Golden Trailer Winners

First up, the category that was only unveiled on the day:
Best In Show

Winner:

The Social Network "Trailer #2", Sony Pictures, Mark Woollen & Associates

Nominees:

Blue Valentine "Trailer 1", The Weinstein Company, Zealot Productions Inc
Inception "Control", Warner Bros., BLT:AV
The King's Speech, The Weinstein Company, AV Squad
Tree of Life, Fox Searchlight, Mark Woollen & Associates

Yup. I'd say that's about right. The Social Network was the best. Blue Valentine, Inception, and Tree of Life were all brilliant. King's Speech. Bah.

Best Action
Inception “Control”, Warner Bros., BLT:AV
Sucker Punch “Trailer”, Warner Bros./Legendary Pictures, Mojo
The Town “This Side”, Warner Bros., Wild Card
Unstoppable “Domestic Trailer”, 20th Century Fox, Ignition Creative

Inception wins it!

Best Animation/Family
Cars 2 “Spies Are Us”, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, mOcean
Gnomeo & Juliet, Walt Disney Studios, The Ant Farm
Hop “Battle For Easter”, 20th Century Fox, Cimarron Entertainment
Rango “Teaser”, Paramount Pictures, The Ant Farm

Rango wins it!

Best Comedy
Bad Teacher “Hot For Teacher”, Columbia, Seismic Productions
The Hangover Part II “Trailer #3”, Warner Bros./Legendary Pictures, BLT:AV
The Other Guys “Return to Glory”, Columbia, Seismic Productions
Paul “Trailer”, Universal/Working Title, Workshop Creative

The Other Guys Wins it! I'm happy with that - their teaser was really funny.

Best Documentary
Catfish, Universal Pictures, Mark Woollen & Associates
Life in a Day “Best Day Ever Trailer, Scott Free/National Geographic, Empire Design

Running America, Nehst, Mighty Pictures
The Tillman Story “Trailer 1”, The Weinstein Company/ A&E Indie Films, Zealot Productions Inc.

The Tillman Story wins it! Yay! Happy with all the wins so far!

Best Drama
127 Hours, Fox Searchlight/Pathe, Motive

Hereafter, “Connection”, Warner Bros., Wild Card
The King’s Speech, The Weinstein Company, AV Squad
The Social Network ,”Domestic Trailer #2”, Sony Pictures, Mark Woollen & Associates

The Social Network wins it!

Best Horror
Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark, “Whisper”, Miramax, Buddha Jones
The Last Exorcism, Lionsgate, Mojo

Let Me In, “More”, Overture/Hammer/Relativity Films, Buddha Jones
The Rite, “Proof”, New Line Cinema, Aspect Ratio

The Last Exorcism wins it! I... don't remember this one. Was it the priest who didn't believe nay more? Oh, yup. That got mostly good reviews.

Best Independent Trailer
It’s Kind of a Funny Story, Focus Features, Big Science Film, Inc
Martha Marcy May Marlene, “Can’t Wait”, Fox Searchlight, Acme Trailer Company
Tree of Life, Fox Searchlight, Mark Woollen & Associates
Winter’s Bone, Roadside Attractions, AV Squad

Tree of Life wins it! Still happy!

Best Music
Battle: Los Angeles, “Prepare”, Columbia/Sony Pictures Entertainment, Wild Card
Rabbit Hole, “Trailer 1A”, Lionsgate, Ignition
The Social Network, “Trailer 2”, Sony Pictures, Mark Woollen & Associates
Sucker Punch, “Trailer”, Warner Bros., Mojo

Social Network wins it!

Best Romance
Beginners, Focus Features, Mark Woollen & Associates
Blue Valentine, “Trailer 1”, The Weinstein Company, Zealot Productions Inc
Love and Other Drugs, “Match Trailer”, 20th Century Fox, Empire Design
Something Borrowed, “Best Things”, Alcon Entertainment/Warner Bros., Trailer Park

Blue Valentine wins it!

Best Thriller
Black Swan, Fox Searchlight, Mark Woollen & Associates
Buried, “Trailer 1A”, Lionsgate, Ignition
Super 8, Paramount Pictures, Mark Woollen & Associates

Unknown, “Puzzle”, Warner Bros., AV Squad

Black Swan wins it!

The Don LaFontaine Award for Best Voice Over
Biutiful, “Intl Trailer”, Focus Features International, Mark Woollen & Associates
Born To Be Wild, “Evolution”, Warner Bros. Pictures, Mob Scene Creative + Productions
The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc Sec, “UK Trailer”, Optimum Releasing, The Editpool
Tangled, “Flynn’s Story”, Walt Disney Studios, mOcean

Awww.... Born to be Wild. My first loss. JUST BECAUSE IT IS MORGAN FREEMAN DOESN'T MEAN YOU HAVE TO GIVE IT TO THAT ONE.

Golden Fleece
Burlesque, “Make A Star”, Screen Gems, Seismic Productions
Faster, “Int’l Trailer B”, Sony Pictures Releasing, Tao Creative
Stone, “Trailer”, Overture Films, In Sync Advertising
The Tourist, “Domestic Trailer”, Columbia, Create Advertising Group

Burlesque "wins" it! Huzzah!

Most Original Trailer
Battle: Los Angeles, “Prepare”, Columbia/Fox Searchlight, Wild Card
Buried, “Trailer 1A”, Lionsgate, Ignition
The Social Network, “Domestic Trailer #2”, Sony Pictures, Mark Woollen & Associates
Tree of Life, Fox Searchlight, Mark Woollen & Associates

Ah - another upset. The Social Network gets it. I'm okay with that.

Summer 2011 Blockbuster Trailer
Cowboys & Aliens, “Domestic Trailer”, Universal Pictures/Paramount Pictures, Ignition Creative
Pirates of the Caribbean 4, “Jack”, Walt Disney Pictures, Create Advertising Group
Super 8, Paramount Pictures, Mark Woollen & Associates
Transformers: Dark of the Moon, “Alien Secret”, Paramount Pictures, Wild Card

Transformers? Are you fucking kidding me?

Trashiest Trailer
F, “UK Trailer”, Optimum Releasing, The Editpool
Hobo With A Shotgun, “Red Band”, Magnet, AV Squad
Machete, “Machete Int’l Trailer B”, Sony Pictures Releasing Int’l, Tao Creative
Piranha 3D, “Waiting”, Dimension Films, Buddha Jones

Hobo with a Shotgun wins it!

Best Foreign Action Trailer
22 Bullets, “German Trailer”, Europa Corp/Central Film/Wild Bunch, Trailerhaus
Carlos, “German Trailer”, Warner Bros. Pictures, Trailerhaus
Centurion, Magnolia Pictures, Kinetic Trailers
Valhalla Rising, “Theatrical Trailer”, IFC Films, Kinetic Trailers

Centurion wins it! Surprisingly! I'm... okay with that.

Best Foreign Comedy Trailer
Potiche, “Trailer 1”, Music Box Films, Zealot Productions Inc
Soul Kitchen, “Soul Kitchen”, IFC Films, Big Science Film, Inc
Submarine, “Trailer 1”, The Weinstein Company, Zealot Productions Inc
Wild Target, Vue Entertainment/Free Style Releasing, Create Advertising Group

Wild Target wins it. Is that the Emily Blunt/ Bill Nighy one? Yes, yes it is. I'm okay with that - I like that trailer. I heard, sadly, that the film is not as good.

Best Foreign Drama Trailer
Empire of Silver, Neo Classics Films, Big Science Film, Inc.
The King’s Speech, “Trailer 1”, Momentum Pictures, Zealot Productions Inc
Life, Above All, “Theatrical Trailer”, Sony Pictures Classics, Kinetic Trailers
Oranges and Sunshine, “Trailer 1”, Icon Films, Zealot Productions Inc

BLECH.

