¿Se quedará Almodóvar sin Oscar el año que viene?  Sí. Al menos, a priori, y siempre que no le caiga un regalo en forma de nominación a mejor director o mejor guión. ¿Por qué? Porque Los abrazos rotos no ha sido la elegida por España para competir como mejor película de habla no inglesa.

Lo dicho: parece que no habrá Oscar para él… pero él sí estará en los Oscar. Ya que no te damos estatuilla, la das tú. Y mira qué coincidencia: la de mejor película extranjera. Eso sí, el honor no será exclusivo: a Pedro le han puesto de compañero a Quentin, Quentin Tarantino. Los dos, quién sabe si al unísono, anunciarán al ganador.

En fin, la noticia tampoco va a ninguna parte, más allá de la parafernalia de la gala, la Academia, etc. Pero no deja de ser curiosa esta especie de vendetta, como si dijeran los señores de Hollywood: “tranquilo, Pedro, que nosotros sí te apoyamos; ya nos encargamos de que no te pierdas la fiesta, entrega tú el muñequito dorado”.

Y una reflexión maliciosa: ¿significa esto que tampoco Tarantino rascará premio? Un servidor lo vería más que justo, teniendo en cuenta lo que me pareció su última película, Malditos bastardos.

Iván es la variante rusa y búlgara del nombre hebreo Juan, que a su vez proviene de Johanan, Yohanan o Yochanan, que significa ‘El bendecido por Dios’ o ‘El fiel a Dios’.
Su variante femenina es Yvonne, Ivone, Ivonne, Ivon o Ivana. Sus variantes en otros idiomas son Ivano (en italiano) e Ivanhoe (en inglés).

El nombre va siempre acentuado pero yo, libremente, siempre lo he escrito sin tilde; para eso es mi nombre y hago con él lo que quiero.

Mi abuelo se llamaba Juan Antonio, mi padre también se llama así. Mis padres, aún siguiendo la tradición, quisieron ser mas originales y me llamaron Ivan, un nombre muy poco común y controvertido para la época; en los años 60, y en plena dictadura, no se veía muy bien un nombre ruso. Mis padres estaban empeñados en llamarme así y, según también las costumbres de la época, el nombre debía ser compuesto, por lo que mi nombre es Oscar Ivan.

Pues sí, efectivamente no me llamo Ariel, ni Ivan a secas, me llamo Oscar Ivan. Pero aún hay más. Mi nombre completo, aunque sólo por la iglesia (ya imaginaréis porqué) es Oscar Ivan Jesús. Pero tanto Oscar como Jesús serán el tema de otros post.

En las imágenes que acompañan este post podéis ver algunos de los dibujos más antiguos que conservo. No sé la edad que tendría, pero es simpático ver como “dibujaba” más que escribir mi nombre para firmar.

De acordo com o site do jornal “Los Angeles Times”, em nota reproduzida na Folha Online, os diretores Quentin Tarantino e Pedro Almodóvar serão os apresentadores do Oscar ao melhor filme em língua estrangeira no próximo ano: eles já teriam sido convidados pelos produtores do evento, que deve ocorrer no dia 07 de março de 2010. Leia mais clicando aqui.

Last Friday night the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the 10 animated short films that will advance in the voting process for the 82nd Academy Awards. The original list contained thirty-seven films that were eligible for the category and this new list is in itself only interim. The Short Films and Feature Animation Branch of the Academy will now vote amongst themselves to select five films that will make up the final short-list, which will be announced on Tuesday, February 2nd, 2010 around lunchtime.

Irish eyes will be firmly fixed on this category with Brown Bag Films’ Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty representing our fair isle. Competition is set to be tough with Wallace and Gromit creator Nick Park up for A Matter of Loaf and Death and Disney/Pixar’s excellent short Partly Cloudy also in contention.

The full list of the current ten is as follows:

The Cat Piano
French Roast
Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty
The Kinematograph
The Lady and the Reaper
Logorama
A Matter of Loaf and Death
Partly Cloudy
Runaway
Variete

The Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2009 will be presented on Sunday, March 7th, 2010.

‘Can I help you out with that trash?’

I heard a voice over my shoulder and, sure enough, when I looked up it was Gwyneth Paltrow on a break from up-dating her website, GOOP.

I knew very well she was being ironic. Certainly, she seemed quite tickled by the notion of it. So I left my chore and invited her into my mouse house.

After I’d washed my hands I got some fish fingers out of the fridge. They can defrost together, I thought as I welcomed her warmly.

Gwynnie is a piece of alabaster perfection and she can do long and short hair, as she showed us in Sliding Doors. I asked for some beauty tips, which she surrendered gracefully.

Nevertheless, she roundly dismissed my offer to paint her nails, with a snort through her elegant nose.

‘Do you prefer Luke or Owen Wilson?’ I asked, referring to her roles in the Wes Anderson films.

‘Oh, I couldn’t possibly choose between them,’ she replied coyly.

‘I could,’ I revealed. ‘Owen. More chamomile tea?’

We went for a walk around Ravenscourt Park so she could get some air. She seemed to relax a little but I have to admit I was quite annoyed because she was wearing sunglasses so no-one knew who she was.

She told me about how she thinks shampoo gives children cancer and how she bounces on a trampoline to sculpt the fabulous skyscraper heel legs that tell the world she’s sexy even though she’s the mother of Moses and a piece of fruit.

‘And Chris- well, he’s so talented. He takes his music very seriously,’ she opened up.

‘Do you think he takes quite a lot of stuff seriously?’ I asked, trying to widen my eyes.

‘No, not at all,’ she replied very seriously. ‘Chris has got a fantastic sense of humour. Just this morning over breakfast he was saying something really funny… Now what was that?’

I let her flail around like a weighted puppy for what seemed like an eternity before blowing the whistle and diving in with a basic bacon and egg gag, at which she laughed so hard I began to wonder if she really does find Chris a bit of a card.

I could tell right from the get-go that she wasn’t going to dish the dirt- she’s not desperate enough, having been born into fame and privilege.

