This post-mortem Oscar week has been refreshingly low key, I have to say.  But then, maybe that's because I went and hid under a rock for a few days.  In any case, I'm back today because we're going out of business and it's time to wrap things up around these parts properly.  Let's start, naturally, with the year's final Oscarweb round-up:

•  Oscar nominated screenwriter Ronald Harwood ("The Diving Bell and the Butterfly") writes up his Oscar experience for the Times of London. [Times Online]

•  David Carr addresses the crystal clear disconnect between movie-going audiences and the annual Academy Awards ceremony in one of his final entries of the season. [The Carpetbagger]

•  Jeffrey Wells poo-poos the lack of prognosticating prowess of Movie City News' David Poland on the way to tooting his own horn (17 correct guesses, Wells made). [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  Modest Millie over here seems to have had the better showing across the net, but who's counting? [In Contention]

•  Stu VanAirsdale continues his snooty perspective on the ceremony, this time going so far as to dryly mock Brad Renfro's death and exclusion from the In Memoriam montage. [Little Gold Men]

•  Accordingly, he's lept out of the (web) pages of Vanity Fair and into the arms of Defamer. [The Reeler]

•  New York Magazine wonders why Amy Adams got the original song performance shaft while Kristin Chenoweth was blessed with a lavish spectacle for her number. [Vulture]

•  Erik Davis asks the good people to suggest a new category to spice things up at the Oscars.  I still say Best Ensemble isn't asking too much. [Cinematical]

•  Lou Lumenick briefly tries his hand at reading the 2008 Oscar crystal ball. [New York Post]

•  And thanks to Ryan Adams, ou can give your own vote on the upcoming year's most likely candidates. [Awards Daily]

•  Reed Johnson digs into the heavy nature of the Coen brothers' Oscar winning work this year. [The Envelope]

•  Pete Hammond, meanwhile, closes down the season with a hint of perspective on the ratings of the Oscars.  He says the show pulls in viewers "that would be the envy of any other awards show."  Touché. [The Envelope]

•  Patrick Goldstein writes the easy column, that being a "let's give the Oscars a face lift because they're showing their age" spin on things that could have been applicable to any of the last dozen or so ceremonies. [Los Angeles Times]

•  Tom O'Neil writes up a response. [Gold Derby]

•  Anthony Breznican cranked out a delicious backstage account of the ceremony's goings-on that, I'm ashamed to say, I didn't see until today. [USA Today]

•  And in case you missed it, our own Brian Lowery writes up a review of the 3 hour, 21 minute ceremony here at home base. [Variety]

I have to say, a lot of this morning's poo-pooing of the Oscar ceremony last night is a bit hyperbolic for my taste.  The mixed critical reactions, that is.  I found the night to be rather swift and host Jon Stewart to be at the top of his game.  Sure, there were a number of montages that should have been nixed.  The Best Picture bit that Jack Nicholson presented comes to mind as considerably unnecessary.  But by my watch, the thing was over in less than four hours, something around three and a half...and that's ALWAYS a good thing.  Right?

But let's get into it.  The season has come to a close and the Coen brothers, Scott Rudin and "No Country for Old Men" had their day to shine.  Good for all involved.  It's the most un-Academy win since "The Silence of the Lambs," but that's the way things go sometimes.

There were surprises in store for some.  Such as Marion Cotillard and Tilda Swinton taking the leading and supporting actress trophies, swooping in at the last minute to steal away the thunder of the night's frontrunners.  Personally, I saw this coming, but no one could deny the possibility was there and the situations were ripe for upsets.  Both speeches, by the way, were quite good.  Cotillard was appropriately emotional (as was Diablo Cody, who even choked me up with her teary acceptance).  Swinton, meanwhile, offered that Tilda charm and sass that has become something of a staple this season for the "Michael Clayton" star.

The biggest shocks of the night for me came in the craft races, where "The Bourne Ultimatum" snuck in and grabbed the sound editing and sound mixing statuettes.  The latter category had been primed as a race between "Transformers" and "No Country for Old Men," a considerable media concentration given the nominations tally of Kevin O'Connell and Greg P. Russell.  Sadly, they missed yet again and this was their last shot at getting it together.  They'll go off and, obviously, churn out great work separately, so this isn't the end of days.  But it would have been a nice bow on their partnership, to be sure.

