Oscar Nominations 2015: Surprises, Disappointments, Predictions

Posted on January 15, 2015 at 10:17 am

This year’s Oscar nominations are out! Most of the expected nominees made it, but there were some surprises and disappointments, especially the omission of the Roger Ebert documentary “Life Itself” and the animated mega-hit “The LEGO Movie,” both of which I expected not just to be nominated but to take home the award. It was good to see a Best Picture nomination for “Selma,” but very disappointing not to see nominations for director Ava Duvernay, star David Oyelowo. I hoped to have seen Angelina Jolie and Jack O’Connell nominated for “Unbroken” and it would have been nice to see Jennifer Aniston nominated for her brave and vulnerable performance in “Cake” and Oscar Isaac nominated for a complex, deeply felt performance in “A Most Violent Year.” I liked “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” especially (of course) the music and production design and the performance by Ralph Fiennes, but would not have given it a Best Picture nomination.

It is a big disappointment to see yet another year with no acting nominations for performers of color, and no women in the director or screenwriter categories.

I was thrilled to see Laura Dern nominated for her effervescent performance in “Wild.” Marion Cotillard is deservedly an Academy favorite, and, like Dern, gave two superb performances this year. So did also-perennial favorite Jessica Chastain, and it was a disappointment not to see her nominated for “A Most Violent Year.” And so did Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who was incandescent in two films, “Beyond the Lights” and “Belle” and deserved nominations for both.

My predictions for the top awards are: “Boyhood” for Best Picture and Richard Linklater for Best Director, Eddie Redmayne for “The Theory of Everything” for Best Actor, Julianne Moore for “Still Alice” for Best Actress, J.K. Simmons for “Whiplash” for Best Supporting Actor, and Patricia Arquette for “Boyhood” for Best Supporting Actress

Here are the nominees:

BEST PICTURE

American Sniper

Birdman

Boyhood

The Grand Budapest Hotel

The Imitation Game

Selma

The Theory of Everything

Whiplash

BEST ACTOR

Steve Carell, Foxcatcher

Bradley Cooper, American Sniper

Benedict Cumberbatch, The Imitation Game

Michael Keaton, Birdman

Eddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything

BEST ACTRESS

Marion Cotillard, Two Days, One Night

Felicity Jones The Theory of Everything

Julianne Moore, Still Alice

Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl

Reese Witherspoon, Wild

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Robert Duvall, The Judge

Ethan Hawke, Boyhood

Edward Norton, Birdman

Mark Ruffalo, Foxcatcher

J.K. Simmons, Whiplash

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Patricia Arquette, Boyhood

Laura Dern, Wild

Keira Knightley, The Imitation Game

Emma Stone, Birdman

Meryl Streep, Into the Woods

BEST DIRECTOR

Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Birdman

Richard Linklater, Boyhood

Bennett Miller, Foxcatcher

Wes Anderson, The Grand Budapest Hotel

Morten Tyldum, The Imitation Game

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

Big Hero 6

The Boxtrolls

How to Train Your Dragon 2

Song of the Sea

The Tale of the Princess Kaguya

BEST FOREIGN FILM

Ida, Poland

Leviathan, Russia

Tangerines, Estonia

Timbuktu, Mauritania

Wild Tales, Argentina

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Birdman, Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr., Armando Bo

Boyhood, Richard Linklater

Foxcatcher, E. Max Frye, Dan Futterman

The Grand Budapest Hotel, Wes Anderson, Hugo Guinness

Nightcrawler, Dan Gilroy

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

American Sniper, Jason Hall

The Imitation Game, Graham Moore

Inherent Vice, Paul Thomas Anderson

The Theory of Everything, Anthony McCarten

Whiplash, Damien Chazelle

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

The Grand Budapest Hotel

The imitation Game

Interstellar

Mr. Turner

The Theory of Everything

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

Everything is Awesome, from The Lego Movie

Glory, from Selma

Grateful, from Beyond the Lights

I’m Not Gonna Miss You, from Glen Campbell…I’ll Be Me

Lost Stars, from Begin Again

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Birdman

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Ida

Mr. Turner

Unbroken

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Inherent Vice

Into the Woods

Maleficent

Mr. Turner

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

CitizenFour

Finding Vivian Maier

Last Days in Vietnam

The Salt of the Earth

Virunga

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT

Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1

Joanna

Our Curse

The Reaper (La Parka)

