DGA Nominees

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Re: DGA Nominees

Post by ITALIANO »

Okri wrote:
ITALIANO wrote:
If you don't respect and like it more than The Help, I will personally refund the money you spend seeing Selma.

:)
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Re: DGA Nominees

Post by Okri »

ITALIANO wrote:I don't know. Selma may be a masterpiece - I haven't seen it. But as those who are crying over its (possible) fate at the Oscars are the same who considered The Help like a profound movie on civil rights, please understand me if I am a bit skeptical...
If you don't respect and like it more than The Help, I will personally refund the money you spend seeing Selma.

To be honest, I'm rather enjoying how confused I am about the director's race. I'm delighted that Linklater and Anderson are two of the top three candidates. Given how locked in some races appear to be (I love that flipp et al are trying to make Jones disappear from best actress through sheer force of will), it's nice to get a race that really feels like it can go in many directions. I have to admit, I was hoping for Marsh to show up here just to hear the anger.
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Re: DGA Nominees

Post by rolotomasi99 »

Sabin wrote:Who's not getting nominated?

Morten Tyldum? There are two organizations that nominated Morten Tyldum for Best Director. The Director's Guild of America and the St. Louis Film Critics Association. That's it. Interesting thing I just learned. Since the expansion of the Best Picture lineup, there is only one movie that can come close to claiming that. David Fincher, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. To be fair, Fincher was also nominated by the Central Ohio Film Critic's Association and an OFTA. For all the talk of whether or not Selma is truly liked by the Academy, we certainly know The Imitation Game is but how much?

As I look at these nominees, it's really possible the one that doesn't fit is Morten Tyldum.
If THE IMITATION GAME was released by any other studio, I would agree with you; but this is Harvey fucking Weinstein, the Dark Prince of Oscar campaigning. Sure, every once in awhile he has a less than stellar year (like 2013), but he is working with...not a great film, but definitely a perfect film for him. This is the type of movie he excels are selling. I know box-office does not guarantee anything, but THE IMITATION GAME has been doing fantastic business. It is going beyond just being an art house hit, like THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL, to being a mainstream hit. I really think some are underestimating its appeal to the older crowd. It does have its weaknesses. It is not an outright tear-jearker like THE KING'S SPEECH (which is odd since it is about a war hero being wrongly persecuted for who he is which lead to his suicide vs. just being a king with a stutter), and it is not a fun crowd-pleaser like THE ARTIST. However, the audience I saw it with in a red state multiplex sure loved it.

After all, the movies has been nominated in all the expected Guilds (Actors, Writers, Directors, Editing, Set, Costume) and even showed up in one none of us saw coming (Cinematography). I agree THE IMITATION GAME's chances are not as strong as some of the other films, but I would not write it off.
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Re: DGA Nominees

Post by Big Magilla »

Rolo, the die-hard liberals I'm talking about are not members of the Academy, but if Academy members of the same vintage (people in their 70s, 80s) think the same way, it might be part of the reason. The Clint love I can't explain.
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Re: DGA Nominees

Post by Sabin »

Who's not getting nominated?

Wes Anderson? There's an iota of a chance he'll miss out. More and more it's looking like The Grand Budapest Hotel might end up being the year's nomination leader but if there's one category where his sensibilities might rub some the wrong way, it's a field voted for by a large mass of working director.

Morten Tyldum? There are two organizations that nominated Morten Tyldum for Best Director. The Director's Guild of America and the St. Louis Film Critics Association. That's it. Interesting thing I just learned. Since the expansion of the Best Picture lineup, there is only one movie that can come close to claiming that. David Fincher, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. To be fair, Fincher was also nominated by the Central Ohio Film Critic's Association and an OFTA. For all the talk of whether or not Selma is truly liked by the Academy, we certainly know The Imitation Game is but how much?

