gARTh's 2010 Movie Awards

WINNERS: 2010

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Beginning in 2008, the winners were chosen by user voting via Myspace and Facebook, with the exception of in a few categories added later. These are marked with an *.

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Film:

The Social Network

Director:

David Fincher - The Social Network

Actor:

Colin Firth - The King's Speech

Actress:

Natalie Portman - Black Swan

Supporting Actor:

Christian Bale - The Fighter

Supporting Actress:

Melissa Leo - The Fighter

Adapted Screenplay:

Aaron Sorkin - The Social Network

Original Screenplay:

Christopher Nolan - Inception

Editing:

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Cinematography:

Inception

Stuntwork:

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Art Direction:

Inception

Costume Design:

Black Swan

Make-Up:

The Wolfman

Visual Effects:

Inception

Sound Mixing:

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Music - Original Score:

Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross - The Social Network

Music - Original Song:

A.R. Rahman & Dido - "If I Rise" - 127 Hours

Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Feature:

Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross (Edvard Grieg) - "In the Hall of the Mountain King" - The Social Network

Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Trailer:

Johnny Cash - "God's Gonna Cut You Down" - True Grit

Animated Feature Film:

Toy Story 3

Documentary Feature Film:

Waiting for "Superman"

Foreign Language Film:

Enter the Void - France

Animated Performance:

Ned Beatty - Toy Story 3

Villainous Performance:

Mark Strong - Kick-Ass

Comedic Performance:

Steve Carell - Dinner for Schmucks

Cameo / Bit-Part Performance:

Crispin Glover - Hot Tub Time Machine

Breakthrough Performance:

Hailee Steinfeld - True Grit

Breakthrough Filmmaker:

Joseph Kosinski - TRON: Legacy

Cast:

The Social Network

Scene:

Inception - Arthur (Joseph-Gordon Levitt) fights a projection while losing gravity in the hotel hallway.

Quote:

The Social Network - "I think if your clients want to sit on my shoulders and call themselves tall, they have the right to give it a try, but there's no requirement that I enjoy sitting here listening to people lie. You have part of my attention, you have the minimum amount. The rest of my attention is back at the offices of Facebook, where my colleagues and I are doing things that no one in this room, including and especially your clients, are intellectually or creatively capable of doing. Did I adequately answer your condescending question?"

Tagline:

The Social Network - "You don't get to 500 million friends without making a few enemies."

Poster Art: (select link to view)

Inception (One Sheet  12)

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*Most Underrated Film:

Films that did not receive a wide release, were unsuccessful at the box office, were not nominated for any major awards or receive acclaim at any major film festivals, and were generally unknown to most audiences at the time of their release... but were well-liked by most critics and audiences that did happen to see them.

Leaves of Grass - Written and Directed by Tim Blake Nelson.

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Special Achievement Award:

Chloë Grace Moretz (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Kick-Ass, and Let Me In)

At 13 years old, Chloë Moretz is set to take Hollywood by storm as only a handful of young actresses before her have been able to do. Drew Barrymore, Anna Paquin, Natalie Portman, Dakota Fanning... the list of recent female child stars able to make the transition into mature roles isn't very long. Already, Moretz has shown the world acting abilities far beyond her years, and her choice of roles reflects a desire to be taken seriously. She's not just another cute-faced kid. She's a smartass middle-schooler with an interesting eye on what's what and who's who in Diary of a Wimpy Kid. She's a lethal assassin in a purple wig Hell-bent on tearing down a druglord's empire with a tongue as sharp as the knives she wields in Kick-Ass. She's a lonely vampire trying to survive in a cold, modern world who makes friends with a bullied boy she feels a strange kinship with in Let Me In.

As supporting character Angie Steadman in Thor Freudenthal's adaptation of the acclaimed novel Diary of a Wimpy Kid, she acts as guide to sixth grader Greg and his nerdy best friend Rowley, giving them lessons on the inner-workings of middle school. While she's not the center of the film, Angie is always around and always a part of Greg and Rowley's lives, and Moretz injects an energy and playfulness so that Angie doesn't come across as too weird or too smart, just smart and weird enough. Diary of a Wimpy Kid, which only cost $15 million to make, made over $75 million at the box office, (The sequel will be released March 25, 2011, although Moretz is not attached).

As Hit-Girl in Matthew Vaughn's adaptation of the Mark Millar and John Romita, Jr. graphically violent graphic novel Kick-Ass, Moretz trained with martial arts legend Jackie Chan's stunt crew for three months, and performed almost all of her acrobatic stunts on location. Besides the action, stunts, and foul-mouthed humor that's delivered with a quick acid-tongue, Moretz brings a sense of sadness and brevity when the action slows adding a dimension of realism and consequence that enhances not only her performance but the entire film, as well. Made for $28 million (raised by director Matthew Vaughn himself due to the Studio's hesitancy over the violence and language of the film... he later sold it to Universal, one of the Studio's that had originally turned him down), Kick-Ass earned $96 million at the box office and instant 'cult movie' status. The sequel, Kick-Ass 2: Balls to the Wall has been announced, with all (surviving) cast and crew returning, to be released in 2012.

