Academy Awards - Live Thread 79th Oscar Awards

25 February 2007 | DollyCali

[DollyCali]

The Queen

Peter Morgan's "The Queen" is nominated for six Academy Awards, including one for best picture.

The Departed

Under Martin Scorsese's directing, "The Departed" is nominated for five Oscars.

Babel

"Babel" is nominated for seven Oscars, including best picture and director.

Letters From Iwo Jima

"Letters" is nominated for four Academy Awards, including best director and best picture.

Little Miss Sunshine

"Sunshine" is nominated for four Academy Awards, including best picture

Leonardo DiCaprio

Nominated for his role in "Blood Diamond," this is Dicaprio's third nomination.

Ryan Gosling

Nominated for "Half Nelson," this is Gosling's first Oscar nod.

Peter O'Toole

This is veteran actor Peter O'Toole's eighth Academy Award nomination.

Forest Whitaker

Whitaker is nominated for playing the brutal dictator Idi Amin in "The Last King of Scotland."

Will Smith

Smith is nominated for an Oscar for the second time for his roll in the film "The Pursuit of Happyness."

Penelope Cruz

Cruz, nominated for "Volver," plays a woman whose life is thrown into chaos.

Kate Winslet

Winslet plays a discontented wife in "Little Children," earning her fifth nomination.

Helen Mirren

Helen Mirren played royalty in "The Queen," earning her third Orcar nomination.

Judi Dench

No stranger to the Academy, this is Dench's sixth nomination.

Meryl Streep

Streep played a well-dressed, outrageously demanding editor in "The Devil Wears Prada."

Mark Wahlberg

In "The Departed," Wahlberg explores the underbelly of the Boston police force.

Alan Arkin

No one plays a heroin-addicted Grandpa like Alan Arkin, nominated for "Little Miss Sunshine."

Eddie Murphy

"Dreamgirls" was a box office hit, and earned Eddie Murphy his first Oscar nomination.

Jackie Earle Haley

Nominated for "Little Children," this is Haley's first Oscar nod.

Djimon Huonsou

This is Huonou's second nomination -- this time, for "Blood Diamond."

Rinko Kikuchi

Kikuchi, up for "Babel" in which she plays a deaf teenager in Tokyo.

Jennifer Hudson

Nominated for "Dreamgirls," this is Jennifer Hudson's first Oscar nod.

Abigail Breslin

This is young Breslin's first nod, for "Little Miss Sunshine."

Cate Blanchett

This is Blanchett's third Oscar nod -- this time, for "Notes on a Scandal."

Adriana Barraza

This is Barraza's first nomination, for Amelia in "Babel."

Clint Eastwood

Eastwood is also nominated for Best Picture for "Letters From Iwo Jima."

Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu

Inarritu is nominated for directing "Babel."

Martin Scorsese

Scorsese is a familiar face at the Oscars -- this is his eight nomination.

Stephen Frears

Frears got the nod in 1990. This time, it's for directing "The Queen."

Paul Greengrass

Greengrass is up for "United 93," his first nomination.

[ReignOfError]

Am I the only one here who doesn't care for Jack Nicholson? He isn't anything compared to the greats of Hollywood's Golden Age. In fact, he is symptomatic of the sad state of Hollywood right now.

I don't think he's particularly indicative of anything in Hollywood right now. He's a sort of grand old man, who works infrequently and usually turns a fairly predictable performance, like Brando after Godfather. Of his recent movies, I really liked his performance in "The Pledge" (2001), which didn't play on the famous Jack persona at all. His others at least nodded to it.

If you want a read on the state of Hollywood right now, look yunger: Forrest Whitaker, with his oversize frame and lazy eye, is no matinee idol, but by God, he can act. If Djimon Hounsu can get a good dialect coach so he's not limited to roles where his African accent makes sense, he will be a force to be reckoned with. Leo DiCaprio and Johnny Depp are matinee idols with real acting chops, and let's not forget Christian Bale, Ewan McGregor, and (I never expected him to be as good as he is) Mark Wahlberg.

In the less-glamorous character ranks, we have Philip Seymour Hoffmann, John C. Reilly, Don Cheadle and Ving Rhames. Moving a few years older, you have William H. Macy, and (love or hate their politics, you have to admit their skills) Alec Baldwin and George Clooney. Another FReeper thought Clooney looked a bit like Cary Grant tonight; my first thought was Clark Gable.

