Mother of Oscar, Here I Stand!

26Feb11

Picture
Will: The King’s Speech
Alt. The Social Network
Should: The Fighter or The Social Network

The Fighter is a rote story vibrantly executed, excitingly performed and tastefully crafted. The King’s Speech is a rote story middlingly staged, haphazardly performed and garishly shot. The King’s Speech will be cited as the best picture of the year.

Director
Will: David Fincher, The Social Network
Alt. Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech
Should: David O. Russell, The Fighter

Truthfully, I’m not quite prepared to watch Hooper best Fincher, Russell, the Coens and Aronofsky. I have varying waves of adoration for the four directors’ current films, but their past and present achievements are of a completely different standard than Hooper’s. A triumph for The King’s Speech here would not necessarily be shocking, but I’m still holding out hope that they recognize a very good director for one of his strongest achievements.

Actor
Will: Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
Alt. Javier Bardem, Biutiful
Should: Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network

A given at this stage. I much preferred Firth last year (though he was in an even worse film), and thought Rush gave a livelier and more affecting lead performance. Yes, Rush is very much lead. This theory can be supported by (what seemed like) an equal amount of screen time, whole scenes wherein Rush is the focus and Firth isn’t even around, and the final shot of the film fading to black on Rush’s face. In other news, it’s a shame that neither Eisenberg or Franco could give Firth a run for his money. The former being too young and subtle a performer and the latter just being too young.

Actress
Will: Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Alt. Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
Should: Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine

Some pundits have been saying that Bening’s really gained traction the past month, and I have noticed her presence increase while Portman’s seems to have subsided. But, then again I’m judging this all through the interweb and who knows what it’s like out in the land of Los Angeles. So, given Oscar’s history I’d say the young, tortured, hottie lesbian will most likely beat out the older, regal lesbian. But, who really cares when the year’s best female performance is sitting right next door? Just like Eisenberg, Williams will simply have to be pleased that her lacerating performance was at least mildly recognized. Not that I’m sure either of them cares.

Supporting Actor
Will: Christian Bale, The Fighter
Alt. Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech
Should: Christian Bale, The Fighter

Three of these performances are lead, but when they’re all this good there’s little reason for complaints. I think Bale, Rush and Ruffalo have unfair advantages as they have more time and opportunities to develop different facets of their characters, but again, they’re all too good for me to moan too much. The kudos also extend to the real supporting performers, with both Renner and Hawkes adding inspired notes to two quite different psychopaths. There isn’t a dull performance among the five, which is really something.

Fassbender should still be here. And win.

Supporting Actress
Will: Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Alt. Helena Bonham Carter, The King’s Speech
Should: Amy Adams, The Fighter

A real race seems to have taken shape. If the Academy creams themselves over The King’s Speech then I expect Helena to grab this. If the Academy creams themselves over whipsmart and resilient teenage girls with true grit in a film they probably love, then I expect Steinfeld to grab this. Then there’s the indie villain and the young cutie de-glamming a little, but not quite enough to win. There’s still a part of me that wonders if all this fuss is over nothing. Yeah, Leo is nutso, but she’s still giving a showy, much-awarded performance based on a real person and in a well-liked film. Last year Mo’Nique played a controlling, larger than life mother in a best picture nominee, took even more flack than Leo, and still came out with a gold statue in her hands

Adapted Screenplay
Will: Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network
Alt. Michael Arndt, Toy Story 3
Should: Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network

Even if The Social Network wasn’t the best picture runner-up Sorkin would be safe. Clearly structured and wordy and actually good, The Social Network is 100% the kind of screenplay that wins this category. Arndt would be next in line, but a Pixar screenplay has yet to triumph and Toy Story 3 didn’t get the traction I once thought it might.

Original Screenplay
Will: David Seidler, The King’s Speech
Alt. Stuart Blumberg & Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right
Should: Keith Dorrington & Eric Johnston & Scott Silver & Paul Tamsay, The Fighter

Weak bunch this year. The two best films here, Another Year and The Fighter, weren’t the achievements that they were due to their scripting, and the other three range from bad (Kids) to dull (King’s Speech) to flawed (Inception). Most of my picks didn’t even come close, but it’s a real shame Baumbach (a writer’s writer) couldn’t squeeze a second nod out of this branch.

