Shearing the Oscars: Best Actress

I'd best start by sharing some love on this, the day devoted to the subject. It would be necessary to do so simply because I will need the reminder after I get done with this piece.

This year's Best Actress Oscar race is not so much a puzzle to me as it an infuriating farce that exposes the emptiness of the Academy Awards. Sandra Bullock is the front runner for her work in THE BLIND SIDE. I don't mean to be hurtful. I saw the movie; I thought she was good in it but Oscar good? Please. Of course not, but she has had a really good year and has done so many great things for the box office over the years. Her top competition is Meryl Streep for her work in JULIE & JULIA. Streep has scored a record breaking 16 nominations with this last one but hasn't won since 1983. Naturally, we have to throw her something as some point. At least Streep's performance is Oscar worthy but what I don't understand is why the headlines don't read, "It's Down to Sidibe and Mulligan!"

Here are the nominees for Best Actress ...

SANDRA BULLOCK as Leigh Anne Tuohy in THE BLIND SIDE


I am not going to just denounce Bullock's nomination here. I didn't mind John Lee Hancock's THE BLIND SIDE. It was certainly designed to be satisfying but it accomplished its goals. Bullock carries the weight of the film on her shoulders and does it with strength and attitude to spare. She is also written in such a saintly manner that her character comes off as too perfect to be actually human. The fact is that Bullock has the nomination and the edge to win because she is well liked in Hollywood and Hollywood enjoys rewarding contribution over performance from time to time. Remember Julia Roberts in ERIN BROCKOVICH?

HELEN MIRREN as Countess Sofya in THE LAST STATION


At 64 years of age, this is Helen Mirren's fourth Oscar nomination. She won in this exact category in 2006 for her work in THE QUEEN. She returns now by portraying another famous historical figure, Countess Sofya, wife of Russian author, Leo Tolstoy, in Michael Hoffman's THE LAST STATION. Whereas her work in THE QUEEN had to be spot on given people's familiarity with the subject but, with little existing footage of Countess Sofya, Mirren had to create a character rather than recreate. This role is just not loud enough in a year like this one and I'm pretty sure Mirren knows it.

CAREY MULLIGAN as Jenny in AN EDUCATION


I am convinced that Carey Mulligan is going to be around for a long time and seen as one of the next generation's greatest actresses. In Lone Scherfig's brilliant, AN EDUCATION, she plays Jenny, a teenage girl of excessive intelligence and discipline who longs to let her passion run free. The range of Jenny's journey requires Mulligan to balance the many faces of this teenage girl - the good student, the perfect daughter, the virgin girlfriend to a man ten years her senior and of course the woman she so hurriedly wants to be. The National Board of Review and the Toronto Film Critics Association threw their support behind Mulligan but the film just never caught on like it should have.

GABOUREY SIDIBE as Clareece "Precious" Jones in PRECIOUS


I'm sure I've said this before but it bears repeating; I was completely floored when I met Gabourey Sidibe in person this past fall at a roundtable with her and PRECIOUS director, Lee Daniels. Ignorantly, I expected her to be much like the damaged, frightened, introvert she played in the film but she is the complete opposite. Beforehand, I did not think her performance was much of a stretch from who she had to be in reality. How could it be? Yet somehow, this bubbly, outspoken young lady found a pain so dark that everything she actually is is swallowed up by Precious. Sidibe was honoured by the National Board of Review but most of the film's award focus goes to co-star, Mo'Nique. Sidibe deserves this but will have to hope Streep and Bullock cancel each other out.

MERYL STREEP as Julia Child in JULIE & JULIA


When I mentioned that Streep broke a record this year with her 16th nomination for JULIE & JULIA, I neglected to mention that it was her own record of most career nods she broke. There is no question that Streep gives everything every time she goes out there (almost, anyway) and not having been rewarded by the Academy since 1983 seems unacceptable but why can't we remember that we should be honouring individual performances and not bodies of work. That said, I would much rather watch Streep take this than see Bullock get it for just putting in the time. Unfortunately, with the Screen Actors Guild in Bullock's camp, it might be tricky.

