The Vote

'1600 Penn' highlight clip

Jon Weisman — 2013-03-08T11:42:02-08:00

Moving on to the new Variety

Jon Weisman — 2013-02-28T09:53:06-08:00

By now, hopefully, you've heard about all the exciting changes at Variety, not the least of which is our revamped website, which has begun operation and officially launches Friday.

Under the new format, content that used to appear on the Variety blogs is all landing in one central location on the home page, and content that is specifically awards-related — including the stuff you'd find here at The Vote — will appear under the Awards tag. If you're looking for my work specifically, click here.

So thanks for coming here, and please continue to visit over there!

In search of next year's Oscar host

Jon Weisman — 2013-02-27T04:34:48-08:00

For three consecutive years, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences has tried to reinvent the wheel with the Oscars and ended up on artistic blocks. So how will they fare next year?

The February 2011 show was the Academy's biggest attempt to go young and hip, with James Franco and Anne Hathaway, and it tanked.

A year later, Brett Ratner was brought in to shake things up on the producing side, then found that choosing a producer who would offer uncensored personal thoughts in public wasn't going to fly. After Ratner ankled the show, with host Eddie Murphy following him out the door, Billy Crystal returned an Old School approach. But that wasn't by design – it was triage.

Then came Seth MacFarlane – whose efforts were loved by a staunch minority, not surprising since he and his producers set out to do an Oscars targeted for a staunch minority.

MacFarlane had made it clear long before the Oscars that this would be a one-time thing, so the fact that he confirmed on Twitter he won't be back after the fact comes as no surprise – or even as news, I'd say.

However, since Sunday's Oscarcast practically begged us to consider whether this year's Golden Globes hosts, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, might move over to next year's Oscars, it's noteworthy to learn that Fey has ruled out doing so, as Mike Ryan of the Huffington Post reports.

"I just feel like that gig is so hard," Fey said. "Especially for, like, a woman -- the amount of months that would be spent trying on dresses alone ... no way. ... I wish I could tell you there was (a chance)."

So where do the Academy Awards go from here?

Yes, the ratings for the Oscars ticked up this year, both in total viewers and in key demos, so it will be tempting for the Academy to consider that it was on the right track with MacFarlane – even to the point where you could argue that it doesn't matter how liked he was. Talking to insiders as well as outsiders, no matter what they thought of MacFarlane, I found they kept watching the show, from start to finish.

At the same time, it can't be lost on AMPAS that this was a rare recent Oscars with wide box office appeal: six films with more than $100 million in domestic box office and a seventh ("Zero Dark Thirty") poised to go over the top. People were invested in the contenders, and that, more than the host (let alone the heavy emphasis on musical tributes) is logically why viewers turned on and never dropped out.

So look for the Academy, which will be under a new president next year after Hawk Koch's term ends, to combine the best of both worlds: to do everything it can to ensure popular films reach the Oscars (no going back to five nominees), and to continue to pursue a host that will court younger audiences – with Fey and Poehler as the role models, even if they aren't the actual folks on stage.

Who might next year's host be?

Melissa McCarthy, who like Fey and Poehler first showed her awards spark at the Emmys (before she uncharacteristically struggled through her Oscar presenting assignment Sunday with Paul Rudd) is a tantalizing possiblity. She has an even broader film profile today than Fey, thanks to "Bridesmaids," "This Is 40" and "Identity Thief," and would also provide a welcome (yet far from politically correct) antidote to the boys' club atmosphere developed at the Academy Awards, which have had two solo female hosts this century and none since Ellen DeGeneres in February 2007.

But it's hard to imagine McCarthy fronting the Oscars on ABC, which holds the rights to the Oscars through 2020, before her association with rival CBS' "Mike & Molly" ends, so it's probably best to table that thought for now.

Neil Patrick Harris, who has already aced the Tonys and Emmys and who has youth-skewing credibility from TV to film ("Harold and Kumar") and the web ("Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog"), will be wrapping up the Eye's "How I Met Your Mother" in spring 2014, so he's also someone to keep an eye on for future years. Jane Lynch offers a similar profile, as soon as she's free of Fox's "Glee."

We can keep scouring Solar System Hollywood for potential alternatives – I mean, if someone like Tom Hanks ever said he wanted to do it, that would be signed, sealed and delivered before brunch. And I wouldn't rule out the non-ABC people entirely: MacFarlane's signature show "Family Guy," after all, is on Fox, though he's not on camera in it.

