Sunday Minute
No. 239 | February 26, 2012

                                                           

The Artist is the big winner of the night, with five Academy Awards including Best Picture.  Hugo also picked up five Oscars, all in technical categories.

The Oscars are tightly scripted and short on suspense.  If there was a surprise, it was Meryl Streep‘s Best Actress win for The Iron Lady, her first in nearly thirty years.  That answered my question, “Will she ever win again?”  As she noted in her speech, the answer to that question now is “No.”  One pair of upset winners were the editors for The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall, who seemed genuinely surprised and at a loss for words.  The most emotional speech was Octavia Spencer‘s.  Jean Dujardin was was grateful in English, then overjoyed in French.

Billy Crystal is a class act and did a fine job, just about all you need for the Oscars.

I did pretty fine too in my predictions, with 18 picks out of 24 (one better than last year).  Respectable, perhaps a shade better.  (Any * below indicates a winner I predicted.)

Summary of Oscar wins by feature film:

The Artist — 5
Hugo — 5
The Iron Lady — 2
The Help — 1
Beginners — 1
Midnight in Paris — 1
The Descendants — 1
A Separation — 1
Rango — 1
Undefeated — 1
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo — 1
The Muppets — 1

Winners by category:

Best Picture*

WINNER:  The Artist

Actor in a Leading Role*

WINNER:  Jean Dujardin, The Artist

Actress in Leading Role

WINNER:  Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady

Actor in a Supporting Role*

WINNER:  Christopher Plummer, Beginners

Actress in a Supporting Role*

WINNER:  Octavia Spencer, The Help

Directing*

WINNER:  Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist

Writing (Original Screenplay)*

WINNER:  Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)*

WINNER: Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash, The Descendants

Animated Feature Film*

WINNER:  Rango

Documentary (Feature)*

WINNER:  Undefeated

Documentary (Short Subject)

WINNER:  Saving Face

Foreign Language Film*

WINNER:  A Separation

Short Film (Animated)*

WINNER:  The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

Short Film (Live Action)*

WINNER:  The Shore

Art Direction*

WINNER:  Hugo

Cinematography

WINNER:  Hugo

Costume Design*

WINNER:  The Artist

Film Editing

WINNER:  The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

Makeup

WINNER:  The Iron Lady

Music (Original Score)

WINNER:  Ludovic Bource, The Artist

Music (Original Song)*

WINNER:  “Man or Muppet,” The Muppets

Sound Editing*

WINNER:  Hugo

Sound Mixing*

WINNER:  Hugo

Visual Effects*

WINNER:  Hugo

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The Pause Button

So wraps up another year in movies.  Time for me to hit the pause button again.  For a while longer…till next time.

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Quote of note
“Perfect!”
—Al Zimmer (John Goodman), The Artist (2011)

…58…59…60.

Sunday Minute
No. 238 | February 26, 2012

2011 Oscars Preview & Predictions

You can find my thoughts about the films of 2011 in these two posts cleverly titled “Films of 2011″—Part 1, Part II.  In this post I pretend to know what the members of the Academy will be doing (or should be doing) when they hand out those little golden men on Sunday night.  A “pick” is my choice among the nominees, where I have an opinion; a “prediction” is my opinion about other people’s opinions.  I wouldn’t bet the farm.

Best Picture

• The Artist
• The Descendants
• Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
• The Help
• Hugo
• Midnight in Paris
• Moneyball
• The Tree of Life
• War Horse

The Academy decided five nominees were not enough, then decided ten may be too many.  For the first time ever, this year there are nine.  I won’t argue about the number (other, better films were left off) but Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, The Help, and War Horse have no business being on the list.  Moneyball I’d have skipped too.  If any of the other five win, I wouldn’t be disappointed.  But I’d be shocked if The Artist is not the name in the envelope.

PICK:  The Artist
PREDICTION:  The Artist

Actor in a Leading Role

• Demián Bichir, A Better Life
• George Clooney, The Descendants
• Jean Dujardin, The Artist
• Gary Oldman, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
• Brad Pitt, Moneyball

The early awards have been split between George Clooney and Jean Dujardin.  I liked them both.  Clooney surprised me, and Dujardin did his share of mugging but had his moments of subtlety too.  I suspect the winds are blowing in The Artist‘s favor.