So I took the liberty of switching off and playing ’shag, marry, cliff’, teaming her up with Jennifer and Angelina, seeing as they all like a bit of Brad Pitt.

It was a no-brainer she was ‘marry’- hell, I’d already managed to spend a few hours in her company without really listening. The other two were easy as well: ’shag’ Jen and ‘cliff’ Angelina (playing the rules by my original understanding of them, whereby ‘cliff’ is the person you are so crazy about you would be willing to jump off one with them).

When I came round, Gwynnie was talking about Anna Wintour and I regretted not paying attention. She said Anna started inviting her to lunches with John Galliano after her Oscar win and reckoned it was because the Queen of Vogue admired her work.

I let it slide. But it got me thinking about Shakespeare in Love.

‘Joseph Fiennes is quite intense but don’t you think his eyes are too close together?’ I asked, hungry for her professional opinion.

‘I was so blessed to work with Jo. He’s a giant of an actor,’ she replied.

‘Wow. Taller than Tim Robbins?’ I asked.

I think I got the wrong end of the stick but I knew she was relieved I didn’t allude to her acceptance speech debacle.

Instead, I praised her English accent and told her she was much better than Renee Zellweger, who sounds like she’s being goosed by the President but can’t let on.

Gwynnie found this remark distasteful. Angelina had warned me that she was a cut above but did I listen? No.

‘Have some of my Mum’s fruit cake with a thin layer of Lurpak butter on it,’ I suggested as she gathered her mobile phones to leave.

In reply to which- and oh, please God, may I never feel so wrong again- she gave me a look that still sends shivers down my spine.

‘I’m not sure I get you, Sophie,’ she said eventually, as she let two bodyguards help her on with her trainers. ‘But probing characters is my vocation so I’m going to take you to bed with me for a few nights to see what I can figure out.’

O.K, I thought.

As long as you don’t mind Jennifer Aniston joining us.

November 22, 2009 by James Gideon

“The Golden Boy” Oscar De La Hoya made his professional boxing debut seventeen years ago this week. Before De La Hoya ever stepped into a professional boxing ring, he was already a household name. When De La Hoya was 15-years-old, he won the national Junior Olympic 119-lb title. Over the next few years, De La Hoya would win several amateur championships. In 1991, De La Hoya was named Boxer of the Year by USA Boxing. At the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games, De La Hoya defeated German Marco Rudolph to win the gold medal and become the only U.S. boxer to take home a medal from Barcelona. De La Hoya then made his professional debut against Lamar Williams in Inglewood, California on November 23, 1992. De La Hoya won the fight by first round knockout. De La Hoya would go on to become America’s “Golden Boy,” and he became the highest grossing fighter in the history of the business. De La Hoya now promotes boxing matches through his company Golden Boy Promotions, and he has dabbled in promoting mixed martial arts events. Before becoming the most successful businessman in the history of boxing, De La Hoya made his professional debut seventeen years ago this week.

Cuando uno piensa en George Clooney generalmente uno piensa en actor, sin emabrgo si uno es atento y revisa bien los créditos de las pelis se puede dar uno cuenta que Clooney igualmente es productor, generalmente, de las pelis en las que él actúa y una que otra peli independiente (generalmente son pelis bien entretenidas), es escritor de una (Good Night, and Good Luck) y también es director.

Hoy estuve revisando y resulta ser que me he visto las tres pelis de Clooney y en su orden cronológico. Confessions of a Dangerous Mind de 2002 basada en la novela de Chuck Barris y con el guión de Charlie Kaufman, Good Night, and Good Luck de 2005 que lo llevó incluso a varias nominaciones al Oscar de La Academia y Leatherheads de 2008.

Como actor es garantía de una peli entretenida, a veces con humor fino y otras veces con dramas bastante crudos. Como escritor se toma demasiado serio las cosas y no lo hace naturalmente entonces se siente un poco acartonanado o ladrilludo y como director pues ha sido una loma en bajada. Su primera peli, de la mano de Kaufman me pareció un éxito como producto, su segunda es interesante, es contestataria pero repito un poco muy seria y acartonada. En esta su tercera, vuelve a relajarse un poco, haciendo comedia junto Renée Zellweger, Jonathan Pryce y John Krasinski pero no es una peli que uno vaya a destacar mucho en el futuro.

La banda sonora es impecable, así como el vestuario y los parlamentos que hacen una ambientación de excelente factura. Un detalle de fina coquetería fue usar la marca de Universal Pictures de la época, sin embargo los créditos estuvieron más bien mediocres.

La peli aguanta un domingo pero seguro Clooney es mejor actor y productor ejecutivo que director hasta ahora con lo que ha venido mostrando. No conozco más proyectos en el futuro que no sean actorales. Yo le pongo fé para que ojalá le vuelva a sonar la flauta.

奥斯卡刚刚宣布了最佳动画短片奖项的十位竞争者，这还不是最终的被提名者哦。只有五部可以获得被提名的殊荣。这意味在还有一轮筛选在等着它们。乘着《Up》的东风，《Partly cloudy》可是相当讨观众喜欢的一部作品。中文翻译为《暴力云和送子鹤》，虽然土，但是那种自在天然，反而深得我心。下面列出十强名单，和所有能找到的视频或预告片 （虚张声势，除了猫钢琴其他都是预告片）。短片嘛，好处就在于短，很适合茶余饭后观看哦。至少看看猫钢琴吧，那个旁白的轻缓徐急实在太妙了。
“The Cat Piano,” Eddie White and Ari Gibson 《猫钢琴》

“French Roast,” Fabrice O. Joubert 《法式烘焙咖啡》

“Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty,” Nicky Phelan 《格林奶奶的睡美人》

“The Kinematograph,” Tomek Baginski 《电影》

“The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte),” Javier Recio Gracia 《老太与死神》

“Logorama,” Nicolas Schmerkin 《商标电影》

“A Matter of Loaf and Death,” Nick Park 《超级无敌掌门狗：面包还是死亡》

“Partly Cloudy,” Peter Sohn 《暴力云与送子鹤》

“Runaway,” Cordell Barker 《逃跑》

“Variete,” Roelof van den Bergh 《音乐厅》

Titolo originale: Valentino- The Last Emperor

Regia: Matt Tyrnauer

Cast: Valentino Garavani, Giancarlo Giammetti

Distribuzione: Medusa, USA, 2008

Guarda il trailer

Le telecamere seguono il grande stilista Valentino tra il 2005 e il 2007,  nei due anni che precedono il suo addio alla moda, avvenuto nel gennaio del 2008, tra la preparazione degli abiti per le sfilate eventi glamour, interviste, viaggi, cambiamenti al vertice dell’azienda.

