Oscar season 2012 has begun!

Cafe Society
81

Well, reasonable minds can differ, because I thought SLP was terrific, as were all the performances, though I agree that Moonrise deserved much more love

Worse than 2006? (Happy Feet, Cars, Monster House) No way.

It would be hilarious, and awesome, that after being the DP for half a dozen Best Picture nominees and working for the Coens and Scorsese, Roger Deakins would finally win an Oscar for a Bond movie (the most visually remarkable Bond movie ever)

Nothing was secretly released. People see something on the Internet and get stupid with all the wrong conclusions.

QT and Affleck made perfectly fine films, but nothing particularly special (haven’t seen the Bigelow yet). But Amour and Beasts are both far superior films, and they richly deserve their place

France didn’t submit it for their entry. Don’t blame the Academy. Blame France.

Along with Les Miz, this is the biggest snoozer of all categories.

Nope. Assembling a cool soundtrack collection of musical cues does not deserve an Oscar. There were several songs that were eligible this year from the film, but none made the cut (I’ll admit, seeing Morricone in the mix would’ve been nice)

Over Lincoln? Not a chance. If Kushner doesn’t win, Russell will.

Those odds are better, but I’m still guessing not.

It probably won’t win, but the Alien franchise picks up its fourth nod in this category (it’s won twice before)

Probably will be the first Bond song to actually win.

82

No, it hasn’t.

In fact, 16 of the 20 acting nominees have been nominated before, and 9 have won before, totaling 13 previous wins:

1: Arkin, Hoffman, Hunt, Jones, Waltz
2: Day-Lewis, De Niro, Field, Washington

83

All the time? He’s received one nomination in the last 40 years (he received two others in the 60s).

That said, I’d say it’s still the least deserving of all 20 acting nominees.

84

As usual, half the movies nominated haven’t even opened yet here in Australia, so it’s hard to know what to make of the nominations. Django Unchained, Lincoln, Silver Linings Playbook, Zero Dark Thirty, and Amour are still to open here. (As well as The Impossible, Anna Karenina, Hitchcock, Flight and Cloud Atlas). Out of the rest, I’d probably go for Les Miserables or Life Of Pi for Best Picture, but it’s hard to know.

I was hoping for more love for The Sessions, which I thought was extraordinary, probably my favourite movie of the last year. I’m disappointed that John Hawkes didn’t get an acting nod. (I’m also surprised that Helen Hunt is nominated for Best Supporting Actress, rather than lead, but oh well, at least she’s nominated, even if she doesn’t have a chance against my girl Anne.)

Glad to see Skyfall got a nomination for Cinematography. One of the many delights of the movie was how gorgeous it looked.

Very surprised about Ben Affleck missing out.

85

This question is about 45 years late, but does anyone know why “To Sir, With Love” wasn’t even nominated?

86

85th Academy Awards
February 24, 2013
ACTING AWARD STATISTICS
Best Lead Actor

Q’n’D: 2 previous winners; 2 first-time nominees

Bradley Cooper, Silver Linings Playbook
1st nomination

Daniel Day-Lewis, Lincoln
2 previous wins overall; both for Lead Actor
4th nomination overall (all for Lead Actor)
Won Lead Actor for *My Left Foot, *1989
Won Lead Actor for *There Will Be Blood, *2007
Nominated for Lead Actor for In the Name of the Father, 1993

Hugh Jackman, Les Misérables
1st nomination

Joaquin Phoenix, The Master
3rd nomination overall; 2nd for Lead Actor
Nominated for Supporting Actor for *Gladiator, *2000
Nominated for Lead Actor for *Walk the Line, *2005

Denzel Washington, Flight
2 previous wins overall; 1 for Supporting Actor, 1 for Lead Actor
6th nomination overall; 4th for Lead Actor
Won Supporting Actor for Glory, 1989
Won Lead Actor for *Training Day, *2001
Nominated for Supporting Actor for *Cry Freedom, *1987
Nominated for Lead Actor for *Malcolm X, 1992
Nominated for Lead Actor for The Hurricane, *1999
Best Lead Actress