Best Foreign Horror/Thriller Trailer
F, “UK Trailer”, Optimum Releasing, The Editpool
I Saw the Devil, “Red Band”, Magnet, AV Squad
REC2, “Red Band”, Magnet, AV Squad
Silent House, “Theatrical Trailer”, IFC Films, Kinetic Trailers

REC2 - okay whatever.

Most Original Foreign Trailer
Drei, “Main Trailer”, X Verleih, Fleischmann Trailer
REC2, “Red Band”, Magnet, AV Squad
Rubber, “Greenband Trailer 1”, Magnolia Pictures, Zealot Productions Inc
Wasted on the Young, “Teaser”, Paramount, The Solid State

Rubber. You know, I really feel like it is more of an original concept to have a killer tire, than it is an original trailer.

So there you have it. I like most of the choices, and the Social Network gets some nice consolation comeuppance on the King's Speech. Well done, everybody.

On a completely unrelated topic, I finally got around to watching A Prophet and it is completely, totally, wildly brilliant and everyone should see it.

The SAG awards

I'm coming in late, but... my thoughts. Let me show them to you.

-I love that Helena Bonham Carter starts to clap for herself and then smacks her own hand away.
-Melissa Leo; get it together girl.
-How drunk is Alec Baldwin?
-There's a show starring Breckin Meyer and Zach Morris? I feel old.
-I do not understand the appeal of Betty White. I think all the actors in the room just want to pray they'll still have careers at that age.
-You know I think the King's Speech is starting to remind me of Crash. The film is mostly focused on the 3 leads, but at all these awards, they keep focusing on all the supporting actors. I feel like somewhere out there, there's a very straight-laced, polite British mobster team sternly suggesting voting for the King's Speech. I mean, he helped defeat the nazis. Righty-o. There's a good chap.
-And Natalie Portman waddles out. Mila Kunis looks fabulous, though.
-Mark-Paul Gosslear. That's Zach Morris' name.
-Man, the SAGs take their tribute award seriously.
-Wow. I thought Elijah Wood was presenting, but it's Jeremy Renner. He sounds like he's been partying hard.
-Oooh! Patrick Stewart! Patrick Stewart!
-Aw. Al Pacino. But he's not there, so at least we move along.
-The good looking crew arrives.
-God. Armie Hammer is huge.
-"And fashion."
-Andrew Garfield is apparently unimpressed with the clip reel.
-Does Josh Duhamel count as an actor?
-Oh, god. I thought Temple Grandin's streak was over.
-Julia Ormond is happy to be getting laid.
-Winona Ryder was not happy with her clip.
-God, is THAT Susan Sarandon's boy-toy?
-Is it just me, or are a LOT of people having trouble speaking tonight? What are they drinking?
-Awww.... Pete Postlethwaite.
-John Hawkes gets some shrieks. Whoo!
-Yay Christian Bale! I'm glad he's finally getting some well-deserved recognition. I do hope, though, that it doesn't go to his head. No one let him get script approval.
-And Dickie Ecklund gets up to steal the spotlight.
-Chrisitan's beard is taking on Brian Wilson proportions.
-Mark Wahlberg has some things to say, let me tell you.
-Wow. Colin Firth gives Anthony Andrews a shout out. Scarlet Pimpernel woot.
-David Sutherland has been hanging out with Grizzlies.
-Please Social Network. But I'm thinking Fighter.
-OH FUCK.

So much to see...

True Grit and Blue Valentine... True Grit and Blue Valentine....

Till then, enjoy this list of EW's 25 films to see before Oscar night (with helpful comments of availability included (bold are the ones I've seen):

The Social Network - on DVD Jan 11
The King's Speech
Inception - now on DVD
The Fighter
Toy Story 3 - now on DVD
True Grit
Black Swan
The Kids Are All Right - now on DVD
127 Hours
Winter's Bone - now on DVD
The Town - now on DVD
Rabbit Hole - goes wide Jan 14
Another Year - goes wide sometime in January
Get Low - DVD Feb 22
How to Train Your Dragon - now on DVD
Blue Valentine - goes wide sometime in January
Biutiful - goes wide Jan 28
Animal Kingdom - on DVD Jan 18
Waiting for Superman - on DVD in Feb
Alice in Wonderland - now on DVD
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - now on DVD
Inside Job - goes wide Jan 28
The Illusionist - goes wide Jan 14
Tangled
Burlesque

On an unrelated note, just as I was mourning what could have been with Nick Stahl's career, this news came through the wires: Nick Stahl Cast in Locke & Key. Yay! Back on the small screen and joining my most anticipated new show!

If I could make up my own awards

Once the Oscar noms come out, I'm sure I'll gleeful about some inclusions, pissed at some snubs, outraged at the undeserving noms, and wistful for those that never had a chance. And then I'll pick the ones I think will win, and which I think should win, and root for my favorites.

But what if I could pick all the nominees myself?

I certainly haven't seen everything that has come out this year. There are many films which I'm sure are some of the best of the year that I never got to; White Material, I Am Love, the Tillman Story, Restrepo, Get Low, Rabbit Hole, Vincere, Ghost Writer, A Prophet, Dogtooth, Applause, Mother, Another Year, Incendies, Beyond.

I mean, if you look at every picture which has received a nomination for Best Picture from a critics guild, that's 47 different films right there, excluding docs and foreign films.

So, given what I have seen, here's what I'd pick (nominees, alternates for your consideration, and notable omissions of the films I have yet to see):

Best Picture
Winter's Bone
Inception
The Social Network
Black Swan
The Fighter
Girl with a Dragon Tattoo
Fish Tank
Red Riding: 1974 (hey, Carlos is getting foreign film nods from a bunch of guilds. Although, yes, it is ineligible for an Oscar. But these are MY awards.)
Never Let Me Go
Animal Kingdom

Notable Omissions; Blue Valentine, True Grit, 127 Hours, Ghost Writer, The Town

Best Popcorn Film (those genre flicks worth your time, if not critical love)
Cell 211
Perrier's Bounty
Red, White and Blue
Predators
The Killer Inside Me
The Crazies
Red Hill
Kick Ass
Tucker and Dale vs. Evil
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Notable Omissions; Red, Machete.

Best Actress
Jennifer Lawrence, Winter's Bone
Katie Jarvis, Fish Tank
Noomi Rapace, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Carey Mulligan, Never Let Me Go

Notable Omissions; Michelle Williams (Blue Valentine), Lesley Manville (Another Year), Anne Hathaway (Love and Other Drugs), Hye-Ja Kim (Mother), Nicole Kidman (Rabbit Hole).

Best Actor
Colin Firth, The King's Speech
Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
Colin Farrell, Ondine
Andrew Garfield, Red Riding: 1974
Noah Taylor, Red, White, and Blue

Alternates; Jim Carrey (I Love You, Philip Morris), Mark Wahlberg (The Fighter), Kodi Smit-McPhee (Let Me In).

Notable Omissions; James Franco (127 Hours), Ryan Gosling (Blue Valentine), Tahar Rahim (A Prophet), Edgar Ramirez (Carlos), Robert Duvall (Get Low), Jeff Bridges (True Grit), Jim Broadbent (Another Year), Aaron Eckhart (Rabbit Hole), Ciaran Hinds (the Eclipse), Vincent Cassel (Mesrine). *phew*.

Best Supporting Actress
Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom
Mila Kunis, Black Swan
Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Juliette Lewis, Conviction
Dale Dickey, Winter's Bone

Alternates; Chloe Moretz (Kick Ass), Amy Adams (The Fighter), Marion Cotillard (Inception).

Notable Omissions; Olivia Williams (Ghost Writer), Hailee Steinfeld (True Grit), Dianne Wiest (Rabbit Hole), Rosamund Pike (Barney's Version).

