The Crawl: Minnesotans all over Oscars (no, not Diablo)

Following the announcement that "The Descendants" and "The Tree of Life" were among the pack in contention for 2012's best picture Oscar, we caught up with the movies' respective producers, Edina native Jim Burke and Bill Pohlad. Each first-time nominee was low-key, aw-shucks and Midwestern modest to a fault.

In addition to the top prize, Burke's Hawaiian family drama nabbed a best actor nomination for George Clooney, best director for Alexander Payne, best adapted screenplay and best film editing. Getting multiple nominations in key categories "means that the movie has got some wind in its sails," Burke said by phone from Los Angeles. "We depend on these kinds of things: Oscar nominations, Golden Globes. Those kinds of things, along with critical reviews, are what movies like ours need. We don't really make high-concept films, so these are like the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval."

Burke's post-nomination plan is to put as many Motion Picture Academy voters as possible in front of his film.

"I guess it's called campaigning. We take the film and screen the movie for audiences and talk about it later with them. We've found this is a picture that really kind of provokes conversation, causes people to think and ask questions. It's a really great experience."

At his River Road Entertainment offices in Minneapolis, Pohlad said he was "thrilled and shocked" by the morning's news. "We went sort of heads down into awards season," he said, anticipating that "The Tree of Life" would earn cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki his fourth Oscar nomination, but hedging his bets about additional honors. Because director Terrence Malick's film debuted in May, "we thought nobody was going to remember it.

"It's hard not to pick up the vibe. We haven't been in the conversation so much lately, so I was surprised," he said. "When I heard them say Terry's name, it was great, really a thrill" and a hint that a best picture nod might follow.

"We knew we were pushing the envelope. This is a film that wasn't for everyone necessarily. You really don't know how they'll react. But winning the Palme d'Or in Cannes was a really great thing. The critics have been quite supportive and Fox Searchlight did a fantastic job of getting it out there, thankfully. It's harder to get challenging films out there to people; they're not as open to it as they were 10 years ago. But even with challenging material, people are open to it if it has substance to it."

Pohlad's next project will be a historical drama co-produced with Brad Pitt, "12 Years a Slave," based on the 1853 autobiography by Solomon Northup. The film reunites the "Shame" team of Michael Fassbender and director Steve McQueen. Chiwetel Ejiofor stars as Northrup, a free black man who was tricked into slavery. The film is slated to start production this summer.

Burke's followup will be another collaboration with Payne, "Fork in the Road," adapted from Denis Hamill's romantic novel about an American filmmaker visiting Dublin and a dangerous, beautiful gypsy thief. It's scheduled to go before the cameras this year.

But until the Oscars are announced Feb. 26 on ABC, the producers will be promoting their current films and hoping. As Burke put it, "ever since January we've been going to banquets and awards shows and everywhere we go we run into the same people with the same movies. Sometimes they hand us the plaque and sometimes they hand them the plaque."

Landmark Theatres will close Minneapolis's historic Uptown Theater on Tuesday and reopen it several months later, after renovating and refurbishing the auditorium.

The theater chain will add a selection of new amenities including a giant screen, new luxury seating, digital projection, a full-service bar and expanded concessions stand. Its 50-foot exterior tower and marquee will remain as is, and the theater's popular balcony will be retained.

For some film fans, the nip and tuck is long overdue. In August, Mpls./St.Paul magazine devoted a column to the theater's decline, calling it "a dump."

"In a day when most single screens are closing, I am truly honored to not only keep the Uptown alive, but oversee the complete transformation into what will be Minneapolis' premiere movie theatre," said Landmark CEO Ted Mundorff.

Landmark expects to reopen the theater in the spring. The chain has operated the 900-seat theater since 1978.

The theater, designed in a classic Streamline Moderne style by the firm of Liebenberg and Kaplan, dates to 1939. It underwent a remodeling in the late 1960s. The theater has been given landmark status by the Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission. It is not listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Last week, Draft Magazine told us what we already know: St. Paul bars the Muddy Pig and the Happy Gnome are among the best beer bars in the nation. The influential beer magazine released its list of America's 100 best beer bars, and the two destinations once again made the list. Of the Pig, Draft said it's a "stop on every brewer's trip to the Twin Cities -- not just for the expertly pared-down selection of about 100 Belgian-leaning brews priced to sell, but for the easygoing, board-game-playing crowd of beer hobbyists that fill the friendly little dive." Of the Gnome, Draft said: "Exclusive pours, beer dinners and regular drop-ins by big-name brewers put the Gnome in the upper echelon of beer bars."