And, as Abby in Let Me In, Matt Reeves' adaptation of the novel Let the Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvis and the 2008 Swedish film of the same name directed by Tomas Alfredson, Moretz adds a spin to the role originated by Swedish actress Lina Leandersson so as to make it her own. The reserved, quiet subtleties and nuances of the character remain intact, but Moretz seems more inviting and accessible, more rewarding with what she gives her audience in her performance, and that small tonal change makes all the difference in the American version. Moretz plays the role phenomenally, bringing a wisdom beyond her years that can be read in her eyes and the sense of primal ferocity lying just beyond the reach of light.

While the movie wasn't a huge box office success (cost $20 million, made only $21 million) it was universally acclaimed by critics and audiences everywhere with review aggregate Rotten Tomatoes giving the consensus that it's "similar to the original in all the right ways, but with enough changes to stand on its own, Let Me In is the rare Hollywood remake that doesn't add insult to inspiration," and leading the novel's author (and writer of the screenplay to the Swedish film) Lindqvis to issue this statement about the film: "I might just be the luckiest writer alive. To have not only one, but two excellent versions of my debut novel done for the screen feels unreal. Let The Right One In is a great Swedish movie. Let Me In is a great American movie. There are notable similarities and the spirit of Tomas Alfredson is present. But Let Me In puts the emotional pressure in different places and stands firmly on its own legs. Like the Swedish movie it made me cry, but not at the same points. Let Me In is a dark and violent love story, a beautiful piece of cinema and a respectful rendering of my novel for which I am grateful. Again." Finally, acclaimed horror author Stephen King said of the film, "Let Me In is a genre-busting triumph. Not just a horror film, but the best American horror film in the last 20 years."

For her performances in Kick-Ass and Let Me In Chloë Moretz has received two Critics Choice Award nominations for Best Young Actress (alongside Let Me In co-star Kodi Smit-McPhee), was nominated for the Female Breakout Award at the Teen Choice Awards for her role in Kick-Ass, and was nominated for Best Fantasy Film Actress, Best Superhero, and won the award for Best Breakthrough Female Performance at the 2010 Scream Awards, also for her role in Kick-Ass.

Besides Kick-Ass 2: Balls to the Wall in 2012, Chloë Moretz can soon be seen in Ami Mann's dark murder mystery set in the Texan bayou The Fields also starring Sam Worthington and Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and as a part of the ensemble cast, including Jude Law, Ben Kingsley, Sascha Baron Cohen and Christopher Lee, of Martin Scorsese's family adventure Hugo Cabret to be released in 3D Fall 2011.

gARTh's 2009 Movie Awards

WINNERS: 2009

: : - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - : :

Beginning in 2008, the winners were chosen by user voting via Myspace and Facebook, with the exception of in a few categories added later. These are marked with an *.

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Film:
Avatar

Director:
Kathryn Bigelow - The Hurt Locker

Actor:
Jeff Bridges - Crazy Heart

Actress:
Meryl Streep - Julie & Julia

Supporting Actor:
Christoph Waltz - Inglourious Basterds

Supporting Actress:
Mo'Nique - Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire

Adapted Screenplay:
Jason Reitman & Sheldon Turner - Up in the Air

Original Screenplay:
Quentin Tarantino - Inglourious Basterds

Editing:
District 9

Cinematography:
Avatar

Stuntwork:
Sherlock Holmes

Art Direction:
Avatar

Costume Design:
Watchmen

Make-Up:
Star Trek

Visual Effects:
Avatar

Sound Mixing:
Avatar

Music - Original Score:
Michael Giacchino - Up

Music - Original Song:
Karen O and the Kids - "All Is Love" - Where the Wild Things Are

Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Feature:
Metallica - "For Whom the Bell Tolls" - Zombieland

Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Trailer:
Nine Inch Nails - "The Day the World Went Away" - Terminator: Salvation

Animated Feature Film:
Up

Documentary Feature Film:
The Cove

Foreign Language Film:
The White Ribbon (Das weisse Band - Eine deutsche Kindergeschichte) - Germany

Animated Performance:
Ed Asner - Up

Villainous Performance:
Christoph Waltz - Inglourious Basterds

Comedic Performance:
Zach Galifanakis - The Hangover

Cameo / Bit-Part Performance:
Bill Murray - Zombieland

Breakthrough Performance:
Sharlto Copley - District 9

Breakthrough Filmmaker:
Neill Blomkamp - District 9

Cast:
Inglourious Basterds

Scene:
Inglourious Basterds - Col. Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz) visits the farm of Perrier LaPadite (Denis Menochet).

Quote:
(500) Days of Summer - "I don't know how to tell you this, but... there's a Chinese family in our bathroom."

Tagline:
The Men Who Stare at Goats - "No goats. No glory."