Best Supporting Actor
Andrew Garfield, The Social Network
Michael Fassbender, Fish Tank
John Hawkes, Winter's Bone
Christian Bale, The Fighter
Armie Hammer, The Social Network

Alternates: Brendan Gleeson (Perrier's Bounty), Tom Hardy (Inception), Kieran Culkin (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World), Michael Shannon (the Runaways), Geoffrey Rush (the King's Speech), Sam Rockwell (Conviction), Ben Mendelsohn (Animal Kingdom).

Notable Omissions; Jeremy Renner (the Town), Matt Damon (True Grit), Edward Norton (Stone), Pierce Brosnan (Ghost Writer).

[Ed. note: I know, I know. I didn't include Sam Rockwell in my top 5. Quelle Horreur. He was good. He's always good. He wasn't given as much material to work with as one would have hoped. So when it comes down to the last spot, Armie Hammer had a more impressive role overall.]

Best Director
Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
David Fincher, The Social Network
Christopher Nolan, Inception
Debra Granik, Winter's Bone
Andrea Arnold, Fish Tank

Alternates; David O. Russell (the Fighter), Lena Dunham (Tiny Furniture).

Notable Omissions; the Coens (True Grit), Danny Boyle (127 Hours), Roman Polanski (Ghost Writer), Derek Cianfrance (Blue Valentine), Mike Leigh (Another Year).

Best Screenplay - Original
Black Swan
The Fighter
Inception
Ondine
Fish Tank

Notable Omissions; Buried, Blue Valentine, The Square, Four Lions, Another Year.

I almost want Four Lions to win as a write-in, just for its audacity.

Best Screenplay - Adapted
The Social Network
The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
Winter's Bone
Red Riding: 1974

Alternates; I Love You Philip Morris, Never Let Me Go, The Killer Inside Me.

Notable Omissions; True Grit, The Town, Rabbit Hole

Best Foreign Film
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Cell 211
(both ineligible for oscars).... and....um. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest?

I may not have seen enough films in this category this year. Let's say Dogtooth, Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives, and A Prophet (nominated last year) for the other nominees and Simple Simon, Beyond, Incendies, Mother, I Am Love (ineligible for the Oscar), Hadewijch, Of Gods and Men, White Material, Carlos (ineligible), Applause, The Edge, Life Above All, and Undertow as the alternates.

Best Animated
Nada. Despite my deep love for animation, I have seen none of these films. I... don't know what happened this year.

Best Documentary
Ditto as foreign films. Marwencol FTW!

So let's go with Exit Through the Gift Shop, the Tillman Story, Restrepo, and A Film Unfinished, with Winnebago Man, Gasland and Last Train Home as alternates. I can't watch Inside Job. I just can't.

Best Visual Effects
Inception
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
TRON
Harry Potter 7a
Alice in Wonderland

Notable Omissions; Monsters, Narnia, Prince of Persia.

I have yet to see any shorts (hmmm.... when do those group showings occur?), so let's skip those.

Best Costumes
Black Swan
Alice in Wonderland
King's Speech

Surely other people wore costumes. Hmmm... TRON? Can I give an award for getting Garrett Hedlund into that getup? Inception? People wore pretty things in that.

Notable Omissions; True Grit, Burlesque (SEQUINS!!!), I Am Love, the Tempest, Agora, Made in Dagenham.

Best Art/Production Design
Bunny and the Bull
Inception
Black Swan
TRON
King's Speech

Alternates; Harry Potter 7a, Shutter Island

Notable Omission; I Am Love

Best Makeup
Alice in Wonderland
Black Swan
Harry Potter 7a

Notable Omissions; True Grit, Splice, the Wolfman, the Tempest, Burlesque? Who wore makeup this year? I can't fill this category.

Best Cinematography
Black Swan
Inception
Never Let Me Go
Harry Potter 7a
Winter's Bone

Alternates; The Fighter, The Social Network, Shutter Island, Let Me In.

Notable Omissions; True Grit, I Am Love, 127 Hours, Sweetgrass, Monsters.

Best Editing
Inception
The Social Network
Black Swan
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
Shutter Island

Notable Omissions; 127 Hours, The Town.

Best Song
(AKA: who do I want to watch during the show - it's like who gets a grammy nomination!)
You Haven't Seen the Last of Me (Burlesque). CHER!!! PLZ WEAR BOB MACKIE, K? THNKS.
Eclipse (Eclipse). Much as I hate to nominate anything having to do with Twilight, I really do like Metric.
Bound to You (Burlesque). (Christina Aguilera)
Life During Wartime (Life During Wartime). (Devendra Banhard & Beck)
What Part of Forever (Eclipse). (Cee-Lo Green)

Your other song options (FYI); If I Rise - 127 Hours (Dido - I like this one alright), I See the Lights - Tangled (Mandy Moore), There's a Place for Us - Narnia (Carrie Underwood), Better Days - Eat Pray Love (Eddie Vedder - ditto; also not bad), Chanson Illusionist - The Illusionist (Sylvain Chomet). The last one isn't a Belleville Rendezvous, but it's cute.

I almost wish I could throw on Avril Lavigne's song from Alice in Wonderland or Gwyneth Paltrow's Coming Home from Country Strong, just to see them both get schooled by Cher and Cristina Aguilera. Because I'm cruel like that.

Best Score
TRON: Legacy - Daft Punk [Ed: WHY is this not getting more attention? I LOVED it.]
The Social Network - Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
The Fighter - Michael Brook
Inception - Hans Zimmer
Black Swan - Clint Mansell

Alternates; King's Speech - Alexandre Desplat, Alice in Wonderland - Danny Elfman, Harry Potter 7a - Alexandre Desplat, Never Let Me Go - Rachel Portman.

Notable Omissions; True Grit - Carter Burwell, Ghost Writer - Alexandre Desplat, 127 Hours - A. R. Rahman.

Best Sound Mixing & Editing (I know the one has to do with recording sound effects and background, and the other has to do with volume/mixing/etc., but.... I'm grouping them.)
Inception
Black Swan
The Social Network
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
Shutter Island

Alternate; Iron Man 2.

Notable Omission; True Grit.

The best year end list

Now that my life has settled (for the moment - thank you vacation!), I've been hyperactively scanning the year-end nominations and awards. I'm not going to bother to post and comment on most individual kudos here (it's mostly been a clean sweep for the Social Network, with one or two bones thrown to Black Swan and Winter's Bone). However, each year there is one list I eagerly anticipate; the Alliance of Women Film Journalists, because they have the best categories - even if they don't necessarily help predict the eventual nominees or winners.

Before I repost the nominations, it did also make me think of one other thing. Let's say the best picture nominees for this year shake out in some combination of these 15 films: Social Network, Black Swan, Winter's Bone, Kids are All Right, King's Speech, Blue Valentine, 127 Hours, Fighter, Another Year, Inception, Toy Story 3, True Grit, the Town, Rabbit Hole, Ghost Writer. (Quick digression; whatever happened to The Way Back?).

Of those 15 films, 6 are led by actress performances (Black Swan, Winter's Bone, Kids are All Right, Rabbit Hole, Another Year, Blue Valentine). And True Grit and the Fighter are both there in large part due to supporting actress performances.

Compare that to last year. Three films with a lead actress (An Education, the Blind Side and Push) and one with supporting actresses (Up in the Air). (I'm not including Avatar in that second category, because Zoe Saldana was not what got it a best picture nomination).

Go back further: 2009 - 1 lead, 2007 - 2 leads, 2006 - 1 lead, maybe 2 supporting, 2005 - 0 leads, 1 supporting, 2004 - 2 leads, 1 supporting, 2003 - 1 lead, 2002 - 2 leads, 2001 - 1 lead, 3 supporting, 2000 - 3 leads.

What I'm saying is; this has been a surprisingly good year for actresses.

