I still haven't seen it, but I guess that, with no real Oscar-type movie to choose from, the committee has gone in the opposite direction, picking something completely different, which, if only because it "stands out", sometimes can get more than one would expect.Precious Doll wrote:That is certainly a surprise selection. Good as the film is I can't see it getting in ahead of a lot more 'Academy friendly' fare in in the final five but it should have a reasonable shot at the shortlist.
Now, we all know that it's between Amour and The Intouchables, but I hope for the Taviani brothers - very good and very serious directors, whose The Night of the Shooting Stars was unfairly denied a nomination thirty years ago - will at least get to the shortlist. They certainly deserve it, at least for their career.
It's interesting, by the way, that you have seen Reality already: in Italy it will only open tomorrow, which is the last possible weekend for a movie to be selected as a Foreign Film candidate - which shows, of course, how they felt that a nomination was very, very possible.
I wonder if it happens in other countries too - here in Italy the selection of our Foreign Film submission is closely followed by the press, as if it's the election of the next Pope, with suspicions of Mafia-like conspiracies, mutual accusations, loud complains, etc. And when the movie is finally chosen, it's front page news (breaking news actually). But maybe it's just Italy.