MONKEY SHINES: DAVID LETTERMAN, A PLUSH TOY AND A CABIN BOY.

From Chevy Chase, Jon Stewart and Craig Ferguson to Jimmy Fallon, Martin Short and Whoopi Goldberg, the ‘Chair Behind the Desk’ late-night hosting gig has seen a great many talented talkers ease the sting of fickle fame with a shot at chat show popularity. But one man reversed the big-to-small screen stigma, melding television immortality and movie stardom.…well, sort of. Remember David Letterman in Cabin Boy…?

Adam Resnick and Chris Elliott connected as staff writers on NBC’s Late Night with David Letterman in the late 1980s. Integral to the core creative team, the caustic Resnick and off-kilter Elliott befriended the notoriously prickly but comedy-savvy ex-weatherman, who was being groomed for the chair left empty by the great Johnny Carson. But when sly manoeuvring by rival Jay Leno infamously robbed Letterman of that spot, the Indiana native downed tools and took some months off to rework the format for a new employer, CBS.

As the high-profile ‘War for Late Night’ was unfolding, Resnick (picture, right; on The Late Show in 2014) and Elliott watched the fate of their old boss from afar, having decamped to LA. They produced two seasons of Fox’s bewildering comedy series Get A Life, described by one critic as an ‘anti-sitcom’; Resnick’s unique comic perspective attracted the likes of Charlie Kaufman and Bob Odenkirk, while Elliott upped his Hollywood profile with acting gigs in The Abyss, New York Stories and Groundhog Day.

The time was right for the writing duo to graduate to feature films. From their off-centre chemistry sprang a starring vehicle for Elliott, a weird re-imagining that combined elements of MGM’s 1937 adventure Captain’s Courageous and the Greek epic poem, The Odyssey. The pitch found favour with the Disney offshoot, Touchstone Pictures; for the mini-studio, the key factor was the chance to secure the services of the pair’s script collaborator, Tim Burton.

"Disney was sort of kissing (Burton's) ass at the time because they wanted him to make a deal there," Resnick told a packed Q&A audience in 2005. "(The film) would’ve been great, if Tim had gone through with it. But he changed his mind at the last minute." The proposed budget of $40million took a hit without Burton’s marquee name; Touchstone now wanted the same script shot for $10million. Meanwhile, the studio fostered Burton’s pet project, Ed Wood, while the director was also working on Cabin Boy. Said a circumspect Resnick in 2012, “I don’t like to disparage the people that were involved…” (Pictured, left; Burton on the set of Ed Wood).

Burton’s eleventh-hour departure did not halt production, with Resnick taking on directing duties. The shooting script followed an uppity ‘Fancy Lad’ who mistakenly boards a rustic vessel, The Filthy Whore, and finds himself at sea with a band of gruff seamen (Brion James, Brian Doyle-Murray and James Gammon), a dim-witted swabby (future Conan O’Brien offsider, Andy Richter), mythical creatures (Ann Magnuson’s randy Octo-woman; Russ Tamblyn’s half-shark/half-man) and a pretty long-distance swimmer (Melora Walters).

“My immediate reaction was, ‘I don’t know how to direct a fucking movie,’ (and) I said no,” Resnick told Splitsider in 2014. “But then all the chatter started. ‘Don’t worry, Adam, we’ll surround you with good people’ and my agents (saying) ‘Do you know how many people would kill for this chance?” In a 2014 interview with The AV Club, the director recalls, “If I were going to direct my first movie, Cabin Boy would be the last sort of thing I’d come up with. It was written for Tim’s sensibility.” The finished film would become the stuff of Hollywood nightmares; debuting January 7, 1994, on a weekend when ice storms shut down much of the US East Coast, and with a tidal wave of negative press crashing against its bow, Cabin Boy sputtered to less than $4million at the US box office. What was once touted as Tim Burton’s follow-up to Batman Begins now seemed destined for movie oblivion…

But one incredible stroke of good fortune had befallen Resnick and Elliot - the Cabin Boy shoot had taken place when David Letterman was between his talk-show commitments. It would be in those fateful few weeks that their old friend agreed to film a cameo as ‘Old Salt in Fishing Village.’ As Fancy Lad wanders a seedy coastal village, Letterman’s cigar-chomping stall owner offers the greeting, “Well, well, well, what’s on your mind, little girl?” After several awkward platitudes and off-colour observations (“You remind me of my sister, Sally. She’s a dietician.”), Letterman brings all his character actor finesse to a line reading that would seal his place in the annals of cinema history…

“Hey, would you like to buy a monkey?

