The 85th Annual Academy Awards: Nominations & Thoughts

So the nominations for the 85th Annual Academy Awards have been released, and like usual with me, there are more snubs than joyous feelings. Even with the solid slate of really good Hollywood films, judging by the nominations, this feels like it might be another film where the Academy goes for smaller films.

Yes, Lincoln did get the most nominations out of every film, but other films that should have scored some nominations didn't. Ben Affleck lost out on what seemed to be a sure thing directing nomination for Argo along with John Goodman for supporting actor. Alan Arkin was fun in Argo, but John Goodman, out of all the supporting actors, felt like he should have secured a nomination.

Not surprisingly, The Master was only nominated for acting categories. As a film that polarizes every viewer, I am at least glad the Academy still offered nominations to Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams.

Robert De Niro and his return to being an Oscar contender in Silver Linings Playbook. It is always a welcome sight when a veteran actor comes out of the doldrums of awful films and returns with a solid performance.

Samuel L. Jackson's turn as a house slave in Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained missed a nomination, which I feel might be the biggest snub of the year. His role and performance were damn good and a shame that it was overlooked. Also overlooked was a directing nomination for Quentin Tarantino. This is not as surprising, but still a snub.

Also missing was Kathryn Bigelow's directing nomination for Zero Dark Thirty. For a film that has been in the press a lot and getting a lot of critical love, this feels more like a political move than providing the correct nominee. Politics at the Oscars? Who knew!

And Tom Hooper didn't get nominated for Les Miserables. He must only get nominated when David Fincher does, so he can steal away David Fincher's Oscar. (Sorry, sore spot for me.)

So anyway, below are all the nominations for the 85th Annual Academy Awards. From what was nominated, I now think that Lincoln is the obvious front runner. The Academy hasn't shown Steven Spielberg love in a while, and this might be his year again. Beyond that, it seems small movies again run wild throughout the nominees, which can be a good thing. It just feels like some films that could have had a chance to compete with Lincoln (Zero Dark Thirty and Argo come specifically to mind) have lost a lot of steam with the nominations that were announced.

We will find out, though, on February 24th, when Seth MacFarlane hosts the Oscar ceremony.


Performance by an actor in a leading role
*   Bradley Cooper in "Silver Linings Playbook"
*   Daniel Day-Lewis in "Lincoln"
*   Hugh Jackman in "Les Miserables"
*   Joaquin Phoenix in "The Master"
*   Denzel Washington in "Flight"


Performance by an actor in a supporting role
*   Alan Arkin in "Argo"
*   Robert De Niro in "Silver Linings Playbook"
*   Philip Seymour Hoffman in "The Master"
*   Tommy Lee Jones in "Lincoln"
*   Christoph Waltz in "Django Unchained"


Performance by an actress in a leading role
*   Jessica Chastain in "Zero Dark Thirty"
*   Jennifer Lawrence in "Silver Linings Playbook"
*   Emmanuelle Riva in "Amour"
*   Quvenzhané Wallis in "Beasts of the Southern Wild"
*   Naomi Watts in "The Impossible"


Performance by an actress in a supporting role
*   Amy Adams in "The Master"
*   Sally Field in "Lincoln"
*   Anne Hathaway in "Les Miserables"
*   Helen Hunt in "The Sessions"
*   Jacki Weaver in "Silver Linings Playbook"


Best animated feature film of the year
*   "Brave" Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman
*   "Frankenweenie" Tim Burton
*   "ParaNorman" Sam Fell and Chris Butler
*   "The Pirates! Band of Misfits" Peter Lord
*   "Wreck-It Ralph" Rich Moore


Achievement in cinematography
*   "Anna Karenina" Seamus McGarvey
*   "Django Unchained" Robert Richardson
*   "Life of Pi" Claudio Miranda
*   "Lincoln" Janusz Kaminski
*   "Skyfall" Roger Deakins


Achievement in costume design
*   "Anna Karenina" Jacqueline Durran
*   "Les Miserables" Paco Delgado
*   "Lincoln" Joanna Johnston
*   "Mirror Mirror" Eiko Ishioka
*   "Snow White and the Huntsman" Colleen Atwood


Achievement in directing
*   "Amour" Michael Haneke
*   "Beasts of the Southern Wild" Benh Zeitlin
*   "Life of Pi" Ang Lee
*   "Lincoln" Steven Spielberg
*   "Silver Linings Playbook" David O. Russell


