Awards Season Feature Post

Awards Season 2015-16 Scoreboard

Carol Keeping a tally of the (wins/nominations) for this year's awards season. Scroll down way below to see which Awards are being...

Jan 26, 2014

Directors Guild Awards 2014



And as many people predicted, Alfonso Cuaron took home the 2014 DGA for "Gravity". Now the question rises, is Gravity going to win best picture too? It hasn't won so far in any major awards show. The significant support it has, the passion of everyone and the fact that it will sweep in technical categories, one can't overlook the possibility. Can BAFTA clear up the field for us? We'll wait and see.

Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film:
Alfonso Cuaron (Gravity)

Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary:
Jehane Noujaim (The Square)

Jan 24, 2014

Review: CAPTAIN PHILLIPS (2013)


Cast:
            Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi, Catherine Keener, Faysal Ahmed, Michael Chernus, David Warshofsky, Corey Johnson, Chris Mulkey, Yul Vazquez, Max Martini, Omar Berdouni, Mohamed Ali, Barkhad Abdirahman, Mahat M. Ali and Issak Farah Samatar

Director:
                     Paul Greengrass

Jan 20, 2014

Producers Guild Awards 2014
















Shocker!!! For the first time in the history of PGA, there was a tie in the best picture category. Both 12 Years a Slave and Gravity tied for the prize. For those who were looking forward to PGA so that the Oscars race can get clearer... well it got even further muddled. DGA is now the next big bet where people have already predicted Alfonso Cuaron to win. So is Gravity going to win big on the Oscars night? Will there be a split? Or 12 Years a Slave will eventually claim the prize... only time will tell.

Here is the list of the winners:

Best Picture:
12 Years a Slave
Gravity (Tie)

Best Animated Feature:
Frozen

Best Documentary:
We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks

Stanley Kramer Award:
Fruitvale Station

Jan 19, 2014

Screen Actors Guild Awards 2014


So the SAG awards were given out last night where American Hustle won their main prize of best cast ensemble. It is the equivalent of best picture as far as what the award stands for on the whole. I must say American Hustle is a worthy winner and this is the only prize I was expecting the David O. Russell directed film to win. While many predicted Jennifer Lawrence to win, I knew it was going to be Lupita Nyong'o who'd be awarded best supporting actress. And it made me happy to see her win. The rest as you know were very predictable winners. These guild awards means a lot for the winners and for their chances to win Oscars as well. Guilds are your best bets though they shouldn't be all that matter. American Hustle winning here gives it the edge though if it fails to win the other 3 important guild awards, I don't think it should be considered a big threat.

Here is the full list of the winners:

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture:
Amy Adams, Christian Bale, Louis C.K., Bradley Cooper, Paul Herman, Jack Huston, Jennifer Lawrence, Alessandro Nivola, Michael Pena, Jeremy Renner, Elisabeth Rohm and Shea Whigham (American Hustle)

Jan 17, 2014

Critics Choice Awards 2014


So the Critics Choice Awards happened last night and surprisingly, American Hustle didn't win much in the main categories. BFCA are more popular and mainstream critics group but looking at this list of winners, I am glad they didn't went for the more obvious choices or typically expected ones. Gravity won a total of 7 awards including best director, editing, cinematography, visual effects, score and 2 others in their extended categories. American Hustle won Hair & Makeup and acting ensemble while 2 others in the extended categories. 12 Years a Slave in the end was awarded the main best picture prize along with supporting actress and adapted screenplay. Fresh from its Golden Globes wins, Matthew McConaughey was awarded best actor while Her continues its streak of winning screenplay awards. Overall, good choices. Now I hope Her and Lupita Nyong'o continues winning just like this.

Here is the full list of the winners:

Best Picture:
12 Years a Slave

Best Director:
Alfonso Cuaron (Gravity)