WHO WILL WIN? Sandra Bullock

WHO COULD STILL UPSET? Gabourey Sidibe

Next up in Black Sheep's Oscar coverage, we give you a guide to what nominated films are still playing in theatres out there and what you need to make sure you need covered before Oscar night.

Again, before I go, much love to all the Black Sheep readers!

Oscars @ Home

There are over 40 different films nominated for Oscars this year and less than 30 days before the actual telecast. Let's be real here. Unless you've been thoroughly preparing for this throughout the year, you will not get a chance to see all the nominated films in time. Even if you did prepare, or are a film critic like myself and have seen 30 of the nominated films already, there are some selections, like the surprise animated feature nominee, THE SECRET OF KELLS, which won't reach theatres until after the awards are handed out. And so I suppose the goal is to do the best we can with what time we have and with the resources available to us.

This is where I come in. I will help you make sure you see as many of the right films possible before the big night. To make it easier on you, I'll start with all the nominated films that you can get at the video store or on demand or delivered to your door. Believe it or not, there are 16 films available to rent before the telecast airs, five of which are nominated for Best Picture. You can start your journey comfortably in your living room and work your way up getting out of the house and into the crowds to see the rest. I will rank them in order of importance and list the awards they are nominated for so that you can see why I consider them important.

1. THE HURT LOCKER
Nominated for:

PICTURE
DIRECTOR
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
ACTOR
FILM EDITING
CINEMATOGRAPHY
ORIGINAL SCORE
SOUND MIXING
SOUND EDITING


Tied for the most nominations with AVATAR, THE HURT LOCKER is your first stop. Unfortunately, as it only pulled in $13 million or so in theatres, it is a lot of people's first stop so it might be hard to find. If you're a fan of the war genre and appreciate the tension that only dismantling bombs can carry, you should just buy it. It's a gorgeous film. THE HURT LOCKER has a great chance to win in all of its categories, except the acting (sorry, Jeremy Renner), so this is a must if you want to follow on the big night.

2. INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS
Nominated for:

PICTURE
DIRECTOR
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
SUPPORTING ACTOR
FILM EDITING
CINEMATOGRAPHY
SOUND MIXING
SOUND EDITING

INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS has only one less nod than THE HURT LOCKER but not as much buzz. I would say it would be a surprise Best Picture winner but if anyone has a shot at a directing upset, it's Quentin Tarantino. Christoph Waltz is a lock for Supporting Actor and Tarantino might take the screenplay nod instead of the directing award. This one is also a must see.

3. DISTRICT 9
Nominated for:

PICTURE
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
FILM EDITING
VISUAL EFFECTS

DISTRICT 9 is a long shot in all of it's categories but the fact that it managed that much attention in such big categories makes me think a lot of people liked this one. It is a must see before the telecast just because of what it is nominated for but as it won't likely win, it won't be the end of everything if you miss it.

4. UP
Nominated for:

PICTURE
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
ANIMATED FEATURE
ORIGINAL SCORE
SOUND EDITING


UP has a very good chance to beat FANTASTIC MR. FOX for Animated Feature and an off chance at the screenplay bid so it is a contender but I don't see it as a Best Picture threat. Composer Michael Giacchino could grab another award for his score but I don't know how many people watch the Oscars for the music category. If you haven't seen UP, you should. You'll be happy to see it win whatever it does.

5. A SERIOUS MAN
Nominated for:

PICTURE
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Two biggies there but no support in any other category suggests people liked A SERIOUS MAN but weren't floored by anything in particular about it. Personally, I loved everything about it and still think Michael Stuhlbarg was robbed in the Best Actor category. It comes out tomorrow and Black Sheep's full review will be up then.

6. JULIE & JULIA
Nominated for:

ACTRESS

JULIE & JULIA only has the one nomination but it happens to be a record-breaking one for Meryl Streep and people are saying that it is going to come down to her or Sandra Bullock in THE BLIND SIDE. If you want to get in on that race, you need to start here.

