I cannot wait to see this movie- I've been waiting for this since last year's Sundance festival, and now A24 is finally releasing it next month. Looks creepy from the trailers alone.
Iowa and Denver Critics Choose 'Spotlight'
I was wrong- THESE are the last critics groups to weigh in now.
IOWA CRITICS
Okay, so one day after the Golden Globes give an award to Kate Winslet, she now wins a critics award for Best Supporting Actress? She hasn't won all season, but critics are such a sheep, aren't they? I'm glad these are the last.
- Best Film: Spotlight
- Best Director: Tom McCarthy, Spotlight
- Best Actor: Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
- Best Actress: Brie Larson, Room
- Best Supporting Actor: Mark Ruffalo, Spotlight
- Best Supporting Actress: Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs
- Best Score: The Hateful Eight
- Best Song: Furious 7
- Best Animated Film: Inside Out
- Best Documentary: Amy
DENVER CRITICS
There was zero interesting choices from this final group here. And with that, the critics are over and out.
Best Picture: “Spotlight”
Best Director: George Miller, “Mad Max: Fury Road”
Best Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio, “The Revenant”
Best Actress: Brie Larson, “Room”
Best Supporting Actor: Sylvester Stallone, “Creed”
Best Supporting Actress: Alicia Vikander, “Ex Machina”
Best Animated Film: “Inside Out”
Best Science Fiction/Horror Film: “The Martian”
Best Comedy: “What We Do in the Shadows”
Best Original Screenplay: Tom McCarthy, Josh Singer, “Spotlight”
Best Adapted Screenplay: Adam McKay, Charles Randolph, “The Big Short”
Best Documentary: “The Look of Silence”
Best Visual Effects: “Mad Max: Fury Road”
Best Original Song: “See You Again” (Wiz Khalifa, DJ Frank E, Andrew Cedar and Charlie Puth), “Furious 7”
Best Score: Ennio Morricone, “The Hateful Eight”
Best Foreign Language Film: “Son of Saul”
'Star Wars' Gets Nominations From Visual Effects and Sound Guilds
The Visual Effects Society weighed in with nominations today, with Star Wars leading the way as expected. I think the five noms at the Oscars will be Star Wars, Mad Max, The Martian, The Revenant, and possibly The Walk?
VISUAL EFFECTS SOCIETY
Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature:
- Furious 7
- San Andreas
- Star Wars: The Force Awakens
- Mad Max: Fury Road
- The Martian
Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature:
- In the Heart of the Sea
- Bridge of Spies
- The Walk
- Everest
- The Revenant
CINEMA AUDIO SOCIETY
And the sound editors came in today too, with the following:
- Bridge of Spies
- The Hateful Eight
- The Revenant
- Mad Max: Fury Road
- Star Wars: The Force Awakens
I always forget the difference between sound mixing and editing, but expect the loud action movies to get in there, as always.
DGA Announces Nominees for 2015
The DGA is a huge deal, the most important guild, because it reveals the five strongest Best Picture nominees, basically. Today there were no big surprises here, as Spotlight, The Big Short, The Revenant, The Martian and Mad Max all made the cut. It's nice to see George Miller after the BAFTA snub, and it means that Mad Max probably is in for Best Picture.
- Alejandro Inarritu, The Revenant
- Ridley Scott, The Martian
- Tom McCarthy, Spotlight
- Adam McKay, The Big Short
- George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road
The director's branch of the Academy doesn't always match the DGA 5/5- they usually leave off at least one name, sometimes two, occasionally even three...but I think these five are pretty solid and I wouldn't be surprised if this is one of those 5/5 years. Todd Haynes may have a chance to knock someone out for Carol, but it's slim. And the winner at this stage is a total mystery- it depends on the winner of the Producers Guild, most likely. It could be any one of these guys, depending on what movie is strongest for Best Picture, which we have no clue of right now.
David Bowie 1947-2016
The world lost a music legend today, and even though David Bowie was first and foremost a rock icon, he also had a varied film career which included movies like The Man Who Fell to Earth, Labyrinth, The Last Temptation of Christ, and The Prestige, most notably. He also served as the narrator to the classic Christmas short film The Snowman, from 1982, which plays on television in the UK every Christmas season to this day. Bowie will always be known for his music and his groundbreaking image as a gender-bending pop/rock icon and a master of reinvention, as UK Prime Minister David Cameron called him today, but also as an artist with a not insignificant body of appearances in film as well.
