Annual Awards Nerdism - Oscar Predictions (with poetry) - Acting and Directing

Well lookie here, I'm back to my world famous (okay, maybe not), fantastic prediction poetry that everyone loves. I am not a poet, nor do I have any intentions of becoming one, but normal predictions do bore me a little bit and spinning a rhyme is one of my favourite things to do. It is dry stuff, but hopefully you find some joy in it...

Best Achievement in Directing 

Alfonso Cuaron - Gravity / Steve McQueen - 12 Years a Slave / David O. Russell - American Hustle / Martin Scorsese - The Wolf of Wall Street / Alexander Payne - Nebraska

Without Paul Greengrass it's not really the same,
Especially as his place went to Alexander Payne,
Remember that film The Descendants with the Cloon?
I think everyone forgot that pretty soon,
Nebraska's chances here are pretty grey
(yeah, thinking of that joke took me all day)
Since this time the Cloon is out in space,
And Alfonso Cuaron is likely to win this race,
Meaning there could be a Pic/Director split,
But I don't think Steve McQueen will quit,
It's great to see him getting notice for 12 Years a Slave,
Even if I'm pretending it's really for Shame,
And then there's Oscar favourite David O. Russell,
Getting his third nomination for American Hustle,
Which is great for making an easy rhyme,
But I didn't find the movie to be a good time,
Yet, my loyalties lie with The Wolf of Wall Street,
With Martin Scorsese's direction being no mean feat,
Because his direction is terrifyingly fun,
And better than anyone else could do at 71.

All I can say is that I want Alfonso Cuaron to win because Gravity is easily the best directed film of the decade, but then I want Steve McQueen to win because 12 Years a Slave makes the third out of three movies of his that got 5/5 from me. But I also want Martin Scorsese to win because his direction of The Wolf of Wall Street is so amazing because he is taking the piss out of so much and it is beautiful. And yeah, I haven't seen Nebraska so I can't comment on Alexander Payne and well...not a fan of either David O. Russell or American Hustle. Apart from the fact that they rhyme. Whenever I say "American Hustle by David O. Russell" I automatically feel like putting my hood up, getting out my grills and corn rows and start an underground rap career.

At least I took something away from that movie...

Questions About Improv, Brought to you by American Hustle's Non-Existent Script

I wouldn't say I have a lot of dramatic training - I did it all through school with considerably good grades and both performed in and directed several stage shows - but there's one thing that we're trained to do: stick to the script. Many days and nights are spent going over the lines, with annotations adorning the margins, and when it comes time to do the performance, the only worry is if you're going to stuff up one of those meticulously learned lines. One of the greatest things that can happen is if someone does end up stuffing up, who will take the initiative to improvise and cover up the missed line so the audience is left none the wiser?

If you're that person (as I have been quite a few times), there's nothing that can rival that sense of achievement and pride.

But that's only a line. What happens when you're given a story and a character and you have to make up everything they say?

This week I had the interesting experience of viewing both Drinking Buddies and American Hustle, two films that were heavily improvised by the actors. As someone who doesn't think cinema gets much better than The Social Network's script and with ambitions of becoming a screenwriter myself, wonders how you can get an improvised feature made, I have a few conflicting thoughts about fully improvising films.

Late Night Thoughts #6 (in the morning): Go get it, McConaughey/DiCaprio Domination/Barkhad Abdi's my new fave person

-No, I'm not going to do a full post on the Oscar nominations. For one thing, by the time I get around to doing them, like eight hours after the nominations, they're old news. And for another thing, I've found that people don't generally respond to awards coverage. Well, definitely not in the last few years I've done it, anyway.

-Plus, I can't really add anything new. The Tom Hanks snub sucked. American Hustle seems to be the buzz, and I'm going to reserve judgement until I see the film (possibly next week), but is this The King's Speech of this year? I reckon it is totally going to True Grit things - have all those nominations but no awards to show for it.

-Also, The Great Gatsby getting no love in the song section hurt, too. WTF is Alone Yet Not Alone?

-Anyway, so here's the story of nominations night: they were at 2.30am, and even though I was supposed to get sleep before and after then, I was up all night sick. However, I managed to contain the stomach flu for the nominations, but I had to do silent fist pumps so I wouldn't wake the house (like I did when Rooney Mara got nominated). There were a lot of silent fist pumps. First, for Jonah Hill. I knew it was going to happen (but sadface for Daniel Bruhl, though). Then for Sally Hawkins, who I knew I was right for predicting - remember when everyone thought it wouldn't happen? Then for Before Midnight getting a screenplay nod. And then for my girl Amy Adams for finally breaking through into the lead category. Started from the bottom now you here, Amy.

-And then along came Best Actor. When Christian Bale got called, I was like "no, no, no, no, no, dear god no that is Leo's spot". And then it happened. All of my hopes and dreams came true in that one moment. I didn't even pay attention to the rest of the nominations.

-But "Academy Award nominee Matthew McConaughey" sounds perfect, doesn't it?

-Anyway, this wasn't the only time of the week that Leo made my hopes and dreams come true. Of course, the Golden Globes - a.k.a the only awards show I'll be able to watch fully this year - happened and he got the award there, too. Ah, it was perfection.