Poster Art: (select link to view)
A Christmas Carol (One Sheet 6)

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*Most Underrated Film:

Films that did not receive a wide release, were unsuccessful at the box office, were not nominated for any major awards or receive acclaim at any major film festivals, and were generally unknown to most audiences at the time of their release... but were well-liked by most critics and audiences that did happen to see them.

The Brothers Bloom - Written and Directed by Rian Johnson.

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Special Achievement Award:

James Cameron's Avatar

The idea, in some form or other, for the groundbreaking film Avatar lay dormant inside the head of director James Cameron since he was a child. In 1994 he wrote a treatment, outlying a basic story and characters. After his Oscar-winning 1997 feature Titanic, work was begun on Avatar for a 1999 release. Quickly, the director realized that the technology in which he wanted to create the world of Pandora and its inhabitants simply did not exist, and he spent the next decade helping to create that technology. From new techniques to better capture an actor's expression through "mo-cap," to creating new cameras that would yield more depth and higher resolutions than ever before, not to mention his work with digital 3D and the numerous computer effects leaps his Digital Domain effects house, among others, have made, Cameron was on his way to not only realizing his vision for a science-fiction epic, but changing the way films are made in Hollywood. If you doubt that the film's impact is that far-reaching, know that many of these technologies have been in practice for years by other filmmakers, effects houses, etc. as they've been developed. But only Avatar would show just how far the imagination-envelope could be pushed, and how beautifully realized it could be.

Production began in 2006, (although by this time much had already been filmed), with principle actors filming in New Zealand and around Los Angeles. Relatively unknown actors Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana, whose film credits had not been star-making at this point, were cast as the leads. Supporting them would be stars Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Rodriguez, Giovanni Ribisi, Wes Studi, Stephen Lang and C.C.H. Pounder among others, with literally thousands of people working on the production. Almost four grueling years later, the film was ready to be unveiled. An epic science-fiction-action-romance that would blow all the competition away.

While the film will be most remembered for its game-changing visuals, the effects are not the only thing to be praised here. The plot, while some may find it contrived and simplistic, is actually a multi-layered story about a vast number of things presented as a timeless tale of boy-meets-girl. The most obvious is the story on the surface, of the grim machine-filled world of man invading the peaceful natural world of the Na'vi tribe. But there's more to it than that, if one were so inclined to look deeper; for example, the allusions to Hinduism, where the term 'avatar' originated. James Cameron and Dr. Paul Frommer, linguist and Director of the Center for Management Communications at USC, developed around 1,000 words of the Na'vi language, some based on pronunciations found in Ethiopia or the in New Zealand Maori, others created out of thin air. The actors in turn had to learn to speak, convincingly, a fictitious language. Then there's Pandora itself. Not just a backdrop, but a full ecological system, inhabited by creatures, plant life, and the jokingly-named element "unobtanium" that causes all the fuss in the first place. All of these things don't just make for an entertaining film, they are all linked by the fact that they were developed, down to the last detail, to fully immerse the viewer into another world. Pandora is now a real place, just as much as Tolkien's Middle-Earth, with its own past, present, and future.

The actors are as much to praise as Cameron, for it is their brave performances that help audiences connect with a film inhabited by mostly computer generated characters, creatures, and environments. Sam Worthington's dual turn as the wheel-chair bound soldier Jake and his avatar-likeness truly holds Cameron's story on its shoulders. Zoe Saldana turns in an equally important turn as the Na'vi princess Neytiri. Without her performance shining above and beyond the technology that provides the visual, audiences would not feel her pain for her people and be swept away by her growing feelings for Jake. It is a testament to these two above all others that Cameron's vision was such a success. Also of note is the sweeping dramatic score by veteran composer James Horner (honored for his work on Cameron's Titanic and Aliens), who brings a sense of hope in the face of doom, splendor in the face of devastation, and love in the face of war.

James Cameron has always been the sort of director that delivers entertaining films. They always push the limits of what a film can do, technologically and otherwise. However, for the first time, there's an actual message beneath the action and behind the beauty. So, for all it's technological breakthroughs and visual wonders, for all its adrenaline-pumping and awe-inspiring spectacle, Avatar becomes a full-on experience by being somewhat important, as well. Something that, after the lights have come up and you find yourself at home in your life, you can take with you.

gARTh's 2008 Movie Awards

WINNERS: 2008

: : - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - : :

Beginning in 2008, the winners were chosen by user voting via Myspace and Facebook, with the exception of in a few categories added later. These are marked with an *.

: : - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - : :

Film:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Director:
Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire

Actor:
Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler

Actress:
Angelina Jolie - Changeling

Supporting Actor:
Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight

Supporting Actress:
Kate Winslet - The Reader

Adapted Screenplay:
Eric Roth - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Original Screenplay:
Martin McDonagh - In Bruges

Editing:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Cinematography:
The Dark Knight

Stuntwork:
The Dark Knight

Art Direction:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Costume Design:
The Fall

Make-Up:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Visual Effects:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Sound:
Cloverfield

Music - Original Score:
A.R. Rahman - Slumdog Millionaire

Music - Original Song:
Jack White and Alicia Keys - "Another Way To Die" - Quantum of Solace

*Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Feature:
Flo Rida & T-Pain - "Low" - Tropic Thunder

*Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Trailer:
M.I.A. - "Paper Planes" - Pineapple Express

Animated Feature Film:
WALL-E

Documentary Feature Film:
Man On Wire

Foreign Language Film:
Let the Right One In (Låt den rätte komma in) - Sweden

*Animated Performance:
Jim Carrey - Horton Hears a Who!

