by Mark Young

The Golden Globes aired January 12th (Sunday night) effectively kicking off the 2014 Hollywood award season.  However, I noticed the People’s Choice Awards aired on January 8th.  This naturally raises several questions about the award season.  Why were the People’s Choice not considered the “kickoff”?  Who decides the winners of these awards?  And what is the difference between a Golden Globe and an Oscar?  As a student of film and all things media related I felt compelled to research the different award ceremonies and share my findings with you, my loyal blog readers.  Today our topic is the Golden Globes.

Every November the Hollywood awards season begins with the Gotham awards and lasts until the Academy Awards ceremony usually in late February.  This year the Academy Awards ceremony is delayed because of the Sochi Winter Olympics and will air on March 2nd.  The awards season is a time where professionals in the fields of film, and television are recognized for their outstanding technical achievements and artistry.  The People’s choice awards are not part of the Hollywood award season simply because they are not chosen by professionals within the industry.

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), are the ones who put on the Golden Globes every year.  They were an organization that began in the midst of World War II.  During the troubled times of the war a group of Hollywood journalists formed the Hollywood Foreign Correspondents Association.  The primary desire was to bring unity between the foreign film market and Hollywood.  They were trailblazers in the film industry because the foreign film market had fallen off after the First World War and the introduction of talking pictures.

Over the years there were disagreements, changes in the awards, and a new name given to the organization but in the end the Hollywood Foreign Press Association has persevered and become an outstanding organization.  Beyond the Golden Globes awards they also donate a great amount to entertainment related charities.  Whether it is scholarships or grants to film schools or charities whose focus is to preserve film and maintain the history of this medium the HFPA’s philanthropy has touched over 40 charities and donated over 1.2 million in 2012 alone.

The differences between the Globes and the Oscars can be difficult to see by even the most avid movie goer, especially if you don’t pay much attention to the press surrounding the awards season.  Rather than compare the two award ceremonies allow me to simply tell you what makes the Globes different than the Oscars.  The Golden Globe Awards is a much larger event.  It is a catered dinner party with a greater focus on honoring entertainers.  The Globe is considered more of an honor than a prize simply won.  The main way this distinction is made is that the Globe will only be awarded to the honoree if they are in attendance.  If the honoree chosen does not attend then it falls to the HFPA’s second choice.

The Golden Globes also recognize television in their ceremony with 11 of the 25 awards being given to television related categories.  The Globes also make a distinction in film categories by having separate awards for comedy/musicals, and drama.  It only seems appropriate that foreign films are more often recognized by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.  The percentage of foreign films that receive nominations for Golden Globes is markedly greater than for Oscars.  The final aspect that makes the Golden Globe stand out is that there are less than 100 people responsible for making the decisions.  The HFPA is a very elite organization that only allows up to 5 new members each year.  These are the people who chose who to honor.  And these are the ones who donate millions to charities.  These 93 individuals are the ones responsible for throwing the biggest party of the year.

For a list of all the winners from this year’s show please click the link below.

Golden Globe Winners

One of the smartest, most creative, and successful directors in the film industry today is the British director, screenwriter, and producer Christopher Nolan. Born in London, England on July 30, 1970, this young director began making short movies with his father’s Super-8 camera when he was just 7 years old. He attended college at University College London to study English literature. In his spare time, he shot 16-millimetre short films in his college’s film society. During this period, he became fascinated with the concept of juggling parallel timelines as he realized this concept was much more common in print than in film industry (Buchanan).

Nolan built on this idea and eventually crafted his first feature film in 1998, Following, on a budget of only $6,000. A noir thriller, the film was praised at several international film festivals and gave Nolan credibility and better financing for his next feature, a noir psychological thriller called Memento, which was co-written by him and his brother, Jonathan Nolan. The film received two Oscar nominations, for Best Screenplay and Best Editing. Nolan’s next project was another noir psychological thriller, Insomnia, which also received critical acclaim (IMDB).

