2005: Technical Awards

BEST SPECIAL EFFECTS: [CLICK HERE]

BEST MAKE UP
1. SIN CITY
Robert Rodriguez and the make up wizards at KNB FX did a superb job in transforming Mickey Rourke, Benecio Del Toro and Nick Stahl into Frank Miller’s comic book creations. Stahl’s Yellow Bastard is the obvious transformation, but Rourke’s Marv (with his large forehead that vertically matches his square jaw) is the real masterpiece. Also loved the occasional fluorescent blood in the B&W world.

2. HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE – Voldemort has snake nostrils
3. LAND OF THE DEAD – Another round of zombie fun with KNB picking up for Tom Savini
4. THE NEW WORLD – Wonderfully elaborate Indian face paint realistically dried in the sun
5. CONSTANTINE – Beautifully blending CGI with real footage


BEST SOUND
1. BATMAN BEGINS
Beyond the usual crisp action movie soundscapes, two things put BATMAN BEGINS over the top…the wonderful bass heavy distortions during the Scarecrow hallucinations (jarringly cut with reality for even greater effect), and the Tumbler. The new Batmobile fired up and roared like the world’s greatest monster truck. No wonder everybody in the film wanted to own one.

2. KING KONG – A close 2nd for all the reasons you suspect
3. WAR OF THE WORLDS – Loved the sound of people going ‘poof’
4. SIN CITY – Hightened sounds of cars, guns, and broken bones…all created in post
5. CONSTANTINE – Overall atmosphere that let you know demons are right here with us


BEST SCORE
1. 2046
This was not even a close race. The other nominees had moments and places where the score really stood out, but 2046 works in the repetition of a main theme (used in the trailer) which never wears out its welcome. Not as classic as HALLOWEEN or THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY, but it holds its own in that esteemed company.

2. THE CONSTANT GARDENER
3. OLDBOY
4. THE MACHINIST
5. KUNG FU HUSTLE


BEST ART DIRECTION
1. KING KONG
Once again making George Lucas’ CGI backdrops look cheap by comparison, Jackson combined real sets, bigatures (really large miniatures), and green screen enhancement to make his grand vision look completely real. The films greatest achievement in Art Direction is the perfectly beautiful 1930’s New York City.

2. 2046 – Lush beauty in 2 time periods, the 1960’s and the future
3. SIN CITY – The comic noir look actually benefits from extensive CGI backdrops
4. BATMAN BEGINS – A Gotham of varied economic conditions that I believe people really live in
5. CHARLIE & THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY – Bloated and indulgent, but still imaginative


BEST COSTUME DESIGN
1. 2046
Everyone is dressed for an elegant dinner party. Tony Leung is dashing in his writers suits and Hong Kong’s most beautiful actresses look their best (and subtly erotic) in tight period dresses.

2. MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA – Cause Geisha wear ain’t easy
3. CHARLIE & THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY – Cause making Depp look cool in that getup ain’t easy
4. SIN CITY – Leather coats, bondage gear and Charlie Brown shirts
5. KINGDOM OF HEAVEN – Crusade wear with a Arabian flair


BEST EDITING
1. SIN CITY
Frank Miller’s drawings make for excellent storyboards, but editing is really where the comic book becomes an actual movie. Rodriguez has always been a great editor, but he really pushed his abilities here, filling in the space between Miller’s panels and making everything snap to cinematic life.

2. KUNG FU HUSTLE – Numerous wonderfully staged set pieces give you the time to go “Wow”
3. THE CONSTANT GARDENER – Montage, shock cuts, intercutting and some beautiful moments of pure mood
4. 2046 – Images come together to transport you to another time, another place, and a master filmmaker’s mind
5. CONSTANTINE – Really good at creating jolts through edits that are tight, but not confusing


BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
1. 2046
Even in a year as strong as this one, there was no contest. Wong Kar Wai films always look great, but this is the best looking film of his career. Until I got into the story, I was enjoying the picture simply as a film to watch. This could play on your television with the sound down as kind of a moving painting. Not only is 2046 the best shot film of the year, it passes HERO as the best of the decade.

2. THE CONSTANT GARDENER – Handheld shots with colors that come from a painter’s eye
3. SIN CITY – Hard edged Black & White with striking splashes of color
4. JARHEAD – Liked the washed out daylight. Loved the dreamy desert sands as the oil wells burned
5. GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK – Flawless recreation of the Black & White of early television