Awards Season 2007

[Barmy]

An anonymous New York Film Critics Circle source has passed along notes about this morning's voting: "There was nothing too exciting this time. Rex Reed made a vomiting noise the first time there was a vote for Francis Coppola's Youth Without Youth, which prompted NYFCC chief Stephen Whitty to quip, 'And a special award to Rex for sitting through it.' N.Y. Press critic Armond White gave a passionate speech arguing against the proposed Lifetime Achievement Award for director Sidney Lumet (Before The Devil Knows You're Dead) on the grounds that Lumet sucks and always has, but that's about it. Oh, and there was a good protest vote for Best Actress with Bianca the doll (from Lars and the Real Girl) being pushed over Julie Christie."

link

[patrick]

It looks like Zodiac is dead in the water, which is a shame. I was hoping that Paramount might put some end-of-the-year weight behind it to make up for kind of burying it in March.

So Sweeney Todd is really good enough to be making lists off of the very limited preview screenings it's had? I'm still not expecting it to make any waves at the Oscars, according to IMDB Burton has never gotten any nominations except for one related to The Corpse Bride - is that correct? I'm sure it'll get some costume/design nods.

Also, somewhat surprisingly, no trace of Paul Dano to be found.

[domino harvey]

N.Y. Press critic Armond White gave a passionate speech arguing against the proposed Lifetime Achievement Award for director Sidney Lumet (Before The Devil Knows You're Dead) on the grounds that Lumet sucks and always has

link

from a comment posted below, aka White loses this and any argument he ever wants to make:

A; Well, you need a better example than Lumet. What about The Darjeeling Limited? In a world that has The Darjeeling Limited, Sidney Lumet should be imprisoned!

[patrick]

A; Well, you need a better example than Lumet. What about The Darjeeling Limited? In a world that has The Darjeeling Limited, Sidney Lumet should be imprisoned!

douchechills

[criterionsnob]

Slant 2007 Year in Film

[Cold Bishop]

wha? - Why is it suddenly asking me for a password?

I must say, I hadn't even heard of The Golden Door prior to his list. Can anyone second his recommendation?

[Barmy]

I must say, I hadn't even heard of The Golden Door prior to his list. Can anyone second his recommendation?

No.

[Jeff]

Golden Globe nominations

Best Motion Picture - Drama

American Gangster
Imagine Entertainment/Scott Free Productions; Universal Pictures

Atonement
Working Title Productions; Focus Features

Eastern Promises
Kudos Pictures – UK Serendipity Point Films – Canada A UK/Canada Co-Production; Focus Features

The Great Debaters
Harpo Films; The Weinstein Company/MGM

Michael Clayton
Clayton Productions LLC; Warner Bros. Pictures

No Country for Old Men
A Scott Rudin/Mike Zoss Production; Miramax/Paramount Vantage

There Will Be Blood
A Joanne Sellar/Ghoulardi Film Company Production; Paramount Vantage and Miramax Films

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama

Cate Blanchett – Elizabeth: The Golden Age

Julie Christie – Away From Her

Jodie Foster – The Brave One

Angelina Jolie – A Mighty Heart

Keira Knightley – Atonement

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama

George Clooney – Michael Clayton

Daniel Day-Lewis – There Will Be Blood

James McAvoy – Atonement

Viggo Mortensen – Eastern Promises

Denzel Washington – American Gangster

Best Motion Picture - Musical Or Comedy

Across The Universe
Revolution Studios International; Sony Pictures Releasing

Charlie Wilson's War
Universal Pictures/Relativity Media/Participant Productions/Playtone; Universal Pictures

Hairspray
New Line Cinema in association with Ingenious Film Partners; New Line Cinema