Despite these successful films, it wasn’t until 2005 that Christopher Nolan really came into the spotlight. A couple years earlier, he approached Warner Brothers about remaking the Batman series, stating that he wanted to create a “darker” and less “cartoonish” feel for the caped crusader. In particular, Nolan expressed his deep desire to explain Batman’s origins, which had never been put in a feature-length film. The studio was impressed with Nolan’s ideas, and greenlit Batman Begins (Batman Begins Blu-Ray disc). Upon release, the film became a box office hit, grossing $48.7 million in its opening weekend in the US and by October grossing $205 million domestically (IMDB). The film rejuvenated and breathed new life into a franchise that ended disastrously with Joel Schumaker’s Batman and Robin in 1997. Before working on the sequel to Batman Begins, Nolan teamed up with Christian Bale and Michael Caine again in The Prestige, a film based on the Christopher Priest novel about two competing magicians. The film received 2 Oscar nominations (Cinematography and Art Direction) and was well received by critics and audiences (IMDB). 

Perhaps Nolan’s best film to date was his sequel to Batman Begins---The Dark Knight. The film’s dark and (at times) disturbing tone was fueled by Heath Ledger’s maniac, chaos-inducing Joker. Although extreme criticism was met at Ledger’s initial casting as the famed villain, Heath gave an undeniably stunning performance and (after his accidental death from drug overdose) received a post-humous Oscar for his performance. The film also won an Academy Award for Best Sound Editing and was nominated for 6 other Oscars (IMDB). The Dark Knight was highly received by critics and audiences and is regarded by many today as the best superhero film ever made to date. 

After The Dark Knight, Nolan finally finished writing a script nearly a decade in the making---Inception. The mind-bending sci-fi film was based on a totally original idea that Nolan came up with at the turn of the century. Although at early screenings it was thought of as too complex for the average audience member, Inception performed well at the box office and was highly received by critics and audiences alike (IMDB). Furthermore, the ambiguous ending and the sheer idea of the film generated a lot of buzz from fans (Buchanan). Inception received 8 Oscar nominations (including Best Picture) and won 4 of them for Best Achievement in Cinematography, Sound Mixing, Sound Editing, and Visual Effects (IMDB).

After Inception, Nolan returned to his Batman franchise. Although initially hesitant to make a sequel, he concluded the franchise in epic fashion with The Dark Knight Rises. Because of the success of The Dark Knight and Inception, the film was highly anticipated by many. In its opening weekend, The Dark Knight Rises brought in $160.8 million, which is currently the fourth most all-time (IMDB).

After producing Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel, Nolan returned to the director's chair and is currently in post-production with Interstellar, another sci-fi film that he co-wrote with his brother. The film is set to be released November 7, 2014 (IMDB).

As with all directors, there are several trademarks of Christopher Nolan. He is best known for his non-linear storytelling and editing, as is especially evident in Memento, Batman Begins and The Prestige. He is also known for (at times) having complex plots (Inception) and especially for having his main characters possess psychological problems. (Memento, Insomnia, Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, Inception). Nolan also uses a lot of cross-cutting (cutting between different lines of action so that it appears each is happening simultaneously). This is especially evident in The Prestige, The Dark Knight, Inception, and The Dark Knight Rises. In his films, Nolan frequently casts Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard, Ken Watanabe, and Michael Caine. In particular, Michael Caine has appeared in the last 5 of Nolan’s films, and has also been cast in Interstellar. When filming, Nolan loves using IMAX cameras, as this gives the eventual audience the best possible viewing experience. However, he dislikes 3D and has yet to release a film in this format. Ultimately, he believes the format to be “distracting” and ultimately ineffective for the viewer. One more interesting trademark of Nolan is his dislike for CGI (Computer Generated Imagery). Whenever possible, Nolan uses real stunts in his films and limits the amount of CGI. His reasoning for this is to keep everything as real and genuine for the audience as possible. He sometimes goes to somewhat extreme measures for stunts, such as the massive truck flip sequence in The Dark Knight (IMDB).

Christopher Nolan currently resides in Los Angeles with his wife, Emma Thomas (who has produced each of his films). They have four children together.  (IMDB). He remains a private person, with no email address or even a cell phone (Rosen, par. 1 and 3). As one of the youngest directors in the industry, Nolan, with already a dazzling resume, has a bright future ahead of him.