Onto the AWFJ list. I'm including a few of their bigger nominations, and all the fun ones:

Listed by category and in alphabetical order, the nominees are:

Best Film:
•Black Swan
•Inception
•The King’s Speech
•The Social Network
•Winter’s Bone

Best Actress:
•Annette Bening - The Kids Are All Right
•Nicole Kidman - Rabbit Hole
•Jennifer Lawrence - Winter’s Bone
•Lesley Manville - Another Year
•Natalie Portman - Black Swan
•Michelle Williams - Blue Valentine

Best Actress in a Supporting Role:
•Amy Adams - The Fighter
•Helena Bonham-Carter - The King’s Speech
•Melissa Leo - The Fighter
•Hailee Steinfeld - True Grit
•Jacki Weaver - Animal Kingdom

Best Ensemble Cast:
•The Fighter
•The Kids Are All Right
•The King’s Speech
•The Social Network
•Winter’s Bone

[Ed. note - The Fighter, Social Network and Winter's Bone are all great ensembles. I keep going back and forth with each one. The Fighter is most likely to see all the supporting cast eventually recognized, Winter's Bone boils down to three unforgettable performances (hopefully 2 will be recognized), with several excellent smaller parts, and Social Network has 3 great supporting parts, only 1 or 2 of which will be recognized. I think with that shake out, I go for Winter's Bone. Then again, I just saw the ensemble list for King's Speech (which I haven't seen yet), and it has some of my all time FAVORITE British (and Aussie) actors in it. Derek Jacobi! Guy Pearce! Timothy Spalls! ANTHONY ANDREWS - WHEN DID YOU COME OUT OF RETIREMENT?!? So I guess what I'm saying is, my opinion could change. Again. Some more. ]

Most Beautiful Film:
•Black Swan
•I Am Love
•Inception
•Never Let Me Go
•True Grit

[Ed. note - I love this category. We should so, so include this at the Oscars. I also love the inclusion of Never Let Me Go here.]

Best Cinematography:
•Black Swan - Matthew Libatique
•Inception - Wally Pfister
•The Social Network - Jeff Cronenweth
•True Grit - Roger Deakins
•Winter’s Bone - Michael McDonough

[Ed note - of course Roger Deakins did True Grit. One more reason to go see it. I think this is a great group. I'd like to see Wally Pfister win something - he's been so good for so long. And every year, cinematography awards make me sad that there are practically no women in the field.]

Best Film Music Or Score:
•127 Hours - A.R. Rahman
•Black Swan - Clint Mansell
•Inception - Hans Zimmer
•The Social Network - Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
•True Grit - Carter Burwell

[Ed. note - awww.... where's Daft Punk? I'll pick Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross in the meantime.]

Best Non-English-Language Film:
•Applause - Martin Zandvliet, Denmark
•Biutiful - Alejandro González Iñárritu, Mexico/Spain
•Girl With The Dragon Tattoo - Niels Arden Oplev, Denmark
•I Am Love - Luca Guadagnino, Italy
•Mother - Joon-ho Bong, South Korea
•Un Prophet - Jacques Audiard, France/Italy

[Ed. note - no Uncle Boonmee? Also - I really fell down on my foreign film watching this year. I need to get on some of these. Also also - I'm glad lots of people are including A Prophet in their lists, but it screws with predictions, since it was nominated for the Oscar last year.]

EDA FEMALE FOCUS AWARDS
Best Woman Director:
•Andrea Arnold - Fish Tank
•Lisa Cholodenko - The Kids Are All Right
•Sofia Coppola - Somewhere
•Debra Granik - Winter’s Bone
•Nicole Holofcener - Please Give

[Ed. note - Fish Tank!!! Or Winter's Bone.]

Best Woman Screenwriter:
•Andrea Arnold - Fish Tank
•Lisa Cholodenko - The Kids Are All Right
•Sofia Coppola - Somewhere
•Debra Granik - Winter’s Bone
•Nicole Holofcener - Please Give
•Laeta Kalogridis - Shutter Island

Best Female Action Star:
•Angelina Jolie - Salt
•Helen Mirren - Red
•Chloe Moretz - Kick-Ass
•Noomi Rapace - Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
•Hailee Steinfeld - Ture Grit

[Ed. note - Love the category. Noomi Rapace ftw.]

Best Animated Female:
•Astrid - How To Train Your Dragon
•Barbie - Toy Story 3
•Jessie - Toy Story 3
•Margo, Edith and Agnes - Despicable Me
•Mother Gothel - Tangled
•Rapunzel - Tangled

Best Breakthrough Performance:
•Lena Dunham - Tiny Furniture
•Jennifer Lawrence - Winter’s Bone
•Chloe Moretz - Kick-Ass
•Noomi Rapace - Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
•Hailee Steinfeld - True Grit

[Ed. note - WOW. What a tough category! Lena broke into Hollywood, which is a big deal. But Noomi and Jennifer came closest to breaking into mainstream American success. Since Jennifer is up for best actress, I'll pick Noomi here.]

Women’s Image Award
•Annette Bening - The Kids Are All Right
•Sally Hawkins - Made In Dagenham
•Helen Mirren - Red
•Noomi Rapace - Girl With The Dragon Tatoo
•Hailee Steinfeld - True Grit

Perseverance Award:
•Cher
•Lisa Cholodenko
•Melissa Leo
•Joan Rivers
•Winona Ryder

[Ed. note - CHER. Cher cher cher cher cher. Obviously. And it makes me a little sad to see Winona on this list.]

Actress Defying Age and Ageism:
•Annette Bening
•Patricia Clarkson
•Melissa Leo
•Helen Mirren
•Julianne Moore

Sexist Pig Award:
•Michael Bay
•Mel Gibson
•Michael Patrick King
•Michael Winterbottom
•Mark Zuckerberg (the character in The Social Network)

[Ed. note - Snort.]

This Year’s Outstanding Achievement By A Woman In The Film Industry:
•Lisa Cholodenko for The Kids Are All Right
•Lena Dunham for Tiny Furniture
•Debra Granik for Winter’s Bone
•Tanya Hamilton for Night Catches Us
•Helen Mirren for opening five movies in the US

[Ed. note - I hope I have that much energy at 74.]

Lifetime Achievement Award:
•Annette Bening
•Ruby Dee
•Claire Denis
•Helen Mirren
•Julie Taymor

AWFJ Award For Humanitarian Activism:
•Sandra Bullock
•Angelina Jolie
•Sean Penn
•Oprah Winfrey

EDA SPECIAL MENTION AWARDS
AWFJ Hall Of Shame Award:
•Jackass 3D
•Jonah Hex
•Mel Gibson
•Sex and The City 2, Michael Patrick King, Sarah Jessica Parker, cast and crew
•Valentine’s Day and Garry Marshall

[Ed. note - Sex and the City! No, Valentine's Day!]

Actress Most in Need Of A New Agent:
•Jennifer Aniston
•Halle Berry
•Katherine Heigl
•Sarah Jessica Parker
•Reese Witherspoon

[Ed. note - is Jennifer Aniston ever not included in this category? Also, allow Katherine Heigl to strangle herself on her own bad decisions, realize Sarah Jessica Parker has pretty much nothing left, and give this one to Reese Witherspoon - the one with the greatest potential of a continuing career.]

Movie You Wanted To Love But Just Couldn‘t:
•Black Swan
•Conviction
•For Colored Girls
•Inception
•The Social Network
•Waiting For Superman

[Ed. note - wait, how can you include Black Swan, Inception, and Social Network when they are up for Best Picture? Doesn't that mean you love them? I could see For Colored Girls easily in this category, but obviously for me, it's Conviction, hands down. *sigh*]

Unforgettable Moment Award: [ED. NOTE: SPOILERS!!!!!]
•127 Hours - Aron Ralston (James Franco) cuts off his arm.
•Black Swan - Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman) sprouts black wings and final dance performance.
•Inception - Paris folds in on itself
•The Kids Are All Right - Nic (Annette Bening) finds out that Jules (Julianne Moore) is cheating.
•Winter’s Bone - Ree Dolly (Jennifer Lawrence) cuts off her dead father’s hands with a chain saw.

