I probably should have made this headline “Click? Poseidon?” but I felt that was a little ambiguous, and obvious is always better in headlines… right?
Anyway, this morning brought us the nominees for the 2007 Oscars (get the full list here), and I can’t really remember a year when I was so upset at the nominations. Looking at this year’s list of nominees there are certainly plenty of deserving films and filmmakers in there, but to think that this is what we get after a year that was far better than the prior is a shame. The Academy is making a mockery of their own award show with some of these picks and I can see myself in a murderous rage if some things actually come true.
We’ll start from the top and work our way down. By the way, if you want a look at a reaction for all the nominees check out Dre’s piece here. I don’t play that shit even though I am happy to see Marie Antoinette get recognized for something, even if it was only costumes. In this piece we are looking at the top line nominations, none of that other stuff.
BEST PICTURE
Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
The Departed (Warner Bros.)
Letters from Iwo Jima (Warner Bros.)
Little Miss Sunshine (Fox Searchlight)
The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada)
Babel? Fine, it is an Oscar style piece and while I don’t think it is in any way entertaining it was very well made.
Letters from Iwo Jima? The Oscars are beginning to look like a Clint Eastwood slob job (like that semi-PC style attempt at covering up fellatio?). Mystic River was crap, yet it was acclaimed as a miraculous piece of filmmaking. Million Dollar Baby was good and I was rooting for it, but Flags of Our Fathers and Letters from Iwo Jima are hardly worth Oscar nominations. This is simply a case of the Academy not wanting to snub Eastwood when he has two films in one year and they are probably very thankful that Iwo was better than the crapfest that was Flags.
Little Miss Sunshine? This is a good movie, but not a Best Picture movie.
The Departed? I love this movie, but the flaws make me think it is not worthy of winning the Oscar. I don’t know why, but it bothers me that Marty might win an Oscar for a film that is not as good as some of his others just because “he deserves it.” If they actually thought he deserved it he would have an Oscar by now wouldn’t he? I think he deserves it but I don’t have any gold plated statuettes to give him other than my junior golf ones and I think 90% of those are missing the club.
The Queen? Awards wise, this is the pick. The Queen is a fantastic movie and deserves to win Best Picture.
Bottom Line: People are pissed Dreamgirls wasn’t nominated. Even that blonde idiot Giuliani on E! was whining when she probably wouldn’t know the quality difference between Little Man and Giant. Personally I don’t think Dreamgirls was all that great, but I would have it in there long before Iwo. I give the Oscar to The Queen, but I think The Departed will win, but Babel is nipping hard at its heels.
BEST ACTOR
Leonardo DiCaprio in Blood Diamond (Warner Bros.)
Ryan Gosling in Half Nelson (THINKFilm)
Peter O’Toole in Venus (Miramax, Filmfour and UK Council)
Will Smith in The Pursuit of Happyness (Sony Pictures Releasing)
Forest Whitaker in The Last King of Scotland (Fox Searchlight)
Of all the nominations this is the category that pretty much hit it on the head. The only one I might question is Gosling for Half Nelson, but that is only because Cohen was so f’ing good as Borat. Someone tried to tell me that it wasn’t really acting, I came back at him saying, “Uh, he convinced every single person you see on screen in that movie.” Conversation ended quickly and in my favor.
Who do I think should win? That is the toughest question of them all. Smith was great. O’Toole was very good. Leo gave one hell of a performance. Gotta give it to Forest, that man scared the shit out of me all while almost making me like him.
BEST ACTRESS
Penélope Cruz in Volver (Sony Pictures Classics)
Judi Dench in Notes on a Scandal (Fox Searchlight)
Helen Mirren in The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada)
Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada (20th Century Fox)
Kate Winslet in Little Children (New Line)
I didn’t see Volver but I heard it was good. I didn’t see Notes on a Scandal even though I heard it was good because the trailer looked like shit, like a movie I have seen 100 times kind of shit. With these noms you get the boring ass Streep nom, the pat on the back Winslet nom and the winner Mirren nom. This one is too easy.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Alan Arkin in Little Miss Sunshine (Fox Searchlight)
Jackie Earle Haley in Little Children (New Line)
Djimon Hounsou in Blood Diamond (Warner Bros.)
