The Second Annual Fangirl Award Winners!

The results are in! Our Fangirl Academy, now 87 members strong, both nominated, then voted for their favorites from 2010. You can find all of the nominees, honorable mentions and winners below.

If you like a little suspense with your awards, watch the videos below! Note: We only have 9 categories to offer you in "suspense" form. A few videos were having trouble uploading, but should be up for your viewing pleasure later today.

After the videos, you'll find all the winners typed out, once again, following Nathaniel R's method of highlighting first place in gold, 2nd in silver and in some cases, 3rd place in bronze. Thanks to the fangirls who participated in voting and in presenting! I hope next year we have an even bigger academy and even more fangirls presenting :). Sign up to be a voting member for next year's awards, by clicking here.

Best Picture

Black Swan

Blue Valentine

Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows Part One

Inception

The Kid's Are All Right

The King's Speech

Scott Pilgrim V. The World

The Social Network

Toy Story 3

True Grit

Honorable Mentions: The Fighter, Shutter Island, Easy A

Best Actor

Colin Firth - The King's Speech

Leonardo DiCaprio - Inception/Shutter Island

Jeff Bridges - True Grit

Jesse Eisenberg - The Social Network

Ryan Gosling - Blue Valentine

Honorable Mentions: James Franco - 127 Hours

Best Actress

- Show quoted text -


Julianne Moore - The Kids Are All Right

Natalie Portman - Black Swan

Haliee Steinfeld - True Grit

Jennifer Lawrence - Winter's Bone

Michelle Williams - Blue Valentine

Annette Bening - The Kids Are All Right*

Honorable Mentions: Emma Stone - Easy A

Best Supporting Actor

Geoffrey Rush - The King's Speech

Joseph Gordon Levitt - Inception

Christian Bale - The Fighter

Andrew Garfield - The Social Network

Mark Ruffalo - The Kids Are All Right/Shutter Island

Honorable Mentions: Jeremy Renner - The Town, Matt Damon - True Grit, Keiran Culkin - Scott Pilgrim

Best Supporting Actress

Helena Bohnam Carter - The King's Speech

Melissa Leo - The Fighter

Amy Adams - The Fighter

Barbara Hershey - Black Swan

Mila Kunis - Black Swan

Honorable Mentions: Marion Cotillard - Inception, Olivia Williams - The Ghost Writer

Best Director

Christopher Nolan - Inception

Darren Aronofsky - Black Swan

David Fincher - The Social Network

Edgar Wright - Scott Pilgrim V. The World

The Coen Brothers - True Grit

Honorable Mentions: David Yates - Harry Potter GHP1, Danny Boyle - 127 Hours, Debra Granik - Winter's Bone

Best Adapted Screenplay

Danny Boyle & Simon Beaufoy -127 Hours

Aaron Sorkin - The Social Network

Joel & Ethan Coen - True Grit

Edgar Wright & Michael Bacall - Scott Pilgrim v. The World

Michael Arndt - Toy Story 3

Honorable Mentions: Harry Potter DHP1, Winter's Bone, The Town

Best Original Screenplay

Mark Heyman, Andres Heinz & John McLaughlin - Black Swan

Christopher Nolan - Inception

Lisa Cholodenko & Stuart Blumberg - The Kids Are All Right

Scott Silver, Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson - The Fighter

David Seidler - The King's Speech

Honorable Mentions: Blue Valentine, Please Give

Best Score

Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross - The Social Network

Daft Punk - Tron: Legacy

Hans Zimmer - Inception

Alexandre Desplat - Harry Potter: DHP1

Clint Mansell - Black Swan

Honorable Mentions: Danny Elfman - Alice in Wonderland, A.R. Rahman - 127 hours

World I Most Want To Visit

The Wizarding World - Harry Potter: DHP1

The Grid - Tron Legacy

Underland - Alice in Wonderland

The Dreamscape - Inception

Stylized Toronto - Scott Pilgrim V. The World

Honorable Mentions: Berk (How to Train Your Dragon), Narnia (Dawn Treader)

Best On Screen Animal

Pascal - Tangled

Maximus - Tangled

Toothless - How To Train Your Dragon

Little Blackie - True Grit

Hedwig - Harry Potter

Honorable Mentions: Cheshire Cat, Secretariat, Reepicheep

Best Chemistry - Romantic - Film

Amy Adams & Mark Wahlberg - The Fighter

Drew Barrymore & Justin Long - Going The Distance

Carey Mulligan & Andrew Garfield - Never Let Me Go

Rupert Grint & Emma Watson - Harry Potter DHP1

Natalie Portman & Mila Kunis - Black Swan

Anne Hathaway & Jake Gyllenhaal - Love & Other Drugs

Michelle Williams & Ryan Gosling - Blue Valentine

Annette Bening & Julianne Moore - The Kids Are All Right

Mark Ruffalo & Julianne Moore - The Kids Are All Right

Michael Cera & Mary Elizabeth Weinsted - Scott Pilgrim V. The World

Honorable Mention: Ben Affleck & Rebecca Hall - The Town, Gwenyth Paltrow & Robert Downey Jr - Iron Man 2, Steve Carrell & Tina Fey - Date Night

Best Chemistry (or is it?) (Mostly, yes) - Platonic - Film - TIE for Bronze

Colin Firth & Geoffrey Rush - The King's Speech

Daniel Radcliffe & Emma Watson - Harry Potter DHP1

Tom Hardy & Joseph Gordon Levitt - Inception

Michael Cera & Keiran Culkin - Scott Pilgrim V The World

Hailee Steinfeld, Jeff Bridges & Matt Damon - True Grit

Andrew Garfield & Jesse Eisenberg - The Social Network

Will Farrell & Mark Wahlberg - The Other Guys

The Mad Hatter & Alice - Alice in Wonderland

Nicholas Cage & Chloe Moretz - Kick Ass

Emma Stone, Stanley Tucci & Patricia Clarkson - Easy A

Voiceover Performance

Steve Carrell as Gru - Despicable Me

Tom Hanks as Woody - Toy Story 3

Zachary Levi as Flynn Rider - Tangled

Mandy Moore as Rapunzel - Tangled

Jay Baruchnel as Hiccup - How To Train Your Dragon

Honorable Mentions: Tim Allen - Toy Story 3, Kristin Schaal - Toy Story 3, Craig Ferguson - How To Train Your Dragon

Epic Fail Movie - Genre

Clash of the Titans

Jonah Hex

The Last Airbender

Twilight: Eclipse

Nightmare on Elm Street

Epic Fail Movie - Non-Genre

Sex and the City 2

The Bounty Hunter

Grown Ups

Yogi Bear

How Do You Know?