7. IN THE LOOP
Nominated for:

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY


Although I was sad not to see Tom Ford pick up a nod for writing A SINGLE MAN, I am thrilled to see the screenplay for IN THE LOOP up for it instead. This is definitely one of the sharpest, dirtiest, most hilarious films I've seen in years. You likely have never heard of it but if you are debating watching it because of the nomination, good for you! You will laugh very hard at this British political satire. It is brave and shocking and again, so funny!

8. STAR TREK
Nominated for:

VISUAL EFFECTS
SOUND MIXING
SOUND EDITING
MAKEUP

STAR TREK may have missed out on the bigger prizes but these four nods tie STAR TREK IV: THE VOYAGE HOME for the most Oscar nods for any Star Trek film. You don't need to see this beforehand but you should definitely see it.

9. THE COVE and FOOD INC.
Each nominated for:

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

You don't always get to see the nominated documentary features that easily and THE COVE and FOOD INC. are two that you don't want to miss. Both will change your life and just imagine how smart you'll look at your Oscar party when you can say you've seen two of the nominated documentaries.


THE REST ...

The following films are nominated here and there and also available to watch before the telecast, in case you wanted to be thorough. Once you're done with the first half of this list though, you should probably get to the theatre before the rest of these. Priorities, people!



BRIGHT STAR
(Nominated for Costume Design)

COCO AVANT CHANEL
(Costume Design)

CORALINE
(Animated Feature)

HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE
(Cinematography)

IL DIVO
(Makeup)

TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN
(Sound Mixing)

Black Sheep @ The Box Office: Glorious Box Office Basterds

There wasn't much question as to whether Quentin Tarantino's INGLORIOUS BASTERDS would debut atop the box office this weekend. It's stiffest competition going in was DISTRICT 9, leftover from last weekend. No, the question was how well it would do and it has done very well. With a well-deserved R-rating, INGLORIOUS BASTERDS nailed down a per screen average of nearly $12K for a grand total of over $37 million. This is Tarantino's highest opening weekend ever, easily besting the former record holder, KILL BILL VOLUME 2, with $25 million. Depending on how it performs in the weeks to come, INGLORIOUS BASTERDS could easily surpass PULP FICTION ($107.9 million) as Tarantino most success film of his career. It was definite redemption for the filmmaker, whose last film, the DEATHPROOF portion of the GRINDHOUSE double bill opened to a miserable $11.6 million. The second film in the GRINDHOUSE set was directed by Robert Rodriguez, whose SHORTS, posted disappointing results this week, landing in 6th place. I thought the kid friendly pic would do well with little competition in sight but it must be time for kids to think about going back to school instead of crazy wishing stones. The only other Top 10 debut went to the Alexis Bliedl vehicle, POST GRAD, which, coming in tenth place, barely passed the final exam. Female driven pics continue to hold well, from THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE, THE UGLY TRUTH and JULIE & JULIA, all posting declines under 30%. The near 60% decline is probably a little disappointing to the DISTRICT 9 people considering the phenomenal word of mouth it has generated. It won't stop the two greenlit sequels though. Outside the Top 10, ADAM saw a 22% jump after adding 29 screens but the big success story belongs to Renee Zellwegger whose period comedy, MY ONE AND ONLY, opened to the best per screen average of any film this week, with a $15K average.


NEXT WEEK: Ang Lee gets the jump on everyone else, opening his lovefest, TAKING WOODSTOCK on two screens on Wednesday before bumping to over 1000 screens on Friday. Outside of that I hope you like horror because your only new options are Rob Zombie's HALLOWEEN 2 (3000 screens) and THE FINAL DESTINATION (3000 screens), the supposed last in the series and the first in 3D.

