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Joaquin Phoenix: Academy Awards 'Helped My Career Tremendously'

Joaquin Phoenix: 'It's Not Like I F--king Hate The Oscars'
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Managing Entertainment Editor, The Huffington Post

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US actor Joaquin Phoenix poses during the photocall of 'The Master' during the 69th Venice Film Festival on September 1 , 2012 at Venice Lido. 'The Master' is competing for the Golden Lion in the Venezia 69 section of the festival. AFP PHOTO / TIZIANA FABI (Photo credit should read TIZIANA FABI/AFP/GettyImages)

Joaquin Phoenix is in the process of reconciling with the Academy Awards, after previously calling the race to win one "bulls--t." Phoenix, who is on the short list for Best Actor thanks to his towering performance in "The Master," told Garry Maddox of The Sydney Morning Herald that he owes a large chunk of his success to the Oscars.

"I wouldn't have the career that I have if it weren't for the Oscars. I haven't been in a lot of movies that have made a lot of money ... and getting nominated for a movie has probably helped my career tremendously," Phoenix said. The star has been singled out by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science twice before: In 2000 for his supporting performance in "Gladiator" and 2005 for his lead performance in "Walk the Line."

Phoenix made waves in October when quotes from an interview he gave to Elvis Mitchell for Interview Magazine went viral.

"I think it's bulls--t," Phoenix said about awards season. "I think it's total, utter bullshit, and I don't want to be a part of it. I don't believe in it. It's a carrot, but it's the worst-tasting carrot I've ever tasted in my whole life. I don't want this carrot. It's totally subjective. Pitting people against each other ... It's the stupidest thing in the whole world."

In his interview with Maddox, Phoenix reiterated the idea that winning awards was in direct opposition with being a performer. He did, however, allow that the Academy Awards aren't that bad.

"It's not like I f--king hate the Oscars," he said. "It doesn't occupy my time to where I can build up hate."

Phoenix has already been singled out for his performance in "The Master," winning the Best Actor award at the Venice Film Festival (he shared the honor with his co-star, Philip Seymour Hoffman). According to a panel of experts on the Oscar website GoldDerby.com, Phoenix is in the runner-up position for Best Actor, behind "Lincoln" star Daniel Day-Lewis. The other actors expected to compete for an Oscar this year are Denzel Washington ("Flight"), Anthony Hopkins ("Hitchcock"), John Hawkes ("The Sessions"), Bradley Cooper ("Silver Linings Playbook"), Jamie Foxx ("Django Unchained"), Bill Murray ("Hyde Park on Hudson"), Hugh Jackman ("Les Miserables") and Jack Black ("Bernie").

For more on Phoenix, head over to the Sydney Morning Herald.

[Sydney Morning Herald via GoldDerby.com]

'The Master' Reviews
Anthony Lane (New Yorker)(01 of10)
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On reflection, and despite these cavils, we should bow to The Master, because it gives us so much to revere, starting with the image that opens the film and recurs right up to the end.
Karina Longworth (Village Voice)(02 of10)
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It's a film of breathtaking cinematic romanticism and near-complete denial of conventional catharsis. You might wish it gave you more in terms of comfort food pleasure, but that's not Anderson's problem.
Linda Holmes (NPR)(03 of10)
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Gorgeous to look at and an absolute feast of strong and interesting acting.
Calum Marsh (Slant Magazine)(04 of10)
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The Master is Paul Thomas Anderson with the edges sanded off, the best bits shorn down to nubs.
Scott Tobias (AV Club)(05 of10)
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It's a feisty, contentious, deliberately misshapen film, designed to challenge and frustrate audiences looking for a clean resolution. Just because it's over doesn't mean it's settled.
Katey Rich (CinemaBlend.com)(06 of10)
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The Master is unforgettable, but like the mercurial men at its center, the harder you try to read into it, the more it slips away into the distance.
Christy Lemire (Associated Press)(07 of10)
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In his first film since the 2010 performance-art stunt of "I'm Still Here," Phoenix once again digs deep to mine his character's inner torment and comes up with a mix of haunting quirks and tics. (credit:AP)
Lou Lumenick (New York Post)(08 of10)
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It's a sharply written, unforgettably directed character study with brilliant performances by Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams... (credit:AP)
Peter Travers (Rolling Stone)(09 of10)
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I believe in the church of Paul Thomas Anderson. Fierce and ferociously funny, The Master is a great movie, the best of the year so far, and a new American classic. (credit:AP)
David Edelstein (New York Magazine)(10 of10)
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Anderson is a romantic who has earned his nihilism. He clarifies nothing, but leaves us brooding on our own confusion. (credit:AP)

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