  Il regista Matt Tyrnauer, corrispondente speciale di Vanity Fair, realizza davvero un piccolo gioiello, mostrando il Valentino uomo, nelle sue debolezze e nei suoi capricci da star, ma anche nel suo grandissimo talento creativo. Il film racconta, o meglio fa raccontare alle immagini delle sue creazioni, alle interviste e alle parole dello stilista stesso e del suo braccio destro, amico, compagno, ombra silenziosa eppure indipensabile Giancarlo Giammetti, la storia del suo impero, dall’arrivo da Parigi e dal loro primo incontro sul quale i due continuano ad avere due versioni differenti, fino all’acquisizione dell’azienda da parte del Gruppo Marzotto, che a sua volta ha ceduto parte del controllo al fondo di private equity Permira.

Senza dubbio il pubblico femminile adorerà questo film perché è la celebrazione di ciò che è bello, poiché il bello è proprio ciò che il famosissimo couturier ama di più: quindi ci sono abiti da sogno, indossati da dive del passato e dei giorni nostri, di cui viene mostrata tutto il processo di realizzazione, dai suoi disegni, al lavoro certosino delle sarte, fino alla prova sulla modella; vediamo location fantastiche, le dimore dello stilista in Italia e in Francia, il suo jet, i suoi cagnolini trattati come principi; il tutto inframmezzato da scene molto divertenti come i battibecchi tra lui e Giammetti, o con le persone del suo staff, da vera prima donna, o da scene commoventi come l’apertura della Mostra a lui dedicata al Museo dell’Ara Pacis in occasione dei 45 anni di attività, o la sua ultima sfilata, o il conferimento della Legion D’onore.

 Valentino è un’icona, un divo, una persona lunatica, volubile, spesso capricciosa,  colui che  durante un’intervista, al giornalista che afferma che la gente dice che nessuno potrà mai prendere il suo posta, risponde sorridendo: “Après moi, le déluge” (Dopo di me, il diluvio), ma allo stesso tempo un professionista attento e quasi maniacale  nella cura di ogni singolo particolare, che si agita dietro le quinte durante le sfilate come un esordiente e segue le modelle fino al loro ingresso in passerella, curando in corda ogni minimo dettaglio, un uomo sensibile che si commuove quando durante il discorso tenuto dopo il conferimento della Legion d’Onore, ringrazia Giancarlo Giammetti per la sua presenza al suo fianco per quasi 50 anni.

Il film è stato presentato  alla  65. Mostra Internazionale d’arte  Cinematografica di Venezia nel 2008 e sta riscuotendo un tale successo ovunque, soprattutto negli States, che si stanno facendo sempre più insistenti le voci che lo vorrebbero candidato all’ Oscar.

In definitiva un ritratto divertente e raffinato, condito da una bellissima colonna sonora che va da Bette Davis eyes di Kim Carnes, a brani jazz, fino a musiche tratte dai film felliniani.

Conclusione: Da vedere.

Voto: 8

OK so I’ve not entered anything, to be honest I wouldn’t know where to start making a film, let alone one of this standard, but if your interested in which short animations will be competing for oscars at the next Academy Awards we’ve got the list:

• The Cat Piano Eddie White and Ari Gibson, directors (The People’s Republic of Animation)
• French Roast Fabrice O. Joubert, director (Pumpkin Factory/Bibo Films)
• Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty Nicky Phelan, director, and Darragh O’Connell, producer (Brown Bag Films)
• The Kinematograph Tomek Baginski, director-producer (Platige Image)
• The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte) Javier Recio Gracia, director (Kandor Graphics and Green Moon)
• Logorama Nicolas Schmerkin, producer (Autour de Minuit)
• A Matter of Loaf and Death Nick Park, director (Aardman Animations Ltd.)
• Partly Cloudy Peter Sohn, director (Pixar Animation Studios)
• Runaway Cordell Barker, director (National Film Board of Canada)
• Variete Roelof van den Bergh, director (il Luster Productions)

Now we know winning an Oscar is not as big an accolade as receiving an award at Flip, but we’ve all got to start somewhere

Steph x

Vida da esposa de Nelson Mandela vai virar filme

Jennifer Hudson será Winnie Mandela nas telonas

A atriz Jennifer Hudson, premiada com um Oscar por sua performance em Dreamgirls – Em Busca de um Sonho, acaba de ser contratada como protagonista de Winnie, em que viverá Winnie Mandela, esposa do ex-presidente sul-africano Nelson Mandela.

O filme terá direção do sul-africano Darrell J. Roodt e será um drama sobre a história da controversa ativista, que lutou contra o apartheid ao lado de seu marido. O roteiro foi escrito por Roodt, Andre Pieterse e Paul L. Johnson, com base no livro biográfico Winnie Mandela: A Life, escrito por Anne Marie du Preez Bezdrob.

Segundo a Variety, o filme contará a história toda – tanto o lado bom, do ativismo social, como o lado ruim, das acusações de fraude e corrupção que marcaram parte de sua carreira política. Fonte: Omelete.

För tretton år sedan föddes Oscar. På väg in till BB i Borås fick jag en ordentlig värk, då klappade Sofia, då tre år, mig på axeln och sa: Det går över mamma…

Och det gjorde det, det gick fort över. En halvtimma efter att jag hade kommit in på BB föddes Oscar. Han kom två och en halv vecka innan beräknad förlossning men om man ser till vikt och längd var han inte direkt för tidigt född. Han föddes en fredag och dagen efter skulle vi ha klubbmästerskap i kattklubben. Jag satt med alla papper hemma och fick sätta mig på morgonen innan vi åkte in och skriva klart allt i datorn. En kompis i klubben var sedan och hämtade grejerna. Klubben fick helt enkelt klara sig utan mig och det gick bra.

