Oscars 2012 — Page 4

"The NYFCC critics picks just confirms what we already know: the wealth is going to be spread amongst a group of great films. The question is just how, exactly, it'll be divvied out."

I agree. There have been a couple of films in the last few years that I was quite fine with winning the Oscar but the group-think that led to them inevitably winning all of the awards seemed to just produce backlash and negative reaction toward that one film and thanks to the internet, that backlash happens at lightning fast speed.

Updated On: 12/5/12 at 03:00 PM

^and yet both NYFCC and NBR agreed on best movie and director. And it's not as if these two bodies have a history of usually choosing the same winners. So this could possibly be a juggernaut for a slew of best movie and director awards for Zero Dark Thirty and Bigelow.

Henrik, I just hope it doesn't become a SOCIAL NETWORK situation where there might have been backlash given the fact it won just about every single critic's prize. THE KING'S SPEECH only became the frontrunner late in the game.
Taz, that could very well be the case, Jones has won already so they might feel compelled to give it to perennial nominee Leonardo DiCaprio. I can't see how DiCaprio's performance can match the brilliance of Jones', but it's all possible this early in the game.

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The only thing I'm thinking is a clue from these early, smaller awards is the consistent recognition of Zero Dark Thirty and Bigelow. That will be the latecomer that could upset.

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I wouldn't call Zero Dark Thirty a late-comer. Bigelow and Boal had a bin Laden movie in development when they were doing all the Oscar pageantry for The Hurt Locker, it was the failed Tora Bora capture. Then May 1st, 2011 happened and the whole script was reworked for that event (did not completely change the script as the Tora Bora capture and buildup man-hunt was a consistent theme). Most people anticipated the movie was going to have the goods but it has been a very secretive project whereas The Hurt Locker had a global run on the festival circuit for nearly a year before distribution.

The Oscars have changed their dates this year. For the first time nomination ballots are due before the Golden Globes are handed out.

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Gotcha, ray. You also had it tightly under wraps compared to the likes of Les Miz, Argo, Lincoln, etc.

Django Unchained was also noted as not making the deadline for a lot of critics lists because of its date (though I found Les Miz on a couple of lists but it was shown) so it is really hard to gauge consensus on it besides buzz though now I am wondering who makes up the National Board of Review who rewarded DiCaprio.

"Les Miserables will almost certainly win comedy or musical film (if it doesn't win, it has no chance of winning the Oscar)."

Almost certainly? What about Silver Linings Playbook?

Updated On: 12/6/12 at 08:44 AM

Yea, the guilds are always the best indicators. Particularly SAG and the DGA.

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Rockwell was also wonderful in Moon and last year in Conviction but he perpetually flies under award season radar.

I wonder how far ARGO can get this season. I also thought it was just absolutely brilliant in every way, the tone, the ensemble, the design, the editing, everything about it just worked. I think it'd probably get my vote for Picture and Director, the thing is it's such a strong year that it's hard to argue with the direction they decide to go. I worry ARGO will get overshadowed by the more politically relevant ZERO DARK THIRTY, but again, it's hard to complain about that movie (which looks so good) winning.

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The L.A. Film Critics are announcing their awards right now. They vote on each one separately and "haggle" in a room together until they agree.

They are in no way predictors of Academy Awards. They average around 25 percent in line with the Oscars.

Still, it's an anticipated critics award (not a guild or "peer" award).

Here's where they stand so far:


Best Picture
"Amour"
(Runner-up: "The Master")

Best Actor
Joaquin Phoenix, "The Master"
(Runner-up: Denis Lavant, "Holy Motors")

Best Actress
(TIE) Jennifer Lawrence, "Silver Linings Playbook" and Emmanuelle Riva, "Amour"

Best Supporting Actor
Dwight Henry, "Beasts of the Southern Wild"
(Runner-up: Christoph Waltz, "Django Unchained")

Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams, "The Master"
(Runner-up: Anne Hathaway, "Les Miserables" and "The Dark Knight Rises")

Best Director
Paul Thomas Anderson, "The Master"
(Runner-up: Kathryn Bigelow, "Zero Dark Thirty")

Best Screenplay
"Argo"
(Runner-up: "Silver Linings Playbook")

Best Film Editing:
"Zero Dark Thirty"
(Runner-up: "Argo")

Best Cinematography
Roger Deakins, "Skyfall"
(Runner-up: Mihai Malaimare Jr., "The Master")

Best Documentary/Non-fiction Film
"The Gatekeepers"
(Runner-up: "Searching For Sugar Man")

Best Foreign-Language Film
TBA
(Runner-up: TBA)

Best Animated Film
"Frankenweenie"
(Runner-up: "It's Such a Beautiful Day")

Best Music/Score
Dan Romer and Benh Zeitlin, "Beasts of the Southern Wild."
(Runner-up: Jonny Greenwood, "The Master")

Best Production Design
David Crank and Jack Fisk, "The Master."
(Runner-up: Adam Stockhausen, "Moonrise Kingdom")

New Generation Award: TBA

Douglas E. Edwards Independent/Experimental Film/Video:
"Leviathan"

(UPDATED)

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Updated On: 12/9/12 at 04:37 PM

I am very impressed that they acknowledged Amour and The Holy Motors. I was expecting more middle-brow picks from the LA critics. Also thought Argo's screenplay, to me it's Achille's Heel, being the lone winner for it was s little bizarre. Then again, I keep on hearing the same about the script for SLP.