Three weeks have passed since I started this column, we’re 18 weeks away, and I’ve seen yet another two major contenders thanks to the Chicago International Film Festival (I might’ve seen three if not for CIFF’s awful secret screening selection), “The Sessions” and “Silver Linings Playbook.”
“Silver Linings” is exactly the kind of film that could take Best Picture and sweep some of the acting awards if I didn’t think “The Master” could absolutely dominate in the acting branch, and that’s because it’s a crowd pleasing romantic comedy with a lot of depth and poignancy about disabilities. It’s more about disabilities than even “The Sessions,” which just uses its problem as a plot device. If it did, it would probably be the first straight rom-com to win since “Annie Hall.”
But this was a busy week elsewhere, so let’s get down to it.
Joaquin Phoenix calls Oscar season “bullshit,” heads explode amongst people who care about this stuff
Sometimes I’m really disappointed by the media. They have a habit of making a story out of nothing because when one person reports it, everyone else has to spread it around. Joaquin Phoenix said in a terrific interview with Elvis Mitchell for Interview magazine that he thought the whole act of campaigning and comparing people’s performances is “total, utter bullshit.” “It’s a carrot, but it’s the worst tasting carrot I’ve ever tasted in my whole life. I don’t want this carrot.”
That quote alone should give a sense of how batshit crazy and awesome the rest of the interview actually is, but pundits decided to pick out this quote and make a big deal about it, some claiming that he now doesn’t stand a chance at even a nomination.
Well, he’s too good in “The Master” for that. This wouldn’t be the first time someone has put down the Oscars and completely opted out of coming to the ceremony and still won (see: Woody Allen, for one). It’s clear that after two losses (“Gladiator,” “Walk the Line”) he’s tired of the posturing and is seeking a different kind of truth in his performances. So everyone can just calm down. (via Entertainment Weekly and Interview Magazine)
Gotham Award Nominations Announced
The Gotham Awards are significant because they’re the first batch of nominations in this long, long, long awards season. They recognize indie films that would otherwise need a boost amongst the studio fare, and this year they’ve helped put “Moonrise Kingdom” and “Beasts of the Southern Wild” back into the conversation. “Beasts” didn’t score a Best Feature nod, opting instead for the lesser known “The Loneliest Planet” and “Middle of Nowhere,” but director Benh Zeitlin scored a nomination and could make some surprise waves come Oscar time. Also in the fray is Richard Linklater’s “Bernie.” There is a small but vigorous campaign to get Jack Black nominated for an Oscar, and this is his first step in that direction. (via In Contention)
George Clooney could be first to be nominated in six Oscar categories
Guy Lodge of In Contention observed in a case of severe data overload that if “Argo” is nominated for Best Picture, producer George Clooney would be the first person to ever be nominated in six separate categories, Best Picture (“Argo”), Best Adapted Screenplay (“The Ides of March”), Best Director and Original Screenplay (“Good Night, and Good Luck”), Best Actor (“Michael Clayton, “Up in the Air,” “The Descendants”) and the category he won for, Best Supporting Actor (“Syriana”). Does Clooney sing? Maybe we can get him nominated for Best Original Song next year. (via In Contention)
“Holy Motors” and “After Lucia” take top prizes at CIFF
CIFF doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of the awards season, but I was there to enjoy it, and for “Holy Motors” to win its first major prize, along with an acting prize for Denis Lavant, says something. I’ve even heard people making a case for Best Original Song for Kylie Minogue’s cameo. I’ll remind you that I hated the film and appear to be the only person on the planet who thinks this way, but there’s no denying it’s not exactly up the Academy’s alley. “After Lucia” however is Mexico’s entry in the Foreign Film race, so any recognition is always a good thing. (via Hollywood Chicago)
Best Costume Design for “Django Unchained”?
Some pundits seem almost adamant in declaring that Quentin Tarantino’s latest film doesn’t really stand much of a chance this Oscar season, but I came across this interesting blog that says otherwise in one peculiar category: Best Costume Design. “Django’s” period clothing is done by Sharen Davis, nominated twice previously for “Ray” and “Dreamgirls.” The article also points out that Tarantino is responsible for some of the most iconic costumes in recent memory but has nothing to show for it. (via Clothes on Film)
Week 3 Oscar Race
Best Picture
Front Runners
Silver Linings Playbook
Argo
Lincoln
Life of Pi
Les Miserables
Probables
Moonrise Kingdom
Hitchcock
Zero Dark Thirty
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Amour
The Master
Flight
Long Shots
The Dark Knight Rises
Not Fade Away
Anna Karenina
Django Unchained
The Sessions
Promised Land
The Impossible
The Hobbit
Rust and Bone
Having now seen it, “Silver Linings Playbook” is an absolute lock. “Moonrise Kingdom” and “Beasts of the Southern Wild” are both more on the radar after the Gotham awards, especially since the five nominees are currently lacking that one indie movie slot.
