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Posted: Sun., Feb. 4, 2007, 6:00am PT

Is Oscar squeeze-play backfiring?
H'w'd strugges with season's new rhythm

By TED JOHNSON

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Four years after the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences moved the Oscar ceremony from March to February, many in the industry are still wondering: Has it worked?
Campaigning is just as intense, studios still pour money into advertising, and awards shows still flood the marketplace. Some pre-Oscar ceremonies, like the Critics Choice Awards and events at the Santa Barbara and Palm Springs film festivals, have only gained in stature.

Judging by release schedules, Hollywood still hasn't figured out the rhythm of a February Oscars. Conventional wisdom was the earlier date would force studios to release more Oscar contenders earlier. That hasn't been the case.

In fact, the schedule has gotten more crowded and competitive. Some 48 movies were released in December, compared with 41 in 2002, the last awards season before the Oscars were moved.

"I think most people feel like this year was the toughest one we've had so far with the new system, in terms of the numbers of pictures that opened in December," says Academy executive director Bruce Davis. "There's always a few that poke through, but it doesn't seem to make sense in terms of Academy Awards or economics. I just don't know what people are thinking when they make these decisions."

Despite the earlier date, many studio execs still believe that a late December launch is needed to maintain a film's buzz during awards voting. Filmmakers and talent are often more adamant: They feel that a December bow is synonymous with prestige, but anything earlier connotes the studio's lack of interest.

In fact, recent history belies these long-held beliefs. Last year's best pic winner, "Crash," was a May launch. Four of this season's five best pic nominees opened before December: "Little Miss Sunshine" in July; "The Departed," "The Queen" and "Babel" in October.

Of the five, only "Letters From Iwo Jima" launched in December, and that one had the Clint Eastwood-Steven Spielberg names to ensure voter interest in a crowded season. In 2002, all five best pic nominees opened in December.

When Halle Berry won the Oscar for the 2001 "Monster's Ball," the pic opened at the end of the year and built word of mouth before the March kudocast. It's questionable whether such small films would have time to build momentum with the accelerated awards schedule if they still bow in December.

The results would indicate that studios need to launch their candidates before December. On the other hand, studios are weighing the financial factor, and earlier bows make it harder to capitalize at the box office on nominations.

Harvey Weinstein says that the earlier Oscars can "cut the life" out of late year releases. The Weinstein Co.'s "Miss Potter," released on Dec. 29, three days after Oscar ballots went out, got all but lost in the awards season crush. Plans are for the movie, which has earned positive reviews and is performing well overseas, to be moved to March, after the kudos derby is over.

"I think you have to spend more money now just to sustain a movie throughout the season," Weinstein says. For distribs, having a later Oscar date "was cheaper, and I think better for the movies."

PictureHouse's Bob Berney, who found success with "Pan's Labyrinth" this season, says: "With the shorter time period, you can come in at the end as an effective way to consolidate a picture's theatrical release money and its awards campaign money. You have to be pretty confident (you will get awards recognition). "

The question remains: With an earlier Oscar ceremony, does that mean more campaigning in a shorter period of time, or does the campaigning simply begin a month earlier? September's Toronto Film Festival seems to have increased its importance as a strategic launching pad. (Admittedly, as studios spend on advertising, Variety has an interest in the results.)

learly the shorter time frame makes campaigning seem more intense -- and exhausting. On the Feb. 10-11 weekend alone, people will be invited to the BAFTAs, Writers Guild Awards, the Grammys, Academy's Sci-Tech Awards, Visual Effects Society and Animation Awards.

As much as Hollywood scram-bles during award season, one studio marketing rep notes, "People aren't as desperate. When you have the longer period, it gives you more time to stir things up, which isn't always a good thing."

Many Academy members had hoped that when the decision to move the show was made in 2002, the earlier Oscars would cut down on campaigning and even some of the hype. Other kudofests and guild shows scrambled to move their dates, in some cases into the same weekend.

"We weren't happy about campaigning, but (the earlier Oscars) was not in any sense a move to address that issue," Davis says.

There are still just as many kudofests. And the buildup to the ceremony itself has become a week-long affair, with the prolif-eration of gift suites, studio parties and other promotional events.

Media attention has reached a fever pitch, with the Los Angeles Times and New York Times providing daily coverage and even Vanity Fair offering a daily blog called Little Gold Men. And stars fill their dockets with appearances, perhaps on an even more hectic schedule than in the past.

On Jan. 26, Helen Mirren had to make an 11 a.m. (2 a.m. PST) flight from London, where she was shooting "Inkheart," and landed at 3 p.m. in Los Angeles to make a ceremony in her honor at the Santa Barbara Film Festival that evening. That was followed by events the next day and the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Jan. 28, before flying back to London on Jan. 29. "I must be going on adrenalin!" she told Daily Variety's Army Archerd.

While the Oscars have moved up, the box office battle among the specialty markets and major studio prestige pics has gotten more cutthroat. What has happened, distributors say, is a conundrum: To move a contender out of the holiday frame is to potentially be forgotten when Academy mem-bers are voting, not to mention to miss the lucrative holiday movie-going season. But the risk is that at the end of the year, there will be so many movies flooding the marketplace that voters won't get a chance to see a film.

"This was definitely an over-crowded marketplace, and it did hurt a lot of films," says one studio distribution head. "But releasing in October or November is just death. 'Bobby' opened just before Thanksgiving. Films can't sustain themselves, or you have to re-launch and re-spend."