[Ed. note - I'm going to go with Black Swan on this one. That performance was indelible.]

Best Depiction Of Nudity, Sexuality, or Seduction:
•Black Swan
•Blue Valentine
•I Am Love
•The Kids Are All Right

[Ed. note - not having seen it yet, I'm going to guess Blue Valentine wins this one.]

Sequel That Shouldn’t Have Been Made Award:
•Iron Man 2
•Little Fockers
•Sex and The City 2
•TRON: Legacy
•Wall Street 2

[Ed. note - Well, Iron Man 2 wins the "Sequel That Should Have Been Better" award and TRON wins "Sequel That Shouldn't Have Been A Sequel". I'd say Sex and the City wins, with Little Fockers in hot pursuit.]

The Remake That Shouldn’t Have Been Made Award:
•A-Team
•Clash of the Titans
•Death At a Funeral
•Let Me In
•Robin Hood

ROBIN HOOD! ROBIN HOOD! ROBIN HOOD! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD! (scroll down for Cleolinda's rant.)

Cultural Crossover Award:
•Four Lions
•Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
•The Kids Are All Right
•Mother
•Waste Land

Bravest Performance Award:
•Annette Bening and Julianne Moore in The Kids Are All Right
•James Franco in 127 Hours
•Chloe Moretz in Kick-Ass
•Natalie Portman in Black Swan
•Paprika Steen in Applause

Most Egregious Age Difference Between The Leading Man and The Love Interest Award:
•Barney’s Version - Paul Giamatti and Rosamund Pike (12 years)
•Company Men - Tommy Lee Jones and Maria Bello (21 years)
•Machete - Danny Trejo and Jessica Alba (37 years)
•Solitary Man - Michael Douglas and Imogen Poots (45 years)
•You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger - Anthony Hopkins and Lucy Punch (40 years)

SAG noms, redux

And the tv nominations:

Best Ensemble (Drama): Boardwalk Empire, The Closer, Dexter, The Good Wife and Mad Men.

I'm going for Dexter on this one, since Breaking Bad is oddly absent (what is UP with the total lack of love for Emmy winner Aaron Paul... hmmmm? First the Globes TOTALLY OVERLOOK HIM and now this. Sheesh.)

(I'm also a little annoyed, because I went to watch Dexter on the plane, thinking it was the season finale, and... nope. It was the penultimate episode. So, I'm on a cliff hanger, and the internet here is so molasses slow I haven't been able to watch the finale. I can't watch anything on Hulu, either, and I'm majorly behind on Burn Notice and Glee. My life is so hard.)

Best Male Actor (Drama Series): Steve Buscemi (Boardwalk Empire), Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), Michael C Hall (Dexter) , Jon Hamm (Mad Men) and Hugh Laurie (House)

OH HEY LOOK THEY HAVE SEEN BREAKING BAD. Harumph. I think I might pick Michael C Hall for season 6 of Dexter over Bryan Cranston for season 3 of Breaking Bad (is that what is up, here? Do they nominate individual episodes?) I think Dexter's personal arc this season has been fascinating and surprising. Bryan Cranston is always interesting and compulsively watchable, but I don't know that his character was as surprising this season as he was in season 2. Then again, will there ever be a moment as shocking as with Jane again on that show? (OH RIGHT, JESSE AND GALE).

Best Female Actor (Drama Series): Glenn Close (Damages), Mariska Hargitay (L&O: SVU) , Julianna Marguiles (The Good Wife), Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men) and Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer)

I'll go with Mariska Hargitay on this one. Since Christopher Meloni never gets nominated.

Best Ensemble (Comedy): 30 Rock, Glee, Hot in Cleveland, Modern Family, the Office

For entire ensemble? I'd say the Office. That has a lot of supporting players who are key to the show continuing to entertain this far into its run. I'd be okay with Glee or 30 Rock though.

Best Male Actor (Comedy): Alec Baldwin (30 Rock), Ty Burrell (Modern Family), Steve Carell (the Office), Chris Colfer (Glee), Ed O'Neil (Modern Family)

Yay Chris Colfer! It really has been his show so far this season, hasn't it? I'm glad they are recognizing him.

Best Female Actor (Comedy): Edie Falco (Nurse Jackie), Tina Fey (30 Rock), Jane Lynch (Glee), Sofia Vergara (Modern Family), Betty White (Hot in Cleveland)

Enough already for the Betty White frenzy. What the Hell? I'll vote for Tina Fey on this one.

Best Male Actor (Miniseries/Movie): John Goodman (You Don’t Know Jack), Al Pacino (You Don’t Know Jack), Dennis Quaid (That Special Relationship), Edgar Ramirez (Carlos) and Patrick Stewart (Macbeth)

Aww... John Goodman and Patrick Stewart! I think Al Pacino has this one wrapped up, though. And I've said it before, and I'll say it again. If Edgar Ramirez can be up here for Carlos, then Andrew Garfield should be up for Red Riding.

Best Female Actor (Miniseries/Movie): Claire Danes (Temple Grandin), Catherine O’Hara (Temple Grandin), Julia Ormond (Temple Grandin), Winona Ryder (When Love is Not Enough), and Susan Sarandon (You Don’t Know Jack)

Winona what now? Has anyone heard of that?

And why don't miniseries get best ensemble?

Another Day, another...

move cross-country. That's right, coming at you from foggy Pacifica, CA, it's.... your overdue news roundup!

First off, and very excitingly, I'm ranked 8th for the winter competition in my box office game (and still in the top 50 overall). I rule.

Secondly, and I will try to write this up in an actual, official way, but Black Swan is incredible. I really, really loved it.

And, the most important news of the day... the SAG noms!

Best Ensemble: Black Swan, The Fighter, The Kids are All Right, The King's Speech, The Social Network.

Definitely going to be rooting for the Fighter and the Social Network in this one.

Best Actor: Jeff Bridges (True Grit), Robert Duvall (Get Low), Jesse Eisenberg (the Social Network), Colin Firth (The King's Speech), James Franco (127 Hours).

Hmm... no Ryan Gosling or Mark Wahlberg. But also no Johnny Depp.

Best Actress: Annette Bening (Kids Are All Right), Nicole Kidman (Rabbit Hole), Jennifer Lawrence (Winter's Bone), Natalie Portman (Black Swan), Hilary Swank (Conviction).

Wow. Hilary Swank must have the best awards publicist in the biz. Either that, or the guild perversely wants to watch her lose to Annette Bening. Thrilled with the other 3 (I would've put Michelle Williams in over Hilary Swank). I'm glad Nicole Kidman is being welcomed back into critical acclaim now that her forehead moves again. I hope that serves as a life lesson to other actresses.

Supporting Actor: Christian Bale (the Fighter), John Hawkes (Winter's Bone), Jeremy Renner (The Town), Mark Ruffalo (Kids Are All Right), Geoffrey Rush (King's Speech).

THRILLED with John Hawkes being included. He so, so, so deserves it. Jeremy Renner over Andrew Garfield? Was he that much fun to be around last year? What?

Supporting Actress: Amy Adams (the Fighter), Helena Bonham Carter (King's Speech), Mila Kunis (Black Swan), Melissa Leo (the Fighter), Hailee Steinfeld (True Grit)

Hmmm... the True Grit love pushes Jacki Weaver out. Interesting.

To keep this from getting too long, I'm going to put the SAG tv noms in another post.

Weight Loss and GG noms...

I'm posting this in its own entry because I found it a really well thought out piece looking at the differences in coverage between Mila Kunis and Natalie Portman in Black Swan and Christian Bale in the Fighter. Maybe he isn't being judged as harshly because thank god he didn't go to Machinist levels of extremism again? Then again, I couldn't help but think of the process Natalie Portman herself went through while preparing for the role of Nina and wondering if her own path had any similar echoes of Nina's.