Animated
Will: Toy Story 3
Alt. How To Train Your Dragon
Should: The Illusionist

Respectable trio this time around, even if I didn’t exactly get in a tizzy over Dragon. And for the fourth year in a row, there’s no competition to speak of. Regardless, I’m more than enthused that The Illusionist was able to steal the third slot.

Art Direction
Will: Eve Stewart & Judy Farr, The King’s Speech
Alt. Robert Stromberg & Karen O’Hara, Alice In Wonderland
Should: Jess Gonchor & Nancy Haig, True Grit

The King’s Speech will take this because it’s period and going to win best picture and they utilized a showy wall. Inception won’t because it’s not period and not going to win best picture and the walls don’t stand out like the walls in The King’s Speech do. In other news, how anyone with two working eyes can put Alice In Wonderland and Best Design together in the same paragraph is one of the top five mysteries of life. It’s like citing Stalin for Most Compassion.

Cinematography
Will: Roger Deakins, True Grit
Alt. Wally Pfister, Inception
Should: Matthew Libatique, Black Swan

It’s Deakins’ moment. Even without overdue status, his work on True Grit is tailor-made for winning cinematography awards. And he faces no serious competition. Pfister will have to console himself with an ASC and Thimios Bakatakis will have to console himself with this (link).

Costume Design
Will: Jenny Beavan, The King’s Speech
Alt. Colleen Atwood, Alice In Wonderland
Should: Antonella Cannarozzi, I Am Love

Another battle between two aesthetically challenged films. But, how does one not vote for Cannarozzi’s impeccable designs? And even if you haven’t seen I Am Love, what about Zophres’ lived in, inventive work on True Grit?

Documentary
Will: Waste Land
Alt. Inside Job
Should: Restrepo

One of the toughest categories to predict. Inside Job and Exit have the most exposure, but that shouldn’t be of great significance given that it’s mandatory to screen all five movies before voting. I missed Waste Land when it played Lightbox, but from what I hear it’s the most uplifting and accessible of the bunch. Inside Job might be too depressing and dense for some voters and Exit isn’t about current events.

Editing
Will: Kirk Baxter & Angus Wall, The Social Network
Alt. Tariq Anwar, The King’s Speech
Should: Kirk Baxter & Angus Wall, The Social Network

Hopefully the energy and verve of Network can see this through to the end. It would also be a joy to see Pamela Martin reign supreme.

Foreign Language
Will: In A Better World
Alt. Incendies
Should: Can’t really say because I haven’t seen three of these yet, but I doubt any of them will derail the Greek.

It’s hard to judge having only seen two nominees but from afar it seems like a battle between Denmark and Canada. In A Better World sounds a little more accessible and easy to swallow and like it could snuggle right up to the last decade’s worth of winners without anyone being too offended. Or maybe it could be Dogtooth, the antithesis of Oscar bait…

Makeup
Will: The Wolfman
Alt. The Way Back
Should: The Way Back, but I haven’t seen Barney’s Version

Don’t understand the notice for The Wolfman, which looked tacky and cheap, but it’s Rick Baker, so it has to be cited. On the other hand, The Way Back’s makeup is top notch. Still, I thoroughly expect to see the Baker and his lovely ponytail giving an acceptance speech.

Original Score
Will: Alexandre Desplat, The King’s Speech
Alt. A.R. Rahman, 127 Hours
Should: Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, The Social Network

I was all but ready to predict a Rahman upset, and then I chickened out. Seems like he could pull a Gustavo/Babel style win as 127 Hours certainly seems to have more support than previously thought. But, Desplat is high profile enough to pull this one off, even though it’s close to the weakest work he’s done.

Original Song
Will: ‘If I Rise’, 127 Hours
Alt. ‘We Belong Together’, Toy Story 3
Should: ‘I’m Easy’, Burlesque

With the exception of Gwyneth Paltrow, I don’t think there’s a single person who cares about this category anymore.