-The Golden Globes were very entertaining. Was very happy to see Matty M, Amy Adams, Jared Leto, Alfonso Cuaron and Steve McQueen get awards. Plus, Amy and Tina were gold. Can't really say too much other than that - just flip through my Twitter feed for my uncensored, unedited thoughts.

-But I must say, I keep watching Matty M's speech because I love hearing him say "alright, alright, alriiiiiight" and "go get it, McConaughey". Like I swear that's going to be my new catchphrase for awards season: "go get it, McConaughey". I seriously need to stop saying it in real life situations.

-I really wish we could just have Jessica Chastain giving Matthew McConaughey awards all season. Their cute friendship makes me all the more excited about Interstellar.

-It would seem that Jennifer Lawrence backlash is the new black right now. Now, I love her as a person. I loved her in Winter's Bone and particularly The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. I'm still a little angry about her winning for Silver Linings Playbook, as I don't think she ever owned her character. And it appears that the same thing happens with American Hustle. I dunno - she has an exceptionally good filmography and she's an exceptionally good performer, but she seems to be getting an awful lot of praise for movies she's not necessarily right for. If she wins that Oscar this year, the backlash will be terrible. But I think that's going to go to Lupita Nyong'o, who broke my heart in 12 Years a Slave. Well, at least I hope it does.

-On the opposite end of the spectrum, and awards getter that I'm loving at the moment is Barkhad Abdi. Maybe I'm a sucker for stories like his, but it is so awesome how he does literally one film and then gets nominated for an Oscar. He's really sweet, too.

-I've been catching up on 2013 films, with films like Short Term 12 (man, y'all were right, such a great film), Rush (I liked it, a bit sad Daniel Bruhl didn't get nommed but no big loss), Dallas Buyers Club (go get it, McConaughey), 12 Years a Slave (yeah...I've never cried so much in my life. Steve McQueen has the most perfect filmography of anyone), and...The Canyons, which I will probably write a post about in the next week or so. Man, that was an experience.

-The next and final installment in my "money" series will take a look at Side Effects and Blue Jasmine, but I'm just waiting for Blue Jasmine to come out on DVD so I can watch it again. And soak up the amazingness of Cate Blanchett and Sally Hawkins.

-And in non-movie related news, I got my exam results back. I managed to achieve Level 3 with Merit endorsed (which I suppose is like a solid B-grade/A- for you Americans), which I was told at the start of the year I couldn't do because I was Head Girl. Ha. Also managed to get Excellence endorsed in Level 3 English (solid A+ grade), getting Excellences in everything I did apart from my damn Othello essay, which I got Merit in. And I also got Merit endorsed in Drama. And yeah, that's high school completely done. I didn't fail anything last year, which was also quite the achievement. I got my acceptance letter into Canterbury and have to scrape together so much money - uni is so hard and I haven't even gone yet!

-Oh crap, just realised the SAG awards are tomorrow. I won't be watching, as I have work, but I don't really see the point as Leo isn't nominated anyway. Alas, my quick predictions would be: Best Ensemble - probably American Hustle since everyone loves it, but judging by only having Jennifer Lawrence nominated, this could well go to 12 Years a Slave (as it should); Best Actor - I imagine this is going to Matthew McConaughey, but there could always be a spoiler from Bruce Dern; Best Actress - Cate Blanchett, no doubt; Best Supporting Actor - Jared Leto, no doubt; Best Supporting Actress - most likely Lupita Nyong'o - I only think Jennifer Lawrence's chances would be helped if the rest of her cast was individually nominated.

-And make sure you listen to the Across the Universe podcast, where the Chicks with Accents discuss/cry over The Wolf of Wall Street. It's beautiful.

What's been going on in your cinematic lives lately?

2013 was the Year of...

2013 was a pretty big year. Perhaps not in my film watching (which will be shown in my unofficial Top 15 that'll be posted up tomorrow morning), but there were plenty of things that I loved about this crazy year. So here's a big gigantic mess of the things that made 2013 what it was for me, some of which are movie related, most of which is culture related, and just the general happenings of 2013 that will remain landmarks for the year. Kinda like flipping through the back pages of my diary. But more interesting than my diary would be if I actually had time to keep one.

The Actors 

Daniel Day-Lewis
Yup, this was definitely my biggest actor obsession of the year. Spurred off by my drama class doing The Crucible, and then turning into this big thing where all I'd do with my spare time is watch his Oscar acceptance speeches over and over (I haven't watched one in about three weeks - have I been rehabilitated?). All other spare time was taken up by watching all of his movies. Which brought me to the lovely My Beautiful Laundrette, the awe-inspiring My Left Foot, the rather restrained The Age of Innocence, the amazing In the Name of the Father, of course The Crucible, the gutsy The Boxer, the violent Gangs of New York, the heartbreaking The Ballad of Jack and Rose, a rewatch of There Will Be Blood which boosted my love for the film, a rewatch of Nine which dragged down my supposed love for that film, and a couple of watches of Lincoln which just exemplifies how Daniel has mastered his craft. I wish I had at least 40% of his commitment.

