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[Borgnine]

A Dark Knight nomination would have been like a Gladiator win.

 

[Skiptastic]

It's a superhero flick that elevates itself to crime drama, but compared to other crime dramas it's just average. Ledger's performance stands out, but look at the hokey and simplistic ("comic book" if you will) world-view it paints, and it's easy to see how it wouldn't get nominated. It's loaded with black-and-white views of the world.

Forrest Gump doesn't present a hokey and simplistic world view? Gladiator? RotK? Titanic? And that's just shit that won Best Picture.

Let's face it: there is some shit that the Oscar voters just eat up like fucking candy, and presenting a world view in black and white doesn't necessarily mean they won't like it.

I'm sick of caring about the Oscars, but goddammit, I grew up loving movies and talking about them and you have to talk about this shit. Wish I could just stop caring.

kick ass at wall-e's 6 nominations including screenplay and score (both well deserved). Best Animated Feature is a shoe-in although I actually greatly enjoyed all three movies in the category for the first time ever. definitely the 3 animated features that should be in there.

Just wanted to say I haven't heard of a screenplay with such few words getting nominated for Best Screenplay in my entire life. :lol

 

[NintendoTogepi]

I'd love to see Presto win for best animated short film. That was one of the funniest things I've seen in years, and my new favorite of Pixars shorts.

To be honest I quite disliked it. It's one of my least favorite Pixar shorts. I didn't even chuckle.

 

[MisterHero]

because it's a comic book based film. that's the only reason. whenever I hear anyone dissing it this is the feeling that I get.

I think that when people say because it's a comic based film, there's more to it.

As a product of the comic book industry, it (any comic film) relies much more on strong writing and established characters. Like in a comic with mediocre art or mediocre concepts, the writing is meant to be able to carry it. In a film, it can make up for an average performance (*wheeze*Christian Bale*wheeze*).

Another aspect of comics such as panel layout can translate to pacing in a movie and thus the editing. Like in a good comic, the pacing will be good in the writing and drawing, so naturally a good comic film will have good or great editing. It isn't necessarilly attributed to the directing or the script.

With characters established before the film, there is perhaps less focus on character development. Of course in TDK, there is some, but the movie more deals with the characters' supposed "basic natures" rather than actual development.

There are films that do aspects of film better than a comic film that tries aspects of film. Not because it's kiddy, too commercial or anything (unless I'm over-crediting the average Academy judge :lol).

Don't get me wrong, TDK is chock full of greatness, but I don't know if it would be Best Picture. (Even though I also prefer Batman 89/Returns over BB/TDK, they aren't Oscar films either :lol :lol :lol).

 

[beelzebozo]

wow, you are satan if you didn't enjoy that short. give me a pen and paper and i will prove it with math.

 

[polyh3dron]

Most of the people who have a say in the editing oscar nominations and especially those who end up voting on it have no idea what goes into editing.

 

[Big-E]

Gran Torino got robbed. The only movie I have seen in the best picture list is Slumdog and I thought it started out great but thought the movie got progressively worse as the kids got older.

 

[DeathbyVolcano]

wow, you are satan if you didn't enjoy that short. give me a pen and paper and i will prove it with math.

:lol

 

[Leonsito]

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10009498-reader/...

Mission accomplished.

 

[AlternativeUlster]

The movie is considered by the film-goers at large and critics to be horrible. I really doubt they'd nominate a movie so despised by the public a and critics even for that type of award. They rarely do so for "bad" movies, even technical awards. It would be like if Batman & Robin had a fantastic soundtrack, they still wouldn't nominate it because it was Batman & Robin a embarrising movie. Same logic applies to Speed Racer. And before the Speed Racer brigade goes crazy about the B&R comparison, yes I realize you loved it but gaf isnt the oscars the movie had some of the worst legs of any blockbuster EVER and near universally terrible reviews so it is a fair comparison for this situation. Hold somesort of GAF year end movie awards instead I guess lol.

Cough cough NORBIT cough FUCKING NORBIT cough cough FUCKING NORBIT THAT GOT RASPBERRY NOMS WHILE GETTING AN OSCAR NOM FOR MAKEUP cough cough.

 

[Gary Whitta]

I wonder how many of the people in this thread who are bitching about The Reader over TDK have actually seen both movies.