Trailer for Labyrinth:
'The Revenant' and 'The Martian' Lead the Golden Globe Winners
Okay, so I don't even want to talk about how bad my predictions turned out last night- I went a pitiful 7 for 14, which I'm pretty sure is my worst Globes showing ever. And what I think happened here is that the HFPA, in the absence of any true Oscar frontrunners, veered away from their recent tendency to stick close to the critics and attempt to predict the winners, and simply reverted back to their worst instincts in picking every single big name they could find on the ballot. I mean look at those winners. Aside from Brie Larson, we have Leo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Sylvester Stallone, Matt Damon, Jennifer Lawrence- you can't get much more starfuckery than this (except they did when they actually voted for Lady Gaga to win on the TV side!). I mean, that god awful song from the Bond movie? Steve Jobs for screenplay because Aaron Sorkin, most famous screenwriter in Hollywood, wrote it (not that that's a bad choice in my opinion, but I know that's the only reason they picked it). What it tells me is that this year was so up in the air that they gave up in trying to be predictive of anything and just went for the glossy stuff. I don't think they're going to match Oscar too well this year. And never again am I going to forget that what these people really are, as it was constantly pointed out last night, are a bunch of whores to the power of celebrity, first and foremost. Above all else.
- BEST PICTURE DRAMA: The Revenant
- BEST ACTOR DRAMA: Leonardo Dicaprio, The Revenant
- BEST ACTRESS DRAMA: Brie Larson, Room
- BEST PICTURE COMEDY/MUSICAL: The Martian
- BEST ACTOR COMEDY: Matt Damon, The Martian
- BEST ATRESS COMEDY: Jennifer Lawrence, Joy
- BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Sylvester Stallone, Creed
- BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs
- BEST DIRECTOR: Alejandro Inarritu, The Revenant
- BEST SCREENPLAY: Steve Jobs
- BEST SCORE: The Hateful Eight
- BEST SONG: "The Writing's On the Wall," Spectre
- BEST FOREIGN FILM: Son of Saul
- BEST ANIMATED FILM: Inside Out
As for the show, well, Ricky Gervais was his usual snarky self, and he got in some awkward and uncomfortable jabs at Mel Gibson at least, but I don't think he could ever be as entertaining as that first year when he roasted everyone completely unexpectedly, and the shock was palpable. That just can't be repeated. It was nice to see a big standing ovation for Stallone, who I hope at least gets the nomination on Thursday (these awards have no bearing on the long past turned in Oscar ballots). And as for the race, well...it's all down to the PGA now. It's not too often that the Oscar Best Picture winner goes home with nothing from the Golden Globes, which doesn't bode well for Spotlight or The Big Short. Maybe The Revenant really is the movie everyone was sleeping on, and it's possible that Leo's impending win will carry the movie right along with him, and its director, who would win an unprecedented back to back Oscars if that happens. I guess it's possible. But the Producers Guild will tell us the real story- whether it's Spotlight, Big Short, Revenant or The Martian. The Oscar seems entirely up for grabs right now.
BOX OFFICE 1/08-1/10: 'Star Wars' Leads Again; 'Revenant' Strong in 2nd
Star Wars held onto its box office crown for the fourth week in a row, but just barely, as Leonardo Dicaprio's The Revenant expanded wide and came in an unexpectedly strong second place, with 38 million to TFA's 41 million over the three days. This proves Dicaprio's box office might, as the movie was expected to be a hard sell, an artsy, violent revenge film directed by last year's Oscar winner Alejandro Inarritu, hardly known for crowdpleasers. In fact, The Revenant is now close to surpassing Birdman's entire domestic haul of 42 million- and all of that is credited to Dicaprio, who drew a near parity crowd of male and female viewers. Old school star power isn't dead after all.
Meanwhile, the only other new release this week was the dreadfully reviewed horror movie The Forest, which came in with 13 million and a "C" Cinemascore, so don't expect much from that. The Force Awakens has now made 812 million, the first movie in history to cross 800 million at the domestic box office, while opening in China to 53 million, the country's biggest weekend opening ever. The worldwide total is now at 1.73 billion, but probably won't reach Avatar's 2.7 billion record for biggest global gross ever. The holdovers were filled by Daddy's Home, which is on track to become Will Ferrell's third biggest hit after Elf and Talladega Nights, and Sisters, which is holding well to cross 73 million.
