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Dave Karger's OscarWatch 2010 Academy Awards | Dave Karger

Category: OscarWatch TV (1-10 of 39)

Dec 23 2009 12:01 AM ET

Terry Gilliam on Heath Ledger's last film and how Johnny Depp saved his movie

There’s certainly a lot of curiosity surrounding Terry Gilliam’s The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, which will forever be remembered as Heath Ledger’s last movie. The question is: Will that interest translate to box office sales? As the film is about to open in theaters, here’s my OscarWatch interview with Gilliam, in which the filmmaker discusses the origin of his trippy imagery, what Ledger was like on set, and how Johnny Depp singlehandedly kept his film from falling apart after Ledger’s death.

Dec 21 2009 11:00 AM ET

Penelope Cruz on 'Nine' and her Oscar win

by Dave Karger

Categories: OscarWatch TV

Here’s the rest of my OscarWatch interview with Penelope Cruz, in which we discuss her experience shooting Nine, her memories of her Oscar win for Vicky Cristina Barcelona earlier this year, and why she used to tear her toenails off as a teenager (disgusting but true). In Part 3 we talk about one of her scenes in Nine where Daniel Day-Lewis applies makeup on her face; hear how the two-time Oscar winner surprised Cruz with his handiwork.

Dec 15 2009 11:05 AM ET

Golden Globe nominee Colin Firth on his 'Single Man' nude scene

by Dave Karger

Categories: Best Actor, OscarWatch TV

It wasn’t exactly a surprise, but it was still good to see Colin Firth recognized with a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor in a Drama for his impeccable performance in A Single Man. (Julianne Moore and the film’s score were also recognized.) In Part 3 of our OscarWatch interview, Firth lightens up a bit as we discuss Moore’s flawless British accent and his own on-screen flesh-baring.

Dec 10 2009 06:04 PM ET

Colin Firth on being directed by Tom Ford

by Dave Karger

Categories: Best Actor, OscarWatch TV

After wowing audiences at the Venice and Toronto film festivals, Tom Ford’s sumptuous drama A Single Man opens tomorrow, at which point the awards buzz for Colin Firth should raise a few notches in volume—particularly when he lands a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor this Tuesday. In Part 2 of our OscarWatch interview, in which Firth talks about working with Ford. Check back here next week for Part 3.

Dec 8 2009 06:01 AM ET

Is 'Up in the Air' this year's 'Slumdog'?

by Dave Karger

Categories: OscarWatch TV

Okay, Oscar fans: I know it’s very early in the season, but I do find it interesting that we’ve had two pre-Oscar award announcements and both groups (the National Board of Review and the Washington, D.C., Film Critics Association) named Up in the Air as their Best Picture. Please tell me we’re not in for a clean sweep like Slumdog Millionaire pulled off last year. Don’t get me wrong: I’m a huge Air booster and it’s without question one of the best films I’ve seen this year. I just can’t bear the thought of another predictable awards season. And something tells me the Up in the Air team wouldn’t mind if some other movies started sharing the wealth, since it’s often difficult to remain the frontrunner all season long (just ask anyone involved with Brokeback Mountain). So when will the tide turn a bit? With this weekend’s New York or Los Angeles critics lists? With the Globe nominations next Tuesday? Until then, here’s the rest of my OscarWatch interview with Air director Jason Reitman, where we discuss how film is different from Walter Kirn’s novel, why he cast Anna Kendrick, and the magic of Up in the Air cameo provider Young M.C.

Dec 3 2009 02:59 PM ET

'Up in the Air': Jason Reitman on his Best Picture frontrunner

by Dave Karger

Categories: Best Picture, OscarWatch TV

Jason Reitman’s Up in the Air has taken something of a back seat in the Oscar-buzz department over the last month or so as Precious has been dominating the conversation. But now that the George Clooney comedic drama has won the National Board of Review prize for Best Picture and is finally hitting theaters in New York and Los Angeles tomorrow, its sure-to-be-fantastic reviews will soon elevate it to movie-to-beat status. Here’s Part 1 of my OscarWatch interview with the hyper-articulate writer-director, on working with Clooney and obsessing over frequent-flier miles.

Nov 25 2009 12:01 AM ET

'The Road': Viggo Mortensen and his precocious costar

by Dave Karger

Categories: Best Actor, OscarWatch TV

I’ll admit I was a little surprised when Viggo Mortensen showed up to our scheduled interview at the Toronto film festival with his young costar from The Road, Kodi Smit-McPhee. And I was a bit thrown when I realized they were wearing matching hockey shirts. But once we started talking, I realized why Mortensen wanted Smit-McPhee around: After the intense shoot of The Road, they’ve clearly become blood brothers. Here’s our interview, where we discuss, among other things, their love of the Montreal Canadiens and who smelled worse on set.

Nov 24 2009 09:47 AM ET

Can 'Fantastic Mr. Fox' challenge 'Up'?

by Dave Karger

Categories: Best Animated Film, OscarWatch TV

They’re both boundary-pushing animated films. They both play equally well to kids and adults. And they both scored in the 90s on Rotten Tomatoes. So if there’s any movie can give Up a run for its money in the Best Animated Feature category, could it be Fantastic Mr. Fox? One crucial test for Wes Anderson’s adaptation of Roald Dahl’s book is its box office performance once it expands beyond New York and Los Angeles. In advance of its wide release tomorrow, I gathered Anderson and three of his cast members (Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman, and Bill Murray) for a spirited interview about their experiences doing the voices for the film and what it’s like to watch children watch it.

Nov 20 2009 12:01 AM ET

'Fantastic Mr. Fox': Bill Murray's animal instincts

by Dave Karger

Categories: Best Animated Film, OscarWatch TV

I don’t know about you, but I’ve always wanted to hear Bill Murray imitate a cardinal. So when I gathered four members of the team behind Fantastic Mr. Fox (Murray, Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman, and writer-director Wes Anderson), I figured it was the perfect time to ask the quartet what kind of animals they’ve ever wished they were. Here’s a sneak peek at my OscarWatch chat with the group; check back here on Tuesday for the full interview. And in the meantime, please follow me on Twitter (@davekarger) for instant Oscar updates.

Oct 6 2009 12:05 AM ET

Carey Mulligan on the controversy of 'An Education'

by Dave Karger

Categories: Best Actress, OscarWatch TV, Toronto Film Festival

Now that An Education is finally hitting theaters this Friday, I’m curious to see if there’s going to be any kind of “ick factor” amongst audiences and Oscar voters (particularly older ones) over the film’s basic plot: a 16-year-old schoolgirl who falls for a man in his early 30s and decides to lose her virginity to him on her 17th birthday. The subject matter is handled with great sensitivity by director Lone Scherfig and screenwriter Nick Hornby, but that’s never stopped some people from getting all up in arms. It’s particularly interesting in light of Roman Polanski’s recent arrest—though it goes without saying that the cases, while both involving adult men and underage girls, are vastly different. In Part 2 of our OscarWatch interview (watch Part 1 here), Carey Mulligan and I discuss her impressive Education costars Emma Thompson and Sally Hawkins and the surprising reactions she’s gotten from fathers after they’ve seen the movie.

(On a side note: I conducted this interview last month in Toronto. After I got back, I saw Jack Rosenthal’s Sept. 25 “On Language” column in the New York Times Magazine, in which he discusses a handful of words that many people use incorrectly, one of which is enormity. Most people, including me, think it means “enormousness,” when in fact it means “great wickedness.” So now of course I feel like an idiot for showing my ignorance in this video. I’ll never make that mistake again!)

UPDATE: According to several commenters, enormity does also mean enormousness. So stuff it, New York Times!