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Welcome to Movies & Film
Movie Reviews, & Film Industry Commentary
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2006 Oscar Nominations
Edited by Doug The Movie Guy from Movies-film.com
Doubles – Winner for that Nomination
* - Golden Globe Nom
$ - Guild Nominees (Guilds=PGA, DGA, SAG, WGA, ACE)
Oscar Primer (D=Director, A=One or more Acting Nominations, W=Screenplay, E=Editing)
+ - Edge
Best Picture
Babel (GGGG, PGA, SAG, DGA, WGA, ACE)(Oscar Primer =D,A,W,E) – An accident in Morrocco with two American tourists leads to an international incident on three continents.
The Departed (GG, PGA, SAG, DGA, WGA, ACE)(Oscar Primer =D,A,W,E) – Two moles, one a Boston cop posing as mobster, the other a mobster posing as a cop, are put in charge of finding the other.
Letters From Iwo Jima (GG, ACE)(Oscar Primer =D,W) – The Japanese side of the Battle of Iwo Jima (as Directed and conceived by Clint Eastwood)
Little Miss Sunshine (GG, PGA, SAGSAG, DGA, WGA, ACE)(Oscar Primer =D,A,W) – A dysfunctional family tries to get behind their youngest member when she is entered in a beauty pageant while on a road trip.
The Queen (GG, PGA, DGA, WGA, ACE)(Oscar Primer =D,A,W)– A fictional account of the week following Princess Di’s death from the points of view of the Royal Family and Tony Blair.
With Two Modern Dramas, a contemporary black comedy (Sunshine), a gangster movie (Departed), and a World War II film (Letters), this year’s top prize appears to be coming down to just two. Babel Vs. The Departed. These are the two with both the momentum and financial backing to go all the way. Of note, though, from 1997 til 2004 all of the winners made over $100 million, which to date makes The Departed the clear winner, the others being under $50 million. (Note on the Oscar Primers: Analysis has shown that a film is more likely to win with all four dimensions, no film has won without at least three of them.) Fun Fact: Letters is the first time a foreign language film has been nominated for Best Picture without a Best Foreign Film nomination.
Best Director
Clint Eastwood – Letters From Iwo Jima GG
Stephen Frears – The Queen GG$
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu – Babel GG$
Paul Greengrass – United 93
Martin Scoresese – The Departed GGGG$
Each of these nominated films are well done and deserve recognition. Eastwood, Frears, and especially Greengrass tackle real life subjects with respect and dignity warranted, but without sacrificing their levels of intensity required. Even then, the made up subjects covered by Babel and The Departed are still thoughtful and engaging to us as the viewers. It could be Scorsese’s year. He is considered to be one of the most influential Directors in Hollywood but has never won this category. This puts him in the same league as Alfred Hitchcock. Although he always seems to get nominated at the same time as Actor / Directors, beware of those that say this is a rematch of 2004’s race (Eastwood’s Million Dollar Baby Vs. Scorsese’s The Aviator).
Best Original Screenplay
Babel $, “I killed the American, I was the only one who shot at you. They did nothing... nothing. Kill me, but save my brother, he did nothing... nothing. Save my brother... he did nothing.”
Letters From Iwo Jima - Written by Paul Haggis and Iris Yamishita, “You should kill ten of the enemy before you are killed.”
Little Miss Sunshine $, “Oh my God, I'm getting pulled over. Everyone, just... pretend to be normal.” / “I can say what I want - I still got Nazi bullets in my ass.”
Pan’s Labyrinth – Written by Guillermo del Toro, “The captain has been so good to us... Please, Ofelia, call him father. It's just a word, Ofelia, just a word.”
The Queen GGGG$, HM Queen Elizabeth II: “Have we shown you how to start a nuclear war yet?” Tony Blair: “Uh, no.” HM QE II: “No? First thing we do, apparently. Then we take away your passport and spend the rest of the time sending you around the world.”
This is probably the hardest category to judge this year. Four of the Five Best Picture nominees are nominated here (the only category to do this aside from Director) and even then the fifth slot (Pan’s Labyrinth) may be the most original IDEA for a screenplay this year. Although not nominated by the Writer’s Guild, Paul Haggis is someone to contend with (having also adapted Million Dollar Baby and Flags of Our Fathers, and having written and directed Crash). The Queen is also getting attention for it’s writing, but the popularity of Sunshine may be an asset to it in this category. Look for the competition to come down to those two.
Best Adapted Screenplay
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan $ - Written by Sacha Baron Cohen (aka. Borat), “My country send me to United States to make movie-film. Please, come and see my film. If it not success, I will be execute.”
Children of Men – Adapted by Alfonso Cuaron, “I can't really remember when I last had any hope, and I certainly can't remember when anyone else did either. Because really, since women stopped being able to have babies, what's left to hope for?”
The Departed $, “When I was your age they used to say you could become cops or criminals. What I'm saying to you is this... When you're facing a loaded gun, what's the difference?”
Little Children $, “There are four columns of lonely women in here, and only one of lonely men. The odds are on our side. Now why wouldn't any of these women want to meet a nice man like you?” “I'm not a nice person.”
Notes on a Scandal , “We are bound by the secrets we share.”
Although I would like to see this one go to The Departed for Adapting the Chinese movie Infernal Affairs (and being the only Best Picture nominee in this category), the popularity of Borat in Hollywood makes it a wild card. In case you are scratching your head wondering why Borat is ‘Adapted’, it is because the character of Borat originally appeared on Sacha Baron Cohen’s ”Da Ali G Show”. |
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