Movies chat, 2/20
3rd & 7 37yd
3rd & 7 37yd
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And, as we hope for some lively speeches on Oscar night, here's an interesting statistic: In a recent analysis of more than a thousand archived Academy Award acceptance speeches, the most-thanked person is Steven Spielberg, with 42 mentions. Right after him is Harvey Weinstein and James Cameron. God, for some reason, is down in sixth place.
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Oscars: Steven Spielberg Is the Most Thanked in History, More Than God
The Hollywood ReporterAnd the award for most mentioned name in Oscars acceptance-speech history goes to Steven Spielberg. -
News from the Academy: There will be, apparently, a great deal of singing in this year's ceremony. In addition to performances of the nominated Best Songs, we'll be treated to unidentified tunes from Lady Gaga, Jennifer Hudson and Anna Kendrick. I am a little nervous about this.
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Oscars: Steven Spielberg Is the Most Thanked in History, More Than God
The Hollywood ReporterAnd the award for most mentioned name in Oscars acceptance-speech history goes to … Steven Spielberg!
The director has been thanked 42 times out of all 1,396 acceptance speeches currently archived online by the Academy, according to Vocativ. -
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'Fifty Shades' Sequel: Author E.L. James Demands Control Over Script (EXCLUSIVE)
VarietyNow that "Fifty Shades of Grey" has become an international box office phenomenon, author E.L. James is seeking more control over the sequel by writing the script herself. Universal Pictures, which... -
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Ok then. Let's talk Best Picture. This is actually, for once, a race with some suspense in it; there are a couple of front-runners, but no clear winner (as is usually the case). "Boyhood" is the sentimental favorite -- everyone loves this movie. "Birdman" has been winning all the pre-Oscar awards. "Grand Budapest Hotel" is the dark horse. "American Sniper" is the box-office favorite. It's not unthinkable that "Selma," if the Academy watches its screeners, could pull an upset. And you can't rule out "The Imitation Game," which seemed, sight unseen, like the most Oscar-friendly of the bunch.
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One year, I got 22 out of 24 categories right. One year, I got 8 out of 24 right. (That was a very depressing year, with people calling me up complaining that I caused them to lose their Oscar pool.) Generally I can pull off 15-16 right, but you never know.
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Some general theories for the tricky categories: The loudest film wins Sound Mixing. (That would be "Interstellar.") The grimmest documentary usually wins (actually, they're all pretty grim this year). One of the two screenplay awards goes to a movie that isn't getting anything else (probably "Whiplash").
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Michael Keaton is absolutely the sentimental favorite -- it's hard to imagine the Academy missing the opportunity to award a former Batman for starring in a movie about a former Birdman. But then again, Eddie Redmayne has been sweeping up the pre-Oscar awards, and is playing the kind of role (physical transformation, real-life inspiration story) that Academy voters love. Plus he's been giving some pretty sweet speeches on the circuit. I still think it might be Keaton, but I'm likely wrong. Definitely not Steve Carell or Bradley Cooper -- it's not their year. Benedict Cumberbatch has an outside shot, but not much of a one.
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Let me also add, though, that the Best Actor category was amazingly crowded this year, with several performances that definitely would have made the cut any other year: David Oyelowo, "Selma"; Timothy Spall, "Mr. Turner"; Ralph Fiennes, "The Grand Budapest Hotel,"; Jake Gyllenhaal, "Nightcrawler." Take a bow, gentlemen.
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Best Documentary That I Have Absolutely No Idea Why It Wasn't Nominated: Steve James' "Life Itself," a wonderfully moving tribute to the late Roger Ebert. (Who probably, now that I think of it, would have had a theory on why it wasn't nominated. We miss you, Roger.)
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Most Beautiful Cinematography That Likely Won't Win: Dick Pope's, for "Mr. Turner." (Maybe it will win. But I think it'll be "Birdman," for all that one-shot wizardry. "Mr. Turner," though, definitely had the year's most exquisite light and color.)
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Wrapping up now, but do join me on Oscar night! (And, if any of you had problems with this chat in our newly re-launched seattletimes.com, please email me and I'll report it: mmacdonald@seattletimes.com.) I'll be kicking off with red-carpet chat (oh, I do love me a nice gown) at 4pm; those who just want to talk about the ceremony can join in at 5:30 p.m. See you then!
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