
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Kudos to the good people of the Chlotrudis Society. No, it’s not
a charity dedicated to eradicating the scourge of chlotrudis, but a growing
band of cinephiles dedicated to asserting the value of independence and
artistry in cinema.For the past 14 years they have put on an awards ceremony to
counter the Oscars, and this year their show (which they kindly invited me to
participate in), which took place last Sunday on the lush stage of the Brattle
Theatre, clearly outclassed the Academy’s
effort both as an entertaining event (their one witty musical number was ten
times more fun than any of the three tunes from “Enchanted”) and as a
demonstration of discerning taste and critical judgment.
A few examples:
Best Actress: Kate Dickey for “Red Road”
Best Documentary: “Protagonist”
Best Buried Treasure: “12:08 East of Bucharest”
Best Movie: “Once”
And here I’ve been thinking I was the only one who saw those
movies.
The Chlotrudians also distinguish themselves for their uncanny
knack for bestowing their “Career So Far” award on talents just on the cusp of
a major career breakthrough. Who had
ever heard of Ellen Page before she got her Trudy a few years back? And this
year she’s been nominated for an Oscar for Best Actress for “Juno” (not that an
Oscar is any better than a Trudy, mind you). Similarly, Canadian
writer/director/actor Don McKellar picked up his trophy last year and now
“Blindness”, for
which McKellar adapted the screenplay from the Jose Saramago novel and in which
he stars, looks like it will be one of the major Oscar contenders to be
released this fall.
So what will the future hold for this year’s winner, Canadian
(what’s the deal with Chlotrudis and the Canadians anyway?) actress Alberta
Watson, hardly a household name now but
memorable from her performances in David
O. Russell’s “Spanking the Monkey,” Atom Egoyan’s “The Sweet Hereafter” and
this year in Sarah Polley’s (winner of
the Trudy for Best Adapted Screenplay) “Away from Her”? We should keep an eye
on her two upcoming 2008 releases, Sandra Nettleback’s “Helen” and Michael
Melski’s “Growing Up.”
4/1/2008 2:25:21 PM by Peter | |
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What's happening behind the scenes in movies.
(c) Matt Bors |
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