It's OSCAR TIME 2023 (cinemas, films, theaters, Hollywood)
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Well fans, it is that time of the year ....IT IS OSCAR TIME again.
Wow it just seems like it was only a year ago that we had a big Oscar ceremony marred by bad jokes , fist fights and predictable Oscar Bait movies...
But Hey I love the Oscars. I never miss them and make it a point to have a fun night around them.
However, unless you are nominated, you don't get the $100,000 swag bag. Just saying
SO looking ahead at a few predictions
There will be jokes made about Tom Hanks not being nominated for the first time since 1981
Also something lavish and musical, enough to make Broadway envious.
And of course, my son and I turning the entire night into a MST3K Event.
SO who do we think will win?
First, the two actress's categories are pretty obvious given performances and Academy politics Both Michelle Yeoh and Jamie Lee Curtis will take home trophies.
In the mens category, since cheesiness does not matter, and I hated that Elvis film, I am voting for Brendon Frazier in THE WHALE a sad movie to watch but characters who tug at the psychological heartstrings tend to get the trophy. For Supporting Actor, Ke Huy Quan really put in the best performance.
Now I want to talk about Music for a moment,
One of the highlights of the Oscar broadcast is always the musical performances, cute or not,
and while
all are good Hold My Hand by a very obscure musician named Stefani Germanotta will win, and If not, Rhianna may walk away with it.
I am liking All Quiet on the Western Front for Foreign film. However, I watched a film from Mexico called BARTO and it was not nominated for best foreign film. I will say that the cinematography of Barto was, in my opinion, far above that of the other 4 nominees.
I am going to hand Spielberg an oscar for best director. He deserved it with his creative film.
And for best picture, which comes down to Everything Everywhere all at once and The Banshees of Insheron, I am pulling for the former.
BUT On occasion, the Academy will give the award to a boring, dull, slow moving and ultimately wasteful film (remember English Patient, Out of Africa, Sense and Sensibility, The Life of Emile Zola, How Green was my Valley?) SO if the Banshees win, and you have not yet seen the movie, I recommend that you hype on on caffeine to stay awake and do not go into it thinking anything interesting will happen other than people arguing and one guy acting like a total d*ck to everyone around.
That being said, Make sure you have plenty of Popcorn, Wine, Junior Mints, Pizza maybe....Beer perhaps and if you want to sit through a few of these other films, some gummies of a certain type might help too.
10. Triangle of Sadness ... atrocious. Thank goodness I watched this at home so I could fast forward through the 15 minutes of vomit and diarrhea
9. All Quiet on the Western Front ... it was boring in the 9th grade. It's still boring.
8. Elvis ... this ranking will probably shock some people, but I can't stand Luhrmann films. It's like watching a movie on a sugar high with non stop jazz hands and confetti and an occasional seizure. This one was a bit more restrained than say Moulin Rouge, but it's still a turnoff. No thanks.
7. Tar ... yawn. Blanchett was really good in this one, but it wasn't enough to grab my attention.
6. Top Gun Maverick ... The action scenes were really well done, and it was refreshing to see a Tom Cruise film that wasn't a big ego fest, but it was still a Tom Cruise film. Ick.
5. Avatar ... Beautiful to watch, but needed some serious editing. That was not a 3+ hour story.
4. Everything Everywhere ... It was a really well made film, and the most interesting of the bunch, but it's just not my jam. And I still have nightmares about hot dog fingers.
3. The Fablemans ... Nothing groundbreaking, but I enjoyed this film, despite the terrible casting for the mother. (Sorry, MW and her terrible hair are on my irrational hate list)
2. Women Talking ... heartbreaking and beautiful. A real celebration of the strength of women. I actually think this one would have been more impactful if no one well known were in it.
1. Banshees of Inishirin ... Breathtakingly shot. In the beginning I was doubtful that what appeared to be a simple story would captivate me. But I think there was a lot of complexity there under the simple story. At some point I do want to learn more about the Irish Civil War and perhaps understand more of the allegory behind the film. This wasn't anything groundbreaking by any means, and not one of my favorite Oscar films of all time, but it was entertaining.
