This year’s Academy Awards was a testament to the amazing films that were made in 2013 and the best example of that is being able to root for absolutely every film and never feeling bad regardless of the win. Of course there were categories that I was strongly cheering for, like “12 Years A Slave” in Best Picture and “Her” in Best Original Screenplay. … Read More 86th Academy Awards Winners
And with the final film viewed for this Oscar Season, I complete the challenge of 42 films in 46 days. Now to put out some predictions, which, for the second year in a row I am not completely confident in, as some of the categories feel way too close to call including the Best Picture, which all of us will be waiting for with … Read More 86th Annual Academy Awards Predictions
Hayao Miyazaki and Toshio Suzuki In the very last film of my Oscar challenged I viewed the sub-titled and animated feature “The Wind Rises”, set to be Hayao Miyazaki’s final film. Marking his third nomination with previous nods for “Howls Moving Castle” (2005) and even a win for “Spirited Away” (2002), the Academy does love to honor Miyazaki and could even pull off an … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [42] The Wind Rises – One Nomination
Philippe Le Sourd With two nominations, I’m surprised that Wong Kar-wai’s wasn’t nominated for more, like Best Foreign Language Feature or even Best Picture, but this kung-fu epic does grab Best Cinematography and Best Costume Design nominations and even though it will probably not be winning either of these, it is nice to see films like this breakthrough in some competitive categories. Filled with … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [41] The Grandmaster – Two Nominations
Martin Scorsese, Leonardo DiCaprio, Joey McFarland and Emma Tillinger Koskoff Martin Scorsese is no stranger to the Best Picture category and with “The Wolf Of Wall Street” becoming one of his best films in an illustrious career, it’s no question that it deserves all the recognition that it’s receiving. Yes, the film is not about nice people and most of the main characters are … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [40] The Wolf Of Wall Street – Five Nominations
“CaveDigger” – Jeffrey Karoff The Documentary Shorts are well represented this year with the many different types of documentaries. “CaveDigger” is a casual documentary with zero urgency that brings a man’s hobby and attempt at employment to the screen as he digs extravagant caves in New Mexico, all without plans. With just an idea in his mind and some hand tools, he works alone … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: Oscar Nominated Shorts – Documentary
Albert Berger and Ron Yerxa “Nebraska”, a black-and-white jaunt into the lives of a family residing in Montana, the entire film follows lead Bruce Dern playing an aging man named Woody Grant that believes he’s won $1,000,000 from a sweepstakes, all he has to do is make it to Lincoln, Nebraska to accept the money. Heartwarming and laced with a dark comedic element that … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [39] Nebraska – Six Nominations
Christopher Townsend, Guy Williams, Erik Nash and Dan Sudick “Iron Man 3” was one of my favorite films of 2013 and a lot of that had to do with the amazing visual effects. Whether you’re watching missiles being shot from helicopters and destroying Tony Stark’s Malibu mansion, knocking it off the hillside into the ocean, or whether it’s the amazing visuals of Iron Man … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [38] Iron Man 3 – One Nomination
Jehane Noujaim and Karim Amer Distributed by Netflix, “The Square” is one of two documentaries that got the most exposure this Oscars season, thanks to billboards and constant advertisement from the growing instant streaming company. Second to only “The Act Of Killing”, which was a huge draw this awards season, the film is available on Netflix instantly (as were three of the other contenders) … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [37] The Square – One Nomination
Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Steve McQueen and Anthony Katagas “12 Years A Slave” is the film that will be remembered from 2013. It does matter if this wins or “Gravity” wins or even “American Hustle”. What matters is that this film explored the nature of history and of slavery unlike any film before its time, from a black director who makes an … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [36] 12 Years A Slave – Nine Nominations
Palestine Every year the Academy Awards brings to light films that I otherwise would have never seen and more often than not, it is in the Best Foreign Feature category that I discover these amazing films. Most notably, I remember seeing “Dogtooth” (2009) and being absolutely blown away by how much I loved the film. This year, three foreign films have blown me away. … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [35] Omar – One Nomination
Cambodia Cambodia’s foreign film entry “The Missing Picture” is a multi-media exploration of the Kampuchean Revolution in 1975, of which very few images remain. To counteract these “missing pictures”, the film-makers create clay models of himself and many of the surrounding Cambodians to reenact the damage done by Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge. The real marvel is the inclusion of the archival footage … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [34] The Missing Picture – One Nomination
