Lindsay’s Weblog

Thought about your Oscar picks yet? Not quite sure who deserves to take that golden statue home? Well if you are looking for some insight into who the potential winners could be, look no further. Andy Saur - film reviewer extraordinaire is your answer. Andy has really great thoughts and insight into who the winners will be this year. I may not necessarily agree with all of his choices or his reviews on certain films, but damn I respect them. I have my choices for this year, and we have agreed on some of the winners.

We both agree that No Country for Old Men will win best picture, even though Andy was not such a fan of the film. I on the other hand loved it. One of my favorites of the year. But we both agree that it hits the right criteria that the Oscars voters look for. Most of the other categories are shoe-ins, which both Andy and I agree upon. Daniel Day-Lewis has got the best actor statue. Javier Bardem and Cate Blanchett will be winners in the supporting categories, but there is one category where both Andy and myself do not quite know what is going to happen: Actress in a leading role. Everybody is rooting for Ellen Page to win for her quirky performance in Juno (Andy review), but both of us agree that it is just not going to happen. Both Cate Blanchett and Laura Linney were good, but not good enough, and if Cate Blanchett didn’t win for Elizabeth the first time around, it’s not going to happen this time, because the sequel apparently sucked. So it’s pretty much down to Julie Christie and Marion Cotillard. I have yet to see either of these films. I would really like to see them, so I really can’t say who will win, but most of the buzz has been between the both of them. My chose Julie Christie and Andy chose Marion Cotillard. So we shall see who comes out on top on Sunday.

Who are your choices for this Sunday’s Oscars? Let me know and check out Andy Saur’s website for some great reviews and thoughts on film.

The Razzies - awards celebrating the worst movies of the year - will be handed out on Feb. 23, the day before the Oscars. Here are the list of categories and nominees. Why do I think that Eddie Murphy is going to be a big winner this year?

1. Worst Picture

• Bratz
• Daddy Day Camp
• I Know Who Killed Me
• I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry
• Norbit

2. Worst Director

• Dennis Dugan - I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry
• Roland Joffe - Captivity
• Brian Robbins - Norbit
• Fred Savage - Daddy Day Camp
• Chris Siverston - I Know Who Killed Me

3. Worst Actor

• Nicholas Cage - Ghost Rider, National Treasure 2 and Next
• Jim Carrey - The Number 23
• Cuba Gooding Jr. - Norbit and Daddy Day Camp
• Eddie Murphy - Norbit
• Adam Sandler - I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry

4. Worst Actress

• Jessica Alba - Good Luck Chuck, Fantastic Four and Awake
• Logan Browning, Janel Parrish, Nathalia Ramos & Skyler Shaye - BRATZ
• Elisha Cuthbert - Captivity
• Diane Keaton - Because I Said So
• Lindsay Lohan as Aubrey - I Know Who Killed Me
• Lindsay Lohan as Dakota - I Know Who Killed Me

5. Worst Supporting Actor

• Orlando Bloom - Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End
• Kevin James - I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry
• Eddie Murphy as Mr. Wong - Norbit
• Rob Schneider - I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry
• Jon Voight - Bratz, National Treasure 2, September Dawn and Transformers

6. Worst Supporting Actress

• Jessica Biel - I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry, and Next
• Eddie Murphy as Rasputia - Norbit
• Julia Ormond - I Know Who Killed Me
• Nicolette Sheridan - Code Name: The Cleaner

7. Worst Prequel or Sequel

• Alien vs. Predator: Requiem
• Daddy Day Camp
• Evan Almighty
• Hannibal Rising
• Hostel: Part II

I have yet to see any of these movies and I hope I never see any of them, so I can’t really make any judgments about who the winners will be. Let me know who you think the big winners are going to be this year.

South by Southwest is one of the largest annual festivals, which takes place in Austin, Texas. Not only is it a music festival, but it is also a film and interactive arts conference. From March 7-15, the film conference showcases many different genres of film including full-length, shorts and documentaries. They also focus heavily on the business side of film by hosting panels and discussion groups with major players in the film industry. The Interactive Arts conference runs from March 7-11, focusing on what is new and exciting in the world of new media and technology. There are panels, as well as a three-day trade-show and exhibition where people can shop around their ideas and inventions. SXSW has also added on a new gaming element the Interactive Arts conference, as well as an Arcade that will be set-up for 2 days.

But the conference that SXSW is known for best is their music conference and festival. The who’s who of the music industry will be there as part of the panels and participating as keynote speakers. Some of the greatest artists and bands today will be performing as well as some of the best up-and-coming bands. Hundreds of bands will be playing at some of the hottest venues around Austin. It is the true playground for any music enthusiast.

