So far, it looks like the critics love Slumdog. WAFCA honored Slumdog with top honors this year. Take a look below:
Best Film: Slumdog Millionaire/Fox Searchlight
Best Director: Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire)
Best Actor: Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler)
Best Actress: Meryl Streep (Doubt)
Best Ensemble: Doubt/Miramax
Best Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger (The Dark Knight)
Best Supporting Actress: Rosemarie DeWitt (Rachel Getting Married)
Best Breakthrough Performance: Dev Patel (Slumdog Millionaire)
Best Adapted Screenplay: Simon Beaufoy (Slumdog Millionaire)
Best Original Screenplay: Jenny Lumet (Rachel Getting Married)
Best Animated Feature: Wall∙E /Disney & PixarBest
Foreign Language Film: Let The Right One In/Magnolia Pictures and Magnet Releasing
Best Documentary: Man On Wire/Magnolia
Best Art Direction: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button/Paramount
Slumdog hasn't pulled away just yet, but this is a great start. We'll see what happens in the future, but I get the feeling that a lot of people might start shifting their belief away from Curious Case as the front runner. This is shaping up to be tight race. Get excited!
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I predicted Slumdog Millionaire would get the NBR because it has turned into this year's critical darling. However, I still think the Best Picture frontrunner is still in question. A nomination seems very likely, but I'm still having a feeling that something is going to cause this to stop there.
ReplyDeleteI agree w/ Josh P.
ReplyDeleteGo DARK KNIGHT
I think there should be no doubt: Slumdog and TDK are going to receive best picture nominations.
ReplyDeleteFans of Benjamin Button, be concerned ! I think its buzz is not as shiny as the one for at least other five pics. I must say that i believe other pics like Wall-E and Rachel Getting Married are a better best picture material.
As for the winners for the DC prizes, im very happy for Patel, Streep, Rourke, Ledger and DeWitt. The Joker is going to be the first comic charachter to win an oscar!
As much as I want to stay cautiously doubtful about Ledger's chances (think of the statistics on posthumous Oscar wins), I have trouble imagining them awarding it to anyone else this year. At this point, Josh Brolin seems to me the only realistic contender to win Best Supporting Actor otherwise.
ReplyDeleteSlumdog is that much closer to being a BP lock. Right now, I'd say Milk is most likely in as well, and I have faith The Dark Knight will squeeze in too. Benjamin Button seems likely, but I'll hold my tongue until it's actually out. Frost/Nixon, Revolutionary Road, maybe Australia, maaayyyybbeeee The Reader, are competing for the fifth slot, with The Wrestler and Rachel Getting Married as dark horses.
Also, I encourage everyone to give up on WALL-E for Best Picture. Does it deserve it? Most definitely. But in terms of realistic possibilities, it will be rewarded in its own category, and that'll have to be good enough.
Slumdog Millionaire just as that Academy Awards Best Picture sound to it doesn't it? It's the kind of title you can hear them reading out at the opening of the envelope. Personally, I am still hanging out for Benjamin Button to do big things, but with the gossip, inuendo, rumours and popularity bullshit to contend with it probably won't. Let us never forget that in Modern Times the Best Picture Oscar has gone to movies such as Chicago and Shakespeare in Love!
ReplyDeleteI so hope Meryl gets her name read out as Best Actress at the Kodak Theatre this year! But I also want Kate Winlset to win too! Is this what they call "torn between two lovers"? lol
You know I live down here in Australia so I usually get to see the award season films when the awards are done and dusted. That said, I check out the trailers and get a feel for a movie through overseas refers, trailers, TV spots etc, and I also consider the talent among the director, actors, etc. Having just looked at the trailer for Slumdog Millionaire, something I had not yet done, I am left feeling very underwhelmed. There's nothing about the trailer that excites me - if it weren't for the quotes from critic's views such as Ebert etc, I wouldn't have thought it stood much of a chance. Even watching the trailer does not make me want to go out and see the film itself. But then I was one of those people who picked Babel for Best Picture last year so what would I know? :-)
ReplyDeleteMatty,
ReplyDeleteI felt the same way about the slumdog trailer, but trailers provide a very limited amount of information about a movie. I thought the trailers for Changeling and St. Anna were decent, but the movies got smashed. I think a better indicator is critic ratings. Of course, the best indicator is a personal viewing.
Cool Hand Luke Duke, I totally agree with you, except it grieves me that critics' reviews hold such sway. I honestly don't think some critics are at all objective about films, but in the case of awards, they do seem to mirror winnings. Unfortunately I have to survive on trailers until I see the movie (at least it gives me a sense of cinematography and some acting). I've heard some people are slamming Doubt, which is disappointing - it looks so good!
ReplyDeleteI agree...
ReplyDeleteI don't like relying primarily on critics. They're human just like the both of us, so they are subject to error. However, when enough people like one film, it is typically a strong signal that that particular is decent. Of course, it doesn't necessarily mean that the film will be great. But, we all need something to give us direction (especially since watching movies involves both explicit and implicit costs).Hence, when I plan on going to movies, I like to make sure the movie is somewhat highly regarded. I hate to spend money on crappy movies, so looking to critics often help in minimizing the "watching a bad movie (in theater)" error.