Just nu är den nyblivne trettonåringen uppe på sitt rum och använder sin födelsedagspresent tillsammans med storasyster Sofia. De spelar Rock Band och det är härligt att se och höra syskonen sams för en gångs skull. Jag har blivit inbjuden att bli sångare i deras band Ret’s Lock (Sofia råkade kasta om ett par bokstäver innan när hon skulle säga Let’s Rock). Vet inte om jag ska tacka ja än, får se vilket gage det blir.. =)

Önskar er en skön söndag!
Kram Ann

RE: Your mental stability

I hope this is just a hilarious joke and that on April 1st next year when I wake up to get my morning coffee and daily online reads, there your face will be with a big smile giving the world the always reassuring finger guns as if to say “I fooled you all, you big bunch of foolio’s!” and oh how we will laugh and in 2020 we will look back on it and say “remember how you got us good 10 years ago?”

What are the chances of that happening? Can we ever get back to the status quo? Don’t answer these questions for I do not want to know.

You’re a darn good actor sir. You’ve been in a few masterpieces such as Return to Paradise and Murder, She Wrote, and some not so good productions like the Village (although you are not to blame for this as M. Night “I Think I’m The Man” Shyamalan is an overrated ass and doesn’t realise he hasn’t produced a quality film since Unbreakable).

Are you pissed that you didn’t win an Oscar for Walk the Line, is that what prompted this sudden lifestyle change? Because you should know that I was rooting for you. I mean Philip S. Hoffman, good bloke, but come on he was in Patch Adams! I am a true believer in holding films against award winners. That way we could be guaranteed that David Caruso and Elizabeth Berkley would never win an Oscar – I know they already have a very slim chance, but a chance nonetheless!

Now I’ve heard you “rap” and I’m not going to be one of those “haters” that make ill-informed decisions before being presented with the entire story nor am I going to pass judgment on the lives of others. Having said that you’re slightly shit. I know I said I wasn’t going to say that but I lied. You’re so shit that I would rather listen to that white guy in 5ive freestyle before I have to endure another listen of what you’re bringing to the table. Take it back and get a refund. Do not put all your eggs into this rapping basket, because you will need a fallback. If asked to do ‘Gladiator 2: Attack of the Zombies’ I say take it.

I will treat this as an open letter as I believe Joaquin would regularly Google the terms “Shyamalan”, “Overrated” and “Philip Seymour Hoffman is a tampon”. This post should be right up there in the searches.

The September Issue, el documental de la revista Vogue, quedó fuera de los premios Oscar. Así lo demostró la lista de los 15 documentales que avanzarán en las votaciones de la entrega 82 de los premios de la Academia, presentados el pasado 18 de noviembre .

A pesar de que The September Issue ha acumulado US$4, 461,835 en Estados Unidos y en el extranjero, Valentino: The Last Emperor, de su rival Vanity Fair  y que ha recaudado la mitad, se coló en la lista de votaciones. Una vez más, los miembros de la Academia juzgan más allá de las recaudaciones.

Otra derrota para Vogue

Nos preguntamos cuál sería la reacción de Anne Wintour, ante esta lista de derrotas, que incluye las ventas de publicidad. In Style batió a Vogue al ser la revista de moda de mujeres que más páginas vendió este año, seguida Elle Magazine, quedando la Bilblia de la Moda en un tercer lugar. (Fuente WWD)

Fuente: Página oficial Premios Oscars, Box Office y WWD

Well after a disturbingly depressing few weeks FilmWipe365 is back with a bang.  My illness has gone (again I have not got VD as several people emailed so don’t worry you will not got a bout of te clap from reading this). If I had planned this better I would have reviewed the Korean film The Presidents Last Bang, however, I am lazy and heading to morbid obesity and didn’t think of this incredibly funny joke early enough.  I feel slightly ashamed to come back with this film.  It is like Robbie Williams 2007 return Rudebox – the first album in music history that made people want to get syphilis in their ears.  What makes the film worst is not the fact that you have to read another excruciatingly long review about how much I hated watching it, nor that I wish everyone involved with the film a short and painful career.  It is instead the fact that I was actually excited about watching it and instead had my hopes crushed much like David Furnish when he thought It’s a Boy Girl Thing would stop him from having to spounge off his sugar daddy Elton John.  Rudo y Cursi – the mainstream vehicle for Diego Luna and Gael Garcia Bernal  – is frankly the weakest film I have had the misforune to watch for sometime and actually left me begging to watch films of the quality of the Break up and Eight Legged Freaks.

The film follows the brothers nicknamed Rudo (Diego Luna) and Cursi (Gael Garcia Bernal) on their journey from the bannana plantations in rural Mexico to super stardom playing football for two of the nations biggest teams.  It all kicks off for them when Batuta (a soccer scout) breaks down near their town.  After helping to fix his car the brothers compete against one another to get him to represent them.  Cursi wins and leaves their provincial home for Mexico City.  He is a big success and finishes as top scorer in his first season, which gives him the opportunity to follow his real passion, music.   Rudo has it a bit tougher.  Several months after Cursi, Batuta gives Rudo an opportunity with a rubbish team.  He leaves his wife and children to follow his dream.  After stuggling to get a place in the team in his first season he fortunately finds himself in the top flight. The second season in football contrasts hugely for the pair.  Cursi has lost form due to his relationship with a tv star and is on the verge of being sent to a lower division club.  Rudo, is close to becoming the best goal keeper in the history of the league.  However, his gambling addiction has left him owing money to some dangerous criminals and in the game against Cursi’s team he is asked to throw the game.  He is left with the dilema of following his dream or doing what he is told.

