Who has the write stuff for an Oscar?
February 22nd, 2009
By Jay A. Fernandez
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Woody Allen was perhaps the most surprising omission from this year's original screenplay Oscar contenders.
His Spanish romp "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" charmed many people as a return to form, yet it failed to secure his 15th writing nomination.
Then again, Allen already has won two screenplay Oscars ("Annie Hall," "Hannah and Her Sisters"), and in all likelihood would have continued his tradition of not showing up.
No matter. On to the 10 original and adapted screenplay nominees vying for the gold at the 81st annual Academy Awards on Sunday.
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
"WALL-E" by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon; story by Stanton and Pete Docter.
Stanton, who also directed, is a maverick in the screenwriting community for elevating animation, a medium that rarely gets the respect it deserves. Voters might reward Stanton and Reardon for composing the most believable and entertaining romance of the year despite having primarily bleeps and whirs for dialogue. Then again, it is animation, and while scripts for "Ratatouille," "The Incredibles" and "Finding Nemo" (also co-written by Stanton) were nominated in the past few years, they all walked away empty-handed.
McDonagh's script is packed with the kind of dialogue actors love to say and writers love to provide. Despite its moderate box office earnings, the film racked up a Golden Globe win for actor Colin Farrell. "In Bruges" could be just the oddball favorite to sneak in and pinch the gold.
"MILK" by Dustin Lance Black
Black's deeply researched treatment is the young "Big Love" writer's first major produced screenplay, which worked wonders for Alan Ball ("American Beauty"), Diablo Cody ("Juno") and Michael Arndt ("Little Miss Sunshine"), who all walked away with the statuette. It was honored by the Writers Guild of America, but might not be funky enough for voters who like to reward idiosyncrasy in the original category ("Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," "Talk to Her," "Gosford Park").
"HAPPY-GO-LUCKY" by Mike Leigh
Leigh has been up for three previous writing Oscars ("Vera Drake," "Topsy-Turvy," "Secrets & Lies") without a win. Voters love his storytelling because it's true-to-life, yet he remains a long shot precisely because of the way he arrives at that naturalism, often in lengthy improvisational workshops with his actors.
"FROZEN RIVER" by Courtney Hunt
A festival favorite that earned the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance last year, "Frozen River" is a dark horse in the screenplay race because most voters have probably not seen the film. Then again, the fact that it was included over such favorites as "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" and Robert D. Siegel's "The Wrestler" bodes well.
Read more...
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Woody Allen was perhaps the most surprising omission from this year's original screenplay Oscar contenders.
His Spanish romp "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" charmed many people as a return to form, yet it failed to secure his 15th writing nomination.
Then again, Allen already has won two screenplay Oscars ("Annie Hall," "Hannah and Her Sisters"), and in all likelihood would have continued his tradition of not showing up.
No matter. On to the 10 original and adapted screenplay nominees vying for the gold at the 81st annual Academy Awards on Sunday.
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
"WALL-E" by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon; story by Stanton and Pete Docter.
Stanton, who also directed, is a maverick in the screenwriting community for elevating animation, a medium that rarely gets the respect it deserves. Voters might reward Stanton and Reardon for composing the most believable and entertaining romance of the year despite having primarily bleeps and whirs for dialogue. Then again, it is animation, and while scripts for "Ratatouille," "The Incredibles" and "Finding Nemo" (also co-written by Stanton) were nominated in the past few years, they all walked away empty-handed.
McDonagh's script is packed with the kind of dialogue actors love to say and writers love to provide. Despite its moderate box office earnings, the film racked up a Golden Globe win for actor Colin Farrell. "In Bruges" could be just the oddball favorite to sneak in and pinch the gold.
"MILK" by Dustin Lance Black
Black's deeply researched treatment is the young "Big Love" writer's first major produced screenplay, which worked wonders for Alan Ball ("American Beauty"), Diablo Cody ("Juno") and Michael Arndt ("Little Miss Sunshine"), who all walked away with the statuette. It was honored by the Writers Guild of America, but might not be funky enough for voters who like to reward idiosyncrasy in the original category ("Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," "Talk to Her," "Gosford Park").
"HAPPY-GO-LUCKY" by Mike Leigh
Leigh has been up for three previous writing Oscars ("Vera Drake," "Topsy-Turvy," "Secrets & Lies") without a win. Voters love his storytelling because it's true-to-life, yet he remains a long shot precisely because of the way he arrives at that naturalism, often in lengthy improvisational workshops with his actors.
"FROZEN RIVER" by Courtney Hunt
A festival favorite that earned the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance last year, "Frozen River" is a dark horse in the screenplay race because most voters have probably not seen the film. Then again, the fact that it was included over such favorites as "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" and Robert D. Siegel's "The Wrestler" bodes well.
Read more...
Comments
Only logged-in members can comment. You can log in or join today for free!
Advertisement
