The 6 remaining Oscars and their implications

Well, much of the rest of the 87th annual Academy Awards are devoted to presenting an award and seeing an acceptance speech.  The sort of unique performance aspect has been tapped out.  And, unlike the Grammys were the awards producers seem not to give a worth about the awards themselves; the Oscars are valued immensely.

First we have Best Original Screenplay going to Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu and his collaborators winning for Birdman.  One of three of the remaining awards that I thought would go to Richard Linklater and Boyhood.  Now, Inarittu winning the award is interesting.  You do have to understand, though; a movie that looks at the movie industry, or in this acting on stage, will garner the awards being presented.  This being one of the better movies that look at our celebrity fixation, the awards given out are quite legitimate. 

Best Adapted Screenplay went to The Imitation Game: adapted for the screen by Graham Moore.  I did not put this movie amongst my best in 2014; yet I was immensely pleased with the movie itself.  I of course would have preferred Paul Thomas Anderson to win.  Yet, I think Graham Moore made more of a compelling acceptance speech; perhaps the best of the night.  I am not sure if Mr. Moore's younger insecurities were due to his orientation or his beliefs; yet I and quite a number of others have been down that road before.  I never attempted suicide, though I know the feeling of being different than others.  Yet, so be it; you and I are different.  So too was Alan Turing.  Sadly, Alan Turing ended his life feeling alienated.  It should be, and hopefully will be, different this time around.

I also want to point out the interesting choices of Eddie Murphy and Oprah Winfrey in presenting the screenwriting awards.  In some respects, it is an ingenious move.  Perhaps a way to showcase their importance to film and making up for not winning competitive Oscars.  And yes, I think Eddie Murphy deserved to win Best Supporting Actor in Dreamgirls; why the heck did Norbit need to be released weeks before the Oscars in 2006? 

This is a bit off; yet I want to discuss Best Actor and Best Actress first.

Best Actor did not go to Steve Carell or Michael Keaton.  In somewhat of a surprise, it went to Eddie Redmayne in The Theory Of Everything.  I have still not seen the movie, though I really should.  I will say, though; Mr. Redmayne is a genuinely nice and affable person.  He was one of the few elements in Les Miserables that I liked.  And Eddie seemed surprised and humbled to win the award.  Plus, I think the approval of Stephen and Jane Hawking to have this film be made convinced AMPAS members to vote for this performance.

Best Actress did not go to Marion Cottiald.  Though she did win as Edith Piaf in La Vie En Rose.  The Oscar went to Julianne Moore in Still Alice.  It is another movie I have not seen; though I might soon enough.  I like Julianne Moore, and think she is one of our better actresses and amongst the coolest celebrities.  I have to wonder if Ms. Moore receiving the Oscar now is to make up for not winning for better movies.  This has occurred over the years to people like Al Pacino, James Coburn, Shirley MacLaine, James Stewart, Sir John Gielgud, Sir Sean Connery, Denzel Washington and others . None the less, a win is a win. 

Best Director went to Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu regarding Birdman.  Again, I thought Richard Linklater would win it; though Innaritu is quite a good choice.  A.G.I. is one of our better and more innovative filmmakers; this was a long time coming. 

And Best Picture of the Year went to Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu and Birdman.  By this point, it would have been awkward for Boyhood and Richard Linklater to win only Best Picture.  Possibly emphasized when Ben Affleck presented Best Director; an award Mr. Affleck would have received had he been nominated.  Also a bit of a tell when Sean Penn presented Best Picture.  Mr. Penn teamed up with A.G.I. to make 21 Grams, one of the best films of 2003 and over the last 20 odd years. 

I do think, between Birdman winning four Oscars and from last year Alfonso Cuaron winning Best Director regarding Gravity (the film winning another 5 technical Oscars); the members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences are willing to accept and recognize the New Wave of Mexican Cinema.  I would regard the storytelling elements and visual innovations in that form of cinema to be amongst the most important in the current movie culture. 

Something else to note: Mr. Innaritu has only made 5 important movies: Amores Parros, 21 Grams, Babel, Biutiful and Birdman.  Each one of these movies is fantastic.  Babel I think is one of the best films in recent memory.  I do hope to see where these Oscar wins will lead A.G.I. in future projects.  And yes, the same goes for Michael Keaton; who gave a shorter thank you speech when the movie won Best Picture.  What is next is anyone's guess; yet a path has been made for better works to come.

Well, that is my look and live blogging for this year's Oscars.  I do have other ideas that I would like to make known and to discuss.  Maybe these will not take multiple posts, even though I do commit to finish what was started.  Because you may want to know what I'm thinking.  What indeed is on my mind?

I think you may know what I picked this video. 

Catch up with you soon,

Robert

Live Blogging the Oscars Part 2: The Tape Delayed Editon

Well thanks to the usage of On Demand software form Verizon, I am now able to give you my continued live blog of what went on during the 87th annual Academy Awards.  Mind you, we know what happened already.  So this is more an opinion piece than anything else. 

Here's what I initially missed while away from my laptop on Sunday night.

Not a time goes by that I think Liam Neeson was robbed of an Oscar in Schindler's List.  You see kids, before Neeson became the hard as nails grandfatherly action star; he was quite the great actor. 

Adam Levine is practically everywhere.  While it is not a bad thing; he may be overexposing himself.  I really would hope Maroon 5 would create another pathos led work like Songs About Jane.

So the award for Best Costume Design is being shown. 

The winner is not Coleen Atwood.  It goes to The Grand Budapest Hotel!  I am very pleased with the result. 

I was right about The Grand Budapest Hotel winning Best Make-Up and Hair Design.  Also well deserved. 

About an hour and a half later, we return to where we left off.  And it is a rousing Common and John Legend performance of Glory.  Brilliant all around.  I also am liking the social political concerns being made in the ceremony.  Frankly, more people in different fields need to speak up on what concerns them. 

Since the songs nominated have been performed, it is now time I think for another performance. 

And right we are; 50 years ago, the Robert Wise film The Sound Of Music was completed.  I must say, it is nice to see Dame Julie Andrews mentioning her ideas and memories on that time.

I am in awe every time Lady Gaga performs.  Every time!  Definitely one of the best singers to come out over the last 10 years.  And she did not need a TV talent show to do it. 

Now we go to Best Original Score.  And it looks like Alexandre Desplat does not cancel himself out.  He wins for his work in The Grand Budapest Hotel.  I like how Wes Anderson is starting to be treated quite seriously with AMPAS.

Idina Menzel is presenting Best Song.  And just to prove there are no hard feelings, here comes John Travolta.  He is starting to remind me of Senor Cardgage.  I do not know whether to laugh or feel scared.

Anyway, Glory won Best Song. Some important truths were mentioned by Common and John Legend on current human rights needed. 

Well, there is going to need to be a part 3.  I have quite a bit to say on who won the remaining 6 awards.  By the time you and I are reading this; we have known what happened.  So, in addition to my continuing running commentary on the ceremony; I will have more to say on these winners.

Kindest Regards,

Robert

PS.  By the way, this is whom I am referring to as Senor Cardgage.  For anyone that loved Homestar Runner, you will instantly know.


Now let us hope the next Homestar Runner cartoon is shown sooner rather than later.

Why there was no post yesterday.

Hello all.

I must apologize for not getting in my follow up to my Live Blogging the Oscars.  Yesterday, I upgraded my cable from Optimum to Verizon.  This also included the need to fix the cogs in internet connectivity.  Sadly, I had the Academy Awards on DVR.  From the older cable box.

The good news is The Oscars are On Demand from Verizon!  Thus, perhaps tomorrow, I will live blog the remaining and missed portions of the ceremony and what went on.  Of course, this now occurs knowing who won. I will get to my thoughts on the winners in a later post.  In the meantime, I found some interesting analysis from the people at rogerebert.com.  Also the same goes for Richard Roeper.  These are great sources of information.

So, you will see more of this tomorrow with the continuation of the Live Blog on the Oscars.  Just wanted to let you all know.

Check back tomorrow,

Robert

Live blogging the Oscars

It is time once again for another live blog.  This night, it will be the 87th annual Academy Awards.  There will be a number of random thoughts coming to my head throughout the night.  And it starts with the pre show at the Red Carpet!  Who will appear?  Who will be wearing what?  Any surprises?  Let's find out.

And here we start.  Already numerous stars are arriving. 

21 cameras?! well, we have to cover everything.

What is the over/under on nominees bringing a parent as their guest?  I would say around 6.

I still think Selma needed several more nominations.  David Olewoyo, Carmen Ejogo, Ava Duvernay, and even Tim Roth were robbed.

I do not know if Michael Keaton has been at a prior Oscar ceremony.  Keaton's night starts here.

