Cinematic Soldiers for Veteran's Day

Robert here. For many of us being a soldier is an experience we'll only get vicariously courtesy of the movies.  In honor of Veteran's Day, I thought I'd share some of my favorite portrayals of American soldiers.  They aren't always the most famous actors or the biggest roles, but they've made impressions.  If you've not seen any of the particular films listed and don't want to know who lives or dies, you may want to skip to the next entry.

General George S. Patton played by George C. Scott in Patton (1970)

Starting off with a big one.  Patton is such a towering figure in American History and Scott's Oscar winning portrayal gives us an understanding of the man who often found himself caught in a place between his own talents and the stern hand he felt was needed and the more careful policies of those he served.

Steven Pushkov played by John Savage in The Deer Hunter (1978)

As the sense of patriotism imbued by World War II films made way for the cynicism of the Vietnam era characters like Steven whose great sacrifice seemed to leave no echo or purpose became more and more common.  There's something unspoken and tragic about not only Savage's portrayal of a newlywed filled with a sense of duty only to have his life change forever, but the fact that his story is so common it doesn't even warrant more than a tertiary plot line.

Homer Parrish played by Harrold Russell in The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)

One of the many successes of The Best Years of Our Lives was its ability to illuminate the lasting scars of even what was considered the most just of wars.  Primary to this success was Russell's portrayal of Homer Parrish.  It's the type of performance that makes you feel every struggle and frustration of a man's life as you come to a greater understanding of someone other than yourself and feel thankful that the film will be around for posterity so that others may understand.

Sgt. Maj. John Rawlins played by Morgan Freeman in Glory (1989)

Early in his career, Freeman plays the kind of role that he'd become known for: strong and inspirational, the perfect audience surrogate for what we'd like to be.  His character is certainly less demanding than Washington's Trip, and while his promotion is a sign of how far we can come in times of struggle (and a nice feel good moment) the realization that it doesn't much matter to others, particularly white union troops, is a reminder of how reality often has a lot of catching up to do.

Jay 'Chef' Hicks played by Frederic Forrest in Apocalypse Now (1979)

In a film populated by characters of extreme mental anguish, the soldiers aboard Captain Willis's transport are our only real connection to reality.  Most easily relatable is Chef, whose enviable backstory (he's a saucier in New Orleans) and palpable fear draw us in.  By the time he reaches Kurtz's compound an delivers one of the more haunting speeches in the film, "I used to think if I died in an evil place, then my soul wouldn't be able to make it to Heaven. But now ... I don't care where it goes, as long as it ain't here." we know those wishes won't likely be filled.  It's a moment we're spared seeing but I've played in my head over and over.

Pfc. Smithson Utivich played by B.J. Novak in Inglourious Basterds (2009)

Okay admittedly Novak isn't really given much to do with this character and you might be wondering why him in a movie filled with larger than life personalities.  Specifically because he isn't.  It's a reminder that most soldiers (and most of the "basterds") were practically just kids.  The utterance of his nickname "The Little Man" is a comical moment because it's rooted in truth.  He's no Brad Pitt or Steve McQueen or John Wayne.  But he doesn't have to be.  "The Little Man" can be a hero too.

Sgt. J.T. Sanborn played by Anthony Mackie in The Hurt Locker (2009)

Jeremy Renner's Sgt. James might be the wild man star of the story but Mackie's Sanborn has an arc that puts his to shame. Sanborn isn't just the straight man, he's a real man who slowly comes to understand why he's been so driven to follow the rules.  By the time he laments, "I don't even have a son." we've come to not only understand what he's so afraid of, but feel it as well.

Capt. James "Bugger" Staros played by Elias Koteas in The Thin Red Line (1998)

In a film where characters are sharply divided between the contemplative romantics and the realist cynics, Koteas's Staros is a welcome brush with reality.  His Captain is neither overwhelmed by the beauty of the world nor disgusted by its realities.  He's just a man who seems pretty sure of his position in the moral quandary between following orders and risking the lives of his men.  It's difficult not to like him for this reason, but once the film is done with him, we know not to expect any karmic reward for his dissonance.  Malick's world doesn't work like that.

Sgt. O'Neill played by John C. McGinley in Platoon (1986)

My lasting memory of Platoon has nothing to do with the three lead actors, but instead features a young McGinley, sitting in a fox hole as a wash of emotion plays over his face: relief and probably guilt that he's survived another attack, fear that eventually it won't matter, and utter desperation to just plain go home.  Moments like that give you pause to realize the importance of the little stories in films.  Whether Sgt. O'Neill lived or died wasn't essential to the film's major dramatic story, but it sure was essential to him.

Pvt. Stanley Mellish played by Adam Goldberg in Saving Private Ryan (1998)

In a film where Steven Spielberg wanted deaths to be more than plot points, perhaps none stung as much as Pvt. Mellish.  A likable character, (it feels good watching him declare his Judaism to passing Nazi prisoners), Mellish's killing is so affecting not only because it's slow and feels so real, but because there is a realization that in this small fight, in the middle of a larger battle, in the middle of a larger war, the bad guy won, and there's no going back.

