Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab.
What? It’s awards season again? Already? Awwww, hell. That means we’ve got to start listening to pundit after pundit tell us about “Oscar handicapping” and “positioning” and all that crap. That means we’re in for one group after another handing out awards that all end up basically serving to fuel conversation about who’s going to end up winning the whole enchilada, The Gay Superbowl, the Oscars themselves in the Spring. First up each year is The National Board of Review, and here’s a full list of the awards they gave out this week:
NBR's Top 10 Movies for 2002
The Hours
Chicago
Gangs of New York
The Quiet American
Adaptation
Rabbit-Proof Fence
The Pianist
Far From Heaven
Thirteen Conversations About One Thing
Frida
TOP FIVE FOREIGN FILMS OF 2002
Talk to Her
Y Tu Mama Tambien
8 Women
City of God
El Crimen del Padre Amaro
Best Actor: Campbell Scott, Roger Dodger
Best Actress: Julianne Moore, Far From Heaven
Best Supporting Actor: Chris Cooper, Adaptation
Best Supporting Actress: Kathy Bates, About Schmidt
Best Acting by an Ensemble: Nicholas Nickleby
Breakthrough Performance Actor: Derek Luke, Antwone Fisher
Breakthrough Performance Actress: Maggie Gyllenhaal, Secretary
Best Director: Phillip Noyce, The Quiet American and Rabbit- Proof Fence
Best Directorial Debut: Rob Marshall, Chicago
Screenwriter of the Year: Charlie Kaufman, Adaptation, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, Human Nature
Best Documentary: Bowling for Columbine
Best Animated Feature: Miyazaki's Spirited Away
Best Film Made for Cable TV: The Laramie Project
Special Award for Visionary Cinematic Achievement: George Lucas
Career Achievement: Christopher Plummer
Special Filmmaking Achievement: George Clooney, Director, Producer, and Star of Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
Career Achievement - Film Music Composition: Elmer Bernstein
Career Achievement - Cinematography: Conrad Hall
Humanitarian Award: Sheila Nevins William K. Everson Award for Film History: Annette Insdorf for her book, Indelible Shadows: Films and the Holocaust
Special Recognition of Films that Reflect the Freedom of Expression: Ararat, Bloody Sunday, The Grey Zone, Rabbit-Proof Fence
Special Mention for Excellence in Filmmaking:
The National Board of Review, in keeping with its long tradition of recognizing excellence in filmmaking is proud to salute the following films, crafted by visionary artists which demonstrate the creativity and determination which have always been vital to the film industry:
Frailty
The Good Girl
The Guys
Heaven
Igby Goes Down
Max
Personal Velocity
Real Women Have Curves
Roger Dodger
Sunshine State
Tadpole
Tully
The thing that drives me most nuts about all of this each year is that people use these awards like baseball bats in conversations, quoting various awards at me like it means something. In the end, I don’t care. If it’s not sitting on a shelf in my house, then what does it matter to me if someone gets a statue or not? It doesn’t change the way I feel about a film. If something I love doesn’t win an Oscar, I’m not going to suddenly change my mind and not love that film anymore, and just because something wins an award doesn’t mean that I’ll automatically tow the party line and call it great.
Still, I know there are many of you who love to play the game, and there are writers out there who actually manage to offer fairly astute commentary about these races. Me? Just writing the word “race” in association with art makes my skin crawl. But that’s why I’m going to hand you off to someone better qualified, someone who actually cares about all of this and does it well.
CLICK HERE FOR SOME ROCK-SOLID OBSERVATIONS ON WHAT THE NATIONAL BOARD OF REVIEW MEANS!!
"Moriarty" out.
