A major new flick by Paul Haggis, the writer/director of one Oscar best picture champ ("Crash") and writer of another ("Million Dollar Baby"), is huge news to Oscarwatchers like us. But is "In the Valley of Elah" another masterpiece or a dud? Hollywood Reporter loves it. Variety blasts it.
First, the Hollywood Reporter: "Paul Haggis has not only avoided the dreaded sophomore slump, but the director and co-writer of the Oscar-winning "Crash" has returned with another bona-fide contender.
"Ostensibly a murder-mystery set against the backdrop of the war in Iraq, 'In the Valley of Elah' is a deeply reflective, quietly powerful work that is as timely as it is moving.
"Further graced by an exceptional Tommy Lee Jones lead performance that would have to be considered one of the finest in the 60-year-old actor's career, the Warner Independent release is getting a little preliminary festival exposure at Venice and Toronto before opening in limited engagements on Sept. 14." READ MORE
"The Dixie Chicks earn a shocking nomination for Vocal Group of the Year, their first in that category since 2003," gasped our forum poster MrTalented when the CMA nominations were announced. Their strong awards showing is a bit of surprise considering how the Nashville establishment spurned the Chicks after they lambasted George W. Bush over the war in Iraq. But that's all over now. The wider music establishment finally forgave the Chicks and embraced them earlier this year when they became one of the few artists ever to sweep the Grammys' Triple Crown: record, song and album of the year. But those Nashville boys — well, they can be a bit conservative, ornery and a bit stubborn by nature. Many Chicks fans wondered: Will the South ever rise and embrace them again?
MrTalented also noted another factoid: "Reba McEntire and Martina McBride are both nominated for Female Vocalist. They each have 4 wins apiece, and if one of them wins a 5th this year, she'll have more Female Vocalist titles than any other woman in the history of the awards."
Here are more reax posted in our message boards:
HollywoodStar: Dixie Chicks deserved their nod, too bad they won't win, let alone, attend.
More star presenters have been named for the the Primetime Emmys gala on Sept. 16 — Alec Baldwin, Stephen Colbert, Marcia Cross, Jon Cryer, Ellen DeGeneres, America Ferrara, Tina Fey, Joely Fisher, Brad Garrett, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Julia-Luis Dreyfus and Kyra Sedgwick. Those are in addition to glitteratti already announced - CLICK HERE.
Fox Network came thisclose to naming someone other than "American Idol" emcee Ryan Seacrest as host of the Emmycast on Sept. 16: Hugh Laurie.
Laurie was actually the early first choice of several top Fox exex, who lobbied strongly for him to get the job, according to a TV academy source. Others tubthumped for Seacrest, who's a logical choice since he already hosts America's most popular regular TV program plus specials like New Year's Eve countdowns. The standoff at the network was to blame for any host being named so late. Last year Conan O'Brien's appointment was unveiled in mid-May — three months before the Seacrest announcement this year.
In the end, Fox decided to go with its "Idol" star over its "House" star because exex felt Seacrest would draw a larger TV audience and because viewers might be confused seeing Laurie in an unfamiliar role.
But Laurie, in fact, is an accomplished entertainer beyond just that Doctor Grouch act you see on "House." He's a darn good pianist, for one thing. He performs in a few bands — 16:9 and Poor White Trash — and tickles the ivories in the "House" episode he submitted to Emmy judges in the race for best drama actor, "Half-Wit."
But most noteworthy of all are the wild performances he gave on "A Bit of Fry and Laurie," the outrageous comedy sketch show he did between 1986 and 1995 with Stephen Fry on the BBC. Click below to see Laurie in drag and other loopy poses.
Sure, it's nice to learn the Emmy predictions of top TV critics, but, personally speaking, I know who the real best experts are: our forum moderators Chris "Boomer" Beachum and Robert "Rob L" Licuria. They've not only tracked these kudos like brainy bloodhounds through the years, but they've actually viewed the same episodes submitted to judges by nominees as examples of their best work.
Boomer and Rob agree on a lot of races this year, but not lead actress in a drama series. Here — hooray! grab some popcorn and a ringside seat, kiddos — we have a pundit smackdown! Boomer's gal is Kyra Sedgwick ("The Closer"), Rob's is Minnie Driver ("The Riches"). Yes, in his text below, he initially put Minnie and Kyra in a tie, but he adds now, way, "If I have to stick my neck out, then I'm going out on a huge limb and pick Minnie."
Arquette really feels comfortable in this role and provides a nice performance in an episode geared around a "Groundhog Day" dream-like situation. She wakes up over and over, each time with a new chance to salvage a murderous outcome at a restaurant (and even severe injury to herself). It is a solid job, but the only memorable moment for me was the third version of the kitchen scene when she loses control.
PERFORMANCE GRADE: 75/100 OTHER INTANGIBLES: 75/100 AVERAGE GRADE: 75/100
Driver nails the Southern accent (believe me, I live here where she supposedly was raised) and does a much better job with it than her co-star Eddie Izzard, whose accent was all over the place. Unfortunately, I just thought it was a above-average performance in an episode that fell mostly flat. She certainly has a chance in this category, but I don't really think it will happen.