“Adam and I were both really so lucky that Dave agreed to do it,” Elliott told Vulture.com. It is the only character part that Letterman has on his IMDb page, despite being listed in the end credits as ‘Earl Hofert.’ The short scene, barely a minute long, became fuel for Letterman’s caustic brand of self-effacing comedy, with references turning up many times as part of his iconic ‘Top 10 List’ (Top 10 Things Overheard at the Academy Awards - No. 9: If this goes well, I hear they'll offer Whoopi Cabin Boy 2; Top 10 Cool Things About Winning an Academy Award - No. 9: Might get offered the lead in the sequel to Cabin Boy).

When David Letterman hosted the 67^th Academy Awards in 1995, the notoriety of Cabin Boy and the profile that he had afforded his ill-fated bit part meant it was right for skewering on Hollywood’s biggest stage. Despite the professional and personal battering Resnick took following the film’s failure (he told The AV Club, “I never wanted to direct again. I didn’t have the strength to endure that level of failure and embarrassment.”), the director agreed to oversee a short that would air during the Oscar broadcast, in which some of cinema’s biggest stars reveal their Cabin Boy auditions.

The Cabin Boy creative team have both restored their tarnished reputations. Elliott would become a TV regular with recurring roles on Saturday Night Live and Everybody Loves Raymond, as well as scene-stealing turns in There’s Something About Mary, Kingpin and the soon-to-be-released The Rewrite, opposite Hugh Grant. Resnick rose to co-executive producer on the highly-acclaimed The Larry Sanders Show and penned the John Travolta/Lisa Kudrow vehicle, Lucky Numbers, and the dark Edward Norton comedy, Death to Smoochy; in 2014, he published his memoirs, Will Not Attend: Lively Stories of Detachment and Isolation.

Even their much-maligned debut feature has experienced a resurrection of sorts, with screenings and Q&A events filled to capacity with fans for whom the fresh insanity and bizarre tone of Cabin Boy represents a period of studio experimentation long since gone. “We’ve grown fonder of it over time,” says Resnick. “It’s kind of unique; it’s its own little strange thing.  And there are people out there who really like it.”

The Late Show airs its final episode on May 20; Cabin Boy is available to Australian readers via Touchstone (Aust) YouTube channel

NEW YORK, NEW YORK: THE FILMS OF GENE SAKS AND NEIL SIMON.

As is fitting for a Broadway legend, all of the seven films directed by the late Gene Saks were adapted from legit theatre triumphs. He gave legendary comedienne Lucille Ball her most famous bigscreen role in Mame, and guided Goldie Hawn to a Supporting Actress Oscar in Cactus Flower. But it was his collaborations with Neil Simon that have created his true legacy. In honour of the 93 year-old, who passed away on March 28, SCREEN-SPACE revisits the four films that Saks and Simon crafted, each one a vivid, loving and funny slice of East Coast mores and memories…

Barefoot in the Park (1967)
After a hit run of 1530 performances under the guidance of director Mike Nichols, Barefoot in the Park served as the film debut for Saks and the second bigscreen outing for Simon (following After the Fox, the previous year). Robert Redford had become the toast of Broadway as newlywed WASP, Paul Bratter, the stuffed-shirt foil to his new wife, the free-spirited Corie (Jane Fonda). The film got lukewarm reviews (The New York Times said, “an old-fashioned romantic farce loaded with incongruities and snappy verbal gags.”) but audiences adored the chemistry of the leads; it grossed US$20million (converted, a whopping US$142million). Mildred Natwick, reprising her stage role as Corie’s mother, earned the film’s sole Oscar nomination. Still a date night favourite, it is nevertheless undervalued as timely commentary on the changing face of mid-60’s New York, when the ‘Greenwich Village boho’ lifestyle was rattling the establishment cage.
Did you know…? – Redford’s stage wife, Elizabeth Ashley, was not considered for the film role, despite coming off a BAFTA-nominated turn in The Carpetbaggers. Actresses considered for the role included Geraldine Chaplin, Sandra Dee, Natalie Wood, Yvette Mimieux and Tuesday Weld.