On the distaff side of the aisle, there are plenty of actresses every bit as glamorous as the goddesses of old, and probably stronger actors. Start with the C/Kates: Blanchett, Beckinsale and Winslet. Add Charlize Theron, and I'll just stop there because I could go on all night. Except to add that Helen Mirren is slightly older than my dad, and she's still hot.

Bottom line, the golden age of Hollywood is now. Of course, a whole lot more crap is produced, because a whole lot more of everything is produced, and Sturgeon's Law still applies. Movies are like the rest of the media -- there's a lot more stuff, and it takes more work and discrimination to find the good stuff, but there's more and better good stuff than ever. You've just got to look for it.

[athelass]

>>>On the distaff side of the aisle, there are plenty of actresses every bit as glamorous as the goddesses of old, and probably stronger actors. Start with the C/Kates: Blanchett, Beckinsale and Winslet. Add Charlize Theron, and I'll just stop there because I could go on all night. Except to add that Helen Mirren is slightly older than my dad, and she's still hot.>>>

You are so right. I would add Rachel Weisz (sp?) and Scarlet Johannson to that list. We just saw a museum full of Annie Leibowitz photos in San Diego. There is the most beautiful picture of Scarlett Johannson in that collection. She is every bit as beautiful as Liz Taylor or Barbara Stanwyck. Breathtaking, and an incredible actress. I haven't seen Little Children but I saw Kate Winslet in Holiday over Christmas. She's so wonderful! I love her in Finding Neverland. After seeing Amazing Grace yesterday I think it won't be long before I could add Romola Garai. She's fabulous. I think you're right about this being the golden age of Hollywood. They can do such marvelous things on film now, I love it!

[ReignOfError]

I also must acknowledge Helen Mirren for giving the best acceptance speech. Very intelligent,gracious woman

Amen. In both her performance and her speech, she acknowledged QEII as a strong, noble and admirable woman, when it would have been easy not to.

But for me, the emotional high point of the night was Thelma Schoomaker's speech. She won for film editing in "The Departed."

Schoomaker helped Martin Scorcese edit his student film at NYU, and they became friends. Scorcese, with help from Al Pacino, allegedly pulled every string they had to get her into the union so she should come to work for him. The details have never been revealed. She has been Scorcese's editor since "Raging Bull," and he introduced her to her husband.

Watching the cameras cut between the two of them, it was a beautiful moment between two old friends, and they were both tearing up a little. Him more than her. I didn't see anything on camera, but I'm sure when Marty won his Oscar (FINALLY!!!), Thelma was bawling.

[ReignOfError]

You would think they would have given Peter O'Toole a lifetime achievement award.

They did, in 2003. I've read that he was tempted to decline the honorary award, because he thought he might yet earn one; in the end, he accepted.

[ReignOfError]

They all drag, it seems

They all seem to drag, but for the last four or five years, they've done a pretty good job of bringing it in before midnight (EST). Tonight broke the trend. I don't know how that happened, because there weren't any overlong speeches -- Ellen probably won't get an invite back last year, but the producer almost definitely won't.

[SuziQ]

What is truly sad is that most of those folks who are supporters of this "mentality" just don't know the facts.

Facts don't matter because they FEEL and BELIEVE that global warming is real.

As my hubby SirKit always says about folks like that, "you don't need reason when you have an ideology".

[athelass]

Oh, and Nicole Kidman, how could I forget her? She's my favorite. Talk about old Hollywood glamour. Nobody does old Hollywood like the Aussies, eh?

[SuziQ]

"That's IT! I've had enough of these Mother-F'in snakes on this Mother-F'ng plane!!!!"

ROTFL!! Of course he had to say it! It was expected of him! Actually I enjoyed the heck out of that movie! The Long Kiss Goodnight is one of my favorite movies. "I be honkin, Miss Daisy."

We also liked Little Miss Sunshine a lot. It was just one of those fun, quirky movies.

You seem to like different movies; have you seen The Station Agent? We really enjoyed that one. Another life, and friend, affirming movie.

[athelass]

and...

[ReignOfError]

Murphy had been holding his legendary concert film 'Delirious' off of DVD for a long time because he is embarrased about the language and gay bashing. It just came out with an apology from Murphy on the disc.