I think the best moments of the evening both involved the film "Once."  The first was Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova's performance of "Falling Slowy," which elicited a huge cheer from the crowd.  The second was Jon Stewart's insistence that Irglova come back out and be given her moment to offer what ultimately was, let's face it, the bes speech of the evening.  Trigger happy bands really piss me off and someone needs to key them into the fact that some people you just don't scoot away like that.  This was a songwriting DUO, the two STARs of the film, for Pete's sake.  Give them both their moment, please.

The "Enchanted" numbers became a bit tedious after a while, and I couldn't help but wish Eddie Vedder had been there to mix things up.  There are no two ways about it.  The music branch embarassed itself this year.  That's my opinion, in any case.

Apparently the ratings were the lowest ever, which it is foolish to attribute (as some have) to the actual show.  I would say one need only look at the slate of rather unpopular Best Picture nominees to find out why the public at large wasn't very interested.  Personally, I thought it was the best year for movies in a long while.  But just look at the box office rankings to see what people preferred.  It's not in line with Oscar.

Anyway, now we look ahead to next year, right?  RIGHT?  Well, those of us who are nuts, in any case.  Scott Rudin and the Coens will be back, for different projects.  Josh Brolin, Sean Penn, Angelina Jolie, Frank Langella, Russell Crowe, George Clooney -- all heading back to the race.  Returning filmmakers include Ridley Scott, Joe Wright and David Fincher, while Paramount Pictures once again has the glut of product to consider.  And there'll be a "titanic" reunion in store for the nostalgic romantics in the crowd.

But we'll get there.  For now, let's just all enjoy the release of another Oscar year in the rear view mirror.  It's been a blast contributing here at variety this season,a nd I hope you've all enjoyed reading.  We'll weather the fallout in the coming days and call it quits at the end of the week.

Happy Monday.

•  Anne Thompson was at the Governor's Ball, and she has a thing or two to say about it. (Lucky!) [Thompson on Hollywood]

•  Jeffrey Wells has 11 observations on the night's festivities, including some stage coaching for the Coens, a cheers to Colin Farrell for supposedly urging producers to let Marekta Irglova speak, and some fashion criticism for Jon Stewart. [Hollywood Elsewhere]

•  Even though it was a tight, swift show, apparently no one watched.  Maybe it has something to do with the vast unpopularity of the nominees? [The Hollywood Reporter]

•  Sasha Stone sticks it to the jerks who can't help themselves but continue to give Diablo Cody hell. [Awards Daily]

•  David Carr rounds up the show and the Ball. [The Carpetbagger]

•  Tom O'Neil rounds up the critics' reactions to the show, which was apparently "a bore and a sporadic thrill."  Uh, ok. [Gold Derby]

•  David Poland spoitballs reactions to the festivities. [The Hot Blog]

•  New York Magazine wraps up its coverage with some Jon Stewart talk. [Vulture]

•  David Edelstein, meanwhile, has some reactions as well (he dug the decision to bring Irglova back as well). [The Projectionist]

•  Pete Hammond writes up what is becoming the most over-done talking point of the past 12 hours: the international love fest that was the Oscars. [The Envelope]

•  David Halbfinger files for the Gray Lady. [New York Times]

•  And Erik Davis thinks the performance of "Falling Slowly" was the night's best moment. [Cinematical]

The night's two biggest awards are handed out as "No Country for Old Men" takes Best Picture and Best Director(s).  The Coens become the only duo to ever win Best Director and Scott Rudin finally gets his Oscar.  So that's a wrap, and a rather unsurprising one at that (despite Rudin's attempt at modesty).  Here's how we wrapped things up at The Movie Blog.

Alright, I'm going to head out for now and do some socializing.  I'll be back either late this evening or in the morning to wrap the night up.

Two stories landed this week, from the AP and USA Today respectively, regarding Marfa, Texas, the westerly town that played host to the productions of "No Country for Old Men" and "There Will Be Blood" last year.

Here's a look at Scott Bowles' piece at USA Today:

Not that many Marfans have seen either film. The closest theater is in Alpine, 26 miles east. The tiny Rangra Theater, however, does have two screens. One is showing No Country, the other Blood. Neither sells out much.

