Awards
Page Index
* OSCAR coverage here
'08 FiLM BiTCH
Awards
by Nathaniel
R
Traditional
Oscar categories: Majors
/
Acting /
Technicals /
Technicals 2 (Tally of Noms)
Special Categories: Extras
/ Extras 2 / Scenes
1 /
Scenes 2
(Tally of Noms) / Polls (Readers)
[some
spoilers follow]
Best Action Sequence
pass
the popcorn
 |
_________________________________ Australia Cattle Drive The second act of the too-many-acts movie was its peak, culminating in this deliciously old school epic sequence with magical finale |
 |
The
Dark Knight Gotham Streets Even when the editing gets jumbled there's still plenty to savor with sick masochism "I want you to do it", bazookas, and semi-flips. Plus: the BatPod |
 |
Kung
Fu Panda Chor Ghom Prison The best cartoon action sequence this side of the dragon battle in Beowulf. It was (rightfully) WALL•E's year but this very well crafted film is still underappreciated |
 |
Quantum
of Solace Scaffolding The ressurection or rejuvenation --or whatever you'd like to call it -- of the Bond franchise continues. Love this baroque choreography. Totally exciting battles |
 |
The
Wrestler Staples and Barb Wire Absolutely painful and raises the character stakes, helping you understand The Ram's self-sacrificing nature. Dropped into the film at the perfect point and edited masterfully |
Finalists:
Let the Right One In (the Pool) * The Incredible
Hulk (Hulk vs. Blonsky) * Hellboy 2 (The Golden
Army) * I
think it was a fairly terrible year for the action genre (outside
of the box office of course) with many would be rough -n-
tumblers having merely OK fight sequences or setpieces (Never
Back Down, Hancock, and Valkyrie) or botched
finales (isn't the final battle in Iron Man the weakest
of the setpieces and shouldn't the climax be the absolute
strongest?) and worst of all: unthrilling, needlessly silly
or nonsensical scenes (Twilight, 10,000 BC, Speed Racer,
Indiana Jones, Jumper ) |
|
Best
Musical Sequence in a Musical
the
singalongs
 |
 |
|||
| Love
Songs "Au Parc" Chiara Mastroianni |
Love
Songs "As-tu déjà aimé" Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet & Louis Garrel |
Mamma
Mia! "The Winner Takes it All" Meryl Streep |
Were
the World Mine the audition Tanner Cohen & Wendy Robie |
Young
at Heart "Fix You" the choir |
I
love these quiet sideways cathartic moments in musicals. Chiara
is so great. |
The
beginning of the final pairing / courtship. Gregoire's voice
is best in show |
Meryl
who wrings water from movie rocks. (But ABBA is eternally
fabulous. No movie can destroy them!) |
There's
something magical about audition sequences when you first
hear someone sing, isn't there? |
Probably
the most sentimental cinematic moment this year that I gave
in to full hog. I was a blubbery mess. |
| Finalists:
everything else in Love Songs especially
"Je n'aime que toi" performed by Louis
Garrel, Ludivine Sagnier and Clotilde Hesme
to introduce their odd triangle Semi-Finalists: er... |
||||
Best
Musical Sequence from a Non-Musical Film
delightful
song and dance detours were...
 |
 |
 |
||
|
Ciao "Let Me Be Your Man" Charles W Blaum |
Miss
Pettigrew Lives For a Day "If I Didn't Care" Amy Adams and Lee Pace |
Forgetting
Sarah Marshall "Dracula's Lament" Jason Segal |
Rachel
Getting Married "Unknown Legend" Tunde Adebimpe |
Trouble
the Water "Amazing" Black Kold Medina (Kimberly Roberts) |
"Come
on let me be your man" this pleading video message snuck
up on me, elevating the hour preceding it. God bless filmmakers
who will let a scene play out w/out interruption |
Movie
stars who sing truly send me and this peak moment from Miss
Pettigrew, as the actress crumbles and her pianist lover
rescues her made me swoon |
Well
acted by the embarrassed Segal and reprised with full puppet
production at film's end. A funny number but also weird and
pathetic and romantic and 'what?!' |
The
wedding song is beautifully handled by Tunde on vocals and
Rosemarie merely reacting, giddy, all eyes on her on her special
day. God, I love this movie. |
This
amazingly raw scene (long post hurricane) as Kimberly raps
is placed at the perfect spot in the film to act as emotional
climax without derailing the issues and overall subject |
| Finalists:
WALL•E shows Hello Dolly to
EVE * Hamlet 2 "Rock Me Sexy
Jesus" * Australia Lady Sarah
Ashley's attempt at "Over the Rainbow" * Semi-Finalists: The Reader Hanna hears the choir * |
||||
Best Kiss
pucker up
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| 27
Dresses James Marsden & Katharine Heigl |
Australia Nicole Kidman & Hugh Jackman |
Ciao Adam Neal Smith & Alessandro Calza |
Nick
& Norah's Infinite Playlist Michael Cera & Kat Dennings |
Vicky
Cristina Barcelona Scarlett Johansson & Penélope Cruz |
Marsden
& Heigl are miles above their material here and they sure
sell sweaty drunken chemistry after their film cliché
karaoke hit |
Australia
strains for effect more than once but I love the iconic drawn
out anticipation of the liplock. I can almost here Baz reworking
Nic's line behind the camera "we can't let them |
When
this talky romantic/platonic indie finally shuts up the passionate
searching kiss really hits home. |
The
classic 'pretend kiss' cliche with real feeling and superbly
timed punchline. Nick: We have the same dentist [pause] Norah: Yeah, he's good. |
Far
more than sophomoric titillation or at the very least quite
successful sophomoric titillation. You can feel Maria Elena's
uninhibited drive and Cristina's restlessness |
 Finalists:
Valkyrie Carice Van Houten & Tom
Cruise. A wife presumes tragedy and runs passionately into her
last kiss. Semi-Finalists: The Duchess * Reprise * Slumdog Millionaire * what did i miss? |
||||
Best Sex / Love Scene
lets
get drrrty
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Elegy Ben Kingsley (with Penélope Cruz or Patty Clarkson) |
Forgetting
Sarah Marshall Jack McBrayer & Maria Thayer |
Milk James Franco & Sean Penn |
The
Reader Kate Winslet & David Kross |
Savage
Grace Julianne Moore & Hugh Dancy & Eddie Redmayne |
The
sex scenes were like tiny windows into these rendezvous but
the sensuality and psychology of both came through |
Hilarious
running gag sex scenes that paid off with a great punchline
(for both them and us) |
From
pickup to postcoital munchies, their sexual chemistry comes
through loud and clear |
Practically
a whole act in the movie and filled with both juvenile gratification
and troubling adult aftershocks |
We
love Julie best when her psycho-sexual issues are having a
field day ...or a roll in the hay. Not a role model mom! |
Finalists:
The Last Mistress was filled with
sex but it's hard to cite a particular scene. It' s more about
the abundance of it and Asia's voracious appetite |
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