Welcome back everybody! Today a major professional guild, the Producers Guild of America (PGA) announced their nominees for Best Picture of 2008. No huge shockers are to be found here, but this is certainly a helpful shot in the arm for Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight. The film really needed this nod to remain a serious bet for an Oscar nod, so it's still in the running for sure. Sam Mendes' Revolutionary Road remains in trouble, but so did Atonement last year, and in the end it earned 8 Oscar nominations including Best Picture. Here are the nominees of the PGA...Motion Picture
“The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
“The Dark Knight”
“Frost/Nixon”
“Milk”
“Slumdog Millionaire”
Animated
“Bolt”
“Kung Fu Panda”
“WALL-E”
Documentary
“Man on Wire”
“Trouble the Water”
“Standard Operating Procedure”
So where are we now? A couple of weeks ago, David Carr from the New York Times said that, in his opinion, the race is down to seven films. Here's how he explained it...
Slumdog Millionaire - exceptionally good storytelling, beautiful cinematography, characters to care about, great directing - would transform the domestic Oscars into the international Oscars, has crossover appeal.
Milk - timely, moving, well directed and written - would erase the bad taste of the Brokeback snub.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - epic, transformative, moving - would be in line with traditional Oscar but would welcome Fincher into the club. Box office would made the difference.
Frost/Nixon - suspenseful, complex, entertaining - again, would be a traditional choice for Best Pic.
The Dark Knight - comic book film but a sweeping epic nonetheless. One of the most entertaining films of the year - timely, dark, highly entertaining and has made more money than any of these will make combined.
Doubt - riveting, funny, moving - with a brilliant cast - The actors choice. But is that enough?
Wall-E - one of the best films of the year - has everything a Best Pic needs except live action.
Up next: Writers Guild of America will be announced in Wednesday in order to honor the best screenplays of 2008.
24 comments:
As much as I love TDK I highly doubt it will win, it might get a nomination by the skin of its teeth, but I agree with what you said in class about the judges being too snooty to pick a batman movie. It obviously had deeper meaning than cool explosions and fights scenes, but I don't think that every person who saw TDK dissected it as is should be. It had many layers to it which I don't believe people dig in to.
In my opinion, I think Slumdog Millionaire will win. My opinion is a little biased at the moment because I have not had the time, or money, to partake watching the rest of the movies nominated. By the end of the week I should have them all watched.
One thing, Prill do you know where I can find the short story version of Benjamin Button?
its good taht the dark night got nominated. and i think horton hears a who should also be up there for the animated film ones. it was a good movie with a good message.
you can find benjamin button in barnes and noble or borders... usually it can be found in one of those fitzgerald short story collections.
i finally saw the dark night the other dayyy;
it was goooodd so im glad it got nominatedddd!
i kinda agree with trevor.
i mean the dark knight was amazing! but i dont think everyone got into it the same way and understood the message so i dont think it will win.
although it would be amazing if it did win because heath ledger is so cute! :]
I got the Wall-E DVD and watched it again this time with my parents and grandma. Yet, they failed to see the significance of the movie and could not get past the point that there was little dialogue. My grandma said that it was cute but predictable, but offered no further response. The day before, I had asked the family if they would want to watch it and my grandma seemed hesitant 1: because it was animated, and 2: because it was about robots. My dad said it was slow and boring. Though they did not particularly enjoy it they did not seem effected by the film's relevant message either. Perhaps it should have been more grim portraying the future more darkly without a return to Earth, for I doub that if the planet was in such as a bad condition as it was in the beginning, humans would be able to return. This would have made the theme more real and compelling. I know you thunk Wall-E is historic, but did you like it?
The Dark Knight is probably the best superhero movie released ever. Whoever liked Iron Man better has no taste.
Benjamin Button was great and moving, but I had trouble understanding the message the movie was trying to convey.
I have not seen any of the others, but I now have netflicks so I will be able to watch a lot more movies and I'll definitely watch Slumdog Millionaire when it comes out on DVD.
Although this has nothing to do with films, I am going to throw it out there anyway. I got Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, a stealth videogame by Hideo Kojima, for Christmas (I'm 3/5 finished with the game). Some compare Kojima as the Quentin Tarantino of video games for his wackiness and genius in storytelling. Metal Gear released on NES was immensely succesful and was praised for its innovative stealth gameplay. In Metal Gear you play as Snake who has to take down a nuclear bi-pedal tank.