 

[DeathbyVolcano]

Cough cough NORBIT cough FUCKING NORBIT cough cough FUCKING NORBIT THAT GOT RASPBERRY NOMS WHILE GETTING AN OSCAR NOM FOR MAKEUP cough cough.

:lol Holy shit I totally forgot about that

 

[TheHeretic]

I wonder how many of the people in this thread who are bitching about The Reader over TDK have actually seen both movies.

I have, though I was dragged into The Reader.

 

[Talamius]

I'm honestly angrier about WALL-E getting snubbed for Best Picture than TDK. There, I said it.

Perhaps Pixar should do a B&W subtitled Holocaust film. That would be a lock

 

[polyh3dron]

It's a superhero flick that elevates itself to crime drama, but compared to other crime dramas it's just average. Ledger's performance stands out, but look at the hokey and simplistic ("comic book" if you will) world-view it paints, and it's easy to see how it wouldn't get nominated. It's loaded with black-and-white views of the world.

Just average compared to what crime dramas? This is like that fallacy where people say that stories in video games suck compared to movies just because the story exists in a video game which inherently lowers their opinion of it for some reason.

It's like you're saying "Bioshock has a great story for a video game, but compared to most Hollywood movies it's average".

Again, people are just pigeonholing TDK due to its "comic book movie" origins.

 

[MIMIC]

I wonder how many of the people in this thread who are bitching about The Reader over TDK have actually seen both movies.

Here's one:

Great minds think alike, because this was my reasoning as to why they didn't nominate TDK.

I can't wait to see F/N, Milk, The Reader, and Ben Button so I can seriously trash the Academy for fucking this movie over. Isn't Supporting Actor one of the first Oscars given out? Once they do, I'm going to bed, those fucking assholes.



Don't remind me. It just makes me madder!

In fact, he hasn't seen 4 out of the 5 :lol (I'm going to go out on a limb and say he didn't see Slumdog either).

 

[YYZ]

The movie is considered by the film-goers at large and critics to be horrible. I really doubt they'd nominate a movie so despised by the public a and critics even for that type of award. They rarely do so for "bad" movies, even technical awards. It would be like if Batman & Robin had a fantastic soundtrack, they still wouldn't nominate it because it was Batman & Robin a embarrising movie. Same logic applies to Speed Racer. And before the Speed Racer brigade goes crazy about the B&R comparison, yes I realize you loved it but gaf isnt the oscars the movie had some of the worst legs of any blockbuster EVER and near universally terrible reviews so it is a fair comparison for this situation. Hold somesort of GAF year end movie awards instead I guess lol.

Speed Racer was ultra mediocre, bordering terrible. It deserves nothing.

 

[AlternativeUlster]

I'm honestly angrier about WALL-E getting snubbed for Best Picture than TDK. There, I said it.

Perhaps Pixar should do a B&W subtitled Holocaust film. That would be a lock

Pixar is making a WWII live action film directed by Brad Bird. Close enough?

 

[jett]

OK, so it was despised by critics, but how does Speed Racer not get a Visual Effects nomination? Didn't they invent a new camera (or at least a new technique) for all the deep focus stuff?

I'd say it has pretty good Art Direction as well, but that could be influenced by whether or not you "got" what they were going for.

It's too bad Speed Racer was passed up by Iron Man. SR is the most visually estimulating movie I've probably ever seen.

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

Pretty badly reviewed movies have gotten that award before, but probably not movies that were panned *and* were flops.

Ah well. Given there are only three movies nominated, it really ought to have gotten one.

 

[DeathbyVolcano]

Pixar is making a WWII live action film directed by Brad Bird. Close enough?

Really? :-\

 

[TrAcEr_x90]

I will be so pissed if mickey rourke doesnt win. Why wasn't the wrestler nominated for anything other than best actor??

 

[Sharp]

I have nothing to say except good job for Wall-E (I hoped for Best Picture but never really expected it, but it was recognized pretty much everywhere else it deserved).

Oh, and WTF, The Reader? Seriously?

 

[~Kinggi~]

Pixar is making a WWII live action film directed by Brad Bird. Close enough?

eh? How can Pixar be doing it if its live action? Are they just taking over the vfx roles? Or is it just Brad Bird as a director?

 

[jett]

Pixar is making a WWII live action film directed by Brad Bird. Close enough?

