Oscar season 2012 has begun!

Cafe Society
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First of all, a request. Yes, assigning awards for quality ignores so many great artists and craftsmen. Yes, time often is not kind to some of these decisions. Yes, the Oscars is crass and self-promoting and blah blah blah.

We know these things. Repeating these truths ad nauseum is just thread-shitting. Please refrain.

Because it still can be fun and compelling to see good work recognized, especially work that’s truly remarkable or work that’s on the margins and even a bit obscure. So the horse race leading up to the Academy Awards will be tracked here.

The New York Film Critics Circle and The National Board of Review (not critics, but the oldest film award-giving body in the US) just announced their winners. Here are how things stand so far:

Picture: ZERO DARK THIRTY (NY & NBR)
Director: Kathryn Bigelow, ZERO DARK THIRTY (NY & NBR)
Actor: Bradley Cooper, SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK (NBR), Daniel Day-Lewis, LINCOLN (NY)
Actress: Jessica Chastain, ZERO DARK THIRTY (NBR), Rachel Weisz, THE DEEP BLUE SEA (NY)
Supporting Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio, DJANGO UNCHAINED (NBR), Matthew McConaughey, MAGIC MIKE & BERNIE
Supporting Actress: Ann Dowd, COMPLIANCE (NBR), Sally Field, LINCOLN (NY)
Screenplay: LINCOLN (NY), LOOPER (Original; NBR), SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK (Adapted; NBR)
Animated Feature: FRANKENWEENIE (NY), WRECK-IT RALPH (NBR)
Foreign Language Film: AMOUR (NY & NBR)
Documentary: THE CENTRAL PARK FIVE* (NY), SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN (NBR)

*out of the running for Oscar

The LA Film Critics are the next big critics group, and then it will be lots of other regional critics groups piping in before we start hearing from the guilds and then the Golden Globes.

Of course, ZDT (or 0D30) and DJANGO don’t get released for another few weeks (as does LES MIZ, which is bound to get some attention, too), so I’ll have to reserve judgment, but it should be a very interesting year, with some heavy Academy favorites (Bigelow, Spielberg, Ang Lee, Tom Hooper, Ben Affleck) competing with some other highly-regarded independent types (David O. Russell, Paul Thomas Anderson, Wes Anderson), all with very strong works this year and Tarantino being the obvious wild-card. The one true left-field film that could be a contender, BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD, has some tough competition. But who knows?

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I knew that ZDT had some buzz going on for it, but I’m surprised to see it win BP - by both groups, no less. I’m just going by the trailer but I have a hard time seeing it being better than some of the other contenders like Lincoln, Argo, Les Miz, Django, etc.

Also - Matthew McConaughey? Really? I guess having not seen either of those movies I can’t really judge, but that seems surprising.

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I don’t think I’ll ever get around to seeing MAGIC MIKE, though it is directed by Soderbergh, who directed Julia Roberts & Benicio Del Toro to Oscars. BERNIE is cute and Jack Black will probably get a Golden Globe nod (Actor/Comedy), but I don’t think MM has a showy enough role in that to get an Academy notice (the Oscars, unlike the critics, don’t recognize cumulative work in a year; one nod = one film)

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I love awards season. And Beasts did get some love from the Independent Spirit nominations, so it’s not outside Academy consideration:

http://www.sacbee.com/2012/11/27/5013588/the-28th-annual-film-independent.html

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Reviews for ZDT have been highly favorable, even compared to those…check out Rotten Tomatoes:

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Well…I’m pretty sure there have been catch-up Oscars in the acting categories, but it’s uncommon, and he won’t be getting one.

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Agreed! With Leo in the mix, he joins previous winners Tommy Lee Jones, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Robert De Niro as likely rivals in the supporting category. The last time Leo was in that category (not lead) was for WHAT’S EATING GILBERT GRAPE (the same year Jones won for THE FUGITIVE).

How many exotic dancer roles have been Oscar nodded in the past? The only one that comes to mind offhand is Natalie Portman in CLOSER.

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Yay, awards season! Love it.

Marisa Tomei in The Wrestler. There are probably more, but I can’t think of any off the top of my head. They’ve nominated a lot of hookers, though.