Tickets run higher than most festivals, but then you are getting a few more days worth. You can register for a Platinum Badge which will get you into all of events for all three conferences. There is the Gold Badge which is for the film and interactive conferences only, or you can individual badges for the film, interactive or music festivals. If you are a student and are interested in film, they offer a student badge just for the film festival.

I will be attending SXSW this year for the first time and I am so excited to go. I am already exhausted looking at the list of music performers. Here is the list so far. It is crazy! Lou Reed is going to be the keynote speaker this year and I am so pumped! Yo La Tango and My Morning Jacket are going to be doing a set together. It’s going to be awesome.

If there is anyone who had been before and has any helpful advice about how to plan out my time, maybe some good, cheap places to eat, etc. let me know. I will be most grateful.

Cheers!

It has been announced a new Kurt Cobain biopic has entered into pre-production. The film will based on Cobain’s biography Heavier than Heaven, written by Charles Cross. The book talks about the life and struggle of the troubled singer, until his untimely demise in 1994. Apparently Courtney Love has put in her two cents about who she believes should play Kurt and herself: Ryan Gosling and Scarlett Johansson. I could possibly see Gosling in this role, but Johansson is just a little too pretty to play a grunged-up, drug-user. I also think she just doesn’t have the acting chops. I think the best way for this film to be made is to sign on relatively unknown actors. It worked really well for the Joy-Division film, Control. I think if a big star was to play someone like Cobain, it would take away from the film and his character. I think I would be too distracted watching Ryan Gosling playing Kurt Cobain, because I would be just watching Ryan Gosling playing Kurt Cobain. I would be thinking too much about the Star and not the content of the film. I have yet to see Last Days directed by Gus Van Sant, which is “not about Kurt Cobain” even though it is about Kurt Cobain. Look at the cover of the movie, it is a Kurt Cobain movie. Anyways I think the film should stick to the no name actors and really focus on what the story is really about. Do not stuff it full of stars that are going to suffocate the story.

Check out who Rolling Stone thinks should play some of the other key roles in the new Kurt Cobain film.

The 2007 Oscar Noms are in. Here are my picks for this year.

Best Picture: Atonement, Juno, Michael Clayton, No Country For Old Men, There Will Be Blood

I have seen all of these except for There Will Be Blood which I have heard is a great film. It’s a hard pick for me this year. I have to say Atonement was my least favorite out of lot, but I think it has the best chance at winning because it’s a very “Hollywood” movie. I think it would be the easiest pick. Juno is this year’s Little Miss Sunshine. The little movie that could. I think it has a good chance of winning, but I don’t think it will. Michael Clayton was one of my favorites of the year. Incredible performances from all the actors, but it won’t win. I can not praise No Country For Old Men enough. A great script, amazing performances, but it is not as audience friendly as Atonement. But The Departed won Best Picture last year, which was also a pretty brutal movie, so there could be some hope for No Country.

My Pick: No Country For Old Men

Who Will Win: Atonement

Actor in a Leading Role: George Clooney - Michael Clayton, Daniel Day-Lewis - There Will Be Blood, Johnny Depp - Sweeney Todd, Tommy Lee Jones - In The Valley of Elah, Viggo Mortensen - Eastern Promises

First off, I am very excited that Viggo Mortensen got a nomination because he gave an awesome performance in Eastern Promises, but once again the movie and the role are not very accessible, and the Oscars like accessible. I think George Clooney in Michael Clayton is probably his best performance ever, but I don’t think the movie received wide enough acclaim. I have yet to see In the Valley of Elah, so I don’t know about Tommy Lee’s performance, but once again I don’t think that movie has received enough acclaim. Johnny Depp, oh Johnny Depp. Nominated once again, but he will not win, because he is Johnny Depp and Johnny Depp never wins. Also I don’t think it was his strongest performance. I think that his performances are always strong, but there is always someone else nominated who is just that much stronger and beats him. Johnny Depp is everybody’s favorite loser. I have heard that Daniel Day-Lewis gave yet another amazing performance in There Will Be Blood. I think he should win because I want revenge for him not winning for The Gangs of New York and all the buzz has been about his performance.