Q’n’D: No previous winners; 2 first-time nominees (both record-breakers; see below)

Jessica Chastain, Zero Dark Thirty
2nd nomination overall; 1st for Lead Actress
Nominated for Supporting Actress for The Help, 2011

Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook
2nd nomination overall (both for Lead Actress)
Nominated for Lead Actress for Winter’s Bone, 2010

Emmanuelle Riva, Amour
1st nomination
Riva, 85, is the oldest actress to be nominated for Best Lead Actress.

Quvenzhané Wallis, Beasts of the Southern Wild
1st nomination (in her debut acting role)
Wallis, 9, is the youngest actress to be nominated for Best Lead Actress.

Naomi Watts, The Impossible
2nd nomination overall (both for Lead Actress)
Nominated for Lead Actress for 21 Grams, 2003
Best Supporting Actor

Q’n’D: 5 previous winners; 1 seeking first award in this category

Alan Arkin, Argo
1 previous win overall (for Supporting Actor)
4th nomination (2nd for Supporting Actor; 2 for Lead Actor)
Won Supporting Actor for *Little Miss Sunshine, *2006
Nominated for Lead Actor for *The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming, *1966
Nominated for Lead Actor for *The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, *1968

Robert De Niro, Silver Linings Playbook
2 previous wins overall (1 for Lead Actor; 1 for Supporting Actor)
7th nomination (2nd for Supporting Actor; 5 for Lead Actor)
Won Supporting Actor for *The Godfather Part II, *1974
Won Lead Actor for Raging Bull, 1980
Nominated for Best Actor for *Taxi Driver, *1976
Nominated for Best Actor for *The Deer Hunter, *1978
Nominated for Best Actor for Awakenings, 1990
Nominated for Best Actor for Cape Fear, 1991

Philip Seymour Hoffman, The Master
1 previous win overall (for Lead Actor)
4th nomination (3rd for Supporting Actor; 1 for Lead Actor)
Won Lead Actor for Capote, 2005
Nominated for Supporting Actor for *Charlie Wilson’s War, *2007
Nominated for Supporting Actor for Doubt, 2008

Tommy Lee Jones, Lincoln
1 previous win overall (for Supporting Actor)
4th nomination (3rd for Supporting Actor; 1 for Lead Actor)
Won Supporting Actor for The Fugitive, 1993
Nominated for Supporting Actor for* JFK, *1991
Nominated for Lead Actor for In the Valley of Elah, 2007

Christoph Waltz, Django Unchained
1 previous win overall (for Supporting Actor)
2nd nomination (both for Supporting Actor)
Won Best Supporting Actor for Inglourious Basterds, 2009
Best Supporting Actress

Q’n’D: 2 previous winners (1 seeking first win in this category); no first-time nominees

Amy Adams, The Master
4th nomination overall (all for Supporting Actress)
Nominated for Supporting Actress for Junebug, 2005
Nominated for Supporting Actress for Doubt, 2008
Nominated for Supporting Actress for The Fighter, 2010

Sally Field, Lincoln
2 previous wins overall (both for Lead Actress)
3rd nomination overall (1st for Supporting Actress)
Won for Lead Actress for Norma Rae, 1979
Won for Lead Actress for *Places in the Heart, *1984

Anne Hathaway, Les Misérables
2nd nomination overall (1st for Supporting Actress)
Nominated for Lead Actress for Rachel Getting Married, 2008

Helen Hunt, The Sessions
1 previous win overall (for Lead Actress)
2nd nomination overall (1st for Supporting Actress)
Won Lead Actress for As Good as It Gets, 1997

Jacki Weaver,* Silver Linings Playbook*
2nd nomination overall (both for Supporting Actress)
Nominated for Supporting Actress for Animal Kingdom, 2010
(Note: This list was compiled by me using Wikipedia, so there may be some inaccuracies.)

