The Reel Society of Film Critics Awards Ceremony 2015

[Geezer]

Can't tell who won, his head is cut off... Don't think it's Oyelowo though....

[silversurfer19]

Sorry misleading in my quest for a joke. The winner is...

David Oyelowo, Selma

[Buscemi]

I took the broom to mean "a sweep". I guess it had no significance.

But anyway, our awards topped the Academy on Selma wins.

[Chienfantome]

I missed all the fun it seems. I need to read everythin I've missed. Did this start earlier than it used to ? Too bad.
Well I'm here for the climax at least.

[Chienfantome]

Oyelowo ? Damn, the only film I haven't seen of the bunch, it's been released this very week here and haven't had time to see it yet.

[Geezer]

No Surfer, we got it.

Great win for Oyelowo. Again, captured a mountain of a man brilliantly and made you feel like you were watching history.

[numbersix]

Wow, that's quite a surprise. Voted for Redmayne, Gyllenhall, and Fiennes ahead of him. It's a good performance, but again he's outshone by one's respect for MLK as a person. If Selma was pure fiction and his character not MLK, I wonder if we would have had the same reaction. But good for him, it was a decent performance. Still think Boseman as James Brown was the performance of 2014.

[silversurfer19]

Very much a surprise, I expected him to be the candidate to just fill out the roster, but more and more high scores kept coming in for him. Can't complain, as while he wasn't my first choice, it was still a very strong performance. And in regards to your question, I think it was a good enough performance to be recognised. Had it been a big booming performance I would perhaps have agreed with you, but the subtelty to a performance cannot be understated, and he evoked it perfectly.

[Chienfantome]

It's frustrating to not be able to discuss it, like last year when Her swept the awards but I had only seen it a couple of weeks after our awards.

[silversurfer19]

And now for the final Best Picture Featurette of the ceremony, courtesy of Geezer I give you:

Whiplash

“There are no two words in the English language more harmful than 'good job'.”
- Terrence Fletcher

In today's society, the “everyone gets a trophy” mentality is the norm. It seems as though greatness is constantly being suppressed in favor of doing what makes the majority happy. You wouldn't want to make anyone upset, no matter if they win or lose. Give them all a trophy, make them feel good, make sure you tell them “good job.”

Whiplash takes this mentality and turns it on it's head. Terrence Fletcher, the director of the Shaffer Conservatory Studio Band, believes that this philosophy is, to be frank, complete bullshit. And this is conveyed masterfully by J.K. Simmons in one of the single greatest acting performances ever put on screen. The constant battle between him and Andrew, also played excellently by Miles Teller, is fascinating from start to finish. This student/teacher relationship is an excellent take on the natural human trait that it is those who are the most disapproving of us that we want to impress the most. It is our natural desire to prove our critics wrong, and that is why Fletcher believes wholeheartedly in the quote above. If he can make his students desire so strongly to prove him wrong, they will stop at nothing to reach their fullest potential.

But of course, the film begs the question of whether or not there is a line that can't be crossed, and therein lies the conflict. This film shows in breathtaking detail how far someone can be pushed. Full of sequences filled with harsh language, physical abuse and bloody drum sets, the film holds nothing back. Some will surely see Terrence Fletcher as an out of control monster. A man with no compassion in his soul who must be stopped. Others will see him as a teacher who knows exactly how to get the most out of his students. It is this line that is the true center of this brilliant film, building to a crescendo of a final scene that audiences won't soon forget.

Nominated for 5 awards this evening, including Best Picture, this is Whiplash.

[silversurfer19]

The penultimate award of the evening:

Best Director

The nominees are:

Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel
Damien Chazelle, Whiplash
Dan Gilroy, Nightcrawler
Alejandro G. Inarritu, Birdman
Richard Linklater, Boyhood

And the winner is...

[silversurfer19]

Richard Linklater, Boyhood

[Buscemi]

Looks like we love Linklater and Anderson more than the Academy does. (we really need a thumbs up emoticon)

[Geezer]

At least someone recognized his work.

[Chienfantome]

A well deserved award for Linklater who managed to pull that amazing feat of directing a film over 12 years. It's a remarkable commitment and a fascinating film he made.