"I thought they were OK," retired rancher Bill Owens, 61, says over an enormous dill pickle, a favorite theater concession. "I hope they win (Oscars) because it'll be good for Marfa. A little artsy-fartsy, though. They weren't no Giant, I'll tell you that."

Hahahaha!  I love it.  Next up, here's a peek at the un-by-lined AP story, via Yahoo! Movies:

When Hollywood needs Western desolation, it comes to Marfa.

More than 50 years ago, famed filmmaker George Stevens also settled on this area for his epic Texas oil tale "Giant," which starred Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean. (Stevens won a best director Oscar for "Giant" in 1957, the only win of that film's 10 nominations).

The stark, gorgeous landscape outside the town shows up in all three films, and it isn't just the wide open desert horizon that directors take advantage of. They also employ the locals.

In the depot scene from "Blood," filmed at the 59,000-acre MacGuire Ranch, it was lifelong rancher David Williams who led the group off the train. Not that he was scene-stealing.

"I wasn't trying to get in the movie or be a movie star," said Williams, 38.

When Williams first escorted location scouts here four years ago, the only structers were the long, unused railroad tracks that lead to Mexico and an old water tank that supplied steam engines of a past era. Houses, a block-long town, an oil well site and a church atop a hill were built later to represent Bakersfield, Calif., in 1910.

The New York Times, mind you, was all over this story waaaaay back in August of 2006.  Here's a look at Whitney Joiner's piece:

Until six months ago W. E. Love, also known as Chip, had not particularly intended to carry on his family’s cinematic legacy. Then Joel and Ethan Coen came to town.

Like many people raised in this isolated West Texas town near the Mexican border, Mr. Love, 49, grew up with a small connection to Hollywood: his grandmother was an extra in the 1956 film “Giant.” That Texas epic, touted at the time as the most expensive movie ever made, irrevocably changed Marfa, a drought-plagued ranching town that had long seen better days. The film’s stars — Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean — drew crowds at the Hotel Paisano on Marfa’s main street, and the movie employed hundreds of locals as extras.

Operating on a somewhat less grand scale, the Coens — the writing and directing team behind “Fargo,” “The Big Lebowski” and “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” — visited Marfa last March, as they searched for ranch land on which to film their latest project, an adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s 2005 novel “No Country for Old Men.”

...The president of Marfa’s only bank, Mr. Love also owns a cattle ranch and gave the Coens a tour of his property when they scouted locations last spring. As the filmmakers and Mr. Love sat on his back porch talking, Joel Coen asked if Mr. Love would be interested in playing a small role in the movie.

“He said, ‘It’s pretty easy — it’ll just take a couple of days,’ ” Mr. Love recalled recently. “ ‘But there’s two bad things: You have to fall down, and you get killed.’ ” (The part Mr. Coen envisioned for Mr. Love was one of the hit man’s victims, who comes to a grotesquely bloody end.) Mr. Love warned the Coens that he wasn’t an actor: the only time he’d performed was in a high school production of “The Wizard of Oz.” “They said, ‘Perfect!’ ” he recalled. “I’m kind of bashful, but I thought it’d be a real goof.”

Check out the rest; it's a great read.

•  Anne Thompson writes up Saturday night's Art Directors Guild Awards. [Thompson on Hollywood]

•  Rachel Abramowitz checks in with Tom Wilkinson, enjoying his great winter romance with the screen. [The Envelope]

•  David Carr explains the fascination with Oscar. [The Carpetbagger]

•  David Denby hearts the Coen brothers. [New Yorker]

•  Sasha Stone points us to the AP's Oscar week countdown. [Awards Daily]

•  Tom O'Neil concocts some Best Actor odds, wonders if George Clooney can pull an upset (uh...no). [Gold Derby]

•  Kim Voynar takes a stab at predicting the Oscar outcome... [Cinematical]

•  ...and explains why the Best Foreign Language Film category is something of a, well...a joke this year. [Cinematical]

(A piece regarding last night's ACE awards will be on the way later in the afternoon.  Lots of fun, lots to discuss.  Sorry for the delay.)

We all knew who the WGA winners were going to be, given the slip up with announcing the nominees in order of vote tally.  But I decide to hit the beach for the early part of this weekend, and BAFTA goes and shoots its accidental load all over the net.

