Matt vs. the Academy

My bruised rib and I are back in New York City once more. While it continues to heal, I have already started rehearsing for another show - another fast-paced, energetic production rife with rib-bruising opportunities. Performing as part of the NY Comic Book Theater Festival , Batz follows a bunch of nerdy office workers as they pay homage to the Dark Knight by re-enacting classic Batman comics using only office supplies for props and costumes. After a short hiatus, I continued yesterday with my review of 1948's nominees for Best Picture by watching... The Red Shoes Directors : Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger Screenplay : Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger and Keith Winter (based on the fairy tale by Hans Christian Anderson) Starring : Moira Shearer, Marius Goring, Anton Walbrook, Leonide Massine, Robert Helpmann, Albert Bassermann, Esmond Knight, Ludmilla Tcherina Academy Awards : 5 nominations 2 wins, for Best Art Direction and Best Original Score Bef...

Matt's tip of the day: Don't ever get a bruised rib. It hurts to cough. It hurts to sneeze. It hurts to go from lying down to sitting up. It just hurts. And it's not really worth the three seconds of laughter that you might get from an audience who witness your pratfall. Since rest is pretty much the only suggested remedy for a bruised rib, last night I rested as I watched the victor among 1948's Best Picture contenders... Hamlet Director : Laurence Olivier Screenplay : Laurence Olivier (based on the play by William Shakespeare) Starring : Laurence Olivier, Basil Sydney, Eileen Herlie, Jean Simmons, Norman Wooland, Felix Aylmer, Terence Morgan Academy Awards : 7 nominations 4 wins, including Best Picture and Best Actor (Olivier) Laurence Olivier's iconic adaptation of Shakespeare's most famous work, Hamlet centres on that angst-ridden prince of Denmark with the funny name. Hamlet (Olivier) is depressed. His father is dead, murdered by his uncl...

Keep those votes coming in for the next year of review for Matt vs. the Academy. The poll remains in the right-hand sidebar for your voting pleasure. Yesterday, my look at 1948's Best Picture nominees continued with a viewing of... The Snake Pit Director : Anatole Litvak Screenplay : Frank Partos and Millen Brand (based on the novel by Mary Jane Ward) Starring : Olivia de Havilland, Mark Stevens, Leo Genn, Celeste Holm, Glenn Langan, Helen Craig, Leif Erickson, Beulah Bondi Academy Awards : 6 nominations 1 win, for Best Sound As The Snake Pit begins, Virginia Stuart (de Havilland) is confused and anxious, seemingly unaware that she is living in a mental institution. She barely recognises her own husband Robert (Stevens) when he visits and only vaguely remembers the events of the past few months. With the help of Dr. Kik (Genn), she is treated with a variety of psychiatric therapies, including shock treatment, hydrotherapy and hypnosis. Her condition fluctuates as s...

Well, I'm back in Las Vegas, making stuff up on stage with the rest of the cast of Aussie Improv Comedy Explosion . The weather is certainly much more agreeable than in New York City, but the trade-off is the increased static electricity due to the dry desert air. And, unfortunately, it is next to impossible to avoid touching metallic objects, so the sparks are flying. You can now put your request in for the next year of review by using the poll over there on the right. You have your choice from a bunch of fine 1980s films. For now, let's begin our look at the Best Picture nominees from 1948 by discussing... The Treasure of the Sierra Madre Director : John Huston Screenplay : John Huston (based on the novel by B. Traven) Starring : Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston, Tim Holt, Bruce Bennett, Barton MacLane, Alfonso Bedoya Academy Awards : 4 nominations 3 wins, including Best Director and Best Supporting Actor (Huston) Fred C. Dobbs (Bogart) and his new buddy Bob ...

Another set of nominees in the can and another verdict to be made. I must say that the decision this time around was one of the easiest I've had to make in quite some time. In my mind, there was a clear frontrunner that was simply the most enjoyable. Consequently, my verdict below is possibly the shortest I've yet written. The nominees for Best Picture of 1973 are: American Graffiti Cries and Whispers The Exorcist The Sting A Touch of Class Forget about trying to compare this bunch. Nominee shortlists have been diverse before, but 1973's selection is ridiculously multifarious. A 1960s coming-of-age comedy, a foreign arthouse film, a supernatural horror, a 1930s heist flick and a quirky romantic comedy. Although, perhaps these films' commonality, with one exception, is in their sense of fun, albeit for entirely different reasons. American Graffiti's youthful fun is borne out of nostalgia. A Touch of Class delights with its witty and romantic fun. For those w...

Last chance to vote for which year from the 1940s we will investigate next. The poll is over there on the right and down a little. Closing out our current shortlist, the last nominee from the 1973 Best Picture race is... A Touch of Class Director : Melvin Frank Screenplay : Melvin Frank & Jack Rose Starring : George Segal, Glenda Jackson, Paul Sorvino, K Callan, Hildegard Neil Academy Awards : 5 nominations 1 win, for Best Actress (Jackson) In the classic screwball style of 1940s Hollywood, A Touch of Class follows the shamelessly unfaithful Steve Blackburn (Segal), an American living with his family in London. By chance, he meets divorced English designer Vicky Allessio (Jackson) and, after sharing a flirtatious cab ride, they arrange a date. A couple of rendezvous later, Steve takes Vicky to a hotel for some, ahem ... action. Apparently unperturbed by beginning an illicit affair, Vicky is more concerned that a hotel room is not the ideally romantic place for it. N...

This week, I was fortunate enough to be working at an event at which Steve Martin was in attendance. I managed to serve him a plate of salmon while fighting the urge to hand him my headshot and resume. Along with last week's sighting of Alec Baldwin at a similar event, I have now rubbed shoulders with both of the hosts of last year's Oscars ceremony. (See? I managed to bring it back to the topic at hand.) Yesterday, for the very first time, I closed the curtains to watch a modern horror classic that was nominated for Best Picture for 1973... The Exorcist Director : William Friedkin Screenplay : William Peter Blatty (based on his novel) Starring : Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Lee J. Cobb, Kitty Winn, Jack MacGowran, Jason Miller, Linda Blair Academy Awards : 10 nominations 2 wins, including Best Adapted Screenplay In keeping with previous decisions regarding which version of a nominee to review when there is more than one available, I snubbed the extended editi...