86th Academy Awards: Nominees

The Academy Awards, awarded by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), also known as the "Oscars", is the only movie awards competition that I feel any real obligation to, but paradoxically, I doubt their credibility.  For a more legitimate form of recognition of greatness and film, I prefer the National Film Registry which selects 25 films annually for preservation on a basis of being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant", or the American Film Institute's annual selection of ten films from the year.  However, the Academy Awards are the most prominent and longest running entertainment awards ceremony today, having been held since 1929, and they're a point of interest for cinephiles.  This morning, the nominations for the 86th Academy Awards were announced, to be voted on by members of AMPAS, with winners announced at the ceremony on March 2nd.  Most of the nominees were predictable, with few noteworthy upsets, although the much-maligned THE LONE RANGER received twice as many nominations as early frontrunner SAVING MR. BANKS, and Tom Hanks' excellent performance in CAPTAIN PHILLIPS failing to garner recognition.  Expect more posts between now and the Awards, covering the contenders and the dynamics of this year's selections.

Films With Multiple Nominations

• 10 nominations: AMERICAN HUSTLE, GRAVITY
• 9 nominations: 12 YEARS A SLAVE
• 6 nominations: CAPTAIN PHILLIPS, DALLAS BUYERS CLUB, NEBRASKA
• 5 nominations: HER, THE WOLF OF WALL STREET
• 4 nominations: PHILOMENA
• 3 nominations: BLUE JASMINE, THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG
• 2 nominations: AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY, DESPICABLE ME 2, FROZEN, THE GRANDMASTER, THE GREAT GATSBY, INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS, THE LONE RANGER, LONE SURVIVOR

BEST PICTURE

• AMERICAN HUSTLE
• CAPTAIN PHILLIPS
• DALLAS BUYERS CLUB
• GRAVITY
• HER
• NEBRASKA
• PHILOMENA
• 12 YEARS A SLAVE
• THE WOLF OF WALL STREET

No very big surprises in the Best Picture category.  SAVING MR. BANKS was a strong contender a while back during the earlier speculation, but clearly fell out of favor.  The long-held top contenders 12 YEARS A SLAVE and GRAVITY have recently been joined by AMERICAN HUSTLE, which has rapidly gaining momentum.  [Note: DALLAS BUYERS CLUB, NEBRASKA and PHILOMENA are still on my "To See" list.]

BEST DIRECTOR

• DAVID O. RUSSELL for AMERICAN HUSTLE
• ALFONSO CUARON for GRAVITY
• ALEXANDER PAYNE for NEBRASKA
• STEVE McQUEEN for 12 YEARS A SLAVE
• MARTIN SCORCESE for THE WOLF OF WALL STREET

 Even after last year's "embarrassment" of not nominating Ben Affleck while his film ARGO rocketed to a position of Best Picture favorite, the Best Director category is still the best way to tell which of the 5+ (this year's 9) Best Picture nominees the Academy is taking seriously for the win.  Although not a huge shocker, Scorcese's nomination for THE WOLF OF WALL STREET is a little surprising, given the bad press and occasionally disgusted reaction that the film has been receiving.

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

• CHRISTIAN BALE in AMERICAN HUSTLE
• BRUCE DERN in NEBRASKA
• LEONARDO DiCAPRIO in THE WOLF OF WALL STREET
• CHIWETEL EJIOFOR in 12 YEARS A SLAVE
• MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY in DALLAS BUYERS CLUB

Of the nominees, none of them are especially surprising to see included, but I think Tom Hanks not receiving a nomination for CAPTAIN PHILLIPS is a great injustice toward one of the greatest performances of his career.  Had he been nominated, probably the most likely swap would be for DiCaprio, given his sometimes laughably tragic record with the Academy Awards, but his performance in THE WOLF OF WALL STREET was really great, too.

BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

• AMY ADAMS in AMERICAN HUSTLE
• CATE BLANCHETT in BLUE JASMINE
• SANDRA BULLOCK in GRAVITY
• JUDI DENCH in PHILOMENA
• MERYL STREEP in AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY

 The only real surprise here is that Emma Thompson failed to garner a nomination for her acclaimed performance in SAVING MR. BANKS, but apparently the Academy has something against the film, only giving it a single nod in a minor category.  Julie Delpy may have also warranted a nomination for her work in BEFORE MIDNIGHT, but was never very prominent in the running.  Meryl "Miss Oscar" Streep could have been interchangeable, especially given AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY's lukewarm reception, but she did win even for the little cared-for THE IRON LADY, plus she had Oscar-hunter extraordinaire Harvey Weinstein behind this film.  Cate Blanchett is the far-and-away frontrunner this year, anyway.