"Pan's Labyrinth," released on Dec. 29, and "Letters From Iwo Jima," which debuted Dec. 20, went on to earn multiple nominations. But pictures like "The Good Shepherd," "The Painted Veil," "Miss Potter" and "Factory Girl" seemed to get lost in the shuffle. "Shepherd" wasn't even completed until mid-December, just as Golden Globe nominations were announced. Screeners of "Potter" were sent out even before the pic's Dec. 29 release date.

Although the Oscar season is still a scramble, Davis says the move to February was made to make sure the ceremony remained relevant.

""We thought we were maybe being a little more polite than necessary about stepping back and allowing many, many awards shows to get in ahead of us. I think that most of us here would prefer if we could do the show even earlier."

In the early 1980s, the show would air as late as April. But many of the releases, even those that debuted at the end of the year, were out of theaters by then, Davis notes.

"That was getting to be pretty old news," he says. "I think moving it a month forward has fresh-ened (the ceremony), and we like that."

Compared with numbers of eyeballs in those earlier years, the Oscarcast certainly has dipped in the ratings, but Davis says "we've held our own" given the overall erosion of network viewership. "There's still only one television show that would not be delighted to trade ratings with us, and that is the Super Bowl. You have to put it into perspective."

One person even proposed moving the Oscars to the same day as the Super Bowl, pairing it as kind of a national mega-event.

"No, no, no," Davis says, laughing at the thought. "If we were to try to do this in late January, as some have suggested, it would just be impossible. I think we have approached the practical limitation of how early we can do the Oscars."

(Pamela McClintock and Ian Mohr contributed to this report.)



Date in print: Mon., Feb. 5, 2007,, Weekly

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Review: Academy Award Nominations

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Is Oscar squeeze-play backfiring?
Ted Johnson | 2/4/2007

DGA Awards winners
Variety Staff | 2/3/2007

Scorsese wins at DGA Awards
| 2/3/2007

Duo to co-chair Spirit Awards
Dave McNary | 1/31/2007

NAACP Theater fetes Wolfe
Jeff Sneider | 1/31/2007

A good year for the Brits
Liz Smith | 1/31/2007

Canuck helmers selected for Jutra
Brendan Kelly | 1/31/2007

Ballots sent to Academy members
Variety Staff | 1/31/2007

AMPAS to host foreign pic noms event
Jeff Sneider | 1/30/2007

Police reunite for Grammys
Stuart Levine | 1/30/2007









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Red-carpet redux: Show hails Oscars' fashion history
By Sandy Cohen
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Barbra Streisand. Cher. Elizabeth Taylor. Sharon Stone.

Each made style history at the Academy Awards. Who can forget Streisand's seemingly see-through sequined pantsuit at the 1969 Oscar show, or the certainly see-through sparkling creation Cher wore in 1988? How about Taylor's 1970 periwinkle chiffon gown that matched her eyes, or the Gap T-shirt Stone built an outfit around in 1996?

These red-carpet contributions - and those of two dozen other stylish female stars - were recognized Tuesday at the film academy headquarters with "A Celebration of Oscar Fashion," a retrospective of iconic Oscar wear. The private runway show, curated by Andre Leon Talley of Vogue magazine, was designed to inspire this year's nominees and presenters to express their personal style and "create their own memorable moment" at the Oscars, said telecast producer Laura Ziskin.

The Academy Awards are about movies, but "Oscar night is also arguably the biggest and most scrutinized fashion event of any year," said Ziskin, who transformed the academy's annual fashion forecast into a trip through style history.

Talley, a veteran fashionista who helped dress Nicole Kidman for the 1997 Academy Awards and consulted with current supporting-actress favorite Jennifer Hudson for this year's show, called the Oscar red carpet "a gridlock of haute couture."

It's been that way since the awards' inception in 1929, he said.

The oldest dress on display Tuesday dated back to 1942. Jamie Lee Curtis wore the ivory beaded confection, which originally belonged to Marlene Dietrich, to the Oscars in 1984.

Legendary Hollywood costumer Edith Head created three of the show's featured gowns: a silver beaded sheath worn by Janet Leigh in 1960, Taylor's 1970 stunner, and the embroidered, cream-colored strapless dress she wore herself to the 1959 Academy Awards, where she celebrated her 15th costume-design nomination.

Other timeless looks included Carol Channing's rhinestone-encrusted number from 1968, which Talley said weighs 50 pounds, and a champagne tulle dress designed by Arnold Scaasi (who created Streisand's news-making pantsuit) worn by Mitzi Gaynor in 1967.

Cher is "one of the most original Oscar red-carpet sweepstakes winners," Talley said, calling her sheer, beaded Bob Mackie dress "bold but brilliant."

"Cher chic does not get any better than this," he said.

Hilary Swank's midnight-blue backless gown from 2005 is "one of the great Oscar dresses," Talley said, and Stone's T-shirt/designer skirt/velvet coat ensemble is "history at its best."

Stone plucked the items from her closet at the last minute after deciding she didn't like the dress she'd chosen, he said.

Another modern style maven is Renee Zellweger, who "perhaps single-handedly reinvented Oscar style with her love of vintage couture," Talley said. Two of Zellweger's dresses were shown: the pastel yellow strapless column she wore in 2001, and the ruby-hued mermaid gown she wore in 2005.

