The OFFICIAL 2012 Oscar nominations thread...- Page 5

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 1/24/12 at 8:45pm

Oh, I thought you were saying that the roles in Bridesmaids and on Mike and Molly were the same. Now that I know what you meant, I agree you've got something of a point.

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 1/24/12 at 10:04pm

I adore Ms. mcCarthy, and love comedic roles getting noms, but am still surprised by her nom here.

[CapnHook]

Posted: 1/24/12 at 10:48pm

On a personal note, my guilty pleasure favorite of the year wasn't nominated for anything: SUPER 8. LIKE CRAZY, CRAZY STUPID LOVE, and 50/50 were also not nominated.

The BEST SONG category is such a scandal. And a shame.

Tilda Swinton's snub is probably because everyone saw TATTOO and no one saw WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN.

[Jane2]

Posted: 1/25/12 at 12:45am

I tried to watch Tree of Life with a friend tonight but after 10 minutes we gave up and watched Devil's Advocate instead!

[strummergirl]

Posted: 1/25/12 at 2:17am

Considering The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo underperformed, with Rudin admitting to such, I don't think it was that. Both movies are pretty tough for the average viewer and probably average academy member to watch and even Fincher's stylized, big budget film is still a longer ride than Lynne Ramsey's less than 2 hour artsy adaptation.

The difference is Mara (who does deserve a nomination) has Scott Rudin, an equal to Harvey Weinstein, and Tilda did not. Honestly, if we had to choose the weak link of nominees, and I hate to say it, then it would be Meryl but that would be unconscionable for many to consider.

[ljay889]

Posted: 1/25/12 at 4:59am

Many people are angered about the Mary J. Blige snub. Apparently it WAS eligible. Such a shame, as it really is a great song, and was absolutely perfect for that film.

[best12bars]

Posted: 1/25/12 at 6:55am

Any explanation as to why there are only two nominees for Best Song?

EDIT: I just Googled around and found the explanation:

In 2009, when the Academy opted to up the number of Best Picture nominees to 10 (the voting body has since altered that number), it also changed the rules for Best Original Song. As Billboard points out, members of the Academy's music branch now "assign each song a numerical score between 1 and 10, and if no song receives an average of more than 8.25, there are no nominees. If only one song tops the threshold, as clearly happened here, the next highest vote getter secures a nomination as well."

This year's Best Original Song category boils down to this: either Bret McKenzie's "Man or Muppet" or "Real in Rio" by songwriting trio Sergio Mendes, Carlinhos Brown and Siedah Garrett secured a score of 8.25 or better, earning a nomination and pulling the #2 vote-getter into the fray. Simply put, members of the music branch didn't award any other song, including John and Gaga's duet "Hello Hello" or Blige's "The Help" track "Living Proof," a score high enough to secure a nomination.

But lest you think that this means the category is all but locked, think again. While selecting the Oscar nominees is an intensely mathematical process, picking the winners is much easier. Once the nominations are decided, every member of the Academy can vote in each category and the nominee that receives the most votes wins. Easy enough. And since actors are the largest voting block of the Academy— and would have had nothing to do with the tracks selected to contend for Best Original Song — it's anyone's game.



LINK

Updated On: 1/25/12 at 06:55 AM

[best12bars]

Posted: 1/25/12 at 7:42am

One of the things that I think is bad about this process is that the music branch is sent a bunch of music CDs and some DVD screeners as well (mostly because they also nominate for Best Picture, as does the entire voting body of the Academy, all branches). But a large number of the songs "for consideration" are sent as music tracks only. I find that unfair. This means the songs are being judged as isolated cues and not within the context of the movie. I say "what's good for the goose," baby. If the songs are required to be incorporated within the body of a movie, then the music branch should be required to watch the film to judge the merits and impact of the song, in this case, 39 eligible songs from (probably) around 30 films. Or their vote shouldn't count into the required percentage to get the song nominated.

If the song is clearly an "end credit" song, that's different. It should be presented as such for voting, and then I think a music-only CD would be fine for judging. If it's that disconnected from the film, there's no reason to make voters sit through the movie.

