Archive for the ‘Ang Lee’ Category

Gemini Man

Director: Ang Lee

Cast: Will Smith, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Clive Owen, Benedict Wong, Linda Emond, Douglas Hodge

Film Rating: 6 out of 10

Two time Oscar winner for Best Director Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain, Life of Pi) approaches the action genre with less than satisfactory results in Gemini Man much like the 2003 flop that was his interpretation of Hulk before Marvel Studios got properly straightened out by Disney.

Will Smith (Bad Boys, Aladdin, Concussion) plays an over the hill assassin Henry Brogan for a shady government department based in Virginia headed by Clay Verris played without compassion by Oscar nominee Clive Owen (Closer) who is wasted as the villain in this rather bizarre CIA revenge story that sees Brogan being cloned without his knowledge so that a 25 year old version of him called Junior comes after him in some exotic locations including Cartagena in Colombia and Budapest in Hungary.

Narrative gaps abound in a poorly written script with a contrived storyline which appears to get more irritating as the film progresses with zero onscreen chemistry between Will Smith and the female lead Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Kill The Messenger) who plays intelligence operative Danny Zakarweski who gets planted by the covert agency to run surveillance on Brogan while he is fishing off the coast of Georgia, USA.

What follows is a classic tale of a cat chasing its own tail as Brogan soon discovers that the man trying to kill him is himself, hence the title Gemini Man. This is a paint by numbers thriller whose storyline is less solid, while the visual effects are about the only redeeming feature of this below average action film.

Considering Ang Lee’s impressive body of work including Sense and Sensibility; Lust, Caution; Brokeback Mountain and Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Gemini Man falls flat as an action film although there are some fantastic visual sequences which make up for the completely dubious premise of this film’s faulty storyline. Such a pity to see great talent as Will Smith and Clive Owen wasted in a poorly scripted film directed by a more than accomplished film director.

Unfortunately, Gemini Man gets a film rating of 6 out 10 and judging by the fact that Alibaba Pictures financed this film, this was a grudge project for Ang Lee to appease the studios which are churning out content with Chinese capital investment.

If audiences like flawed action films with dubious plots, then Gemini Man is for them. 

THE  59TH BAFTA AWARDS /

THE BRITISH ACADEMY FILM AWARDS

Took place on Sunday 19th February 2006 in London

BAFTA WINNERS IN THE FILM CATEGORY:

Best Film: Brokeback Mountain

Best Director: Ang Lee – Brokeback Mountain

Best Actor: Philip Seymour Hoffman – Capote

Best Actress: Reese Witherspoon – Walk the Line

Best Supporting Actor: Jake Gyllenhaal – Brokeback Mountain

Best Supporting Actress: Thandie Newton – Crash

Rising Star Award: James McAvoy

Best British Film: Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit

Best Original Screenplay: Crash – Paul Haggis and Robert Moresco

Best Adapted Screenplay: Brokeback Mountain – Diana Ossana and Larry McMurtry

Best Costume Design: Memoirs of a Geisha

Best Foreign Language Film: The Beat That My Heart Skipped directed by Jacques Audiard

Source: 59th BAFTA Awards

The  54th BAFTA Awards /

The British Academy Film Awards

Took place on the 25th February 2001 in London

BAFTA Winners in the Film Category:

Best Film: Gladiator

Best Director: Ang Lee – Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Best Actor: Jamie Bell – Billy Elliot

Best Actress: Julia Roberts – Erin Brockovich

Best Supporting Actor: Benicio del Toro – Traffic

Best Supporting Actress: Julie Walters – Billy Elliot

Best British Film: Billy Elliott

Best Original Screenplay: Cameron Crowe – Almost Famous 

Best Adapted Screenplay: Stephen Gaghan – Traffic

Best Foreign Language Film: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/54th_British_Academy_Film_Awards

63rd Golden Globe Awards

Took place on Sunday  16th January 2006 hosted by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association

Golden Globe Winners in The Film Categories:

Best Film Drama: Brokeback Mountain

Best Film Musical or Comedy: Walk the Line

Best Actor Drama: Philip Seymour Hoffman – Capote

Best Actress Drama: Felicity Huffman – TransAmerica
Best Actor Musical or Comedy: Joaquin Phoenix – Walk the Line
Best Actress Musical or Comedy: Reese Witherspoon – Walk the Line

Best Supporting Actor: George Clooney – Syriana

Best Supporting Actress :Rachel Weisz – The Constant Gardener
Best Director: Ang Lee – Brokeback Mountain