Charlize Theron also had two gowns on the runway: the jeweled nude sheath she wore when she won best actress for "Monster" in 2004 and her ice blue tulle dress from the following year.

Other memorable best-actress styles included Julia Roberts' black-and-white vintage Valentino dress from 2001, when she won for "Erin Brockovich," Gwyneth Paltrow's pink princess dress from 1999, when she won for "Shakespeare in Love," and Halle Berry's embroidered burgundy gown from 2002, when she won for "Monster's Ball."

Sundance wraps: And the winners are
By M&C Movie News Jan 28, 2007, 12:39 GMT

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Park City, UT–The jury and audience award-winners of the 2007 Sundance Film Festival were announced January 27 at the Festival’s closing Awards Ceremony in Park City, Utah.


The films receiving jury awards were selected by distinguished jurors from films screening in the Independent Film Competition and the World Cinema Competition. Awards were given to both dramatic and documentary films screening in the four competitive categories: Documentary Competition, Dramatic Competition, World Cinema Documentary Competition, and World Cinema Dramatic Competition.

The films in these categories were also eligible for the 2007 Sundance Film Festival Audience Awards as selected by Film Festival audiences. The premier showcase for U.S. independent film, the Film Festival is an important new platform for international independent film and screens films that embody risk-taking, diversity, and aesthetic innovation.

In addition, the Shorts Jury awarded a Jury Prize in Short Filmmaking to a U.S. and international filmmaker. Other awards recognized at the ceremony include the recipient of the Alfred P. Sloan Prize, awarded to a film which excels in addressing compelling topics in science or technology and the recipients of the Sundance/NHK International Filmmakers Award, created to honor and support emerging filmmakers with their next screenplays.

“The films in this year’s program have opened up the possibilities of what independent film can be and will be in the future,” said Geoffrey Gilmore, Director of the Sundance Film Festival. “The 2007 Sundance Film Festival award-winners reflect the talent, diversity, and evolution of independent film and exemplify
the artistic power of film to illuminate and explore issues that are prevalent in our global society.”

The Independent Film Competition is the heart and soul of the Sundance Film Festival program. It has introduced audiences to many of the best American and international independent films and filmmakers of the past 24 years. Films selected to screen in the Dramatic and Documentary Competitions were eligible for a number of jury awards.

The 2007 Sundance Film Festival Award-Winners are:

The Grand Jury Prize: Documentary was given to MANDA BALA (SEND A BULLET), directed by Jason Kohn. In Brazil, known as one of the world's most corrupt and violent countries, MANDA BALA follows a politician who uses a frog farm to steal billions of dollars, a wealthy businessman who spends a small fortune bulletproofing his cars, and a plastic surgeon who reconstructs the ears of mutilated kidnapping victims.

The Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic was given to PADRE NUESTRO, directed by Christopher Zalla. Fleeing a criminal past, Juan hops a truck transporting illegal immigrants from Mexico to New York City, where he meets Pedro, who is seeking his rich father.

The World Cinema Jury Prize: Documentary was given to ENEMIES OF HAPPINESS (VORES LYKKES FJENDER)/Denmark, directed by Eva Mulvad and Anja Al Erhayem. In ENEMIES OF HAPPINESS, Malalai Joya, a 28-year-old Afghani woman, redefines the role of women and elected officials in her country with her historic 2005 victory in Afghanistan's first democratic parliamentary election in over 30 years.

The World Cinema Jury Prize: Dramatic was given to SWEET MUD (ADAMA MESHUGAAT)/Israel, directed by Dror Shaul. On a kibbutz in southern Israel in the 1970's, Dvir Avni realizes that his mother is mentally ill. In this closed community, bound by rigid rules, Dvir must navigate between the kibbutz motto of equality and the stinging reality that his mother has, in effect, been abandoned by the community.

The Audience Awards are given to both a dramatic and documentary film in the Independent Film Competition as voted by Sundance Film Festival audiences.

The 2007 Sundance Film Festival Audience Awards for the Independent Film Competition are presented by Volkswagen of America, Inc.

The Audience Award: Documentary was given to HEAR AND NOW, directed by Irene Taylor Brodsky. Brodsky tells a deeply personal story about her deaf parents and their radical decision–after 65 years living together in silence–to undergo cochlear implant surgery, a procedure that could give them the ability to hear.

The Audience Award: Dramatic was given to GRACE IS GONE, directed by James C. Strouse. After learning that his wife has been killed in Iraq, a father finds the courage to tell his daughters the news during a quixotic road trip to an amusement park.

The World Cinema Audience Awards are given to both a dramatic and documentary film in the World Cinema Competition as voted by Sundance Film Festival audiences.

The World Cinema Audience Award: Documentary was given to IN THE SHADOW OF THE MOON/United Kingdom, directed by David Sington. One of the defining passages of American history, the Apollo Space Program literally brought the aspirations of a nation to another world. Awe-inspiring footage and candid interviews with the astronauts who visited the moon provide unparalleled perspective on the precious state of our planet.

The World Cinema Audience Award: Dramatic was given to ONCE/Ireland, directed by John Carney. ONCE is a modern day musical set on the streets of Dublin. Featuring Glen Hansard and his Irish band "The Frames," the film tells the story of a busker and an immigrant during an eventful week as they write, rehearse and record songs that reveal their unique love story.

The Directing Awards recognize excellence in directing for dramatic and documentary features.

The Directing Award: Documentary went to Sean Fine and Andrea Nix Fine, directors of WAR/DANCE.

