Di Caprio deserves that Oscar!

Less variety back then. You gave out Oscars based on caliber of studio players involved, and how freaking massive the sets were. They built whole cities for Cecil B. Demille. Stuntmen died in the chases, etc. In that sense, special effects were considered 'cheating' because the broke up the whole hierarchy. Since then, we have a whole mess of sci-fi and rom-coms and biopics and war stories all being tossed into this stew called "BEST PICTURE." And I think that, more than anything, has delegitimized the best picture category.

The Tonys are still functional, since all of the nominees start from scratch (more or less), and they separate musicals, plays and revivals.

edited 13th Jan '14 9:30:36 PM by johnnyfog

Stuntmen died in the chases, etc. …yeaaah, let's not glamorize that, okay?

I don't know how comprehensive it is, but wikipedia's list of film accidents seems to indicate that deaths from stuntwork have actually increased since the 20s. Like I say, I don't know how reflective this actually is; maybe deaths weren't remarkable in the silent era, or perhaps there were just fewer films back then.

From what Ed Harris and others have said, James Cameron is bloody lucky never to have had someone die on the set of one of his films.

Of course, back in Ye Olde Silente Era, actors often did stunts themselves:

edited 14th Jan '14 3:07:40 AM by Achaemenid

Sad to read about Bruce Willis' hearing loss. Yuck.

I think stuntmen nearly die more often than actually die. Non-fatal accidents or reckless directors aren't the sort of thing people remember.

edited 14th Jan '14 8:24:46 AM by johnnyfog

It's also number of movies being made and reliability of reports. People could die in a film shoot and it would be covered up. The scale of the stunts have also increased. Certainly reminds me of the XXX movie where a stuntman died parachuting into a bridge, where they used as much of that footage as they could and immediately started a fund for his family.

Probably. Certainly, I was surprised when I found out on TVT how often actors nearly die, and I imagine the risk is far greater for stuntmen.

There seems to be a difference of opinion; some directors keep the footage or even work it into the film out of respect (xXx, Jackie Chan), whilst others destroy it as soon as the legal issues are resolved (Alex Proyas with The Crow).

edited 14th Jan '14 11:15:15 AM by Achaemenid

Well, Brandon Lee was not a stuntman. Also, from what little I've read, The Crow was a shoestring affair. None of those prop guys ever fired a live gun before, much less mixed their own magnum ammo(!). To preserve video proof of their incompetence would be poor taste.

Jackie Chan's relationship to stuntmen is/was different; he was one of them. In fact, the whole Chinese stuntman culture was different from anything we had. Those guys knew they were taking their lives into their hands. The car sequence in Police Story was like 'Nam. In return, the stuntmen got to act and fight on-camera — no doubles or lookalikes.

edited 14th Jan '14 6:34:52 PM by johnnyfog

The situations are similar but fundamentally different. The XXX event was also not a close-up of the person dying, but a distant shot of the stuntman doing his job. While tragic, in some ways it is honoring his work by having some of the shot in the movie (the movie is also dedicated to the guy). Brandon Lee was shot in full view of the camera and, if kept, would only turn into a bootleg novelty like the Star Wars Holiday Special.

One crewman described it as "a thirty million dollar film with twenty million dollars". Empire did an article on it - the whole thing was a train-wreck, caused in a large part by the studio's decision to film in Wilmington, in right-to-work North Carolina to avoid having to comply with Hollywood union rules. For instance, the aforementioned uber-stupidity of DIYing rather than buying professionally-made blanks to fire in the film (there's a reason live ammunition is strictly forbidden on a film set) is only the tip of the shitberg: A huge chunk of the crew were on cocaine, even going into the portaloos to snort between takes (one crew-member recalls hearing someone quip "there goes $50" after hearing someone sneeze). The film was to be shot in a tiny time-frame; far too short for a movie like this; the production only shot at night, even after all the night-scenes were done, to avoid the legally required 24 hour down-time for the switch (it was that bad). The outside sets were so cold that, in filming, riggers had to defrost the camera rails with blowtorches as the scene progressed. A carpenter set himself on fire when his cherry-picker hit power lines and another crewmember drilled through his own hand. The production schedule was so punishing, and mistakes so frequent (again, because North Carolina is a RTW state) that the other productions filming nearby had a Running Gag that the film was cursed.

