Jennifer Hudson

Well, I haven't watch most seasons of American Idol, but according to David Poland, I caught the right one because I know who Jennifer Hudson is. Apparently, she's not only a great singer, but an Oscar-calibar actress. Poland tends to get excited and over state things...I can't imagine what it must be like to be a person with tendencies like that :-p ...but this is certainly very interesting.

Poland's Review:
There isn't a bad performance in the movie. But the powerful surprise is Jennifer Hudson, who will be winning an Oscar this year, no matter what category they run her in.

The studio long ago decided to go supporting, but the HFPA is considering moving her to lead and she is, indeed, the lead of this film. There is a fear of Dame Helen, but the reality is that this performance would win in any category, whether Actress, Supporting Actress, or Best Short Film. The reason to move her to lead would to make an opportunity available for another performance…

Beyonce absolutely deserves a Best Supporting Actress nomination for her role in Dreamgirls. But given the brutal fight for Best Actress slots, I don't believe she can be sure of even a nomination there. As you watch the early parts of the film, it's not real clear that she deserves Academy recognition, but she really soars in the third act with a number of sequences, particularly with her performance of a new Henry Krieger song, "Listen," done almost completely in close-up.

And again… Jennifer Hudson will have an Oscar before the end of February.

Keep Dreaming

Maybe I'm totally out of touch here, but I'm not interested in Dreamgirls...at all...none...and I don't just think it's because I haven't really liked anything Bill Condon has done. The music in the trailer didn't do anything for me. The fact that it's not based on an actual group means my interest isn't piqued at all. If American Idol's Jennifer Hudson wasn't in it, I don't think I'd be the slightest bit interested. Apparently they showed 30 mins in Toronto and everyone loved it. Paramount's got faith in it...but I don't think it will play...kinda like Memiors of a Geisha last year. What do you guys think?

MCN: 20 Weeks To Oscar: "Paramount has already delivered all but Dreamgirls within the industry, yet you can have a conversation about whether they can get four nominations or whether they will get two."