Sound Editing and Mixing
Will: Inception
Alt. True Grit
Should: True Grit and The Social Network

Why isn’t Scott Pilgrim here? The sound work there is loud, complex and genuinely original. The nicest thing one can say about this slate is the lack of overlap between the two.

Visual Effects
Will: Inception
Alt. Hereafter
Should: Inception

I’m currently zoning out imagining The Tree Of Life winning this next year and Douglas Trumbull and Malick on the stage talking to each other for a few hours.

…and for completion’s sake:

Animated Short
Will: Madagascar, A Journey Diary

Documentary Short
Will: The Warriors Of Quigang

Live Action Short
Will: Wish 143

And there you are. That means 6 wins for The King’s Speech, 3 wins for The Social Network, 3 wins for Inception, 2 wins for The Fighter and everything else just getting the 1.

Filed under: Awards, Best Picture, Oscar   |  1 Comment

Personal Ballot

25Feb11

Picture
Alamar
Dogtooth
Everyone Else
Mother
The Social Network

Director
Pedro Gonzàlez-Rubio, Alamar
Yorgos Lanthimos, Dogtooth
Maren Ade, Everyone Else
David O. Russell, The Fighter
Bong Joon-ho, Mother

Actor
James Franco, 127 Hours
Jim Broadbent, Another Year
Christian Bale, The Fighter
Ben Stiller, Greenberg
Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network

Actress
Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine
Emma Stone, Easy A
Birgit Minichmayr, Everyone Else
Greta Gerwig, Greenberg
Kim Hye-ja, Mother

Supporting Actor
Ben Mendelsohn, Animal Kingdom
Michael Fassbender, Fish Tank
Rhys Ifans, Greenberg
Kieran Culkin, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World
John Hawkes, Winter’s Bone

Supporting Actress
Susan Prior, Animal Kingdom
Elena Morozova, Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky
Alice De Lencquesaing, The Father Of My Children
Amy Adams, The Fighter
Claudia Celedòn, The Maid

Adapted Screenplay
Robert Harris & Roman Polanski, The Ghost Writer
Sylvain Chomet, The Illusionist
David Lindsay-Abaire, Rabbit Hole
Michael Bacall & Edgar Wright, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World
Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network

Original Screenplay
David Michod, Animal Kingdom
Efthymis Filippou & Yorgos Lanthimos, Dogtooth
Maren Ade, Everyone Else
Noah Baumbach, Greenberg
Bong Joon-ho & Park Eun-kyo, Mother

Art Direction
Silke Fischer & Volko Kamensky, Everyone Else
Francesca Balestra Di Mottola, I Am Love
Bjarne Hansen, The Illusionist
Michel Barthèlèmy, A Prophet
Marcus Rowland, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World

Cinematography
Pedro Gonzàlez-Rubio, Alamar
Andrij Parekh, Blue Valentine
Thimios Bakatakis, Dogtooth
Hong Kyung-pyo, Mother
Harris Savides, Somewhere

Costume Design
Amy Westcott, Black Swan
Mark Bridges, The Fighter
Antonella Cannarozzi, I Am Love
Mary Zophres, True Grit
Rebecca Hoffher, Winter’s Bone

Editing
Jon Gregory, Another Year
Pamela Martin, The Fighter
Nicolas Chaudeurge, Fish Tank
Moon Sae-kyoung, Mother
Kirk Baxter & Angus Wall, The Social Network

Makeup
Black Swan
The Fighter
I Am Love
True Grit
The Way Back

Score
Antony Partos, Animal Kingdom
Alexandre Desplat, The Ghost Writer
Sylvain Chomet, The Illusionist
Lee Byeong-woo, Mother
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, The Social Network

Sound Editing
Enter The Void
The Illusionist
A Prophet
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World
The Social Network

Sound Mixing
Dogtooth
The Ghost Writer
Greenberg
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World
The Social Network

Visual Effects
Black Swan
Enter The Void
Inception
Monsters
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World