87

I…really don’t know how to explain it…it just seems like with Lincoln…

You know it was a great film and everything. There is no doubt. Daniel Day-Lewis staying to his truest form and doing incredibly well. But, while it does show the dirty political side of Lincoln, I just didn’t feel moved by Lincoln. It just FELT like Oscar bait the whole time, like that was the only reason they made the movie. It was GOOD…SO GOOD…but…man. I just can’t put it into words.

Okay. Remember when you were in the theatre watching Lincoln? screen becomes fuzzy as we go into flashback It was somber with some fun moments in between when the Senators were yelling at eachother. It was enlightening and fun to see Lincoln tell the George Washington story in the telegraph office. It was uplifting to see them get the support for the 13th amendment and have senators stand up to their colleagues for what’s right.

Now flash forward to when you saw Djano Unchained wash out and fade back in to Django movie theatre You held your breath constantly in anticipation of how Christoph Waltz would handle the situations they got into.

You laughed your ass off when all the white dudes were trying to have a raid and messing with the bags on their head. You felt a surging sense of justice when Django beats the tar out of the Brittle brothers. When Christoph went to shake Leo’s hand, only to shoot him right in the heart? my jaw dropped. When Django shoots Lara and she flies into the other room? holy crap man…

I feel like there is legitimately something to be said about a film that can really take you on a journey like that. Hell, I think Argo was a lot more climactic that Lincoln in telling the story of something that had already happened. While Lincoln was just such a good film, I think it was also Oscar bait at its finest and there were many other films this year who made a much more powerful statement this year. Off the top of my head, Django, The Impossible, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Argo, and even Dark Knight Rises.

88

Eh, Oscar bait (OB) films aren’t misnamed. 2011’s The King’s Speech was, imho, a far more egregious example of a better-than-decent film that won the major awards over far, far better films* merely because it hit the right OB buttons: English, royalty, disability, triumph, etc etc etc. I’m still trying to figure out how Tom Hooper won B. Director for it, over Nolan (not even nominated!) and Fincher.

At least Lincoln delved into a period of history that is very important, though largely ignored. TKS didn’t even bother to do that.

*Social Network, 127 Hours, Inception (all, imho, of course.)

89

I added a spoiler box to Oedipus’ post about Django Unchained. Might be a good idea to remember that a lot of people haven’t seen all the nominees and might want to avoid spoilers. Thanks!

90

The social network sucked, the kings speech deserved the best picture Oscar.

91

Great summary!

The one thing missing is that DDL was also nominated for Best Actor in 2000 for Gangs of New York, putting his nomination total at 5 currently.

92

2003, right?

93

Sorry, that should’ve been 2002 for GONY (I use the year of the performance being honored, not the date of the ceremony)

94

OK, so I have not see her in the film.
But I have to wonder about a 6 year old (age during filming) being nominated for Best Actress. Seriously?

Now, I don’t deny she was probably perfectly CAST (Best Casting of child actor) or that her DIRECTOR fed her line for line (Best Director) or that the CINEMATOGRAPHER got the best angles (Best Cinematography) or that even her wardrobe and makeup were perfect.

But at age six, was this kid really acting or was she just a natural that fit the role perfectly? If the kid looks the part and has the accent and can smile pretty or cry sadly in front of a camera, is that acting or just being the perfect kid as per the script/book in this one story being filmed?

Meryl Streep can jump from one character to another; Helen Mirren can embody any number of characters/roles and make them believable - these are actors who can make you believe they are someone else in every different film role.

I don’t begrudge this little girl from her 15 minutes of fame, and as mentioned, I haven’t seen the film so perhaps I am way off base - but it seems to me that nominating a 6 year old live puppet for Best Actress is a bit of a stretch.