Juno
Mandate Pictures/Mr. Mudd Production; Fox Searchlight Pictures

Sweeney Todd
Parkes/Mac Donald and Zanuck Company; Warner Bros. Pictures

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy

Amy Adams – Enchanted

Nikki Blonsky – Hairspray

Helena Bonham Carter – Sweeney Todd

Marion Cotillard – La Vie En Rose

Ellen Page – Juno

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical Or Comedy

Johnny Depp – Sweeney Todd

Ryan Gosling – Lars and the Real Girl

Tom Hanks – Charlie Wilson's War

Philip Seymour Hoffman – The Savages

John C. Reilly – Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story

Best Performance by an Actress In A Supporting Role in a Motion Picture

Cate Blanchett – I'm Not There

Julia Roberts – Charlie Wilson's War

Saoirse Ronan – Atonement

Amy Ryan – Gone Baby Gone

Tilda Swinton – Michael Clayton

Best Performance by an Actor In A Supporting Role in a Motion Picture

Casey Affleck – The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford

Javier Bardem – No Country for Old Men

Philip Seymour Hoffman – Charlie Wilson's War

John Travolta – Hairspray

Tom Wilkinson – Michael Clayton

Best Animated Feature Film

Bee Movie
DreamWorks Animation; DreamWorks Animation

Ratatouille
Pixar; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Distribution

The Simpsons Movie
Gracie Films; Twentieth Century Fox

Best Foreign Languge Film

4 Months, 3 Weeks And 2 Days (Romania)
Mobra Films; IFC First Take

The Diving Bell And The Butterfly (France, United States)
A Kennedy/Marshall Company and Jon Kilik Production; Miramax/Paramount Vantage

The Kite Runner (United States)
DreamWorks Pictures Sidney Kimmel Entertainment and Paramount Classics Participant Productions Present a Sidney Kimmel Entertainment and Parkes/Macdonald Production Distributed by Paramount Classics

Lust, Caution (Taiwan)
Haishang Films; Focus Features

Persepolis (France)
247 Films; Sony Pictures Classics

[Andre Jurieu]

So, I guess that pops Charlie Wilson's War and American Gangster back into contention. This is going to be one painful awards season.

[Napoleon]

If I wasn't at work I might well have dozed off while reading those Golden Globe noms.

[souvenir]

So, I guess that pops Charlie Wilson's War and American Gangster back into contention. This is going to be one painful awards season.

Not necessarily. With 12 movies nominated in their 2 major best film categories, the Golden Globes seem less relevant than ever. Add to that the fact that another 2 potential Best Picture Oscar nominees are in the foreign category and it makes things even less clear. Aside from these nominations conspicuously ignoring Into the Wild after the Broadcast Film Critics gave it several nominations, I don't think anything's changed dramatically. If American Gangster was really so well loved then Ruby Dee would have been nominated somewhere.

[Andre Jurieu]

With 12 movies nominated in their 2 major best film categories, the Golden Globes seem less relevant than ever.

Very true, but they still serve as a signal to the Academy of what films they believe they should be devoting their attention towards. I'm not saying that Charlie Wilson's War and American Gangster are certain to score Oscar nominations now, but their inclusion within the Golden Globes boosts their profile, which makes them relevant again. If they hadn't received GG noms (which was realistically just wishful thinking on my part, since their inclusion was almost inevitable really) their Oscar campaign would have been on life-support.

Add to that the fact that another 2 potential Best Picture Oscar nominees are in the foreign category and it makes things even less clear.

Which 2 film did you have in mind? I was thinking the only serious contender among those films was The Diving Bell And The Butterfly. The content within 4 Months... and Lust, Caution is probably too graphic for the Academy.

Based on the Golden Globe nominees, I would say Eastern Promises will probably be ignored by the Academy since many voters will just believe it to be a cheesy-gangster pick on the surface. If Cronenberg had made the child-prostitution angle his focus the Academy might have eaten it up. I think the Great Debaters doesn't represent a serious threat, since it feels like the Hollywood Foreign Press making a concession to Oprah and the Weinsteins. That leaves 5 serious contenders in the drama category, though I'm thinking There Will Be Blood will be too cynical for the Academy's tastes.

As for the Musical and Comedy category, I think we can automatically eliminate Across The Universe and Hairspray since they seem to be obligatory noms for musicals. So that leaves 3 serious contenders from that category. So realistically, the list of potential Oscar nominees probably looks something like this:

American Gangster
Atonement
Michael Clayton
No Country for Old Men
There Will Be Blood
Charlie Wilson's War
Juno
Sweeney Todd
The Diving Bell And The Butterfly

[malcolm1980]

I think the nominations for American Gangster and Charlie Wilson's War are flukes. I doubt if BOTH of them score a lot of noms come Oscar time.

[souvenir]

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly and The Kite Runner both still have a chance for a Best Picture nomination I think. Both were in the BFCA list. Into the Wild isn't dead yet either and I'm stunned Hal Holbrook was snubbed today.