Villainous Performance:
Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight

Comedic Performance:
Robert Downey, Jr. - Tropic Thunder

Cameo / Bit-Part Performance:
Tom Cruise - Tropic Thunder

Breakthrough Performance:
Bobb'e J. Thompson - Role Models

Breakthrough Filmmaker:
Martin McDonagh - In Bruges

Cast:
Tropic Thunder

*Scene:
The Dark Knight - The Joker (Heath Ledger) and his accomplices pull off a bank heist.

Quote:
Tropic Thunder - "First, take a big step back... and literally, FUCK YOUR OWN FACE! I don't know what kind of pan-Pacific bullshit power play you're trying to pull here, but Asia, Jack, is <i>my</i> territory. So whatever you're thinking, you'd better think again! Otherwise I'm gonna have to head down there and I will rain down in a Godly fucking firestorm upon you! You're gonna have to call the fucking United Nations and get a fucking binding resolution to keep me from fucking destroying you. I'm talking about a scorched Earth, motherfucker! I will massacre you! I will FUCK YOU UP!"

*Tagline:
The Dark Knight - "Why so serious?"

Poster Art: (select link to view)
The Dark Knight (One Sheet 4)

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*Most Underrated Film:

Films that did not receive a wide release, were unsuccessful at the box office, were not nominated for any major awards or receive acclaim at any major film festivals, and were generally unknown to most audiences at the time of their release... but were well-liked by most critics and audiences that did happen to see them.

Transsiberian - Directed by Brad Anderson. Written by Brad Anderson and Will Conroy.

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Special Achievement Award:

Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight

Ever since his mainstream breakthrough in 2000 with the film Memento, director Christopher Nolan has only gotten better at enveloping audiences in his vision. From his Alaskan take on the Skjoldbjærg cult classic Insomnia in 2002, to his first voyage into Gotham with Batman Begins in 2005, and then developing a world of mystery, magic, and thrills with The Prestige in 2006, he has taken what he's learned prior and expanded on it considerably. Therefore, it was no surprise that The Dark Knight was more than just another sequel, more than just another comicbook adaptation, and more than just another summer action film. The Dark Knight, as the late Heath Ledger explains in the film, "...has changed things."

Currently resting as the second-highest grossing film of all time at almost a billion dollars in world-wide box office receipts (in the middle of an economic recession), the film will be studied from here on out as an expertly executed masterpiece. Just as Jonathan Demme's Silence of the Lambs and David Fincher's Se7en changed the way thrillers are viewed by audiences and created by filmmakers in the years after their respective releases, so will Nolan's directing choices be analyzed in the years to come. Nolan's solid directing is just the beginning, however, of The Dark Knight's ingenuity. Cinematographer Wally Pfiste's breakthrough use of IMAX film technology in all of the major action set pieces, to enhance the scope and create the largest possible viewing canvas, has already opened the door for Hollywood to use this technology in ways they'd never dreamed. Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard's breathtakingly subtle score embeds a sense of threatening madness and underlying bravery into the scenes instead of the standard pumping action cues, therefore adding to the suspense of The Joker's threat, the sadness of Harvey Dent's loss, and the monumental sacrifices our hero must make to ensure the betterment of the city and people he loves. Even the story and character development as written by screenwriters Jonathan and Christopher Nolan defy mainstream conventions, by having the hero take a backseat to what should be the supporting characters throughout the bulk of the film. With this, Nolan says to his audience that Bruce Wayne and his alter-ego Batman are not, in fact, the only story to be told here in Gotham City; his fate is intertwined with that of the city and the array of interesting characters that populate it. The continuing themes of whether or not Batman can, and more importantly why he should, continue to do what he does leaves the audience in the end with a greater sense of what it actually means to be a hero than any superhero film before it.

With outstanding performances by Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, and Gary Oldman, and supporting performances by Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Eric Roberts, Chin Han, Anthony Michael Hall, Joshua Harto, and Colin McFarlane, the film shines scene-to-scene with powerful emotion and intelligent dialogue. Heath Ledger's legendary performance as The Joker stands as a testament to the amount of dedication all those involved put into this film, and Aaron Eckhart's wonderfully powerful journey of a man of duty and honor's fall from grace as a result of tragedy will remain just as poignant ten or twenty years from now as it is in 2008.