Best Characterization of an Established Figure

King George VI - The King's Speech

Scott Pilgrim - Scott Pilgrim V. The World

The Mad Hatter - Alice in Wonderland

Tony Stark - Iron Man 2

Mark Zuckerberg - The Social Network

Honorable Mentions: Sherlock & Watson - BBC's Sherlock, Rapunzel - Tangled, Al Capone - Boardwalk Empire, Dicky Euckland - The Fighter

Best Fight/Battle Sequence

Scott/Ramona/Knives/Gideon (Final Battle) - Scott Pilgrim

Arthur's No Gravity Hallway Fight - Inception

Hit Girl Infiltrates Mob Building (Final Battle) - Kick Ass

Scott Pilgrim v. Exil Ex #1 - Scott Pilgrim v. The World

Scott Pilgrim v. Exil Ex #3 (Vegan) - Scott Pilgrim v. The World

Black Widow Hallway Takedown - Iron Man 2*

Honorable Mentions: Scott Pilgrim v. Exil Ex #4, Final Fight - The Fighter, Final Fight - Red, Rooster & Mattie v. Ned - True Grit, Snow Fortress Attack - Inception, Light Cycle Race - Tron: Legacy

Guiltiest Pleasure - Film

Burlesque

Twilight: Eclipse

Tron: Legacy

Salt

Machete

Splice*

Honorable Mentions: The Losers, Step Up 3D, When In Rome, Red, Morning Glory

Best Animated Film

Despicable Me

How To Train Your Dragon

Megamind

Tangled

Toy Story 3

The Illusionist*

Best TV Show - Drama

Mad Men

Fringe

Dr. Who

Lost

The Walking Dead

Honorable Mentions: Boardwalk Empire, Caprica

Best TV Show - Comedy

Glee

Modern Family

30 Rock

Community

The Big Bang Theory

Honorable Mentions: How I Met Your Mother, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Best Actor - Drama TV

Jon Hamm - Mad Men

Steve Bushemi - Boardwalk Empire

Andrew Lincoln - The Walking Dead

John Noble - Fringe

Bryan Cranston - Breaking Bad

Honorable Mentions: Hugh Laurie - House, Michael C. Hall, Dexter, Matthew Fox - Lost, John Slattery - Mad Men, Terry O'Quinn - Lost

Best Actor - Comedy TV

Don Glover - Community

Chris Colfer - Glee

Jim Parsons - The Big Bang Theory

Ty Burrell - Modern Family

Joel McHale - Community

Honorable Mentions: Alec Baldwin - 30 Rock, Steve Carrell - The Office, Eric Stonestreet - Modern Family, NPH - How I Met Your Mother

Best Actress - Drama TV

Christina Hendricks - Mad Men

Elisabeth Moss - Mad Men

Katey Sagal - Sons of Anarchy

Anna Torv - Fringe

Kelly McDonald - Boardwalk Empire

Honorable Mentions: Juliana Margulies - The Good Wife, Connie Britton - Friday Night Lights, Polly Walker - Caprica

Best Actress - Comedy TV

Alison Brie - Community

Sofia Vergara - Modern Family

Julie Bowen - Modern Family

Jane Lynch - Glee

Tina Fey - 30 Rock

Honorable Mentions: Amy Poehler - Parks & Rec, Heather Morris - Glee, Alyson Hannigan, HIMYM, Kaley Cuoco - The Big Bang Theory

Best Chemistry - Romantic TV - TIE for Bronze

Eric/Sookie - True Blood

Chuck/Blair - Gossip Girl

Chuck/Sarah - Chuck

Marshall/Lily - How I Met Your Mother

Pam/Jim - The Office

Beckett/Castle - Castle

Boones/Booth - Bones

Roger/Joan - Mad Men

Olivia/Peter - Fringe

Dexter/Lumen - Dexter

Best Chemistry - Platonic TV

Abed/Troy - Community

Jack Donaghy/Liz Lemon - 30 Rock

Neal/Peter - White Collar

Don Draper/Peggy Olsen - Mad Men

Amy/The Doctor - Dr. Who

Peter/Walter - Fringe

Al Capone/Jimmy Dormety - Boardwalk Empire

Casey/Morgan - Chuck

Pam/Eric - True Blood

"The Gang" - It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Guiltiest Pleasure - TV

Glee

Gossip Girl

Pretty Little Liars

Vampire Diaries

True Blood

Actor I Most Want To Marry 2010

Joseph Gordon Levitt

Tom Hardy

Andrew Garfield

Ryan Gosling

Jon Hamm

Nathan Fillion

Ryan Reynolds

Robert Downey Jr.

Mark Ruffalo

Matt Damon

Honorable Mentions: James Franco, Leonardo DiCaprio, Rupert Grint, Jesse Eisenberg

Woman I Most Want To Marry 2010

Emma Stone

Christina Hendricks

Natalie Portman

Mila Kunis

Michelle Williams

Olivia Wilde

Carey Mulligan

Julianne Moore

Scarlett Johansson

Keira Knightly

Most Overrated

Glee

Twilight: Eclipse

Toy Story 3

Lost

Anne Hathaway

Honorable Mentions: Olivia Munn, The Black Eyed Peas

Most Underrated - TIE for Silver

Caprica

Fringe

Friday Night Lights

Shutter Island

Archer

Supernatural*

Honorable Mentions: Flipped, Raising Hope, Going The Distance, The Town

Best Graphic Novel

Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour

Xed Out

Batwoman: Elegy

Richard Stark's Parker: The Outfit

The Shepherd's Tale

Honorable Mentions: Return of the Dapper Men

Best Comic Series

Buffy Season 8

The Unwritten

The Walking Dead

American Vampire

Batman & Robin

Honorable Mentions: Chew, Daytripper, Uncanny X-Men, Invincible Iron Man

Best Video Game

Halo: Reach

Red Dead Redemption

Call of Duty: Black Ops

Mass Effect 2

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood

Honorable Mentions: Fable 3

Best Villain - TIE for Bronze

Sue Sylvester - Glee

Voldemort - Harry Potter DHP1

Gideon Graves - Scott Pilgrim v The World

Clu - Tron

Ivan Vanko - Iron Man 2

The Man In Black - Lost

Lotso - Toy Story 3

Bellatrix LeStrange - Harry Potter DHP1

Subconscious Mal - Inception

Russel Edgington - True Blood

Honorable Mentions: Cheney - True Grit, The Rock - 127 Hours, Cooper - Red, Van Alden - Boardwalk Empire

Best Musician/Band

Arcade Fire

Mumford & Sons

Daft Punk

Vampire Weekend

Girl Talk

Honorable Mentions: Katy Perry, Eminem, Amanda Palmer, Broken Bells, She & Him

Best Book

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Just Kids by Patti Smith

The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest by Steig Larsson

Freedom by Jonathan Franzen

A Visit From The Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan

Extra Lives by Tom Bissell*

Honorable Mentions: Full Dark, No Stars by Stephen King, Room by Emma Donohuge

Most Romantic Line EVAR 2010 - TIE For Bronze

"You were my new dream." "And you were mine" - Tangled

"You were the only thing that got me through. If it wasn't for you I would never have made it back. You saved my life" - Fringe

"Kiss me, James" "You got it, Blondie" - Lost

"I'm in lesbians with you" - Scott Pilgrim v. The World

"The deluminator. It doesn't just turn off lights. I don't know how it work but Christmas morning, I was sleeping in this little pub, keeping away from some Snatchers, and I heard it. A voice. Your voice, Hermione. You said my name. Just my name. Like a whisper. So I took it, clicked it and this tiny ball of light appeared. And I knew. It flew towards me, the ball of light, right through my chest and straight through me. Right here. And I knew it was going to take me where I needed to go." - Harry Potter: DHP1

"You're waiting for a train. A train that will take you far away. You know where you hope this train will take you, but you can't be sure. But, it doesn't matter. Because we'll be together." - Inception

"In my experience, the prettier a girl is, the more nuts she is... which makes you insane. You're probably nutty coo-coo crazy." - Blue Valentine

"If I meet the true death without at least kissing you, Sookie Stackhouse, that will be my biggest regret." - True Blood

"You're my home, Chuck. You always have been." - Chuck

"When I'm around you, I kind of feel like I'm on drugs. Not that I do drugs. Unless you do drugs, in which case I do them all the time. All of them." - Scott Pilgrim v. The World

Best Fan Outreach

 Scott Pilgrim v. Comic-Con

Networks/Studios Using Twitter In Q&As (Syfy Fridays, Community DVD, etc)

Firefly References on Castle

ElecTRONica at Disneyland

Tron at Comic-Con (Flynn's Arcade/End of the Line Club/Panel)

Marvel at Comic-Con (Avengers Assemble! Panel, Dealer's Room Booth)

Walking Dead Campaign - Comic-Con, NYCC, Win a Walk on role, etc.

