Ruminations From a Movie Geek

Pre-Nomination Thoughts

2011-01-24T21:07:00.000-05:00

The PGA certainly threw a wrench in the Oscar proceedings by shining the spotlight on The King's Speech, even if the two match don't match as often as you might think. Still with the PGA employing the same balloting system as Oscar it does give some great hope towards Tom Hooper's film. Traditionally, The King's Speech is more of an Oscar film anyway and it really took Social Network winning every critic award imaginable to become the frontrunner. However, there was always a push back from Social Network fans against those who still suggested other films had a chance to take the gold.

Yet, King's Speech seems to have positioned itself well by steadily building a release pattern and using word of mouth to keep buzz alive. After my parent's pastor mentioned the movie in this weekend's homily I knew that it is becoming a film to be reckoned with. More and more late Boomers seem to be discussing the movie and that will be a major factor in its favor to win the big one. Harvey Weinstein surely knows how to mount a campaign, whether he wins or loses.

Best Actress is another category that is very much in play as sentiment grows for the "overdue" Benning. Portman still has the more dazzling role and the baby, but she also has the stinker No Strings Attached in the marketplace (remember Eddie Murphy and Norbit?) Of course Norbit might be one of the worst movies of the last ten years, a strong statement even for Portman's film. However, unlike Firth or other frontrunners of recent years there doesn't seem to be the feeling that Portman is the best actress of the year. SAG will go a long way in deciding this race.

Lastly there is Hailee Steinfeld who is now very much in play for Best Actress, but she has less chance of winning in the lead category. If she were to land in supporting she would have a terrific chance of winning in a fairly wide-open field. Leo might be the frontrunner based on critic wins, but she hasn't shown complete love to take the prize. In the end it feels like this might be the year for a supporting upset. Much like Alan Arkin and Marcia Gay Harden.

As for my predictions - you'll need to head over to www.boxofficeprophets.com for those

Blockbuster

2010-08-28T14:19:00.000-04:00

Kris Tapley over at In Contention did a nice brief wrap up of the bankruptcy of Blcokbuster. I remember when Blockbuster's line stretch around the store on Friday nights. I used spend countless minutes and hours scouring the shelves for hard to find movies or classics such as Alien, North by Northwest and Goodfellas. Competition became tight when a Video Warehouse opened up and I could rent five movies for five dollars and keep the for days. This is when I discoverd Pulp Fiction, Fight Club, The Seventh Seal, The Big Lebowski, The Godfather, Jaws and Rear Window among other movies. Link to Tapley's article follows

Blockbuster

Movies You Missed

2010-08-07T13:11:00.000-04:00

I'm over at Border's and looking through their section of movie books and see one from the NY Times about DVD's you missed, didn't hear of or forgot about. I did a quick skim and saw Blue Velvet and had to laugh. a)
You don't forget about a Lynch movie b)they may be indie but you hear of Lynch c)you don't miss a Lynch movie like you a miss a phone call, you either seek him out or avoid at all costs.

A Few Quick Thoughts on Scott Pilgrim

2010-07-31T18:34:00.000-04:00

Scott Pilgrim's presence was very large at this year's comic-con. Edgar Wright scheduled three separate viewings all of which were received with great enthusiasm. Having sat in on a smaller panel with Wright I can say his personality went a long way in the large response for the film. Yet, at the same time people just generally really liked this movie, and from what I hear it is quite the ride. I have been skeptical about this project since the debut of the first trailer, as it looked like another teen movie. Yet, the more the buzz picks up on this film the more I'm tempted to think it just may be one hell of a ride. Now I'm wondering if perhaps Scott Pilgrim might lead the way in terms of box office come August 13th. The Expendables was also warmly received, but that movie has its core audience and it doesn't expand much beyond that, it is also a hard R limiting box office potential. Eat, Pray, Love has Julia Roberts, but the movie has quiet buzz and Julia Roberts hasn't exactly propelled a non-romantic comedy to the top spot a long time. Scott Pilgrim though is a PG-13 movie that has the advantage of having broad appeal to the teen set, which hasn't had a movie targeted at them all summer, but is also building buzz among those twenty and thirty year olds as well. Of course I might just be wrong about all of this and have bought too much into the comic-con buzz, but stranger things have happened.