The Odd Couple (1968)
When Saks and Simon paired up for their second collaboration, few predicted that the The Odd Couple would turn into one of the biggest hits of the decade; the final US box office figure of $44.5million converts to a staggering $300million, making it Paramount’s highest earner of 1968 and topping the likes of Bullitt, The Planet of The Apes and Rosemary’s Baby (and not far behind the top-grosser, 2001: A Space Odyssey). Having played 964 packed-house performances between March 1965 and July 1967 (again, with Mike Nichols directing), it was going to be a challenge to open up the largely single-set staging to the bigscreen. Another hurdle was recasting the pivotal role of Felix Ungar, after Art Carney was not considered for the movie version. With Walter Matthau still on board as the slovenly Oscar Madison and Jack Lemmon now in place (in their second film together), it fell to Gene Saks to recapture the on-stage magic of Neil Simon’s buddy comedy. The script earned Simon an Oscar nomination and won him the Writer’s Guild Screen Writing trophy; Saks understated direction was harshly ignored, earning just a single nomination from his peers at the Director’s Guild.
Did you know…? – The film broke several records during its season at the famous Radio City Music Hall, including longest single run (14 weeks) and highest gross (over US$3million) in the then 42-year history of the venue. 

Last of the Red Hot Lovers (1972)
Saks and Simon would wait four years before reteaming on Last of The Red Hot Lovers, a darker-hued comedy that showed the maturation of two storytellers willing to tackle the very contemporary theme of infidelity. The play ran 706 performances at Broadway’s Eugene O’Neill Theatre with the portly character actor James Coco as anti-hero Barney Cashman, a restaurateur in a lifeless marriage and determined to have an affair. Paramount had more faith in Alan Arkin as their leading man (despite his expensive flop Catch-22 only a year prior), his smooth good looks at odds with the hopeless, chubby lothario that Simon originally envisioned. The play’s temptresses (Doris Roberts, the Tony-nominated Linda Lavin) were also upgraded to the screen sirens of the period (Sally Kellerman, Paula Prentiss). Simon’s and Sak’s trademark ageing, middle-class Jewish spin on the sexual revolution didn’t play well with critics or audiences, already feeling dated despite only having premiered on stage a few short years before the film adaptation.
Did you know…? – A union strike all but shut down location shooting in New York City just as Last of The Red Hot Lovers was getting set to begin filming. Despite Simon’s and Sak’s beloved NYC being central to the narrative, the production was largely shot in Philadelphia and Pennsylvania.

Brighton Beach Memoirs (1986)
14 years after the lukewarm response to Last of the Red Lovers, Saks and Simon would reunite for a melancholy walk down memory lane in the form of the acclaimed Brighton Beach Memoirs. As middle age began to encroach on the pair (Saks was 65; Simon, 59), they pooled their collective memories into the autobiographical story of Eugene Jerome (Jonathan Silverman, replacing Matthew Broderick from the Broadway run) and the idiosyncratic family life of 1937 Brooklyn, an existence that influenced his passion for baseball, storytelling and pretty girls. Having directed and shared in the acclaim of the Broadway season, Saks’ adds his trademark flavoursome eye for location detail (aided by the wonderful production design of Stuart Wurtzel), crafting the warmest, most cinematic film of the pair’s oeuvre. Both the film and play took some stick for employing a rose-coloured rear view (Roger Ebert said, “Simon and Saks should have taken some chances and cut closer to the bone.”) but neither apologised for the warm sentimentality and loving embrace they showed in recounting those awkward ‘teenage manhood’ years. Blythe Danner is a standout as the extended clan’s matriarch.
Did you know…? – Despite winning a Tony for playing Eugene in the initial stage run of Brighton Beach Memoirs, Matthew Broderick passed on the film version when the shooting schedule clashed with his lead role in John Hughes’ Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. Broderick would, however, play Eugene in the film version of Simon’s sequel, Biloxi Blues, opposite Christopher Walken.

LIVE! THE SCREEN-SPACE 2015 OSCAR BLOG

America's favourite go-to awards MC, Neil Patrick Harris (pictured, below) will usher in the 87th annual Academy Awards in a matter of moments. From the Dolby Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard and North Highland Avenue, the 2015 Oscars have weathered their fair share of controversy, but all that counts for for little more than monologue fodder come the big night. As the celebration unfolds, SCREEN-SPACE will be live-blogging all the evening's key moments as they happen - every award, every presenter, all the spontaneous craziness that comes when tense celebrities meet free booze. Bookmark and refresh the page for all the latest Oscar moments...

