Best Music: 1970s

Best Original Score:

1970: Love Story (Francis Lai)

Oscar winner: Love Story (Francis Lai)

Review: Heartbeats (2011)

Left to right: Francis (Dolan), Nicolas (Schneider) & Marie (Chokri)

Directed by Xavier Dolan
Produced by Xavier Dolan, Carole Mondello, and Daniel Morin
Written by Xavier Dolan
Starring Monia Chokri, Niels Schneider, and Xavier Dolan

How to Lose Oscar Cred in 10 Years

Kate Hudson was nominated for an Oscar over a decade ago.

My entry into A Fistful of Films' blogathon. Please excuse the terrible pun in the title of this post. I just couldn't resist.

In 2001, Kate Hudson became an Oscar nominee for her terrific performance in Almost Famous. She had it made in Hollywood, and I'm sure she had a great many projects coming in. Unfortunately, she gambled and lost. When the remake of The Four Feathers flopped, she began appearing mostly in romantic comedies and thrillers, among which include such films as The Skeleton Key, Bride Wars, My Best Friend's Girl, and Something Borrowed. She has since been in some award-winning films like Nine and The Killer Inside Me, but her career has never gotten back on track. Next up, she appears in Mira Nair's thriller The Reluctant Fundamentalist. I hope she gets back to doing films like Almost Famous, because she was fantastic once upon a time. 

Note: I wrote a longer post for my blogathon entry, but I forgot that one's pick must be an Oscar nominee. Look for that unused post next week.

Mini-Reviews: Flight, Wreck-It Ralph & The Man with the Iron Fists (2012)

Oscar Campaign Bust #6: Casino Royale & Quantum of Solace

007 has received no Oscar love since For Your Eyes Only (1981).

Skyfall is finally opening in the U.S. this week. Since it is getting some Oscar buzz, I thought it would be interesting to look back at the last two campaign efforts in the Bond franchise.

Best Music: 1960s

Best Original Score:

1960: Psycho (Bernard Herrmann)

Oscar winner: Exodus (Ernest Gold)

Was this nominated?: No

Films I Saw in October

This month's best has a little something for everyone...or not.

The Best:
1. Cloud Atlas - ****
2. Pitch Perfect (x2) - ****
3. Oslo, August 31st - ****
4. Heartbeats - ****
5. The Perks of Being a Wallflower - ****
6. Bride of Frankenstein (theaters) - ****
7. Argo (x2) - ****
8. Sleepless Night - ****
9. Six Shooter - ****
10. Frankenstein (1931) (theaters) - ****

More after the cut.