The Dark Knight The Oscar Push!

[Badabing45]

What's everyone's prediction for Heath Ledger's Oscar clip (the 15-30 second video they play of each nominees performance before handing out the award)

I predict it'll be the "It's all part of the plan" speech at the hospital.

 

[redfirebird2008]

Slumdog beats TDK for Cinematography, I'll be mad.

I fully expect Slumdog to win Cinematography. I expect it to win pretty much every category it's nominated in. That's what happens when the vast majority of Academy members just vote for their BP favorite on every category even if it's not really deserving in a different category. Actors voting on sound mixing, editing, etc. is absolutely laughable.

 

[FlawlessVictory]

I fully expect Slumdog to win Cinematography. I expect it to win pretty much every category it's nominated in. That's what happens when the vast majority of Academy members just vote for their BP favorite on every category even if it's not really deserving in a different category. Actors voting on sound mixing, editing, etc. is absolutely laughable.

Totally agreed. No one should act shocked anymore or be upset at any results that happen. I know it's not the Oscars, but the cast of Slumdog won Best Acting Ensemble at the SAG awards for crying out loud. That says it all. Slumdog is absolutely cleaning house, doesn't matter if it deserves to win in that particular category or not, it's just lazy voting done by the members.

 

[redfirebird2008]

Totally agreed. No one should act shocked anymore or be upset at any results that happen. I know it's not the Oscars, but the cast of Slumdog won Best Acting Ensemble at the SAG awards for crying out loud. That says it all. Slumdog is absolutely cleaning house, doesn't matter if it deserves to win in that particular category or not, it's just lazy voting done by the members.

I don't blame the members so much as I blame the rules committee. If someone is voting on a technical category that they have no expertise in, what else are they supposed to do than vote for their favorite movie? I would do the same thing if I was in their position. That's why the tech categories should be limited to the expert members in each field. Directors are the only ones who should have a vote in every category since they oversee everything in the filmmaking process.

 

[cansi]

Seriously guys if Dev Patel was nominated for Best Supporting Actor, maybe even Best actor he would have win on sunday. But we can pray for there will be a TDK sweap. There will probably not be one, but we have been surprised before.

 

[Kargo Warrior]

When i was a kid i was in absolute awe at the oscars...the prestige,the ceremony,it all looked so wonderful...and when someone won i was taking that as the ultimate deserving success.

But now i don't value the oscars any more than any kind of poll you will find at any website.

1) 3/4 of the people who vote have not seen even half of the nominated movies which by default gives them not credibility in choosing the winner.

2) A lot of the members give their ballots to family members to fill which again robs them of any credibility.

3)The oscars are about the 5 most prestige movies,not the 5 best...which is a fundamental difference...Button,The Reader,Frost/Nixon are not among the 5 best movies of the year by any criteria....and they were frontrunners even before a single screening was made,before a single review was issued.

4)As Redfirebird said,when a movie has it's followers,they vote for every category the movie is nominated in,no mather if every other nominated movie is better in the said category.Slumdog does not have the best score,cinematography,sound mixing/editing,song of the year...but it's following it's too big for any common sense to take place.

 

[Boom]

Check this out.

http://www.awardsdaily.com/Predictions/

Only three of the major categories are unanimously agreed upon by critics/Oscar bloggers.

-Slumdog Millionaire for Best Picture.
-Danny Boyle for Best Director.
-Heath Ledger for Best Supporting Actor.

It kills me that Stephen Colbert is on that list.

 

[Kargo Warrior]

http://www.awardsdaily.com/?p=7361#more-7361

An interesting article about Melissa Leo's possible upset victory.

I really hope however unlikely that it'll happen..Kate Winslet didn't have the best perfomance of the year,as a mather of a fact this wasnt HER best performance of the year let alone the best overall....the same goes for Meryl Streep who overacted the hell out of the movie.

Either Leo or Hathaway deserve it...

 

[Anita18]

I fully expect Slumdog to win Cinematography. I expect it to win pretty much every category it's nominated in. That's what happens when the vast majority of Academy members just vote for their BP favorite on every category even if it's not really deserving in a different category. Actors voting on sound mixing, editing, etc. is absolutely laughable.

Slumdog also swept the guilds. Kris Tapley spoke to a "renowned" sound mixer who thinks Slumdog will sweep sound, while I have a sound re-recordist/mixer friend who think it's a joke that Slumdog is even nominated. So there you go. Not even the tech people can agree on these things.

It kills me that Stephen Colbert is on that list.

The DaColbert Code!

 

[hatebox]

Anyone else ever so slightly disappointed Ledger Snr will collect the award? I know there's no real protocol for winning a posthumous oscar, but it's a professional award first and foremost and it'd be nice to the person most directly responsible for getting that winning performance out of Ledger (ie Nolan) collect it and give a speech. Obviously he'd give the statuette to the family.