The Directing Award: Dramatic was presented to Jeffrey Blitz, director of ROCKET SCIENCE.

The Excellence in Cinematography Awards honor exceptional photography in both a dramatic and documentary film at the Festival. Heloisa Passos for MANDA BALA (SEND A BULLET) from the Documentary Competition and Benoit Debie for JOSHUA from the Dramatic Competition received the 2007 Cinematography Awards.

The Independent Film Competition Documentary Jury presented the Documentary Editing Award to editors Hibah Sherif Frisina, Charlton McMillian, and Michael Schweitzer for their work on the film NANKING.

The Jury for the Independent Film Dramatic Competition presents the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award for outstanding achievement in writing. The 2007 prize was given to James C. Strouse for GRACE IS GONE.

The Documentary Jury presented a Special Jury Prize to NO END IN SIGHT, directed by Charles Ferguson, “in recognition of the film as timely work that clearly illuminates the misguided policy decisions that have led to the catastrophic quagmire of the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq.”

The Jury for the Independent Film Dramatic Competition also presented two special Jury Prizes. Special Jury Prizes for Acting were presented to Jess Weixler in TEETH “for a juicy and jaw-dropping performance” and to Tamara Podemski in FOUR SHEETS TO THE WIND “for a fully realized physical and emotional turn.”

The Jury also presented a Special Jury Prize for Singularity of Vision to Chris Smith, director of THE POOL.

The World Cinema Documentary Competition Jury presented a Special Jury Prize to HOT HOUSE/Israel, directed by Shimon Dotan.

The World Cinema Dramatic Competition Jury presented a Special Jury Prize to THE LEGACY (L’HERITAGE)/France directed by Géla Babluani and Temur Babluani.

The Shorts Jury presented the Jury Prize in Short Filmmaking to EVERYTHING WILL BE OK directed by Don Hertzfeldt.

The Jury Prize in International Short Filmmaking was given to THE TUBE WITH A HAT/Romania, directed by Radu Jude.

The Shorts Jury awarded Honorable Mentions in Short Filmmaking to DEATH TO THE TINMAN, directed by Ray Tintori; THE FIGHTING CHOLITAS, directed by Mariam Jobrani; MEN UNDERSTAND EACH OTHER BETTER (MARDHA HAMDIGAR RA BEHTAR MIFAHMAND)/Iran, directed by Marjan Alizadeh; MOTODROM/Germany, directed by Joerg Wagner; SPITFIRE 944 directed by William Lorton; and t.o.m./United Kingdom, directed by Tom Brown and Daniel Gray.

The 2007 Sundance Film Festival Short Film Awards were presented by Adobe Systems Incorporated. The Shorts Jury also presented a Special Jury Prize to the documentary short film FREEHELD, directed by Cynthia Wade.

The 2007 Independent Film Competition Documentary Jurors were Alan Berliner, Lewis Erskine, Lauren Greenfield, Julia Reichert, and Carlos Sandoval.

The 2007 Independent Film Competition Dramatic Jurors were Catherine Hardwicke, Dawn Hudson, Pamela Martin, Elvis Mitchell and Sarah Polley.

The 2007 World Cinema Competition Documentary Jurors are Raoul Peck, Juan Carlos Rulfo, and Elizabeth Weatherford.

The 2007 World Cinema Competition Dramatic Jurors were Carlos Bolado, Lynne Ramsay, and U-Wei Bin Haji Saari.

The 2007 Shorts Jurors presenting awards to U.S. and international short films were Jared Hess, Daniela Michel, and Mark Elijah Rosenberg.

The Alfred P. Sloan Prize carries a $20,000 cash award and celebrates the work of emerging independent feature filmmakers tackling compelling ideas and issues in science and technology. The 2007 Alfred P. Sloan Prize was presented to DARK MATTER, directed by Chen Shi-Zhen.

The 2007 Alfred P. Sloan Jurors were Darren Aronofsky, Ann Druyan, Dr. Brian Greene, Howard Suber, and John Underkoffler.

Actors Guild Awards may be the key to Oscar victories
Email this storyPrint this story 8:50AM Sunday January 28, 2007
By Arthur Spiegelman


'Dreamgirls' Jennifer Hudson (L) and Beyonce Knowles. Photo / Reuters

Screen Actors Guild Awards
Oscar watchers narrow list of top film nominees
Mirren nominated in Oscars indicator
LOS ANGELES - It is a question sometimes asked with scorn in the film industry: Who cares what actors think? Right now, the answer is maybe all of Hollywood.

The 13th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards tomorrow have assumed more importance than usual this year because a surprise snub of a major film at the Oscar nominations created a wide open race for best picture.

This means that the SAG awards, normally a clubby affair that never receives terribly high ratings, have a chance to make a difference in the key battle at the Feb. 25 Oscars.

The same thing happened last year when SAG actors chose Crash over the heavy favourite Brokeback Mountain for outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture. Crash then went on to win the Oscar for best picture.

SAG members this year get to choose between five films for best ensemble performance in a motion picture: Babel, Bobby, The Departed, Dreamgirls and Little Miss Sunshine.


By omitting Dreamgirls from its list of films nominated for best picture, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences sent shock waves through the industry.

Many experts expected Dreamgirls to not only get nominated but to win the Oscar for best picture.

Now the experts are looking to the Screen Actors Guild for guidance.