LIVE FROM LOS ANGELES' DOLBY THEATRE, THE 87TH ACADEMY AWARDS...

An uncharacteristically rainy LA welcomes the celebs. Red carpet chit-chat turns from the tension of the evening to how the downpour will affect the hair and dresses.

Harris' strengths as a showman launch into an ol'-fashioned song-and-dance number about the magic of cinema. He 'Crystals' things up by putting himself in the frame with classic film scenes of yore.

Anna Kendrick and Jack Black weigh in with some self-deprecating humour, that actually works. Then some dancing storm-troopers...wait, what?

Solid opening that gets the show of to a high-gloss, upbeat start. Uh-oh, now he's talking...

First presenter, Lupita Nyong'o, introduces the nominees for Best Supporting Actor.

WINNER: JK SIMMONS, WHIPLASH

As expected, journeyman actor JK Simmons (pictured, below right) proves a popular choice for Whiplash. Co-star Miles Teller is clearly happy for on-screen tormentor. Wife Michelle leads the thank yous, followed by his kids,followed bya plea to "call your parents." Nice touch. No industry acknowledgements in speech! Is that a first?

Silly diversion about Price Waterhouse Cooper and NPH's predictions. Move on.

Liam Neeson introduces the Best Pic nominee clips, for The Grand Budapest Hotel and American Sniper respectively. Full black tux-&-tie ensemble very dashing.

Dakota Johnson introduces 'Lost Stars,' Best Song nominee from Begin Again, performed by Maroon 5, fronted by the music-biz pic co-star, Adam Levine. Tight set.

Show yet to spark. Slick but lacking...

The actress from Anaconda and Captain Kirk step up for Best Costume Design announcement.

WINNER: MILENA CANONERO, THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL

Presenter Reese Witherspoon weathers an awful pun and condescending hillbilly play-on to present Best Makeup & Hairstyling.

WINNER: MARK COULIER and FRANCES HANNON, THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL

Coulier honours the late Dick Smith, revered makeup artist, in his speech.

Channing Tatum steps up to introduce winners of the Team Oscar search, young filmmakers whose 60 second films were chosen from hundreds of entrants.

NPH has a Travolta moment introducing Chiwetel Ejiofor who, with Nicole Kidman, present the Foreign Film nominees.

WINNER: IDA (Poland).

First Oscar trophy for Polish film industry from 10 nominations. Director Pawel Palikowska (pictured, below) blows off orchestra play-off to deliver first memorable moment of the night, thanking all his drunk Polish friends and honouring his deceased wife and parents.

Shirley Maclaine struggles a bit talking up next three Best Picture nominees, Boyhood, Birdman and The Theory of Everything.

The old 'crowd-walk' bit is saved by Steve Carrell's quick wit.

Marion Cotillard who, we are reminded by some twee play-on music, is French, introduces the next Best Song nominee, The Lego Movie anthem Everyting is Awesome. Andy Samberg and co mash-up song-styles to garish, gaudy excess. This is more like it!

Kerry Washington and 'the most well-adjusted former child star in the room', Jason Bateman, present Live Action Short Film contenders.

WINNER: THE PHONE CALL, Matt Kirby and James Lucas.

...and straight into Best Documentary Short.

WINNER: CRISIS HOTLINE VETERANS PRESS 1.

Viola Davis introduces the recipients of the 2015 Governor's Awards, presented prior to the ceremony. They were Maureen O'Hara, Hayao Miyazaki, Jean-Claude Carriere and Harry Belafonte.

Another crowd-walk, in which David Oyelowo is put on the spot. Ouch.

Gwyneth Paltrow introduces Tim McGraw, who gives moving rendition of Best Song nominee, I'm Not Gonna Miss You. The nominated artist, the great Glen Campbell, in the grips of late-stage Atlzheimers, is in the audience.

NPH, perhaps realising the show is a bit staid, drops trousers for Birdman bit before introducing Margot Robbie and Miles Teller, who present clip package of AMPAS Technical Awards evening. Looked like fun.

Star eye-candy continues with Chris Evans and Sienna Miller onstage for Sound Mixing and Sound Editing categories. First, the Mixers...

WINNER: WHIPLASH, Craig Mann, Ben Wilkins, and Thomas Curley.

..then, the Editors...

WINNER: AMERICAN SNIPER, Alan Robert Murray and Bub Asman.

Winners know where their bread is buttered, and thank Mr Eastwood first off.