Still, I guess it'll be an emotional moment anyhow.

 

[Kargo Warrior]

As i've heard,Tilda Swindon,last year's best supporting actress will present the Best Supporting Actor award.

 

[cansi]

I would love to see Christian Bale, Aaron Eckhart, Gary Oldman and Chris Nolan on the scene. Maybe even Maggie Gyllenhaal... The hole TDK family.

But as you write its gonna be emotional no matter what, and i´m expecting a standing ovation!

 

[Figs]

4)As Redfirebird said,when a movie has it's followers,they vote for every category the movie is nominated in,no mather if every other nominated movie is better in the said category.Slumdog does not have the best score,cinematography,sound mixing/editing,song of the year...but it's following it's too big for any common sense to take place.

 

[Crook]

Barring Best Song, people can make good arguments for Slumdog winning any of those either categories.

Look, I too hated on Slumdog (for completely different reasons than others here), but once I actually saw it, I realized what the hype was about. It obviously resonated with a lot of people, so it's no question why it's winning all these awards.

If TDK were in this position, I'm sure you all wouldn't appreciate others constantly talking down on the film because of it's popularity and massive achievements. It's just the Oscars. There was a massive campaign for TDK, and it didn't work out as planned. In turn, the Oscars (are once again) irrelevant. Until they agree with your opinion, that is. They're both successful, in different ways. I don't see why we can't just accept it.

 

[batman11]

Barring Best Song, people can make good arguments for Slumdog winning any of those either categories.

Out of curiosity, why don't you think a good argument could be made in favor of Slumdog winning Best Song?

 

[hatebox]

People should hate on the Reader, not Slumdog. The latter is actually a decent film, and didn't take TDK's place in BP because it was always going to be there.

 

[batman11]

People should hate on the Reader, not Slumdog. The latter is actually a decent film, and didn't take TDK's place in BP because it was always going to be there.

Funnily enough, I really want The Reader to win somehow. It's just too great of an opportunity to pass up. On February 22, the world will watch in horror as it's Internet community tears itself apart through hatred for The Reader. t:

 

[The Shape]

I'm still stinging from TDK's snub. What bothers me is that the Oscars have become all about campaigning. That's how Harvey Weinstein was able to sneak The Reader into the Best Picture race, knocking out The Dark Knight, and how was was able to shove Winselt into the best actress race when she should have been there for Revolutionary Road.

But seriously, all three LOTR films were nominated for Best Picture and the third one actually won it. Are any of those films better than TDK, an ambitious, genre-bending epic? I think not, but of course, because of the source material, TDK wasn't taken seriously. Hell, TDK deserves to be there ahead of Benjamin Button by a long shot, let alone The Reader.

Even if Best Picture was too much to ask, Nolan seriously was robbed of a Best Director nomination, and that's the sad thing about it all. A man that worked so how and did so much and actually changed the medium of film forever with his revolutionary use of IMAX cameras. A man that took a concept that was laughable 10 years ago and churned out a crime epic that was appreciated by both adults and children all around the world, with a scope that is unrivaled by any of the other Best Pic nominees .

 

[Anita18]

People should hate on the Reader, not Slumdog. The latter is actually a decent film, and didn't take TDK's place in BP because it was always going to be there.

We did, for a whole week after the nominations. Certainly you were here for that?

With Slumdog sweeping the guilds though, it's just your typical backlash. Slumdog was good, but it wasn't THAT good. Seriously. It's as if no other movies came out this year.

I'm not hating on Slumdog, I'm at the "awards" its winning. I'm actually more miffed at the sound awards it got over Wall-E, than anything it won over TDK.

 

[redfirebird2008]

I'm still stinging from TDK's snub. What bothers me is that the Oscars have become all about campaigning. That's how Harvey Weinstein was able to sneak The Reader into the Best Picture race, knocking out The Dark Knight, and how was was able to shove Winselt into the best actress race when she should have been there for Revolutionary Road.

But seriously, all three LOTR films were nominated for Best Picture and the third one actually won it. Are any of those films better than TDK, an ambitious, genre-bending epic? I think not, but of course, because of the source material, TDK wasn't taken seriously. Hell, TDK deserves to be there ahead of Benjamin Button by a long shot, let alone The Reader.

Even if Best Picture was too much to ask, Nolan seriously was robbed of a Best Director nomination, and that's the sad thing about it all. A man that worked so how and did so much and actually changed the medium of film forever with his revolutionary use of IMAX cameras. A man that took a concept that was laughable 10 years ago and churned out a crime epic that was appreciated by both adults and children all around the world, with a scope that is unrivaled by any of the other Best Pic nominees .