SAG voters will not necessarily go for Dreamgirls. SAG members form the biggest voting bloc among Oscar voters and one can assume that Dreamgirls would have won a nomination for best picture if it had strong actor support.

This leaves four films, of which three are rated with the best chance of winning the top SAG award -- The Departed, Babel and Little Miss Sunshine. Bobby, a tale of the assassination of Bobby Kennedy, which received poor reviews and did badly at the box office, but has plenty of winning performances.

Babel, a tale of the globalisation of pain and suffering, was shot in four countries in five languages with few professional actors. One of its performers is up for best supporting actress, Rinko Kikuchi.

The Departed, a cops and robbers film directed by Martin Scorsese, features a cast of Hollywood heavyweights, including Jack Nicholson and Leonardo DiCaprio.

And Little Miss Sunshine boasts an actors' dream story -- it took six years to get made and stars a host of dedicated journeymen burning up the screen. For SAG members, those actors' stories could be their own.

The front-runner in the race for best actor is Forest Whitaker, who plays the late Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland. Leading the contest for best actress is British veteran Helen Mirren for her work as Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen.

Both are considered shoo-ins for victory and losses could create waves.

Jennifer Hudson, the singer who is brutally cut loose in Dreamgirls, and Eddie Murphy, who plays a singer going from riches to rags in the same film are favoured to win the best supporting actor awards.

- REUTERS

Movie Review: Smokin'Aces
By Anne Brodie Jan 27, 2007, 3:36 GMT

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If ever there was a film to shock us out of the January blahs, (see Ann’s ode to the 'January Blahs' here) its ‘Smokin’ Aces.’


With as much nerve as Crank and a bigger budget, Carnahan’s blood soaked morality tale is tight. Keeps the adrenaline pumping as the body count climbs.

Buddy ‘Aces’ Israel (Jeremy Piven), a Las Vegas magician and mob puppet, knows a lot, enough to know he is in danger. The feds want him for themselves; he’ll rat out the mobsters to avoid prison. Convictions stemming from his testimony will have a domino effect that will ultimately destroy the mob in America. That’s the plan, according to the good guys (Ray Liotta and Ryan Reynolds to name a couple).

Israel’s mob mentor has put a $1-million plus heart bounty out, to ensure silence. The heart is proof he is dead and gone and no more trouble. The feds have plants inside, relaying information regarding Israel’s fate.

So Israel and his bodyguards head to a penthouse suite in Lake Tahoe to enjoy one final bacchanalia before he becomes federal property, protected by an army of security and federal agents.

Naturally, when word gets out that there is a cool million to be made for a simple hit, the country’s leading assassins show up. And what a pack of wolves they are. Armed to the teeth, evil written all over them (literally in some cases) and bloodthirsty, the race is on to get Buddy.

Jason Bateman was born to play Rip Reed, a lawyer who is certainly ripped and will not shut up. He looks good in a bra and panties and refuses to let our attention flag.

The first casualties are apparently witless bail bondsmen (Peter Berg and Ben Affleck) struck down by the hilariously over the top Tremor Boys. Straight out of Road Warrior, these are clearly worshippers of early Sigue Sigue Sputnik.

A lesbian assassin team big momma, sexy girl and radical (Davenia McFadden, Alicia Keys and Taraji P. Henson) are the best prepared of the bunch – carrying missile launchers and a solid plan, they’ve got Israel covered, from his floor to a hotel window across town.

Meanwhile a Russian operative manages to replace Israel’s butler inside the suite and a big, threatening towheaded Swede is on his way. There’s a psycho lunatic boy of about nine chop-sockying his way into the mix with a guy the Tremors should have checked twice.

Eternal TV mobsters David Proval and Alex Rocco, Matthew Fox, Andy Garcia and Common confirm the beauty of this cast list . Even Wayne Newton shows up.

One delicious surprise after another, except towards the end the taste of blood is a little too strong – it dominates the many other notes. Violence is overplayed and hurts the film by providing an easy out. The film deserves a better demise. More time, a little more thought and this could have been a killer. Okay, it wouldn’t have been Shakespeare, but who cares?

And Piven shows what he can do, like break our hearts as the guy in the middle.

2007 Academy Award Nominees

Best Actor
Leonardo DiCaprio - Blood Diamond
Ryan Gosling - Half Nelson
Peter O'Toole - Venus
Will Smith - The Pursuit of Happyness
Forest Whitaker - The Last King of Scotland

Best Supporting Actor
Alan Arkin - Little Miss Sunshine
Jackie Earle Haley - Little Children
Djimon Hounsou - Blood Diamond
Eddie Murphy - Dreamgirls
Mark Wahlberg - The Departed

Best Actress
Penélope Cruz - Volver
Judi Dench - Notes on a Scandal
Helen Mirren - The Queen
Meryl Streep - The Devil Wears Prada
Kate Winslet - Little Children

Best Supporting Actress
Adriana Barraza - Babel
Cate Blanchett - Notes on a Scandal
Abigail Breslin - Little Miss Sunshine
Jennifer Hudson - Dreamgirls
Rinko Kikuchi - Babel

Best Animated Feature Film
Cars
Happy Feet
Monster House

Art Direction
Dreamgirls
The Good Shepherd
Pan's Labyrinth
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
The Prestige

Cinematography
The Black Dahlia
Children of Men
The Illusionist
Pan's Labyrinth
The Prestige