Price Waterhouse Coopers have arrived with the ballots. 

Just to let it be known: I have not yet seen The Theory Of Everything.  However, I know that several reviewers, including Richard Roeper and some at Roger Ebert .com were not too pleased.  Again, I have not seen it yet. 

I do hope Dakota Johnson will be involved in a movie that might fit my interests.  These do not include somewhat erotic sex.  She does look good tonight; and I am glad to see Melanie Griffith there too.

Jimmy Kimmel forgot to wear a tuxedo.  Will he allowed in? 

I should point out I did see The Wedding Ringer.  There was some laughs, and a bit of heart.  The sex jokes could have been turned down a notch.

Let me also say that I did not yet see Still Alice.  I hear Julianne Moore is brilliant, yet the movie itself feels like a Lifetime movie-of-the-week at worst.  Fortunately, not one of those abused relationships sort of movies. 

Chris Pratt and Anna Faris are married?  I did not know that.  And they have a child together. 

Benedict Cumberbatch is wearing the dinner tuxedo.  Black tie, white suit. 

6000 pearls on Lupita Nyongo's dress.  I am impressed.

Reese Witherspoon has made some valid concerns and ideals in her red carpet interview. 

This is likely the third time Bang Bang has been used.  Serpentine Fire should replace it.

Clint Eastwood has arrived.  Emma Stone has arrived with her mother. 

Taya Kyle has arrived.  A nice and welcoming gesture, given the circumstances. 

Faith Hill and Tim McGraw look so different than when I remember them.  Glad to see they are still together. 

I am liking the dress Lady Gaga is wearing.  She is quite the good performance artist. 

When I think about it; Snowpiercer should have gotten at least one nod.  Probably one of the more politically charged movies in recent memory. 

Patricia Arquette seems disoriented.  I hope she is not conked out or anything.

It's show time, folks!

Here he goes; Neil Patrick Harris is nailing it.

Interesting visual effects going on.

He referenced Clue!

Special appearances abound.  Jack Black is making a point here, though. 

So he hated Smurfs 2.  It was rather bad.

And now, Best Supporting Actor.  A nod to Robin Williams.

And it is J.k. Simmons.  Well Deserved.

He's getting a standing ovation!

Will Simmons continue the Farmer's Insurance commercials?  Why would he not?

It's just a case; nothing more.

Oh darn it; I left the vicinities for a short time and already I feel like I missed something.  I do know The Grand Budapest Hotel won an award; possibly Best Make-Up and Hairstyling.

We are now up to Best Foreign Language Film.

The winner is Ida.  Highly well deserved. 

Do not cue the music for an award recipient.  Thank goodness Pawel Pawlikowski is not taking the bait.

Shirley MacLaine is still looking important and regal at her age.

Just call it Birdman.

Why the need to do three at a time for Best Picture retrospectives?

This is awkward.

Tegan and Sara are performing!  And so is Andy Samberg!  And they are doing the well electronic hyper version. 

Damn; Mark Mothersbaugh is performing. 

Good performance.  It still is not going to win the Oscar.  Sorry.

A very good Lego Oscar.  And whoever has it gets to keep it.

You know, I liked Bad Words.  I wonder why many were indifferent.

And now we have Best Live Action Short Film.

And it goes to The Phone Call.  I knew it.  Mr. Kirby and Mr. Lucas are in the back rows, though?  Not cool. 

I am liking their speeches.

We are now onto Best Documentary Short Subject.

The winner is Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1. 

I did see the Perry family's documentary on their son Evan.  Heart wrenching to say the least.

I can remember when the Governor's Awards were handed out on Oscar night.  There were some great tributes then.

Would it have hurt AMPAS to give these honors tonight?  Any one of them, in fact?

And they are not there tonight? What gives?

I am not pleased with the camera movements for this Glen Campbell tribute.  Tim McGraw sounds a little flat.  Though the sentiment is needed. 

An interesting Birdman parody is going on.

And now we are going to Best Sound Mixing.

The winner is Whiplash.  Okay, I did not entirely expect that.

We now give you Best Sound Editing.

Winning it will be American Sniper.  An interesting choice. 

Looks like it is time for Best Supporting Actress.

Perhaps Jared Leto is somewhat correct about state law.

The Oscar goes to Patricia Arquette.  Well Deserved standing ovation for good measure.

5 second delay.  Arquette said the s word.

Good speech there.  So true.

I do like Rita Ora.  She is quite theatrical. 

Diane Warren is wearing quite a good suit. 

Now, here is Best Visual Effects.

The winner is Interstellar!  Now if only it had gotten more nominations.

We now go to Best Animated Short Film. 

The Oscar goes to Feast.  Yes; good choice there. 

Now we head to Best Animated Film.  The younger kids will like this, of any age.

Winning the award is Big Hero 6.  Well, I did like the movie.  So this is not the worst decision to be made.  Falalala:)

Though the words were well needed; there are of course limits to what one can say to achieve a public liking. 

We now go to Best Production Design.

The winner is The Grand Budapest Hotel.  An impressive win.

Now we are at Best Cinematography. 

The Oscar goes to Emanuel Lubezki.  For the second straight year.  Yet very much deserved.

In memoriam.  It is always a bittersweet moment.  More so in the past year.  I can see Meryl Streep is holding back tears.  I can only guess who is remembered last.

And the last one is Mike Nichols. 

I am liking this Jennifer Hudson song.  Such a great performer. 

Now we come to Best Film Editing.

The winner is Whiplash.  Okay, but not what I wanted to see.

Is Terrence Howard alright?  I would think so, maybe a bit unscripted.

Best Documentary Feature is up next.

The award goes to Laura Poitras and the filmmakers of Citizen Four.  I must say; this is a brave move the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences are taking. 

I feel like they cut off a speech from Glenn Greenwald.  If that is the case, I am quite disappointed. 

Well, we are of course no where near done with the night.  This requires a part two. 

See you there,

Robert

The 15 Oscars we will be talking about next week

At long last, here is the second and more interesting section of this year's Oscar nominees.  As well, if I had a ballot or were a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, here is whom I would vote for.


Best Costume Design

Coleen Atwood - Into The Woods
The Grand Budapest Hotel - costumes designed by Milena Canonero
Inherent Vice - costumes designed by Mark Bridges
Maleficent - costumes designed by Anna B. Shepard
Mr. Turner - costumes designed by Jacqueline Durran

Although my preference would be for Canonero or Bridges to receive this award; I must admit it will be very difficult to topple Coleen Atwood.  Ms. Atwood, even with a not great yet still well made movie like Into the Woods, has become one of the most important designers in film.  This award is Coleen Atwood's for the taking.

Best Cinematography

Roger Deakins - Unbroken
Emmanuel Lubezki - Birdman
The Grand Budapest Hotel - Robert Yeoman, director of photography
Ida - Lukasz Zal & Ryszard Lenziewski, directors of photography
Mr. Turner - Dick Pope, director of photography

Even though Roger Deakins has his 12th nomination, he will not have his first win.  The clear winner is Emmanuel Lubezki; having shot and filmed a movie that for the most part seems as if it was shot in one take.  I was particularly impressed in the camera movements Birdman had achieved, and thus I think Mr. Lubezki is most deserving to win Best Cinematography.

Best Documentary Feature: the award going to the movie's primary filmmakers

Laura Poitras,  Mathilde Bonnefoy & Dirk Wilutsky - Citizen four
Wim Wenders,  Laila Wanick Salgado & David Rosier - The Salt Of The Earth
Finding Vivian Maier - directed by John Maloof  & Charlie Siskel
Last Days In Vietnam - directed by Rory Kennedy & Keven Mcalester
Virunga - directed by Orlando von Einseindel & Joanna Natasgera

Wim Wenders is one of the most important and influential filmmakers of our time.  Yet he has never won an Oscar.  Having seen The Salt Of The Earth a while back; I am hopeful Mr. Wenders will be able to finally receive his Oscar.  Perhaps as a way for AMPAS to compensate for not even considering Paris, Texas and Wings Of Desire all those years ago.  Citizen four could be an upset, though it is rather doubtful.

Best Song

Glen Campbell & Julian Raymond - I'm Not Gonna Miss You - Glen Campbell: I'll Be Me
Common and John Legend - Glory - Selma
Diane Warren - Grateful - Beyond The Lights
Everything Is Awesome - The Lego Movie - music and lyric by Shawn Patterson
Lost Stars - Begin Again - music and lyric by Gregg Alexander & Danielle Brisebois

This award is going to Common and John Legend, and rightly so.  Like many, I am still peeved that Selma only received 2 nominations; and not any for acting, director, or technical achievement.  It is cold comfort, yet it is much deserving. 

