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.
