Oscar Spotlight: Christopher Nolan
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
You know that kid in high school who was ridiculously talented but a little too genius to be able to fit in with the cool kids? British director Christopher Nolan is the film industry equivalent of that kid.Nolanites will remember only too clearly when his incredible superhero allegory The Dark Knight failed to be nominated for a best picture or best director Oscar in 2009, despite being nominated in eight major categories. Fans created such an outcry over this injustice that the Academy were forced to open up the best picture category to 10 nominees the following year in what is now known as `The Dark Knight effect’. It seemed with the resounding critical and commercial success of Nolan’s mind-bending Inception this year, there was simply no way he or the film could be overlooked.
Well, the Academy got it half right. Although Inception has received the best picture nomination it rightly deserves, as well as nods in seven other categories, Nolan has again been snubbed from the best director list. How is it then, that someone who wrote, produced and directed the most original film of the season, can be utterly and completely ignored in the director category?
That’s a good question. Iconic director Stanley Kubrick, with whom Nolan’s work has been closely compared to, never won an Oscar for best director or best picture despite being behind classics such as 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange and Full Metal Jacket. The reality is the Academy isn’t able to handle the conceptually and intellectually challenging genius of a film such as Inception and a mastermind such as Nolan.I think the best way to end this rant, is in the words of the wise God Damn Batman; "Oscar Nominations and NO nods for Dark Knight Rises?? I DON'T CARE IF IT DOESN'T COME OUT FOR ANOTHER YEAR. I'll remember this, Academy." Amen.
Thank heavens for The Dark Knight, because if it wasn't for its record-breaking success, British filmmaker Christopher Nolan would not have the freedom to make his latest masterpiece.
The fact Nolan has been able to thread together multiple storylines using the same actors, yet set in different time settings and spaces, without completely alienating the audience is an accomplishment of movie making. Like the characters in the film, Inception tunnels into your subconscious planting seeds of its genius in a similar fashion to the great works of Stanley Kubrick. However, it is so detailed and complex that when you leave the cinema, trying to retain details from the film is like trying to keep water in the palm of your hands. The only way to appreciate the magnitude of its brilliance is with multiple viewings.
Inception hits July 22 and I’m already clearing my calendar in preparation for critic screenings.
The unluckiest Oscar-nominee who ever lived aka Leo, plays the lead role as the CEO-type.
Everyone’s favourite French actress (sorry Eva Green) plays Leo’s wifey.
The power of Levittation continues with another foray into blockbusters playing an associate of Leo’s character.
The once-pregnant Page plays a young college grad student and Leo’s sidekick.
The man is back in villain-mode and plays the guy who is blackmailing DiCaprio’s character.
A member of Leo’s team
These two ridiculously talented people are also cast, but there are no details on what parts they will be playing yet.
In more Batman news, director Chris Nolan’s next project will be the sci-fi action pic Inception which he is adapting from his original screenplay. Rumor has it that Nolan signed a deal with Warner Bros saying they would make/finance his Inception film if the next project he did after that was Batman 3. Clever man. 
I think the producers have gone ‘
Useless fact: This day marks the seventh anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centre. It also marks the day