**2010 Oscar Nods (A few days late...so sue me)**

Best Picture
“Avatar”
“The Blind Side”
“District 9”
“An Education”
“The Hurt Locker”
“Inglourious Basterds”
“Precious”
“A Serious Man”
“Up”
“Up in the Air”

Best Director
James Cameron, “Avatar”
Kathryn Bigelow, “The Hurt Locker”
“Quentin Tarantino, “Inglourious Basterds”
“Lee Daniels, “Precious”
Jason Reitman, “Up in the Air”

Best Actor
Jeff Bridges, “Crazy Heart”
George Clooney, “Up in the Air”
Colin Firth, “A Single Man”
Morgan Freeman, “Invictus”
Jeremy Renner, “The Hurt Locker”

Best Actress
Sandra Bullock, “The Blind Side”
Helen Mirren, “The Last Station”
Carey Mulligan, “An Education”
Gabourey Sidibe, “Precious”
Meryl Streep, “Julie & Julia”

Best Supporting Actor
Matt Damon, “Invictus”
Woody Harrelon, “The Messenger”
Christopher Plummer, “The Last Station”
Stanley Tucci, “The Lovely Bones”
Christoph Waltz, “Inglourious Basterds”

Best Supporting Actress
Penelope Cruz, “Nine”
Vera Farmiga, “Up in the Air”
Maggie Gyllenhaal, “Crazy Heart”
Anna Kendrick, “Up in the Air”
Mo’Nique, “Precious”

Best Adapted Screenplay
“District 9”
“An Education”
“In the Loop”
“Precious”
“Up in the Air”

Best Original Screenplay
“The Hurt Locker”
“Inglourious Basterds”
“The Messenger”
“A Serious Man”
“Up”

Best Animated Feature Film
“Coraline”
“Fantastic Mr. Fox”
“The Princess and the Frog”
“The Secret of Kells”
“Up”

Best Foreign Language Film
“Ajami” (Israel)
“The Milk of Sorrow” (Peru)
“A Prophet” (France)
“The Secret in Their Eyes” (Argentina)
“The White Ribbon” (Germany)

Best Art Direction
“Avatar”
“The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus”
“Nine”
“Sherlock Holmes”
“The Young Victoria”

Best Cinematography
“Avatar”
“Inglourious Basterds”
“Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”
“The Hurt Locker”
“The White Ribbon”

Best Costume Design
“Bright Star”
“Coco Before Chanel”
“The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus”
“Nine”
“The Young Victoria”

Best Film Editing
“Avatar”
“District 9”
“The Hurt Locker”
“Inglourious Basterds”
“Precious”

Best Makeup
“Il Divo”
“Star Trek”
“The Young Victoria”

Best Music (Original Score)
“Avatar”
“Fantastic Mr. Fox”
“The Hurt Locker”
“Sherlock Holmes”
“Up”

Best Music (Original Song)
“Almost There” from “The Princess and the Frog”
“Down in New Orleans” from “The Princess and the Frog”
“Loin de Paname” from “Paris 36″
“Take it All” from “Nine”
“The Weary Kind” from “Crazy Heart”

Best Sound Editing
“Avatar”
“The Hurt Locker”
“Inglourious Basterds”
“Star Trek”
“Up”

Best Sound Mixing
“Avatar”
“The Hurt Locker”
“Inglourious Basterds”
“Star Trek”
“Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen”

Best Visual Effects
“Avatar”
“District 9”
“Star Trek”

Best Documentary Feature
“Burma VJ: Reporting from a Closed Country”
“The Cove”
“Food, Inc.”
“The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers”
“Which Way Home”

Best Documentary Short
“China’s Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province”
“The Last Campaign of Booth Gardener”
“The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant”
“Music by Prudence”
“Rabbit a la Berlin”

Best Short Film (Animated)
“French Roast”
“Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty”
“The Lady and the Reaper”
“Logorama”
“A Matter of Loaf and Death”

Best Short Film (Live Action)
“The Door”
“Instead of Abracadabra”
“Kavi”
“Miracle Fish”
“The New Tenants”

If There Were Any Justice...

...Michelle Pfeiffer would be killing the awards game with nominations across the board for her breathtaking performance in Cheri, that last scene still haunts me. The film itself surely deserve's notice for it's impeccable costume design and cinematography.



And Two Lovers would get Oscar nods for Picture, Directing, Screenplay, Actor (Phoenix), Actress (Paltrow), Supporting Actress (Shaw, who certainly brought as much to the film as either of her costars) and Cinematography.