EDIT: I also think the Academy should toy with the idea of a Best Adapted Song category, just like Best Adapted Screenplay. If an old song is used to great effect and presented in a new way (in other words, they don't just use an old recording of it), then it should be eligible for this category. It should be within the body of the film, no end credit adaptations allowed except MAYBE a first cue during the credits. But it doesn't have to be sung "on screen." Just not a previously-recorded "source" song (example: Unchained Melody in "Ghost" uses the original recording, so it wouldn't be eligible for "adapted"). The reason I say this is there have been many times where I have seen non-original songs used to great effect in movies, helping shape and elevate them. For example, this year's use of Lenka's song "The Show" in Moneyball was excellent, as played and sung by Brad Pitt's daughter in the movie. It's used twice in the film, and both times, I teared up. Other examples: "Come What May" from Moulin Rouge! was deemed ineligible for Original Song, because it had appeared on a non-related compilation album prior to the film. It should have been a hot contender for Best Adapted Song.

Updated On: 1/25/12 at 07:42 AM

[madbrian]

Posted: 1/25/12 at 9:11am

I like the concept of Best Adapted Song. Question: to whom would you award the Oscar? I would guess the performer & producer.

[best12bars]

Posted: 1/25/12 at 10:07am

That's a very good point.

Unfortunately, with the Best Original Song not recognizing the performer (understandably, just as Best Original Screenplay doesn't recognize the actors who say the lines), I can't see Best Adapted Song doing so either.

I might even suggest that the movie's own production decide who gets the nomination, just as with multiple producer candidates for Best Picture (this year, there are too may eligible for the nominee The Tree of Life, so they have to decide amongst themselves who gets the nod---it may or may not include Brad Pitt, who is one of possibilities).

I would say it could go to the song producer, the arranger/orchestrator, the screenwriter, the director, or the even film producer, assuming an adapted song finds its way into the movie in its current state from many different roads. If the performer of the song had more to do with it than just performing it (perhaps they selected the song to use, or presented it in a new/fresh way in their performance) they should be considered for the "adaptation" award as well.

And if the screenwriter writes a song into the story and integrates it in a powerful way, then that writer should receive the nomination, perhaps jointly with the song's producer.

I could come up with a list of songs from films that made a powerful impact, for one reason or another, that would be possible contenders for a Best Adapted Song Oscar.

Come What May - Moulin Rouge
Roxanne - Moulin Rouge
And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going - Dreamgirls
Did You Ever See a Dream Walking?" - Lady In White
The Show - Moneyball
Rose's Turn - The Fisher King
I Say a Little Prayer - My Best Friend's Wedding
You Don't Own Me - The First Wive's Club
I Will Follow Him - Sister Act
Do Re Mi - The Sound of Music
Who Will Buy? - Oliver!
My Man - Funny Girl
Maybe This Time - Cabaret


Nominees TBD by the studios.

(Random choices, I know, but you get the idea.)

Updated On: 1/25/12 at 10:07 AM

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 1/25/12 at 10:30am

I also like the case for Adapted Song (though it would never happen) and similarly, I would also love an Adapted Score category. I think Black Swan could have easily taken the Oscar if it hadn't been disqualified.

[best12bars]

Posted: 1/25/12 at 11:26am

They used to have an Adapted Score category, mashed in with Song Score (original or adapted). Stranger things have happened.

Adapted Score Oscar-winners of the past include:

The Music Man (the first year they had the category of "adapted" score for 1962)
Irma La Douce (which threw out all the songs but used them as underscoring)
My Fair Lady
Sound of Music
A Funny Thing Happened ...
Camelot

Then in 1968, they realized this award was going almost exclusively to musical films (with the exception of Irma), so they changed the category to "Scoring of a Musical Picture, Original or Adaptation." By doing that, they eliminated any non-musical films with adapted scores. The other music category was Best Original Score.

Then, for 1971, it changed again, realizing that they had shut out non-musical adapted scores from any recognition. So the category became Best Original Song Score and Adaptation (which included non-musical films as well).

Winners included:
Fiddler on the Roof (not an original song score, but an adapted score, and it was John Williams first Oscar)
Cabaret (adapted musical score by Ralph Burns)
The Sting (Scott Joplin adapted by Marvin Hamlisch)
The Great Gatsby (adapted music by Nelson Riddle)
Barry Lyndon (adapted music by Leonard Rosenman)
Bound For Glory (adapted music by Leonard Rosenman)
A Little Night Music (adapted by Jonathan Tunick)
The Buddy Holly Story (adapted by Joe Renzetti)
All That Jazz (adapted by Ralph Burns)

Then they killed the category for two years in the early '80s, only to bring it back again for 1982:

Victor Victoria (original song score by Leslie Bricusse and Henry Mancini)
Yentl (original song score by Michel Legrand and Marilyn & Alan Bergman)

Then they knocked off the "adapted" part again, and made it Best Original Song Score for one year (the winner was Purple Rain) before they killed the category.