Tom O'Neil is pointing us to BAFTA's website announcing the winners in advance, and Sasha Stone is doing the same.  "Atonement," of course, will be taking Best Film, while Daniel Day-Lewis ("There Will Be Blood") and Marion Cotillard ("La Vie en Rose") took top acting honors.  The Coen brothers willt ake Best Director.

"Will take."  I sound like I'm Nostradamus.  But hey, apparently, it's true!

This opening anecdote from Ethan Coen regarding the neck-and-neck shooting of "No Country for Old Men" and "There Will Be Blood" outside of Marfa, Texas just kills.  From Entertainment Weekly's latest issue:

"We ran into Paul [Thomas Anderson] once while we were shooting,'' says Ethan Coen. ''When we were shooting a scene with Josh Brolin tracking a blood trail, we had one very wide shot of Josh in the frame. He was just walking in this most remote place in the United States, and then behind Josh [arose] this big plume of black smoke over the ridge. We thought, Son of a bitch, the scene is ruined. We sent a grip over to see what was happening. It turned out it was Paul, testing an oil-well fire. We had to wait for the smoke to dissipate."

Read the whole story.

Gerard Kennedy took some time this week to speak with two of the nominated sound mixers from "No Country for Old Men": Craig Berkey and Peter Kurland.  The aural qualities of the Coen brothers film have been a talking point for some time, substituting thematically relevant room tone and production sound for original musical accompaniment.

The film was nominated for both sound mixing and sound editing, the latter being a surprise even to those of us obsessive enough to follow the crafts races.

Here's a quick look at Kennedy's piece:

Kurland has been working with the Coens for nearly 25 years (he was the boom operator on “Blood Simple”) and loves their joint efforts.

“There’s never any hysteria or screaming on the set,” he says. “They are exceptionally well prepared. It isn’t that there aren’t surprises but there are very few completely unexpected elements.”

Berkey adds to the notion that the helmers know exactly what they want to do, having “the whole thing laid out as they’re writing the script. But they also listen to new ideas regarding sound, having the confidence to have a minimal score in a film like this.”

Having been on the set with the brothers on many occasions, Kurland says new challenges still manage to arise on each shoot. He says this was definitely the warmest set apart from “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” and that, being out in the desert, wind was a large problem (as it always is for production sound). But the work was particularly pivotal in this film and had to be recorded just right. He also notes a new and somewhat bizarre element on the production called “dusk panic.” Only about 10 takes were done in the daylight and the rest were done during sunset or sunrise, with very little time to get those shots right.

Also, I particularly liked this bit of insight into building the character of Anton Chigurgh with sound elements:

Berkey also says he and his colleagues attempted to keep the mix quiet, at the same time trying to create a “theme” of sound for Bardem’s character akin to what might be present in a score, notably in the fact that the sound of a train almost always accompanies, or slightly precedes, his presence. “We wanted to get the idea that a big bad freight train is coming,” he recalls.

It is probably worth noting that this film is the biggest competition for Kevin O'Connell and greg P. Russell at the moment, and the infamous 32 nominations they claim between them.  But there is no denying the sheer complexity of the sound work in "Transformers," so at least we're looking at a race between equally deserving candidates rather than finding a musical in the mix that keeps the Academy from actually THINKING about this section of the ballot.

Check out the rest of Kennedy's column.

Joel Coen couldn't be bothered to speak more than, oh, 40 seconds at tonight's USC Scripter Award ceremony before taking his seat at stage left and finishing his meal.  But I guess it makes sense that he'd keep things brief, sense he scooted on out of the Doheny Library in order to go accept another award -- the PGA's highest honor -- and the third major guild win for "No Country for Old Men."

Ethan Coen, by the way, was "on the tarmac," according to Coen's presenter.  Maybe that was just a joke, but perhaps Ethan may have been either en route or already at the PGA ceremony.  Whatever the case, Joel was there as sole representation for the film.

Cormac McCarthy wasn't in attendance, though that is no shock, seeing as the author's only public appearance in support of the film has been an interview on "Oprah" and a showcase in Time Magazine.  Christine Lahti graciously accepted on his behalf, struggling with the teleprompter all along.  But hey, she wasn't alone on that front.

