OVP: Best Sound Mixing (2010)
The Nominees Were...
Lora Hirschberg, Gary A. Rizzo, and Ed Novick, Inception
Paul Hamblin, Martin Jensen, and John Midgley, The King's Speech
Jeffrey J. Haboush, Greg P. Russell, Scott Millan, and William Sarokin, Salt
Ren Klyce, David Parker, Michael Semanick, and Mark Weingarten, The Social Network
Skip Lievsay, Craig Berkey, Greg Orloff, and Peter F. Kurland, True Grit
Jeffrey J. Haboush, Greg P. Russell, Scott Millan, and William Sarokin, Salt
Ren Klyce, David Parker, Michael Semanick, and Mark Weingarten, The Social Network
Skip Lievsay, Craig Berkey, Greg Orloff, and Peter F. Kurland, True Grit
My Thoughts: Is it weird that I keep thinking of the Oscar-nominated song "Listen" right now when looking at the list of nominees in this category? Listen, to the sound from deep within...isn't that what all of these nominees are hoping for in some fashion? That we'll hear, through the crisp delivery of their skills, the stronger message of their film (or, you know, whatever Salt was getting at), and that it won't just be a series of explosions that catches our ears.
I've been leading in with one of the weaker nominees in a lot of these writeups, so I figure I should start with one of the stronger contenders here, Inception. I feel like we've been discussing Inception more than any other film (I haven't done the count yet, but only True Grit seems to have appeared as often), so I apologize if I'm repeating myself, but it's hard not to get giddy when discussing certain technical aspects of this movie. I love the way the score knows how to play back-and-forth so well in the film (few categories rely so much on another artist on a film as the sound mixers do on the composers), with it knowing just when to ebb and when to come full throttle. I also love the crispness of the sounds-silence is as much a part of this category as sound, and the film knows how to suspend an auditory moment.
The same can be said for The Social Network, which also makes its way wonderfully around its noises. I love the way that the film pushes the noise in the club to an almost inaudible decibel, getting us inside of the techno beat of that era (I was in college at the same time as Mark Zuckerberg, and have been in that style of club multiple times). Think of how they both have to yell, and how that noise makes the entire sequence, with Mark confessing something rather inward, one of the few times he does, all the more arresting-he's shouting his deepest insecurities at the top of his lungs, and Sean still doesn't care. He slowly becomes colder, harder after this scene. This is just one example in the film of how the sound mixers confidently handle their subjects.
True Grit is mildly better here than with the editors. I love the way that the Coen Brothers always very much value their silences and know the way to sparingly use music (if at all) in their films. This film, though, doesn't quite hit the heights of a No Country for Old Men, however. I loved the courtroom scene-just the right level of anger in the crowd and in the retorts coming from Jeff Bridges, but the rest of the film, again, I just don't see this rising to a grand level in comparison to Social or Inception.
Salt is not the sort of film that is lacking sound, and while the film is probably more on the sound editing side, there's certainly a lot of sound mixing to be had here too. However, in addition to the film's ridiculous plot, there's little to laud in the sound department. The film's car chase sequence is probably its best aspect, and the noises are highly realistic, but the rest of the film sort of melds. The movie doesn't utilize its noises properly in building suspense-it goes with a traditional set of music toward the end of the movie when building through the twists, and in the other sequences it lets its scenes drag too long, not building or crescendoing at a swift enough pace.
Finally, there's the pristine calm of The King's Speech. The film soars through most of its key auditory sequences. I love the way the first, dreadful speech goes-the awkward silence of a public figure, a man destined to be a leader, faltering dreadfully and stammering as he slowly misses every opportunity he has to connect with the audience. This stilted silence makes the later triumph all the more winning, and it helps that the speech is perfectly accompanied by Beethoven, blaring winningly to the film's natural conclusion. For a film that is largely average for its field in other techs, this is one of the few times where it truly earns its Oscar citation.
I've been leading in with one of the weaker nominees in a lot of these writeups, so I figure I should start with one of the stronger contenders here, Inception. I feel like we've been discussing Inception more than any other film (I haven't done the count yet, but only True Grit seems to have appeared as often), so I apologize if I'm repeating myself, but it's hard not to get giddy when discussing certain technical aspects of this movie. I love the way the score knows how to play back-and-forth so well in the film (few categories rely so much on another artist on a film as the sound mixers do on the composers), with it knowing just when to ebb and when to come full throttle. I also love the crispness of the sounds-silence is as much a part of this category as sound, and the film knows how to suspend an auditory moment.