They finally added a second "Musical or Comedy Score," separating that from Dramatic Score, for few years in the '90s, during the heyday of Disney's animated "musicals," which was taking home the Best Original Score award almost every time. They thought it was now being unfair to Dramatic scores to have them compete in the same category.

I think it would be worth a try to revise it again. I also think it's a worthy category for recognition since so many songs in films are adapted these days. But I agree it'll never happen. The studios would freak out over the "nominees to be determined" part, having to submit who is credited for the adapted song: performer, producer, director, writer, arranger, etc. It can't be all of them and shouldn't be. It should be the 1-3 people who are responsible for having that song in the film presented in such a way.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 1/25/12 at 4:40pm

Best 12, you're forgetting some very impactful and classic employments of previously recorded songs at the movies, including:

As Time Goes By - Casablanca

Unchained Melody - Ghost

Poor Wandering One - The Hand That Rocks The Cradle

Misty - Play Misty For Me

Scarborough Fair and The Sounds of Silence - The Graduate

Carmina Burana: O Fortuna - The Omen

And The Band Played On - The Strawberry Blonde

Singin' In The Rain and Be A Clown - Singin' In The Rain

Saga of Jenny and Limehouse Blues - Star

Entire score - Pennies From Heaven

I'm Through With Love - Everyone Says I Love You

Round Midnight - Round Midnight

Fire Down Below - The Rose

Alberta Hunter's songs - Remember My Name

entire score - Walk the Line, La Vie En Rose, Coalminer's Daughter, Ray, Amadeus, What's Love Got To Do With It? etc.

You Don't Know Me and I'm Still Here - Postcards From The Edge

Daisy - 2001: A Space Odyssey









Updated On: 1/25/12 at 04:40 PM

[best12bars]

Posted: 1/25/12 at 9:50pm

I actually mentioned "Unchained Melody" earlier. I wouldn't put that up for eligibility in my fictional Best Adapted Song category because they used the original recording. The material wasn't adapted, it was just used as is. (Also known as a "source" song.)

It would be the same thing if a film (for example, the terrible remake of Psycho) were eligible for Best Adapted Screenplay, when in fact they used the exact original screenplay. There was no adaptation. They just used it.

So no Unchained Melody.
No songs from The Graduate (they were all previously recorded by Simon & Garfunkel)
No La Vie En Rose (the original Piaf recordings were used)

Basically no songs that weren't recorded (I don't mean written for, but recorded) for the film.

Carmina Burana: O Fortuna wasn't used in "The Omen." Jerry Goldsmith wrote an entirely original score with his own satanic take on Ave Maria, called Ave Satani. Since the movie was about the Antichrist, he wanted a score that was a "Religious Mass for Satan." It has a classical works feel to it with choral singing reminiscent of O Fortuna, but it's not actually the same at all. In fact, Goldsmith won his only Oscar (out of 18 total nominations) for Best Original Score for "The Omen." And his main choral work for it, "Ave Satani," received an unexpected nomination for Best Original Song. (Yeah, let me run out and buy the sheet music for that one!)

And yes, I gave some random samples before (as I said earlier), but there are so many possible candidates for this award in past years, which is why I think they should consider a new category honoring adapted songs in the future.

EDIT: BTW, I really like some of your suggestions, too. Especially, something like "Daisy" for 2001. Such a powerful use of that song that really shaped those moments in the film.

Updated On: 1/25/12 at 09:50 PM

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 1/25/12 at 11:05pm

^ ah, yes, I missed you mention of Unchained Melody, but I did realize some of my selections were simply using previous recordings of the songs (sometimes lipsynched), however effectively.

[Borstalboy]

Posted: 1/26/12 at 8:03pm

Ebert nails it: Nolte, Streep, and Close didn't really deserve it

[AC126748]

Posted: 1/29/12 at 10:11am

Michel Hazanavicius won the Directors Guild of America Award last night, beating fellow Oscar nominees Scorsese, Allen, and Payne (and David Fincher). The DGA has a pretty flawless track-record of predicting who will win the Oscar for Best Director: only 6 of the 63 DGA winners have NOT gone on to win.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/scorsese-hazanavicius-lead-directors-guild-rolls-in-filmmakers-warm-up-for-oscars/2012/01/28/gIQAxeyrXQ_story.html

[The Josh]

Posted: 1/29/12 at 8:35pm

I'm a bit disappointed that Charlize Theron and Patton Oswalt weren't nominated for Young Adult. I thought they were both excellent.