Ghostbusters

2010-07-31T13:27:00.000-04:00

There seems to be a popular sentiment among the upper crust of moviegoers that somehow popular comedy is unfunny. This sentiment hit me as I watched Ghostbusters the other night. One of the most popular comedies of the last 30 years, Ghostbusters maintains a comic edge without dropping random pop culture references. Still Bill Murray's greatest performance not to mention; Dan Ackroyd, Harold Ramis, Sigourney Weaver and Rick Moranis, Ghostbusters feature a terrific cast that know how to sell the story and humor. Yet, some don't deem this as a great comedy in the way many film scholars might deem The Philadelphia Story, Bringing Up Baby and Some Like it Hot great comedies. Maybe I'm still too close to the picture to see that newer younger film scholars will give Ghostbusters its proper credit. This point was made even greater to me watching Luis Bunel's The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie. Even a film that satirizes the elitist classes is only truly enjoyed by the more elitist film watcher. The movie is funny to be sure and brilliantly made, but it only helps to prove further while a movie like Ghostbusters, while vastly popular is often overlooked.

Yet, there seems to be a popular sentiment that an average audience is unable to comprehend a smart yet accessible comedy. Yet, one look at the popularity of Inception and one sees that a film can be very intelligent and still be craved by the larger masses. The most popular comedies anymore come with an R rating and involve men behaving badly. I recently saw the new trailer for Little Fockers at Comic-Con and realized how far that franchise has fallen. I often wonder what happened to the comedy an entire family could enjoy. Ghostbusters contains definite adult material while remaining a safe option for your average child, yet today most comedies are either aimed directly at the 10 and under crowd, or at an adult crowd. Rarely does a PG or a light PG-13 movie get made anymore that can truly be called a "family" film. Not a family film in the sense that the entire family sees it together, but that neither does it feel like the film was made for the kiddies nor just for adults. I suppose Pixar tugs this line very closely, and while being brilliant films the fact remains they are made with kids in mind first. Yet, I'm to blame as much as the next person, I really dug The Hangover. The movie was profane, boisterous and downright funny, easily one of the funniest R-rated films since Animal House. Yet, I still hope for a movie that remains funny from its script and performances, without resorting to Wes Anderson type of quirky characters.

And one last thing, if someone asks if you're a God, "You say yes!"

Comic Con Wrap Up

2010-07-27T21:53:00.000-04:00

I posted this over at Box Office Prophets also

I had planned to bring a couple of updates of Comic-Con for all of you throughout the last five days, but I quickly learned that a first time experience at Comic-Con can be overwhelming, especially when you approach from the perspective of a fan and as someone that is looking to bring that experience to other people. Regardless of not being able to bring you a minute by minute blow of my experience, I will bring you my thoughts on the overall experience and then panels I did catch.

From a total geek perspective this was a fantastic weekend, from seeing the San Diego Convention Center for the first time to seeing all sorts of fans, whether they are there for movie and tv panels, video games, comics or the entire experience it quickly becomes apparent that there is lots to process. I would quickly find out that even it becomes easy to miss stuff when going after one panel, or looking for an autograph session or to looking to spend some time at a bar, it becomes easy to miss a smaller panel that features a larger star, special screening or cool parties. Going into the convention much of the buzz was placed firmly on Tron: Legacy and the Marvel panel, but other panels ended up stealing the show (Scott Pilgrim and Cowboys and Aliens).

Tron: Legacy

If you’ve ever attended Comic-Con you know of the insanity of Hall H, an insanity I hadn’t quite prepared myself for. Upon arriving at the convention center and registering, I quickly made my way to find Hall H to attend the Tron panel. Needless to say the line was already long. After waiting about 2 1/2 hours and staring at the Hall H doors for about 40 minutes, they let us in after the Megamind panel was cleared and finished. Given the large presence Tron has had at Comic-Con over the last several years, I expected perhaps a slightly great reveal of footage, but the anticipation was heavy in the crowd. After bringing out the cast and crew including Jeff Bridges, eight minutes of the film was debuted. As someone who did really enjoy Tron, but not the avid fan that some are, I have to say the footage I saw was great. It only makes sense that a film that was far ahead of the curve in terms of computer graphics be able to effectively use 3-4 technology to make the world of Tron seem far more realistic than it ever has. The 3-D is easily the best I’ve seen since Avatar, and as many of have seen from the trailers, the costumes and the music are up to as par as well. Fans are certainly ready to make a huge opening weekend for this film, and the I-MAX and 3-D screens should make for a large opening weekend. Whether this movie break-out like other “geek” films, is more difficult to gauge. The movie is firmly implanted in pop-culture, but that has more to do with movie’s uniqueness than anything, but with the marketing power of Disney the success of Tron should be interesting to track. Following the Tron panel, Jack Sparrow made a surprise appearance via video, but I can’t get excited for another Pirates movie. The real surprise came afterwards when Gulliermo del Toro came out to announce The Haunted Mansion, without Eddie Murphy. Del Toro did a great job of explaining his love of the Disney ride, so combined with the popularity of the ride and del Toro’s unique vision, Haunted Mansion should be an interesting project to track.