Costume Design
Curse of the Golden Flower
The Devil Wears Prada
Dreamgirls
Marie Antoinette
The Queen

Best Director
Babel - Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
The Departed - Martin Scorsese
Letters from Iwo Jima - Clint Eastwood
The Queen - Stephen Frears
United 93 - Paul Greengrass

Best Documentary Feature Film
Deliver Us From Evil
An Inconveniet Truth
Iraq in Fragments
Jesus Camp
My Country, My Country

Best Documentary Short Subject
The Blood of Yingzhou District
Recycled Life
Rehearsing a Dream
Two Hands

Film Editing
Babel
Blood Diamond
Children of Men
The Departed
United 93

Best Foreign Language Film
After the Wedding
Days of Glory (Indigenes)
The Lives of Others
Pan's Labyrinth
Water

Achievement in Makeup
Apocalytpo
Click
Pan's Labyrinth

Music (Score)
Babel
The Good German
Notes on a Scandal
Pan's Labyrinth
The Queen

Music (Original Song)
"I Need to Wake Up" - An Inconvenient Truth
"Listen" - Dreamgirls
"Love You I Do" - Dreamgirls
"Our Town" - Cars
"Patience" - Dreamgirls

Best Picture
Babel
The Departed
Letters from Iwo Jima
Little Miss Sunshine
The Queen

Animated Short Film
The Danish Poet
Lifted
The Little Matchgirl
Maestro
No Time for Nuts

Live Action Short Film
Binta and the Great Idea (Binta Y la Gran Idea)
Éramos Pocos (One Too Many)
Helmer & Son
The Saviour
West Bank Story

Sound Editing
Apocalypto
Blood Diamond
Flags of Our Fathers
Letters from Iwo Jima
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dean Man's Chest

Sound Mixing
Apocalypto
Blood Diamond
Dreamgirls
Flags of Our Fathers
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

Visual Effects
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
Poseidon
Superman Returns

Adapted Screenplay
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Children of Men
The Departed
Little Children
Notes on a Scandal

Original Screenplay
Babel
Letters from Iwo Jima
Little Miss Sunshine
Pan's Labyrinth
The Queen

The 79th Academy Awards will be telecast live from Hollywood on February 25, 2007 at 5pm PST (8pm EST).

At The Movies: The End of the World as We Know It

Sasha Stone, Mirror Film Critic Children of Men ****
Three of the best films made this year came from directors who hailed from Mexico. Dubbed “The Three Amigos” by film editor for The Hollywood Reporter, Anne Thompson, Guillermo Del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth), Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (Babel) and Alfonso Cuaron (Children of Men) have made films that have reset the bar for filmmakers in this country, and maybe opened doors for foreign directors who are willing to take chances American directors can’t or won’t take.

Children of Men is a strange and exhilarating look into our potentially bleak future. If we continue to live the way we are, there is a good chance we will obliterate ourselves. Based on a P.D. James novel, Cuaron’s film, which he adapted and directed, stars Clive Owen as Theo, the man put in charge of no less than saving humanity.

He is thrust into the position by his ex-wife, played by a toughened up Julianne Moore, who is part of a rebellious underground. In her charge, the only pregnant woman in England, maybe in the world. They don’t know. What the world around them does know is that babies don’t exist anymore. People don’t have babies anymore. Kee (Claire-Hope Ashitey) doesn’t know who the father is; her pregnancy was entirely accidental. But Theo has to get her out of England and to a place where she can live in peace and help start future generations.

As Theo and Kee make their way across the war torn landscape (civil war surrounds them, among other frightening things), they must run from the rebels who want Kee’s baby to be their new leader (if it’s a boy). They must count on the kindness of strangers and escape one hair-raising crisis after another as they make their escape.

This isn’t the first film to tackle this subject – end of the world, woman carrying the seed of the future. In fact, when cinema goes forward to the future the first thing it does is mess with women’s reproductive cycles. Somehow, it is thought that one day they won’t make babies the old-fashioned way. Babies will be grown in test tubes, of course.

It’s the end of life as we know it that sets the tone of inescapable fear and hopelessness in Children of Men. But there is one reason to keep hoping, and that’s because Kee and Theo survive.

The best reason to see Children of Men, though, isn’t necessarily the story. It’s a good story, and the acting is wonderfully varied – especially Clive Owen, who is not unlike Harrison Ford in Bladerunner, with his Bogart-like elusiveness and brooding charm. But it’s those dazzling long takes that make Children of Men a must-see.

One take in particular lasts a full nine minutes. Cuaron choreographed these segments and gave the actors specific instructions, yet they feel anything but rehearsed. These long takes give the film a present tense urgency that leaves you on the edge of your seat. There is no time to blink, let alone cut. Editing can upset or soothe the viewer, depending on how it’s done, but having no cuts at all for that long is disturbing and exhilarating at the same time.

Cuaron didn’t have to make Children of Men. He made a Harry Potter movie, which means he could coast on one big action movie after the next if he so chose. But there was something inside him that made him want to be a cinema revolutionary.

Perhaps this is why Children of Men is fast becoming the number one film among the most discerning of film geeks out there; there is nothing else out there like it and it is already changing the way filmmakers look at filmmaking, and it’s opening doors not just for those filmmakers, but for audiences who have been fed a steady diet of bland and safe fare for far too long.