White Earth

BEST FILM EDITING

American Sniper

Boyhood

The Grand Budapest Hotel

The Imitation Game

Whiplash

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING

Foxcatcher

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Guardians of the Galaxy

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

The Grand Budapest Hotel

The Imitation Game

Interstellar

Into the Woods

Mr. Turner

BEST ANIMATED SHORT FILM

The Bigger Picture

The Dam Keeper

Feast

Me and My Moulton

A Single Life

BEST LIVE-ACTION SHORT FILM

Aya

Boogaloo and Graham

Butter Lamp (La Lampe au Beurre de Yak)

Parvaneh

The Phone Call

BEST SOUND EDITING

American Sniper

Birdman

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Interstellar

Unbroken

BEST SOUND MIXING

American Sniper

Birdman

Interstellar

Unbroken

Whiplash

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

Guardians of the Galaxy

Interstellar

X-Men: Days of Future Past

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2015 Awards from the Alliance of Women Film Journalists

Posted on January 12, 2015 at 8:12 am

I am so proud to be a member of the Alliance of Women Film Journalists, and of our 2015 awards.

AWFJ EDA ‘BEST OF’ AWARDS
These awards are presented to females and/or males.
Best Film
BOYHOOD
Best Director (Female or Male)
Richard Linklater for BOYHOOD
Best Screenplay, Original

BIRDMAN – Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu, Nicholas Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Armando Bo
Best Screenplay, Adapted
GONE GIRL – Gillian Flynn
Best Documentary
CITIZENFOUR – Laura Poitras
Best Animated Film
The LEGO Movie – Phil Lord, Christopher Miller
Best Actress
Julianne Moore for STILL ALICE
Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Tilda Swinton for SNOWPIERCER
Best Actor
Michael Keaton for BIRDMAN
Best Actor in a Supporting Role
J.K. Simmons for WHIPLASH
Best Ensemble Cast (tie)
BIRDMAN – Francine Maisler, Casting Director
and
GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL – Douglas Aibel (US), Antoinette Boulat (France), Simone Bar, Alexandra Montag (Germany), Debra Maxwell Dion (LA), Jina Jay (UK)
Best Editing
BIRDMAN – Douglas Crise, Stephen Mirrione
Best Cinematography
BIRDMAN – Emmanuel Lubezki
Best Film Music Or Score
BIRDMAN – Antonio Sanchez
Best Non-English-Language Film
IDA – Pavel Pawlikowski (Poland)

EDA FEMALE FOCUS AWARDS
These awards honor WOMEN only.

Best Woman Director
Ava DuVernay for SELMA
Best Woman Screenwriter
Gillian Flynn for GONE GIRL
Best Female Action Star
Emily Blunt for EDGE OF TOMORROW
Best Breakthrough Performance
Gugu Mbatha-Raw for BELLE
Female Icon of the Year (tie)
(a woman whose work in film and/or in life made a difference)
Ava DuVernay
and
Laura Poitras

EDA SPECIAL MENTION AWARDS
Best Depiction Of Nudity, Sexuality, or Seduction
UNDER THE SKIN – Scarlett Johansson
Actress Defying Age and Ageism
Tilda Swinton
Most Egregious Age Difference Between The Leading Man and The Love Interest
MAGIC IN THE MOONLIGHT – Colin Firth (b. 1960) and Emma Stone (b. 1988)
Actress Most in Need Of A New Agent
Cameron Diaz for SEX TAPE
Movie You Wanted To Love, But Just Couldn’t
INHERENT VICE

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Awards Gender and Diversity

Golden Globes 2015: The Good, The Bad, and the What Were They Thinking?

Posted on January 11, 2015 at 11:03 pm

Thoughts on the 2015 Golden Globes:

Amy Poehler and Tina Fey were marvelous as always. We knew they’d take on the Sony hack and “The Interview” and they got right to it. “North Korea referred to The Interview as ‘absolutely intolerable’ and a ‘wanton act of terror.’ Even more amazing: not the worst review the movie got.” Loved their line about George Clooney’s wife. The Bill Cosby bit did not work, however.

