lcliffor@bbncca.ARPA (Laura Frank Clifford) (02/22/84)
Well, I've been griping about these for a few days, so I decided
to let off a little steam. Following is a list of the "big" nominations
with comments/flames aside the category heading. I liked "Terms of
Endearment", but 11 nominations strikes me as way off base. Too many
good performances/jobs overlooked this year (what else is new?).
_B_e_s_t_ _P_i_c_t_u_r_e_ _-_ What about Local Hero and Star 80? What's all the
The Big Chill fuss about Tender Mercies and the overrated "Terms of
The Dresser Endearment"?
The Right Stuff
Tender Mercies
Terms of Endearment
_B_e_s_t_ _A_c_t_o_r_ _-_ MY GOD!! - Where's Eric Roberts (Star 80)?? I must
admit I haven't seen "The Dresser" yet, but I truly
believe Roberts gave the "best performance by an actor"
this year. The Academy's biggest oversight this year.
Michael Caine, "Educating Rita"
Tom Conti, "Reuben, Reuben"
Tom Courtenay, "The Dresser"
Robert Duvall, "Tender Mercies"
Albert Finney, "The Dresser"
_B_e_s_t_ _A_c_t_r_e_s_s_ _-_ Shirley MacLaine does indeed deserve this one (probably
one of the only nominations this film should have received).
I thought Muriel Hemmingway should get a nomination for her
understated but effective performance in Star 80. At
least they didn't nominate Jennifer Beals.
Jane Alexander, "Testament"
Shirley MacLaine, "Terms of Endearment"
Meryl Streep, "Silkwood"
Julie Walters, "Educating Rita"
Debra Winger, "Terms of Endearment"
_B_e_s_t_ _S_u_p_p_o_r_t_i_n_g_ _A_c_t_o_r_ _-_ What about Jerry Lewis for "King of Comedy"?
What about Kevin Kline and William Hurt in
"The Big Chill"?
Looks like Jack Nicholson's going to pick up
an oscar for doing himself.
Charles Durning, "To Be or Not To Be"
John Lithgow, "Terms of Endearment"
Jack Nicholson, "Terms of Endearment"
Sam Shepard, "The Right Stuff"
Rip Torn, "Cross Creek"
_B_e_s_t_ _S_u_p_p_o_r_t_i_n_g_ _A_c_t_r_e_s_s_ _-_ After seeing "The Year of Living Dangerously",
I never thought the academy would have the
class to nominate Linda Hunt. I was wrong - and
a good thing too! Another top placer in my
mind was Sarah Bernhardt(sp?) for King of
Comedy. Too bad Cher had to wait til
this year's OK performance for the nomination
she should have won last year in "Come Back to
The Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean"
Cher, "Silkwood"
Glenn Close, "The Big Chill"
Linda Hunt, "The Year of Living Dangerously"
Amy Irving, "Yentl"
Alfre Woodard, "Cross Creek"
_B_e_s_t_ _D_i_r_e_c_t_o_r_ _-_ James L. Brooks? Give me a break. Where's
Bill Forsythe (Local Hero) and Bob Fosse (Star 80)?
What about Lawrence Kasdan for "The Big Chill"?
Peter Yates, "The Dresser"
Ingmar Bergman, "Fanny and Alexander"
Mike Nichols, "Silkwood"
Bruce Beresford, "Tender Mercies"
James L. Brooks, "Terms of Endearment"
_B_e_s_t_ _O_r_i_g_i_n_a_l_ _S_c_r_e_e_n_p_l_a_y_ _-_ WARGAMES???? Geez, why not Flashdance?
"The Big Chill", Lawrence Kasdan and Barbara Benedek
"Fanny & Alexander", Ingmar Bergman
"Silkwood", Norah Ephron and Alice Arlen
"Tender Mercies", Horton Foote
"WarGames", Lawrence Lasker and Walter F. Parkes
_B_e_s_t_ _A_d_a_p_t_e_d_ _S_c_r_e_e_n_p_l_a_y_ _-_ At last - "Betrayal" gets a nod.
"Betrayal", Harold Pinter
"The Dresser", Ronald Harwood
"Educating Rita", Willy Russell
"Reuben, Reuben", Julius J. Epstein
"Terms of Endearment", James L. Brooks
_B_e_s_t_ _C_i_n_e_m_a_t_o_g_r_a_p_h_y_ _-_ "Never Cry Wolf", "The Grey Fox" and "The Hunger"
were deserving in this category.
