Oscar Nominations are out

[kpresidente]

I have to go back to this and agree. I've had the "pleasure" of knowing quite a few men like Fletcher in my life and have probably been a bit of a "bad guy" myself, but JK Simmons is the first actor that made me feel that vile taste in my mouth like I've experienced around those kind of people.

I liked him, and as I see it, he was redeemed at the end. Of course, they threw in the part about one of the former students killing themselves just to let you would know exactly how they feel about him, but that part felt tacked on and was never believable, so I just ignore it. But the single-minded pursuit of excellence and devotion to the craft should be admired, not condemned, and it's a broken culture engrossed in mediocrity that wants to paint his "type" as the villain.

[dabvu2498]

I liked him, and as I see it, he was redeemed at the end. Of course, they threw in the part about one of the former students killing themselves just to let you would know exactly how they feel about him, but that part felt tacked on and was never believable, so I just ignore it. But the single-minded pursuit of excellence and devotion to the craft should be admired, not condemned, and it's a broken culture engrossed in mediocrity that wants to paint his "type" as the villain.

Nah. You can be single-minded and devoted to craft without the slurs and putting your hands on students. Fletcher was a bad guy. And not all the players that Fletcher admired had been "motivated" in such ways. Heck, Fletcher didn't even get the Charlie Parker/Jo Jones confrontation correct.

The real story of the cymbal, at least as it’s been told over and over again in biographies and in the press—most famously in Ross Russell’s 1973 Bird Lives!—reveals how Whiplash distorts the Parker legend to fit its twisted premise. Jones didn’t throw the cymbal at Parker’s head. He threw it at the floor around his feet, “gonging” him off. In other words, it was not an episode of physical abuse. Perhaps more importantly, according to the usual Parker lore, he wasn’t so much following the charts as flying off them, modulating into unusual keys, and demonstrating the kind of daring improvisation that would revolutionize the art form (though many versions of the story do say that he eventually lost his key). The humiliation of Jones’ gesture did help motivate Parker to keep practicing, but creative genius is more than discipline and how-fast-can-you-play athleticism.

http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/...ut_genius.html

Fletcher's a bad dude. The fact that he got the results that he wanted in the end doesn't redeem him, as a human, at all.

[cincinnati chili]

Finally saw Boyhood. Quite good. This could have been interesting just as a gimmick, but they managed to create something really special. Imagine what would have happened if the boy turned into a lousy actor.

[marcshoe]

Whoever wins best actress needs to just give the trophy to the person who deserves it, Beyonce. Best actor too.

[redsmetz]

This week I watch one of the foreign language nominees, a Polish film titled "Ida" about a young Catholic novice preparing to make her final vows as a nun. Her superior tells her she needs to go spend time with her only living relative, an aunt. The movie is set in 1962 Poland and deals with the war and its consequences. I heard the director on Fresh Aire this week and decided to catch it on Netflix. It's a very subdued movie, filmed in black & white. It could seem plodding to some, but I thought it moved along well enough. The actress who played the young nun actually had never acted before, but was found by an acquaintance of the director who wasn't satisfied with any of the actresses he'd auditioned. Again, I'd recommend it, although it's a fairly spare move.

[klw]

Just saw "Grand Budapest Hotel" last weekend. I am surprised it was nominated for anything other than the Razzies. boy did I not enjoy that movie.

[RFS62]

I really liked Grand Budapest Hotel, and I absolutely loved Birdman.

Haven't seen Whiplash yet, but my preconceived notion is that I'll like it.

It would take a lot to get me to vote for anything else other than Birdman for best actor, best picture, best director, and maybe best supporting actress.

It was magnificent.

[dfs]

Just saw "Grand Budapest Hotel" last weekend. I am surprised it was nominated for anything other than the Razzies. boy did I not enjoy that movie.

I think it's the best film Wes Anderson has ever made and that he's got a great film in him.

I don't think gb was that great film, but I think it's on it's way.

And I thing rfs62 has very good taste. If you are only going to watch one of those films, birdman is the one to see.

And boyhood is going to win....