Steve Boeddeker and Richard Hymns “All Is Lost” is the epitome of sound design. With Robert Redford having a handful of lines throughout the entire piece, the film completely relies on the sounds surrounding the character, whether it be the waves crashing against the boat while Redford is down below in the living quarters, whether it be the growing storm around Redford and the … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [33] All Is Lost – One Nomination
Bruno Delbonnel I knew from the moment that I first saw “Inside Llewyn Davis” that the cinematography was extraordinary. With a faded quality that transports you to that era, yet a brilliance in color and lighting, these visuals help the film stand out and give it an ethereal quality that made it one of my favorite films of the year. Usually garnering more Academy … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [32] Inside Llewyn Davis – Two Nominations
Benjamin Renner and Didier Brunner Having made it to a preview screening of this foreign animated film in the theaters, I can easily say that the audience loved it. Adults and children alike were cracking up at the well timed and well drawn jokes throughout the course of this film. As a bear and mouse attempt to be friends in a segregated world where … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [31] Ernest And Celestine – One Nomination
Megan Ellison, Spike Jonze and Vincent Landay “Her” was my favorite film of 2014. Not only is Joaquin Phoenix perfectly cast in the film, but the writing and production on screen is absolutely phenomenal. Capturing a future not too far off where a new operating system is released that has artificial intelligence and has its own personality, Phoenix’s introvert character, Theodore Twombly, begins a … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [30] Her – Five Nominations
Joshua Oppenheimer and Signe Byrge Sørensen A favorite right of the gate this year for Best Documentary Feature, “The Act Of Killing” landed as many critics’ picks for Best Documentary across the nation. Now, the only remaining favorite since “Blackfish” and “Stories We Tell”, the documentary category is so disheveled this year that at the moment, dark horse pick “20 Feet From Stardom” is … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [29] The Act Of Killing – One Nomination
“Ordinary Love” – Music by Paul Hewson, Dave Evans, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen; Lyric by Paul Hewson With the real life passing of Nelson Mandela this year, there was no better time for the release of the period piece recollecting a better part of his life, “Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom”. Now, with U2 getting nominated for the song that plays during the end … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [28] Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom – One Nomination
Editing: Wylie Stateman Mixing: Andy Koyama, Beau Borders and David Brownlow Sound design for any war related film is hard to deny, but for “Lone Survivor”, it’s impossible. The nominations for Best Sound Editing and Best Sound Mixing normally seem arbitrary to me, like “Captains Phillips” and “All Is Lost”. Yes, I understand that “All Is Lost” leans on its sound design over dialogue, … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [27] Lone Survivor – Two Nominations
Catherine Martin The costumes in “The Great Gatsby”, let alone any Baz Luhrmann film, are an integral part of the experience. Especially in “Gatsby”, the costumes jump off the pages of a F. Scott Fitzgerald’s masterpiece novel, and Luhrmann along with costume designer Catherine Martin, capture this perfectly. Whether it be the suave way that they dress their Gatsby, Leonardo DiCaprio, or the amazing … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [26] The Great Gatsby – Two Nominations
Cate Blanchett Nominated Role: As Jasmine, Cate Blanchett portrays a formerly wealthy woman who moves in with her sister after the break-up of her marriage. The odds-on favorite to win, Cate Blanchett has won absolutely every award in her path to get here. Woody Allen obviously provides a fantastic screenplay but with Blanchett and her ability to bring Jasmine to life, this film would … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [25] Blue Jasmine – Three Nominations
Roger A. Deakins The Oscars wouldn’t be the Oscars without a Best Cinematography nomination for Roger Deakins. “Prisoners”, as you may notice, was nominated for absolutely nothing else, yet someone the enigma that is Deakins proves brighter than even the films that he steps behind the camera for. Nominated an astounding eleven times now, Deakins has notoriously never won despite his exquisite work on … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [24] Prisoners – One Nomination
Michael O’Connor To be completely honest, I was surprised to see “The Invisible Woman” get any nominations. Not because it isn’t good, because it really is, but because of the competition this year. An unheard of film directed by and starring Ralph Fiennes sees Charles Dickens and the story behind he and his much younger mistress, played by one of my favorites, Felicity Jones. … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [23] The Invisible Woman – One Nomination
Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton and Eric Reynolds Last year, “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” only received two nominations, one of which was for Best Visual Effects to which it lost to “Life Of Pi”, which also took home Best Directing for Ang Lee. This year, “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” garners three nominations, losing the Best Makeup nomination from last year … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [22] The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug – Three Nominations