Clint Eastwood? I just posted below about American Sniper: The Movie's relationship with its source material. I personally find it amazing that this 84 year old man could make a movie like this. Like, honestly. It doesn't matter that they shot a lot of it in California. He's 84. If nominated, he will be the oldest Oscar nominated director ever beating John Huston by five years. Look at a picture of John Huston at 79 and then look at a picture of Clint Eastwood at 84. Clint Eastwood is like the old racist grandfather of the Oscars. He says some things we're not in love with, but he looks great and he sure gets around.

As I look at these nominees, it's really possible the one that doesn't fit is Morten Tyldum.
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Re: DGA Nominees

Post by Sabin »

rolotomasi99 wrote
If these "die-hard liberals" have a problem with DuVernay not giving LBJ the respect he deserves then I hope they are outraged at Eastwood for lionizing a cold blooded, xenophobic, jingoistic murderer like Chris Kyle. I know Eastwood is a Republican (who can forget the empty chair routine at the Republican convention), but I expected more of him as an artist. How can someone who made such a beautiful film about understanding the other side in a war (LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA) turn around and make something that has such contempt for ever single person in a country under siege from an invasion of U.S. military forces?
To be fair to Clint Eastwood (well, maybe "fair" is the wrong word), he's not really making a movie about Chris Kyle. The problem with American Sniper is that the film doesn't remotely delve into the one thing that makes him unique: he is the most lethal sniper in our history. If anything, the film conflates his lethality with his noble desire to serve his country. On the other hand because it must conform to Chris Kyle's life, it's a less interesting picture. One wonders why they made a movie about him at all and didn't just write something original? The obvious answer is there's a built in market if it's based on a successful book.
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Re: DGA Nominees

Post by OscarGuy »

Selma just went wide this past weekend where it pulled in an impressive $9 million. It currently has a 7.7 on IMDb (not the best arbiter of public taste), but it did get an A+ from Cinema Score, which means it should have long legs at the box office.

That's beside the point. Paramount has botched this campaign since it began. You can complain about DuVernay alienating this person or that person, but ultimately it's the studio's responsibility to flog its contenders and get them nominated. Harvey made mistakes for the last two years, but he seems to be playing the game like he used to. Which is why I think Tyldum is nominated here and will carry over to Oscar. Eastwood, could get in as well, but the DGA didn't pick Benh Zeitlin either and he still managed an Oscar nomination, which could mean Damien Chazelle has a good opportunity (he was nominated for BAFTA for Pete's sake...and he isn't even a Brit).
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Re: DGA Nominees

Post by rolotomasi99 »

Big Magilla wrote: You probably won't hear anyone in Hollywood say this, but I know some die-hard liberals who were part of the civil rights movement who take offense at DuVarnay and company continuously comparing what went down in Selma to Ferguson and on Staten Island.
If these "die-hard liberals" have a problem with DuVernay not giving LBJ the respect he deserves then I hope they are outraged at Eastwood for lionizing a cold blooded, xenophobic, jingoistic murderer like Chris Kyle. I know Eastwood is a Republican (who can forget the empty chair routine at the Republican convention), but I expected more of him as an artist. How can someone who made such a beautiful film about understanding the other side in a war (LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA) turn around and make something that has such contempt for ever single person in a country under siege from an invasion of U.S. military forces?

I knew the attacks on Kathryn Bigelow over ZERO DARK THIRTY were sexist. DJANGO UNCHAINED advocated and celebrated torture and murder, but no one criticized Tarantino and the Academy gave him an Oscar for his disgusting screenplay. ARGO lied about the facts it was depicting, but it won Best Picture. Yet Bigelow was supposed to be ashamed of her movie? Bullshit. Now the same assholes are doing the exact same thing to DuVernay.

If people think AMERICAN SNIPER is a better film than SELMA than I can only pity their poor taste; but if they are saying (if I am understanding you Big Magilla) they refuse to vote for SELMA simply because they disagree with the depiction of LBJ, then these assholes just need to leave the Academy. They have no business voting on the quality of cinema every year if they are selecting or excluding films for bullshit reasons.
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Re: DGA Nominees

Post by ITALIANO »

I don't know. Selma may be a masterpiece - I haven't seen it. But as those who are crying over its (possible) fate at the Oscars are the same who considered The Help like a profound movie on civil rights, please understand me if I am a bit skeptical...
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Re: DGA Nominees

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The Original BJ wrote: I haven't been over to Awards Daily yet today, but with the omissions of both DuVernay and Fincher, is Sasha Stone having a total meltdown?
Yes she is...in full "why do I care about this?" mode, and calling racism for not nominating the female or the female-centric film.