Best documentary feature
*   "5 Broken Cameras"
Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi
*   "The Gatekeepers"
Nominees to be determined
*   "How to Survive a Plague"
Nominees to be determined
*   "The Invisible War"
Nominees to be determined
*   "Searching for Sugar Man"
Nominees to be determined


Best documentary short subject
*   "Inocente"
Sean Fine and Andrea Nix Fine
*   "Kings Point"
Sari Gilman and Jedd Wider
*   "Mondays at Racine"
Cynthia Wade and Robin Honan
*   "Open Heart"
Kief Davidson and Cori Shepherd Stern
*   "Redemption"
Jon Alpert and Matthew O'Neill


Achievement in film editing
*   "Argo" William Goldenberg
*   "Life of Pi" Tim Squyres
*   "Lincoln" Michael Kahn
*   "Silver Linings Playbook" Jay Cassidy and Crispin Struthers
*   "Zero Dark Thirty" Dylan Tichenor and William Goldenberg


Best foreign language film of the year
*   "Amour" Austria
*   "Kon-Tiki" Norway
*   "No" Chile
*   "A Royal Affair" Denmark
*   "War Witch" Canada


Achievement in makeup and hairstyling
*   "Hitchcock"
Howard Berger, Peter Montagna and Martin Samuel
*   "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"
Peter Swords King, Rick Findlater and Tami Lane
*   "Les Miserables"
Lisa Westcott and Julie Dartnell


Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)
*   "Anna Karenina" Dario Marianelli
*   "Argo" Alexandre Desplat
*   "Life of Pi" Mychael Danna
*   "Lincoln" John Williams
*   "Skyfall" Thomas Newman


Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)
*   "Before My Time" from "Chasing Ice"
Music and Lyric by J. Ralph
*   "Everybody Needs A Best Friend" from "Ted"
Music by Walter Murphy; Lyric by Seth MacFarlane
*   "Pi's Lullaby" from "Life of Pi"
Music by Mychael Danna; Lyric by Bombay Jayashri
*   "Skyfall" from "Skyfall"
Music and Lyric by Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth
*   "Suddenly" from "Les Miserables"
Music by Claude-Michel Schönberg; Lyric by Herbert Kretzmer and Alain Boublil


Best motion picture of the year
*   "Amour" Nominees to be determined
*   "Argo" Grant Heslov, Ben Affleck and George Clooney, Producers
*   "Beasts of the Southern Wild" Dan Janvey, Josh Penn and Michael Gottwald, Producers
*   "Django Unchained" Stacey Sher, Reginald Hudlin and Pilar Savone, Producers
*   "Les Miserables" Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Debra Hayward and Cameron Mackintosh, Producers
*   "Life of Pi" Gil Netter, Ang Lee and David Womark, Producers
*   "Lincoln" Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, Producers
*   "Silver Linings Playbook" Donna Gigliotti, Bruce Cohen and Jonathan Gordon, Producers
*   "Zero Dark Thirty" Mark Boal, Kathryn Bigelow and Megan Ellison, Producers


Achievement in production design
*   "Anna Karenina"
Production Design: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer
*   "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"
Production Design: Dan Hennah; Set Decoration: Ra Vincent and Simon Bright
*   "Les Miserables"
Production Design: Eve Stewart; Set Decoration: Anna Lynch-Robinson
*   "Life of Pi"
Production Design: David Gropman; Set Decoration: Anna Pinnock
*   "Lincoln"
Production Design: Rick Carter; Set Decoration: Jim Erickson


Best animated short film
*   "Adam and Dog" Minkyu Lee
*   "Fresh Guacamole" PES
*   "Head over Heels" Timothy Reckart and Fodhla Cronin O'Reilly
*   "Maggie Simpson in "The Longest Daycare"" David Silverman
*   "Paperman" John Kahrs


Best live action short film
*   "Asad" Bryan Buckley and Mino Jarjoura
*   "Buzkashi Boys" Sam French and Ariel Nasr
*   "Curfew" Shawn Christensen
*   "Death of a Shadow (Dood van een Schaduw)" Tom Van Avermaet and Ellen De Waele
*   "Henry" Yan England


Achievement in sound editing
*   "Argo" Erik Aadahl and Ethan Van der Ryn
*   "Django Unchained" Wylie Stateman
*   "Life of Pi" Eugene Gearty and Philip Stockton
*   "Skyfall" Per Hallberg and Karen Baker Landers
*   "Zero Dark Thirty" Paul N.J. Ottosson


