Original Desmond

I will!

There's not another movie this year which even deserves to smell the far*t of ROTK !

Jackskeleton

No. there are plenty of other films that deserve it just as much. I will give ROTK and the whole LOTR trilogy credit that it was one of, if not the biggest film projects ever taken and perhaps peter jacksons deserves a nod for that alone.

mike45

The Academy has been corrupt for decades.

groovrbaby

The only real contender in my eyes would be Seabiscuit, and IMO ROTK was much better. The LOTR trilogy was much better. I wouldn't call the Academy corrupt, but I would certainly be very disappointed in their bias against fantasy.

Jason

There are several movies that could qualify as best picture this year, and some of them might even get nominated!

But if ROTK doesn't win, I won't think the academy is corrupt. I'll just chalk it up to a lot of snobs who can't get past the fact that it's a "genre" picture. Just like 1977.

Seeker

corrupt is a strong word. no.

DVD Polizei

Yes, corrupt is a strong word. Monetarily influenced, is more accurate.

Groucho

Have you seen every other film that is contention this year in order to make a qualified judgment?

Jepthah

Anyone who believes the Oscars are anything more than a circle-jerk in tuxedos and evening dress needs their head dunked in ice-cold water.

Will it be nice if ROTK wins? Sure. Is it going to enhance the Academy's "reputation"? Maybe, with some people who think the Oscars are still some mark of 'legitimacy.'

As far as the LOTR films themselves, what the hell else is there to prove? Does anyone seriously think people are going to be talking about how great A Beautiful Mind, Chicago and Cold Mountain are 20 years from now?

rushmore223

I already think it is. Well, as another Talker said Monetarily influenced.

I could go on and on about this, but basically any organization that sees fit to bestow awards on Ron Howard has something majorly wrong about it. I have never seen a more artless director in my whole life.

Not to mention the travesty that was the ignoring of Crouching Tiger.

uhhh... I'll stop now before I get worked up.

That being said, it would be nice to see LOTR and PJ get what they deserve, but, no, it would not reinstill my faith in the academy.

mllefoo

I lost confidence in the Oscars when Bugsy won best costume design over Hook. Sheesh, how hard is it to go to a vintage clothing store and get a pin striped suit? I think it was far more challenging to shave Robin Williams head to toe and squeeze him into a pair of tights than whatever they did to Warren Beatty to make him look like something out of the 30s.

I also thought it was a travesty when Frida got best makeup effects over..well...everything else that year. All they did was slap a unibrow on Salma Hayek's face.

But then, I was also one of those horribly disappointed folks who thought Star Wars should have won best picture over Annie Hall. Oh come on, what eight year old didn't feel that way?

das Monkey

What a silly mentality this is. It's been weeks since I saw Return of the King, and I still find that I am in complete awe of their remarkable achievement. These films will endure for generations and have positioned themselves near the top of cinematic history. And yet, Return of the King wasn't even the best film I saw over that weekend. To assert that it has some divine claim over every film award this year, as people seem to be doing around here, is ludicrous. I've seen at least 5 films this year that are wonderful enough for me to seriously consider as the best of the year, and any one of them would be deserving of an Oscar in that category. If Return of the King wins, it will be wonderful, as it was an amazing accomplishment. However, if something else that's great wins instead, it won't be the colossal injustice people are making it out to be. The Academy is what it is. They clearly gravitate more towards certain types of films than others (they love an artsy epic) and too often give "make-up" awards to great actors/directors who could/should have won in another year. They're also pretty susceptible to late season hype. But whether or not one great film that many of us clearly love wins the top award in a year where many great films were created will not define the Academy. It is what it is, and of you're desperate to find somethind that always agrees with you, your best bet is going to be cloning or AI, because we all have different opinions on what defines greatness. Just because someone doesn't agree with you, it doesn't make him corrupt.

That said, I'd really like to see Return of the King clean up a lot of Oscars, most notably Jackson for Director; but if it doesn't, life will go on. Only one film can win this thing, and there are a hell of a lot more than one that deserve it.

das

rushmore223

Yeah...and I am sure Phil Collins won Best Original Song in 1999 because he is such a talented musician. Not because he cried foul that the academy wouldnt let him sing his song the way it needed to be sung (in its entirety)

Please, it is all money and politics. It was never about the best film.

Supermallet

Except that Annie Hall really was and is a better movie than Star Wars. It wholeheartedly deserved that win. This year, while there are other strong contenders, Return of the King is SUCH a good film, and the culmination of an amazing trilogy, that it is a much better contender than Star Wars ever was.

eXcentris

No because ROTK, despite being a good film, isn't the best film to come out this year and in my mind is the weakest of the trilogy. Jackson should get the nod as director because the trilogy is an amazing accomplishment, and that fact hasn't been recognized so far.