Nomination Tally

7
The Fighter (1 win), Mother (1 win), The Social Network (5 wins)
5
Dogtooth (1 win), The Illusionist, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World (2 wins)
4
Animal Kingdom, Everyone Else (2 wins), Greenberg
3
Alamar, Black Swan, The Ghost Writer, I Am Love
2
Another Year, Blue Valentine (1 win), Fish Tank (1 win), The Maid, True Grit, Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, Winter’s Bone
1
127 Hours, Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky, Easy A, Enter The Void, The Father Of My Children (1 win), Inception, Monsters, A Prophet (1 win), Rabbit Hole, Somewhere, The Way Back (1 win)

Filed under: Miscellaneous   |  Leave a Comment

The Ten of 2010

22Feb11

Filed under: Miscellaneous   |  Leave a Comment

Final Predictions

24Jan11

Picture

1. The Social Network
2. The King’s Speech
3. Black Swan
4. True Grit
5. The Fighter
6. The Kids Are All Right
7. Toy Story 3
8. Inception
9. The Town
10. Winter’s Bone

It’s so very tempting to predict a surprise here. The same eleven films have been in play for what seems like ages and I want something new. I honestly don’t understand: does every single person who has an opportunity to vote with some awards body believe that these ten (along with 127 Hours) are the absolute greatest achievements of the 2010? No room for a small shuffle? Or are these the only films people saw? Or did they not even see all these, they’re just voting for them because they hear the same names bandied about over and over? Anyways: if there is a surprise nomination (please!) I would bet on Shutter Island, Blue Valentine or The Ghost Writer. But, there’s pretty much no chance.

Director

1. David Fincher, The Social Network
2. Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
3. Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech
4. Christopher Nolan, Inception
5. David O. Russell, The Fighter

The only question mark is whether or not the Coen’s will show up. My guess is people like The Fighter a little bit more. I also can’t stand the thought of Russell getting left behind. I wouldn’t be overwhelmingly shocked to Granik or Affleck show up here either, nor Cholodenko whose face I’ve seen around a lot.

Leading Actor

1. Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
2. James Franco, 127 Hours
3. Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
4. Jeff Bridges, True Grit
5. Javier Bardem, Biutiful

Battling it out for those last two spots are Duvall and Gosling. The former would be a pretty depressing selection, the latter quite pleasing. But, I think Bardem has enough support to carry him through. Feels like a bit of a Tommy Lee Jones situation circa 2007.

Leading Actress

1. Natalie Portman, Black Swan
2. Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
3. Jennifer Lawrence, Winter’s Bone
4. Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine
5. Julianne Moore, The Kids Are All Right

The actress categories are unbelievably difficult to predict, which is great. I’m betting Kidman gets snubbed the way Jolie did in 2007: big actress, good performance, strong precursors, underseen film. Then there’s the category confusion of Manville and Steinfeld. The former being campaigned as lead while many consider her supporting (she’s not) and the latter being campaigned as supporting while many consider her lead (she is). I’ve had Manville in my predictions since Cannes, but I made a last minute decision to cut her out entirely. Don’t ask, logic rarely factors into this. As for Steinfeld, my guess is she’ll be kept in supporting; Bridges has enough of the leading performance heat to justify her baffling placement. There’s also Swank, Rapace and Swinton to consider, but they would be real shocks and I think there are enough frontrunners to fend them off.

Supporting Actor

1. Christian Bale, The Fighter
2. Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech
3. John Hawkes, Winter’s Bone
4. Jeremy Renner, The Town
5. Justin Timberlake, The Social Network

There’s always one big snub, right? Very little logic behind a Ruffalo shut-out, but it’s what my fingers are telling me to do. Timberlake is going to be the Wahlberg of The Social Network (except that logic doesn’t hold either, because I’m also predicting Eisenberg and DiCaprio wasn’t nominated for The Departed). I’m probably wrong.