Uh no? Brad Bird is busy with 1906, a movie about the San Francisco earthquake.

 

[borghe]

eh? How can Pixar be doing it if its live action? Are they just taking over the vfx roles? Or is it just Brad Bird as a director?

pixar is a movie studio. more than just a animation studio. much like disney branched into live action with Mary Poppins, etc.

great filmmakers make great films. doesn't matter what medium they're in. pixar has already said they are open to all ideas, whether CG, hand drawn, or live action.

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

Just average compared to what crime dramas? This is like that fallacy where people say that stories in video games suck compared to movies just because the story exists in a video game.

It's like you're saying "Bioshock has a great story for a video game, but compared to most Hollywood movies it's average".

Again, people are just pigeonholing TDK due to its "comic book movie" origins.

I loved Dark Knight, but really, it's not pigeonholing. You have blinders on if you can't see how limited a movie it is compared to a crime drama (and even crime dramas have a had time getting nominated unless they are either epic or have a deeper layer of meaning than TDK did, or multiple standout performances).

TDK was probably my favorite movie of the year-- that doesn't make it Best Picture material. It's deeper than your average entertainment, true, but it's not as deep (or well acted outside Ledger, or written, or shot) than most dramas.

The only reason I can see giving it a nom is the apparently weak field this year (much of which I have not seen). Compare it to No Country for Old Men or The Departed for otehr crime dramas that won-- and TDK stacks up horribly short. And in the case of The Departed, that was more an "it's an Epic/lifetime achievement/apology to Scorsese" win.

 

[Blader]

A comic book movie will never, ever be Oscar bait. Thats just a flat out idiotic statement.

3 of the 5 nominations are historical dramas (and in fact all of them are dramas). What does that tell you?

You can't take brandon seriously when it comes to movies.

It's a superhero flick that elevates itself to crime drama, but compared to other crime dramas it's just average. Ledger's performance stands out, but look at the hokey and simplistic ("comic book" if you will) world-view it paints, and it's easy to see how it wouldn't get nominated. It's loaded with black-and-white views of the world.

What? :lol The only character in the movie with a black-and-white view was the Joker. Batman, Gordon, and Dent all worked in shades of grey.

 

[PhoenixDark]

TDK was NEVER going to win best picture anyway so stop getting all worked up over nothing.

Many people pointed this out ages ago. I'm not surprised at all

that being said, it's way better than Button

 

[distantmantra]

As long as Slumdog or Milk wins best picture, I'll be happy. Frost/Nixon was also fantastic, but not as good. The Reader and Benjamin Button did not deserve nominations.

Now, on to the cool categories!

Foreign Film:
"The Baader Meinhof Complex," Germany;
"The Class," France;
"Departures," Japan;
"Revanche," Austria;
"Waltz With Bashir," Israel.

The Class was well-made, and Departures was good, but Waltz with Bashir is incredible. It will win hands down. I hope we get Revanche and The Baader Meinhof Complex in Seattle soon. I tend to love the Foreign Film nominees more than the Best Picture noms.

Adapted Screenplay: Eric Roth and Robin Swicord,
"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button";
John Patrick Shanley, "Doubt"; Peter Morgan, "Frost/Nixon";
David Hare, "The Reader";
Simon Beaufoy, "Slumdog Millionaire."

Should go to either Slumdog or Frost/Nixon.

Original Screenplay:
Courtney Hunt, "Frozen River";
Mike Leigh, "Happy-Go-Lucky";
Martin McDonagh, "In Bruges";
Dustin Lance Black, "Milk";
Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon and Pete Docter, "WALL-E."

Now THIS is the awesome category. I'd be thrilled to see any of these win.

Documentary Feature:
"The Betrayal (Nerakhoon),"
"Encounters at the End of the World,"
"The Garden,"
"Man on Wire,"
"Trouble the Water."

Man on Wire will probably win. Too bad Up the Yangtze wasn't nominated, it was my favorite documentary of 2008.

I'm so glad that Frozen River was acknolwedged in screenplay and actress categories. More people should see it.

Too bad Sally Hawkins didn't get nominated, she made Happy Go Lucky the brilliant little film that it was.

Anne Hathaway was incredible in Rachel Getting Married, nice to see her recognized.

