2010 Oscars (Academy Award) Nominations

Posted by Greg Treadway | Movies & Cinema | Wednesday 17 February 2010 3:47 pm

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Avatar, James Cameron and Jon Landau.
With Earth an ecological disaster, a corporation sets its sights on the distant planet Pandora, which possesses a mineral that can be used as a valuable energy source. To overcome the resistance of the planet’s indigenous population, the Na’vi, former Marine Jake Sully is sent to infiltrate the society as a part-human, part-Na’vi avatar who can operate on Pandora while Jake himself remains in a twilight sleep.

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The Blind Side, Gil Netter, Andrew A. Kosove and Broderick Johnson.
African-American teenager Michael Oher has been in and out of the foster care system throughout his difficult childhood. When suburban mom Leigh Anne Tuohy, whose children are Michael’s schoolmates, discovers him living on the streets, he gains a home with the Tuohy family and receives the stability and encouragement he needs to develop his talents as a football player.
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District 9, Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham.
The arrival of an enormous disabled spaceship over Johannesburg, South Africa, has led to the establishment of a refugee camp on the city’s outskirts for the ship’s starving, stranded aliens. Leading an attempt to relocate its inhabitants to a more remote location is security expert Wikus van de Merwe, whose lack of knowledge about the visitors will undergo a dramatic change when he becomes infected with an alien substance.
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An Education, Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey
When Jenny, a 16-year-old English schoolgirl, finds herself the object of a calculated seduction by a charming older man, she is by turns wary, flattered, and disarmed by his interest. As their relationship develops, Jenny is drawn deeper into a sophisticated world of wealth and style that may be too good to be true.
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The Hurt Locker
Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier and Greg Shapiro
As the war in Iraq continues, Staff Sgt. William James carries out one of the most dangerous of all military assignments: bomb defusing. While James thrives on the job’s risks, the head of his support team, Sgt. JT Sanborn, becomes increasingly worried by what he feels is a growing recklessness in James’s behavior.
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Inglourious Basterds, Lawrence Bender.
Shosanna, a resourceful young movie theater owner fighting to stay one step ahead of the Nazis in occupied France, plots her revenge on the man responsible for her family’s death, the flamboyant Col. Hans Landa. Her plan soon draws the attention of Lt. Aldo Raine, who leads a group of Jewish soldiers known as the Basterds in a savage campaign behind enemy lines.
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Precious, Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness and Gary Magness.
Sixteen-year-old Precious Jones is overweight, nearly illiterate, and the victim of horrific physical and verbal abuse at the hands of her mother and father. Facing a seemingly hopeless future, Precious transfers to a new school, where a dedicated teacher and fellow classmates offer the unhappy young girl a chance for a new life.
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A Serious Man, Joel Coen and Ethan Coen.
In a series of escalating personal catastrophes, physics professor Larry Gopnik finds himself facing an unfaithful wife, ungrateful children, a troubled brother-in-law and poison pen letters at work. But Gopnik is a fundamentally decent man, and he tries, with increasing despair, to respond rationally and fairly to trials befitting a modern-day Job.
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Up, Jonas Rivera.
Carl Fredricksen, a gruff, lonely old man, thwarts an attempt to force him out of his home by launching it into the air with hundreds of helium balloons. As he sets his sights on South America, however, Carl discovers he has an inadvertent stowaway: a Boy Scout named Russell who was trapped on his front porch.
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Up in the Air, Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman and Jason Reitman.
Ryan Bingham is a corporate downsizer who spends his days in hotels, airports, and airplanes as he travels around the country laying off other companies’ workers with polished finesse. His pursuit of a life without emotional connections is called into question, however, by his interactions with two women, one a sophisticated fellow traveler and the other an inexperienced young colleague.

Quantum Project (screenplay, 2000)

Posted by Greg Treadway | Movies & Cinema | Wednesday 17 February 2010 3:38 pm

Quantum Project by David Aaron Cohen. 2000.

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Early Oscar Predictions 2010

Posted by Greg Treadway | Movies & Cinema | Monday 4 January 2010 4:34 pm

It is always tough to make Best Picture nominations. But by now there are plenty of indicators and other awards that have been bestowed. So taking an educated guess, here are my predictions for the Best Picture category.

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Precious, The Buzz: How strong is the hype on this critically acclaimed urban drama and Sundance darling? Tyler Perry AND Oprah have stepped on as executive producers, almost ensuring that magical combo of strong reviews and popular support.

A Serious Man. The Buzz: The Coen brothers don’t need no stinkin’ stars (no offense, Michael Stuhlbarg) for what looks to be another darkly comedic triumph. The film earned kudos all around at Toronto.

The Lovely Bones, The Buzz: Peter Jackson returning to drama to helm the highly anticipated adaptation of a widely celebrated novel, with Oscar-nominated leads Mark Wahlberg, Rachel Weisz and Saoirse Ronan? The force with this one is strong.

