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Confessions of an Oscars geek

The Oscars may have lost some luster, but they still offer a starting point for talking about the year's best movies.


STORY HIGHLIGHTS


I've seen all nine of this year's best picture nominees, which makes me sort of a freak
There's a disconnect this year between Oscar media hype and the public's movie interest
Most nominees have long since disappeared from theaters; audiences have moved on
Right or wrong, the Oscars still offer a starting point for talking about the year's best movies

Editor's note: Brandon Griggs is the senior producer for Entertainment News Digital's , a former entertainment critic and an avid movie fan...clearly.

(Entertainment News) -- One night earlier this month, I found myself alone at a remote suburban movie theater, miles from my home, seeing "War Horse." I admire Steven Spielberg's movies, and I'd heard raves about the play, but that's not really why I went.

I went because it was the only place left in Atlanta where "War Horse" was playing. And "War Horse" was the last of the nine Best Picture Oscar nominees I hadn't seen.

It's kind of a tradition for me. I saw all 10 nominated films last year, and all 10 the year before that. I keep lists of such things -- geek alert! -- and I've figured out that of the 139 movies nominated for best picture over the past 25 years, I've seen all but two -- not in some Netflix retrospective binge years later, but when they first hit theaters.

So for almost as long as I can remember, I've sat down to watch the Academy Awards having seen all the year's top contenders. And this makes me kind of a freak.

That's because most people just don't care that much about the Oscars anymore. Sure, they might watch the show to make catty comments about the stars' dresses or catch wacko unscripted moments like Jack Palance doing one-armed pushups. But they're not all that invested in the movies themselves, many of which tend to be somber and struggle to find audiences. "Winter's Bone," anybody?

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This year, there's an even bigger disconnect between the usual media hype over the Oscars and the public's interest in the top movies. Of the nine best picture nominees, only one, "The Help," has reached the $ 100-million mark at the box office. Compare that to 2009 and 2010, which each produced five $ 100-million earners among the Best Picture contenders, including such blockbusters as "Avatar," "Inception" and "Toy Story 3."

This year's favorite for best picture, "The Artist," has earned just $ 28 million and is on track to be the second-least-popular best picture winner, behind only "The Hurt Locker." Days before the Oscars, most of the nominees have long since disappeared from theaters, and audiences have moved on to "Safe House" and "The Vow."

I can't blame them. You have to be in the right mood to travel to a theater and sit through a silent, black-and-white movie about a fading film star or an emotionally taxing epic about a horse drafted into World War I or a quiet, meditative and largely plotless look at the origins and meaning of life on Earth. (At least, I think that's what "The Tree of Life" was about.)

And I'm not sure anyone is ever in the mood for "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close," about a heartbroken boy after the death of his father on 9/11. It was even tough for me, Mr. Oscar Obsessive, to drag myself to that one.

The Oscars still reign supreme as the grand dame of awards shows. But their relevance is fading. Years ago, people followed Oscar nods as endorsements for which movies to see. Now, thanks to the Internet, everyone's a critic. Who cares that "Hugo" is nominated for 11 Oscars -- your friends on Facebook say it's boring!

January and February are so saturated with movie awards now that by the time the Oscars finally roll around they feel like an afterthought. No wonder ratings for the show are down. By late February we feel like we've seen it already, and thanks to the glut of Oscar prognosticators we pretty much know who's going to win. Hmm, I wonder what George Clooney will say in his "Descendants" acceptance speech this time?

Plus many times the Oscars just plain get it wrong. The Academy has a long, notorious history of honoring safe or "serious" movies over comedies, edgier films and mass-appeal entertainments: "My Fair Lady" over "Dr. Strangelove," "Forrest Gump" over "Pulp Fiction" or "The Reader" (nominated, didn't win) over "The Dark Knight" (not nominated) just for starters. There may not have been a better time at the movies in 2011 than "Bridesmaids," but food-poisoning jokes aren't Best Picture material, apparently.

So yes, I know the Oscars aren't perfect. I know the stodgy ol' Academy would rather honor Morgan Freeman for driving Miss Daisy than Spike Lee for throwing a trash can through his white boss's storefront window. I know the Oscars telecast is usually a bloated mess.

Yet there I was the other night at "War Horse," checking the last box on my Oscar list. The Oscars may have lost a little luster -- witness the Academy's desperate tinkering with the show to boost interest -- but they still provide a valuable service. Right or wrong, they offer a starting point for talking about the year's best movies. And they still inspire people in timid, profit-obsessed Hollywood to make artful, important films.