 

[AluminumRod]

People actually believed The Dark Knight was getting into best picture? :lol

I loved the movie, but come on.

 

[TheHeretic]

People actually believed The Dark Knight was getting into best picture? :lol

I loved the movie, but come on.

Universal praise and one of the best selling movies of all time? Why shouldn't it have gotten into best picture?

 

[AlternativeUlster]

Uh no? Brad Bird is busy with 1906, a movie about the San Francisco earthquake.

Whoops! I thought I remember reading about something like it years ago. Ah well.

 

[~Kinggi~]

pixar is a movie studio. more than just a animation studio. much like disney branched into live action with Mary Poppins, etc.

great filmmakers make great films. doesn't matter what medium they're in. pixar has already said they are open to all ideas, whether CG, hand drawn, or live action.

Um, most of Pixar's infrastructure is still geared toward animation. They employ people who are great writers and great directors, but they arent exactly like Disney.

 

[DevelopmentArrested]

WHERE's THE WRESTLER NOMS?
No director, screenplay, best song or best pic!

The Reader has 59% on RT and MC!! That's sickening.


i liked dark knight but most people saying it should be best pic prolly saw 5-6 other good movies this year.

 

[DeathbyVolcano]

Many people pointed this out ages ago. I'm not surprised at all

that being said, it's way better than Button

Even though we slightly disagreed on Button, yes yes a thousand times yes.

 

[polyh3dron]

People actually believed The Dark Knight was getting into best picture? :lol

I loved the movie, but come on.

ITS A COMIC BOOK MOVIE LOL

 

[keanerie]

I'm honestly angrier about WALL-E getting snubbed for Best Picture than TDK. There, I said it.

This, though really I wasn't expecting any surprises.

 

[Sharp]

Universal praise and one of the best selling movies of all time? Why shouldn't it have gotten into best picture?

It should have gotten nominated, I suppose, if only due to audience size. But it really doesn't deserve a win.

Also, the five films with the most nominations--Benjamin Button, Slumdog, Milk, Dark Knight and Wall-E--would have been my preferred nominees. Frost/Nixon and the Reader are good movies but even in a pretty bad movie year like 2008 they shouldn't be in the top five. From the number of nominations it is clear that if Oscar voters were willing to let go of their biases against comic book movies and animated films this would have been the list for best picture... shame.

 

[DevelopmentArrested]

Melissa Leo and Richard Jenkins for leading noms is fucking awesome by the way...


oh sorry. back to THE DARK KNIGHT SHOULD HAVE BEEN NOM'D.


this is really awesome too:

“I was out shopping and my wife called me, she was watching on the telly. I’ve waited 35 years for this. I don’t think I’ll be able to wait around for the next one. I’m overwhelmed, actually. It’s my first Oscar nomination. It’s about the sixth time I’ve been in the bakeoff but I’ve never been nominated. It’s very gratifying it’s the best work I’ve ever done as a crew and I’m so proud of the guys.”
-- Chris Corbourld, visual effects, “The Dark Knight”

 

[Meier]

I'm not surprised at Clint being snubbed for Gran Torino on Actor/Director... but Song? Since when did Best Song only get 3 entries? Very odd (not to mention The Boss).

 

[Ignatz Mouse]

Forrest Gump doesn't present a hokey and simplistic world view? Gladiator? RotK? Titanic? And that's just shit that won Best Picture.

Let's face it: there is some shit that the Oscar voters just eat up like fucking candy, and presenting a world view in black and white doesn't necessarily mean they won't like it.

I'm sick of caring about the Oscars, but goddammit, I grew up loving movies and talking about them and you have to talk about this shit. Wish I could just stop caring.



Just wanted to say I haven't heard of a screenplay with such few words getting nominated for Best Screenplay in my entire life. :lol

Bad past winners mean that TDK should have been nominated?

And my point wasn't the a simplistic world-view will disqualify a movie, but that it has to have something which makes up for it. Ledger isn't enough. Gladiator has Epic, Gump has scope, ROTK is epic-squared, and Titanic was a colossal mistake, but love stories have some pull in the category and it was an incredible social phenomenon.

Like I said, I love TDK but it's not without both flaws and some basic shortcomings compared to the other movies you list (except Titanic-- and even that had two main stars who have turned in multiple nom-worthy performances).


FWIW, I don't think Slumdog belongs there for similar reasons, and I enjoyed that too.

