Nine vie for foreign language Oscar.... No TZP sadly

[eggman]

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences has unveiled the nine semifinalists for the foreign-language award, the first shortlist to reflect the new voting rules in the category.

These are the nine:

Austria, "Revanche" (Gotz Spielmann, director);

Canada, "The Necessities of Life" (Benoit Pilon);

France, "The Class" (Laurent Cantet);

Germany, "The Baader Meinhof Complex" (Uli Edel);

Israel, "Waltz With Bashir" (Ari Folman);

Japan, "Departures" (Yojiro Takita);

Mexico, "Tear This Heart Out" (Roberto Sneider);

Sweden, "Everlasting Moments" (Jan Troell);

Turkey, "3 Monkeys" (Nuri Bilge Ceylan).

more here:
http://www.variety.com/awardcentral_...&cs=1&nid=3078


To bad TZP did not make the cut

[BBThumbHealer]

That's bad ... i was expecting Aamir to get one this time !! Let's see if A.R Rahman spells his magic over the oscars too

[Faun]

Well TZP was not that good. It has typical cliches

[freshseasons]

Whatever TZP was one of its kind.

[red_devil]

they should have sent an OSO or a WELCOME or a SINGH is KINGG for the oscars.. these movies would've swept all the awards lol

[esumitkumar]

^^he he he

but really TZP is must watch..I love it and the songs tooo goood

Its really sad it didnt make in the nominations

[Garbage]

TZP is not there is really sad.

[thewisecrab]

I didnt find anything khaas in TZP.
I'm not surprised it didnt make the cut.

[Liverpool_fan]

I was the best movie of its time. However Oscars are of different breed altogether...

[alter_ego]

World still has a very myopic views of India. To most of them we are still an exotic land. Land of elephants, snake charmers, cows and all other cr@p associated with it.

If the same TZP would have been made on the life of a dyslexic slum kid. It would have probably been nominated for the Oscars. Since the protagonist is from upper middle class family the movie is apperently "not very real".

I am not very happy with the portrayal of slum children & poverty in Slumdog Millionaire either.

[esumitkumar]

^^++1 ..I didnt like Slumdog M much ...

[MetalheadGautham]

Oscar movies are not just ANY movies. They need to have POWER, and TZP lacks any.
I saw slumdog and now I know why its been billed as a propable oscar.
it simply blows the mind away.

tzp is just a minor children's feature film which lacks enough depth to impress.

[eggman]

Originally Posted by alter_ego

World still has a very myopic views of India. To most of them we are still an exotic land. Land of elephants, snake charmers, cows and all other cr@p associated with it.

If the same TZP would have been made on the life of a dyslexic slum kid. It would have probably been nominated for the Oscars. Since the protagonist is from upper middle class family the movie is apperently "not very real".

I am not very happy with the portrayal of slum children & poverty in Slumdog Millionaire either.

I really do agree!!! Its the same reason Lagaan was nominated and SLUMDOG MILLIONARE is winning every where!!! Even WHITE TIGER had the same element and see what happened to it!!! While RDB and TZP are not considered despite of real powerful films!!!

[amitabhishek]

Originally Posted by MetalheadGautham

Oscar movies are not just ANY movies. They need to have POWER, and TZP lacks any.
I saw slumdog and now I know why its been billed as a propable oscar.
it simply blows the mind away.

tzp is just a minor children's feature film which lacks enough depth to impress.

@Metalhead: Ya! Right! a minor film!!!!!? Wonder what you have said if Danny Boyle directed this film.

Can you find a link between these so called Oscar films:

Salaam Bombay, Lagaan, Satyajit Ray Movies

...they all typecast India in a typical way let me clarify I am not saying these movies are bad they are masterpieces but I too just see a link here.

[thewisecrab]

Originally Posted by alter_ego

World still has a very myopic views of India. To most of them we are still an exotic land. Land of elephants, snake charmers, cows and all other cr@p associated with it.

If the same TZP would have been made on the life of a dyslexic slum kid. It would have probably been nominated for the Oscars. Since the protagonist is from upper middle class family the movie is apperently "not very real".

I am not very happy with the portrayal of slum children & poverty in Slumdog Millionaire either.

I beg to differ.
Taare Zameen Par was riddled with cliches. I mean, come on, just coz Aamir Khan showed some courage an adopted a different genre (whose script was completely predictable) doesnt make it the best foreign film.

And foreign film means certain parts, characters in the film, should depict tradition, culture, language of that country. (which although TZP is a different film, did not do so) Remeber Lagaan?

If you do have a look at rural India, (which, I'm sure you know, is the majority of Indian population) they do live in that typical manner, with elephants, camels, etc.

Slumdog was a satire on the true India, which is difficult to digest but does exist (which I'm sure you know about too). You might be happy with the poverty and slums depicted in the movie, but sadly, it is true.

The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga (Booker Price winner) was also a satire of the caste system in India.

Most foreigners are intrigued by the fact that an India filled with culture and tradition, also has a cruel society where only the fittest survive. (as depicted in Slumdog and White Tiger) And face it, Slumdog is different from main-stream hollywood cinema.

I wouldnt say Slumdog is a great film (it's a decent effort IMO and worth a watch) but it's no use comparing that to TZP.

PS. Lagaan was a film based on rural India which lost out by a small margin at the Oscars

Originally Posted by MetalheadGautham

Oscar movies are not just ANY movies. They need to have POWER, and TZP lacks any.
I saw slumdog and now I know why its been billed as a propable oscar.
it simply blows the mind away.

tzp is just a minor children's feature film which lacks enough depth to impress.

+1
Though I do feel Slumdog was overplayed

[MetalheadGautham]

Originally Posted by amitabhishek

@Metalhead: Ya! Right! a minor film!!!!!? Wonder what you have said if Danny Boyle directed this film.

So you think I like Slumdog just because its from a non-Indian director ?
WTF do you think I am ? Some kind of anti-patriot who thinks all Indian stuff suck ?

Indian movies have great acting. Great songs. Great base story.

But the way the story is told in the movie, the way some lines are delivered - they make all the difference. Most indian movies rely on stardom (esp Om Shanti Om) or looks of the lead pair or use typical biff baff type fighting scenes to label the films as "action movies" or just use lots and lots of glam and skin show to attract audience. Remember I said most.

Some things need to be made in such a way that they appeal to people's sensitivities and emotions and make them think. Think about what is shown on screen.

I am sorry to say that not many Indian movies actually leave a lot to think about.

TZP was definitely a better film than most of its contemporaries, but its still another "minor" (note: minor does not refer to age, it refers to "class") film when compared to the REALLY good films which get nominated for various awards.

Yes directors from abroad abuse the various Indian stereotypes, but that doesn't matter much here. Its about how the story is actually told.

There is little fault of actors and musicians of India. They just rock. Its the directing and the story implementation which needs a look in.