Supporting Actress

1. Melissa Leo, The Fighter
2. Amy Adams, The Fighter
3. Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit
4. Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom
5. Helena Bonham Carter, The King’s Speech

Again, really hard category to predict. These five feel pretty solid though. The Fighter women are locked. Steinfeld seems secure enough. Weaver will have enough passion votes. And Bonham Carter will sail along with her movie. However, I wouldn’t spill my coffee if Kunis or Hershey showed up here.

Adapted Screenplay

1. Aaron Sorkin, The Social network
2. Michael Arndt, Toy Story 3
3. Debra Granik & Anne Rosellini, Winter’s Bone
4. Ethan & Joel Coen, True Grit
5. Ben Affleck & Peter Craig & Aaron Stockard, The Town

Black Swan‘s been showing up here more than expected, but as Nick said: “Screenplay? Really? No matter how many times he says, “But I’m not only casting ze White Swan”?”

Original Screenplay

1. David Seidler, The King’s Speech
2. Stuart Blumberg & Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right
3. Christopher Nolan, Inception
4. Derek Cianfrance, Blue Valentine
5. David Michôd, Animal Kingdom

The writers often go their own way (thank god), so I’m never too surprised to not see all the picture nominees represented. Michôd, because I think enough people watched their screeners and Cianfrance, because I think enough people will want to reward him for the whole 12 years thing. My two runners-up would The Fighter and Another Year.

Animated Film

1. Toy Story 3
2. How To Train Your Dragon
3. Despicable Me

It pains me to leave out The Illusionist, but Despicable Me has been showing up a lot more than expected. Totally Shark Tale.

Art Direction

1. Eve Stewart, The King’s Speech
2. Robert Stromberg, Alice In Wonderland
3. Jess Gonchor, True Grit
4. Dante Ferretti, Shutter Island
5. Mark Friedberg, The Tempest

It’s terrifying how many craft nominations Alice In Wonderland is going to get.

Cinematography

1. Roger Deakins, True Grit
2. Matthew Libatique, Black Swan
3. Wally Pfister, Inception
4. Enrique Chediak & Anthony Dod Mantle, 127 Hours
5. Danny Cohen, The King’s Speech

Unless things are shaken up, this is going to be a pretty dull line-up. It’s a shame that something like I Am Love or The American couldn’t find their way into the conversation. And welcome to another year where Harris Savides is once again a non-entity for awards bodies. Clearly Danny Cohen’s fish-eye lenses were better representations of the form than the combo of both Greenberg and Somewhere. Watch out for Richardson (Shutter Island) and Cronenweth (that social networking thing).

Costume Design

1. Jenny Beavan, The King’s Speech
2. Mary Zophres, True Grit
3. Colleen Atwood, Alice In Wonderland
4. Antonella Cannarozzi, I Am Love
5. Jeffrey Kurland, Inception

It’s terrifying how many craft nominations Alice In Wonderland is going to get.

Documentary

1. Inside Job
2. Waiting For ‘Superman’
3. Waste Land
4. Restrepo
5. Exit Through The Gift Shop

I haven’t seen most of these so it’s more difficult to predict, but I’m counting on Exit making it through.

Film Editing

1. Kirk Baxter & Angus Wall, The Social Network
2. Lee Smith, Inception
3. Andrew Weisblum, Black Swan
4. Dylan Tichenor, The Town
5. Pamela Martin, The Fighter

Tricky category. A lot of contenders. Strong chances for True Grit, 127 Hours and The King’s Speech. But editors seem to like boxing and action more than westerns and royalty.

Foreign Language

1. Incendies
2. In A Better World
3. Life, Above All
4. Even The Rain
5. Dogtooth

Dogtooth? Why not? It’s got this far.

Makeup

1. Alice In Wonderland
2. The Wolfman
3. Barney’s Version

Or Jonah Hex.

Original Score

1. Hans Zimmer, Inception
2. Alexandre Desplat, The King’s Speech
3. Alexandre Desplat, The Ghost Writer
4. Craig Powell, How To Train Your Dragon
5. Rachel Portman, Never Let Me Go

People have started predicting Reznor & Ross because it’s been recognized so much recently, but I think they’re forgetting this category’s past. They like their melodies pretty.

