Never let it be said that Madonna's film work has been unexamined.
Time and again, the voters of the Razzies have examined her flicks. Then they've trashed them.
The Material Thespian, who starred in the critically swamped Swept Away and lived to cameo in Die Another Day, picked up four nominations Monday for the 23rd Annual Golden Raspberry Awards, the unofficial anti-Oscars, dis-honoring the worst of the year in film. With 15 career nominations now, Madonna has ascended, or descended, to the rank of the most-Razzed woman ever. (Sylvester Stallone, if you must know, is the most-Razzed man.)
Britney Spears, considered to be the popster most likely to become the new Madonna, looks well on her way--especially where her film career is concerned. The Britster's big-screen debut, Crossroads, picked up a league-leading eight Razzie nominations, including a Worst Actress nod for Justin Timberlake's ex.
Other very-special nominees include: Eddie Murphy, dinged for everything he did last year (The Adventures of Pluto Nash, I Spy and Showtime); Adam Sandler, dinged for just about everything he did last year (Mr. Deeds, Adam Sandler's Eight Crazy Nights, but not Punch-Drunk Love), and, Natalie Portman, dinged for playing kissy face with the future Darth Vader (Hayden Christensen) in Star Wars: Episode II--Attack of the Clones.
Newcomer Christensen, likewise, received two Razzie nods, for Worst Supporting Actor and Worst Screen Couple, a diss shared with Worst Supporting Actress un-hopeful Portman.
Overall, Attack of the Clones was attacked with seven Razzie nominations, matching Swept Away, Madonna's career suicide pact with hubby Guy Ritchie.
Two of Swept Away's nods were reserved for Mr. Ritchie. He's in the running for writing and directing the wife to her biggest-ever box-office bomb--no small task. The couple's would-be romantic comedy was swept away after grossing less than $600,000 in U.S. theaters last October.
Madonna earned two Razzie nods for Swept Away--Worst Actress and Worst Screen Couple, shared with costar Adriano Giannini. She also picked up a pair for her contributions to the James Bond flick, Die Another Day--Worst Supporting Actress and Worst Original Song, the 007 title tune "Die Another Day," cowritten with Mirwais Ahmadzai.
"She's got a good start on the new century," cracked Razzies founder John Wilson, noting that his group cited Madonna as worst actress of the 20th century.
Madonna also is a four-time, um, champ in the Worst Actress category, Razzed for Shanghai Surprise, Who's That Girl?, Madonna: Truth or Dare and The Next Best Thing. According to Wilson, Swept Away may be her crowning achievement.
"Even by her standards," Wilson said, "it's an incredibly unappealing performance."
Still, Madonna faces stiff competition in this year's Worst Actress race--and not just from Spears. A-listers Jennifer Lopez (Enough, Maid in Manhattan), Angelina Jolie (Life or Something Like It) and Winona Ryder (Mr. Deeds) all will vie for the spray-painted, golf-ball-sized orb (what passes for a trophy at the Razzies).
Per tradition, Razzie nominations are announced one day before the Academy Award nominations. And per another tradition, the "ultra-low-budget" Razzie ceremony, set for March 22 in Santa Monica, will be held one day before the ultra-snazzy Academy Awards at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood.
With the exception of Attack of the Clones, which may be cited in Oscar's technical categories, and Christopher Walken, who may earn a supporting actor nod for Catch Me If You Can (and, um, a Razzie for The Country Bears), there appears to be little chance of crossover between the two award shows.
Expected big-time Oscar nominees Chicago and The Hours were snubbed by the Razzies' 537 voters (members all of the Golden Raspberry Award Foundation), on account of they weren't bad and/or didn't star Eddie Murphy.
Murphy had a Madonna-esque 2002, starring in the biggest box-office bomb of his career, the sci-fi misfire Pluto Nash, which beamed up five Razzie nominations.
The hot-and-cold comic's cold streak continued in I Spy and Showtime. Murphy's work in both films, along with Pluto Nash, earned him a cumulative Worst Actor nod.
Fellow Worst Actor nominee Adam Sandler was cited for starring in Mr. Deeds--and giving voice to the animated Eight Crazy Nights.
Eight Crazy Nights also was a nominee in the brand-new Razzie category, dubbed "Most Flatulent Teen-Targeted Movie," for films that depict the emission of gaseous fumes.
The odious category was about the only one that Roberto Benigni's latest opus didn't qualify for. The effusive Italian, an Oscar winner for 1998's Life Is Beautiful, was a Razzie target for his take on the kiddie classic Pinocchio (six overall nominations).
Here's a complete look at the field for the 23rd Annual Golden Raspberry Awards:
Worst Film: The Adventures of Pluto Nash; Crossroads; Pinocchio; Star Wars: Episode II--Attack of the Clones; Swept Away
Worst Actor: Roberto Benigni, Pinocchio; Adriano Giannini, Swept Away; Eddie Murphy, Adventures of Pluto Nash, I Spy and Showtime; Steven Seagal, Half Past Dead; Adam Sandler, Adam Sandler's Eight Crazy Nights and Mr. Deeds
Worst Actress: Angelina Jolie, Life or Something Like It; Jennifer Lopez, Enough and Maid in Manhattan; Madonna Swept Away; Winona Ryder, Mr. Deeds; Britney Spears, Crossroads
Worst Supporting Actor: Hayden Christensen, Star Wars: Episode II--Attack of the Clones; Tom Green, Stealing Harvard; Freddie Prinze Jr., Scooby-Doo; Christopher Walken, The Country Bears; Robin Williams, Death to Smoochy
Worst Supporting Actress: Lara Flynn Boyle, Men In Black II; Bo Derek, Master of Disguise; Madonna, Die Another Day; Natalie Portman, Star Wars: Episode II--Attack of the Clones; Rebecca Romijn-Stamos, Rollerball
Most Flatulent Teen-Targeted Movie: Adam Sandler's Eight Crazy Nights; Crossroads; Jackass: The Movie; Scooby-Doo; XXX
Worst Screen Couple: Adriano Giannini and Madonna, Swept Away; Roberto Benigni and Nicoletta Braschi, Pinocchio; Hayden Christensen and Natalie Portman, Star Wars: Episode II--Attack of the Clones; Eddie Murphy and either: Robert De Niro for Showtime, Owen Wilson for I Spy, or, the cloned version of himself for The Adventures of Pluto Nash; Britney Spears and "Whatever-His-Name-Was" (Anson Mount), Crossroads
Worst Director: Roberto Benigni, Pinocchio; Tamra Davis, Crossroads; George Lucas, Star Wars: Episode II--Attack of the Clones; Guy Ritchie, Swept Away; Ron Underwood, The Adventures of Pluto Nash
Worst Remake/Sequel: I Spy; Mr. Deeds; Pinocchio; Star Wars: Episode II--Attack of the Clones; Swept Away
Worst Screenplay: The Adventures of Pluto Nash; Crossroads; Pinocchio; Star Wars: Episode II--Attack of the Clones; Swept Away
Worst Song: "Die Another Day," Die Another Day; "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman," Crossroads; "Overprotected," Crossroads