Well after what is possibly the longest description of a film in review history, I will get down to business (I can hear the sense of relief).  Until Cursi leaves for Mexico the film is desperately dull. The film offers very little about the depressing poverty that the pair grow up in. In some ways this is good, however there is hardly anything interesting.  And when you do get a flash of something interesting you’re so bored that you struggle to notice it (such as the abuse by her boyfriend of the pairs mother).  Cursi on his own in Mexico city is abut as exciting as staring at a beie wll for 15 hours.  It is so difficult to stay awake only repeated attempts at self harm will stop you from seeing most of the film with your eyes closed. 

Personally the most excruciating aspect of the film is Rudo’s gambling addiction.  From about 2 minutes into him arriving in Mexico city you quickly guess where the story is going.  It takes about 40 minutes to get to the point that you had magically predicted.  It is so painful to watch that cutting off my penis, cooking it on an open fire and then sharing it with a small Mongolian family as I slowly bleed to death seems a tempting alternative.  There is nothing I  loath more than being able to predict what is going to happen.

If I had my way Radovan Karadžićy would not be the only one in the Hague waiting to serve trial for crimes against humanity.  Director Carlos Cauron deserves to be sentenced to a life punishment for what he has done to cinema.  Technically the film is ok.  However, as the boy genius who wrote and directed this horror show he takes full credit for the misery he has brought on the world.  The script is terrible.  Even his mum would struggle to tell him that this was any good.  The dialogue between characters is so turgid it makes watching paint dry genuinely seem quite exiting.  His direction does little to excite the senses.  Worst of all he manages to make two excellent actors seem like David Arquette.  This is quite a skill as David Arquette is so bad that even genital crabs seem like Oscar nominated actors in comparison to him.

Overall this should be avoided at all costs.  Even football thugs will be bored as you only see about 1 minute of football.  Save money and do something else.

1/10 – If I couldgive minus figures Iwould but I don’t want to give it the infamy.

English, Iris, Portuguese, Scandinavian, Irish Mythology.

Possibly means “deer lover”, derived from Gaelic os “deer” and cara “lover”. Alternatively, it may derive from the Old English name OSGAR or its Old Norse cognateÁSGEIRR, which may have been brought to Ireland by Viking invaders and settlers. In Irish legend Oscar was the son of the poet Oisín and the grandson of the hero Fionn mac Cumhail.

This name was popularized in continental Europe by the works of the 18th-century Scottish poet James Macpherson. Napolean was an admirer of Macpherson, and he suggested Oscar as the second middle name of his godson, who eventually became king of Sweden as Oscar I. Another notable bearer was the Irish writer and humourist Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) (Behindthename.com)

Baby Name Wizard

Origin of the name Oscar: derived from a Norman baronial name taken from a French place-name meaning “golden city.” Others think it is merely an invention of the novelist Fanny Burney, who used it for the hero in her novel Evelina (1778). From A World of Baby Names by Teresa Norman

Me he permitido el lujo de seleccionar los más populares y representativos compositores cinematográficos de todos los tiempos. Desde los más antiguos hasta los más actuales, todos tienen una gran importancia, pero quizá los diferentes premios obtenidos o la asimilación de las diferentes melodías en las mentes de los espectadores, marquen diferencias entre ellos. En general, todos y cada uno de los compositores han hecho posible que a través de una melodía, una película sea para siempre única y espectacular en nuestra memoria.

MIKLOS ROZSAEste húngaro nacido en 1907 hizo de su vida una melodía. El estallido de La II Guerra Mundial en Europa fue la culpable de que Rozsa se instalara en Hollywood de por vida. Sus primeras composiciones para la compañía de Alexander Korda fueron “El ladrón de Bagdad” (1940) y el “Libro de la Selva” (1942), ambas nominadas por la Academia. Tras ser expulsado de la Paramount por introducir ciertas asperezas de ritmo y armonía que causaron consternación en ciertos sectores de Hollywood, la Metro-Goldwyn Mayer se interesó en su trabajo. Para esta productora escribió grandes epopeyas históricas como “Quo Vadis” (1951), “Ivanhoe” (1952), “Julio César” (1953), “Ben-Hur” (1959), “Rey de reyes” (1961) o “El Cid” (1961). Fue nominado al Premio Óscar en 17 ocasiones, obteniéndolo en 3 ocasiones por “Recuerda” (1945), “Doble vida” (1947) y “Ben-Hur” (1959).
Tras su muerte en el año 2004 Miklos Rozsa descansa bajo las colinas de Hollywood, pero su legado musical ha ido trascendiendo más y más con el paso de los años. Nuevas generaciones de amantes de la música pueden hoy día descubrir las creaciones de aquel gran maestro del lirismo que se destacó, sobre todo, por la elegancia y sofisticación de sus melodías.

ENNIO MORRICONE
Su larga carrera artística incluye una amplia gama de géneros de composición, trabajando como orquestador y director de orquesta en el campo de la grabación, y luego como compositor para teatro, cine y radio.
La carrera como compositor de música de película comenzó en 1961 con la película “Il Federale”, dirigida por Luciano Salce, pero se hizo famoso en todo el mundo con los westerns de Sergio Leone: “A Fistful Of Dollars” (1964), “Por unos dólares más” (1965), “El bueno, El Feo y El Malo” (1966), “Once Upon A Time In The West” (1968) y “A Fistful Of Dynamite” (1971).
Desde 1960, Morricone ha marcado más de 400 películas de las cuales las más famosas son: “La batalla de Argel”, “Sacco y Vanzetti”, “Cinema Paradiso”, “La Leyenda de 1900”, “Malena”, “Los intocables”, “Érase una vez en América”, “La Misión” y “U-Turn”.
En su larga carrera, Ennio Morricone ha recibido el León de Oro y en 2006 el Oscar de Honor en reconocimiento a su magnifica y multifacética contribución al arte de la música en el cine. Pero también ha obtenido: 8 Nastri d’argento, 5 Bafta, 5 nominaciones al Oscar, 7 David di Donatello, 3 Globos de Oro, 1 Premio Grammy y 1 European Film Award.