Source: BOX OFFICE MOJO

Black Sheep @ The Box Office: Alien Invasion

My apologies, Black Sheep readers. I am under the weather and therefore, will not be doing a full box office report this week. In fact, I have an eye infection and it won't go away. I've been taking drops all week for it and yet I still look like the dude from DISTRICT 9. When people ask me in public what's wrong with my eye, I simply tell them I'm a really big fan of the movie. Anyway, my support seems to have paid off as DISTRICT 9 has surpassed expectations and debuted atop the top of the box office, taking G.I. JOE down to second place with a somewhat reasonable 58% drop. JULIE AND JULIA held up well in its second week, which is even more impressive when you think about all the ladies who rushed off to see Eric Bana romance Rachel McAdams in THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE. The film, which will get the Black Sheep treatment later this week, pulled in a respectable start but will now depend on word of mouth. (500) DAYS OF SUMMER squeaked out another week it the Top 10 while Summit hopeful, BANDSLAM couldn't cut it, pulling $2.25 million for a 13th place finish. I guess those NEW MOON teasers before the screenings were not enough to lure in the kids. THE GOODS did not deliver in sixth place and PONYO, from Academy Award winning Japanese director, Hayao Miyazaki, which I saw and loved this afternoon, debuted to mediocre numbers in ninth place despite rave reviews. Look for reviews this week for, as mentioned previously, THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE, ADAM and later in the week, INGLORIOUS BASTERDS. Oh, and happy birthday to James Cameron and Madonna!

Source: Box Office Mojo

Black Sheep @ The Box Office: Yo Joe!

I don’t think anyone can say they didn’t see this coming. G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA has debuted atop the North American box office chart, just as everyone presumed it would. When it comes to an obvious blockbuster like this one, the real question is not whether it will come out on top but really more so by how much. With a $56 million start, Hasbro and Paramount can rest peacefully knowing they’ve launched another successful franchise. And knowing is half the battle …


G.I. JOE solidified its success on Friday when it debuted to a single day gross of over $22 million, the fifth highest of any film this summer. This amount was also almost more than last week’s box office champ, FUNNY PEOPLE, brought in all weekend. This weekend, the firs official Judd Apatow disappointment stumbles more than 65% for a fifth place finish. So with this weekend looking much brighter than last, there was even room for audiences starved for movies to spread the money around. This week’s second debut gives Meryl Streep her third $20+ million summer opening in the last four years. JULIE & JULIA, which co-stars Amy Adams, brought in just over $20 million for a second place opening. While this is a solid start, it is about $7 million lower than Streep’s other summer hits, THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA and MAMMA MIA!


The week’s only other wide release, the Steve Zahn thriller, THE PERFECT GETAWAY, wasn’t the perfect anything for viewers this weekend. It opened in seventh place and, despite mostly positive reviews, will likely disappear very soon, with very little mystery left to be solved. The Top 10 did see one other debut; in its fourth week, (500) DAYS OF SUMMER expands to over 800 screens and finally earns enough to be seen amongst the elite. The expansion may have eroded its average to about $4.5K per screen but this is still the third largest in the Top 10. Elsewhere in the art-house world, the Charlene Yi/Michael Cera mockumentary, PAPER HEARTS, debuted to an average of $5.4K on 38 screens. It seems to me it should have been higher but there hasn’t been very much publicity for this quirky little film (Black Sheep review coming this week). Two other Black Sheep favorites continued their limited runs with limited success. THE COVE, a must see documentary, added 52 screens and saw its gross balloon by 174% by its average dropped from $17K to under $3K. Don’t miss the Black Sheep interview THE COVE director, Louie Psihoyos. Faring better was the Asperger’s Syndrome romantic comedy, ADAM. It added 16 new screens and maintained an average of $5.2K per screen. This touching film gets the Black Sheep treatment very soon.


