Oscar Bits

Yes, I had already heard that Sean Penn was going supporting for Fair Game — but I’d forgotten to post it. Of course. So I found it via Kris who linked over to Scott Feinberg’s piece. Yes, so Penn is going supporting even though he’s really the lead – but he’s the lead like Marcia Gay Harden was the lead in Pollock.

And speaking of Kris, he also caught a screening of The Way Back on Tuesday (as usual, AD was a day late and a dollar shot on that one too due to a certain 12 year-old’s cello concert. Anne Thompson, who missed the screening due to a book club meeting, reassured me over Twitter, “gotta make a life,” she said, and she’s right).¬† Says Kris, “What was confirmed for me was that the majesty of the film and the overall sense of atmosphere Weir establishes and maintains makes it one of the very best films of the year.”

David Poland gets mighty pissed at Patrick Goldstein for writing this must-read (one of Goldstein’s best) story on Jim Cameron, the New King of Retread. Says Goldstein, “But the odds aren’t in his favor. If you look at the greatest movies ever made, “The Godfather Part II” and “The Dark Knight” are the exceptions to the rule. Most sequels, in terms of creativity, end up a lot closer in terms of consumer satisfaction to “Big Momma’s House 2” or “Saw II” or even “Iron Man 2.”¬†When you leave the theater, you feel¬†somewhere between¬†disappointed and ripped off. I’ve never felt that way¬†leaving a Jim Cameron movie, because his films were¬†invariably cause for great anticipation.¬†I know “Avatar 2″ isn’t coming until 2014, but, for now, I’m¬†thinking about the whole project with far more dread than¬†desire.” When you’re right, you’re right.