However, it's hard to escape the notion that the Occam's razor choice to host next year's Oscars is Jimmy Kimmel.

He's an ABC personality. He has 18-49 cachet. He's got a fairly well-received Emmys hosting gig from 2012 in his back pocket (not as dynamic as his peer Jimmy Fallon, but Fallon's on NBC). He's established a well-defined connection to the kudofest thanks to the tailor-made Oscar-night special editions of his talkshow. And now that he has moved "Jimmy Kimmel Live" to its new, pre-midnight timeslot, his next challenge awaits.

We'll see. There's plenty of time before the Academy arrives at a decision – last year's MacFarlane announcement didn't come until the first morning in October. AMPAS will consider its options, while Kimmel, if interested, would have to decide whether the massive time commitment needed for hosting the Oscars (whether the 2014 Winter Olympics push them to January or March) would be worth the potential mixed reviews he would receive.

Here are two suggestions, though, that might help Kimmel to a successful Oscar gig if he wants it. If you don't seek out those dreary reviews as a self-fulfilling prophecy as MacFarlane and exec producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron did, you might avoid them. And in the meantime, don't wait to start touting box office hits as Oscar contenders on your talkshow.

Follow Awards Editor Jon Weisman on Twitter.

Is there an Emmy hosting gig in Kaley Cuoco's future?

Jon Weisman — 2013-02-26T10:19:13-08:00

Kaley Cuoco, star of "The Big Bang Theory," is developing a pretty lucrative side biz hosting awards shows. She's hosted the past two People's Choice Awards, a Teen Choice Awards, and it has just been announced that she will host the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame induction ceremony on March 11.

CBS has the Emmys this year, and though Neil Patrick Harris is an obvious option, with this trial run in front of the TV Academy, you have to think that Cuoco is on the shortlist for consideration this September.

Here's the list of this year's Hall of Fame inductees and who will be introducing them:

-- Ron Howard (Will Arnett)
-- Al Michaels (John Madden)
-- Leslie Moonves (Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen)
-- Bob Schieffer (Jeff Fager and David Rhodes of CBS News)
-- Dick Wolf (Ice-T)
-- Philo T. Farnsworth (posthumously) (Aaron Sorkin)

Phil Gurin will produce the ceremony, which will be scripted by Dave Boone. It will take place at the Beverly Hilton Hotel and will benefit the Academy's Archive of American Television.

The post-Oscars top 40

Jon Weisman — 2013-02-25T11:25:04-08:00

Now that "Argo" has won best picture, we know who's No. 1 this awards season. But what about the rest?

With the confetti having fallen Sunday on this year's Oscars, here’s a final 2012-13 awards-season film top 40.

To be clear, this isn’t an artistic ranking of the films, but rather of how rewarding their journey through kudo country was (with preseason expectations ever-so-gently factored in). Only scripted features were considered.

And so, to the rankings (and apologies for the auto-playing videos below) ...

1) “Argo”
Like a no-hit pitcher who walks seven, it was a wild but otherwise incredibly fulfilling ride for this year’s Oscar best picture champion. Even though it won only three Oscars overall and director Ben Affleck wasn’t even nominated by the Academy, “Argo” pitched a memorable awards game, sweeping top film prizes from the Oscars, BAFTA, Golden Globes (in drama), Directors Guild, Producers Guild, Screen Actors Guild and Writers Guild.

2) “Life of Pi”
The beautiful also-ran best picture came away with the director prize for Ang Lee and won more Oscars than any other film, establishing its group effort as one of excellence.

3) “Django Unchained”
No one really knew what awards would come when “Django” became the final Oscar hopeful to present itself onscreen. It fared quite well, with two major Oscars in supporting actor (Christoph Waltz) and original screenplay (Quentin Tarantino) off four nominations, in addition to wins for Tarantino and Waltz at BAFTA and the Golden Globes.

4) “Les Miserables”
Did you hear the people vote? What had been something of a disappointing awards season was salvaged on Oscar night when Tom Hooper's film tied "Argo" for second place in Oscars. And that wasn't all: Four wins at BAFTA and three at the Golden Globes (including top musical/comedy) aren’t exactly chopped liver.

5) “Lincoln”
Keep your sunny side up, Steven. Mr. Spielberg made a movie about the legendary president that will live long after any agony of defeat from this year’s Oscars. Still, it was shocking how quickly the film went from the catbird seat of an Academy-high 12 Oscar nominations (including picture, director, screenplay and three in acting) to being put on its heels by the “Argo” surge, landing only two Oscars in all.