Best Original Score

Alexandre Desplat - The Grand Budapest Hotel
Alexandre Desplat - The Imitation Game
Hans Zimmer - Interstellar
Mr. Turner - music by Gary Yershon
The Theory Of Everything - music by Johan Johansson

I think Alexandre Desplat should be in the vicinity to win an Oscar, particularly with respect to The Grand Budapest Hotel.  Yet, Mr. Desplat being nominated twice might be a cancellation of ballots.  So, I would not be surprised to see Hans Zimmer win another Oscar for his interesting score for Interstellar.  Mr. Zimmer of course is much deserving of acclaim and appraisal. 

Best Animated Film: awarded to the primary filmmakers

Dean Deblois & Bonnie Arnold - How To Train Your Dragon 2
Isao Takahata & Yoshiaki Nishmura -  The Tale Of The Princess Kaguya
Big Hero 6 - directed by Don Hall,  Chris Williams & Roy Conti
The Boxtrolls - directed by Anthony Stacchi, Graham Annable & Travis Knight
Song Of The Sea - directed by Tomm Moore & Paul Young

Although I really liked How To Drain Your Dragon 2; I found the Isao Takahata movie The Tale Of The Princess Kaguya to be more interesting once I had gotten a chance to see it.  Bear in mind, I am quite a fan of anime and Studio Ghibli anime in particular.  Thus this cerebral film is of more qualification to receive this award.

Best Foreign Language Film: awarded to the directors

Pawel Powlikaski - Ida
Abderrahammne Sissako -  Timbuktu
Zaza Ushadze -  Tangerines
Leviathan - directed by Andrey  Zyginiftsev
Wild Tales - directed by Damian Szifron

Having seen recently the Pawel Polwlikakski film Ida; I am certain this will deservedly win Best Foreign Language Film.  I also feel it could have contended for many of the leading Oscar categories.  Ida was well made and quite moving.

Best Original Screenplay

Wes Anderson & Hugo Guinness - The Grand Budapest Hotel
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr. and Armando Bo - Birdman
Richard Linklater - Boyhood
Foxcatcher - screenplay by E. Max Frye & Dan Futterman
Night crawler - screenplay by Dan Gilroy

Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu and his co writers might be able to win this Oscar; considering Birdman went through numerous ideas that would not be found in a conventional movie.  I would much more prefer Richard Linklater to receive this Oscar, however.  Once again, the uniqueness of Boyhood is quite prevalent for movies in 2014.  Wes Anderson may need to wait a bit longer.

Best Adapted Screenplay

Paul Thomas Anderson - Inherent Vice - from the Thomas Pynchon novel
Damian Chazelle - Whiplash - from Chazelle's initial short movie
Chris Kyle, Jim DeFelice & Scott McEwen - American Sniper - adapted for the screen by Jason Hall
The Imitation Game - screenplay by Graham Moore from the Andrew Hodges biography Alan Turing: The Enigma
The Theory Of Everything - screenplay by Anthony McCarten from the Jane Wilde Hawking memoir Traveling To Infinity: My Life With Stephen

As odd as it may seem, Paul Thomas Anderson has never won on Oscar.  Not for Sydney, Boogie Nights, Magnolia, Punch Drunk Love, There Will Be Blood or The Master.  If for adapting Thomas Pynchon to the big screen, Anderson would be deserving to win.  Yet, Damian Chazelle did expand upon his student film to detail the hard life of a jazz musician.  So I would not be surprised if Chazelle's expansion of Whiplash receives the Oscar.  My preference of course would be for Paul Thomas Anderson; clearly one of the best filmmakers alive today.

Best Supporting Actor

Robert Duvall - The Judge
Ethan Hawke - Boyhood
Edward Norton - Birdman
Mark Ruffalo - Foxcatcher
J.K. Simmons - Whiplash

As remarkable as Hawke, Norton & Ruffalo were in their respective films; J.K. Simmons damn well nailed it in Whiplash.  In point of fact, I think this role of Simmons' might be looked at by up and coming filmmakers and actors at how best to, as they say, chew the scenery. 

Best Supporting Actress

Patricia Arquette - Boyhood
Laura Dern - Wild
Keira Knightley - The Imitation Game
Emma Stone - Birdman
Meryl Streep - Into The Woods

This is a two person race between Patricia Arquette and Emma Stone.  In the end, I believe Ms. Arquette will deservedly receive her Oscar, in a role that while not physically transforming is an evolutionary role in ideas and stature.  I was amazed and continue to be awed at Ms. Arquette's talents.

Best Actor

Steve Carell - Foxcatcher
Bradley Cooper - American Sniper
Benedict Cumberbatch - The Imitation Game
Michael Keaton - Birdman
Eddie Redmayne - The Theory Of Everything

This is a two person race between Steve Carell and Michael Keaton.  I am guessing Mr. Keaton will win an Oscar for basically playing a highly exaggerated version of himself and his Batman character.  It is an award which will be much admired by his peers. 

Best Actress

Marion Cottiald - Two Days, One Night
Felicity Jones - The Theory Of Everything
Julianne Moore - Still Alice
Rosamund Pike - Gone Girl
Reese Witherspoon - Wild

This should, I hope, go to Marion Cottiald.  She has become one of the most interesting and versatile presences in film,  allowing a movie to be become far more interesting just by being in it.  Please do not be alarmed that the movie is in the French language.  It is a well made and excellent film in every way possible. 

Best Director

Wes Anderson - The Grand Budapest Hotel
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu - Birdman
Richard Linklater - Boyhood
Bennett Miller - Foxcatcher
Morten Tyldum - The Imitation Game

Bennett Miller might not win considering Foxcatcher did not receive a best picture nod.  That leaves either Anderson, Gonzalez Inarritu, or Linklater.  I think and am confident Richard Linklater will receive Best Director.  And about damn time too.

Best Picture - awarded to the producers

Wes Anderson, Scott Rudin, Steven Raines & Jeremy Dawson - The Grand Budapest Hotel
Clint Eastwood, Robert Lorenz, Bradley Cooper, Andrew Lazar & Peter Morgan - American Sniper
Eric Fellner, Tim Bevan,  Lisa Bruce & Anthony McCarten - The Theory Of Everything
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, John Lesher & James W. Skotchdople - Birdman
Richard Linklater & Cathleen Sutherland - Boyhood
Oprah Winfrey, Christian Colson, DeDe Gardner & Jeremy Kleiner - Selma
The Imitation Game - produced by Nora Grossman, Ido Ostrowsky & Teddy Schwartzman
Whiplash - produced by Jason Blum,  Helen Easterbrook & David Lancaster

While The Grand Budapest Hotel, Birdman, Selma and Whiplash were amongst the best movies in recent years; there can only be one Oscar winner.  And that movie is Boyhood.  In a way, Boyhood deserving to and likely winning Best Picture is a career achievement award for Richard Linklater; easily one of the most original and interesting filmmakers of his era.  To devote 12 years to tell a story of a young man from grade school to first year at the University of Texas is quite the feat. 

Another matter too: when he was alive, Roger Ebert had a series of essays devoted to what he deemed The Great Movies.  Were Ebert still alive, I have little doubt this would immediately go into the pantheon of Great Movies.  Waking Life was already on there, and it was possible Bernie might have made it too.  In short, this is not only of the best movies in recent years; Boyhood may well be amongst the best to be made.  Mr. Linklater should now be ranked up there with many of the great filmmakers in bringing this to life.  I cannot wait for his next film. 

Well, that is whom I hope and believe will and should win Oscars this year.  None the less, I do wonder what you might think of these movies and the nominees.  If you are able to, please leave a comment on this article; the interactivity would be of interest to many.  Do remember to have a Google or G Mail account to have all things be verified.

Talk to you all tomorrow,

Robert

PS.  Remember when Maroon 5/Adam Levine were considered edgy?  Remember the first time you heard anything off of Songs About Jane?

Do you remember those days?  Well, Pepperidge Farm remembers.

Something to share with others

I must apologize for not bringing forth the rest of my Oscar predictions for tonight.  The laptop needed software to be updated.  I did however do something in my next step in becoming more involved with social media.  Yes, it is true: I made a photo meme. 

And it is taken from a photo of Brian Williams.  I do know this is going against the grain in what I might find humorous.  However, I thought of something both funny and different to generate this idea.  I already posted this on my Facebook account.  I thus now share it with others on this blog.

I mentioned before that the only true judges Brian Williams will face is his family.  Perhaps with their standing by him, a corner will be turned.  That is A corner, not The corner.  If it must be done, I will explain the punch line later.

More Oscar predictions tomorrow, fingers crossed,

Robert

Who Should win an Oscar This Year: A First Post

Here are some of the lesser known but equally important categories that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences give Oscars to each year.  For myself, if I had a ballot, this is what I think would be the top of my ballot to receive the award.

