'Grand Budapest Hotel' Leads the 2014 BAFTA Nominations

Well, there were quite a few shockers at this year's British Academy Film noms (which shares signifcant overlap with our own Academy), notably that Wes Anderson's Grand Budapest Hotel dominated with 11 nominations, including Director, Actor and Editing nods. I may have to seriously consider it as a threat for the Oscar nomination in director now. Mr. Turner was unfairly shut out in major categories (shame on the Brits for ignoring their hometown boy Mike Leigh- and in favor of James Marsh? Really?) Birdman and Theory of Everything got 10 noms each, while The Imitation Game was right behind them with 9. Interestingly, as strong as Imitation Game has been across the guilds and here at Bafta, no one seems to want to nominate the director Morten Tyldum, even going for Marsh of all people instead (although he is British and Tyldum's not, so that may explain the snub). The DGA next week will be interesting, as the Directors Guild five are almost always the leading contenders for the Oscar Best Picture. I can't imagine them going for Marsh, especially with Theory weaker in the guilds than TIG, but we'll see what happens. And how about that Chazelle nod? The Whiplash wunderkind could very easily be a surprise nominee at the Oscars, even if he doesn't make the DGA next week.

Best Film
    •    Birdman
    •    Boyhood
    •    The Grand Budapest Hotel
    •    The Imitation Game
    •    The Theory of Everything

Best British Film
    •    71
    •    The Imitation Game
    •    Paddington
    •    Pride
    •    The Theory of Everything
    •    Under the Skin

Best Director
    •    Alejandro González Iñárritu – “Birdman”
    •    Richard Linklater – “Boyhood”
    •    Wes Anderson – “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
    •    James Marsh – “The Theory of Everything”
    •    Damien Chazelle – “Whiplash”

Best Actor
    •    Benedict Cumberbatch – “The Imitation Game”
    •    Ralph Fiennes – “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
    •    Jake Gyllenhaal – “Nightcrawler”
    •    Michael Keaton – “Birdman”
    •    Eddie Redmayne – “The Theory of Everything”

Best Actress
    •    Amy Adams – “Big Eyes”
    •    Felicity Jones – “The Theory of Everything”
    •    Julianne Moore – “Still Alice”
    •    Rosamund Pike – “Gone Girl”
    •    Reese Witherspoon – “Wild”

Best Actor
    •    Steve Carrel – “Foxcatcher”
    •    Ethan Hawke – “Boyhood”
    •    Edward Norton – “Birdman”
    •    Mark Ruffalo – “Foxcatcher”
    •    J. K. Simmons – “Whiplash”

Best Supporting Actress
    •    Patricia Arquette – “Boyhood”
    •    Keira Knightley – “The Imitation Game”
    •    Rene Russo – “Nightcrawler”
    •    Imelda Staunton – “Pride”
    •    Emma Stone – “Birdman”

Best Original Screenplay
    •    Birdman
    •    Boyhood
    •    The Grand Budapest Hotel
    •    Nightcrawler
    •    Whiplash

Best Adapted Screenplay
    •    American Sniper
    •    Gone Girl
    •    The Imitation Game
    •    Paddington
    •    The Theory of Everything

Best Animated Film
    •    Big Hero 6
    •    The Boxtrolls
    •    The LEGO Movie

Best Documentary
    •    20 Feet from Stardom
    •    20,000 Days on Earth
    •    Citizenfour
    •    Finding Vivian Meier
    •    Virunga

Best Debut of a British Writer, Director or Producer
    •    Elaine Constantine – “Northern Soul”
    •    Gregory Burke & Yann Demange – “71”
    •    Hong Khaou – “Lilting”
    •    Paul Katis & Andrew de Lotbiniere – “Kajaki: The True Story”
    •    Stephen Beresford & David Livingstone – “Pride”

Best International Film
    •    Ida (Polonia)
    •    Leviathan (Rusia)
    •    The Lunchbox (India)
    •    Trash (Reino Unido)
    •    Two Days, One Night (Francia)

Best Music
    •    Birdman
    •    The Grand Budapest Hotel
    •    Interstellar
    •    The Theory of Everything
    •    Under the Skin

Best Cinematography
    •    Birdman
    •    The Grand Budapest Hotel
    •    Ida
    •    Interstellar
    •    Mr. Turner

Best Editing
    •    Birdman
    •    The Grand Budapest Hotel
    •    The Imitation Game
    •    Nightcrawler
    •    The Theory of Everything
    •    Whiplash