6) “Silver Linings Playbook”
The first film in three decades to earn Oscar nominations in all four acting categories, plus nods for picture, editing and for David O. Russell in writing and directing, “Silver Linings” made some noise, even if it only won one Oscar. It was also the big fish in the pond that was the Indie Spirit Awards. It’s hard to say what the film will be remembered more for: its bravado combination of romance and mental illness, or for launching Jennifer Lawrence into the stratosphere.

7) “Zero Dark Thirty”
The what-might-have-been award goes to “Zero Dark Thirty,” whose awards season will be forever colored by a controversy that for at least a month eclipsed any discussion of its critical merits. With five nominations including picture, lead actress and original screenplay, it was hardly a lost winter, but the promise of its early spree among critics groups evaporated like water in Death Valley. Its only Oscar on Sunday was a shared prize for sound editing.

8) “Amour”
Michael Haneke’s somber pic broke out of the foreign-language film suburb to also earn big-city Oscar nominations in picture, director, screenplay and lead actress. As a result, it figures to be one of the most-remembered foreign-language Oscar-winners for quite some time.

9) “Beasts of the Southern Wild”
Hushpuppy hushed the naysayers, as “Beasts” beasted Oscar nominations in picture, director, lead actress and screenplay. Quvenzhane Wallis, Lucy Alibar and Benh Zeitlin helped give the Academy’s kudofest a youthful glow.

10) “Skyfall”
Though it didn’t break through to become the first Bond movie nominated for picture or acting, five Oscar nominations and the first two Oscar wins for the Bond franchise in 47 years (not to mention a BAFTA prize for top British film) made this the franchise’s top Oscar overachiever. Would this have been the 10th best picture nominee if that had remained the magic number?

11) “The Master”
Of the summertime best picture picks that ultimately fell short, “The Master” ended up an acting showcase as far as voters were concerned — and next to "Skyfall" is arguably the film that would have rounded out an Academy top 10. Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams and Philip Seymour Hoffman each earned BAFTA, Golden Globe and Oscar noms, while Hoffman added a SAG nod as well. However, it was certainly thought before winter arrived that writer-director Paul Thomas Anderson might fare better, not to mention such pros as Mihai Malaimare Jr. in cinematography and Jonny Greenwood for score.

12) “Flight”
It didn’t get an Oscar nomination for best picture or anything below the line, but “Flight” still flew high with noms for lead actor Denzel Washington (also recognized at the Globes and SAGs) and for John Gatins’ original screenplay.

13) “Anna Karenina”
The Joe Wright pic became something of a poster child for the virtues and perils of risktaking thanks to its highly conceptual approach to the legendary Tolstoy work. Hopes for major awards in directing, screenplay and acting faded slowly but surely, yet it still remained potent below-the-line with four Oscar noms and a victory.

14) “The Sessions”
Some inner-circle lead actor candidate had to be left out of the Oscars, and it was John Hawkes who drew the short straw, leaving fellow SAG, Indie Spirit and Golden Globe nominee Helen Hunt as the film’s only Oscar finalist. Writer-director Ben Lewin also might have had the right to expect more recognition than he got post-Sundance for this close-but-no-cigar awards contender. Hawkes and Hunt did win at the Spirits, however.

15) “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”
Directed by “Shakespeare in Love” helmer John Madden, the cast for “Best Exotic” seemed to play into the Academy’s wheelhouse. Buoyed by a SAG ensemble nomination plus an individual nod for Maggie Smith (plus noms to the film and Judi Dench at the Golden Globes), the film wasn’t definitively ruled out of the best picture picture until January. But it came up empty with the Academy and for that matter, polled only one nom from BAFTA.

16) “Moonrise Kingdom”
The combination of Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola produced a steady player in the writing competition from start to Oscar-nominated finish. Though acting noms — even for its great cast — were something of a longshot, more recognition might have been expected for the film’s striking visual look. “Moonrise” did have five Indie Spirit noms, including supporting actor for Bruce Willis, director for Anderson and feature – but no wins there, either.

17) “Hitchcock”
One of the big fall headlines was the sudden entry of “Hitchcock” into the awards race, with a ballyhooed Nov. 1 premiere at the AFI Fest signalling that Fox Searchlight believed it had a major player. But auds (and in particular, voters) weren’t particularly fired up by the film, ultimately targeting their affection to Helen Mirren (Golden Globe and SAG noms) and to its only Oscar nomination, makeup and hairstyling.

