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.

[CaptainK]

The reason for the remake is the question of the ages.

[SuziQ]

Good post! We enjoy movies, and there are few we'll outright boycott because of the actor starring in them, if it looks to be a good film. For Jane Fonda we'll make an exception. We don't like her at ALL, and won't watch her in anything! LOL!

I'd agree with all of your actor and actress choices, and as the poster who followed mentioned, I'd add Rachel Weisz. She was terrific, as was Keanu Reeves, and the outstanding Peter Stormare, in Constantine, one of our favorite movies.

[SuziQ]

Heh, you mean Waking Ned Devine, truly one of the funniest movies I've ever seen. The music is terrific, too! I think it is one of Ian Bannen's last movies.

That man was a terrific actor. We first saw him in a Masterpiece Theater series, "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy", back in 1979. He starred with two other awesome, though also, sadly, departed actors, Sir Alec Guiness, and Ian Richardson.

If you liked Ned Devine, you'd probably also like The Secret of Roan Inish. Another beautiful film, both in cinematography and music.

[DollyCali]

that is it.. I was drawing a complete blank this morning when I wrote that.

I loved that movie!

I will watch for the secret of roan Irish at Library..which is where I get the DVDs normally.

I wonder if the Tinker movie is availble

Thanks Suzi

[SuziQ]

I think many conservatives had a knee-jerk reaction because of the language and the homosexual brother. Didn't bother me; the dynamics of the family at the beginning made the actions later on so much more affecting. Our #2 son was home at Christmas and encouraged us to see it, figuring we'd like it. He was thrilled that we enjoyed it so much, and we had a great time watching it with him.

We joined Netflix back in early 2000, when it was fairly new. We enjoyed watching movies with our kids, so we'd research the content, when they were much younger, so we could watch as many together as we could. It has become easier, since the youngest is now 17. We can watch most anything, except stuff with explicit sex. We don't like those that much anyway, and it's embarassing for him and us to watch them together, so we skip those parts, if we know they're there. We like big old action movies as well as quiet little movies; we're just strange. ;o)

[SuziQ]

Don't be such a scold! ;o)

[DollyCali]

The movies lately it seems to me have hazed over the sex scenes.. show a lot of foreplay & then just soften it up & leave it up to the imagination. I have noted that with the rape scenes also.

They want to keep the PG13 ratings if possible.. and basically it is easier & less trying to the actors who I have read on many occasions really dont like those scenes

[SuziQ]

Heh, when our youngest was 14, we wanted to see Panic Room. We checked it out on the website we used to review movies for families, www.kidinmind.com, and we saw that on the language ratings, it used the "F" word 59 times. We decided to get it from Netflix anyway, and told our son that, even though he'd hear that word a lot, to remember we don't use it in our house!

We enjoyed the movie a lot, and at the end, he informed us that the actually used the "F" work 65 times!! He had sat there and counted them! LOL!

[SuziQ]

They want to keep the PG13 ratings if possible.. and basically it is easier & less trying to the actors who I have read on many occasions really dont like those scenes

That's good to hear!

[ReignOfError]

I don't think Keanu Reeves is much of an actor -- but he's a good movie star. He has a limited range, and as long as he sticks to it, he's golden. I liked him in The Matrix, Speed, and Point Blank; in Much Ado About Nothing, not so much. He was out of his element.

Rachel Weisz, I agree, is drop-dead gorgeous, smart, and talented enough to play an ugly and dumb character convincingly. I haven't seen Constantine and don't know Peter Stormare, so I can't comment on that.

[ReignOfError]

told our son that, even though he'd hear that word a lot, to remember we don't use it in our house!

When I was small, and first discovered the power of profanity, my parents called those "bathroom words." Words that could only be spoken in the bathroom. So when I felt the need, I could go into the bathroom and yell to my heart's content. I got it out of my system, no soap in the mouth required.

As an adult, I use profanity when I feel it's warranted, but I know there's a time and a place. I am much more circumspect in my word choice on FR than I am among my IRL friends, because the standards are different. I use language with my buddies over beers that I would never use at a state dinner. Time and place.

[ReignOfError]

Why is Jack bald? Is he taking Chemo?

That wasn't my question .SomeCallMeTim asked that, and I answered "show of sollidarity with Britney," which I thought was pretty clearly a joke.

Actually, Nicholson is playing a cancer victim in latest film, so he had to be in character.

Much like Tom Hanks had the long hair and scraggly beard in the middle of shooting "Castaway," and Natalie Portman showed up bald during the filming of "V for Vendetta."

[potlatch]

Ahmmmm, Dolly?? LOL!! I figured the Academy would vote for him just to stick a finger in 'our eye'!

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1791036/posts?page=18#18

[ReignOfError]

I have to say that Cate Blanchett distracted me because she was, at least initially, imitating Katherine Hepburn's mannerisms by exaggeration rather than more subtly.

I have to disagree. Plenty of folks did impressions, comic caricatures, of Hepburn over the years. Kate Hepburn was a big personality, a strong woman, someone who wore pants and played sports when that Just Wasn't Done. Blanchet didn't exaggerate Hepburn's accent or mannerisms. Hepburn herself was just that big.

In her relationships with Hughes and Tracy, she was looking for a partner, not a master. Underplaying that would have been as much of a sin as overplaying it, with the latter far easier. I thought Blanchet nailed it, and if I were planning a Hepburn bio flic, I'd have to be insane if I didn't put her at the head of the line.

I haven't seen any Johnny Depp movies lately, what do you recommend?