Jan 16, 2014

The 86th Annual Academy Awards Nominations


So the nominations for 2014 Oscars Awards were announced a while ago. I sat down with much anticipation in front of my TV to catch the announcements live on CNN. I was both excited and nervous for the films and actors. For those who were supposed to get nominated and those who were supposed to get snubbed. I must say that as much as I was unhappy with a few snubs, this year's surprises felt more exciting than predictably bland. 2013 was a great year for films and specially performances. So Gravity and American Hustle got the most nominations with 10 while 12 Years a Slave got 9 nominations. For third time in a row, there were 9 nominees in best picture category. Other films that were nominated apart from the above mentioned three were Captain Phillips, Her, Nebraska, The Wolf of Wall Street, Dallas Buyers Club (which I knew was going to get in) and surprisingly, Philomena. Unfortunately, Coen Brothers' Cannes Grand Prix winning film, Inside Llewyn Davis got snubbed. That is something I feared during my predictions. What is really interesting is that the Academy did not nominate Saving Mr. Banks. I am happy they didn't! On the other Hand, Spike Jonze and the frontrunner Paul Greengrass were snubbed for much respected Martin Scorsese and surprisingly-but-not-so-surprisingly, Alexander Payne in the director category. On the acting front, the biggest snubs includes Robert Redford (considered to be a potential winner at one point), Tom Hanks, Oprah Winfrey, Emma Thompson and Daniel Bruhl for their respective films. Captain Phillips weirdly enough got the beating which is something I wasn't expecting. Lee Daniels' The Butler shut out isn't a surprise considering its recent set of snubs in major awards shows. One thing that was at the back of my mind was whether or not American Hustle will get nominated in all four acting categories just like Russell's previous film and it did. Amy Adams was predicted to make it but over Meryl Streep and not Emma Thompson. I was expecting Bradley Cooper to get in but not Christian Bale at all. On the other hand, it pleases me to see Leonardo DiCaprio getting nominated for one of his career best performances. And of course, the same thing can be said for Amy Adams. Among the supporting categories, Jonah Hill specially and Sally Hawkins somewhat surprised me with their inclusions.

If we talk about other categories then the lineup for Foreign Language is pretty good. Though I wasn't predicting Omar and The Missing Picture (which I removed for The Grandmaster last minute). Monsters University snub doesn't affect me in the animated feature category but it is nice to see two foreign animations in the list. For documentary and perhaps THE BIGGEST SNUB in my opinion has to be Sarah Polley's Stories We Well. It was highly acclaimed and rewarded but failed to make the cut. Another perhaps mainstream favorite documentary was Blackfish which wasn't nominated either. Dirty Wars getting a nod was a huge surprise for me. Finally if I can just go through the major snubs in technical categories then... The Wolf of Wall Street in editing, 12 Years a Slave in cinematography and original score would be the major ones along with a few others. At the same time, it is quite amazing to see The Grandmaster getting nominations in costume design and cinematography. I believe it also deserved to be in production design but I am not complaining. Now the film that I was championing was Spike Jonze's Her. My favorite film of the year made it in best picture (not director unfortunately), original screenplay, original score (wow), original song and production design (superb). The Lone Ranger made it in visual effects instead of Pacific Rim which I don't think it deserves. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug made it in a few categories as well. And even though I don't plan to see the film itself, I would like to congratulate John Williams who just keeps on adding nominations to his already giant list.

Below is the full list of the nominations:

Best Motion Picture of the Year:

12 Years a Slave
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Dallas Buyers Club
Gravity
Her
Nebraska
Philomena
The Wolf of Wall Street

Jan 15, 2014

Predicting The 86th Annual Academy Awards Nominations


Well the Academy nominations are going to be announced in just 2 days so its time to finalize your predictions. I don't know what to say that hasn't already been said but 12 Years a Slave, Gravity and American Hustle are the frontrunners. I don't think Martin Scorsese is getting in for The Wolf of Wall Street, neither do I think that either Leonardo DiCaprio for the same film or Amy Adams for American Hustle will. They both won Golden Globes I know but I don't see them kicking two acclaimed and well-regarded veterans out. For the picture category, Inside Llewyn Davis is on the brink of being snubbed. I am expecting an original score nomination for Disney's Frozen.

As for my Oscar wish, Spike Jonze's Her should get at least 10 nominations.