18) “The Impossible”
Much best picture contender talk accompanied the Toronto premiere of “The Impossible,” before it became clear that voters didn’t feel the film’s post-tsunami chapter lived up to its initial drama. With young Tom Holland competing in the lead actor slot, it wasn’t a surprise that acting nods (including an Oscar nom) landed only on Naomi Watts, but the final blow to “The Impossible” was its absence of below-the-line recognition.

19) “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey”
Eliminated as a serious contender for above-the-line awards the moment it screened, “The Hobbit” nevertheless earned three Oscar noms.

20) “Brave”
Winning top animated feature honors at the Oscars more than took the sting out of losing the equivalent Producers Guild prize to "Wreck-It Ralph." "Brave" also won at the Golden Globes.

21) “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen”
The “Huh? What?” movie of awards season, the charming if lightly regarded “Salmon” came out of nowhere to nab three Golden Globe nominations including one in musical/comedy — getting Emily Blunt and Ewan McGregor some quality ceremony time — then vanished upstream just as quickly as it arrived.

22) “Wreck-It Ralph”
"I am not an Oscar winner, and that's good. I will never be an Oscar winner, and that's not bad. There is no one I would rather be than me."

23) “The Deep Blue Sea”
A New York Film Critics Circle victory for lead actress Rachel Weisz resurrected the mostly forgotten film and might have contributed to her Golden Globes nomination, but when Weisz came up empty at the SAGs, it was “Sea” you later.

24) “Snow White and the Huntsman”
One of only 15 films to have more than one Oscar nomination, “Snow White” was tapped in costume design and production design.

25) “Rust and Bone”
Eliminated from the foreign-language film Oscar early on when France chose “The Intouchables,” the film still remained an awards player thanks to the standout performance of Marion Cotillard, nominated at BAFTA, SAG, Critics Choice and the Golden Globes. If there was a surprise omission in the Academy Awards’ lead actress nominations, it was probably her.

26) “Arbitrage”
The awards story of “Arbitrage” mainly boiled down to whether the film would deliver Richard Gere his first Oscar nomination, though added depth came from the touting of Nicholas Jarecki’s original screenplay and notice of supporting work by Brit Marling and Nate Parker. In the end, Gere got a Golden Globes nom, but that was the film’s last kudo breath.

27) “Magic Mike”
A ton of recognition for Matthew McConaughey didn’t translate into any significant awards action outside the Indie Spirit win for the supporting actor, but the film stayed alive in the conversation well past its September exit from theaters.

28) "Bernie"
Heavy campaigning for and by Jack Black helped the film to Indie Spirt noms for feature and male lead, and Shirley MacLaine added a Critics’ Choice Movie Awards nom. But the competition was too challenging for the Richard Linklater pic to go further.

29) “Looper”
Rian Johnson’s original screenplay got on a bit of a recognition roll, peaking with a WGA nomination, to become a de facto contender for an Oscar nomination it ultimately fell short of. The film was popular at the Critics' Choice Movie Awards, earning five nominations, though four of them were in genre slots.

30) “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”
Despite settling for little beyond its Writers Guild and Indie Spirit nominations for hyphenate Stephen Chbosky, “Perks” seemed to have a fairly strong presence in awards season and figures to have a longer legacy than some of the films above it on this list.

31) “Middle of Nowhere”
Though it did little outside of the Indie Spirits, “Middle of Nowhere” also won’t be forgotten. It notched four Indie Spirit noms, won the John Cassavettes Award for achievement in low-budget filmmaking and etched lead actress Emayatzy Corinealdi and writer-director Ava DuVernay permanently on discerning consciousnesses.

32) “ParaNorman”
Won numerous critics groups honors leading up to its Oscar nomination, when its journey came to an abrupt halt.

33) “Frankenweenie”
Basically “ParaNorman” redux.

34) “The Paperboy”
Beset with shaky reviews, it was the biggest surprise this side of the “Yemen” when Nicole Kidman grabbed a supporting actress nomination at the SAGs, preparing awards pundits for her subsequent Golden Globes nom. Modest as it was, it was a better awards season than “The Paperboy” had reason to expect after its critical trouncing.

35) “Quartet”
Somehow, Dustin Hoffman making his directorial debut didn’t resonate as an awards story, and interest in the estimable “Quartet” remained modest. Perhaps confusion with the similarly titled (and themed) “A Late Quartet” didn’t help, but the best kudo nod the film yielded was a Golden Globe nom for Maggie Smith.

