2009-10 looking like unpredictable year in Hollywood
The dates are set for a flood of screenings, ****tail receptions and Q&A sessions, with plenty more to come. This means only one thing: Awards season is here!
So it's time for our second annual series of awards columns, in which we will wander through the kudos world like a Tinseltown Margaret Mead, observing the strange rituals of the natives.
I've always liked awards because they are like time capsules, offering clues about the tastes and priorities of each era. As such, the 2009-10 season should be one of the craziest and most unpredictable in memory -- because this has been a year of massive changes.
In the past six months, four of the majors have seen top-level exec shifts, reflecting the turbulence as everything changes: the backing (so long, hedge funds!), the salaries (au revoir, first-dollar gross!) and the marketing (auf wiedersehen, ad buys in consumer newspapers!).
There are changes in film budgets: The marketing for "Paranormal Activity" cost a gazillion times more than production; Is this an anomaly or an omen?). And there have been shifts in word of mouth (Twittering and texting were credited with "Bruno's" 39% B.O. drop from opening day to Saturday) and in audiences' viewing rituals (Redbox, Netflix, downloads, VOD have all found places in the release window).
So what does all this mean for awards season? Changes have begun; the question is whether these are just cosmetic changes or whether they portend fundamental shifts in the kudos business:
•The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences and the Producers Guild have expanded their best-pic races to 10 nominations.
•There are so many films from female, gay, minority and foreign-language helmers that seem worthy of consideration this year that it's possible the best-director noms might not include a single English-speaking, Caucasian, straight male. It's not likely, but, for the first time, it's possible. n In the days of "Bwana Devil" and "It Came From Outer Space," who thought 3D would be a factor in awards consideration?
•The list of companies on the kudos scene includes new players (such as the Bob Berney-Bill Pohlad Apparition), and newish ones (Summit, Overture), while established ones are stepping up (IFC, Magnolia) and one of the old mainstays is seriously altered (Miramax). Every past awards season has been keyed to one premise: Who will win the big prizes? But this year, there's another question: What will the shows look like? The February Oscarcast, under Laurence Mark and Bill Condon, showed kudocast folks that you can break with tradition to the benefit of both those in the auditorium and those watching at home.
Perhaps inspired by this radicalism, the Golden Globes will have a host for the first time since 1995. The Academy Awards will have two hosts, and has shifted its Governors Awards to a separate ceremony. The Independent Spirit Awards have traded venues and dates. The Critics Choice Movie Awards have a new name and a new location. And the Gotham Awards noms were announced Oct. 19 via Webcast.
So the scene is set for what could be an exciting, breaking-all-rules, wacky season. One hopes so: Innovations and surprises could re-energize the entire ritual.
But don't bet the farm on it. In changing times, people sometimes take comfort in the familiar. So it's possible that kudos voters will retreat to things that are retro and safe this season.
The TV biz offered a recent reminder that it's not easy to change long-entrenched traditions, as naysayers shot down CBS-ATAS' proposal to present eight Emmys off-air.
And while 10 best-pic noms could alter the entire mood of the season -- adding comedies, docus, toons and foreign fare into the usual mix of "prestige" films -- the 10 slots could simply mean more of the same. (Don't forget: The AFI, Critics Choice Awards and Golden Globes have been saluting 10 for a long time.)
Will things change? Who are the frontrunners and dark horses? Don't look to this column for predictions. We are impartial, we are Switzerland. And by that I mean WWII-era neutral Switzerland, not Polanski-in-jail Switzerland or let's-study-their-healthcare-system Switzerland.
And when our Swiss friends are at the center of two hot-button controversies, you know the world has turned upside down.
So enjoy the awards season and keep watching the skies for major changes!
Posts: 5425 | Location: "Stay Classy San Diego!" | Registered: June 15, 2006
We really need to be able to say things like ****tail and pea**** and Joe ****er. It's kinda crazy that it gets blocked out like that.
Anyhoo, I'm glad I'm not the only one who doesn't know what to think about this year. Even with everyone's predictions so far it just seems like we're starting off with far fewer movies than are usually in the mix at this point. So I'm wondering what's going to happen. I have no clue.
FYC District 9 and Sharlto Copley The Hurt Locker and Jeremy Renner and Kathryn Bigelow Watchmen This Is It Christoph Waltz in Inglourious Basterds Paul Rudd in I Love You, Man
Originally posted by Aura: We really need to be able to say things like ****tail and pea**** and Joe ****er. It's kinda crazy that it gets blocked out like that.
Don't forget my favorite director Alfred Hitch****. Or my favorite Russ Meyer film, Faster, *****cat Kill Kill.
This message has been edited. Last edited by: puxzkkx,
"Notorious was nice, but it’s not in the color purple range" "Angels and Demons may get nominated for cinematography the imagery was profound" "District Nine will definitely win for best foreign film it made money and everyone loved it" ~ 8movies
Posts: 2714 | Location: nz | Registered: January 12, 2009
Originally posted by OnMyBirthday: Why can't we say "*****," but we can say "pussies"?
It's less "shocking" if it's plural?
Haha, I never noticed that. Hmm... ****s!
Nope, didn't work. Damn.
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Tye-Grr,
FYC, Oscars 2010-
Best Picture- Star Trek Best Picture- Up Best Supporting Actor- Zachary Quinto in 'Star Trek' Best Supporting Actor- Michael Gambon in 'Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince' Best Actress- Tilda Swinton in 'Julia' Best Supporting Actress- Elle Fanning in 'Phoebe in Wonderland' Best Actor- Robert Downey Jr. in 'The Soloist' Best Supporting Actor- Jamie Foxx in 'The Soloist'
Posts: 271 | Location: STOCKTON, CA | Registered: August 12, 2009
I think it is beyond ridiculous that we cannot even type the name Alfred Hitch**** without it being censored. And I am flat out amazed that this has never been fixed in all the time GoldDerby has been hosted here.
Originally posted by Aura: We really need to be able to say things like ****tail and pea**** and Joe ****er. It's kinda crazy that it gets blocked out like that.
Don't forget my favorite director Alfred Hitch****. Or my favorite Russ Meyer film, Faster, *****cat Kill Kill.
It's silly when they blackout those words. derrrr The board should crack down on cutting and pasting articles from other publications whole cloth (!), but another poster told me everyone does it. I was cheered yesterday to see that at least the moderators post links. : )
Posts: 194 | Location: East of Madison | Registered: October 07, 2009
"Notorious was nice, but it’s not in the color purple range" "Angels and Demons may get nominated for cinematography the imagery was profound" "District Nine will definitely win for best foreign film it made money and everyone loved it" ~ 8movies
Posts: 2714 | Location: nz | Registered: January 12, 2009
ANYWAY.... Back to the Unpredictable Awards Season
... Um... nice article... ****
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Dr. McPhearson,
---- OSCAR FYC: Best Picture - "Up" Best Actor - Michael Stuhlbarg, "A Serious Man" Best Actress - Saoirse Ronan, "Lovely Bones" Best Supporting Actor - Christoph Waltz, "Basterds" Best Original Screenplay - "Up"
Posts: 1924 | Location: Right behind you. | Registered: December 07, 2007
Originally posted by trans_lux73: It's silly when they blackout those words. derrrr The board should crack down on cutting and pasting articles from other publications whole cloth (!), but another poster told me everyone does it. I was cheered yesterday to see that at least the moderators post links. : )
I always include the links with any articles that I paste. Like you, at first I was reluctant to copy and paste whole articles too because every other messageboard that I've posted absolutely forbids the practice, so it felt weird doing it.