2013 Awards Season Thread

[tazber]

Posted: 12/3/13 at 4:15pm

The New York Film Critics Circle Awards were announced.

American Hustle, which has not been widely screened at this point, has already broken out of the pack.

Best Film:
"American Hustle"

Best Director:
Steve McQueen, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Screenplay:
Eric Singer & David O. Russell, "American Hustle"

Best Actress:
Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine"

Best Actor:
Robert Redford, "All Is Lost"

Best Supporting Actress:
Jennifer Lawrence, "American Hustle"

Best Supporting Actor:
Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Cinematography:
Bruno Delbonnel, "Inside Llewyn Davis"

Best Non-fiction Film:
"Stories We Tell," directed by Sarah Polley

Best Foreign Language Film:
"Blue is the Warmest Color," directed by Abdellatif Kechiche

Best Animated Feature:
"The Wind Rises," directed by Hayao Miyazaki

Best First Feature:
"Fruitvale Station," directed by Ryan Coogler
Link

[tazber]

Posted: 12/3/13 at 4:18pm

Super happy for Blanchett, Leto, Miyazaki, and Polley.

At this very early stage the only Oscar prediction I will make is "The Wind Rises" winning best animated feature.

[strummergirl]

Posted: 12/3/13 at 5:04pm

According to David Edelstein there was a split of Hustle and 12 Years A Slave voting blocs and it was narrowly close. In fact, Dana Stevens of Slate left before the final vote and was surprised to find out that Hustle won. That said, while a lot of critical hosannas for 12 Years a Slave came from New York critics, some of its most critical reviews also came from NY critics (ignoring Armond White's rather fire-breathing 'review', Stephanie Zaharek and Keith Uhlich were notable dissenters on the movie).

Interesting to see that this is the second year in a row a Sony/Annapurna film took major categories including Picture. Sony has managed to fumble two campaigns of critically-awarded films (The Social Network and Zero Dark Thirty) very badly that I am just thinking the movie will maybe have its moments at SAG and the Globes but that is all. But Russell seems to be having a moment unlike Bigelow (who was already a winner) or Fincher (who they were just recognizing but as a technician whereas Russell has made movies that have won acting awards). The screenplay nod, however, is puzzling. The actors and Russell freely admit the script for his films are at the most just framework than page to screen, with Russell directing by a lot of improv and going for character than plot. Should be an interesting race for the movie. I am already hearing about whispering campaigns against the film and how Russell is having fall-outs with Bale and Lawrence.

Having a split Picture and Director for a second year in a row would be shocking.

Bruno Delbonnel winning Cinematography over Emmanuel Lubezki and Sean Bobbitt was probably the most surprising win before Hustle won Picture. Be rather amazing if the one time Roger Deakins was not in on a Coen Brothers Oscar film that the film win for Cinematography. But last year's Cinematography winner, Greig Fraser of Zero Dark Thirty, did not even get nominated (that snub bothered me as much as Bigelow's personally).

People might make a big deal out of certain films getting ignored but I think Blanchett is undeniable so the acting for A:OC is probably going to benefit from the bigger critical bodies and SAG. CORRECTION: The Wolf of Wall Street was screened to NYFCC members but the screenings for the film are pretty recent happenings for guild members and critic groups. I was a little disappointed Ejiofor did not win for Actor but Redford is having a moment, I just wish it was for a film not so desperately striving to be a such mechanical minimalist art film.

I really hope Miyazaki does get Oscar glory for his swan song and 'Oscar winner, Sarah Polley' would be one of the best things to say.

LA Film Critics usually have more off the wall choices. Would not be surprised if there is zero carry-over of winners by that group.

Updated On: 12/3/13 at 05:04 PM

[SomeDude]

Posted: 12/3/13 at 5:52pm

Was very surprised Gravity did not take Cinematography. Chiwetel and Blanchett are pretty much locks for an Oscar nomination and it seems like American Hustle and Wolf of Wallstreet are becoming serious contenders. In the end I think it will come down to 12 Years A slave and Gravity for Best Picture.

[tazber]

Posted: 12/3/13 at 5:53pm

Yea, Wolf of Wall Street is a big unknown at this point. I wouldn't be surprised if Leonardo becomes a spoiler.

And Supporting Actor category is so weak at this point Jonah Hill could very well score another nomination.

