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Matt was not nominated for an individual Screen Actors Guild award, but is in the nominated ensemble cast for The Departed. Critic Leonard Maltin's comments from USA Today, in their SAG snubs article, are below:
The two finest performances of Damon's career might both be ignored by the academy, some fear. He was the slimy cop in The Departed and an angst-ridden recruit for the fledgling CIA in Shepherd.
"I'm more impressed with him with every passing film," Maltin says. "He doesn't make conventional movie-star choices. And the character in The Good Shepherd is so bottled up that he has to internalize almost all of his emotions. That's challenging for any actor."
Excerpts from British critic David Thomson's comments in an article at The Guardian, where he compares Brad Pitt unfavorably to Matt:
Have you been noticing what's happening to Brad Pitt's career? This Christmas, in America, Matt Damon is giving a really sensational performance in The Good Shepherd (in which a shy, retiring man turns into a ghost or a spook before your very eyes). The threat in the Bourne films is really paying off. Earlier in the year, Damon punched his weight in The Departed. Two knockout performances in a year - and Damon is seven years younger than Pitt.
George Clooney survives because of all the other things he does. The same goes for Matt Damon. But Brad Pitt is behaving as if they [Ocean's movies] were real jobs of work.
There's too much competition around for him to be complacent. Damon is flying now.
The Good Shepherd will be in competition at the Berlin Film Festival, held from 8-18 February - details here or here.
George Clooney, a Berlinale regular, is expected to attend, as are, barring scheduling conflicts, "Good Shepherd" co-stars Matt Damon and Angelina Jolie.
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| From: jennaz123 |
Date:
January 5th, 2007 11:41 pm (UTC)
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PopCandy mention
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From USA TODAY, Whitney Matheson's explanation for Matt's shut-out: Pop Candy mailbag Why is The Good Shepherd getting completely shut out of all awards? De Niro as director, Damon as male lead ... How is there no buzz for this project? -- Laremy L.
Let me just preface this by saying I liked Shepherd -- in fact, it was the only movie I saw over the holidays. But it has received mixed reviews, and the most mixed opinion seems to focus on De Niro's acting ability, so it doesn't surprise me that he's not an award contender. On the other hand, I thought Damon was very good in the film, and I always love William Hurt, though this year it could be a case of too many boys in the field. And if I had to pick one Damon performance over the other, I'd say his work in The Departed was better than The Good Shepherd. Unfortunately, there were so many great actors in Departed that Damon may be ignored altogether.
http://blogs.usatoday.com/popcandy/2007/01/the_candy_mailb.html#more
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| From: (Anonymous) |
Date:
January 6th, 2007 05:39 am (UTC)
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Feud?
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First, I just returned from a short trip and was catching up on my "Felicity's Site" reading. I saw an anonymous reader directed a question to me but that you felt it was all going far afield. Naturally, I'll respect your feeling and not reply except to say I think your reply really answered the question. Everything I said in my earlier post was a Hollywood commonplace; no one involved in the business would question that money, buzz, and politics decide who gets nominated for awards maybe 95% of the time. Everyone nominated has always given at least a "good" performance. But enough of that. By the way, I take nothing away from Leo; I just think Matt is a demonstrably better actor--IMHO. Peter O'Toole deserves to be King of actors and has for many years!
My question, Felicity, is: do you know of any feud between Matt and Jay Leno? The last couple of times Matt's appeared on Letterman. Also, this last time, DeNiro appeared on Leno and got to mention Matt once. Leno studiously avoided mentioning or referring to Matt and Angelina and seemed to give DeNiro quick shrift--not what you would expect for an actor/director of DeNiro's stature. Is Matt still annoyed about the sneak attack video Ben made about "taking Matt to the park" that Leno sprang on Matt? Matt seemed very annoyed that night. Just curious. DeNiro's interview on Leno was cold and I think useless as publicity. What do you think?
Island Boy
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Hi Island Boy.
Answer if you like. I'm just about over the awards debate and am trying not to care any longer.
However, I saw 'Blood Diamond' today, and I cannot understand how Leo was nominated. All he did was alternatively scowl, sneer, take his shirt off and pant furtively (most combined with 'that' accent). I'd call it, and the movie, an exercise in overacting and cliches strung together in a populist rant, topped off by a rap song over the credits telling us blood diamonds are bad.
If you don't 'get' this movie, or the OTT performances, you fell asleep somewhere along the way. Leo was fine, but so's any other actor in such an obvious role. His plot device 101 forced crying scene (demonstrating the tortured past, he's really just a softie, the woman can get through!!!) was painful to watch.
Matt hasn't done Leno since Supremacy because the press junkets for all movies since have been based in New York and he's been filming other projects at the time (ie no time to do other LA press). I don't think there's any bad blood, and the last time he was on the show Leno was really favourable about Matt being there, the movie etc. I can't imagine doing Leno was De Niro's idea, and without someone else to deflect answers, it probably was very painful for him. But I've only ever seen the show when Matt's on, and have no real indication of other appearances, or how De Niro was treated. Ben, of course, always appears to be BFF with Leno.
Grimm was in LA, but that movie got no TV promotion, and Matt did the junket in between finishing Departed and starting TGS. Again, no time rather than a feud, I'd guess.
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| From: (Anonymous) |
Date:
January 7th, 2007 10:37 pm (UTC)
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Re: Feud?
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He's a real actor, Maureen, that's for sure. In a poem entitled "Ars Poetica", Archibald MacLeish writes about how far you have to go artistically regarding emotion. His view (and mine--and yours, too, sounds like)is that you don't TELL anyone the emotion, you EVOKE it within them. "For all the history of grief, an empty doorway and a maple leaf." That's what a real actor like Matt does: he helps US feel the emotion, not spew it at us. After all, the best art enhances our lives but doesn't live it for us.
I choose to be happy that I know Matt is a great actor becoming greater with every project. I can look forward to his upcoming work and appreciate it, either as a misstep that helps him learn his art or as another leap forward.TGS is quite a leap the importance of which will elude many for awhile. We have a history in our civilization of underappreciating greatness when it is newly presented. I surely don't worship Matt, but it's gratifying to watch, as I have since "Courage Under Fire", the growth of a true artist who follows his art wherever it may lead. We should all be so brave in our own lives.
Matt's time will come for major acting awards, and we will be able to say (maybe with a little self-satisfied smile!)that we recognized his great work early on and felt a friendly (if anonymous) kinship with him.
GO MATT!
Island Boy
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