oscar nominations were announced today, and the big winner was (of course) "Lord of the Rings: the Return of the King" with a whopping 11 nominations. "Master and Commander: the Far Side of the World" was right behind ROTK with 10 nominations. most of the nominations were as expected for me, but there were some interesting surprises.
among the biggest surprises: Keisha Castle-Hughes, the 13 year old star of "Whale Rider," which i posted about a few days ago, was nominated for best actress in a leading role. i am very pleasantly surprised with this recognition of a great performance. the most amazing thing is that this was her first acting role ever. a win would make her the youngest oscar winner since Anna Paquin won at 11 for "The Piano," and i think the youngest lead actress winner ever, but i'm not sure about that. i should look it up sometime. i don't expect Keisha to win, because she's going up against some pretty tough competition, but it took some guts for the academy to recognize her wonderful performance in "Whale Rider." so go rent the movie. you'll thank me for it.
another nomination that surprised me was Jonny Depp's best actor nomination for "Pirates of the Caribbean: the Curse of the Black Pearl." hey, are you beginning to notice a trend with some of these movies that get nominated? they all have really long, two-part titles. anyways, i didn't expect Depp to get nominated, even though he does a really good job with the Jack Sparrow character, because big mindless blockbuster summer action flicks rarely get recognized for their performances. overall i don't think i disagree with the academy here though. Depp always has the amazing ability to give his characters life.
i wish i could say i'm surprised that ROTK didn't get any acting nominations. if Depp could get one for a film like "Pirates," why can't another big budget special effects movie be recognized for its performances as well? maybe a nomination for Andy Serkis is asking too much, but what about Sean Astin? the most amazing thing about the acting in ROTK is that despite being a special effects laden fantasy film, the performances aren't only utterly convincing, but emotionally moving as well. you try having a conversation with a non-existant character while standing in front of a blue screen sometime. i say being able to act in those conditions is even more challenging then in a realistic setting.
a few other pleasant surprises: Djimon Hounsou and Samantha Morton for "In America." you may remember them best from "Amistad" and "Minority Report," respectively. i really need to see that movie. also, Ken Watanabe for "The Last Samurai." i personally thought his performance was miles above Tom Cruise's in that movie, and Cruise wasn't bad at all, and it's nice to see that the academy feels the same way. Watanabe could have carried that film, but hollywood doesn't have the guts to make a japanese actor the central character. they have to have their american hunk to sell tickets. Bill Murray got his first oscar nomination too, but he'll have a tough time going up against perennial nominees Ben Kingley and Sean Penn. i thought Scarlett Johansson would be nominated for her performance in one of the two critically acclaimed films ("Lost in Translation" and "Girl with a Pearl Earring") she was in last year, but she's got a long career ahead of her. she'll get an oscar someday, trust me.
and in the "shoo-in-guarantee-no-doubt-about-it" category: "Finding Nemo" for best animated film. "Brother Bear?" yeah...gimme a break. i haven't seen "The Triplets if Belleville" though, so hey, i may be wrong. but i doubt it.
much thanks to everyone who's praying for my aunt.
i checked, Keisha Castle-Hughes is the youngest best actress nominee in oscar history.
Posted by: naziriteSOG on January 27, 2004 11:56 AMThe Triplets of Belleville looks amazing. I've watched the first 5 minutes on my computer, but I'm holding off to see it in the theatre now. They've been raving about it on National Public Radio, so I wouldn't quite count Nemo as a shoe-in, though I do agree that it's likely.
Posted by: Brian on January 27, 2004 01:37 PMduuude, I hope LOTR ROTK wins some stuff, and not just special effects, which they have hands down. I hope they win best pic, but I doubt it...
hehe
found this... didn't know where else to put it... though the ring geeks would enjoy.
LOTR Dating Manual
By Liz Langley, AlterNet
January 27, 2004
You're smart enough to have noticed by now that a lot of maxims contradict one another. "He who hesitates is lost," conflicts with "Look before you leap." "Good things come to those who wait," doesn't jibe with "A rolling stone gathers no moss." And sure, "Quit while you're ahead," but what about "Winners never quit"?
My least favorite of the contradictory mottos are "Seek and you shall find," and "You will find it when you're not looking for it."
A lot of people say that last one about love is really bad news for single people, because looking becomes second nature after a while, in the same way that job seekers will automatically find their pupils dilating at the sight of the Help Wanted ads.
When you're ISO you try to look cool but you're really like a meerkat, casting your lighthouse eyes on everything that moves. After a while it becomes a reflex.
It doesn't matter if you're looking at an online dating site (and you'll at least look at one), a story on the Richest Bachelors in America (whom you'll never meet), or an encyclopedia. (Who is that? Lord Byron? Dead, huh? Nice lips.)
It's exhausting. And on top of it all, you hear your mother's voice saying, "Fix yourself up before you go out! You never know who you might meet."
The movies are supposed to be an escape from all that, but I discovered that even Middle Earth wasn't far enough to go to get my mind off romance, past and future.
I had made it all the way to "Return of the King," the third installment of the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, when suddenly Aragorn reminded me very much of someone I once went out with. My date was a good actor, too – which was too bad, because he was actually in a whole different profession.
Then I realized that I'd gone out with a guy who reminded me a little of Gollum, too. And one who somewhat resembled the dwarf. And there's definitely a Hobbit or two in my past. This cheered me up, because it made me realize how much I get around. I also realized that while others have picked up on other subtexts in Tolkien's work, like his anti-war themes, I might be the first to interpret the whole enchilada as a dating manual.
Now, I'm not one of those aficionados who knows every intricacy of Tolkien or has memorized every book, grocery list and letter to Santa he ever wrote. I'm just an average moviegoer, but I know a metaphor when I see one, or make one up. LOTR may be disguised as a sexless geek-boy epic, but this trilogy is more riddled with dating tips than an issue of Seventeen magazine:
When you're trying to catch the cute guy's eye is the exact moment the dwarf will pick to approach you;
Eating raw fish is no longer a sign of a sophisticated date. (That said, you have to admit the Atkins plan is working for Gollum.)
if you're the only girl among 100 guys you'll still fall for the only one who has a girlfriend;
When overused, terms of endearment such as "precious" lose their meaning;
All couples fight, but battles shouldn't last so long that one of you has to get up and stretch your legs or use the bathroom;
It doesn't matter if you look like Liv Tyler; your pining and whining will still get on people's nerves;
Don't blame your friends just because they can see right through your creepy little partner;
If you can get along on a road trip, the relationship will probably last;
There will come a point when it seems like the relationship should be over. Don't drag it out. Just end it there.
And finally, the mother of all dating wisdom:
Some people will go to any lengths to get a ring; others, having had one for awhile, will go to any lengths to chuck it into a volcano.
See what I mean? And speaking of the movies, you may find love there, but only if you turn your attention away from the screen and towards the surrounding seats. Like mom said, you never know.
There is no great genius without some touch of madness.
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