Robbie Brenner and Rachel Winter With likely two acting awards coming from the film, “Dallas Buyers Club” is a forced to be reckoned with. Even without a Best Directing nomination, the film likely lands into the top 5 with chances of the winning the Oscar for Best Picture. And even though it is entirely unlikely that it will win, this film will not go … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [21] Dallas Buyers Club – Six Nominations
Charles Roven, Richard Suckle, Megan Ellison, and Jonathan Gordon There are three big contenders in the Best Picture category this year: “Gravity”, “12 Years A Slave”, and “American Hustle”. Now, “Gravity” and “12 Years A Slave” are the odds-on favorites to win, both vying for the Best Directing category and leaving David O. Russell out of the mix, but the steam that is building … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [20] American Hustle – Ten Nominations
Denmark What a passionate year for the Best Foreign Language Feature category. Already with two strong frontrunners including “The Broken Circle Breakdown” and now “The Hunt”, it will be hard to place a sure fire winner before the actual awards. “The Hunt” is Thomas Vinterberg’s latest film, which sees a Kindergarten teacher played by Mads Mikkelsen accused of sexual misconduct by his best friend’s … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [19] The Hunt – One Nomination
Morgan Neville, Gil Friesen and Caitrin Rogers The entire Best Documentary Feature category was surprising to me on the morning of the nominations. Not only were “Blackfish” and “Stories We Tell” missing from the nominations, but “20 Feet From Stardom”, a film that I had all but written off had made the cut. Following the story of some of the most prestigious back up … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [18] 20 Feet From Stardom – One Nomination
Alfonso Cuarón & David Heyman “Gravity” surprised everyone this year, bringing a female driven, original screenplay, big budget blockbuster to the masses. Warner Brothers probably couldn’t be more pleased and could mark a back to back year for the studio with “Argo” winning last year. “Gravity” lands an amazing ten nominations, with a high chance of winning most of them including Best Visual Effects, … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [17] Gravity – Ten Nominations
Scott Rudin, Dana Brunetti and Michael De Luca What a competitive year. One of the biggest upsets when nominations were announced was the missing nomination for Tom Hanks as Captain Phillips. Almost anyone, including myself, would agree. His leadership role in the film topped only by his emotional breakdown at the end of the film leaves the audience in a state not that much … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [16] Captain Phillips – Six Nominations
Chris Renaud, Pierre Coffin and Chris Meledandri The first “Despicable Me” was not nominated for an Academy Award, but this sequel from Universal Pictures has not only captured the box office but the Oscar voters as well. Expanding off the original film, former super villain Gru (voiced by Steve Carrell) turned foster father of three is taken captive by the Anti-Villain League to consult … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [15] Despicable Me 2 – Two Nominations
“Helium” – Anders Walter and Kim Magnusson Of all the live action shorts this year, “Helium” is the most sentimental, or in other words, the one that is the most likely to make you cry. As a hospital janitor makes a connection with a young dying boy, he re-imagines heaven for the boy as he questions life after death. Telling stories of a land … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: Oscar Nominated Shorts – Live Action
“Get A Horse!” – Lauren MacMullan and Dorothy McKim Disney usually takes home the Best Animated Short award, and with “Get A Horse!” an animated short that not only brings back the beloved Mickey Mouse with all classic voice work used from previous recordings, chances are it will be taking home yet another Oscar. Seeing Mickey battle longtime rival Peg-Leg Pete over Minnie, what starts … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: Oscar Nominated Shorts – Animation
Chris Sanders, Kirk DeMicco and Kristine Belson What more could you ask for from an animated children’s film? “The Croods” relies on an against the norm leading lady in Eep (voiced by the talented Emma Stone), a young cave woman with broad shoulders, wild hair, and a boisterous personality, playing against the stick figure women portrayed in Disney films. The animation and voice acting … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [14] The Croods – One Nomination
Stephen Prouty When the Oscar nominations were announced just a few weeks ago, I think that absolutely everyone involved was surprised to see “Jackass Presents Bad Grandpa” as one of the final three to be nominated for Best Makeup and Hairstyling. Not because the film and its makeup does not deserve it, but because Jackass has never been a brand name associated with the … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [13] Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa – One Nomination
Richard Rowley and Jeremy Scahill Although most categories are up for grabs, Best Documentary Feature is one of those categories that is almost unpredictable this year with the way things turned out. With no fan favorites like “Blackfish” or “Stories We Tell”, it really is anyone’s came. So even “Dirty Wars” could pull off a win, even though I personally do not find that … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [12] Dirty Wars – One Nomination