Written by Anthony Watkins

Note: Next week I will write about the "Behind-the-Scenes" of the truck flip sequence in The Dark Knight. I will continue this pattern of blogging about a director and then the following week giving a Behind-the-Scenes look at a particular scene from a film by that director.

If you are further interested in Christopher Nolan's works, Cinemablography has published pages on The Dark Knight (http://www.cinemablography.org/batman.html) as well as The Prestige (http://www.cinemablography.org/the-prestige.html). Also, the history of Batman can be found on the Timeline section of the website.

WORKS CITED
Batman Begins. Screenplay by Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer. Dir. Christopher Nolan. Prod. Charles Roven and Emma Thomas. 2005. Blu-Ray. Warner Bros., 2005.

Buchanan, Jason. "Christopher Nolan." The New York Times. 01 Jan. 2014. <http://www.nytimes.com/movies/person/240025/Christopher-Nolan/biography>.

IMDB. 2014. 01 Jan. 2014. <http://www.imdb.com>.

Rosen, Christopher. "'Dark Knight Rises': Christopher Nolan Doesn't Use A Cell Phone." Huffington Post. 20 July 2012. 01 Jan. 2014. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/19/dark-knight-rises-christopher-nolan-cell-phone_n_1687705.html>.

            For several decades, the cinematic topic of whether or not the use of 3D diminishes or enhances the experience of viewing a movie has been hotly debated. With the relatively recent advent and growing use of digital filmmaking in the industry, this topic has only intensified in the last few years, as many opponents of 3D believe that this technology poses a serious threat to the continued use of film. In addition, many critics believe that 3D adds nothing essential to the moviegoing experience, while largely being driven by the capitalist mentality of looking to charge a greater amount for already expensive movie tickets. As a matter of fact, Roger Ebert believed that 3D could actually make the illusion of the third dimension less convincing since our minds use the principle of perspective to provide us with the third dimension in a 2D movie, while filmmakers artificially create this dimension in 3D (Ebert). Beyond that, several critics find that 3D often mutes the color palettes in movies and can be distracting, trite, and really best suited for children’s movies rather than for serious dramas.

            With that said, technology outside of the theaters (e.g. smartphones, printing, and television) has started moving towards 3D, so new and exciting opportunities certainly exist in the realm of 3D. Also, consider the popular criticism of 3D being a gimmick that egregiously throws elements at its viewers. Didn’t the Lumières’ Arrival of a Train rely on similar “gimmicks?” Beyond that, given the fact that 3D is still a relatively new technology for the film industry, it was bound to have early imperfections. However, such imperfections are being addressed. For example, some projection systems that are available today scavenge the light lost in the 3D format and are able to project it onto the screen (Maheshwari).

            While the use of 3D alone does not inherently create good characters or stories, today’s filmmakers are certainly using the unique opportunities offered by 3D technology to tell amazing new stories. Martin Scorsese’s Hugo provides an excellent example of this, as it utilized 3D technology to glorify early cinema and illustrate how such cinema has heavily influenced movies today. Although a sound conclusion on whether or not 3D diminishes or enhances the experience of viewing a movie is hard to reach, it seems reasonable to deduce that many fears on 3D stem from a resistance to new technology, and that if such technology is artistically incorporated, it can successfully push the notion of what cinema is able to capture.


Works Cited

Ebert, Roger. "Why I Hate 3D Movies." Newsweek. 9 May 2010: n. page. Print. <http://www.newsweek.com/roger-ebert-why-i-hate-3d-movies-70247>.

Maheshwari, Laya. "The Challenges of 3D Filmmaking and The Future of 3D: An Academy Masterclass." Indiewire. N.p., 23 Oct 2013. Web. <http://www.indiewire.com/article/the-art-and-science-of-3d-highlights-from-ampas-masterclass>.