The sixth annual TC Hip-Hop Awards ended prematurely last Friday, as an audience brawl that included reported use of stun guns forced police to clear First Avenue.

This marks the second time in three years that the awards were cut short, with 2010's show dissolving into fisticuffs. It's unknown whether the event -- which aims to shed light on lesser-known Twin Cities rappers and foster a sense of community -- will return next year.

"It took six years to build, but only two minutes to destroy," organizer David "DEPth" Powell posted to his Facebook wall. "Today we all need to do some soul searching and figure out where are we headed as a community."

Friday's show lasted 45 minutes after the initial violence, but continued fighting outside the venue led police to clear the main room early, reports Larry Lucio Jr., the evening's stage manager and owner of artist management/consulting firm Amplified Life.

Lucio couldn't say definitively, but he predicts the awards will continue in 2013. "It's too important for the undervalued and underappreciated portion of our hip-hop community," he said. "Events like this are defined by how they react to negative energy, not the energy itself."

While a decent score from Pitchfork has become one of the more forceful nudges in the right direction for up-and-coming indie bands, Twin Cities buzz band Howler's recent thumbs up from the New York Times still holds a good deal of weight. After the band performed at Pianos in Manhattan on Jan. 18, columnist Jon Caramanica started his live review by asking rhetorically, "Just how long will it take for Howler to become very, very handsome?" before highlighting elements in their performance that foreshadow a positive future for the band. Caramanica also described the band's "America Give Up" as an "impressive debut album." Most intriguing, though, may be the mention of "the bustling Minneapolis indie-rock scene" -- an encouraging decree, as the Times doesn't always pay attention to the middle of the country unless it knows it's onto something good.

Of the million-plus people who recently voiced their disapproval of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, a group of musicians chose to channel their frustration into song. The 12-man reggae band Irie Sol, featuring seven members currently living in the Twin Cities, will be playing its protest song "Rockupy the Dome" live for the first time Saturday at the Cabooze. The song has been featured on the entertainment website Kidult.com, started by Pharrell Williams, and the band has even heard from MCs in New York who want to add their own verses to the track. Joel Pace, who wrote and sings the chorus ("You have a right to be free/You have a right to equality"), lives in St. Paul and commutes to UW-Eau Claire to teach in the English Department. He said the inspiration for his verse came from a dream he had about the crippling effects of Walker's budget cuts on his university. "We wanted a track that would stand up for education," Pace said. The song is currently streaming at Volumeone.com.

Those waiting for Dunkin' Donuts to jump on the doughnut craze that seems to have gripped the Twin Cities, keep waiting. The East Coast-based doughnut behemoth operates more than 7,000 locations and may be expanding faster than the average American waistline -- fueled by a recent $500 million cash infusion -- but the company is currently eyeballing Colorado, New Mexico and Louisiana. Until then, check out the far better product at one of the area's deep-fried newcomers, including the Donut Cooperative and Mojo Monkey Donuts.

Going out for a drink? You can't throw a beer mug in this town without hitting a Trivia Mafia host in the head. In five years, the bar trivia crew has grown from a two-person outfit to the leader of the pack (25 bars and counting). Trivia dons Sean McPherson (of Heiruspecs) and Chuck Terhark will celebrate their five-year anniversary at the 331 Club Sunday night. The big quiz will feature the usual shenanigans ("hip-hop charades"), plus "Unfair-aoke" (contestants forced to sing without the lyrics). (www.triviamafia.com.)

2011 was the Year of Beer in the Twin Cities. Looking back, the great year began with the opening of Harriet Brewing, Minneapolis' first new brewery in years. On Friday, Harriet celebrates its one-year anniversary with a huge bash at the Blue Nile. Brewer Jason Sowards captured our taste buds with his daring takes on Belgian-style brews. He'll show off this deep portfolio at the party with a total tap takeover (12 total beers). I'm most looking forward to the release of Elevator Doppelbock (his take on the malty German style), plus Sowards' variations on his flagship beers (such as a Merlot barrel-aged Dark Abbey). In addition to the beer, the party will feature a lineup of live bands and live painting. (Beer flights start 4 p.m.)