My Pick: Daniel Day-Lewis

Who Will Win: Daniel Day-Lewis

Actress in a Leading Role: Cate Blanchett - Elizabeth: The Golden Age, Julie Christie - Away From Her, Marion Cotillard - Le Vie En Rose, Laura Linney - The Savages, Ellen Page - Juno

This is a hard one because I have only seen Juno. I am sure that Ellen Page is everybody’s favorite to win and I think she has a good chance to take home the Oscar, but I have heard many great things about Julie Christie and Marion Cotillard, and each of them took home a Golden Globe for their performances. Cate Blanchett and Laura Linney won’t win because Elizabeth apparently was a terrible film and there wasn’t enough talk or acclaim for Laura Linney’s role. Both are personal favorite actresses of mine, but it’s not their year for best actress.

My Pick: Ellen Page or Julie Christie

Who Will Win: Julie Christie

Actor in a Supporting Role: Casey Affleck - The Assassination of Jesse James, Javier Bardiem - No Country For Old Men, Phillip Seymour Hoffman - Charlie Wilson’s War, Hal Holbrook - Into the Wild, Tom Wilkinson - Michael Clayton

All I can say is Javier Bardiem has it in the bag. Casey Affleck and Tom Wilkinson were both great in their roles but Bardiem was better. I can’t say much for Hoffman and Holbrook because I have yet to see either of the other movies, but Hoffman won two years ago for Best Actor and this is the first I have heard of Hal Holbrook’s performance in Into the Wild. Javier Bardiem completely embodied his role as a crazy, psychotic killer with no soul. You hate him at the end of this film and you hate the fact that his character has not been stopped. The entire time watching the movie, every time he enters a room, I got a chill down my back because he was always about to do something terrible. Javier Bardiem has got it hands down.

My Pick - Javier Bardiem

Who Will Win: Javier Bardiem

Actress in a Supporting Role: Cate Blanchett - I’m Not There, Ruby Dee - American Gangster, Saoirse Ronan - Atonement, Amy Ryan - Gone Baby Gone, Tilda Swinton - Michael Clayton

I have seen all of these movies except for Gone Baby Gone, which I heard that Amy Ryan was really good but there were two performances that really stood out to me this year. Cate Blanchett as Jude Quinn in I’m Not There, I think is a highlight of her career. She was definitely the strongest actor in the entire movie. Though her character was “not” Bob Dylan, she was Bob Dylan. She had his mannerisms, personality, swagger and voice down to a tee. Cate Blanchett has amazing versatility and really shines in any role that she takes on. But the one actress I am really rooting for is Tilda Swinton. She was SO GOOD! SO GOOD! in Michael Clayton! It gave me chills she was so good. You could feel and understand every emotion that this woman was going through, throughout the entire movie. You can hear the words that running through her head at every moment. She was woman who was trying to evoke this strong almost steel like demeanor but underneath she is struggling so hard to keep things together, only to have things coming crashing down on her in the end. One of my absolute favorite performances of 2007. But I think that Cate Blanchett has a better chance of taking the Oscar home because she is more of a house-hold name and everybody loves a role where the actor has to completely transform themselves to play their character.

My Pick: Tilda Swinton

Who Will Win: Cate Blanchett

Best Director - Julian Schnabel - The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Jason Reitman - Juno, Tony Gilroy - Michael Clayton, Joel and Ethan Coen - No Country For Old Men, Paul Thomas Anderson - There Will Be Blood

I am really bad a deciding who best director is, because I don’t really understand the criteria of what makes a good director. I would really like for the Coen Brothers to win because they deserve it. I think that Jason Reitman has a good chance, but I think that Julian Schnabel by come from behind and take it. But I really can’t say.

My Pick: Joel and Ethan Coen

Who Will Win: Joel and Ethan Coen

Writing: Adapted Screenplay - Atonement, Away From Her, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, No Country For Old Men, There Will Be Blood

My Pick: No Country For Old Men

Who Will Win: No Country For Old Men

Writing: Original Screenplay - Juno, Lars and the Real Girl, Michael Clayton, Ratatouille, The Savages

My Pick: Juno

Who Will Win: Juno

If you are looking for a good, suspenseful ghost story to get your heart pumping I suggest the Orphanage. It is the story of a woman who decides to re-open and run the Orphanage that she grew up in. Along with her husband and adopted son, they move into this large house that has a sinister past. Then strange things begin to happen…you know the drill. I can’t say that the plot line is the most original, because we have all seen the haunted house movie, but there is a great twist at the end that I was not expecting. The movie was also not that over-the-top. There was no gore or guts. The Orphanage had this understated suspense that was just enough to keep me at the edge of seat and gripping my boyfriend’s hand throughout the movie. And also if you are looking for a little change of pace, it is in Spanish. If you are a fan of Pan’s Labyrinth or the Devil’s Backbone or Guillermo del Toro in general, I am sure that you will enjoy the Orphanage.