2002-02-12
Oscar Reaction, posted at 9:45 a.m.
Epiphany in Baltimore has moved to epiphanyinbaltimore.blogspot.com The Oscar nominations were announced today. How anticlimactic. Maybe I'm following it too closely, but the results are really disappointing. There were no curveballs at all. Everything was predictable.One of the only surprises is Ethan Hawke's nomination for Training Day. I've always liked him as an actor and think he's bashed a lot, so I don't mind that. Still, it's a bit fishy - I always ask myself when someone is nominated from a movie that isn't very good, then why isn't the movie any better (see Angelina Jolie in Girl, Interrupted, for example). Renee Zelwegger's nomination for Bridget Jones Diary was another mild surprise, but the fact that I hated that movie makes an unpleasant one.
The Royal Tenenbaums and Memento, the two most original films released this year, were both pretty much shut out. Both got Original Screenplay nominations, but that was it. The snoozefests Gosford Park and In the Bedroom both brought about tons of undeserved nominations, however.
It's cool that two African-American actors were nominated for Best Actor, but Denzel Washington's performance in Training Day was unsubtle and one of the most overrated of his career. Sean Penn's performance has gotten mixed reviews in I Am Sam (I haven't seen it, but I do want to), and as far as I'm concerned it's his nomination that pushed Gene Hackman's much-deserved turn in The Royal Tenenbaums out of the running.
And, sorry, but there's no way that Moulin Rouge is amongst the best of the year. I give it credit for being daring and original, but it's also way frenetic (like a music video) and overlong.
By the way, in writing that criticism, I wonder if I am remiss in loving Magnolia but not loving (just liking) Moulin Rouge. After all, both films have been criticized for the same thing - too much emotion, too much going on. Hmmm. Oh well, it's one to ponder. I need to see Moulin Rouge again, but the memories certainly don't make me believe it deserves anything more than a Best Actress nomination for Nicole Kidman and perhaps Cinematography or Editing noms.
Iris got three nominations. I guess I need to see that one. Cate Blanchett's nomination for Bandits certainly came from left field, as well. But, otherwise, I've seen every other major nominee. That's just sort of boring. There are no films I've got to go out and see before the broadcast...
Well, now that the nominees have been announced, here's who I hope wins:
Best Picture - A Beautiful Mind
Best Actor - Will Smith
Best Actress - Halle Berry or Nicole Kidman (jury is still out since I haven't seen A Monster's Ball yet)
Best Supporting Actor - Jon Voight
Best Supporting Actress - Jennifer Connelly
That spreads them out a bit, which is good, since none of the films nominated are masterpieces.
And, if you missed it, check out my "If I Ran the Oscars" journal entry from yesterday.