New Collaboration Video, "Quietly Awake"

Over the weekend, Ryan decided to record some footage with our Flip HD cam; he's been wanting to make sort of a tone poem for awhile now, and while walking in Prospect Park, we decided to just go for it.

"Quietly Awake" 2010

Ryan Haupt

Flip Cam HD

(Edited in iMovie)

CAST
Tara Rose Stromberg

(Yes, the cast is none other than yours truly. I swear, it wasn't my decision! The director was very selective.)

Quietly Awake from Ryan Haupt on Vimeo.

Oscar Nom Nom Noms

Here they are: my own deliciously juicy tidbits on the Oscar nominations this year.

I haven't seen all the films that were nominated, or those that should have been, so it's with some reluctance that I make a fuss over any of this. But I will put forth my opinion anyhow, since everyone else is doing it, and if you don't want to read it you can just leave this blog, go find some smug, self-proclaimed film buff's nifty list and proceed to silently judge them.

DISCLAIMER: I have not, nor have I ever claimed I am a film buff.

PHEW. My conscience is cleared.

My first question would be, where is the film Moon? First time director, Duncan Jones, did a fine job with this 2001-esque story. The space sets look amazing. Mostly because, I would think, they are ACTUAL sets. Really conveyed the eeriness and isolation of being alone on a distant planet. This should have at least been given a nod for director or screenplay.

And far more perplexing is the fact that Sam Rockwell wasn't nominated for Best Actor. He basically carried the film himself! (And if you've seen it, you know that means much more than what it appears.)

And, I gotta say it...The Limits of Control got no love. Don't even get me started.

Also Somers Town (Shane Meadows).....Bad Lieutenant (Wernor Herzog)....Drag Me to Hell (Sam Raimi)....? Really, nothin........?

Sigh.

"Best Picture"
Couple things wrong with this picture...first of all, there are 10 nominees. That's a lot. Also, Avatar is on the list...now here's the dilemma. I haven't seen Avatar (I have no desire to, really - don't shoot me, I'm not pretentious, I'm just choosy with spending my livelihood money), but the last time I checked it was pretty much animated.

The rule, so I've heard, is that you need at least 75% animation in your film to qualify as an "Animated Picture." Maybe that's not the case with Avatar. OR perhaps it isn't...perhaps they just wanted to nominate Avatar because it is the highest grossing film, like, ever, yada yada, and James Cameron totally created a world of his own and blew our 2D minds with flying jellyfish and he must truly be a great director to like, even imagine this. (I mean, my sister draws giant mechanical, flying sea creatures, and it didn't cost her millions and a few years of her life, but I digress...)

To top it off, Up was also listed under Best Picture. Which was, yes, a good film. Perhaps not just for the graphics, but for the story and how it was executed.

IF that were the case...then why is there an "Best Animated Picture" category as well? Is that just for the mastery of the particular craft of animation, or for story, or both? And if so, how is that different from "Best Picture"? In my opinion, a good film should have both. So why pigeonhole animated films into their own category when they essentially achieve the same goals?

Lest we forget that once upon the time Beauty and the Beast was nominated in the "Best [not Animated] Picture" category...

"Best Actor"
Jeff Bridges. I like him. Not enough to see him play a drunk country musician...but I have faith. Morgan Freeman again, seriously? Did they even bother to watch him in the movie this time?

"Best Supporting Actor"
I don't even care about the others (though I have a little crush on Christopher Plummer..); maybe it's easy to play a criminal when it's a Nazi, but Christoph Waltz' villain in Inglorious Basterds made me pee my pants.

"Best Actress"
They nominated Penelope Cruz for - no, not Broken Embraces - but...Nine. WTF.

"Animated Feature Film"
WHERE THE HELL IS PONYO YOU SHITHEADS!? Honestly, I could cry. Did they forget about Miyazaki's masterpiece? Beautiful illustrations, GREAT English casting, a classic fairtytale story - no good or evil, even - just the circumstances of two kids. Well one fish, who dreams of living on land, and one kid, who wants to help her. Maybe the simple plot served as the excuse for its lack of Academy appeal.

Ohhhh I forgot, movies have to have things that EXPLODE and make REALLY LOUD ANNOYING NOISES and end in an EPIC BATTLES in order to gain mass appeal from younger audiences. ::rolls eyes::

Though, I admit, I'm still torn on this list. Remember I said before that this category needn't exist? It's because these ARE the best pictures of the year, by far.

I was hesitant to see The Princess and the Frog as I've lost my loyalty to Disney gradually over the years. I was also a Little Mermaid fanatic, and I was afraid of wounding my inner child further. I will say this: they have redeemed themselves in the world of cel animation. And the music (though Randy Newman annoys the crap out of me) was fully entertaining. That art deco scene was a pleasant surprise.



The Fantastic Mr. Fox is so fun to watch. Yes, George Clooney was basically playing himself. And yes it's a Wes Anderson film; but boo to all the naysayers. He could be an asshole for all I know, but as a director, Anderson did some kick-ass stop motion, and I laughed wholeheartedly through its entirety. Haven't experienced a movie like this since Wallace & Gromit...

(....which is also on the list for Animated Shorts! When the hell did that come out and why haven't I seen it!?)

Remember as a kid how some movies used to give you the creeps? Make you afraid that something would grab you in the dark, or that your parents would suddenly disappear...and you would DIE? Coraline brings those scary, yet necessary feelings back. I felt like a kid again, and I'm sure the whimpering children next to me enjoyed it as well ("Oh no Coraline, don't go in there!!!" ::Screams::)

Up. My friend Josh puts it perfectly: the first 10 minutes of the film are probably the best moments of drama written in history. The rest was a rollicking fun (albeit predictable) Disney movie. Not too shabby.

"Directing"
If Cameron wins, you can count me out of next year's Oscars. He's an asshole. Don't believe me? Remember when he won for Titanic? ....Yeah.

"Writing" (Original Screenplay)
I think Quentin really deserves this one. Killing Nazis hasn't been this good since Indiana Jones.

Well, my rant here is done.

So, after all that, will I be watching the Oscars? Well, since I don't have cable at home, no. Unless there are a generous few willing to let me loll around in my PJs for 5 hours whilst eating Pringles.

(Read all about my Oscar ritual, which has been seriously disrupted by the bummer of reality, here.)