OVP: Best Sound Editing (2002)
The Nominees Were...
Ethan Van der Ryn & Michael Hopkins, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Richard Hymns & Gary Rydstrom, Minority Report
Scott A. Hecker, Road to Perdition
My Thoughts: See, I told you we'd actually get some more articles from the OVP Ballot right away! We're doing Sound Editing today (links to all past 2002 contests and Sound Editing battles at the bottom of this article), which in 2002 was still in the "whatever you feel like it" phase of the category, where films would get nominated for 2-3 nominees depending on the year. 2002 was still the dawn of the special effects era dominating the entire summer (star-driven movies like Mr. Deeds and Road to Perdition were big enough deals then to be the #1 movie in America on a weekend, which would be unthinkable now), so while two of these movies were special effects films, one stands out as being a bit out-of-its-league.
Let's just get it out of the way-I don't entirely get what Road to Perdition is doing in this category. It's not necessarily that it doesn't have sound editing, and if you wanted to criticize me for pigeonholing the category a bit to only films with the "most" sound editing I'd buy it to some degree, but the sound work here is at its best when we're talking about the mixing. The editing doesn't feel as essential to the plot, and doesn't stand out in the way that, say No Country for Old Men (a film with a somewhat similar story structure) would five years later. This is a gorgeous, but relatively standard-issue work that I suspect got in because the box office returns weren't bad.
Minority Report, on the other hand, is totally going for broke with its sound work. I love this film's sound design. The creepy crawly spiders and the way they spin around the floors throughout, the design for the precogs and the dropping red ball...it's fascinating to watch it come to pass. Part of really great sound editing is the way that it helps to build the world in front of you up...you are creating a unique film experience, something that audiences haven't felt before and will forever associate with this picture. That's true with Minority Report, which stands apart as its own world.
To a degree this is also true of The Two Towers. Similar to Minority Report, there's things in this film that are unique to this picture, like the trumpet calls over Helm's Deep or the entire battle sequences...plus the work around the Ents & Gollum are impressive to say the least. It has to be noted that a lot of the best tricks in this film have already been used previously, specifically those associated with Sauron and the Ring, but honestly-you're in a class by yourself technically when you look at Peter Jackson's films-collectively they're amongst the best movies ever put to celluloid. But I have to point out that it's borrowing from its predecessor here in a way that Minority Report is not, even if The Two Towers is collectively more cohesive.
Other Precursor Contenders: The Golden Reel Awards split their categories between live-action & animated. Live action went with Road to Perdition against The Bourne Identity, Gangs of New York, Minority Report, Panic Room, Spider-Man, Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones, We Were Soldiers, and xXx (I don't know the rationale behind The Two Towers missing in a lineup that solid, but I'm sure there must be a story), while Animated favored Treasure Planet atop Ice Age, Lilo & Stitch, Spirited Away, Spirt: Stallion of the Cimarron, and The Wild Thornberrys Movie. This was still in the era where Sound Editing got a shortlist, so fourth place was Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Spider-Man, We Were Soldiers, or xXX, and...Spider-Man, right? It's gotta be Spider-Man?
Films I Would Have Nominated: I don't really understand why Signs didn't get shortlisted anywhere here. The alien design in that film is dynamite, and it's proof how little-regarded horror films have been with AMPAS over the past century that it couldn't even make the shortlist.
Oscar’s Choice: Despite a clear repudiation from the Sound Editors with the Golden Reel Awards (perhaps telling of The Return of the King's shock snub the following hear in this category), The Two Towers took the prize atop Road to Perdition.
My Choice: As you might have been able to tell, I struggled with where to land this category. The Two Towers as a stand-alone achievement is the better of the two films-it's stronger, and it matches its film better throughout. But it also heavily borrows from its predecessor, and Minority Report is a unique, new-to-the-audience creation. As a result, I'm going to pick Spielberg's SciFi epic here over Jackson's second chapter. Road to Perdition gets the bronze.
Those are my thoughts-what are yours? Did I just make a lot of enemies by not picking The Two Towers (which is a film I love!) or am I getting some nodding in concurrence on Minority Report? What am I missing in Road to Perdition's sound editing that clearly everyone else was enamored with? And if we had gone two-wide, would this have been Spider-Man (and perhaps the only nomination that Chamber of Secrets landed)? Share your thoughts below in the comments!
Also in 2002: Original Score, Original Song, Art Direction, Cinematography, Costume, Film Editing, Visual Effects, Makeup, Previously in 2002
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