Conspiracy is the wrong word. I haven't seen Selma, so I can't comment on it, but I'm just tired of hearing everyone wax on as if each nomination missed was the equivalent of losing a limb. It has also been in theatres long enough, and prominent enough in the mainstream conversation (I have had several students see the film already, here in suburban Chicago), that you have to imagine at some point the screeners are not as much a problem as people just not jiving with the film. Are you telling me that no one has ever voted for something they haven't seen yet? Maybe the word on the street isn't as great as we think.

That said, I'm looking forward to getting my screener this weekend and finally checking it out.
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Re: DGA Nominees

Post by ITALIANO »

Seems that I will have to see American Sniper - which honestly I hoped I could avoid...
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Re: DGA Nominees

Post by The Original BJ »

It's not a conspiracy; it is a FACT that the screeners for Selma were not sent to any of the Guilds, only to Academy members. (Oddly, though, Independent Spirit voters WILL be getting them.) Obviously, the question Mister Tee poses is very valid -- did enough voters see it anyway, and just not respond to it, or did they just not see it? (As a fan of the movie, I do have to express reservation over the instant cries of racism/sexism over DuVernay's omission here -- it's just become so clear lately that screeners are such an integral part of this process, and if you don't make your released-on-Christmas movie as easy as possible for voters to see, you're just torpedoing yourself.)

Anyway, I still think DuVernay gets in with Oscar, with Eastwood and Tyldum both vulnerable. (Though American Sniper seems like it would have to be considered a pretty good bet in Best Picture -- that movie's fortunes sure have risen since the Globe shut-out.) The strength of The Imitation Game seems like it could very easily carry Tyldum along anyway; at the same time, the more square DGA candidates sometimes get replaced by cooler names come Oscar time.

Who would have thought when The Grand Budapest Hotel opened that Wes Anderson would become one of the most solid candidates in this race?

I haven't been over to Awards Daily yet today, but with the omissions of both DuVernay and Fincher, is Sasha Stone having a total meltdown?
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Re: DGA Nominees

Post by Greg »

My feeling with Selma and the screeners is that I have absolutely no idea how well it will do with Oscar nominations and will just wait until Thursday morning.
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Re: DGA Nominees

Post by Big Magilla »

I would have voted for DuVarnay over Eastwood, but although I think her film is 90% spot-on, I did find the depiction of LBJ a little unfair.

The anti-LBJ bias was not helped by DuVarnay's early response that it's time black men and women were given credit for the things they did that white men have taken credit for. That may be true, but LBJ wasn't one of those guys.

You probably won't hear anyone in Hollywood say this, but I know some die-hard liberals who were part of the civil rights movement who take offense at DuVarnay and company continuously comparing what went down in Selma to Ferguson and on Staten Island. While they are saddened by both police incidents, they think the cop in Ferguson had no other choice but to shoot in self-defense and they believe the cops that the guy in Staten Island had used the "I can't breathe" complaint before to spend the night in a hospital instead of a jail cell. They don't think it's a fair comparison to the violence in the South in the 1960s or even the Travon Martin incident which they believe was murder. They think a stronger argument would have been one that is being said, but not as loudly, that after all the struggle voting rights are now being overturned in Republic controlled legislatures all over the country.
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Re: DGA Nominees

Post by mlrg »

I’ve read somewhere that the only DGA nominees that went on to be nominated for best director at the Oscars from a film that received zero golden globe nominations were Field of Dreams, The Thin Red Line and Black Hawk Down, all of which deal with a particular part of American history.

So, American Sniper could very well be the next in line.
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