36) “Hyde Park on Hudson”
Stumbled about as fast as any on-paper contender for major awards. Bill Murray hung tough the longest and was nominated for lead actor in a comedy or musical at the Golden Globes, but then “Hyde” went into hiding.

37) “Compliance”
Miles apart in tone but similar to “Magic Mike” in awards journey, “Compliance” hung around in the kudo consciousness thanks to the extended appreciation given Ann Dowd’s performance — however much it was a lead jammed into a supporting slot. Unlike Matthew McConaughey of "Mike," Dowd didn't win at the Indie Spirits.

38) “The Intouchables”
Mostly well-received in the U.S. after breaking box office records in France, “The Intouchables” became a villain of sorts for some when it nosed out “Rust and Bone” for France’s spot in the foreign-language competition — then didn’t even break through to the final five at the Oscars. Still, in terms of Stateside critics honors for foreign-language films, it was ahead of all but “Amour.”

39) “Cloud Atlas”
Perhaps the film that took the hardest tumble from the highest ambition, the risktaking, unconventional “Cloud” drew no small amount of positive buzz out of Toronto before being overwhelmed by dissenters, ending up with one Golden Globe nom for score and nothing from the Oscars.

40) “The Dark Knight Rises”
If patterns held as many expected them to, the third chapter of Christopher Nolan’s “Dark Knight” saga would have aped the final “Lord of the Rings” film in surging to the top of this year’s Oscar charts — especially considering the commonly held belief that we largely owe Oscar’s expanded best picture field to the omission of “Dark Knight” No. 2. Whether it was derailed by the tragedy in Aurora, Colo. or whether it just fell too far outside the fancy of voters, “Dark Knight” came up empty on Oscar noms day (despite strong reviews) and mostly ignored elsewhere.

The crime of Sunday's Oscarcast wasn't irreverence, it was arrogance

Jon Weisman — 2013-02-25T10:34:30-08:00

The Oscars are done with, and much has been written about the ceremony broadcast already, so forgive me my three cents. But since I spent enough time expressing my fears about Sunday in the days and weeks leading up to the show, I figured I might as well complete the cycle.

It's one thing when you're an artist to create something and say, "I'm going to do it my way."

It's another to take something that doesn't belong to you and say, "I'm going to do it my way," and to be aware that your way isn't the right way to do it — so aware that you take 15 minutes at the start of the show to point that out, over and over again. That's not self-deprecation. That's an insult.

And that's what Oscarcast exec producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron and host Seth MacFarlane delivered.

I get that some people liked Sunday's ceremony. My wife liked Sunday's ceremony (and she doesn't even like "Family Guy" or "Smash"). But the issue isn't about whether you won't please anyone. Anyone can please someone.

It's about making your best effort. And if you're so focused on pleasing yourself that you don't care to address the problems you are causing, you're not making your best effort.

This was writ large and small during the ceremony.

Large: A so-called tribute to the history of movie musicals that covers all of three movies, one of which was produced by the Oscarcast exec producers, another of which featured a singer from a television show produced by the Oscarcast exec producers. Feeble. Either do it right, or don't do it at all.

Small: Five members of the cast of the "Avengers" present an Oscar, and they're a wonderful combination of disinterested and incoherent. Who even knows what they were saying? It's a dead moment and one that shouldn't happen. Understand when something isn't going to work and deal with it.

Gigantic: An opening show segment that was twice as long as the time devoted to celebrating all nine best picture nominees combined.

And that's with me putting aside, because others have addressed it so well, how the show did offend, practically as promised, large swaths of people.

As Zadan, Meron and MacFarlane couldn't stop telling us, the Oscars are an easy target for criticism, and that's true. And the thing is, the show wasn't even as bad as I thought it would be. MacFarlane did have some funny lines. Shirley Bassey kicked ass, as far as I'm concerned. And the brief moment of the socks in the dryer during the "Flight" parody was a half-second of genius.

But what I think offends me so much about Sunday's broadcast, more than any Oscars I've ever watched, is how blatantly Zadan, Meron and MacFarlane used the anti-Sally Field approach of "You're really not going to like me" to do absolutely whatever the hell they wanted, regardless of its merits. What cowardice, to blame your audience if any of it doesn't like what you're doing. It absolutely reeked of self-indulgence, completely oblivious to the idea that most of us do not tune in to see you. If this were on their show, that'd be one thing. But it was on our show.

