Categories One-by-One: Best Documentary Feature

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Sonic Youth
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Post by Sonic Youth »

Oscar's attention to Gasland irks energy industry:

http://online.wsj.com/article....NewsTop
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Post by Jeffrey »

This is the sexiest, hottest, most glamorous category this year! "Inside Job" versus "Restrepo." Exciting competition!
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Post by Franz Ferdinand »

I think the closest comparison for Exit... in recent years is Man On Wire - a critically adored, crowd-pleasing movie with a prankster at its core. I think the recent story of the Academy trying to put the kibosh on any Banksy pranks "should he win" speaks volumes about what's to come on Oscar night...or I'm reading too deep into it.
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Post by Precious Doll »

Having seen four of these films (Waste Land being the exception) I'm inclinded to think Gas Land will take it. It simply holds more emotional punch than the others, even if it's pretty badly made and undermined by having the director front and centre of his film.



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Post by Sabin »

The Director's Guild doesn't have a fantastic track record with predicting the winner. I've only seen Exit Through the Gift Shop and it doesn't seem like the kind of film that would win. Most likely Restrepo. Craig Ferguson did direct No End in Sight a few years back and failed to win, so it's possible this will be the makeup award.
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Post by Mister Tee »

Have you guys seen Restrepo? It's respectable enough, but not special, and I wonder if Afghanistan is enough on the front-burner to win.

Exit Through the Gift Shop probably doesn't meet the High Seriousness standards of those stalwart few who actually vote on the documentaries. In fact, it about makes fun of them, so they'd be showing more sense of humor than I imagine they have by voting for it.

I've been guessing Inside Job on subject matter alone, but if it's hard to get through, who knows? I can tell you Gas Land is a hot item on Netflix...it's read "Very Long Wait" for weeks now. Could that be indicative of anything?
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Post by Damien »

Big Magilla wrote:I'm guessing Restrepo, which is a sort of real life Hurt Locker, but anything is possible in this category.
This category is pure guesswork, but my hunch, too, is Restrepo. And those of us of a certain age can think back on the 1967 winer in this caregory, The Anderson Platoon.

I thought Inside Job was a bore -- would have worked fine as a 30 minute movie, but the constant stream of odious rich people being given enough rope to hang themselves and make fools of themselves got tedious quickly. Exit Through The Gift Shop is a lot of fun but just doesn't fit the mold of the movies the Academy has honored in this category. Gasland has strong support in New York because director Josh Fox is well-know in the off- and off-off-Broadway theatre community.
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Post by Big Magilla »

I'm guessing Restrepo, which is a sort of real life Hurt Locker, but anything is possible in this category.
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Post by OscarGuy »

I think his pranks are what will cost him a win. No one likes an embarrassment and Inside Job just seems to fit more with the recent track record of winners in this category. I won't be at all surprised if the critically lauded Exit is shown The Great Egress!
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Post by anonymous1980 »

I haven't seen any of these films so I can't predict it based on their quality. I guess one could argue for and against any one of them.

Although I am rooting for Exit Through the Gift Shop to win if nothing else than to see what Banksy will do. Boo on the Academy for trying to put the kibosh on a Banksy prank on Oscar night.
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Post by anonymous1980 »

Exit Through the Gift Shop
Gas Land
Inside Job
Restrepo
Waste Land
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