Thomas Newman Many would say that “Saving Mr. Banks” was robbed in many of the categories of the Academy Awards this year, including not making the list for Best Picture and for Emma Thompson and Tom Hanks not making the cut for their respected acting awards. However, the one place the film does show up is Best Original Score, with composer Thomas Newman at … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [11] Saving Mr. Banks – One Nomination
Belgium With a few more foreign films left to see, I can already tell that Belgium’s entry for Best Foreign Language Feature, “The Broken Circle Breakdown” will be my resounding favorite of the five. Following a man in a bluegrass band who meets a gorgeous tattooed blonde and begins a relationship with her, the film is told in a fragmented story structure with creates … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [10] The Broken Circle Breakdown – One Nomination
Meryl Streep Nominated Role: Meryl Streep portrays Violet Weston, an Oklahoma matriarch whose three grown daughters return home for their father’s funeral. Believe it or not, but this is Meryl Streep’s eighteenth Academy Award nomination, holding the record for most nominations in the history of the Oscars, starting with “The Deer Hunter” (1979) all the way to “The Iron Lady” (2011) to which she … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [9] August: Osage County – Two Nominations
Italy Having won the Golden Globe award for Best Foreign Language Feature, “The Great Beauty” or “La Grande Bellezza” is the only foreign film anyone is talking about. Whether it proves to be the best has yet to be seen, but marking off the first foreign film I have seen out of the bunch, it does set the bar high, with amazing visuals and … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [8] The Great Beauty – One Nomination
Screenplay by Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, and Ethan Hawke No other film in the Best Adapted Screenplay category works harder than “Before Midnight”. Now, do not mistake my words, as I do not feel like it will be taking home the big honor, but in terms of delivering in the sense of dialogue and descriptions, no other screenplay nominated captures more character development with … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [7] Before Midnight – One Nomination
Roger Guyett, Patrick Tubach, Ben Grossmann and Burt Dalton Most Oscar followers will agree that there is almost no beating “Gravity” in the Best Visual Effects category this year. The stage is set much like last year, where “Life Of Pi” was the definite winner of the bunch longer before the awards were announced. Plus you had “The Avengers” whose place is now taken … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [6] Star Trek Into Darkness – One Nomination
Gabrielle Tana, Steve Coogan and Tracey Seaward “Philomena” is the true story of one Philomena Lee, an elderly woman who, for fifty years, kept a secret about having a son that was taken from her by nuns and adopted off to America for money. Now, paired up with a journalist, they follow the clues that could lead Philomena into find her long lost son. … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [5] Philomena – Four Nominations
John Williams When it comes to the Academy Awards, the way you can spot a true artist is that no matter what film it is that they worked on that year, that particular gets nominated, even if it is bringing the film that single nomination. The cinematography Roger Deakins is one of those artists, this year bringing “Prisoners” its one and only nomination. Deakins … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [4] The Book Thief – One Nomination
Lauren MacMullan and Dorothy McKim Disney usually takes home the Best Animated Short award, and with “Get A Horse!” an animated short that not only brings back the beloved Mickey Mouse with all classic voice work used from previous recordings, chances are it will be taking home yet another Oscar. Seeing Mickey battle longtime rival Peg-Leg Pete over Minnie, what starts off as a … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: Short Film #1: Get A Horse!
Zachary Heinzerling and Lydia Dean Pilcher “Cutie And The Boxer” is the story of the artistic couple, Noriko and Ushio Shinohara, in their Manhattan flat. Having moved from Japan to the United States, Ushio found slight stardom from his transition into the New York art scene. His sculptures made from recycled cardboard and his paintings made from his boxing with a canvas made him … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [3] Cutie And The Boxer – One Nomination
Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee and Peter Del Vecho Anyone looking for a safe pick for Best Animated Feature should look no further. Touting the Disney brand, “Frozen” is sure to be a favorite upon Oscar predictors, looking at just the Disney track record alone. With a return to form for the animation studio, complete with two Disney princess additions and several memorable musical numbers, … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [2] Frozen – Two Nominations
Joel Harlow and Gloria Pasqua-Casny For being one of the most underrated films of 2013, “The Lone Ranger” pulled in two nominations from the Academy and proved that it wasn’t so universally panned after all. Now, of the two nominations, the film’s chances rest mostly in the Best Makeup and Hairstyling category. Not only are there only two other competitors in that category (“Jackass … Read More 2014 Oscars Challenge: [1] The Lone Ranger – Two Nominations