Before the film's opening, the groundbreaking viral marketing campaign developed by 42 Entertainment brought fans into the world of Gotham City and let them participate in the story leading up to the film. Whether it was having an army of fans dressed as The Joker's minions search through cities around the country for clues or actively voting in the election for Gotham's new District Attorney Harvey Dent, fans were able to unlock trailers, images from the film, or more viral marketing websites with details bridging the gap between Batman Begins and The Dark Knight.

With The Dark Knight, director Christopher Nolan and his wonderful cast and crew have proven that superheroes are more than just a pop-culture phenomena and that films based on comicbooks can be both entertainment and artform, both of the highest caliber. Of all the films of 2008, this will be the one that will be remembered not only for its mass appeal as a landmark in entertainment that broke box-office records, but for its accomplishments along the way that progressed the film industry as a whole even further into the new millennium.

gARTh's 2007 Movie Awards

WINNERS: 2007

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Film:
Atonement

Director:
Ethan Coen & Joel Coen - No Country for Old Men

Actor:
Daniel Day-Lewis - There Will Be Blood

Actress:
Marion Cotillard - La Vie en Rose

Supporting Actor:
Javier Bardem - No Country for Old Men

Supporting Actress:
Cate Blanchett - I'm Not There

Adapted Screenplay:
Ethan Coen & Joel Coen - No Country for Old Men

Original Screenplay:
Diablo Cody - Juno

Editing:
Zodiac

Cinematography:
The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford

Stuntwork:
The Bourne Ultimatum

Art Direction:
Atonement

Costume Design:
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Make-Up:
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Visual Effects:
300

Sound Mixing:
Transformers

Music - Original Score:
Dario Marianelli - Atonement

Music - Original Song:
Glen Hansard & Markéta Irglová - "Falling Slowly" - Once

Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Feature:
Jason Freeman & Samuel L. Jackson (Traditional) - "Black Snake Moan" - Black Snake Moan

Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Trailer:
Nine Inch Nails - "Just Like You Imagined" - 300

Animated Feature Film:
The Simpsons Movie

Documentary Feature Film:
No End in Sight

Foreign Language Film:
Black Book (Zwartboek) - Netherlands

Animated Performance:
Ray Winstone - Beowulf

Villainous Performance:
Javier Bardem - No Country for Old Men

Comedic Performance:
John C. Reilly - Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story

Cameo / Bit-Part Performance:
Tom Hanks- The Simpson's Movie

Breakthrough Performance:
Sam Riley - Control

Breakthrough Filmmaker:
Anton Corbijn - Control

Cast:
Zodiac

Scene:
Grindhouse - Zoë (Zoë Bell) hangs off the hood of a full-speed Dodge Challenger as Stuntman Mike (Kurt Russell) goes in for the kill.

Quote:
300 - "Spartans! Ready your breakfast and eat hearty... For tonight, we dine in hell! "

Tagline:
The Simpsons Movie - "For years, lines have been drawn...and then colored in yellow."

Poster Art: (select link to view)
Grindhouse (One Sheet 3)

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Most Underrated Film:

Films that did not receive a wide release, were unsuccessful at the box office, were not nominated for any major awards or receive acclaim at any major film festivals, and were generally unknown to most audiences at the time of their release... but were well-liked by most critics and audiences that did happen to see them.

Trick 'r Treat - Written and Directed by Michael Dougherty.

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Special Achievement Award:

Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino's Grindhouse (Shared with Eli Roth, Edgar Wright and Rob Zombie)

Prior to 2008, I didn't write long-winded reasons why the film or person(s) won, but briefly:

If there's anyone in Hollywood that truly understands the horror genre, and all the exploitative, over-the-top excess and tomfoolery that comes with it, it's Tarantino and Rodriguez. Together with fellow horror-buffs Roth, Wright and Zombie they created a cinematic masterpiece out of a late-night schlock drive-in picture. With tongue firmly planted in cheek they delivered what few in Hollywood can anymore, a full-on theatrical experience. From the opening Machete trailer, to the ridiculous mayhem of Planet Terror, through the vintage intermission and the trailers for Don't, Thanksgiving, and Werewolf Women of the S.S. (that I hope will one day grace a screen near me as feature films, themselves), and straight into Death Proof (featuring a long-awaited return to form from genre-badass Kurt Russell), the entire Grindhouse experience brought horror fans what they wanted, what they craved, and despite its poor box office returns, was heralded by any and all who saw it as one of the best films of 2007. (Not bad for something that 20 years ago would have been relegated to VHS and USA Up All Night). People tend to throw around the phrase "An instant Cult Classic" a little loosely these days, but for once the phrase is dead-on accurate.

gARTh's 2006 Movie Awards

WINNERS: 2006

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Film:
Pan's Labyrinth (El laberinto del fauno)

Director:
Martin Scorsese - The Departed

Actor:
Forrest Whitaker - The Last King of Scotland

Actress:
Helen Mirren - The Queen

Supporting Actor:
Djimon Hounsou - Blood Diamond

Supporting Actress:
Rinko Kikuchi - Babel

Adapted Screenplay:
William Monahan - The Departed

Original Screenplay:
Rian Johnson - Brick

Editing:
The Departed

Cinematography:
Children of Men

Stuntwork:
Casino Royale

Art Direction:
Pan's Labyrinth (El laberinto del fauno)

