Argo wins best picture Oscar; Lee best director, Day-Lewis, Lawrence, Hathaway, Waltz win acting honors

Just watched ARGO this afternoon. Had a feel of All The Presidents Men about it, due to the 70s, and its good storytelling.

Good to see a very broad bunch of winners and that not one single film dominated the night. I liked Argo. Day-Lewis is always tough to beat (although I was rooting for D. Washington), and Lee deserved credit for making that beautiful Pi film. Waltz was great in Django and, well, I like Hathaway but didn't see see her movie.

Good call on best director, which Lee clearly deserved. I'm glad to see it going that way instead of Lincoln getting it, which would have been solely because it was expected by comparison.

Life of Pi was amazing. Definitely the movie want to see if you want to be moved. Best storytelling I've seen in a while.

Did you know that Ang Lee (Chinese) was the first Asian director to win the golden statue for Best Director?

Chinese and Taiwanese have a beautiful culture. They are capable of creating some of the finest art in the world. Life of Pi is just that - a work of Art.

I'm looking forward to Life of Pi and Lincoln. I watched Argo and Django and thought they were OK but not really Best Picture material. Django was especially average.

Jennifer Lawrence is a knockout....

I was extremely glad to see Jennifer Lawrence win. She was tremendous in Winter's Bone and in everything else I've seen her in, including Hunger Games.

I was also thankful that Tarantino's movie didn't win much. Very sorry to those to lost to him for best screenplay. Waltz is a great actor, but Tarantino's films are crap.

Quvenzhané Wallis did remarkably fine work in Beasts of the Southern Wild, and she certainly deserved to be nominated, but overall the film was just not that great.

It was interesting to see Amour nominated for Best Picture as well as for Best Foreign Film. Not sure how often that has happened. And I'm wondering if the Academy was making up for A Separation -- which won Best Foreign film last year and was a far, far better film than any of the Best Picture nominees that were up.

Life of Pi is a Indian story. It is moving and entertaining. Interestingly leading character has never make movie before. All Indian cast performance are impressive. Hope they will make more movies for international audience.

FPSRussia: "Chinese and Taiwanese have a beautiful culture. They are capable of creating some of the finest art in the world. Life of Pi is just that - a work of Art."

I think you've gone a little far on this one. Japan (director or otherwise) produces some Oscar-worthy movies, once in a while, though usually for best Foreign Film category, and not all blood and guts. What's more, these Asian nations you mention and others churn out plenty of blood and guts film as well -- with Hong Kong even having it's own movie category aside Action!, and Japanese directors like Kitano Takeshi are quite well renowned world-wide.

Anyway, you are correct in that Life of Pi is a work of art, and so it is the novel it's based upon. Since premiering in South Korea in December the novel topped the best-seller list for quite a while, and now that it's won four Oscars I've no doubt it will become even more successful here in Japan as well. It's a shame it takes that to do so, but that's all the exposure some people have some times, and it's better than nothing.

yabits: "I was also thankful that Tarantino's movie didn't win much. Very sorry to those to lost to him for best screenplay. Waltz is a great actor, but Tarantino's films are crap."

All a matter of opinion. I definitely think that a couple are, but I think others are beyond legendary (ex. Resevoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction); he refreshed the industry at a time when the genres had more or less become stagnant. Haven't seen Django yet, and by the sounds of it I won't like it too much, but like I said, all a matter of opinion.

yabits: "The story of Life of Pi, was not written by an Asian, by the way, but the Spaniard, Yann Martel. I realize this won't mean anything to some -- who want to take the contributions of others and pretend it is all part of another's "culture.""

Speaking of which, Yabits, Yann is actually Canadian. True, he was born in Spain, but to French Canadian parents, was raised over four continents, and his mother tongue is French. So before you go lecturing people about others' cultures...

Yabits: Clicked too soon. I meant to add that regardless of Yann's nationality, the movie is of course based on the screen adaptation, written by an American (who was nominated for an Academy Award previously for the script for Finding Neverland).

In other words -- nationality does not matter.

Anyone with a good knowledge of historic facts will find Argo highly entertaining, but also innacurate, full of cliches, and instead of showing a broad point-of-view of the facts, Affleck opted for a narrow focus - his capital sin and the Academy showed it has more brains than it seems. It would more entertaining if Tom and Jerry cartoon portrayed the same events.

In other words -- nationality does not matter.

What ? Ang Lee, winner of an award again. He left his country in his early 20's, did his studies in the US, made all his career there, and of course he gave up his nationality to be American. He thought that mattered. Was he wrong ? Otherwise, directors staying in Taiwan (or Japan), their movies are ever passing in mainstream theaters in the US ?

I kept hearing about how Django was finally going to "tackle slavery" but it had too much comedy and style to come even close to tacking anything. Sunglasses on Jaime Fox? Jim Croce's "I've Got a Name" on the soundtrack? Tarantino as an Aussie? Too much fluff to be taken as a serious film. He pulled it off in Inglorious Bastards but not here.