'Glory,' 'Chatterley,' 'Tell No One' top Cesar nomsBy Rebecca Leffler

Jan 27, 2007

PARIS -- Rachid Bouchareb's "Days of Glory," Pascale Ferran's "Lady Chatterley" and Guillaume Canet's "Tell No One" dominate the nominations for this year's Cesar Awards, France's top film honors, with each film vying for nine awards, organizers said Friday.

Alain Resnais' "Coeurs" and Xavier Giannoli's "When I Was a Singer" trail with eight and seven nominations, respectively.

"Days of Glory," a harrowing portrayal of North Africans who fought to liberate France during World War II, followed up its foreign-language Oscar nomination with nine Cesar noms including best film, director and original script.

"Tell No One," Guillaume Canet's adaptation of Harlan Coben's thriller, also bagged nine nominations, including best film, director and actor (Francois Cluzet).

"Lady Chatterley," a critics' favorite that picked up the Louis Delluc prize in December, rounded out the trio with nominations in the best film, director and actress (Marina Hands) categories.
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Philippe Lioret's adolescent drama "Don't Worry, I'm Fine," also will compete in the best film category, nabbing a total of five nominations including best director and female newcomer (Melanie Laurent).

Cecile de France, who took last year's supporting actress Cesar, will compete against herself in the best actress category for her roles in "When I Was a Singer" and "Avenue Montaigne." Catherine Frot ("The Page Turner"), Charlotte Gainsbourg ("I Do") and Marina Hands ("Lady Chatterley") also will vie for the prize.

Nominees in the best actor category include Michel Blanc, who plays a farmer in French boxoffice hit "You're So Beautiful"; Alain Chabat, for his hilarious portrayal of a reluctant lover in "I Do"; Gerard Depardieu, for his role as a worn-out ballroom singer in "When I Was a Singer"; Jean Dujardin, who plays the French reincarnation of James Bond in "OSS 117"; and Francois Cluzet, a man searching for his missing wife in "Tell No One."

"Singer," "Glory" and "Beautiful" will vie for best original screenplay alongside "Avenue Montaigne" and "Jean-Philippe" while "No One," "Chatterley," "OSS 117" and "Don't Worry" will compete with Alain Resnais' ensemble hit "Private Fears in Public Places" in the best adaptation category.

Christine Citti ("Singer"), Mylene Demongeot ("French California") and Bernadette Lafont ("I Do") will compete for the best supporting actress prize with French singer Dani ("Avenue Montaigne") and this year's Cesars ceremony host, Valerie Lemercier ("Montaigne").

The nominees for best supporting actor are Danny Boon ("The Valet"), Francois Cluzet ("Four Stars"), Andre Dussollier ("No One"), Guy Marchand ("Inside Paris") and Kad Merad ("Don't Worry").

Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's "Babel," Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris' "Little Miss Sunshine," Ang Lee's "Brokeback Mountain," Stephen Frears' "The Queen" and Pedro Almodovar's "Volver" will compete for best foreign-language film.

The Academy of Cinema Arts and Techniques has added a new documentary category this year, said Academy president Alain Terzian. Nominees for the new prize include Karl Zero and Michel Royer's "Being Jacques Chirac," William Karel's "My Dad Is Into Terrorism," Jean-Henri Meunier's "Ici Najac, A Vous la Terre," Chantal Akerman's "La-bas" and Philippe Parreno and Douglas Gordon's "Zidane, A 21st Century Portrait."

Lemercier will preside over the 32nd annual Cesar Awards ceremony Feb. 24 at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris. It will be broadcast live on Canal Plus.

A complete list of nominees follows:

FILM
"Days of Glory," Jean Brehat
"Don't Worry, I'm Fine," Christophe Rossignon
"Lady Chatterley," Gilles Sandoz
"Tell No One," Alain Attal
"When I was a Singer," Xavier Giannoli

DIRECTOR
Rachid Bouchareb, "Days of Glory"
Guillaume Canet, "Tell No One"
Pascale Ferran, "Lady Chatterley"
Philippe Lioret, "Don't Worry, I'm Fine"
Alain Resnais, "Private Fears in Public Places"

ACTOR
Michel Blanc, "You Are So Handsome"
Alain Chabat, "I Do"
Francois Cluzet, "Tell No One"
Gerard Depardieu, "When I was a Singer"
Jean Dujardin, "OSS 117"

ACTRESS
Cecile de France, "Avenue Montaigne"
Cecile de France, " When I was a Singer"
Catherine Frot, "The Page Turner"
Charlotte Gainsbourg, "I Do"
Marina Hands, "Lady Chatterley"

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Xavier Giannoli, "When I was a Singer"
Olivier Lorelle and Rachid Bouchareb, "Days of Glory"
Isabelle Mergault, "You Are So Handsome"
Daniele Thompson and Christopher Thompson, "Avenue Montaigne"
Laurent Tuel and Christophe Turpin, "Jean-Philippe"

ADAPTATION
Guillaume Canet and Philippe Lefebvre, "Tell No One"
Pascale Ferran, Rover Bohbot and Pierre Tridivic, "Lady Chatterley"
Jean-Francois Halin and Michel Hazanavicius, "OSS 117"
Philippe Lioret and Olivier Adam, "Don't Worry, I'm Fine"
Jean-Michel Ribes, "Private Fears in Public Places"

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Patrick Blossier, "Days of Glory"
Eric Gautier, "Private Fears in Public Places"
Julien Hirsch, "Lady Chatterley"
Christophe Offenstein, "Tell No One"
Guillaume Schiffman, "OSS 117"