Then again, by all accounts, the evening's festivities were a major step up from years past, with Jason Alexander taking over for Henry Winkler as the Master of Ceremonies.  Alexander was actually a hell of an emcee, full of more than a few guffaw-enducing zingers and keeping the mood light and breezy enough throughout.  And, God bless him, one solitary strike joke and that was it (though talk was lingering through the crowd, including a long-gestating rumor that the whole nightmare will be over within the week).  Depending on how much the Friends of the USC Libraries are willing to allow their host to poke fun at the organization, I could see Alexander being a staple.  We'll see.

Steven Zaillian later accepted the Literary Achievement Award, by the way, which he said he would like to please refrain from calling a "lifetime achievement award."  Zaillian is a three-time Scripter winner, for "Awakenings" in 1990, "Schindler's List" in 1993 and "A Civil Action" in 1998.  A true vet with the group.

Oh, and students from the university's school of music performed a lovely melody of scores from past Scripet winners.  I picked out "L.A. Confidential" and "Schindler's List" immediately.  The others kind of blurred together, but they sure sounded great.

I'll try to upload a mp3 of Coen's speech if I can, but in the meantime, you can actually check out the entire ceremony for yourself at the USC website.  They held a live webcast, and of course, it isn't the most professional of things, but they're on their way.  Biggest "doh!" moment of the night had to be the use of the logo for "The Zodiac," rather than the logo for the film that was actually nominated.  Two completely different films, folks.

Here's a couple of shots from the ceremony.  I'm no photo journalist, mind you, but I try:

Alright, I'm off to USC's Doheny Library (where I'll also be spending plenty of time on a final paper later this semester -- ugh) for tonight's Scripter Awards dinner and ceremony.  Jason Alexander is the evening's emcee and, of course, the brothers Coen and Cormac McCarthy are the belles of the ball.  I'll drop in later this evening for some news and notes from the proceedings.  I don't know if the PGA announcement will land by the time I get back, but if it does, well, you know what to do.

(To put a face to the season beyond the coverage, I thought I'd introduce this little series.  Nothing special, just the trailers from each of the nominated films.  A couple a day.  We'll start things out with the "frontrunner.")



Directing  Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
Actor in a Supporting Role  Javier Bardem
Cinematography  Roger Deakins
Film Editing  Roderick Jaynes
Best Picture  Scott Rudin, Ethan Coen and Joel Coen, Producers
Sound Editing  Skip Lievsay
Sound Mixing  Skip Lievsay, Craig Berkey, Greg Orloff and Peter Kurland
Writing (Adapted Screenplay)  Written by Joel Coen and Ethan Coen

•  David Carr live blogs last nights SAG Awards with his special breed of insight and commentary. [The Carpetbagger]

•  T.L. Stanley does the same. [Gold Rush]

•  Wait, so does Lou Lumenick. [New York Post]

•  Deborah Netburn was also hot on the case.  Live-blogging is so "in" again.  [The Envelope]

•  David Poland kinda-sorta responds to the festivities. [The Hot Blog]

•  Tom O'Neil thinks it's now in the bag for "No Country for Old Men." [Gold Derby]

•  Nathaniel Rogers talks to 12-time Oscar nominee Greg P. Russell. [The Film Experience]

•  New York Magazine dug back into the Kevin O'Connell/Greg P. Russell thing, by the way, uncovering some old wounds in the process. [Vulture]

•  Following Saturday's DGA victory for the Coens, Susan King spotlights directing partners throughout cinema history. [The Envelope]

•  William Keck follows up on the Sean Young fiasco from Saturday in his DGA coverage. [USA Today]

The Coen brothers were joined by production designer Jess Gonchor, sound mixers Skip Lievsay, Craig Berkey and Greg Orloff, as well as cinematographer Roger Deakins this morning over at the Harmony Gold theater on Sunset.  I couldn't get out to the event, it pains me to say, but did ANYONE out there cover this thing?  I can't find anyone to link to here.  The thing ended almost two hours ago.

Ah well.

I got this note about last night's DGA awards this morning, and had to read it twice.  Apparently, things got a bit feisty.  Well, just take a look for yourself:

Being in the room was an odd experience to say the least.  I'm sure you have heard by now the drama of the show....