The whole thing was a rushed botch-job that would have become an infamous Troubled Production even had Brandon Lee not died.

,

The Crow was perhaps a bad example; Shark! and Insee thong and Comes a Horseman are others; though, as you note, it is rare for the death itself to be shown on camera. Re: Brandon Lee becoming a bootleg tape; the Twilight Zone movie death of Vic Morrow and two Vietnamese child actors is on You Tube, and I think it was actually broadcast on primetime TV.

edited 15th Jan '14 3:07:23 AM by Achaemenid

I guess another way of describing it is the difference between an occupation hazard and manslaughter.

There is a similar story with Mythbusters where a cannon experiment ricocheted into a nearby neighborhood (2 miles away!) and they made the choice to scrap all of that days filming and only showed the initial misfire, along with an extended Don't Try This at Home intro because of professional courtesy to the people affected by the accident.

So. WHY DIDN'T LEO GET HIS OSCAR. WHY?!

Because "Politics". But I think the academy really disgredited themselves with this one. Ejiofor was great, but Leo ATE that screen.

edited 5th Mar '14 11:17:22 AM by TheHandle

It's because Leo declined the offer of pizza. It was a secret test of character, and he failed.

@Kalel94

That pompous ass ><

Because he first has to star in a forgettable movie, delivering a mediocre performance...and THAN he will get the award for it. As usual.

Why did you discuss Chiwetel when the winner was Matthew Mc Counaghey?

Because McConaughey gave a better performance. I mean, I agree Di Caprio deserves an Oscar - he should have got one for Calvin Candie, since he basically stole the movie, but, this year, the best man won.

GIVE HIM THAT OSCAR ALREADY!

PLEASE! ENOUGH ALREADY!

I like the joke far too much to allow him an oscar.

That's mean.

Yeah...could you stop that, please?

edited 18th Feb '16 10:31:36 AM by HextarVigar

Yeah... could you please clarify your request? Stop what, exactly?

edited 18th Feb '16 10:50:09 AM by TheHandle

This remains my favorite parody.

Someone earlier said that the Academy was never about rewarding spectacle. Which is so wrong it's entertaining and hilarious as well as easily proven to be so.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031381/awards - Gone With The Wind. Oscars all over that bitch.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052618/awards - Ben-Hur. Oscars all over that Tale of the Christ.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120338/awards - Titanic. Oscars all over that tale of doomed romance.

What were all of those films (and there's many others I'm sure) built around?

Spectacle.

Massive setpieces. Audiences made to gawp in awe at what they're witnessing on the giant screen in front of them.

What AMPAS isn't about is rewarding science-fiction. That's why Di Caprio got ignored for "Inception". They also don't like rewarding criminal characters unless they're mob bosses, which is why "The Godfather" nailed Brando his Oscar, and why Di Caprio didn't get his for playing Jordan Belfort in "The Wolf of Wall Street", even though they're at heart both shitheels. Only Brando wore nicer suits.

Not to mention that Vito Corleone at least had some family and marital values going for him, and genuine concern for his sons. Jordan Belfort didn't even had that going for him.

I also recognize that it's a lot harder to play a bad guy in a restrained way (Brando) than it is to play a drugged financial crook obsessed with sex, with lots of hammy moments emphasizing those aspects.

(Though I still think he oughta have gotten the award for that performance)

edited 18th Feb '16 5:29:32 PM by Quag15

I agree. Like, the only thing I look forward to when it comes to the Oscars are all the Leo Memes.