“Since forming the Weinstein Company with his brother, Bob, in 2005, Harvey Weinstein has struggled to regain the hot hand that made him one of the most successful and feared figures in the independent movie business,” writes Media Equation’s David Carr. “An opportunistic bottom feeder with a knack for resuscitating troubled projects, Mr. Weinstein has become one himself. Here at Sundance and elsewhere, people whispered he was a ghost.

(l.) Harvey Weinstein; (r.) David Carr.

“Turns out that he wasn’t starring in The Sixth Sense. He was playing the role of Jason in Friday the 13th, Part 9: biding his time and then striking again.

“As the Oscar nominations demonstrated, Mr. Weinstein is still capable of spotting value. Many people, including me, look at The King’s Speech and see a by-the-numbers film that’s a fine candidate for BBC TV. Mr. Weinstein saw a high-end buddy movie that humanized its royal subject and then he carefully husbanded the marketing resources of the film, enticing consumers to come out and see the film and reminding the academy voters that the carefully crafted dramedy of manners was worthy of consideration. The nominations surprise last Tuesday provided oxygen to the struggling company.

“Yes, his company is a shell of its former self and his partners are out a lot of money, but there is something to be said for relentlessness, a refusal to acknowledge that you are finished, and the will to just keep hacking away no matter what.

“No wonder Bob has had such good luck producing horror films: he grew up with Jason.”