Note: I REALLY don’t want to see Portman nominated and I REALLY want to Reznor & Ross nominated.

Original Song

1. ‘You Haven’t Seen The Last Of Me’, Burlesque
2. ‘I See The Light’, Tangled
3. ‘Coming Home’, Country Strong
4. ‘Shine’, Waiting For Superman
5. ‘We Belong Together’, Toy Story 3

Not a clue.

Sound Editing

1. Inception
2. How To Train Your Dragon
3. Tron: Legacy
4. Unstoppable
5. The Fighter

Something always gets in that people don’t see coming. Wanted? Right? My inside sources tell me those sound guys are into Unstoppable.

Sound Mixing

1. Inception
2. How To Train Your Dragon
3. Tron: Legacy
4. Unstoppable
5. Toy Story 3

I feel really secure about Inception, Dragon and Tron. The rest could go any way.

Visual Effects

1. Inception
2. Tron: Legacy
3. Hereafter
4. Alice In Wonderland
5. Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World

It’s terrifying how many craft nominations Alice In Wonderland is going to get.

 

Filed under: Awards, Best Picture, Oscar   |  4 Comments

Oscar & Other Drugs

27Nov10

Three months into the 2010/11 Oscar race and I haven’t said a peep. Although, this is in keeping with my general lack of writing and posting about all other cinematically-related ventures (let no one say I’m not consistent). But, since we are well into the season, and the majority of the crop has been seen, and the critics and the guilds and the other haphazard voting bodies are about to unleash their top tens, and personal (although personal is not even close to the right word) ballots, and other not so compelling but still discussed and fretted over thoughts and lists, I thought I might as well get my predictions out there before it becomes too easy a game.

Truth be told this is the most interesting time of the season for me; it’s the perfect balance between knowledge and mystery. The films are no longer distant questions, they’re now tangible objects that can actually be discussed beyond speculation. At the same time, the mundanity and frequency of the same films and people being lauded over and over hasn’t arrived. The race could actually lead anywhere and this is where, for me, the majority of the fun in Oscar Watching lies. So, for all those loonies who obsess over every detail of what those personally involved in the picking spend so little over, I give you my very first 2010 Academy Award nomination predictions (and for added idiocy my winner predictions bolded).

Picture
127 Hours
Black Swan
The Fighter
Inception
The Kids Are All Right
The King’s Speech
The Social Network
Toy Story 3
True Grit
Winter’s Bone

Director
Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
Christopher Nolan, Inception
Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech
David Fincher, The Social Network
Ethan Coen & Joel Coen, True Grit

Actor
James Franco, 127 Hours
Javier Bardem, Biutiful
Robert Duvall, Get Low
Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network

Actress
Lesley Manville, Another Year
Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole
Jennifer Lawrence, Winter’s Bone

Supporting Actor
Christian Bale, The Fighter
Bill Murray, Get Low
Mark Ruffalo, The Kids Are All Right
Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech
Jeremy Renner, The Town

Supporting Actress
Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom
Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Helena Bonham Carter, The King’s Speech
Miranda Richardson, Made In Dagenham
Dianne Wiest, Rabbit Hole

Adapted Screenplay
Danny Boyle & Simon Beaufoy, 127 Hours
David Lindsay-Abaire, Rabbit Hole
Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network
Michael Arndt, Toy Story 3
Ben Affleck & Peter Craig & Aaron Stockard, The Town

Original Screenplay
Mike Leigh, Another Year
Sylvain Chomet & Jacques Tati, The Illusionist
Christopher Nolan, Inception
Stuart Blumberg & Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right
David Speidler, The King’s Speech

Animated Film
How To Train Your Dragon
The Illusionist
Toy Story 3

Art Direction
Robert Stromberg, Alice In Wonderland
Geoffrey Kirkland, Get Low
Guy Dyas, Inception
Eve Stewart, The King’s Speech
Jess Gonchor, True Grit

Cinematography
Matthew Libatique, Black Swan
Wally Pfister, Inception
Robert Richardson, Shutter Island
Roger Deakins, True Grit
Russell Boyd, The Way Back