Best Live Action Short Film:

Aya
Boogaloo & Graham
Butter Lamp
Parvarneh
The Phone Call

Having seen The Phone Call on YouTube a while back; I believe it will and deserves to win the Best Short Film Oscar.  It has Sally Hawkins and Jim Broadbent in the movie.  Do take a look if you can.

Best Documentary Short Subject:

Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1
Joanna
Our Curse
The Reaper
White Earth

I had gotten a chance to see Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1 a while back on HBO. It is my hope that this short film can win an Oscar; continuing the sterling efforts HBO has done in their documentary division. 

Best Animated Short Film:

The Bigger Picture
The Dam Keeper
Feast
Me & My Moulton
A Single Life

I was amazed at the creativity Feast presented; considering the lack of consistent dialogue and relative brevity.  I do believe Feast deserves to win, and will win the Oscar.

Best Sound Editing:

American Sniper
Birdman
The Hobbit: The Battle Of The Five Armies
Interstellar
Unbroken

I am hoping Interstellar wins at least one Oscar; as I think it needed to have been nominated for far more awards than was given.  I would not be surprised if Birdman wins this category however.  It is essentially a two film race.

Best Sound Mixing:

American Sniper
Birdman
Interstellar
Unbroken
Whiplash

The sound mixing on Whiplash was quite unique and was, pun intended, instrumental in making the movie succeed.  It should be given the award for sound mixing, though a close second would go to Interstellar.  Birdman also has a shot at this.  My preference though would be for Whiplash to win this.

Best Production Design:

The Grand Budapest Hotel
The Imitation Game
Interstellar
Into The Woods
Mr. Turner

The production design in The Grand Budapest Hotel was, I think, crucial for the film to be as interesting as it was .  Wes Anderson has a clear visual outlook that I think will deservedly pay off with an Oscar in this category.  I should say that Interstellar's production design was not that far behind.  I rather liked it.  This is also a two film race here.

Best Make-Up and Hair Styling:

Foxcatcher
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Guardians Of The Galaxy

All three choices would be well deserving.  And while I would choose Guardians Of The Galaxy amongst the three in this category; I think the Oscar will go to The Grand Budapest Hotel, due in large part to its usage in a non action film where the visual is as important as the human touch. 

Best Visual Effects:

Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes
Guardians Of The Galaxy
Interstellar
X-Men: Days Of Future Past

Interstellar should by all means win this award, and I think it just might.  None the less, I was impressed with Guardians Of The Galaxy in its character effects becoming as lifelike as could be.  Yet, Interstellar blew all others out of the water.

Best Film Editing:

American Sniper
Boyhood
The Grand Budapest Hotel
The Imitation Game
Whiplash

The amount of editing Sandra Adair had done in assembling Boyhood would be tasking for an amateur.  To assemble 12 years of filmmaking into a smooth transition over time without being obvious in the approach is astounding.  Boyhood will deservedly win Best Film Editing.

These are the categories that are more on the specialized and technical side of filmmaking.  There are still another more individualized 15 categories that people are now and will still be talking about long after the award ceremony takes place. I will have more on the leading awards to be given out in a short time. 

One other thing that is off the subject.  A baseball player should not be apologizing for entertaining us.  We should be apologizing to a baseball player for asking for much and giving little to nothing in return.  We ask for our wants in the world of sports, and yet never see the side of those doing the dirty work for us.  Are we not entertained? 

Talk to you again,

Robert

This did not win an Oscar?!?

Winning an Oscar is one of the more crowning gems a filmmaker and craftsman can have.  It certainly means something to any person who has ever won the award.  There are times, however, when we look back at a particular award given out in a given year and we think: this was an Academy Award winner?  That movie did not get an Oscar?  It is a practice we see far too often.

It often falls into the winners of Best Director and Best Picture that eyes start to roll.  In point of fact, several of the winners in these categories are not as remembered today.  Some simply defy logic and all explanation.  Can it honestly be said that in retrospect the winner was better than the alternatives?  Here are some examples.

1932: Grand Hotel wins Best Picture, Frank Borzag Best Director (Bad Girl).  Ernst Lubitsch's Trouble In Paradise did not win either.

1937: Leo McCarey wins Best Director regarding The Awful Truth.  Not, as many would think, Make Way For Tomorrow; which does not win Best Picture either.  That goes to The Life Of Emile Zola. Also, nothing for Walt Disney's Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs.

1940.  John Ford wins Best Director regarding The Grapes Of Wrath.  It does not win Best Picture; which goes to Sir Alfred Hitchcock's Rebecca.  Incidentally, Hitchcock did not get an Oscar for that; since he did not produce the movie.

1941.  John Ford and How Green Was My Valley.  Not Orson Welles' Citizen Kane.

1952.  The Greatest Show On Earth wins Best Picture.  John Ford wins Best Director (The Quiet Man).  Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen's Singing In The Rain wins neither.

1955.  Delbert Mann and Marty.  Nothing for Nicholas Ray's Rebel without A Cause.

1959.  William Wyler and Ben-Hur.  Yet no wins for Francois Truffaut's The 400 Blows.

1963.  Tony Richardson and Tom Jones.  Hud, Hitchcock's The Birds, The Great Escape do not win.

1968.  Sir Carol Reed and Oliver!  Nothing for Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey.

1969.  John Schlesinger and Midnight Cowboy.  Yet nothing for Dennis Hopper's Easy Rider.

1973.  George Roy Hill and The Sting.  Yet no nominations for Nicolas Roeg's Don't Look Now.

1979.  Robert Benton and Kramer Vs. Kramer.  Sadly, not Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now.

1980.  Robert Redford and Ordinary People.  Yet not Martin Scorsese's Raging Bull.

1982.  Lord Attenborough and Gandhi.  No main awards for Steven Spielberg's E.T.  Not a nomination for Sir Ridley Scott's Blade Runner.

1983.  James L. Brooks and Terms Of Endearment.  Yet not one nomination for Gregory Nava and Anna Thomas' El Norte.  Not a nod for Wargames. 

1985.  Sydney Pollack and Out Of Africa.  Not one win for Steven Spielberg's The Color Purple.

1988.  Barry Levinson and Rain Man.  Not an award given to Martin Scorsese's The Last Temptation Of Christ. 

1989.  Driving Miss Daisy wins Best Picture.  However, Oliver Stone's Born On The Fourth Of July does not; it does win Best Director though.

1990.  Kevin Costner and Dances With Wolves.  Yet not Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas. 

1994.  Robert Zemeckis and Forrest Gump.  Surprisingly, not for Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction, Steve James' Hoop Dreams, Frank Darabont's The Shawshank Redemption, or Krysztof Kieslowski's Three Colors Trilogy.

1995.  Mel Gibson and Braveheart.  Not one nod for David Fincher's Seven.

1996.  Anthony Minghella and The English Patient. Not, sadly, the Coen Brothers' Fargo.

2001.  Ron Howard and A Beautiful Mind.  Not one important nomination for Cameron Crowe's Vanilla Sky. Also nothing for Steven Spielberg's A.I. Artificial Intelligence.

2002.  Chicago wins Best Picture.  Roman Polanski wins Best Director (The Pianist).  Nothing for Liliana Cavani's Ripley's Game, Spike Jonze's Adaptation, Martin Scorsese's Gangs Of New York, the Steven Spielberg movies Minority Report and Catch Me If You Can, Christopher Nolan's version of Insomnia, or even One Hour Photo.

2005.  Crash wins Best Picture.  Ang Lee wins Best Director (Brokeback Mountain).  Not Steven Spielberg's Munich, the George Clooney-Steven Soderbergh produced Syriana, or even the Clooney directed Good Night And Good Luck.

2010.  Tom Hooper and The King's Speech.  Nothing for David Fincher's The Social Network, or even Nolan's Inception.

2012.  Argo wins Best Picture; though it is not nominated for Best Director for Ben Affleck.  That goes to Ang Lee regarding Life Of Pi.  In either matter,  Jacques Audiard's Rust And Bone, or even Steven Spielberg's Lincoln were more preferable.

Heck, for this year, I would have added Christopher Nolan and Interstellar for both categories.  Somewhat related, the Steve James documentary Life Itself received not one nomination in any category.

There are lesser criticisms for awards like the acting categories.  Though they do pop up every so often.  I think, for instance, Denzel Washington should have won Best Actor in Philadelphia; not Tom Hanks. 

The moral is: just because a movie or an individual did not win an Oscar does not make the movie any lesser than the winner.  As well, just because a movie or person won the Oscar does not mean it was in retrospect the best of that time frame.  None the less, an Academy Award win or even nod means a great deal to any film or person. 

