The Academy Awards
By Larry Anklewicz
Monday, March 5, 2007
Although most of the main categories went exactly as predicted, there were a lot of surprises at this year's Academy Awards. Although Best Picture ("The Departed"), Best Director (Martin Scorsese for "The Departed"), Best Actor (Forest Whitaker in "The Last King of Scotland") and Best Actress (Helen Mirren in "The Queen") were all easily predictable, some of the other awards brought a little bit of spice to the event. Everyone expected Eddie Murphy to win the award for Best Supporting Actor for his marvellous work in "Dreamgirls". Instead, Alan Arkin took home the prize for his beautifully nuanced role in "Little Miss Sunshine". Arkin was perfectly cast in this film as the crotchety grandfather who insisted on telling the truth (as he saw it) no matter what the consequences. The award for best animated film also was a bit of a surprise. Everyone believed that "Cars" would win the award in this category. It was a beautiful film, but the heartwarming appeal of "Happy Feet" carried it to the top in its category. How can anyone resist the charm and humour of penguins singing and dancing?
In the documentary feature film area, "An Inconvenient Truth" won the day. This was not completely unexpected. Hollywood's well known left leaning philosophy almost guaranteed that the Al Gore film about preventing global warming would win out. As well it should. But there were some other outstanding films in competition. The same might be said about the fact that "West Bank Story" won the prize for live action documentary shorts. This was a West Side Story kind of film about a Jewish falafel stand and its Arab competitor on the West Bank of the Occupied Territories. It was a feel good kind of film promoting better relations between Arabs and Jews, and how can anyone argue against that?
Best Foreign Film turned out to be a bit of a surprise. Everyone expected that "Pan's Labyrinth" would walk away with that prize. Instead, the German production that impressed so many film critics during the Toronto International Film Festival, "The Lives of Others" won. This film tells the story of a secret police officer in East Germany during the Cold War who unsuccessfully tries to find evidence that a well-known writer is really a western sympathizer, Eventually, the officer fails in all his attempts and is demoted and punished, but he finds more satisfaction from his new simpler life than he ever had trying to round up people who did not support the regime.
In the Best original Song area, everyone expected one of the new songs in "Dreamgirls" to win out. Instead, it was a song by Melissa Etheridge, "I Need To Wake Up" that won the Oscar in this category. Perhaps having three songs nominated from one film split the vote up too much. Besides, it also showed the scarcity of good original compositions these days.
Also somewhat of a surprise was the fact that "Little Miss Sunshine" won the award to Best Original Screenplay. I expected that "Letters From Iwo Jima" or "Pan's Labyrinth" would have taken this category. Instead, the charming little story about a disfunctional family getting together to support the youngest child, won the hearts of Academy voters.
I should also point out that it was a bit of a surprise that "The Departed" won only 4 Awards and that "Dreamgirls" was practically shut out, winning only Best Supporting Actress (Jennifer Hudson) and Best Sound Mixing. "Pan's Labyrinth" ended up with three technical awards for Art Direction, Cinematography and Makeup, but missed out on the Best Foreign Film. Other disappointments were that "Letters From Iwo Jima" won only for Sound Editing, and was shut out in all the other categories. In my opinion, this may have been the best picture of the year. Also disappointing was that "Blood Diamond" won nothing and that "Babel" won for only Original Music Score.
But that is the way it is in Hollywood. You can never be too sure of anything.
And for those of you keeping score of these things, the following winning films are now available on DVD: Babel, The Departed, Little Miss Sunshine, An Inconvenient Truth, Marie Antoinette, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. The following films will be released on DVD in the near future: Happy Feet , The Last King of Scotland, and Letters from Iwo Jima.
Recent DVD Releases
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America For Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
It's politically incorrect, it's offensive and it will drive a lot of people crazy, but it is also one of the funniest films of the year. Borat was nominated as best comedy or musical at the Golden Globes and its star, Sasha Baron Cohen, won the Golden Globe Award for his acting in this film.