Achievement in sound mixing
*   "Argo"
John Reitz, Gregg Rudloff and Jose Antonio Garcia
*   "Les Miserables"
Andy Nelson, Mark Paterson and Simon Hayes
*   "Life of Pi"
Ron Bartlett, D.M. Hemphill and Drew Kunin
*   "Lincoln"
Andy Nelson, Gary Rydstrom and Ronald Judkins
*   "Skyfall"
Scott Millan, Greg P. Russell and Stuart Wilson


Achievement in visual effects
*   "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"
Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton and R. Christopher White
*   "Life of Pi"
Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Rocheron, Erik-Jan De Boer and Donald R. Elliott
*   "Marvel's The Avengers"
Janek Sirrs, Jeff White, Guy Williams and Dan Sudick
*   "Prometheus"
Richard Stammers, Trevor Wood, Charley Henley and Martin Hill
*   "Snow White and the Huntsman"
Cedric Nicolas-Troyan, Philip Brennan, Neil Corbould and Michael Dawson


Adapted screenplay
*   "Argo" Screenplay by Chris Terrio
*   "Beasts of the Southern Wild" Screenplay by Lucy Alibar & Benh Zeitlin
*   "Life of Pi" Screenplay by David Magee
*   "Lincoln" Screenplay by Tony Kushner
*   "Silver Linings Playbook" Screenplay by David O. Russell


Original screenplay
*   "Amour" Written by Michael Haneke
*   "Django Unchained" Written by Quentin Tarantino
*   "Flight" Written by John Gatins
*   "Moonrise Kingdom" Written by Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola
*   "Zero Dark Thirty" Written by Mark Boal

The List: Top 10 Best Films of 2012

With every "Worst of..." list, there must be a "Best of..." list. Here are my picks for the ten best films of 2012 I saw by year's end.


10. Jack Reacher

Released only a short time ago, Jack Reacher finds Tom Cruise in the titular role investigating a sniper attack. As I said in my review, this is a solid, if unspectacular, film that knows what it is. An old school, action/thriller that doesn't skimp on either. Cruise brings everything you'd expect, but writer/director Christopher McQuarrie is the star as he brings a stripped-down feel and gives you a film that does not overload you with CGI.


9. Killer Joe

Another film that was just reviewed! Matthew McConaughey stars as Killer Joe Cooper, a Dallas detective who moonlights as a killer. When hired by a redneck family who are trying to recover a life insurance policy, the family gets more than they bargained for. McConaughey does career work here as does Gina Gershon as the extremely trashy wife of this redneck family. Dark humor and twisted characters directed by William Friedkin make for a film that should be seen.

8. Frankenweenie

Tim Burton takes an idea he had from the mid-80's and turns it into a feature-length film. And by providing the audience this gem, Burton gives us his best film since the 1990's. After an accident, a boy reanimates his dog so their friendship can continue. Bringing back his dead dog, though, does not sit well with some of the local townsfolk. As stated in my initial review, Tim Burton shows his love for old-school monster films and brings a charming and fun story to life using stop motion animation in glorious black and white!

7. Moonrise Kingdom

Being a fan of Wes Anderson, I felt this film had a solid chance of making my ten best films of the year list. And he did not disappoint. Making his best film since The Royal Tenenbaums, Anderson takes us to the fictional town New Penzance where two young children find adventure and love while the town locals, including: Bill Murray, Bruce Willis and Edward Norton attempt to find them. This is a sweet and funny film that had me reminding myself of what it was like to be a kid. Granted, I never went on adventures like these, but still...

6. Chronicle

Writer Max Landis and Director Josh Trank take us on a new take for a superhero story. Told through the "found footage" genre, three boys appear to get superpowers and document how they use these powers in everyday life. As such with superhero films, one kid has to use the powers for evil. For a PG-13 film, this actually had a lot of dark elements which helped make it stand out amongst other superhero films. The "found footage" genre has really worn out its welcome, but this film used it as a tool and not as a crutch.

5. The Cabin in the Woods

I'm not really sure why this film gets a lot of hate. A smart, clever and hilarious take on the cliched horror trope, Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard take the tried-and-true story and spin it on its head. I don't really want to go into the plot, as the less you know, the better. Take mine and most people's words for it: The Cabin in the Woods is a very good film.

4. Looper

I know there is a lot of hate for this film, but I didn't see it that way. Rian Johnson provides a smart and entertaining time travel film. Bruce Willis and Joseph Gordon-Levitt play the same character; 30 years apart. Both are in the year 2044 with different agendas. What follows are the plots of both Young Joe and Old Joe as they work to close in on each other and also, to close whatever loop they have in their life. Another film where I don't want to go into the plot too much, but my review certainly will tell you more. This is a film that you need to see for yourself.

