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In Your Face!
In each edition of The BookSense.com Newsletter (sign up here!), Len Vlahos, director of BookSense.com, holds forth about various topics...

Oscar, Oscar, Oscar
April 2 , 2001

I have to admit I like movies almost as much as I like books -- some days, even more. So, naturally, I was among the hundreds of millions who tuned in to watch the 73rd Annual Academy Awards.

What struck me as I watched the awards -- other than "what the hell is wrong with Bjork?" -- was the really fine work in film last year that was not acknowledged. Two examples that've been on my mind:

Missing from the feature-length documentary category was Julian Temple's "The Filth and the Fury." This isn't about a war-ravaged country, or a deep, introspective artist, or an underprivileged child fighting tough odds. And maybe that's why it wasn't nominated. Instead, this is a film about a particular moment in history that changed the course of youth culture forever. It's about class warfare, rebellion, and anarchy. It is, of course, a documentary about the Sex Pistols.

From grainy BBC footage of Britain in the mid-1970s, to silhouetted interviews with the surviving Pistols today, to commentary from Malcolm McLaren (the band's unmanageable manager) heard over images of someone (presumably McLaren himself) in an inflatable leather mask, "The Filth and the Fury" is a riveting 108 minutes, the film equivalent of a real page-turner. You will come away from "The Filth and the Fury" with a better understanding of why punk music happened, and why it had to happen.

Second is Mark Ruffalo's performance in "You Can Count on Me." Yes, Laura Linney was nominated for best actress, and the film itself was nominated for best screenplay, so "You Can Count on Me" wasn't exactly ignored. But the real standout in this picture was Mr. Ruffalo's performance.

His portrayal of Terry Prescott, a misguided drifter come home to borrow money from his uptight sister, strikes the perfectly ambiguous chord between hero and loser. His scenes with young Rory Culkin (another in a long line of acting products put out by the Culkin family) are particularly evocative.

How Joaquin Phoenix (can you say overact?) and Willem Dafoe (can you say really good makeup?) can be recognized over Mr. Ruffalo for their performances as actors in a supporting role is a mystery to me. Not to say that Benicio del Toro didn't deserve to win -- just that Mark Ruffalo deserved to be nominated. (And by the way, the screenplay for "You Can Count on Me" is light years better than the predictable, overly sentimental winner in that category, "Almost Famous.")

I've got to include one honorable mention: The screenplay for "High Fidelity" is a near-perfect adaptation of Nick Hornby's thoroughly enjoyable novel. It, too, was overlooked.

If you haven't seen "The Filth and the Fury" and/or "You Can Count on Me," put one or both on your list of activities this weekend, and let me know what you think -- go ahead, get in my face. You can write to me at inyourface@booksense.com.

Further reading:

High Fidelity
Books on Film
May the Best Picture Win
Mr. Showbiz Review of "You Can Count on Me"
Mr. Showbiz Review of "The Filth and the Fury"

Disclaimer: In Your Face does not necessarily represent the views of BookSense.com’s staff, management, ownership, or its affiliated booksellers. [Heck, we're not entirely sure it even represents Len's views.]

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