Kojima also made Snatcher on Sega CD, a doomed system. I've never played Snatcher, but it was praised for its innovation in narrative the intro is simply mesmerizing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_lwkMMCUdFU
the awesome part starts at 2:50
Metal Gear Solid 4 is certainly a landmark in videogame storytelling. The characters are complex and real. The game is a perfect mix of gameplay and cinematography. Although the plot and bosses are wacky and sometimes cheesy(the game centers around the bringing down of the system created by an orginization known as the Patriots who wished to set up checks and ballances to keep the world in balance) the plot is relevant and considers themes such as the dangers of nuclear weapons (not an uncommon theme in Japanese produced things) and science in general, and the even more relevant theme of the privatization of the military. MGS4 depicts a dark future in which PMCs are the main forces in wars. War is portrayed as an economic activity. While I was playing I thought it was all very interesting, but it did not seem likely. Yet, recently discovered that PMCs are real and there aer many of them currently in Iraq, the most well known company is Blackwater. While the game does not bash PMCs it rather asks a question, that if we are not careful, the consequences could be dire.
This video is the intro to MGS4, there is some war violence.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-twkJyeBEU&feature=related
Whether not anyone cares, I don't know, but videogames have been proved as effective storytelling devices which can convey meaningful messages. Although videogames like these are rare, they do exist.
Oh and also Horton should NOT be nominated for it simply showed for the third time that Dr. Suess stories do not make good full-length movies.
Unfortunately the only movie I've seen in this list is TDK. That movie really surprised me though. I was expecting a typical super hero movie but it was a lot deeper and darker than I expected and I really liked it. However, I also agree with Trevor and everyone else who said that it will barely, if it even does, get a nomination simply because it is a super hero movie.
This weekend I'm going to see Benjamin Button and I've heard mixed reviews but I think it's going to be good.
Well...The only movie I have seen is Wall-e. And Alec I completely understand what you were trying to say. My little brother and sister got Wall-e for Christmas and won't even watch it because "They don't talk"....BUT WALL-E DOES't NEED DIALOGUE It's THAT AWESOME!--and I didn't every see it as being predictable.
And I am not suprised that The Dark Knight was nominated. I haven't seen it yet but it was the buzz of 2008 that's for sure.
I really liked Wall E and hope that it gets nominated. I thought it was a really good film and had a good message. I am going to see the Benjamin film this weekend. I have got mixed reviews from people who have seen it.
I am so happy Wall-e is up there! it was so cute! i hope that wins for animated and i think the dark knight was awesome. everyone who saw it would agree its pretty sick :]
i haven't even seen a preview for slumdog millionaire but i plan on watching it illegally tonight :]ben button was probably my favorite out of that list. i haven't seen the batman movie but i plan to. Wouldn't you think that twilight would be up there just because of how popular it was even though the acting and story line sucked?
2 things:
let's not endorse illegal downloads on this site. it's bad for the industry, it's bad for the art form, and it's a bad habit (and an illegal one at that) to get into. so let's not.
awards are not usually a popularity contest. why is twilight not up for awards? you answered your own question. bad acting and bad story line. if you want popularity contests, watch the mtv movie awards.
I don't know about the movie Revolutionary Road but I sure know that I thought the Dark Knight was amazing. But I dooubt that it will win a win because most movies that are really big in the box office don't seem to win. Most of the ones that I have seen win are movies that I have never seen, much less heard of so since the Dark Knight pretty much everyone heard of it, I don't think it will win. Maybe since I have never heard of Revolutionary Road, it will end up getting a nomination and win!
I thought Wall-E was awesome personally (:
A lot of people just think it's cute but it really has a message. I'm glad it was nominated.
I really want to see Benjamin Button... some people said it was really confusing so I might wait til it comes out on DVD, then I can watch it multiple times.
