The nominations are out, and it is becoming clear to me that I really owe the Academy a debt of gratitude for supplying me with something to complain about, year after year. True, 2008 wasn’t the best year in film, but it appears as if big names, big concepts, and epic stories have browbeaten the competition once again.
Yesterday’s New York Times featured an article lauding the Academy’s conversion to auteur ascendancy. (“…Quality Emerges Triumphant) The article describes how the awards, originally launched in 1929 as a studio marketing tool, have recognized more smaller-budget movies in the past decade. (The article sites Crash’s win in 2005 to illustrate the new-found emphasis on quality, so I have to take this time to point out what a heavy-handed, over-acted movie that was…) I do think that there has been a shift, but this is just a by-product of the overwhelming popularity of the “Indie” film in the past two decades. Whereas very few people were watching a John Cassavetes movie in the 70’s, *everyone* saw at least one Quentin Tarantino movie in the 90’s. The “Independent” label as it was once known can hardly be applied to many of the films being produced by big studio offshoots today. The Oscars have simply continued to reflect the tastes of the public.
So this year, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, The Reader, Slumdog Millionaire, and Milk are competing for best picture. I think Benjamin Button should automatically be out of the running because of that wretched hummingbird David Fincher found appropriate to pepper in at the most implausible times during the movie. That level of cheese is completely unacceptable. The movie displays mild success because the concept is such a good one and the effects are impressive, but many of the scenes were redundant, and the acting was nothing special, despite the two nominees it produced. Milk was very good, well-acted, and well-told, but certainly not Van Sant’s best. Frost/Nixon was surprisingly excellent – a very entertaining story about the interview that vindicated the nation. Frank Langella should win for best actor, no question about it. I confess I haven’t seen The Reader or Slumdog Millionaire, but I think I can wait for DVD with those two. (Incidentally, Kate Winslet’s nomination for her role in The Reader actually brings me great joy after re-watching her appearance on an episode of Extra’s)
Man on Wire was hands-down my favorite movie of the year, and I’m glad it received a nod in the best documentary category, but why the hesitation to count this among the BEST overall? It was very well-told, utterly inspiring and moving, featured an interesting cast of people, and one hell of a charismatic lead. Encounters at the End of the World was another brilliant film from Werner Herzog. This too could be placed in the best picture category – Herzog’s movies are not exactly documentaries in the strictest sense (which puts some people off), and are just as carefully crafted as any fictional epic, and this one is exceptionally beautiful to look at.
Richard Jenkins’ nomination for his role in The Visitor – a movie that tells a quiet, touching story while adeptly avoiding sentimentality – is well-deserved, perhaps not just as recognition of this role, but for his impressive body of work. (He was perhaps the most likable character on Six Feet Under). Brad Pitt certainly did an adequate job in Benjamin Button, but most of the work was done for him by the special effects/makeup. Overall it was nothing special, nor anything I thought about more than 15 minutes after the credits rolled.
Surely I will forget about the awards ceremony shortly after it’s over as well. I will forget the complaints I lodged this year, and will wait to be re-visited by Oscar-winners-past as they live up to the honor that the Academy has bestowed upon them:
