Colorado Springs has a sister city. Guess where.
The Academy Award nominations were announced today. It was gratifying to see recognition at last for Bill Murray. He generated a lot of critical buzz for Rushmore, but for my money his performance in The Cradle Will Rock was nothing short of astonishing. As usual one of the best films of the year was only recognized by the writers' branch (American Splendor), and, disappointingly, although Seabiscuit managed to get a Best Picture nomination without placing in any of the major categories, Randy Newman's score was entirely ignored.Kudos to Charlize Theron for Monster, but isn't it always a given that if a glamour girl gains thirty pounds and sheds her beauty-queen image to play a ruthless killer, she'll be lavished with praise and awards? If they had just found some big, tough, mean-looking actress to play her, would she have generated as much notice? What is this fascination with physical transformation as the pinnacle of acting achievement? Have Renee Zellweger's performances generated anywhere near as much press as her donut diet?
For that matter, who creates a part for a dowdy woman in Hollywood unless Kathy Bates is available? When Terrence McNally wrote Frankie and Johnny at the Clare de Lune, a play about two generally unattractive people, Broadway gave us F. Murray Abraham and, yes, Kathy Bates in the roles. When Garry Marshall obtained the movie rights, he cast Al Pacino and Michelle Pfeiffer. He tried to make a big deal about Michelle playing the part without makeup, but spare me.
On the way home tonight I was listening to Steely Dan's Everything Must Go, which features Walter Becker's first vocal on any of their albums. It reinforced my suspicion, when during their live show in Albuquerque they gave Walter the vocals on two of their old numbers, that it was a ploy to keep Donald Fagen from straining his voice too much.