I’m still scratching my head at the acclaim for Magic Mike and McConaughey. The movie itself has a very engaging first half but descends into standard melodrama in the second, weighed down by an non-compelling romantic subplot and the incredibly wooden Cody Horn. McConaughey was fine, but nothing special. I’d much rather see him nominated for Bernie. (Although I don’t think either of the performances were worthy of a nomination.)

I thought for sure one of the New York groups would go for Lincoln. I’m not surprised that Les Miserables is getting blanked so far; that kind of movie usually doesn’t do as well with critics’ groups. But the guilds will almost certainly embrace it.

I think the LA critics will choose either Argo or The Master. The former will appeal to those in and around Hollywood, and the latter is from a director whose work has been closely tied to Southern California in the past. That kind of stuff counts more than you’d think.

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I think some critics groups also don’t want to be seen as bandwagoners, just going with the same choices others have. In certain years (L.A. Confidential, The Social Network), the choice may seem inevitable, but this year has a nice range, so I’m inclined to agree that the PTA film holds a good shot at Pic, Actor, and/or Director with LA.

I think if one film automatically suffers from ZDT’s potential domination, it’s ARGO (which I found pretty lightweight), since the themes and setting are pretty similar, while by all accounts, the Bigelow packs much more of a punch. With 10 potential pic nominees, there’s still room for the Affleck in that category, but its odds in most of the others look pretty bleak now.

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Another notable thing about the LA critics: they’re more open to foreign-language performances than any other critics group, especially from actresses. I’d look for Emmanuelle Riva from Michael Haneke’s Amour to be a serious contender for a Best Actress win.

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Sadly, most of the time, foreign-language actress performances are contenders because of the dearth of English-language roles to consider. Jean-Louis Trintignant would be in pretty good shape too (he’s got classic name recognition on his side) if Lead Actor wasn’t so heavily congested. The real question is whether Haneke might pull a Director nod from that branch–or maybe screenplay, which is where Foreign Language films most often get some recognition.

Good call on Tomei, btw. swoon There’s also Valerie Perreine in LENNY and Mary Steenburgen in MELVIN & HOWARD. Was Penelope Cruz in NINE? I’ve blocked that movie from my memory. None of THE FULL MONTY cast was nominated, though.

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My Oscar prediction: Les Miserables will have 13 nominations and either win 11 of them or win 2. One guarantied loss - Best Actor with Daniel Day-Lewis beating out Hugh Jackman.

Best cinemetography - Life of Pi

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Before moving on from the NBR, here are their lists, which I always love. The winners aren’t on these lists because they’ve already won.

NBR’s (other) Top Films (in alphabetical order)

ARGO
BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD
DJANGO UNCHAINED
LES MISÉRABLES
LINCOLN
LOOPER
THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER
PROMISED LAND
SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK

NBR’s (other) Top 5 Foreign Language Films (In Alphabetical Order)

BARBARA
THE INTOUCHABLES
THE KID WITH A BIKE
NO
WAR WITCH

NBR’s (other) Top 5 Documentaries (In Alphabetical Order)

AI WEIWEI: NEVER SORRY
DETROPIA
THE GATEKEEPERS
THE INVISIBLE WAR
ONLY THE YOUNG

NBR’s Top 10 Independent Films (In Alphabetical Order)

ARBITRAGE
BERNIE
COMPLIANCE
END OF WATCH
HELLO I MUST BE GOING
LITTLE BIRDS
MOONRISE KINGDOM
ON THE ROAD
QUARTET
SLEEPWALK WITH ME

Los Angeles Film Critics

Best Film: Amour
(runner-up: The Master )

Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson, The Master
(runner-up: Kathryn Bigelow)

Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook
(runner-up: Emmanuelle Riva)

Best Actor: Joaquin Phoenix, The Master
(runner-up: Denis Lavant, Holy Motors

Best Supporting Actor: Dwight Henry, Beasts of the Southern Wild
(runner-up: Christof Waltz, Django Unchained)

Best Supporting Actress: Amy Adams, The Master
(runner-up: Anne Hathaway, The Dark Knight Rises and Les Miserables)

Best Editing: Dylan Tichenor and William Goldenberg, Zero Dark Thirty
(runner-up: William Goldenberg, Argo)