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE 

• BARKHAD ABDI in CAPTAIN PHILLIPS
• BRADLEY COOPER in AMERICAN HUSTLE
• MICHAEL FASSBENDER in 12 YEARS A SLAVE
• JONAH HILL in THE WOLF OF WALL STREET
• JARED LETO in DALLAS BUYERS CLUB

This category is a well-mixed bag this year, with two regularly-acclaimed actors (Fassbender and Leto), a couple of actors usually associated with less-sophisticated fare (Hill and Cooper) and one newcomer (Abdi).  Cooper's nomination makes his second after last year's SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK in the Best Actor category, and Hill's is his second in the same category after 2011's MONEYBALL, but neither is especially strong in the running.  Leto is the current frontrunner, having just won the Golden Globe, and the Academy has a record of appreciating gender-bending performances, but Abdi and Fassbender both have been extremely acclaimed and each have a chance of gaining the needed momentum.

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

• SALLY HAWKINS in BLUE JASMINE
• JENNIFER LAWRENCE in AMERICAN HUSTLE
• LUPITA NYONG'O in 12 YEARS A SLAVE
• JULIA ROBERTS in AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY
• JUNE SQUIBB in NEBRASKA

Another mixed bag of previous winners (Lawrence and Roberts), a newcomer (Nyong'o) and an 84-year old first-time nominee (Squibb), the surprise, albeit little, is Hawkins, who shares the screen with an impossibly spotlight-grabbing Cate Blanchett.  Roberts' nomination is most likely thanks to AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY's producer, Harvey Weinstein, who cares more about Oscars than making money, and despite an excellent performance, Lawrence may be put aside after winning Best Actress for SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK last year.  My favorite is Nyong'o, but Hawkins also has a good underdog's shot.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

• AMERICAN HUSTLE  -Written by Eric Warren Singer and David O. Russell
• BLUE JASMINE  -Written by Woody Allen
• DALLAS BUYERS CLUB  -Written by Craig Borten & Melisa Wallack
• HER  -Written by Spike Jonze
• NEBRASKA  -Written by Bob Nelson

 Some people are disappointed that Joel & Ethan Coen's INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS didn't manage a nomination for this category, but by far, the deserving film is Spike Jonze's HER.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

• BEFORE MIDNIGHT  -Written by Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke
• CAPTAIN PHILLIPS  -Written by Billy Ray
• PHILOMENA  -Written by Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope
• 12 YEARS A SLAVE  -Written by John Ridley
• THE WOLF OF WALL STREET  -Written by Terence Winter

These nominees are just about what anyone expected.  PHILOMENA is the frontrunner right now, but the Academy might choose to lump it in with 12 YEAR A SLAVE's wins.  Personally, I wish BEFORE MIDNIGHT would get the win for its hugely involving dialogue-driven script.

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

• THE BROKEN CIRCLE BREAKDOWN  (Belgium)
• THE GREAT BEAUTY  (Italy)
• THE HUNT  (Denmark)
• THE MISSING PICTURE  (Cambodia)
• OMAR  (Palestine)

 As usual, I haven't seen any of these.  It's not that I've anything against foreign language films, but they don't play in many theaters, so their reach is limited.

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

• THE CROODS
• DESPICABLE ME 2
• ERNEST & CELESTINE
• FROZEN
• THE WIND RISES

One of the most notable of the few and minor surprises in this year's nominees lineup, is Pixar's MONSTER'S UNIVERSITY's exclusion from this category.  That makes it one of only two Pixar films since the category's introduction in 2001 to fail to get a nomination, the other being the much-maligned CARS 2.  Granted, MONSTER'S UNIVERSITY was yet another lackluster Pixar film since their last great movie, TOY STORY 3, but that didn't stop the Academy from awarding an undeserving BRAVE over WRECK-IT RALPH last year.  The standard foreign indie feature this year is French-Belgian ERNEST AND CELINE, which is mainly a courtesy to a film unseen by most, and legendary animator Hayao Miyazaki's final feature, THE WIND RISES got an obvious nod.  However, the definite and deserving favorite is Disney's FROZEN, which would be Walt Disney Animation's first win of seven nominations in this category.