Super

One of the nicest surprises of the Con for me, was the panel for this movie that has failed to find a distributor. Yet, starring a great cast including, Rainn Wilson, Ellen Page, Liv Tyler, Nathan Fillion and Kevin Bacon and directed by James Gunn the movie is not short on talent. The footage shown as well shows a definite black comedy that will fit its indie roots. The crowd was certainly enthused by what it saw, so hopefully that will allow a distributor to take a chance on what appears to be a very funny film.

Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark

Another project of Guillermo del Toro, is another horror remake. However, del Toro seems very confident in this project and his director. The movie certainly seems better than your average horror shockfest, but I’m not sold this will be one of the scariest movies you have ever seen.

Let Me In

I spent all of Saturday in the madness of Hall H, which included a stabbing and the return of trailer park to the Con. The first of the panels I saw was Let Me In, a remake of the the new classic Let the Right One In. This panel went a long way in assuaging my fears that this would be another pointless remake. The entire cast seems very game for this picture and the director Matt Reeves looks to have effectively captured the tone of the Swedish masterpiece. The clips shown show a great respect for the original film, and the second scene is a particularly tense scene that was very effective. Reeves showed a great knowledge and respect of Hitchcock, so hopefully he can a bit more success here than he did with Cloverfield. While I still don’t quite get the need to remake this soon, the panel showed that this might still be a very respectful remake.

Resident Evil:Afterlife

I’ll be honest, I have no interest in this movie. I only stuck around so I wouldn’t have to re-enter the Hall H line again. The clip they showed was pretty cool, but I still refuse to see this movie. Still Milla Jovovich was very very excited.

Paul

Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz are easily two of the funniest movies of the last decade. Paul should be no exception. This panel ended up being a tribute to Comic-Con and it’s hoard of fans. The panel demonstrated a great love to the audience and the audience responded very well. Needless to say the movie looks to be the duo’s attempt to kind of send up the American road trip movie. The panel also included Sigourney Weaver, Bill Hader and Jason Bateman. Simon and Nick are clearly very popular, and it should be good to have them have an American production. The movie looks vulgar, crazy and a tribute to geeks and also one the funniest movies of next year.

Cowboys and Aliens

Jon Favreau has rocked Comic-Con in the past with Iron Man, and he really delivered with Cowboys and Aliens, complete with bring out geek god Harrison Ford, which resulted in the largest geekgasms ever recorded. Hall H was certainly rocking at this point, and I can only wonder if the vibrations were felt in the exhibit hall. Despite only having filmed for about a month, Favreau debuted some impressive footage, including an impressive action sequence involving an alien attack. Favreau did what he does perfectly and start the buzz on a film that won’t be released for over an year. Yet, in a summer that will be filled with superhero franchises, Cowboys and Aliens will be an original property that looks true to the roots of a western while infusing sci-fi elements.

Captain America

Needless to say Chris Evans as Captain America doesn’t do much for me, and the test footage of him in costume doesn’t make me feel much better. However, the clip starring Hugo Weaving seems to be promising, but he refused to share his Red Skull voice. I was guarded about this production before the panel and I remain just as guarded.

Thor

The only problem I see with Thor is the use of 3-D, other than that the extended trailer for Thor had me very excited. Kenneth Branagh seems to fully know what he wanted to do with this film, while finding a great sense of adventure and action. I have read some other guarded response for this film, but while Thor may not be the success of Iron Man, I expect many fanboys to be very happy with the end result.

The Avengers

Not much to say, but this ended up being a photo-op. Yet, it was exciting to hear Jeremy Renner cast as Hawkeye, and that great cast of talent assembled on one stage, including Robert Downey Jr taking the mic. Each actor got a large response, save for Mark Ruffalo (but seriously is it really his fault Edward Norton got screwed over). This film has two years to build some very positive buzz and if it doesn’t capitalize it will be seen as a colossal failure.

That’s my brief wrap of this year’s comic-con, with Tron, Scott Pilgrim and Cowboys coming out as clear winners. Scott Pilgrim used multiple screenings and a great exhibit in the Gaslamp to build its profile and was very successful at doing so. Edgar Wright used the power of Twitter to build the buzz even further. If you aren’t following him of Twitter you should do so now. The Expendables also seemed to have a very popular panel, but will have to contend with the far more popular Scott Pilgrim. I also took the time to attend a Chuck panel, and saw the great reveal that Linda Hamilton will be playing his mom. I also found out that it looks as if an adaptation of Garth Ennis’ The Boys may be moving forward. Disney also set up a mock Flynn’s arcade for a couple of apparently wicked parties, I was busy getting drunk elsewhere so I missed that. Robert Rodriguez also served up some hot dogs and footage for Machete, a movie while with limited box office potential should become a wildly popular film among young men, and even Jackass 3-D debuted footage that apparently killed. My first visit to Comic- Con ended up being very special and I hope to make this terrific trip yearly. Next year I will have a better lay of the land, so hopefully I can bring you all more updated reports.

