After much-anticipation, the nominees for 81st Academy Awards were announced today. For the most part, the list doesn’t really shine; some categories are as expected, some include surprises, and some just don’t make any sense at all.
First of all, the bright spot. After many, many months of wonder, debates, and arguments — Heath Ledger was indeed given his much-deserved Oscar nomination. Whether he’ll actually win or not is yet to be seen — he does have some very strong competition — but now that he has received the nomination, it would really be a perfect and poetic ending to an extremely sad story.
On the more negative side: the Best Picture category. Keep in mind that I haven’t seen any of these movies, so my opinions are strictly based on what I’ve heard about the various films that were thought to be in contention for a Best Picture nomination. Considering what I’ve heard, one can’t help but think that this year’s five is a little… boring. From what I’ve gathered, there were definitely other movies that could have replaced multiple nominees, so why did they not?
Continue reading for more, as well as the complete list of nominees.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Directed by David Fincher
Starring Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Taraji P. Henson
Rated PG-13
Release Date: December 25, 2008
Every movie made employs the use of some sort of gimmick. Some are smaller than others and they don’t always work but whether it is the cast, the special effects, or something else, every filmmaker uses some device that they hope will allow their movie to rise above their contemporaries. In The Curious Case of Benjamin Button the gimmick is the story. A baby is born with the appearance and all of the physical limitations of an old man who ages backwards through life. It’s really a fascinating premise that, beyond its initial intrigue, stirs a lot of questions. How would one operate under the construction of backwards aging? How would you let it shape your everyday life? On a deeper level, how would you deal with the inevitability of loss in your life that would be compounded by that very construction? It is in the film’s attempt to answer these questions that you will find its true appeal.
At first glance, this film seems like a fairly odd film choice for director David Fincher. The styles of his previous films were consistently dark and stylish, in story and design. So why would a director who made his name with films like Fight Club, Se7en, and Zodiac opt for a character-driven fairy tale? For starters, he is one of probably a handful of directors with the ability to handle the special effects needed to properly translate the required images to the screen while being able to balance them against the story. If the main device of the movie is the setup, then right behind it would be how the effects were handled. Technologically, the film is a masterpiece. Throughout the film we see Benjamin (Brad Pitt) at every point in his life, from grave to cradle. Almost every scene features Pitt at various ages other than his own and you are left with no choice other than to believe it — it is just that seamless. In an early scene you see a child’s body with the 80-year-old face of Brad Pitt and you believe it. It is obvious enough to notice but subtle enough for you not to care. It’s only after the film is over do you start to wonder how it was done. The greatest compliment I can give the film is never once are you taken out of the story because of the effects.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett, is probably the most anticipated movie of the holiday season, and the soundtrack for the film has a lot of award buzz as well. The score, by Alexandre Desplat, has already been nominated for a Golden Globe, so an Oscar nod is surely not far behind.
In honor of its recent nomination, we here at Geeks of Doom have one (1) The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Soundtrack to give away to one lucky winner!
One (1) winner will receive:
— (1) The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Soundtrack CD
This is a 2-CD collection of the film’s original score by Alexandre Desplat, along with tunes by Louis Armstrong, The Platters, and Bix Beiderbecke and more. The soundtrack goes on sale on December 16, 2008.
You can here some of the score at Warner Bros. BAFTA site for the film, and a few tracks here below too. For the track listing and more information about his CD, see the About section here below.
TO ENTER: Fill out the form below and submit. Entry form is here after the jump.
RULES: One entry per person. All entries must be in by Friday, December 19, 2008 at 9pm EST. This contest is only open to residents of the United States. No international entries will be accepted. Void where prohibited. Winners will be chosen randomly from valid entries and will be notified by email. NOTE: We will not sell your contact info into spam slavery. Enter with confidence.
Students of the Unusual™ comic cover used with permission of 3BoysProductions
The Mercuri Bros.™ comic cover used with permission of Prodigal Son Press