Eddie Murphy in Dreamgirls (DreamWorks and Paramount)
Mark Wahlberg in The Departed (Warner Bros.)
Here is another really hard category. Man, the fellas did it up right in 2006 didn’t they? What up ladies? Anyway, Arkin was great, but he won’t win. Earle Haley is the dark horse here and for him to be nominated and not Michael Sheen for The Queen is another disaster in my opinion. Hounsou was fantastic and I am torn on whether I think he should win or if it would be good for him not to. All I want is for Hollywood to realize that he can do more than just play an oppressed black man. This guy can act people! He was cool as hell in Constantine!
Mark Wahlberg would be my pick of this bunch only because every single scene he is in in The Departed is pure gold. “Let’s say you have no idea, zero, none. If you had an idea about we do we wouldn’t be good at what we do now would we? We would be cunts, you callin’ us cunts?” Not a lot of people can deliver that line and he nailed it.
However, I think Eddie gets this one. Good on yah Ed, another bullshit winner.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Adriana Barraza in Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
Cate Blanchett in Notes on a Scandal (Fox Searchlight)
Abigail Breslin in Little Miss Sunshine (Fox Searchlight)
Jennifer Hudson in Dreamgirls (DreamWorks and Paramount)
Rinko Kikuchi in Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
If you thought the Best Actress category was weak (and I did) get a load of this. A lot of people seem to think Jennifer Hudson was soooooo great in Dreamgirls, but if that is the case then we might as well add music videos to the Oscar race because her “performance” in Dreamgirls was all singing. Music video after music video. I will admit Hudson can sing her ass off, she is fantastic! However, she didn’t do much acting and when she did… uh… not exactly Oscar worthy folks.
Again, I didn’t see Notes so I can’t tell yah on Cate. If I was to hand out the award I would give it to Adriana Barraza because she had me convinced that she was one hell of a clueless stupid nanny.
BEST DIRECTOR
Alejandro González Iñárritu for Babel (Paramount and Paramount Vantage)
Martin Scorsese for The Departed (Warner Bros.)
Clint Eastwood for Letters from Iwo Jima (Warner Bros.)
Stephen Frears for The Queen (Miramax, Pathé and Granada)
Paul Greengrass for United 93 (Universal and StudioCanal)
Finally, finally I get to talk about the biggest snub of them all, and no, it isn’t Bill Condon for Dreamgirls. Give it up people. But to that in a moment.
First, why is Clint here? Just because he is Clint, that’s why.
Alejandro for Babel? Okay, I still think you made the most horribly depressing and suicidal movie in a long time but it was effective.
Frears? Man, you made one hell of a movie but your actors and script are why this is so good.
Scorsese? This guy deserves an Oscar and the Academy might give it to him this time, but The Departed is still not his best film.
Greengrass? Directing wise here is your winner and I honestly think he stands a chance. However, he wouldn’t stand one if Universal had managed to push Children of Men as much as they did United 93!
Yeah, Alfonso Cuaron! Where the hell is he? Oh, Children of Men gets three nominations in basket weaving fantastic! However, this film, registering a 91% over at Rotten Tomatoes and on a ton of top ten lists doesn’t even register a blip on the Academy radar. Then I look further down the nomination list and see that Click and Poseidon get nominated for Oscars? Really, you should see my face right now… I am actually scowling at my computer as I type those words. CLICK? Click is an Oscar nominee?!?!? A dormant 31% of reviewers gave this a passing grade and now it is an Oscar nominee. Surprisingly Poseidon did 1% better, but combined they don’t even sniff at Children of Men!
Whew!
Deep breath…
Okay, I think I am calm. That was a bit of a rant, but I am frustrated. The politics of award season have shown their ugly face this year, and while I will still geek out on February 25 when the winners are announced I can only hope a few of the better films of 2006 get what they deserve.
If you haven’t yet seen the nominations click here and stay tuned as we have so much more Oscar hugs and punches to throw out.
