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.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: The Weinstein Company

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.

Harvey Weinstein Now Removed From Oscars Membership

Harvey Weinstein

In case you haven't been paying attention, the era of Harvey Weinstein is over. Following an immediate removal from The Weinstein Company, the producer has been faced with dozens of allegations that symbolize decades of ugly patriarchy being abused in gross manners. I will not go into detail here, as that isn't the intent of this blog. However, I still believe that this is fair punishment for a man who abused his power in inappropriate ways, even sacrificing many actresses' careers because they didn't comply to his scuzzy behavior. While all of this is disgusting, there has been one fair punishment, which was announced last Saturday by The Academy: Weinstein is no longer a voting member.

Harvey Weinstein is Let Go From The Weinstein Company

Harvey Weinstein

This past weekend marked a major change in Hollywood. Producer Harvey Weinstein left his group The Weinstein company following a New York Times article accusing him of sexually assaulting several women. Considering his impact on how Oscar campaigns have been ran in the past 30 years, it comes as both a shock and no surprise depending on who you ask. His bullish nature (well documented on my Failed Oscar Campaigns column) would suggest that he had a few other unfavorable tendencies. Now that others are coming forward and forcing Hollywood to take sides, the defamed producer has brought out a worthwhile conversation about the meaning of power and what it means to abuse it.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "The Birth of a Nation" (2016)

Nate Parker

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.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "The Hateful Eight" (2015)

Scene from The Hateful Eight

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.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "Carol" (2015)

Scene from Carol

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.

McDonald's Film "The Founder" Moved From August to December Release

Scene from The Founder

Depending on who you ask, this summer's movie season has been a bit of a drag with very few films rising above an average rating. Considering that we're almost halfway through July and haven't had a stand-out on par with Mad Max: Fury Road, the sentiments may be hard to ignore. However, there are those few like myself who had faith in an August release from director John Lee Hancock called The Founder, which sees Michael Keaton playing Ray Kroc: the man who turned fast food chain McDonald's into America's most recognizable name. Many have pitted it in the Oscar race, especially with Keaton coming off of two back-to-back Best Picture winning films. However, those who are eagerly hoping that The Founder makes this summer a little better, prepare to be disappointed. You'll have to wait a little longer. The only upside is that if you're hoping for some Oscar buzz, its late December release should perk you right up.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "Southpaw" (2015)

Jake Gyllenhaal in Southpaw

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.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "Inglourious Basterds" (2009)

Christoph Waltz in Inglourious Basterds

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.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "The Imitation Game" (2013)

Benedict Cumberbatch

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.

Harvey Weinstein is Disappointed With This Oscar Season

Harvey Weinstein

If you're someone who follows Oscars culture annually, there's certain names that you have on your Rolodex. There is, of course, Meryl Streep, David O. Russell, and Steven Spielberg. Among the producers that will usually be good for a news piece or two, there's Harvey Weinstein of The Weinstein Company and former head of Miramax. At The Oscar Buzz, he is someone of constant reference, especially in the Failed Oscar Campaigns column; of which he's been the subject of using bizarre tactics for Oscar nominations. However, the man who helped to give the world films like Pulp Fiction and Shakespeare in Love has come forward in a recent op-ed piece regarding his personal thoughts on Oscar season. Apparently, he's not happy with how things have turned out.

Nothing But the Best: "Shakespeare in Love" (1998)

Scene from Shakespeare in Love

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.

Update: "I See the Light" and "Burnt" Get New Release Dates

Tom Hiddleston in I Saw the Light

It's a pretty good time to be Tom Hiddleston. For starters, he has had an impressive run in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as series favorite villain Loki. He also recently worked with director Guillermo Del Toro for the Gothic romance film Crimson Peak from this past weekend. However, those wanting to bet on him getting an Oscar nomination to cap off 2015 will have to wait, possibly even give up hopes entirely. Director Marc Abraham's Hank Williams biopic has been delayed to 2016. This isn't the only film to get moved around, with the Bradley Cooper chef film Burnt also receiving a not as severe change of plans. If anything, these may serve as a slight change to their Oscar buzz going forward.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "Philomena" (2013)

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.

Weinsten Refuses to Give Up on "Southpaw," Does Awards Push Rerelease

Jake Gyllenhaal in Southpaw

Oh, Jake Gyllenhaal. Much like Leonardo DiCaprio, he has become a prime target for "overdue-Oscar" consideration. Following last year's excellent Nightcrawler, he returned this summer with the boxing drama from director Antoine Fuqua called Southpaw. The results were less than stellar, as those thriving to get Gyllenhaal into the Oscar conversation were immediately dismissed when the film, despite decent box office, failed to keep the hype alive. Between his other 2015 films (Everest and Demolition), it doesn't look to be a great year for him. That is, unless Harvey Weinstein saved a big surprise for the campaign this upcoming weekend with its planned rerelease.

Edward Norton Gives Advice on How to Fix the Oscars

Edward Norton

It must be pretty good right now to be Edward Norton. For starters, he appeared in two Best Picture nominees from last year (The Grand Budapest Hotel and winner Birdman). He also is fresh off of a Best Supporting Actor nomination for the latter, which is his third overall. Despite all of this, the actor recently made remarks about The Academy that were a little harsh as well as constructive. What he wants is a change to the rules. He doesn't want the awards to be "monetized" as he puts it. So, what exactly is his plan? It's a pretty good one that involves shutting out advertising.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "Silver Linings Playbook" (2012)

Left to right: Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper

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.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "Saving Private Ryan" (1998)

Tom Hanks

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.

Failed Oscar Campaigns: "Sling Blade" (1996)

Billy Bob Thornton

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.