Best Ensemble — Inglourious Basterds Best Actress — Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side - (So disappointed in the actors branch.) Best Actor — Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart Best Supporting Actor — Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds Best Supporting Actress — Mo’Nique, Precious Best Stunt Ensemble — Star Trek
TV:
Best Ensemble, Drama — Mad Men Best Actress, Drama — Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife Best Actor, Drama — Michael C. Hall, Dexter Best Ensemble, Comedy — Glee Best Actress, Comedy — Tina Fey, 30 Rock Best Actor, Comedy — Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock Best Actor, Miniseries — Kevin Bacon, Taking Chance Best Actress, Miniseries — Drew Barrymore, Grey Gardens Best Stunt Ensemble — 24
What I really want to comment on is the return of on of my favourite red carpet women who made a wonderful return to form. Nicole Kidman looked a vision.
Also great was the wonderful colour on display (click to embiggen)
(l to r) Mariska Hargitay, Carey Mulligan (made her ass look huge though), Diane Kruger (looking amazing), 'GLEE's Leah Michelle (also looking amazing), the adorable Drew Barrymoore and Anne Kendrick.
Really hoping for a few spanners to be chucked into the awards race this year.
The SAG awards sometime do like to throw some odd choices out there when picking their winners. These are actors voting so I am hoping that performance will win over popularity.
Could Gabby get some recognition here? It seems likely as I cannot imagine actors rewarding Bullock. Sure she may be popular, but by performance it should be a race between Sidibe, Mulligan and Streep. Streep just won so could they reward a fellow American in Sibide?
Lets hope so.
My out of left field predictions are ripe for upset and mocking, but what the hey.
Best Actor: Jeff Bridges - 'Crazy Heart' - He has yet to win one and is well respected.
Best Actress: Gabourey Sidibe - 'Precious' - I am sure I will be disappointed here, but how wonderful would it be for her to get some credit for a turn as equally wonderful as Mo'Niques.
Best Supporting Actor - Christopher Plummer - 'The Last Station' - Remember Ruby Dee. They like to pay respect to a veteran.
Best Supporting Actress - Mo'Nique - 'Precious' - Head and tails above all the other performances.
Best Ensemble - 'Inglourious Basterds' - Has to be really, unless they go with 'Precious'. Both are truly wonderful examples of ensemble performance.
The trailer for this did absolutely nothing for me. Sure I thought it looked cute, but I was not in a rush to see it.
Perhaps it was because of these lowered expectations that I found this story of a girl who, suffocated by her mother and the small town in which she lives, joins the girls roller-derby team - so damn delightful. The film flows wonderfully, but it is the top notch cast that make for this film to be as buoyant as it is. Marcia Gay Harden, Ellen Page, Alia Shawkat, Landon Pigg, Daniel Stern, Jimmy Fallon, Kristen Wiig, Zoe Bell, Eve, Drew Barrymoore, Andrew Wilson and Juliette Lewis all give fully rounded performances and create wonderful and lasting characters with what little, or how much screen time they are given. This is the sign of a true ensemble. They each compliment each other. First time director Drew Barrymoore proves her chops with this. Being able to create such chemistry on film is hard to do, but she does it with ease. You can almost imagine how much fun this group of people had on set with this film. When just jubilation spills over and already entertaining story, well I am truly thankful.
