Matt vs. the Academy

One more collection of nominees out of the way and, as I've come to expect from this project, not a dud among them. However, this decision proved to be a little easier than recent verdicts, for which my tired brain is grateful. The nominees for Best Picture of 1984 are: Amadeus The Killing Fields A Passage to India Places in the Heart A Soldier's Story Contrary to the diversity of some of the previous years I've examined, these five films can almost be similarly categorised ... well, perhaps with a little manipulation. Each deals at some level with the dastardly deeds to which human beings can subject one another. Racism features prominently in four of the pictures, the fifth being a more personal account of hatred. Consequently, 1984 was a powerful year for the Best Picture award. To be completely ruthless, A Soldier's Story left the smallest impact on me, which is more a credit to the other four films than a criticism of the Norman Jewison picture, for it is undoubted...

As I write this, the sun is almost below the horizon and it's only a quarter past four in the afternoon. Having lived my whole life, save the last six months, in Sydney, I'm used to daylight until at least well after five, even in the dead of winter. Here in New York City, however, I'm beginning to think, come January, it'll be dark by noon. I've never quite understood why Daylight Savings time isn't simply employed the whole year round. I mean, if it's okay to screw around with the time zones for the summer, why not for the rest of the year as well? In fact, why don't we just adjust the time zones themselves? Then we could dispense with Daylight Savings altogether... One day, I'll change the world. Just before the city was drawn into darkness, I viewed the final entry in the 1984 Best Picture race... A Soldier's Story Director : Norman Jewison Screenplay : Charles Fuller (based on his play "A Soldier's Play") Starring : Howard Roll...

One of the many benefits of living in New York City is that you can discover a new eatery every night (if you were so inclined) without ever having to dine at the same place twice. And there are restaurants specialising in just about everything. Yesterday, after a quick Google search for a place to eat near the location of our later plans that evening, Kat and I dined at S'MAC , a quaint little establishment whose menu consists entirely of variations of macaroni and cheese. Artery clogging, I'm sure, but delicious nonetheless. Before that culinary delight, I watched another nominee from 1984's Best Picture line-up... The Killing Fields Director : Roland Joffé Screenplay : Bruce Robinson (based on the New York Times Magazine article 'The Death and Life of Dith Pran' by Sydney Schanberg) Starring : Sam Waterston, Haing S. Ngor, John Malkovich, Julian Sands, Craig T. Nelson Academy Awards : 7 nominations 3 wins, including Best Supporting Actor The Killing Fields relate...

I know I'm a week late to be discussing baseball, but has it not occurred to anyone in upper management at the MLB that it's possibly a bit of a misnomer to be calling the league's final battle the World Series. With only one team in the league that hails from outside the United States (and they're in nearby Toronto), it seems somewhat farcical to acclaim the winning team as the world champions. I guess when the MLB began, no other country was playing baseball, but even so, a bit of humility wouldn't go astray. World Series. I mean, really. Right, now that I've insulted America's pastime, which, incidentally, I enjoy watching in lieu of my beloved cricket , let's move on now to the latest Best Picture nominee from 1984 to be viewed, which was... Amadeus Director : Milos Forman Screenplay : Peter Shaffer (based on his play) Starring : F. Murray Abraham, Tom Hulce, Elizabeth Berridge, Roy Dotrice, Simon Callow, Christine Ebersole, Jeffrey Jones Academy A...

After a frustrating experience with the frustrating New York City transport system which left me waiting, frustrated, on a platform for thirty frustrating minutes before being told the train would never arrive, I was forced to call my director to explain why I was absent from today's rehearsal. Frustrating. The subway system here is usually more than satisfactory, especially in comparison to Sydney's equivalent, but then something frustrating like this happens and I lose all faith in it. Anyway, the frustration was alleviated when Kat and I walked to the nearby Bohemian Hall & Beer Garden for a bite to eat. Too cold for the impressive outdoor beer garden, we dined inside on the scrumptious Czech and Slovak food. As a schnitzel aficionado, I simply couldn't go past the Bohemian Schnitzel, a breast of breaded chicken stuffed with ham, cheese, egg and garlic. Simply heaven. Although, my arteries may have something to say about that. After a quick stroll through Astoria pa...

Celebrity sighting #34: Whilst performing my ushering duties, Isabella Rossellini entered the theatre to be seated in the second row, which unfortunately meant I could only see the back of her fairly distant head owing to the fact that I was positioned in the back row. My colleagues assured me over the walkie that it was indeed the daughter of Ingrid Bergman, so I took their word for it. (For the record, the number 34 is entirely fabricated. I am not, in fact, keeping a tally of my star-struckedness.) Moving on... The epic movie marathon that was the 1956 Best Picture race is now over and I must admit that, when I sat down to watch the next film for Matt vs. the Academy, it was nice to know that I wouldn't be spending over three hours in front of the television screen. The first of 1984's nominees was... Places in the Heart Director : Robert Benton Screenplay : Robert Benton Starring : Sally Field, Lindsay Crouse, Ed Harris, Amy Madigan, John Malkovich, Danny Glover Academy Aw...