Cinematography

Okay, so yesterday I said I had some definite ideas about this year's Cinematography greats. Turns out I lied. I had originally been backing Jindabyne, for those sprawling, uneasy landscapes but then I got to thinking. What about Martin Ruhe's work on Control?


To make a glimmering Australian landscape look beautiful is easy, but to extract the poetry from everyday life is more difficult. There were a number of standout things about the Ian Curtis biopic (and many that fell flat) but the photography was impeccable. Crisp, streamlined and fluid, the b&w lent Curtis' life a kinetic beauty filled with gravitas.

Harris Savides has had a busy year. He's the DP on three of the year's most anticipated films, American Gangster, Margot at the Wedding and the one you can see to your left, Zodiac. Poor old David Fincher; despite Zodiac's prestige it seems to be left behind when it comes to Oscar buzz. Was it too long, too convoluted for the AMPAS? Too wordy? Released too early in the year? Whatever the reason for the lack of hype surrounding it, people shouldn't neglect Savides' work in this picture. He's a prestigious cinematographer, working with some of the most respected directors around (van San, Fincher, Scott) and I think this is he best work yet. I couldn't find any stills from the opening scene, the haunting murder set to Donovon's "Hurdy Gurdy Man", but it was one of the most chilling
and beautiful scenes I've watched this year.


Question - can animated features be nominated for Cinematography accolades?

Soak that in. Mmmmm. I've been searching the net for an answer to my query, and the only thing I've found out is that Who Framed Roger Rabbit was nominated in 1988, but seeing as how that was a mixture of live action and animation, I don't know if that counts. Nope, judging from my quick resarchm a fully animated feature is not eligible for inclusion (which makes sense, I guess) but just look at the pretty!

If I chose the Oscars...

I've come to the conclusion that there's not much point me doing Oscar predictions this year. Partly because I haven't been following the ceremony for very long and therefore don't have the valuable knowledge and empiricial sense that is necessary for predictions. Secondly, anything I single out for nomination, whether it be best actor, cinematography or score, will be singularly be filtered through my own personal tastes. I refuse to even consider Ikea Knightly for Best Actress, (I haven't seen Atonement so I can't judge her performance in that) because I find her impossibly wooden and irritating. I acknowledge that she's a likely lock, but screw that. I vote with my heart as much as with my head, and I cannot even reluctantly grant her a placing on my own list. Thirdly, living in Ireland is somewhat a disadvantage as regards getting out to see the films. Not for lack of quality screens and cinemas, but distributors are often months behind the US and it's frustrating reading rave reviews of a film recently opened in the states and knowing you have to wait to get to see it yourself. Release dates can be severely skewed, and so certain performances I loved this year (Maggie G in Sherrybaby,Laura Dern in INLAND EMPIRE) won't be eligible for this year's awards. So, casting all these difficulties aside, I present what I would be overjoyed to see at this year's AMPAS ceremony.

Best Picture: Zodiac


Best Director: Ray Lawrence, Jindabyne

Best Actor in a Leading Role: Chris Cooper, Breach



Best Actress in a Leading Role: Laura Linney, Jindabyne


This is the category that inspires the most torment on my part. Linney's quiet portrayal of a woman struggling against an inpeneratable problem was the first performance that blew me away this year, yet the film itself didn't make a splash. Jindabyne was released in a very Linney-ish year, with The Savages looking to actually garner her a nomination (something I'd be very pleased with, Linney is one of my favourite actors working today and the clip of The Savages I've seen looks great). Yet the field is strong, with Julie Christie's devilish Alzhemier's victim, Marion Cotillard's spirited Edith Piaf and the nobility that Angelina Jolie brought to A Mighty Heart. There were other good female leads this year of course, but these four were my favourite, appealing on different levels. I watched Away From Her last night and so Julie Christie is freshly imprinted on my brain and thus I am inclinced towards giving her my number one spot, but I know Linney will stay with me for longer.


Best Actor in a Supporting Role: David Strathairn, The Bourne Ultimatum


Best Supporting Actress: Samantha Morton, Control


I'll eventually get around to looking at the other categories. I have strong favourites for music, cinematography, screenplay etc. I still haven't seen many of the big hitters this year, so in a month or so I'm guessing these picks will look outdated and poorly thought out. But for the moment, I'm sticking by them.