Maybe you want to make the case that all actors are basically “puppets”. OK - but my guess is they have also brought more to the role in terms of motivation, life experience and training. These are “actors”, people who spend time honing their craft and trying different approaches to characters/scenes/dialog. You will find multiple versions of scenes on the cutting room floor that were perhaps just as interesting but totally different each time - allowing the directors/editors some choices in the final film.

I just wonder if a 6 year old can really be dropped into this category and be considered the Best Actress of the year?

95

[QUOTE=Kiros]
Moonrise Kingdom seems to be the biggest omission.
[/QUOTE]

Moonrise Kingdom made the mistake of being released too early in the year. Of all the Best Picture nominees, only one–Beasts of the Southern Wild–was not released during the last two months of 2012. The Academy’s memory is apparently very short.

It was considered too “rock and roll” to be nominated. The Academy’s musical tastes were notoriously reactionary and old-fashioned back in 1967 when To Sir, With Love was released. If you think that omission was bad, keep in mind that neither “Mrs. Robinson” from The Graduate nor the title song from In the Heart of the Night were nominated that year.

96

How did “Cloud Atlas” not get an Adapted Screenplay nom?
Les Miz will get one and only one Oscar - Suporting Actress
I concur that these were not the 5 best directors of the year.
I think the most interesting award will be Best Visual Effects. The Hobbit relies on a lot of old-school techniques and not 100% CGI. Does that make them an automatic winner or loser?

97

Do you have a Google alert set up for Kings Speech or something?

98

Probably because the film had a decidedly mixed set of reviews and responses, and nowhere near the level of acclaim that the 5 nominees (in addition to non-nominated The Perks of Being a Wallflower or Anna Karenina) had. Personally, I liked the film, but thought it was cleverly constructed more than well-written (dialogue & characterization)

It has reasonable shots at Production Design, Costumes, Sound Mixing and Makeup. Definitely wouldn’t rule it out in any of those.

Time has shown over and over that, unless there’s an overwhelmingly obvious degree of quality involved (Jurassic Park), they usually go to the movie they like the most (which accounts for dubious winners like Gladiator or Hugo). That definitely gives the edge to Life of Pi (unseen by me, yet) and makes it the prohibitive favorite. It doesn’t hurt that the film was shot in 3D, as were several winners here in the last few years.

99

What the heck’s the difference? How can you really tell?

I can quite plausibly argue that such Oscars as Tommy Lee Jones in “The Fugitive” are just cases of perfect casting. Either the actor owns the role or they do not. Whether it’s natural talent, casting, skill or dumb luck, who cares?

It’s pretty apparent that you can be a highly skilled actor at a young age. Jennifer Lawrence is just 22, has no formal training of any sort, appears to have no particular interest or passion in the world besides a remarkable love of french fries, and is a terrific actor. Kate Winslet was already one of the best actors *in the world *by that age. Haley Joel Osment’s performance in “The Sixth Sense” was mesmerizing despite the fact that he obviously is not actually a person plagued by ghosts, and Hailee Steinfeld (same sounding name, but this one’s a girl) acted Jeff Bridges and Matt Damon right off the screen at the age of 14, again playing someone nothing at all like what she really is. Elle Fanning was 12 or 13 in “Super 8,” a movie that was generally pretty cheesy, and she made all the other actors in it, child and adult, look like clumsy morons.

Practice helps, but maybe acting is something some people are just good at. We’ve all seen it at school, at local drama companies, everywhere; some people can just act, and some people just can’t.

100

I thank you for the information, but I remain confused, because the vocals in To Sir, With Love were backed by a lush string orchestra, not guitars and saxes and drums. It sounded less “pop” to me than the winner, “Talk to the Animals,” which sounded like a kiddie song (nothing wrong with that, but it makes no sense that stodgy conservatives would favor a kiddie song over an adult song).

And yet, they clearly did, so you must be right. But jeez, I hate being perpetually confused.