MILLENIUM ACTRESS
oscarwatch.com says there's Oscar buzz on this...could it be another SPIRITED AWAY? Here's the other two currently thought to be competition...SINBAD?????
Animated Feature
Finding Nemo
Millennium Actress
Sinbad
It's a great film, but I don't think it would be in serious contention for the Oscar. The Academy offered the animated category up to permit those films children like to watch a shot at the prize. On a technical and story level, it is clearly one of the best I've seen this year. Unfortunately, the intended audience doesn't extend below high school age. I don't think it will even get a nomination.
Of the animated films I've seen this year that were released this year (at least in English) I'd put down the following:
1. Junkers Come Here
2. Millenium Actress
3. Finding Nemo
JUNKERS COME HERE is another I haven't heard of. Anyway, if oscarwatch.com is accurate, MILLENIUM ACTRESS is getting enough buzz to make it a possible nominee. BROTHER BEAR isn't doing well at rottentomatoes or on the weekend box office projections.
shareThey said that it was very likely at Oscar Watch for Nemo to get animated Oscar. I think they strongly should reconsider looking at Spirited Away.
"Revenge is a dish best served cold."
Junkers Come Here isn't elegible because the film was done in 1995 originally, and was theatrically released in japan that year. Millennium Actress was not theatrically released in japan until 2002 so its still elegible, it was done in 2001 for the film festival circuit. Actually I feel the oscar list will be this way:
1. Finding Nemo
2. Triplettes of Belleville (lots of buzz from Cannes on this one)
3. Millennium Actress
if 5 are elegible
4. Tokyo Godfathers (Satoshi Kon's newest film getting released by sony in december at the same time as in japan so its elegible for an oscar. I don't know if this is listed on IMDB yet look at www.animenewsnetwork.com for information.)
5. ???? (not sure what will go here could be any old animated film... I guess like how Treasure Planet was a place holder last year :P)
The English language version of Junkers Come Here was released this year, but it likely wouldn't be eligible because there was no theatrical release.
In a similar vein, the Japanese version of Spirited Away was released in 2001 and would not have been eligible for the 2002 Academy Awards, except that the US version was released in 2002.
What's really sad is that I really think Millenium Actress is an Oscar-quality film. It is a film for more mature audiences, even though it doesn't, in any way, fit in the normal (read: hentai) adult anime mold. I hope I'm wrong, but I really believe the Academy WILL hold the fact that it's not for children against it. My money's on Finding Nemo.
I imagine that FINDING NEMO will undoubtedly win, but I sure hope MILLENNIUM ACTRESS is at least nominated, now that I know more about it. As for SINBAD, personally I feel that it'll be nominated only if there isn't anything else around.
"Sinbad" is the sole reason that I am hating Dreamworks for giving this a limited run. Obviously, Dreamworks doesn't want to be humiliated by a superior work, so they buy the rights to "distribute" it, let it tank at the box office with only SIX SCREENS and advertising I've only seen at rottentomatoes.com before it was released, put it on video (and I'm assuming it's a rare find, too), and there, problem solved.
Sinbad can win, now.
If it does, I'm going to completely disapprove of the Academy. (like i don't already) Hopefully, the award goes to Finding Nemo, if not anything else. (Cowboy Bebop and this both deserve at least a nomination, but due to the fact that their US "distributors" could care less about them, it doesn't sound like a possibility)
"I did absolutely nothing today and it was everything I ever dreamed it would be."
This sounds like exactly the same dirty trick Disney and Buena Vista pulled last year to keep SPIRITED AWAY from winning. Except it didn't work and SPIRITED AWAY won anyway. Since screeners are being allowed for the Academy voters, they'll still likely see it. But SINBAD isn't likely to win anyway. FINDING NEMO is definitely the one.
shareKeep "Spirited" from winning? Disney spent a whole lot of money on the "for your consideration" ad campaign for "Spirited Away". I think SA had a bigger campaign than even for "Lilo and Stitch" ( which I thought was a better movie ) and "Treasure Planet". Disney did the work SA needed to be high profile enough for the academy to know about this movie. I'd be really surprised if Dreamworks put anywhere near the effort for "Millennium Actress". :-(
When and where was "Junkers Come Here" released theatrically??
The English language version wasn't released theatrically--but it was released this year. The Japanese version was released theatrically in '95, but I understand the film was a financial failure. It actually won a Japanese 'anime of the year' award competing against Mimi wo Sumaseba.
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