Best Actor
Front Runners
Daniel Day-Lewis – Lincoln
John Hawkes – The Sessions
Joaquin Phoenix – The Master
Bradley Cooper – Silver Linings Playbook
Denzel Washington – Flight
Probables
Anthony Hopkins – Hitchcock
Matt Damon – Promised Land
Hugh Jackman – Les Miserables
Jean-Louis Trintignant – Amour
Long Shots
Richard Gere – Arbitrage
Jamie Foxx – Django Unchained
Jake Gyllenhaal – End of Watch
Bill Murray – Hyde Park on Hudson
Jack Black – Bernie
Denis Lavant – Holy Motors
Bradley Cooper and John Hawkes are both terrific in their respected films. For Cooper, this is the best role of his career. Hawkes gets the obvious showy, sympathy vote, but Cooper’s performance is actually the biggest part of “Silver Linings.”
Best Actress
Front Runners
Marion Cotillard – Rust and Bone
Quvenzhane Wallis – Beasts of the Southern Wild
Jennifer Lawrence – Silver Linings Playbook
Emmanuelle Riva – Amour
Helen Mirren – Hitchcock
Probables
Judi Dench – The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Keira Knightley – Anna Karenina
Mary Elizabeth Winstead – Smashed
Naomi Watts – The Impossible
Long Shots
Halle Berry – Cloud Atlas
Anne Hathaway – The Dark Knight Rises
Meryl Streep – Hope Springs
Rachel Weisz – The Deep Blue Sea
Jennifer Lawrence is now also a lock, in case it wasn’t obvious.
Best Supporting Actor
Front Runners
Philip Seymour Hoffman – The Master
Tommy Lee Jones – Lincoln
Alan Arkin – Argo
Robert De Niro – Silver Linings Playbook
John Goodman – Argo/Flight
Probables
Jude Law – Anna Karenina
Leonardo DiCaprio – Django Unchained
William H. Macy – The Sessions
Irrfan Kahn – Life of Pi
Jim Broadbent – Cloud Atlas
Long Shots
Chris Tucker – Silver Linings Playbook
Tom Holland – The Impossible
James Gandolfini – Zero Dark Thirty
Aaron Paul – Smashed
Omar Sy – The Intouchables
Dwight Henry – Beasts of the Southern Wild
Christoph Waltz – Django Unchained
Russell Crowe – Les Miserables
Matthew McConnaughey – Magic Mike
Michael Caine – The Dark Knight Rises
Michael Fassbender – Prometheus
Javier Bardem – Skyfall
Robert De Niro is a very likely nominee, as this is the first time he’s really “acted” in about 15 years. I think a very outside contender would be Chris Tucker for “Silver Linings Playbook” as well. The audience cheered just about every time his character showed up on screen, and he’s a lot of fun in the role.
Best Supporting Actress
Front Runners
Amy Adams – The Master
Helen Hunt – The Sessions
Maggie Smith – The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Sally Field – Lincoln
Jackie Weaver – Silver Linings Playbook
Probables
Judi Dench – Skyfall
Jessica Chastain – Zero Dark Thirty
Anne Hathaway – Les Miserables
Long Shots
Frances McDormand – Promised Land
I’m bumping Jackie Weaver into the front runner category because this race is so thin. She doesn’t really have a big part in “Silver Linings” but her only real competition at this point is Judi Dench, who is an Oscar favorite and is getting a huge push for people clamoring for the first Bond acting nod.
Directing
Front Runners
Ben Affleck – Argo
David O. Russell – Silver Linings Playbook
Steven Spielberg – Lincoln
Tom Hooper – Les Miserables
Ang Lee – Life of Pi
Probables
Robert Zemeckis – Flight
Paul Thomas Anderson – The Master
Michael Haneke – Amour
Kathryn Bigelow – Zero Dark Thirty
Wes Anderson – Moonrise Kingdom
Benh Zeitlin – Beasts of the Southern Wild
Quentin Tarantino – Django Unchained
Gus Van Sant – Promised Land
Long Shots
Juan Antonio Bayona – The Impossible
David Chase – Not Fade Away
Dustin Hoffman – Quartet
Ben Lewin – The Sessions
Joe Wright – Anna Karenina