3. The Master

By far, the most plotless film on the list; that doesn't make it bad though. Joaquin Phoenix, Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams do amazing acting work in a film that is vaguely based on Scientology. The plot is non-existent, but what matters here are the performances. For my money, though, as said when I first reviewed this film, Phillip Seymour Hoffman gave one of the best and most subtle performances of the year as the charismatic leader Lancaster Dodd. This is not P.T. Anderson's best film, but this certainly one of this year's best films.

2. Django Unchained

Another recent film I reviewed shows up in my top ten best films list! Quentin Tarantino tackles race in his bloody and hilarious Django Unchained. Though needing another run through the editing bay, just about this entire film works. With the exception of the ending, this film flows and moves at its leisurely pace as we follow freed slave Django along with the man who freed him: Dr. King Schultz. The first half of this film sets up as a buddy picture, then we move on to Leonard DiCaprio's Calvin Candie and his plantation; where Django's wife is being held. This is where the film kicks it into an extra gear. Calvin and his house slave Stephen (Samuel L. Jackson) then go head to head for Django's wife. Christoph Waltz and Samuel L. Jackson are so good in this movie; I just wish the ending was better because this film would have been number 1...

1. Argo

...not to say Argo is bad. Not by a long shot! Ben Affleck stars and directs the film based on the Iranian hostage crisis. Six members escape the U.S. Embassy when it is stormed and seek refuge at the home of the Canadian Ambassador. CIA Specialist Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck) comes up with the idea of the U.S. shooting a fake movie in Iran and to have the six members pose as a film crew to escape Iran. This film is tense, funny and very satisfying. Argo is a really, really good movie. Even when I first reviewed the film, I called it one of the year's best. Now I can just call it the year's best film.

With good movies, it seems less fun to write about them. It's always much more fun to joke about the bad films that are out there.

These are the ten best films that I was able to see in 2012. I wish I could have seen more, as the list may have changed. As is, though, these are what I saw and these are what I felt were best in my opinion.

Argo

Ben Affleck makes it three for three in the directing department.

Set in 1979 during the Iranian hostage crisis, Argo follows six embassy staff members who escape from the U.S. Embassy in Iran and take refuge in the home of Canadian Ambassador Ken Taylor (Victor Garber). The Iranians who have taken over the embassy are working to verify if anyone has escaped their takeover. The Canadian Ambassador knows if he is caught harboring the six escapees; the six, himself and all inside the home will be killed. The State Department understands that this is a time sensitive issue and contacts CIA specialist Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck) to assist with an extraction process.

After shooting down various ways to get the six out of Iran, Tony brings forth an idea to set up a fake movie that wants to shoot in Iran and include the six staff members as the film crew. Tony enlists Hollywood makeup artist John Chambers (John Goodman) and producer Lester Siegel (Alan Arkin) with creating all that is needed for the fake, science fiction film: Argo.

Once set up, Tony then flies to Iran and meets up with the six staff members at Ken Taylor's home. He informs them of the plan, and with the help of his superior, Jack O'Donnell, (Bryan Cranston) Tony attempts to lead the six staff members through Iran posing as the film crew and out of Iran without being captured or killed.

Ben Affleck directs this film with a mostly solid eye, and does not often let the film meander too far from the two major plots that are going on. If there was one issue with the film, it lies with the fact that too many unnecessary characters are included. We are introduced to various characters for one scene, only to never be seen again. I understand that each character does serve a purpose, but some things could have easily been cut for the sake of time.

And speaking of the sake of time, Ben Affleck occasionally cuts back to the Iranian hostage crisis at the U.S. Embassy to focus on the hostages. As the plot is about the six staff members that escaped, it feels like Ben Affleck would occasionally lose focus of the plot about the six and want to cover the entire Iranian hostage crisis. This only occurs a few times, but each time it jarringly pulls you out of the film, even if it is only briefly.

This film could have used another run through by the editor, but overall this is an exceptional film. Ben Affleck gives the feel of a 1970's thriller as the film is focused on the plot and not a lot of sensational elements. Some criticism has been made about why Ben Affleck plays the role of someone who in real life was Latino. I have no clue as to why, but his performance in this film is well done. Also well done are the film's opening and penultimate scenes that depict the initial takeover of the U.S. Embassy and the attempted escape by Tony and the six staff members.

Argo deserves the praise it is getting as the film is well acted, directed and one of the best films of the year.

8.3/10