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Up in the Air, The Buzz: This George Clooney dramedy directed by Jason Reitman (‘Thank You for Smoking’) was the toast of Toronto, earning raves across the board. EW’s Oscar guru Dave Karger writes that the film “lives up to all the hype” and “seems like a great bet for a nomination.”

Up. The Buzz: Pixar’s 10th straight critical darling was also their 10th straight box office smash, earning $291 million. ‘WALL-E’ was considered a dark horse a year ago, but with the Best Picture category expanded to 10 slots, ‘Up’ could be a shoo-in.

Nine, The Buzz: Not to be confused with the psychedelically animated ‘9,’ or the actioner ‘District 9,’ this is the musical directed by Rob Marshall (‘Chicago’), based on Fellini’s ‘8 ½,’ and starring Oscar heavyweights Daniel Day-Lewis, Nicole Kidman, Penelope Cruz and Marion Cotillard. Yeah, this one’s a safe bet.

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Avatar, The Buzz: Reactions to the first trailer weren’t as unanimously positive as promised (at least for those NOT wearing 3-D glasses), but we’d be fools to doubt long-reigning “King of the World” James Cameron, who has not-so-subtly hinted at “revolutionizing filmmaking” with this sci-fi epic.

The Hurt Locker, The Buzz: One of the best reviewed films of the year, Kathryn Bigelow’s startling war drama is another film that a year ago would no doubt be on the outside looking in but now stands a solid shot at a Best Picture nom given the wider field.

Invictus, The Buzz: Clint Eastwood has about a .500 batting average of making Oscar’s short list since he’s become primarily a director, with ‘Mystic River,’ ‘Million Dollar Baby’ and ‘Letters From Iwo Jima’ all making the cut. Expect this Nelson Mandela story to up his stats.

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Star Trek. The Buzz: J.J. Abrams’ dynamic reboot is the definitive example of the type of film the Academy would like to see get nominated, if only to boost ratings. Unlike, say, ‘Transformers,’ it was worshipped by critics and audiences alike.

Invictus [2009, Clint Eastwood] review

Posted by Greg Treadway | Movies & Cinema | Friday 18 December 2009 4:32 pm

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This film is a Clint Eastwood movie. He has a way of putting his mark on each of his films, making it distinctly Eastwood. The movies tend to get to the point of the story. They are tight and don’t waste space or the audience’s time. Once again with Invictus, his style of moviemaking works for him and this tight, no nonsense film can proudly be called an Eastwood film.

The film is essentially about the period of Nelson Mandela’s life when he was released from prison after twenty-seven years. Afterwards he was elected President of South Africa. He presided over a divided country. The blacks don’t trust the whites and vice versa. In order to unite the country Mandela (Morgan Freeman) came up with the idea of using sports.

Rugby is the sport of choice in South Africa and the Springbok team represented South Africa. The team was lead by Francois Pienaar (Matt Damon) and he and his teammates were far from favorites to win the 1995 World Cup. Still Mandela thought they could and he enlisted the help of Francoise to inspire the team to greatness.

This is the bare bones of the plot and the bare bones of the script. We get glimpses along the way of the country, Mandela and Pienaar but there are no “getting to know you” scenes. It is either basic to the plot or it is not shown.

At first this lack of detail is off putting but as the film progresses the audience is drawn into the quest for glory of the rugby team and with Mandela’s vision of unity. The emotions of the story have a life of their own and eventually make the movie a rousing success.

Most of us know little to nothing about the sport of rugby, but that is not a block to enjoying this film. As long as you can appreciate the dream of unity Mandela has, and how he uses the team to achieve that goal then you will be able to follow the film. Freeman and Damon are at the top of their game and they are in the hands of the maestro himself. Eastwood does things the “Eastwood way” and ends up with one of the best movies of the year.

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Top Movie Posters of All Time [UPDATE]

Posted by Greg Treadway | Movies & Cinema | Friday 18 December 2009 4:27 pm

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American Beauty 1999 is certainly not ranked number one, but it is a fine example of an iconic image for movie poster history. Pulp Fiction 1994 is a highly sought after poster, especially this Cannes Film Festival version. The Gold Rush 1925. Metropolis 1927 36×83 size sold for $690,000 making it the most expensive poster.

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The Mummy 1932 was recently sold for $435,500. The Black Cat 1934 sold for $286,800 and the style B is going under the auction block in November 2009. 1927-28 Oscar Best Picture winner Wings.
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King Kong 1933 is 41×81 in size. Frankenstein 1931 had a recent auction price of $189,000. Babe Comes Home is 1927. The Mad Doctor is a Mickey Mouse poster from 1933.
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Jules et Jim 1962 was paid homage to in Cameron Crowe’s Vanilla Sky 2001 which is just an ego poster for Tom Cruise. If one must choose a Tom Cruise poster it would have to be Risky Business 1983. Gun Crazy 1950 aka Deadly is the Female is a great example of pulp art.

