Dave Karger's OscarWatch

‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’: Bill Murray’s animal instincts

Dave Karger — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:01:52 +0000

I don’t know about you, but I’ve always wanted to hear Bill Murray imitate a cardinal. So when I gathered four members of the team behind Fantastic Mr. Fox (Murray, Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman, and writer-director Wes Anderson), I figured it was the perfect time to ask the quartet what kind of animals they’ve ever wished

Oscar roundup: November 20

Dave Karger — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:38:11 +0000

Two female-driven films — one aimed at art houses, the other at the heartland — hit theaters this week, and both have some awards hopes to speak of. Here are the categories where Broken Embraces and The Blind Side could be a contender. BROKEN EMBRACES Possibles Best Actress, Penélope Cruz The reigning Best Supporting Actress winner’s role in this

Best Documentary semifinalists announced: No Michael Moore!

Dave Karger — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 00:26:56 +0000

The Academy has just announced the 15 films on the shortlist for Best Documentary, and glaringly absent from the list is Michael Moore’s Capitalism: A Love Story. It’s a surprising omission (Moore did submit the film) since he won this category with 2002’s Bowling for Columbine. For the most part, though, it’s a good group

‘Precious’ to receive special Producers Guild prize

Dave Karger — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 20:55:44 +0000

The Producers Guild of America announced today that Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire will receive its Stanley Kramer prize next year. The special award recognizes a film that “illuminates provocative social issues in an accessible and elevating fashion.” Last year’s Kramer award winner was Milk, which also earned best picture nominations from

Can ‘Avatar’ play on DVD?

Dave Karger — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:18:44 +0000

Although the Academy hosts official screenings of all the big award hopefuls for Oscar voters, the fact remains that many Academy members prefer to watch the contenders in their living rooms on DVD. But this year, for the first time, we have a 3D film—James Cameron’s Avatar—with a decent shot at a Best Picture nomination.

Oscar roundup: November 13

Dave Karger — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 17:00:42 +0000

An indie drama with three impressive performances and a quirky animated film with a dream cast are the two Oscar-baiting entries to hit theaters this weekend. Here’s how The Messenger and Fantastic Mr. Fox might fare in this year’s awards races. THE MESSENGER Possible Best Supporting Actor, Woody Harrelson: He’s the biggest star in the cast and also

George Clooney and Matt Damon: The double showdown

Dave Karger — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:01:32 +0000

Only two men in Oscar history have ever received acting nominations for two different performances in the same year: Al Pacino (for 1992’s Scent of a Woman and Glengarry Glen Ross) and Jamie Foxx (for 2004’s Ray and Collateral). Though I don’t expect anyone to join that list this year, I do find it funny

‘Precious’ lives up to the hype

Dave Karger — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 17:49:52 +0000

While big-studio releases like A Christmas Carol and The Fourth Kind topped the box office chart this weekend, all OscarWatchers’ eyes were on Precious. After dominating this year’s film-festival prizes, the indie drama opened on Friday to very strong reviews, resulting in an 85 grade from Rotten Tomatoes. EW’s Owen Gleiberman rated the film an

Who’s the best Oscar host of the 2000s?

Dave Karger — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:38:49 +0000

All the talk about the announcement of Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin as next year’s Academy Award hosts has started me thinking: Who is the best Oscar emcee of the last decade? There have been seven: Billy Crystal, Ellen DeGeneres, Whoopi Goldberg, Hugh Jackman, Steve Martin, Chris Rock, and Jon Stewart. Below I list each

Oscar roundup: November 6

Dave Karger — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 19:06:07 +0000

So there’s this movie that came out today; it’s called Precious. Maybe you’ve heard of it? Ever since its Sundance premiere all the way back in January, people have been using the O-word (no, not Oprah) when talking about the film. Now that it’s finally out, I can run down its chances in all the