Do any of you fellow travelers have a gripe with a past or current winner and/or nominee that should have gone to someone else or another movie?  I would like to hear from you then.  Feel free to comment on this weblog and interact in this lively discussion.  Do remember to have a Google+ or G Mail account for authenticity. 

I will have more tomorrow.  See you then.

Robert

Oscar Week at the weblog

Hello to all that read this!

This week, I plan on devoting at least one post per day on the upcoming Academy Awards to be presented on ABC this Sunday, February 22.  As you all know, I am keenly interested in movies and the performing arts.  During what is now considered award season, I along with many others eagerly await for the time when the one award any filmmaker really wants, the Oscar, can be handed out.

An Academy Award nomination, or even a win, still matters not only to a film; it also matters to whom is being nominated and/or set to win.  Any time a person gets nominated; future prospects in the film industry do begin to increase.  It could be anything from higher pay to final cut to getting to star in the new action summer blockbuster.  Indeed, the value of getting called an Oscar winner, or even a nominee, means a heck of a lot more due to the prestige and worthiness of the award itself. 

This coming award ceremony looks to be keenly interesting.  I am pretty sure Boyhood, the seminal Richard Linklater film, will receive Best Picture and Best Director at the very least.  I am also interested in many of the other categories for awards that perhaps others give little heed for.  Will Roger Deakins, for instance, finally win an Oscar for Best Cinematography?  10+ nominations, yet never an award to show for it.  Who might perform Lost Stars?  I would be enthralled if it led to a New Radicals reunion.  How will Neil Patrick Harris do as a host? Will he succeed in a matter that is amongst the best, or as good for the time?  And of course, who will show up and surprise us all?

Each post will go into greater detail on what I think will occur, who might win, and I will even look back at past winners and whether the award should have gone to another film or person.  This will, I hope, culminate in me live blogging the Oscars in a fashion similar to what I did with Super Bowl 49.  Once again, the words may seem disjointed, yet they will make sense in context. 

There will certainly be a lot of ground to cover.  Some days will be shorter posts, others might take longer.  I do hope you will join me in this look at a most important night in film that comes but once a year.  And yes, anything that pops into my mind to write and later to show will arrive here.

With that, I end this post with an explanation on the New Radicals.  They were a duo consisting of Gregg Alexander and Danielle Brisebois that were around in the late 1990s.  Recently, Alexander and Brisebois have been writing songs for other artists; including the Oscar nominated Lost Stars, as performed by among others Adam Levine.  None the less, the duo are quite good performers themselves.  They only had one hit back in late 98-early 99; yet it is one of the best 5 minutes in recorded music.  And here it is.

The celebrity references at the end are quite dated, and do not reflect the overall message of the song.  A great example of what could have been had they stayed together.

Check back tomorrow,

Robert

PS.  I had gotten a chance to meet Philip Levine two years ago at a reading of his recent poems at my alma mater, Hofstra University.  Levine was one of the better modern poets I have read and heard.  He passed away on Valentine's Day, leaving behind a lifetime of letters, poems and ideas.  He certainly will be missed.

Real Time

I mentioned in my most recent post the turn of the events surrounding the lives of Brian Williams and Jon Stewart.  A process which, I think, is beginning to resemble Freaky Friday, in one wants to be the other.  Yet, unlike those that we hear about recently; Bill Maher has not been like that.  Indeed, for Bill Maher, it has always been him using comedy as a form of political activism and commentary that has been tapped by only a select few of the comedy greats. 

And yes, this does extend to Maher's pre-Politically Incorrect and Real Time days.  This also, indeed, extends to some of the more lower budget comedies Bill Maher starred in during that time frame.  Perhaps Cannibal Women In The Avacado Jungle Of Death was not that explicit, or even that good.  Yet I do remember being a young kid and seeing every so often on Comedy Central Maher's 1991 horror/political comedy Pizza Man.  It is not readily available to view now, save some clips on YouTube.  Yet, Maher's political leanings were always there.

What made me want to follow Bill Maher was his courage and gumption to say important ideas at a time when most media were censoring themselves in order to catapult the war propaganda.  In that same 2001-2005 period I mentioned when NBC News and Brian Williams were no different than the Cheney-Bush people, Jon Stewart was a bit timid at best to go against the grain.  Bill Maher was not like that.  Indeed, in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, I can remember only two people in the television media that were aghast at the responses and jingoism that were afoot from an event which we all know was not what we were told.  Of course, Maher was the leading figure; the immediate result was the cancellation of Politically Incorrect.  The other I can remember was Rev. Fred McFeely Rogers; whom we all knew as Mr. Rogers.  You know, it has always been a quizzical coincidence to me that hostilities in Iraq by the US Military began After Mr. Rogers had died.  One wonders what would have been different had he been alive. 

Luckily for us, Bill Maher did not take the cancellation sitting down.  Indeed, in the 12 years it has been on, Real Time with Bill Maher has been immeasurably superior.  Personally, I prefer Real Time than The Daily Show due to a greater interest in interviewing iconoclasts and unique leaders.  For instance, you may not have ever seen Noam Chomsky, another hero of mine, on commercial television.  Yet Dr. Chomsky has been on Real Time.  There is also a sense of actually attempting to bring forth change in the political landscape with Maher's ideas, including expanding horizons by executive producing Vice. 

What also makes Real Time a more important show are the New Rules at the end.  They usually are quite funny, with some good uses of photo shop.  Maher usually ends the show with a New Rule extended commentary that is both funny and thoughtful on a medium that does not seem to do both.  In point of fact, just this past night, Maher's final New Rule says it all, I think, on the current Nightly News landscape.

In short, Bill Maher has been far more valuable in giving people the news along with even making the news.  There are often times when I am amazed that Maher has not become an overtly political candidate. 

Yet, this is where Bill Maher falls short.  They have not gone where Tom Dobbs went; seeking the office and winning the office of President.  For those who do not know, Tom Dobbs was a fictional television political commentator and humorist played by Robin Williams in the Barry Levinson film Man Of The Year.  Easily one of the better political satires in recent memory, alongside films like The Campaign, Man Of The Year does not get enough traction for its interesting plot and commentary.  Sadly, it was hardly mentioned at all after Robin Williams died. 

In a way, though, Robin Williams was more potent and politically influential than the three I mentioned.  More than half of Williams' stand up was social-political oriented.  Heck, go look at any of Robin Williams' stand-up and be amazed at the insight he had.   There is one point in his 2009 D.C. show that looks at the ten years prior as if someone was coming out of a drug haze.

A lot of truth in those nearly 4 minutes.  And perhaps a tough act and person to follow. 

So I look at it this way.  In speaking the truth, whichever it may be, and usually it is one's opinions and memories:

Brian Williams is a spokesperson and a guy just eager to get into the cool kids' club.
Jon Stewart is a humorist that would rather be a journalist.
Bill Maher is whom he has always been, and is one of the bravest people in the media.
Robin Williams was a brilliant man with a brilliant mind, and more of a leader than others think.

You see the differences?  Looking at Brian Williams alone, his suspension came during a week when New York Times media columnist David Carr died suddenly just a day after making his opinions known on the Brian Williams matter.  In that same time period, CBS News foreign and 60 Minutes correspondent Bob Simon died in a traffic accident .  Two newsmen and columnists that, foibles notwithstanding, remained newsmen and columnists.  And I know Stewart may fancy himself a newsman and columnist; quite the change from his non-essential MTV years (and yes I remember those years too!). 

So, knowing this sea of change, what will Brian Williams do next?  Would it be a surprise to anybody that he becomes someone who becomes the news for what he says than for what he does?  Would it be out of the ordinary for him to be involved in, say, the fake news division of the next Grand Theft Auto game?  I am not sure.  I do know that while news and entertainment can and do mix (infotainment); the need to be with the entertainment side can really hurt a person who is a newsman.  I do not blame Brian Williams for doing what he did.  Indeed, some of these stories could fit well in a book. 

Yet, just as Alison Williams has no desire to follow directly in her parents' footsteps in journalism; it does not mean Brian Williams could follow in a way the trajectory of Alison Williams.  Obviously what Alison does to entertain people is not what Brian does or would do to purportedly inform people; yet the allure is there.  Indeed, as Bill Maher mentioned, much of the news today described on a half hour program means little.  Is it any wonder people will look elsewhere for their news and information?  And is it not interesting that it takes a humorist like Maher or Robin Williams, or Jon Stewart, or going back some years George Carlin, Mort Sahl, Bill Hicks, Paul Mooney, Joy Behar or even Mark Russell to give people a more truthful interpretation of the news than most newsmen today? 

