The ones you missed

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

By Andrew Munz

Grandiose sets. Overly long acceptance speeches. Hit-or-miss jokes from the host.  Close up shots of Jack Nicholson. The annual Academy Awards ceremony, commonly known as the Oscars, is filled with designer gowns, celebrity smiles and musical performances.  It’s a private engagement for the televised masses. 

Last year host Hugh Jackman danced around the stage, Slumdog Millionaire won Best Picture, and viewership was around 37 million. Sound like a lot?  Not really, considering that in 1998 when Titanic won 11 Oscars, numbers were at 57 million, probably because Titanic was hugely successful, and people actually had a reason to watch the event.  Nowadays, the general public is lucky to see maybe one or two of the films that are nominated, as most aren’t blockbusters.

This year, however, the tables have turned.

With the number of Best Picture nominees rising this year from five to 10, box office gems like Up, Inglourious Basterds, and District 9 are in the running, not to mention the newly crowned top grossing film of all time, Avatar.  I’m fairly certain many more people will be watching this year, even us local Jackson Hole folk.
Movie theater owner Frank Londy’s Oscar contest is a popular event in the valley, with thousands of ballots turned in each year. The voting ballot, found in the Jackson Hole Daily, is divided up into the main categories (excluding obscure awards like short films), each of which is given a point value to total 100. The contender whose point value exceeds all others wins a yearlong free pass to the movies – a coveted, much desired award.  No acceptance speech required.
But as March 7 draws near, what films should you catch before the ceremony starts?

With nine nominations each, sci-fi epic Avatar and the Iraq war drama The Hurt Locker are the main ones to watch out for.  Most say it’ll be down to these two mammoths to win the big one, but, who can be sure. The George Clooney dramatic comedy Up in the Air follows with eight nominations. Almost all of us have already seen Avatar, many have even taken a trip to Idaho Falls to see it in 3-D, and The Hurt Locker graced Jackson cinemas twice and is now on DVD.

Precious is currently playing at the Twin Cinema, and don’t miss it. With six nominations, it’s one of the best-reviewed films of the year, and is taking audiences by storm. Nominated films on DVD that you should see include: Inglourious Basterds, Star Trek, Up, A Serious Man, and the hilarious British comedy In the Loop.

I can’t guarantee that seeing these films will make it easier to fill out your ballot, but at least you’ll recognize the film a best actor or actress nominee is nominated for.  Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side) and Meryl Streep (Julie & Julia) are top runners for the Best Actress award, and Colin Firth (A Single Man) and Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart) are favorites for Best Actor. Bridges’ and Firth’s films have yet to show up on Jackson screens, but sit tight; the theaters’ Web site says they’re coming soon.

Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin are the hosts this year and given their comedic performances in movies and on television, as well as starring in the hilarious It’s Complicated, they’re sure to entertain. Usually, a single host rots on the stage, so it’ll be nice to see two stars up there, just in case one fails to step up.  
Next week, I’ll be covering the various categories and explain what constitutes a Best Director nomination, and what the difference is between Best Sound Mixing, and Sound Editing. Stay tuned! JHW   

Courtesy - HURT LOCKER

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The ones you missed | Planet JH News Article: General Music Arts and Culture

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