Comic Con

2010-07-20T20:30:00.001-04:00

Sorry, for my leave of absence

Anyway I've doing some articles over at Box Office Prophets and lots of census work, but I should have more time to write again. I'm heading out to San Diego for comic-con, so I hope to have many updates for you.

Alice in Wonderland

2010-03-22T17:17:00.002-04:00

I've heard many negative things about this movie - so how is it making so much money at the box office?

What's Her Name - Parker Posey

2010-03-15T21:46:00.000-04:00

Fans of Christopher Guest’s mockumentarys surely know how great Parker Posey can be, most notably in Waiting For Guffman and Best in Show. However, she has also starred in a number of early 90’s respected independent comedies, Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused and Noah Baumbach’s Kicking and Screaming. In the late 90’s she finally received a number of supporting roles in more mainstream hits, You’ve Got Mail and Scream 3. Entering the 90’s she continued to be noticed to mainstream audiences in mid-level movies such as Josie and the Pussycats and Laws of Attractions. Finally she had a mostly thankless role in Superman Returns back in 2006. So her resume outside of Guest is mostly spotty, but she still maintains a presence in a number of average mainstream movies.

Notable Films:

Dazed and Confused (1993)
Kicking and Screaming (1995)
Waiting For Guffman (1997)
You’ve Got Mail (1998)
Scream 3 (2000)
Best in Show (2000)
The Anniversary Party (2001)
A Mighty Wind (2003)
Laws of Attraction (2003)
Blade Trinity (2004)
Superman Returns (2006)
For Your Consideration (2006)
The Eye (2008)

Big Lebowski Makes Ebert's Great Movies List

2010-03-15T13:57:00.000-04:00

Roger Ebert has always done a pretty good job with his column highlighting great movies, some of which are well known (The Godfather, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest) others are not. His most recent addition was The Big Lebowski a movie he originally gave 3 stars. Ebert has always wanted to be seen as hip, so his sudden acceptance of Big Lebowski isn't much of a surprise, and I'm glad to see it featured here. Yet, the article just isn't very good, it never captures the essence of the movie. Worst of all he refers to the Dude as Jeff Lebowski, and fan of the movie knows you don't call him Mr. Lebowski, he's The Dude and thats what you call him or His Dudeness, or Duder or El Duderino if you're not into the whole brevity thing. Not to mention some of his other menial observations that don't matter (the similarity of Brant and the Big Lebowski). A movie like The Big Lebowski deserves such a better article but all of its little plot nuances that don't amount to anything (a check for .69 cents). Worst off Ebert says the rug pulled the room together!!! How do you screw that line up! Seriously the rug really tied the room together, did it not? Sadly Ebert continues to grow more detached from the world (Knowing and Lakeview Terrace are apparantly four star movies and The Proposal was a box office disappointment this summer), and his awful article about this classic film is just another example of how far he has fallen.

Roger Ebert on The Big Lebowski

Depp

2010-03-12T00:22:00.000-05:00

I watched From Hell tonight and was reminded of a day when you could really look forward to a Johnny Depp movie. Not that his performance here is his best, but far more enjoyable than many of his recent roles. He really needs to take a break from Burton and Jack Sparrow for awhile and explore his artistic talent again, where he actually created characters. Maybe The Rum Diary later this year will be what he needs to redeem himself.

Mortenson and Cronenberg Teaming Up Again

2010-03-10T00:45:00.000-05:00

Viggo Mortenson and David Cronenberg are teaming up again for their third film, in what should be expected to garner some award consideration two years from now. Both Mortenson and Cronenberg are among the most underrated professionals in the business. Their previous two collaborations A History of Violence and Eastern Promises were among the best films of the past decade. The two are teaming up again in The Talking Cure, based on a play about the relationship between Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung. Mortenson is set to play Freud with Michael Fassbender (Inglourious Basterds, Hunger) playing Jung. Given the talent involved this is sure to be a highly anticipated film of 2011 or whenever it is released. Given that Mortenson is portraying such a high profile figure of the early 20th century, Mortenson is sure to get some award attention, if everything falls into place Mortenson can find it his year to win some serious awards. Here's hoping to the best for this film -- link below to the news story