NEXT WEEK: It’s a biggie, folks! PAPER HEARTS will commence its expansion next week, hoping to spread the love across the nation. A couple of lower brow comedies hit with modest runs, POOL BOYS starring Matthew Lillard on 400 screens and the Jeremy Piven vehicle, THE GOODS: LIVE HARD, SELL HARD hits 1500 screens. The latest from Hayao Miyazaki, PONYO, enlists huge names in hopes of crossing over on 800 screens. I’m not sure what kind of hard times Lisa Kudrow and David Bowi have fallen on but they are both in the Vanessa Hudgens teen rock comedy, BANDSLAM (2000 screens). Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams travel through time with love in THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE (2700 screens). And finally, one of my favorite movies of the year, DISTRICT 9 unleashes all its alien gooey goodness on 2900 screens. See it!

Source: Box Office Mojo

JULIE & JULIA

Written and Directed by Nora Ephron
Starring: Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, Stanley Tucci and Chris Messina


Julie Powell: The truth is, no one knows about me. I feel like I’m just sending things out into this endless void.

In 2002, struggling New York writer, Julie Powell started a blog, called “The Julie/Julia Project”. In 2004, I started a blog and if you’re reading this right now, then you are likely reading my blog. And I, like Julie, often wonder if there is anyone out there reading these words that I spend so much time toiling over or, on more fortunate occasions, delighting in. She, like me, sometimes lacks the faith and the strength to believe that there is an audience, that there will be a bigger one and that all of this work will lead to the right person at the right time taking note of it and subsequently plucking her (or me) from her life (or mine) and dropping her in the middle of the one’s she’s only dreamt of. The major difference is that Julie has a secret weapon – Julia Child. I apparently need to get me one of those.


JULIE & JULIA is based on not just one but two true stories. Writer/Director, Nora Ephron, who hasn’t directed anything since 2005’s BEWITCHED and hasn’t directed a hit since 1993’s SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE, returns with a structure that is not so dissimilar to her Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan romantic comedy classic. Ephron must balance her story between two times and places as Julie Powell (Amy Adams) blogs and cooks her way through Julia Child’s cookbook and Julia Child (Meryl Streep) learns to become well, herself. Both ladies are lost before taking on their new challenges; both have strong, supportive men in their lives who make them better people (Chris Messina for Julie and Stanley Tucci for Julia); and, fortunately for Ephron, both ladies are effortlessly talented and consistently compelling to watch.


Ephron plays things too safe for JULIE & JULIA to have a profound impact on the viewer. The obstacles the two women face seem more contrived than plausible and therefore, their triumphs never take on the significance necessary to inspire the viewer. This is particularly disappointing considering this is a movie about following inspiration and daring to dream. Still, the talented cast manage laughs whenever they can and Streep’s performance is so boisterous that it elevates the whole thing from, in restaurant review terms, a 2-star to a 3, but given what they had to work with, it could have easily been a 5 under the command of a more skilled chef.

Black Sheep's Summer Longin' (Part Two)

The summer movie season is often pretty top heavy, with studios packing all their bigger fare is at the beginning and letting some of their untested hopefuls trickle in near the end. I always prefer the later days of summer myself. Sure, it’s winding down but I always find that it just forces you to be in the moment and appreciate that summer is still upon you rather than focus on its inevitable departure. And, aside from the return of Quentin Tarantino (INGLORIOUS BASTERDS), there is plenty to help you carry the feeling of a warm summer night well into the fall.

500 DAYS OF SUMMER Written by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber Directed by Marc Webb Starring Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt Release Date 07/17 I’m pretty sure that summer consists of about 100 or so days and not 500 but I’m not so great with math so I don’t want to make any bold statements. I do know that this Sundance favorite from first time feature filmmaker, Marc Webb, has the potential to capture many a heart. On paper, it doesn’t sound so fresh. We’ve got a guy who falls in love with a girl and the big twist here is that he’s a romantic and she’s a realist. From the trailer though, it seems to me that Webb may have figured out how romance and realism need to learn to work together to make a successful relationship. The film also boasts two of today’s most promising younger actors, Zooey Deschanel and Gordon Joseph-Levitt, so you know you are in for a good time one way or another. The question is, will you still be having as much fun the next morning.