So on Sunday night I'll be planted in front of our TV, duking it out with my wife in our annual Oscar pool and actually caring (a little) who wins best art direction. The Oscar show, bless its narcissistic heart, is like an annual family reunion with charming, photogenic and long-winded relatives. You know it'll go on too long, you know you'll get bored and you know somebody will cry. But you look forward to it anyway.

At least I do.

How ABC's 'Revenge' snuck up on us

Emily VanCamp and Gabriel Mann star in ABC's "Revenge."


STORY HIGHLIGHTS


Modern day "Count of Monte Cristo" reels audiences in with love/hate characters
Amanda Clarke, disguised as Emily Thorne, returns to the Hamptons to take revenge
ABC was lucky to find a new female-driven drama that resonates with viewers

(Entertainment News) -- Most of us haven't partied with the bunnies at "The Playboy Club," or fought crime like "Charlie's Angels." And with the NBC and ABC programs canceled after just a few episodes, we'll never have the chance.

But in the time it took for one alphabet network drama to get the axe, another garnered 8 million viewers and a full season pickup.

After all, "Revenge" is a language we all understand.

The modern day "Count of Monte Cristo" reels audiences in with characters viewers seem to love -- and love to hate. Not to mention plot twists to die for. Still, the primetime soap doesn't venture into campy territory. Not even while playing with traded identities and crimes of passion.

The concept is simple: Amanda Clarke, disguised as Emily Thorne, returns to the Hamptons to take revenge on the people who destroyed her family when she was a little girl.

And "Revenge" couldn't have come at a better time as far as its network is concerned.

With "Desperate Housewives'" eighth and final season underway, ABC was fortunate to find a new female-driven drama that so far appears to resonate with viewers. "Revenge" even has its own insightful narrator. (Thank you, Mary Alice Young. You can go now.)

"For the truly wronged, real satisfaction can only be found in one of two places: Absolute forgiveness or mortal vindication," narrator and protagonist Emily Thorne, played by former "Brothers and Sisters'" cast member Emily VanCamp, coos at the beginning of the pilot. Before even making the acquaintance of her victims, she's got the audience on her side.

That's not to say everyone is a fan of her narration.

With "Desperate Housewives" and "Grey's Anatomy" in mind, , "ABC has an in-house style that says that having your female lead narrate nothingness at the start of every episode is a worthy strategy."

But whether you're a fan of Thorne's philosophical musings or not, the numbers don't lie. About 7.3 million viewers tuned in to "Revenge" on Thanksgiving Eve -- better known as the biggest bar night of the year.

Now nine episodes in, the series began in a predictable fashion -- with Emily targeting and conquering one victim every week. Each episode even ended with Emily marking a red X over the victim of the hour in a posed photograph of the Hamptons royalty.

"Revenge" has since taken a more complex turn, with the introduction of new characters, telling flashbacks and plans gone awry -- a change welcomed by some critics.

"The show has wisely realized that it needs to mix it up when it comes to 'revenging,' and it's also fruitful to have plans backfire and have unexpected complications emerge,"

One complication being antagonist Victoria Grayson, played brilliantly by Madeleine Stowe.

Let's just say Emily isn't the only character seeking revenge.

The perfect present day villain, Victoria is out to get her son's new love interest, her daughter's inept boy toy, her unfaithful husband and the frenemy who led him astray.

"I can believe that this person would be doing these things," Stowe . "It's easy for me to slide into her."

As if Stowe and VanCamp weren't enough of a sell, the show's portrayal of the Hamptons royalty might be.

"We are dealing at a particular time right now in American history where I think the average American is going to want to see the takedown of the rich," Stowe said.

Nothing like a show about rich people who hate their lives to keep one entertained during a recession.

Review: 'Raven' a feeble tale

John Cusack stars as Edgar Allan Poe in "The Raven."






STORY HIGHLIGHTS


John Cusack plays Edgar Allan Poe in "The Raven"
Peter Travers: Cusack, who plays Poe with just the right blend of romantic longing and tortuous doubt
Travers: Cusack captures that desperation vividly enough

() -- There's a promising premise on the boil here.

What if Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) spent the last days of his life trying to nab a serial killer who's been using macabre ideas from Poe's short stories to off his victims? "The Pit and the Pendulum," anyone? OK, "The Raven" sounds like a TV series that gets canceled soon after its debut. But it has compensations, chief of which is , who plays Poe with just the right blend of romantic longing and tortuous doubt.

Director James McTeigue (""), an assistant to the Wachowski brothers on "," pulls us in with the period atmosphere. A few days before his death, Poe was found on a park bench in Baltimore, babbling incoherently. So much for truth. Booze and syphilis reportedly contributed to Poe's demise. But the script, by Ben Livingston and Hannah Shakespeare, posits that he's been poisoned by a crazed fan who adores and loathes him in equal measure.