Bradley Cooper
This has been a banner year for Bradley Cooper, an actor who I've long been in love with since The Hangover back in 2009. Along comes Silver Linings Playbook, which shows what I've long known: Bradley Cooper is one talented actor who is more than just the "eye candy" status that the woman's magazines like to lay on him. The Place Beyond the Pines gave him another chance to show how talented he is, and I hear that he's one of the best things about American Hustle. Hopefully The Hangover has been long left behind, and it is only up from here.

Making the Case for Elizabeth Debicki + Blogathon Entries

Yes, I know there were 10,000 better films that came out in 2013, but truth is, I've only seen around 30 2013 films (I wish I was joking), and by far, the one that stuck was The Great Gatsby. As is documented here, I don't really like the film all that much as an adaptation, but I liked it enough to see it six times since June. Reason? This flawless lady right here:

Yes, the marvellous debut actress Elizabeth Debicki is cruelly underused in the film. They cut out her all important final scene (but the deleted scene does exist, and she is flawless, so we'll pretend that it is still a part of the film). Of all the actors in the film, she has her character so incredibly aligned with F. Scott Fitzgerald's description. In fact, the part where Jordan is described is pretty much my favourite example of Fitzgerald's writing (apart from the amazing final lines), and to see Debicki pull off those few moments so flawlessly ensured that I would love the film.

Debicki just fits so perfectly into the time period, with her look and her voice, shedding off the feelings of imitations that plagued Carey Mulligan and Joel Edgerton. I'd be happy if we had a whole film of just her and her poor driving skills, lies about leaving the car roof down and her adventures through golfing. Unfortunately, we didn't get that, but one can only imagine what kind of talent Debicki would have brought to the table. Her vibrance is something that I look forward to seeing in the future.

But one can't forget: Leonardo DiCaprio as Gatsby. He's (supposed to be) getting buzz for The Wolf of Wall Street, and the Best Actor race is damn over-crowded this year, so any chance of him getting proper recognition for his work as Gatsby is slim. Alas, he fits Gatsby like a glove, perfectly portraying Gatsby's fantastical dreams and self-built delusions. Would have been interesting to see how he'd have fared if the film was released closer to awards season (probably not well, knowing his track record).

Other mentions, from the handful of films I've seen:

The Place Beyond the Pines - Best Supporting Actor, Bradley Cooper
He may have a bit more traction with American Hustle, but out of the fine ensemble - which does include a brilliant Ryan Gosling - Bradley Cooper really proved his worth here. It is hard to put my finger on exactly what it is that he does so well here, but he just brings such a vulnerability to someone reluctantly put at hero status. Speaking of...

Catching Fire - Best Actress, Jennifer Lawrence
...another person reluctantly put at hero status. And also another person who has a better chance with American Hustle. But Jennifer is wonderful in this film, navigating the tricky business of being Katniss Everdeen with more fluidity than she showed in the first film. She truly does make this teen franchise one of a high calibre.

The Past - Best Actress, Berenice Bejo
Why isn't this getting more love? Sure, Bejo won the Cannes award for Best Actress, and rightly so, but the love seemed to stop there. She plays one hell of a character, and is probably one of the "strong female characters" that actually deserves that paper thin title. She's flawed, frustrating and ferocious, and definitely a far cry from the preppy Peppy Miller from The Artist. Due credit should also go to Asghar Farhadi for another thrilling screenplay that uses words as weapons.

Side Effects - Best Actress, Rooney Mara
This film, though released very early in the year, is still one of my absolute favourites. It is so twisted, evoking this Hitchcockian feel that many modern thrillers lack. One of my favourite things about this film was the chilling performance by Rooney Mara, who played one of the more twisted and complicated characters of the year with surprising ease. If Lisbeth Salander had be terrified of Mara, then Side Effects definitely gave me another reason.

Spring Breakers - Best Cinematography
For one thing, and one thing only: the pink skies that light up some of the scenes in the film. Makes a grimy gangster flick as slick as a Terrence Malick film. Spring Breakers deserves points for being the most colourful, most out there film of the year, but I'm pinning my hopes on a cinematography nomination, because this film was an unsettling feast for the eyes.

Entries into the blogathon:

Mette has some love for Spring Breakers and the categories it should be nominated in. Which includes Best Nail Polish.

Josh makes the case for everything, with an outsider for every category at the Oscars. How I'd love for Before Midnight to get a Best Picture nom!

Brittani makes the case for The East, a movie which I'm still desperate to see. ILY, Brit Marling!

While Gravity is sure to get a lot of love, one person who will probably come out awards season without any recognition is George Clooney. Sati tells us why he should be up there with the party.

Andy has a case to make for Stoker, and the several categories it should be nominated in (a big yes for a Nicole Kidman nom).

And Nikhat went beyond the call of duty and had three cases to make: a case for comedy, a case for Tye Sheridan in Mud, and a case for Greta Gerwig in Frances Ha. Considering I've seen all of the films she's made a case for, major hearts for all of them.

There were only a few entries, so if you wanna get your entry in, tweet at me (@SteveeTaylor) or email it to me (steveetaylor[@]hotmail.co.nz). For now, who is an outsider that you're most rooting for?

Super Late 2012 Retrospective: Top 10 Female Performances

I must admit that 2012 wasn't my favourite year for female performances. In fact, I had a lot of trouble compiling this list, since there was only one person who really really impressed me (as you'll see later in this list). Alas, at least there was no Meryl Streep breaking another Oscar record or that many towering biopics to contend with, and we were left with actresses in indie films getting some great notices. This may be a strange little list, but it was a strange little year for ladies in film.