[vaticanplum]

I think if you like Linklater's other work, you will love it. You may not even need to like earlier Linklater, but knowing his style is helpful in that things in this film don't really happen in the same way as they do in other feature films. It is more about tonal ambience than actual events -- about following the maturation of a little boy into a man, and about the experience of doing so in a three-hour span. Sure there are events in the narrative, but they are loosely arranged and thematic, more about watching the character's reactions than about establishing clarity about his motivations or his overt personality traits.

Hawke is great -- very much like the character in the Before Sunrise trilogy, in many ways, though this guy is far less successful in life. The film manages to be deeply moving and well-nigh spiritual about the process of growing up without (for the most part) being too heavy handed. Patricia Arquette is amazing, too... and I thought Eller Coltrane was really solid, especially since when they cast him as a six year-old there is no way they could have known whether he would be any good at acting later on.

I saw Boyhood last night. It's not even my favorite of Linklater's films, but I think it needs to be recognized for the achievement that it is. What he did with this movie is extraordinarily difficult, and I'm not even talking about logistics. He breaks just about every convention of storytelling (objectives, focused action, character arc, time and place continuity) and still pulls it off. You have to be extremely deliberate and careful to do all this and still end up with an engrossing story. That the movie still has, in my opinion, a clear message without at all feeling like it has a clear message is all that much more impressive.

[WildcatFan]

I finally saw Boyhood, and I think I appreciate the ideas themselves but didn't think they made for a particularly interesting movie. The short scenes did make the almost 3 hour runtime feel quicker than that, though.

[NebraskaRed]

I saw Boyhood last night. It's not even my favorite of Linklater's films, but I think it needs to be recognized for the achievement that it is. What he did with this movie is extraordinarily difficult, and I'm not even talking about logistics. He breaks just about every convention of storytelling (objectives, focused action, character arc, time and place continuity) and still pulls it off. You have to be extremely deliberate and careful to do all this and still end up with an engrossing story. That the movie still has, in my opinion, a clear message without at all feeling like it has a clear message is all that much more impressive.

I feel the same way. It's the best movie I saw last year,hands down. Instead of feeling gimmicky, I think the "gimmick" provides a sort of cumulative power to this movie that could not have been achieved had they used different actors to play the same character at different ages.

[_Sir_Charles_]

Of the best picture nominees, I've seen American Sniper, Selma, Theory of Everything, Immitation Game and Whiplash. Tough choice there. I'm leaning towards Immitation Game, but the performances in Whiplash are hard to beat. That movie just blew me away. The only one I hope DOESN'T win is Selma. It was okay, but not in the class as the other 4 IMO.

JK Simmons for supporting actor should be a slam dunk.

Just my 2 cents.

[757690]

My thoughts on the actual show:

1. Neil Patrick Harris should host every year until he dies, and then I wouldn’t mind a “Weekend At Bernie’s” attempt after that.
2. Hollywood redeemed itself for its “Selma” snub, by giving the song “Glory” a standing ovation, acknowledging that those black people sure are good at singing and dancing.
3. So it seems that the key to John Travolta pronouncing names right is wearing an even more noticeable hairpiece than usual.
4. Lady Gaga singing a medley from “The Sound of Music” was almost the highlight of the night. The only thing missing was Julie Andrews singing a medley of “Bad Romance,” “Poker Face” and “Born This Way.”
5. “Well, there’s always 2027.” - Richard Linklater at the end of the evening.

[HeatherC1212]

Lady Gaga was OUTSTANDING last night. She blew me away with that medley and I'm someone who all ready knew she could sing (her acoustic stuff is amazing if you haven't heard any of it). I hope she sticks with being more 'normal' with her music for a while and gets rid of all the artsy garbage because she is insanely talented and deserves to be recognized for it.

[RedTeamGo!]

I will never watch the Oscars again. That was an embarrassment last night.

Neil Patrick Harris should have been removed from the stage after he made fun of a woman literally 5 seconds after her commenting about her son committing suicide. I mean, I am sure he was told to make a joke about the dress by production before the suicide comment, but you can't take a step back and just not make a joke? Really?