- No nomination for Tilda Swinton for best actress despite a slew of critics prizes for her in We Need To Talk About Kevin, though Rooney Mara and Glenn Close got in.
- A couple of surprises in Best Actor--Gary Oldman gets into the mix for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (which is also in the running for adapted screenplay), and Demian Bichir gets in for the little-seen A Better Life.
- Despite the "tighter" Best Pic eligibility rules, 9 nominees, including a couple of surprises--Tree of Life and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, both of which likely benefited from the ranked voting system in which a #1 vote counts for a lot in nominations, as they are highly, highly polarizing, with their fans being insistent on their high value.
- In the category of "People who are going to lose to Christopher Plummer," Nick Nolte's performance in Warrior (which I found extremely hammy) is on the short list, as are Jonah Hill's work in Moneyball and Max Von Sydow's wordless work in Extremely Loud. Interestingly, 3 of the 20 acting nominations are for non-speaking roles.
- They bent over backwards to snub Pixar, Tintin, and Rio in Animated Feature, with two obscure films to fill out the category but not slow the inevitable win of Rango.
- Apparently only two original song competitors, with an easy call for "Man or Muppet" to win.
- Other movies that can add "Academy Award Nominee" to their ads? Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Real Steel, Anonymous, and Madonna's film W.E.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
ATTACK OF THE SHORT GOLD MEN: Looks like we've got a few surprises in the Oscar nods:
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Not sure you can call it a snub for Pixar when their one release was a Cars movie. I love Pixar a lot, but that's second-tier Pixar all the way.
ReplyDeleteAndy Serkis was snubbed and would have made it a much more interesting supporting category.
No tech nods for Mission Impossble? Weird.
Pretty damn happy about that Oldman nod.
Just an oddly uninspiring list of Best Picture nominees. Not that they're bad (though ELIC is going to have to work reaaaallllll hard to get past such blah source material) but that nothing really leaps out at me.
I haven't seen Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close yet (I guess I'll have to now), but I was stunned to see it nominated. The people who didn't like it absolutely despised it. I guess that's a credit to the new rules. If you'd told me yesterday there would be nine nominees for Best Picture, I'd have guessed that either The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo or Bridesmaids sneaked in there.
ReplyDeleteI really didn't like Tinker Tailor.
ReplyDeleteFrom Scott Tobias on Twitter just now: "Well, Max Von Sydow *is* the best part of EL&IC. Much like lunch at the hospital commissary is the best part of getting radiation treatment." OUCH.
ReplyDeleteLeo DiCaprio snubbed for Best Actor for "J. Edgar."
ReplyDeleteSince I haven't seen WNTTAK yet, I'll have to save my outrage for a bit. If you like, though, I can rant about Tilda not being nominated for Julia again.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I suppose its lack of nominations was inevitable, I was hoping Young Adult would fare better today.
ReplyDeleteI'm thrilled for Oldman. He was mesmerizing as George Smiley, and that's a hard character to make mesmerizing.
ReplyDeleteAlso happy (though not surprised) for Plummer's Supporting nod.
2nd that. Even if not for acting since both categories are really competetive this year, at least for writing.
ReplyDeleteI didn't either and I really wanted to. Oldman was great, but in the same way he is always great, and I found nothing special about it at all.
ReplyDeleteThe studio didn't put a big campaign effort behind it. Might have decided it was too indie/dark in a year when inspirational films were all frontrunners already when it came out. They supported the film, but not in an Academy push kind of way.
ReplyDeleteI loved Hugo. And I only liked The Artist. And while artist, will, I think, win Best Picture, I am happy that Hugo got the most nominations.
ReplyDeleteAlso I very much hope the "Man orMuppet" performance is a reenactment from the film with surprise guest included.
Max Von Sydow is still alive?
ReplyDeleteI actually really loved The Artist, although I loved Hugo more and I think I would give it my vote for Best Picture, if I had one.
ReplyDeleteIt's another one of those films that's extraordinarily polarizing--those who like it really like it, and those who hate it really hate it, and there's not a lot of space in the middle. Since Original Screenplay is going to go as a compensation award to either Allen or Wiig/Mumolo, it wouldn't have been worth much anyway.
ReplyDeleteOf the Best Picture nominees, I have yet to see two: Hugo and Tree of Life. Not sure I can make myself see Tree of Life, but I will definitely get to Hugo.