I think there are maybe 7 major contenders and a few more minor ones for Best Picture at this point. No Country for Old Men seems set. Sweeney Todd still has to open but looks like a near lock. Michael Clayton is the perfect AMPAS movie so I think it's in. Atonement probably also. That leaves, in my opinion, the fifth slot with Juno, There Will Be Blood, and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly all trying to squeeze in.

American Gangster, Into the Wild, Charlie Wilson's War, and The Kite Runner all have outside chances, but seem unlikely at this point (though I'm hesitant to necessarily rule out the last two since they've not yet opened).

[THX1378]

Before The Devil Knows Your Dead is dead in the water now. I'm shocked that Sidney Lumet didn't even get a nom for best director. The love for Charlie Willison's War doesn't suprise me. It's a good film, but it's just filler. And least we forget that the year that the Globes gave a nom for Patch Adams for best picture.

[Jeff]

The presence of Charlie Wilson's War and American Gangster is largely indicative of The HFPA's reputation for starfucking. They want Denzel and Julia and Tom at their party. Andre's right that it boosts their profile, but I'd be very surprised if both of them carried over with the Academy. Gangster is the most likely of the two.

I think that The Kite Runner's chances are diminishing. If it had much of a shot, you would have seen Forester's name in the director category.

Lumet still has a shot at the "lone director" slot with the Academy. Remember, the best director nominations for Oscar will be made by members of the director's branch of the Academy. Lumet doesn't mean much to the HFPA, but he's still a bit of an icon to members of the director's guild.

[Andre Jurieu]

I think the nominations for American Gangster and Charlie Wilson's War are flukes. I doubt if BOTH of them score a lot of noms come Oscar time.

The presence of Charlie Wilson's War and American Gangster is largely indicative of The HFPA's reputation for starfucking. They want Denzel and Julia and Tom at their party. Andre's right that it boosts their profile, but I'd be very surprised if both of them carried over with the Academy.

I agree that it's unlikely that both films wind up getting Oscar nominations. I'm just chagrined that their Oscar campaigns are still alive and kicking. This means more interviews with Roberts regarding a potential Oscar, which I'm looking forward to about as much as gastrointestinal surgery without the anaesthetic.

[Jeff]

Here are the winners from the Chicago Film Critics:

BEST PICTURE – "No Country for Old Men"

BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM – "4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days"

BEST DIRECTOR – Joel & Ethan Coen for "No Country for Old Men"

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY – Diablo Cody for" Juno"

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY – Joel & Ethan Coen for "No Country for Old Men"

BEST ACTOR – Daniel Day-Lewis for "There Will Be Blood"

BEST ACTRESS – Ellen Page for "Juno"

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR – Javier Bardem for "No Country for Old Men"

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS – Cate Blanchett for "I'm Not There"

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE – Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova for "Once"

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY – Roger Deakins for "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford"

BEST DOCUMENTARY – "Sicko"

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE – "Ratatouille"

MOST PROMISING PERFORMER – Michael Cera for "Juno" and "Superbad"

MOST PROMISING FILMMAKER – Ben Affleck for "Gone Baby Gone"

[Jeff]

Boy, the British critics have much better taste than the Americans. Go British people!

LONDON FILM CRITICS ASSOCIATION:

Film of the Year
No Country For Old Men (Paramount)
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (Warner)
There Will Be Blood (Disney)
Zodiac (Warner)
The Bourne Ultimatum (Universal)

The Attenborough Award for British Film of the Year
Once (Icon)
Control (Momentum)
Atonement (Universal)
Eastern Promises (Pathe)
This Is England (Optimum)

Foreign Language Film of the Year
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Pathe)
4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days (Artificial Eye)
The Lives of Others (Lionsgate)
Letters from Iwo Jima (Warner)
Tell No One (Revolver)

Director of the Year
Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck - The Lives of Others (Lionsgate)
Paul Thomas Anderson – There Will Be Blood (Disney)
Joel and Ethan Coen – No Country For Old Men (Paramount)
David Fincher – Zodiac (Warner)
Cristian Mungui – 4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days (Artificial Eye)

British Director of the Year
Anton Corbijn – Control (Momentum)
Paul Greengrass – The Bourne Ultimatum (Universal)
Shane Meadows – This Is England (Optimum)
Joe Wright – Atonement (Universal)
Danny Boyle – Sunshine (Fox)

Actor of the Year
Ulrich Muhe – The Lives of Others (Lionsgate)
Casey Affleck – The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (Warner)
George Clooney – Michael Clayton (Pathe)
Tommy Lee Jones – In the Valley of Elah (Optimum)
Daniel Day Lewis – There Will Be Blood (Disney)

Actress of the Year
Laura Linney – The Savages (Fox)
Marion Cotillard – La Vie En Rose (Icon)
Maggie Gyllenhaall – Sherry Baby (Metrodome)
Angelina Jolie – A Mighty Heart (Paramount)
Anamaria Marinca – 4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days (Artificial Eye)

British Actor of the Year
Sam Riley - Control (Momentum)
James McAvoy – Atonement (Universal)
Christian Bale – 3:10 to Yuma (Lionsgate)
Jim Broadbent - And When Did You Last See Your Father (Disney)
Jonny Lee Miller – The Flying Scotsman (Verve)

British Actress of the Year
Samantha Morton – Control (Momentum)
Julie Christie – Away From Her (Metrodome)
Keira Knightley – Atonement (Universal)
Helena Bonham Carter – Sweeney Todd (Warner)
Sienna Miller – Interview (The Works)

British Actor in a Supporting Role
Tom Wilkinson – Michael Clayton (Pathe)
Toby Jones – The Painted Veil (Momentum)
Alfred Molina – The Hoax (Momentum)
Tobey Kebell – Control (Momentum)
Albert Finney – Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (Entertainment)

British Actress in a Supporting Role
Saoirse Ronan – Atonement (Universal)
Imelda Staunton – Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Warner)
Tilda Swinton – Michael Clayton (Pathe)
Kelly Macdonald – No Country for Old Men (Paramount)
Vanessa Redgrave – Atonement (Universal)

Screenwriter of the Year
Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck – The Lives of Others (Lionsgate)
Joel and Ethan Coen – No Country for Old Men (Paramount)
Paul Thomas Anderson – There Will Be Blood (Disney)
Ronald Harwood – The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Pathe)
Christopher Hampton – Atonement (Universal)

British Breakthrough – Acting
Saoirse Ronan – Atonement (Universal)
Sam Riley - Control (Momentum)
Thomas Turgoose – This Is England (Optimum)
Benedict Cumberbatch – Amazing Grace (Momentum)
Dakota Blue Richards – The Golden Compass (Entertainment)

British Breakthrough – Film-making
John Carney, writer and director – Once (Icon)
Sarah Gavron, director – Brick Lane (Optimum)
Anton Corbijn, director – Control (Momentum)
Matt Greenhalgh, writer – Control (Momentum)
Stevan Riley, writer, director and producer – Blue Blood (Miracle)

[Barmy]

Yay. One other person besides me rates "Tell No One".

Overall the list is only slightly less predictable and bland than the US lists.

[patrick]

Wow, at least the British have got it right in regards to Zodiac. All in all, some excellent choices.

I'm betting that the Golden Globe nom for The Great Debaters will be the fluke of the season. Has it even screened for critics yet?

It also seems like Charlie Wilson's War is still picking up steam, to my surprise. I wonder if it'll rack up a bunch of nominations and not win any awards.

[Jeff]

I'm betting that the Golden Globe nom for The Great Debaters will be the fluke of the season. Has it even screened for critics yet?

Yeah, it screened a few weeks ago. "Inspirational" stories are right up the HFPA's alley.

[Jeff]

American Film Institute's Ten Movies of the Year

BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU'RE DEAD
THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY
INTO THE WILD
JUNO
KNOCKED UP
MICHAEL CLAYTON
NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
RATATOUILLE
THE SAVAGES
THERE WILL BE BLOOD

[domino harvey]

American Film Institute's Ten Movies of the Year

BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU'RE DEAD
THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY
INTO THE WILD
JUNO
KNOCKED UP
MICHAEL CLAYTON
NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
RATATOUILLE
THE SAVAGES
THERE WILL BE BLOOD

?

[Cde.]

A good portion of the crew are American.

It's an American film with an American director and screenwriter filmed in France with a French cast and some French crewmembers. Let's not fall for the hype of the 'little French movie that could' here.