Best Foreign Language Film: Paradise Now (Palestine)

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/63rd_Golden_Globe_Awards

The 58th Golden Globe Awards

Took place on Sunday 21st January 2001 by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association

Golden Globe Winners in The Film Categories:

Best Film Drama: Gladiator

Best Actor Drama: Tom Hanks – Cast Away

Best Actress Drama: Julia Roberts – Erin Brockovich

Best Director: Ang Lee – Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Best Supporting Actor – Benicio del Toro – Traffic

Best Supporting Actress – Kate Hudson – Almost Famous

Best Film Musical/Comedy: Almost Famous

Best Actor Musical/ Comedy: George Clooney – O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Best Actress Musical / Comedy – Renee Zellweger – Nurse Betty

Best Foreign Language Film – Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Taiwan)

2000 Toronto International Film Festival Winners

Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) takes place every year in September in Canada.
Films which premiere at Toronto are often nominated for Academy Awards the following year.

TIFF does not hand out individual prizes for Best Actor or Actress but focuses on amongst others the following awards:
People’s Choice Award & Best Canadian Feature Film

Opening Night Film: Stardom directed by Denys Arcand, starring Jessica Pare and Dan Aykroyd

People Choice Award: Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon directed by Ang Lee, starring Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh and Ziyi Zhang

Best Canadian Feature Film: Waydowntown directed by Gary Burns, starring Don McKellar and Marya Delver

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000_Toronto_International_Film_Festival

2007 Venice International Film Festival Winners

Venice International Film Festival, known as the Biennale di Venezia takes place annually
in late August, early September and is the oldest Film Festival in the World.

Winners of the 2007 Venice International Film Festival are as follows: –

Golden Lion (Best Film): Lust, Caution directed by Ang Lee

Silver Lion (Best Director): Brian de Palma – Redacted

Best Actor: Brad Pitt – The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett – I’m Not There

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venice_International_Film_Festival

2005 Venice International Film Festival Winners

Venice International Film Festival, known as the Biennale di Venezia takes place annually
in late August, early September and is the oldest Film Festival in the World.

Winners of the 2005 Venice International Film Festival are as follows: –

Golden Lion (Best Film): Brokeback Mountain directed by Ang Lee

Silver Lion (Best Director): Philippe Garrel – Regular Lovers (Les Amants Réguliers)

Best Actor: David Strathairn – Good Night and Good Luck

Best Actress: Giovanna Mezzogiorno – The Beast in the Heart (also released as Don’t Tell)

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venice_International_Film_Festival

78th Academy Awards

5th March 2006

Oscar Winners at the 78th Academy Awards

Best Picture: Crash

Best Director: Ang Lee – Brokeback Mountain

Best Actor: Philip Seymour Hoffman – Capote

Best Actress: Reese Witherspoon – Walk the Line

Best Supporting Actor: George Clooney – Syriana

Best Supporting Actress: Rachel Weisz – The Constant Gardener

Best Original Screenplay: Paul Haggis & Robert Moresco – Crash

Best Adapted Screenplay: Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana – Brokeback Mountain

Best Foreign Language Film: Tsotsi directed by Gavin Hood (South Africa)

Best Documentary Feature: March of the Penguins directed by Luc Jacquet and Yves Darondeau

Best Original Score: Gustavo Santaolalla – Brokeback Mountain

Best Cinematography: Dion Beebe – Memoirs of a Geisha

Best Costume Design: Colleen Atwood – Memoirs of a Geisha

Best Film Editing: Hughes Winborne – Crash

Best Visual Effects: King Kong

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/78th_Academy_Awards

73rd Academy Awards

25th March 2001

Oscar Winners at the 73rd Academy Awards

Best Film: Gladiator

Best Director: Steven Soderbergh – Traffic

Best Actor: Russell Crowe – Gladiator

Best Actress: Julia Roberts – Erin Brockovich

Best Supporting Actor: Benicio del Toro – Traffic

Best Supporting Actress: Marcia Gay Harden – Pollock

Best Original Screenplay: Cameron Crowe – Almost Famous

Best Adapted Screenplay: Stephen Gaghan – Traffic

Best Foreign Language Film: Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon directed by Ang Lee (Taiwan)

Best Documentary Feature: Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport  directed by Mark Jonathan Harris and Deborah Oppenheimer

Best Original Score: Tan Dun – Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

Best Cinematography: Peter Pau – Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

Best Costume Design: Janty Yates – Gladiator

Best Film Editing: Stephen Mirrione – Traffic

Best Visual Effects: Gladiator

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/73rd_Academy_Awards