2022 Oscar Nominees

[Ben]

You call him DR Jones, doll!

[Ben]

Okay, so…

I’m gonna break ranks here and post what I just sent Rand in an email, having finished watching one of the nominees, and eventual winner, at the weekend:

I cannot, in all good faith, get behind Pinocchio. I finished it off on Sunday, after starting it just before the Oscars and realising that I only had an hour and not two because of the US clocks changing and our time difference. So I only got the first hour in, but I was pleased for the break. I found it hard to watch and tedious. Honestly, I thought the animation *technique* was pretty astounding, but the performances, especially the voices, were pretty average or terrible. WHY WERE THEY SHOUTING ALL THE TIME? Why did Geppetto deliver all his lines at one pitch? Why did Ewan McGregor not bring any character to his character? He literally just reads his lines. Why were the songs — if you can all them that — not even songs? They didn’t scan at all, they were tuneless, and over before they began. The kid playing Pinoque was flat and bland. Why did some have Italian accents, and some not? If Pinocchio was made of wood, why did all the other characters also look like they were made of wood, particularly all their hair? Why was it so long? Why was it set in WWII Italy and have all the fascist stuff if it went nowhere? None of that had any point and then just fizzled out and disappeared by the end. How come we piled on the Zemeckis version when this did the same things (the non-whale whale, not being a real boy at the end, several other things that I can’t be bothered to remember but thought at the time)? I’ve still yet to be enthralled by a del Toro film. Often — usually in fact — I come away thinking "well, what is everyone going on about?" Red Crimson, Shape Of Water and Nightmare Alley are obvious, predictable, not even that well acted or made films, and yet they get all this praise? I am perplexed. Pan's Labyrinth was fresh and new, yes, and Pacific Rim was just bonkers entertainment albeit completely derivative. But it annoyed me that Pinocchio was just so structurally bad, and long. I mean, tell me. What’s so good about it? Totally honestly, given the choice, I’d sit through the Zemeckis again, just to pick apart how so much went wrong and drop my jaw at how bizarre that all was, but this one was just painful and interminable to endure. Ugly designs, tonally disconnected, and unsure who it was ultimately for, was this really that good? I know I’m not the only one thinking this, especially when it comes to other filmmakers, so what am I missing??

[blackcauldron85]

My husband and I are still singing "Ciao Papa," and those are the only words we know, lol. I did not like the music in that film. He liked the film a lot more than I did. I was unique enough (Disney remakes make me upset so I haven't seen Zemeckis' yet besides clips...). Hubby really liked the world of the dead parts. Pinocchio was really annoying in this version. The monkey was the best part of the film in my opinion. The technique, though, is super impressive. Because it's Del Toro, I think it'd have had an audience no matter what technique was used to make the film. It's interesting you ask who exactly the audience is supposed to be; Pan's Labyrinth is like a (freaky) fairy tale so I guess just sometimes he makes these kinds of films...

[Ben]

Glad I’m not the only one!

Yes, the "dead parts" were visually striking, but then again they reminded me of the ultraviolet stuff we've seen in things like Nightmare, etc. And it somewhat annoyed me that Cate Blanchett's character spoke without mouth movements when other dead characters did move their mouths. It just felt less a creative thing and more that they didn’t want that extra work so kept it simpler to do, though it could/would have made her more awesome.

And I remembered one of the other things that got Zemeckis' version thrashed — the use of Pinocchio intentionally lying (and being encouraged to so!) so as to grow his nose and get out of trouble. Everyone hated the Zemeckis one for that, and yet here it gets a pass? For the exact same idea!? How clever!

And the end was depressing!

[Farerb]

It wasn't Cate Blanchett, it was Tilda Swinton. Cate Blanchett was the monkey.

[Dacey]

No?

I thought Ewan was terrific. He was full of life and gave the cricket plenty of personality. I don’t love the movie as much as others, but the voice acting I thought as a whole was great from everyone (seriously, I don’t recall anyone “shouting all the time” like Ben claimed?). And I felt the ending was wonderful for what this movie was going for (but then again, I also loved Nightmare Alley—which I actually thought was a superior film to this).

All of that being said, I do think Puss in Boots deserved the win. It blew me away when I watched it recently. Incredibly well done.

[Ben]

Oops! Tilda, Cate. Same difference! Still spoke without moving her mouth…

I did watch the original Puss over the weekend, in anticipation of the new one arriving soon, and liked it a lot more than when I saw it first time around (wow, ten years ago!). I’ve heard many say that they’d have liked the new Puss to take BAF, but I’ve a feeling del Toro's name won this, rather than the film itself.

[EricJ]

Yes, after Pacific Rim, Nightmare Alley, and...whatever that haunted-house picture was, I'm still not sure why we're supposed to be so excited when Del Toro does a picture--
Apart from our grateful astonishment that he actually FINISHED a project on his fat-aging-fanboy plate.

Even the default answer of "B-but, Pan's Labyrinth!" used up its free-ride pass long ago.

[Dacey]

on his fat-aging-fanboy plate.

There had to be a more civil way to for you to say this.

[Ben]

Yes. Uncalled for, Eric.

Then again, he seems to be shaming someone called Derek Toro, whoever that is…?

[EricJ]

There had to be a more civil way to for you to say this.

There was, about six uncompleted projects ago.
It's gotten OLD, and frustration has settled in next to dismissal.

Del Toro's choice of projects keeps resembling a sort of arthouse Tim Burton, that wants to explore neato remakes of all the other monster/horror fanboy cliche's that have already become wildly cultural-overexposed, but...he won an OSCAR, darnit!

Then again, he seems to be shaming someone called Derek Toro, whoever that is…?

(Sorry, no clue here either...Are you sure you're reading the posts we're actually writing? )

[Randall]

Del is apparently short for Derek. But I'm lost, too, since Guillermo's name is del Toro.

Aaaahhhh.... because Eric capitalized "del." Okay, I get it. But that's being pretty picky.

[Ben]

What…to get someone’s name right? But you know this, as I had to pick up a few of the exact same ones in our Best Of article, rand!

[Kenneth223]

I'll process all of that information later on, but meanwhile, I adore that format—it's so adorable! shell shockers

[James]

I'll take that all in later, but love that formatting…very cute!