On the the other hand the actors were amazing, even the cliche parts played by Leonardo DiCaprio and Samuel L. Jackson.

The academy made another mistake. Argo won for best picture while the actual best picture was Lincoln. What makes the movie worthy and even brave is how Spielberg he didn't break up the talk with action. Spielberg did none of that and he kept his focus on the politicians, especially the captivating and always tough to figure out Mr. Lincoln. This was brave of him to do a master film.

smithinjapanFeb. 25, 2013 - 07:59PM JST

Not all the best selling books have become successful movie. The success of Life of Pi movie is not soley contributed by author. From unflimable flim since 2002 has become box office success and 4 Oscar winner. Credit will go to producer, director, visual effect team and actors.The success come from international talents.

2012 has made many good movies such as Argo, Lincoln and Life of Pi. Movies are getting more realistc and actors performance also improved a lot. That movies are motion picture master piece and deserve to watch again.

I think you've gone a little far on this one. Japan (director or otherwise) produces some Oscar-worthy movies

What FRSRussia mentioned is not about past old J movies. Current main stream J Movies. It is true that most J movies made in now a days are not worthy for Oscars. They have no new talent like Director Kurosawa.

What's more, these Asian nations you mention and others churn out plenty of blood and guts film as well -- with Hong Kong even having it's own movie category aside Action!

There are difference between violence and actions. War and Samuria movies have blood and fight sence. They are still acceptable unlike Gangster movies torturing and bullying someone.

In the future, many nations will collarborate for movie making like Life of Pi.

I think you've gone a little far on this one. Japan (director or otherwise) produces some Oscar-worthy movies

No, It's not a question of quality of the movie (even if Japan lost it anyway IMO), but what makes a movie "worthy for oscars" is it has to be an American movie. The non-American ones have a special category as curiosity. If you check the nominated films since the beginning (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academy_Award_for_Best_Picture), you'll see that the exceptions are few, maybe a pair UK based productions but certainly paired with an Hollywood company. Last year's *French" movie, that was a Weinstein's. The limitation has nothing shocking as nearly each country as its awards, what is more disturbing is they can impose the US selection as a quasi-monopoly on the American markets (it's really a tiny minority of theaters that shows the non-American), so they are just doing like China. But worse is they also impose these movies to half of the world (let's not forget the other half has no movies at all or only propaganda), and there is nothing in exchange.

War and Samurai movies have blood and fight sence. They are still acceptable unlike Gangster movies torturing and bullying someone.

I don't see why. War is acceptable ? Movies are supposed to show role models only ?

If "Lincoln" would had won, people would've been criticizing that vote by implying Americans glorifying yet again the American President is simply par for the course.

Cos Feb. 26, 2013 - 10:18AM JST

I don't see why. War is acceptable ? Movies are supposed to show role models only ?

Many War pictures made my US are worthy for Oscars. Not for t violence category. A bridge too far, Tora Tora Tora and Longest day are so good. When I watched as 4 or 5 yrs old I did not see them as violence. It is part of entertainment and part of historical document.

Reality is not sugar coated. Samurai movies also displayed their honor, pride and sacrifice for master and clan. Gangster or schoolyard bullied movies are too violent and out of touch with me.

Walz is a good actor but the overall admiration for Tarantino in Hollywood still puzzles me.

Octagon: "Not all the best selling books have become successful movie. The success of Life of Pi movie is not soley contributed by author."

Obviously not all best selling books become successful movies, let alone become movies at all. I think if you read my post again you'll find it is a reply to a poster who comments solely on the author the book is based on, and then if you read further you'll notice I talk about how the screenplay, for which the movie is adapted, is not done by Yann Martel at all.

"From unflimable flim since 2002 has become box office success and 4 Oscar winner. Credit will go to producer, director, visual effect team and actors.The success come from international talents."

Success comes from talent, bottom line, not from nationality. That was my point. Lee is a genius, and anyone trying to undermine his success based on background is simply jealous.

Octagon: "There are difference between violence and actions. War and Samuria movies have blood and fight sence. They are still acceptable unlike Gangster movies torturing and bullying someone."

No offense, but I'm not sure what you mean, here. Samurai movies can be gratuitous violence same as anything else, including war movies. Likewise 'gangster movies' can have as much story and drama as anything else.

Only Les Miserables impressed me. The deification of any political leader, as Spielberg has done with Lincoln, or aggrandizing of covert operations as heroism, as in ZDT and Argo, ring merely as state propaganda even with A-listers.

Smithjapan

Thanks for your feedback about author of Life of Pi.

When you replied to FRSRussia, other Asian movies have some form of blood and killing too. Not only J movies. It is partly true for me. Some J movies such as gangster, school yard bully and teen killing each other on their trip was very hard for watching. They are very violent and inhumane. They are not actions, period or war film from Asian nations.

I agree with you Lee is a genius however Lee have worked with Indian cast in Life of Pi. He admitted that Indian cast are outstanding. He should acknowledge them in his speech like others.