I think pointing out how easily ballet becomes a horror film is worth noting, too.

Monday Morning Discussion: Christian Bale, Natalie Portman and the Body Image Debate

GG Noms!

Right. I haven't been updating with all the Critics lists that have been coming out, since I'm just so swamped, but Social Network has been leading the way, except the Critics Choice, where Black Swan received a record number of nominations.

But, let us set aside these lists for now and look at the just released Golden Globe nominations:

Best Picture — Drama
Black Swan
The Fighter
Inception
The King’s Speech
The Social Network

Pretty much what you would expect. Having seen 4 of these, I think they are good picks. (Yes, I will probably see the King's Speech, too...)

Best Picture — Musical or Comedy
Alice in Wonderland
Burlesque
The Kids Are All Right
Red
The Tourist

Wow. The start of the shocking amount of love for the Tourist. Is it because it was filmed in Venice? Probably. Hollywood Foreign Press, you so crazy. I like the inclusion of Red, which is surprising, and calling The Kids Are All Right a comedy gets it included, I guess.

Best Actor — Drama
Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
James Franco, 127 Hours
Ryan Gosling, Blue Valentine
Mark Wahlberg, The Fighter

Solid. And I am THRILLED Ryan Gosling is up for Blue Valentine. He really needed this to stay alive in the Oscar race. Happy to see Mark Wahlberg and Jesse Eisenberg in there. I have yet to see 127 hours, but I assume that is a good pick and we already knew Colin Firth would be up.

Best Actress — Drama
Halle Berry, Frankie and Alice
Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole
Jennifer Lawrence, Winter’s Bone
Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine

Huh - Halle Berry managed to get herself in there. Interesting. Thrilled with the other 4, although I have only seen Jennifer Lawrence and Natalie Portman so far.

Best Actor — Musical or Comedy
Johnny Depp, Alice in Wonderland
Johnny Depp, The Tourist
Paul Giamatti, Barney’s Version
Jake Gyllenhaal, Love and Other Drugs
Kevin Spacey, Casino Jack

And then we get to a category like this. WTF? Look, I love Johnny Depp. He has done phenomenal, interesting work over the years. But I'm not sure there was enough of a performance under all the makeup and crazy in Alice in Wonderland, and almost no one has had good things to say about the Tourist. Pleasantly surprised to see the other 3, but let's face it. None of these performances hold a candle to the next 5 actors who would be up in the drama category (say, Jeff Bridges, Robert Duvall, Javier Bardem, Ryan Reynolds (yes, I'm being serious), and Andrew Garfield (he should be up for Red Riding!). How about Leonardo DiCaprio for Inception? Jim Broadbent for Another Year?) Sometimes the comedy/musical category is a good way to highlight performances that are too far out of mainstream drama to receive Oscar consideration (see: Richard Gere, Gene Hackman, Jim Carrey). And sometimes you have this year.

Best Actress — Musical or Comedy
Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
Anne Hathaway, Love and Other Drugs
Angelina Jolie, The Tourist
Julianne Moore, The Kids Are All Right
Emma Stone, Easy A

Hey look, the one time Julianne Moore will get included with Annette Bening. Anne Hathaway and Emma Stone are good picks. Could we not have recognized Angelina for, say, A Mighty Heart? What is this Tourist crap?

Best Supporting Actor
Christian Bale, The Fighter
Michael Douglas, Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps
Andrew Garfield, The Social Network
Jeremy Renner, The Town
Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech

Pretty solid, although Michael Douglas feels like a pity inclusion. (sorry. I feel bad saying that.) Christian Bale and Andrew Garfield are a tough choice. They are both so good. For individual roles, Bale might have the edge, but seeing as Garfield has been in 3 excellent performances this year, he'll have the edge if they go with body of work. I heard good things about Jeremy Renner in the Town, so it's nice to see him, although I'm disappointed John Hawkes didn't make it (not surprising, but it would have been nice.) I wonder if this puts a nail in Armie Hammer's campaigning? (I mean, I doubt it'll stop Justin Timberlake from dreaming).

Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams, The Fighter
Helena Bonham Carter, The King’s Speech
Mila Kunis, Black Swan
Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom

Wow, Amy Adams and Melissa Leo. The whole Fighter cast gets recognized! You get a nomination! You... okay. I'm done. Thrilled to see Jacki Weaver pull through, and the other 2 are pretty expected (good for Mila Kunis!) I suppose the exclusions here are Barbara Hershey, Dianne Wiest, and possibly Hailee Steinfeld. (Did the HFPA see True Grit?)

Best Director
Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
David Fincher, The Social Network
Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech
Christopher Nolan, Inception
David O. Russell, The Fighter

That's pretty solid. I'd rather have Danny Boyle than Tom Hooper, but oh well.

Best Screenplay
127 Hours, Simon Beaufoy and Danny Boyle
Inception, Christopher Nolan
The Kids Are All Right, Lisa Cholodenko and Stuart Blumberg
The King’s Speech, David Seidler
The Social Network, Aaron Sorkin

Yup. Pretty much what you'd expect.

Best Original Song
“Bound to You,” Burlesque (performed by Christina Aguilera; written by Samuel Dixon, Christina Aguilera and Sia Furler)
“Coming Home,” Country Strong (performed by Gwyneth Paltrow; written by Bob PiPiero, Tom Douglas, Hillary Lindsey, Troy Verges)
“I See the Light,” Tangled (performed by Mandy Moore & Zachary Levi; written by Alan Menken & Glenn Slater)
“There’s a Place For Us,” The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (performed by Carrie Underwood; written by Carrie Underwood, David Hodges, Hillary Lindsey)
“You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me Yet,” Burlesque (performed by Cher; written by Diane Warren)

Okay. I don't know. Despite the glitter and lashes, I haven't seen Burlesque.

Best Original Score
Inception, Hans Zimmer
The King’s Speech, Alexandre Desplat
The Social Network, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
Alice in Wonderland, Danny Elfman
127 Hours, A.R. Rahman

Yay Trent Reznor.

Best Foreign Language Film
Biutiful
The Concert
The Edge
I Am Love
In a Better World

The Concert - really? Out of all the foreign films out there, we're going with that?

Best Animated Feature
Despicable Me
How to Train Your Dragon
The Illusionist
Tangled
Toy Story 3

Please let the Illusionist upset Toy Story.

TELEVISION

Best TV Series — Drama
Boardwalk Empire
Dexter
The Good Wife
Mad Men
The Walking Dead

Yay Dexter and the Walking Dead.

Best TV Series — Musical or Comedy
30 Rock
The Big Bang Theory
The Big C
Glee
Modern Family
Nurse Jackie

Meh. And really, there isn't much else going on here that hasn't been mostly covered by the emmys, so I don't really care until the night when I'll root for my faves.

Best Miniseries or Made-for-TV Movie
Carlos
The Pacific
The Pillars of the Earth
Temple Grandin
You Don’t Know Jack

Best Actor — Drama
Steve Buscemi, Boardwalk Empire
Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad
Michael C. Hall, Dexter
Jon Hamm, Mad Men
Hugh Laurie, House M.D.

Best Actress — Drama
Elizabeth Moss, Mad Men
Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife
Piper Perabo, Covert Affairs
Katey Sagal, Sons of Anarchy
Kyra Sedgwick, The Closer

Best Actor — Musical or Comedy
Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock
Steve Carell, The Office
Thomas Jane, Hung
Matthew Morrison, Glee
Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory

Best Actress — Musical or Comedy
Toni Collette, United States of Tara
Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie
Tina Fey, 30 Rock
Laura Linney, The Big C
Lea Michele, Glee

Best Actor — Miniseries or Made-for-TV Movie
Idris Elba, Luther
Ian McShane, Pillars of the Earth
Al Pacino, You Don’t Know Jack
Dennis Quaid, The Special Relationship
Edgar Ramirez, Carlos

Wait a minute. I'm confused. We're putting Carlos here? Because if so, where the fuck is Red Riding?

Best Actress — Miniseries or Made-for-TV Movie
Hayley Atwell, Pillars of the Earth
Claire Danes, Temple Grandin
Judi Dench, Return to Cranford
Romola Garai, Emma
Jennifer Love Hewitt, The Client List

Best Supporting Actor in TV Series, Mini-Series, or Made-for-TV Movie
Scott Caan, Hawaii Five-0
Chris Colfer, Glee
Chris Noth, The Good Wife
David Strathairn, Temple Grandin
Eric Stonestreet, Modern Family

Best Supporting Actress in TV Series, Mini-Series, or Made-for-TV Movie
Hope Davis, The Special Relationship
Jane Lynch, Glee
Kelly Macdonald, Boardwalk Empire
Julia Stiles, Dexter
Sofia Vergara, Modern Family

Yay Julia Styles!

NBR Awards!

Ah, the Oscar race is starting in earnest, and I'm so very behind. The satellite noms are fun (yay Noomi Rapace love), as are the gothams, but the NBR awards are the first ones that people take seriously. Whether they should or not. The list below, with my thoughts:

Best Film: The Social Network

Best Director: David Fincher, The Social Network

Best Actor: Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network

Best Actress: Lesley Manville, Another Year

Best Supporting Actor: Christian Bale, The Fighter

Best Supporting Actress: Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom

I'm pretty happy with these. Jacki Weaver gets remembered, which keeps her hopes for a nomination alive. I'm thrilled Christian Bale is finally getting some long-deserved recognition. And The Social Network is excellent. I have yet to see Another Year, so... no thoughts there.

Best Foreign Film: Of Gods and Men

Best Documentary: Waiting For “Superman”

Best Animated Feature: Toy Story 3

Why do the animated films I like never win anything?

Best Ensemble Cast: The Town

Oh yay. This is a good cast. Although I would've picked Winter's Bone, like the Gothams.

Breakthrough Performance: Jennifer Lawrence, Winter’s Bone

YAY! Win.

Spotlight Award for Best Directorial Debut: Sebastian Junger and Tim Hetherington, Restrepo

Best Original Screenplay: Chris Sparling, Buried

Best Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network

Good.

Special Filmmaking Achievement Award: Sofia Coppola, for for writing, directing, and producing Somewhere

William K. Everson Film History Award: Leonard Maltin

NBR Freedom of Expression: Fair Game, Conviction, Howl

Awww.... Conviction. This is the only award you will win.

Top Eleven Films (In alphabetical order):
Another Year
The Fighter
Hereafter
Inception
The King’s Speech
Shutter Island
The Social Network
The Town
Toy Story 3
True Grit
Winter’s Bone

Pretty good. I like having The Fighter and Winter's Bone in here. But Shutter Island, Hereafter and Toy Story 3 over Blue Valentine, Black Swan, and 127 Hours?

Top Ten Independent Films (In alphabetical order):
Animal Kingdom
Buried
Fish Tank
The Ghost Writer
Greenberg
Let Me In
Monsters
Please Give
Somewhere
Youth in Revolt

YAY Fish Tank!!!! SO excited about that. Hmmm.... I'm getting the sense I should see Buried. I read an interesting article that said it should be garnering more notice than 127 hours. Yay Animal Kingdom. And happy Let Me In got a little notice.

Top Six Foreign Films (In alphabetical order):
I Am Love
Incendies
Life, Above All
Of Gods And Men
Soul Kitchen
White Material

Huh. I think Incendies is going to next year's Sundance. *sigh* I still need to see I Am Love.

Top Six Documentary Films (In alphabetical order):
A Film Unfinished
Inside Job
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
Restrepo
The Tillman Story
Waiting For “Superman"

Another thought on the Satellite noms: "the awards - handed out by International Press Academy - are generally disregarded as a serious Oscar precursor due to their often inexplainable decisions (see this year’s bizarre move to erratically extend most categories to seemingly whatever number of nominees they wanted),"

It's Oscar season! Officially!

God bless the awards race. The Gotham noms are out!

LOVE the Winter's Bone love. Think Let Me In is a really interesting addition, and I hope it means some more people go check it out. Can't wait to see Blue Valentine, Sweet Grass and Black Swan.

Please let Winter's Bone get the ensemble award - John Hawkes and Dale Dickey are so fabulous in it!

Oscar noms

Quick reactions here;

No exciting upsets that I immediately noticed. While I didn't hold out much hope for Abbie Cornish, I did think there was a good chance of Christian McKay getting a supporting actor nod. C'est la vie.

I'm thrilled that District 9 made it into the top 10, and disappointed by the Blind Side (how's that Razzie nomination, Sandra??)

The rest:

BEST PICTURE
Avatar
The Blind Side
District 9
An Education
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Precious
A Serious Man
Up
Up in the Air

Well, District 9, An Education, The Hurt Locker, Inglorious Basterds and A Serious Man all deserve to be on there. And without 10 nominees, I doubt they would have all gotten a chance. However, I don't think the nods will help box office at this point.

BEST DIRECTOR
James Cameron -- Avatar
Kathryn Bigelow -- The Hurt Locker
Quentin Tarantino -- Inglourious Basterds
Lee Daniels -- Precious
Jason Reitman -- Up in the Air

Predictable, but mostly a good group. Kathryn!!!

BEST ACTOR
Jeff Bridges
George Clooney
Colin Firth
Morgan Freeman
Jeremy Renner

Hurrah for Jeremy Renner and Colin Firth! And I'm glad Invictus got a little love somewhere. However, I'm fairly certain this is Jeff Bridges' to lose. Besides, Sam Rockwell gave the best performance of the year, so it doesn't really matter who wins this.

BEST ACTRESS
Sandra Bullock
Helen Mirren
Carey Muligan
Gaborey Sibide
Meryl Streep

Ugh. Ugh Ugh. Just because Helen Mirren and Meryl Streep are grande dames, DOESN'T MEAN YOU HAVE TO NOMINATE THEM.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Matt Damon
Woody Harrelson
Christopher Plummer
Stanley Tucci
Christoph Waltz

Again, happy for Matt Damon, crushed for Christian McKay.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Penelope Cruz
Vera Farmiga
Maggie Gyllenhaal
Anna Kendrick
Mo'Nique

Huh - I haven't heard great things about Maggie's performance, but I like her as an actress, so I'm glad she's got her first academy award nom.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Marc Boal -- The Hurt Locker
Quentin Tarantino -- Inglourious Basterds
Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman -- The Messenger
Joel Coen, Ethan Coen -- A Serious Man
Bob Peterson, Pete Docter, Story by Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy -- Up

Pretty expected.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell -- District 9
Nick Hornby -- An Education
Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche -- In the Loop
Geoffrey Fletcher -- Precious
Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner -- Up in the Air

Hurrah for In the Loop!! Bright Star should be included, but then again, it should have been placed in Original, so....

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Coraline -- Henry Selick
Fantastic Mr Fox -- Wes Anderson
The Princess and the Frog -- John Musker and Ron Clements
The Secret of Kells -- Tomm Moore
Up -- Pete Docter

Yay for The Secret of Kells! I'm so excited that something almost totally unknown got a mention.

BEST ART DIRECTION

Avatar

:

Art Direction: Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg; Set Decoration: Kim Sinclair

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus: Art Direction: Dave Warren and Anastasia Masaro; Set Decoration: Caroline Smith

Nine: Art Direction: John Myhre; Set Decoration: Gordon Sim

Sherlock Holmes: Art Direction: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer

The Young Victoria: Art Direction: Patrice Vermette; Set Decoration: Maggie Gray

Imaginarium!!

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Avatar: Mauro Fiore

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: Bruno Delbonnel
The Hurt Locker: Barry Ackroyd
Inglourious Basterds: Robert Richardson
The White Ribbon: Christian Berger

This is shocking - no Roger Deakins for A Serious Man? You mean, people don't have to be nominated just because they've been nominated before? Also - Avatar? Really? Does that count?

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Bright Star -- Janet Patterson
Coco before Chanel -- Catherine Leterrier
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus -- Monique Prudhomme
Nine - Colleen Atwood
The Young Victoria

Well thank god Bright Star wasn't a complete shutout. Harrumph.

BEST DOCUMENTARY

• "Burma VJ" Anders Østergaard and Lise Lense-Møller
• "The Cove" Nominees to be determined
• "Food, Inc." Robert Kenner and Elise Pearlstein
• "The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers" Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith
• "Which Way Home" Rebecca Cammisa

Yay Food, Inc. and the Cove!

BEST EDITING

• "Avatar" Stephen Rivkin, John Refoua and James Cameron
• "District 9" Julian Clarke
• "The Hurt Locker" Bob Murawski and Chris Innis
• "Inglourious Basterds" Sally Menke
• "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire" Joe Klotz

District 9 is doing well....

BEST FOREIGN FILM

• "Ajami" Israel
• "El Secreto de Sus Ojos" Argentina
• "The Milk of Sorrow" Peru
• "Un Prophète" France
• "The White Ribbon" Germany

Yay - I want to see The White Ribbon and Un Prophete

BEST MAKEUP

• "Il Divo" Aldo Signoretti and Vittorio Sodano
• "Star Trek" Barney Burman, Mindy Hall and Joel Harlow
• "The Young Victoria" Jon Henry Gordon and Jenny Shircore

Could there be 3 more different nominees?

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

• "Avatar" James Horner
• "Fantastic Mr. Fox" Alexandre Desplat
• "The Hurt Locker" Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders
• "Sherlock Holmes" Hans Zimmer
• "Up" Michael Giacchino

Yay Fantastic Mr. Fox!

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

• "Almost There" from "The Princess and the Frog" Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
• "Down in New Orleans" from "The Princess and the Frog" Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
• "Loin de Paname" from "Paris 36" Music by Reinhardt Wagner Lyric by Frank Thomas
• "Take It All" from "Nine" Music and Lyric by Maury Yeston
• "The Weary Kind (Theme from Crazy Heart)" from "Crazy Heart" Music and Lyric by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett

Oh thank god Paul McCartney didn't get a nom just for being him. Then again, I almost wanted a U2 nomination, so something for Brothers would get in...

BEST SOUND

• "Avatar" Christopher Boyes and Gwendolyn Yates Whittle
• "The Hurt Locker" Paul N.J. Ottosson
• "Inglourious Basterds" Wylie Stateman
• "Star Trek" Mark Stoeckinger and Alan Rankin
• "Up" Michael Silvers and Tom Myers

BEST SOUND EFFECTS EDITING

• "Avatar" Christopher Boyes, Gary Summers, Andy Nelson and Tony Johnson
• "The Hurt Locker" Paul N.J. Ottosson and Ray Beckett
• "Inglourious Basterds" Michael Minkler, Tony Lamberti and Mark Ulano
• "Star Trek" Anna Behlmer, Andy Nelson and Peter J. Devlin
• "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers and Geoffrey Patterson

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

• "Avatar" Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R. Jones
• "District 9" Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers, Robert Habros and Matt Aitken
• "Star Trek" Roger Guyett, Russell Earl, Paul Kavanagh and Burt Dalton

DISTRICT 9!!!!

Burninator!

I am so loving Flight of the Conchords. Clips for your enjoyment here, here, and - maybe most amazingly - here. Also, I hate to say it, but without the beard, Bret kind of looks like Frodo. (I will also say that the show reminds me a bit of the Mighty Boosh. (Do they have that show in America?))

Since my last post I saw The Lookout, which was pretty good, the Notorious Bettie Page, which I enjoyed, although I felt the ending was a bit abrupt, and Enchanted, which I found amusing, particularly James Marsden's clueless prince.

I'd also like to point out that In Bruges is now out on DVD. It is most likely going to end up in my top 10 films of the year. I really, really highly recommend it. It is very dark and very funny.

7 moments of George Carlin greatness My brother and I were lucky enough to see him at Davies Symphony Hall a few years back. The stage at Davies had never seen that kind of language. Probably never will again...

The Saturn Awards SUCKED Seriously. Enchanted over STARDUST?!? Cloverfied over SUNSHINE?!? Although I'm okay with 300 for action and Sweeney Todd for Horror. No, it isn't a straight-up horror flick and I'm sure it won for being mainstream and critically adored. However, Tim Burton certainly made the scariest version of the story possible; the way he filmed the bodies being turned into meat was pretty horrific. And fairly brilliant.

Rip Roarin' ammo fest 'Wanted' is a Can't Miss


Wall*E downplays message


I saw this ad in EW. It made me laugh.

7 Chick flicks for guys Or for those of us who won't touch chick flicks with a ten foot pole. That was one thing I noticed about Definitely, Maybe. I usually cannot stand romantic comedies as a genre, but this stood out as something I'd like to see at some point. The list is fairly standard, Jerry Maguire aside (ugh.).

Is the sky falling on indies? Well, I was disappointed by the returns for Snow Angels and Joshua the year before. (Joshua may have been the most under appreciated film of the year.) Certainly the angle on Sundance coverage this year was the slow buyers market. I think once this year's crop of films gets released, there'll be a better idea of how things stand.

Arrested Development movie Maybe. I don't actually see anything in that quote that confirms a film.

Revisiting Brideshead

The Geek Beat: Super Careers

Youth in Revolt has a great cast

19 one scene wonders I'd add Sam Rockwell in Jarhead, but his scene only made it on the DVD, unfortunately.

Defiance screens Includes a comparison to the Wind that Shakes the Barley, which instantly makes me much more interested.

Is Wall*E the most expensive silent film ever? Umm.. first off, awesome. I love silent films. But doesn't Eve talk?

Hancock billboard amuses passing Londoners, film bloggers across pond I don't find the billboard as amusing as the fact that someone originally titled the film "Tonight, He Comes." What the???

Kate Winslet gets old for the Reader

Ann Curry prowls for James McAvoy Aah!

Could you shoot curvy bullets? This calls for... Mythbusters!

Movie posters vie for street cred

Poster premiere: Death Defying Acts

Sam Riley to play Robin Hood While I've heard great things about Control... I'm not sure he can cancel out Russell Crowe and Sienna Miller.

Watchmen trailer to go before the Dark Knight? Stuff at Comic Con? Neither of these (if true) seem particularly surprising. And it isn't as if there'd be any Watchmen fans not already seeing the Dark Knight when it opens...

Morning spoilers. Hello pretty Milo. Seriously, bless whichever costume designer picks out Peter's coats. And yes, I'm biased, but who doesn't look better with dark hair? Hayden Panettiere, Cameron Diaz, Sarah Jessica Parker, Sienna Miller, Gwenyth Paltrow. Still, I guess it's lucky for brunettes that so few Hollywood blonds choose to stay dark.

Sam news! Sam and Anna Faris to shoot Linda Lovelace biopic this summer?

And I'm reposting Cleolinda's entry about the following bit of news, because she's brilliant; "Hopkins Confirmed As Lear. Apparently Naomi Watts will also join Gwyneth Paltrow and Keira Knightley as the third daughter. Quoth the director, an "American newcomer," "It's pre-Roman, Celtic, very raw. It's a period in British history, from which Tolkien took a lot of his inspiration, where there were thatched-roof roundhouses and fortresses." AND THE TROGDOR COMES IN THE NIIIIIIIGHT!"