Talking Cure

The Coens

2010-03-09T20:01:00.002-05:00

The last 25 years has seen the rise of several prominent filmmakers, Quentin Tarantino, David Fincher, Paul Thomas Anderson, Sam Mendes, Sofia Coppola, Guillermo del Toro and my personal favorites the Coen Brothers. Each of this directors is distinct in his or her own way, but the Coen's along with Tarantino are perhaps have made their career based off their distinctive style. The duo is also willing to tackle a variety of genres and turns out movies more consistently than any of these other directors. The Coens are masters of black comedy, capturing the spirit of regions and time periods of America and a terrific understanding of language. The two also have a great attention of detail (notice the background painting of scissors in Maude's apartment in The Big Lebowski - those scissors show up later). The Coen's movie are also very existential in nature (Raising Arizona, Barton Fink, Big Lebowski, No Country For Old Men, A Serious Man) while providing madcap comedy. The Coen's also have a real sense of genre and have shown their hand several times to another master of language, Preston Sturges. Finally, their movies tend to feature absurd violence to demonstrate characters that are totally oblivious. Many of these characters find themselves important, when in reality there is nothing important about them. My ranking of their movies:

14. The Hudsucker Proxy (1994)

This certainly has many of the features of Coen Brother movies, but it's the only movie of theirs that I couldn't get into. The movie has the right zany tone and an outlandish plot, but in the end it fell flat for me.

13. Intolerable Cruelty ( 2003)

Not bad per se, but this is one of the few efforts where it seemed as if the brothers were trying to be mainstream. That said the movie takes a hard line on love, lawyers (espcially those profitting from divorce) and upper class lifestyle. The Coens never hold back from what they attend to lampoon, and Cruelty, is no different. The star power here ends up being a hindrance.

12. The Man Who Wasn't There (2001)

The most beautiful looking Coen brother movie, this black and white nod to film noir is very entertaining. I honestly remember very little about this film, it's enjoyable but this seemed to be one of the more limited stories from the two.

11. Barton Fink (1991)

The first movie from the two blend genres, Barton Fink is a meditation on writer's block and the flaws of the Hollywood system. Also featuring some of the brothers' most outlandish scenes and great performances from John Turturro and John Goodman, Barton Fink remains a solid but far from great effort from the two. Also of note is the terrific set design (always a highlight of their films).

10. A Serious Man (2009)

A movie that I'm still digesting, this might be the most personal film for the two. The two show a great attention to detail to recreats 60's suburbia through the eyes of a middle-age Jewish man. One of the blacker comedies from the two it has also proven to be one of the most divisive and perhaps the most esoteric.

9. The Ladykillers (2004)

The Coen's first real adaptation (I don't count O'Brother), they still manage to make this remake uniquely theirs. Featuring some of the most outlandish characters, The Ladykillers might be their most underrated movie. Tom Hanks fit perfectly into the lead role, and the rest of the cast fills out nicely with J.K. Simmons and Irma Hall delivering the goods. The portrait of Hall's dead husband is a terrific set-piece along with a pivotal bridge. Lastly there is the cat, one of the many Coen's quasi MacGuffins.

8. O, Brother Where Art Thou (2000)

Maybe the most popular Coen movie this side of Big Lebowski, it's a terrific display of the Coen's knowledge of language. Featuring George Clooney's greatest performance, O' Brother displays a terrific vision of the deep south in the 1930's in a way only the Coens can do it. The movie parallels the Odyssey very closely, but make it a great story of one man's redemption.

7. Raising Arizona (1987)

Following their successful debut the crime drama Blood Simple, the Coen's made a madcap screwball comedy with Raising Arizona. One of the funniest movies to come out of the 80's the movie also featured Nicolas Cage before the fall. A movie that also terrificly captures the rural southwest, Raising Arizona proved that the Coen brothers were a duo with a unique vision that would serve them well for years to come.

6. Burn After Reading (2008)

The craziest Coen movie since Big Lebowski, also makes little sense upon a first viewing. However, the movie boasts one of the strongest casts, some of the funniest moments while exhibiting the trademark Coen assuredness. The movie features some great dialogue and set design as well (loved the CIA office). This may not be a favorite of many but I loved the zany madcap nature of it. This goes well with 2009's In the Loop which demonstrates the incompetence of mid-level government bureaucrats.

5. Blood Simple (1984)

The brilliant debut of the Coen's is a hard boiled pulp thriller. The Coen's display their great knowledge of the Texas landscape (which they would re-visit 23 years later) the film's terrific cinematography only augments the desperation of these lowly characters.

4. Fargo (1996)

The brilliance of the Coens was finally recognized with Fargo, which terrificly doubled as a crime drama and dark comedy. Featuring some of the most memorable characters and landscape of their movies, Fargo remains one of their most popular movies. Frances McDormand won a deserved Oscar for her role as a pregnant detective. The Coens used their knowledge of Minnesota to capture the dialect and regionality of the upper-midwest to capture the bulk of the film's comedy.