The most nominated films based on my predictions are 12 Years a Slave with 11, Gravity with 10 while both American Hustle and Captain Phillips with 9 nominations each. Below is the full list:

Best Picture:

1) 12 Years a Slave
2) Gravity
3) American Hustle
4) Captain Phillips
5) Nebraska
6) Her
7) The Wolf of Wall Street
8) Saving Mr. Banks
9) Inside Llewyn Davis
10) Dallas Buyers Club

Review: GRAVITY (2013)


Cast:
           Sandra Bullock, George Clooney, Ed Harris (voice), Orto Ignatiussen (voice), Paul Sharma (voice), Amy Warren (voice) and Basher Savage (voice)

Director:
                   Alfonso Cuaron

Jan 13, 2014

Golden Globe Awards 2014 Winners


I wasn't able to watch them live as usual but when there is Twitter... you don't really feel bad if you don't. So the HFPA awarded their Golden Globe Awards to the frontrunners, 12 Years a Slave and American Hustle in their particular categories. Also Alfonso Cuaron won the best director award for Gravity. It is an interesting distribution of wealth, all three of the films got something. I wasn't really sure about 12 Years a Slave's chances as opposed to something like Gravity considering HFPA but well it did won and I don't care that I got that wrong. My favorite win however has to be Spike Jonze winning much deserved screenplay prize for his masterpiece, Her. I thought they would go for much fast-talking film like America Hustle but they didn't and I thank them for that. These particular wins weren't as shocking as most of the others like All is Lost beating Gravity for the original score prize or "Ordinary Love" winning original song over much favorites, Frozen and Inside Llewyn Davis. I got Matthew McConaughey wrong as well but I am happy he won for his career best performance in Dallas Buyers Club. Also, HFPA didn't awarded Blue is the Warmest Color or The Hunt... which is surprising!

We have the Oscars nominations coming up next and will be interesting to see what happens there. I mean they already submitted their ballots so the choices wont be affected by Globes or something. With the McQueen/Cuaron divide that is going on and American Hustle gaining its frontrunner momentum, I will be curious to see what WGA, DGA and PGA goes for. If Academy should learn anything from the Globes... it has to be that Jonze should be awarded over Russell. Don't fall for it Academy... just don't. I am sure you guys had a good time watching Tina and Amy host the beep out of the Globes right?

Here is the full list of the winners:

Best Picture – Drama: 12 Years a Slave

Jan 11, 2014

ACE Eddie Nominations 2014


The nominations for the ACE Eddie awards were announced today. They are one of the important ones as you know, editing is an important feature in a film as well as the category itself plays a crucial part in the awards race, i.e the chance of the films getting Oscar nods and wins. Prominent features like Gravity, 12 Years a Slave, American Hustle, Captain Phillips etc all got the nods. Here is the full list of the nominees:

Best Edited Feature Film (Dramatic):

Jeff Buchanan and Eric Zumbrunnen (Her)
Alfonso Cuaron and Mark Sanger (Gravity)
Mark Livolsi (Saving Mr. Banks)
Christopher Rouse (Captain Phillips)
Joe Walker (12 Years a Slave)

Best Edited Feature Film (Comedy or Musical):

Alan Baumgarten, Jay Cassidy and Crispin Struthers (American Hustle)
Ethan Coen and Joel Coen (Inside Llewyn Davis)
Stephen Mirrione (August: Osage County)
Thelma Schoonmaker (The Wolf of Wall Street)
Kevin Tent (Nebraska)

Best Edited Animated Feature Film:

Jeff Draheim (Frozen)
Gregory Perler (Despicable Me 2)
Greg Snyder (Monsters University)

Best Edited Documentary (Feature):

Douglas Blush, Kevin Klauber and Jason Zeldes (20 Feet from Stardom)
Eli Despres (Blackfish)
Patrick Sheffield (Tim’s Vermeer)

Golden Globe Awards 2014 Predictions


Well, Golden Globe Awards are taking place this Sunday so I guess it is time for me to share my predictions. I am never really excited about this particular ceremony but well, they are still an important part of the awards season. I actually love their choices this time a lot but the credit for that goes entirely to the amazing films of 2013 not the HFPA. So "12 Years a Slave", "Gravity" and "American Hustle" are the IT films. While I have a tiny bit doubt in my mind, still I believe HFPA is going to go with "Gravity" over "12 Years a Slave" while "American Hustle" is a done deal in the Comedy or Musical category. "Gravity" is also going to win 2 other awards. I also have doubts about the Comedy or Musical acting categories. You can't say no to Meryl Streep you know! I hope "12 Years a Slave" at the very least, get the screenplay prize as well because just 1 win for that film is going to look really bad. Best of luck to all the contenders.

