Nomination talk is animated this year
Most of the Oscar races are so wide open right now that speculating about them would be pointless.
But one category has grabbed my interest, because academy rules have made this competition as fierce as Thunderdome. Only in this case, the chant would be "Ten films enter, three films leave."
Last week the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced 10 films were eligible for the animated feature Oscar. When the category was created in 2001, the academy stipulated that only three films could be nominated if fewer than 16 are eligible.
I have seen six movies on the list and consider five of them worthy of a nomination. The one I consider unworthy, "Madagascar," almost certainly will be one of the nominees.
In alphabetical order, here are the eligible films: "Chicken Little," "Gulliver's Travel," "Hoodwinked," "Howl's Moving Castle," "Madagascar," "Robots," "Steamboy," "Tim Burton's Corpse Bride," "Valiant" and "Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit." I didn't see "Steamboy" or "Valiant," and "Hoodwinked," a spoof of Little Red Riding Hood, won't open until Dec. 23. As for "Gulliver's Travel" – I've never heard of it.
Two of the three slots probably are being reserved for "Madagascar" and "Tim Burton's Corpse Bride." I may be wrong about "Madagascar," though (and I hope I am), because if DreamWorks Animation believes it can push through only one film, it may put its muscle behind the more prestigious "Curse of the Were-Rabbit." "Madagascar" is a lousy, artless movie and, moreover, is poorly animated. But let's assume it and "Corpse Bride" will be on the ballot. What will get the coveted third slot?
"Steamboy," "Valiant," "Hoodwinked" and especially "Gulliver's Travel" are too obscure to be nominated. That leaves four contenders.
If "Curse of the Were-Rabbit" were nominated, it would set up a race between two stop-motion features, the other being "Corpse Bride." But Wallace and Gromit have won two Oscars for their shorts "The Wrong Trousers" and "A Close Shave," so voters may think the Plasticine duo have been rewarded enough.
That works against "Howl's Moving Castle" too, because another of director Hayao Miyazaki's films, "Spirited Away," won best animated feature in 2002.
"Robots" is beautifully animated and deserves a nomination much more than "Madagascar," but does 20th Century Fox have the interest or expertise in campaigning for an animated feature?
And then there's "Chicken Little." Unfairly savaged by most critics, who overlook no opportunity to bash Disney, "Chicken Little" may get the final nomination because it is Disney's sole eligible film. Then again, that may be the very reason it doesn't get a nomination.
My nominees would be "Chicken Little," "Corpse Bride" and "Curse of the Were-Rabbit." Then I would petition for a "Corpse Bride"/"Were-Rabbit" tie. And maybe by the time the Oscars are presented on March 5, I'll have heard of "Gulliver's Travel."
– Jeffrey Westhoff can be reached at jwesthoff@nwherald.com.
Jeffery Westhoff
But one category has grabbed my interest, because academy rules have made this competition as fierce as Thunderdome. Only in this case, the chant would be "Ten films enter, three films leave."
Last week the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced 10 films were eligible for the animated feature Oscar. When the category was created in 2001, the academy stipulated that only three films could be nominated if fewer than 16 are eligible.
I have seen six movies on the list and consider five of them worthy of a nomination. The one I consider unworthy, "Madagascar," almost certainly will be one of the nominees.
In alphabetical order, here are the eligible films: "Chicken Little," "Gulliver's Travel," "Hoodwinked," "Howl's Moving Castle," "Madagascar," "Robots," "Steamboy," "Tim Burton's Corpse Bride," "Valiant" and "Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit." I didn't see "Steamboy" or "Valiant," and "Hoodwinked," a spoof of Little Red Riding Hood, won't open until Dec. 23. As for "Gulliver's Travel" – I've never heard of it.
Two of the three slots probably are being reserved for "Madagascar" and "Tim Burton's Corpse Bride." I may be wrong about "Madagascar," though (and I hope I am), because if DreamWorks Animation believes it can push through only one film, it may put its muscle behind the more prestigious "Curse of the Were-Rabbit." "Madagascar" is a lousy, artless movie and, moreover, is poorly animated. But let's assume it and "Corpse Bride" will be on the ballot. What will get the coveted third slot?
"Steamboy," "Valiant," "Hoodwinked" and especially "Gulliver's Travel" are too obscure to be nominated. That leaves four contenders.
If "Curse of the Were-Rabbit" were nominated, it would set up a race between two stop-motion features, the other being "Corpse Bride." But Wallace and Gromit have won two Oscars for their shorts "The Wrong Trousers" and "A Close Shave," so voters may think the Plasticine duo have been rewarded enough.
That works against "Howl's Moving Castle" too, because another of director Hayao Miyazaki's films, "Spirited Away," won best animated feature in 2002.
"Robots" is beautifully animated and deserves a nomination much more than "Madagascar," but does 20th Century Fox have the interest or expertise in campaigning for an animated feature?
And then there's "Chicken Little." Unfairly savaged by most critics, who overlook no opportunity to bash Disney, "Chicken Little" may get the final nomination because it is Disney's sole eligible film. Then again, that may be the very reason it doesn't get a nomination.
My nominees would be "Chicken Little," "Corpse Bride" and "Curse of the Were-Rabbit." Then I would petition for a "Corpse Bride"/"Were-Rabbit" tie. And maybe by the time the Oscars are presented on March 5, I'll have heard of "Gulliver's Travel."
– Jeffrey Westhoff can be reached at jwesthoff@nwherald.com.
Jeffery Westhoff
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