Theatre 40: Introduction to Film: 2010-02-28

Thursday, March 4, 2010

The 2010 Oscar Challenge

The Challenge:
Have the most number of correct picks in the class.

The Prize:
The top two winners will be allowed to "skip" an OSR and ISR of their choice.

The Procedure:
1. Copy this ballot
2. Open the Comments option below
3. Paste the ballot into a comment box, leaving only your picks for EACH category. Be sure to leave your name.
4. I'll tally the results by Monday's class and announce the winners

The Rules:
1. All entries must be in by 4 PM Sunday
2. Only fully-completed ballots will counted

(See my picks in the Comments section as an example)

Good luck!

The Ballot:

BEST PICTURE
Avatar
The Blind Side
District 9
An Education
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Precious
A Serious Man
Up
Up in the Air

ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart
George Clooney, Up in the Air
Colin Firth, A Single Man
Morgan Freeman, Invictus
Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker

ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side
Helen Mirren, The Last Station
Carey Mulligan, An Education
Gabourey Sidibe, Precious
Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia

ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Matt Damon, Invictus
Woody Harrelson, The Messenger
Christopher Plummer, The Last Station
Stanley Tucci, The Lovely Bones
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds

ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Penélope Cruz, Nine
Vera Farmiga, Up in the Air
Maggie Gyllenhaal, Crazy Heart
Anna Kendrick, Up in the Air
Mo'Nique, Precious

DIRECTOR
Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker
James Cameron, Avatar
Lee Daniels, Precious
Jason Reitman, Up in the Air
Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Mark Boal, The Hurt Locker
Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman, The Messenger
Joel Coen & Ethan Coen, A Serious Man
Pete Docter, Bob Peterson & Tom McCarthy, Up
Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci & Tony Roche, In the Loop
Neill Bloomkamp & Terri Tatchell, District 9
Geoffrey Fletcher, Precious
Nick Hornby, An Education
Jason Reitman & Sheldon Turner, Up in the Air

ANIMATED FEATURE
Coraline
Fantastic Mr. Fox
The Princess and the Frog
The Secret of Kells
Up

FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
El Secreto do Sus Ojos (Argentina)
Un Prophete (France)
The White Ribbon (Germany)
Ajami (Israel)
The Milk of Sorrow (Peru)

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Burma VJ
The Cove
Food, Inc.
The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers
Which Way Home

DOCUMENTARY SHORT
China’s Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province
The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner
The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant
Music by Prudence
Rabbit à la Berlin

SHORT FILM - ANIMATED
French Roast
Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty
The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte)
Logorama
A Matter of Loaf and Death

SHORT FILM - LIVE ACTION
The Door
Instead of Abracadabra
Kavi
Miracle Fish
The New Tenants

ORIGINAL SCORE
Avatar
Fantastic Mr. Fox
The Hurt Locker
Sherlock Holmes
Up

ORIGINAL SONG
"Almost There," The Princess and the Frog
"Down in New Orleans," The Princess and the Frog
"Loin de Paname," Paris 36
"Take It All," Nine
"The Weary Kind," Crazy Heart

ART DIRECTION
Avatar
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
Nine
Sherlock Holmes
The Young Victoria

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Avatar
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
The White Ribbon

COSTUME DESIGN
Bright Star
Coco Before Chanel
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
Nine
The Young Victoria

MAKEUP
Il Divo
Star Trek
The Young Victoria

SOUND MIXING
Avatar
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Star Trek
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

SOUND EDITING
Avatar
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Star Trek
Up

VISUAL EFFECTS
Avatar
District 9
Star Trek

FILM EDITING
Avatar
District 9
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Precious

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Movie Goers Don't Know What Scary is Anymore

By Amy Biancolli, The Houston Chronicle
March 02, 2010

Days ago I wrote my review of The Crazies, Breck Eisner's retake on the George Romero non-zombie zombie movie, but one aspect of it keeps gnawing at me. I can't let go of the suspicion that movie goers don't know, any longer, what it feels like to be scared.

There are exceptions, but most contemporary horror filmmakers -- and contemporary horror audiences -- seem to have forgotten that being frightened is something more, something nastier, than just being jabbed in the butt with a cattle prod every 15 or 20 minutes. In my review I call them "shock-pops," these quickie jolts to the system -- a sound or sudden image that pops outta nowhere. In response we shout "ah!" or "oh!" or "holy fluffy Shih Tzu!" while experiencing a rapid and instantaneous uptick in our heart rates.

Which, you know, isn't a bad thing. The ticker could always use a work-out. But then it's over. You jump from your seat, and you're done -- until the next shock-pop comes along, goosing you from your padded seat and your equilibrium. The rhythm of such movies follows the same pattern, as the heroes (whoever they are) move from one location to the next on a feature-length quest to poke the audience: we get filler, shock-pop, filler, shock-pop, filler, shock-pop, shock-pop. It's like paying 10 bucks to be tasered several times an hour. With popcorn on your lap. While balancing a soda. Not pleasant.

Back in November, I mentioned Alfred Hitchcock's definition of suspense in a blog entry about Paranormal Activity, which I liked but didn't love -- because it wasn't as scary as it might have been. There was too much reliance on shock-pops, less on classically mounting dread. Think back to the most terrifying movie you've ever seen: Was it Rosemary's Baby? The Exorcist? For me, I'd have to say The Shining, with all of its ghosts and redrums and Nicholsonian flip-outs in the dead of winter.

One of my favorite bits is that steadicam shot of little Danny on his Big Wheel. As violins flutter in the score, he pedals his trike down hideously carpeted corridors toward Room 237. There's one shock-pop -- that quick cut of the dead-eyed girls -- but it's not the point of the scene. The point is the slow crescendo of fear that builds as the kid approaches the door.

Or think of the bathtub scene, which boasts three of the best shock-pops in the history of movies: first, when Danny pulls back the shower curtains to find the rotting ghoul; second, when she opens her eyes; and third, when said ghoul grabs him from behind after several long, agonizing moments while he tries to escape.

But the key to the sequence -- to any great and terrifying horror sequence -- isn't those momentary shocks. It's the near-unbearable anxiety that builds before, after and around them. We care about that little boy. As he yanks at the door, fumbling with the knob, we see (but he can't) the straggle-haired bathtub horror slowly advancing behind him. And it's terrifying.

That's the frightening part. That's why we sit through horror movies: to feel angst, alarm and fear for characters we're genuinely attached to. Or at least, that's why I sit through them. What about you?

Sunday, February 28, 2010

Week 5: Sports Films

Don't be obsessed with your desires Danny. The
Zen philosopher Basha once wrote, "A flute with
no holes, is not a flute. A donut with no hole, is
a Danish." He was a funny guy.

—Chevy Chase as Ty
in Caddyshack (Ramis, 1980 USA)

M 3.1/W 3.3: Sports Films
In-class: “An Introduction to Sports on Film, Pt. I”
Screening: Rocky (Avildsen, 1976 USA)

Upcoming:

M 3.8/W 3.10: Sports Films
In-class: “An Introduction to Sports on Film, Pt. II”
Screening: The Wrestler (Aronofsky, 2008 USA)
Due: OSR 3 (1960-1979)