BEST FILM AVATAR James Cameron, Jon Landau AN EDUCATION Amanda Posey, Finola Dwyer THE HURT LOCKER Nominees TBC PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness, Gary Magness UP IN THE AIR Ivan Reitman, Jason Reitman, Daniel Dubiecki
OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM AN EDUCATION Amanda Posey, Finola Dwyer, Lone Scherfig, Nick Hornby FISH TANK Kees Kasander, Nick Laws, Andrea Arnold IN THE LOOP Kevin Loader, Adam Tandy, Armando Iannucci, Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Tony Roche MOON Stuart Fenegan, Trudie Styler, Duncan Jones, Nathan Parker NOWHERE BOY Kevin Loader, Douglas Rae, Robert Bernstein, Sam Taylor-Wood, Matt Greenhalgh
DIRECTOR AVATAR James Cameron DISTRICT 9 Neill Blomkamp AN EDUCATION Lone Scherfig THE HURT LOCKER Kathryn Bigelow INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS Quentin Tarantino
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY THE HANGOVER Jon Lucas, Scott Moore THE HURT LOCKER Mark Boal INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS Quentin Tarantino A SERIOUS MAN Joel Coen, Ethan Coen UP Bob Peterson, Pete Docter
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY DISTRICT 9 Neill Blomkamp, Terri Tatchell AN EDUCATION Nick Hornby IN THE LOOP Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE Geoffrey Fletcher UP IN THE AIR Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner
FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE BROKEN EMBRACES Agustín Almodóvar, Pedro Almodóvar COCO BEFORE CHANEL Carole Scotta, Caroline Benjo, Philippe Carcassonne, Anne Fontaine LET THE RIGHT ONE IN Carl Molinder, John Nordling, Tomas Alfredson A PROPHET Pascale Caucheteux, Marco Chergui, Alix Raynaud, Jacques Audiard THE WHITE RIBBON Stefan Arndt, Veit Heiduschka, Margaret Menegoz, Michael Haneke
ANIMATED FILM CORALINE Henry Selick FANTASTIC MR FOX Wes Anderson UP Pete Docter
LEADING ACTOR JEFF BRIDGES Crazy Heart GEORGE CLOONEY Up in the Air COLIN FIRTH A Single Man JEREMY RENNER The Hurt Locker ANDY SERKIS Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll
LEADING ACTRESS CAREY MULLIGAN An Education SAOIRSE RONAN The Lovely Bones GABOUREY SIDIBE Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire MERYL STREEP Julie & Julia AUDREY TAUTOU Coco Before Chanel
SUPPORTING ACTOR ALEC BALDWIN It’s Complicated CHRISTIAN McKAY Me and Orson Welles ALFRED MOLINA An Education STANLEY TUCCI The Lovely Bones CHRISTOPH WALTZ Inglourious Basterds
SUPPORTING ACTRESS ANNE-MARIE DUFF Nowhere Boy VERA FARMIGA Up in the Air ANNA KENDRICK Up in the Air MO’NIQUE Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire KRISTIN SCOTT THOMAS Nowhere Boy
MUSIC AVATAR James Horner CRAZY HEART T-Bone Burnett, Stephen Bruton FANTASTIC MR FOX Alexandre Desplat SEX & DRUGS & ROCK & ROLL Chaz Jankel UP Michael Giacchino
CINEMATOGRAPHY AVATAR Mauro Fiore DISTRICT 9 Trent Opaloch THE HURT LOCKER Barry Ackroyd INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS Robert Richardson THE ROAD Javier Aguirresarobe
EDITING AVATAR Stephen Rivkin, John Refoua, James Cameron DISTRICT 9 Julian Clarke THE HURT LOCKER Bob Murawski, Chris Innis INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS Sally Menke UP IN THE AIR Dana E. Glauberman
PRODUCTION DESIGN AVATAR Rick Carter, Robert Stromberg, Kim Sinclair DISTRICT 9 Philip Ivey, Guy Poltgieter HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE Stuart Craig, Stephenie McMillan THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS Nominees TBC INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS David Wasco, Sandy Reynolds Wasco
COSTUME DESIGN BRIGHT STAR Janet Patterson COCO BEFORE CHANEL Catherine Leterrier AN EDUCATION Odile Dicks-Mireaux A SINGLE MAN Arianne Phillips THE YOUNG VICTORIA Sandy Powell
SOUND AVATAR Christopher Boyes, Gary Summers, Andy Nelson, Tony Johnson, Addison Teague DISTRICT 9 Nominees TBC THE HURT LOCKER Ray Beckett, Paul N. J. Ottosson, Craig Stauffer STAR TREK Peter J. Devlin, Andy Nelson, Anna Behlmer, Mark Stoeckinger, Ben Burtt UP Tom Myers, Michael Silvers, Michael Semanick
SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS AVATAR Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham, Andrew R. Jones DISTRICT 9 Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers, Robert Habros, Matt Aitken HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE John Richardson, Tim Burke, Tim Alexander, Nicolas Aithadi THE HURT LOCKER Richard Stutsman STAR TREK Roger Guyett, Russell Earl, Paul Kavanagh, Burt Dalton