An extremely drunk Sean Young heckled Julian Schnabel the moment he walked on stage to accept his medallion.  She was quickly 86'd by security and tried to throw a punch at those ejecting her from the venue.  She really ruined Julian's moment and it was kind of sad.  He looked into the audience and said "Who said that?"  She blurted out something else unintelligible and then he said "Perhaps you'd like to finish my speech," said "thank you very much" and started to step away from the podium.  He came back, of course, but it seemed he was visibly pissed and upset by the interruption.  Sort of sad, actually.  It's like you get this big moment where you're one of the 5 directors honored in a year and then some drunk ass wipe in the audience ruins a lifetime moment for you.

(Tony Gilroy item/subjective reaction to a speech stricken from the record due to ruffled feathers.)

If you're looking for more coverage of last night's festivities, Tom O'Neil has a podcast up of the Coens' acceptance speech as well as some speculation on the DGA-Oscar win percentage.  Is "No Country for Old Men" going to take this year's Best Picture award?

Also, as always, Variety has its coverage of the goings-on.

1979-2008

•  Phil Gallo rounds up a list of 2008 Oscar factoids here at homebase. [Variety]

•  Calling from Rome regarding his Best Director nomiantion, Julian Schnabel has this bit of dry excitement for Paula Schwartz: "They're going to buy me a bottle of champagne and we're going to act like we're excited." [The Carpetbagger]

•  Another rudimentary list of nominee reactions, but with some fresh faces nonetheless: Scott Rudin and Andrzej Wajda among them. [Movie City News]

•  Nathaniel Rogers, thinking outside the box as always, ponders the Top 10 Oscar Talking Points of yesterday's goings on. [The Film Experience]

•  New York Magazine asks the brothers Coen about Oscar nominee "Roderick Jaynes." [Vulture]

•  Peter Martin thinks "There Will Be Blood" is one Oscar nomination short of its destiny, thank you very much. [Cinematical]

•  Boy, T.L. Stanley really hates "Juno." [Gold Rush]

•  No, she really hates "Juno." [Gold Rush]

•  Ramin Satoodeh, meanwhile, chalks Jason Reitman's Best Director nomination for "Juno" up as the morning's most surprising nominee. [The Gold Digger]

•  Pete Hammond has his own idea of the surprises, and calls the Best Makeup showing for "Norbit" his "favorite nom of the day."  Here's hoping Pete's winning sense of humor is shinging through there. [The Envelope]

•  Tom O'Neil pours over the various guild misteps this season, where Oscar prognostication is concerned. [Gold Derby]

•  Anthony Breznican and Susan Wloszczyna dig into "the long strange Oscar season" of 2007. [USA Today]

•  And Gary Strauss rounds up Oscar's snubs. [USA Today]

It shouldn't come as any surprise that the Coen brothers and Cormac McCarthy have won the USC Scripter award.  This one was almost a foregone conclusion.

Here's the full press release, which includes the announcement of Steven Zaillian's receiving the first ever Scripter Literary Achievement Award:

LOS ANGELES—Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Cormac McCarthy and Oscar-winning screenwriters Ethan and Joel Coen have won the 20th-annual USC Libraries Scripter Award for “No Country for Old Men.”

Scripter recognizes the writers’ contribution to the critically-lauded “No Country for Old Men” as the year’s greatest achievement in cinematic adaptation. The University of Southern California Libraries announced the winners today on behalf of the selection committee and the Friends of the USC Libraries, who sponsor the award.

The Scripter selection committee, led by Academy Award-nominated screenwriter Naomi Foner Gyllenhaal, chose “No Country for Old Men” from an unprecedented field of nearly 50 eligible films adapted from novels, short stories or novellas. Said Gyllenhaal of the winning film and writers, “‘No Country for Old Men’ is an accomplished work of filmmaking from the Coen brothers, who have adapted Cormac McCarthy's book with enormous skill and feeling for the dark places in our souls.”

“Atonement,” “Into the Wild,” “There Will Be Blood” and “Zodiac” rounded out this year’s group of five Scripter finalists.

“No Country for Old Men” stars Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem and Tommy Lee Jones. The film has been nominated for four Golden Globes; has been named film of the year by the Boston, Chicago, Dallas, New York, Phoenix, and Washington D.C. critics associations and the National Board of Review; and has been compared to the films of Anthony Mann and Sam Peckinpah.

