If I Picked the Winners: Best Adapted Screenplay 2010

     The Adapted Screenplay tends to be where the heavy hitters are every year in the writing awards. If you look throughout the history of the Oscars, the Best Picture winner, and a fair share of the nominees as well, tend to come from the Adapted category, not the Original category. I'm not sure why this is. It just may be that coming up with a great original story is so much significantly harder than repurposing one already told for the sake of cinema, but whatever the cause, the Adapted race is usually where it is at in terms of predicting the Best Picture (not that they are necessarily better than the Original Screenplays though). This year's nominees is a fairly good slate, with some big names (including three past winners in the category), as well as a duet of newcomers. All of the scripts are from films I generally liked, although I was a bit disappointed with one of the screenplays. Even though I was not surprised it failed to receive a nomination, it was disappointing that the Academy did not make room for Laeta Kalogridis' adaptation of the Dennis Lehane novel "Shutter Island". Lehane has served as one of the leading literary inspirations for filmmakers of the last decade along with J.K Rowling and that lady who writes the Twilight series (sorry, I don't care enough to look up her name, something Meyer I think), as his novels-turned-into-films such as "Mystic River" and "Gone Baby Gone" helped set off the 2000's Boston Cinema Renaissance. Kalogridis' adaptation of "Shutter Island" may be the best adaptation of Lehane's work so for. In particular, the film's closing line, "Which would be worst, to live as a monster or die as a good man?", which was not in the book, puts a whole new interesting spin on the story. In my own personal ballot, I would have also included Edgar Wright and Michael Bacall for their wonderful adaptation of the comic book, "Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World", but since I don't have a say, I guess it's all a moot point. This is a good slate of nominees though, so let's get to the ranking.

5. Ethan and Joel Coen for "True Grit"

     The Coen Brothers have been probably the best screenplay writers of the last two decades, as well as one of the greatest writing teams in cinema history, which is why I am so disappointed and surprised to put them at the bottom of this category. Nevertheless, the script of "True Grit" is without a doubt (in my humble opinion) the weakest link in the film. From a visual point of view, as well as in the pacing and cadence from the characters, there are still trademark Coen Brothers moments that are unmistakable and remind you of why you love their movies, but the patented dialogue stylings of the sibling duo is MIA. I have not read the Charles Portis novel, but from what I hear, and from comparing it to the Henry Hathaway 1969 version, the dialogue of the Coen's film is almost a verbatim recitation of the book. And here in lies the problem with the script and the film as a whole: too much reverence towards the source material. The story of "True Grit" is a nice one, with bits of mildly humorous dialogue that give you that, "look at how dang precocious that little girl is" and "weren't the olden times a hoot and a riot" feeling, but for adventurous filmmakers such as the Coens, there is potentially a lot more depth in the story to explore. A 14-year old girl, in the rough and tumbled wild west, is searching for a gang of thieves who is sheltering her father's killer, and a scene about horse haggling sets the tone for the film? I just kept getting the sense that had the Coens wandered off the reservation a bit, toned down the cutesy, and dealt with the immediacy of the situation that a young teenage girl was trekking the wild west to hunt down her father's killer, we may have been able to tap into something more meaningful and memorable. There is also an inherent flawed nature to the third act of the story, as in both film versions of the book it comes across as a bit rushed. As much as I have criticized the script here, I don't want to give you the impression that I thought the script was worthless. There are some good moments here and there, and if it wasn't for their overwhelming predominance throughout the story, the light-hearted moments would have been a welcomed treat, but despite some fun flashes here or there, all I could think of while watching the film was the lost potential in the Coens adaptation of this Western tale.

4. Michael Arndt, John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton, and Lee Unkrich for "Toy Story 3"

     Eleven years after the last sequel, and fifteen years since the original launched the careers of the super-studio that is Pixar, "Toy Story 3" takes it's characters in a new and interesting direction that proves a third film in a dormant franchise doesn't necessarily have to disappoint beyond words (that's aimed at you "The Godfather Part III"). The story for film, which was concocted by Pixar veterans John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton, and director Lee Unkrich, sees the lovable toys many years down the line from their last exploits, where a grown up Andy has little use for such childish play things anymore. Hanging out with nothing to do in a storage bin, the groups friendship is threatened by Andy's departure to college, which forces Andy to decide whether he should toss them, store them in the attic or donate them. Accidentally, Andy's mother believes Andy wished to donate the toys, and she drops them off at a daycare center. With the prospect of being played with again, at first, with the exception of the ever loyal Woody who tries to make his way back to Andy, the toys believe that have found a paradise. Soon though, their tune begins to change, as they discover the horror of being played with by toddlers. It is a clever tale, and an excellent way to develop the characters and their world so many years later, almost as if their world has existed in real-time. The screenplay, which was written by Michael Arndt, who wrote the terrific script for "Little Miss Sunshine", also has its clever and charming moments. The film has its share of amusing gags, although it does lean on some them a bit long, and the film's final scene is especially touching. The main complaint I have with the script, which is the problem with almost all of Pixar's films and keeps me from embracing them to the same extent that many critics seem to, is the action-heavy third act. I am not a huge fan of long drawn-out action sequences to begin with, but if there is going to be such an effects driven sequence, I want to see it with living human beings performing real stunts with real explosions and fire in the background, not some cartoons escaping peril. The other thing that keeps both of the sequels a step behind the original in my opinion is that, while Woody is inevitably the star of the series, the humorous interaction between Woody and Buzz in the first film has never been fully recaptured, as Buzz Lightyear has basically been relegated to comic relief in the two sequels. "Toy Story 3" though is still an above-par sequel, and all four writers should be proud of their fitting finale to the best animated series of all-time.