MAKE UP & HAIR COCO BEFORE CHANEL Thi Thanh Tu Nguyen, Jane Milon AN EDUCATION Lizzie Yianni Georgiou THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS Sarah Monzani NINE Peter ‘Swords’ King THE YOUNG VICTORIA Jenny Shircore
OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER LUCY BAILEY, ANDREW THOMPSON, ELIZABETH MORGAN HEMLOCK, DAVID PEARSON Directors, Producers – Mugabe and the White African ERAN CREEVY Writer/Director – Shifty STUART HAZELDINE Writer/Director – Exam DUNCAN JONES Director – Moon SAM TAYLOR-WOOD Director – Nowhere Boy
SHORT ANIMATION THE GRUFFALO Michael Rose, Martin Pope, Jakob Schuh, Max Lang THE HAPPY DUCKLING Gili Dolev MOTHER OF MANY Sally Arthur, Emma Lazenby
SHORT FILM 14 Asitha Ameresekere I DO AIR James Bolton, Martina Amati JADE Samm Haillay, Daniel Elliott MIXTAPE Luti Fagbenle, Luke Snellin OFF SEASON Jacob Jaffke, Jonathan van Tulleken
THE ORANGE RISING STAR AWARD (voted for by the public) JESSE EISENBERG NICHOLAS HOULT CAREY MULLIGAN TAHAR RAHIM KRISTEN STEWART
12 all too short episodes and I am in withdrawal at the moment. Sure it can border on silly at times, but it is another piece of brilliance on TV. Is TV the new cinema? What with this, 'United States of Tara', 'Glee' and 'Modern Family' I am in heaven.
Please suggest other shows I need to discover! I am all ears in the comments!
Apparently Tim Burton wants to do the story of sleeping beauty, but told from the point of view of Maleficent. That gets me excited, but also worried that when/if it happens the role will go to Helena Bonham Carter as per usual.
Who would make a great Maleficent? Think of actresses tall and slender and in there 40's or 50's.
Nicole Kidman? Toni Collette? Angela Basset? Michelle Pfeiffer?
Not the return to form I was hoping in terms of songs and story. There was something missing from the usual Disney magic I was used to, or perhaps I have just been spoiled by the sheer animated genius of Pixar as well as the wealth of stop-motion pictures that have come out this year.
Many people have complained about the racial stereotyping in this film, and to be honest, I was aware, but not bothered as stereotypes in general do not bother me (we constantly live up to them so why complain - celebrate them). What did bother me is the sense of déjà-vu I got whilst watching the film. The characters all looked so recycled from old Disney stock, as did some of the sets.
There were strong points in the film. The shadow hunters were clever and extremely eerie, and the landscape animation was astonishing using clever methods of lighting to make the bayou a thing of frame-able beauty. Still the end effect was un-effecting. The art was there, but they never spent enough time fine tuning the story to make the viewer really care about the story.
“People always ask me, ‘You have so much confidence. Where did that come from?’ It came from me. One day I decided that I was beautiful, and so I carried out my life as if I was a beautiful girl….It doesn’t have anything to do with how the world perceives you. What matters is what you see. Your body is your temple, it’s your home, and you must decorate it.”
Let me get this out of the way first. James Cameron needs to hire a script doctor. Not for plotting (although it would help) but for dialogue. It is really not his strong point at all. Calling the life force of the planet the "Tree of Souls" is so 'Ferngully'. Do not translate the Na'vi language - it is seriously distracting.
That being said I was completely blown away. The story may have been weak, but the momentum never wavered. I was never bored. Absorbing this new world was humbling. So much thought went into it that you cannot help but be awed. From the plants, animal life and landscapes, it all felt organic. The highest compliment I could give is believed in this world and am very sorry it does not exist.
The other think that blew me away was the character animation. I was doubtful at first, but the Na'vi blew me away with their authenticity. Zoe Saldana impressed me to no end as the warrior princess. I honestly believe that a motion capture performance should be considered in the major awards acting categories. When they are good you can tell. People may argue that a performance is enhanced, but what is the difference between that and a CGI tear added to Jennifer Connelly in 'Blood Diamond'? None in my book. Saldana's Neytiri is up there with Andy Serkis as Gollum and King Kong. A true performance, captured. The passion displayed in her is astonishing. She even makes the dialogue work for her.