Top 5:
- Star Wars: The Force Awakens- 41.6 million
- The Revenant- 38 million
- Daddy's Home- 15 million
- The Forest- 13.1 million
- Sisters- 7.2 million
The Hateful Eight fell a steep 60 percent this week, despite adding over 400 more theaters. The movie has now made 41 million domestically, and looks like it won't be one of Tarantino's bigger hits. Next week Ride Along 2 is opening, which probably means Star Wars will go down, as Kevin Hart's new comedy will likely top the box office, and Michael Bay's Benghazi movie 13 Hours is set to fill the January war movie slot that seems to happen every year at this time. That's it for today and enjoy the Golden Globes tonight, everyone.
Matthew McConaughey Rebels in Trailer for 'Free State of Jones'
An interesting, unique story from the Civil War is unearthed in this film by Gary Ross, coming out in May, about a Southern soldier who deserted the Confederacy and created his own little rebellion against the rebellion army. It's nice to remember that not all Southerners supported the Confederacy in the Civil War, even if they were in the minority.
2016 Predictions For Golden Globe Winners
Okay, so it's Golden Globe prediction time, and I'm going to warn you right now that this is a major crapshoot year. I'm not that great at Globe predicting in the best of circumstances, but since support for so many different films is scattered, and there aren't clear frontrunners in a lot of categories, it's really hard to say what the HFPA is going to do this year, especially since they normally like trying as hard as possible to predict the Oscars. That's hard when everything is up in the air. It actually gives them more power than usual as the first televised awards, to see whether people like watching their winners onstage or not, if it can work to start some real momentum for a winner. I may have to go old-school Globes predicting here for some things, since in lieu of clear frontrunners, they may actually revert back to gasp, what they really like. Which for years was always big stars and international productions, at least on the film side. So here it goes.
BEST FILM- DRAMA
- Carol
- Mad Max: Fury Road
- The Revenant
- Room
- Spotlight
This one is actually not too hard, as I think it's Spotlight, no question. It's been the critics favorite and I actually don't see which of these other films would appeal to the Hollywood Foreign Press much anyway. Mad Max and The Revenant seem too dark and/or weird for them, Room too indie and Carol too cold. So Spotlight it is.
Winner: Spotlight
Alternate: Carol
BEST DRAMA ACTOR
- Bryan Cranston, Trumbo
- Leo Dicaprio, The Revenant
- Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
- Eddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl
- Will Smith, Concussion
This one's easy too. Leo for his third. And this is probably where he kicks off his momentum to finally get that Oscar he's been wanting, but a lot of it's due to lack of clear favorite, since The Revenant isn't that popular of a movie. You know my personal pick is Fassbender, but I can't really imagine the HFPA going for anyone other than their beloved Leo here.
Winner: Leonardo Dicaprio
Alternate: Bryan Cranston
BEST DRAMA ACTRESS
- Cate Blanchett, Carol
- Brie Larson, Room
- Rooney Mara, Carol
- Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn
- Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl
Logic would dictate Brie Larson, since they nominated Room and not Brooklyn in Best Picture. But I still think Saoirse has a real chance for this, since normally I would have thought of Brooklyn as a movie that would really appeal to the Globes voters, many of whom are immigrants themselves. But because of that Picture nom, I can't choose anyone besides Larson. But I think it's close and I wouldn't be surprised to see it go to Ronan. The Carol actresses probably cancel each other out.
Winner: Brie Larson
Alternate: Saoirse Ronan
BEST FILM- COMEDY/MUSICAL
- The Big Short
- Joy
- The Martian
- Spy
- Trainwreck
I thought The Martian had this walking away, but the controversy over it being stuffed into Comedy by just one vote makes me think they'll give it to something else. Which would probably be The Big Short, as it's coming up strong in the Oscar race.
Winner: The Big Short
Alternate: The Martian
BEST ACTOR COMEDY
- Christian Bale, The Big Short
- Steve Carell, The Big Short
- Matt Damon, The Martian
- Al Pacino, Danny Collins
- Mark Ruffalo, Infinitely Polar Bear
I think this is where they reward The Martian for sure, with Damon winning, since the Big Short guys will cancel each other out.
Winner: Matt Damon
Alternate: Steve Carell
BEST ACTRESS COMEDY
- Jennifer Lawrence, Joy
- Melissa McCarthy, Spy
- Amy Schumer, Trainwreck
- Maggie Smith, The Lady in the Van
- Lily Tomlin, Grandma
The Globes love stars, but they did reward Jennifer Lawrence two years in a row, so I think they give it to Amy Schumer this time, whose movie was well received and she's so much of a "cool" thing right now.