PERFORMANCE GRADE: 80/100 OTHER INTANGIBLES: 70/100 AVERAGE GRADE: 75/100
EDIE FALCO, "The Sopranos" ("The Second Coming" - 13:45 minutes / 8 scenes)
The Emmy voters may want to give Falco one final award for her incredible character work over the last few years. If they do, it will be for far more than she is given to do in just over 13 minutes on this episode. The writers didn't do her justice at all this final season and should have offered her a great departing showcase somewhere along the way. She does have great scenes with Robert Iler and especially one final kitchen argument with James Gandolfini, but will it be enough?
PERFORMANCE GRADE: 80/100 OTHER INTANGIBLES: 80/100 AVERAGE GRADE: 80/100
SALLY FIELD, "Brothers & Sisters" ("Mistakes Were Made, Part 2" - 17:30 minutes / 11 scenes)
I've never really seen the show, so if I didn't follow the television industry, they could have billed Field as "Special Guest Star" and I wouldn't have known any difference. There are so many long stretches where she isn't even on screen. When she is, Field is effective as a concerned mother about her son going into the military (past and present). Somebody has to finish in last place, so even though she is a double Oscar winner and past Emmy winner, I think it will be her amongst these five other contenders.
PERFORMANCE GRADE: 65/100 OTHER INTANGIBLES: 75/100 AVERAGE GRADE: 70/100
"Slings & Arrows," a drama about the intrigue backstage at a Shakespearean theater festival, reaped the most nominations (14) for Gemini Awards, which are Canada's equivalent to the Emmys. Last year's winner of best drama series now returns with additional bids for lead performers Paul Gross, the late William Hutt, Susan Coyne and Martha Burns.
Science investigation thriller "ReGenesis" received the second-most bids (12).
Biggest disappointment: "'Little Mosque on the Prairie' — the lighthearted look at Muslim life that received international buzz when it premiered last fall — was largely shut out of the awards honoring the best in Canadian television," noted the Toronto Star.
"Corner Gas," winner of best comedy series for the last two years, returns to defend its title against steady comedy faves "Royal Canadian Air Farce" and "This Hour Has 22 Minutes."
Carlos Mencia of Comedy Central's "Mind of Mencia" will host the Creative Arts Emmy ceremony on Sept. 8 at the Shrine Auditorium. That's when most of this year's primetime Emmys will actually be bestowed — in the crafts categories (lighting, sound, camera work, costumes) and guest acting (adding a dash of celebrity involvement).
Some media aren't too happy about the appointment. TMZ.com gets snarky about him emceeing the Creative Arts bash, adding, "The key word in that sentence is 'creative.' Mencia, star of Comedy Central's 'Mind of Mencia,' is frequently accused of stealing his material -- earning the nickname 'Carlos Menstealia.'" READ MORE .
For a 13th time, the ceremony will be produced by Spike Jones Jr. with his production company SJ2 Entertainment, plus Creative Arts Emmys co-chair Lee Miller and John Moffitt, a governor of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
E! Networks will broadcast the Creative Arts Emmycast as a two-hour special on Sept. 15 at 8 p.m., one night before the Primetime Emmys will be presented on Fox.
"The Sopranos" star James Gandolfini may have won three times already, but it's been several years since we've seen him at the podium with a chunk of TV academy gold in hand. However, we'll see him there again soon, according to our two forum moderators Chris "Boomer" Beachum and Robert "Rob L" Licuria, who offer their analysis, nominee by nominee, below. Also included is detailed analysis of the sample episode submitted by each contender to judges as an example of their best work from the past TV season.
Note that Boomer and Rob L differ on who may be a spoiler in this smackdown. Boomer says Hugh Laurie ("House") has the best shot at pulling off an upset; Rob L. says to watch out for James Spader ("Boston Legal"). I agree with them both that Gandolfini is out front to win and with Boomer that Laurie has the best shot for an upset. Beware: they're both underestimating Denis Leary.
First, here are Boomer's predix:
JAMES GANDOLFINI, The Sopranos ("The Second Coming" - 32:45 minutes /19 scenes) What more can be said about this incredible submission? I knew when it first aired at the end of May that it was a great one for Gandolfini, and a second viewing validates that theory. As an actor, he gets to show off the full range of his character (demanding, depressive, fiery, self-centered, loving) and has even more screen time than I originally remembered. There are so many memorable moments by Gandolfini here, but I am specifically reminded of the pool scene with Robert Iler, the great kitchen argument with Edie Falco, the beatdown in the restaurant (justified, even though gory), and the always interesting therapy sessions. Congratulations to Mr. Gandolfini on a fourth Emmy Award! PERFORMANCE GRADE: 95/100 OTHER INTANGIBLES: 95/100 AVERAGE GRADE: 95/100
HUGH LAURIE, House ("Half-Wit" - 29:15 minutes /21 scenes) On the surface, this episode doesn't offer a big "money" scene or lots of ranting and raving normally associated with Laurie's character. I really like it, though, because it shows a nice range (who knew he played the piano that well?) and actually has some charm to it. Laurie is definitely overdue for an Emmy (and will probably have to wait because of Gandolfini's last shot), but he really might be the spoiler this year. PERFORMANCE GRADE: 80/100 OTHER INTANGIBLES: 90/100 AVERAGE GRADE: 85/100
DENIS LEARY, Rescue Me ("Retards" - 31:45 minutes/ 14 scenes) This is a very workmanlike performance with several fine scenes across various locations and with various cast members/guest stars. If not for the big bar scene near the end where he starts drinking again and has an incredible monologue, it wouldn't be all that memorable. I also don't think voters will care for the way he handles his ex-wife in their confrontation. Better luck next year. PERFORMANCE GRADE: 80/100 OTHER INTANGIBLES: 70/100 AVERAGE GRADE: 75/100
Among contenders for lead actor in a drama series, James Gandolfini of "The Sopranos" leads with the most screen time in the episode he submitted to Emmy judges as an example of his best work. Kyra Sedgwick ("The Closer") has the most face time among the drama actresses. That could mean that they both have an edge to win. (Read more about the theory that screen time may contribute to Emmy victory — CLICK HERE.) Again, our thanks to forums moderator Chris "Boomer" Beachum for compiling these numbers.
To see what episodes nominees submitted, CLICK HERE and HERE.
LEAD ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES JAMES GANDOLFINI = 32:45 minutes /19 scenes HUGH LAURIE = 29:15 minutes / 21 scenes DENIS LEARY = 31:45 minutes / 14 scenes JAMES SPADER = 24:30 minutes / 13 scenes KIEFER SUTHERLAND = 17:00 minutes / 8 scenes
LEAD ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES PATRICIA ARQUETTE = 38:45 minutes / 18 scenes MINNIE DRIVER = 33:45 minutes / 18 scenes EDIE FALCO = 13:45 minutes / 8 scenes SALLY FIELD = 17:30 minutes / 11 scenes MARISKA HARGITAY = 40:45 minutes / 24 scenes KYRA SEDGWICK = 42:30 minutes / 18 scenes
"Juan Luis Guerra has been the favorite of everybody on this forum to lead the nominations this year," notes "Ojodiamante" in our message-boards thread devoted to speculation over the Latin Grammy bids, which will be announced on Wednesday, Aug. 29. Hopes run high that Juan Luis Guerra can score top noms for record, song and album of the year.
"Well, I think this is the Year of Ricky Martin thanks to "the most beautiful and overplayed song of the year: 'Tu Recuerdo,'" adds our poster "PCA."
According to our poster "Jose," Mexico and Brazil have led all other nations with the most wins in the past (73 and 70, respectively), but Ojodiamante says that they're the leaders "because they have a lot of exclusive categories for their regional music. But the success by countries in Latin Grammys must be measured by the amount of nominations and awards in the General Field. Spain and Colombia took an ample advantage there." READ MORE
With another bad review — this one from Variety's David Rooney — "The Little Mermaid," currently previewing in Denver, is on even shakier ground than we first thought.
Rooney saw the Broadway-bound musical two days after attending the out-of-town opening of "Young Frankenstein" in Seattle. While he had reservations about that Mel Brooks' tuner version of his 1974 hit movie, he was downright dismissive of this musicalization of the 1989 Disney flick that relaunched the studio's animation division.
After the show shutters in the Mile High City on Sept.9, the creative types have nearly two months, till Nov. 3, before the first scheduled preview performance in Gotham. But, as per Rooney, they have their work cut out to fix all that is wrong with the show before opening night at the Lunt-Fontanne Theater Dec. 6.
"While director Francesca Zambello is new to Broadway, her opera and musical productions elsewhere have been lauded for their balance of spectacle with emotional detail. But by choosing frequent opera-world collaborators, set designer George Tsypin and costumer Tatiana Noginova, Zambello has allowed emotion, charm and enchantment to be drowned in a sea of bewilderingly over-stylized designs. In a musical for which children are the primary audience, clarity of representation is fundamental. But in the magical underwater kingdom that beautiful young mermaid Ariel (Sierra Boggess) longs to leave behind to marry the human prince (Sean Palmer), we often require explanation to know what we're looking at." Read the rest of Rooney's review - CLICK HERE
If you thought making a documentary was difficult, take a gander at the rules regarding the Oscar race. CLICK HERE Filmmakers have till Sept. 4 to submit their applications to the academy documenting (of course) their adherence to these requirements.
Chief among them is the need for a seven-day theatrical run in either L.A. or Gotham between Sept. 1 of last year and this Aug. 31. Beyond that, feature documentaries (those more than 40 minutes) must complete 14 three-day runs in at least 10 U.S. states by Nov. 15. Appropriately enough, this requirement is curtailed for short docs to two-day runs in at least four U.S. cities by Sept. 4 or, in the alternative, no TV or Internet airing till 180 days after Oscar nominations are announced Jan. 22. Members of the documentary branch will determine nominations with five features chosen by preferential voting and three to five shorts selected by an averaged point system.
The new Reelz Channel knows a great way to celebrate an important anniversary: Surrender to awardsmania! That's what the cable channel devoted to movies plans to do to hail its first birthday — launching "Awards Watch '07-'08," which includes extensive coverage of all award shows and film festivals leading up the Oscar finish line. I love Reelz and frequently do shoots with them. Up until now the network has mostly been available only via satellite hookup, but it's rigging more and more cable deals so it's on its way to your cable dial if it ain't there yet. READ MORE.
Many award watchers like me have always had a sneaky suspicion that screen time plays a big part in winning an Emmy for a series role. Not always. Allison Janney appeared in less than 15 minutes of the sample episode of "The West Wing" she submitted to judges in 2002 — "The Women of Qumar" — but she still won best drama actress anyway, probably because judges used to be deliriously, inexplicably smitten with her. Janney reaped four Emmys out of six nominations, two in the supporting slot before she moved up to lead, sensing their worship, and cashing in shrewdly on it.
But screen time clearly plays a major role in general. Do you ever wonder how Helen Hunt kept winning year after year — four times in a row — for "Mad About You"? Sure, voters were clearly mad for her, too, but it probably helped that she often submitted special one-hour episodes to compete against her half-hour rivals.
Other stars of half-hour programs who ended up winning for one-hour specials include Michael J. Fox ("Spin City"), Jennifer Aniston ("Friends") and Eric McCormack ("Will & Grace").Curiously, Debra Messing submitted the same one-hour episode of "Will & Grace" that McCormack did ("Low in the Mid-Eighties"), but lost to a half-hour submission ("The Cannister") by Patricia Heaton of "Everybody Loves Raymond." So there's further evidence that size doesn't always matter. But, come on. It's Hollywood. Size matters.
And have you ever wondered why actors often win when nominated against co-stars? Shouldn't that mean they'd split a program's vote? Nope. Quite the opposite is true, in fact. Dennis Franz prevailed three times when judges got to see the additional performances he gave in the episodes of "NYPD Blue" submitted by Jimmy Smits and David Caruso. In two of the three cases when Edie Falco won, she was nominated against "The Sopranos" costar Lorraine Bracco.
It is widely accepted among many Emmy experts that Felicity Huffman gave judges a lousy episode of "Desperate Housewives" after its debut season, but won because of the bravura turn she gave on Marcia Cross' entry.
So . . . hmmmm . . . wouldn't it be great this year, when making your predictions, to know how much screen time each actor has on their sample episode being judged? Huzzahs and cheers go our forums moderator Chris "Boomer" Beachum for running those numbers for us! Below is his tally in the comedy races.
LEAD ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES Alec Baldwin, "30 Rock" - 9:30 minutes / 9 scenes Steve Carell, "The Office" - 12:00 minutes / 13 scenes Ricky Gervais, "Extras" - 25:00 minutes / 10 scenes Tony Shalhoub, "Monk" 37:15 minutes / 13 scenes Charlie Sheen, "Two and a Half Men" - 20:15 minutes / 10 scenes
LEAD ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES America Ferrera, "Ugly Betty" - 31:15 minutes / 18 scenes Tine Fey, "30 Rock" - 8:15 minutes / 6 scenes Felicity Huffman, "Desperate Housewives" - 14:30 minutes / 13 scenes Julia Louis-Dreyfus, "New Adventures of Old Christine" - 18:45 minutes / 9 scenes Mary Louise-Parker, "Weeds" - 13:30 minutes / 8 scenes
The Envelope's forum posters said "Fuggedaboutit" to "The Sopranos," bestowing the departing drama series zero awards despite five nominations.
Instead the big winners of this year's Gold Derby Awards for television were "The Office" and "Lost," which both earned four prizes.
The kudos are informal, unofficial prizes created five years ago by award fans in this site's message boards who have strong opinions about who should really be honored for outstanding work in TV and film.
Big wins for "The Office": best comedy series, ensemble of the year, performer of the year (Steve Carell) and best supporting comedy actress (Jenna Fischer).
"Lost" got gypped by Emmy voters this year, but not our voters, who gave it these laurels: Best drama series, drama episode of the year ("Through the Looking Glass") and best supporting actor and actress (Michael Emerson, Elizabeth Mitchell).
"Ugly Betty" star America Ferrera won two prizes: best comedy actress and breakthrough performer of the year. CLICK HERE TO SEE THE FULL WINNERS LIST. Our thanks to our forum moderators for organizing these awards, especially our emcee, Chris "Boomer" Beachum! Huzzah!
The Directors Guild of America will pay a huge price for the decision it announced this week not to permit DVD screeners to be sent to its 13,400 members. A rough dollar amount can even be attached to it: Millions. That's how much money, for example, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences — which has a membership of similar size — earns from its DVD biz surrounding Emmy campaigns over a few years. In the race for film awards, other guilds like SAG and the Writers Guild of America don't earn nearly as much, but they still reap big bucks from handling the DVDs shipped to its award voters. In the past no DVDs were shipped to DGA members in the absence of a formal policy on the matter, but now that there is one, the price may be high. (Read more about the new ruling in blog item below — or CLICK HERE).
The TV academy charges every Emmy contender a fee of more than $1,000 to route a DVD to its members. Then there's profit to be made from managing the manufacture and distribution of discs, depending on the scope of distribution. Some contenders only pay to have their work sent to, say, the actors' branch. Others pay to reach all 13,000 members. ATAS doesn't disclose how much profit it makes from the process, but it's millions of dollars over the course of just a few years.
The Screen Actors Guild of America doesn't earn so much money because campaigners only need to reach the 2,100 members of the guild's nominating committee. It's extremely expensive to send a disc to the full membership exceeding 100,000.
Lionsgate was the first to blitz all of SAG. It sent "Crash" two years ago and ended up winning its ensemble award. Then later, of course, the Oscar for best picture. Last year "Little Miss Sunshine" won the ensemble prize after a mass guild mailing. It was also nominated at the Oscars for best picture, but lost to "The Departed," which also paid for a full SAG blitz. "Venus" is the only contender to fail to reap a top prize at either kudo after canvassing all of SAG. Peter O'Toole lost both prizes to "Last King of Scotland's" Forest Whitaker.
Fans of the original film version of "Young Frankenstein" don't need to worry about one thing being cut from the new musical stage adaptation: "Puttin' on the Ritz" remains intact. Here's a reminder of Gene Wilder and Peter Boyle puttin' on the schmaltz while doing a clumsy soft shoe and crooning on celluoid.
Several more reviews for "Young Frankenstein" confirm the early consensus — the show is very good but, with some work, could be great.
As Variety's David Rooney writes, "While it's freighted with unrealistic expectations in the wake of 'The Producers,' this monster nonetheless looks certain to place a stranglehold on Broadway. 'Young Frankenstein' doesn't scale the same dizzying comic heights, but it is a big, boisterous entertainment stuffed with laughs and spectacle. Like the eponymous monster brought winningly to life here by Shuler Hensley, the show walks, talks, sings, dances and charms in the Seattle tryout, which precedes its Nov. 8 Broadway opening. But at 2¾ hours, it needs to step out from its maker's shadow, receive a couple more volts of electricity and go on a diet before hitting New York."
His advice? "Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan's book sticks too slavishly to the screenplay and the cast is encouraged inordinately to milk jokes that fans of the movie know by heart. Consequently, it seems a little deficient in fresh comic angles despite the actors' resourceful work. Those longueurs are a factor especially in act one, which has a heap of plot and character presentations to trudge through: At 90 minutes, it drags. Given all that expository duty, trimming is a challenge (though a laborious soap/cheese gag is an obvious candidate for excision) but overall tightening of songs, dialogue and transitions is needed."
Oh, forget those silly Emmys for a sec! "My Name Is Earl" star Jason Lee and "Scrubs" hottie Zach Braff may not have received nominations for best comedy actor this year, but they're both up for the prestigious, highly coveted Gold Derby Award. But can either one trip up frontrunners Steve Carell ("The Office") or Alec Baldwin ("30 Rock") to win?
For many years our forum posters at this awards website have gone their own way, picking their own kudos nominees and winners. Now recipients of our latest TV prizes will be announced live this Sunday, Aug. 26, at 7 p.m. ET in our chatroom.
CLICK HERE to join the gang and the fun and to see our list of nominees, which is curiously different from the current Emmy list.
The first out-of-town notices for the two big musicals coming to Broadway this fall — "Young Frankenstein" and "The Little Mermaid" — all bring up the good, the bad and the ugly. While there are only two reviews per show, all four of the critics in Seattle and Denver think that there is much work to be done before these tuners turn up in New York. Compare this with Mel Brooks' last screen-to-stage adaptation, "The Producers," which rode its rave reviews in Chicago all the way to a record-breaking 12 Tony Awards. Even the preview of the Disney musicalization of "The Lion King" had reviewers in Minneapolis roaring with approval.
Misha Berson of the Seattle Times thought, "'Young Frankenstein' is a super-size, eager-to-please and arguably redundant musical comedy. Affection for Brooks' 1974 same-titled film, an ingeniously mirthsome spoof of James Whale's iconic 1931 'Frankenstein' film, is rampant. And this musical version crafted by composer-writer Brooks, co-writer Thomas Meehan and hit maker director-choreographer Susan Stroman is alive and often quite lively with a cast of expert merrymakers, shtick galore, winning dance numbers, elaborate sets by Robin Wagner and all the explosions, fog and lighting effects (by Peter Kaczorowski) a rumored $20 million budget can buy."
However, sounding a sour note, she writes, "The show has reportedly grown tighter and smoother in its run here but it has not yet escaped the looming shadow of its celluloid model and come into its own. The humor is choppy, and the one-liners repeated from the film script (by Brooks and Gene Wilder) can fall flat. The musical is freshest and funniest in the second act, when it stops doggedly aping the film and lets the actors concoct their own comic chemistry."
The Directors Guild of America just scrapped a new scene coming into focus that would've formally permitted DVD screeners of award contenders to be shipped to its 13,400 members for the first time ever.
But now the guild has announced a formal ban that probably will have the opposite effect of its intention. Many small, artsy films will continue to be cut out of the big awards picture as a result.
Last December the guild OK'd the request of "Babel" and "Dreamgirls" directors to ship DVDs to voters, but then reversed its decision one day later, noting that it was too late in the derby to make such an important decree. Technically, DGA never had a formal policy on the issue, but it didn't need one since marketers hadn't asked to reach its members. A final decision was postponed till this awards season.
"The DGA recognizes that this decision is different from what was stated last year," the guild now says. "However, closer examination of the issue revealed concern among members that films sent out on DVD might have an unfair advantage over films that were not able to be sent out due to limited marketing budgets or other financial considerations."
The Hollywood Reporter added this observation: "A quick check of the town's marketing mavens showed little strong feeling one way or another on the issue. But there was general agreement that the early ruling by the DGA will keep a level playing field for the guild's awards program."
Not true. This new formalized policy is a slap at the noble little art-house movies that most DGA members want to champion. The guild is already famous for preferring bigger, more buzzed-about films when compared to the Academy Awards.
For example, in 2001 the guild snubbed "Gosford Park" by Robert Altman, who was nominated by the Oscars' directors' branch. Instead, DGA nommed Baz Luhrmann's "Moulin Rouge!"
All of these other films were snubbed by DGA, too, but nommed by the Oscars for best director in recent years: "Billy Elliot" (Stephen Daldry), "Talk to Her" (Pedro Almodovar), "City of God" (Fernando Meirelles), "The Cider House Rules" (Lasse Hallstrom) and "Vera Drake" (Mike Leigh). In general, DGA voters preferred more box-office-friendly films.
The reason for the split in taste probably has to do with the accessibility of the smaller flicks to reach DGA voters, which DVD screeners could correct.
A huge percentage of the guild's 13,400 members and award voters live in cities far beyond Hollywood. (Also, they work in television, not film, by the way.) They don't have access to frequent screenings of small films, which are conducted often in Hollywood for the 370 directors who belong to the 5,800-member Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences and decide the Oscar nominees for best director. If AMPAS members miss a screening, they can watch the DVD — and watch it again and again, if they really like the film.
Smaller movies really suffer if they open late in the calendar year when a glut of Oscar contenders compete for attention. Big movies opening this year in late December like Mike Nichol's "Charlie Wilson's War" and Tim Burton's "Sweeney Todd" may not be hurt. They're big and famous enough that DGA members will make an effort to see them.
Our two shrewd Emmymeisters — forums moderators Chris "Boomer" Beachum and Robert "Rob L" Licuria (AwardsHeaven is Rob's personal site) — disagreed with me on who'll win best comedy actor (see their predix HERE; mine HERE), but we all concur on who'll prevail as Emmy's best funny girl: America Ferrera of "Ugly Betty."
Despite a lack of suspense in this category, it's still interesting to read their analysis of the race, which includes detailed scrutiny of the episodes each contender submitted to Emmy judges.
It's also curious to see how they rank the other nominees. Boomer, for example, believes that past champ Felicity Huffman ("Desperate Housewives") is in second place. Rob ranks her in the fifth slot!
BEST COMEDY ACTRESS: BOOMER'S PREDIX
America Ferrera, "Ugly Betty" ("Pilot") Ding-ding-ding, we have a winner! There's barely any need in watching the other tapes. Ferrera is totally charming, funny, endearing and everything else in this premiere episode. She has many memorable moments, especially with the family and with her first days at the magazine. The Golden Globe and SAG wins have virtually nothing to do with what will happen at the Emmys, but in this particular year we will definitely see a three-peat. On top of that, she gets to have way more screen time than all of her competitors. This is an easy call for me.
PERFORMANCE GRADE: 100/100 OTHER INTANGIBLES: 90/100 AVERAGE GRADE: 95/100
Tiny Fey, "30 Rock" ("Up All Night") Well, everybody knows that I absolutely love this show and completely admire Fey's writing, producing and acting on it. It was going to be an uphill struggle anyway, but she did herself no favors by submitting an episode where she feels like a supporting player. Of course, she is witty and funny (as always), but it is simply not enough to finish any better than fifth place. Better luck with both the writing and producing nominations this time!
PERFORMANCE GRADE: 70/100 OTHER INTANGIBLES: 80/100 AVERAGE GRADE: 75/100
Apparently, Tony wasn't bumped off in the last scene of the last episode of "The Sopranos" when the screen went to black. Marc Malkin of E! Online reports that the Emmys will bring back the whole HBO family on Emmy night, adding, "I'm talkin' James Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Lorraine Bracco, Aida Turturro, Michael Imperioli and a whole lot more of the cast." Watch out for "an all-singing, all-dancing gangbuster extravaganza," he adds. HERE IS MARC'S REPORT
Here's proof of how smart our forum posters are here at The Envelope. They offer the best analysis of the impact of today's news about who the TV academy recognizes as producers of Emmy-nominated programs. ATAS has been closely vetting its process of who gets credit and who doesn't, withholding final judgment till just now — that's a month after nominations were announced. Here are the news items in Variety (CLICK HERE) and the Hollywood Reporter (CLICK HERE). Now to get the real upshot, check out commentary in our forums: CLICK HERE.
Two of the fall's biggest movies-turned-stage-musicals — "Young Frankenstein" and "The Little Mermaid" — open in their out-of-town tryouts tonight. Disney's songfest under the sea comes ashore in mile-high Denver, while the monster bash kicks off in Seattle.
Six years ago Mel Brooks & Co. adapted his 1968 Oscar-winning film "The Producers" for the stage and the resulting smash-hit show went on to win a record 12 Tonys. With his own three wins (musical, score, and book), Brooks joined nine other showbiz elite who have won all four major awards.
That 2001 Tony-winning creative team has reunited to transform the laffmeister's 1974 movie about a mad scientist and his singing and dancing creation into another legit tuner. Thomas Meehan worked with Brooks to adapt his and original star Gene Wilder's Oscar-nominated screenplay. Susan Stroman repeats her double duties of helming and choreographing. The design elements are again by Robin Wagner (sets), William Ivey Long (costumes), and Peter Kaczorowski (lighting) while Doug Besterman handled orchestrations.
The collection of talent onstage has been equally honored. Two-time Emmy winner Megan Mullally ("Will & Grace") returns to Broadway after a decade-long absence as Elizabeth (Madeline Kahn in the movie) with Tony winner Roger Bart taking on Wilder's role as the doctor. A trio of other Tony winners co-star: Sutton Foster as the yodeling Inga (originally Teri Garr), Shuler Hensley as the musical Monster (Peter Boyle) and Andrea Martin as horsy housekeeper Frau Blucher (Cloris Leachman).
That's what I insist, anyway, in Susan Wloszczyna's excellent article in USA Today about "Oscar rehab." Now the bad news: Maybe no curse, but "just stars who let greed doom their careers after they win. They suddenly become celebrities chasing big salaries instead of artists chasing great acting roles." READ MORE
Check out the comments section of the blog item below about Harry Shearer never winning an Emmy for his voiceover work on "The Simpsons." There are two responses directly from Harry himself!
"I'm with Hank (Azaria)," he says in one item. "I'm amazed I haven't won an Emmy!"
Secondly — "PS: I don't submit anything for Emmy nominations, but one of the show's producers submits an entry for each cast member each year."
The American Film Institute will announce its eighth annual movie award winners Dec. 16 with the awards ceremony to be held Jan. 11. The AFI, best known for its lifetime achievement award, began these kudos in 2000 and honors 10 films a year.
As a barometer for predicting Oscar nominees, these awards are of some use. In its seven-year history, 26 of the 70 films honored by the AFI went on to be nominated for best picture by the motion picture academy and four won best animated feature.
However, given that the AFI list extends to 10 titles, it is surprising that not more of the eventual best picture nominees made the cut. Only in 2005 did AFI include all five of the nominees in its top 10. And last year's best picture winner, "The Departed," was left off a list that had only three of the eventual contenders.
A jury of 13, including academics, filmmakers, and critics, chooses the honorees. For a look at last year's panel CLICK HERE
The first time Chicago's Steppenwolf Theatre came to Broadway with a play about an Oklahoma family in crisis it won the Tony. That was back in 1990 with the stage adaptation of John Steinbeck's classic novel, "The Grapes of Wrath." Now this Windy City institution, recipient of the 1985 Tony for regional theater, is returning to the Rialto with "August: Osage County" by Tracy Letts.
This three-and-a-half-hour saga about a family coming together when their father goes missing recently opened to rave reviews in Chicago. The entire company of 13, less one teenager staying home for school, begins a 16-week run at the Imperial Theater Oct. 30 with opening night scheduled for Nov. 20.
Actor-turned-playwright Letts is best known for the dark dramas "Bug" and "Killer Joe." A Steppenwolf artistic associate, he was a 2004 Pulitzer Prize finalist for "Man From Nebraska."
"Poor Harry! What a slap in the face!" gasped our forums poster "Turtle" upon hearing the news that the Emmys will snub Harry Shearer again. "Somebody must really hate him!"
When the TV academy announced that it will not bestow any juried awards for voice over work in animation this year, that meant there's no immediate hope to redress one of Emmy's most outrageous snubs.
Often it seems as if everyone who voices a character on "The Simpsons" wins a special juried Emmy (or three like Dan Castellaneta and Hank Azaria). Other recipients: Nancy Cartwright (Bart Simpson), Julie Kavner (Marge, Patty, Selma and Marge's Mother), Jackie Mason (Rabbi Krustofsky), Yeardley Smith (Lisa Simpson) and Marcia Wallace (Mrs. Krabappel).
Everyone, that is, except the person who utters the voices of many of the cartoon series' most popular voices: Montgomery Burns, Smithers, Ned Flanders, Kent Brockman, Rev. Lovejoy, Principal Skinner and Dr. Hibbert.
Shearer even voices GOD! Oh, lordy! Is Ned Flanders aware that the Emmys are stiffin' the Almightly like this?
Some Emmy watchers believe that Shearer's snub is all Mr. Burns' fault — voters may confuse Shearer with that fantastically sinister character he portrays. But Burns isn't totally evil! In the past, he fell in love with Marge Simpson, adopted Bart, got shot by Maggie and revealed his lingering love for Bobo, a teddy bear he gave up as a youngster so he could become rich.
Photo: Poor Harry Shearer is the Susan Lucci of voiceover animation! But in addition to his Emmy-snubbed work on "The Simpsons," he's also starred in feature films like "A Mighty Wind" and "This Is Spinal Tap."
