The Academy Crowns The King's Speech Best Picture

I just got home from my parents' house--which, having an HD TV and also a fireplace, was the obvious choice of location for Oscar-watching--and The King's Speech music is still stuck in my head. An unsurprising win, although everyone was pushing for The Social Network. Don't get me wrong. I enjoyed the film and its razor-sharp dialogue (for which it deserved the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar.) When I saw it with my mom, who has never used Facebook, I thought it gave a a perfect portrait of the times and this generation. And, as I realized later, it was surprisingly exciting for a film in which nearly all of the action consists of people sitting around in offices or in front of computers.

But once The King's Speech had won for Best Original Screenplay, Best Actor (yay Colin Firth!), and especially Best Director, it was clearly going home with the Best Picture trophy as well. I mean, they even played the music/speech from the finale of the movie during the nominee montage! And I think I would have been disappointed otherwise. The Social Network is cool, smart, and of-the-moment, but The King's Speech is simply flawless. As much as I love quirky movies, non-linear storytelling and the like, I'm glad Hollywood still honors classic storytelling including great performances and cinematography, as well as a story that is moving and inspiring yet also humorous.

Anyway, I wasn't really rooting for anyone in particular in most of the other categories. I did want Hailee Steinfield to win Best Supporting Actress, but I didn't see The Fighter and Melissa Leo was great, I'm sure. I was amused by how much she seemed to be in shock and even dropped the (censored) f-bomb. James Franco and the always lovely Anne Hathaway did a good job from what I saw--I missed part of the opening performance, which apparently included them dressing in drag. Probably, that was the most daring fashion choice of the night. Where is Lady Gaga when you need her? Just kidding. My one gripe about the broadcast is that I wish Florence Welch's performance could have been longer. I love her voice and music in general. Maybe if the thank-you speeches had been shorter? Ha...we all know that's never going to happen!

Check out all the winners of the 83rd Annual Academy Award winners here.

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's...a stuntman!

I was bored today at work, so I started listening to NPR, and heard a great interview of Hal Needham, "the highest-paid stuntman in Hollywood" (his own words). He's worked in the industry for over forty years, mainly focusing on Westerns. Needham talked about jumping on moving stagecoaches and falling off horses, but I was surprised to learn that one of the most dangerous stunts is being caught in the stirrups and dragged by a horse--Needham said he's always been lucky, but he saw one stuntman killed trying to do it.

Anyway, not a job I could do probably, but at least it doesn't sound boring!

Listen to Needham's interview here.

Oscars!

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen and non-existent subscribers. It's time to begin this cutting-edge blog at long last by announcing some breaking news--the Oscar nominees have been announced! Yes, it all happened the Tuesday before last; and The King's Speech leads the pack with 12 nominations. Remember, you heard it here first at One Hundred Twenty Minutes, always bringing you up-to-the-year coverage of some of the most already-reported happenings in film! Brought to you right from the epicenter of Hollywood movie-watching, my living room! Be sure to tune in daily to 120 Mins--where old news is made new again!

But I digress. The nominees were no surprise for the most part, but I was surprised to realize that I'd actually seen a majority of the films this year. (One of the perks of not being in college at the moment is actually having money and homework-free weekends to waste.)

I've currently seen six of the ten Best Picture nominees:

• The King's Speech
• Inception
• Black Swan
• The Social Network
• True Grit
• Toy Story 3

I still need to watch:

• 127 Hours
• The Fighter
• Winter's Bone
• The Kids Are All Right

At this point, I've honestly enjoyed all of the movies up for Best Picture. Inception's mind-and gravity-bending adventure, The Social Network's quick-witted and pitch-perfect portrayal of the Facebook generation, Toy Story 3's fun yet deeply moving story about growing up...I'd pay to see them again. I relished Black Swan's madness and trippy visuals that blurred the line between reality and hallucination--exactly what I'd expect from one of my favorite directors, Darren Aronofsky. And I can see why The King's Speech has so many nominations. Really, I expected a rather stiff, "serious" film, but was actually quite entertained by the interaction between Prince Albert and the commoner who becomes his speech therapist. I hope Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush both win awards (for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor, respectively). But I'm withholding judgement on which film deserves Best Picture. I plan on watching The Kids Are All Right today, and Winter's Bone should be next in the queue.

What do you guys think? How many of the films up for this year's Academy Awards have you seen? And do you agree with the nominations?