This mockumentary follows Borat and his producer on a trip across the United States in order to report back on the things that make America such a great nation. Everything Borat does goes wrong. And everything he sees, he misinterprets. Borat is a sex crazed idiot who is sure to say the wrong thing at the wrong time. But he is funny and this film provides lots of yucks.
Starring: Sacha Baron Cohen, Pamela Anderson.
Fast Food Nation
Ever wonder what is in that hamburger you're eating? This film explores the dark side of the fast food industry. When an executive from a large burger chain goes to the meat packing plant where his company's burgers are produced, he finds more than he bargained for. Although the plant appears to be spick and span, the things going on behind the scenes may make you swear off hamburgers forever.
A great ensemble cast and a terrific script make for one really great film.
Starring: Greg Kinnear, Wilmer Valderrama, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Avril Lavigne, Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke, Kris Kristofferson, Bruce Willis.
Confetti
Hilarious British comedy in which three couples compete to win a bridal magazine's contest for most original wedding. The characters are outrageous and the humour is off the wall. The three couples include tennis fanatics, musical comedy freaks and a pair of naturalists who plan to get married in the nude.
Starring: Martin Freeman, Selina Cadell, Jimmy Carr, Olivia Colman, Ron Cook.
C.R.A.Z.Y. Collector's Edition
That Genie Award winning Canadian comedy is back in a Collector's Edition DVD version. This release contains two hours of extra features, all of them in French with English subtitles. The film centres on Zachary, a teenager born on Christmas Day of 1960. Zachary is determined to survive his four brothers and keep the attention of his old fashioned father. In this tumultuous household, Zachary's sexual orientation becomes an issue when he finally comes out of the closet.
Starring: Marc-Andre Grondin, Michel Cote.
The Full Monty: The Fully Exposed Edition
A two-disc release that celebrates the 10th anniversary of this very funny and very successful British comedy. This edition contains loads of special features, including deleted scenes, cast bios, TV spots and Marketing featurette, Music Machine, which allows viewers to skip to their favourite musical/dance sequences, a featurette describing the development of the script, finding the director and describing the city of Sheffield, where this film is set. There is also a production featurette that focuses in on the film's score and other music elements, and much more.
Starring: Robert Carlyle, Tom Wilkinson
Live At The Rock 'n' Roll Palace Volume 1 & 2
Welcome to all you rockers of the 1950s and 60s. If you remember The Coasters, Del Shannon, Brian Hyland, The Diamonds, Tommy Sands, The Tokens, The Dixie Cups and many more pop artists of those times, then you'll want to get your own copies of these DVDs. The pop icons may be a bit long in the tooth, their hair may be a bit grayer and a bit sparser, but they're still up there rocking out their hits. Some are even losing a bit of their voices, but the music is still fun. These DVDs were filmed at the Rock ‘n' Roll Palace in Orlando, Florida before a live audience that seemed to really groove to the music.
The Platters & The Coasters
Another DVD filmed at the Rock 'n' Roll Palace in Orlando, but this one features The Platters and The Coasters. You can see The Platters perform some of their greatest hits--songs such as Only You, My Prayer, The Great Pretender, Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, while The Coasters do such hits as Yakety Yak, Young Blood and Charlie Brown. If you admit to remembering these hits, we know how old you really are.
Martha Reeves
At one time it was Martha Reeves and the Vandellas. Now the Vandellas have disappeared, but Martha is still in full voice. Among the selections of this DVD are such hits as Dancing In the Street, Nowhere To Run To, and Heatwave.
Bobby Vee
I have to admit it, I liked a lot of the songs Bobby Vee recorded. In fact I remember going to a semi formal dance with a very pretty girl as my date and hearing Bobby Vee's recording of Rubber Ball coming over the radio in the car. That song is included on this DVD, as are Devil Or Angel, The Night Has A Thousand Eyes and Take Good Care of My Baby. This DVD, also filmed at the Rock 'n' Roll Palace, includes special guest stars, The Original Juniors. I must have missed that group, because I don't remember them, but the Bobby Vee songs make this a must purchase.
All of the rock DVD's have been released by MVD Visual and if you can't find them at the video store, you can ask the store to order them for you.
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