I was surprised that Redford won. I'm pretty sure he'll end up with a nomination, but I really feel like it's Ejiofer's to lose. The movie won't win so this is the category to honor it (and possibly McQueen, although I think best director will go to David O Russell).

Updated On: 12/3/13 at 05:53 PM

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 12/3/13 at 6:01pm

WOLF OF WALL STREET was eligible; the NYFCC, the NBR and another group (I forget who) were the only critics allowed to see it before this Friday screening. It didn't lose because people didn't see it.
This makes me so excited for AMERICAN HUSTLE, not that I needed any reason to be more excited about it. I love David O'Russell. And wow, I can't believe Jennifer Lawrence won Supporting Actress, she's such a force to be reckoned with! Overall, I was very happy with these wins.

[SomeDude]

Posted: 12/3/13 at 6:06pm

Wolf seems to be getting a pretty good initial responses and many of the people who have seen it are saying Leo is a lock for a nomination. I would love to see Leo get a nomination, he hasn't had one for 7 years.

I'm really not sure about Jonah, He is getting good responses but I think he will need to campaign hard for this.

I think Redford is safe for the most part. I think Hanks will miss out for Captain Philips but he has a good shot at a nomination for Saving Mr.Banks.

What are you predicting to win Best Picture?

[strummergirl]

Posted: 12/3/13 at 6:09pm

Redford's rep and legacy will have to carry him through the season and frankly, it is not getting the critical support to help its meager box-office. Roadside Attractions are a good distributor but they are small.

Lubezki was a shocking loss but critics tend to be anti-CGI driven cinematography. Oscars, however, have been rather kind to it so I think he'll win but I definitely think Bobbitt and Delbonnel will have support.

Blue is the Warmest Color could easily sweep the precursors for Best Foreign Language Film which would make the Foreign Language Oscar field incredibly unpredictable because BITWC was not deemed eligible by France to qualify (Yet it could next year- and yes, such a thing has happened before).

I am wondering about American Hustle's strength when The Wolf of Wall Street becomes more known. Not because I think TWOWS is a best picture contender, I think it will make money but it may be a polarizing experience that alienates Oscar voters. The moment the trailers for American Hustle were shown everybody was thinking Scorsese. That the films have wide releases that are a week apart is interesting. Can a movie that clearly does owe some stylistic influences from another master who is also making a movie with similar 'themes' both have movies out at the same time?

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 12/3/13 at 6:37pm

AMERICAN HUSTLE might be influenced by Scorsese but David O'Russell has his own style. Not to mention the fact that most critics are predicting AMERICAN HUSTLE will do really well at the BO. I think there's plenty of room for both HUSTLE and WOLF OF WALL STREET, and wouldn't be surprised if the former ends up being more Academy friendly.
Also, I'm gonna be so annoyed when Jonah Hill gets a second acting nod, his first nominated performance mainly consisted of his version of what a smart guy sounds/looks like. I hope this time he's a lot better, though really I don't think much of him as an actor.

[strummergirl]

Posted: 12/3/13 at 7:01pm

I got nothing against DOR, obviously. I've liked to loved all of his movies. Just the perception of others and the whispering campaign make me wonder if the movie can sustain a long campaign season. I am just waiting for Scorsese fanboys (I love me some Scorsese, I just don't think he is infallible) whining that AH is just Scorsese-lite and mad that elderly Oscar voters probably turned off their TWOWS screeners the moment **SPOILERS** DiCaprio snorts coke out of a naked woman's derriere in the opening sequence **END SPOILERS**.

With that said, this is from Jeff Wells (A rather cantankerous Oscar blogger but full of info) on how the voting went. Lots of love for American Hustle, with some voters vouching for Amy Adams. I got so happy that James Franco was also talked about as a candidate for Spring Breakers. Also, I so want Adele Exarchopoulos to happen. LAFCA, your move!

A guy who was right in the thick of today’s New York Film Critics Circle balloting (which took almost five hours to complete) shares the following: “For four ballots the Best Picture vote was essentially a tie between American Hustle and 12 Years A Slave, and then Hustle finally won in a run-off vote against Slave. So it basically took five ballots. Inside Llewyn Davis was a contender all day long but it didn’t have the votes. At least it did better than The Wolf of Wall Street, which didn’t compete strongly in any category.


“The Best Supporting Actress vote went on for three ballots, and was very close between Hustle‘s Jennifer Lawrence and 12 Years A Slave‘s Lupita N’yongo. Nebraska‘s June Squibb was in there but not very strongly.