The Nolan snub is definitely more annoying than the film getting snubbed. Oh well though. He'll get his due eventually, whether it be from the awards scene or simply from millions of people admiring his work. Hitchcock and Kubrick never won the Best Director Oscar but they are considered two of the best filmmakers ever. Nolan doesn't really pander with typical "Oscar-bait" style movies. Aronofsky doesn't either. But I think the two of them will continue making great movies and continue gaining a lot of respect around the world, regardless of whether the Academy chooses to acknowledge their ability or not.

 

[Kargo Warrior]

Barring Best Song, people can make good arguments for Slumdog winning any of those either categories.

Look, I too hated on Slumdog (for completely different reasons than others here), but once I actually saw it, I realized what the hype was about. It obviously resonated with a lot of people, so it's no question why it's winning all these awards.

If TDK were in this position, I'm sure you all wouldn't appreciate others constantly talking down on the film because of it's popularity and massive achievements. It's just the Oscars. There was a massive campaign for TDK, and it didn't work out as planned. In turn, the Oscars (are once again) irrelevant. Until they agree with your opinion, that is. They're both successful, in different ways. I don't see why we can't just accept it.

The popularity of the movie is not the point...last year No Country For Old Men won almost all critical awards including the oscars and i was very happy for the movie,even when it lost awards,it lost to equally great movies like There Will Be Blood.

Same thing for a lot of movies which won a huge number of awards.

There were a lot of great movies this year,The Wrestler,The Visitor,Frozen River,Wall-E,Let The Right One In etc... movies that i woudnt have been angry at all if they were nominated in front of TDK.

So it's not about blind fanboy-ism at all...i'm a movie lover first,so i want to see the best movies winning the awards not the movies which made people feel good...the number one liberal crap factor which makes Slumdog the frontrunner.

Slumdog doesnt have a great score...as a musician myself,there is nothing groundbreaking,harmonicaly relevant or even melodically aesthetic to even nominate the score.Same goes for the song.

The movie won the costumes guilds and the best ensemble...costumes???what costumes please?And objectivelly:Christian Bale,Heath Ledger,Garry Oldman,Michael Caine,Morgan Freeman,Aaron Eckhart,Eric Roberts or some unknown amateur actors whom you can find in the dictionary under the word mediocre?

That's where the problem is...people are voting for it just because...with their hearts not with their minds and that's not the way it should be done....at least not if they want to have relevant award shows.

I love TDK to death but if it lost to a deserving movie,a movie which will stand the test of time and wasn't awarded for sentimental reasons,i would have been fine with that.

Slumdog Milionare is not that movie.

 

[hatebox]

That's where the problem is...people are voting for it just because...with their hearts not with their minds and that's not the way it should be done....at least not if they want to have relevant award shows.
.

Although I know what you're getting at, I don't think this was the best choice of words. For what is art, and the appreciation of it, if it's not from the heart, if to some extent it doesn't defy logic?

 

[Captain Planet!]

The Wrestler should have been nominated for BP, Chris Nolan should have been nominated for BD.

The End.

 

[Kargo Warrior]

Although I know what you're getting at, I don't think this was the best choice of words. For what is art, and the appreciation of it, if it's not from the heart, if to some extent it doesn't defy logic?

A movie should be judged by some criterias...not how it makes you feel.That's why people are voting Slumdog in sound mixing even though most of them have no idea what sound mixing is.

By the academy criteria,Backstreet Boys are better than Beethoven because they evoke some feelings he doesn't.

Real art provokes,stings and often expresses the inexpressible.The best art often tries to speak about things people don't want to talk about...in a genuine way...not by making a story as black as white as you can ...as syrupy as candy.

Wall-E is art...Slumdog,not really.

Slumdog is nothing more than a cliche fairy tale where the boy gets the girl by surmounting circumstances...a story told hundreds of times,a hundred times better.

But like you said,art is subjective...so this is a neverending discussion.

 

[hatebox]

A movie should be judged by some criterias...not how it makes you feel.That's why people are voting Slumdog in sound mixing even though most of them have no idea what sound mixing is.

By the academy criteria,Backstreet Boys are better than Beethoven because they evoke some feelings he doesn't.

Real art provokes,stings and often expresses the inexpressible.The best art often tries to speak about things people don't want to talk about...in a genuine way...not by making a story as black as white as you can ...as syrupy as candy.

Wall-E is art...Slumdog,not really.

Slumdog is nothing more than a cliche fairy tale where the boy gets the girl by surmounting circumstances...a story told hundreds of times,a hundred times better.

But like you said,art is subjective...so this is a neverending discussion.

Well yes, and I'm glad you added that last sentence as the rest of the post seemed to take a very factual tone!