Failed Oscar Campaigns: "The Lovely Bones" (2009)

Saoirse Ronan in The Lovely Bones

As awards seasons pick up, so do the campaigns to make your film have the best chances at the Best Picture race. However, like a drunken stupor, sometimes these efforts come off as trying too hard and leave behind a trailer of ridiculous flamboyance. Join me on every other Saturday for a highlight of the failed campaigns that make this season as much about prestige as it does about train wrecks. Come for the Harvey Weinstein comments and stay for the history. It's going to be a fun time as I explore cinema's rich history of attempting to matter.

How Weinstein Almost Ruined "Lord of the Rings" with Quentin Tarantino

Scene from Lord of the Rings

Nowadays it's tough to imagine a world without Peter Jackson directing the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Clocking in at over 12 hours in extended edition, the series has become the peak of the modern epic, pushing visual effects in new and exciting ways. It also created a faithfulness to the source material that was ambitious while also earning billions at the box office along with earning over a dozen Oscars and a Best Picture in just three years. But news has recently broke of just how different things could've gone. Had the producer Harvey Weinstein had his way, things would be different for Jackson. He wouldn't even be there and the film wouldn't even be what it is now seen as.

Nothing But the Best: "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" (2003)

Elijah Wood in The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Welcome to the series Nothing But the Best in which I chronicle all of the Academy Award Best Picture winners as they celebrate their anniversaries. Instead of going in chronological order, this series will be presented on each film's anniversary and will feature personal opinions as well as facts regarding its legacy and behind the scenes information. The goal is to create an in depth essay for each film while looking not only how the medium progressed, but how the film is integral to pop culture. In some cases, it will be easy. Others not so much. Without further ado, let's start the show.

Peter Jackson Explains Why "The Hobbit" Films Weren't His Best

Scene from The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Over the past 15 years, there hasn't been a series as beloved and integral to the advancement of cinema as that of director Peter Jackson's work on The Lord of the Rings. With the third film also winning Best Picture, it was a high point in entertainment and provided epic scope to the beloved J.R.R. Tolkien books. When it was announced that Jackson would return to tackle "The Hobbit," hopes were high, but the results weren't as great. In a rare move, footage has surfaced in which the director and various cast members essentially apologize for any short coming, believing that they were "winging it." If nothing else, it's a rare and noble move the likes of which aren't seen often enough, especially with the final film only being a few years old.

The Directors Project: #15 - Peter Jackson

Scene from Cinema Paradiso

With the many lists and essays written on the subject of film, there has been one thing that The Oscar Buzz has tried to understand: Who is my favorite of the film world? For 10 weeks this summer, I will be exploring this with a countdown of the Top 50 names based on a numerical ranking of ratings from various sources, the following is a list of directors who rank above everyone else. With occasional upsets, this is intended as both a discussion opener as well as a better understanding of me as a film critic and fan. Please enjoy and leave any comments you have regarding the entry's selection.

Will "The Hobbit" Continue Jackson's Winning Streak?

Depending on your stance, next week's release of director Peter Jackson's The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is either nine years of painful waiting, or nine years too late. Very few people will deny that Jackson's work on The Lord of the Rings trilogy was a cinematic achievement and its bounty of Oscar wins only solidifies that statement. However, between Return of the King and The Hobbit series was nine years, in which time a lot has changed in cinema, including Jackson's style. While many predict that the film will get an easy Best Picture nomination just like the last three, is it possible that the film will actually prove to be a continued hot streak with a possible win?