What performances of soldiers, whether lead, supporting or even smaller, have left a lasting impression on you?

FB Awards: Action, Music, Sex... Roll Credits

Whew, that took... a good long while. The 10th Anniversary of my film awards kept getting bogged down but now you can see the rest of the nominees for the 2009 film year in categories like Action, Sex Scenes and Musical Sequences, as well as Credit Design, Openings & Endings. Done! I finished it as my birthday gift to myself this morning!


The last page also has nomination tallies for all 42 categories. Inglourious Basterds far outpaced the rest of the field with The Hurt Locker, Avatar, Nine, Precious and Where the Wild Things Are also making strong showings. Two films I really loved (Summer Hours and Whip It) didn't do so well. Those kinds of weird things always happen with awardage, a very imperfect science that's not, uh, really a science. It's more like a scrapbook. And when I "flip" through the scrapbook again in a year I'm going to really wish I was seeing more of Summer Hours and Whip It.

I expect there may be a few errors on the pages as I was working quickly, so if you see them you may notify me politely or ignore. Meanwhile, how has 2009 settled for you? Aren't you glad we're well into 2010?

Pssst. Now that that's complete I can start updating those Oscar predictions tomorrow.

Heroics and Dastardly Deeds, Circa 2009

I should be finished wrapping up the unfortunately delayed FiLM BiTCH Awards for 2009 in the next few days. (This past spring roughed me up... ouch. Coming back to life now). But while I knock off the rest of the categories backstage enjoy the finalized nominations for Best Cameos/Limited Roles (with gold medals for Carrie Preston and Robert Duvall) and Best Hero, Best Villain.


Which do-gooder would you call on if you needed rescue and which villains do you most love to hate?

Inglourious Bast Glorious Shoe

It's Basterds Day (5 Days until Oscar!)

Can someone please explain to me again how Inglourious Basterds did not manage a costume design nomination this year? Still scratching my head about that a month later.


As would be expected, films which make a big story deal about their clothing (Bright Star, Coco Before Chanel, The Duchess, The Devil Wears Prada to name a few recent examples) do well here. The other three things that tend to help in this category are period work (√ World War II), fawning camera work emphasizing the clothes (√ Shoshana dressing for battle in red with veil) and royalty porn (n/a).

This film even has the tale of "Bridget von Hammersmark & the shoe". I never thought Tarantino would be able to top "wiggle your big toe" under the category of Entire Scenes Built Around Director's Foot Fetish but he worked it out, didn't he?

Related Link Polyvore approximates some of the costumes for your shopping pleasure.
Costume Design Who's up for Oscars? Vote on your favorite.
My Awards Who won my medals in the visual categories? Find out.
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Chapters Six, Seven, And Beyond

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JA from MNPP here, wishing everybody a very happy Basterds Day! It's like Bastille Day, only... terd-ier? (Ugh, my apologies, I'm on cold medicine here.) Anyway I am taking this opportunity to take a look at seven members of QT's Inglourious cast and see what they're up to next (besides that Inglourious sequel/prequel that Quentin will talk about for years but never make). But the cast's upcoming projects here are of distinct interest since everybody knows that once you've starred in a Tarantino picture, your career just explodes straight into the stratosphere! (Example A - Pam Grier. Oh... wait. Riiiight. Well at least she got to play a decapitated lesbian in John Carpenter's worst movie!) So let's see what these folks have got lined up for the future...

Brad Pitt - Lt. Aldo Raine - Brad Pitt, being Brad effing Pitt, hasn't really got a shortage of projects in the pipeline. In fact he's got six projects listed as being in some sort of production - ranging from Terrence Malick's The Tree of Life, purportedly out sometime this year (though they said the same thing last year), to Moneyball, a movie about the fascinating revolution in baseball drafting through statistical analysis (yeah I fell asleep already too). And after that there are 20 more projects in some form of development (A Steve McQueen biopic? Sure, why the heck not!).

Mélanie Laurent - Shoshanna Dreyfus - I can't imagine her plate won't pile up with credits in a post-Basterds world - although QT's magic touch seems to work longer stronger magic on the fellas (see: John Travolta's woefully extended career versus Uma Thurman's) - but for now she's starring opposite Jean Reno in a French film called La rafle (The Round Up) about a shameful event in French history where their government handed 13,000 over to the Nazis, and Beginners, a film by the director of Thumbsucker, starring Laurent and Ewan McGregor which has already sparked gossipy gossip when she dared be seen (heavens no!) walking around with married Ewan in (no!) public. Da noive!

Christoph Waltz - Col. Hans Landa - First step, Oscar glory! After that he's nemesis'ing Seth Rogen in The Green Hornet for Michel Gondry and abusing Reese Witherspoon in the circus in Water For Elephants, aka that book that I saw everyone reading on the subway a couple of years ago. Anyway it sounds like discovering his inner demon's good for his career, then. And for cinema!