Winner: Amy Schumer
Alternate: Jennifer Lawrence
Dark Horse: Maggie Smith (rumor has it she's actually attending the ceremony this year, and wouldn't the HFPA love to have her onstage?)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
- Paul Dano, Love & Mercy
- Idris Elba, Beasts of No Nation
- Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies
- Michael Shannon, 99 Homes
- Sylvester Stallone, Creed
My money's on Stallone here. They'll want to see him up on that stage along with the rest of the audience and the viewers. The ones who want to be taken seriously may go with Rylance, but I think Stallone would be too much of an old-school Globes kind of action to resist. Also, none of these guys' films made it into Picture here, which makes it a free for all.
Winner: Sly Stallone
Alternate: Mark Rylance
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
- Jane Fonda, Youth
- Jennifer Jason Leigh, The Hateful Eight
- Helen Mirren, Trumbo
- Alicia Vikander, Ex Machina
- Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs
Well, everyone seems to think Alicia Vikander is the one to beat here, so I guess it's hers. I really don't have a preference for any of these actresses, so I'm just going to go with the majority, even though I really don't know what made that performance so great.
Winner: Alicia Vikander
Alternate: Jennifer Jason Leigh
BEST DIRECTOR
- Todd Haynes, Carol
- Alejandro Inarritu, The Revenant
- Tom McCarthy, Spotlight
- George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road
- Ridley Scott, The Martian
This is kind of a tough one, but I think the Globes will go for Ridley Scott in this category. The Martian is well liked and he's an overdue veteran (although so's George Miller). But there's something nagging me that they could pick Inarritu here, since they actually snubbed him for Birdman last year, and it'd be kind of a makeup award. I'm torn.
Winner: Ridley Scott
Alternate: Alejandro Inarritu
Dark Horse: George Miller
BEST SCREENPLAY
- Room
- Spotlight
- The Big Short
- Steve Jobs
- The Hateful Eight
I'm torn on this one too. They may want to give Tarantino something, since they like to spread the wealth, but Hateful Eight may be more likely to win in Score. When in doubt go with the Best Picture frontrunner, but I'm saying both Spotlight and The Big Short are going to win their categories, so...it's flip a coin time.
Winner: Spotlight
Alternate: The Big Short (I really think this is totally 50/50 here)
BEST SCORE
- Carol
- The Danish Girl
- The Hateful Eight
- Steve Jobs
- The Revenant
Yeah, I think Ennio Moriccone takes it. That'll be The Hateful Eight's win.
Winner: The Hateful Eight
Alternate: Carol
BEST SONG
- "Love Me Like You Do," Fifty Shades of Grey
- "One Kind of Love," Love & Mercy
- "See You Again," Furious 7
- "Simple Song #3," Youth
- "Writings on the Wall," Spectre
I'm starting to think this category needs to become obsolete, but nothing they choose here has any bearing on anything, so I'm guessing it's Brian Wilson. Has to be, right?
Winner: "One Kind of Love," Love & Mercy
Alternate: "See You Again," Furious 7
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
- Anomalisa
- The Good Dinosaur
- Inside Out
- The Peanuts Movie
- Shaun the Sheep
Inside Out, no question. Easiest call of the night.
Winner: Inside Out
BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM
- The Brand New Testament
- The Club
- The Fencer
- Mustang
- Son of Saul
They don't always match Oscar in this category, but this year Son of Saul has been pretty much sweeping all the awards for Foreign Film, so I assume they'll probably go along with that.
Winner: Son of Saul
Kevin Spacey and Michael Shannon Bring to Life 'Elvis and Nixon'
With Chi-Raq out this year, Amazon is wanting to get into the business of original films, and here's one about the famous photo taken in the 70's when Richard Nixon met with Elvis Presley at the White House. I don't know about you guys, but Michael Shannon seems horribly miscast to me in this. I don't even think he sounds like Elvis.
Georgia Goes for 'Mad Max,' Ohio Likes 'Spotlight,' Benicio Del Toro
With all the industry news this week, it seems lame to still be reporting on the critics wins, but here we are with what I do believe are the last two stragglers in the bunch.
GEORGIA FILM CRITICS
Nothing too interesting to see here, and I'm still holding out hope that Stallone lands that Oscar nom after his strong critics run, even if it seems like Rylance is now the one to beat in that category for sure. Snobby, snobby industry voters.