(Fox/ Warner Bros./ Spinal Tap Productions)
Tonight is the Hollywood premiere of "3:10 to Yuma" where my Envelope colleague Elizabeth Snead is chatting with its stars on the red carpet right now. Soon we'll have the video uploaded for ya.
Meantime, Edward Douglas of Comingsoon.net tells Gold Derby, "I think '3:10 to Yuma' stands a good chance to make the Oscars' short list in a couple categories, particularly for writing and directing. Of course, I might still be bitter about James Mangold being shut out for his skillful direction of 'Walk the Line' a few years ago, but I think anyone who sees '3:10' would have a hard time (not recognizing his impressive skill). And the script, which was derived from the original screenplay from the 1957 movie is excellent, maybe the best script since 'Zodiac' . . . really sharp and reverential to the old Westerns without seeming dated. Which I think will go over very well with the WGA and Academy writers.
"I think many of us figured that the release date (Sept. 7) might be problematic and I do think it'll hurt the box office, not only because the weekend after Labor Day is bad, but also because it's facing the much poppier 'Shoot 'Em Up' with Clive Owen. The thing is that as fun as that movie is, '3:10' has the performances across the board to help it win over SAG in the ensemble category and both of us know how that's helped underdog movies at the Oscars. (We both remember how 'Crash,' another Lionsgate release from earlier in the year, wound up taking the big prize a couple years ago.)
Variety's Michael Schneider does an excellent job of describing changes made this year to Emmy voting — CLICK HERE to read his handy-dandy summary.
However, I disagree strongly with Schneider's claim that the voting overhaul is "earning some raves" this summer. Heck, the only rave he quotes is from academy chairman Dick Askin, who instituted the changes. Perhaps there were a few others, but where from? I don't recall. Any utterances of support I may have heard are overwhelmed by the shrieks of disapproval expressed by two top TV network presidents (can't name them because they spoke off the record), journos from Entertainment Weekly (Mark Harris), TV Guide (Matt Roush) and USA Today (Robert Bianco) plus many posters in The Envelope's forums.
Oh, come on! Wasn't it obvious that Ryan Seacrest would be this year's Emmycast host? The telecasting network almost always volunteers one of its shining stars — like NBC appointing Conan O'Brien last year.
But according to the Hollywood Reporter, the choice of Seacrest is surprising and "a somewhat unorthodox pick" since the ceremony "usually is fronted by a comedian."
Sure, comics tend to dominate, like past emcees Ellen DeGeneres, Garry Shandling, Dennis Miller and Paul Reiser. But not always. In fact, exceptions are frequent. Sometimes mere actors are cast in the star Emmy role: like Michael J. Fox, David Hyde Pierce, Patricia Richardson, Jason Alexander and John Larroquette. True, those are comedic actors. But some past hosts have not been, like one of its most successful past ringmasters, Angela Lansbury.
It may have helped that Lansbury was a performer. A few non-actor ringmaster choices like Jane Pauley and Bryant Gumbel turned out to be huge disappointments.
But Seacrest knows how to hold forth from center stage on TV, having proven his skills on the tube's most popular show, "American Idol." Frequently, he's compared to Dick Clark, who, by the way, teamed up with Steve Allen to pull off the most miraculous of all past Emmy gigs: the ceremony boycotted by actors during a strike in 1980. Stand-ins ended up accepting the celebs' awards while the night turned out to be a salute to the tech and crafts folks by default. Somehow, strangely, and defying all odds, the wacky evening actually worked thanks to its deft emcees.
The original "Grease" ran for eight years on Broadway and spawned the most successful movie musical of all time. The newly opened second Rialtorevival cast the two leads via a reality TV show. This publicity generated advance sales hasn't helped cushion the show from the scathing reviews. Neither the 1972 production nor the 1994 revival won any Tonys and that losing streak is unlikely to be broken this time 'round.
David Rooney of Variety says the show, "May well go on to financial success, but, in terms of energy and freshness, it's flat as a pancake. Not that there's anything especially wrong with Max Crumm and Laura Osnes (pictured). They sing confidently, dance capably and both have their own low-key, unaffected charms. But they're unprepossessingly innocuous, which is not a great quality in musical theater leads. What's more, they have less-than-zero sexual connection."
For Ben Brantley of the New York Times, "there's the numbing sense of performers of undeveloped talent conscientiously doing what they have been told to do and failing to claim their parts as their own." He says, "Kathleen Marshall, who so memorably rejuvenated 'The Pajama Game' a year ago, seems principally to get her cast through the show without any of its members embarrassing themselves. They don't, although a truly embarrassing moment or two might at least give this 'Grease' some of the raw life it lacks."
Actually, perhaps we should say another exclusive for The Envelope! Just as we've given you reports all along about the episodes submitted by nominated actors to Emmy judges as examples of their best work (CLICK HERE and HERE), now we give you the list of episodes submitted for comedy and drama series. The only info missing here is how they're grouped. The six episodes submitted by each contender are split into three sets of two episodes distributed randomly to voters. To see what our forum posters think of these choices over all, CLICK HERE!
DRAMA SERIES "Boston Legal" "Lincoln" "On the Ledge" "Angel of Death" "The Good Lawyer" "Son of the Defender" "Trial of the Century"
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