Mad Men Yourself Twitter Icons

@ThatKevinSmith's Twitter Account

Machete Taco Truck

See full post

Interview with an Academy Member - 2011

Every year, numerous publications, including the LA Times & Entertainment Weekly, reveal how anonymous Academy members voted, in the hopes of shedding some light on the way this years Oscars go down. Last year we were lucky enough to chat with a member who most often votes off the beaten path and he agreed to talk to us again this year, this time going even more in depth.

How do you think 2010 fared in general?


Overall, I actually think it's been a very impressive year. It may not have been very deep in terms of quantity of good films, but the top 10-12 were pretty exceptional. As a matter of fact this is the first time since I've been in the academy in which all the films I nominated actually made it on to the final ballot. I have heard some murmuring about this year's films lacking in some way and just last week on Show Business!, Peter Guber complained it was not a particularly great year because he didn't see any "Godfathers" out there. Truth of the matter is that I don't see any "Godfathers" in many of the recent Best Pic winners, so I'm really not quite sure what he was talking about. It certainly wasn't The Departed or No Country for Old Men. In terms of cinematic scope, I'd have to look back to Return of the King, and in terms of perfection, I think you'd have to go all the way back to Shakespeare in Love, but still neither of those touch The Godfather. So, I guess what I'm saying is sure, we'd all like to see more "Godfathers" being made, but in the mean time, this year's crop is a pretty damn good one.

What is your philosophy when it comes to filling out your ballot?


Well by the time I get the ballot I have tried very consciously to have already seen all of the major contenders and beyond, and then if I've seen all five nominees in a given category, I'll fill out the ballot IMMEDIATELY. This way it reflects my true gut feelings about the work itself. It is after all an Academy of motion picture arts and sciences, it's not about commercial success or "pimping" yourself to win (as one actress has infamously described her campaign). I can understand a studio campaigning for a film just to be sure that it's seen by as many members as possible, but it's hard for me to accept that one actor wants to have an Oscar more than any of the other nominees. So taking out an ad that essentially says "pick me because I want it more" seems counter intuitive to awarding the Oscar based on the performance alone. One of the major benefits of filling it out as soon as possible is to avoid being influenced in any way by all of the ensuing typical Oscar campaigns.

Was Supporting Actress a category you filled out before all the controversy, or did the ad end up affecting your choice?


I had seen all five nominees and in all honestly it was a no brainer for me to pick Hailee Steinfeld, who basically stole the entire picture and on whose shoulders the story rested. I thought Melissa Leo's performance in The Fighter was terrific, I could also name half a dozen other actresses who could have hit it out of the park as well. However it took looking at something like 14,000 girls to find Hailee Steinfeld and she was uniquely spot on. All of this being said however, if Julianne Moore had been nominated in this category, I very probably would have voted for her because she was the heart and soul of The Kids Are All Right and although that film is as close to an ensemble piece as the Best Picture nominees go, she truly supported every other performance in the movie. Her performance also took me by surprise in that it's the warmest, earthiest, most sensual, most vulnerable, most lovable that I've ever seen her in a film. She made the pivotal scenes with Mark Ruffalo believable and organic, when they so easily could have been cliched or come across as a stereotypical male fantasy.

Clearly Moore was a snub you weren't happy with, was there anything else you disappointed to see not receive a nomination?

First I have to reiterate that we Academy Members never get together and decide to snub someone. And for all I know, Julianne Moore pulled herself out of this category because her not getting nominated is incomprehensible to me. The only other film I wish had been nominated was Tangled for Best Animated Film as it came closest to giving me as an animation lover everything I enjoy about classic animated films. I didn't think the animation itself was as beautiful as it could have been, but the voice performances, the screenplay, the humor and the music were wonderful, as well as the twist of changing Rapunzel's rescuer from a prince to a thief, which worked extremely well. Everything about it seemed genuine, especially the lead performances and so your emotional responses to the story were more authentic than they were to Toy Story 3, which to me seemed to be working overtime to manipulate your emotions. The Illusionist was beautifully animated, but I can't say the story was all that engaging and while I really enjoyed the story, music and flight sequences of How To Train Your Dragon, the character design and particularly the lead voice acting and the dragons themselves just weren't very appealing. If Toy Story 3 had recused itself, as I think any animated film nominated for Best Picture should, that third slot would have most likely gone to Tangled. And just to clarify, I'd feel the same way about a Best Foreign Language film. If it should be nominated for Best Picture, it should not also be nominated for Best Foreign. I don't think there should be a built-in consolation prize.

Which were your top 5 and in which order were they nominated?


1. The Social Network

2. True Grit

3. Black Swan

4. Inception

5. The Kids Are All Right

So The King's Speech, the front runner, didn't even make your top five?


When I saw the movie, my first reaction was Colin Firth just gave the best performance of his career, deeply nuanced from the inside out... and is going to win an Oscar, but I honestly did not think I just saw one of the best movies of the year. It's that simple. I don't mean to diminish it in any way whatsoever by saying it would have worked as well on television, because I think some of the best television ever made is being produced now, but ultimately, it's was just not as outright cinematic as the films I did nominate.

What was your pick for Best Director?


I hope it's Fincher's year. There's not much else to say other than The Social Network was brilliantly directed. I've seen it 3 times now and it impressed me more with every viewing.

What was your pick for Best Actress?


I thought all 5 leading performances were absolutely wonderful this year, but I put the check next to Natalie Portman as soon as I opened my ballot. Jennifer Lawrence and Michelle Williams gave beautiful, subtle performances and I loved Annette Bening, but simply did not see that role as either the lead character or her best work. Natalie Portman's immersion in that character is what made Black Swan as stunning as it is and she was breathtaking in it.

What was your pick for Best Original Screenplay?


The King's Speech kind of carved its story out of historical tidbits and existing works whereas the Kids Are All Right was a wholly original, authentic, genuine portrayal of truly complex relationships thats is also very relevant to what's going on in our society today. It reflected the way that real people really speak and interact and it actually felt original, like something you hadn't seen before, which I don't think was accomplished by The King's Speech's screenplay, as well written as it might be.

Anything else you'd like to say?


On a side note, I wish there was someway to acknowledge the animated sequence in Harry Potter, which is probably among the finest animation I've seen this year in any context or format. I can only hope that if Deathly Hallows wins either of the categories it's nominated in (Art Direction, Special Effects), that the animator gets a well deserved piece of that award.

See full post

Happy Radiohead Day!

I hope you've all had a fabulous Radiohead day! Waking up to find The King of Limbs released a day early was a spectacular surprise. I need more time to process the album before I can write a proper post but it's certainly GOOD. I think Radiohead actually has a rule where (after Pablo Honey) they refuse to make bad albums. I like this rule.

I also like their video for "Lotus Flower"...Thom Yorke is so oddly sexy in it.

