LONDON — One ring ruled them all at the British Academy Film Awards on Sunday night, with “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” winning five prizes, including best film. But the British Academy of Film & TV Arts continued its tradition of spreading kudos far and wide, dividing its 19 main awards among 11 films.
Peter Jackson took the director nod, and the Tolkien epic also earned kudos for special visual effects and makeup/hair. Its haul was completed by the Orange film of the year prize, voted on by the public.
Russell Crowe and Jennifer Connelly won actor and supporting actress for “A Beautiful Mind,” even though the pic opened in the U.K. this weekend to widely negative reviews. Connelly’s triumph was a notable surprise, since the four other nominees in her category were all Brits.
Judi Dench, one of those defeated four (along with Helen Mirren, Maggie Smith and Kate Winslet), did win the considerable consolation of the best actress prize for “Iris.”
Jim Broadbent, in the supporting actor race, was one of three winners for “Moulin Rouge,” which also picked up awards for sound and music.
“Gosford Park,” omitted entirely from the film nominees, took the Alexander Korda Award for outstanding British film of the year, as well as the BAFTA for costume design.
“Amelie,” another best film contender, took prizes for original screenplay and production design. But it surprisingly missed out on foreign-language film kudos; winner was Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu’s tough Mexican movie “Amores Perros.”
“Shrek,” which had already won the BAFTA for kids film in a separate ceremony a couple of months ago, took the adapted screenplay gong. And even the dark horses went away with something — “The Man Who Wasn’t There” received the cinematography award, and “Mulholland Drive” was honored for editing.
BAFTA pulled off a star-studded evening at the Odeon Leicester Square in the heart of London’s West End, despite an icy downpour that brought a curious white foam of soap suds out of the red carpet.
That prompted Kevin Spacey, handing out an award, to ask host Stephen Fry, “What was that horribly soapy substance coming out of the red carpet? Judi Dench’s shoes are ruined, and she’s holding you responsible.” Fry suggested that it was the residue of “years of greasy flattery.”
Warren Beatty, accompanied by wife Annette Bening, accepted a BAFTA Fellowship, only the eighth American to receive the honor. He threatened to “free associate into eternity” about his experiences shooting in Britain, but confined himself to saying that “so much of what I managed to learn about making movies I learned here.”
“When I take this award home to Los Angeles, it will make it much easier to convince my 10-year-old, my 7-year-old, my 5-year-old and my 2-year-old of my mammoth importance,” he joked.
Director James Ivory, producer Ismail Merchant and writer Ruth Prawer Jhabvala also accepted a joint Fellowship. Stunt coordinator and action director Vic Armstrong won the Michael Balcon Award for Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema. Michael Wilson and Barbara Broccoli accepted a special award from BAFTA for their company Eon Prods., maker of the James Bond movies.
With BAFTA determined to stick to a crisp two-hour running time for its show, speeches were kept short and largely without incident. Crowe quoted poetry, and said, “I love my job and I don’t think I do it that well, but keep on disagreeing with me.”
Inarritu, jumping up and down with joy, and Connelly were clearly the most shocked of all the winners, in an evening that included several surprises.
Director Joel Hopkins and writer-producer Nicola Usborne were also taken aback to win the Carl Foreman Award for British newcomer, for their film “Jump Tomorrow.”
Richard Attenborough, chairman of BAFTA’s trustees, was confirmed as the org’s new president.
‘Rongotai’ shares his thoughts about Hobbiton and the Shire qualities of the place in NZ where it was filmed. They’re not obvious unless you look in the right way….
“In this week’s edition of the New Zealand magazine ‘The Listener’ there is an article on the small but steady stream of tourists now arriving in the town of Matamata, which is close to the location for Hobbiton in FOTR. It is a nice, ironic, little piece that highlights the town’s more or less complete failure to adapt to its new found status, and the pressures on it to do so from the likes of Tourism New Zealand.
“I have never lived in Matamata, but I know many people there, and I have lived in similar New Zealand towns. Out of all this here are a few thoughts that I would like any overseas fan heading for Matamata to consider.
“Matamata has never ever been a tourist town. It is an unexceptional, pretty (in a New World, not European, way), reasonably prosperous, rural service town. For you Americans, Lake Woebegon springs to mind. Located in New Zealand, and in the Waikato in particular, Matamata is about as close to Hobbiton, the Shire and Tolkien’s romantic view of an older, rural England, as can still be found anywhere in the world. For a modern, urban world it is, for many people, screamingly boring.
“And there is the irony. People are now descending on it because it was a filmic Hobbiton, and apparently often being disappointed by what is provided for them. But what if there were a real life Middle Earth and a real life Hobbiton? Would the lovers of LOTR go there hoping to see, or hoping not to see, Hobbits running souvenir stalls, providing guided tours of Bag End, and negotiating special deals with Burger King? For me, at least, such an experience would be a justification for a real life Scouring of the Shire.