This was my first movie in 3D and I have to say I am a convert. What Cameron managed to do is pure cinematic magic.
The wins for Toni Collette, Mo'Nique, Glee, Meryl Streep, Drew Barrymoore, Mad Men, Michael Giacchino and Christoph Waltz.
The fashion - It was nice to see some colour on the red carpet. I thought Toni Collette, Nicole Kidman, Fergie, Meryl Streep and Gabby Sibide looked so pretty.
Martin Scorsese's speech. Lovely and so very humble.
Sadly that was it - there was not much to like about the proceedings.
The wins for Robert Downey Jr., and Sandra Bullock are only about the most popular. It happens every year but I still get annoyed that people are not rewarded for the work they have done. Thank God we have Mo'Nique and Christoph Waltz who are actually winning because of the performance. Sure SaBu and RDJ have charisma to spare, so get them to present.
Ricky Gervais - I thought he was terrible. A few good gags, but just not very funny and sometimes a little bit rude. His comedy just does not translate to this type of event.
I am sorry if I want a little pizzaz from my host. He just came across as a little pug faced man very upset that he was in a room of people prettier than he.
Favourite wins in bold. Least favourite in italics
Best Picture, Drama — Avatar Best Picture, Comedy/Musical — The Hangover Best Director — James Cameron, Avatar Best Actress, Drama — Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side Best Actor, Drama — Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart Best Actress, Comedy/Musical — Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia Best Actor, Comedy/Musical — Robert Downey Jr, Sherlock Holmes Best Supporting Actress — Mo’Nique, Precious Best Supporting Actor — Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds Best Foreign Language Film — The White Ribbon Best Animated Feature — Up Best Screenplay — Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner, Up in the Air Best Original Score — Michael Giacchino, Up Best Original Song — The Weary Kind, Crazy Heart Best TV Series, Drama – Mad Men Best TV Series, Comedy — Glee Best TV Miniseries — Grey Gardens Best Actress, TV Miniseries — Drew Barrymore, Grey Gardens Best Actor, TV Miniseries — Kevin Bacon, Taking Chance Best Actress, TV Drama — Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife Best Actor, TV Drama — Michael C. Hall, Dexter Best Actress, TV Comedy — Toni Collette, United States of Tara Best Actor, TV Comedy — Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock Best Supporting Actress, TV — Chloe Sevigny, Big Love Best Supporting Actor, TV — John Lithgow, Dexter
Sadly this is one of the forgotten gems of the movie year, mainly because they do not want to know anything about the war in Iraq.
Any of us not in the U.S. during the aftermath of 9/11 and the beginning war kind of looked on with a sense doom for both sides. Reports of people in the states thought to be Iraqi being attacked crept over airwaves making us sick with dread. This didn’t stop in the U.S., it spread everywhere, the U.K. was just as bad, but is was the U.S. who the eyes of the world were on.
‘Amreeka’ shows how it was for people, not even from Iraq, living in America at the time. It was hard, and probably is still pretty bad. The film does not go into horrors that may have occurred, but rather in the smaller, spirit crushing manner (bullies, being turned away from jobs, looks in the supermarket, hate mail).
However this is a surprisingly upbeat approach to such a dark matter. Muna (a miraculous Nisreen Faour) moves to middle America with her son. They will live with her cousin Raghda (the brilliant Hiam Abbass) who is married to a successful doctor and she will get work in a bank like she did in Palestine, and her son will go to school to be a doctor or lawyer.
Of course things do not go as planned, and set back after set back, mainly due to ignorance and prejudice threat to diminish Munas’ dreams.
However due to assured direction and an unsentimental screenplay by Cherien Dabis, the film does not fall into schlocky trappings. This is also mainly due to Faour who is strikingly beautiful as well as a very gifted comedic and dramatic actress. She will do what she can to survive in this strange new world, and she will do it with a smile on her face. Equally as strong is Abbass. Raghda misses her home, and does not give herself to the American way. Constantly suspicious of the world around her she pushes back what is happening to her home and lives in an ideal vision of it, which is much better than her present. Abbass makes this woman so heart breakingly real that you are thankful you never have to see her visit her home, to see what it has become.
‘Amreeka’ does have a few pacing and plot issues, but they are made up for by two strong female performances and some solid supporting players.
