The Honoraries: David Lynch's masterpiece "Mulholland Dr"

The Governors Awards (Honorary Oscars) will be held on October 27th, 2019 with director Lina Wertmüller, actress Geena Davis, director David Lynch, and actor Wes Studi celebrated. We'll be discussing each of them.

by Eric Blume

The decision to give David Lynch an honorary Oscar this year is among the Academy’s smartest and most inspired choices.  Lynch’s movies are so singular, so not-conceived for commercial consumption, that he was never likely to gain enough popular majority to actually win as Best Director. But he has garnered three nominations over the years: 1980’s The Elephant Man, 1986’s Blue Velvet, and 2001’s Mulholland Dr.  Each of these films contains stunning and memorable images, a feverish sensibility, a subversively compassionate worldview, and a mastery of storytelling... even when the story feels incomprehensible.  

Mulholland Dr truly merits the term overused word "masterpiece".  Lynch is in complete control and it’s a film that could only have sprung from his mind and heart.  While we’ve seen many versions of the American Dream story, none has ever emphasized the “dream” portion of that term in the way that this film does...

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De Laurentiis pt 5: the Schlocky 80s

This week at TFE we've celebrated the centennial of one of cinema’s most prolific and legendary producers, Dino De Laurentiis... with look backs at his Italian breakthrough, his expensive taste in 60s epics, an American reinvention, and the hubris of King Kong.

Here's Chris Feil to wrap things up...  

With the exception of Hannibal Lecter, history tends to overlook Dino De Laurentiis genre contributions. In fact when Manhunter (1986) would arrive, Hannibal was somewhat the closing chapter to what Dino would bring in the late 70s and 80s. Instead the interim brought its share of delightful schlock, namely giving David Lynch enduring battle wounds and introducing the world to Arnold Schwarzenegger. I’m talking about the earnest disasterpieces Dune and Conan the Barbarian.

Think of this as the De Laurentiis dessert of our week-long series...

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Honorary Oscars to... Davis, Lynch, Studi, and Wertmuller

by Nathaniel R

Just this weekend we loved you all anew for that robust conversation about worthy Honorary Oscar recipients. News broke yesterday that the Board of Governors has named the four 2019 recipients. Honorary Oscars will go to the actor Wes Studi (who many thought should have been nominated for Last of the Mohicans in 1992, his starmaking role), and two previously nominated directors, David Lynch (who we've been campaigning for) and Lina Wertmüller who was famously the first woman ever nominated for the directing Oscar for her total masterpiece Seven Beauties. In addition to those three artists, the actress Geena Davis will receive this year's Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. That's a special subdivision of the Honorary that's not actually about the movies but your "outstanding contributions to humanitarian causes"...

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Auditions: Betty's Audition in "Mulholland Dr"

Our new series from Ginny O'Keefe, who knows from auditions as an actress in Los Angeles...

One of the more iconic audition scenes in the past 20 years of film comes from a film that gives you a great sense of security and comfort before ripping the rug right out from underneath you. It’s David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive. Naomi Watts plays Hollywood hopeful, Betty Elms, fresh off the plane from Ontario, Canada. She dreams of being a successful actress and is staying in her Aunt Ruth’s awesome apartment (rent-free I might add) while she is away filming a movie. She’s got a big audition coming up for a movie (with some really cheesy dialogue) and has been practicing like a beast in order to land the part. One of the things we admire about Betty is that she actually puts in the work in order to make her dreams come true. Cut to...

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Who should receive an Honorary Oscar?

Liv Ullmann and Max von Sydow in "Shame"Pete Hammond at Deadline revealed this morning that with all the dates moving earlier next Oscar season, the Academy is actually choosing the next Honorary Oscar winners THIS WEEKEND. It's too late then for an FYC but we feel the need to do one anyway. In the past we've made great suggestions like Albert Finney, Doris Day, Neil Simon, Michael Ballhaus, and Marni Nixon but they let all those people die without honoring them which is such bad form. At least they heard us on Maureen O'Hara, Harry Belafonte, and Angela Lansbury!

I have a suspicion that Caleb Deschanel, obviously a well-loved cinematographer given that surprise sixth nomination for the German film Never Look Away last season, will be named this year. He's 74 years old. For some reason I don't think they'll go with Glenn Close quite yet though she's a common prediction. She's 72 but working a lot right now and still in her prime.

TWELVE SUGGESTIONS...

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