Should host next year: Chris Pratt and Anna Faris

Best dress: Lupita Nyong’O once again channeled Audrey Hepburn with effortless elegance and impeccable style

Worst suits: Kevin Hart, Alan Cumming, and Jill Soloway

It was a good year for red dresses: Jane Fonda, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Viola Davis, and Julianna Margulies

It was not such a good year for white dresses: Rosamund Pike, Kate Hudson, and Kristen Wiig (hers looked like it was made from two pillow cases)

Good idea: No musical numbers

Bad idea: Too long a walk from the tables to the stage. Runner-up: Jeremy Renner’s crack about Jennifer Lopez’s “golden globes”

Nice to see them together again: Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin picked up where they left off in “9 to 5”

Not so great to see them together again: Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig, who were so terrific as twins in “The Skeleton Twins,” stumbled through bad jokes about quotable movie lines.

It was a great year for women: “Transparent” and “The Affair” were created by women, as were some of the other nominees and the acceptance speech by Maggie Gyllenhaal and the comments from Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin were inspiring.

It was not a great year for broadcast TV: Cable and online shows took most of the television awards.

It was not a great year for nominees of color.

Best takedown of the ultimate silliness of the Golden Globes: Robert Bianco in USA Today.

The Globes are a carefully cultivated illusion, much like the wide-angle camera work used (not quite effectively) to make the Beverly Hilton’s ballroom look far larger and grander than it really is.

The winners all seemed very happy with their victories, some almost ecstatically so. But that’s merely a natural byproduct of a Hollywood-fueled desire for promotion and affirmation, and the universal urge to win a prize if a prize is offered, valuable or not. Joy may abound Monday morning, but look at any star’s bio, and you’ll see how quickly that Globe tumbles down the credits list when an actual award — an Emmy, Tony, Grammy or Oscar — is available to replace it.

That leaves you with a pokey, mostly performance-free broadcast devoted to showing clips, reading off names, revealing cleavage, and airing acceptance speeches. In the end, what can one say about an event that was less a TV show than a glorified home movie?

Best acceptance speech: Common (for the song from “Selma”), with Jeffrey Tambor (“Transparent”) and George Clooney (lifetime achievement award) a close second. Michael Keaton’s speech was very touching, too. All in all, a big improvement over last year — do you think they took my advice?

Winners:

Supporting Actor, Motion Picture: J.K. Simmons, Whiplash
Supporting Actress, Miniseries: Joanne Froggatt, Downton Abbey
Best Miniseries: Fargo
Lead Actor, Miniseries: Billy Bob Thornton, Fargo
Lead Actress, TV Comedy: Gina Rodriguez, Jane the Virgin
Best TV Comedy: Transparent
Best Original Score: The Theory of Everything
Best Original Song: John Legend and Common’s “Glory,” Selma
Supporting Actor, TV: Matt Bomer, The Normal Heart
Comedic Actress, Motion Picture: Amy Adams, Big Eyes
Best Animated Film: How to Train Your Dragon 2
Supporting Actress, Motion Picture: Patricia Arquette, Boyhood
Best Screenplay: Birdman
Lead Actor, TV: Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent
Best Foreign Language Film: Leviathan
Lead Actress, Miniseries: Maggie Gyllenhaal, The Honourable Woman
Best TV Drama: The Affair
Lead Actor, TV Drama: Kevin Spacey, House of Cards
Best Director: Richard Linklater, Boyhood
Lead Actress, TV Drama: Ruth Wilson, The Affair
Lead Actor, Motion Picture Comedy: Michael Keaton, Birdman
Best Picture, Comedy: The Grand Budapest Hotel
Best Actress, Motion Picture Drama: Julianne Moore, Still Alice
Best Actor, Motion Picture Drama: Eddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything
Best Picture: Drama: Boyhood