FUNNY PEOPLE Written and Directed by Judd Apatow (KNOCKED UP) Starring Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen and Leslie Mann Release Date 07/31 You may not know this, and the trailer is actually smart enough to point it out, but comedy juggernaut, Judd Apatow, has actually only made two movies himself. They are THE FORTY YEAR OLD VIRGIN and KNOCKED UP. No, he didn’t make SUPERBAD; no, he didn’t make FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL or PINEAPPLE EXPRESS. Everyone just assumes he does because his name is always tossed around in the trailer just because he is associated in some way with the film. FUNNY PEOPLE is his third film and, not only does it look sharp, but it seems much more subtle than overtly comedic. Apatow understands that life isn’t easy but he also gets that it’s pretty darn funny even when it sucks. This is what makes him the most authentic comedy writer to come around in years and what makes everyone want to be him.



TAKING WOODSTOCK Written by James Schamus Directed by Ang Lee (BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN) Starring Demitri Martin, Emile Hirsch and Liev Schreiber Release Date 08/14 This is an example of my total bias when it comes to certain directors. To watch the preview for this film, I wouldn’t say that it necessarily looks like a masterpiece but this is Ang Lee. This is the man behind THE ICE STORM, CROUCHING TIGER HIDDEN DRAGON and BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN. I love these movies. Sure, he also made THE INCREDIBLE HULK (the first one) and LUST, CAUTION. These weren’t great and everyone is entitled to make a few mistakes along the way. And yes, it is entirely possible that TAKING WOODSTOCK will go the wrong way but I am always willing to give Mr. Lee the benefit of the doubt. The cast is intriguing, the sexuality is ambiguous and the setting is ripe with potential and sweaty young people. I remain optimistic.



JULIE & JULIA Written and Directed by Nora Ephron (SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE) Starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams Release Date 08/07 If you ask Meryl Streep how she feels about her newfound box office clout, she will tell you that she is more surprised than anyone and doesn’t have any explanation for it. I say that as if it is that easy to just run into her and ask her such a plain question but I did read that somewhere. In recent summers, with THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA and MAMMA MIA!, Streep has become the queen of summer counterprogamming and a champion for female driven box office success. Her latest reunites her with DOUBT co-star Amy Adams and is based on two real life stories – that of famous chef, Julia Child (Streep) and a woman who became famous by drawing inspiration from Child, Julie Powell (Adams). To watch Streep as Child, you can almost smell her next Oscar nod and potential win considering how long it’s been since she last took one home. You know Hollywood is waiting for the right moment to give her her third trophy and they may not need to wait much longer.



PAPER HEART Written by Nicolas Jasenovec and Charlyne Yi Directed by Nicolas Jasenovec Starring Charlyne Yi and Michael Cera Release Date 08/07 Now this one has me hooked. Charlyne Yi is this tiny little lady, small in stature but big on awkward hilarity. Maybe you remember her as Jodi, one of Seth Rogen’s peculiar housemates in KNOCKED UP. If you don’t, it doesn’t matter. She is now the subject of a faux documentary called PAPER HEART. In it, she plays herself and is on a mission to understand love as she herself has never experienced it. Being herself, she has the chance to speak to many a friend in the film industry, like Rogen and Demitri Martin (who makes his major acting debut in TAKING WOODSTOCK, incidentally). She also comes across Michael Cera along the way. In real life, Cera is Yi’s boyfriend. In the movie, they meet and fall in love while she is supposed to be making a movie about how elusive that darn emotion is. It’s self-referential heaven! And I will watch Cera is just about anything. That said, I’m still not sold on YEAR ONE yet.



So, as you can see there are plenty of reasons to forego a game of soccer in the park or a trip to a theme park with the family this summer. In fact, why bother with beautiful weather and beautiful people soaking in said beautiful weather when you can run to the nearest theatre and enjoy the air conditioning all by your lonesome? Hmmm … I think I need to get out more.

Have a safe and happy summer!