Emma Thompson to the rescue

You know, my friends, there was a time (and I call this time "1993) when I was in love with Emma Thompson. No longer does the flame of passion burn through my soul, but I am still quite fond of her.

This clip, from the Cesars (France's version of The Oscars), shows why. (You only need to watch about the first 1:45 or so.)

Césars 2009 : 34° Cérémonie / Julie Ferrier
Uploaded by websilone

There is one more piece of information to this story but I will put that in the comments so as to not spoil the surprise.

Best Picture Oscar Showcase

As many of you know, the last two years I have joined some friends to watch all Five Best Picture Nominees in one day. It's on February 21, the day before the Oscars. (The picture is last year's pass.)

Here is the link to the AMC Showcase page

It's $30 for an all-day pass, which includes some special souvenirs, and free drinks (and I think popcorn) all day long.


Koz is really hoping we do it this year (after he punked out like LaDanian Tomlinson in a playoff game last year), and I want to as well. Even though it's a pretty good deal, money is always an issue, but the bigger concern for me is health; can I physically get up there and back?

Anyway, assuming this old body can pull through, we're putting out a call to any Monkeys in the Atlanta area. You can't imagine how much fun it is to do this. We get lots of snacks, and argue with everyone around us during the breaks. Yes, by the end you're a bit of a zombie, but it's a good zombie-feeling.

So, like I said, we'd love for all of you to go. Email me (Hyperion) if you're interested, and we'll hook it up!

Golden Globes

The Golden Globe Nominations came out the other day. I totally forgot to post them. Here they are:

MOVIES

BEST PICTURE (DRAMA)
The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
The Reader
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire



BEST ACTRESS (DRAMA)
Anne Hathaway – Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie – Changeling
Meryl Streep – Doubt
Kristin Scott Thomas – I've Loved You So Long
Kate Winslet – Revolutionary Road



BEST ACTOR (DRAMA)
Leonardo DiCaprio – Revolutionary Road
Frank Langella – Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn – Milk
Brad Pitt – The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke – The Wrestler



BEST PICTURE (MUSICAL OR COMEDY)
Burn After Reading
Happy-Go-Lucky
In Bruges
Blueprint Pictures; Focus Features
Mamma Mia!
Vicky Cristina Barcelona




BEST ACTRESS (MUSICAL OR COMEDY)
Rebecca Hall – Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Sally Hawkins – Happy-Go-Lucky
Frances McDormand – Burn After Reading
Meryl Streep – Mamma Mia!
Emma Thompson – Last Chance Harvey



BEST ACTOR (MUSICAL OR COMEDY)
Javier Bardem – Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Colin Farrell – In Bruges
James Franco – Pineapple Express
Brendan Gleeson – In Bruges
Dustin Hoffman – Last Chance Harvey




BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams – Doubt
Penélope Cruz – Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis – Doubt
Marisa Tomei – The Wrestler
Kate Winslet – The Reader



BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Tom Cruise – Tropic Thunder
Robert Downey Jr. – Tropic Thunder
Ralph Fiennes – The Duchess
Philip Seymour Hoffman – Doubt
Heath Ledger – The Dark Knight



BEST ANIMATED FILM
Bolt
Kung Fu Panda
Wall-E



BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
The Baader Meinhof Complex (Germany)
Everlasting Moments (Sweden, Denmark)
Gomorrah (Italy)
I've Loved You So Long (France)
Waltz With Bashir (Israel)


BEST DIRECTOR
Danny Boyle – Slumdog Millionaire
Stephen Daldry – The Reader
David Fincher – The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard – Frost/Nixon
Sam Mendes – Revolutionary Road


BEST SCREENPLAY
The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button - Written by Eric Roth
Doubt - Written by John Patrick Shanley
Frost/Nixon - Written by Peter Morgan
The Reader - Written by David Hare
Slumdog Millionaire - Written by Simon Beaufoy


BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button - Composed by Alexandre Desplat
Changeling - Composed by Clint Eastwood
Defiance - Composed by James Newton Howard
Slumdog Millionaire - Composed by A. R. Rahman
Frost/Nixon - Composed by Hans Zimmer


BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"Down To Earth" – Wall-E
Music By: Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman
Lyrics By: Peter Gabriel

"Gran Torino" – Gran Torino
Music By: Clint Eastwood, Jamie Cullum, Kyle Eastwood and Michael Stevens
Lyrics By: Jamie Cullum

"I Thought I Lost You" – Bolt
Music & Lyrics By: Miley Cyrus and Jeffrey Steele

"Once In A Lifetime" – Cadillac Records
Music & Lyrics By: Beyoncé Knowles, Amanda Ghost, Scott McFarmon, Ian Dench, James Dring and Jody Street

"The Wrestler" – The Wrestler
Music & Lyrics By: Bruce Springsteen

TELEVISION

BEST TELEVISION SERIES (DRAMA)
Dexter (SHOWTIME)
House (FOX)
In Treatment (HBO)
Mad Men (AMC)
True Blood (HBO)



BEST ACTRESS (DRAMA)
Sally Field – Brothers & Sisters (ABC)
Mariska Hargitay – Law & Order
January Jones – Mad Men (AMC)
Anna Paquin – True Blood (HBO)
Kyra Sedgwick – The Closer (TNT)



