Oscar-Calibur film discussion

[Tony Perkis]

I thought it'd be good to discuss films that venture away from the typical Disney fair and possibly talk about the films that can and should be considered for Oscar glory in a few months.

I'll start.

I went to see The Imitation Game yesterday. Excellent film, and Benedict Cumberbatch's performance was one of the two best I've seen all year (the other being Michael Keaton in Birdman).

Incredibly interesting, well made film. It probably doesn't have much of a shot at winning anything besides Best Actor, but it will be nominated for a whole slew (Picture, screenplay, potentially directing, and numerous technical nods).

 

[216bruce]

Bill Murray in "St. Vincent" should sure get a nom. Agree on Keaton in "Birdman".

 

[Matt_Black]

Big Hero 6 will definitely get nominated for Best Animated Feature, along with the Lego Movie and How To Train Your Dragon 2. Other films obviously will get nominated, but those three are locks, I think, with BH6 and Lego the strongest candidates for winning. Dragon, being a sequel, is much less likely to pick up the Oscar.

One or both of the Marvel movies is definitely going to get nominated for the various technical awards. I would hope the Academy gets over their bias on genre films to give Cap 2 an nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay.

 

[Tony Perkis]

I think Best Animated Feature nominations are:

-The LEGO Movie
-Big Hero 6
-How to Train Your Dragon 2

If they stretch the nominations to 5 this year, throw The Boxtrolls, The Book of Life, and The Tale of Princess Kaguya into the conversation.

Either way, I think The LEGO Movie has this almost locked. It's been winning the vast majority of the regional awards.

 

[Matt_Black]

Either way, I think The LEGO Movie has this almost locked. It's been winning the vast majority of the regional awards.

Possibly. Two factors against it- it's not as recent as the other two, and second, the message of "Hey, maybe strict intellectual property laws aren't that great" might not go over well with the more conservative members of the Academy. BH6, on the other hand, is more fresh in the minds and has a simple but well delivered message of "Grieving hurts and vengeance is bad."

 

[Tony Perkis]

Possibly. Two factors against it- it's not as recent as the other two, and second, the message of "Hey, maybe strict intellectual property laws aren't that great" might not go over well with the more conservative members of the Academy. BH6, on the other hand, is more fresh in the minds and has a simple but well delivered message of "Grieving hurts and vengeance is bad."

The issues with Big Hero 6 is that it didn't get nearly the critical praise that The LEGO Movie, nor nearly the money.

 

[Tony Perkis]

Bill Murray in "St. Vincent" should sure get a nom. Agree on Keaton in "Birdman".

Is the film any good?

 

[Matt_Black]

Well, if we just look at the scores on Rotten Tomatoes, that's correct. Critically, Lego has 96% to BH6's 89%. Audiences seem to be a bit more on the side of BH6 however. And that MAY be a factor. Remember, Ernest & Celestine seemed more of a critical darling than Frozen, AND it was a foreign film, and we know the Academy goes crazy over stuff like that, and yet Frozen still walked away with the Oscar.

 

[Tony Perkis]

Well, if we just look at the scores on Rotten Tomatoes, that's correct. Critically, Lego has 96% to BH6's 89%. Audiences seem to be a bit more on the side of BH6 however. And that MAY be a factor. Remember, Ernest & Celestine seemed more of a critical darling than Frozen, AND it was a foreign film, and we know the Academy goes crazy over stuff like that, and yet Frozen still walked away with the Oscar.

Frozen and Big Hero 6 are not close to the same in quality and mass appeal. Not a great comparison. And Ernest & Celestine is not a good comparison to Lego.

And I'm not seeing the "audiences preferring BH6" sentiment. It's lagging behind Lego on RT, Metacritic, and the domestic and international box office. This includes both critics and users ratings.

Maybe it's more widely acclaimed within the Disney fandom tent, but by and large, I don't see it.

 

[Matt_Black]

BH6 has a 93% audience rating, with an average of 4.4/5, compared to Lego's 87% with an average of 4.3/5.

 

[Tony Perkis]

BH6 has a 93% audience rating, with an average of 4.4/5, compared to Lego's 87% with an average of 4.3/5.

Correct. I was using primarily Metacritic's gauge.

 

[216bruce]

Is the film any good?

I enjoyed it a great deal. Funny at times, sad at times. Murray was fantastic. Best role I've ever seen him in.

 

[Tony Perkis]

Observations from the Golden Globes last night:

• Boyhood is the film to beat, as is Link later for director and Arquette for supporting actress
• Best actor is between Redmanyne (the favorite) and Keaton
• Dragon 2 for animated film? Can't see that success replicated.
• Birdman is losing serious momentum, while Grand Budapest Hotel is surging.
• Imitation Game will be highly nominated, but Oscar wins will be minimal, if any
• Into the Woods, outside of the obligatory Streep nomination and a few technical categories, is dead

 

[Matt_Black]

• Dragon 2 for animated film? Can't see that success replicated.

It was pointed out somewhere else that no sequel has ever won the Best Animated Feature Oscar. It's possible Dragon might buck the trend, but I've a feeling that this will be a two-man race between Lego and BH6.

 

[Tony Perkis]

It was pointed out somewhere else that no sequel has ever won the Best Animated Feature Oscar. It's possible Dragon might buck the trend, but I've a feeling that this will be a two-man race between Lego and BH6.

Toy Story 3 won, but I get agree with your general point

 

[Matt_Black]

Toy Story 3 won, but I get agree with your general point

I THINK they accounted for that with other observations about Pixar and total worldwide gross. Anyway, I will no qualify my earlier statement with no non-Pixar sequel has won.

 

[Tony Perkis]

Finally watched The Theory of Everything. Overrated film, very by-the -numbers, but Redmayne is one of the best two performances of the year. Easily.

 

[Tony Perkis]

I THINK they accounted for that with other observations about Pixar and total worldwide gross. Anyway, I will no qualify my earlier statement with no non-Pixar sequel has won.

Fair enough. What worries me about the Oscars is the voters choosing Big Hero 6 because they don't care about the category (think Brave over Wreck It Ralph). I think LEGO will win out because the industry, right now, loves Christopher Miller and Phil Lord.

 

[MarshMellow]

I was really scratching my head when Dragon 2 won the Golden Globe. Really, people???

 

[Tony Perkis]

I was really scratching my head when Dragon 2 won the Golden Globe. Really, people???

The Hollywood Foreign Press is only something along the lines 35 members with almost 0 overlap at the Oscars regarding voters. I can't see this carrying over.