TDK was still the best movie of the year in my opinion! So what if it doesn't win (:
I saw Slumdog Millionaire the other day!!!!!! It was a very good movie. I did not understand the beginning at first, but i soon got it haha. It portrays the "real" India, refering to the gangs and how far people would go to get money, fame, And/or power... I think the Slumdog Millionaire will win.
im glad that the dark knight was nominatated cuz that was a BA movie with alot of action and great acting... and if keith ledger was still alive then he should get some type of reward cuz he was an amazing actor in that movie. you would think that keith was actually that crazy in real life
i think the dark knight is a really good film and even though it was based on a super hero when your watching the movie you arent thinking of a cartoon at all. it really captures you and keeps you on the edge of your seat. it most definitely is not a childish cartoon it is a good movie and i think it should have a chance just like the other movies. however it might not win it should still have several nominations.
i dont think the dark night will win but i hope it will. trevor is right it isnt just about true explosions it hhaas a meaning. batman is in love with rachel and he is trying to save her, while in the end he cant. i think heath ledger gave the best performance of his life in that movie. he pulled off the joker a little to well.
for the animated moviewsw i think bolt or kung fu panda should win. i loved both of those movies and i think bolt had a great message behind it. bolt did everything for his owner even saved her life. he had unconditional love for her.
even though i havent seen slumdog millionaire i think from all the positive reactions it will win.
Even though The Dark Knight is not a movie that would probably be chosen, I find it to be one of the most interesting movies I have seen in a long time. Each actor brings all they have in this movie, and i can watch it back to back. I am not a huge fan of movies, so this is unusual for me. I also find that superhero movies are some-what corny in plot, but this movie has an interesting message of it's own. Yes the plot is dark, but the message that is trying to come through, although there are evils in the world, is that in general people are good. The way this movie shudders your spine, but can still give a message like that without being a joke, is a winner for me.
Also, I did not like the movie Wall-E. It was very disappointing for me being a pixar fan. It wasnt the fact that there wasn't much dialogue, i didn't mind that. It was the doom and gloom message to "save the earth." Also the fact that in the beginning, the humans weren't animated, but then they were. It was strange. For all those that were disappointed with Happy Feet, I found that the movie focused too much on it's environmental views. Pixar did the same instead of making a classic pixar movie, but since i am still a fan of pixar i am willing to give them a second chance.
I agree with Jacob about Wall-E. I wasn't your typicla pixar movie but I do have to disagree on one thing... The message, while one might have been save the earth, there was a very large hidden agenda on the writers minds. At least what I saw from Wall-E was the writers trying to entice americans to get off their lazy butts and DO SOMETHING! If you notice when all the people are on the "cruise" ship, all they do is sit around and watch TV... hmmm what society does that sound like??? I know not all americans are like that but the better part of our country is. They also were trying to show what we are currently doing to our planet by not re-using and recycling. I personally really enjoyed Wall-E even if it didn't have a ton of dialect- you didn't need it.
Why does everyone think that comic books don't go as deep as real books? Sometimes they go deeper. you people seriously need to read "Watchmen". I totally agree with the video game thing Alec. The games we play tell just as much as the movies we watch. I loved WallE. Not only did it have a deep message, but it was very creative. I mean, come on, hardly any dialogue was used!
Speaking of WallE, it reminded me a lot of the book "Epic". It's setting is a place called New Earth, and it is said that they had to leave their original home (here) because their ancestors tore the world apart. Violence is banned in this world, and your social status, occupation, and everything else is determined by your playing skills in the video game Epic. Great book.
Also, WallE was wonderfully short! I had to take a break from watching TDK, and I waited til it came out on DVD because I doubt I could've sat through it in theaters.
Lora,
I understand what you're saying, but MOST comic books and vidoo games have very crappy stories and are they are viewed as mediums for a niche audience, unsecure teenage boys. While this stereotype is sad, it is one that is slightly diminishing. With films like Spiderman, The Dark Knight, and Persepolis graphic novels are becoming more accepted, although they are still niche. I don't really read graphic novels, but I understand that it is a viable medium for conveying meaningful and relevant stories. That is why i was making a big deal out of MGS4, and I'm glad somebody saw it and commented. Graphic novels like Watchmen are probably very rare, and so is MGS4. While videogames are becoming less niche, it is not in the way of conveying stories. With Wii and DS Nintendo has created a whole new "casual" market. With titles like Wii Fit, and Wii Sports, and Nintendogs videogames are becoming more accesible. These people that are buying Wiis like hot-pockets wouldn't probably buy software like MGS4, but buy stuff like Wii Play, which is quick accesible "fun". For the most part story and writing in videogames are crappy, very, very crappy. So I wouldn't go as far to say that videogames or comics tell just as much as the movies we watch, but the potential is there. Usually though story doesn't sell, blowing stuff, sports, and dogs does.
Post a Comment