SUPPORTING ACTOR
Dany Boon, "The Valet"
Francois Cluzet, "Quatre Etoiles"
Andre Dussollier, "Tell No One"
Guy Marchand, "Dans Paris"
Kad Merad, "Don't Worry, I'm Fine"

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Christine Citti, "When I was a Singer"
Dani, "Avenue Montaigne"
Mylene Demongeot, "La Californie"
Bernadette Laffont, "I Do"
Valerie Lemercier, "Avenue Montaigne"

FEMALE NEWCOMER
Deborah Francois, "The Page Turner"
Marina Hands, "Lady Chatterley"
Melanie Laurent, "Don't Worry, I'm Fine"
Aissa Maiga, "Bamako"
Maiwenn, "Forgive Me"

FIRST FILM
"13 Tzameti," Gela Babluani
"Pieces If Antonin," Gabriel Le Bomin
"You Are So Handsome," Isabelle Mergault
"Bad Faith," Roschdy Zem
"Forgive Me," Maiwenn

DOCUMENTARY FILM
"Being Jacques Chirac," Karl Zero, Michel Royer
"My Dad Is into Terrorism," William Karel
"Najac Calling, Over to You Earth," Jean Henri Meunier
"Down There," Chantal Akerman
"Zidane: A Portrait of the 21st Century," Philippe Parreno, Douglas Gordon

SOUND
Jean-Marie Blondel, Thomas Desjonqueres, Gerard Lamps, "Private Fears in Public Places"
Jean Jacques Ferran, Nicolas Moreau and Jean Pierre Laforce, "Lady Chatterley"
Pierre Gamet, Jean Goudier and Gerard Lamps, "Tell No One"
Olivier Hespel, Olivier Walczak, Franck Rubio and Thomas Gauder, "Days of Glory"
Francois Musy and Gabriel Hafner, "When I was a Singer"

ORIGINAL SCORE
Armand Amar, "Days of Glory"
Mathieu Chedid, "Tell No One"
Jerome Lemonnier, "The Page Turner"
Mark Snow, "Private Fears in Public Places"
Gabriel Yared, "Azur and Asmar"

SET DESIGN
Dominique Douret, "Days of Glory"
Maamar Ech Cheikh, "OSS 117"
Jean Luc Raoul, "The Tiger Brigades"
Francois-Renaud Labarthe, "Lady Chatterley"
Jacques Saulnier, "Private Fears in Public Places"

COSTUMES
Marie Claude Altot, "Lady Chatterley"
Jackie Budin, "Private Fears in Public Places"
Charlotte David, "OSS 117"
Pierre-Jean Larroque, "The Tiger Brigades"
Michele Richer, "Days of Glory"

EDITING
Martine Giordano, "When I was a Singer"
Yannick Kergoat, "Days of Glory"
Sylvie Landra, "Avenue Montaigne"
Herve de Luze, "Private Fears in Public Places"
Hervede Luze, "Tell No One "

SHORT FILM
"Bonbon au Poivre," Marc Fitoussi
"Fais de beaux reves," Marilyne Canto
"La Lecon de guitare," Martin Rit
"Le Mammouth Pobalski," Jacques Mitsch
"Les Volets," Lyece Boukhitine

BEST FOREIGN FILM
"Babel," Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
"Little Miss Sunshine," Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris
"Brokeback Mountain," Ang Lee
"The Queen," Stephen Frears)
"Volver," Pedro Almodovar

Prince Charles and Camilla Hit Philly and the East CoastAl Gore to Present Prince and His Wife With Environmental Award
Britain's Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, are set to visit the East Coast this weekend. Charles will receive an environmental award from former Vice President Al Gore. (Dylan Martinez/Reuters)

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Jan. 26, 2007 — Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, are making a whirlwind trip to the East Coast this weekend and are set to visit Philadelphia today.

It will be the first visit to the city from a prince of Wales in almost 150 years.


Coming to America



The couple is expected to arrive this afternoon and spend about 24 hours in the city.

When it comes to visiting the states, Charles is a frequent flier. Over the years, he has been wined and dined at the White House. In 2005, he introduced his new bride to the Bushes over lunch.

"It was her first trip, and she was really touched by the warmth of the reception," said Paddy Harverson, Charles' communications secretary.

Gone is the glamour of Diana. In the Reagan administration years, she stole the show, especially when she danced with John Travolta during one White House visit.

For this trip, Charles has dramatically scaled back his travel plans. There will be no specially chartered flight for the royal entourage. Instead, he'll fly on a regularly scheduled, commercial jet.

"A whole number of changes have been made to the way we go about our business, and the prince of Wales and duchess do their business," Harverson said. "Probably the most important one is travel."


The Al Gore Effect

The prince's travel regimen was changed because he wanted to reduce his impact on the environment.

After all, he will accept an environmental award presented by a kindred spirit, former Vice President Al Gore.

"I think he and President Gore, er Vice President Gore, are very much on the same wavelength about this one," Harverson said.

This time, they'll have something else to chat about. Both men may watch the Oscars closely.

Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" is nominated for best documentary, and Prince Charles is depicted in "The Queen," which is up for best picture.

"Everyone always asks us if the royal family has seen 'The Queen,' and I think we'll keep that one a secret for ourselves," Harverson said.


The environmental award from Harvard Medical School's Center for Health and Global Environment will be presented to Charles in New York City.