PICK:  George Clooney
PREDICTION:  Jean Dujardin

Actress in Leading Role

• Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
• Viola Davis, The Help
• Rooney Mara, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
• Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
• Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn

A year ago I picked Michelle Williams in this spot, for her raw and brave performance in Blue Valentine.  A very different role this time, and I’ll pick her again.  Which is not to say she will win.  It’s a toss-up between Meryl Streep (will she ever win again?) and Viola Davis.

PICK:  Michelle Williams
PREDICTION:  Viola Davis

Actor in a Supporting Role

• Kenneth Branagh, My Week With Marilyn
• Jonah Hill, Moneyball
• Nick Nolte, Warrior
• Christopher Plummer, Beginners
• Max von Sydow, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

These actors have turned in some great performances over the years, though no one here has yet won an Oscar.  A high crime indeed.  Max von Sydow is perhaps the most overlooked, getting only his second nomination.  He deserves the statuette but it appears his contemporary Mr. Plummer (both were born in 1929) will be giving the speech.

PICK:  Max von Sydow
PREDICTION:  Christopher Plummer

Actress in a Supporting Role

• Bérénice Bejo, The Artist
• Jessica Chastain, The Help
• Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids
• Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
• Octavia Spencer, The Help

Not a lot of suspense with this one.  Well deserved.

PICK:  Octavia Spencer
PREDICTION:  Octavia Spencer

Directing

• Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
• Alexander Payne, The Descendants
• Martin Scorsese, Hugo
• Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
• Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life

The picture and the director go together, right?  I look forward to the presenter trying to pronounce his name.

PICK:  Michel Hazanavicius
PREDICTION:  Michel Hazanavicius

Writing (Original Screenplay)

• Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
• Annie Mumolo & Kristen Wiig, Bridesmaids
• J.C. Chandor, Margin Call
• Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
• Asghar Farhadi, A Separation

Woody has won his share of Oscars, and this should add to his collection.  His best work in years.

PICK:  Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
PREDICTION:  Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

• Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash, The Descendants
• John Logan, Hugo
• George Clooney & Grant Heslov and Beau Willimon, The Ides of March
• Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin, story by Stan Chervin, Moneyball
• Bridget O’Connor & Peter Straughan, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

In another year The Descendants would win many categories.  Still, it will not go home empty-handed.

PICK:  Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash, The Descendants
PREDICTION:  Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash, The Descendants

Animated Feature Film

• A Cat in Paris
• Chico & Rita
• Kung Fu Panda 2
• Puss in Boots
• Rango

PREDICTION:  Rango

Documentary (Feature)

• Hell and Back Again
• If a Tree Falls:  A Story of the Earth Liberation Front
• Paradise Lost 3:  Purgatory
• Pina
• Undefeated

PREDICTION:  Undefeated

Documentary (Short Subject)

• The Barber of Birmingham:  Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement
• God Is the Bigger Elvis
• Incident in New Baghdad
• Saving Face
• The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom

PREDICTION:  The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom

Foreign Language Film

• Bullhead, Belgium
• Footnote, Israel
• In Darkness, Poland
• Monsieur Lazhar, Canada
• A Separation, Iran

PREDICTION:  A Separation

Short Film (Animated)

• Dimanche/Sunday
• The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore
• La Luna
• A Morning Stroll
• Wild Life

PREDICTION:  The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

Short Film (Live Action)

• Pentecost
• Raju
• The Shore
• Time Freak
• Tuba Atlantic

PREDICTION:  The Shore

Art Direction

• The Artist
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
• Hugo
• Midnight in Paris
• War Horse

PREDICTION:  Hugo

Cinematography

• The Artist
• The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
• Hugo
• The Tree of Life
• War Horse

PREDICTION:  The Tree of Life

Costume Design

• Anonymous
• The Artist
• Hugo
• Jane Eyre
• W.E.

