The Canyons
Release Date: August 2 Oscar Prospects: Bad Paul Schrader has had a most unusual career and life. Brought up by strict Calvinist parents, Schrader was not allowed to even see a movie until he turned 18. He developed a quick affinity for film, though, because by the age of thirty he had written the script for Taxi Driver, which was of course then turned into an absolute masterpiece by Martin Scorsese. Along with the likes of George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Francis Ford Coppola, and the aforementioned Scorsese, Schrader became an established figure of the "New Hollywood" which many film historians, and this particular film fan, believe to be the greatest era of the medium of cinema. Since that time, Schrader would go on to collaborate on screenplays with Scorsese a few times (Raging Bull, The Last Temptation of Christ, and Bringing Out the Dead) and direct a few well regarded films of his own, such as Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters and Affliction, but has never spun out a solid enough string of hits to establish himself as an A-list director. Even so, the name Schrader still arouses the curiosity of hardcore cinephiles, and particularly when he partners with the 21st Century tabloid queen herself, Lindsay Lohan, as well as the notoriously party-hard author Bret Easton Ellis, who concocted the original screenplay for the film, Schrader's films can still garner some attention. Schrader's newest film, titled The Canyons, tells the story of Christian (James Deen), a spoiled rich-kid in Los Angeles who gets a bit jealous when Tara (Lindsay Lohan) begins an affair with the lead of his movie, Ryan (Nolan Gerad Funk). The film's trailer, as well as the players involved, portray The Canyons as an exercise in high camp, which is unlikely to receive much appreciation from the Academy, an organization that has never been known for its ability to admire train wreck cinema. Lest you dismiss the Academy as excessively snobbish, it should be noted that both the Sundance and SXSW film festivals declined to show the film, so the Academy will have some company when they inevitably ignore the picture. The Canyons may be a film that achieves some cult status down the road, but an Oscar nominee I can guarantee it will not be. Possible nominations: None