ReplyDeleteI seem to be in the minority - I really liked Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close. Yes, it was overly quirky and sentimental, but I still found it very interesting and incredibly moving.
I don't see a lot of documentaries and haven't seen any of the doc features nominated, but I would have liked to see "Buck" nominated.
Very excited for Melissa McCarthy's nomination. Wish "Bridesmaids" had also gotten a Best Picture nomination, but I knew that was a longshot.
Looking back on it, I really do think my favorite movie experience of the year was "Ghost Protocol" on IMAX, although I enjoyed "Midnight in Paris." I still need to see "Hugo" and "The Artist," but my thoughts on the rest of the BP nominees range from "It's fine, but really?" (Descendants) to "No interest, thanks" (Tree of Life) to laughing out loud the entire movie ("War Horse").
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed Moneyball and will watch The Descendants and Hugo when I can find them. No interest in the others. A few 2011 movies I'd recommend (thought probably wouldn't call then "Best"): Viva Riva!, Little Big Soldier, The Debt, A Lonely Place to Die, Winne the Pooh.
ReplyDeleteI would have left out Cars 2 too, but I would have included Winnie The Pooh.
ReplyDeleteI've only seen 2 of the 9 Best Picture nominees, so I'll be getting a good bang for my buck at this year's AMC Best Picture Showcase. Although it's going to be really, really hard to convince myself to sit through "War Horse." I don't care for war movies generally and I never had that horse thing that so many girls do. And, in the last decade, the name "Steven Spielberg" makes me less, rather than more, likely to want to see a movie.
ReplyDeleteFWIW, that will be my fourth viewing of Midnight in Paris (all in theaters), so it goes down as my "most-watched" 2011 movie.
Agree to disagree. But I loved it as someone who has read the book twice, and I definitely think the movie could have done a better job helping the unfamiliar viewer along.
ReplyDeleteCurious: Did the EL&IC movie keep the Dresden plotline?
ReplyDeleteThe Newsweek/Daily Beast "Oscar Roundtable" is always a fun feature, but since it's done before the nominations are announced, there always seems to be one poor actor who participates in the roundtable and then gets snubbed by the Academy. This year, three of the six participants in the roundtable got snubbed: Michael Fassbender, Charlize Theron, and Tilda Swinton. This is starting to sound like the Sports Illustrated jinx.
ReplyDeleteSue, I haven't seen any of the nominated docs, but I was rooting hard for "Bill Cunningham New York" to get in there. Fascinating man, extremely well-made film. It's on Netflix Watch Instant and I can't recommend it highly enough.
ReplyDeleteDEAN PELTON OSCAR NOD!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI just hope he leaves his sister's outfits at home.
--bd
Why just two songs nominated? Especially when The Muppets itself could have supplied at least one more - Life's a Happy Song is a sublime creation of infectious happiness! Keep in mind though - The Rainbow Connection did not win Best Song, which I'd submit as a top-ten egregious oversight in Oscar history.
ReplyDeleteIn other news, The Muppets may well be the only nominated film I've seen. Wait, Harry Potter 8, ok. Two.
I liked, but did not love, Hugo and The Artist, probably because I'm cold and dead inside. I found Hugo to be a bit draggy, though perhaps it played better in 3D and for kids. The Artist's tonal shifts made it too lumpy to me to be AWESOME, but it is a well-acted silent film. I'm glad Albert Nobbs didn't get a Best Picture nod, as it was one of the few movies I thought was genuinely painful to watch last year. I haven't seen 4 of the Best Pic nominees, so I should probably get on that. Except I probably won't watch Extremely Loud. I'm not sure I can make it through 9/11 movies yet. I would also like to see Beginners. I never got to, and it looked adorable.
ReplyDeleteThere were some wonderfully entertaining movies out this year (X-MEN!), but they weren't IMPORTANT films, so they got ignored, as usual. Oh, and if you want a less flashy link to the noms, go here.
I was sad to see that Harry Potter received only one nomination ... For the most part, it was a great series, and deserved better.
ReplyDeleteBill Cunningham New York really was great.
ReplyDeleteDo you?
ReplyDeleteI'm going to have a separate post on this point later today or tomorrow. Hold that thought.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately I don't think anyone (industry-wise) thought Serkis really had a chance. The general guess around town is that he may get some sort of special award in the future... The Awards voting bloc is older and less savvy about that stuff...