Sorry fanboys, ROTK doesn't deserve to win best picture.

pro-bassoonist

well, I have to disagree with you eXcentris.

This was an amazing movie that showed us movie making on a grand scale. It has bits of magic that movies we see nowadays have long ago lost. Not a single film this year has had the sort of appeal that ROTK had on me. I rarely see movies twice in the theater and this time I did go twice. No matter what age you are I believe that each film from the trilogy had something to offer.

I was at the theater when the first Star Wars film came out....then the rest of them and I witnessed history. I believe that for a second time in my life I was able to witness a cinematic masterpiece that will leave its mark on generations after us.

Thank you Peter Jackson and all that contributed to the films.

As to whether or not the film will win....it sure deserves to win...and I hope it will. In a number of categories!!!

jough

I don't know if the academy *can* be considered corrupt, since the purpose of the academy is to make money for its members.

The Oscars were designed to highlight certain films so that audiences would be more inclined to go spend money on them.

So I guess the Academy would be corrupt if they started making judgements solely on the artistic merit of the films.

gcribbs

It was considered a great film by many critics so you do not need to be a "fanboy" to think it is a great film or even to think it was the best film this year.

Many people might not like the movie and as a result disagree it should even be nominated. Some might like it and still feel it does not deserve a nomination. Others will love the movie and feel it is deserving of a nomination or even a win.

This is why we express our opinions and have these discussions.

You do a disservice to your post when you throw "fanboy" around IMO.

I may be a fan however I am not a boy and the term is very condescending IMO.

eXcentris

gcribbs, I was merely poking some fun at people who think ROTK is the best thing since sliced bread. Those people do exist, after all this is an LOTR sub-forum.

My comment was by no means meant to be derogatory or condescending.

gcribbs

http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthr...hreadid=172249

In the videogame forum you get suspended for the use of Fanboy since so many threads got a bit out of control with people using the term and others getting angry and responding.

I am sure if the term is used in other forums the odds are that in time angry responses will occur and the term might generate more suspensions.

The problem with the term is that it already has a meaning that appears derogatory or condescending so many will read that into what you meant to say diminishing the strength of your post.

again IMO.

Fanboy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Fanboy is a derogatory term used to describe someone who is utterly devoted to a hobby or a subject, to the point where it becomes an obsession. Fanboys are often experts on minor details regarding their hobbies, and they take these details extremely seriously. The stereotypical image often associated with Star Trek fans (or Trekkies) can be used to describe a fanboy: a person with little or no social life outside the circle of fans he or she associates with.

An alternate, more recent example of the fanboy is someone whose enthusiasms are shallow but broad, being directed at a whole art-form, activity, or genre (e.g. science fiction films and television shows) rather than one particular exemplar (e.g. Star Trek). These sorts of fanboys stereotypically show an almost sycophantic devotion to the creators and principals behind a work they are currently entralled by, but will quickly move their attention elsewhere once something better or even only newer comes along. A good example of this is Harry Knowles and his associates at Ain't It Cool News, whose particular focus is on movies in the action, fantasy, adventure and superhero genres.

Because of its negative connotations, the term fanboy is generally seen as insulting to those who are familiar with its usage, even within the subculture of fandom.


See I am a dictionary fanboy

eXcentris

See my last reply in the "worst ending" thread, I replaced fanboys with zealots.

B.A.

I concur w/ everything that you stated above so eloquently.

gcribbs

see now we agree

DrOBoogie1

If the Academy cannot award a film like Return of the King as best picture and a director like Peter Jackson as best director, then the Academy has no legitimacy. Failure to recognize the achievements of these 3 films (i'll accept the argument that the award this year is a cumulativeone) means the Oscars are meaningless - which they already may be.

rushmore223

Critically, this year, if you are in the anti-ROTK camp as far as Oscars go, your in the minority. So I think the term Fanboy or Zealot is misplaced. This series of films has done something Star Wars (which I love) could not do. Pull in audiences that defy demographics. Whether your a middle aged housewife from Wisconsin, a 14 year old girl who just cant get enough of Orlando Bloom, or even (dread) a 20 year old male, this movie not only had every age represented at the showings, it had every age and gender represented on opening night. And every face I saw was in awe. I'm not going to say that everyone loved this movie, nor will I claim that it will win the Oscars it deserves, but it is a front runner, and it has the best chances of any film out there.

Personally, it is my pick. I think Mystic River will probably win most of the acting awards, But I hope that ROTK walks away with the 2 biggest prizes.