Eli Roth - Sgt. Donny Donowitz - Y'all are just dying to hear what The Bear Jew's up to next, aren't ya? I knew it! Well even though he's now the proud owner of a SAG award, after a brief side-trip to cameo-ville in Alexander Aja's remake of Piranha it appears he'll be sticking behind the screen for a bit (when he isn't jerking off with his fans on Twitter, natch) - he's been talking up a big science-fiction project called Endangered Species as well as a long-form version of his Grindhouse trailer Thanksgiving for ages now. We'll see what comes of any of it. With bated breath I'm sure!

Michael Fassbender - Lt. Archie Hicox - Next up for the sexy Mr. Michael Fassbender is a role as a sexy Roman soldier in Centurion by the director of The Descent, which is out sometime this Spring. Then he'll be a sexy villain tormenting Josh Brolin in Jonah Hex this Summer. Then a sexy commando in Soderbergh's Knockout, then a sexy Rochester in an adaptation of Jane Eyre by the director of Sin Nombre... and then many more sexy somethings for the rest of his sexy life. Sexy, sexy. Exhaustively so.

Diane Kruger - Bridget von Hammersmarck - Perhaps like most of us I just hadn't been paying attention to anything Kruger did before she wowed us in Basterds, because I had been paying some attention to the film Mr. Nobody for a bit - it stars Sarah Polley and Sarah Polley is one of my (many) weaknesses - and I'd never even noticed that Kruger was even in it. But now that I see she is in it this makes me happy! Because she's suddenly revealed herself to be awesome. She's also currently filming a movie with the director of Orphan, which also makes this here geek squeal. Esther 2.0!

Daniel Brühl - Pvt. Fredrick Zoller - Adorable Danny Brühl is currently filming opposite Charlotte Rampling and Pushing Daisies' Anna Friel in Jon Amiel's new film The Angel Makers, described as a dark comedy about British soldiers returning from war to find German POWs having taken over their homes (and beds, and ladies in said beds). Co-starring in this movie are beautiful Tom Tykwer-alums Benno Fuhrmann and Moritz Bleibtreu...


If I hadn't done this post I don't know when I would've heard about this, and everything about this cast is exquisite catnip to me, so I am very happy to have discovered this thing's existence. Thanks, Danny!
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Lunch With... Colonel Hans Landa

It's Inglourious Basterds Day. Theme days until Hollywood's big night.

Lunch with new acquaintances should be fun if not entirely relaxing. You definitely want to get to know each other but still, it shouldn’t feel like an interrogation. Next time before accepting an “invitation” like Shoshanna did in Paris, you might want to reconsider. Not that she had much of a choice.

You’ve surely noticed that Landa’s refreshment breaks always involve dairy -- a glass of milk, a dollop of cream -- “Attendez la Crème!” But what makes this scene in Inglourious Basterds so amazing (it's my second favorite after this one) is that his amiability isn't sweet at all but curdled.


This strudel may well be delicious, but if your dining companion isn't what you'd hoped for you won’t have the appetite for it. Shoshanna doesn’t enjoy this one but at least she gets sweet revenge later on. Landa will get his just dessert.

Related Posts: Breakfast With...

Once Upon a Time In...

It's Inglourious Basterds Day... 5 days until Hollywood's High Holy Night

"Once upon a time in Nazi occupied France..." was a pretty great opening for a revisionist history yarn like Inglourious Basterds. I feel safe in assuming it's the most violent film to ever use the instantly familiar "Once upon a time..." line for story positioning.

Can you think of other films that have used the "Once upon a time..." line in unusual fashion? It's a memory exercise for the comments. The only movies I can think of are the original Disney classics which even used to zero in on books opening and turning pages to put you in the right fantastical (not based on a true story) frame of mind.

I know that Disney promises that the upcoming Thanskgiving release, the 3D animated Tangled, will be a "really fresh, smart take on the Rapunzel story" but I think nobody will ever beat Stephen Sondheim for refashioning fairy tales to serve his own brilliant purposes.

Oscar Symposium Day 2: (500) Basterds In the Bright Starry Loop

Nathaniel R: I led with the Reality Television problem yesterday because I'm trying to work through some, um, "personal issues". I actually snapped at two friends this week for no reason other than that something they said reminded me tangentially of reality television and how much I hate it and inbetween these outbursts I sat through the entire new episodes of Amazing Race, Project Runway and RuPaul's Drag Race on my DVR. I'm part of the problem! So I needed to binge and purge the reality television issue before moving on. My chief problem with its dominance is the samey samey ness of everything. Art thrives on variety and so often the pop culture pie -- of which the Oscars are my favorite slice -- comes in only one flavor at a time.