BERNARD HERRMANN
En 1911 nació en EE.UU un genio creativo, un musicólogo indiscutible, que a pesar de su muerte en 1975 recibió nominaciones póstumas de mano de la Academia en 1976 por “Taxi Driver” y “Obsesión”.
Tan complejo como cualquier personaje de las películas ningún compositor ha contribuido más a las películas que Bernard Herrmann, que en más de cuarenta Films ha enriquecido el trabajo de directores como Orson Welles, Alfred Hitchcock, François Truffaut, y Martin Scorsese. Desde su primera película “All that Money Can Buy”, galardonada con un Oscar, hasta su pasado con “Taxi Driver”, Herrmann fue un maestro en la evocación de los matices psicológicos y la tensión dramática a través de la música, a menudo utilizando inaudita combinaciones de instrumentos para adaptarse a las necesidades dramáticas de una película.
Sus partituras se encuentran entre las más distinguidas que se han escrito en la historia de la música cinematográfica, que van desde lo fantástico (“Fahrenheit 451″, “El Día de la Tierra se detuvo”) A la romántica (“Ciudadano Kane”, “Obsesión”, “El fantasma y la señora Muir”) A la terrible (“Psycho”). Además dirigió la orquesta de la CBS en varias ocasiones promocionando melodías de jóvenes músicos.

ALEX NORTH
Alex North nació en Chester, Pennsylvania, el 10 de diciembre de 1910 y el 8 de septiembre de 1991 murió conocido como un gran innovador musical. Compositor polifacético, escribió para televisión, cine, teatro, orquesta, incluso para documentales de guerra.
La versión de la película de Tennessee Williams “Un tranvía llamado deseo” (1951) marcó por primera vez en la historia la integración plena de una melodía de jazz en un film. Es probablemente el compositor más complejo y más original de la historia, el cual revoluciono todo el panorama musical. Tuvo la oportunidad de demostrarlo en sus películas mas destacadas como “Espartaco” (1960) o “Cleopatra” (1963), o con la creación de canciones entrañables como “Unchained melody” bastante recordada y utilizada como fue en la película “Ghost”.
A pesar de crear más de 50 películas, de las cuales 15 fueron nominadas por la Academia, Alex North nunca recibió ningún premio en activo. No fue hasta 1985 cuando recibió su primera estatuilla a modo de Premio Honorífico, en reconocimiento de su arte brillante en la creación de música memorable para una serie de imágenes en movimiento distinguido.

JERRY GOLDSMITHCuando la vida del legendario compositor de radio, televisión y cine, Jerry Goldsmith, se “apagó”, en 2004 dejó un vacío enorme en el mundo de la música de la película, pero su legado de más de 50 años de música nos ha dejado un huequito en nuestros corazones.
Gracias a las enseñanzas de Miklos Rozsa y Alfred Newman su vida ha sido un ir y venir entre la pequeña y gran pantalla. Ejemplo de ello es citar que ha sido nominado nueve veces en los Globos de Oro y dieciocho veces por la Academia de los Oscars, pero sólo en 1976 con la música original de “The Omen” ha obtenido la codiciada estatuilla. También obtuvo cinco nominaciones a los Grammy, y las diecisiete nominaciones por los Saturn Awards, en los cuales ganó uno por Star Trek: The Motion Picture en 1980. Su contratación en la 20th Century-Fox le sirvieron para hacer producciones cómo “Freud”, “Un retazo de azul”, “The Sand Pebbles”, “El Planeta de los Simios”, “Patton”, “Papillon”, “Chinatown”, “El viento y el león”, “Logan’s Run”, “Islands in the Stream”, “Capricornio Uno”, “Alien”, “Star Trek: The Motion Picture”, “Gremlims”, “Under Fire”, “Poltergeist”, “L.A. Confidential”, “Basic Instinct”, “Mulán” y “La Momia”.
Bajo la tutela de la CBS o de la Revue Studios consiguió 4 premios Emmy con producciones musicales para la televisión cómo “Star Trek: Voyager”, “QB VIII” (1974), “Babe” (1975), “Masada” (1981).

JOHN WILLIAMS
En la ciudad de Nueva York, un 8 de febrero de 1932 nació una estrella condenada al éxito. Aunque en la actualidad es uno de los compositores cinematográficos mas prestigiosos, su carrera profesional comenzó en series televisivas como “La Isla de Gilligan” o “Perdidos en el Espacio” para la Fox. Pero el salto a la gran pantalla, tras varias nominaciones, le proporciono su primera estatuilla en 1971 en la 44ª edición de los Oscars por la adaptación original de “El violinista en el Tejado”.
No es un error decir que gran parte de su música ha traspasado la pantalla para asentarse en la cultura popular en el cine de los últimos 35 años y es que cinco premios de la Academia, 17 Grammys, tres Globos de Oro, dos Emmys y cinco Premios BAFTA de la Academia Británica de Cine y Artes de la Televisión confirman su talento. Grandioso compositor y director de orquesta, John Williams es el motivo de que muchos teman meterse en el mar tras ver “Tiburón” (mejor banda sonora original en la 48ª Edición de los premios Oscars en 1975) o de hacernos llorar amargamente viendo “La lista de Schindler” (mejor banda sonora original en la 66ª Edición de los Oscars en 1993 y un Grammy). Es el responsable de la inolvidable y casi perfecta partitura para el más famoso extraterrestre del séptimo arte “E.T” (mejor banda sonora original en la 55ª Edición de los Oscars en 1982), o sin ir más lejos de la composición más paradigmática de la profesión, alzada por el American Film Institute como la mejor en la historia del cine: “La Guerra de las Galaxias” (mejor banda sonora original en la 50ª Edición de los Oscars en 1977).
Hay que destacar que Williams ha hecho recurrente el uso del leitmotiv identificando a personajes tales como Superman, Indiana Jones o a Darth Vader con la “Marcha Imperial”. Pero también son destacables composiciones para películas como “Jurassic Park”, “Solo en casa” o “Salvar al Soldado Ryan” que siempre tendrán un hueco en nuestros corazones.

