I often contemplate writing about the randomness about the much applauded Academy awards. Actually, this year, since Mallika Sherawat walked in with the caterers & Abhi- Ash also made it to the exalted red carpet, I kinda gave up. Ash might have been able to ace a couple of passes thanks to an anti ageing cream, but Mallika's only certifiable qualification has to be her weighty chest size.
Yet, some Oscar decisions baffle me. Critics, film reviewers & movie buffs end up debating Why a Film Won. But I would rather point out to some spiffy reasons about why some films/ film folk very obviously Didnt win.
Instance number 1: Tom Cruise. A rewatch of ' A few Good Men' made me rewind the clock to 1992. The spirited performance about a yuppie lawyer's sudden passionate turn for 'honor' simply didnt make it to the Best Actor nomination list. But that's probably because Cruise was taking on some doyens of acting who had been given a miss long enough! Notably, Al Pacino.
Now many argue that Al Pacino's performance in 'Scent of A Woman' was fabulous. But then, So were his acts for 'Dog Day Afternoon', 'The Godfather 2', 'And Justice for All' & 'Serpico'. Pacino's defensive reflex- the loud 'Attica Attica Attica Attica' chant - in 'Dog Day Afternoon' resonates till present time. His 11 minute plus uncut, one take finale speech in 'And Justice For All' is perhaps the inspiration behind many an Amitabh Bachchan monologue. (Actually Big B is pretty reflective of little Al's acting at times.) Yet, in his heydays, Pacino NEVER won an Oscar!! So the walking stick role had to be It. (God knows, the Academy didn't count on him & De Niro carrying on for so long.)
Coming back to Cruise, if you were to exclude his love for scientology & the annoying Katie Holmes, he is pretty powerful & accurate performer. But the man's just too goodlooking perhaps, to be ever taken seriously! Nominated in the Best Actor race for 'Born on the Fourth of July', & 'Jerry Mcguire', he has also been given a nomination once for Best Supporting Actor for 'Magnolia'. Yet, no luck with winning. His debut role as the physically challenged Vietnam veteran crash boomed against the even more powerful wheel chair act of Daniel Day Lewis' 'My Left Foot' in 1989. Mcguire's lovable character hit the mighty wall of one more mentally challenged character, Geoffrey Rush in 'Shine.' And 'Magnolia's sex guru, thundering act didnt stand a chance against Sir Micheal Caine's 'The Cider House Rules' act. After all, even the British doyen has NEVER won a Best Actor Oscar!
So if you are too good looking, or suave & popular, or playing an utterly normal human being with abnormal reactions, you don't stand a chance against a challenged faculty act.
You also don't stand a chance if you are competing with Daniel Day Lewis. Hollywood's very own Aamir Khan, the Irish star does 1 film in 3 years & swallows the competition with it.
But perhaps the funniest year, in my memory, would be 2002. Denzel Washington, modern day demi god of acting, given misses for 'Glory' & 'Malcolm X'; wins the Best Actor for a role where he was, at best, the grey supporting star! Washington basically brooded & mumbled a lot in that film. & his co winner, Halle Berry, won a Best Actress for 'Monsters Ball!'!! Except for an intense rape scene, Berry didnt do much more than cry & simper a lot in the film. Ironically,the same year, Russell Crowe's 'A Beautiful Mind' got the nomination ONLY. & a much better performance, by another African- American actor, Will Smith in 'Ali', had to contend with a nomination. As for Halle Berry's competitor, the sophisticated performance by Judi Dench in 'Iris' or Renee Zellweger's 'Bridget Jones' Diary' simply didnt stand a chance. After all, happy but cult roles have never dented the Oscar house of cards.
And this year too, the Oscars didnt dissapoint on the randamometer. While 'The King's Speech' is a near-perfect piece of cinema, David Fincher didnt ever stand a chance. He doesnt wine, dine or 'network', as the Hollywood press often mentions. Christopher Nolan being ignored? Well, the Academy is simply jealous of the man!!!
So the next time an Indian film/ filmmaker/ documentary/ music composer makes it to the Oscar race, don't consider that anything but a lobbying coup. After all, Charlie Chaplin won just the one solitary Oscar for a film of his (discounting the lifetime achievement consolation prize) & 'Citizen Kane' was booed at the Academy Night each time it's nominations were announced!