Good for him on both counts. Stand-up comedy should be harsh, it should be brutal, and it should be in and of its time; it's a potent form of satire, and the comics I respect least are the ones who try to be bland and inoffensive so they can land a sitcom deal. Actually, make that second-least. The ones I like least are the ones who aren't funny.

If the language is offensive to latter-day ears, it should be explained and put in context. If I had some of the stuff I said in my early twenties widely circulated on video today, i would certainly want to attach some disclaimers.

There is a great cartoon titled "Coal Black and de Sebben Dwarfs." Warner Brothers has tried to flush it down the memory hole. It's a 1941 parody of "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves" voiced by an all-black cast. It is a fabulous example of the animator's art in 1941, and also of the state of jazz in that year. And it is wall-to-wall with grotesque and offensive racial stereotypes.

It's on Google video. I wouldn't recommend watching it unless you're able to separate artistic merit from content; like watching "Triumph of the Will" or "Birth of a Nation." I'll FRmail the link on request. So how do you deal with that kind of thing? The usual response has been to bury it, but that's not feasible in the internet era.

I've had an idea for several years now to put together a series for cable with the most egregious examples of stereotypes that also include the best performances by black (or Asian, Hispanic, American Indian, whatever) actors of their day. To me, it is a cruel irony that black performers, who did good work despite worse oppression than anyone in America faces today, are consigned to be forgotten because the roles they were offered are now considered demeaning.

During the Civil Rights era of the '60s, Hattie McDaniel -- the first black Oscar winner -- was criticized for playing subservient "Mammy" roles (Most memorably in "Gone With the Wind"). Her response, which is pretty damned difficult to fault, is that when she couldn't find acting gigs she had to make ends meet as an actual domestic servant. Playing at scrubbing floors is better than scrubbing floors, and it pays more.

So my idea is this: bring out the offensive cartoons. Bust open the Disney Vault and let Song of the South out. Bring back Amos 'n' Andy. And intercut the segments with commentary, discussion, and debate over where the stereotypes came from, what they mean, and why they're wrong. Write teachers' guides for class discussion, Don't try to hide a bad message, because folks who want that will find it; take it head-on and kill it where it sleeps.

[BigSkyFreeper]

lol...the only movie I've seen on this list is The Queen..and it was most excellent!

The only movies I saw on the list were Little Miss Sunshine and The Queen.  Watched them as well as The Flyboys on the same flight back to the US from Amsterdam to Minneapolis.  I almost didn't watch The Queen, but I compelled myself anyway.

All three movies were excellent.

[ReignOfError]

I don't remember Letterman hosting. How long ago was that?

Oh, holy crap. Google reveals that it was 1995, which makes me feel incredibly old. Any time "a little while ago" turns out to be a dozen years, that's not good.

[The Raven]

>> Have you ever heard of a beer called "the Poet"?

Can't say that I have...

[athelass]

>>>To me, it is a cruel irony that black performers, who did good work despite worse oppression than anyone in America faces today, are consigned to be forgotten because the roles they were offered are now considered demeaning.
>>>
And now the Academy tries to make up for it by giving Oscar to every black actor who is nominated, regardless of quality. I know what you're saying though. People don't understand that you can't judge history by the present. It has to be judged by the standards of that time, not our time. Obviously, people change. Did you hear about that school in Illinois that was forced to give up it's Warrior mascot last week by the state Supreme Court because it's supposedly demeaning to American Indians? Apparently that school has had that mascot for over a hundred years. How can that possibly be considered demeaning? Ridiculous.

[athelass]

>>>Google reveals that it was 1995>>>

Well, good. Now I don't have to feel so bad for not remembering!

[athelass]

Well, thanks everyone. It's been fun. Dolly, ping me next time you do something fun like this. Otherwise, I'll never find you! Goodnight all!

[SuziQ]

I just saw Calendar Girls a few weeks ago. That was such a lovely film! Julie Walters, Helen Mirren, and Ciaran Hinds are three of my favorite actors.

[Treeless Branch]

I am sorry but people who refer to actors by their first names are complete idiots/boobs/dorks/fantasy land residents, esp people ho are conservative.

[durasell]

Yes, it was a sweet movie. However, speaking as a guy, a sword fight and a couple cars blowing up would have helped it quite a bit.

[durasell]

...and maybe a cameo appearance by Lucy Liu.