Costume Design:
Marie Antoinette

Make-Up:
Pan's Labyrinth (El laberinto del fauno)

Visual Effects:
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

Sound Mixing:
Letters from Iwo Jima

Music - Original Score:
David Julyan - The Prestige

Music - Original Song:
Jack Black, Kyle Gass and Dave Grohl - "Beelzeboss (The Final Showdown)" - Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny

Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Feature:
Dropkick Murphys - "I'm Shipping Up to Boston" - The Departed

Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Trailer:
Sufjan Stevens - "Chicago" - Little Miss Sunshine

Animated Feature Film:
Over the Hedge

Documentary Feature Film:
An Inconvenient Truth

Foreign Language Film:
Pan's Labyrinth (El laberinto del fauno) - Mexico

Animated Performance:
Steve Buscemi - Monster House

Villainous Performance:
Mads Mikkelsen - Casino Royale

Comedic Performance:
Sacha Baron Cohen - Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

Cameo / Bit-Part Performance:
Tim Robbins - Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny

Breakthrough Performance:
Jennifer Hudson - Dreamgirls

Breakthrough Filmmaker:
Rian Johnson - Brick

Cast:
The Departed

Scene:
Azumi - Azumi (Aya Ueto) storms Kato's (Naoto Takenaka) compound.

Quote:
V for Vendetta - "Voilà! In view, a humble vaudevillian veteran, cast vicariously as both victim and villain by the vicissitudes of Fate. This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is a vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished. However, this valorous visitation of a by-gone vexation, stands vivified and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin van-guarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition. The only verdict is vengeance; a vendetta, held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous. Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose, so let me simply add that it's my very good honor to meet you... and you may call me V."

Tagline:
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby - "The story of a man who could only count to #1."

Poster Art: (select link to view)
V for Vendetta (One Sheet 2)

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Most Underrated Film:

Films that did not receive a wide release, were unsuccessful at the box office, were not nominated for any major awards or receive acclaim at any major film festivals, and were generally unknown to most audiences at the time of their release... but were well-liked by most critics and audiences that did happen to see them.

Factotum - Directed by Bent Hamer. Written by Bent Hamer and Jim Stark. Based on the novel by Charles Bukowski.

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Special Achievement Award:

Leonardo DiCaprio (Blood Diamond and The Departed)

Prior to 2008, I didn't write long-winded reasons why the film or person(s) won, but briefly:

Leonardo DiCaprio had already established himself as a bonafide actor, creating celebrated and memorable performances in What's Eating Gilbert Grape, The Basketball Diaries, Catch Me If You Can, The Aviator and Gangs of New York, but it wasn't until 2006 that he was able to pull off (arguably) his two best career performances to date... both in the same year. This feat is not unprecedented, De Niro made both Heat and Casino in 1995, Pacino both Glengarry Glen Ross and Scent of a Woman in 1992,  Gary Oldman both Leon: The Professional and Immortal Beloved in 1994, Meryl Streep both The Hours and Adaptation. in 2002, and the list goes on and on. There are many, however, that wouldn't normally place DiCaprio, aged 32 in 2006, on a list with those actors. But his performances in both Blood Diamond and The Departed were two of the most noteworthy of the year. He was praised for his authentic South African Afrikaner accent in Blood Diamond, known to be a difficult accent to pull off, and his performance in The Departed was show-stealing (considering he was acting opposite Jack Nicholson and Martin Sheen for most of the film, and considering the diverse and accomplished ensemble cast of the film, that's saying something), and is in my opinion his best to date.

gARTh's 2005 Movie Awards

WINNERS: 2005

: : - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - : :

Film:
King Kong

Director:
Ang Lee - Brokeback Mountain

Actor:
Phillip Seymour Hoffman - Capote

Actress:
Felicity Huffman - Transamerica

Supporting Actor:
Mickey Rourke - Sin City

Supporting Actress:
Rachel Weisz - The Constant Gardener

Adapted Screenplay:
Jeffrey Caine - The Constant Gardener

Original Screenplay:
George Clooney & Grant Heslov - Good Night, and Good Luck

Editing:
Crash

Cinematography:
The New World

Stuntwork:
The Protector (Tom yum goong)

Art Direction:
King Kong

Costume Design:
Memoirs of a Geisha

Make-Up:
King Kong

Visual Effects:
King Kong

Sound Mixing:
King Kong

Music - Original Score:
John Williams - Munich

Music - Original Song:
Al Kapone & Terrence Howard - "Hustle and Flow (It Ain't Over)" - Hustle & Flow

Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Feature:
James Brown - "Get Up Offa That Thing" - Robots

Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Trailer:
The Servant - "Cells" - Sin City

Animated Feature Film:
Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit

Documentary Feature Film:
Murderball

Foreign Language Film:
Paradise Now - Palestine

Animated Performance:
Andy Serkis - King Kong

Villainous Performance:
Ralph Fiennes - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Comedic Performance:
Steve Carell - The 40-Year-Old Virgin

Cameo / Bit-Part Performance:
Will Ferrell - Wedding Crashers

Breakthrough Performance:
Q'orianka Kilcher - The New World

Breakthrough Filmmaker:
Garth Jennings - The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Cast:
Batman Begins

Scene:
Sin City - Dwight (Clive Owen) races toward The Pits with the corpse of Jackie Boy (Benicio Del Toro) keeping him company.