Costume Design
Gabriella Pescucci, Agora
Colleen Atwood, Alice In Wonderland
Julie Weiss, Get Low
Jenny Beavan, The King’s Speech
Mary Zophres, True Grit

Documentary
Gasland
Inside Job
The Tillman Story
Waiting For Superman
Waste Land

Film Editing
Jon Harris, 127 Hours
Lee Smith, Inception
Tariq Anwar, The King’s Speech
Kirk Baxter & Angus Wall, The Social Network
Dylan Tichenor, The Town

Foreign Language
Honey (Turkey)
Incendies (Canada)
Life, Above All (South Africa)
Of Gods And Men (France)
Son Of Babylon (Iraq)

Make-Up
Alice In Wonderland
Let Me In
The Wolfman

Original Score
John Powell, How To Train Your Dragon
Hans Zimmer, Inception
Michael Giacchino, Let Me In
Rachel Portman, Never Let Me Go
Randy Newman, Toy Story 3

Original Song
“If I Rise”, 127 Hours
“Sticks & Stones”, How To Train Your Dragon
“I See The Light”, Tangled
“We Belong Together”, Toy Story 3
“Shine”, Waiting For Superman

Sound Editing
127 Hours
The Fighter
How To Train Your Dragon
Inception
Toy Story 3

Sound Mixing
127 Hours
How To Train Your Dragon
Inception
True Grit
Toy Story 3

Visual Effects
Alice In Wonderland
Inception
TRON Legacy

Filed under: Awards, Best Picture, Lists, Oscar   |  2 Comments

Further Reading.

14Sep10

Starting university and attending TIFF don’t really seem to go together so nicely, but I’m still attempting to write what I can for Nathaniel’s indispensable The Film Experience. Head over there to read my occasional thoughts on what I’ve been seeing. A new post will be up later today.

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REVIEW: Animal Kingdom

28Aug10

Can you believe it? Months of zero interaction and now I actually have a full film review up. Sometimes, I astound even myself. The subject here is David Michôd’s very good Animal Kingdom. I hope you enjoy and I hope this isn’t the end of posting. Perhaps I’ll attempt one review a week. Or perhaps not. Here it is.

Filed under: Reviews   |  Leave a Comment
Tags: 2010, Animal Kingdom, Australia, Back From The Dead, Crime, Genre, Good, Guy Pearce, summer

A Decade’s Best

13Apr10

Well, here it is. And four months late. While the rest of the world seems to have moved on from the previous decade’s offerings I’ve been scrambling to catch up with all that I’ve missed. So, here I am a few months later and I haven’t even seen half of what I set out to. Regardless, I figured it was time to simply get on with it. So, in the business of moving on, I present you my Top 25 films of the Decade.

A note: Because I only listed 25 films I decided each director would only be allowed one film. I think it’s fair.

Filed under: Lists   |  Leave a Comment

Ballot 2009

06Mar10

In honour of tomorrow’s impending awards show, I thought I’d compile what Lev’s perfect-world-nominations would look like. I started writing out reasonings, but was unable to figure out a way to do it that wouldn’t take me all day, and seeing as I want to get these out before the ceremony, I thought I’d just post names. If anyone has the interest they’re welcome to question, praise, slander etc…

Winners in bold.

Best Picture

“Antichrist”
“Bright Star”
“Gomorra”
“The Headless Woman”
“Hunger”
“Lorna’s Silence”
“The Messenger”
“Summer Hours”
“Where the Wild Things Are”
“The White Ribbon”

Best Actor*

Jesse Eisenberg, “Adventureland”
Willem Dafoe, “Antichrist”
Nicolas Cage, “Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans”
Ben Wishaw, “Bright Star”
Michael Fassbender, “Hunger”
Jeremy Renner, “The Hurt Locker”
Paul Rudd, “I Love You, Man”
Ben Foster, “The Messenger”
Joaquin Phoenix, “Two Lovers”
Max Records, “Where the Wild Things Are”

Best Actor (Supporting)

