Oscar Nominations: First Reactions

The Oscar nominations were this morning, and while much of it was predictable, there were some surprises and snubs.  Here are my first reactions.

We didn't know how many films would be nominated for best picture, only that it would be between 5 and 10.  I was quite surprised that 9 films were nominated.  I figured it would be between 5 and 7.  And if we're going to nominate 9 films, why not just throw in the much deserved "Drive" or "Bridesmaids" as the 10th spot? This annoys me.  Two snubs right there.


Extremely excited about:

• Best Picture noms for: The Artist, Hugo, Midnight in Paris, and The Help.
• Best Actress noms for: Meryl Streep, Michelle Williams, and Viola Davis
• Best Supporting Actress noms for: Jessica Chastain, Octavia Spencer, and the academy actually recognizing a comedic performance -- Melissa McCarthy for Bridesmaids.
• Best Supporting Actor nom for: Kenneth Branagh (My Week With Marilyn)

Surprised by:

• No love for Drive at all.  No Best Picture, No Supporting Actor for Albert Brooks (this upsets me greatly), and No Best Actor nom for Gosling.
• 9 nominations for Best Picture, and that Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close was nominated. It's predictable, but didn't get good reviews.
• No Best Picture nom for The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo or for Director David Fincher.
• Rooney Mara nominated for Lead Actress, nudging out Tilda Swinton (this makes me very happy).
• No Director nom for Spielberg for either War Horse, or The Adventures of Tintin.
• No Best Actor nom for Michael Fassbender or Leonardo DiCaprio, but virtually unknown actor to American audiences Demian Bichir did get a nomination.
• Golden Globe winner for best animated film The Adventures of Tintin doesn't even get a nomination for the Oscar in the same category. And it has Spielberg and Peter Jackson behind it.

Rolling my eyes at:

• Gary Oldman nominated for Best Actor. (yes, he is overdue, but Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy was not the film to finally recognize him for...IMO)
• Once again, can't say it enough, no love for Drive. 
• In a year that Ryan Gosling turned 3 great performances, which were all very different from one another, didn't get any nominations.  The Best Actor category was apparently much more crowded than I thought.

Those are my thoughts for now.  Below is a list of nominations. for all those who are curious. Don't forget you can follow me on twitter: @tvfilmjunkie

Best Picture
War Horse
The Artist
Moneyball
The Descendants
The Tree of Life
Midnight in Paris
The Help
Hugo
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

Best Actress
Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
Rooney Mara, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Viola Davis, The Help
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn


Best Actor
Demian Bichir, A Better Life
George Clooney, The Descendants
Jean Dujardin, The Artist
Gary Oldman, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Brad Pitt, Moneyball

Supporting Actress
Berenice Bejo, The Artist
Jessica Chastain, The Help
Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids
Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer, The Help

Supporting Actor
Kenneth Branagh, My Week With Marilyn
Jonah Hill, Moneyball
Nick Nolte, Warrior
Christopher Plummer, Beginners
Max von Sydow, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close 

Best Director
Michel Hazanivicus, The Artist
Alexander Payne, The Descendants
Martin Scorsese, Hugo
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life

Best Original Screenplay
Michel Hazanivicius, The Artist
Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo, Bridesmaids
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
J.C. Chandor, Margin Call
Asghar Farhadi, A Separation

Best Adapted Screenplay
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash, The Descendants
John Logan, Hugo
George Clooney, Beau Willimon and Grant Heslov, The Ides of March
Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin and Stan Chervin, Moneyball
Bridget O'Connor and Peter Straughan, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Favorites of 2011

I know it's already mid-January, but I have finally finished seeing all the 2011 film releases that I wanted to see, so I have completed my Favorite and Least Favorite lists of the year.  Just in time for Oscar nominations Tuesday morning!

Alright here we go...

My Top 10 of the Year
10. The Muppets
9.  The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
8.  The Ides of March
7.  Bridesmaids
6.  Drive
5.  Crazy Stupid Love
4.  Carnage
3.  My Week With Marilyn
2.  Hugo
1.  The Artist

The Artist and Hugo were both throwbacks to classic Hollywood, revolving around early film-making.  They both featured great story telling, which combined with excellent performances, direction, scores, etc, all came together to make incredibly enjoyable films.

Here would be my next 5 favorites:
11. The Help
12. Midnight In Paris
13. Iron Lady
14. J. Edgar
15. The Debt

Every year I also put out my least favorites of the year, but usually it's filled with things that are pretty much universally seen as garbage.  However, this year an interesting thing happened -- I found some that I did not like at all, that critics and audiences rather liked.  Here we go...

My Least Favorites
5.  Moneyball
4.  Adjustment Bureau
3.  Our Idiot Brother
2.  Larry Crowne
1.  Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

I must have completely missed the boat on Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy because I thought it was one of the most boring movies I have ever seen.  I couldn't even concentrate on the plot and performances because I was so bored.  And this is coming from someone who tries to find at least one good thing about a movie.  Couldn't do it here.  Also, don't get me started on how bad Larry Crowne was.  I was very embarrassed for Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts.  Poor things. 

If anyone is wondering, I saw 45 movies released in 2011.  Those are where this list comes from. 

Anyway, there are my lists for the year.  Oscar nominations are Tuesday morning, and the Oscars are right around the corner, so I'll be back with my predictions and wishes at some point soon.

Also, don't forget this blog now has a twitter account.  Follow me @tvfilmjunkie for daily tweets of reviews, news, and commentary on television and films.

-Andrew

Now on Twitter

Hi folks.  Since I rarely update this blog anymore, I decided to create a twitter account for people to follow that will be along the lines of this blog.  The handle is @tvfilmjunkie so be sure to follow me! I will be posting short reviews, news, and commentary about television shows and movies.  At times I will be live tweeting as well (look out, Oscars!).  This will be much more convenient for me to keep up with, so if you're into tv and films like I am, be sure to follow me there! Be sure to tell your friends as well!

I should be back with a new blog post around Oscars time. 

Thanks in advance for the follow!

Andrew
Twitter: @tvfilmjunkie