3. Miller's Crossing (1990)

Miller's Crossing has risen to the top of the Coen Brother pile over the past decade. While lacking some of the snappy dialogue of other Coen scripts, the movie contains its own language which is appropriate given the film's crime setting. The Coen's present a gangster flick unlike those we are most familiar with, but also staying very true to the genre. The movie was largely ignored at first, as it was released around the same time as Goodfellas. It may not be based on a true story, but the Coen's manage to create their very own world with this movie and pull of it perfectly.

2. No Country For Old Men (2007)

There isn't much to say about this, but despite the bleakness of the movie the movie still features many iconic Coen Brother staples. Particularly the clothing, dialogue and featuring a great depiction of early 80's Texas. Javier Bardem won the second Coen brothers acting Oscar as one of the greatest villains of the decade.

1. The Big Lebowski (1998)

I loved this when I first saw it and have continued to do so over the last decade. The Coens created their greatest character with some of their most iconic dialogue. The movie feels authentically LA despite being made by two mid-western boys. Not only their best films, but also one of very favorite films.

Tron: Legacy

2010-03-09T12:12:00.002-05:00

It's good to see Tron finally getting its due close to thirty years later. Today we finally get a new trailer -- it's good stuf. Apparantly Daft Punk is doing the music, which I say is a good thing and an improvement on Journey - enjoy

What's Their Name - Frequent Coen Brothers Colloborators

2010-03-08T20:22:00.001-05:00

Blood Simple the blistering debut from the Coen Brothers recently celebrated its 25th birthday. I'm currently working on a large piece about the duo and a ranking of their movies and performances, until then I wanted to highlight several frequent actors and actresses the two work with frequently. Like most directors the Coens have a troupe of actors they like to work with. This list has evolved throughout their career, at the moment they are using a different set of actors than 15-20 years ago. Richard Jenkins, J.K, Simmons and now Josh Brolin seem to be favorites of the two.

Frances McDormand - 7 films

Given that she is married to Joel it shouldn't be too surprising the Coens prefer to use her. McDormand was the first actor to win an Oscar in a Coen Brothers movie as Marge Gunderson in Fargo, her most iconic role. Since then the Coens have used her sparingly, next in 2001's The Man Who Wasn't There and not again until 2008's Burn After Reading, one of her more under-appreciated roles.

1985 - Blood Simple
1987 - Raising Arizona
1990 - Miller's Crossing
1991 - Barton Fink
1996 - Fargo
2001 - The Man Who Wasn't There
2008 - Burn After Reading

Jon Polito - 5 Films

An odd looking guy to be sure, Jon Polito is always reliable in Coen films, especially his terrific Coen debut as Johnny Casper in Miller's Crossing or his awkward cluelessness as a low rent PI in The Big Lebowski. The Coens havn't used Polito in some time as he focuses mostly on tv appearances. Hopefully the Coens will find another rule that Polito is just right for sometime soon.

1990 - Miller's Crossing
1991 - Barton Fink
1994 - The Hudsucker Proxy
1998 - The Big Lebowski
2001 - The Man Who Wasn't There

Richard Jenkins - 3 Films

A character actor that blends into his Coen Brothers roles as much as he does his other roles. Jenkins is not immediately thought of as a Coen Brother staple, but his turn in Burn After Reading as a gym manager proved Jenkins to be one of the Coens finest actors.

2001 - The Man Who Wasn't There
2003 - Intolerable Cruelity
2008 - Burn After Reading

John Turturro - 4 Films

Another actor who always nails his Coen roles. His performance as Bernie in Miller's Crossing is among the finest in a Coen movie, and despite limited screentime in Big Lebowski, The Jesus stands out as a great character among a movie full of them.

1990 - Miller's Crossing
1991 - Barton Fink
1998 - The Big Lebowski
2000 - O, Brother Where Art Thou

Of course John Goodman, Steve Buscemi and George Clooney are Coen staples, not to mention Holly Hunter. Jeff Bridges is back for a second Coen movie in this True Grit late this year. There a whole host of others, the so-called family tree only helps to add to their movies. When all is said and done, aside from their quirkiness these actor and actresses will be a large part of the Coen legacy.

Oscar Wrap-Up

2010-03-08T18:28:00.000-05:00

The ceremony lacked much suspense last night, as it became apparantly rather quickly the The Hurt Locker was the favorite movie in the room. Its win probalay doesn't mean as much as some of the speculation today would have you believe. Certainly important is Bigelow becoming the first woman to win Best Director, but the film's small box office isn't much of a story in my eyes. The movie will find an audience on DVD as it plays like any other action flick. The night also lacked many surprises as Precious's screenplay win was the biggest shocker of the night, given it was the heaviest of the screenplays, we should've seen that coming. I couldn't care much less about whether Bullock deserved to win or not, Tilda Swinton not being in the field was enough of a travesty. Jeff Bridges was great as always and you have to feel for the director of Music by Prudence.

