Taylor Kitsch and Lynn Collins in "John Carter."

Credit: Walt Disney Pictures

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The Super Bowl is an event that passes me and most of my over-the-Atlantic brethren by, but I've been doing my best to mop up the buzz this morning. (Among other things, I've been amused to learn people still find flipping the bird a subversive gesture -- I'm sure if M.I.A. had wanted to shock America, she could have done better than that.) Anyway, many seem excited by the blockbuster trailers that were unveiled during the proceedings -- normally, I avoid trailers of heavily anticipated films, but since I'm not personally anticipating any of these, I watched them all in the name of journalistic thoroughness. Well, enough to register my disappointment that "Battleship" doesn't look at all like the board game, and that "John Carter" still doesn't star Noah Wyle. Here's a better rundown.  [Television Without Pity]

Richard Brody offers the most concisely evocative appreciation I've read of the unassuming genius of Ben Gazzara, who passed away on Friday. [New Yorker]

Academy Award nominee Gary Oldman (still feels good saying that out loud) gets the David Poland video interview treatment. [Hot Blog]

Nathaniel Rogers and friends wrap up their annual Oscar Symposium with thoughts on everything from their favourite crafts nominees to Viola Davis's post-Oscar future. [The Film Experience]

If you think this year's Best Supporting Actor Oscar lineup is on the thin side, Nick Davis reminds us how rich it could/should be. Yay, Chris O'Dowd! [Nick's Flick Picks]

Paul Sheehan rounds up the weekend box-office figures or this year's Oscar players, as "The Artist" passes the $20 million mark. [Gold Derby]

Susan King previews a big week of career honours for visual effects master Douglas Trumbull, which will culminate with the Academy's Gordon E. Sawyer Award on Saturday. [LA Times]

Not everyone in Iran is happy about the international success of Oscar frontrunner "A Separation." [The Guardian]

Justin Lowe reports from the Santa Barbara fest's Vanguard Awards, where "The Artist" stars Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo were honored. [Thompson on Hollywood]

An excellent piece on David Cronenberg and his commendable taste for tricky adaptations. [Moving Image Source]

As you might expect, "Melancholia" did rather well in the Robert Awards, Denmark's answer to the Oscars. [Screen Daily]