Awards Season 2014

[ordinaryperson]

Oscar acceptance speech generator.

[ordinaryperson]

Oscar acceptance speech generator.

Here's mine:

"Wow. Thank you so much. I share this with the amazing cast, Thomas, Jennifer, our wonderful crew in Massachusetts, my girlfriend _, my Mom, and my brother _. Thanks to Jimmy for that awesome script that set the tone for everything. Making movies is like washing cats and this is no exception, but I am so grateful for everyone involved. Isn't this were we came in from?"

[colinr0380]

The supporting actor one is fun too:

"My second cousin twice-removed was a grape harvester. My overly friendly step-father was a coal miner turned ballet dancer. And I’m a screen fabulist, and I am so grateful. Thank you to my team at Quasicom, Ethel, who has been my manager for 42 years; everyone at Carolco, for believing in this project. Quentin, Hugh, Virginia, Lavinia, Derek, and everyone at Icy Barren Waste Features. Thank you to Benedict Cumberbatch, my amazing co-star, you inspire me every aeon. This movie was based on Belinda Carlisle’s life, and I want to honor that by being the best dream-weaver I can. Thank you so much."

[cdnchris]

Wow. Thank you so much. I share this with the amazing cast, Mr. Timberlake, Maggie Smith, our wonderful crew in Stratford, Ontario, my wife Snookums, my third cousin, twice removed, and my daughter and son, but not the cat. Thanks to Dominique for a somewhat good enough script that set the tone for everything. Making movies is like mowing church steeples, and this was no exception, but I am so grateful to everyone involved. Oh, hi Mark!!

[Werewolf by Night]

These are really spot-on. It's such a shame that it's now seen as presumptuous to prepare a polished speech in advance and so now all you get is these strings of inanities. It would be a vast improvement to just say, simply, "thank you" and then run a full-page ad in the next issue of Variety thanking everyone you know.

[Forrest Taft]

In related news, Norwegian newspapers reported yesterday that Morten Tyldum has written an Oscar™ acceptance speech with help from Imitation Game scripter Graham Moore. Seems a bit...impersonal to me, but Tyldum claims "everyone" in Hollywood does this. Would be funnier if he just used this speech generator.

[zedz]

The supporting actor one is fun too:

"My second cousin twice-removed was a grape harvester. My overly friendly step-father was a coal miner turned ballet dancer. And I’m a screen fabulist, and I am so grateful. Thank you to my team at Quasicom, Ethel, who has been my manager for 42 years; everyone at Carolco, for believing in this project. Quentin, Hugh, Virginia, Lavinia, Derek, and everyone at Icy Barren Waste Features. Thank you to Benedict Cumberbatch, my amazing co-star, you inspire me every aeon. This movie was based on Belinda Carlisle’s life, and I want to honor that by being the best dream-weaver I can. Thank you so much."

I have to admit that I had a creepy stepdad in my acceptance speech as well. That guy sure got around.

[D50]

Saw this listing at a couple theaters in town (2 showings a day at each). NYT article Oscar Shorts in Theaters, January 30, 2015.

Looks like there are 3 of them, and Animated Shorts, amctheatres.com/, may be the one playing, with the listed February 13, 2015 release date.

[lacritfan]

Timbuktu and Kristen Stewart win Cesar Awards.

[ordinaryperson]

Jon Paula and his always excellent Best Picture reviews.

[ordinaryperson]

Steven Spielberg is bigger than Jesus.

[ordinaryperson]

"Birdman" wins over "Boyhood" at the Spirit Awards.

[ordinaryperson]

Razzie winners:

Worst Picture- Saving Christmas
Worst Actor- Kirk Cameron (Saving Christmas)
Worst Actress- Cameron Diaz (Sex Tape & The Other Woman)
Razzie Redeemer Award- Ben Affleck
Worst Supporting Actress- Megan Fox (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)
Worst Supporting Actor- Kelsey Grammer (The Expendables 3, etc.)
Worst Director- Michael Bay (Transformers 4)
Worst Screen Combo- Kirk Cameron and His Ego (Saving Christmas)
Worst Screenplay- Saving Christmas
Worst Remake, Rip-Off, or Sequel- Annie

[lacritfan]

Is it just me or is this shaping up to be one of most ho-hum awards years ever?

Well anyone outside Eddie Redmayne, Julianne Moore, J.K. Simmons and Patricia Arquette would be an upset at this point.

Well I'm glad to stand corrected. Looks like Eddie Redmayne would be the upset now and there are a few pundits saying Boyhood could still win Best Picture so this year's Oscars could have some surprises, and at the very end of the night no less.

[hearthesilence]

Eddie Redmayne is still the heavy favorite. If this is in reference to the Spirit awards, he wasn't even eligible/nominated, hence Keaton's win.

Keaton is actually my favorite of the nominees, if not my favorite performance of the year. I'd like to see him win, but I don't think it's going to happen.

I really want to see Boyhood win, it was my favorite, but I have seen no indication it will. It's been beaten in all the awards that are heavy with Academy voters. The Golden Globes mean nothing compared to the guild awards, and BAFTA has a much smaller overlap with the Academy. Mathematically, you could say non-Academy voters in the guilds pushed Birdman ahead, but how those voters vote would have to be proportionally different, and I can't think of a reason why they would be.

The pundits who believe Boyhood has a chance - IndieWire, The Guardian, etc. - are also sources that absolutely love Boyhood and have gushed over it all last year. I don't blame them for looking for reasons why Boyhood will win, but I still think Birdman will edge it out.

Again, after SAG and the PGA began their awards in the '90s, the Oscars have grown more predictable, especially when campaigns started targeting both. If there wasn't a consensus among all of them, I'd be more optimistic about Boyhood.

[lacritfan]

No, I've read some predictions that had access to anonymous Oscar voters and there is apparently now a strong contingent that is voting for Keaton half for the performance and half "life achievement." I do enjoy when the conventions of "this film or performance won X award(s) which has been right 80-90% of the time" fail so I'm hoping for Keaton too.

[FrauBlucher]

Anything, as long as American Sniper doesn't win any biggies. I'm tired of listening to a certain group of people say what a great movie it is and is being intentionally neglected. Lou Lumenick of the NY Post predicted it will shock everyone and win Best Picture. Sigh.

[lacritfan]

Good job, J.K. Simmons

[domino harvey]

And parents everywhere get Simmons-mandated calls immediately after

[domino harvey]

And now it's proved a rare year where the overwhelming popular favorite in Foreign Language category won!

[lacritfan]

Wow! Two helpline/hotline films sweep the fiction/documentary short category! (I mean, that's something...)

[domino harvey]

The Academy is slowly but surely doing their reparations work for Sally Hawkins' Happy Go Lucky snub

[ordinaryperson]

Neil Patrick Harris is a terrible host. Half of his jokes are puns.

[lacritfan]

OK, Idina Menzel and John Travolta presenting together was genius.

[jojo]

Neil Patrick Harris is a terrible host.

He's in good company then.