Here are my predictions:

Best Picture – Drama: Gravity

Best Picture – Comedy or Musical: American Hustle

Review: HER (2013)


Cast:
           Joaquin Phoenix, Scarlett Johansson (voice), Amy Adams, Rooney Mara, Olivia Wilde, Chris Pratt, Matt Letscher, Sam Jaeger, Luka Jones, Portia Doubleday, Kristen Wiig (voice), Spike Jonze (voice), Bill Hader (voice), Soko (voice) and Brian Cox (voice).

Director:
                   Spike Jonze

Jan 10, 2014

Art Directors Guild Nominations 2014


Art Directors Guild announced their nominations for the year 2013. They also divide their categories into three for period, fantasy and contemporary. Films like "12 Years a Slave", "The Great Gatsby", "Gravity" etc are nominated. A good bunch I must say. Here are the nominees:

Best Production Design – Period Film

Judy Becker (American Hustle)
Michael Corenblith (Saving Mr. Banks)
Jess Gonchor (Inside Llewyn Davis)
Catherine Martin (The Great Gatsby)
Adam Stockhausen (12 Years a Slave)

USC Scripter Nominations 2014


The USC Scripter announced their nominations for the adapted screenplays of the year. They nominate both the writers of the film and the source material as you all know. The biggest snub if you wanna call it is definitely "The Wolf of Wall Street". Surprise nominations for "What Maisie Knew" which is a nice little drama that was completely absent from the awards discussion. These are the nominees:

John Ridley - screenwriter and Solomon Northup - author of "Twelve Years a Slave" (12 Years a Slave)

Billy Ray - screenwriter and Richard Phillips and Stephen Talty - authors of "A Captain's Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy SEALs, and Dangerous Days at Sea" (Captain Phillips)

Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope - screenwriters, and Martin Sixsmith - author of The Lost Child of Philomena Lee (Philomena)

Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber - screenwriters and Tim Tharp - author of the novel of the same name (The Spectacular Now)

Carroll Cartwright and Nancy Doyne - screenwriters and Henry James - author of the novel of the same name (What Maisie Knew)

Jan 9, 2014

Costume Designers Guild Nominations 2014


Costume Designers Guild announced their nominations with mostly favorites getting in. If you talk about the Oscars, they mostly love period films. Here, "Dallas Buyers Club" is nominated instead of "The Invisible Woman" which I am predicting to be one of the nominees. Some really interesting picks, below is the complete list.

Best Costume Design – Period Film

Catherine Martin (The Great Gatsby)
Bart Mueller and Kurt Swanson (Dallas Buyers Club)
Patricia Norris (12 Years a Slave)
Daniel Orlandi (Saving Mr. Banks)
Michael Wilkinson (American Hustle)

American Society of Cinematographers Nominations 2014


The ASC announced their nominations and as you can see, they nominated 7 instead of the usual 5. The fact that they nominated Philippe Le Sourd for "The Grandmaster" is just amazing. Here is the list:

Best Cinematography

Barry Ackroyd (Captain Phillips)
Sean Bobbitt (12 Years a Slave)
Roger Deakins (Prisoners)
Bruno Delbonnel (Inside Llewyn Davis)
Philippe Le Sourd (The Grandmaster)
Emmanuel Lubezki (Gravity)
Phedon Papamichael (Nebraska)

BAFTA Nominations 2014


The nominations for the "British Academy Awards" were announced earlier today. The acclaimed sci-fi drama, "Gravity" got the most nominations with 11 while both "12 Years a Slave" and "American Hustle" got 10 nominations each. "Philomena" had a strong showing as did "Captain Phillips". "Behind the Candelabra" as well which was released theatrically in UK. "Dallas Buyers Club" was completely snubbed specially for the two actors nominations. So did Robert Redford for "All is Lost" and some others. "Gravity" made a surprise showing in the original screenplay and the director category was a match with the DGA. The awards will take place on the 16th of February.

Below is the full list of the nominations:

Best Film

12 Years a Slave
American Hustle
Captain Phillips
Gravity
Philomena

Jan 8, 2014

DGA, PGA, WGA... and the Oscars




Due to some technical difficulties, I have been unable to update my blog with Awards news and reviews etc. Still not fully in functioning state but I am trying anyways.

So PGA and WGA have already announced their nominees, with DGA having announced just today, I thought to give my thoughts on all three in a single post. So first, these are the nominations for the Directors Guild Award 2014:

Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity
Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave
David O. Russell, American Hustle
Paul Greengrass, Captain Phillips
Martin Scorsese, The Wolf of Wall Street