"Fanny & Alexander", Sven Nykvist
"Flashdance", Don Peterman
"The Right Stuff", Caleb Deschanel
"WarGames", William A. Fraker
"Zelig", Gordon Willis
_B_e_s_t_ _F_i_l_m_ _E_d_i_t_i_n_g_ _-_ "Zelig" most assuredly belongs here. Last year,
they overlooked "Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid", so what's
to be expected.
"Blue Thunder"
"Flashdance"
"The Right Stuff"
"Silkwood"
"Terms of Endearment"
_B_e_s_t_ _O_r_i_g_i_n_a_l_ _S_c_o_r_e_ _-_ !!RUMBLEFISH!! - A notably terrific score written
by the drummer of The Police - kinda off-beat jazz (I
don't know enough about jazz to know how to describe it).
John Williams gets a lot of nominations for the same
old stuff year after year. Does anyone really
remember the music to "Terms"?
"Cross Creek", Leonard Rosenman
"Return of the Jedi", John Williams
"The Right Stuff", Bill Conti
"Terms of Endearment", Michael Gore
"Under Fire", Jerry Goldsmithrebbs@bbncca.ARPA (Robert Ebbs) (02/23/84)
About your gripes: The fuss about Tender Mercies: Of course, it hasn't got a chance of winning a damn thing - no violent deaths, no cheesy sex, no upanddown roller coaster ride for the TV conditioned audience, too few queues as to when to (ready, one two three CRY!; okay, now LAUGH!) respond and in what manner. This movie is a marvel in maturity for a Hollywood production. Let's allow it its brief shining moment and maybe this year (and each year following) we'll get our one token adult film from Hollywood. Eric Roberts: Just a question - How can you say he gave this year's best performance if you haven't yet seen The Dresser? Terms of Endearment: God, yes, overrated. I always like Shirley and Jack, but, really, the movie was just better than average TV tearjerker stuff. (Though the book was a fun read and incidentally - you probably know this - was without the character played by JN.) Best Actress: How could Meryl Streep not win this one? (Well, easy; after all this is the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the same group that in 1964 decided that John Wayne did a better job in True Grit than did Dustin Hoffman in Midnight Cowboy!) Best Supporting Actor: Jerry Lewis!? Talk about doing oneself! He was adequate... Of the nominees, I like Lithgow, whose rather woebegone character still came across with some degree of dignity, an element that many actors would have lost or sacrificed for the big cheap laugh. (Yes, credit the director for this, too.) As for Hurt and Kline, seems to me The Big Chill was so much a team movie, all the gears meshing, that no one character stood out enough for special mention. But I would say (dare I?) that the one character you could not subtract without losing the whole tone of the film would be Jeff Goldblum. Think about it. Best Supporting Actress: Linda Hunt, agreed. Ditto on your comments on Cher (except I thought it a better than OK performance.) She has truly become a fine actress. Best Director: Mike Nichols, Silkwood. Screenplay: Damnit, Under Fire is underrated. A fine screenplay, fine direction, fine acting (and I've never particulary appreciated Nick Nolte's persona.) Of all last year's movies, this is the one that was meaty enough for a second viewing. Like Silkwood, it concerned itself with questions of conscience, how much responsibility we must take on ourselves for condoning the world we live in. It was a daring film, doing, not surprisingly, much better in Europe where politically conscious films (and books) are generally better received; Americans are too complacent and truculently maintain that they go to the movies not to think but to have a good time. Cinematography: Again, Under Fire should also be nominated. But this is the one category, I think, where excellence is almost the norm. As a serious amateur photographer, I am amazed at the technical know-how and attention to detail and the commitment to artistic integrity that most cinematographers today show us. I think of all the categories for the Awards, cinematography is the one that requires the longest apprenticeship, the one that most resembles a craftsman's guild, where expertise and dedication are passed on from master to student. Editing: Well, wasn't that what Flashdance was all about? Surely we aren't meant to believe that a 19 year old woman had broken into a tight union as a construction worker in order to study ballet. The Right Stuff, tho, should win here, managing as it does a tough job of crosscutting throughout the movie to make its "statement" concerning who the true pioneers are even while several Johnny Come Lately Blue-Eyed Americans are being heralded as America's new frontiersmen. (And let this be a lesson to all the boys and girls who think a college education is less than important: you too could be left behind in the California desert. So, be elite.) But, really, what does it all matter in the large scheme of things. The only reason to take it halfway seriously is because they who win will be the one who continue to get the backing to do other movies. So we would hope the dedicated, talented and conscientious win.... Fat chance.
