PGA Winner

[OscarGuy]

Wow. I thought the fact that it was the imdb inferred it wasn't some critical consensus and was more an explanation of the variety of opinions expressed by different individuals for a film. The Academy can be accused of being populist at times and the point I was trying to make was that if audiences were wildly in favor of the film that it wouldn't be too far a stretch to believe that there are a lot of Academy members who feel the same way. But, obviously you guys know what I'm meaning and saying better than I, so I guess I must believe that imdb is the be-all-end-all of critical consensus. It's great that you guys can help me to know what I'm thinking and all. I like that support structure.

[Big Magilla]

Any organization that ranks The Shawshank Redemption as the number one film of all time can never be taken too seriously.

All the nomianted films were ranked high by IMDb members. The Reader, which is the only one not to place in the top 250, is rated 7.9 just below the 8.0 cut-off of those that made the list.

Unless God forbid a house he is building for Habitat for Humanity or something falls on and gravely injures Brd Pitt before the Oscar ballots are due back, Benjamin Button's early lead is gone for good. Slumdog has captured the imagination and is virtually unbeatable. The most that Milk and The Reader can hope for are best actor and actress wins for their stars. Button's best chances are at a major award are with its supporting actress nominee. Frost/Nixon is unlikely to pick up any awards but at least we get to see Ron Howard's grinning face at the Oscars. Aren't we lucky?



Edited By Big Magilla on 1232916811

[rain Bard]

it is ranked at #88 on the all-time great films on imdb.

Please lets not give this "distinction" more legitimacy than it even claims for itself- nowhere is this list called a list of "all-time great films". It's, according to its own title, a list of top films "as voted by our users".

Nobody should suggest that the collective imdb set has the perspective to know, or motivation to care what a "great film" is- they're just ranking their personal favorites high and others varying degrees of low.

[OscarGuy]

Again, it seems like only around here and with critics does Benjamin Button seem to have a negative reputation...with 41,000+ votes it is ranked at #88 on the all-time great films on imdb. But Slumdog is currently ranked higher (#34) with nearly as many votes. Both are above No Country for Old Men (#95) on the list, though. So, while we all have our dislikes about some of the contenders, it seems like they are at least well liked by a number of people. (other contenders this year: Milk is at #223, The Reader is unranked, Frost/Nixon is at #248, Dark Knight is at #5 and WALL-E is at #38).

So, while I'm tired of hearing about Slumdog, others apparently are not and consider it one of the best films of the year. As with Benjamin Button, WALL-E and Dark Knight.

[HarryGoldfarb]

The one caveat: some recent top-category Oscar upsets -- as '02 and '05 -- came in years where things seemed completely predictable till the moment the envelopes were opened.

The Reader.

The Reader.

The Reader.

Can you picture that? If Harrison Ford appears to hand out the Best Picture award then...

[Eric]

The one caveat: some recent top-category Oscar upsets -- as '02 and '05 -- came in years where things seemed completely predictable till the moment the envelopes were opened.

The Reader.

The Reader.

The Reader.

[Mister Tee]

I think that the frustration from people isn't that Slumdog is winning, although it isn't much loved around here, but that in such a weak year (and that post shows just how unexciting this batch of films are) it is such a landslide. In weak years, where there are no "masterpieces" or "much beloved films" to rally around, I would hope it would be a weird year where everyone has a different favorite they honor. Instead, we are stuck with a boring Oscar season, at least BP wise.

110% in agreement. If we can't be enthused about the winner, at least we deserve a contest. What's disheartening is how the system seems to be geared these days to create predictability.

The one caveat: some recent top-category Oscar upsets -- as '02 and '05 -- came in years where things seemed completely predictable till the moment the envelopes were opened.

[FilmFan720]

I think that the frustration from people isn't that Slumdog is winning, although it isn't much loved around here, but that in such a weak year (and that post shows just how unexciting this batch of films are) it is such a landslide. In weak years, where there are no "masterpieces" or "much beloved films" to rally around, I would hope it would be a weird year where everyone has a different favorite they honor. Instead, we are stuck with a boring Oscar season, at least BP wise.

[Okri]

And if The Dark Knight won, we'd comment about how it's tremendous box office snowed the academy into thinking it was great.

And if The Curious Case of Benjamin Button won, we'd talk about the complete lack of an emotional high achieved by using a Hurricane Katrina/Journal reading as a framing device and putting together two people that have no explored emotional connection (it's just a plot device and nothing more) and declaring that a weak ass premise controls all things and minimize any impact decisions have by making these characters so thinly drawn as to be shadows.

And if Milk won, enough people would probably use Prop 8 to dismiss it.

And if Frost/Nixon won, hell would have frozen over.

So really, no one wins. We should all give up.

[Penelope]

Conversely, what among the other nominees this year will people look back at as a masterful achievement that deserved the prize in place of Slumdog? For my money, the only one that comes close is Milk, and even it is only a moderately great film. Unlike Rocky, which defeated such beloved and even revered films such as All the President's Men, Bound for Glory, Network and Taxi Driver, or Chariots of Fire, which defeated much respected works such as Atlantic City, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Reds, none of this year's nominees come close to being, or will ever likely be considered, masterful films.

[OscarGuy]

Fake emotional high achieved by using a tedious show as a framing device and putting together two people that have no explored emotional connection (it's just a plot device and nothing more) and declaring that fate controls all things and thus human decision plays absolutely no part and all we have to do is have faith in a supreme being/supreme force and all our greatest desires will come true.

I make mention that I liked the movie well enough, but it isn't anything remotely good. I think the comparisons to Rocky and Chariots of Fire may be apt and this could be one of those crowd-pleasing movies that, in five years or more down the line, will be listed as one of those thoroughly forgettable choices that most people will think "that was a Best Picture winner?" It's not a film that people will loathe as a winner like say Braveheart, A Beautiful Mind, Crash, The Greatest Show on Earth or Around the World in 80 Days, but it won't be remembered as one of the classic, great choices like Gone With the Wind, Casablanca, Lawrence of Arabia, The Godfather, etc.

And with PGA in its corner, the only thing it needs is a DGA award to become a lock, though I certainly hope for a different outcome...even if it's not Curious Case, I'd rather have Milk or Frost/Nixon win at this point, though the latter wouldn't be a classic great choice or disastrous one either.

[Jim20]

From Awards Daily:

Slumdog Millionaire wins the Producers Guild Award

Other winners:
Wall-E, animated
Man on Wire - doc
John Adams - miniseries
30 Rock - comedy
Mad Men - drama, TV

Confirmed by David Carr, Carpetbagger, who is attending. Thanks to Waltizzle for the tip off.


Maybe I missed something when I saw it in November, but cannot understand the love of this film.