PS: Despite it all, the Oscars still have a few notches about the Filmfare Awards! The rest of our own? Aren't worth the effort involved in typing out their names!
Yet, some Oscar decisions baffle me. Critics, film reviewers & movie buffs end up debating Why a Film Won. But I would rather point out to some spiffy reasons about why some films/ film folk very obviously Didnt win.
Instance number 1: Tom Cruise. A rewatch of ' A few Good Men' made me rewind the clock to 1992. The spirited performance about a yuppie lawyer's sudden passionate turn for 'honor' simply didnt make it to the Best Actor nomination list. But that's probably because Cruise was taking on some doyens of acting who had been given a miss long enough! Notably, Al Pacino.
Now many argue that Al Pacino's performance in 'Scent of A Woman' was fabulous. But then, So were his acts for 'Dog Day Afternoon', 'The Godfather 2', 'And Justice for All' & 'Serpico'. Pacino's defensive reflex- the loud 'Attica Attica Attica Attica' chant - in 'Dog Day Afternoon' resonates till present time. His 11 minute plus uncut, one take finale speech in 'And Justice For All' is perhaps the inspiration behind many an Amitabh Bachchan monologue. (Actually Big B is pretty reflective of little Al's acting at times.) Yet, in his heydays, Pacino NEVER won an Oscar!! So the walking stick role had to be It. (God knows, the Academy didn't count on him & De Niro carrying on for so long.)
Coming back to Cruise, if you were to exclude his love for scientology & the annoying Katie Holmes, he is pretty powerful & accurate performer. But the man's just too goodlooking perhaps, to be ever taken seriously! Nominated in the Best Actor race for 'Born on the Fourth of July', & 'Jerry Mcguire', he has also been given a nomination once for Best Supporting Actor for 'Magnolia'. Yet, no luck with winning. His debut role as the physically challenged Vietnam veteran crash boomed against the even more powerful wheel chair act of Daniel Day Lewis' 'My Left Foot' in 1989. Mcguire's lovable character hit the mighty wall of one more mentally challenged character, Geoffrey Rush in 'Shine.' And 'Magnolia's sex guru, thundering act didnt stand a chance against Sir Micheal Caine's 'The Cider House Rules' act. After all, even the British doyen has NEVER won a Best Actor Oscar!
So if you are too good looking, or suave & popular, or playing an utterly normal human being with abnormal reactions, you don't stand a chance against a challenged faculty act.
You also don't stand a chance if you are competing with Daniel Day Lewis. Hollywood's very own Aamir Khan, the Irish star does 1 film in 3 years & swallows the competition with it.
But perhaps the funniest year, in my memory, would be 2002. Denzel Washington, modern day demi god of acting, given misses for 'Glory' & 'Malcolm X'; wins the Best Actor for a role where he was, at best, the grey supporting star! Washington basically brooded & mumbled a lot in that film. & his co winner, Halle Berry, won a Best Actress for 'Monsters Ball!'!! Except for an intense rape scene, Berry didnt do much more than cry & simper a lot in the film. Ironically,the same year, Russell Crowe's 'A Beautiful Mind' got the nomination ONLY. & a much better performance, by another African- American actor, Will Smith in 'Ali', had to contend with a nomination. As for Halle Berry's competitor, the sophisticated performance by Judi Dench in 'Iris' or Renee Zellweger's 'Bridget Jones' Diary' simply didnt stand a chance. After all, happy but cult roles have never dented the Oscar house of cards.
And this year too, the Oscars didnt dissapoint on the randamometer. While 'The King's Speech' is a near-perfect piece of cinema, David Fincher didnt ever stand a chance. He doesnt wine, dine or 'network', as the Hollywood press often mentions. Christopher Nolan being ignored? Well, the Academy is simply jealous of the man!!!
So the next time an Indian film/ filmmaker/ documentary/ music composer makes it to the Oscar race, don't consider that anything but a lobbying coup. After all, Charlie Chaplin won just the one solitary Oscar for a film of his (discounting the lifetime achievement consolation prize) & 'Citizen Kane' was booed at the Academy Night each time it's nominations were announced!
PS: Despite it all, the Oscars still have a few notches about the Filmfare Awards! The rest of our own? Aren't worth the effort involved in typing out their names!
sorry but monsters ball's scene wasn't a rape scene. it was a consensual act.
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