.:2009: The Lists:.

The best of the year (that I’ve seen), in no particular order:


*Two Lovers


*The Hangover


*Inglourious Basterds


*(500) Days of Summer


*Star Trek


*Avatar


*Watchmen


*Precious


*Public Enemies


*District 9

The Princess & the Frog
Duplicity
Cheri
An Education
Goodbye Solo
Adventureland
Drag Me to Hell
Coraline
Orphan
(*= top ten)

The almost great/good ones:
9
Whatever Works
Next Day Air
American Violet
Julie & Julia
The Proposal
Sherlock Holmes
Up
Jennifer’s Body
Funny People
He's Just Not That Into You

Those I really want/need to see:
Nine
Where the Wild Things Are
It's Complicated
Medicine for Melancholy
Ballast (2008 release, came to DVD in 2009)
Up in the Air
Brothers
Get Low
The Hurt Locker
The Messenger
Crazy Heart
A Single Man
The Lovely Bones
Fantastic Mr. Fox
Bright Star
The Informant!
Good Hair
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

Got 'em, just need to watch them:
Julia
Paranormal Activity
Away We Go
My Sisters Keeper

Worst of the year/biggest disappointments:
All About Steve
Dance Flick
Wolverine
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
G.I. Joe
Terminator: Salvation
New Moon
Alvin & the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel

.:Happy New Year:.

I hope all is well and that 2010 will be greater than the year before for you all!
I'll be putting up a "Top 10" of the year list pretty soon, a "top [whatever] of the decade" may soon follow. I should have had it up earlier but I was being lazy...oh well! Happy New Year & be safe tonight and every night.

iPhone test

Just a test to see if I can do this from my phone...

New Music from Nine!!!!

So, you may have heard of this little movie coming out on Christmas day starring a slew of unknown actors called "Nine"...its one of my most anticipated films of the year. Well, this file contains four unnamed tracks in .wma format (put them into Itunes and they will convert to mp3):

1.) Track 1 ("Be Italian" - Fergie)*
2.) Track 2 ("Cinema Italiano" - Kate Hudson)
3.) Track 3 ("Take It All" - Marion Cotillard)
4.) Track 4 ("Unusual Way [Soundtrack Version]" - Griffith Frank)**

* Truncated version
** The song is sung by Nicole Kidman in the film, Griffith Frank is a new artist signed to Geffen Records.

I just watched...

...and I loved it! It's not your typical period drama, yes the clothes are lovely and the photography is gorgeous, but there lies within Cheri a certain emotional muteness/distance that is rarely found in these sorts of films. Afterall, melodrama is usually the biggest draw for the genre and yet Cheri sidesteps those staples and, ironically, has a bigger emotional impact because of it. Some have seen this as the films ultimate flaw, stating that for all of it's sumptuous, robust scenery and fantastic performances, it's script was lacking. And I have to disagree, Christopher Hampton (who also wrote Dangerous Liasons and Atonement) has crafted a beautifully delicate and sparse script. And it's sparse for a reason, the story is based on feelings and a thousand pages of dialog can't compare to what nuanced actors can convey in ere seconds without words. I expect some to find the narration (by the film's director, Stephen Frears) a bit jarring, but it sets the tone nicely.

The performances are top-notch and worthy of awards consideration. Kathy Bates turns in yet another fiery supporting performance (after her heinously overlooked work in the heinously overlooked "Revolutionary Road") as the busy-body mother of the title character, while Rupert Friend shines. Friend seamlessly inhabits the role of a man who's maturation is inert, at times sheepish and at other's a full-blown brat, he finds the perfect notes to hit. And yet, in the midst of two assured performances, the film belongs to Michelle Pfeiffer. Her performance is subtler than some might expect, but it is powerful nonetheless. Pfeiffer sometimes says so much with no words at all, it's a truly compelling performance that proves - once again - how much of a treasure she is. The ending of the film will frustrate, maybe even baffle some, but I feel it packs a pretty hefty punch to the gut. Some things need not be seen, the mere mentioning of what happens in the end is enough to make our jaws drop.

This cast, this director and the screenwriter have crafted an exceptional film that should be seen by far more people. The horrible mishandling of it's theatrical run has pretty much ruined the bulk of Mrs. Pfeiffer's chances at a fourth Oscar nomination (and possible win), and it's a shame because she is so deserving. Cheri is the film those of you in the mood for a period film that moves at a brisk pace and has wit and plenty of drama. It's not a weepy sort of film (see Atonement for that, they have the same screenwriter), but it's effective nonetheless.