In the end, for me, when the news went full jingoistic in the months and years post-911, I lost my trust in the mainstream media.  That is collectively than on an individual basis.  Indeed, I happen to like Brian Williams at times.  Yet, somewhere along the way, he thought himself a celebrity only and not what his employment is; a newsman. 

In memoriam for two newsmen:  Bob Simon (1941-2015) and David Carr (1956-2015).  My thoughts and well wishes and prayers go out to their families and loved ones.

Well, that ends my spiel on the news today.  Though there are times when a news day is basically waking up, falling out of bed; dragging a comb across your head.

A final chord that can never be duplicated.

Catch up with you all soon,

Robert

PS.  Go see Kingsman: The Secret Service.  I will explain more later.

Someone left their life behind in a plastic bag

When I was a younger man, the average time it took a noted individual to go from respected to mocked was measured in months; perhaps years.  It still happens once in a while today.  Witness for instance the truth regarding Bill Cosby.  It took 18 years, starting with the "I brought you into this world, I can take you out" murder of his son Ennis, for most of the world to realize the Cosby fraud.  Although for myself, I knew of his fraudulence before 1997 ended. 

Fortunately, many of these celebrities do not have the irreparable knowledge of outliving their child once ridicule sets in.  Brian Williams, to note, still has his family and his children in his life.  And in the end, their feelings and opinions will matter far more than ours.  None the less, the Brain Williams affair showcases the measures taken on what we consider the news.  Or rather, what we are told is the news and who will bring us the news outside of newspapers.  Since the news media lives in a world where blogging and the internet are still treated as an unknown device (not unlike the now funny Today Show 1994 look at email),  what is considered news is akin to whom is considered the personification of trust.  There are four such individuals where news and celebrity exist; along with news and influence.

Brian Williams is for all intents and purposes a spokesman for a corporation.  Until two years ago, that corporation was General Electric.  GE, then and now, are amongst the leading defense contractors and war profiteers in the world.  Indeed, from 2001-2005 or thereabouts, NBC News was The place to get the most obvious amount of war propaganda.  You remember that moment in Apocalypse Now where Francis Ford Coppola has a cameo where he tells Willard (Martin Sheen) to move a certain way so he can get his perfect shot?  Well, that is exactly the sort of thing NBC was doing during Afghanistan and Iraq during the first 4 or five years of the war of terror. 

It was NBC News that had pretty much every one of their anchors and reporters in Iraq, embedded with the troops during 2003. It was NBC that had the exclusive access to the latest war propaganda, the latest hi tech gadgets, and the sensationalist stories to tell.  To go through all of these examples would be unnecessary.  We know it was and still is a lie.  So, does it seem a reasonable conclusion that the stories Brian Williams told were written and told to him by his superiors at GE/NBC?  It seems pretty darn reasonable to me.

So why is Brian Williams now becoming the only person penalized for the Iraq lie?  Perhaps it is more than these tall tales.  A personal foible to not be revealed, maybe.  Or, and I think this is likely; Brian Williams was getting too much clout.  And the clout only intensified with the success of his daughter, Alison.  Perhaps some of the executives of Comcast (NBC's new parent) felt Alison Williams doing the Peter Pan telecast was a case of nepotism.  I think it was not; I certainly liked her Peter Pan and thought it was better than the production of The Sound of Music made the year before.  Outside of the family, Brian Williams was getting involved with veterans' organizations, making appearances at important sports and live events, and had shown an increasingly funny side of himself.  One could say, Brian Williams wanted to become Jon Stewart. 

By comparison, Jon Stewart has possibly wanted to become Brian Williams.  I have no doubt the Daily Show these past 16 years have been interesting and newsworthy in and of itself.  If you need to understand; go back and look at some of the Craig Kilborn era shows.  They are not that good.  Now, with Stewart at the helm, matters pertaining to news media changed significantly.  As the years went on, Stewart became just as interested in being part of the political scene, in the same breath mocking the political scene.  I noticed this when certain political and economic leaders would give first dibs to Jon Stewart for an interview.

The quantum jump with Stewart, I think, occurred last year with the release of his movie, Rosewater.  I have yet to see the movie; though I am aware of its independent journalism overtones and the need to make news matter to agents of change.  Once a person does something this ambitious and personal; where else can one go with what is essentially a comedy show?  Well, it is either the Stephen Colbert route of entertaining people, the John Oliver route of going deeper in analysis of news events; or perhaps, a third option that Stewart might take.  That is to say, to go from mocking the news on a nightly basis to anchoring and editing the news on a nightly basis.  I would not be surprised were I to see Stewart anchoring a 6:30 newscast. 

So, we have a newsman going beyond the news with Brian Williams, and an entertainer who is also a newsman in Jon Stewart.  Are not there noted people that have done more to influence others in the news and humor fields than the two above?  Why yes, there have been indeed.  We first need to pause for station identification and a word from sponsors.  In the meanwhile, here is the news with Electric Light Orchestra.

Talk to you sooner rather than later,

Robert

What is News?

Jon Stewart is retiring from The Daily Show after 16 years.  I will have more to say on Stewart, his evolvement and what the future holds for news programs. 

I do want to point out something.  Why is it that Jon Stewart and Brian Williams get the attention for their news coverage?  While someone more important is not given the rightful respect needed?  I am speaking of course about Bill Maher.  You see, Williams is a storyteller.  Stewart does not take matters seriously.  Maher makes people think. 

In short, Jon Stewart is no Bill Maher.  Then again, both of them were not Robin Williams in Man Of The Year.  I will explain more as soon as can be.

Talk to you all later,

Robert

PS.  Thanks, love, kindness and appreciation for all the birthday wishes I have received in the past 24 hours.  It is very pleasing and humbling to know the care others have.

Nightly News

When I think of all the lies that I have heard over the years:

"We did not trade arms for hostages in Iran"

"Global Warming is a fraud for a carbon tax"

"Kennedy died from a shot by a lone gunman"

"We had no idea about Pearl Harbor"

"The Maine was sunk by the Spanish"

"The Holocaust did not occur"

"Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait"

"Saddam Hussein is using WMDs from a large stockpile"

"The Gulf of Tonkin justified Vietnam"

"There are no truths to conspiracies"

"Drugs are not addictive"

"We are a legitimate business"

"The news is unbiased"

"The Federal Reserve is a government branch"

"All men are created equal"

"Watergate was a third-rate burglary"

"Osama Bin Laden did 911"

"Ronald Reagan was a great leader"

"Clarence Thomas is the most qualified for the Supreme Court"

"Bill Cosby is America's Dad"

"I did not kill my child"

"He/she was asking for it"

"I do not have a problem"

Et cetera, ad infinitum, ad nauseum


Brian Williams' tales of his life are not worth criticizing.  Williams, like many, are simply a by-product of a culture that lies to itself.  Because you see, people believe a lie than a truth when it is in their interests.

So I ask you, what is the bigger lie:  Brian Williams or the wars of the last 14 years?  Find the answer, and you will find the truth.

Feel free to comment and post your thoughts.  I strongly encourage it.

Talk to you tomorrow,

Robert

Channel Awesome forgetting to be Awesome (Part 4)

As I mentioned before, the five short films that made up The Uncanny Valley were amongst the best work Channel Awesome had done.  Each had a theme about the drawbacks of living and dealing in an online world. 

One of them, produced and co created by Phelan Porteous, was a humorous look at cats overtaking the web and most political governments as, I believe, a form of blowback from exploitation of their foibles and tricks in viral videos.

Brad Jones had done what would turn out to be a pilot for a series of his that resembled the actions of Michel Gondry's underrated gem Be Kind Rewind.  I rather liked it, Jones' warped humor being of interest.

Mike Jeavons of Shameful Sequels, Informercialism and That Sock, had a very funny and yet awkward video regarding what can go wrong with online dating.  In this case, Jeavons has a blind date set for him.  It turns out to be Mathew Buck, of all people.  Hilarity ensues.

Doug Walker, along with Rob Walker and Brian Heinz, managed to create Dragonbored,  This might be Doug's most original and best work outside of the Nostalgia Critic.  What would happen if your video game avatar came to life and was a better person than you, the gamer?  This question is answered quite conclusively in Dragonbored.  I think it is best summed up with a line given that sounds chhesy, but really is not.

Man losing everything due to playing games:  You ruined my life!

Doug Walker's character:  No. I lived it!

Each one of the four was quite funny.  It was the fifth and final part of The Uncanny Valley that may have caused some more problems with the brass at the website.

The last one on internet etiquette involved Mat Williams and Holly Christine Brown bringing forth a serious dissertation on the issues of dealing with fans, trolls, and other travelers on the world wide web.  Allison Pregler, Lewis Lovhaug, and others were interviewed where they spoke important truths that would usually not be permissible on the website.  In the end, Welshy and Holly more or less told viewers to consider the fact that web reviewers, indeed, have lives and other ideas for living a securely financial life.