“The Best Director voting was very strongly for Steve McQueen, David O’Russell, Alfonso Cuaron and the Coen brothers but McQueen and Russell were very close…and then McQueen took it on the fourth ballot.

“There was no strong challenge against Cate Blanchett for Best Actress although there was some support for Adele “whatsername” (i.e., Exarchopoulos) and Hustle‘s Amy Adams.

“Robert Redford‘s Best Actor trophy was decided on a second ballot. The bulk of the first-ballot votes went to Redford and Slave‘s Chiweitel Ejiofor. A certain level of support was also there for Oscar Isaac, Bruce Dern and Matthew McConaughey.

“Dallas Buyer’s Club‘s Jared Leto took Best Supporting Actor on the second ballot. His closest competitors were 12 Years A Slave‘s Michael Fassbender and Spring Breakers‘ James Franco. Jonah Hill got a couple of votes but nothing to speak of.

“After the Best Screenplay win for Eric Singer and David O. Russell’s American Hustle, the strongest runner-up was Before Midnight followed by Spike Jonze‘s Her screenplay and the Coen brothers’ Inside Llewyn Davis.

“Sarah Polley‘s Stories We Tell was a third ballot win for Best Non-Fiction. The Act of Killing and 20 Feet From Stardom were the runners-up.

“There was no formidable competition for the Best Cinematography award won by Inside Llewyn Davis‘s Bruno Delbonnel. The strongest runners-up were for Gravity and Nebraska. The Wolf of Wall Street got one or two votes.

“The Wolf of Wall Street was not a contender for Best Picture or in any other category,” he says.





How the NYFCC voting went down.

[SomeDude]

Posted: 12/3/13 at 7:43pm

It's going to be a blood bath between the Scorsese fanboys and the American Hustle fanboys this year. It's Dark Knight Vs Avengers all over again....



Updated On: 12/3/13 at 07:43 PM

[strummergirl]

Posted: 12/3/13 at 9:09pm

Lou Lumenick has the breakdowns of the actual vote tallies. 12 Years a Slave was **so** close on a lot of categories. Though Lumenick forgot to include Ejiofor's tallies.

http://www.twitlonger.com/show/n_1rsqsec

[trentsketch]

Posted: 12/4/13 at 11:16am

tazber, The Wind Rises didn't do very well at the Annie nominations. It only got in for animated feature and character animation. Frozen has the category locked up. The biggest possible spoiler is Ernest & Celestine if it gets nominated. That got six nominations, including direction, writing, production design, and editing.


Annie Nominations Updated On: 12/4/13 at 11:16 AM

[strummergirl]

Posted: 12/4/13 at 1:40pm

NBR Awards are out and it's Spike Jonze's Her as it's Best Film. Like American Hustle, it was produced within Megan Ellison's production company, Annapurna Pictures. What is interesting is that Her and Gravity are both distributed by WB. If Her continues to do well with critics, can WB balance 2 top movies or have to favor one over the other.

http://www.nationalboardofreview.org...award-winners/

Best Film: HER

Best Director: Spike Jonze, HER

Best Actor: Bruce Dern, NEBRASKA

Best Actress: Emma Thompson, SAVING MR. BANKS

Best Supporting Actor: Will Forte, NEBRASKA

Best Supporting Actress: Octavia Spencer, FRUITVALE STATION

Best Original Screenplay: Joel and Ethan Coen, Inside LLEWYN Davis

Best Adapted Screenplay: Terence Winter, THE Wolf of Wall Street

Best Animated Feature: The Wind Rises

Breakthrough Performance: Michael B. Jordan, Fruitvale Station
Breakthrough Performance: Adele Exarchopoulos, BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR

Best Directorial Debut: Ryan Coogler, Fruitvale Station

Best Foreign Language Film: THE PAST

Best Documentary: Stories We Tell

William K. Everson Film History Award: George Stevens, Jr.

