At Your Discretion
True story: a conversation among three or four guys with film-industry ties happened a couple of days ago in a major southern-region city. Included was a sound mixer who's been around a couple of decades. The subject was upcoming movies, and the sound mixer interjected at one point, "Guys, guys, I've seen the Best Picture Oscar winner, okay? And it's Benjamin Button." You've seen the whole thing? he was asked. "Most of it but that's enough," he answered. "Forget it, it's over. It's an eight-hankie movie and it's going to win."
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next >>Well Said
Posted by Jeffrey Wells on October 17, 2008 at 1:06 PM
comment #1
115thDreamer
says ...
Hmmm...interesting. Hard to argue with the reasoning until some of the other heavies start screening. Films that connect with people emotionally definitely tend to pull away from the pack at some point. Of the other possible Best Picture contenders, I'm sure "Milk" will be at least somewhat moving, but since it'll also be super-duper gay, I'm guessing that will kill its chances with alot of voters, a la "Brokeback". Moving (with Brad Pitt as a straight guy) is one thing, while Moving (with Sean Penn as a gay dude) will be quite another, I'm afraid. The question for "Button" is, can Fincher, a technically brilliant perfectionist in the Kubrick mold (well, sort of), make a film that truly merits +/- eight hankies? Even I'm skeptical, and I'm a big fan - just watched "Zodiac" for the 3rd time recently. We shall see.
Posted by 115thDreamer
at October 17, 2008 1:30 PM
comment #2
actionman
says ...
Can't wait. My #1 for the rest of the year.
Posted by actionman
at October 17, 2008 1:46 PM
comment #3
Rich S.
says ...
I read the short story in about 20 minutes and it is surprisingly emotional. It will be interesting to see how they translate it over two hours.
Posted by Rich S.
at October 17, 2008 1:50 PM
comment #4
lazarus
says ...
Can Fincher make an 8-hankie film? Sure. Go look at the diner scene in Seven between Freeman and Paltrow where they discuss her pregnancy. Very moving stuff early in his career. If the script is good, which I'm assuming it is because of Roth, then all he has to do is let the actors sell it without getting in the way. Pitt and Blanchett both know what they're doing.
Posted by lazarus
at October 17, 2008 3:37 PM
comment #5
cleopatrajones
says ...
December 25th can't come fast enough for me. I have a feeling Fincher, Pitt, and Blanchett are going to make me very happy.
Posted by cleopatrajones
at October 17, 2008 5:03 PM
comment #6
Zimmergirl
says ...
"most of it" doesn't count.
Posted by Zimmergirl
at October 17, 2008 7:26 PM
comment #7
Dan Revill
says ...
Is it opening wide on Christmas? Or just a limited release?
Posted by Dan Revill
at October 17, 2008 7:40 PM
comment #8
CitizenKanedforChewingGum
says ...
Oh god, it's only October, and here we go already with Zimmergirl and her anti-Fincher platform
Posted by CitizenKanedforChewingGum
at October 17, 2008 8:53 PM
comment #9
diesel
says ...
anti-fincher retorics is never okay in my book.
the release date for button here in sweden is 23/1, had it been any later I'd flown to garden state just to see it.
Posted by diesel
at October 18, 2008 1:16 AM
comment #10
K. Bowen
says ...
can't wait.
Posted by K. Bowen
at October 18, 2008 10:09 AM
comment #11
Lars
says ...
Fincher's fine, as commercial director's go, but I'm getting a little tired of all the unworthy praise heaped onto Zodiac -- which is an average film, at best. I especially dislike Fincher falling back on his old Fight Club tricks, like headlines superimposed on the newsroom. So tired, and so 1999. I mean, the guy's done a hundred commercials since he first employed that gag -- couldn't he have come up with something new? And am I the only person who remembers Alien3, or The Game? And let's be honest, Panic Room wasn't that good. I'd also like to see him be a little more disciplined in the editing room. Just because he's forced to tell a story in 30 seconds on TV shouldn't give him the freedom to be so flabby in movies.
Posted by Lars
at October 18, 2008 2:24 PM
comment #12
Malone
says ...
Lars,
Fincher can direct rings around any director in his age range. And I did see Aliens 3 recently and it holds up. It's certainly a more mature and better crafted film than Aliens, the crassest most overrated hunk of trash in 25 years. Zodiac was better than three (maybe four) of the five Best Picture nominees and Downey should've been nominated. And what other director would've done Zodiac with any sort of craftsmanship?
Were the sound-mixer's initials in the lead story P.L., by any chance?
Posted by Malone
at October 18, 2008 9:31 PM
comment #13
Hal
says ...
I'm a little squeamish, so I'll wait until I can find out how many shots there will be of Old Man Toddler Brad before I decide weather to watch this in a theatre or not. He looks like an X-Files monster in the pictured incarnation.
Posted by Hal
at October 19, 2008 12:13 AM
comment #14
wwwtravel
says ...
Benjamin Button is a winner...if you can follow the story!
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