I liked NPH's opening, but Martin and Baldwin just fell flat. I also felt bad for the guys of Hurt Locker as it didn't seem like they got any love from their movie's filmmakers. Glad to see Up have a good night too. Overall though the show lacked spirit and seemed to be just going through the motions. Oscar night just seems to be less of an event than it used to be.

Now it's time to wait til next year's ceremony, I havn't even thought about what might win yet, but I'll try to create a preview soon.

Iron Man 2 Trailer

2010-03-08T17:31:00.002-05:00

A nice diverson as a write a few articles and contemplate my Oscar Wrap-up.

Quick Thoughts

2010-03-08T13:20:00.003-05:00

I'll have full analysis later, but I was happy to see Bigelow and Hurt Locker win. Decent telecast but didn't enjoy the Martin/Baldwin combo.

Live Blogging

2010-03-07T20:21:00.064-05:00

12:04 great night - not much suspense though -- can't argue with most of the winners - i;m a little tipsy full wrap-up tomorrow

11:59 Tom Hanks presents Best Pic - Hurt Locker! won 6

11:58 Ho-hum speech - Baldwin and Martin have been virtually non-existent since their opening

11:56 Director -- I think its a no-brainer that it will be Bigelow - winner is Bigelow!!!!!! likely not the woman you would think to win this but certainly deserving

11:53 never got your appeal Barbara

11:51 boring speech Sandra

11:48 and out Best Lady of the evening is Sandra Bullock -- should've stuck with my gut and realized the Academy doesn't care much about how great a performance really is

11:45 Oprah makes me want to slit my throat

11:41 Nor did I ever hope to see Hope Floats mentioned at the Oscars

11:40 Could I be right on Meryl Streep's win?

11:39: Hurt Locker might have the edge winning both sound categories - an odd way of looking at it I know

11:33 - Best Actor lets go Dude!!! damn straight! Jeff Bridges

11:32 I never thought SWAT would be mentioned at the Oscars

11:30 Funny stuff Tim Robbins

11:28 Few montages this year or honorary awards

11:27 interesting way of presenting the nominees in the Best Actor/Actress categories with co-stars announcing the nominees

11:20 Kathy Bates worked with Cameron on Titanic - I was expecting Michael Biehn (not really)

11:18 Foreign language film - always a bit tough to tell - winner is Secret in Their Eyes -- knew I should've gone something outside the most well known

11:16 whats with the lamps?

11:10 Keanu better enjoy his Oscar spotlight

11:08 and Editing goes to Hurt Locker - I still think Best Pic is up in the air -- not the movie

11:06 Editing - if Avatar wins this I think its over

11:04 Documentary Feature - should be The Cove I think - yep

10:55 Visual effects goes to Avatar like you thought it would be something else?

10:52 yeah!!! Up wins Best Score (love his LOST stuff by the way)

10:48 I don't know about these dance numbers for these scores

10:38 In memoriam - i don't like you demi

10:37 Sandra Bullock presenting cinematography (lipstick is too red but still hot) Avatar - so still tough to say between Avatar and Hurt Locker -- thats good keep the suspense

10:30 I thought Travolta was dead but I like connections announcing the Best Pics nominees instead of the cast

10:29 Sci-Tech - never care about it but I'm sure they deserve their wins

10:27 Sound Mixing goes to Hurt Locker - is a sweep coming?

10:25 Sound Editing goes to Hurt Locker - will Avatar win Sound Mixing?

10:23 I love me some Morgan Freeman

10:20 Sorry to inform Kristen but its commonly known that Silence of the Lambs in 1991 won for horror - and Twilight aint horror - love the tribute though

10:18 yuck Twilight

10:17 Funny stuff Steve Martin sharing a bed ala Paranormal Activity

10:12 Costume Design (SJP's is awful by the way) The young Victoria - hilarious dress by the way Sandy Powell

10:07 Art Direction - I'll be surprised if Avatar doesn't take this for its first win of the night - and it is Avatar

9:59 Supporting Actress - Mo'Nique - Yawn

9:50 Adapted Screenplay goes to Precious!!!! holy crap thats a shock didnt Up in the Air win everything in the award season!!!

9:42 Best Make-up (where the heck was District 9) goes to Star Trek

9:38 I like Ben Stiller as a Navi

9:37 Live Action Short - The New Tenants

9:35 - WTF!!! who is this lady pulling a Kanye interrupting this guy

9:34 Documentary Short goes to Music by Prudence

9:32 Interesting a tribute to short films - Short Film Animated goes to Logorama - I havn't seen the shorts yet but I was expecting Wallace and Gromit to take this

9:29 Ok Saldena's dress is ok from the waist up and then you see the bottom half

9:18 Love a tribute to John Hughes - but seriously Molly don't make it so obvious you're reading off a teleprompter and that dress is terrible

9:14 Big moment for Hurt Locker if it wins Original Screenplay here - and it goes to HURT LOCKER!!!

