Jan 29 2009
Oscars 2009: Best Director
This one is pretty transparent. Not to minimize some of the other nominees (well, actually, I will be doing that with at least two of them), but this is one man’s Oscar to lose. THE NOMINEES David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - Fincher has been doing wonderful work for a long time and it’s nice to see him finally get some recognition (especially since Zodiac was so thoroughly snubbed last year). It would have been nice if the Academy would have shown a little backbone and nominated him in a previous year for a film that did not so clearly have “Oscar” stamped on it. Don’t get me wrong, I liked Button and I think Fincher did a masterful job pulling it together, but his directorial acumen is something that many film fans have been aware of for some time and the Academy is really late to the gate on this one. Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon – I think Ron Howard is a fine person and a perfectly adequate filmmaker, but I think the voters nominated the man and not the work in this case. The only Ron Howard movie that I’ve ever thought truly deserved this level of recognition was Apollo 13. As a matter of fact, I’m really disappointed that Howard was the one that was awarded with the Frost/Nixon job, as there were several more interesting and daring directors that were up for the job and that I think could have done a much better job with it (e.g., Sam Mendes, Bennett Miller). The movie is fine. It’s not exceptional, it is merely average…something that Howard excels at. Gus Van Sant, Milk – I must say, after sitting through Gerry and Last Days it was nice to see a Gus Van Sant movie that was a little more accessible (and by accessible, I mean a movie where the actors spoke to each other more than three times). Still, Van Sant is the directorial equivalent of a subtle character actor’s performance. He never brings a lot of flash to his direction. There’s merit in what he brings to a film, but I think that the affect he brings to a project can be so invisible that it is unlikely he will ever receive such a top honor (just like a performance like Richard Jenkins in The Visitor would never stand a chance in the best actor race). I think Milk could be quite a dark horse in many big categories this year, but this is not one of them. Stephen Daldry, The Reader - Prepare yourself, I’m about to flog The Reader again. Okay, I know that I lot of people liked The Hours. I didn’t. I thought it quite dull and, beyond Nicole Kidman’s transformation, completely un-noteworthy. Therefore, I wasn’t especially psyched to hear that he was at the helm of this project. I wish I could say my gut was wrong, but it was not. This is really not a good movie. It’s dull, completely emotionally detached from its audience and has no real direction. Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire - The definite win in this category. Boyle has always been a very interesting director and to hear screenwriter Simon Beaufoy describe it on the Creative Screenwriting podcast, he contributed quite a lot to this film beyond his visual style. He definitely earned this one and I’ll be happy to see him pick it up. THE FORGOTTEN Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight - You cannot deny what Nolan brought to this film. Well, actually, I guess it seems the Academy can. The breadth of The Dark Knight is vast, but he manages it very well. He has accomplished so much within this genre of film. Thankfully, the movie was extremely successful financially, since it doesn’t seem that the Academy can yet get beyond the fact that it’s a comic book adaptation. John Patrick Shanley, Doubt - Like Milk, I think the direction in this film is subtle enough to go completely unnoticed, especially since the acting and writing are what’s really noticeable in the film. But then, I could say that about Frost/Nixon, too, and Doubt was a far better film. Sam Mendes, Revolutionary Road - I’m a big Sam Mendes fan. I own all of his films on DVD. He’s clearly doing a bit of retread of the American Beauty territory here and given that he’s already been awarded for that movie, one that had far more love thrown its way, I’m not terribly surprised that he’s missing from this category. Still, I liked the film quite a bit and I thought he brought his signature style to it. Darren Aronofsky, The Wrestler - This is one that’s really unforgivable, especially considering Howard and Daldry’s inclusion in the category. The Wrestler was woefully under-recognized this year, with only two nominations. This was such a refreshing turn from Aronofsky. It didn’t have nearly the flash and style of Requiem for a Dream or The Fountain, it was incredibly subtle in an almost documentary style. He did a wonderful job with this film and his absence from this category gives a real blow to the Academy’s credibility.
