Welcome to Movie Musings with Laremy, a weekly feature that dives into the weekly happenings around the cinematic landscape.
Check out last week’s Movie Musings here
1. Kathryn Bigelow Will Be Winning the Academy Award for Best Director.
It becomes fairly easy to predict Oscar’s whims if you take out all qualitative judgments and focus entirely on the narrative. What will make the biggest splash come Monday morning? The “Bigelow First Woman Director to Take Home Best Director Oscar” headline writes itself. Plus, rewarding her for The Hurt Locker proves (in the Academy’s mind) that it’s not about her female perspective; it’s about her directing prowess.
Bonus Random Thought: Frankly, this should have happened back in 2003 with Sofia Coppola for Lost in Translation. However, the Academy owed Peter Jackson for the entire Lord of the Rings series, when in fact he should have been given the honor in 2001 or 2002 instead. See what happens when you’re in the business of making the best headlines?
2. Iron Man 2 Gets a Trailer!
It looks delightful, doesn’t it? When Jon Favreau unveiled the original Iron Man trailer (Comic-Con, 2007) the place went crazy. Clearly, the man can cut a trailer that makes you want to buy a ticket. I’m a little troubled that Mickey Rourke looks a bit like he’s jumping rope (instead of Whiplashin’), but I’m certain that will pass. Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow is working for me too, though I’d like to hear the accent.
Bonus Random Thought: Hot Tub Time Machine and Alice in Wonderland also released solid trailers this week. Hey, Hollywood, I thought we were off for the holidays?
3. The Golden Globe and SAG Nominations Are In.
The big winner? Up in the Air. It led the charge with six Golden Globe nominations, throwing some serious heat behind a Best Picture candidacy. Up in the Air followed that up by getting three actor nominations from the Guild; George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, and Anna Kendrick all made serious progress towards an Academy Award nom. Personally, I thought the film was good… but not amazing. It was more glossy than heartfelt, and I’m not sure why it’s become the de facto Best Picture lock. Why not Inglourious Basterds instead? Or, heck, even Nine has some real moments of innovative beauty. Now, I’m not saying I’d be upset if Up in the Air triumphs; I’m just saying I’d like a little more discussion on the matter. Let’s not crown it simply on the strength of the Golden Globes and SAG Awards, eh?
Bonus Random Thought: The most zany Golden Globe nom? Sandra Bullock in The Proposal. C’mon, fellas, we know she’s going to win for The Blind Side, but let’s all act like we’ve been here before.
4. The Verdict on Avatar Will Depend on Who Wins the PR Battle.
Avatar is going to open in the $60M range, and then it’s going be up to the spin doctors to see how this all turns out. Will it be considered a “flop” because of the giant budget? Or a fantastic result for a third weekend in December? Because you could legitimately argue either way. For my part, I found the effects to be absolutely genius. The story? Well… not as solid. But I don’t think Titanic had an amazing story either, and that film still managed to do decent box office. The biggest factor working against Avatar these days is the speed of communication and summary judgment. Titanic and Terminator 2 had months to cultivate a reputation. Director James Cameron might find out just how much the game has changed on Monday.
5. Get Ready for the Sherlock Holmes Juggernaut!
This film is going to be massive on Christmas Day. Seriously, consider buying your ticket now. Warner Bros. has been playing it close to the vest, but it has a Pirates of the Caribbean-style franchise on its hands here. Guy Ritchie was the perfect director, Downey Jr. the ideal Sherlock — even Jude Law’s Watson feels vibrant and updated for our times. I can’t wait to take family and friends to this; it’s like the all good parts of the Tim Burton color palette mixed with intelligent comedy and solid pacing. I can’t say much more, as I’m probably already risking incurring the wrath of a few publicists. But if loving Sherlock Holmes is wrong, I don’t wanna be right!
Laremy is the lead critic and senior producer for a Web site named Film.com. He’s also available on Twitter, and won’t be we winning an Academy Award any time soon.