PREDICTION:  The Artist

Film Editing

• The Artist
• The Descendants
• The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
• Hugo
• Moneyball

PREDICTION:  The Artist

Makeup

• Albert Nobbs
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows:  Part 2
• The Iron Lady

PREDICTION:  Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Music (Original Score)

• The Adventures of Tintin, John Williams
• The Artist, Ludovic Bource
• Hugo, Howard Shore
• Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Alberto Iglesias
• War Horse, John Williams

PREDICTION:  Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Music (Original Song)

• “Man or Muppet,” music & lyric by Bret McKenzie, The Muppets
• “Real in Rio,” music by Sergio Mendes and Carlinhos Brown, lyric by Siedah Garrett, Rio

PREDICTION:  “Man or Muppet”

Sound Editing

• Drive
• The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
• Hugo
• Transformers:  Dark of the Moon
• War Horse

PREDICTION:  Hugo

Sound Mixing

• The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
• Hugo
• Moneyball
• Transformers:  Dark of the Moon
• War Horse

PREDICTION:  Hugo

Visual Effects

• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows:  Part 2
• Hugo
• Real Steel
• Rise of the Planet of the Apes
• Transformers:  Dark of the Moon

PREDICTION:  Hugo

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Quote of note
“You think losing is fun?”
—Billy Beane (Brad Pitt), Moneyball (2011)

…58…59…60.

Thursday Minute
Entr’acte | March 3, 2011

Alfred Hitchcock, Never Best Director

.
The Lodger, Blackmail, Murder!, The 39 Steps, The Lady Vanishes, Rebecca*, Foreign Correspondent, Suspicion, Saboteur, Shadow of a Doubt, Lifeboat*, Spellbound*, Notorious, The Paradine Case, Rope, Stage Fright, Strangers on a Train, I Confess, Dial M for Murder, Rear Window*, To Catch a Thief, The Man Who Knew Too Much, The Wrong Man, Vertigo, North by Northwest, Psycho*, The Birds, Marnie, Frenzy, Family Plot.

* Hitchcock’s five Oscar nominations for Best Director.  The respective winners:  John Ford, The Grapes of Wrath (1940); Leo McCarey, Going My Way (1944); Billy Wilder, The Lost Weekend (1945); Elia Kazan, On the Waterfront (1954); Billy Wilder, The Apartment (1960).

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Interview with Alfred Hitchcock
“Monitor,” BBC Television
Huw Wheldon, interviewer
Broadcast:  May 5, 1964
Part 1

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Interview with Alfred Hitchcock
“Monitor,” BBC Television
Huw Wheldon, interviewer
Broadcast:  May 5, 1964
Part 2

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…58…59…60.

Tuesday Minute
Entr’acte | March 1, 2011

Stanley Kubrick, Never Best Director

.
Paths of Glory, Spartacus, Lolita, Dr. Strangelove*, 2001: A Space Odyssey*, A Clockwork Orange*, Barry Lyndon*, The Shining, Full Metal Jacket, Eyes Wide Shut.

* Kubrick’s four Oscar nominations for Best Director.  The respective winners:  George Cukor, My Fair Lady (1964); Carol Reed, Oliver! (1968); William Friedkin, The French Connection (1971);  Miloš Forman, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975).

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The Art of Stanley Kubrick:  From Short Films to Strangelove (2000)
David Naylor, director
Robert Fleck, writer
Documentary

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…58…59…60.

Friday Minute
No. 220 | February 25, 2011

Oscar Perspective

Our theme this week
Films and filmmakers overlooked by Oscar…and a look ahead to this year’s awards

Featured this week
(See Monday post for theme introduction)
Monday         —   Actors Who Never Won an Oscar
Tuesday         —   Actresses Who Never Won an Oscar
Wednesday    —   Directors Who Never Won an Oscar
Thursday        —   Films That Didn’t Win a Single Oscar

UPDATE:  The Winners   —   Oscar 2010 Recap

Picks & Predictions for the 2010 Oscars

Colin Firth, Natalie Portman, David Fincher:  three who haven’t won an Oscar…yet.  You’ll find them smiling Sunday night.