Honourable mentions: Vanessa Redgrave - Coriolanus, Andrea Riseborough - W.E., Rosemarie DeWitt - Your Sister's Sister, Rashida Jones - Celeste and Jesse Forever, Melanie Lynskey - Hello I Must Be Going, Emily Blunt - Looper, Kelly Reilly - Flight, Alicia Vikander - Anna Karenina, Samantha Barks - Les Miserables

10. Dreama Walker as Becky in Compliance
I remember that there was all this buzz surrounding Ann Dowd's performance in Craig Zobel's uncomfortable Compliance. To be honest, I never understood that buzz. I found that the best in show was actually Dreama Walker, who was the one at the centre of all of the film's controversy. She was the one that had to go through all of the horribly uncomfortable stuff. This was really her film. And she carries it without being alienated by the source material, and instead with a certain sort of maturity in confronting it. I hold a lot of hope for this young actress - it is certainly different from the more mainstream image she's created for herself in Don't Trust the B---- from Apartment 23.

9. Naomi Watts as Maria in The Impossible
One thing that I really admire (as you will see later on in this list) is when somebody actually uses their body in a performance. This can work in one or two ways: have it trained to do glorious things like Natalie Portman's rigorous work in Black Swan, or when the actors have to take their body's ability away. Such is the case with Naomi Watts in The Impossible, who spends much of the film on the brink of exhaustive death. It's a great paradox, but I find that when the body's ability is limited, this is where the acting really shines through. Naomi is a classic example of this, and her utterance of the words "thank you so much" is one of the most devastating, heart-wrenching yet relieving thing that happened in 2012 cinema.

8. Jennifer Lawrence as Tiffany Maxwell in Silver Linings Playbook
Again, Bradley Cooper is my favourite performer in Silver Linings Playbook, and even though I'm still a little annoyed with Jennifer's extremely premature Oscar win, there's no denying that she had a special sort of energy in this film. She was this strange blend of kinetic and magnetic energy, happy one minute and boiling with anger the next. Jennifer plays the part with wisdom and charisma far beyond her years, which makes me realise that this is just another stepping stone in what is shaping up to be a brilliant career.

7. Rachel Weisz at Hester Collyer in The Deep Blue Sea
I didn't really like this movie all that much, but if there was one thing I took away from it, it was how scarily similar Rachel Weisz was to Vivien Leigh. Not just in looks, or poise, but in the tragic way she carries her character. I guess that's testimony to Vivien Leigh being the originator of this role, but Weisz embodies this film and her character in a way that few actresses in period pieces can. She doesn't get lost in the time, she just belongs in it. Such a strange beauty to this performance, but if anyone is brave enough to make a Vivien Leigh biopic, I'll be campaigning for her.

6. Amy Adams as Peggy Dodd in The Master
Joaquin Phoenix is best in show in this film (I couldn't fit him into my unbelievably strong actor's list unfortunately), but Amy Adams was brilliant in every scene she was in. Yes, she's in very few scenes, but she's just so...different. I wouldn't say that she plays all the same kind of role - there was plenty of difference between her roles in Trouble with the Curve and On the Road last year - but this role was pretty special. I felt a little bit frightened by her. And to be frightened by Amy Adams, the sweetest woman in the world...I think that kinda deserves an Oscar.

5. Quvenzhane Wallis as Hushpuppy in Beasts of the Southern Wild
I wasn't the hugest fan of this film (I really should watch it again when I'm not so saddened by the fact that I had to leave Japan), but there's no denying little Quvenzhane Wallis' immense talent. She commands the screen like people five times her age can't even manage. And I can't even begin to process how she does it with such panache, like she's been acting for more years than she's even been alive. Which is a little bit intimidating.

4. Emmanuelle Riva as Anne in Amour
This is just the same as Naomi Watts - this is a performance that requires the actress to limit her body, and that counteracts into an amazing performance. I felt absolutely paralysed by Riva's performance, mainly because she can command so many emotions through a single look. This isn't Riva "acting her age", because what I've seen she's still full of vitality, and I find it so brave that she confronted her age in such a brutally honest way. She was robbed of that Oscar, pure and simple.

3. Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle in The Dark Knight Rises
I'm one of the few people who was cheering with delight when Anne Hathaway won her Oscar for Les Miserables, and have stuck by her through all of this strange Anne hate. She deserved that Oscar, because she literally ripped my soul out and made me cry every time she was on screen. However, this wasn't my favourite performance from Annie in 2012. There's her ferocious, smooth, unyielding performance as Selina Kyle (or Catwoman, as she isn't called in this movie) in The Dark Knight Rises, who steals every single scene she's in. Her voice literally purrs, she moves around so smoothly, and the best thing is that we're never really aware of what her agenda is. This is barely the energetic, beaming Anne Hathaway that we've seen grow up over the past decade. She embodies Selina Kyle, with such athleticism in both the way she moves and the way she acts. And she certainly runs rings around poor old Marion Cotillard, who definitely disappointed in a role that could've been so much more.

2. Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Kate Hannah in Smashed
I always find a certain sense of pride when an actress I've admired for a while - even if they haven't had the most amazing roles in the most amazing films - suddenly breaks through with this amazing performance in an amazing indie film. Such is the case with Mary Elizabeth Winstead's incredible breakthrough in James Ponsdolt's brilliant Smashed. She's had some mildly good supporting roles, but here we see something completely different: an actress playing a normal human being as natural as possible. Which is quite an impressive feat considering this is a film about alcoholism, which gives anyone the assumption that they can just go crazy. Winstead keeps it frighteningly real, and this is a raw, heart-wrenching performance. One that certainly deserved a whole lot more recognition than it got, that's for sure.

1. Jessica Chastain as Maya in Zero Dark Thirty
This will come as little surprise to anyone, but in fact I was surprised to find out why this performance resonated with me so much when I watched it a second time a few weeks back. Maya is probably the closest thing I'll ever get to a character who is like me. Sure, I'm not off trying to find Bin Laden, but her scary determination is something that I connected with all too well. You can say that Maya isn't a character with a huge backstory - she just turns up, is determined and finds Bin Laden - but it doesn't really matter than she doesn't have an emotional monologue detailing every single reason she has behind her determination. The most amazing thing is that Jessica doesn't need that emotional monologue to convince us of anything. She yells sometimes, but her overall presence just commands conviction. My favourite part is when she looks up from identifying Bin Laden and just nods every so slightly to confirm that it is him. Her face is so exhausted and wounded. And then there's the tears at the end. Which really devastated me. I just felt everything in this performance. I can see why it polarises, but from one Maya to another, this is probably the best female performance I've seen in a long while.

What do you think of my choices? Who were your favourite female performances?

Incoherent Thoughts on Silver Linings Playbook

I'm fairly sure that Silver Linings Playbook is one of the hardest movies to write coherently about because it is so crazy and messy. Suffice to say, I've starting writing a review about it approximately 498530 times and I have literally nothing. So I thought I may as well just jot down the thoughts I have about this film in no particular order with no coherence, because that's a whole lot easier. And I'm sure the world doesn't need another review of the movie:

-It was totally predictable. That doesn't work against it, though. It is one of those rare occasions where everything turns out just fine at the end and it really does make you feel great inside, because that's what you've wanted all along. It would have been a little bit better had I not been eagerly anticipating the credits since I desperately needed to use the facilities, but still, it made me feel good.

-The acting is phenomenal. It is what makes this film a cut above other romantic comedies - if you choose to class this film as one of those.

AAN: Where the Awards Stand After the Guilds and BAFTAs

I haven't really covered this year's awards season as much as I would have liked - hell, I just haven't found the time to review Silver Linings Playbook even though I saw it over a week ago - but I've found it a little hard to keep up to the minute with this stuff. So I've waited until after the BAFTAs to throw in my two cents on how the season is going as we head into the final straight. Here's my simple guide to what has been happening...

Best Picture - Well Argo pretty much has this one in the bag. With the Golden Globe, SAG, PGA, DGA and BAFTA under it's belt, there's pretty much no stopping it. I do think there is a little leeway for a spoiler from Lincoln or Zero Dark Thirty or even Amour. I mean, I won't be surprised if it doesn't win.

Best Actor - Yeah, Daniel Day-Lewis has pretty much got this as well. I haven't seen Lincoln but I still get so angry about the fact that he is winning over Hugh Jackman and Bradley Cooper who were both brilliant. Ah well. There's literally no room for anyone else to win in this category.

Best Actress - As has been said, this is pretty much a race between Jennifer Lawrence and Jessica Chastain. I mean, the media is now making up rumours that they hate each other but let's be honest - it isn't a big deal if neither of them win it, and I'm sure they're beyond catty behaviour. I like Jessica Chastain's performance 1000x more than Jennifer Lawrence's (that's not because I love J-Chas more than life itself), but they both have a million more chances to win in the future. However, Emmanuelle Riva won the BAFTA tonight and I think this could happen again come Oscar night. Like really. But I still hope that J-Chas wins.

Best Supporting Actor - Christoph Waltz has won the Golden Globe and the BAFTA, with Tommy Lee Jones winning the SAG, probably because Waltz wasn't nominated. Another Oscar for Waltz? Bet on it.

Best Supporting Actress - Biggest plot twist ever: Anne Hathaway doesn't win.
Not in this lifetime.

Best Director - This whole category makes me LOL so hard. "Oh look, Ben Affleck just won another award - oh wait, he's not even nominated for the Oscar". Neither is Kathryn Bigelow, who would be my other guess. So really, this race is going to be down to the wire. I'm thinking Michael Haneke will win (I have this thing that Amour is going to win literally everything, like including Best Animated Film). None of the directors who have been nominated for the rest - Ang Lee, Steven Spielberg or David O. Russell - seem to stand out, though Ang Lee seems to be the sensible bet. This is mind boggling stuff, which makes it all the more exciting.

Other little notes:
-Django Unchained's screenplay is getting lots of love. The WGA's can't provide much more clarity on that but I think QT has it in the bag.
-Skyfall seems to be all the rage. Even though it isn't nominated for much that isn't on the technical side, I'd see it taking a few of those awards. Specifically Best Score, which it seems to be doing rather well with.
-Brave is the front runner for the Animated section? Who knows. I hope it is.
-On a BAFTA related note, so happy that Juno Temple got the Rising Star award. She's amazing.
-I actually can't wait for the Indie Spirits this year. Matthew McConaughey as a double nominee? That's how it should be done!

