Archive for Rants
Oscar Nominations Revealed For The ’84th Academy Awards’
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This morning the 2012 Oscar nominations were revealed, which of course annually provides both heartbreak and jubilation for those nominated and those snubbed. This year, the Best Picture nomination pool is nine, and not the ten of years past. The nominations were reduced from the ten made standard in 2010, down to however many Best Picture nominees the voting body feels is necessary. This year they felt nine was appropriate, a number I do not agree with. The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo was left off the nominee list, as was its director David Fincher. In my opinion, these two headline the snubs this year, along with Steven Spielberg being left out of the nomination for Best Director despite War Horse earning a Best Picture nod. Hit the jump for the full list, and a few brief thoughts from yours truly.
The Best Movies of 2011
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Each of the past three years has gotten a treatment of my top ten favorite movies here on the Movie Mash. I cannot believe I am already writing another one of these posts, how quickly time flies. For a year many critics considered to be a downgrade in overall quality in terms of content at the cinema, I found this year to be full of gems — of course there will always be movies that fail, but I believe 2011 had more than its share of films that soared. Hit the jump to check out my favorites from 2011.
Hollywood Is Shameless This Holiday Season, And I Like It
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It’s strange to think that you could bring your family to the movie theater right now and on either side of your innocent entertainment could be explicit, hardcore sexual content. As I walked through the theater the other day, I noticed The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Shame were separated only by Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked.
Dominik Johnson Shaping Sound Design with Strings
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I came across a trailer for Dominik Johnson’s new album World/Acoustic/Cinematic not knowing anything about him or his music. At only 24 years old, Dominik is making his passion for an array of world string instruments a key asset for making quality modern music productions unique and intriguing. With this multi-instrument talent, he has landed the opportunity to do a good deal of soundtrack production and design for multiple independent film productions, the BBC, Channel4, and NBC. He even got the chance to play the bouzouki and saz for parts of the 007: Blood Stone video game soundtrack under the guidance of the highly successful composer, Richard Jaques. Hit the jump to learn more about what Johnson thinks of his rising success as a session artist, composer, and producer, and view the World/Acoustic/Cinematic trailer.
‘Winnie the Pooh’ Singing a Contemporary Tune
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Today, the adaptation of Winnie the Pooh will be singing a different tune than ever before. Zooey Deschanel and her musical counterpart M. Ward–who together form the indie group She & Him–have collaborated on the soundtrack for the children’s film. In an interview with Moviefone, Deschanel explained that working on Winnie the Pooh was not an “official” She & Him project, even though the two were solely involved with writing and making the music.
Matt’s Take on the 83rd Academy Awards
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Of course, being a movie website, The Movie Mash has to have a follow up to the 83rd Oscars ceremony that took place last night. First things first, by a show of hands, who thinks Kirk Douglas should host the Oscars next year? Wouldn’t that be a lovely five-and-a-half-hour ceremony with Douglas rambling on quietly and sometimes incoherently. If he lives until next year, he has my vote, because he can’t possibly fair worse than Hathaway and Franco playing the hosts. This year’s Oscars was watched by four million less people than last year.
Hathaway portrayed an aura of enthusiasm while Franco seemed like he was backstage with Michael Phelps tag teaming a bong. The younger duo was asked to host the Oscars to appeal to the younger audiences. Mission failed. The coveted 18-49 demographic was down 12% from last year’s viewership. But really, I don’t care about the whole procession of the Oscars. I really just care about the winners and the beautiful women in all their fancy dresses.
Top Fred Astaire Movies
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Known for his smooth dancing and charming choreography, actor Fred Astaire captured Broadway lovers’ hearts. He starred in dozens of musical films and worked for nearly 70 years. Astaire is often remembered along side his frequent dancing partner, Ginger Rogers. Hit the jump to check out my favorite films from this legend.
How to Watch Movies: Mise-en-scène Analysis and ‘The Fall’
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How to Watch Movies is a series of articles designed to help our readers get the most out of their movie watching experience. I find that I get the most enjoyment from films when I take the time to really appreciate the deeper levels of the movie. I hope the advice and methods that I give you can help you enjoy the movies you watch even more.
Nolan and DiCaprio Excluded From Oscar Nominees — Typical Academy Antics
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As many movie buffs know, the Academy Award nominations were announced yesterday for the 83rd Oscars ceremony set to take place on February 27th. Of course not all of our favorite movies, actors, directors, or writers can be nominated; but seriously, some of the snubs by the snobs on the nomination panel are starting to get a little sickening. This year’s list of nominees is not only missing a few notable names, but features an actress being placed into the wrong category. The list this year is so absurd in places it has infuriated me so much I will vent to anyone who says “Oscars.” Hit the jump to read my frustrations with this year’s nominees.
Deserving Nominees for Best Score Announced
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The five Oscar nominations for Best Score have been announced for the 83rd Academy Awards ceremony. The list goes as follows: The Social Network by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Inception by Hans Zimmer, The King’s Speech by Alexandre Desplat, 127 Hours by A.R. Rahman, and How to Train Your Dragon by John Powell. All of these soundtracks are worthy of a nomination. I have a hard time zoning in on one soundtrack I want to see take the cake. However, I can give you some insight as to what exactly these soundtracks have to offer. That way you can understand where the competition is coming from within each soundtrack on February 27th.