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Le Divorce 2003 is a nicely designed poster with the Eiffel Tower snugly tucked in the cleavage. The Rocketeer 1991 is a great example of art deco work making this poster highly sought after. Jaws is a very famous poster. Of course the picture shown on the poster is not even in the movie, in fact it is a hand drawn image.

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Notorious Bettie Page 2005 has a classic look of an iconic image but the popularity may not be enough to push this poster too high on the list. Star Wars Episode One 1999 is a well thought out designed poster with the Darth Vador image in the shadow of young Annikin. This Alien 1979 poster is a very recognizable image that should put it at a decent number on the list. Also from 1979 is Manhattan with Woody and Mia at the 59th street bridge, both scene and poster are etched into movie history.
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All About Eve 1950 poster is a throwback to the 1950s design era. Grand Hotel 1931 was the best picture winner of that year and the poster captures the feeling of that movie. Casablanca is of course a classic, and so is the poster and it is a bonus as an Academy Award winner. Naturally Chinatown has to be on the list. The wild vivid colors are beautifully designed.

The Final, Edge of Darkness, Kick Ass posters

Posted by Greg Treadway | Movies & Cinema | Friday 18 December 2009 2:57 pm

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Posters for The Final & Edge of Darkness and another in the series of Kick Ass pos

Did You Hear About the Morgans? [2009, Marc Lawrence] review

Posted by Greg Treadway | Movies & Cinema | Friday 18 December 2009 2:37 pm

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Let me say that I have not seen this movie. I normally don’t do this, but I can’t help myself. This movie has been made so many times. It has been done on Sex and the City, other Hugh Grant movies, and more.

The story is Sarah Jessica Parker who plays Meryl Morgan, an overcaffeinated New York City woman who, and despite running the city’s most faaabulous boutique real estate firm, blabs about her biological clock to complete strangers and has a rare talent for jumping up and down and shrieking. Hugh Grant is her estranged mate Paul, who cheats, leaves rambling voice mails and stammers. Both are playing to their respective stero-type. When the pair stumble onto the murder scene of of Meryl’s client and get an eyeful of the killer, they are conveniently whisked into temporary witness protection in a small Wyoming town with a red neck and a heart of gold.

Ick!!

This stinker is someone reeks of producers that had to throw some money away this year for tax purposes. It is hard to believe this movie gets made.

Final Grade: Septic Tank Smell – Stay Away.4septictank.jpg

Academy Awards Vegas Odds

Posted by Greg Treadway | Movies & Cinema | Thursday 17 December 2009 2:59 pm

Academy Awards Odds (More Academy Awards odds to follow when the nominees are announced)
2010 Academy Awards – Odds to Win Best Picture

  1. Up in the Air 3/1
  2. The Hurt Locker 7/2
  3. Precious 6/1
  4. Inglorious Basterds 15/2
  5. An Education 8/1
  6. The Lovely Bones 9/1
  7. Public Enemies 10/1
  8. Up 10/1
  9. Avatar 10/1
  10. Shutter Island 10/1
  11. A Serious Man 12/1
  12. The Road 15/1
  13. Nine 15/1
  14. Invictus 15/1
  15. Cheri 15/1
  16. Biutiful 15/1
  17. Bright Star 15/1
  18. A Single Man 20/1
  19. The Human Factor 20/1
  20. Taking Woodstock 25/1
  21. Amelia 25/1
  22. The Informant 25/1
  23. The Last Station 25/1
  24. The White Ribbon 30/1
  25. Star Trek 50/1

The Wolfman (2010) poster

Posted by Greg Treadway | Movies & Cinema | Friday 13 November 2009 6:36 pm

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The Wolfman posters look very cool and deserved to be posted here.

A Cool Sci-Fi Movie List: 1960s-1970s

Posted by Greg Treadway | Movies & Cinema | Friday 13 November 2009 5:28 pm

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If the following movies appear on your list then consult your therapist as to what this says about your list making. This is not a top sci-fi list but it is a must-have list. If you have not seen all of the following movies please get busy checking them off your list of movies to see.

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La Jetee (1962)
Santa Claus Conquers the Martians (1964)
Robinson Crusoe on Mars (1964)
Quatermass and the Pit or Five Million Years to Earth (1967)
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The President’s Analyst (1967)
Barbarella (1968)
Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970)
A Clockwork Orange (1971)

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The Andromeda Strain (1971)
The Omega Man (1971)
THX 1138 (1971)
Night of the Lepus (1972)
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Westworld (1973)
La Planète Sauvage (The Fantastic Planet) (1973)
Sleeper (1973)
Dark Star (1974)

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Flesh Gordon (1974)
The Stepford Wives (1975)
Death Race 2000 (1975)
Alien (1979)

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