“No Country for Old Men” author Cormac McCarthy’s career spans more than four decades and includes such books as “The Orchard Keeper” (1965), “Child of God” (1974) and “Blood Meridian, or the Evening Redness in the West” (1985). McCarthy was a Scripter finalist in 2001 when his 1992 book “All the Pretty Horses” was adapted for the silver screen. His novel “The Road” earned a 2007 Pulitzer.

The Coen brothers’ screenwriting credits include “Blood Simple” (1984), “Raising Arizona” (1987), “Miller’s Crossing” (1990), “The Hudsucker Proxy” (1994) and “Intolerable Cruelty” (2003). Their 1996 collaboration “Fargo” won the Oscar for best original screenplay. Other Academy Award nominations came for their adapted screenplay for “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” (2000) and for editing and directing “Fargo.” They also directed “No Country for Old Men.”

Vintage Books, a division of Random House, publishes “No Country for Old Men.” Miramax Films distributes the film in the United States.

Scripter 2008 marks the award’s platinum anniversary. To celebrate this 20-year milestone, the USC Libraries will honor director, producer, and Academy Award-winning screenwriter Steven Zaillian with the inaugural Scripter Literary Achievement Award. The Friends of the USC Libraries created this new prize to recognize writers who have made significant and sustained contributions to the art of adaptation.

USC Trustee, Scripter co-founder and president of the Friends of the USC Libraries Glenn A. Sonnenberg described Zaillian as the ideal first recipient, noting the scribe’s Academy Award-recognized screenplays for “Awakenings” (1990), “Schindler’s List” (1993) and “Gangs of New York” (2002). Zaillian also is a three-time Scripter winner, receiving honors for “Schindler’s List,” “Awakenings,” and “A Civil Action” (1998).

“As our only three-time Scripter winner, Steven embodies what the Scripter is all about—outstanding storytelling,” Sonnenberg said. “His body of work represents the best in adapted screenwriting.”

Zaillian’s other credits include the screenplays for “American Gangster” (2007), “The Interpreter” (2005), “Searching for Bobby Fischer” (1993) and “The Falcon and the Snowman” (1985).

Tony Award-winning actor Jason Alexander will serve as master of ceremonies for the Feb. 2 Scripter gala on the University of Southern California campus. Dean of the USC Libraries Catherine Quinlan will host the annual black-tie event in USC’s historic Edward L. Doheny Jr. Memorial Library.

As part of the weekend's Eye on the Oscars: Directors Roundup Feature Issue, Robert Koehler gives the auteur theory a once over by looking at filmmakers like David Fincher, Sidney Lumet and the Coen brothers, but there's also a very interesting collection of helmer profiles from Broadway directors to sift through.

There's Michael Mayer ("Spring Awakening") on Julian Schnabel ("The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"); Jack O'Brien ("Hairspray") on Sidney Lumet ("Before the Devil Knows You're Dead"); Des McAnuff ("Jersey Boys") on Anton Corbijn ("Control"); and Doug Hughes ("Doubt") on Tony Gilroy ("Michael Clayton:") among many others.  Give it a look.

I love these artist on artist things.  If you missed it the first time around, be sure to check out Variety's round-up of actors sizing up their colleagues from November.

From: Cesar Millan
To: The Coen brothers
CC:
Subject: Gloom
Sent: Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Dear Coen brothers:

Your dog enjoys a healthy atmosphere of vigorous physical activity, but his people skills leave much to be desired, and squeaking "WHAT a good dog" doesn't seem to be working. To show him who's boss, attach a long choke chain, and yank and heel him whenever there's a loud noise, such as the burst of an air gun. Keep him swimming, and tell Mr. Brolin not to look at him directly. Soon he'll be so docile he'll lead you to where the money's hidden, but if you're not firm, your domestic performance could be impaired. Americans don't like to see their heroes chewed up. This is no country for mauled men.

Be strong!
Cesar Millan a/k/a the Dog Whisperer


More secret documents from the major players here.

Erik Childress' "Oscar Eye" column has the full list of Chicago Film Critics nominations mixed in with his tally of who's won what.  You have to kind of pick things out, but the full list is there.

