LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Forget lavish junkets and expensive gifts this awards season.
Whatever over-the-top campaigning Oscar organizers haven't managed to rein in, the recession and corporate downsizing have seen to: It's no longer cool to throw a splashy, public event to hype a contender.
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LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The Coen Bros. and Paramount have launched a search for the young female lead in their remake of the western "True Grit."
No acting experience is necessary for girls who can play 14-year-old Mattie Ross, a role played in the 1969 original by Kim Darby, who was 21 at the time.
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LOS ANGELES - James Cameron launched his science-fiction epic "Avatar" into a safe orbit as the costly film soared to No. 1 with $73 million domestically and $159.2 million overseas, for a $232.2 million worldwide total.
With that big a start, distributor 20th Century Fox was quick to proclaim it made a good investment with the estimated $400 million spent to make and market the film, which is Cameron's first narrative feature since 1997's "Titanic," the king of modern blockbusters.
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LOS ANGELES - "Up in the Air," "Precious" and "Inglourious Basterds" led the Screen Actors Guild Awards with three nominations each Thursday, among them honors for George Clooney, Diane Kruger and Mo'Nique.
The World War II rewrite "Inglourious Basterds" and the Harlem story "Precious: Based on the Novel `Push' By Sapphire" are competing for the guild's overall cast prize, along with the 1960s British drama "An Education," the Iraq War tale "The Hurt Locker" and the musical "Nine."
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- Capsule reviews of films opening this week:
"Avatar" — James Cameron's 3-D epic has all the smack of a Film Not To Miss — a movie whose effects are clearly revolutionary, a spectacle that millions will find adventure in. But it nevertheless feels unsatisfying and somehow lacks the pulse of a truly alive film. The plot is a little like the American frontier circa the 1800s, only transposed to the year 2154 on the faraway moon Pandora, the home of Native American-like, aqua blue, 10-foot tall creatures called the Na'vi. Arriving are imperialistic humans to plunder, and scientists to study. Dr. Grace Augustine (Sigourney Weaver) leads a team that explores in Na'vi bodies, avatars, controlled remotely. A sense of discovery — of Cameron's digital world of Pandora, of the impressive techno-filmmaking — makes "Avatar" often thrilling. The environmentalist and anti-war messages resonate with contemporary troubles, but they also seem odd coming from such a swaggering behemoth of a movie. One senses Cameron's zest lies in the battle, not in peace. With Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana. PG-13 for intense epic battle sequences and warfare, sensuality, language and some smoking. 161 minutes. Two and half stars out of four.
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LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The Screen Actors Guild on Thursday unveiled nominations for its widely watched film awards, giving key nods to three films including "Up in the Air" and capping a busy week of honors from industry groups.
In the past five days, critics and others across the United States have named best films, top 10 lists and nominations for upcoming honors such as the Golden Globe Awards -- all leading to the world's top movie awards, the Oscars, in March.
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BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. - "Up in the Air" landed at just the right time, emerging as a potential Academy Awards favorite with themes of job loss and economic calamity that offer a heartbreaking yet hilarious reflection of these hard times.
The film grabbed a leading six Golden Globe nominations Tuesday, including best drama, plus directing and screenplay honors for Jason Reitman. George Clooney earned a best dramatic actor slot as a frequent-flyer junkie traveling the country in first-class seats and premium car rentals as he fires the rank-and-file at downsizing companies.
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BEVERLY HILLS (Reuters) - Film drama "Up in the Air" soared away with six Golden Globe nominations on Tuesday, more than any film, while Sandra Bullock, Meryl Streep and Matt Damon each earned two nominations for the major awards show.
"Up in the Air," starring George Clooney as a corporate hatchet man forced to consider his life's direction, took home nominations for best film drama and for Clooney as best actor. Jason Reitman grabbed a nod for director and best screenplay with co-writer Sheldon Turner, while both Anna Kendrick and Vera Farmiga will compete for supporting actress.
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- Nominees for the 67th annual Golden Globe Awards, announced Tuesday in Beverly Hills, Calif.:
MOTION PICTURES
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PARIS -- Filmmaker Roman Polanski says letters from supporters that he received in a Swiss prison and while under house arrest at his Alpine chalet have been "full of comfort and reason to hope.".. More »
Sleepers come seemingly out of nowhere. They are the little films that confound expectations, attracting enthusiastic audiences that happily spread the word. Sometimes they come from the studio system, produced almost as an afterthought, but mostly they're produced well off the radar. On occasion, they upend the established order by opening at No. 1 at the boxoffice. But more typically they start small, building over time, hanging on in theaters as more heralded movies come and go. Often the filmmakers involved meet with initial rejection before wildly triumphing in the end. And in the process, they expose the limitations of Hollywood's conventional thinking about what makes a hit. Sleepers, when everyone wakes up to their potential, tend to be wildly successful, resulting in boxoffice returns that dwarf their modest budgets. And so, top sleepers of the past decade, take another bow... More »
Actress Brittany Murphy will be laid to rest at a small, private funeral on Christmas Eve, while a larger memorial service may be held early next year... More »