The Academy Awards (as they used to be called before Zadan and Meron banned the name this year) are not sacred. I'm not anti-irreverance. I am anti-arrogance.

Maybe that's arrogant of me to say, but at least you have online options for Oscar coverage besides me. There's only one Oscars.

Oscars generate new trivia on big night for 'Argo'

Jon Weisman — 2013-02-24T21:27:02-08:00

My recap of tonight's Oscar results, which can be found here, includes some good trivia ...

... With Chris Terrio's award for adapted screenplay and William Goldenberg's for editing, "Argo" ended up with three Oscars, the fewest for a best-picture champ since 2005's "Crash." (The last grand-prize winner to win fewer Oscars was 1952's "The Greatest Show on Earth" with two.)

"Argo" also became the first best picture since 2004's "Million Dollar Baby" and second since 1977's "Annie Hall" not to at least tie for the most Oscars in its winning year. "Life of Pi" came away with the fullest hands, winning four Oscars including best director for Ang Lee.

Nevertheless, "Argo" proved as dominant in the picture race as any film in recent years, becoming the first since 2008's "Slumdog Millionaire" and second since 1999's "American Beauty" to win top feature prizes from the Directors Guild, Producers Guild, Screen Actors Guild (cast), Writers Guild (adapted screenplay), BAFTA, the Golden Globes and the Oscars.

The night was historical for more than just "Argo," or for First Lady Michelle Obama live from the White House joining Jack Nicholson in presenting the best picture award.

Daniel Day-Lewis became the first actor to win his third Oscar for a lead performance, taking what was arguably the night's most predictable honor for "Lincoln" (whose Rick Carter and Jim Erickson also won for production design).

"I really don't know how any of this happened -- I do know I've received so much more than my fair share of good fortune in my life," said Day-Lewis, who then turned comedian, addressing award presenter Meryl Streep, who won lead actress a year ago for "The Iron Lady." "It's a strange thing because three years ago, before we decided to do a straight swap, I had actually been committed to play Margaret Thatcher."

At age 22 and 193 days, Jennifer Lawrence became the second-youngest lead actress winner ever, sliding in a month more junior than Janet Gaynor and a year older than Marlee Matlin. Among others, Lawrence topped youngest-ever lead-actress nominee Quvenzhane Wallis (the 9-year-old star of "Beasts of the Southern Wild") and oldest-ever Emmanuelle Riva, who celebrated her 86th birthday on Oscar Sunday. ...

... Sound editing produced a rare tie ("No B.S.," according to presenter Mark Wahlberg): Paul N.J. Ottosson for "Zero Dark Thirty" -- that film's only kudo -- and Scott Millan, Greg P. Russell and Stuart Wilson for "Skyfall." The tie was the first at the Oscars since a 1994 deadlock in the live-action short race between "Franz Kafka's It's a Wonderful Life" and "Trevor."

"Skyfall" gave the James Bond franchise, whose 50th anniversary was celebrated during the kudocast, its third all-time Oscar and first since 1965's "Thunderball" won for visual effects. Soon after, "Skyfall" won its second Oscar for the title song by Adele and Paul Epworth. ...

Read the entire story here. And while I have your attention, here is my choice for the night's biggest surprise: Quentin Tarantino for original screenplay. I'm not sure I'd have put in him in my top three in terms of chances for winning -- definitely had Mark Boal and Tony Kushner ahead, and Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola of "Moonrise Kingdom" and Michael Haneke of "Amour" would have been equally valid darkhorses in my mind.

The Oscars are upon us

Jon Weisman — 2013-02-24T15:48:49-08:00

Folks, it's been quite the ride. A final thought before everyone hands tonight's top award to "Argo" -- the Academy gave "Life of Pi" 11 nominations without any for acting. That's some broad support. Not that I had the guts to turn away from the "Argo" freight train in my personal picks ...

Enjoy your evening, and let's hope my pessimism about the big show is unfounded.

The 'Asad' kids arrive at LAX

Jon Weisman — 2013-02-23T20:24:40-08:00

Via Facebook ...

'Silver Linings Playbook' tops at Indie Spirit Awards

Jon Weisman — 2013-02-23T20:22:44-08:00

As I battled a pre-Oscars bug, "Silver Linings Playbook" won four awards including top feature at today's Independent Spirit Awards. Details here.

Was happy to see "Middle of Nowhere" win the Cassavetes Award for truly low-budget feature filmmaking.