(Providence, Rhode Island)
I love the Academy Awards, going way back to the days when legends such as Bob Hope and Johnny Carson hosted.
I admit I have seen only two of the nominated movies, and I loved them both. “Julie and Julia” is sensational, both from an acting standpoint and for all the glorious food. When I saw it, I immediately said Meryl Streep would win another Oscar. My one and only interview with Julia Child remains one of the highlights of my career—both as a newsman and as a foodie!
But then I saw “The Blind Side” with Sandra Bullock. I had never thought much of her acting skills, as--in my book--she played too many similar characters. But she was wonderful as the mentor and adoptive mom of future NFL star Michael Oher. Her Oscar nomination is well deserved. (Streep and Bullock are pictured above.)
In fact, I am torn. I hope it is a tie. Didn’t a tie occur once before at the Oscars? Sure enough, in 1968, Katherine Hepburn (“A Lion in Winter”) and Barbra Streisand (“Funny Girl”) tied for Best Actress.
More than anything else, what I love about “Julie and Julia” and “The Blind Side” is that they are both true stories. I tire of some of the fiction Hollywood puts out, as well as some of its revisionist history and its endless list of re-makes. Be original, Hollywood! There are many good, true stories out there that would make great films, both at the box office and with critical acclaim. “Julie and Julia” and “The Blind Side” proved it!
The one movie I really am dying to see is “Crazy Heart,” based on the book written by Rhode Island College Professor Thomas Cobb. I love movies about the music business.
We carry the Oscars “live” on ABC-6 at 8 p.m., Eastern Time, as well as our “Oscar Night America” party “live” at 6:30 p.m. Check in at www.ABC6.com.
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There is actually much doubt that Julie and Julia is true, or at least the Julie part. Believing that she cooked 524 recipes in 365 days while working a full-time job and having several fits and starts that threw her behind is stretching credibility to the breaking point. The real JC did not like Julie and thought her whole blog was little more than a publicity stunt. And I'd have to agree.
Too bad you missed Up In The Air and The Hurt Locker, two of the more intelligent films in a year filled with too many duds to contemplate.
I rented all of last year's nominees on DVD: "No Country for Old Men," "There Will Be Blood," and I don't even remember the others, except that I was disappointed and/or disgusted by all of them. What a waste of talent and other resources. YUK!
I'd tend to agree. Most of last year's films disappointed me too and it's impossible to know anymore where real criticism ends and pure hype begins. The best films are usually little-known movies that can't pay for the massive publicity that gets a handful of generally average films elevated to the nosebleed level.
I've seen only "Julie and Julia" of all the movies nominated. Guess I'm really out of step with the times. BUT I would see more movies if Hollywood chooses to make movies about real people and if Hollywood would stop so often pandering to the basest human instincts. I like to be entertained; and I like to feel better, not worse, after seeing a movie. The seamier aspects of real society, as relentlessly reported by the media, give us enough negativity, titillation, violence, etc.
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