3. Debra Granik and Anne Rosellini for "Winter's Bone"

     Based on the novel by Daniel Woodrell, "Winter's Bone" tells the story of a young teenage girl in the Missouri Ozark Mountains who must find her fugitive father in order to make him show up for a court date so that the police don't claim the property for their own, as her father offered up the house that she, along with her shell-shocked mother and two younger siblings, lives in for bail. Her father was into the production and distribution of meth, which he did at the behest of his extended family, a Hillbilly drug cartel of sorts. In order to find the truth about her father's whereabouts, the young girl has to dig deep into her extended families business, which is none too appreciated by the cold, scary Ozark drug dealers. Putting her life at risk by dredging up buried skeletons and focusing unwanted police attention on the Hillbillies meth operations, she eventually convinces her initially uncooperative uncle (her father's brother) to help her get to the truth of what happened to her father, but not without going to some dark places in order to save her home. The script does a great job of capturing the gruff nature of these Ozark criminals (not exactly your friendly Jed Clampett), and the unique Hillbilly version of the extended family/crime organization is probably the most memorable part of the film. The dialogue feels very authentic, and with these characters, a lot of the realism is about the lack of dialogue between the characters, as many in the Ozark region (especially of the meth-dealing criminal persuasion) aren't exactly known as some of the world's greatest conversationalist. The biggest complaint leveled against the film is that it dips too much into the "Poverty Porn" or "Hillbilly Porn" territory, and there are a few scenes that felt added on for the express purpose of showing how damn poor and backwards the region is, but overall the film is about one girl's journey to save her house and only the extra sensitive will let the few scenes of white-trash tourism get in the way of this compelling story. Granik and Rosellini paint and interested picture of time and place, as well as developed characters with an intriguing narrative, which is covers the main requirements of an adaptation of this nature.

          2. Danny Boyle and Simon Beaufoy for "127 Hours"

     Based on the autobiography "Between a Rock and a Hard Place" by Aaron Ralston, "127 Hours" tells the harrowing story of how Mr. Ralston amputated his own right arm in order to save his life when it became stuck between a boulder and cliff wall during a climbing mishap. Boyle and Beaufoy, who have already won an Oscar for their previous collaboration on "Slumdog Millionaire", do a brilliant job of avoiding the trap of making the film a "survivalist" picture. In many hands, the script written about this true life story would have focused in on the sheer panic of the situation and would have spent an inexorable amount of time on the nitty gritty details of what he did to survive ("Castaway" anyone?). While these elements do play a factor in Boyle and Beaufoy's script, they are really tangential aspects of the film, as Boyle and Beaufoy instead opt to use the situation in order to tell the story of one man's life. Ironically, I find that this is ultimately a more "realistic" take than obsessing over the minute-by-minute details of what happened for those 127 hours, because if you were stuck in the same spot for that long, at some point you would put aside the immediate need to escape and reflect on your life and who you really are. Some have also criticized the film for it's flashy stylistic choices (such as using split screens), but I think this misses the point somewhat. The film purposefully stays clear from being mistakenly as a painfully accurate documentary and chooses instead to match the emotional state of the film's protagonist at any given moment. Of course some may feel that the choices Mr. Boyle and Mr. Beaufoy make don't do a good job of eliciting the correct emotions from the audience, but I really appreciated the truly cinematic tools the duo used to portray the mindset of Mr. Ralston at any given moment. As an anti-realist though, I guess that is to be expected, but when given the chance (which many have decided not to apparently out of fear of a grizzly amputation seen that is actually quite mild), I think many audience members will agree with my sentiment. 

1. Aaron Sorkin for "The Social Network"

     As with last week's choice of my favorite director, for frequent readers of this blog, this should come as no surprise. I do love "The Social Network". If I was forced to pick one element of the film that I liked the best though, as hard of a decision as it would be, I would have to go with Aaron Sorkin's script (although the the film's score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross would come in a close second). Based on the book "The Accidental Billionaires" by Ben Mezrich, "The Social Network" tells the story of Mark Zuckerbeg, and how he created Facebook and screwed over everyone he knew in the process (just in case you haven't heard). The film's script is extremely up-tempo and snapping, almost to the point where it feels like an action flick, which is amazing considering it is completely dialogue driven. The greatest achievement of the screenplay in my view is its perfect snapshot of a certain type of socially awkward, yet extremely intelligent, computer "nerd" that has built its own large subculture in today's younger generation. It's a character that has yet to be portrayed on film, and the accuracy with which Mr. Sorkin nails not only their style of speech and sarcastic humor, but the extreme jealousy and pettiness that too often motivates their lives, is truly stunning. Some have complained that the script is "over-written", too aware of its own sharpness. While I understand what the critics are getting at, this self-consciousness is exactly what is called for, because the generation that the film puts under the microscope (and especially it's computer geek subculture), is probably the most self-conscious generation       in the history of earth. Everything is self-referential, everything is sarcastic, everything is parody, because it would be just too tragically embarrassing to let someone catch you being sincerely honest with yourself even for one moment. The film also has the hands-down best lines of the year, my personal favorite being (and the one I think has the best chance of being remembered), "If you guys were the inventors of Facebook, you'd have invented Facebook". I have been very disappointed with the recent turn in the awards season away from "The Social Network" and towards "The King's Speech", but if there is one award "The Social Network" should and will win, it will be Best Adapted Screenplay. If it some how doesn't win this award, the Academy will have a lot of egg on its face from many people's point of view.

     That's all I got for this week, so until next week when I think I will cover the Best Supporting Actor category, feel free to leave comments below and don't forget to vote in the new poll in the upper left-hand corner.