A freshly clothed NPH introduces Jared Leto in silver-blue tux (yikes), who wins points for Meryl Streep gag (Her nomination is a condition of a California State Law, apparently). The Oscar goes to...

WINNER: PATRICIA ARQUETTE, BOYHOOD.

Arquette rips into a speech certain to cause much post-ceremony commentary, as she demands wage equality across the US for women and justice for the hard-working middle-class moms, such as her character in Boyhood. Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lopez and co-star Ethan Hawke rise to scream support. A powerful moment.

Best Song nominee Grateful, word and lyrics by Dianne Warren, from Beyond the Lights, stakes a solid claim for the trophy with a soaring rendition by Rita Ora.

Ansell Elgort and Chloe Grace Moretz front for Visual Effects category.

WINNER: INTERSTELLAR, Paul Franklin, Andrew Lockley, Ian Hunter and Scott Fisher.

Kevin Hart and Anna Kendrick do some 'short person' schtick ahead of Best Animated Short announcement. 

WINNER: FEAST, Patrick Osborne and Christina Reid.

Zoe Saldana and Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnstone pony up for Animated Feature award; NPH says what everyones thinking, "Where's The Lego Movie?"

WINNER: BIG HERO 6, Don Hall, Chris Williams, and Roy Conli.

AMPAS president Sheryl Boone-Isaacs speaks loud and proud for freedom of creative speech and expression. "We honour the courage of filmmakers who cross borders and expand boundaries," she says.

New Hollywood gets a look in with 2014's breakout stars Chris Pratt and Felicity Jones, who step up for Best Production Design announcement.

WINNER: THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL, Production Design: Adam Stockhausen; Set Decoration: Anna Pinnock.

Some one needs to stop Adam Levine's gf from being on-camera...

Idris Elba and Jessica Chastain present Best Cinematography award. This will be telling. Another Budapest trophy could put a stop to Birdman's night...

WINNER: Emmanuel Lubezki, BIRDMAN.

Meryl Streep (pictured, below right) introduces the much-loved In Memoriam montage. She is clearly moved...

Mickey Rooney, Paul Mazursky lead the artfully rendered presentation. HR Giger, Anita Ekberg, Louis Jourdan, Gordon Willis, Richard Attenborough, Ruby Dee. A young Robin Williams...

Jennifer Hudson sings a tribute to the many we've lost. Not necessary, given the emotion of the montage, but fitting.

Naomi Watts and Benedict Cumberbatch remind us just how white the night is. They present the Best Editor honour to...

WINNER: Tom Cross, WHIPLASH.

Is the playing field changing re the Best Picture race? Whiplash and The Grand Budapest Hotel are building unexpected momentum. We'll see...

Terence Howard stumbles awkwardly (autocue problems; banging the mic stand) while announcing the remaining Best Picture nominees, Whiplash, Selma and The Imitation Game.

Best Documentary Feature category give David Oyelowo and Jennifer Aniston the stage time they deserved. And the Oscar goes to...

WINNER: CITIZENFOUR, Laura Poitras, Mathilde Bonnefoy, and Dirk Wilutzky.

Not for the first time tonight, NPH undercuts a serious moment with a stupid joke. After CitizenFour director Laura Poitras gives a poignant speech, the host smugly guffaws, "Edward Snowden couldn't be her tonight, for some treason." Geddit? Terrible. Is he ad-libbing?

Octavia Spencer intoduces John Legend and Common (pictured, left) to sing the Best Song nominee, Glory, one of only two categories in which Selma features. Rousing, heartfelt rendition; crowd rises for prolonged SO.

John Travolta and Idina Menzel get big laughs reliving last years 'Adele Dazeem' moment. John's a bit touchy-feely! They have the honour of awarding the Best Song to...

WINNER: 'GLORY' from SELMA, Music and Lyric by John Stephens and Lonnie Lynn.

Common rips into the night's best speech, uniting the world through the fight against injustice in countries everywhere. John Legend backs it up with his own impassioned words.

Scarlett Johansson, elaborately attired, fronts for what seems to be a tribute to The Sound of Music 50th anniversary. And they say the Academy is an anchronistic institute for old white people!

The job falls to Lady Gaga to make it relevant. This show DOES NOT need a Sound of Music medley tribute right now... In fairness, Gaga nailed it. 'The incomparable' Julie Andrews materialises and recalls the impact of the film. Seems the production number was a primer for the Best Original Score category (wasn't The Sound of Music based upon a stage production?).

