Academy Awards

Well, the Academy Awards nominations came out today and Dreamgirls was snubbed in several major categories, including Best Picture, Director, Actor and Actress. Truthfully, I'm not surprised, there were so many great movies this year, and performances, that someone was bound to get bumped.

And the truth is, while Dreamgirls was good, it wasn't great. Eddie Murphy and Jennifer Hudson were the stand-outs in the cast, and were deservedly nominated. Beyonce? Pretty and can sing, but she can't act her way out of an evening gown, and Jamie Foxx wasn't that impressive either. Personally, I felt the show lacked some pizazz compared to Chicago.

I was very happy to see that Forest Whitaker and Helen Mirren were nominated. I had the opportunity last Friday to see Forest Whitaker speak at the Film Society of Lincoln Center. He came off as a very sweet and humble guy, although the interviewer had about as much personality as the chair he was sitting in.

Helen Mirren, I've adored as an actor ever since she appeared in The Long Good Friday with Bob Hoskins and Excalibur. What I love is that Meryl Streep, Judi Dench and Helen Mirren are both over 50, and they had amazing roles this year. Judi Dench was phenomenal in Notes on a Scandal, although I found the movie a tad creepy. It just brought back memories of the whole Mary Kay LeTourneau thing. I'm still disgusted that Entertainment Tonight devoted a whole week to her wedding a year ago.

And hurray that this year the Academy nominated a record number of performances by non white actors. The whole disappointment is that Ken Watanabe wasn't nominated for Letters from Iwo Jima.

I still have to see Letters, Venus (with Peter O'Toole), Blood Diamond, and Babel, so that's my goal over the next month before the awards. I have Little Miss Sunshine at home thanks to Netflix. I always try and see as many of the films nominated as possible, if only to win the Oscar betting pool.

Thanks for reading!

EKM