What are you thinking now? Got any front-runners/favourites sorted?

AAN: Predicting the Golden Globes w/ Silva, David and Joe

The Golden Globes are happening in nine days, but since I'll be in Japan at the time, I am going to do my predictions now. I'll be using Sparkling Silva, 'Overjoyed' David and Loopy Looper to help me predict the awards. Here's how they work:

Sparkling Silva - Who I want to win...even though I don't really have an opinion because I've seen 0.078% of the nominees.
'Overjoyed' David - Who I'm predicting to actually win.
Loopy Looper - The long-shot.

Best Motion Picture - Drama: Argo / Django Unchained / Life of Pi / Lincoln / Zero Dark Thirty
While this is race between Lincoln and Zero Dark Thirty, I just can't see Zero Dark Thirty taking out this one. I'm leaving that for the DGA and PGA's to get that to the Oscars. So, I'm fairly sure Lincoln will win, even though I wouldn't dismiss Argo. Life of Pi and Django Unchained seem like long-shots for such a close race, but I'd pick Django Unchained as the one I want to win because that would be cool.

Best Motion Picture - Musical/Comedy: The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel / Les Miserables / Moonrise Kingdom / Salmon Fishing in the Yemen / Silver Linings Playbook
Silver Linings Playbook and Les Miserables will go head to head here, but given the mixed reaction to Les Miserables, I can see the former winning. However, Moonrise Kingdom could end up being the spoiler (hey I've seen that one, meaning that the only films I haven't seen in this category are the front-runners - I guess I'm kinda winning). I'd love to see The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel win, and Salmon Fishing in the Yemen will continue being the place-filler it is and come out on the bottom.

AAN: Early Awards Forecast - The Gotham Winners and the Indie Spirit Noms

Awards season has officially kicked off now, with yesterday's Gotham Awards winners and today's Independent Spirit Nominations being announced. For those wondering if I'm going to unveil the new 'Happy Fassy', 'Lowkey Loki' and 'Overwhelmed Owen' for this year, you'll have to wait until the Golden Globes nominations roll around next month. For now, this is just a forecast to see how awards season could swing. Because, after all, awards season is a season of the year. Who knows if we'll have a storm on our hands or we can blitz through it with only sunshine?

Gotham Awards winners (winners in bold, nominees in italics)

Best Film: Bernie, The Loneliest Planet, The Master, Middle of Nowhere, Moonrise Kingdom
Breakthrough Director: Zal Batmanglij - Sound of My Voice, Brian M. Cassidy and Melanie Shatsky - Francine, Jason Cortlund and Julia Halperlin - Now Forager, Antonio Mendez Esparza - Here and There, Benh Zeitlin - Beasts of the Southern Wild
Breakthrough Actor: Mike Birbiglia - Sleepwalk with Me, Emayatzy Corinealdi - Middle of Nowhere, Thure Lindhardt - Keep the Lights On, Melanie Lynskey - Hello I Must Be Going, Quvenzhane Wallis - Beasts of the Southern Wild
Best Ensemble Perofrmance: Bernie, Moonrise Kingdom, Safety Not Guaranteed, Silver Linings Playbook, Your Sister's Sister
Best Documentary: Detropia, How to Survive a Plague, Marina Abramovic: The Artist is Present, Room 237, The Waiting Room
Best Film Not Playing in a Theatre Near You: Kid-Thing, An Oversimplification of Her Beauty, Red Flag, Sun Don't Shine, Tiger Tail in Blue

What kind of forecast this brings for awards season: I think a whole lot of people were expecting the Gotham Awards to give an early boost to The Master, but it didn't happen. They swung the way of Moonrise Kingdom - but I'm not entirely sure that that movie will end up sustaining enough energy for the rest of the season. A few other notes, though:
-Quvenzhane Wallis missed out for Beasts of the Southern Wild - which begs the question, will this be the indie hit in awards season still? Or will her place go to another older actress?
-This Middle of Nowhere seemed to be quite a hit. Could be a dark horse.
-Bernie is getting a whole lot of loving, too. I doubt it could carry on into the heart of awards season, but it seems that we should be a whole lot more aware of it.
-And I've gotta say, since when was Melanie Lynskey a breakthrough actor? She had her breakthrough before I was born. Still, I'm happy to see her getting some recognition.

