Results tagged “oscars”

Did you know that in the 30's and 40's there were frequently ten nominees for Best Picture? Neither did we. The practice ended in 1943, when Casablanca took home the Oscar. Since then it's always been winnowed to a list of five. But this morning AMPAS President Sid Ganis announced that the bigger list is being revived for next year's awards. There will once again be ten nominees. Said Ganis, "Having ten Best Picture nominees is going to allow Academy voters to recognize and include some of the fantastic movies that often show up in the other Oscar categories, but have been squeezed out of the race for the top prize. The final outcome, of course, will be the same - one Best Picture winner." The other categories will remain unchanged.

A party is always a great excuse to get out the punchbowl, and an Oscar party calls for sparking wine. By the end of the evening at least few people will feel like celebrating; and well before the end of the evening the rest of us will feel like drinking. For many years the Weinstein brothers held their Oscar party at the Beverly Hills Trader Vic's. That particular location is not quite the same, alas, but we have a tiki punch recipe straight from the Trader's cookbook that we've made before and loved. We've modified it, boosting its star power. Francis Coppola named his sparkling wine, Sofia Blanc de Blancs, after his daughter. It's light, crisp and refreshing. In other words: perfect for punch. In Chicago it's available at Sam's, Binny's, Cost Plus, and elsewhere. None of the Coppola clan are nominated this year, but surely they'd approve.

Has there been a more predictable year for the Academy Awards than this one? Not since Titanic, in our view; and wouldn't you know it, Kate Winslet is up for Best Actress again. Roger Ebert is predicting a win for her, one for Sean Penn in Milk, and a whole mess of awards for the all-but-unstoppable acclaim-train that is Slumdog Millionaire. In an annual tradition Mr. Ebert once again invites you to try and outguess him for a chance to win a trip for two to the world premiere of Disney/Pixar's Up. If the results are as surprise-free as we're expecting, outguessing Ebert is going to hinge on a wild card category like Best Documentary (he's predicting Man on Wire, but don't overlook Trouble the Water).

• Tomorrow the Music Box begins a week-long run of the 2009 Oscar-nominated short films, with one program for Live Action and another for Animation. It's a great smorgasbord including films from all over the world. If you can't make it to the Music Box, you'll be able to watch them at home: the nominated short films will be released on iTunes on February 17. Just keep in mind what David Lynch says about that.
• Speaking of digital cinema, one of the films we loved the most at last year's CIFF gets a non-traditional release in a few weeks. Must Read After My Death, the fascinating and disturbing documentary fashioned by Morgan Dews from materials left behind by his family, opens theatrically in New York and LA on February 20 but will also be viewable in ultrahigh quality online. Via Gigantic Digital, a $2.99 "ticket" will give a viewer unlimited access. As a result of their outreach, Time Out Chicago will actually change the way they cover films. Hank Sartin explains: "After an extended discussion, we're going to run a review both online and in print. In print, we're going to include a newly designed logo indicating that this film is not in theaters but is online. We're going to take this case-by-case, but try to cover films getting non-traditional release whenever we can, online if not always in print."
• Also on February 20, the Alliance Française of Chicago presents an evening of Europe's best short films of 2008. More than 2,000 international cinema professionals voted for the winners, in a format inspired by the Césars. The lineup is a surprise, but expect some solid work that you're unlikely to see anywhere else. Tickets are $12 for members, $15 for non-members; more info here.

We've been so preoccupied lately with Blago and Huberman that we forgot to get excited about the Oscar nominations. Frankly, compared to last year, this year's crop holds a lot less excitement for us, although there are some notable exceptions. It's pretty awesome to see Richard Jenkins and Werner Herzog (!) up for awards, but coolest of all is the Best Supporting Actor nomination for long-time Chicago actor Michael Shannon in Revolutionary Road.

We are not fetishists in any way, shape or form. And yet even we would be loathe to pass up the chance to fondle an actual Academy Award. (Note: we actually have; Ben Hecht's Oscar is in the collection of the Newberry Library). You'll have the chance to do it too: February 13-22 at at The Shops at North Bridge on Michigan Avenue, "Meet the Oscars, Chicago" will feature a display of Oscars. One of which you'll be able to hold. The free exhibit will include six statuettes to be given out during next year's ceremony as well as Clark Gable's Best Actor Oscar for It Happened One Night. Since 1982 the awards have been manufactured here in Chicago by R.S. Owens & Company.

