Teen Choice Awards – This Had Oscar Buzz

Adaptations of uberpopular novels are always ripe for awards prestige, but this week’s episode is for a film that fizzled quickly. 2011′s Water for Elephants assembled an impressive crew for the circus-set period romantic drama along with a starry cast at tricky career moments: Robert Pattinson breaking from the Twilight franchise, Reese Witherspoon on a string of unsuccessful films, and Christoph Waltz as his typecast was taking shape. Each was slightly miscast, resulting in tepid romantic fireworks and familiar narrative beats that add up to a hohum movie forgotten by the time The Artist became a somewhat atypical Best Picture winner.

This episode, we discuss Pattinson career and the power of the Twihard base, along with our thoughts on The Batman. We also go into the filmography of the film’s screenwriter Richard LaGravenese and director Francis Lawrence, and look back at Witherspoon’s rebound that came shortly after this film.

Topics also include the Teen Choice Awards, why circus films stir up awe and awards prospects, and Uggie.

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Heavily anticipated by Oscar predictors in fall 2007, Justin Chadwick’s historical fiction The Other Boleyn Girl paired Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johnasson as their Oscar stars were rising. But when the film was rescheduled into early 2008, all signs pointed towards a disappointment that the film ultimately proved to be. With Eric Bana as King Henry VIII, the film is a soapy and scattered take on the Boleyn sisters vying for the king’s affections. Even with the beloved Sandy Powell on costuming duties, the film’s poor reception canceled out its chances to make an impact in the 08 Oscar races.

This week, we go into Oscar’s long history of awarding films surrounding the royals and how this film is weighted with historical inaccuracies. We also dive into screenwriter Peter Morgan’s place as current royals’ biographer with an Oscar pedigree and Johansson’s long road to her two first Oscar nominations last year, beginning with her two 2003 competing performances through souring her public favor in later years.

Topics also include the Teen Choice Awards, a cringe-inducing plot turn that turns Jim Sturgess into a royal Kombucha Girl, and the musical Six.

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Tag: Teen Choice Awards

187 – Water for Elephants

133 – The Other Boleyn Girl