BEST ACTOR (DRAMA)
Gabriel Byrne – In Treatment (HBO)
Michael C. Hall – Dexter (SHOWTIME)
Jon Hamm – Mad Men (AMC)
Hugh Laurie – House (FOX)
Jonathan Rhys Meyers – The Tudors (SHOWTIME)



BEST TELEVISION SERIES (MUSICAL OR COMEDY)
30 Rock (NBC)
Californication (SHOWTIME)
Entourage (HBO)
The Office (NBC)
Weeds (SHOWTIME)



BEST ACTRESS (MUSICAL OR COMEDY)
Christina Applegate – Samantha Who? (ABC)
America Ferrera – Ugly Betty (ABC)
Tina Fey – 30 Rock (NBC)
Debra Messing – The Starter Wife (USA)
Mary-Louise Parker – Weeds (SHOWTIME)



BEST ACTOR (MUSICAL OR COMEDY)
Alec Baldwin – 30 Rock (NBC)
Steve Carell – The Office (NBC)
Kevin Connolly – Entourage (HBO)
David Duchovny – Californication (SHOWTIME)
Tony Shalhoub – Monk (USA)



BEST MINI-SERIES OR TV MOVIE
A Raisin In The Sun (ABC)
Bernard And Doris (HBO)
Cranford (PBS)
John Adams (HBO)
Recount (HBO)



BEST ACTRESS (MINI-SERIES OR TV MOVIE)
Judi Dench – Cranford (PBS)
Catherine Keener – An American Crime
Laura Linney – John Adams (HBO)
Shirley MacLaine – Coco Chanel
Susan Sarandon – Bernard And Doris (HBO)



BEST ACTOR (MINI-SERIES OR TV MOVIE)
Ralph Fiennes – Bernard And Doris (HBO)
Paul Giamatti – John Adams (HBO)
Kevin Spacey – Recount (HBO)
Kiefer Sutherland – 24 (FOX)
Tom Wilkinson – Recount (HBO)



BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Eileen Atkins – Cranford (PBS)
Laura Dern – Recount (HBO)
Melissa George – In Treatment (HBO)
Rachel Griffiths – Brothers & Sisters (ABC)
Dianne Wiest – In Treatment (HBO)



BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Neil Patrick Harris – How I Met Your Mother (CBS)
Denis Leary – Recount (HBO)
Jeremy Piven – Entourage (HBO)
Blair Underwood – In Treatment (HBO)
Tom Wilkinson – John Adams (HBO)




The SAG Award Nominations just came out this morning. I'm not going to take the time to prep all them for posting (also I'm ticked at SAG right now), but you can see them here.


I have thoughts on the TV nominations, but I'm hoping to complete an end-of-the-year TV column, so I'll save my accolades for that. I haven't seen most of the movies, which isn't a surprise, since they often don't come out until late December or even January!

I was shocked THE DARK KNIGHT didn't get a Best Picture nod. I thought it would be a lock. I guess we'll see how Oscar thinks in a few weeks.

WHAT ABOUT YOU?

What have you seen, and do you agree with these nominations? Disagree? Why?

National Board of Review

The National Board of Review released their Award Winners for 2008.


Best Film
SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE

Top Ten Films
(In alphabetical order) BURN AFTER READING, CHANGELING, THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON, THE DARK KNIGHT, DEFIANCE, FROST/NIXON, GRAN TORINO, MILK, WALL-E, THE WRESTLER

Best Foreign Language Film
MONGOL

Top Five Foreign Films
(In alphabetical order) THE EDGE OF HEAVEN, LET THE RIGHT ONE IN, ROMAN DE GARE, A SECRET, WALTZ WITH BASHIR

Best Documentary
MAN ON WIRE

Top Five Documentaries
(In alphabetical order) AMERICAN TEEN, THE BETRAYAL (NERAKHOON), DEAR ZACHARY, ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD, ROMAN POLANSKI: WANTED AND DESIRED

Top Independent Films
(In alphabetical order) FROZEN RIVER, IN BRUGES, IN SEARCH OF A MIDNIGHT KISS, MR. FOE, RACHEL GETTING MARRIED, SNOW ANGELS, SON OF RAMBOW, WENDY AND LUCY, VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA, THE VISITOR

Best Actor
CLINT EASTWOOD, Gran Torino

Best Actress
ANNE HATHAWAY, Rachel Getting Married

Best Supporting Actor
JOSH BROLIN, Milk

Best Supporting Actress
PENELOPE CRUZ, Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Best Ensemble Cast
DOUBT

Breakthrough Performance by an Actor
DEV PATEL, Slumdog Millionaire

Breakthrough Performance by an Actress
VIOLA DAVIS, Doubt

Best Director
DAVID FINCHER, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Best Directorial Debut
COURTNEY HUNT, Frozen River

Best Adapted Screenplay
SIMON BEAUFOY, Slumdog Millionaire and ERIC ROTH, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Spotlight Award
MELISSA LEO, Frozen River and RICHARD JENKINS, The Visitor

Best Original Screenplay
NICK SCHENK, Gran Torino

Best Animated Feature
WALL-E

William K. Everson Award For Film History
MOLLY HASKELL and ANDREW SARRIS

The BVLGARI Award for NBR Freedom of Expression
TRUMBO


Most of these movies I haven't seen yet; actually, most of these movies aren't even out, yet! So, I cannot really comment. But it is interesting.