Part of what makes Johnny Depp great is that he isn't Tom Cruise. He doesn't take boring leading-man blockbuster parts. Of his recent roles, Finding Neverland stands out as a straightforward example of good acting. No flash, no stunts, just skill. Blow is another powerful performance, albeit with a less likable character. Going less recent, Benny and Joon is one of my all-time favorite movies, and Depp is amazing in it. If you want to see his range from subtle to out-there, compare any of the movies above to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory or Edward Scissorhands.

[SuziQ]

I do like Keanu Reeves, though, as you say, he is limited. But I think he chooses movies that are comfortable for him.

[mountainfolk]

Thats funny!! I wonder why they don't just put the word on the marque along with the title---like 'The Fing Departed' etc. I read your mention of Waking Ned Devine---I really liked that movie and tried to get the sound track for the music at the end but never found it.

[mountainfolk]

It appears that we both like Katherine Hepburn and Cate Blanchett but disagree on Blanchett's interpretation of her role as Hepburn. Cate Blanchett's performance of the Katherine Hepburn role came across to me as an unnecessary caricature of the woman. I don't believe Hepburn's personality needed to be embellished as just playing the role spoke to her nature. Hepburn was just a small segment of Hugh's life and the film was about him, not her. If I were to cast Blanchett in that role I would tell her to concentrate on Hepburn the person, not to rely on enhancing the gimmicks. Thanks for the Johnny Depp film suggestions, I will give him a try.

[zbigreddogz]

I loved Prairie Home Companion as well. In spite of his liberal views, Robert Altman was a great director, and if anybody was more due then Scorsese, it was Altman. Too bad he died.

Anyhow, great movie. I got a big kick out of this song too:

Bad Jokes by Woody Harrelson

(Feat. John C. Reilly)

The blind man's seeing eye dog
Pissed on the blind man's shoe
The blind man said, "Here Rover,
Here's a piece of beef for you."
His wife said, "Don't reward him.
You can't just let that pass."
The blind man said,
"I gotta find his mouth,
so I can kick him in the ass."

Chorus

Bad Jokes,
Lord I love them.
Bad jokes,
Can't get enough of 'em.
oo oo oo whee,
Bad jokes for me.

You got one Dusty.
I got one Lefty.
Let's hear it.

When God created woman,
He gave not two breasts but three.
When the middle one got in the way
God performed surgery.
Woman stood before God,
With middle breast in hand.
Said "What do we do,
With the useless boob?"
And got created man.

Bad Jokes,
Lord I love them.
Bad jokes,
Can't get enough of 'em.
oo oo oo whee,
Bad jokes for me.

Gramps turned 80 the other day,
He never did find his way.
He dressed up in a brand new suit,
Sitting in a big lawn chair.
When a beautiful young naked woman,
Stood up in front of the group.
She offered gramps some super sex ,
And he said, "I'll take the soup!"

Bad Jokes,
Lord I love them.
Bad jokes,
Can't get enough of 'em.
oo oo oo whee,
Bad jokes for me.

You ready for another one?
Yea, lay it on me.

Olie went to the neighborhood dance,
And he won the big door prize.
Was a toilet brush,
And he took it home.
And the next week one of the guys,
Said, "Olie, how's that toilet brush,
The one you won from the neighbors?"
Olie said, "Oh, it works pretty good,
but I prefer toilet paper."

Bad Jokes,
Lord I love them.
Bad jokes,
Can't get enough of 'em.
oo oo oo whee,
Bad jokes for me.

Farmer had a champion bull,
Bred 200 times a year.
Farmer's wife said, "200 times.
Isn't that wonderful dear.
Maybe you otta watch 'em
Maybe he'll show you how."
Farmer said, "He's a heck of a bull,
But it wasn't all with same cow."
Come on now.

Bad Jokes,
Lord I love them.
Bad jokes,
Can't get enough of 'em.
oo oo oo whee,
Bad jokes for me.

You gotta another one Dusty?
Actually I do.

You hear about the viagra shipment that got stolen?

No, who they think did that?

Well they don't know,
But they are on the lookout for hardened criminals.

You got another one?
I got another one Lefty.

Sven said to his friend,
"O, I think my wife died."
His friend said, "What do you mean you think?"
"Well, the sex is still the same,
But the dishes are stacking up."

Hey Dusty.
Yea Lefty.

Did you know that diarrhea was hereditary?

No, I didn't.
Yea, it runs in your jeans.

Heya, Lefty.
Yea, go aheadin.

Why do they call it PMS?
PMS, well I don't know why?
Mad cow was already taken.

Hey, Dusty.
Yea, Lefty.

What do you get when you cross
Holy water with castor oil?
I don't know Lefty.
What do you get?
A religious movement.

Heya, Hey, Lefty.

What did the elephant
say to the naked man?
What did he say?
He said, "It's cute,
But can you really breath
through that thing?"

Come on

Bad Jokes,
Lord I love them.
Bad jokes,
Can't get enough of 'em.
oo oo oo whee,
Bad jokes for me.

Bad Jokes,
Man I love them.
Bad jokes,
Can't get enough of 'em.
oo oo oo whee,
Baaaad, Whoo
jokes for meee.

Hey!

[zbigreddogz]

Uh oh, you defied conventional FR wisdom, and are thus a RINO, deserving of being shot.

Anyhow, I agree with what you said. There's a difference between being a Conservative and bowing to everything that might be in the majority opinion of the right half of the country.

[daisyscarlett]

The movies lately it seems to me have hazed over the sex scenes.. show a lot of foreplay & then just soften it up & leave it up to the imagination

Have you seen The Factory Girl? A lot of real steamy sex scenes - no wonder Tom Cruise made Katie Holmes give up the lead which was subsequently taken by Sienna Miller....the movie was not well received, was only in the theaters for 1 week. Actually, it was pretty interesting, about Andy Warhohl who was a nasty piece of goods IMO. But should have been rated R++++++++++....