9:13 Lovin Downey Jr and his tie

9:04 Hooray with T-Bone Burnett - a deserved win for best song

9:03 Miley Cyrus looks a bit old in that dress

9:00 Up wins animated

8:44 and in no surprise Best Supporting Actor goes to Christoph Waltz

8:42 What was with Clooney's look?

8:37 This co-host thing ain't working, someone needs to yank Alec Baldwin off the stage

8:34 NPH should start every award show, loved the Harold and Kumar reference.

8:20: Ten minutes to the Oscar telecast - Neil Patrick Harris is supposedly opening up the show and all the nominees all suppose to be on stage for some sort of American Idol type of thing. Anyway stay tuned for a great night

Sam Mendes Filmography

2010-03-07T17:01:00.001-05:00

Ten years ago American Beauty was the big winner at the Oscars to cap off one of the best cinematic years. The Matrix and The Cider House Rules were the other big winners that evening. Since then Mendes has come closest to gaining Oscar consideration again with Road to Perdition which did land six nominations. Last year's underrated Revolutionary Road gained three nominations. Mendes has been pegged to direct the next Bond movie, which should be an interesting project as he has yet to direct an action movie, but I'm sure he'll figure out somehow to make Bond a trapped person burdened by the world's conventions. Below is my ranking of Mendes' films.

5. Away We Go (2009)
4. Jarhead (2005)
3. Road to Perdition (2002)
2. Revolutionary Road (2008)
1. American Beauty (1999)

The Dude Abides

2010-03-07T12:43:00.000-05:00

Jeff Bridge should finally be getting his due tonight for one of his best performances. It was twelves years ago, the Coen Brothers came out with my favorite of their films The Big Lebowski. The Dude has become one of the most iconic screen characters of the last two decades, partially due to people like discovering it after its release on DVD and playing it non-stop at college. Owen Gleiberman at EW has a good article about how this role might be key to Bridges winning the Oscar. The best performances in my opinion are the ones that create singular characters that stay with us and The Dude is certainly one of those.

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Live Blogging

2010-03-06T23:03:00.000-05:00

I'm taking an attempt to live blog the Oscars tomorrow -- come join if you wish -- make sure you watch with a beverage of choice (if you have vodka, kahula and cream go for the white russian in honor of The Dude) I myself will likely be drinking Captain and Coke. Make sure to root for your favorite of the nominees, I've got my fingers crosssed for Hurt Locker and Bridges.

Maybe Gabby Can Win

2010-03-06T22:12:00.000-05:00

There seems to be far more buzz on Gabby than I had thought and that a vote split could help her. The other sentiment seems to be the anti-Bullock votes might be split among Gabby and Carey still propelling Bullock to the win. I'm still sticking my guns and saying that Streep wins -- I think theres too much of a sentiment to give the top acting prizes to longtime screen veterans. Both Streep and Bridges are 60, a win by both will be only the second time that the lead winners were both over the age of 60 (On Golden Pond was the one time) - this could be the deciding factor.

Remembering Marty's Win

2010-03-06T16:30:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite Oscar moments -- don't know why George Lucas was there presenting the award as he is hardly considered on of the best directors of the last 40 years. I could think of countless other winners from that time period James Cameron, Clint Eastwood, Jonathon Demme, Oliver Stone or Woody Allen that would've made more sense. Anyway here's a link to his speech.

Marty

Big Weekend For Alice in Wonderland

2010-03-06T16:00:00.000-05:00

Alice in Wonderland exceeded expectations and should finish its opening weekend in the 90-100 million dollar ballpark. Like Avatar, Alice in Wonderland's gorss is a bit augmented by its use of 3-D. Of course Johnny Depp has become quite the marquee name of late, and people seem to have taken to his colloborations with Tim Burton (even if it's getting tired in my eyes). Their last team-up Sweeney Todd did modestly at the boxoffice for a violent musical. Before that they hit it big with the mostly forgotten Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which opened to over 50 million in the summer of 2005, so perhaps the success of Alice shouldn't be too shocking. I havn't seen Alice yet, but despite slightly better than average reviews I'm not too keen about this project. Burton seems to have lost his artistic vision of the last five years.

Also released this weekend to a respectable opening was Antoine Fuqua's latest Brooklyn's Finest. The movie seems like a retread of most gritty cop dramas, so I can't expect it perform much better from this pint forward.

Avatar should be passing Return of the Jedi by the end of the weekend also on the inflation adjusted chart.