The Writer's Guild of America has announced their nominations for "outstanding achievement in TV, radio, news, promotional writing, and graphic animation," and guess which movie got a nod for Best Adapted Screenplay? Why, it would be the same one which received an ASC nomination earlier today and a Producer's Guild of America nomination a few days ago. Depending on how you look at it, these noms could be a harbinger of things to come when the Oscars roll around. Or they could just be acknowledgments that The Dark Knight made boatloads of money (in fact it was last year's highest-grossing film).

The first few months of the year are typically the cinematic equivalent of a graveyard. Studios have already unloaded their Oscar bait in advance of the January 1 deadline and are in the midst of prepping their would-be cash cows for release in the late spring. But After Dark's Horrorfest III will take the phrase "cinematic graveyard" seriously. It unspools January 9-15 at Piper's Alley, highlighting eight fright flicks. They'll be shown on a rotating schedule for the duration of the festival.

Winter is a damn good time to just sit around and drink coffee and watch movies. Stuff to watch:

Most of us watched the Oscars last night, while others of us found something else to do, but either way, we were happy to see another Chicago-area native bringing home an award. Writer Diablo Cody, author of the excellent year-as-a-stripper memoir, Candy Girl, won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for the teen-pregnancy comedy Juno. While it was the only Oscar for the critical darling little-movie-that-could, it's another addition to the growing list of awards both the film and Ms. Cody have racked up so far. Diablo, accepted the award from Indiana Jones and was on the verge of tears during her acceptance speech (see below). Giving props to her fellow nominees and the cast and crew of her film, Ms. Cody seemed genuinely shocked, excited, and overwhelmed by the award and recognition. We wish Ms. Cody luck on her skyrocketing career and can only imagine the heights of cinematic excellence that could be reached if she were given a crack at something like, say, the next Harry Potter movie. We might actually pay to see that.

Here's what our local ne'erdowells have been up to while waiting in eager anticipation for tonight's Oscars:

More fascinated by Kelis' milkshake than Daniel Plainview's? Is the only Oscar you'll watch living in a garbage can? Then this Sunday probably means nothing to you. You're burnt out on the "glitz" and "glamor" of the night, not to mention the drama surrounding that writers strike.

When Oscar nominations came out this morning, we could only think about one thing: how much freakin' facial hair there is in the nominated films. Here are some photos of some people in some of the nominated movies rockin' (and not really rockin') 'staches.

We're referring of course to the Golden Globes ceremony, which has been axed because of the writer's strike. It was announced today that Instead of the long-winded, smarmy fashion show we've seen in the past, the Sunday NBC telecast will instead be a bare-bones press conference padded out with lotsa clips (all the better to separate the commercials with, my dear). Says Jorge Camara, president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association: "We are all very disappointed that our traditional awards ceremony will not take place this year and that millions of viewers worldwide will be deprived of seeing many of their favorite stars celebrating 2007's outstanding achievements in motion pictures and television." Oh, the sacrifice! Yup, we here in the Chicagoist offices are shedding tears right alongside you.

If you're like us, you're already getting pumped up for the Oscars! Not. Jeez, let's get past New Year's first, O.K.? Oops. Too late. The Chicago Film Critics Association has already jumped the gun and handed out their awards. To the surprise of no one the big winner was No Country for Old Men, the new Coen brothers movie that both impressed and disturbed us when we saw it last month. It won four awards in all (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actor for Javier Bardem). We're very pleased that Bardem won; there wouldn't be much of a movie without his chilling character study, and he damned well better win the Oscar.

Kanye West leads the pack with the most Grammy nominations this year. Kanye is also famous for throwing a tantrum every time he ends up being beaten out by anyone else for any other award. This time around, we think maybe Kanye should be crossing his fingers in hopes that he doesn't win.

The James L. Beard Awards — the Oscars of the culinary world — were handed out last night. Though Chicago didn't win a large number of awards, we did win one of the most important ones, so we can take solace in that.

Now that the Super Bowl is finally over, we can at last turn our attention to things which are truly important ... like The Oscars. Really we wanted to talk to you about this last week, but a hunch told us that it just wouldn't register. The Oscars are now less than three weeks away. Speculation is flying fast and furious. Maureen Ryan at the Trib is whining about how Hollywood "seems to have gone...