moriarty@uw-june (Jeff Meyer) (02/23/84)
While I agree with quite a few of the critiques brought up, please see "Tender Mercies"... I really feel that the academy was on the right track nominating this film and Duvall (who through some weird stroke of fate has never won an oscar. Also, I'm willing to argue with anyone who thinks betrayl is a great movie... I'd be hard pressed to give it the term interesting. The Napoleon of Crime | Currently skulking around | UUCP: MORIARTY | {...decvax!}uw-beaver!uw-june!moriarty | ARPANET: AKA -jwm- | moriarty@washington
chuqui@nsc.UUCP (Chuq Von Rospach) (02/23/84)
I thought I might drop in my half a nickel worth on Laura's nomination
comments, since I disagree with some of her feelings:
Best Picture: The only picture on that list that didn't deserve the
nomination was 'The Right Stuff' since it was all wrong. Star 80 should
have been there instead, but you have to remember that the Academy lives in
the early 30's and has real problems with controversial material and S*X.
Tender Mercies would be a distant second for dropping off the list, but not
for Local Hero. I don't think that Terms of Endearment is all that
overrated, but on top of that it is the kind of movie most directors would
kill to make; a simple, well made, intelligent film that also happens to
make a mint at the box office.
Best Actor: Agreed. Eric Roberts should be in there instead of Michael
Caine, since neither Caine nor Educating Rita were all that stimulating.
The others are all amazingly good performances and deserve to be there.
Best Actress: I don't think that Hemmingway deserves a nomination. She was
good, but it was Roberts movie. I also disagree with Julie Walters and
Educating Rita. Note also the obligatory Streep nomination (once again,
obligatory and deserved...).
Best director: Fosse should be in here, not instead of brooks but instead
of Beresford (Tender Mercies). It isn't the direction that makes that
flick, its the actor. A similar (but less convincing) argument can be made
for silkwood and actresses.
Best Orig. Screenplay: Please note that the screenplay and the movie
sometimes differ significantly. I think Wargames reads much better than it
views, and if you consider it fantasy, it isn't **that** bad.
Fanny&Alexander as a screenplay is an emotional nomination, not a logical
one.
Best cinematography: I don't agree on the Hunger. I also don't think Right
Stuff should have been there, and we can argue all day on flashdance.
Editing: They blew it on zelig. They blew it on 'The Right Stuff (do I see
a pattern here?).
Original Score: Jedi? C'mon folks, Williams could score a Charmin
commercial and get a nomination.
Oh, well....
--
From the house at Pooh Corner: Chuq 'Nuke Wobegon' Von Rospach
{fortune,menlo70}!nsc!chuqui Have you hugged your Pooh today?
Yo, Ho! Yo, Ho! A pirates life for me...wombat@uicsl.UUCP (02/26/84)
#R:bbncca:-60000:uicsl:7600047:000:854 uicsl!wombat Feb 25 18:15:00 1984 I can't believe all the nominations for *The Big Chill*. Haven't any of those people heard of John Sayles? Or would they prefer to forget *The Return of the Seacaucus Seven*? (I've got a fixation on this topic.) A big HOORAY for Linda Hunt; I'm really looking forward to seeing her as the Shadout Mapes in *Dune* this December. I think the editing for *The Right Stuff* would have been even better if they'd let them keep in the extra half hour or so. Some scenes seemed to end too abruptly. It would have been nice if they'd mentioned "whatever happened to ..." for the rest of the astronauts, too, not just Grissom. They did get Wolfe's style down pretty good, though, but it missed ... the commentary ... the thoughts inside their heads ... the constant repetition of "the *Right Stuff*" every half page. Wombat ihnp4!uiucdcs!uicsl!wombat
jpp@hogpd.UUCP (J.PALTIN) (03/02/84)
I am also willing to argue with anyone who thinks Betrayal was not great. It was excellently played by all three protagonists. And Ben Kingsley was, predictably, superb in his role. The movie was appropriately understated and I think, a good representation of the play. For those of us who would never get to see the play this is an excellent alternative. I would have liked to see more nominations for this one. And another gripe. For those of us from Eastern Europe Yentl was a good Oscar candidate. I realize Barbra Streisand is not much liked, but surely not for any faults with this movie. That's it.