WINNER: Alexandre Desplat, THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL.

Great funnyman Eddie Murphy kicks off the Screenplay categories with Original work nominees.

WINNER: BIRDMAN, Written by Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr. & Armando Bo

Alejandro takes centre stage, likely aware Linklater has firmed as favourite for the Director award.

Oprah Winfrey glides onstage, to deliver Adapted Screenplay trophy.

WINNER: THE IMITATION GAME, Written by Graham Moore.

Moore uses the platform to encourage tolerance, truth and self-belief, opening up about his teen suicide attempt.

Shrugging off NPH's vaguely racist intro, Ben Affleck steps up for Best Director announcement.

WINNER: Alejandro G. Iñárritu, BIRDMAN

Genuine cries of shock as Iñárritu pips Linklater at the post. The Mexican is humbled before his peers, acknowledging the fellow nominees. Linklater's expression is one of "Oh, well..." SCREEN-SPACE has been open about its ambivalence to Boyhood, but it is a shame that Linklater may go home empty-handed.

Cate Blanchett primes the crowd for the Best Actor award. Keaton, Redmayne or Cooper in a shock..?

WINNER: Eddie Redmayne, THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING.

Suddenly, I want to watch Tropic Thunder.

Matthew McConnaughey steps up to reveal Best Actress winner. Getting the feeling it will be the Year of the Afflicted in the lead acting categories...

WINNER: Julianne Moore, STILL ALICE.

Deserving and popular choice.

NPH returns to a running gag about his predictions, locked in box the whole show. It seemed silly four hours ago; now, with the big award pending and everyone's arse numb... well. Turns out its a bit, that doesn't really make sense. Best forgotten.

Sean Penn to announce the Best Picture. Can Boyhood salvage something...?

WINNER: BIRDMAN, Alejandro G. Iñárritu, John Lesher, and James W. Skotchdopole, Producers.

Cast and crew take the stage, each making sure Michael Keaton gets some moment in the spotlight. Given the mike, he says, "Look, it's great to be here, who am I kidding. This is great fun."

"AND THE OSCAR GOES TO...": PREDICTING THE 2015 WINNERS.

Call us a little bit cynical, but the modern Oscars circus is little more than an extension of the studio marketing arms. Each year, the bestowed-upon contenders are probably not the ‘best’ movies of the year, but certainly are the ones that serve the image and integrity of Hollywood’s corporate masters most succinctly. That said, the Oscars are still a blast, not least for us ‘industry analysis’ types. We indulge in long ruminations about who is going to win and why, as if we are privy to the back room dealings and long lunches that draw those left-field votes from the Academy members. We aren’t that inside, of course, but that never stops us from conjuring wildly hypothetical scenarios to support our prognostications. To wit, the 2015 SCREEN-SPACE Oscar Predictions… 

BEST ACTRESS:
Julianne Moore will take home this statue. It is impossible to recall when a category seemed like such a lock and will present the defining moment of the entire evening if she misses out (see also, J.K. Simmons and Patricia Arquette in the supporting player categories). On merit alone, it should be a much closer contest - Marion Cotillard gives the performance of the year in Two Days One Night, but no one saw it; Reese Witherspoon hit a new career-high in Wild; Felicity Jones was the Tom Cruise to Eddie Redmayne’s ‘Rainman’ and deserves any acting kudos far more than her co-star. Gone Girl’s Rosamund Pike’s inclusion at the expense of Jenny Slate (Obvious Child), Jessica Chastain (A Most Violent Year; Miss Julie), Jennifer Aniston (Cake) or Essie Davis (The Babadook) now seems daft. 

BEST ACTOR:
Like Moore, sentimental favourite Michael Keaton seemed a similar ‘sure thing’ a few months back. But the race has tightened. American Sniper’s enormous success has seen Bradley Cooper surge; with no Best Director nomination and the adapted screenplay sparking credibility debates, this category may be the only opportunity to reward the surprise hit. Redmayne’s impersonation of Stephen Hawking pales next to the likes of Daniel Day Lewis (who won for My Left Foot) and Tom Cruise (nominated for Born on The Fourth of July), but he has the BAFTA and SAG trophies already in his cabinet. No Ralph Fiennes (The Grand Budapest Hotel) or Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler) undermines this category, for sure. Hollywood will reward it’s own and give Keaton the gong. 