Best Ensemble: PRISONERS

Spotlight Award: Career Collaboration of Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio

NBR Freedom of Expression Award: Wadjda

Creative Innovation in Filmmaking Award: Gravity


Top Films

(in alphabetical order)
12 YEARS A SLAVE
Fruitvale Station
Gravity
Inside Llewyn Davis
Lone Survivor
Nebraska
Prisoners
Saving Mr. Banks
The Secret Life of Walter MITTY
THE Wolf of Wall Street

Top 5 Foreign Language Films

(In Alphabetical Order)
Beyond the Hills
Gloria
The Grandmaster
A Hijacking
The Hunt



Top 5 Documentaries

(In Alphabetical Order)
20 Feet from Stardom
The Act of Killing
After Tiller
Casting By
The Square


Top 10 Independent Films

(In Alphabetical Order)

Ain’t Them Bodies Saints
Dallas Buyers Club
In a World…
Mother of George
Much Ado About Nothing
Mud
The Place Beyond the Pines
Short Term 12
Sightseers
The Spectacular Now


Her is not a surprising choice. Look up NBR's standing with WB, Her's distributor.

[AC126748]

Posted: 12/4/13 at 3:30pm

The NBR has long prided itself on making iconoclastic choices, so HER (or Octavia Spencer taking Supporting Actress) isn't that surprising.

[tazber]

Posted: 12/4/13 at 4:15pm

Well that was unexpected. Other than animated feature was there any overlap with the NY FCC?

A few things do stick out though:

The Grandmaster was a mess. It was possibly Kar Wai Wong's worst film to date. Odd that they'd choose it.

And no Stories We Tell? That was probably one of the best films, let alone documentaries, I've seen all year.

Updated On: 12/4/13 at 04:15 PM

[strummergirl]

Posted: 12/4/13 at 5:40pm

Stories We Tell better happen. In my Top Ten fo' sure and much more interesting meditation on the documentary form of the short-list barring The Act of Killing. If either lose to Blackfish, it will just gnaw at me.

LAFCA is now more determined than ever to go crazy. Lots of foreign actresses have won Best Actresses from them. So keep an eye out for Paulina Garcia for Gloria in addition to Berenice Bejo of The Past and Adele Exarchopoulos in BITWC. Wouldn't shock me if they pulled for James Franco of Spring Breakers for Best Supporting Actor. They're bold and also highlight runner-ups. I can see both Her and American Hustle at least getting recognition for major categories. 12YAS, I do not see doing too well. LAFCA members were not the stronger reviews for the movie, in fact, a few pans happened from them. I do see Nebraska also doing well, they've awarded a lot of Payne films in the past. They've picked only one Best Picture winner that overlapped with the Oscars since 2000 and that was The Hurt Locker. It's quite possibly one of the worst critic award Oscar indicators around and I love them for it.

taz, David Ehrlich (Who put the original cut in his Top Ten of the year) has a good summary of how The Grandmaster's US cut by Harvey Weinstein really gutted a masterpiece. I've only seen the original cut but Ziyi Zhang is great in it but apparently has her story cut in the US version.
http://www.film.com/movies/wong-kar-wai-the-grandmaster-ruined-by-american-cut







Updated On: 12/4/13 at 05:40 PM

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 12/4/13 at 7:13pm

Cannot believe HER won Best Film! How awesome is that? Out of all the movies I've seen this year, HER is one I can't stop thinking about. It truly is an experience to watch it, and everyone is doing top notch work. Scarlett Johansson should have worked Supporting Actress, but so nice to see the film rewarded in this way.

[SomeDude]

Posted: 12/5/13 at 6:37am

Here is the Awards Season schedule if anyone is interested:

DECEMBER 2013
Monday, December 2nd - Satellite Award Nominations Announced
Tuesday, December 3rd - Voting for the 2014 DGA Awards Opens
Tuesday, December 3rd - New York Film Critics Awards
Wednesday, December 4th - National Board of Review Awards Announced
Monday, December 9th - SAG Award Nomination Ballots Due by 12 Noon PST
Monday, December 9th - Deadline for Receiving Golden Globe Nomination Ballots
Wednesday, December 11th - Screen Actors Guild Award Nominations Announced
Thursday, December 12th - Golden Globe Nominations Announced
Monday, December 16th - Critics' Choice Awards Nominees Announced
Monday, December 23rd - Final Golden Globe Ballots Mailed
Friday, December 27th - Oscar Nomination voting begins