“Visibly Matamata’s sole response has been to put up a sign reading ‘Welcome to Hobbiton’. If you are a lover of what Tolkien was getting at with his creation of The Shire and mourn what happened to it in the book (although not, apparently, in the movie), then you will celebrate the place, but you will be seriously underwhelmed by its tourist offerings. If you demand more then you will be an ally of Saruman.
“Go to Matamata with your eyes open. It is not spectacular scenic New Zealand. It is set in a mature rural landscape full of grass, sheep, cows grazing on family farms (not on feedlots) and set against park like trees and a quality of light you will see nowhere in the Northern Hemisphere. Walk down the main street and watch the people living lives that are increasingly rare, but which do not bear romanticisation. If you know North-East Iowa, then you are getting a little close to what Matamata has to offer. If you go looking for Jackson’s Shire, and come away disappointed, then you will have passed right through a real life Shire and not even noticed.”
Liv Tyler (Arwen) has joined the cast of ‘Voltage’ for director Robert Altman. The film also stars Joaquin Phoenix (Gladiator), Steve Buscemi & William H. Macy (Fargo).
David Wenham (Faramir) is set to star in the Gillies MacKinnon (The Last Of The Blonde Bombshells) film ‘Pure’, the film, currently in post-production, was filmed in Los Angeles & Thailand.
Bruce Spence (Mouth of Sauron) has joined the cast of ‘Inspector Gadget 2’, and that’s all I’ve got to say about that….I’m going to get a cookie 🙂
To get more information, use the sites I use like the ones below. Simply find a movie or actor you want to see, go to one of the sites below and see if the film is playing in your area.
28 Days (2000) Walk on the Moon, A (1999) Albino Alligator (1996) Crimson Tide (1995) Prophecy, The (1995) Ruby Cairo (1993) Indian Runner, The (1991) Young Guns II (1990)
Liv Tyler (Arwen)
Onegin (1999) UK Plunkett & Macleane (1999) U Turn (1997) UK Inventing the Abbotts (1997) Stealing Beauty (1996) Empire Records (1995) Heavy (1995)
Ian Holm (Bilbo)
Bless the Child (2000) UK Life Less Ordinary, A (1997) Big Night (1996) Naked Lunch (1991) UK Dance with a Stranger (1985) Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984) UK Chariots of Fire (1981) Time Bandits (1981) Alien (1979) UK Mary, Queen of Scots (1971) UK Fixer, The (1968) UK
Sean Bean (Boromir)
Field, The (1990) Stormy Monday (1988)
Ian Mune (Bounder)
Piano, The (1993)
Martyn Sanderson (Bree Gatekeeper)
Ned Kelly (1970)
John Noble (Denethor)
Airtight (1999) (TV) UK
Peter Mackenzie (Elendil)
In Crowd, The (2000) Chill Factor (1999) UK Off Limits (1988)
Karl Urban (Eomer)
Price of Milk, The (2000)
Hugo Weaving (Elrond)
Matrix, The (1999) UK Interview, The (1998) Babe (1995) UK
Miranda Otto (Eowyn)
What Lies Beneath (2000) Jack Bull, The (1999) (TV) UK
David Wenham (Faramir)
Moulin Rouge! (2001) Molokai: The Story of Father Damien (1999) Boys, The (1997/I) UK
Elijah Wood (Frodo)
Bumblebee Flies Anyway, The (2000) Black and White (1999) Good Son, The (1993) Radio Flyer (1992) Forever Young (1992) UK Paradise (1991) Internal Affairs (1990) Back to the Future Part II (1989)
Cate Blanchett (Galadriel)
Talented Mr. Ripley, The (1999) UK Pushing Tin (1999) UK Elizabeth (1998) UK
Ian McKellen (Gandalf)
X-Men (2000) UK Apt Pupil (1998) UK Gods and Monsters (1998) Bent (1997) Restoration (1995) Shadow, The (1994) To Die for (1994) UK And the Band Played On (1993) (TV) Six Degrees of Separation (1993) Touch of Love, A (1969) UK
Britannic (2000) (TV) UK Au Pair (1999) (TV) Secret of the Andes (1998) UK Great White Hype, The (1996) Cyborg Cop (1994) Tusks (1990) Perry Mason: The Case of the Murdered Madam (1987) (TV) Sword of the Valiant: The Legend of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (1982) Victor/Victoria (1982) UK
Price of Milk, The (2000) Heavenly Creatures (1994)
Ray Henwood (Man At Council)