While there was no objection to any of the short films; the leadership at Channel Awesome might not have been too pleased with the Williams/Brown collaboration that, for me, should be required viewing for any person willing to put themselves online.  As a result, more departures came forth.

Welshy pretty much decided to retire from doing web reviewing.  He did however finish with one last collaboration with Julian Diaz (Sad Panda), who himself decided to focus on his YouTube account and his native French Language videos.  Yet while the Sad Panda Q&A guys managed to leave somewhat on their own terms; the same could not be said for Holly.  Days after having undergone a successful surgical procedure for a long standing medical condition, Holly Christine Brown was summarily terminated from the website by primarily Mike Michaud and Rob Walker.  This did not and does not sit well with the long term fan base. 

And yet, that was only a prelude of what was to come.  The point of demarcation was January 23, 2014.  It was on that day Channel Awesome changed permanently.  Justin Carmical, nearly 43 and in financial difficulty, locked himself in his bathroom.  Though his wife and others begged for him to come out, Carmical took out a gun he owned and killed himself.  I became aware of this some two days later, while reading Brad Jones' Twitter feed.  Subsequently, within moments many Channel Awesome people past and present went to pay respects to him, his wife Jennifer, the Carmical extended family, and others. 

This ended a lot of things Channel Awesome had been doing up to that point.  It ended the anniversary specials, many of the interlocking storylines, You Can Play This, along with far too much to even mention.  I think it also became the  onus for the Walker brothers and Michaud to practically remake the website to fit their ideas. 

In the last year alone, those who either left or were dismissed from Channel Awesome in the post JewWario era have included:

Mike "Birdman" Dodd, Hope Chapman (jesu otaku), Andrew Dickman, Lupa/Allison Pregler, Phelous/Phelan Porteous, Kyle Kallgren, Lindsay Ellis, just about anyone affiliated with Phelous' website, and pretty much anyone affiliated with Chez Apocalypse; Lindsay Ellis' own web hosting platform.  That latter section also includes Paw (Paul Schuler), Nella and Elisa, and Todd In The Shadows.  Fortunately, the recent Chez Apocalypse departures were made on their  own terms., with the exception of Kallgren.  In that case, Kyle, along with Dickman, Lupa and Phelous were summarily dismissed last month in a terse statement.  That has since revealed through Tumblr accounts and other posts the lack of communication and transparency in finances that have gone on through Channel Awesome.

It does not help that the site is starting to become more comedy sketch oriented as opposed to telling a good story and bring forth a fair analysis of a movie or series and such.  Many that still are part of the website like Linkara, Bennett the Sage, and Brad Jones have not been affected in this change of attitude.  However, you do see that in other reviewers like Rap Critic, Eddie Rodriguez, Some Jerk With A Camera (the guy that reviews theme parks), and others; comedy is the name of the game.  Whether this is a direct reflection of the Walkers' original works, including even Doug's commentary on movies that unintentionally could border on humor, remains to be seen. 

Oh, yes; one other big change.  That Guy With The Glasses no longer exists.  Both the website and the character.  Here is how it ended.  Admittedly, it is rather clever.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-nac6uFUD0

So, it is now Channel Awesome.  Starring Doug Walker, and created by Doug Walker.  Produced by Doug Walker.  Edited by Doug Walker.  Written by Doug Walker and Rob Walker.  Did I mention this is Doug Walker's site?  Well, Doug and Rob Walker host this Doug Walker site.  There are others, but you are just here for Doug Walker, right? 

Hopefully, the talent searches and pilots will pay off and be shown to all.  For myself, any producer could be found on YouTube, Disney/Maker/Blip, or their own websites and blogs.  I pretty much check out Channel Awesome to see the new Leon Thomas piece, and if the Walkers have anything interesting in mind.  Apart from that; it just has become in a way what Cinemassacre has been for a long time; a website devoted to one web producer mostly. 

What will happen next to the website and the Walkers and Michaud's relationship with other producers is entirely and only in their hands.  In short, I think individuality has taken hold with web series and reviewers.  Obviously, this was learned the most difficult way with Justin Carmical's death.  The aftermath is not one we had sought; yet here it is.

Well, that finishes my look at Channel Awesome.  Perhaps in another time I will make a video on another like minded web series analysis.  Thank you all again for viewing these posts. 

By the way, the title refers to a catch phrase and motto the Vlog Brothers use at the end of their videos and collaborations.  That would be Hank Green and John Green, both writers of considerable acclaim; John having written The Fault In Our Stars.  The motto is "don't forget to be awesome."  Channel Awesome has seemingly lost that credo, even if they never adopted it.

Talk to you all again soon,

Robert

PS.  Creedence Clearwater Revival were Never nominated for a Grammy.  That is how much relevance in awards the Grammys are.  The performances are good, though.

A bit of a note

Well, I just was about to complete my Channel Awesome dissertation when suddenly I accidentally pressed the backspace key.

I am terribly sorry for the problems to have arrived.  The fourth and I hope final post on Channel Awesome will come fairly soon.  In the meantime, here is a picture I think sums up my abject blundering. 

Cheers,

Robert 

An update

Hello all!

I am considering adding a Twitter account, along with adding photos on Instagram and posting videos on YouTube.  The latter idea is quite intriguing, as indicated in my ongoing look at the problems now facing Channel Awesome.  Do any of you have some suggestions on how to come across in these other forms of social media?  Please feel free to comment to bring forth any ideas that I may be able to incorporate for future endeavors. 

I will next post my conclusion, I hope, on Channel Awesome and its changes.  I suppose this is a trait I have been known to use; ask me what time it is, get a lesson on how to build a watch.  Just wanted to have all of you get an update from me and a chance to interact with me.  Thank you again for your support.  Let us keep the conversation going.

Tune in tomorrow, not same blog time but same blog channel:),

Robert

Channel Awesome forgetting to be Awesome (Part 3)

In late September 2012, followers of Channel Awesome, myself included, witnessed a movie from the site by Doug Walker which would forever alter the perception of Walker's characters and the site at large.  That movie, To Boldly Flee, did in fact become Doug and Rob Walker's equivalent of The Search for Spock.  It also, in retrospect, was their Return of the Jedi, their Akira, their Battlefield Earth (including Noah Antwiler as Terl!), and I would also add their Unforgiven.  That last movie referenced may not seem much plot wise; yet similar to the Clint Eastwood film which had Eastwood say goodbye to the Western, To Boldly Flee was Doug Walker saying goodbye to the Nostalgia Critic.  It also was a goodbye to Ma-Ti, Terl, General Zod (Walker again), and though unintentional Luke Mochrie. 

Well, it was supposed to be the Nostalgia Critic's goodbye.  Only plans did not turn out as was thought.  The last four months of 2012 had the Walker Brothers focus their resources and creativity on Demo Reel.  In short, Demo Reel felt like a long term program with an intricate storyline and as much pathos as there was humor.  Many were expecting this chapter in Channel Awesome to be even more interesting than what had come before.

Only, Demo Reel was not that great.  It had a promising setup, and indeed given time might have seen improvements.  The reaction by the fans, however, was pretty certain.  It was a disappointment; not to mention in some regard an insult to many that followed the TGWTG people.  During that time, more producers started to leave their Channel Awesome affiliation to go out on their own. 

Thomas Hanley and pretty much the entirety of the Game Heroes, Mickey Paradis (8-bit Mickey) included, retired the name and web hosting of their program.  Some matters of this was due to the team starting their own families.  What also occurred were financial disagreements in how funding and ad revenue would be given for the gamer section of the website, aptly named Blistered Thumbs.  Within a year, Blistered Thumbs would cease its web hosting activity. 

Luke Mochrie, as mentioned above, stopped posting videos after To Boldly Flee was released.  This was more for personal and career opportunities than anything else.

Sarah Wilson (PushingUpRoses) decided to begin hosting her own series on YouTube and other websites.  Once again, lack of communication on the part of the website leaders and financial concerns were reasons for the decision to leave.

And yes, at that time Justin Carmical decided to end his affiliation with the website.  JewWario continued to release reviews, gameplay, and collaborations up until days before his death.  More on that later.

So, knowing Demo Reel was in need of improvement,  and knowing a fanbase was feeling alienated, what was done to remedy the situation?  Re-tool the show?  Add newer material and/or crossovers?  The answer, we found, occurred in January 2013.  In a short film released, Doug Walker as Doug Walker merges himself with the Nostalgia Critic.  In the process, the Demo Reel characters are found to be imagined or in the case of Donnie (Walker), the Nostalgia Critic in purgatory. 