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY and BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY:
Pundits will get some idea if The Grand Budapest Hotel is going to contend for a Best Picture win if it bumps Boyhood and Birdman in the Original Screenplay category. It will have certainly picked up some below-the-line honours by this stage, but will need this nod to maintain momentum; the recent BAFTA crown is a good sign. Foxcatcher is firming as the evening’s also-ran; Nigtcrawler should win, but won’t. Wes Anderson by a hipster’s whisker.
Adapted Screenplay is most likely the last big category The Imitation Game can win, but that seems unlikely against American Sniper and The Theory of Everything. Inherent Vice is (fittingly) the rank outsider; would’ve been nice to see James Gunn’s smart, sweet reworking of the comic book source Guardians of the Galaxy get recognition here. The 2015 surprise may be Damien Chazelle (pictured, left) taking the gold for Whiplash. With five nominations, the film has a lot of love amongst AMPAS members; JK Simmons didn’t just make up those vicious, tyrannical rants. Whiplash in an upset. 

BEST DIRECTOR
Morten Tyldum’s understated, workmanlike job on The Imitation Game was fine, but not one of the year’s five best. Foxcatcher auteur Bennet Miller’s rigid, austere eye was much admired, but did anyone come out of that film exclaiming, “God, I loved it”? Wes Anderson will be rewarded with the Original Screenplay gong. That leaves arguably the night’s toughest split decision – Alejandro Inarritu’s giddy, bewildering, technically dazzling spin on the artist-as-a-tortured-soul, or Richard Linklater’s warm celebration of every-home Americana. For its widely publicised production schedule and his intensely personal conviction, Linklater will probably claim it. No, I’m not that enamoured with the meandering mediocrity of Boyhood or its mopey leading man, but everyone else seems to love it and Linklater has certainly paid his dues, so good luck to him. 

BEST FILM:
In such a tight year, it is inconceivable that any kind of ‘clean sweep’ will emerge. If Boyhood wins here, it will have three of the top slots (Director, Supporting Actress). Boyhood won’t be ‘that’ film. If Redmayne surprises in the Best Actor category, Linklater takes the directing honours and The Grand Budapest Hotel nabs tech awards, the highly-touted pre-ceremony frontrunner Birdman may be shutout. Frankly, I can’t see that happening. Both the critics and the creative community adored Inarritu’s vision; that warmth will carry it to Best Picture glory in one of the tightest races in recent memory.

For what it’s worth…
Ida for Best Foreign Film; Big Hero 6 for Animated Feature; CitizenFour for Doco, and; ‘Glory’ from Selma for Best Song.

THE SCREEN-SPACE TEN: OUR FAVOURITE FILMS OF 2014

At time of writing, several of the big Oscar contenders (Birdman, Foxcatcher, CitizenFour) had yet to roll-out internationally, so watch for those twelve months from now. Which is not to suggest there wasn't plenty of prime movie meat to chew on in 2014. SCREEN-SPACE swam against the current on some of the award season contenders (when will the rest of the world twig to the meandering mediocrity of Boyhood?) and got a glimpse of some of 2015's cinematic surprises (watch for Jason Trost's chilling How to Save Us). Settling on a subjective, occasionally indulgent, Top 10 of 2014 (in no particular order) was not easy, given the wealth of wonderful work world cinema had to offer...

NIGHTCRAWLER
Writer/director Dan Gilroy’s glistening, ghoulish vision of Los Angeles’ and the immoral hunger for fame and fortune it inspires proves every bit as potent and disturbing as past LA-noir classics Chinatown and The Player. As the skeletal sociopath Lou Bloom, whose predatory instincts and myopic ambition know no boundaries, Jake Gylenhaal (pictured, above) embodied dark dreaming and feverish insanity to create the perfect American psycho.

FROM WHAT IS BEFORE (Mula sa kung ano ang noon)
The societal structure of a small coastal barrio unravels to chilling, heartbreaking effect in Lav Diaz’s dreamlike political allegory, From What is Before. Non-festival crowds will find the film (if they find the film) particularly challenging – a monochromatic masterpiece, the narrative (set on the eve of Ferdinand Marcos’ imposition of martial law in 1972) unfolds over five-and-a-half-hours in regional Filipino dialect, albeit with mesmerising artistry.