The same can be said for The Social Network, which also makes its way wonderfully around its noises. I love the way that the film pushes the noise in the club to an almost inaudible decibel, getting us inside of the techno beat of that era (I was in college at the same time as Mark Zuckerberg, and have been in that style of club multiple times). Think of how they both have to yell, and how that noise makes the entire sequence, with Mark confessing something rather inward, one of the few times he does, all the more arresting-he's shouting his deepest insecurities at the top of his lungs, and Sean still doesn't care. He slowly becomes colder, harder after this scene. This is just one example in the film of how the sound mixers confidently handle their subjects.
True Grit is mildly better here than with the editors. I love the way that the Coen Brothers always very much value their silences and know the way to sparingly use music (if at all) in their films. This film, though, doesn't quite hit the heights of a No Country for Old Men, however. I loved the courtroom scene-just the right level of anger in the crowd and in the retorts coming from Jeff Bridges, but the rest of the film, again, I just don't see this rising to a grand level in comparison to Social or Inception.
Salt is not the sort of film that is lacking sound, and while the film is probably more on the sound editing side, there's certainly a lot of sound mixing to be had here too. However, in addition to the film's ridiculous plot, there's little to laud in the sound department. The film's car chase sequence is probably its best aspect, and the noises are highly realistic, but the rest of the film sort of melds. The movie doesn't utilize its noises properly in building suspense-it goes with a traditional set of music toward the end of the movie when building through the twists, and in the other sequences it lets its scenes drag too long, not building or crescendoing at a swift enough pace.
Finally, there's the pristine calm of The King's Speech. The film soars through most of its key auditory sequences. I love the way the first, dreadful speech goes-the awkward silence of a public figure, a man destined to be a leader, faltering dreadfully and stammering as he slowly misses every opportunity he has to connect with the audience. This stilted silence makes the later triumph all the more winning, and it helps that the speech is perfectly accompanied by Beethoven, blaring winningly to the film's natural conclusion. For a film that is largely average for its field in other techs, this is one of the few times where it truly earns its Oscar citation.
Other Precursor Contenders: The Cinema Audio Society skipped both The King's Speech and Salt in favor of Shutter Island and Black Swan, giving their top prize to True Grit. The BAFTA Awards also found room for Black Swan (you kind of get the feeling that that film was on the verge of a lot more Oscar nominations considering all of the precursors), along with 127 Hours, skipping The Social Network and Salt, and giving its trophy to The King's Speech.
Films I Would Have Nominated: I'm kind of in the camp of the precursors-where was Black Swan, with its malevolent score and chattering noise, constantly throwing us in a twirl, as if we ourselves are performing a pirouette.
Oscar's Choice: Inception and its team of auditory wizards were any easy choice, and completed the Blockbuster Three of the Oscars (the two Sound categories and Visual Effects, a term I just coined, but doesn't it kind of fit?)
My Choice: Inception is excellent-Social Network is genius. Rarely has a film so obviously deserved an Oscar for Sound Mixing, and so I have to go with it. In third is the surprisingly strong King's Speech, followed by True Grit and then Salt.
Films I Would Have Nominated: I'm kind of in the camp of the precursors-where was Black Swan, with its malevolent score and chattering noise, constantly throwing us in a twirl, as if we ourselves are performing a pirouette.
Oscar's Choice: Inception and its team of auditory wizards were any easy choice, and completed the Blockbuster Three of the Oscars (the two Sound categories and Visual Effects, a term I just coined, but doesn't it kind of fit?)
My Choice: Inception is excellent-Social Network is genius. Rarely has a film so obviously deserved an Oscar for Sound Mixing, and so I have to go with it. In third is the surprisingly strong King's Speech, followed by True Grit and then Salt.
Do you agree, or are you more in the action camp of Inception? Do you think Black Swan or 127 Hours should have made it to the lineup, and who should have been cut? And would you have split your editing and mixing winners, or would you have doubled-up?
Also in 2010: Sound Editing, Original Score, Original Song, Art Direction, Cinematography, Costume, Editing, Visual Effects, Makeup, Previously in 2010
Past Best Sound Mixing Contests: 2011
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