Does anybody ever see most of the nominees anymore?
Back in the day most everybody saw the same Hollywood output, now there is a distinct division between "grownup films" ( like the nominees) and the blockbuster hits ( CGI spectaculars with fantasy characters). Movies used to be based on books, plays or written by people who read books or knew cultural matters, similar to most of the above nominees.
But the bulk of today's moviegoers aren't book readers, their reference point is video games & tv. So there is a real division in expectations of what is a good movie by older "elites" or the bulk of viewers that still go to cinemas. I just wonder if this will make the whole Oscar thing more meaningless to the bulk of moviegoers in the future.
I've seen "Banshees" & am looking forward to "Everything, Everywhere..." All Quiet.." "EO" & probably "Tar".
The biggest difference to me is that Hollywood was run by artists and now its accountants. The golden age has shifted to streaming TV and I haven't been to the movies in years. With the advent of cheap flat screen TVs in large sizes the difference between the "theater" experience and home TV with a 65 incher and surround sound has narrowed considerably. COVID kept everyone at home and people that invested in improved TVs are less inclined to go to back to the theater (like remote working). There are way too much CGI superhero movies that suck all the revenue up leaving the quality art fare dying on the vine.
Last year I was rooting for the song "Dos Orugitas" from the movie Encanto which was one of the most beautiful, exquisite songs I have ever heard (I am a huge movie soundtrack buff). So what happens? A forgettable song wins for whatever reason.
How many Oscars did Alfred Hitchcock, Stanley Kubrick, Sidney Lumet, Ingmar Bergman, Orson Welles, Akira Kurosawa, Sergio Leone and Christopher Nolan win? Zero.
Does anybody ever see most of the nominees anymore?
Back in the day most everybody saw the same Hollywood output...
What makes it harder is that these films play in theaters for such a short period of time, and if you don't have a particular streaming platform (e.g. "Everything, Everywhere, All at Once" is available only to purchase, for more $ than most would want to pay), then you can't see the film.
Or you can stream it, but you aren't interested in seeing that particular film, e.g. "All Quiet on the Western Front." The book was depressing enough to read. And this version is in German, unlike the 1930 film.
I have seen almost all of them. To me I don't care who wins, I love the gowns and the comedy.
I love Banshees and Tar was fine, Fabelman's nice story - but the WORK done on the other movies was phenomenal!
Even Elvis - my gosh the sets, the clothing! The make up for Tom H., the music!!
And, of course, it took YEARS to make Avatar... Top Gun, my gosh, All Quiet? the work to make that !! wow.
And so on....
Ignore the numbers, pls.
1. Top Gun: Maverick (2022) 96% ...
#2. The Banshees of Inisherin (2022) 96% ...
#3. Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022) 95% ...
And this version is in German, unlike the 1930 film.
Actually, most of it's in English, which I found surprising since it's a German film.
I really enjoyed Banshees, my favorite of the bunch nominated. I liked Everything, but it just seemed like a fad film; didn't have a best picture feel for it (just my opinion).
I really enjoyed Blanchett's acting in Tar and it wasn't a bad movie (thought the last third of it really picked up while the first two thirds were a bit slow).
I actually enjoyed the Elvis film, but I really didn't know too much about him before I watched it (younger person here, early 40s).
Let's see... Oh, I thought the cinematography and production design in All Quiet was stunning. That score was really unique too; it seemed like a character in the movie (I haven't seen Babylon, the one that's supposedly the favorite in this category). The costume design in Black Panther was phenomenal too.
I'm figuring not many saw the shorts, but out of the live action shorts, I really enjoyed An Irish Goodbye; it's supposed to be the favorite too (but the short categories can be unpredictable)--so hoping that one will pull through!
...the WORK done on the other movies was phenomenal!
Even Elvis - my gosh the sets, the clothing! The make up for Tom H., the music!!
I loved "Elvis"... and Austin Butler is one talented young man. The time and effort he put in to play this role really paid off. Even his voice changed as Elvis aged.
Actually, most of it's in English, which I found surprising since it's a German film.
I didn't realize that. Someday I may watch it, despite its length of 2 hours and 23 minutes.
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