HONEYMOON
Newlyweds Harry Treadaway and the wonderful Rose Leslie find their idyllic post-ceremony holiday devolving into a tortuous psychological fight against unknown forces, both external (what is that beam of light in the darkness?) and from within (“You taste the same, but you’re different.”) The leads bring a crucial humanity to this classic ‘cabin-in-the-woods’ horror premise, just one of many tropes deconstructed in Leigh Janiak’s paranoid, nerve-shredding, slow-burn directorial debut.

THE BABADOOK
As the increasingly fragile single mum desperately clinging to her sanity while her son conjures to life his own dark fantasies, Essie Davis delivers one of the great pieces of horror film acting in Australian auteur Jennifer Kent’s instant boogeyman classic. Steadily building a word-of-mouth reputation that strengthens with every viewing; Noah Wiseman's terrified, disturbed, courageous Samuel deserves a place alongside The Shining's Danny and Poltergeist's Carol-Anne as one of the great horror genre child characters.

TRACKS
The unforgiving landscape of Australia’s outback, captured with an artist’s eye by DOP Mandy Walker, is no match for the unyielding strength of spirit that drove lone explorer Robyn Davidson in her cross-continental journey. John Curran explores the pain and perseverance of one of Australia’s unsung heroines; Mia Wasikowska (pictured, right) embodies it in an unforgettable portrayal as the driven heroine (a coveted part that, at various stages of this daunting shoot’s long development, was attached to Julia Roberts, Meg Ryan and Cate Blanchett).

THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL
Wes Anderson finally silenced his detractors with The Grand Budapest Hotel, a frantic, fabulous farce that danced between light and dark amidst the most beautiful set design of the year. Heading an all-star cast of perfectly employed blink-and-miss-them cameos is Ralph Fiennes (pictured, left; with co-star Tony Revolori) as the wonderfully immoral concierge M. Gustave, Anderson’s most idiosyncratic and lovable ne’er-do-well lead character to date, in the comedic performance of the year (yes, that Ralph Fiennes).

THE DARK HORSE
The great New Zealand actor Cliff Curtis (pictured, right) gives a masterclass in character acting in The Dark Horse, James Napier Robinson's account of troubled chess-champion Genesis ‘Gen’ Potini. From Gisborne’s mean streets and its unforgiving maori gang culture springs a story of family values, achieving goals and shaping destinies. A tough, strikingly-shot film that earned Curtis the Asia Pacific Screen Award trophy for Best Actor, his leading man looks shed for full immersion as the chipped-tooth, overweight, bald bipolar sufferer.

THE IMMIGRANT
If film award ceremonies actually reflected critical opinion, Marion Cotillard would be short-odds favourite for most Best Actress trophies in the weeks ahead (at time of writing, she had just one, from the New York Film Critics Circle). Some would be for the Dardennes Brothers stirring Two Days, One Night; most would be for James Gray’s sweeping, personal and criminally underseen epic, The Immigrant, in which she plays a new American swept up into a life of exploitation and heartbreak the minute she steps off the boat. A majestic work that soars as both an emotional journey and a grand production, it is the director’s masterpiece, a darkly-hued homage to ‘Old Hollywood’s vision of the American dream, as well as his leading lady’s shining silver-screen moment.

PADDINGTON
Writer/director Paul King’s adaptation of Michael Bond’s children’s books takes all that was endearing about the adventures of the little bear ‘from darkest Peru’ and crafts a giddy gem of heightened whimsy and magical movie moments. Great comic turns by Hugh Bonneville and the wonderful Nicole Kidman as the treacherous taxidermist out to stuff our hero are second only to Paddington himself, a CGI-creation (voiced by Ben Whishaw) with more heart and personality than just about every actor working today.

MELBOURNE
Eliciting that ‘What would you do?’ response from audiences with gripping potency, Iranian Nami Javidi announces himself as heir apparent to countryman Asghar Farhadi with his stomach-tightening debut. A young couple (Peyman Moaadi, Negar Javaherian) are packing for their life-changing relocation to the titular Australian city when tragedy strikes. How they react – the decisions they rationalize, the secrets they are willing to keep – makes for gripping drama, the kind of cinema that has you uttering “Oh my God…” to yourself.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS: John Wick, Under the Skin, Guardians of the Galaxy, Life Itself, The Fault in Our Stars, The Theory of Everything, Whiplash, Ida, Calvary, Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley’s Island of Dr Moreau, Blue Ruin, Manakamana, The Raid 2, Stranger by the Lake, Goodbye to Language 3D, Edge of Tomorrow, Winter Sleep.