ReplyDeleteYay for: Octavia Spencer, Rooney Mara, Jonah Hill (mostly b/c I want the 21 Jump Street ads to start saying "Oscar Nominee Jonah Hill"), the snubbing of Leo (he's a good actor but that movie was interminable), the lovely cheery dancing people from The Artist (THE DOG WAS SNUBBED), Man or Muppet (I think the # of songs nominated is based on # of songs eligible, but someone else might know better and correct me on this?), Nolte (mostly as a representative for Warrior, which I loved and wish had gotten more eyeballs when it was out), McCarthy...Hmm, making this list makes me realize I am generally very pleased at the noms. Yay for Oscar voters!
ReplyDeletePOTENTIAL EL&IC SPOILERS:
ReplyDeleteRuss: I haven't read the book, but I hear the Dresden plotline is pretty significant in it. In the movie, it's referred to very briefly and in passing for only a moment, and that's about it.
Watts - thanks for the recommendation. I've heard good things about the movie and I'll check it out on Netflix.
I really did not enjoy War Horse. (And I loved the Broadway play.) I'm especially annoyed that the overdone, schmaltzy John Williams score and WAY overdone cinematography were nominated.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sue. I read it in hardback, shortly after it was released, so my recall isn't great, but I do think it played a much more significant role in the book than what you describe re: the film.
ReplyDeleteThanks for asking/answering this. I loved the book, and the reviews have been so extreme in both directions that I wasn't sure I wanted to see it.
ReplyDeleteI second all of that, and add a Yay Jessica Chastain (I know it wasn't a surprise but I loved her in The Help) and a boo to no Harry Potter.
ReplyDeleteConsider this a separate-post request - would love to see a post on this topic specifically, as I am very curious to see where this particular collection of folks comes down on this issue. Should mo-cap performances be eligible?
ReplyDeleteBillboard magazine breaks it down for you:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.billboard.com/news/oscar-analysis-what-happened-to-best-original-1005966952.story
(HT @courtneyesmith)
There's also the related question of whether a film where the performances are mo-cap (e.g., Tintin, Beowulf, Polar Express) should qualify as an animated film.
ReplyDeleteMy personal view tends to be that the Academy should insert a category for something along the lines of "best non-visible performance," which could honor not just mocap work, but outstanding traditional animation voice work and narration.
That would seem to cement that Man or Muppet is a lead-pipe cinch to win, unless folks are REALLY into Brazilian music.
ReplyDeleteWhile I think Man or Muppet the superior song, some sixth sense is saying, the older-skewing Academy just might be too old to be Muppet-friendly and about the right age to be impressed by the samba rhythms of Sergio Mendes' Rio tune.
ReplyDeleteSpecial Performance -- something like the Tony "Theatrical Event" category?
ReplyDeleteHidden longterm EGOT Watch: song-from-Rio co-writer Siedah Garrett already has a Grammy for "Love You I Do," which she added to the Dreamgirls film soundtrack.
ReplyDeleteBut, Matt, it'd still be too late for Harry Potter and his Invisibility Cloak.
ReplyDeleteThe Tony Committee abolished that award after only a few years (and never gave the proposed award for "Best Replacement Performance"), though they likely wish they had it back this year to hand a Tony to Hugh Jackman.
ReplyDeleteI request that the Academy add the new "Non-visible Performance" award this coming year in time for Serkis's performance in "The Hobbit." Also, would puppetry be covered by this award?
ReplyDeleteThe w called it "the most boring spy thriller ever." She's not wrong. I enjoyed it, but it's a character study -- the spy drama is secondary.
ReplyDeleteI'm with you, I thought he died shortly after Dune. Serious premorse.
ReplyDeleteOr immediately, for inclusion of his portrayal of Caesar.
ReplyDeleteYes. The problem is calling it a "spy thriller." It's not that (and Le Carre's books rarely are). It's "literary fiction" that happens to involve spies.
ReplyDeleteYeah, my frist reaction was what will Jim Rash wear?
ReplyDeleteA time hoodie, I hope.
ReplyDeleteOh, Alan Rickman. Seriously.
ReplyDeleteYou're forgetting his chief competition in that movie--Benedict Cumberbatch as Smaug. (Though it's not clear whether Smaug will show up until Part 2.)
ReplyDeleteI was thrilled to see Demian Bichir was nominated. I stumbled on "A Better Life" on a plane a month ago and was devastated by the time we landed. It's a lovely film and he's beautiful in it.
ReplyDelete