Best Picture
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
Best Director
"Mad Max: Fury Road" - George Miller
Best Actor
Leonardo DiCaprio ("The Revenant")
Best Actress
Brie Larson ("Room")
Best Supporting Actor
Sylvester Stallone ("Creed")
Best Supporting Actress
Alicia Vikander ("Ex Machina")
Best Original Screenplay
"Inside Out" - Pete Docter, Meg LeFauve, Josh Cooley
Best Adapted Screenplay
"The Big Short" - Charles Randolph, Adam McKay
Best Cinematography
"Mad Max: Fury Road" - John Seale
Best Production Design
"Mad Max: Fury Road" - Colin Gibson, Shira Hockman, Jacinta Leong
Best Original Score
"The Hateful Eight" - Ennio Morricone
Best Original Song
"See You Again" - DJ Frank E, Andrew Cedar, Charlie Puth, Wiz Khalifa ("Furious 7")
Best Ensemble
"Spotlight"
Best Foreign Film
"Son of Saul"
Breakthrough Award
Alicia Vikander ("Burnt," "The Danish Girl," "Ex Machina," "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.," "Testament of Youth")
Best Animated Film
"Inside Out"
Best Documentary
"Amy"
CENTRAL OHIO FILM CRITICS
Not much to note here either, except another win for Benicio Del Toro, who may be a late breaker in that category, after having landed a BAFTA nom today for Sicario. He is undoubtedly the best part of that movie, so I'm really crossing my fingers for that one too.
Best Film
01. SPOTLIGHT
02. INSIDE OUT
03. ROOM
04. MAD MAX: FURY ROAD
05. EX MACHINA
06. SICARIO
07. STAR WARS: EPISODE VII - THE FORCE AWAKENS
08. THE REVENANT
09. THE BIG SHORT
10. THE MARTIAN
Best Director
Tom McCarthy - SPOTLIGHT
Runner-up: George Miller - MAD MAX: FURY ROAD
Best Actor
Leonardo DiCaprio - THE REVENANT
Runner-up: Michael Fassbender - STEVE JOBS
Best Actress
Brie Larson - ROOM
Runners-up: Saoirse Ronan - BROOKLYN & Alicia Vikander -THE DANISH GIRL
Best Supporting Actor
Benicio Del Toro - SICARIO
Runner-up: Oscar Isaac -EX MACHINA
Best Supporting Actress
Alicia Vikander - EX MACHINA
Runner-up: Jennifer Jason Leigh -THE HATEFUL EIGHT
Best Ensemble
SPOTLIGHT
Runner-up: THE HATEFUL EIGHT
Actor of the Year (body of work)
Alicia Vikander
Runner-up: Domhnall Gleeson
Breakthrough Film Artist
Alicia Vikander
Runner-Up: Sean Baker
Best Cinematography
THE REVENANT
Runner-up: MAD MAX: FURY ROAD
Best Film Editing
MAD MAX: FURY ROAD
Runner-up: SICARIO
Best Adapted Screenplay
THE BIG SHORT
Runner-up: ROOM
Best Original Screenplay
SPOTLIGHT
Runner-up: INSIDE OUT
Best Score
THE HATEFUL EIGHT
Runner-up: MAD MAX: FURY ROAD
Best Documentary
THE LOOK OF SILENCE
Runner-up: AMY
Best Foreign Language Film
PHOENIX
Runner-up: WILD TALES
Best Animated Film
INSIDE OUT
Runner-up: ANOMALISA
Best Overlooked Film
THE TRIBE (PLEMYA)
Runner-up: THE GIFT
'Bridge of Spies' and 'Carol' Lead the BAFTA Nominations
The BAFTAS are the British Academy Film Awards, and while not as important as the guilds, I would say they're probably the second most important indicator, because it is an industry award, and it does tell us what the significant bloc of British voters in our Academy is thinking, since there's overlap of about 1500 people. And boy did these guys like Bridge of Spies. That was something of a surprise today, and the heavy nomination haul for Carol seems to revive it somewhat after the PGA snub. The film may have enough support to land a BP nom after all. So many other nods were scattered though, as the supporting acting categories are completely up in the air, and the lack of support for Room is not boding well at all for that film with AMPAS.
BEST PICTURE
"The Big Short"
"Bridge of Spies"
"Carol"
"The Revenant"
"Spotlight"
BEST DIRECTOR
Todd Haynes, "Carol"
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, "The Revenant"
Adam McKay, "The Big Short"
Ridley Scott, "The Martian"
Steven Spielberg, "Bridge of Spies"
BEST ACTOR
Bryan Cranston, "Trumbo"
Matt Damon, "The Martian"
Leonardo DiCaprio, "The Revenant"
Michael Fassbender, "Steve Jobs"
Eddie Redmayne, "The Danish Girl"
BEST ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett, "Carol"
Brie Larson, "Room"
Saoirse Ronan, "Brooklyn"
Maggie Smith, "The Lady in the Van"
Alicia Vikander, "The Danish Girl"
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christian Bale, "The Big Short"
Benicio del Toro, "Sicario"
Idris Elba, "Beasts of No Nation"
Mark Ruffalo, "Spotlight"
Mark Rylance, "Bridge of Spies"
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Jennifer Jason Leigh, "The Hateful Eight"
Rooney Mara, "Carol"
Alicia Vikander, "Ex Machina"
Julie Walters, "Brooklyn"
Kate Winslet, "Steve Jobs"
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
"The Big Short"
"Brooklyn"
"Carol"
"Room"
"Steve Jobs"
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
"Bridge of Spies"
"Ex Machina"
"The Hateful Eight"
"Inside Out"
"Spotlight"
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
"Bridge of Spies"
"Carol"
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Revenant"
"Sicario"
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
"Brooklyn"
"Carol"
"Cinderella"
"The Danish Girl"
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
BEST FILM EDITING
"The Big Short"
"Bridge of Spies"
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Martian"
"The Revenant"
BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
"Brooklyn"
"Carol"
"The Danish Girl"
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Revenant"
BEST MUSIC
"Bridge of Spies"
"The Hateful Eight"
"The Revenant"
"Sicario"
"Star Wars: The Force Awakens"
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
"Bridge of Spies"
"Carol"
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Martian"
"Star Wars: The Force Awakens"
BEST SOUND
"Bridge of Spies"
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Martian"
"The Revenant"
"Star Wars: The Force Awakens"
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
"Ant-Man"
"Ex Machina"
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Martian"
"Star Wars: The Force Awakens"
BEST ANIMATED FILM
"Inside Out"
"Minions"
"Shaun the Sheep Movie"
BEST BRITISH FILM
"45 Years"
"Amy"
"Brooklyn"
"The Danish Girl"
"Ex Machina"
"The Lobster"
BEST DOCUMENTARY FILM
"Amy"
"Cartel Land"
"He Named Me Malala"
"Listen to Me Marlon"
"Sherpa"
BEST FOREIGN FILM
"The Assassin"
"Force Majeure"
"Theeb"
"Timbuktu"
"Wild Tales"
BEST BRITISH ANIMATED SHORT FILM
"Edmond"
"Manoman"
"Prologue"
BEST BRITISH LIVE-ACTION SHORT FILM
"Elephant"
"Mining Poems or Odes"
"Operator"
"Over"
"Samuel-613"
BEST DEBUT FILM
"Ex Machina"
"Second Coming"
"The Survivalist"
"A Syrian Love Story"
"Theeb"
EE RISING STAR AWARD
John Boyega
Taron Egerton
Dakota Johnson
Brie Larson
Bel Powley
I was really surprised they overlooked Charlotte Rampling in Best Actress, even while nominating 45 Years in Best British Film. I think she still has a shot with the Academy, but it could honestly be anyone in the last two slots for Best Actress, depending where Alicia Vikander ends up for The Danish Girl. Same goes for Supporting Actor, where Bale, Rylance and maybe Elba seem locked, while those last two slots are anybody's guess. And the director race is a total free for all, with Tom McCarthy of all people missing here for Spotlight, which frankly no longer looks like the supposed frontrunner most thought it was. Could that film be this year's Boyhood, a critics thing only? The Big Short looks stronger and stronger every day, with BAFTA becoming the first group to acknowledge Adam McKay for director, and the total snubbing of George Miller and Mad Max in Picture/Director has me fearful that the Academy may pull a Dark Knight with that movie, like I always thought was possible, no matter how much critics liked it. Whatever the case, the Oscar nominees next Thursday morning are bound to have a lot of surprises for everyone, with so many unpredictable slots to be filled.
Alicia Vikander landed the rare double nomination in Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress
