The Skandies

[rain Bard]

That's what I gave to Abbas Kiarostami before I gave up.

In Kiarostami's case, working backwards is probably NOT the best strategy, certainly not if accessibility is a factor. Better to start with Where Is the Friends Home or even one of the earlier child-centric films like the Wedding Suit.

[Hustler]

In Bruges really grew on me since my viewing last summer. It's got a couple of inconsistencies and lags, but it's a pretty solid feature that i really enjoyed. Ralph Fiennes is great but Brendan Gleeson is the class act. I don't think Colin Farrell will ever be as good again.

I think he was even better in Cassandra´s Dream.

[Sabin]

I've heard that Woman on the Beach is very accessible so I might start there and work backwards. I've heard astonishing things about Turning Gate. I'm in it for at least three. That's what I gave to Abbas Kiarostami before I gave up.

[rain Bard]

Woman on the Beach is a fine place to start, but if it underwhelms I'd give Virgin Stripped Bare By Her Bachelors or Turning Gate a try before giving up on Hong.

I love all three. (and Power of Kangwon Province and to a lesser extent Woman is the Future of Man). Can't wait for Night and Day to screen near me.

[Sabin]

In Bruges really grew on me since my viewing last summer. It's got a couple of inconsistencies and lags, but it's a pretty solid feature that i really enjoyed. Ralph Fiennes is great but Brendan Gleeson is the class act. I don't think Colin Farrell will ever be as good again.


Best Picture
5. The Dark Knight

Best Director
5. Gus Van Sant, Paranoid Park

Best Actor
5. Javier Bardem, Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Best Actress
5. Juliette Binoche, Flight of the Red Balloon

Best Supporting Actor
5. John Malkovich, Burn After Reading

Best Supporting Actress
5. Laura Vasiliu, 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days

Best Screenplay
5. In Bruges

Best Scene
5. The Diagram, Woman on the Beach (me thinks I need to educate myself on Hong)

[Okri]

They really like Robert Downey Jr. A top five for Iron Man? For basically giving the exact same performance he's been giving for the last decade? Bardem for taking a one note role and making it ... one note?

[dws1982]

12. Ralph Fiennes, In Bruges

After seeing this performance last week, I can partially take back what I said about Fiennes in another thread. His work in In Bruges was a great comic performance. Still not crazy about all of his brooding European performances of late, but he was priceless in this.

Glad to see Russell Brand place tenth for Forgetting Sarah Marshall, playing the only character in the film who I would've been happy to watch an entire movie about. I've liked Jason Segel on Freaks and Geeks and Kristen Bell on Veronica Mars, and was looking forward to that movie because of them, but they've both been awful in everything else I've seen them in. Brand, who I had never heard of before, was the only reason to watch it.

[Sabin]

It's not even placing. None of the Best Picture nominees are. Milk is ranked at #23, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button at #29, Frost/Nixon at #35, Slumdog Millionaire at #71, and The Reader with no votes.

They are down to their "nominees"

Best Picture
* The Dark Knight
* 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
* Rachel Getting Married
* Silent Light
* WALL*E

Best Director
* Jonathan Demme, Rachel Getting Married
* Cristian Mungiu, 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
* Carlos Reygadas, Silent Light
* Andrew Stanton, WALL*E
* Gus Van Sant, Paranoid Park

Best Actor
* Javier Bardem, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
* Guillaume Depardieu, The Duchess of Langeais
* Robert Downey, Jr., Iron Man
* Sean Penn, Milk
* Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler

Best Actress
* Juliette Binoche, Flight of the Red Balloon
* Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
* Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky
* Anamaria Marinca, 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
* Michelle Williams, Wendy and Lucy

Best Supporting Actor
* Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
* Eddie Marsan, Happy-Go-Lucky
* John Malkovich, Burn After Reading
* Brad Pitt, Burn After Reading
* Michael Shannon, Revolutionary Road

Best Supporting Actress
* Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
* Rosemarie DeWitt, Rachel Getting Married
* Hafsia Herzi, The Secret of the Grain
* Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler
* Laura Vasiliu, 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days

Best Screenplay
* Burn After Reading
* The Dark Knight
* In Bruges
* My Winnipeg
* Synecdoche, New York


...to recap their choices thus far:

Best Picture
6. Paranoid Park
7. Synecdoche, New York
8. My Winnipeg
9. In the City of Sylvia
10. A Christmas Tale
11. Burn After Reading
12. Happy-Go-Lucky
13. Woman on the Beach
14. The Wrestler
15. The Flight of the Red Balloon
16. Man on Wire
17. Let the Right One In
18. Still Life
19. Vicky Cristina Barcelona
20. Funny Games

Best Director
6. Guy Maddin, My Winnipeg
7. Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight
8. José Garcia Guerin, In the City of Sylvia
9. Arnaud Desplechin, A Christmas Tale
10. Charlie Kaufman, Synecdoche, New York
11. Hou Hsiao Hsien, Flight of the Red Balloon
12. Mike Leigh, Happy-Go-Lucky
13. Joel & Ethan Coen, Burn After Reading
14. Lance Hammer, Ballast
15. Jia Zhang-ke, Still Life
16. Darren Aronofsky, The Wrestler
17. Hong Sang-soo, Woman on the Beach
18. Michael Haneke, Funny Games
19. Jacques Rivette, The Duchess of Langeais
20. Woody Allen, Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Best Actor
6. Philip Seymour Hoffman, Synecdoche, New York
7. Matthieu Amalric, A Christmas Tale
8. Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
9. Chiwetel Ejiofor, Redbelt
10. Josh Brolin, W.
11. Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
12. Fu’ad Ait Attou, The Last Mistress
13. Colin Farrell, In Bruges
14. Karl Markovics, The Counterfeiters
15. Dore Mann, Frownland
16. Richard Jenkins, The Visitor
17. Michael Shannon, Shotgun Stories
18. Michael Sheen, Frost/Nixon
19. Julianne Moore, Savage Grace
20. Francois Begaudeau, The Class

Best Actress
6. Jeanne Balibar, The Duchess of Langeais
7. Kristen Scott Thomas, I’ve Loved You So Long
8. Ana Faris, The House Bunny
9. Asia Argento, Boarding Gate
10. Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road
11. Lina Leandersson, Let the Right One In
12. Meryl Streep, Doubt
13. Naomi Watts, Funny Games
14. Melissa Leo, Frozen River
15. Ludivine Sagnier, A Girl Cut in Two
16. Catherine Deneuve, A Christmas Tale
17. Inés Efron, XXY
18. Miriam Toews, Silent Light
19. Benicio Del Toro, Che
20. Galina Vishnevskaya, Alexandra

Best Supporting Actor
6. Bill Irwin, Rachel Getting Married
7. Vlad Ivanov, 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days
8. Robert Downey, Jr., Tropic Thunder
9. Brendan Gleeson, In Bruges
10. Russell Brand, Forgetting Sarah Marshall
11. Josh Brolin, Milk
12. Ralph Fiennes, In Bruges
13. James Franco, Pineapple Express
14. Aaron Eckhart, The Dark Knight
15. James Franco, Milk
16. Mark Strong, Body of Lies
17. David Strathairn, My Blueberry Nights
18. George Clooney, Burn After Reading
19. J.K. Simmons, Burn After Reading
20. Benoit Magimel, A Girl Cut in Two

Best Supporting Actress
6. Samantha Morton, Synecdoche, New york
7. Hanna Schygulla, The Edge of Heaven
8. Viola Davis, Doubt
9. Olivia Thirlby, Snow Angels
10. Rebecca Hall, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
11. Emmanuelle Devos, A Christmas Tale
12. Tilda Swinton, Burn After Reading
13. Tilda Swinton, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
14t Jane Lynch, Role Models
14t Gwyneth Paltrow, Iron Man
16. Debra Winger, Rachel Getting Married
17. Frances McDormand, Burn After Reading
18. Alexis Zegerman, Happy-Go-Lucky
19. Ann Savage, My Winnipeg
20. Go Hyun-jung, Women on the Beach

Best Screenplay
6. Arnaud Desplechin & Emmanuel Bourdieu, A Christmas Tale
7. Cristian Mingiu, 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days
8. Andrew Stanton & Jim Reardon, WALL*E
9. Jenny Lumet, Rachel Getting Married
10. Woody Allen, Vicky Crisitna Barcelona, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
11. Hong Sang-soo, Woman on the Beach
12. Jacques Rivette, Pascal Bonitzer, and Christine Laurent, The Duchess of Langeais
13. Fatih Akin, The Edge of Heaven
14. Mike Leigh, Happy-Go-Lucky
15. Catherine Breillat, The Last Mistress
16. Robert Siegel, The Wrestler
17. John Ajvide Lindqvist, Let the Right One In
18. John Patrick Shanley, Doubt
19. Carlos Reygadas, Silent Light
20. Abdellatif Kechiche, The Secret of the Grain

Best Scene
6. Rehearsal Dinner ~ Rachel Getting Married
7. The pencil trick ~ The Dark Knight
8. First day at the deli counter ~ The Wrestler
9. Bathing the kids ~ Silent Light
10. Lonely deranged penguin ~ Encounters at the Edge of the World
11. Nurse Joker ~ The Dark Knight
12. Tonight we dine on bellydancing ~ The Secret of the Grain
13. Philippe steps into the abyss ~ Man on Wire
14. “What did we learn, Palmer?” (coda) ~ Burn After Reading
15. Monologue ~ JCVD
16. The Negotiation ~ The Wrestler
17. The Prisoners’ Dilemma ~ The Dark Knight
18. Barbed-wire/staple-gun match ~ The Wrestler
19. Rachel bathes Kym ~ Rachel Getting Married
20. Bank Robbery ~ The Dark Knight

[Sonic Youth]

Don't worry. Slumdog won't win this one.

[Sabin]

I always enjoy these. They began in 1995 with Mike D'Angelo heading the internet survey and they've continued in making eclectic choices and forgoing Oscar-mongering. Usually.

Previous winners:
2007 - There Will Be Blood (r.u. - No Country for Old Men)
2006 - The Departed (r.u. - The Prestige)
2005 - Grizzly Man (r.u. - The New World)
2004 - Dogville (r.u. - Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind)
2003 - Irreversible (r.u. - Kill Bill: Vol. 1)
2002 - 25th Hour (r.u. - Y Tu Mama Tambien)
2001 - In the Mood for Love (r.u. - Mulholland Drive)
2000 - Yi Yi (A One and a Two...) (r.u. - Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon)