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Academy Awards
Oscar ratings rise, but -- surprise! -- more women watched the Super Bowl
by Joel Keller, posted Feb 24th 2009 2:04PM
Well, it looks like rejiggering the format of the Oscar telecast paid off; ratings for the 81st annual back-patting orgy were up 13% from last year's record-low ratings. Maybe it was the "faster-paced" ceremony, or maybe it was just that there were some intriguing storylines (Slumdog, Heath Ledger, what kind of nutty stuff would Mickey Rourke have said if he won... that kind of stuff). Or it could have been a matter of more people being at home to watch because, uh, they don't have the money to do anything else. But at least the ratings are back to being semi-respectable.
One interesting aspect to these ratings numbers, though, was brought up by Newsday's Neil Best: the total number of female viewers for the Super Bowl (38.3 million) surpassed the entire audience for the Oscars (36.3 million). So, despite the conventional wisdom, it looks like the "Super Bowl for women" is actually... the Super Bowl.
At the very least, the ratings will probably earn Hugh Jackman and producers Bill Condon and Laurence Mark a return engagement. Now if they can just get this thing under three hours, they're all set.
Should the Oscars skip the technical awards?
by Joel Keller, posted Feb 23rd 2009 10:43AM
It's the age-old question that comes up just about every year, but after last night's marathon Oscar ceremony, I need to ask it again: Is it about time for the Academy to award most of the technical prizes (for editing, art, costumes, makeup, visual effects, etc.) either another day or before the televised ceremony starts?The reason why I ask is because of the way the producers formatted the show this year. They did a nice job of grouping those technical awards together, threading them through the life cycle of a film's production. Believe me, it helped; instead of dragging out new presenters for each and every category, one set usually presented a few at a times (poor Will Smith was out there presenting the post-production awards almost as long as host Hugh Jackman was on stage). But somewhere around 10:30, I was still looking at the clock and trying to count how many categories were left.
The Oscars will still involve Ricky Gervais
by Brad Trechak, posted Feb 22nd 2009 1:08PM
Ricky Gervais won't be hosting the Oscars tonight, but he'll be doing the next best thing. It looks like Gervais will be writing some of the jokes to be used by host Hugh Jackman and company. If so, then I draw a few conclusions from this:Tonight's jokes will be swipes at Hollywood and probably the entertainment industry in general. As one can tell from The Office and Extras (and even the BBC article itself), Gervais excels at self-deprecating humor. They will be nasty, but nasty in a funny and cute way that industry insiders and the audience will enjoy. He could even recycle jokes from Extras.
Also, tonight's jokes will be extremely funny if Jackman can deliver them in a Gervais-like style. Hopefully he'll practice them beforehand. I wonder if Stephen Merchant was involved with the joke-writing as well?
If this works out, perhaps he'll accept that offer to host the event next year? Fingers crossed.
Another reason the Oscars will stink this year
by Allison Waldman, posted Feb 13th 2009 6:00PM
A few weeks ago, I shared with you my six reasons the Oscars will probably stink this year. Now I have another reason to add to the list. Peter Gabriel has dropped out of the broadcast in protest. Gabriel, who collaborated with Thomas Newman on the song "Down To Earth" from WALL-E, had been slated to perform the song during the February 22 airing on ABC. However, when the producers told Gabriel that his performance had be compressed to 65 seconds and fit into a medley of all the best song nominations, Peter opted out.
Right now on Cinematical
by Kona Gallagher, posted Feb 1st 2009 3:28PM
The folks at our sister site Cinematical are working hard to give you news and reviews of the best -- and worst -- the silver screen has to offer. Here are some of their musings on the latest blockbusters, indies, and everything in between:- It's super commercial night! There may be some sort of game on in between, but this is the day of sweet new ads. A few have popped up online already: check out the trailers for the Transformers sequel and Star Trek.
- ...And here are the trailers for Land of the Lost, starring Will Ferrell and Pushing Daisies' Anna Friel, Year One, Up, and more.
- "So you're just gonna make SPITE NOISE until the movie ends, huh? Just because I had the ignorance to ask you to stop talking during a movie. And you, the parents, condoning it. Brilliant." --Cinematical's Scott Weinberg did not have a good experience watching The Uninvited.
- I love Jennifer Garner and think she should be in movies all the time (that is, if she doesn't want to make me really happy by returning to television), so it makes me sad that she's doing movies like Ghosts of Girlfriends Past. It... doesn't look good.
- So I'm trying to find someone who would be interested in watching my baby for about 12 hours or so, so I can go to an AMC theater and watch all five Best Picture Oscar nominees. Any takers?
Six reasons the Oscars will probably stink - VIDEO
by Allison Waldman, posted Jan 23rd 2009 10:03AM
Do you remember what film won the Oscar for Best Picture last year? (No Country for Old Men). What about Best Actor and Actress? (Daniel Day-Lewis and Marion Cotillard). If you didn't remember, don't feel bad. You're probably like most people. Most of us weren't watching in 2008. Even though they were celebrating the 80th anniversary of the Academy Awards, it was the lowest rated and least watched telecast ever. As I perused the Academy Award nominations yesterday, I couldn't help but think that this year's broadcast is going to have a hard time drawing a huge TV audience. And considering that the only thing you can usually count on with the Oscars is that they'll run over three hours long, the show will probably leave something to be desired, too.
In fact, here's six reasons the Oscars -- which will be broadcast live on February 22 on ABC -- will probably stink.
Academy Awards to accept movie ads for the first time
by Brad Trechak, posted Jan 19th 2009 5:30PM
Nothing tests ethics like a recession. To prove this, the Academy Awards ceremony broadcast is now accepting spots for films and has cut the price of an advertisement to $1.4 million.I could understand the concern. If someone sees an advertisement for the latest Adam Sandler flick, they could confuse it for an Academy Award nominee. The Academy has put some restrictions on the types of ads that can be used which will hopefully prevent such a mix-up. Sadly, these restrictions have only permitted for one studio advertisement so far: Disney-Pixar's Up.
It does seem a bit of a conflict of interest from getting advertising revenue from organizations to whom you are giving awards. At least Hollywood will not be confused for a society of principle. Studios big and small have always used their bank accounts and marketing campaigns to purchase an Academy Award nomination anyway. This just makes the process more obvious.
How do you feel about watching an Academy Awards broadcast with movie ads?
You have until February 28 to enroll at TCM University
by Bob Sassone, posted Dec 17th 2008 1:01PM
If I were to enroll at TCM University, I think I'd major in film noir.I'll get my chance to enroll at such a school this February, when Turner Classic Movies presents its annual "31 Days of Oscar" film schedule (there aren't 31 days in February - maybe it leaks into March?). This year the festival will be devoted to a "classroom" of 350 different films, hosted by Robert Osborne. Each day Osborne will introduce each movie theme and tell us a little bit about the theme and the movies.
The "courses" include Mass Media, Nuclear Physics, Farm Planning and Management, Military Law, Reproductive Biology, and other courses that will be represented by classic Oscar-winning movies, from My Fair Lady and The China Syndrome to Hannah and Her Sisters and The Caine Mutiny. Other movies will include Network, Yankee Doodle Dandy, Casablanca, Poltergeist, and The Great Escape.
They should hold classes in Space Exploration and Technology and show Plan 9 From Outer Space.
Are you ready for a singing and dancing Hugh Jackman on Oscar night? - VIDEO
by Mike Moody, posted Dec 12th 2008 5:05PM
At the very least, this sounds more promising than an awards show hosted by reality TV stars.Hugh Jackman, probably the only Tony Award-winner to be named People's "Sexiest Man Alive," will host this year's Academy Awards ceremony. Yep, it's an odd pick. The last few Oscar night hosts have been comedians (Jon Stewart, Ellen DeGeneres, Chris Rock), but something tells me this broadcast will be the funniest in years.
Why? Because Hugh Jackman likes to sing. And dance. And he usually looks pretty silly when he does those things at the same time, like in that episode of Viva Laughlin.