[best12bars]

Posted: 1/29/12 at 9:11pm

So glad to hear about both the DGA and PGA going to "The Artist." It's my choice for both Picture and Director as well.

[beautywickedlover]

Posted: 2/7/12 at 1:15pm

Daniel Radcliffe believes that 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2' was snubbed for Best Picture because it was too commercial.


"I dont think the Oscars like commercial films, or kids films, unless theyre directed by Martin Scorsese. I was watching Hugo the other day and going, Why is this nominated and were not? I was slightly miffed Theres a certain amount of snobbery. Its kind of disheartening. I never thought Id care. But it wouldve been nice to have some recognition, just for the hours put in.



Daniel Radcliffe thinks 'Harry Potter' was snubbed by the Oscars because it was too commercial

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 2/17/12 at 3:49pm

Finally saw Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. It was...okay. I just don't think this was the time for a screen adaptation of this novel. Ten years after the fact, we've had 9/11 shoved down our throats and what might have provided an intriguing background to the novel seems like emotional gimmickry in the film. And it didn't help that the boy is almost completely unlikable. Perhaps I missed it, but did the parents (or just the mother) ever consider therapy for him? Pre- or post-9/11? I honestly don't know how this film made the list.

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 2/17/12 at 6:11pm

I saw all of the live action and animated short films last week, and there are some really, really great entries in both categories this year. All of the animated shorts have great, bold personalities and a whimsical far-outness to them, but the standouts are "Dimanche" and "A Morning Stroll."

In the live action category, with the exception of "Time Freak," which might have been a lot better if they had gotten two actors who could actually, you know, act... there's strong stuff happening. "Pentecost" is the longest and perhaps least nuanced, though it's still quite good. "Raju," "The Shore," and "Tuba Atlantic" all have such great depth and the courage of their convictions that each one packs the wallop of a great 2-hour film, which is quite impressive. They unfold with the incisive economy of a Raymond Carver short story. I don't keep enough with these categories to know if any are being favored, but if it were up to me, I'd say it's a toss-up between "Raju" and "The Shore." I'd personally give a slight edge to "The Shore."

Also, tomorrow is the first Saturday for AMC's annual Best Picture Showcase, which I've attended for the past five years. For $60 per person, you see all the Best Picture nominees in two day-long marathons, over the course of consecutive Saturdays. Tomorrow's line-up is "War Horse," "Tree of Life," "Moneyball" (fun that they put Pitt's two starring roles back-to-back), and "The Descendants." Is anyone else going?

[strummergirl]

Posted: 2/17/12 at 6:24pm

Mister Matt, I feel like Spike Lee's 25th Hour is an indirect 9/11 film while itself being a great film between one scene happening with Ground Zero as a backdrop and Edward Norton's internal monologue rant about him blaming everything about New York City for him going to jail and then saying, no, that is all BS. It managed to be poetic without being kitsch or having Tom Hanks jump out of one of the towers. It was just pure Spike Lee in the best sense.

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 2/17/12 at 6:28pm

"The 25th Hour" is one of Lee's best and his second-best since "Malcolm X." (I think the first is "Inside Man.")

[best12bars]

Posted: 2/17/12 at 6:40pm

themysteriousgrowl---I can't imagine seeing The Tree of Life in a marathon of movies. I spent a week of my life watching that film for 2 hours. (A joke, I didn't stop it and start it.) Still, it's probably the film I will remember the most from this year, with the exception of The Artist. I can't stop thinking about it. It tells a story in such a fascinating unexpected (aka anything but traditional) way. It crept up on me and ultimately blew me away. Pitt's other movie Moneyball was terrific, and I'm not a baseball guy (or sports guy). I found the characters and the performances to be uniformly great, and Pitt is a worthy candidate for Best Actor.

Thanks for the recap of the shorts!

Are you going to see the animated features? I have to say I love the Academy's selections being a mix of obvious/popular choices to obscure/interesting choices. I've watched the trailer to Chico & Rita several times now, and I LOVE that this was nominated. It's probably the movie I'm most looking forward to seeing, animated or not, that I haven't already seen from 2011.