In short, the Walkers returned to their old standby.  With a new set, added subplots and sketches, actors leftover from Demo Reel and other Channel Awesome works, and an emphasis on commentary and recent movies, the Nostalgia Critic returned.  Yet, for about a year or so, many episodes either made fun of the fan base for not liking Demo Reel; turning likable characters into complete wankers, making Santa Christ a hated figure, and feeling like it became a duty and not an interest on the part of Doug and Rob. 

Maybe you could never kill the Nostalgia Critic.  Yet, to me it seemed a ham fisted move on the part of Channel Awesome to make these changes.  From that point forward, the emphasis of the website would be on Doug Walker and perhaps a select few producers; also the never ending search for talent, Patreon campaigns for the Walkers but discouraged for other producers; nearly most of Doug's characters turning against their audience, a continued process of shooting the same pilots over and over; and perhaps most importantly: forgetting to give equal share to the long standing talent on the site. 

It also became clear that no criticism of the site's business would be taken in jest.  This would lead to a series of short films for their fifth anniversary, compiled as The Uncanny Valley.  These films are amongst the best made by the site.  Yet, the ramifications of the films themselves would prove prophetic for what was to come for the site and for many of its now former producers.

I thought this would go only for 3 posts.  Yet, a fourth post will be given soon to hopefully conclude my now tract on Channel Awesome.  Thank you though for following me on this.  As always, feel free to comment.

Talk to you later on,

Robert

Live blogging Super Bowl 49

Join me as you watch Super Bowl 49 while I every so often make comments during said game and it televised broadcast.

NBC is showing starters on both offense and defense for both Patriots and Seahawks.  Also the Special Teams players, which almost never happens.

Crazy Train for the Pats; Bittersweet Symphony for the Hawks.  How appropriate.

My apologies for missing most of everything before kickoff.  Now, though, on to the first half.

Patriots have the ball, and may throughout much of the night.

Both teams will need to throw the ball as much as possible.  Since the maxim to follow is defense wins championships, the forward pass will be needed.

First punt of the night.  Let us hope this does not turn into a blowout, again.

This also should be a game with some interceptions, if needed.

Marshawn Lynch got sacked twice before a first down.  Now the Seahawks punt.

And it is a fair catch.

Darn interesting BMW commercial.  I had no idea this was possible for retired newspeople to make an ad this interesting.

If it's 3rd down, it is time to throw the ball.  For both teams.

Except when it is 3rd and one, I suppose.

Bill Belicheik is wearing a blue hoodie.  Just in case you wanted to know.

First interception of the night.  And it is the Seahawks defense.

I am liking these new visors the players are wearing.

First period over.  The score, as is said in association football, is nil-all.  Not good. Although I have always wondered what it would be like if there is overtime in the Super Bowl.

I do not think Carnival Cruises entirely understood President John F. Kennedy's speech using the sea as a metaphor.  This may not help Carnival as they attempt to end their reputation for trips gone awry.

Pete Carroll is wearing a blue long sleeve shirt, in case you are wondering.

Not a great throw from Russell Wilson. 

Patriots have got the ball again.  Maybe these have been Inflated tonight for both teams.

What is the deal with beer commercials and dogs?  And would it have killed Anheiser Busch to actually get the license to use The Proclaimers' own recording of I'm Gonna Be?

Another Terminator movie?  Why?

Good 3rd down play from Tom Brady right there.

First Touchdown of the night.  And it is Brady to Brandon Lavell.  It is now 7-0 Patriots. 

Furious 7 seems interesting.  I do wonder what will become of Paul Walker's character. 

First QB sack of the night against Wilson.  Not a good sign.

The long throws tonight are not working as of yet.

Julian Edelman is quite a good return specialist.  He reminds me of a younger Tim Brown in that respect.

Cats In The Cradle is not a heartwarming song.  Nissan seems to forget the lines "my boy is just like me".  Harry Chapin would not be proud.

Another punt, a result of not a good drive.

Sir Paul McCartney is in the building. 

First penalty of the night.  This is against the Hawks.

A good long catch for once! 

Marshawn Lynch's first touchdown of the night.  The score is now tied 7-all.

The first quarter is usually the fastest played.  It will be the fourth quarter that will seem like an eternity. 

2nd penalty on the Seahawks.  Immediate first down.

First team time out of the night of 6.  Believe me, both teams will use their timeouts and challenges whenever possible.

2nd Brady touchdown, this time to Rob Gronkowski.  It is now Patriots 14-7.

Tom Brady now ties Joe Montana with 11 Touchdowns, tied for most in Super Bowls.

Russell Wilson cannot be stopped when he is running.

With 6 seconds to go, it will take 6 minutes to complete. 

Russell Wilson touchdown to Chris Matthews, the wide receiver.  It is again tied 14-all.

Thank you for watching the final run through of the dress rehearsal.  Stay tuned after half time for when the Real game begins.

Thankfully, it is a close game, and will be watched to the end.  At this point last year, the game was over.

And now, Pepsi presents the Pepsi Halftime Show starring Pepsi.  Did we mention Pepsi sponsored this?  Well, Pepsi sponsored this Pepsi event.  Oh, right; here is Katy Perry.

Lenny Kravitz is making I Kissed A Girl a whole heck of a lot more interesting.  I would like to hear a fuller version of that.

It must be an honor and an insult to be one of the life sized puppets on stage.

First audience participation in a Super Bowl.  Why did it need to be Katy Perry starting this?

Missy Elliott is in the building.  It has been a long time, has it not?  Watch and learn, Katy Perry. 

Please take over this halftime show, Missy. Please? 

Of course the big number is Firework.  It might still be Perry's most accomplished work. 

Nice subtle advertising for NBC's The More You Know campaign.

Now, on to the real Super Bowl game.  It is a restart, with a 14-all tie.

It is also night now in Arizona. 

That was The Voice reminding us of the least important Mad Max movie. 

Does a GEICO commercial ever emphasize their car insurance business?  Is a football filled with air?

Seahawks carry the ball to start this half.

It is clear NBC wants the Seahawks to win this game.

Steven Hauscka kicks the ball for a 17-14 Seahawks lead. 

Quite funny Sprint commercial, though obnoxious.

Bet you dollars to dollars Chris Mathews and Hardball will be linked at least once tonight.  Think of the publicity, NBC.

Good first down from the Patriots. 

Another interception for the Seahawks.

I told you Hardball would be mentioned. 

Wilson touchdown to Doug Baldwin.  It is Seahawks 24-14.

Well, I am calling it.  To me, this game is now over.  How will the Patriots be able to recover a 10 point deficit?  In addition, I am also calling who will be MVP: Chris Matthews.  Now to just watch a close game turn into another blowout. 

This is also the biggest point deficit Brady has had in any Super Bowl. 

You wonder if this is being scripted as a way to punish the Patriots for obvious cheating.

How many car commercials do you need?

Come back after the break for the interminably long fourth quarter. 

Can it be any more obvious that many want the Hawks to win it all again?  I'm not complaining.  Yet I would be if a New York Team was being rooted against .

Hardball is mentioned again. 

Here is a clear way to increase battery power on your smartphone.  Keep it charged at all times.

Well, that was a premature prediction.  Now a third Brady touchdown tonight, this one to Danny Amandola.  Seahawks still lead 24-21.  This now puts Tom Brady as the all time leader in Super Bowl touchdowns.

The Pats will need to get at least a field goal in order to tie, and preferably an interception to seal the deal. 

I would be up for real live Pac-Man.  Yet, I do not want a Bud Lite to get one. 

These next 7 minutes will last 7 hours.

The tortoise just cheated the hare with a Mercedes.  Not a fair idea.

Patriots got the ball back again for a chance to lead again.

Well, that was a good throw to erase a 10 yard penalty.

Brady's 4th touchdown to Julian Edelman.  My prediction has been discredited without question.  Patriots now lead 28-24.

The Patriots have now just lost the game.  With Another odd catch. 

Holy Shit!  An interception for the Patriots with 20 seconds to go! 

Now just to take a knee and it is all over. 

This game is ending badly, and very unsportsmanlike.

And now the knee has taken place.  The Patriots win 28-24.  Tom Brady now joins Montana and Terry Bradshaw as QBs with four rings.  Bill Belicheik now has four rings. Gronk, Edelman, Amandola etc.  get their rings.  And Brady can now go out on top if he wants to. 

None the less, I expect the Seahawks to win a couple more Super Bowls in the next few years.  They may be the team of this decade when all is said and done.

Well, thanks for reading this first live blog I did.  Feel free to comment and/or use my statements in a sort of EDM piece.  It might just rival Harlem Shake, or Selfie for most random statements without deep meaning. 

Good night to all,

Robert

PS.  The Patriots are going to get hit hard when the deflation penalties come.