What I don't get is the fuss about Amelie. I flat-out hated the film and damn near walked out -- something I haven't done in over a decade. I just never got swept into the magical realism of the film. Instead of finding it cute and clever that boy and girl couldn't get together, I just found it annoying and tedious. Likewise, none of the other characters were especially likable to me. And all of the camera tricks and special effects did nothing bit distract me and take me out of the story. Most of the time I didn't feel like they were motivated by story but rather by a DP who got to play with some new toys .... I realize I'm in the vast, vast minority on this one, so I acknowledge it might be me and not Amelie. But I was glad it didn't win anything.
Denzel deserved it. His act in Training Day was superb. Sublime. LOTR got ripped off in the Best Picture category. Ian McKellan (sp)certainly got ripped - he was absolutely perfect as Gandalf. It's a travesty that he walked away with nothing, and the film only won trivialties like cinematography and score. It would have topped the list if the Academy wasn't so damn flakey and didn't have an inherent bias against the fantasy/sci-fi genre. Halle's fine, but God, stop crying woman! She deserved it just for the acceptance speech.
