Are we looking at another “David Cook” in the making in Season 8’s American Idol?
In his performance of Michael Jackson’s Black or White, Adam Lambert unraveled the “whole package” which indeed impressed Paula Abdul. She even predicted that this young singer–who can really hit the high notes–would be “running all the way to the top.”
What do you think?
Slumdog Millionaire wins!
Hauling a total of eight awards, this movie about a slum dweller turned millionaire dominates this year’s Academy Awards. It took home the best Directing (Danny Boyle), Song (”Jai Ho”), Musical Score, Film Editing, Sound Mixing, Cinematography, Adapted Screenplay (Simon Beaufoy of “Full Monty”) and of course, Best Picture. That’s eight out of 10 nominations (including two nominations for best Song).
Directed by Danny Boyle and Loveleen Tandan (co-director in India), Slumdog Millionaire was shot in Mumbai. Adapted from a novel written by Vikas Swarup, the movie juxtaposes reality and fantasy, pain and suffering with joy and love. Yes, it’s a love story but with a twist.
Slumdog Millionaire has been hauling awards from other award-giving bodies (including 7 awards from BAFTA and four from the Golden Globes), and has been anticipated as a big winner in this year’s Oscars.
If you haven’t watched the film, here’s a brief summary of the story from Fox Searchlight Pictures:
The story of Jamal Malik (Dev Patel), an 18 year-old orphan from the slums of Mumbai, who is about to experience the biggest day of his life. With the whole nation watching, he is just one question away from winning a staggering 20 million rupees on India’s “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?” But when the show breaks for the night, police arrest him on suspicion of cheating; how could a street kid know so much? Desperate to prove his innocence, Jamal tells the story of his life in the slum where he and his brother grew up, of their adventures together on the road, of vicious encounters with local gangs, and of Latika (Freida Pinto), the girl he loved and lost. Each chapter of his story reveals the key to the answer to one of the game show’s questions. Each chapter of Jamal’s increasingly layered story reveals where he learned the answers to the show’s seemingly impossible quizzes. But one question remains a mystery: what is this young man with no apparent desire for riches really doing on the game show? When the new day dawns and Jamal returns to answer the final question, the Inspector and sixty million viewers are about to find out. At the heart of its storytelling lies the question of how anyone comes to know the things they know about life and love.
Here’s another interesting liveblog from the Oscars. Check it out.
SLAMDUNK FOR SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE WINS.
Steven Speilberg introduces the nominees for best picture.
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So far, Slumdog Millionaire has hauled six awards including best in Directing
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Sean Penn wins for his role in Milk. Penn acknowledges fellow nominee Mickey Rourke who played an aging wrestler in The Wrestler.
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We’re now hearing all the best actor nominees being introduced by fellow best actor winners…
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So far, here are the winners of the 81st Academy Awards.
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Kate Winslet wins!
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Quotable quote from Ben Stiller doing a Joaquin Phoenix: “Slumdog was totally shot on a cellphone.”
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Slumdog Millionaire wins best adopted screenplay. Before that Milk get the original screeplay award.
by Paula Bustamante
Agence France-Presse
HOLLYWOOD–Penelope Cruz created a piece of Hollywood history here on Sunday after becoming the first Spanish actress to win an Oscar for her performance in the Woody Allen comedy “Vicky Cristina Barcelona.”
The 34-year-old’s victory in the supporting actress category represented a glittering recognition of an acting talent that has seen her appear in two Oscar-winning foreign language movies.
However it was her scene-stealing performance as Maria Elena, the neurotic wife of an artist, in Allen’s steamy Barcelona-set comedy that finally saw her strike Oscars gold.
Born in Madrid in 1974, Cruz appeared destined for a career in the entertainment industry almost as soon as she could walk. As a child she entertained family members by mimicking popular television commercials.
By Clarence Yu
Contributor
DIRECTOR Ron Howard has once again proven his mettle with his latest Academy-nominated effort, Frost/Nixon. Based on the London and Broadway plays of the same name, Michael Sheen (The Queen) and Frank Langella (Dave) reprise their roles as David Frost and Richard M. Nixon.
While not as seriously dramatic as Oliver Stone’s Nixon, the film is a great and successful attempt at educating and entertaining audiences on a particular piece of celluloid history that has become the stuff of legend for political junkies, the infamous Nixon interviews that took place in 1977.
Michael Sheen plays David Frost as the talk show/television host who yearns for more credibility and fame, and Frank Langella gives a powerhouse performance as the disgraced President Nixon who, well, wants his credibility and fame restored.
It is the comedy of it all that makes the film work. Witness the film’s first hour or so and you will find that the film does not attempt to be serious political drama but rather a behind-the-scenes look at how Frost tries to set up an interview with Nixon. A passionate James Reston, Jr. played by Sam Rockwell, livens up the comedy even more.
Kevin Bacon surprisingly brings in a watered down performance as Nixon’s chief of staff Jack Brennan as he doesn’t really bring anything refreshing to the film.
The film notably highlights Richard Nixon’s political skill and the ethics of checkbook journalism. Small details such as several surprised looks on Frost’s face and the irresistible personal charm of Frank Langella’s Nixon are exploded onto the screen with such vividness that I could not help but laugh at it all. Whether this is intended or not, these help propel the film from a mere political film to something really worth watching. I haven’t seen the play but I think that Ron Howard has been successful in this transposition from stage to screen.
The youth of today are encouraged to see this film to get a glimpse of how it was back then before reality TV and how deeply America was scarred by the only resignation of a President in office. Hopefully one day, Bill Clinton’s scandals can be rightfully made into a film in the same vein.
A word of caution however–all must be taken in context. David Frost went on to become somewhat of a more serious journalist, finally earning a knighthood, and Richard M. Nixon became a somewhat respected elder statesman in his later years before finally passing away in 1994.
Finally, Frank Langella’s performance as Nixon rightfully deserves its Oscar nomination. He doesn’t look anything like Nixon, but by the end of this highly entertaining movie, you are convinced. Anything but boring, this movie is a must see.