Ricky Gervais won't host the Oscars
by Bob Sassone, posted Oct 21st 2008 3:20PM
Remember when we all watched the Emmy Awards several weeks ago and wondered why they didn't just have Ricky Gervais host the damn thing since we all agree that getting five reality show hosts to host it was a pretty bad idea? Well, Gervais has actually been approached to host another awards show, The Oscars, but he has turned it down.Gervais tells BBC News that his agent has been approached about him hosting the telecast but that he would be too scared to do it. Besides, they would probably want him to stick to a script and not let him adlib as much as he would like to.
Obama's speech shatters Nielsen ratings
by Allison Waldman, posted Aug 29th 2008 3:38PM
The reviews from the political talking heads -- right and left -- have been mostly positive. The visuals were spectacular and riveting. History was made at Mile High Stadium in Denver last night when Senator Barack Obama accepted the nomination of the Democratic party as the first African-American presidential candidate. There were 80,000 people packed in the stadium, and now Nielsen has determined that 38 million people tuned in to watch on TV.
How impressive is that number? It's more than the opening ceremonies from the Beijing Olympics. It's also more than the 2008 Oscars and the finale of Fox's American Idol.
The networks cleared just one hour of prime time -- from 10-11 ET -- and the Democratic organizers made sure to present Obama's speech right in that slot, not drifting into the local late news.
Is Justin Timberlake the right star to host the Oscars?
by Allison Waldman, posted Aug 3rd 2008 3:05PM
He's no Johnny Carson or Bob Hope or Billy Crystal, but pop star and former boy band fave Justin Timberlake could be the next star to host the Academy Awards. The Oscars are still months away, but the Academy is already contemplating a way to make the show more Nielsen worthy. Last February's show, hosted by The Daily Show's Jon Stewart (he also hosted in 2006), celebrated the 80th anniversary of the Oscars but was a ratings dud. It was the worst Oscars ever, in terms of Nielsen ratings, even though it had a 21.9 rating and 33 share.
Many people blame those dismal numbers on a disinterest among viewers in the films that were in contention last year, including heavy dramas No Country for Old Men, There Will Be Blood, Michael Clayton, which seemed to have little appeal to mass audiences.
Golden Globes date set early
by Brad Trechak, posted Apr 24th 2008 10:09AM
The Golden Globes will be returning in 2009, on January 11th to be precise. This was announced by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association this past Tuesday. Nominees will be announced on December 11, 2008. It will be broadcast by NBC from the Beverly Hilton.The awards show used to be shown in late January, but after the rescheduling of the Academy Awards in 2004, the date was bumped up to compensate. The Golden Globes are not expect to affect the Academy Awards outcome since the judges for the Oscars are to have mailed in their ballots by the time the Golden Globes are broadcast.
Having adopted a "magazine" format to the 2008 show due to the WGA Strike, the show suffered a serious drop in ratings. They couldn't even have a red carpet event before the show to put the celebrities on display. Most likely, the 2009 broadcast will return to the traditional format and a bump in the ratings.
Oscars a flop in Nielsens and that's not all
by Allison Waldman, posted Feb 25th 2008 8:42PM
Oscar turned 80 last night. For eight decades, Hollywood has been handing out gold statuettes for the best in motion picture arts and sciences. Sadly, last night's show will not have to worry about winning an Emmy. Not only was the show pedestrian, long and uninspired, it was also a bomb in the Nielsen overnight ratings. In fact, it was historically disappointing: averaging just 32 million viewers to become the least watched Oscar telecast ever! EVER, people!Of course, if you're worried that with ratings so bad, some day the Academy Awards won't be broadcast -- don't. The Oscars, like the Super Bowl, make a fortune for the network broadcasting it. ABC made an average of $1.8 million for each 30-second spot.
Will the Kimmel/Affleck video debut after the Oscars? - VIDEO
by Bob Sassone, posted Feb 21st 2008 4:19PM
Brad told you recently about the video that ABC late show host Jimmy Kimmel has prepared to answer girlfriend Sarah Silverman's "I'm F**king Matt Damon" song that she unveiled on his show a few weeks ago. Now comes word that the answer video might debut on Kimmel's post-Oscars telecast this Sunday night.
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