And Peter landed on the category that, invariably, I find the most difficult to stomach year in and year out for the exact same reason: Supporting Actor. They seem to use this category as a dumping ground for "types" even more so than the other categories. This will be three years in a row they've gone with a psychotic/charismatic killer for the win... and meanwhile they fill out the category with aging man career tributes. I won't attempt to argue that that winning threesome (Javier/Heath/Christoph) aren't worthy choices but there's something more to it than just coincidence, yes?

Psycho Killers, Qu'est-Que C'est?

Maybe this psycho-killas and revered old men category is actually a metaphor for the glamorous brutality of Hollywood -- they're always trying to kill you but if you survive for any admirable length of time they're sure to kiss your ass...

I'm stretching but anything to take my mind away from this category!

And to take my mind away from Bringing Down The House's blinged up homie --uh, thanks Tim-- because that leads me right back into The Blind Side territory. Racial landmines ahead!



Speaking of... Precious. What Tim said. But the issue of who-gets-credit, which he briefly alluded to in regards to the performances, is so fascinating here (and elsewhere). But for my money, Tilda Swinton in Julia aside, Mo'Nique gave the one performance this year that I can't even wrap my head around fully it's so titanic.

Guy Lodge: Best Supporting Actor may be a dumping ground for "types," but that's no excuse to make it a dumping ground for bad performances too, which is precisely what they've done this year. If they really found Anthony Mackie and Alfred Molina that hard to accept (despite apparently liking everything around them), perhaps they should have applied their new Best Original Song rule to this category, and curtailed the number of nominees. Because, frankly, I'd rather see a two-strong field than have to scratch my head any longer over who was actually impressed enough by Stanley Tucci's sweaty psycho kvetching, or Matt Damon's (more justifiably sweaty, at least) approximation of Afrikaner hulkiness by way of Opie, to place them at the top of their ballot. Because someone did.

Read the rest of DAY TWO
Wherein we move on to individual nominations and snubs that delighted and confused us, what makes some movies click with Oscar or miss entirely, that weird relationship in Crazy Heart and the internal conflict of Inglourious Basterds.

Then return and comment. Continue the conversation.
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Hot Link Injection

I Need My Fix pics from the Shutter Island premiere. Scorsese gets the stars out
Worth 1000 "Mate a Movie" contest. Fun entries my favorites being Lt. Aldo Raine of the Na'Vi tribe and a Coen Bros/ The Wolfman mash-up
/Film An Avatar novel to tide you over until the sequel?
Studio Daily Lance Acord, one of the best living cinematographers (Where The Wild Things Are, Marie Antoinette), speaks
In Contention concludes its annual opinionated shots of the year column
MTV Movies Oren Moverman (The Messenger) moving on from depressed soldiers to depressed rock stars. A Kurt Cobain biopic is next
Upper Playground 'The Lost Art of Inglourious Basterds'. Mmmm, movie artwork.

Finally, today is Molly Ringwald's birthday -- happy 42 -- and since I grew up idolizing her (ohhh, the 80s!) I had to share this great print celebrating The Breakfast Club. It's going for $10 a pop. Isn't it fine?


I should also note that the Oscars will have a tribute to John Hughes this year. That should be fun but I think it's kind of a bummer that the BFCA already went there. And it's a little suspect since I remember my young self being h-o-r-r-i-f-i-e-d when they passed Mr. Hughes over for screenplay nominations for this immortal film. Among others. He was never nominated for an Oscar.

My Ballot: Best Picture & Best Actor & More

So... The first half of my own annual awards is now complete. Every Oscar category I also cover is filled out. There's more to come after a couple days of other things ... I still have to bring you the more idiosyncratic categories. It's always really tough doing these things because I usually love my #6s as much as my #5s and #7s, you know? But it is what it is, a personalized celebration of the cinematic year, personalized but public. My 15 favorite pictures of the year (in alpha order) from all the films I saw.

• (500) Days of Summer (posts)
  
• Avatar (review)
  
• Bright Star (posts)
  
• Coraline (posts)
  
• Fantastic Mr. Fox (posts)
  
• Hunger (more on Michael Fassbender)
  
• The Hurt Locker (posts)
  
• Inglourious Basterds (video review)
  
• Julia (more on Tilda Swinton)
  
• The Maid
  
• Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' By Sapphire (first impression)
  
• Summer Hours ('sell it to the highest bidder')
  
• UP (video review)
  
• Up in the Air (posts)
  
• Whip It (review)
  

I'm not sure why I didn't do the proper top ten list article this year... but it strangely fell through the cracks. And I would like to to add that I love Mary & Max, Valentino the Last Emperor and Prodigal Sons as much or better than some of these but they were ineligible for various reasons for my prizes. There'll be more to come on the transgendered documentary Prodigal Sons since it's finally gotten some press. And major press, too: Oprah! Don't miss this movie when it eventually comes anywhere near you. Or just "save" it on Netflix or whatever service you use for when it launches on DVD.

The FiLM BiTCH Awards
page 1: Best Picture, Director, Screenplays
page 2: Best Acting
page 3: Best of Visual Categories
page 4: Best of Aural Categories and Nomination Tallies

It was one of my rare consensus years so my three nomination leaders are exactly the same as Oscar: the basterds, the Na'Vi and the bomb squad. The major difference would be that Oscar shunned Bright Star and I haven't been able to shake it. So beautiful it t'was. And speaking of beautiful, the more I sit with the Oscar nominees for Best Picture the more comfortable I am with them representing the film year. Give or take a nomination or seven, Oscar didn't do so badly this year.

How's your awards season going?
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Tarantino on Maddow

Did you catch Quentin Tarantino on The Rachel Maddow Show last night? He was his usual vainglorious --excuse me vainglourious-- self. But it is interesting to see how successfully they have repositioned the movie for Oscar season. This was the plan way back of course, to move away from the outrageous comedy persona they were cultivating in the summer. But sometimes I'm surprised that Tarantino, who can never shut up, is so good at staying on message. He gives the movie all sorts of extra credit points here for political relevance and comparing its modern take on past history to Bonnie & Clyde (!)

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

I actually watch violent movies with the "chick-vision" they laugh about. I'm not ashamed. I'm just not a big lover of gruesome violence. I don't have the bloodlust that the box office receipts for just about everything imply that I should have. I love that Maddow admits that she does this, too. "This is one chick like thing about me."

Now I want to see one of these "glockenspiel musicals" that QT references when he's talking about the German film industry at the time.

Eye Candy Greatness: Cinematography & Costume Design.

More FiLM BiTCH Awards for you: cinematography & costume design.

I love these categories. Smart movie lovers realize how crucial they are to a film's success. Put your character in the wrong outfit and light them the wrong way and suddenly it's so less... right. Have them in the perfect outfit, with the right mix of character-revealing specificity and beauty (if it's called for) and suddenly... MAGIC.

Costumes
Oscar went with Bright Star, Coco Before Chanel, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, Nine and The Young Victoria in the costume category. Those are all valid and defendable choices, if a little obvious. For example, though I liked Nine more than most people -- and apparently if you didn't think it was the apocalypse in cinematic form, you did, too -- I'm struggling to see what's particular G-R-E-A-T about the costumes though I do like quite a lot. Pretty. Though I try to see all the Oscar contending films I did miss Coco Before Chanel. I blame my allergies to biopics combined with my misguided belief that it would get shut out of nominations and thereby end the mandatory viewing obligation.

I'm frustrated that Anna B Sheppard's work on Inglourious Basterds was snubbed by the Academy. I thought it was a really solid bet. But just like actors, various craft people also have different levels of awards magnetism and she gets the weird snubs, she does. For instance, Band of Brothers (the HBO miniseries) got 19 Emmy nominations in its day, but her costume design wasn't among them. Weird.

Cinematography
And see this man here?


That's Greig Fraser, director of photography on Bright Star. He's from Melbourne, he's only nine years into his screen career. He's only made a couple handfuls of shorts and features. But look what he can do already!!! He has a right to be furious about that Oscar snub. If he is furious. But I'm sure he'll get his revenge by getting even more brilliant as bigger jobs open up. This movie has to be a pretty great resume piece for a DP, no? His next gig: the remake of Let the Right One In... shortened to Let Me In.

How anyone can look at Bright Star and not see that it's one of the worthiest pieces of cinematography this year... I'll never understand. AMPAS is filled with strange people of strange tastes and peculiarities.

My Ballot: Cinematography and Costume Design.

What were your favorites in these categories this year?

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Modern Maestros: Quentin Tarantino

Robert here, continuing my series on great contemporary directors. I figured this would be as good a time as any to take a look at one of this year's Best Director nominees.  No, he probably won't win the Oscar this year, but history may look upon him more kindly than any of his fellow nominees, especially as a real titan of his generation.  He's a rock star director, and like him or hate him, you can't deny his influence.

Maestro:Quentin Tarantino
Known For: Highly structured, stylized, talky and violent movies.
Influences: Jean-Luc Godard, Sergio Leone, and anyone who ever made a Kung-Fu film.
Masterpieces: Pulp Fiction is the easy answer, but in pop-culture years that was eons ago. How about the Kill Bill movies.
Disasters: none
Better than you remember: Jackie Brown is already a "better than you remember" classic.
Awards: A couple Best Screenplay Oscars (excuse me, one Best Screenplay Oscar, don't want to jump the gun).  A couple Best Direction and Picture nominations.  And a Palme d'Or back in 1994.
Box Office: As we all know, Inglourious Basterds is his highest grossing film with over 120 mil to date.
Favorite Actor: Samuel L. Jackson whose likeness (or voice) has appeared in four Tarantino films.

What can be said about Quentin Tarantino that hasn't already been?  Not much.  But let's not start with the two elements of his films that are most discussed - his stylistic flourishes and his unique dialogue.  Instead I pose to you what may be Tarantino's greatest, yet least credited strength as a director.  He is a fantastic director of actors.  It's fitting to note now as we're expecting Christoph Waltz to earn an Oscar for giving perhaps the best performance in a Tarantino film that all of his actors' performances are uniformly excellent.  Unfortunately, too often they're overshadowed by the style and dialogue that everyone seems to obsess over.  But in Tarantino's mind, his witty, trademark dialogue is merely a means to the end of a great performance  He's said himself that if he truly considered himself a writer at heart he'd be writing novels.  But he's not.  He's a filmmaker, and his dialogue isn't nearly as important on a page as it is performed out loud.

Okay, so let's talk a little about style... it's unavoidable.  Tarantino, lover of the French New Wave, has taken a page from their play book and enjoys breaking cinematic rules for the sake of breaking cinematic rules.  And why not do so by throwing in elements from another kind of picture he loves, the B-movie. Q.T. has yet to meet a trick he doesn't like.  Voice overs, animated sequences, shifts in time, can all sneak up on us without warning, and perhaps without purpose aside from setting a mood unique to Tarantino films alone.  And then there's the violence.  Yes, the way Tarantino enjoys breaking the rules most is through his total and fervent delight in violence.  And yet he occasionally jars us through violence that's suddenly less gleeful (the death of Vincent Vega or the baseball bat bludgeoning of a sympathetically painted Nazi).  Tarantino is eternally exploring the complex relationship between delighting in and being repelled by violence.  It is perhaps for this reason why he's given us so many revenge pictures lately (a genre he's constantly redefining by making it epic or dancing on established archetypes or even revising history itself), or why he continually focuses on violence committed by the fairer sex.  These elements are meant to turn our ideas of right or wrong or natural against us.  But we're not bogged down by them because we're having so much damn fun.

We root for the violent ladies

Feeding into his revenge fantasies is his love for the plotting of a plan.  Tarnatino films often feature large meticulously structured plans.  It's no surprise then that he loves making movies.  He sits atop the modern indie film world as something of an elder statesman.  Really he just wants to have fun.  Other modern directors who delight in exploiting B-movie elements seem burdened by their inability to apply them to anything new.  But Tarantino knows how to keep giving us something new.  He keeps evolving.  That's what makes him not just relevant but revolutionary almost twenty years after he helped re-invent the American indie.  In that time he's been not only a director but a promoter of great films, helping to bring pictures like Chungking Express, Sonatine and Hero to American audiences.  What comes next for Tarantino is somewhat unknown.  That's all part of his enigmatic image.  He's suggested a desire to make a film entirely in Mandarin.  And he's hinted that there will soon be a unified Kill Bill epic and a Kill Bill vol. 3.  But it doesn't really matter what comes next.  It's already a given that it'll be exciting and interesting and the mark of a director who truly defines his time.

The Hurt, Precious, Inglourious, Crazy, Complicated, Blind, Single, Serious, Up-in-the-Air 2010 SAG Awards Liveblog!

txt critic liveblogs SAG

Greetings all. I've just returned from my shitty movie day with my Quizno's, Tasti Delite and Orville Redenbacher in tow, ready and super-pumped for this evening's festivities. Feel free to chime in with any thoughts along the way!

6:17 EST: Revelation from Giuliana Rancic: "Guys, when TV stars and movie stars mix, anything can -- and usually does -- happen."

6:31 EST: She just suggested to Ed Helms that Susan Boyle appear in the "Hangover" sequel.

6:32 EST: Tracy Morgan: "Morgan Freeman could be my daddy."

6:35 EST: Ross the Intern just asked Carey Mulligan "Where is Shia LaBeauof tonight?" and she looked flustered and said "I don't know" (i.e.: "You're not allowed to talk about that"). Awkwaaaaaard.

6:50 EST: Questions are being asked about what Ryan Seacrest does in steamrooms.

6:57 EST: Apparently, the first award of the evening -- for Best Stunt Ensemble -- has been given to "Star Trek."

6:58 EST: Tina Fey just confronted Giuliana with "Are you one of the ones who took a big steaming crap on me last week?" Effing Awesome. For the record, I don't care what anyone says, I LOVED that dress.

7:08 EST: You know you're stoned when you see a commercial for "Valentine's Day" and think for the first time: "Hm, maybe that won't be so bad."

7:12 EST: Me still no likey Jon Hamm + beard

7:19 EST: Whoa, Meryl Streep is wearing a beautifully ugly dress. LOVE it.

7:25 EST: "An Education" seems to be buying a lot of TV spots for this E! pre-show. I know a lot of people who love it. I am not one of them.

7:39 EST: Is it wrong that I completely forgot about the TV awards? I totally associate the SAG awards with movies.

7:47 EST: Gabby Sidibe appears to be WILDLY drunk, and confirms her place as my favorite person at these awards. She just confessed that she's never watched the SAG awards.

7:55 EST: Holy hell. Why do I still get surprised when Helen Mirren shows up somewhere looking sexy as shit?

7:59 EST: Adam Lambert, diva that he is, is the last guest to show up before the awards start. Wait, why is he here?

8:04 EST: Jeremy Irons is wearing sunglasses indoors. Hrm, his pretentiousness is offset by his yellow-and-red bow tie.

8:07 EST: Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. Me say it's Baldwin, though him, Steve Carell and Larry David are all consistently great. I've never seen "Monk" or "Two and a Half Men," so I can't speak for Shalhoub or Sheen. And it's... Baldwin.

8:09 EST: Fuck, Christoph Waltz is handsome.

8:13 EST: Lead Actress in a Comedy Series. I've not seen "Samantha Who" or "The New Adventures of Old Christine." Noticing a theme? I don't really watch CBS except for Letterman. This will probably be Toni Collette. I'd be happy with Falco, Collette or Fey. Whoa, it's Tina Fey for "30 Rock"! Apparently, her 25th win from them.

8:14 EST: "I just want to take a moment to say to everyone at NBC... that we are very happy with everything. And happy to be there." So funny.

8:21 EST: There is currently a clip reel devoted to honoring/commemorating... Comedy. WTF? And set to the wackiest generic music you can imagine. I hate this.

8:23 EST: Man, Ray Romano just made a Kevin Bacon / Jon Hamm joke. Blech.

8:26 EST: Ensemble in Comedy Series. Even though I can't stop watching it, "Glee" consistently infuriates me. As great as the cast of "The Office" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm" are, this should really go to "30 Rock" or "Modern Family," currently my two favorite shows on TV. I'm sure it will be "30 Rock." And it's.... "Glee"?!?! Christ! Okay, I guess none of my issues with the show have to do with the cast, but still! Eh, as long as Jane Lynch gets an award, I can't complain that hugely.

8:28 EST: Gabby and Mo'Nique present a clip from "Precious" while holding hands. Me likey.

8:29 EST: Helen Mirren is presenting BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE

In a just world, would've been nominated: James Gandolfini ("Where the Wild Things Are"), Peter Capaldi ("In the Loop"), Garrett Dillahunt ("The Last House on the Left"), Robert Duvall ("The Road"), Saul Rubinek ("Julia")

ChrIstoph Waltz will probably win this, and he deserves to, but I wouldn't be angry with Woody Harrelson. Christopher Plummer is a threat to win simply because he's old, but the performance really isn't deserving. Damon is fine in "Invictus," but basically just has to shout things in a huddle.

I happen to adore Stanley Tucci, but I seem to be one of the rare few who thinks he's AWFUL in "The Lovely Bones" (though I don't outright hate the movie). He just piles on affectation after affectation -- like talking with a weird speech impediment -- that it feels like a parody of an actor playing a serial killer.

8:32 EST: Yay, it's Christoph! This is a thoughtful, eloquent speech, but it's not the YouTube clip, outpouring of emotion or fireworks display supposedly needed at an early awards like this. Luckily, the performance is strong enough that he doesn't need to rely on anything else to be the Oscar winner.

8:39 EST: Outstanding Female Actor in a Drama Series. The nominees are Patricia Arquette, Glenn Close, Mariska Hargatay, Holly Hunter, Julianna Margulies, and Kyra Sedgwick. I've never seen one episode of any of these shows. Wow, do I not watch any Dramas?

8:41 EST: And it's Julianna Margulies. Okay.

8:45 EST: Male Actor in a Drama Series. Simon Baker, Bryan Cranston, Michael C. Hall, Jon Hamm, Hugh Laurie. Oh, I do watch "Dexter" and "Mad Men." I guess I do watch dramas, just not those boring, lady-driven TNT detective-esque dramas. Yay, Michael C. Hall! Though that Bryan Cranston clip reminded me that I need to start watching "Breaking Bad."

8:47 EST: I will try to cut down on my "An Education" hate, since I really don't hate it, but these clips just remind me that I don't understand what anyone is finding special about this movie. It's a nice, fairly entertaining, middle-of-the-road, learn-your-lesson movies made for grandmothers. But whatever I guess.

8:50 EST: Ensemble Cast in a Drama Series. Never seen "The Closer" or "The Good Wife" and I only half-watch "True Blood," but I love "Dexter" and "Mad Men." This should really be "Mad Men" .... and it is!

9:00 EST: As president of the SAG, Ken Howard is doing his duty by saying some very boring things for minutes on end. He was wonderful in "In Her Shoes."

9:02 EST: And now Sandra Bullock is beginning the presentation of the Lifetime Achievement Award to Betty White. Is it wrong that the former golden girl's appearance in "The Proposal" last year (ever-so-slightly) diminished the love I had for her?

9:18 EST: This "Extraordinary Measures" commercial seems to be advertising a much happier, smilier movie than the two-hour dying-children movie I saw this afternoon.

9:22 EST: Best Actress in a TV Movie or Mini-Series. This should really, really, really be Drew Barrymore. I always like her, but always find her more charming than actually thinking she gave a particularly special performance, but she was truly fantastic in "Grey Gardens." If this goes to her co-star Jessica Lange, it's purely because Lange is older..... Ahhh, awesome, it's Drew!

9:24 EST: Loved that speech. Even with all the "um, um, um," it clearly was coming from the heart. I don't presume to think we actually really 'know' any Hollywood celebrity, but she just seems like a genuine person.

9:27 EST: Best Actor in a TV Movie or Mini-Series. I didn't even hear of these films with Cuba Gooding Jr. and Tom Wilkinson, and alas I missed "Georgia O'Keefe," but Kevin Bacon was terrific in "Taking Chance." It will likely be him... and it is.

9:33 EST: In Memoriam. I know they do it at every single awards show every single year, but I really wish they'd stop doing the applause-meter thing.

9:36 EST: P.S. We're 96 minutes into a supposedly-two-hour-long awards show, and they've officially given out ONE film award.

9:41 EST: SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE

In a just world, would've been nominated: Catherine Keener ("Where the Wild Things Are"), Patricia Clarkson ("Whatever Works"), Marion Cotillard ("Nine"), Vera Farmiga (for "Orphan"), Melanie Laurent ("Inglourious Basterds")

Penelope was fun in "Nine" but she's playing the exact same role she won an Oscar for last year. I happen to love, love, love "Up in the Air" but count me among the few who doesn't think Vera was anything special in it. Sure, she's sexy and has great chemistry with Clooney, but I didn't think the role required a whole hell of a lot. Call me crazy. Kendrick and Kruger are deserving of their nominations, but not for the win. Mo'Nique will be winning this, and rightfully so.

9:43 EST: And like we all thought/knew, Mo'Nique won. She delivered a really excellent speech, to boot, one that seemed (to me) significantly more sincere than her Golden Globes one last Sunday.

9:51 EST: ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE

In a just world, would've been nominated: Robin Williams ("World's Greatest Dad"), Nicolas Cage ("Bad Lieutenant"), Matt Damon ("The Informant!"), Tom Hardy ("Bronson"), Viggo Mortensen ("The Road"), Patton Oswalt ("Big Fan"), Sam Rockwell ("Moon"), Michael Stuhlbarg ("A Serious Man")

Honestly, anyone EXCEPT MORGAN FREEMAN would totally deserve this. Colin Firth was my personal favorite (though I didn't love the movie), but Clooney, Bridges and Renner are not far behind. Happy to see anyone win this, but it really should be (and will be) the long overdue Bridges. And unlike Winslet last year, it'll actually be for a deserving performance.

9:54 EST: Jeff Bridges for the win! Good for him. Meryl Streep encourages him to ignore the "Please Wrap It Up" cue.

9:56 EST: ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE

In a just world, would've been nominated: Tilda Swinton ("Julia"), Ellen Page ("Whip It"), Catalina Saavedra ("The Maid"), Charlotte Gainsbourg ("Antichrist")

I want to see Gabourey Sidibe win this. Only her and Helen Mirren gave deserving performances, and Gabby is easily the best in the category. If Tilda had gotten nominated on the other hand... I still say if "Julia" had been put out by a distributor that had any money to support it (it was Magnolia), she would far and away be the frontrunner in this category. This will likely go to Meryl (snooze) or Sandra (cuts wrists). Thankfully, Carey Mulligan appears to have lost steam.

9:57 EST: Oh, fuck. Sandra Bullock. There are no words.

10:00 EST: Yes, yes, nice speech. But completely, completely undeserved. Just a little anecdote to share -- not saying it's related: I attended a SAG screening of "A Serious Man" a couple weeks back, and a gentleman behind me said to his screening partner that he was going to vote for Sandra Bullock even though he hadn't seen "The Blind Side," using the following rationale: "She's had such a long career, and she's always been good, as opposed to someone who just lucked into it like Precious."

10:01 EST: And Clooney clinches the best moment of the night by implying he's had sex with Betty White. And making the joke "An Education: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire." Interesting that he's presenting the category that his film was surprisingly snubbed from.

CAST IN A MOTION PICTURE

While Alfred Molina and Rosamund Pike rocked the shit, I generally don't think the ensemble of "An Education" is worthy of winning an award. I also think that, aside from Jeremy Renner, the cast of "The Hurt Locker" has been a bit overvalued. "Nine" -- don't make me laugh. This should go to "Precious" or "Inglourious Basterds," and dare I say, it will go to one of them.

10:02 EST: And it does indeed go to "Inglourious Basterds." I'm very happy about it, but somehow it seems inappropriate for Eli Roth to (again!) be the one accepting the award, considering he gives the worst performance in the film.

10:05 EST: And it's over. Well, to be honest, I enjoyed blogging this more than the actual awards, so I don't how all y'all who were just watching it felt. Either way, whatever the reason, I had fun, hopefully you did too. Now, I'm off to drink in the East Village, and I'll leave you with the following words:

VOTE 'NO' ON SANDRA BULLOCK FOR BEST ACTRESS.