Thompson on Hollywood

Oscar Talk Episode Sixteen: Top Ten, Nine, Avatar, Up, Picks for 2010

At the new year, Kris Tapley and I ponder the fate of the Oscar Top Ten. We agree that Avatar is now the best picture front-runner, over EW's Oscar Issue Pick, Up in the Air, and that Crazy Heart star Jeff Bridges is overtaking critics-group fave George Clooney.

By Anne Thompson
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January 1, 2010 9:00 AM
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Last Post of 2009: Avatar Passes 800 Million, Year and Decade Wraps, Gilliam's First Short

Twelve years after Titanic, another late-year James Cameron release is climbing the box office charts. I thought I was safe with my estimate of $1 billion worldwide ($400 m domestic, $600 foreign). But Avatar is already passing $800 million! It could challenge Titanic's $1.8 billion record after all.

By Anne Thompson
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January 1, 2010 2:25 AM
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Trailer Watch: How to Train Your Dragon

While most folks would pick Pixar over Dreamworks animation any day, Jeffrey Katzenberg does know how to craft accessible commercial movies like Madagascar and Shrek (the fourth installment is in the works under live-action director Mike Mitchell). But I am hearing good buzz on How to Train Your Dragon, set in the world of the Vikings, which hits theaters March 10 in several 3-D formats, including IMAX. Some elements are familiar: our young hero proves his manhood by riding a flying banshee--er, dragon. (Slashfilm has doubts.)

By Anne Thompson
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January 1, 2010 12:05 AM
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Holiday Biopics: Young Victoria, Creation, Me and Orson Welles

Three period biopics with awards hopes face some tough going over the holidays.

By Anne Thompson
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December 31, 2009 3:10 AM
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Holiday Movie Watching: Aamir Khan's 3 Idiots Hits Big

Like everybody else, I've been catching up on movies over the holidays. By far the most fun movie was the big-budget Bollywood comedy 3 Idiots, starring 44-year-old Aamir Khan as a geeky engineering student.

By Anne Thompson
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December 30, 2009 9:30 AM
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Sherlock Holmes vs. Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

One is slick, the other isn't.

By Anne Thompson
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December 30, 2009 12:57 AM
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Oscar Watch: Voting for Ten Instead of Five

I'm having a devil of a time figuring out what this year's Oscar nominations for best picture are going to be. As the ballots are going out, I usually have a fair idea of the final five. But this year there are ten best picture slots instead of five. If voters had trouble coming up with their top five in the past, won't they have even more trouble filling out a ballot with ten?

By Anne Thompson
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December 29, 2009 11:10 AM
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Polanski Posts Holiday Greetings

Roman Polanski is under house arrest, spending the holidays with his family at his ski chalet while waiting to hear about his fate. He posted at the website of French philosopher pal Bernard Henri-Levy this public response to the cards and letters he's received:

By Anne Thompson
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December 29, 2009 12:13 AM
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Spike Lee Directs Michael Jackson Homage

I finally caught up with Kenny Ortega's Michael Jackson rehearsal film, This is It. I see why people like it so much--Jackson still had more chops than most people dream of. But the movie's strength--its bare-bones straight-on simplicity--is a weakness for Oscar voters. I don't see them loving the filmmaking so passionately that they put it on their Oscar ballot.

By Anne Thompson
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December 28, 2009 11:02 AM
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Previews 2010: Inception, Iron Man 2, Toy Story 3

Surprise! The most-viewed trailers of 2009 were also among the year's biggest b.o. grossers. Among some of the anticipated movies of 2010 are two Leonardo DiCaprio movies--Chris Nolan's Inception and Martin Scorsese's pushed-back Shutter Island--as well as Pixar's latest, Toy Story 3. More trailers and clips are on the jump.