Independent Spirit nominations

Best Film: Beasts of the Southern Wild, Bernie, Keep the Lights On, Moonrise Kingdom, Silver Linings Playbook
Best Director: Wes Anderson - Moonrise Kingdom, Julia Loktev - The Loneliest Planet, David O. Russell - Silver Linings Playbook, Ira Sachs - Keep the Lights On, Benh Zeitlin - Beasts of the Southern Wild
Best Female Lead: Linda Cardellini - Return, Emayatzy Corinealdi - Middle of Nowhere, Jennifer Lawrence - Silver Linings Playbook, Quvenzhane Wallis - Beasts of the Southern Wild, Mary Elizabeth Winstead - Smashed
Best Male Lead: Jack Black - Bernie, Bradley Cooper - Silver Linings Playbook, John Hawkes - The Sessions, Thure Lindhardt - Keep the Lights On, Matthew McConaughey - Killer Joe, Wendell Pierce - Four
Best Supporting Female: Rosemarie DeWitt - Your Sister's Sister, Ann Dowd - Compliance, Helen Hunt - The Sessions, Brit Marling - Sound of My Voice, Lorraine Toussaint - Middle of Nowhere
Best Supporting Male: Matthew McConaughey - Magic Mike, David Oyelowo - Middle of Nowhere, Michael Pena - End of Watch, Sam Rockwell - Seven Psychopaths, Bruce Willis - Moonrise Kingdom
Best Screenplay: Keep The Lights On (Ira Sachs and Mauricio Zacharias, Moonrise Kingdom (Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola), Ruby Sparks (Zoe Kazan), Seven Psychopaths (Martin McDonagh), Silver Linings Playbook (David O. Russell)
Best First Screenplay: Celeste & Jesse Forever (Rashida Jones and Will McCormack), Fill the Void (Rama Burshtein), Gayby (Jonathan Lisecki), Robot & Frank (Christopher Ford), Safety Not Guaranteed (Derek Connolly)
Best First Feature: Fill the Void, Gimme the Loot, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Safety Not Guaranteed, Sound of My Voice
The John Cassavetes Award: Breakfast with Curtis, The Color Wheel, Middle of Nowhere, Mosquito Y Mari, Starlet
Best Cinematography: Beasts of the Southern Wild (Ben Richardson), End of Watch (Roman Vasyanov), Here (Lol Crawley), Moonrise Kingdom (Robert Yeoman), Valley of Saints (Yoni Brook)
Best International Film: Amour, Once Upon a Time in Anatolia, Rust and Bone, Sister, War Witch
Best Documentary: The Central Park Five, How to Survive a Plague, The Invisible War, Marina Abramovic: The Artist is Present, The Waiting Room
The Robert Altman Award: Starlet

What kind of forecast this brings for awards season: Quite an interesting one, I must say.
-YAY for Matthew McConaughey's double nod. I saw Magic Mike last night and I can totally see him getting an Oscar nomination. However, I'm extra happy that his work in Killer Joe got recognised. I wasn't sure if it was eligible, since it technically first surfaced in 2011, but if it is, I'm starting a campaign. It is kinda funny, because I never used to like McConaughey, but now he has given my two favourite male performances of the year. You go, Glen Coco.
-So basically, Silver Linings Playbook will sweep these awards. Just like it might sweep the Oscars. Interesting Robert De Niro snub, as I thought he had a better chance of getting a nomination than Bradley Cooper. Jennifer Lawrence will probably end up winning her category, though.
-Looks as if Ann Dowd got the push she needed for a Compliance nomination. I wouldn't take your chips down just yet - as I said, we could have a Jacki Weaver nomination this year.
-Bernie is still ever-present.
-I'm happy for Mary Elizabeth Winstead, even though I haven't seen Smashed. This could give her a big push, but there's not a lot of air in that Best Actress race.
-Yay for Zoe Kazan, too. I haven't seen Ruby Sparks, but I adore her.
-Beasts of the Southern Wild is prominently featured. I do think it will get the indie nomination in the Best Picture category.
-There's no Marion Cotillard for Rust and Bone, which could really hurt her chances.
-I was hoping that these awards would picks up The Perks of Being a Wallflower a lot more and maybe send a nomination in the way of Logan Lerman and Ezra Miller. Alas, it only got 'Best First Feature', which seems like a bit of a consolation prize more than anything.

These two awards give us the outlook on how some of the smaller films will fare for the rest of awards season. The future is looking mostly bright for films like Beasts of the Southern Wild and Silver Linings Playbook, and Matthew McConaughey is coming into this race a lot stronger than we once thought he would. What do you think will happen to the awards race now?

Young Hearts Run Free.

Film: Like Crazy
Year: 2011
Director: Drake Doremus
Written by: Drake Doremus and Ben York Jones
Starring: Felicity Jones, Anton Yelchin, Jennifer Lawrence, Charlie Bewley, Alex Kingston, Oliver Muirhead, Finola Hughes, Chris Messina.
Running time: 86 min.

Unless you're counting famous people, I guess you could say that I've never been in love. So when Like Crazy came knocking on my door, I didn't know whether I'd consumed with the tale of two young people who fall hopelessly in love with each other, only to be torn apart. Luckily, I had adorable people like Felicity Jones and Anton Yelchin playing young lovebirds Anna and Jacob. Also playing to my advantage was the fact that this isn't your typical Hollywood love story. It isn't the kind filled with dreadful pop songs and half a tonne of sugar. It doesn't even fit into the twee-romance-between-two-hipsters-indie category. Writer and director Drake Doremus based the film off his real life experience with a long-distance relationship. Added in with a considerably low budget of $250,000 and the fact that basically all of the dialogue was improvised (which makes me wonder why there were two writers, but anyway...), Like Crazy tells a raw story of love, the hard way.

No, This is Not Your Next Twilight.