American Hustle (David O. Russell, 2013), scrutinizes the life of a crumbling conman trying to “survive”, and epitomizes the perfection of storytelling within film by focusing specifically on the character’s strife
and brilliantly stylizing the world in which the character exists. American Hustle is also stacked with stout actors, handling characters that require such actors to do them justice. While some people will compliment Amy Adam’s
convincing transformation from a strong conwoman to a seductive English business woman or will commend Jennifer Lawrence’s ability to tickle the nerves of her audience and convey an unpredictable bundle of fun, the true master of character in this intense drama lies in Christian Bale’s deteriorating and brilliant conman named Irving Rosenfeld, who is continuously and unfairly attacked by those he loves. Rosenfeld's own emotional pain causes him to wrestle with his deceitful occupation, producing a crumbling character bombarded with internal stress. 
 
There were many particulars that are admirable about Christian Bale’s performance, but the single characteristic that has been recurring in most of his past films, and is existent in American Hustle as well, is Bale’s constant weight gains and losses between his character portrayals. Famously, Bale lost 63 pounds in the film The Mechanist (Brad Anderson, 2004), and then gained back the weight, plus more, to become the iconic and powerful Bruce Wayne in Batman Begins (Christopher Nolan, 2005). What was interesting about the character of Irving Rosenfeld that differed from Bale’s usual weight changes, was his lack of the typical muscle gain, and instead, gain of fat. Bale shows us in American Hustle that he is willing to literally become the character that a screenwriter wrote, even if that character is an overweight and unattractive slob. Christian Bale takes method acting to the full extreme, and that is what makes him one of the most versatile, intelligent and unique actors on the market.

While Bale's character produces a strong subject to maintain the audience's interest, the quality of the actual story creation provides a separate platform to push the Irving's journey. As filmmaking has progressed, screenwriters have felt the need to complicate their stories, drawing the audience’s attention to their characters using flashbacks, narrations, montages, etc. These tactics can be seen in many of Christopher Nolan's films such as Memento (Christopher Nolan, 2000), and Inception (Christopher Nolan, 2010), taking layers of style and story and overlapping them to create a functioning and completed plot. American Hustle replicates this style. Eric Warren Singer, screenwriter, begins the story with a pivotal scene in Irving Rosenfeld’s internal deterioration, capturing our curiosities, forcing us to ponder the full story of why Christian Bale’s character is so dedicated to persuading a politician to accept a bribe. We are then launched into a flashback of a party where Irving first met Amy Adams’ character Sydney Prosser, allowing us to follow Rosenfeld's journey to the bribe we previously saw. This style of storytelling within a film is consistently successful as it sparks the audiences’ interests and provides a beginning look at the characters we will be viewing.

The brilliancy of the screenwriting and the powerful performances by esteemed actors brought the story to life, but David O. Russell used his mastery as the director to add depth and relevance to the film and its presence in the current context. Opening with the traditional titles from the seventies of both Columbia Pictures and Annapurna Pictures, the director immediately establishes a popular style of contemporary films, highlighted by the burgundy undertones and 1970's rock'n'roll. This style was seen particularly in last year's Oscar Best Picture winner Argo (Ben Affleck, 2012), where the time period was heavily developed in the setting to create Affleck's mise en scene. David O. Russell, understanding the success of Affleck's style in Argo, found another great story during a similar historical time, and focused on the same design.

Recent filmmaking was not the only influence that was evident in American Hustle; it was easy to see that David O. Russell did his homework. The most obvious influence that can be seen throughout the entire story, was Martin Scorsese's renowned classic Goodfellas (Martin Scorsese, 1990) which used various character's points of view and stories through narration to create a completed, and deeply developed plot. Russell mimicked this in American Hustle and was able to successfully use this storytelling technique to his advantage. Another classic film, The Sting (George Roy Hill, 1973), one that surprised audiences for it's unexpected ending, set the stage for modern and contemporary twist ending plots. David Russell finished his film in a similar fashion. Although, looking back, I guess I should have expected the unexpected when viewing a film entitled American Hustle, who's main characters specialize in trickery.

David O. Russell should be commended for executing a film that utilizes the medium of filmmaking to its full potential and draws upon current cinematic trends and past classic styles. American Hustle is overall a complete film with depth, requiring a great deal of thought and analysis. This is one that I will be seeing multiple times, and I advise you to do the same.