h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I think we should distinguish between violent films which have comedic elements in them (like, er, An American Werewolf in London) and films which treat violence as being inherently funny (like Kill Bill or Home Alone).

But of course, then you're wide open to the Tom and Jerry objection - those cartoons are horrendously violent, and it's played for laughs, yet I have no real problem with them. It's awkward.

Certainly I think the rapturous response Kill Bill got was mainly due to it being 'a Tarantino film' (notice how his name was fetishised in the advertising). If a first-time director had come up with such a shallow and derivative script I doubt it would even have got made, certainly not by a major comapny like Miramax.

Well Kill bill isn't even in the list

http://www.oscar.com/nominees/nomineelist.html

I can't see anything in there that will challenge ROTK for the best picture or Peter Jackson for best director.

(I thought Andy Serklis was a hot tip for the supporting actor but obviously not)

Hope Johnny Depp gets best actor, I thought he was excellent In Pirates of the Carribean, now if that were nominated there may have been some competition for ROTK!

All the films that I've seen off the Best Picture list were extremely good, heck, Cold Mountain was one of the classiest films I saw last year and it didn't even get nominated.

Same goes for the director category... particularly in the case of Fernando Meirelles and Katia Lund for City of God, but they've all done good jobs so far as I can see. LotR will probably do very well - and, as it seems to be the case of RotK winning all the big Oscars that FotR and T2T should've won, I won't object to that. But, in a funny sort of way, I won't be too surprised if there are a few shocks on the night.

Nominating Johnny Depp for Pirates was a crowd-pleasing move (personally I thought he was slightly better in Once Upon A Time In Mexico) but I will be *very* surprised if he wins. My money, if I were a betting man, would be on Bill Murray for LiT.

Are the Academy Awards followed as closely in the UK as they are in the US? Are they shown live on TV? And do you have a UK equivalent?

H

If it's shown live, it'd be past midnight, wouldn't it?

We get the BAFTAs, which are basically the same deal only shorter.

The BBC shows the Oscars live between 2 and 6 am (I usually tape them and watch them the next day) plus there's a highlights package the following evening (dispensing with much of the ceremony's charm and stupidity). The commercial breaks are filled with chitchat between one of leading film critics/chatshow hosts and whoever he can lay his hands on (Alan Cumming, Dyan Cannon, Elliot Gould, John Rhys-Davies last year).

That would certainly be better than actually watching the commercials.

Ok, the Emmy's are awarded for another year.

The post presentation hoopla seemed to be more about the worst and best dressed actresses than anything else. Which sort of puts the entire entertainment scene into perspective. And reflects the superficiality of American culture.

The Miss America beauty pagent aired recently. I will admit to not watching it. But according to one press report, the talent competition has been eliminated and it has turned into a strictly cheesecake event.