Film: The Hunger Games
Year: 2012
Director: Gary Ross
Written by: Gary Ross, Suzanne Collins, Billy Ray - based on the book 'The Hunger Games' by Suzanne Collins.
Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Willow Shields, Elizabeth Banks, Stanley Tucci, Lenny Kravitz, Woody Harrelson, Amandla Stenberg, Wes Bentley, Donald Sutherland.
Running time: 142 min.

One day, a person gets an idea to write a book. The book gets written, then it gets published. It hits the shelves, and someone picks it up. They recommend it to their friends. These friends are most likely teenagers. Then the book spreads like wildfire throughout high schools, it becomes a talking point at lunchtime. Through that success, they make a movie. That movie becomes the most anticipated thing out. Teens queue up with their wallets filled with hope that they might get into a midnight screening. The people in the movie become favourites of teen magazines, and their pictures get plastered over the walls of a young girl's bedroom.

Sound familiar?

Yes, we had this problem with Twilight. People went insane for it, but the problem was, the backlash came. Quite a few loyal fans still hold a torch for it, and that's what keeps the unprecedented phenomenon going. The Hunger Games treads the same path. Let's just say, it takes a detour from turning into mindless teen schlock and is actually a teen cause worth getting behind.

A Conversation with 'The Beaver'

What is she talking about, you say? Have my chronic headaches that have plagued me all week or my new gluten-free diet sent me into a world of hallucinations, and now I'm resorting to have conversations with a beaver? No. Loyal readers, or readers who have been around these parts since around May last year, will remember I did this 'A Conversation with...' series where I got a fake 'interview' called Christopher (after the ginger cat that I never got) and I 'became' the movie and answered some questions. It is pretty high-tech stuff. So, coming at you each Thursday night (hopefully) is another season of the Conversation series - which is just my naive way of saying that during the July school holidays I lost my creative juices and gave up on reviewing films this way, but I feel like it needs to come back. So let's start off with 'Season 2', where we'll chat with Jodie Foster's The Beaver first.

CHRISTOPHER: Hello there. Now, before we begin, I don't know who I am supposed address, you or the beaver puppet?
THE BEAVER: I am no 'puppet'.

C: Right, so I suppose you're going to tell me that you're a 'real boy'...
TB: I would, if I was Pinnochio. You're supposed to just go with it.

C: But what if I want to talk to the actual film and not just...you?
TB: Well then you're cripes out of luck. You've only got me.

C: Well I guess that shall suffice. Okay then, tell me a bit about yourself/the movie.
TB: This is a picture of Walter Black, a hopelessly depressed individual. Somewhere inside him is a man who fell in love. Who started a family. Who ran a successful company. That man has gone missing. No matter what he's tried, and he's tried everything, Walter can't seem to bring him back. It's as if he's died, but hasn't had the good sense to take his body with him. So mostly what he does is sleep.

C: Mhm...so where do you, the Beaver, come into the story?
TB: I lend a helping hand to our Walter...or rather he lends me a hand! You get it?

C: Wow, you're jokes are almost as bad as that of How Do You Know, whom I interviewed last year.
TB: I have big stars in my cast, too.

C: Speaking of 'big stars', let's talk about Mel Gibson.
TB: How'd I know that would be on your question list?

C: Because he's the reason nobody wants to see you.
TB: Well, that's not my fault, now is it? He's not even the star of the movie. *I'm* the star of the movie. People shouldn't care about him. They should care about *me.*

C: You're kinda sounding like Miss Piggy right now...
TB: What, just because we're both puppets?

C: I think that's where the comparison ends. In terms of 2011 puppet movies, The Muppets comes out on top.
TB: Well, I can't really compete with the feel good nature of that movie, nor do I have any song or dance numbers.

C: No...your film is more on the 'downbeat' sides of things.
TB: As you start to realise that I mean business and this isn't Mel Gibson's film any more, things do start to get a bit serious. Especially as we dwindle down to the end, we realise that old Mel really does have a bit of a problem and I may have caused it...even though it is not my fault.

C: Yes...things do get very dark towards the end. It kind of detracts from the philosophical moments scattered throughout the film.
TB: Well, at first, I take care of all of the philosophical moments. I'm almost like a self-help guide, except I'm a puppet. Maybe they should make lots of beaver puppets and distribute them around the place or something. I can just imagine what they would have on their packet: "Hello. The person who handed you this card is under the care of a prescription puppet, designed to help create a psychological distance between himself and the negative aspects of his personality. Please treat him as you normally would, but address yourself to the puppet. Thank you." But anyway, I digress. I thought I might leave the philosophical to the two teens, Norah and Porter.

C: They did have some interesting things to say, particularly towards the end, but their characters felt a bit redundant compared to everything else happening in the film.
TB: I guess *I* do take most of the attention. But they're played by Anton Yelchin and Jennifer Lawrence, two fine young actors who can rustle up a bit of attention by themselves.

C: That's true. Finally, Jodie Foster has proved herself as an actress, but she was a good choice to direct your big 'starring role'?
TB: She was just fine, but I think the proof is in the pudding. I had some good material to work with, but then I also had some really, well, shit material to work with. She didn't do a lot to elevate that, but she did what she could. It's nothing new. I can't help but feel a little short-changed.

C: Hey, well at least Ricky Gervais made a joke about you at the Golden Globes.
TB: He made a joke about Johnny Depp, too. And where is he at now? Exactly.

What I got: