sAG awards
SAG Awards
29/01/12 17:05
The Screen Actors Guild and Directors Guild awards took place in LA at the weekend. Both big indicators as to how February's Academy Awards will go, the stars were out in force . THE HELP, Tate Taylor's civil rights era tale of black Mississippi maids, last night emerged as a late contender to challenge “THE ARTIST” at next month’s OSCARS, after taking three of the top five film prizes at the highly influential show. Viola Davis carried off the leading female actor award, with co-star Octavia Spencer taking the equivalent prize for supporting female actor and the cast of the film taking the ensemble award, widely considered the guild's version of the Oscar for best film. The Artist, a black-and-white hymn to Hollywood's golden era, was not completely shut out: Star Jean Dujardin won the leading male actor prize, while earlier in the weekend Hazanavicius took the top honour at another key Oscars bellwether, the DGA awards. This year's Academy Awards take place on Sunday 26 February. Billy Crystal is hosting for the ninth time.
Oscar picks
27/01/12 16:48
Flattery will get you everywhere in Hollywood. So it is that the films leadingt he nominations haul for this year’s Osars – to be presented on Sunday 26 February – are both love letters to movie making. But what about stand out, edgy films like DRIVE, SHAME, DEVIL’S DOUBLE, etc. Are the old fogies at the Oscars--drag out Billy Crystal again? I mean, really! Hugo is, essentially, about the need to preserve film history, couched in a kid friendly paen to George Méliès, the early effects pioneer. Michel Hazanavicius's The Artist is a Frenchie’s lust for old Hollywood itself. Academy voters in their retirement homes must be lapping it up – art telling old artists their art was important, and still is.
In a digital era of 3D, Sony 4K, Imax, iPads and streaming video, not evenAndy Serkis’ motion-capture performances in The Adventures of Tintin or Rise of the Planet of the Apes have made it, either as feats of modern acting or as game-changing special effects. Instead, we get old hat vets like Scorsese, Spielberg, Woody Allen and Terrence Malick are back on top. Hell, even old “school negro” maids--“Gone Wit the Wind” anyone?-- are providing the entertainment – Help! There's not an iota of the experimental about the Oscars this year, nothing daring, nothing new, except a counting system that leaves us with nine nominations for best picture, a move that ends up looking like someone's made a clerical mistake.
In a digital era of 3D, Sony 4K, Imax, iPads and streaming video, not evenAndy Serkis’ motion-capture performances in The Adventures of Tintin or Rise of the Planet of the Apes have made it, either as feats of modern acting or as game-changing special effects. Instead, we get old hat vets like Scorsese, Spielberg, Woody Allen and Terrence Malick are back on top. Hell, even old “school negro” maids--“Gone Wit the Wind” anyone?-- are providing the entertainment – Help! There's not an iota of the experimental about the Oscars this year, nothing daring, nothing new, except a counting system that leaves us with nine nominations for best picture, a move that ends up looking like someone's made a clerical mistake.