"No Country for Old Men" and "There Will Be Blood" continue to show up, but the group went out of its way to personally champion "Once" in more than a few areas, including Best Picture.

Casey Affleck popped up again for his supporting turn in "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford," while Viggo Mortensen found some Best Actor love for his work in David Cronenberg's "Eastern Promises."  Frank Langella also made another appearance in the lead field for "Starting Out in the Evening."

Another key contender showing up in the nominations is "Zodiac," which managed citations for Best Director (david Fincher) and Best Adapted Screenplay.

"Michael Clayton" led the way with seven nominations.  "Blood" wasn't far behind with six.  Nothing for "The Kite Runner" or "Sweeney Todd."

Best Picture
"Into the Wild"
"Michael Clayton"
"No Country for Old Men"
"Once"
"There Will Be Blood"

Best Director
Paul Thomas Anderson, "There Will Be Blood"
Ethan Coen, Joel Coen, "No Country for Old Men"
Tony Gilroy, "Michael Clayton"
David Fincher, "Zodiac"
Jason Reitman, "Juno"

Best Actor
George Clooney, "Michael Clayton"
Daniel Day-Lewis, "There Will Be Blood"
Ryan Gosling, "Lars and the Real Girl"
Frank Langella, "Starting Out in the Evening"
Viggo Mortensen, "Eastern Promises"

Best Actress
Julie Christie, "Away from Her"
Marion Cotillard, "La Vie en Rose"
Angelina Jolie, "A Mighty Heart"
Laura Linney, "The Savages"
Ellen Page, "Juno"

Best Supporting Actor
Casey Affleck, "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford"
Javier Bardem, "No Country for Old Men"
Phillip Seymour Hoffman, "Charlie Wilson's War"
Hal Holbrook, "Into the Wild"
Tom Wilkinson, "Michael Clayton"

Best Supporting Actress
Cate Blanchet, "I'm Not There"
Jennifer Jason Leigh, "Margot at the Wedding"
Leslie Mann, "Knocked Up"
Amy Ryan, "Gone Baby Gone"
Tilda Swinton, "Michael Clayton"

Best Adapted Screenplay
"Atonement"
"Into the Wild"
"No Country for Old Men"
"There Will Be Blood"
"Zodiac"

Best Original Screenplay
"Before the Devil Knows You're Dead"
"Juno"
"Michael Clayton"
"Ratatouille"
"The Savages"

Best Cinematography
"The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford"
"Atonement"
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"
"No Country for Old Men"
"There Will Be Blood"

Best Score
"The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford"
"Atonement"
"Lust, Caution"
"Once"
"There Will Be Blood"

Best Animated Feature
"Beowulf"
"Meet the Robinsons"
"Persepolis"
"Ratatouille"
"The Simpsons Movie"

Best Foreign Film
"4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days"
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly"
"La Vie en Rose"
"Lust, Caution"
"The Orphanage"

Best Documentary
"Darfur Now"
"The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters"
"Lake of Fire"
"No End in Sight"
"Sicko"

Promising Director
Ben Affleck, "Gone Baby Gone"
John Carney, "Once"
Craig Gillespie, "Lars and the Real Girl"
Tony Gilroy, "Michael Clayton"
Sarah Polley, "Away from Her"

Promising Performer
Nikki Blonsky, "Hairspray"
Michael Cera, "Juno"/"Superbad"
Glen Hansard, "Once"
Carice van Houten, "Black Book"
Tang Wei, "Lust, Caution"

•  As part of a big "Hollywood Goes West" collective in the Gray Lady's magazine supplement, Lynn Hirschberg profiles Daniel Day-Lewis... [New York Times]

•  ...and the Coen brothers. [New York Times]

•  Thomas Schatz spotlights the western genre (finally someone writes this story). [New York Times]

•  And thinking outside the box, director Walter Salles writes up the road trip movie. [New York Times]

•  Tom O'Neil joins the very small chorus that thinks "No Country for Old Men" is no shoo-in for a Best Picture nomination. [Gold Derby]

•  Nathaniel Rogers gives his Oscar predictions a November revamp. [The Film Experience]

•  Scott Feinberg talks to "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" star Matthieu Amalric. [And the Winner Is...]

•  Lou Lumenick recommends a few holiday flicks. [New York Post]