Anthony Mackie, “The Hurt Locker”
Christoph Waltz, “Inglourious Basterds”
Jérémie Renier, “Lorna’s Silence”
Woody Harrelson, “The Messenger”
James Gandolfini, “Where the Wild Things Are”

Best Actress

Charlotte Gainsbourg, “Antichrist”
Abbie Cornish, “Bright Star”
Arta Dobroshi, “Lorna’s Silence”
Tilda Swinton, “Julia”
Gabourey Sidibe, “Precious”

Best Actress (Supporting)

Mimi Kennedy, “In the Loop”
Samantha Morton, “The Messenger”
Mo’Nique, “Precious”
Vera Farmiga, “Up in the Air”
Roxanne Duran, “The White Ribbon”

Best Art Direction

Rick Carter, “Avatar”
Janet Patterson, “Bright Star”
Nelson Lowry, “Fantastic Mr. Fox”
K.K. Barrett, “Where the Wild Things Are”
Christoph Kanter, “The White Ribbon”

Best Cinematography

Anthony Dod Mantle, “Antichrist”
Greig Fraser, “Bright Star”
Alain Marcoen, “Lorna’s Silence”
Adriano Goldman, “Sin Nombre”
Eric Gautier, “Summer Hours”

Best Costume Design

Janet Patterson, “Bright Star”
Anna B. Sheppard, “Inglourious Basterds”
Michael Clancy, “Two Lovers”
Catherine Marie Thomas, “Whip It”
Moidele Bickel, “The White Ribbon”

Best Director

Lars von Trier, “Antichrist”
Steve McQueen, “Hunger”
Luc Dardenne & Jean-Pierre Dardenne, “Lorna’s Silence”
Oren Moverman, “The Messenger”
Spike Jonze, “Where the Wild Things Are”

Best Editing

Marco Spoletini, “Gomorra”
Miguel Schverdfinger, “The Headless Woman”
Joe Walker, “Hunger”
Anthony Boys & Billy Sneddon, “In the Loop”
Jae-beom Kim & Sang-bum Kim, “Thirst”

Best Ensemble

“In the Loop”
“The Messenger”
“Summer Hours”
“Whip It”
“The White Ribbon”

Best Makeup

“District 9″
“Moon”
“Thirst”

Best Original Score

Mark Bradshaw, “Bright Star”
Alexandre Desplat, “Fantastic Mr. Fox”
Elliot Goldenthal, “Public Enemies”
Kazumasa Hashimoto, “Tokyo Sonata”
Michael Giacchino, “Up”

Best Original Song

‘Somebody Else’, “Crazy Heart”
‘The Weary Kind’, “Crazy Heart”
‘You’ve Got Me Wrapped Around Your Little Finger’, “An Education’
‘All Is Love’, “Where the Wild Things Are”
‘Hideaway’, “Where the Wild Things Are”

Best Screenplay (Adapted)

Angela Schanelec, “Afternoon”
Maurizio Braucci, Ugo Chiti, Gianni Di Gregorio, Matteo Garrone, Massimo Gaudioso & Roberto Saviano, “Gomorra”
Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci & Tony Roche, “In the Loop”
Scott Z. Burns, “The Informant!”
Dave Eggers & Spike Jonze, “Where the Wild Things Are”

Best Screenplay (Original)

Jane Campion, “Bright Star”
Steve McQueen & Enda Walsh, “Hunger”
Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman, “The Messenger”
Olivier Assayas, “Summer Hours”
Michael Haneke, “The White Ribbon”

Best Sound Editing

“Antichrist”
“Avatar”
“Hunger”
“The Hurt Locker”
“Where the Wild Things Are”

Best Sound Mixing

“Antichrist”
“The Headless Woman”
“Hunger”
“Three Monkeys”
“Where the Wild Things Are”

Best Visual Effects

“Avatar”
“District 9″
“Moon”
“Where the Wild Things Are”

I truly, truly, truly could not whittle this category down to ten. There were even more contenders that it pained me to cut; really paring this down to ten was hard enough.

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Final Oscar Predictions

03Mar10

They are complete. Check ‘em out here…

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