Heavenly Creatures (1994)
Bruce Spence (Mouth of Sauron)
Sweet Talker (1991) Rikky and Pete (1988) Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985) UK Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)
Sean Astin (Sam)
Sky Is Falling, The (2000) Deterrence (1999) UK Courage Under Fire (1996) Low Life, The (1994/I) Safe Passage (1994) Encino Man (1992) UK Toy Soldiers (1991) UK Memphis Belle (1990) Staying Together (1989) War of the Roses, The (1989) White Water Summer (1987) UK Like Father, Like Son (1987) UK
Christopher Lee (Saruman)
Sleepy Hollow (1999) UK Jinnah (1998) UK Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990) Mio min Mio (1987) Safari 3000 (1982) Last Unicorn, The (1982) 1941 (1979) Three Musketeers, The (1973) UK Death Line (1972) Schlangengrube und das Pendel, Die (1967) Brides of Fu Manchu, The (1966) Gorgon, The (1964) UK Beat Girl (1960) Cockleshell Heroes, The (1955) Captain Horatio Hornblower (1951) Valley of Eagles (1951) UK My Brother’s Keeper (1948) UK
Brian Sergent (Ted Sandyman)
Carry Me Back (1982) UK
Bernard Hill (Theoden)
True Crime (1999) Midsummer Night’s Dream, A (1999) UK Bounty, The (1984) Gandhi (1982) UK
Brad Dourif (Wormtongue)
Silicon Towers (1999) Storytellers, The (1999) UK Alien: Resurrection (1997) UK Death Machine (1995) Murder in the First (1995) UK Color of Night (1994) Amos & Andrew (1993) Child’s Play 3 (1991) UK Body Parts (1991) UK Child’s Play 2 (1990) UK Hidden Agenda (1990) Exorcist III, The (1990) Child’s Play (1988) Mississippi Burning (1988) Blue Velvet (1986)
Jim Rygiel (SFX)
Anna and the King (1999) Desperate Measures (1998) Multiplicity (1996) Cliffhanger (1993) Batman Returns (1992) Ghost (1990) Solar Crisis (1990) Last Starfighter, The (1984)
Howard Shore (Composer)
Score, The (2001) High Fidelity (2000) Cell, The (2000) Analyze This (1999) Dogma (1999) Striptease (1996) White Man’s Burden (1995) Se7en (1995) Moonlight and Valentino (1995) Client, The (1994) Ed Wood (1994) Guilty as Sin (1993) M. Butterfly (1993) Prelude to a Kiss (1992) Silence of the Lambs, The (1991) Naked Lunch (1991) She-Devil (1989) Big (1988) Nadine (1987) Fly, The (1986) After Hours (1985) Places in the Heart (1984) Videodrome (1983)
Academy Award Nominee, film and stage star Sir Ian McKellen will appear at Cinequest to receive Cinequest’s coveted Maverick Spirit Award. McKellen is best known for his amazing performances in Lord of the Rings, X-Men, and Gods & Monsters.
Cinequest invites you to join us for a very special event, ‘A Conversation with Sir Ian McKellen’ on Saturday, March 2nd.
Festival Passes are currently on sale and provide admission to this event. A limited number of individual tickets will go on sale on Tuesday (2/26/02). The location and time of the event will be announced on Tuesday at 408.295.FEST, www.Cinequest.org and Cinequest box offices.
:Brett Heppes, Charter Member of the LORT Fan Club (Baron of Bar Ereg) and Volunteer Staff Member of Cinequest, The San Jose Film Festival
Liv Tyler (Arwen) has joined the cast of ‘Voltage’ for director Robert Altman. The film also stars Joaquin Phoenix (Gladiator), Steve Buscemi & William H. Macy (Fargo). 
David Wenham (Faramir) is set to star in the Gillies MacKinnon (The Last Of The Blonde Bombshells) film ‘Pure’, the film, currently in post-production, was filmed in Los Angeles & Thailand. 
Bruce Spence (Mouth of Sauron) has joined the cast of ‘Inspector Gadget 2’, and that’s all I’ve got to say about that….I’m going to get a cookie 🙂
Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn)
Ian Holm (Bilbo)
Sean Bean (Boromir)
Ian Mune (Bounder)
Martyn Sanderson (Bree Gatekeeper)
John Noble (Denethor)
Peter Mackenzie (Elendil)
Karl Urban (Eomer)
Hugo Weaving (Elrond)
Miranda Otto (Eowyn)
Elijah Wood (Frodo)
Cate Blanchett (Galadriel)
Andy Serkis (
John Leigh (Hama)
Ray Henwood (Man At Council)
Sean Astin (Sam)
Christopher Lee (Saruman)
Brian Sergent (Ted Sandyman)
Bernard Hill (Theoden)
Brad Dourif (Wormtongue)