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

• THE ACT OF KILLING
• CUTIE AND THE BOXER
• DIRTY WARS
• THE SQUARE
• 20 FEET FROM STARDOM

Another set of nominees unseen by most, I've only seen THE ACT OF KILLING in this selection, and that may win as the most "important" of the nominees, but CUTIE AND THE BOXER could pull through as a feel-good favorite.

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT

• CAVEDIGGER
• FACING FEAR
• KARAMA HAS NO WALLS
• THE LADY IN NUMBER 6: MUSIC SAVED MY LIFE
• PRISON TERMINAL: THE LAST DAY OF PRIVATE JACK HALL

I haven't seen any of these, and neither have most people.  There aren't a lot of venues outside of film festivals to watch short films, let alone documentary short films.


BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

• AMERICAN HUSTLE
• GRAVITY
• THE GREAT GATSBY
• HER
• 12 YEARS A SLAVE

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

• THE GRANDMASTER
• GRAVITY
• INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS
• NEBRASKA
• PRISONERS

It's a little surprising not to find 12 YEARS A SLAVE nominated here, given its gorgeously choreographed shots of Louisiana, which present the Southern scenery as its own character.  However, Roger Deakins is on his eleventh nomination and is still yet to win, so maybe this will be his year, though its the only nomination garnered by PRISONERS.

BEST FILM EDITING

• AMERICAN HUSTLE
• CAPTAIN PHILLIPS
• DALLAS BUYERS CLUB
• GRAVITY
• 12 YEARS A SLAVE

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

• THE BOOK THIEF
• GRAVITY
• HER
• PHILOMENA
• SAVING MR. BANKS

This is the only nomination for SAVING MR. BANKS, despite its status as an early frontrunner, but the score by Thomas Newman was unremarkable, outside of the variations on the Sherman brothers' MARY POPPINS tunes.  HER's score, by indie rock band Arcade Fire, is a nice way to shake things up and may even win, but GRAVITY's score, by Steven Price, is the real heavyweight, having played such a prominent role.

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

• "Alone Yet Not Alone" from ALONE YET NOT ALONE
• "Happy" from DESPICABLE ME 2
• "Let It Go" from FROZEN
• "The Moon Song" from HER
• "Ordinary Love" from MANDELA: LONG WALK TO FREEDOM

New Disney favorite "Let It Go" is the only nomination here worth giving any note.  Anything else would be a gross injustice, as if it isn't bad enough that they ignored other worthy (but not as worthy) songs in FROZEN, like "Do You Want to Build a Snowman", "For the First Time in Forever" and everyone else' favorite, if not my own, the comic piece "In Summer".  Certainly, it must have been hoped that MANDELA: LONG WALK TO FREEDOM would have had a stronger awards presence, but this is its single Academy Award nomination.

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

• GRAVITY
• THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG
• IRON MAN 3
• THE LONE RANGER
• STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS

As much as everyone loves that dragon from THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG, there's simply no contest here.  GRAVITY was the frontrunner from the instant the preview started running, and the leaps and bounds taken in visual effects technology have been the talk of the industry.

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

• AMERICAN HUSTLE
• THE GRANDMASTER
• THE GREAT GATSBY
• THE INVISIBLE WOMAN
• 12 YEARS A SLAVE

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING

• DALLAS BUYERS CLUB
• JACKASS PRESENTS: BAD GRANDPA
• THE LONE RANGER

The Oscar-nominated film, JACKASS PRESENTS: BAD GRANDPA!  The Best Makeup and Hairstyling category is often the best bet for less prestigious, sometimes even maligned, films to get an award (hello, THE WOLFMAN), but this is almost definitely DALLAS BUYERS CLUB's already, just in case it loses everything else to the frontrunners.

BEST SOUND EDITING

• ALL IS LOST
• CAPTAIN PHILLIPS
• GRAVITY
• THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG
• LONE SURVIVOR

BEST SOUND MIXING

• CAPTAIN PHILLIPS
• GRAVITY
• THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG
• INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS
• LONE SURVIVOR

BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM

• FERAL
• GET A HORSE!
• MR. HUBLOT
• POSSESSIONS
• ROOM ON THE BROOM

BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM

• AQUEL NO ERA YO (THAT WASN'T ME)
• AVANT QUE DE TOUT PERDRE (JUST BEFORE LOSING EVERYTHING)
• HELIUM
• PITAAKO MUN KAIKKI HOITAA? (DO I HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF EVERYTHING?)
• THE VOORMAN PROBLEM