The week so far has featured 140 actors, actresses, directors, and films that inexplicably never won an Academy Award.  Today we look ahead.  Guaranteed, somebody will win at the upcoming ceremony.  I don’t really know who the winners will be, but I can pretend, and that’s what I do below.  Read on for my picks (those who should win) and predictions (those who will win).  Good luck in your pool and enjoy the show.

Best Picture

• Black Swan
• The Fighter
• Inception
• The Kids Are All Right
• The King’s Speech
• 127 Hours
• The Social Network
• Toy Story 3
• True Grit
• Winter’s Bone

The word around town is that The King’s Speech is the one.  I like to think the Academy may give people a surprise.  Last year (unlike some other years) it awarded the Best Picture Oscar to the picture that was best.  A novel idea.  Why not do it again?  It really is a clear choice, the way I see  it.  The Social Network is not just the best film of the year, it’s one of the great pictures of the millennium.  The King’s Speech is a fine movie, but in a few years it’ll seem like just another nice pic about the British royals, a family that’s been the subject of too many films already.  Fifty years from now The Social Network will still look brilliant.  Its future is a surer thing than Facebook’s, if you ask me.  What’s at stake on Sunday is not what people will think of the movie someday, but what they will think of the Academy.  Here’s hoping it does the right thing.

PICK:  The Social Network
PREDICTION:  The Social Network

Actor in a Leading Role

• Javier Bardem, Biutiful
• Jeff Bridges, True Grit
• Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
• Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
• James Franco, 127 Hours

Both give first-rate performances, and I’d give the edge to Jesse Eisenberg, who creates a kind of character we haven’t seen before.  But Eisenberg would be the youngest Best Actor ever, and Colin Firth, at 50, is ripe for the recognition his career deserves.  It’s no contest.  “Speech!”

PICK:  Jesse Eisenberg
PREDICTION:  Colin Firth

Actress in Leading Role

• Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
• Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole
• Jennifer Lawrence, Winter’s Bone
• Natalie Portman, Black Swan
• Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine

Michelle Williams gave a raw, brave, and deserving performance, but she’s a long shot here.  Natalie Portman was very good, and her role of artist-in-the-making should resonate with Oscar voters.  She’s the likely winner, but if Annette Bening were to have her name called, I’d be thrilled.

PICK:  Michelle Williams
PREDICTION:  Natalie Portman

Actor in a Supporting Role

• Christian Bale, The Fighter
• John Hawkes, Winter’s Bone
• Jeremy Renner, The Town
• Mark Ruffalo, The Kids Are All Right
• Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech

Christian Bale had a showy role, the kind that usually does well at Oscar time.  But there was nothing easy about his performance.  He’ll win, and he’ll deserve it.

PICK:  Christian Bale
PREDICTION:  Christian Bale

Actress in a Supporting Role

• Amy Adams, The Fighter
• Helena Bonham Carter, The King’s Speech
• Melissa Leo, The Fighter
• Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit
• Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom

Tatum O’Neal won an Oscar at 10, and Anna Paquin at 11, so it’s possible that 14-year-old Hailee Steinfeld could bring home an Academy Award.  But more likely, one of the nominees from The Fighter will win.  I’m fond of Amy Adams’s performance, but Melissa Leo had a role that seemed aimed to get Oscar attention, and unless her self-financed campaign and complaints about ageism turn off voters, it probably will.

PICK:  Amy Adams
PREDICTION:  Melissa Leo

Directing

• Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
• David O. Russell, The Fighter
• Tom Hopper, The King’s Speech
• David Fincher, The Social Network
• Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, True Grit

The man who should win will win, and fittingly, for the best of his many good films.

PICK:  David Fincher
PREDICTION:  David Fincher

Writing (Original Screenplay)

• Mike Leigh, Another Year
• Scott Silver and Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson, The Fighter
• Christopher Nolan, Inception
• Lisa Cholodenko & Stuart Blumberg, The Kids Are All Right
• David Seidler, The King’s Speech

The story of David Seidler waiting decades for the Queen Mum to die before his film would be made it as touching as the story of the film itself.  If anybody deserves an award for The King’s Speech, he’s the one.