JANUARY 2014
Tuesday, January 7th - 2014 DGA Awards Nominees Announced
Wednesday, January 8th - Oscar Nominations voting ends at 5 p.m. PST
Wednesday, January 8th - Deadline for Receiving Final Golden Globe Ballots
Wednesday, January 8th - ASC Nominees Announced
Friday, January 10th - ACE Eddie Award Nominations Announced
Sunday, January 12th - 2014 Golden Globe Awards
Monday, January 13th - VES Award Nominations Announced
Tuesday, January 14th - CAS Nominees Announced
Thursday, January 16th - Oscar nominations announced
Thursday, January 16th - 2014 Critics' Choice Awards
Friday, January 17th - Screen Actors Guild Award Final Votes Due by 12 Noon PT
Saturday, January 18th - 20th Screen Actors Guild Awards
Sunday, January 19th - Producers Guild of America Awards
Friday, January 24th - Deadline to Vote for 2014 DGA Awards
Saturday, January 25th - 66th Annual Directors Guild Awards

FEBRUARY 2014
Saturday, February 1st - 2014 Writers Guild Awards
Saturday, February 1st - ASC Winners Announced
Saturday, February 8th - Art Directors Guild Awards
Wednesday, February 12th - 12th Annual VES Awards
Friday, February 14th - Final Oscar voting begins
Saturday, February 15th - 2014 ACE Eddie Awards
Sunday, February 16th - 67th BAFTA Awards
Saturday, February 22nd - 50th Annual CAS Awards
Saturday, February 22nd - 15th Annual Costume Designers Guild Awards
Tuesday, February 25th - Final Oscar voting ends at 5 p.m. PT

MARCH 2014
Saturday, March 1st - 2014 Independent Spirit Awards
Sunday, March 2nd - 86th Academy Awards

[tazber]

Posted: 12/5/13 at 6:48am

Wow, I didn't realize they were announcing the Globe noms next week.

[SomeDude]

Posted: 12/5/13 at 6:54am

I know, this season is going by so fast.

[strummergirl]

Posted: 12/8/13 at 7:59pm

It was Super Sunday this afternoon. Boston Film Critics, LA Film Critics, and New York Online Critics all had there awards simultaneously. On Twitter, hearing the voting tallies and members dropping some inside the room information was juicy.

NYOFC

Picture: 12 Years a Slave

Ensemble Cast: American Hustle

Director: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity

Screenplay: Spike Jonze, Her

Actress: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave

Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong’o, 12 Years a Slave

Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Documentary: The Act of Killing

Animated Feature: The Wind Rises

Foreign Language: Blue is the Warmest Color

Breakthrough Performance: Adèle Exarchopoulos, Blue is the Warmest Color

Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, Gravity

Use of Music: T Bone Bunett, Inside Llewyn Davis

Debut Director: Ryan Coogler, Fruitvale Station

NYFCO Best Films of 2013:

12 Years a Slave
Before Midnight
Blue is the Warmest Color
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
Her
Inside Llewyn Davis
Nebraska
Philomena
Prisoners
The Wolf of Wall Street

BSFC

Best Picture: "12 Years a Slave"
Runner-up: "The Wolf of Wall Street"

Best Director: Steve McQueen, "12 Years a Slave"
Runner-up: Martin Scorsese, "The Wolf of Wall Street"

Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave"
Runner-up: Leonardo DiCaprio, "The Wolf of Wall Street"

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine"
Runner-up: Judi Dench, "Philomena"

Best Supporting Actor: James Gandolfini, "Enough Said"
Runners-up: Barkhad Abdi, "Captain Phillips"; Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club"

Best Supporting Actress: June Squibb, "Nebraska"
Runner-up: Lupita Nyong'o, "12 Years a Slave"

Best Screenplay: Nicole Holofcener, "Enough Said"
Runner-up: Terrence Winter, "The Wolf of Wall Street"

Best Foreign Language Film: "Wadjda"
Runner-up: "Blue is the Warmest Color"

LAFCA


Best Documentary: "The Act of Killing"
Runner-up: "Blackfish"

Best Animated Film: "The Wind Rises"
Runner-up: "Frozen"

Best New Filmmaker: Ryan Coogler, "Fruitvale Station"
Runner-up: Joshua Oppenheimer, "The Act of Killing"

Best Ensemble: "Nebraska"

Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, "Gravity"
Runner-up: Philippe Le Sourd, "The Grandmaster"

Best Film Editing: Dan Hanley and Mike Hill, "Rush"
Runner-up: Thelma Schoonmaker, "The Wolf of Wall Street"

Best Use of Music: T-Bone Burnett, "Inside Llewyn Davis"
Runner-up: Mark Orton, "Nebraska"

LAFCA

Film: Tie, Gravity and Her

Director: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity (Runner-up: Spike Jonze, Her.)

Actor: Bruce Dern, Nebraska (Runner-up: Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave.)

Actress: Tie, Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine, and Adèle Exarchopoulos, Blue Is the Warmest Color.

Documentary: Stories We Tell (Runner-up: The Act of Killing.)

Supporting actress: Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave (Runner-up: June Squibb, Nebraska.)

Supporting actor: Tie, James Franco, Spring Breakers, and Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club.

Screenplay: Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke, Before Midnight (Runner Up: Spike Jonze, Her)

Animation: Ernest & Celestine (Runner-up: The Wind Rises.)

Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, Gravity. (Runner-up, Bruno Delbonnel, Inside Llewyn Davis.)

Film Editing: Alfonso Cuarón and Mark Sanger, Gravity. (Runner-up: Shane Carruth and David Lowery, Upstream Color.)

Score: T Bone Burnett, Inside Llewyn Davis (Runner-up: Arcade Fire and Owen Pallett, Her.)

Production design: K.K. Barrett, Her. (Runner-up: Jess Gonchor, Inside Llewyn Davis.)

Foreign-language film: Blue Is the Warmest Color. (Runner-up: The Great Beauty.)

New Generation: Megan Ellison, producer of Her and American Hustle.

Douglas Edwards Experimental/Independent Film/Video Award: Charlotte Pryce, Cabinets Of Wonder: Films and a Performance

Legacy of Cinema: The Criterion Collection

Special Citation: 12 Years A Slave creative team

Round-Up: Perhaps American Hustle was an aberration at NYFCC but Her definitely was not and 12 Years a Slave is clearly in the picture.

I loved the ties by LAFCA, mainly because Franco and Exarchopoulos were my picks based on their history as a group. Supposedly LAFCA had a lot of abstaining that led to those tie results.

In Boston, TWOWS was a major factor but according to Ty Burr, not enough people saw it, even if the movie technically made its deadline. For me that makes the film kind of a mystery the whole awards season. Some critics just did not get the to see it and there still seems to be a major divide on the film from the early word I have seen in both age and gender. But whatever, it gave Enough Said a major opening with the Boston Critics. Gandolfini at this point would be my most realistic supporting actor choice and I hope the strength of performance and a little bit of sentiment help that happen.


It's still a critics awards and the certain films that are still not quite darlings, August: Osage County, The Butler, and Saving Mr. Banks, will probably pop up at SAG and the Globes. So I am holding these results dearly when I know I am going to be griping so much come Oscar announcements.

I think Her may be deceptively an undeniable consensus pick. I know older critics and observers of the awards loved it. I think people expect it to be a movie only millennials/Gen Xers could relate to in the story. WB may have its hands tied with Gravity and Her but they're smart in their handling during awards season. Paramount, however, with Nebraska and TWOWS, I am just not sure about. Ditto with Sony. I think they may kick Captain Phillips out in favor of American Hustle.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 12/8/13 at 8:48pm

All I want this awards season is just to see Alfonso Cuaron & Sarah Polley accept Academy Awards.

[CapnHook]

Posted: 12/8/13 at 9:03pm

Cate Blanchett is sweeping.

[strummergirl]

Posted: 12/8/13 at 9:14pm

She might because of the volatility of her competition in the category. With that said, what a bore that would be. I'll be rooting hard for Amy Adams and Adele Exarchopoulos for nominations but I've been peeved about how that category has been handled the last few years. Hindsight was not necessary in finding the 2011 Best Actress category having as many snubs as it did.

Sarah Polley winning would fill me with so much joy. I love The Act of Killing too but there is something so wonderful and fascinating about what Polley does. It makes me excited for her as a filmmaker and I liked her other stuff before.

And also, before we consider The Wind Rises an indestructible force to sweep the animation category, it got hit with a whispering campaign. People are mad about Miyazaki possibly glorifying Japan in the war effort. A Boston-area critic had a prepared statement (has that ever happened before at one of these things be when critiquing any nominated film?).

http://blogs.indiewire.com/criticwire/during-boston-film-critics-vote-member-calls-the-wind-rises-morally-repugnant

I know there was talk among the LA critics about this very issue and it has happened with Academy members who raved about the LAFCA winner for animated film.