See full post

The Bottom Line: Melissa Leo's Personal Oscar Campaign

Crossposted on and commissioned by Film.com

In true industry fashion, for the first couple days following the publication of Melissa Leo's controversial "For Your Consideration" ads, the Internet was ablaze with talk of how inappropriate and awkward they were, asking what she was thinking and pondering whether it was going to hurt her chances. But in ever truer industry fashion, a couple days after that, the backlash to the backlash had begun, the Internet then ablaze with people being offended by the notion that these ads would affect her potential Oscar win, defending Leo, saying, *if* you're going to judge her at least try to get a sense of who she really is first.

I've actually been struggling with all of this myself. When I initially saw the ads, my reaction was one of pure and unbridled "WTF." Why on EARTH would the front-runner for the Academy Award find it necessary to take an ad out for herself, let alone an ad that is nothing more than a glamor shot. If this is about the performance? Why isn't the ad ... about the performance?

Then a few days later, after reading multiple defenses, I changed my tune. Everyone else has studios or publicists taking out ads for them; she had to take matters into her own hands. She isn't desperate, just excited -- who cares how she campaigns, plus, fun fact! She actually seems like a pretty amazing person.

Well now that the initial fervor has somewhat died down, I've finally settled on how I truly feel about the matter and whether or not it will affect her predicted win.

Academy members *should* only vote based on performance, this is true. It's what we all hope for. But if we are going to believe in this principle, we need to really believe it. All of us. Which would mean no ads based on anything other than touting the performance. How can we ignore the ads and claim awards are about the performance, when that doesn't even seem to be what Leo believes? I love her, but it does sort of seem like she wants us to think that this is about *her*, not the character of Alice Ward, that she's been in this industry for years, that she's an old pro, that she's due -- nothing about her campaign or previous speeches have implied otherwise. So the whole argument seems very uneven. I'm all for focusing only on the performance, but it needs to apply all around. This would also mean, as much as I've loved the pieces I've read on the matter, that there shouldn't be articles explaining why she is a good person. It shouldn't matter.

To further complicate the situation, Hailee Steinfeld was being primed to upset Leo before all this ruckus started. Her momentum had definitely begun. If anything, this mini controversy may have simply brought up the conversation slightly sooner. But in terms of predictions I've been reading and industry insiders I've been talking to, the win was starting to swing in Steinfeld's direction BEFORE the ads came out. And the reason is the performance. Many people simply appreciate Steinfeld's performance more. It's been explained to me that Maddie does more to support Cogburn's journey than Alice did for Mickey's, and that Alice is more of a fun character role than an Oscar-worthy one. The biggest argument I've heard against Steinfield is that this is her first movie (...and?), the second biggest being that she is so vital to the film because she is actually the lead and therefore shouldn't win supporting. But the mere fact that whether she is lead or supporting is debatable; add to that the fact that kids have traditionally always ended up in the supporting categories, and that should squash this argument once and for all. Her placement is what it is, don't blame Steinfeld for it. (For what it's worth, I think her monologue at the end proves that Cogburn is in fact the "lead" -- it might have been her story, but it was her story about *his* redemption. He is the one that changes. She supports that change.)

Ultimately it comes down to this: I don't think Leo should have taken out those ads, but I do hope the Academy ignores them. And for that matter, any other ads. Performance should always be considered first, then role, then movie, then sentiment/history, then politics. While those last two factors are unfortunately inevitable, they should *at least* be considered after what really matters.

The worst part of this? If someone does upset Leo, guess what people are going to point to for the reason? Not the performance. Not the role. Perhaps not even the movie. They will point purely to this controversy. And this is reason enough alone not to have taken the ad out. It makes the Supporting Actress race unnecessarily focused on politics and outside factors, pure and simple. If anything is to come from the ad, perhaps it is Academy members being forced to "think about the performance," as people jumping to Leo's defense have urged them to do, that will end up hurting her come Oscar night -- maybe such a suggestion will make members second guess going with a supposed lock and really take another look at the other nominated performances.

I'd like to think voters will forget about this entire situation before sending in their ballots, especially because Melissa Leo was an absolute genius in The Fighter, and I'd be thrilled to see her take the win with no controversy. Unfortunately, in true industry fashion, no one forgets anything. Expect mention of these ads in every Oscar wrap-up article on the Internet should Leo win OR lose. Sigh. See full post

Casting The Runaways

Crossposted on Film.com

At first glance, Marvel's Runaways being delayed for another year or two may seem like horrible news. But I have a much different perspective. When W released this photo a couple weeks ago, I started thinking about the large amount of teen talent out there right now. But specifically in the ages 11-16, as in, *just* too young to be cast in Runaways, had it begun shooting last month like originally intended, but the perfect age to begin shooting in 2012 or 2013. I mean, there's always been Disney and Nick kids, sure, but the list of consistently working teenagers who've never appeared on an episode of Wizards of Waverly Place is quite staggering, at least as far as girls are concerned. Consider: Chloe Moretz (13), Madeline Carrol (14), Georgie Henley (15), Dakotah & Elle Fanning (16 & 12), Nicola Peltz (16), Kiernan Shipka (11), and that's to name just a few.

Featuring the actual released breakdowns, I present to you, my casting for Runaways, mostly aimed to be just the right age in 1-2 years. Message boards dally in casting the property every year, but the actors in question quickly grow out of the roles. This fantasy casting is attempting to safe guard against that. Enjoy and feel free to offer up your ideas in the comments!

NICO

Breakdown: Uniquely beautiful, nurturing but guarded

(Note: Original breakdown didn't specify race, but after some controversy, "Asian-American" was added to the description of the character)

Suggestion: We get a time machine, go back to 1998, steal 16 year old Kristin Kreuk, and bring her back to play Nico. Oh, time travel doesn't exist? Cool. In that case, I'm going with the perhaps questionable choice of part Filipino Hailee Steinfeld. Nico is supposed to be Japanese American, but as most actresses fitting that bill, or at least fitting closer than Hailee is, (Sophie Oda, Malese Jow, Ellen Wong) are well beyond the appropriate age, I'm going with Hailee for fun. We know she can exude confidence on command, and it would be fun to see her take the journey from rebellious girl to woman in charge over the course of a few movies. Though ultimately I do hope that the casting office elects to go with an unknown here rather than cast too old or too white washed, while Hailee rocks the part of Katniss in the Hunger Games. Fingers crossed.

GERT

Breakdown: Chubby oddball, smart and verbal

Suggestion: The popular choice on the interwebs for Gert is the more or less on the money Mae Whitman. Unfortunately, Whitman is pushing 23, and no longer an actual teenager. I'd go more for either 16 year old Allie Grant (Weeds) or 14 year old Abigail Breslin. Both can do verbal, both can do sass and both are at least circling the correct age range. Another suggestion I've heard is 17 year old Jennifer Stone, mostly known from Disney/ABC Family ventures, and she actually fits the bill quite well, but since I'd like to avoid Disney kids, and we're skewing younger here, I'm sticking with Breslin. Can you imagine her with purple hair and glasses? Please yes please!

KAROLINA

Breakdown: Conventionally beautiful, with an unchecked ego

Suggestion: Taylor Momsen and Dakotah Fanning seem to be popular choices on various message boards, but as Karolina is both unusually poised and an alien, I'm going with the suddenly jaw droppingly stunning 16 year old Saoirse Ronan. She simuntaneously rocks an alien quality whilst remaining incredibly gorgeous. Girl is growing up well. And hell, I wouldn't object to making Karolina's famous actor "parents" happen to be Irish so Ronan can keep her accent.

MOLLY

Breakdown: An innocent, wide-eyed and overprotected

Suggestion: My pick for Molly isn't as well known as the others, but could definitely rock this part. Morgan Lily, best known by me for playing the 10 year old version of Juli in Flipped, soon to be best known by you as young Mystique in X-Men: First Class, has the right look and tenacity for the adorable, but resourceful Molly. I'm confident that in a couple years she will still be young and wide-eyed enough to pull off this role. 

ALEX

Breakdown: Very smart, natural leader, in need of a father figure. African American.

Suggestion: So while we are in 1998, stealing 16 year old Kristin Kreuk, can we also steal 16 year old Percy Daggs III, of Veronica Mars fame? He is such a spitting image of Alex, it makes my brain hurt. If that doesn't work out, I have a strange, but perhaps intriguing idea. Connor Cruise has decided to go into the family business, having recently shot Red Dawn, for which he lost all of his baby fat. I can't help but imagine glasses and longer hair on the 16 year old and seeing flashes of Alex. Though I'm beginning to warm to a particular actor who keeps popping up on Runaways casting boards across the internet - 17 year old Marcus Carl Franklin, best known for being the Woody incarnation of Bob Dylan in 2007's I'm Not There, for which he was nominated for a Spirit Award, and for his role in Broadway's Caroline or Change. Boy has chops and a striking resemblance to Alex.

CHASE

Breakdown: A rebel, ignores rules and authority, wounded inside

Suggestion: If Chase weren't specifically the oldest in the group, I'd love to recommend 14 year old Charlie Rowe (Never Let Me Go), but even two years from now, he'd be a tad too young. If filming were beginning now, I'd suggest 18 year old Josh Hutcherson. We certainly got a feel for his anti-establishment side in The Kids Are All Right, and he has a young enough face that a romance with the slightly younger Gert wouldn't seem entirely out of place. But going with the conceit of beginning production in two years, I'm selecting 16 year old Callan McAuliffe (I Am Number Four) who I think would actually make quite the nice match with Breslin.

So there you have it. Since the announcement a couple months ago regarding pushing production back and allowing Peter Sollet to make a different movie first, there has been some worry that the film will be shelved indefinitely. Here's hoping we still get our Runaways movie within the next couple years and that some of the kids on this list are considered? Maybe? Saoirse Ronan at least?

If it were up to you, who would you cast?

Special Thanks: Cakes See full post

Warning Signs: How To Tell You Are Becoming A Movie Blogger

Crossposted on and commissioned by Film.com

Things used to be so different. If you wanted to be a journalist, you majored in journalism. Or if you didn’t have that kind of foresight, you’d write a couple samples, submit to small publications or free magazines, building your portfolio so you could one day make it to the big leagues. My dad always tells me about how he started writing music reviews in the ’70s just to get free records and it led to his entire career being possible, but how he had to work really hard to get his pieces published.

These days, a lot of people start their own blogs with a similar idea, thinking, maybe I can get free stuff, maybe I can make a career! But there are almost as many un-updated blogs out there as there are non-working actors. Sure, in theory, anyone can be a blogger, but to really be considered one, you have to crossover into a very specific and sometimes strange area. So we decided to provide you with a guide, a way of figuring out when you’ve finally made the transition from wanna-be-blogger to wanna-be-journalist *actual* blogger. Some snarky, some serious, but all true. And as I consider myself nothing more than a blogger, please take these with a self-deprecating grain of salt. Warning signs, in chronological order, below!

You start carrying a tiny notebook with you at all times, for movies, for events, for post ideas, for future tweets.

You find yourself taking notes in your tiny notebook during movies more than you’re actually watching the movies, much to the chagrin of anyone you ever see movies with ever.

You filled up your tiny notebook. And your next tiny notebook. And your next. You now have A LOT of tiny notebooks.

You download a recording app for your iPhone/iPad because you were buying too many tiny notebooks.

You start turning down hanging out with friends so you can stay home and write recaps. For shows you don’t like. For your own website. That no one is paying you for. Great idea!

Your stomach hurts with jealousy when you read other, snarkier recaps of said TV shows.

Any time you disagree with something, anything, anywhere, you think “This will make a great post!” … It doesn’t always work out so well.

You understand the importance of Twitter and can explain it to someone with zero irony.

You start thinking exclusively in 140-character blocks.

You start getting into tweet wars with Devin Faraci … that he never knows exist.

Your blog has at least 300 posts/year and you consider that to be not good enough.

Your movie rating system quickly dissolves into “the most awesome,” “really awesome,” “awesome,” “pretty awesome,” or “not that awesome, but still awesome enough.”

Your “Real Life Friends” Twitter list is starting to closely resemble your “Favorite Movie Blogger” Twitter list.

You quote movie bloggers to your friends, without explaining who they are, who they write for, or the fact that they are even writers to begin with.

You’ve won at least three Twitter/blog contests.

You’ve held at least three Twitter/blog contests.

You now feel no guilt when you write off movie tickets, DVDs, video games, comic books, your cable bill, and more on your taxes.

You’ve been linked to by Slashfilm‘s Page Two, The Film Experience, or any other number of successful blogs’ link posts.

Your blog now has its own link post each week.

You start beginning conversations at events, screenings, and conventions with “What’s your Twitter handle?” And surprise! More often than not, turns out you know the person already.

You begin getting bizarre, unsolicited packages in the mail that range from flip cams to candy to screeners to books to packets of fake blood. And you accept this as perfectly normal.

You feel a kinship with Scott Weinberg because you both tweet way too much and you both love your cat. Sometimes this turns into both of you tweeting way too much ABOUT your cat. Note: This one could also just apply to me.

You start being called names, belonging to cliques and having haters. It’s like high school all over again, only now you’re the cool kid. VICTORY!

And finally, the true sign that you have become a movie blogger — someone starts paying you to write about movies. That one’s pretty cut and dry. See full post

Need A Last Minute Geeky Valentine?

 Check out these, from Beavotron

These remind me of Eruditechick :)

For more geeky valentines, ranging from Lost to Left for Dead to The Office, follow the link! See full post

A Happy V-Day Courtesy of Radiohead

The new Radiohead album, The King of Limbs, is available for pre-order on the band's official website. You can now order either a digital download or the "newspaper album" + digital download. The album will then be available for download this Saturday, Feb. 19th.

I'm too happy for words. Let's just say that life is sweet again and, despite being single, I feel the love everywhere on this stupid holiday.

Expect a review soon!

See full post

My (I Don't Really Care About The) Grammy Awards Post

I didn't watch the Grammy Awards. I was however happy to hear about both Muse and (especially) Arcade Fire winning awards. They deserve all sorts of accolades, even when it's at a (generally) lame award show.

I was also, very curious about the Bob Dylan performance (featuring some other blokes too). Dylan kinda owns my life right now (no, we don't have to get into it) so obviously I had to go find a video of the performance as soon as the show ended. I found it and I loved it. So here it is, just in case you missed it too:




By the way, it's awesome. And not just because of Dylan. Mumford & Sons are an obvious win. Avett Brothers were a pleasant surprise. See full post

Would You Do 99 Takes for David Fincher?

Crossposted on and commissioned by Film.com

One of the big talking points around The Social Network has been how director David Fincher had Jesse Eisenberg & Rooney Mara do 99 takes of the opening six minute scene over the course of two days. Which isn't new for Fincher - doing an inordinate number of takes is how he rolls. And in the case of The Social Network, with a script as wordy and deliberate as Sorkin's tend to be, I can hardly imagine the kind of experience this must have been for the actors. It begs the question - would you do 99 takes for David Fincher?

In a recent actor's round table organized by The Hollywood Reporter, Jesse Eisenberg got into discussing the process and Mark Ruffalo, also in attendance, offered his two cents as well, having worked with Fincher himself on Zodiac. Ruffalo posits that Fincher sees the whole, and the actors are only a bit of that whole, while Duvall scoffs at the idea of 50+ takes so much that he wonders if there was a subconscious reason he turned down a role in Seven. What compels one actor to jump at the chance to do 99 takes and turns others off so much that they be thrilled to miss an opportunity to work with such a director?

I have a BA in Drama from NYU Tisch and almost always hated the rehearsal process of theater out of fear of finding a moment and then never being able to retrieve it again, but was of course grateful for the process in the end. But theater is QUITE different from film. In theater, you have months of prep. You rehearse to find your blocking, to find your moments and hopefully keep them, to see if your analysis works, to get your actions or any potential externals you have to live with for the duration of the show in your body. But with film, you do bits at a time and often the technical aspects take priority over the acting - most directors expect you to come ready to film. And because it's so up close, because it's just one tiny part of the whole, spontaneity is key in capturing honesty. Clint Eastwood is one of those directors that thinks the best takes happen right away, most spontaneous, most in the moment, most unaware of what is to come. He casts actors he knows he can trust, who will come ready to go, and makes sure his actors know they can trust him, that they are in a safe environment, that they can feel free to do whatever they want - he is known for most often using the first take that was shot. My personal favorite experiences on sets have been when we got the scene in 1-3 takes, so on paper, working with Eastwood sounds like a dream.

And the idea of doing a six minute scene 99 times in a row makes my head want to explode.

But here's the thing. Eastwood movies I tend to not like. Fincher movies, I LOVE. I love every movie he has ever made, that I've seen (Sorry Panic Room & Alien 3, one day I'll meet you). It might be annoying for the actors, but his methods yield genius results. Also with that number of takes, I feel like it could almost give more of a chance to just mess around and do takes for yourself. Natalie Portman has praised Darren Aronosfky for always letting her have a take "for herself." There is something about doing that many takes that could end up being a similar kind of freeing. Especially if you know that's the way the director works. If your director does 2-3 takes normally, then needs to do 20 on you because you are missing all your moments or flubbing your lines, that's a bad sign. But if you know your director will be doing 40-99 takes, there isn't really much you can do to change that, so you might as well go balls out. And it shows.

Recently, Vulture printed an in depth interview with Fincher, in which I was thrilled to find he touches on exactly that notion,

"I’m not, like, trying to psychologically remake people, but look, it’s an incredibly neurotic thing to want to do with one’s life. It’s incredibly hard to stand in front of a camera and be the focus of that attention and not be self-conscious. It makes you self-conscious, and to get beyond that self-consciousness, I absolutely want people to have their idea of what the scene is about, to have an idea of what their moment is. And then I want to take them through that process to a point where they’ve literally forgotten their own names. I want to take them past the point where they go, "But I had it all worked out." If it’s still there but you’re doing it a little bit later or doing it a little bit flustered. You know, it’s an interesting thing: It happens very rarely, but invariably, when an actor’s in the middle of a take and they go, "Uh, hang on a sec, sorry, my fault, can we start again?" always it’s the best take. Always the best take before they cry uncle, before they go, "Wait a minute, I’ve lost my train of thought." And I can show them on the monitor: "Look at you here, that is you at your most present, when you’re falling-down ill, like Dudley Moore in Arthur, ass-over-teakettle trying to remember where you were in the thing, that’s when you are stunning and real and amazing." Little things happen. There’s this moment at the beginning of the movie where Rooney [Mara, who plays Zuckerberg’s girlfriend] interrupts him and says “Mark!" And Jesse did this thing where he leaned forward in a very prodding way and said "Erica!" Oddly condescending. She gets really pissed off — and he’d never done it before. It was kind of great. I went up to him and he said, "Do you want me to do it again?" And I said, "No, but I bet you it’s going in the movie." That’s the kind of stuff you want to find."

Adding to the freedom? In the opening scene of The Social Network, Fincher put a camera on Mara *and* a camera on Eisenberg so they could nail the rhythms and overlaps of Sorkin's language. Thus, everything those actors did was captured. No moment lost. He also instructed the extras to speak at full volume to create a sense of realism for the actors. They weren't on a silent set, feeling the pressure, feeling the focus all directed on them. They were in it.

Another director notorious for doing numerous takes was Stanley Kubrick. People often view his methods as perhaps less kind or more crazy than Fincher's, Duvall going so far as to call him the "actor's enemy" in the aforementioned actor's round table, but according to some, Kubrick was going after a similar result, as Nicole Kidman can testify,

"He believed that what it does to you, as an actor, was that you would lose control of your sense of self, of the part of you that was internally watching your own performance. Eventually, he felt, you would stop censoring yourself."

So it seems as though directors like Fincher & Kubrick are in fact going after the exact same thing directors like Eastwood desire - spontaneity, honesty, living in the moment.

The difference?

You can't half ass 99 takes. You need to know your lines, you need to have energy, you need to have worked on your voice & speech skills so you don't lose your voice or trip over your words. You need your body to be warm and open so you don't slip up, so you don't get tired. It's scary. And truly something only the most dedicated actors can pull off. Which is why, Justin Timberlake, I just got a whole lot more impressed with you.

But you know what? 99 takes? That's a challenge I'd be willing to take. Yes I hate doing more than 3 takes of anything, but for the chance to work with David Fincher, I'd do just about anything. Well. That's overstating it a bit. But you know what I mean. Can you imagine waking up every morning knowing you are going to go work with incredibly talented people who, rather than worrying about time or perfection, are most concerned with letting you be open and free. Screw an actor's nightmare, this just turned into actor's dream, you guys. Sign me up.

For more on the behind the scenes process, check out the behind the scenes doc, How Did They Ever Make a Movie About Facebook, included on The Social Network blu-ray. See full post

Objectifying Men: Genuine Ken

Kids don't need to be sold on Barbie, but if you want to expand Barbie's market demographics it's sensible to look towards those who once loved her rather than trying to sell boys on the pink plastic dream house.

Read more at The Mystery of Girls Media See full post

You knew this was coming

The Strokes have released their new single "Under Cover of Darkness" as a free download, available on their website for another 20 or so hours. Go here. And enjoy. See full post

Muse's Eight Most Upsetting Snubs of Oscars 2011

Crossposted on & commissioned by Film.com

Last Tuesday, I was hoping for a pleasant morning. For an Oscars 2010 kind of morning, where you wake up and find out that District 9 got nominated for Best Picture. Instead it was an Oscars 2009 kind of morning. A The Dark Knight got snubbed for Best Picture kind of morning. Translation: A really bad morning.

The only happy surprise of the main 8 categories? Michelle Williams getting a nod. But there was no Ryan Gosling. There was no Julianne Moore, though no one really thought she'd make it in. And most upsettingly, there was no Andrew Garfield, the heart and soul of The Social Network. His snub alone began to unravel my previously stable belief that The Social Network has Best Picture locked up (now almost completely shattered by The King's Speech winning at the SAG Awards). If the actors branch, the largest branch of the academy, didn't appreciate his performance enough to get him a nod, does that mean they don't appreciate the movie enough?

But then something even worse was announced. The nominees for Best Director. Don't get me wrong. I love David Fincher. I love Darren Aronofsky. I love the Coen Brothers. I even love notoriously crazy David O Russell. But the fact that Christopher Nolan, a director committed to using the language of cinema to not only tell a story, but make you think and make you feel in ways you don't even understand or realize you're feeling until it's over - the fact that one of the most innovative, creative, most aspiring to cinematic greatness directors working today did not get a nomination for Best Director is disappointing at best. But, and not to beat a dead horse, Tom Hooper, who impressed me directorally only in his casting of the three leads, did. And then won the DGA award later that week. Because the universe hates me.


So when the director nominations were announced, I got worried. I immediately went online, found the complete list of Oscar nominations...and I didn't like what I saw. There were more snubs than the obvious - more than Gosling, Garfield, Mila Kunis & Nolan, Waiting for Superman in Doc, The Town in Picture. So here is my list of the top eight most upsetting snubs.

8.Lisa Cholodenko - Director - The Kids Are All Right

No one seemed to prognosticate that Lisa ever had a chance, but since I believed that the top five would have been The Social Network, The King's Speech, Black Swan, True Grit or Inception & The Kids Are All Right (if following the genre standards set by the aughts), I was still hoping that maybe the directors would reflect this. Unfortunately it seems as though The Fighter would have potentially taken that last slot, leaving The Kids Are All Right out in the cold and Cholodenko with it. But her direction was actually quite remarkable. The way the scenes were framed & lit that seemed to inform the relationships, the comfort levels in each location, the lingering shots, the attention to detail, the warmth - plus it really feels like open, honest acting from everyone in the cast. There is no schmacting, there is no indicating, Cholodenko knew exactly how to capture what she wanted. I was so sincerely hoping there would be a slot for this movie in direction and not just because Lisa is a woman, though that would have been a cool plus side coming off of last year's historic win for Kathryn Bigelow. Le sigh.

7. Daft Punk- Score - Tron: Legacy

This movie would be a big fat nothing without two things: The visuals & the score. Daft Punk MADE this movie work for me. Looking at Tron: Legacy as one long Daft Punk music video suddenly made it not suck. Aside from the fact that it is absurdly necessary for the movie to even work on any level, the score is *awesome* to listen to. It's atmospheric when it needs to be, triumphant when it needs to be, popping when it needs to be, forlorn when it needs to be - each track is distinct, yet clearly Daft Punk and clearly from Tron: Legacy. I've listened to it on multiple occasions for multiple reasons and was really hoping to be able to say "Oscar nominees Daft Punk." Not everyone can be Three Six Mafia, I suppose.

6. & 5. Visual FX: Tron: Legacy and Scott Pilgrim

The other aspect that made Tron for me was obviously the VFX. The ways in which Tron utilized 3D and the IMAX screen to actually help tell the story (as stupid as the story was) I thought deserved some praise. This movie looked so utterly cool, it's the first time I have *ever* excused a terrible story and terrible dialogue because I loved the effects so much. I was so taken with this universe, I felt like I was actually inside it and I loved every moment. No one can deny the feat that was accomplished with the visuals and those very visuals have been a subject for discussion since we first got a glimpse of what would be at Comic-Con three years ago.

Then you have Scott Pilgrim, which played with vfx in a very different way, but still a style I've never seen before. They play into the environment and help specify that this world isn't exactly our world, but rather a much more badass one. Or, to be slightly more accurate, a much more EPIC one.

It seems endlessly strange to me that the opening sequence of a movie, Hereafter, featuring a type of effect that has been done many times before, tsunami, (see: Deep Impact, 2012, The Day After Tomorrow, etc etc etc) deserved a nomination more than two films that really created something unique and essential to the storytelling of the film. Using fx as a flavor of ice cream itself instead of the cherry on top, if you will?

4.& 3. Sound Editing & Mixing - Scott Pilgrim & Black Swan

I don't know much about sound. Which is precisely why I think Scott Pilgrim & Black Swan deserved some recognition. Sound played essential roles in both of these films and not in the obvious action movie sense.

In Scott Pilgrim, there is almost *always* a specific sound cue designed to help tell the story - whether it's by referencing something else, setting the location, keeping the pace, directing the audience's attention - sound plays a HUGE role in the movie. The choices in sound were actually on the same level as the choices in music and special effects, to the point where all three departments were working together to create the most immersive result possible. It mystifies me that that much detail doesn't deserve some recognition. I don't see how "train sounds" is more innovative or creative than what Julian Slater and his team did for Scott Pilgrim. I'm sure Unstoppable's sound was edited perfectly, but to what imaginative end? With Pilgrim, Every punch with a different person sounded different. There was a specific sound scape running through every scene, playing a vital role in letting us know what to think & how to feel. It's a travesty Pilgrim was snubbed here, nothing less. For more, head here.

Then you have Black Swan, in which the sounds affect environment as much as the cinematography and production design do. They are integral in creating atmosphere, in getting inside Nina's head, in suggesting emotion. The cracking, the whispering, the breathing, the sound was almost a living entity. It is an artistic use of sound, both in editing and mixing that has sadly gone unnoticed by the academy. Fore more on Black Swan and sound, head here.


2. Lesley Manville - Actress - Another Year

Now THAT is a performance. Yes, the other actresses were fantastic and I begrudge none of them, but it would have been wonderful to see Manville sneak in there. Her performance is almost beyond description. Her character is so thoroughly authentic that you have trouble believing she's real. It's difficult to play unstable that accurately. Watching her, I was uncomfortable, but couldn't pull my eyes away. Every choice was fascinating. I'm honestly not sure any other actress nominated could have pulled off that character. I was positively in awe and absolutely believe the reason she didn't make it is that simply not enough actors saw Another Year to get her quite enough votes.

1. Lee Smith - Editing - Inception

The one you've probably heard the most bitching about on Twitter and rightly so. A crucial element in Inception was tricking the audience into thinking we are following a much more straightforward story than we actually are. To edit so seamlessly that we don't realize anything is truly strange until the end of the movie. Like a dream itself. Part of what makes Nolan so masterful is his ability to make a movie like Memento and really make us feel like we don't have a short term memory, to make a movie like Insomnia and make us feel like we have insomnia, and with Inception, to make us feel like we've been dreaming, or to go even further, than we've been incepted. (Sidenote: I LOVE Inception theories.) But this would not be possible without top notch editing. The only reasonable explanation for this is that Smith ended up as #6 and by a remarkably small margin.

If any of these snubs affected you the way they affected me, check out the nominations for the second annual Fangirl Awards...Scott Pilgrim got 14 nominations. Take that, The King's Speech with 12 Academy Award nominations! ... I'm not going to be happy on Oscar night, am I? See full post

My The King's Speech Rant Of The Day

Think I can keep this up for 25 days?

Today's rant was inspired by three words in Lisa Schwartzbaum's article about the absurdity of Tom Hooper winning the DGA award.

"privileged fellow’s triumph" in reference to what The King's Speech is actually about.

And this got me thinking.

Lots of people complain that The Social Network is just a movie about some bratty nerds making a website that people will forget about next week and The King's Speech is about World War II and will last forever.

A. Incorrect

B. Let me provide you with a different perspective.

The King's Speech is about a rich royal who feels like he isn't good enough because he has a stutter. Did I mention he is rich as balls and the King and never has to want for anything and also that he never mentioned maybe his nazi sympathizer brother shouldn't be King, oh, because he's a nazi sympathizer, not just cause he fell for a divorced woman? Oh yeah, marrying someone who was married once before is SO much worse than being a nazi-lover. Yup. So: privileged entitled King to be gets over his stutter with the help of a failed actor who isn't as rich cause he isn't PART OF THE ROYAL FAMILY and they become friends, despite the fact that again, one of them isn't part of the royal family, OMG. ...

As opposed to a film about someone who could be called privileged if being a genius is a privilege. Someone who was flawed and fucked up emotionally but managed to use his smarts to LITERALLY CHANGE THE WORLD. THE WHOLE WORLD. ACTUALLY. It's about young people yes, young people who eventually have a shit load of money, some young people who have money already, like Eduardo - but they all *worked* for it, they all used their minds to get into school, to make money, to eventually revolutionize the way people communicate.

If we're talking purely subject matter, all people are from now on forbidden from positing that The King's Speech, because it's all warm & fuzzy, is somehow more important. Excuse me for being more interested in seeing how someone my age, born into nothing particularly special, except a mind and the determination to use it, changes the world and loses the only people he cares about in the process, versus a movie about someone born into royalty who has one fault and it's his stutter, but through friendship, he fixes it zzzzzzzzzzzz. Give me a break. And give The Social Network its damn Oscar.

Muse out.

Updated with response (in comments) -

It's only my vitriol, unfortunately...

Definitely see them. Both. Then read my 2000 word article on why The Social Network should win, haha.

The King's Speech is a perfectly lovely film. I saw it before all the hype, before it was a front runner, before all of this. It didn't move me. It didn't impress me. I thought Colin Firth was a GENIUS, but that's it. Then all of a sudden, it's winning everything and Harvey Weinstein is hiring lawyers to defend its historical accuracy (Check this out - http://www.slate.com/id/2282194/) and wanting to recut the movie without the "fucks" so middle america will see it and making all sorts of phone calls and claims about how TKS is *actually* the timely, yet timeless one. So my "Oh, I liked it!" has turned into "FUCK THAT GOD DAMN MOVIE, EFFING GOD DAMNIT"

And while it's true that these kids were from middle to upper middle class families, they didn't *have* to go to Harvard, they didn't *have* to revolutionize communication as we know it. They could have been asshole idiots. But they were smart and knew how to use their smarts they made that shit happen.

The truth is though, subject matter is the least of my arguments for TSN and against TKS. I'm sick of people all of a sudden saying TKS will last forever cause World War II blah and TSN will be forgotten about cause it's about nerds, which makes me want to laugh and/or choke on my own vomit.

The King's Speech is totally delightful. Would sweep at the Emmys. But it's the most conventional, safe, boringly shot, uncreatively made, least cinematic movie of what has been generally an *incredible* Oscar season.

And it didn't even move me, for all it's supposed fuzziness. Another Year moved me. Toy Story 3 at least manipulated me so perversely that I couldn't feel my face afterwards from all the tears. Black Swan and Inception made me cry out of sheer goosebumpy awe. Yet TKS, supposedly the best and most moving of the bunch? Not a tear. And keep in mind, when I saw it, I WANTED to love it. Was before any of this.

So that's that. Definitely see those two, see True Grit, keep an open mind. I just hate that Harvey Weinstein has shoved a perfectly fine movie with one incredible performance down everyone's throats so much that now it's gonna win Best Picture. In 2011. In a year with The Social Network, Black Swan, Inception, True Grit, The Kids Are All Right, I just...ugh.. See full post

The Fangirling: Slings & Arrows Edition

 A few things before we get to the carnage of my dignity that will hopefully frame the events that so recently took place:

1: I am a Shakespeare nerd, and attend a free Shakespeare workshop, called The Shakespeare Forum, every Tuesday at 8 pm.

2: Like any Shakespeare nerd worth their salt, I have a deep love (and the complete box set of) Slings&Arrows, the three-season Canadian television show starring Paul Gross, Martha Burns and Mark McKinney and featuring such talents as Sarah Polley and Rachel MacAdams, which follows the misadventures of a Shakespeare Festival helmed by a former actor who has suffered a mental breakdown and sees the ghost of his former mentor while he tries to wrangle cats make a theater company work.

3: I spent last Sunday at home in pajamas convelescing and watching the entire series start to finish.

Which brings us to Monday.

Monday, after a very long day at the office, I bundled up and prepared to trudge out into the cold. I double checked all the email accounts, turned off all the lights, and then loitered for no particular reason in our foyer, tidying things and tying my hair back before I left. I waited for the world's slowest elevator, got on, and exited onto the street.

Directly in front of me were two women of rather small stature, bundled up and chatting. I did not see either of their faces nor could I hear a single word of their conversation, but somehow my radar went off. Trying not to look lik the world's most epic creeper, with my scarf bundled around my face and my black trenchcoat wrapped up tight, I attempted to get a peek of the woman on the left's face. Possibly sensing she was being peered at, she glanced over her shoulder at me-

And I had an immediate and severe internal freak out. It was Martha Burns, who plays the indomitable and insufferable and brilliant actress Ellen Fanshaw in the above mentioned show.

I was then faced with a conundrum that my severely S&A addled brain could not successfully tackle. I could quietly spazz and follow them until I had to peel off for the subway, or I could Be That Person and say something.

But what were the odds? Really? What were the odds of my watching a show that is a real touchstone for me, a reminder of why I want to do what I do, and what I want to do, at the tail end of possibly the most discouraging and hellaciously stressful month of my life and the very next day finding myself all but face to face with one of its greatest components.

So I said, to their backs, "Excuse me, I know this is atrociously rude and invasive, I'm so sorry, but- Are you Martha Burns?"

At which point Ms. Burns turned, somewhat surprised, and said "Yes."

I immediately began the process of making an ass out of myself.

I told her it was uncanny, because I just the day before showed my friend the show for the first time, at which point her companion turned and it was Susan Coyne.

Series creator and writer and co-star, Susan Coyne. I yelped aloud and clapped my hands over my mouth while they watched with polite bemusement as I said things like "Oh my God, I love you both! You're such wonderful actors! I'm sorry, I'm so flustered, I never do this, but- I love you!"

They then opened up the line they were standing so I could WALK BETWEEN THEM as they CONTINUED DOWN THE STREET. I was so frazzled I could scarcely put two words together, and yet I managed to babble incoherently at them for quite some distance. I asked them if they were in town for a show, and they told me no, they were attending a Shakespeare workshop at the Michael Howard studio, which is directly next to my place of work. They asked me if I was in the theater, and I asked them if it was that obvious. They were amused.

At the end of the block, I could have followed them down the way they were going. I should have done so and tried to recover, to tell them about the forum I attend and invite them to please email me if THEY were ever hosting seminars or workshops, for acting or writing or anything at all, in the city. But I was so mortified by my flailing and gushing that I merely bid them congratulations on having created such a wonderful and enduring show and wished them a good night.

Then I called @erinlaurel8 and absolutely lost my shit in the middle of Madison Square Park.

It was a strange incident- the unlikelihood of running into those two actresses together outside my place of work, at that particular point in the evening, on the last day of the terrible month of January- and I have had no choice but to take it as a sign. Here are two tremendous, marvelous actresses, actively working on their craft, walking around like normal people. It was such a moment of geek joy, I had to- after calling, texting, IMing and tweeting at everyone I know- write it up on the blog, because.... Fangirling. Fangirling all over the place. In public.

I'm still happy about it. Even though I didn't even introduce myself UGH RUDE I WAS SO FLUSTERED blast it all.

If you haven't, pick up Slings&Arrows. Or a Complete Works. And if you see them wandering around, please tell them to call me, I have a group of young Shakespearean actors who are dying to buy them a drink. See full post