PICK:  David Seidler
PREDICTION:  David Seidler

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

• Danny Boyle & Simon Beaufoy, 127 Hours
• Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network
• John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton & Lee Unkrich, Toy Story 3
• Joel Coen & Ethan Coen, True Grit
• Debra Granik & Anne Rosellini, Winter’s Bone

Voters may give Aaron Sorkin the Oscar for his brilliant dialogue, but his real achievement is an inventive story structure and compelling, complex characters.  The Social Network is a special film, and it all starts with Sorkin’s script.

PICK:  Aaron Sorkin
PREDICTION:  Aaron Sorkin

Animated Feature Film

• How to Train Your Dragon
• The Illusionist
• Toy Story 3

I’m a fan of The Illusionist but it will take more than magic for it to win.  Short of a miracle, the Oscar goes to Toy Story 3.

PICK:  The Illusionist
PREDICTION:  Toy Story 3

Documentary (Feature)

• Exit Through the Gift Shop
• Gasland
• Inside Job
• Restrepo
• Waste Land

The crooks who run Wall Street got away with trillions and escaped justice.  The closest we’ll see to consolation in this world is an Oscar for Inside Job.

PICK:  Inside Job
PREDICTION:  Inside Job

Documentary (Short Subject)

• Killing in the Name
• Poster Girl
• Strangers No More
• Sun Come Up
• The Warriors of Qiugang

Haven’t seen them so I’m just reading tea leaves.

PICK:  None
PREDICTION:  Killing in the Name

Foreign Language Film

• Biutiful, Mexico
• Dogtooth, Greece
• In a Better World, Denmark
• Incendies, Canada
• Outside the Law, Algeria

Tea leaves again.

PICK:  None
PREDICTION:  In a Better World

Short Film (Animated)

• Day & Night
• The Gruffalo
• Let’s Pollute
• The Lost Thing
• Madagascar, carnet de voyage

A competitive category, so I hear.  More tea leaves and a hunch.

PICK:  None
PREDICTION:  Madagascar, carnet de voyage

Short Film (Live Action)

• The Confession
• The Crush
• God of Love
• Na Wewe
• Wish 143

If you’re the type who wagers on a horse because you like its name, you’re well equipped to bet on the Academy Award winner for the Short Film category.

PICK:  None
PREDICTION:  Wish 143

Art Direction

• Alice In Wonderland
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
• Inception
• The King’s Speech
• True Grit

Tim Burton films have won in this category three times before (Batman, Sleepy Hollow, Sweeny Todd).  Now it will be four.

PICK: Alice in Wonderland
PREDICTION:  Alice in Wonderland

Cinematography

• Black Swan
• Inception
• The King’s Speech
• The Social Network
• True Grit

Nine-time nominee Roger Deakins is about to win his first Oscar.  Overdue and well deserved.

PICK:  True Grit
PREDICTION:  True Grit

Costume Design

• Alice in Wonderland
• I Am Love
• The King’s Speech
• The Tempest
• True Grit

Nine-time nominee (and three-time winner) Sandy Powell (The Tempest) is in the running but the Oscar this time goes to nine-time nominee (and soon-to-be-two-time winner) Jenny Beavans.  Royal period outfits rule.

PICK:  The King’s Speech
PREDICTION:  The King’s Speech

Film Editing

• Black Swan
• The Fighter
• The King’s Speech
• 127 Hours
• The Social Network

We are living in a golden age of editing.  The Editors Guild’s Eddie Award for film drama went to The Social Network.  I won’t argue with that.

PICK:  Black Swan
PREDICTION:  The Social Network

Makeup

• Barney’s Version
• The Way Back
• The Wolfman

Rick Baker has twelve nominations and six wins.  Partner Dave Elsey has his second nomination.  Expect them to pick up Oscars seven and one, respectively.

PICK:  The Wolfman
PREDICTION:  The Wolfman

Music (Original Score)

• How to Train Your Dragon
• Inception
• The King’s Speech
• 127 Hours
• The Social Network

Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross deserve to win.  Will they?  Well, why not?

PICK:  The Social Network
PREDICTION:  The Social Network

Music (Original Song)

• “Coming Home,” Country Strong
• “I See the Light,” Tangled
• “If I Rise,” 127 Hours
• “We Belong Together,” Toy Story 3

The A.R. Rahman / Dido theme song for 127 Hours is wonderful, and has an ethereal, magical touch, but animation tends to dominate this category.  FifteenTwenty(!)-time nominee Randy Newman may win his second Oscar.

PICK:  “If I Rise”
PREDICTION:  “We Belong Together”

Sound Editing

• Inception
• Toy Story 3
• Tron: Legacy
• True Grit
• Unstoppable

Inception will dominate the technical categories and win here.

PICK:  Inception
PREDICTION:  Inception

Sound Mixing

• Inception
• The King’s Speech
• Salt
• The Social Network
• True Grit

Inception will dominate the technical categories and win here.  Do I repeat myself?

PICK:  Inception
PREDICTION:  Inception

Visual Effects

• Alice In Wonderland
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
• Hereafter
• Inception
• Iron Man 2

Yes, I repeat myself.

PICK:  Inception
PREDICTION:  Inception

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 127 Hours (2010)
Music Video
“If I Rise”
A.R. Rahman, music
Dido, Rollo, lyrics
Dido, A.R. Rahmah, performers

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Quote of note
“Creation myths need a devil.”
—Marylin Delpy (Rashida Jones), The Social Network (2010)

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Final Friday Five, the monthly mini-quiz

1.  Match each Oscar-nominated role for 2010 with the actor or actress who played the character.

ROLES

• Prince Albert / King George VI
• Aron Ralston
• Cindy
• Janine “Smurf” Cody
• Rooster Cogburn
• Becca Corbett
• James “Jem” Coughlin
• Ree Dolly
• Dicky Ecklund
• Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon / Queen Elizabeth
• Charlene Fleming
• Lionel Logue
• Nic
• Paul
• Mattie Ross
• Nina Sayers
• Teardrop
• Uxbal
• Alice Ward
• Mark Zuckerberg

 ACTORS & ACTRESSES

• Javier Bardem, Biutiful
• Jeff Bridges, True Grit
• Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
• Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
• James Franco, 127 Hours

• Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
• Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole
• Jennifer Lawrence, Winter’s Bone
• Natalie Portman, Black Swan
• Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine

• Christian Bale, The Fighter
• John Hawkes, Winter’s Bone
• Jeremy Renner, The Town
• Mark Ruffalo, The Kids Are All Right
• Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech

• Amy Adams, The Fighter
• Helena Bonham Carter, The King’s Speech
• Melissa Leo, The Fighter
• Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit
• Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom

2.  Which of this year’s acting nominees have won Oscars in the past?

3.  ”I call that bold talk for a one-eyed fat man!”  That’s a line from Best Picture nominee True Grit spoken to Rooster Cogburn.  Is Pepper the name of the character or the name of the actor who says the line?

4.  Name that Oscar.  The only Oscar to win an Oscar was a two-time winner for original song:  ”The Last Time I Saw Paris,” from Lady Be Good (1941), and ”It Might as Well Be Spring,” from State Fair (1945).  What is Oscar’s full name?

5.  Several past movies have featured characters winning Academy Awards.  Name the actor or actress who plays the Oscar-winning performer.

In & Out (1997) — Cameron Drake is awarded the Best Actor prize for his portrayal of a gay soldier.  In his televised speech, he thanks his former high school teacher Howard Brackett (Kevin Kline), adding “…and he’s gay.”  It’s a surprise to Brackett’s family, friends, students, and fiancée.  Who plays Cameron Drake?

S1m0ne (2002) — Director Viktor Taransky (Al Pacino) loses the big star on his new film and is unable to find a replacement.  He uses a computer program to create a simulated actress named Simone.  The film is a success and Simone wins Best Actress.  Who plays Simone?

Tropic Thunder (2008) — A Vietnam vet’s memoir is adapted into a movie starring Tugg Speedman, Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey Jr.), and Jeff Portnoy (Jack Black).  A film taken from footage of the production called Tropical Blunder goes on to great success, winning Speedman the Best Actor prize.  Who plays Tugg Speedman?

Answers here.

…58…59…60.