Best Cinematography: Roger Deakins, Skyfall
(runner-up: Mihai Malaimare Jr., The Master)

Best Score: Benh Zeitlin & Dan Romer, Beasts of the Southern Wild
(runner-up: Jonny Greenwood, The Master)

Best Screenplay: Chris Terrio, Argo
(runner-up: David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook)

Best Production Design: Jack Fisk, The Master
(runner-up: Adam Stockhausen, Moonrise Kingdom)

Best Animated Film: Frankenweenie
(runner-up: It’s Such a Beautiful Day)

Best Documentary: The Gatekeepers
(runner-up: Searching for Sugar Man)

Here are a few more in spoiler tags (to avoid long lists).

[spoiler]Boston Film Critics winners

Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty
(tied for 2nd: Moonrise Kingdom and Amour)

Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow, Zero Dark Thirty
(2nd: Paul Thomas Anderson, The Master)

Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis, Lincoln
(2nd: Denis Lavant, Holy Motors)

Best Actress: Emmanuelle Riva , Amour
(2nd: Deanie Yip, A Simple Life)

Best Supporting Actress: Sally Field, Lincoln
(2nd: Emma Watson, Perks of Being a Wallflower)

Best Supporting Actor: Ezra Miller, Perks of Being a Wallflower
(2nd: Christof Waltz, Django Unchained)

Best Screenplay: Tony Kushner,Lincoln
(2nd: Wes Anderson, Moonrise Kingdom)

Best Cinematography: Mihai Malaimare Jr, The Master
(tied for 2nd: Moonrise Kingdon, Life of Pi)

Best Editing: William Goldenberg, Dylan Tichenor, Zero Dark Thirty
(2nd: Argo)

Best Use of Music: Moonrise Kingdom
(2nd: Django Unchained)

Best New Filmmaker: David France, How to Survive a Plague
(2nd: Benh Zeitlin for Beasts of the Southern Wild)

Best Documentary: How to Survive a Plague
(2nd: Queen of Versailles)

Best Animated: Frankenweenie
(2nd: ParaNorman)

Best Foreign Language Film: Amour
(2nd: Holy Motors)

Washington DC Area Film Critics nominations

Best Film:
Argo
Les Misérables
Lincoln
Silver Linings Playbook
Zero Dark Thirty

Best Director:
Ben Affleck (Argo)
Paul Thomas Anderson (The Master)
Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty)
Tom Hooper (Les Misérables)
Steven Spielberg (Lincoln)

Best Actor:
Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)
John Hawkes (The Sessions)
Hugh Jackman (Les Misérables)
Joaquin Phoenix (The Master)
Denzel Washington (Flight)

Best Actress:
Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty)
Marion Cotillard (Rust and Bone)
Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook)
Helen Mirren (Hitchcock)
Emmanuelle Riva (Amour)

Best Supporting Actor:
Alan Arkin (Argo)
Javier Bardem (Skyfall)
Leonardo DiCaprio (Django Unchained)
Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Master)
Tommy Lee Jones (Lincoln)

Best Supporting Actress:
Amy Adams (The Master)
Samantha Barks (Les Misérables)
Sally Field (Lincoln)
Anne Hathaway (Les Misérables)
Helen Hunt (The Sessions)

Best Acting Ensemble:
Argo
Les Misérables
Lincoln
Moonrise Kingdom
Zero Dark Thirty

Best Adapted Screenplay:
Chris Terrio (Argo)
David Magee (Life of Pi)
Tony Kushner (Lincoln)
Stephen Chbosky (The Perks of Being a Wallflower)
David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook)
Best Original Screenplay:
Quentin Tarantino (Django Unchained)
Rian Johnson (Looper)
Paul Thomas Anderson (The Master)
Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola (Moonrise Kingdom)
Mark Boal (Zero Dark Thirty)

Best Animated Feature:
Brave
Frankenweenie
ParaNorman
Rise of the Guardians
Wreck-It Ralph

Best Documentary:
Bully
The Imposter
The Invisible War
The Queen of Versailles
Searching for Sugar Man

Best Foreign Language Film:
Amour
The Intouchables
I Wish
A Royal Affair
Rust and Bone