Quote:
Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang - "Thanks for coming, please stay for the end credits. If you're wondering who the best boy is, it's somebody's nephew. Don't forget to validate your parking, and to all you good people in the Midwest, sorry we said 'fuck' so much."

Tagline:
Jarhead - "Welcome to the suck."

Poster Art: (select link to view)
Walk the Line (Teaser)

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Most Underrated Film:

Films that did not receive a wide release, were unsuccessful at the box office, were not nominated for any major awards or receive acclaim at any major film festivals, and were generally unknown to most audiences at the time of their release... but were well-liked by most critics and audiences that did happen to see them.

Everything Is Illuminated - Written and Directed by Liev Schreiber. Based on the novel by Jonathan Safran Foer.

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Special Achievement Award:

Robert Rodriguez, Frank Miller and Quentin Tarantino's Sin City

Prior to 2008, I didn't write long-winded reasons why the film or person(s) won, but briefly:

For the first time fans of an original source were treated to a film adaptation that respected that source to the point of recreating it almost verbatim. From the complex angles of the shots, to the dialogue, to the obvious coolness of the color schemes (and the interesting reversals of black and white in certain shots that had never been used or seen outside of an inked drawing), to the look of the actors and the make-up and costumes used to bring Frank Miller's vision to life. Rodriguez is the man (to credit) for the vision coming to life as it did, and for bringing Frank Miller on as a co-director... even going so far as cutting up his DGA card to do so... and even letting friend Quentin Tarantino direct a stand-out scene. Fans have been clammoring for Hollywood to respect the source, to bring to the screen everything they liked in the first place while keep the changes to a minimum. These comicbook properties (and this actually applies to any film adapted from another source, from a remake of a previous film to a novel adaptation) are only made into films because they gained some notoriety, and that credit goes to the fans. It only makes sense to respect the original fanbase when creating the film version. If changes are made and the integrity of the original story is lost to appease mainstream audiences, that had nothing to do with bringing the property its fame, then the filmmakers are essentially spitting in the faces of the original fanbase. Rodriguez and co. proved that it could be done, and it could be successful. Sin City didn't make Spider-Man money, but it was never meant to, it's just not that kind of story. Three years later Jon Favreau's Iron Man made the leap to the big screen, also with minimal changes, and did bring in Spider-Man money at the box office, and so with the precedent set, hopefully moving forward more filmmakers will realize that to embrace your original fanbase is the most important thing you can do. Win them over, and they'll spread the good news like wildfire across the internet and across the world.

gARTh's 2004 Movie Awards

WINNERS: 2004

: : - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - : :

Film:
The Aviator

Director:
Mel Gibson - The Passion of the Christ

Actor:
Leonardo DiCaprio - The Aviator

Actress:
Uma Thurman - Kill Bill: Volume 2

Supporting Actor:
Morgan Freeman - Million Dollar Baby

Supporting Actress:
Natalie Portman - Closer

Adapted Screenplay:
Alexander Payne & Jim Taylor - Sideways

Original Screenplay:
Charlie Kaufman - Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Editing:
Collateral

Cinematography:
House of Flying Daggers (Shi mian mai fu)

Stuntwork:
House of Flying Daggers (Shi mian mai fu)

Art Direction:
The Aviator

Costume Design:
House of Flying Daggers (Shi mian mai fu)

Make-Up:
Hellboy

Visual Effects:
Spider-Man 2

Sound Mixing:
The Incredibles

Music - Original Score:
John Debney - The Passion of the Christ

Music - Original Song:
Trey Parker - "America, F**k Yeah" - Team America: World Police

Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Feature:
Frou Frou - "Let Go" - Garden State

Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Trailer:
Immediate Music - "Lacrimosa" - Spider-Man 2

Animated Feature Film:
The Incredibles

Documentary Feature Film:
Fahrenheit 9/11

Foreign Language Film:
House of Flying Daggers (Shi mian mai fu) - China

Animated Performance:
Antonio Banderas - Shrek 2

Villainous Performance:
Tom Cruise - Collateral

Comedic Performance:
Nick Frost - Shaun of the Dead

Cameo / Bit-Part Performance:
Matt Damon - EuroTrip

Breakthrough Performance:
Eva Green - The Dreamers

Breakthrough Filmmaker:
Zack Snyder - Dawn of the Dead

Cast:
Shrek 2

Scene:
Spider-Man 2 - Spider-Man (Tobey Maguire) and Dr. Otto Octavius (Alfred Molina) take their fight from the side of a building onto a passing subway train.