Best Production Design
    •    Big Eyes
    •    The Grand Budapest Hotel
    •    The Imitation Game
    •    Interstellar
    •    Mr. Turner

Best Costume Design
    •    The Grand Budapest Hotel
    •    The Imitation Game
    •    Into the Woods
    •    Mr. Turner
    •    The Theory of Everything

Best Sound
    •    American Sniper
    •    Birdman
    •    The Grand Budapest Hotel
    •    The Imitation Game
    •    Whiplash

Best Visual Effects
    •    Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
    •    Guardians of the Galaxy
    •    The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
    •    Interstellar
    •    X-Men: Days of Future Past

Best Hair & Makeup
    •    The Grand Budapest Hotel
    •    Guardians of the Galaxy
    •    Into the Woods
    •    Mr. Turner
    •    The Theory of Everything

Best Animated Short
    •    The Bigger Picture
    •    Monkey Love Experiments
    •    My Dad

Best Short Film
    •    Boogaloo and Graham
    •    Emotional Fusebox
    •    The Karman Line
    •    Slap
    •    Three Brothers

Rising Star Award
    •    Jack O’Connell
    •    Margot Robbie
    •    Milles Teller
    •    Shailene Woodley
    •    Gugu Mbatha-Raw

I guess Theory of Everything is stronger than I thought it would be. I just cannot understand the love for that cheesy, superficial movie and to honor it with a directing nod makes me nauseous. I should also mention that with the complete shutout of Selma, the movie is now in serious trouble (apparently BAFTA did get screeners), so frankly, it may miss out altogether next week. Or the Academy could be the one place that chooses to honor Ava DuVernay's film with at least a Best Picture nomination and some techs, if nothing else. Other interesting tidbits here are Bafta's continued love affair with Amy Adams (please overtake Jennifer Aniston, Amy!) and the love for Nightcrawler, which included a nod for Rene Russo! And a snub for Meryl Streep, which I had been wondering about for a while now. Bafta can often be very good with telling us who any "surprise" acting nominations at the Oscars might be- given all the love for Nightcrawler, I'd honestly bet on Rene at this point. In fact, I think she'll take Streep's place. Another interesting note is Steve Carell's nomination in supporting here- might the Academy do the same, ignore his studio's placement in lead in order to toss him a bone in supporting? I doubt it, but that'd be better than a filler Robert Duvall nod. The battle in Best Actor continues though, and the question is other than Keaton, Cumberbatch and Redmayne, who's going to fill those last two spots? Gyllenhaal? Cooper? Fiennes? Oyelowo? Carell? We'll find out next week.

USC Scripter Nominees include 'Inherent Vice' and 'Wild'

The prestigious Scripter award is given to the best adapted screenplay of the year, usually taking the source literary material into account as much as the script itself. These films got the nod and aside from Inherent Vice, will probably be screenplay nominees at the Oscars too:

• Gone Girl
• The Imitation Game
• Inherent Vice
• The Theory of Everything
• Wild

I think Imitation Game probably takes this one, given the historical significance of the biography it was based on.

Makeup & Hairstyling Guild Nominees

After today, The Grand Budapest Hotel remains the one movie to hit every single guild in the runup to the Oscar nominations. Pretty impressive, but the question is does the Academy still hold a blockage when it comes to Wes Anderson films? Can he actually get for Best Director, for example? In this category I think the three Oscar nominees will be Guardians, Budapest and probably Maleficent.

Contemporary Makeup

• Captain America: The Winter Soldier
• Gone Girl
• Guardians of the Galaxy
• Interstellar
• Nightcrawler

Period and/or Character Makeup

• The Hunger Games: Mockingjay- Part 1
• Into the Woods
• The Grand Budapest Hotel
• The Theory of Everything
• Unbroken

Special Makeup Effects

• Foxcatcher
• Guardians of the Galaxy
• Into the Woods
• Maleficent
• The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Contemporary Hairstyling

• Birdman
• Guardians of the Galaxy
• Interstellar
• St. Vincent
• Winter's Tale

Period and/or Character Hairstyling

• Get On Up
• Into the Woods
• Selma
• The Grand Budapest Hotel
• The Theory of Everything

Teens and J-Law Win at People's Choice Awards

God. The horror show that is the People's Choice Awards took place tonight, reminding me again why I tend to hate "the people." Based on these winners though, I have to say that whoever's voting can't possibly be any older than 12. I mean, Maleficent for Favorite Movie? Maleficent? MALEFICENT? WTF? Reading that result almost gave me an aneurysm. And you do realize that the only movies favorite comedy actors Adam Sandler and Melissa McCarthy were in this year were the shitpiles Blended and Tammy, right? Or do they not realize that and just check off familiar names? Methinks it's the latter. These results are gross, and once again, fuck the People's Choice Awards.