Cue the flashbacks and a feeble fictional story about how Poe's heiress fiancee, Emily Hamilton (Alice Eve), gets interred alive ("The Premature Burial") and Poe labors to help police detective Emmett Fields (Luke Evans) find Emily before her breath runs nevermore.

None of this huggermugger generates much excitement. What drew me into the film most was the depiction of Poe's life as an impoverished poet, trying to make a few bucks by composing detective fiction while fiercely criticizing the work of other writers. In one scene, the anguished Poe wagers that at least one person in a pub will recognize him as an author, best known for "The Raven." Cusack captures that desperation vividly enough to make you wish this was the real Poe story, which "The Raven" onscreen leaves buried alive.

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Comedy routine give voice to speechless man

'Lost Voice Guy' a comedy hit






STORY HIGHLIGHTS


Born with cerebral palsy, Lee Ridley has been unable to speak since birth
On stage he uses an iPad with a text-to-voice app
The manager of Ridley's favorite football team praises his bravery
Lost Voice Guy invites his audience to laugh along with him at his own disability

London (Entertainment News) -- Lee Ridley staggers onto the stage at London's Soho Theatre and squints into the darkness at the sell-out crowd. It's the first paid gig in his short career as a stand-up comedian. The microphone stands in the spotlight in the centre of the stage but Lee doesn't approach it. He doesn't need to because he has no voice.

Under the stage name "Lost Voice Guy," Lee is fast becoming the talk of the town.

Born with cerebral palsy he has been unable to speak since birth. Off-stage he uses a somewhat cumbersome machine which resembles an electric typewriter to convert his words to speech. On stage he uses an iPad with a text-to-voice app.

Lost Voice Guy thanks the audience for their warm welcome and adds: "I haven't felt this important since the doctors said I was going to be a special child."

Encouraged by the laughter he continues, referring to his difficulty walking.

"I know what you were thinking when I walked on. It's OK I'm used to it."

Having apparently played on the sympathy of the audience he switches the joke.

"You thought 'here comes another ****** with an iPad.' Well I'm not. I'm a disabled ****** with an iPad -- the difference being I paid for mine with my benefit [welfare] money." Don't tell David Cameron. He still thinks I cannot walk, can barely see and have a problem with my bladder. Unfortunately for those closest to the stage -- one of those facts is actually true."

He's into his stride now and has the crowd on his side.

"In case you were in any doubt I really am disabled. It's not just really good acting and I'm definitely not just in it for the parking space.

"When I realized I would never be able to talk again I was speechless."

Ridley continues, talking about his synthesized voice, a mature male English accent which he refers to as a "posh version of Robocop" and demonstrates the limited alternatives he had to choose from including a woman's voice, American accents and a German translation.

But just when things are proceeding smoothly, disaster strikes and technology kicks him in the seat of his pants. After an uncomfortable silence Ridley recovers with a little improvisation.

"Sorry Ladies and gentlemen, my iPad has just crashed. Where the **** is Steve Jobs when you need him?"

As the laughter continues he's up and running once more.

"I am not related to Steven Hawking in any way. However I do hate the way people take the *** out of the way he speaks. I can really synthesize with him!

"People have often asked me why I want to put myself in a position where everyone can look and stare at me. The truth is that it happens to me every day any way. At least this way there's a scheduled time and place for it."

He finishes his set with an account of his audition for Simon Cowell's "X-Factor" with a dead-pan spoken-word version of "I believe I can fly" leaving the producers unsure how to handle him. With that he thanks his audience and lurches off the stage with loud cheers ringing in his ears.

Just as Ridley thinks the night cannot get any better he bumps into one of his heroes -- not a comedian but the manager of his favorite football team, Newcastle United.

Manager Alan Pardew is warm in his admiration. "Let's be honest -- it takes incredible bravery to do what he's doing. More bravery than me or any of my players show to do what he's trying to do. So all I can say is that I wish him all the best in a very tough business. Our business is tough but his is tougher so I wish him all the best."

I suggest to Ridley that his act creates a dilemma for audiences: in normal circumstances it would be offensive for people to laugh at someone's disability but Lost Voice Guy invites his audience to laugh along with him at his own disability

Ridley begins typing and about a minute later his machine gives voice to his thoughts. "I've also thought that any subject can be joked about if handled correctly. I think I can get away with more because it's essentially about me. I'd like to think the audience go away with a more positive view about disability."

The bookings have begun to roll in -- Ridley has been hired to perform at the prestigious Edinburgh Festival Fringe, attended by many a talent booker in search of the next comedy breakthrough act.