Quote:
Team America: World Police - "We're dicks! We're reckless, arrogant, stupid dicks. And the Film Actors Guild are pussies. And Kim Jong Il is an asshole. Pussies don't like dicks, because pussies get fucked by dicks. But dicks also fuck assholes: assholes that just want to shit on everything. Pussies may think they can deal with assholes their way. But the only thing that can fuck an asshole is a dick, with some balls. The problem with dicks is: they fuck too much or fuck when it isn't appropriate - and it takes a pussy to show them that. But sometimes, pussies can be so full of shit that they become assholes themselves... because pussies are an inch and half away from ass holes. I don't know much about this crazy, crazy world, but I do know this: If you don't let us fuck this asshole, we're going to have our dicks and pussies all covered in shit!"

Tagline:
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy - "His news is bigger than your news."

Poster Art: (select link to view)
The Passion of the Christ (One Sheet 4)

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Most Underrated Film:

Films that did not receive a wide release, were unsuccessful at the box office, were not nominated for any major awards or receive acclaim at any major film festivals, and were generally unknown to most audiences at the time of their release... but were well-liked by most critics and audiences that did happen to see them.

Spartan - Written and Directed by David Mamet.

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Special Achievement Award:

Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ

Prior to 2008, I didn't write long-winded reasons why the film or person(s) won, but briefly:

The biggest and highest grossing independent film (not made in, and by doing so going against, the traditional Hollywood Studio system) of all time, Gibson, despite what he's said and done since, created a momentous, groundbreaking film unlike any before or since. The level of detail, historical accuracy and raw emotional power involved in both its making and its handling of its subject is both amazing and staggering. The film was able to bring in an audience that generally feels forgotten by mainstream Hollywood, and was able to reach others that aren't even followers of the Christian faith as they simply enjoyed a great emotionally driven story.

gARTh's 2003 Movie Awards

WINNERS: 2003

: : - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - : :

Film:
City of God (Cidade de Deus)

Director:
Peter Weir - Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World

Actor:
Bill Murray - Lost in Translation

Actress:
Charlize Theron - Monster

Supporting Actor:
Tim Robbins - Mystic River

Supporting Actress:
Maria Bello - The Cooler

Adapted Screenplay:
John August - Big Fish

Original Screenplay:
Sophia Coppola - Lost in Translation

Editing:
City of God (Cidade de Deus)

Cinematography:
Irréversible

Stuntwork:
Kill Bill: Volume 1

Art Direction:
Cold Mountain

Costume Design:
The Last Samurai

Make-Up:
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

Visual Effects:
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

Sound Mixing:
Kill Bill: Volume 1

Music - Original Score:
Danny Elfman - Big Fish

Music - Original Song:
Fran Walsh, Howard Shore & Annie Lennox - "Into the West" - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Feature:
Tomoyasu Hotei - "Battle Without Honor or Humanity" - Kill Bill: Volume 1

Music - Use of Previously Recorded Song; Trailer:
Red Tape - "Agent Provocateur" - Underworld

Animated Feature Film:
Finding Nemo

Documentary Feature Film:
The Fog of War

Foreign Language Film:
City of God (Cidade de Deus) - Brazil

Animated Performance:
Albert Brooks - Finding Nemo

Villainous Performance:
Geoffrey Rush - Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

Comedic Performance:
Jack Black - School of Rock

Cameo / Bit-Part Performance:
Rowan Atkinson - Love Actually

Breakthrough Performance:
Keisha Castle-Hughes - Whale Rider

Breakthrough Filmmaker:
Wayne Kramer - The Cooler

Cast:
Love Actually

Scene:
Kill Bill: Volume 1 - The Bride (Uma Thurman) fights her way through the Crazy 88.

Quote:
Kill Bill: Volume 1 - "I am finished doing what I swore an oath to God 28 years ago to never do again. I've created, 'something that kills people.' And in that purpose, I was a success. I've done this because, philosophically, I am sympathetic to your aim. I can tell you with no ego, this is my finest sword. If on your journey, you should encounter God, God will be cut."

Tagline:
Mystic River - "We bury our sins, we wash them clean."

Poster Art: (select link to view)
Identity (One Sheet)

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Most Underrated Film:

Films that did not receive a wide release, were unsuccessful at the box office, were not nominated for any major awards or receive acclaim at any major film festivals, and were generally unknown to most audiences at the time of their release... but were well-liked by most critics and audiences that did happen to see them.

The Shape of Things - Written and Directed by Neil LaBute.

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Special Achievement Award:

Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, and the cast and crew of The Lord of the Rings Trilogy

Prior to 2008, I didn't write long-winded reasons why the film or person(s) won, but briefly:

This should be obvious, but the task of filming three back-to-back epic-scale film adaptations of one of the most celebrated literary works of the 20th century is a feat never before attempted in the history of film (the closest precedent was the filming of Back to the Future Parts II and III). The planning, foresight, effort and endurance it must have taken to complete these films is unimaginable.