Oscar fever has got us doing cartwheels all over the Chicagoist offices, as well as placing more than a few friendly wagers over who will be taking home those expensive doorstops come February 25th. But that’s not the only thing going down in the film world at the moment. A little gathering in Park City, Utah called the Sundance Film Festival has been underway since last week. And lest you shrug your shoulders indifferently just...

Just like Christmastime, each year Oscar season seems to start a little bit earlier. Some people were even making predictions way back in November, but we've done our best to hold our tongues. Why? Well, the Oscars are much less like a horse race and much more like just a good excuse to throw a party. If you're a film lover, it's better for your own sanity to care less about winners and losers and...

We are very sad to hear news that Robert Altman, one of our favorite filmmakers, has died at age 81. His last film A Prairie Home Companion was one of his few to deal overtly with death, so we can't help thinking that it was on his mind. At last year's Oscars, the long-overdue presentation of a lifetime acheivement award to Mr. Altman filled us with pride. A true maverick who directed everything from M*A*S*H to Popeye, The Player, Nashville, Short Cuts and Gosford Park, Altman was known for making films exactly the way he damn well felt like making them. As irrational as it sounds, to this day we have a soft spot for Popeye and often still hum "He Needs Me," as sung in the film by Shelley Duvall.

Quick: how many more days 'til the Oscars? Frankly, we don't care. However the Sundance Film Festival opens on January 18, an event which we've always daydreamed about but haven't been able to attend. This year's opener will bring a bit of Chicago to the usually-sleepy ski town of Park City, Utah: the documentary Chicago 10, directed by Brett Morgen. It chronicles the anti-war protests which accompanied the 1968 Democratic Convention and the subsequent trial...

Your acting skills have not gotten any better since 1st grade when Sister Mary Ignatius said you “made some confusing choices” in your portrayal of a bar of soap in your Catholic grade school production of “Cleanliness Is Next To Godliness (So Scrub Your Back Or You’re Going To Hell).” Therefore, an Oscar is out of the question.

The Joseph Jefferson Awards Committee showed much love for non-Equity shows last night, handing out thirty-seven Citation Awards for 2005-2006 productions. In the city of Burnham, companies making no small plans were rewarded. The Kentucky Cycle Parts 1 and 2, Infamous Commonwealth Theatre’s six-hour historical epic, won Best Play and three other awards (winners pictured at right). Bailiwick’s Kiss of the Spider Woman won seven total citations, including Best Musical. Unlike the Oscars or Tonys,...

This past Saturday the Gridiron Club, a group of Washington journalists, held its 121st annual dinner roasting politicians. Senator Barack Obama got in on the fun and sang a parody of “If I Only Had a Brain” with the refrain of “If I Only Had McCain,” a reference to his earlier ethics tiff with Republican Arizona Senator John McCain. Those attending seemed to be impressed by his “velvet voice.” Maybe he was just trying for...

Torontoist throws down the gauntlet and challenges all comers: pillow fight, bitch. They also stand up for a fellow blogger taking heat from the TTC and welcome city-wide WiFi. SFist can finally admit it: It's possible that Bary Bonds juiced. Is Bay Area artist (tempted to put quotes around that) Thomas Kinkaid "kinda crappy" or "explosively crappy" or does he just like marking territory? SFist wonders. Technology comes in the form of new Mac goodness...

In the spirit of last night’s Oscars, we present this montage of thoughts: * Forget pimps: it was hard out there for Jon Stewart. Stewart is and was frequently hilarious, but what works on the Daily Show doesn't work for the Oscars. Like most unconventional hosts (Letterman, Chris Rock), Stewart was done in because he was expected to bring his sharp, cutting wit to a venue that doesn't appreciate it. An organization that rolls three...

Nursing an Oscars hangover and licking our wounds from choking hard on our predictions (Crash? March of the Freaking Penguins?) we can at least take comfort and solace that a home-town girl made good this awards season:

Chicagoist hasn’t posted much about the Oscars this year, and we think we’ve figured out why.

Roger Ebert is going to be a guest tonight on the Daily Show. How’s that for a slice of fried gold*? Mr. Ebert posted his Oscar predictions Saturday, and we’re but ten days from the Oscar ceremony itself, which is hosted by – wait for it – Jon Stewart. Chicagoist is a big fan of the Daily Show what with the high and low humor, so we’re looking forward to an intelligent discussion of how...