HANS ZIMMER
Hoy día es considerado uno de los compositores más sobresalientes e innovadores de Hollywood, apodado por gran parte de la crítica como “el omnipresente Zimmer” por sus numerosas apariciones, ya sea como compositor principal o como colaborador con uno de sus múltiples discípulos.
Este compositor alemán nacido en el 57, es el padre de la integración de la música electrónica con arreglos orquestales tradicionales en el género cinematográfico.
El punto de inflexión en la carrera de Zimmer llego cuando en 1988 “Rain Man” ganó el Oscar a la Mejor Película del Año y Zimmer ganó su primera nominación al Oscar como Mejor Banda Sonora Original. Pero sin duda la obra maestra del compositor fue la banda sonora de “El Rey León” en 1994, ya que ha vendido alrededor de 15 millones de copias hasta la fecha, un Oscar por Mejor Música Original, un Globo de Oro, un premio American Music Award, un Tony y dos premios Grammy. En total, el trabajo de Zimmer ha sido nominado a 7 Globos de Oro, 7 Grammys y siete premios Oscar por “Rain Man”, “Gladiator”, “El Rey León”, “As Good As It Gets”, “La mujer del Predicador”, “La Delgada Línea Roja”,” El Príncipe de Egipto” y “El Último Samurai”.
Entre otras composiciones también nos ha emocionado con “Pearl Harbor”, asustado con “The Ring”, divertido con “Piratas del Caribe y “Madagascar” o ensimismado con “Matchstick Men”, “Hannibal”, “Black Hawk Down” o “Thelma y Louise”, estas cuatro dirigidas por Ridley Scott.

JAMES HORNER
Este californiano de cincuenta y seis años es actualmente uno de los compositores más populares de la música clásica.
Su primer proyecto de gran dimensión fue la música para Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan (1982), que daría lugar a numerosas ofertas cinematográficas y las oportunidades de trabajar con artistas de clase mundial tales como la Orquesta Sinfónica de Londres, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, James Cameron, Oliver Stone, Y Ron Howard.
La sinfonía, es de lo que se nutre su estilo, al igual que Jerry Goldsmith y John Williams, pero también se atreve con el sintetizador, siendo un gran virtuoso en este estilo e integrándolo perfectamente en la gran orquesta.
Obviamente ha sido nominado al Óscar en el apartado a la mejor Banda Sonora en 7 ocasiones, como también lo fue en los Grammy o en los Globos de Oro, con películas como “Aliens: el regreso” (1986), “Campo de sueños” (1989), “Braveheart” (1995), “Apolo 13″ (1995), “Titanic” (1997), “Una mente maravillosa” (2001), “Casa de arena y niebla” (2003), consiguiéndolo doblemente con “Titanic” tanto en el apartado a la mejor música como a la mejor canción. “La leyenda del zorro”, “Gloria” o “El nombre de la rosa” fueron también grandes composiciones de Horner.

Oscar fyller 9×7+7 år i dag han. Ergo er han 9 år i menneskeår og 70 i hundeår. Begynner å bli gammel, men han er fortsatt like rar og søt. I hvert fall i dag! Når jeg stod opp gav jeg han mye oppmerksomhet, noe han Eeeeelsker med stor e. Han ble helt overlykkelig, og av den grunn er vi bestiser i dag. Slik fungerer det.

My 39th birthday was last week. Sarah and I were walking down to get some coffee at Square One and she asked me what my highlights were of being 38. I thought about it, and thought I’d share some of those highlights here. At first glance, this may seem like just another Year in Review blog, but trust me, it’s different. These are in no particular order, except in the order that they came into my brain.

COOL THINGS I DID WHEN I WAS 38

1. Lost Nights
   Once a week Sarah and I get together and watch Lost with some friends. I know what you’re saying: Who doesn’t? But it’s not just about gathering around the TV and watching a show. It’s the whole “gathering with friends and watching a show” aspect about it that I love. Usually before or after the show we’ll play games, eat whatever snacks we brought, or just hang out. And now that we’ve caught up on all of the Seasons and are eagerly awaiting the beginning of Season 6, we still get together once a week and….well we do whatever. Play games. Watch a movie. Eat snacks. Hang out. It’s been a good excuse to get together and be with our pals on a regular basis.
2. Dressing Up as Batman and The Joker
   Every year our friends John and Lisa hold an Oscar-viewing party. In the last couple of years they’ve encouraged everyone to dress up as a movie character and it’s been a lot of fun. This year Sarah and I came as Batman and The Joker, and I gotta admit, we looked good.
   
3. Jim Thorpe
   Sarah’s birthday is only 3 days before mine so we get to celebrate together. Our friends Alyssa and Ashlea decided to treat us to a mystery trip. They gave us the date and time but kept the destination a secret. The only hint they gave us was the fact it was a couple of hours away. It turns out they took us to Jim Thorpe PA, a small town one of the TV travel programs listed as one of the Top 10 Towns in America. I think they were right to put this on the list.
   
4. Live Shows
   When I was 38, I got to see a couple of live shows that came into town that were a lot of fun: the touring production of Avenue Q and Bill Cosby. If I don’t come across as your average  musical-theatre kinda guy, I’m not. But Avenue Q isn’t your average musical theatre production.
   
   And Bill Cosby. Well….he’s just Bill Cosby. How can you not enjoy him?
5. New York City
   Sarah and I were able to travel up to New York City twice. The first time we went up to see the Season 34 Finale of Saturday Night Live with Will Ferrell. To say it was a blast would be an understatement. The second time, we went up with our friends Ryan, Alyssa, and Ashlea and got to show them around the city. Both times I was able to jump in the shows at the National Comedy Theatre and improv it up with some of my old pals as well as perform with some new cast members whom I hadn’t met. It was a great time. I heart New York.
6. Ireland
   As anyone who’s followed my blog knows, Sarah and I went to Ireland with Alyssa and Ashlea and it was incredible. I won’t bore you with the details (again) but will post the recap of our trip here.
   
7. Doodles at Square One
   I’ve been drawing doodles of people ever since I was in middle school. I haven’t always kept up at it, but this past year I’ve been very proactive about keeping at it. I had a chance to display my art at our coffee house of choice here in Lancaster, Square One Coffee. For the month of October I displayed about 30 doodles, all in the theme of Halloween creepiness. You can see all of my doodles at my Facebook fan page.

So yea…38 wasn’t too bad. Those were just a few of the things that jumped out at me. I’ll include more in my annual End-of-the-Year update but Sarah was right. Thirty-eight was a good year. I think 39 is gonna be good, too. With someone as cool as Sarah by my side to walk with to the coffee shop, how can it not be?

Giulia, Bruna, Igino e Franco al Globe Theatre di Londra, Luglio 2009.

Oggi pomeriggio il Direttivo TGS si raduna presso la sede associativa per fare il punto della situazione sulla pianificazione delle attività 2010 …e per un interessante “fuori programma” serale! Dopo aver apprezzato Shakespeare al Globe Theatre di Londra l’estate scorsa… ci trasferiamo infatti all’auditorium di Maserada sul Piave per applaudire un’attrice a cui siamo particolarmente affezionati!
Ma andiamo per ordine…

• Relazione Viaggio del Direttivo TGS in UK (06-10 Novembre 2009)
• Definizione quote associative 2010
• Attività promozionali: stato di avanzamento nuovo libretto illustrato
• Attività promozionali: pianificazione generale di contatti, spedizioni di materiale, incontri di presentazione, etc.
• Attività promozionali Su e Zo per i Ponti: ricerca di nuovi contatti, sponsor, etc.
• Preparazione Incontro dell’Amicizia (10 gennaio 2010)
• Novità e aggiornamenti dalla Segreteria TGS Eurogroup

A seguire una veloce cena comunitaria presso il refettorio del Collegio Astori (come sempre, nella migliore tradizione TGS, ognuno porti qualcosa da condividere!) e poi, per chi si può fermare, un’occasione davvero da non perdere: la commedia teatrale “‘Oscar’ ovvero: due figlie, tre valigie e un reggipetto” di Claude Magnier, messa in scena all’Auditorium Don Enrico Vidotto di Maserada sul Piave (TV) dalla Compagnia “Tarvisium teatro” di cui fa parte la nostra Giulia!! E noi in prima fila ad applaudirla…

Igino

Talk about making the most out of a bad thing… Randy Newman had the record for most Oscar nominations without a win (16), when he finally took home his first statuette in 2002 for the song, “If I Didn’t Have You,” from Monsters, Inc. So, how did he thank the members of the Academy? He said, “I want to thank first of all the music branch for giving me so many chances to be humiliated over the years.” (That record has been broken, by the way, by sound re-recording mixer Kevin O’Connell, who has 20 Academy Award nominations and no wins).

by Jonathan Burrello

A jaunty jalopy ride down a dusty Kansas road to a former lover’s funeral was all it took to rope conman, Moses Pray (Ryan O’Neal), into meeting one of the most special ladies his puny life might ever know. Shot in glorious black and white and boasting a sharp wit set rakishly against bleak Depression-era Midwestern textures and scenery, director Peter Bogdanovich (“The Last Picture Show,” “What’s Up, Doc?”) weaves up a homespun adventure with “Paper Moon” (1973). “Paper Moon” is a very welcome departure off the beaten path…and onto an even more beaten path with two guides that scarcely know where they’re headed in life let alone the road.

Moses Pray travels the American Midwest and cons recent widows into believing that their dearly departed husbands have purchased Bibles for them. Genuinely touched that their loved ones would have been so piously generous in their final days, they gladly pay the difference (minus the original fictitious down-payment Pray alleges their husbands have already spent). It’s an easy gig with easy money, made easier by Pray’s seeming lack of conscience, but it gets a lot more complicated after a visit to the funeral of a woman he once loved (she was a prostitute). Orphaned Addie Loggins (played by 8-year-old Tatum O’Neal) is the spittin’ image of ol’ Moses (no coincidence, they were father and daughter in real life) and the old biddies at the funeral shame the con-artist into taking little Addie with him to her aunt’s house. Reluctantly he obliges.

Moses feverishly denies the remote possibility that he is the girl’s father, but the stone-faced, quick-witted tomboy, Addie, soon finds her way into the conman’s life (he takes Addie’s money and she knows it and essentially she demands he pay her back or else she’ll tell the police). The two form an uneasy alliance and turn out to make a pretty good con team. Addie’s added innocence to Moses’ scam pays off well for the shifty duo (despite Addie’s stubborn moral compass that she employs on certain occasions) and they set their sights higher and con their way across the state. In the eyes of the viewer, these two unlikely and extremely stubborn characters were made for each other.

The movie follows Moses and Addie through squabbles and squalls—as when buxom stripper, Miss Trixie Delight (played by the always enjoyable Madeline Kahn) makes her move to use and abuse an all-too willing Moses and it’s up to Addie to break it up. Between Moses’ fast-talking and trouble-making, it’s all little Addie can do to keep the plan going and still have time for a smoke. Even if Moses may never admit he is her father, they become a very formidable family unit. At the end of the day they have nowhere else to turn but to each other.

I applaud any movie that makes us fall in love with lowly shysters and “Paper Moon” is no exception. Moses Pray is plain diabolical (if a bit slipshod), and Addie Loggins proves her precocious mettle against many an odd. Tatum O’Neal is the real star of this picture and her deadpan performance as Addie notably garnered her the Academy Award for best supporting actor (against co-star Kahn and other child actor, Linda Blair for “The Exorcist”). This film may be accused of wearing its heart on its sleeves, but Bogdanovich makes it really work. This film earns its sweetness. “Paper Moon” is fun and sweet and humorous and insanely likable. The script, performances, and the sumptuous cinematography all combine wonderfully well to transport us back to the Dust Bowl era in Middle America, when religion was in and wallets wore thin. I encourage you to seek out this smarmy but sweet little treasure out. “Paper Moon” is a charmer that can warm the most cynical of hearts…because that’s what it does to the cynical characters that inhabit the film.