Movie: Maleficent
Actor: Robert Downey Jr
Actress: Jennifer Lawrence
Movie Duo: Shailene Woodley & Theo James
Action Movie: Divergent
Action Movie Actor: Chris Evans
Action Movie Actress: Jennifer Lawrence
Comedy Movie: 22 Jump Street
Comedy Actor: Adam Sandler
Comedy Actress: Melissa McCarthy
Dramatic Movie: The Fault in Our Stars
Dramatic Movie Actor: Robert Downey Jr
Dramatic Movie Actress: Chloe Grace Moretz
Family Movie: Maleficent
Thriller Movie: Gone Girl

Cinematography and Costume Guild Nominees

Two more guilds announced today, with the American Society of Cinematographers going first. The ASC is a very exclusive group and overlap with the Academy cinematography branch is huge, so frankly this may be your Oscar five as well:

ASC nominees

• Birdman
• The Grand Budapest Hotel
• The Imitation Game
• Mr. Turner
• Unbroken

At least Mr. Turner didn't miss here- the cinematography was its most luscious aspect. And the fact that Imitation Game made it into even this group really shows how strong it is across the board with the industry. Meanwhile, the Costume Designers Guild also spoke up.

2014 CDG Nominations

Contemporary Film

• Birdman
• Boyhood
• Gone Girl
• Interstellar
• Wild

Fantasy Film

• Guardians of the Galaxy
• The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
• The Hunger Games: Mockingjay- Part 1
• Into the Woods
• Maleficent

Period Film

• The Grand Budapest Hotel
• The Imitation Game
• Inherent Vice
• Selma
• The Theory of Everything

Well, apparently the CDG was the only guild that saw Selma, or they just assumed the 1960's costumes must be good enough to get it. Based on this, and knowing the Academy loves period film, my guess would be that the five Oscar nominees are Budapest, Into the Woods, Imitation Game, Maleficent and Mr. Turner. I don't why Turner is missing from this list, but it has the kinds of costumes the Oscars love, so I fully expect it will get in there.

WGA Nominates 'Boyhood,' 'Wild,' 'Guardians of the Galaxy'

The Writers Guild isn't the strongest predictor at the Oscars, simply because there are all kinds of disqualifications for screenplays every year. This time Selma, Birdman and Theory of Everything weren't eligible but all are considered strong contenders for the screenplay category at the Oscars. Nevertheless, it obviously doesn't hurt to get in here.

Original Screenplay

• Boyhood
• Foxcatcher
• The Grand Budapest Hotel
• Nightcrawler
• Whiplash

Adapted Screenplay

• American Sniper
• Gone Girl
• Guardians of the Galaxy
• The Imitation Game
• Wild

Once again, Sniper shows its strength, even though it's kind of hilarious to see Guardians of the Galaxy take the place of what will presumably be Theory of Everything on Oscar night. On the other hand, for some strange reason, the Academy has qualified Whiplash as an adapted screenplay for the Oscars only, so maybe that will take its place while Birdman replaces it in original. Because of the disqualifications, it's hard to predict what will happen here- but Birdman is getting in for sure, certainly in place of Whiplash - the question is can Selma take out Foxcatcher.

TEASER: "Ant-Man"

Marvel's current timetable of one sequel and one "original" film a year continues, as the trailer for Ant-Man drops. The most publicity this movie's gotten has been all the controversy surrounding Edgar Wright abandoning the project last year after spending at least three years writing the script and working on pre-production. Apparently the director of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz had ideas that were far too creative and "off-brand" for Marvel, which now seems to package its movies off an assembly line devoid of unique content. So it shouldn't be surprising that they've produced a very generic trailer after placing director-for-hire Peyton Reed on the film. I love Paul Rudd, but sorry guys- I see nothing to get excited about in this teaser. It's coming out July 17th.

Iowa Joins 'Boyhood', J.K. Simmons Train

The love just won't stop. The Iowa Film Critics agree that Boyhood's best, but also list what their runners-up were. By the way, I really hate it when any group gives out an award for "best movie that hasn't come out yet." What's that about- the title you liked best?

• Best Film - Boyhood (runners-up, Birdman and Imitation Game)
• Best Director - Richard Linklater (runners-up, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, David Fincher)
• Best Actor - Micheal Keaton (runners-up, Eddie Redmayne, Benedict Cumberbatch)
• Best Actress - Reese Witherspoon (runners-up, Felicity Jones, Rosamund Pike)
• Best Supporting Actor - JK Simmons (runners-up, Ethan Hawke, Edward Norton)
• Best Supporting Actress - Patricia Arquette (runners-up, Emma Stone, Tilda Swinton)
• Best Score - Birdman (runners-up, The Theory of Everything, The Imitation Game)
• Best Animated Film - The Lego Movie (runners-up, Big Hero 6, How To Train Your Dragon 2)
• Best Original Song - Everything is Awesome (runners-up, Lost Stars, Glory)
• Best Movie Yet To Open in Iowa - A Most Violent Year and American Sniper (tie)
   

Vancouver Critics like 'Boyhood,' Tilda Swinton

The Vancouver film critics went for Boyhood in best film but gave actress to Tilda Swinton for Only Lovers Left Alive! Probably my favorite critics pick all season. She was so great in that, and in Snowpiercer last year- it's a shame she won't be recognized for either come Oscar time. Sigh.

Film: Boyhood
Director: Alejandro Inarritu, Birdman
Actor: Jake Gyllenhaal, Nightcrawler
Actress: Tilda Swinton, Only Lovers Left Alive
S. Actor: J.K. Simmons, Whiplash
S. Actress: Patricia Arquette, Boyhood
Screenplay: The Grand Budapest Hotel
Foreign: Force Majeure
Documentary: The Overnighters

REVIEW: "Foxcatcher" (2014) Steve Carell, Channing Tatum. Dir. Bennett Miller

What's there to say about a movie like Foxcatcher? It's impeccably wrought, well-acted and precisely controlled, yet I didn't get anything out of the experience that would make me want to recommend it to someone else. It's cold, it's moody, it's unsettling...but essentially that's all it is, and a movie has to have more to it than simply a sense of atmosphere. There has to be something of a story worth telling, or characters worth knowing- something that leaves you feeling that what you're being shown is in some way worth your time. I did not get that from this film as a whole, despite the finely tuned crafting of the individual pieces of it.

In 1987, Olympic wrestler Mark Schulz, here played by Channing Tatum, was invited to the "Foxcatcher" estate of billionaire John DuPont, whose goal was to provide training grounds for the 1988 Olympic wrestling team and be their coach and advisor. There was no real sense of purpose in DuPont's life, or so this movie would have you believe, as he was endlessly searching for something to build his legacy on, using his mass inherited wealth to do so. He had no talents of his own, or close friends, and he may have also been using this endeavor to buy himself some of those, as he seemed to want the wrestlers to look up to him as a father figure and a mentor. Or maybe he was physically attracted to them, as the movie vaguely hints, using their presence to work out his hidden sexual desires.

The film doesn't outright tell us any of this, that's only me theorizing based on the slightest inferences sprinkled throughout this slowly paced, methodical telling of what happened at the DuPont estate. It ended in the tragic killing of Mark Schulz's brother Dave, also an Olympic wrestler, but this film wants us to observe and question what it is that led to that event. I can't say that I have any kind of an answer, and that's because the movie never focuses on any one aspect of the story it purportedly wants to tell. In some ways this is a character study, not simply of John DuPont, but of each of the Schulz brothers as well. The movie at times trades off between them, and we see various angles of the relationship between Mark and DuPont from different viewpoints, but always from a carefully observed distance. There's not enough intimacy involved in any of it to know what's really going on under the surface, and the tone is maddeningly opaque.

The bright spot is the performances from the actors, all of whom give it their best shot and dive head on into the material, especially Steve Carell as the intensely disturbed DuPont. Disguised by heavy facial makeup including a prosthetic nose, Carell nonetheless does not let the makeup act for him, turning in a deeply unsettling, creepy performance as this troubled figure- so much so that you're perturbed by his presence and relieved when he's not onscreen. I'm not sure if that's a sign Carell succeeded in this role or not- but I was genuinely put off by him and didn't want to see any more of him than was necessary. Tatum is also impressive as Schulz, and turns in a much more serious performance than we're used to seeing from him. As the needy and sulking athlete who lives in his brother's shadow, he hulks down under his physical presence and changes the way he walks to more closely resemble a wrestler. It shows a canny development of talent from an actor who I used to think sounded like he read his dialogue phonetically.

But best in show here by far is Mark Ruffalo as Dave Schulz. Blessed with his uncanny knack for complete naturalism, he once again delivers the most un-actorly performance in a very actorly film (he's using the false prosthetics too, but on him they seem to disappear) and you can't help but feel the entire movie should have been seen from Dave's point of view. As the older, more secure brother who always looked after his younger one and still sees what's going on around him, capable of being bought but incapable of being owned, it's he who suffers most in the end and he who was least deserving of the troubles brought upon him. Ruffalo is the highlight in a film that feels unbearably frustrating at times, content to wallow in the unsettling atmosphere of DuPont's wealthy and remote island of existence without giving us any insight into his character or what makes him tick- or worse, why any of this matters. Why do we need to spend all this time with a man who remains utterly inscrutable, watching as events inevitably unfold without any hint as to the inner workings of his mindset? Do the events themselves communicate something bigger? Is it meant to be ambiguous? Bennett Miller shows off his tight control over every shot and the performances of his actors, but to what end? I'm afraid this story was lost on me. I felt thoroughly creeped out by Carell's villainous John DuPont, but that was it, and not in a good way.

* *

Blu-Ray Pick of the Week: "Working Girl" (1988)

After a drought in blu-ray picks for the last couple of weeks (as per usual at the end of the year), our weekly recommendation is back with a classic from the late Mike Nichols. A kind of corporate fairy tale that encompasses 1980's values, but entirely centered on Melanie Griffith's quest to work her way up from lowly secretary to Sigourney Weaver to high powered executive at a Wall Street bank. It's funny, it's crowdpleasing, and watching it now, it's incredibly disheartening to realize that a movie like this wouldn't even be made today- a workplace comedy revolving around two women's professional ambitions with a star like Harrison Ford essentially playing the supporting love interest? I can't even imagine it.

Original 1988 Trailer:

North Carolina Chooses 'Budapest'; Oklahoma and North Texas like 'Boyhood'

You thought we were done with these, right? Nope- still a handful of regional critics groups left to go, but they're getting slimmer. Hey, at least North Carolina did something super awesome in naming the ferocious Essie Davis Best Actress for The Babadook! Now that's what I'm talking about! I'll love these guys forever for that.

NORTH CAROLINA FILM CRITICS

Picture: The Grand Budapest Hotel
Director: Richard Linklator, Boyhood
Actor: Michael Keaton, Birdman
Actress: Essie Davis, The Babadook
S. Actor: Edward Norton, Birdman
S. Actress: Patricia Arquette, Boyhood
O. Screenplay: The Grand Budapest Hotel
A. Screenplay: Guardians of the Galaxy
Foreign Film: Force Majeure
Animated: The Lego Movie
Documentary: Life Itself

OKLAHOMA CRITICS

These guys didn't do much worth noting, except name a couple of cute extra categories, like "not so worst" film (what the hell does that mean?) Chalk up another Boyhood win.

Best Picture - Boyhood
Best Actor – Michael Keaton, Birdman
Best Actress – Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl
Best Animated Film – The LEGO Movie
Best Body of Work – Chris Miller & Phil Lord – The LEGO Movie & 22 Jump Street
Best Director – Richard Linklater, Boyhood
Best Documentary – Life Itself
Best First Feature – Nightcrawler
Best Foreign Language Film – Force Majeure
Best Guilty Pleasure – Edge of Tomorrow
Not So Obviously Worst Film – The Monuments Men
Obviously Worst Film – Transformers: Age of Extinction
Best Original Screenplay – The Grand Budapest Hotel
Best Adapted Screenplay – Gone Girl
Best Supporting Actor – Edward Norton, Birdman
Best Supporting Actress – Patricia Arquette, Boyhood

NORTH TEXAS CRITICS

Meanwhile, the North Texas critics unsurprisingly went for Boyhood and other familiar winners- it's sort of interesting that Arquette and Simmons have nearly swept the supporting races, while there seems to be a whole lot less consensus in the lead acting categories. I wonder if there's a possibility for upsets there at the televised awards.

Picture: Boyhood
Director: Richard Linklator, Boyhood
Actor: Jake Gyllenhaal, Nightcrawler
Actress: Rosamund Pike, Gone Girl
S. Actor: J.K. Simmons, Whiplash
S. Actress: Patricia Arquette, Boyhood
Cinematography: Interstellar
Animated: The Lego Movie
Documentary: Life Itself
Foreign: Ida
Ensemble: Birdman