatar may win on that front. On the otherhand, there's been a lot of Avatar backlash and all the SciFi films might cancel eachother out, leaving the award to one of the dramas. I'm still rooting for District 9 and Inglorious Basterds.
I think its great UP was nominated for best picture! But I kind of wish they stuck it in one category instead of two, just to give the others a chance and to give Up a chance to win Best picture. I rather have Coraline win best animated but if its against UP it probably won't win. Which means Up won't win best picture. This happened with Pan's Labyrinth...which didn't win either best picture noms it had and enraged me. *L*
I haven't been following the actors too much other than Christopher Waltz. But I've been hearing Mo'nique was amazing in Precious so she might be a lock.

Its about tine the Oscars started nominating films that are not just "serious" films. Its like a breath of fresh air.

[bevinbaka.livejournal.com]

Up isn't going to win Best Picture, it just won't. But it's the second animated film to get nominated, and that's still something, anyway (and it effing deserves it, too!). So yeah, it'll take Animated Feature, and it deserves that, too, it's an amazing film. But I do get tired of seeing Pixar win that category every year (deserving though they are) because it means other great films are getting passed over (Persepolis should have been in the Foreign Films category at the very least, that was total crap).

I really do think Avatar will take Best Picture. I will be thrilled to death if something else wins, just because to me "best film" means "best overall film" not "most innovative". Inglourious Basterds is the only one I've seen, and I think it deserves to be up there completely. Precious and District 9 by all accounts are also excellent, and I'd be thrilled if one of them won. But yeah, I really think Avatar will win it. Still, it is nice to see two sci-fi films and an animated film in the Best Picture category, as well as a satirical take on Hollywood's favorite historical war. I also like that in addition to the fourth nomination for a woman director, but I believe the second nomination for a black director (whom I believe is openly gay to boot, so double-minority points). I love that three out of the five actresses up for Best Actress are over forty and another one is non-white, and I love that this is Meryl Streep's 16th nomination, which is the most for any actor of any gender.

All in all, I love that there are so many different kinds of movies up, and that so many people being recognized are so diverse. I'm sort of ambivalent on the expanding of the Best Picture nominations slots to ten, but it is opening up the arena for more diverse movies to be nominated (indie/arthouse/foreign/popular), and maybe that'll generate some interest amongst people who don't normally like this sort of thing to tune in and maybe get interested in one of the other movies they might not have considered otherwise. We'll see, but right now, I'm hopeful.

[patrickat.livejournal.com]

I wish I could care more about the Oscars, but every year they just prove again that they're mainly there to kiss the ass of the most popular money-making movies. Occasionally they throw a bone to something that was well-made but not a top-grosser, but for the most part... let's just say if "Avatar" doesn't walk away with a bunch of statuettes, I'll be really surprised.

Also... the hosting just hasn't done anything for me since Billy Crystal stopped doing it.