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Awards Television

Awards Season Heats Up

Posted on January 11, 2015 at 8:00 am

This is the week when we start seeing things come together as we get ready for the biggest awards night in the world of movies, the Oscars, coming up on February 22, 2015. Tonight is the Golden Globes. Amy Poehler and Tina Fey are hosting, no one takes it too seriously, and the tables are well-supplied with liquor, which means it will be the most fun. They also give out a lot of awards — television and movies, with separate categories for drama and comedy/musical.Presenters include: Jack Black, Don Cheadle, Benedict Cumberbatch, David Duchovny, Colin Farrell, Katie Holmes, Jared Leto, Julianna Margulies, Melissa McCarthy, Sienna Miller, Clive Owen, Paul Rudd, Naomi Watts, Oprah Winfrey Amy Adams, Jennifer Aniston, Kate Beckinsale, Adrien Brody, Bryan Cranston, Jamie Dornan, Robert Downey Jr., Anna Faris, Colin Firth, Jane Fonda, Harrison Ford, Ricky Gervais, Bill Hader, Kevin Hart, Salma Hayek, Katherine Heigl, Kate Hudson, Dakota Johnson, Adam Levine, Jennifer Lopez, Matthew McConaughey, Seth Meyers, Lupita Nyong’o, Gwyneth Paltrow, Chris Pratt, Jeremy Renner, Meryl Streep, Channing Tatum, Lily Tomlin, Vince Vaughn, Kerry Washington, Kristen Wiig, Owen Wilson and Catherine Zeta-Jones. I’ll be posting my thoughts on the high and low points and any surprises tomorrow.

Thursday morning, we get the Oscar nominations. There will be a few hours to pore over the nods and snubs, and then Thursday night is my favorite awards show, the Critics Choice Awards, and I’ll be attending in person. Our host is Michael Strahan and all the stars will be there. I like the the Critics Choice Awards because the critics see all the films that come out each year, not just the ones the studios are supporting by sending out screener DVDs, so we have the best sense of the range of candidates and the most objectivity, too, as we are not a part of the industry. Plus it is our 20th anniversary broadcast and the show will be a lot of fun. So be sure to tune in Thursday, January 15, 2015 at 9 Eastern to see us at the Hollywood Palladium, to see us pay tribute to the films and performances that moved, inspired, entertained, and thrilled us in 2014.

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Black Reel Awards Nominations 2014

Posted on December 17, 2014 at 9:14 am

One of the great pleasures of this time of year is voting for so many of my favorite filmmakers as a part of the Black Reel Awards. Thanks, as ever, to Tim Gordon for allowing me to participate. I think it is fair to say we had more and better choices this year than we ever have before. Here are our nominees:

MOTION PICTURE

Outstanding Motion Picture

Belle | Damian Jones (Fox Searchlight)
Beyond the Lights | Stephanie Allain, Amar’e Stoudamire, Reggie Rock Bythewood & Ryan Kavanaugh (Relativity Media)
Dear White People | Justin Simien, Angel Lopez, Lena Waithe, Ann Le, Effie Brown & Julia Lebedev (Lionsgate/ Roadside Attractions)
Selma | Oprah Winfrey, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner & Christian Colson (Paramount)
Top Five | Scott Rudin & Eli Bush (Paramount)

Outstanding Actor, Motion Picture

Outstanding Actress, Motion Picture

Outstanding Supporting Actor, Motion Picture

Outstanding Supporting Actress, Motion Picture

Viola Davis | The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby (The Weinstein Company)
Carmen Ejogo | Selma (Paramount)
Teyonah Parris | Dear White People (Lionsgate / Roadside Attractions)
Zoe Saldana | Guardians of the Galaxy (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
Octavia Spencer | Snowpiercer (The Weinstein Company)

Outstanding Director, Motion Picture

Outstanding Screenplay (Original or Adapted), Motion Picture

Gina Prince-Bythewood | Beyond the Lights (Relativity Media)
John Ridley | Jimi: All is by My Side (XLrator Media/ Open Road Films)
Chris Rock | Top Five (Paramount)
Misan Sagay | Belle (Fox Searchlight)
Justin Simien | Dear White People (Lionsgate / Roadside Attractions)

Outstanding Documentary

Outstanding Ensemble (Awarded to Casting Directors)

Outstanding Foreign Film

Difret (Ethiopia)| Zeresenay Mehari (Moving Turtle)
The Double! (U.K.) | Richard Ayoade (Magnolia Films)
Fishing Without Nets (Kenya) | Cutter Hodierne (Drafthouse Films)
Freedom Road (South Africa) | Shane Vermooten (Media Village Productions)
Half of a Yellow Sun (Nigeria) | Biyi Bandele (Monterey Media)

Outstanding Breakthrough Performance, Male

Outstanding Breakthrough Performance, Female

Jillian Estell| Black or White (Relativity Media)
Patina Miller | The Hunger Games: Mockingjay-Part 1 (Lionsgate)
Teyonah Parris | Dear White People (Lionsgate / Roadside Attractions)
Amber Stevens | 22 Jump Street (Columbia/ MGM)
Kuoth Wiel | The Good Lie (Warner Bros.)

Outstanding Voice Performance

Vin Diesel | Guardians of the Galaxy (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
Morgan Freeman | The LEGO Movie (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Maya Rudolph | Big Hero 6 (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
Zoe Saldana | The Book of Life (20th Century Fox)
Damon Wayans Jr. | Big Hero 6 (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

MUSIC

Outstanding Score

Terence Blanchard | Black or White (Relativity Media)
Kathryn Bostic | Dear White People (Lionsgate/ Roadside Attractions)
Danny Bramson & Waddy Wachtel | Jimi: All is by My Side (XLrator Media/ Open Road Films)
Mask Isham | Beyond the Lights (Relativity Media)
Jason Moran | Selma (Paramount)

Outstanding Original Song

“It Ain’t Easy” from Top Five | Written & Performed by: Questlove & Elza Colby (Paramount)
“It’s On Again” from The Amazing Spider-Man 2| Performed by: Alicia Keys & Kendrick Lamar; Written by: Alicia Keys, Pharrell Williams, Hans Zimmer & Kendrick Lamar (Sony Pictures)
“Glory” from Selma | Performed by: John Legend & Common; Written by: John Legend, Common & Che Smith (Paramount)
“Grateful” from Beyond the Lights | Performed by: Rita Ora; Written by: Diane Warren (Relativity Media)
“What is Love” from Rio 2 | Performed by: Janelle Monae; Written by: Janelle Monae, Nathaniel Irvin III and Roman Irvin (20th Century Fox)

INDEPENDENT

Outstanding Independent Feature

Outstanding Independent Documentary

25 to Life | Mike Brown (AAFRM)
Evolution of a Criminal | Darius Clark Monroe
Let the Fire Burn | Jason Osder
Oscar Micheaux: The Czar of Black Hollywood | Bayer Mack
Through a Lens Darkly: Black Photographers and the Emergence of a People | Thomas Allen Harris

Outstanding Independent Short

#AmeriCan | Nate Parker
Muted | Rachel Goldberg
The Voodoo | Steven Alexander

TELEVISION

Outstanding Television Documentary or Special

Finding the Funk | Nelson George (VH1)
Mr. Dynamite: The Rise of James Brown | Alex Gibney (HBO)
On the Run Tour: Jay-Z & Beyonce | Jonas Akerlund (HBO)
The Tanning of America: One Nation Under Hip-Hop | Billy Corben & Alfred Spellman (VH1)
Terror at the Mall | Dan Reed (HBO)

Outstanding TV Movie or Mini-Series

A Day Late and a Dollar Short | Tom Leonardis, Jeffrey M. Hayes, Bill Haber & Whoopi Goldberg (Lifetime)
Gun Hill | Daniel Hank (BET)
Rosemary’s Baby | Zoe Saldana, Cisely Saldana, Mariel Saldana, Tom Patricia & Robert Bernacchi (NBC)
Seasons of Love | Joshua A. Green, Asger Hussain & Yaron Schwartzman (Lifetime)
The Trip to Bountiful | Bill Haber, Cicely Tyson, Hallie Foote & Jeff Hayes (Lifetime)

Outstanding Actor, TV Movie or Mini-Series

Outstanding Actress, TV Movie or Mini-Series

Outstanding Supporting Actor, TV Movie or Mini-Series

Outstanding Supporting Actress, TV Movie or Mini-Series

Outstanding Director, TV Movie or Mini-Series

Outstanding Writing, TV Movie or Mini-Series

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