Best Art Direction:
Anna Karenina (Nominees TBD)
Cloud Atlas (Nominees TBD)
Les Misérables (Nominees TBD)
Lincoln (Nominees TBD)
Moonrise Kingdom (Nominees TBD)

Best Cinematography:
Les Misérables (Danny Cohen)
Life of Pi (Claudio Miranda)
The Master (Mihai Malaimare Jr.)
Skyfall (Roger Deakins)
Zero Dark Thirty (Greig Fraser)

Best Score:
Beasts of the Southern Wild (Dan Romer & Benh Zeitlin)
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (Howard Shore)
Lincoln (John Williams)
The Master (Jonny Greenwood)
Moonrise Kingdom (Alexandre Desplat)

Best Youth Performance:
Jared Gilman (Moonrise Kingdom)
Kara Hayward (Moonrise Kingdom)
Tom Holland (The Impossible)
Logan Lerman (The Perks of Being a Wallflower)
Quvenzhané Wallis (Beasts of the Southern
New York Film Critics Online (different entity from what the OP posted)

Best Picture: Zero Dark Thirty
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow – Zero Dark Thirty
Best Debut Director: Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild
Best Actress: Emmanuelle Riva – Amour
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis – Lincoln
Best Ensemble Cast: Argo
Best Supporting Actor: Tommy Lee Jones – Lincoln
Best Supporting Actress: Anne Hathaway – Les Miserables
Best Cinematography: Life of Pi – Claudio Miranda
Best Screenplay: Zero Dark Thirty – Mark Boal
Best Use of Music: Django Unchained – Mary Ramos
Breakthrough Performance: Quvenzhane Wallis – Beasts of the Southern Wild
Best Animated Feature: Chico and Rita
Best Documentary: The Central Park Five
Best Foreign Language Film: Amour
[/spoiler]

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Matthew McConaughey is having a hell of a great year with Bernie (playing an overzealous lawyer), Magic Mike (a business owner and semi-retired exotic dancer), The Paperboy (a way-too-trusting closeted gay reporter) and Killer Joe (an icy-cold detective who’s a hired killer in his spare time) all released this year, and he was fantastic in all of them. He notched his career up in quality several levels last year with The Lincoln Lawyer and he’s continuing to soar (he did have several good roles before then too though). The time will come when no one will say “Matthew McConaughey? Really?”

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Ooops, MM played a Prosecutor in Bernie.

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Well, aren’t they usually lawyers?

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Metacritic has a fantastic awards page that updates for nominations and wins:

I browse it occasionally with the delight of a gourmand paging through favorite cookbooks.

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The Boston critics are officially my favorite ones this season thanks to their giving Best Supporting Actor to Ezra Miller from The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Such a wonderful, deserving performance in a movie that’s way, way off the Oscar radar, sadly.

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I’m with you Rollo. Ezra’s great, so flippy in Wallflower and so frightening in We Need To Talk About Kevin and so funny in City Island.

Yes of course, but his character was very very much a prosecutor. If you see the movie you’ll understand what I mean. He takes his job as a prosecutor extremely seriously. Hilariously seriously.

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Great link! Thanks!

I’m encouraged that the Wes Anderson ranks second (dubiously) based on the math they’ve assigned, but I know anything more than an Original Screenplay nod is wishful thinking. However, since most of the fiercest competition is in Adapted, the temptation to give another Coppola an Oscar might be too irresistible.

For anyone who says it might be too soon to give Bigelow a second Oscar for a similarly-themed film, just remember that Oliver Stone won Director 3 years apart for 2 Vietnam films. Interestingly, the second award (Born on the 4th of July) was an Oscar split, with Picture going to Driving Miss Daisy that year. I wouldn’t be surprised if Lincoln did something similar with Bigelow.

I’m guessing Amy Adams will lose her 4th nomination in this category. At this rate she’s going (she’s not even 40 yet), I wouldn’t be surprised if she exceeds Thelma Ritter’s Oscar record of 6 nods in supporting (note: Ritter never won).

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My first thought on reading the post above: “Amy Adams got a nod for that baseball movie? That film sucked!”

Fortunately, it was for The Master, which didn’t suck (I didn’t care for it, but it was a quality movie - just not for me.)