Me, Elsewhere. Talking Oscar

I was a special guest star on two different sites today. So I have to send you away; come to me by going away! 

First, I was one of two guest stars on the latest edition of the fine podcast OpKino which stars my friend Katey Rich and her harem of movie besties Matt Patches, David Ehrlich and Da7e Gonzales (all of whom are infinitely worth following on twitter if you don't yet). I'm one of two guests. Not the one talking up The Amazing Spider-Man 2 rumors (i.e. Spider-Man 5) although I have nothing against Spidey. (Oh wait, I do now. Damnit.) I'm there to talk Oscars. Are they important? Why should people who don't like them learn to appreciate? And more...

Second, the fine folks at Slate and I have revamped last year's Acceptance Speech Analysis Essay and Interactives to bring it to the right now. I was so proud of this last season so if you missed it please read. Or read again. I spent DAYS researching it - fun filled eye strained days of watching actresses and actors stutter, cry, freak out. Now of course every site is writing about acceptance speeches since Oscar went and made it easy for them, transcribing all the actors acceptance speeches from somewhere in the 70s onward. They did it a year too late to save me those days and days of research but I like to think that I gave AMPAS the idea with my Slate thesis last year! They can thank me by inviting me to the Dolby next year. I'll be a lowly seat filler, bathroom attendant, or janitor, I don't care. 

P.S. Before you click away, as instructed, why not like the Film Experience on Facebook?

Making Peace With "Argo". How Many Oscars Will It Win?

When Best Picture locks up each year -- which usually happens sooner than February 2nd so we should count our blessings that this year had more drama! -- the best thing that one can do is find a way to make peace with it. I've followed the Oscars long enough to know that when your absolute favorite in a category wins you should feel rapturous but treat it like its as rare as Brigadoon since you might never see it's like again. The trick to staying sane (not that I've actually mastered this, mind you) is to enjoy the annual awards festivities without caring about the winners so much as the journey to crown them. In its better moments the awards season circus provides plenty of entertainment, delectable star-gazing, and even the occasional conversational or critical insight into what makes particularly movies great or what makes people love particular movies despite their unfortunate lack of greatness.

I've learned to enjoy it when anything in my top ten each year wins something since, in most years, actual favorites are not crowned. It's harder though to enoy your non-favorites winning when they're solidly in the middle of the pack or when a particular forthcoming win defeats something clearly masterful.

Which brings us to Argo...

Click to read more ...

Re: Ben Affleck

I would like to go on record... as saying that this hideous idea of a "write-in" vote for Ben Affleck which is making the webrounds should not be humored by any Academy member or Oscar pundit who respects that the votes are what the votes are come what may. We all have disagreements each year. I mean I think it's ludicrous / embarrassing / etcetera that Crash won best picture but I haven't demanded a recount or a retroactive do-over. The Oscars are what they are: a historical document of a given moment in time and what an elite group of people in Hollywood in those fields valued at the time. 

To deny the directors their ability to choose the five Best Directors is tantamount to overthrowing the entire system in which the nominations come from their own branch of expertise. What's next, actors being able to choose which 5 sound engineers should be up for awards? Documentarians choosing which 5 costume designers should be nominated because, they themselves understand so much about character and clothing?

If I were Ben Affleck I would shut this down immediately somehow. No one likes a sore loser. 

Emmanuelle Riva's Oscar Birthday And The 100 Oldest Living Oscar Nominees

Emmanuelle Riva at the NYFCC Awards earlier this weekGuess who has a birthday on Oscar night this year? Emmanuelle Riva! What fortuitous timing.

The legendary French actress of Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959) fame, was Oscar-nominated just a few days ago for her haunting downward spiral in Michael Haneke's Amour (2012) and on her 86th birthday she could become the oldest winner of any competitive acting Oscar. Christopher Plummer, who turned 83 last month, currently holds that record for his win last year for Beginners. Riva's abundantly well deserved nomination makes her, at this writing, the 64th oldest living Oscar nominee or winner, just a few days younger than American screen legend Sidney Poitier.

So, as we gear up for Oscar night, I thought it was time to look back with gratitude on our elders. Let's pay homage to the Oscar nominees and winners that are still with us. Investigate these talents with your DVD queues and perhaps they'll feel the vibes of new fans "discovering" their cinematic contributions. That would have to be a sweet (and deserved) sensation. 

I'm posting today, not just due to the discovery that next month's Emmanuelle Riva Birthday Celebration will involve all the biggest stars in the world, but because it's January 12th, on which we always say happy birthday to #1 on this list. I hope you enjoy!

100 OLDEST LIVING OSCAR NOMINEES/WINNERS

Thank God It's Link Day

In Contention talks to Oscar nominated sound designer Paul N.J. Ottoson on Zero Dark Thirty 
Film.com Joe Reid does the research we wanted done on most winningest acting lineups of all time -- but, yes, Supporting Actor 2012 is the only ALL winners acting lineup at nomination time.
We Are Movie Geeks collects all the new official Oscar posters and Oscar promos so click on over if you wanna fill up on Seth MacFarlane.

Heat Vision Christopher Nolan in talks to direct Interstellar. The internet's mind is blown because it's a) Nolan and b) sci-fi and c) a & b together and d) because it's supposedly a surprise... but since Jonathan Nolan wrote it I can't figure how the "d" is true. What did I miss?
National Post contemplates Bradley Cooper's hair, awards schmoozing amd career highs in Palm Springs 

Worthy Long Read
New York Times Magazine "Here is what happens when you cast Lindsay Lohan in your movie" an epic piece on Paul Schrader and the making of Canyons 

Today's Funny
Have you seen College Humor's "accurate movie titles" Best Picture edition. It's funny. Argo and Amour are the ones that made me lol. 

see them all