 

[Grimmy]

As long as Slumdog or Milk wins best picture, I'll be happy. Frost/Nixon was also fantastic, but not as good. The Reader and Benjamin Button did not deserve nominations.

Now, on to the cool categories!



The Class was well-made, and Departures was good, but Waltz with Bashir is incredible. It will win hands down. I hope we get Revanche and The Baader Meinhof Complex in Seattle soon. I tend to love the Foreign Film nominees more than the Best Picture noms.

REVANCHE!!!! YES!!!
Thumbs-up to the Oscars for nominated this. Frankly I didn't expect it - too dark, too morose, etc. etc.

 

[Barrett2]

Slumdog Millionaire is a predictable, charmless, cheesy, insanely cliched pile of shit, and all it seems to do is remind people of how much better City of God was. The ending is awful, all the actors sub 2 kids are all shit. I am guessing most people love Danny Boyle so much hence all the love.

You pretty much nailed it, especially about City of God... now THAT was a fucking movie.

 

[Sharp]

What a surprise, Wall-E ties Beauty and the Beast for most nominations for an animated film ever. If there weren't an animated film category it would probably still tie it because then voters would likely have voted it in for Best Picture. It's a shame, it really is. But what are you going to do?

 

[Barrett2]

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10009498-reader/...

Oh shit. :lol

So basically the geriatric Academy members couldn't bear to nominate an action film or cartoon, and instead jumped at any winter-release drama they could find?

I'm not surprised at Clint being snubbed for Gran Torino on Actor/Director... but Song? Since when did Best Song only get 3 entries? Very odd (not to mention The Boss).

After giving a ton of undeserved awards to Million Dollar Baby (gag me), I think the Academy has been shamed into staying away from Clint.

 

[HamPster PamPster]

How can you make this thread and not update the OP with the list when its out!

Hey Duckroll, where's Sword of the Stranger? I thought it had a chance. I'd put the dog up for best supporting character if it was up to me

 

[Hitokage]

Oh shit. :lol

So basically the geriatric Academy members couldn't bear to nominate an action film or cartoon, and instead jumped at any winter-release drama they could find?

You know, if this is the cost of having a certain other balloting turn out well, I'll take it.

 

[Skiptastic]

In fact, he hasn't seen 4 out of the 5 :lol (I'm going to go out on a limb and say he didn't see Slumdog either).

Wrong limb, buddy. I saw Slumdog at a sneak peek. I'd still nominate TDK over that, though I can understand why the Oscar people wouldn't.

It's MY opinion on what should or should not be nominated. I'd fucking nominate In Bruges before Slumdog. But In Bruges didn't have the support and/or clout that TDK did. TDK is my movie of 2008. Again, I'm not "trashing The Reader", I'm just pissed that TDK get nominated. But that opinion could change after I see the other four. (Wait, no it won't because I saw Slumdog and would nominate TDK over Slumdog. Never mind.)

Bad past winners mean that TDK should have been nominated?

And my point wasn't the a simplistic world-view will disqualify a movie, but that it has to have something which makes up for it. Ledger isn't enough. Gladiator has Epic, Gump has scope, ROTK is epic-squared, and Titanic was a colossal mistake, but love stories have some pull in the category and it was an incredible social phenomenon.

Like I said, I love TDK but it's not without both flaws and some basic shortcomings compared to the other movies you list (except Titanic-- and even that had two main stars who have turned in multiple nom-worthy performances).

FWIW, I don't think Slumdog belongs there for similar reasons, and I enjoyed that too.

Fair enough. I was just playing against the simple argument that the world view is a really great argument against TDK. I would have thought that Ledger's performance, great noir and scope of the city scape (as much as one can get in a movie based in a modern city, they fucking flipped a semi!), and huge box office for a high quality movie would have been enough for them to nominate it.

You know, if this is the cost of having a certain other balloting turn out well, I'll take it.

Yeah, national elections and the Oscars tend to have an adversarial relationship in the cosmic balance that way.

 

[Solo]

RotK wasn't even deserving of the Best Picture though :/

No, it wasnt. BUT, keeping in line with my previous remark about the Oscars not awarding the best film so much as they are making up for flubs of years past, I see the ROTK Best Picture win to be a mulligan for FOTR not winning in 2001.