Most years I find it difficult to predict the nominations for the Oscars. With so many great films to have to choose from, weighing what I think will get nominated over what I want to get nominated, and the unpredictable nature of the Academy, there’s almost no way to completely be sure of your choices. But as with every year, I gave it my … Read More Oscars Watch: 86th Academy Awards Nomination Predictions
DIRECTORS GUILD Alfonso Cuaron, “Gravity” Paul Greengrass, “Captain Phillips” Steve McQueen, “12 Years A Slave” David O. Russell, “American Hustle” Martin Scorsese, “The Wolf Of Wall Street” PRODUCERS GUILD FEATURE “12 Years a Slave” “American Hustle” “Blue Jasmine” “Captain Phillips” “Dallas Buyers Club” “Gravity” “Her” “Nebraska” “Saving Mr. Banks” “The Wolf of Wall Street” ANIMATED “The Croods,” “Despicable Me 2” “Epic” “Frozen” “Monsters … Read More Oscars Watch: 2014 DGA, PGA, & WGA Nominees
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: 9 FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILMS A few surprises come out of the Foreign Language Feature being shortlisted, especially with no love for Saudi Arabia’s first feature film ever “Wadjda” as well as previous winner Asghar Farhadi and his new film “The Past” starring Bérénice Bejo. I’m disappointed not to see “The Wall” or “Renoir” in the final cut. Regardless, we are left … Read More Oscars Shortlist: 9 Foreign Language Features Shortlisted for 86th Academy Awards
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: SEVENTY-FIVE ORIGINAL SONGS And we’re down to seventy-five Original Songs, meaning songs that have music and lyrics written specifically for the film they are contained in and apparently, an original song that starts the credits (but none after, which is too bad for the original songs following Coldplay in the credits of “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire”). The odds-on favorite to … Read More Oscars Shortlist: 75 Original Songs Shortlisted for 86th Academy Awards
In this year’s Oscar race, the question isn’t between two films vying for the win like most years, although “Gravity” versus “12 Years A Slave” seems to be the big two, it’s whether or not you believe “The Butler” should be recognized. Supposedly snubbed by the Golden Globes nominations, SAG went the other route and is choosing to recognize Forest Whittaker and Oprah Winfrey … Read More Oscars Watch: 20th Annual Screen Actors Guild Award Nominees
The Golden Globes is held by the Hollywood Foreign Press, and often years, we write off these awards as a precursor to the Academy Awards because of the Drama-Comedy split. But as the years have gone by, many of the winners picked here will go on to win Oscars and for that you must at least pay attention. Also, people tend to weigh the … Read More Oscars Watch: 71st Annual Golden Globes Nominees
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: SEVEN FILMS FOR MAKEUP & HAIRSTYLING Seven films now stand for Best Makeup & Hairstyling, but only three will get nominations in this category. Sadly, “The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug” doesn’t make the cut. The two locks that I can see are “The Great Gatsby” which could even go on to take this award, and of course, “American Hustle” which … Read More Oscars Shortlist: 7 Makeup And Hairstyling Shortlisted for 86th Academy Awards
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: ONE-HUNDRED AND FOURTEEN ORIGINAL SCORES More of a reminder of what films were released this year, the 114 original scores will eventually be whittled down to five. Basically the who’s who of composing that we see every year, this year’s list has the big shots like Hans Zimmer considered for three different films (“12 Years A Slave”, “Man Of Steel”, “Rush”), … Read More Oscars Shortlist: 114 Original Scores Shortlisted for 86th Academy Awards
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: TEN LIVE ACTION SHORTS “Aquel No Era Yo (That Wasn’t Me),” Esteban Crespo, director (Producciones Africanauan) “Avant Que De Tout Perdre (Just before Losing Everything),” Xavier Legrand, director, and Alexandre Gavras, producer (KG Productions) “Dva (Two),” Mickey Nedimovic, director, and Henner Besuch, director of photography (Filoufilm Dani Barsch) “Helium,” Anders Walter, director, and Kim Magnusson, producer (M & M Productions) “Kush,” … Read More Oscars Shortlist: 10 Live Action Shorts Shortlisted for 86th Academy Awards
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: TEN FILMS FOR BEST VISUAL EFFECTS And the Best Visual Effects contenders are whittled down to ten, with the year’s best science fiction and action films filling the category. The obvious film to beat is “Gravity” and with the praise parade continuing for that film, it may have the closest thing to a lock before the nominations are announced. The film … Read More Oscars Shortlist: 10 Visual Effects Shortlisted for 86th Academy Awards
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: FIFTEEN DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILMS Chances are if you haven’t heard of it, it is an HBO documentary. Otherwise, the rest of the entries are about what we expected, minus maybe Weinstein’s “Salinger” and “Let The Fire Burn” not finding spots on the list. Without having seen most of these, I feel like I can already pick my winner in “Blackfish”, which … Read More Oscars Shortlist: 15 Documentary Features Shortlisted for 86th Academy Awards
Even though Christian Bale is marketing “Out Of The Furnace” more than the other strong Oscar contender he’s apart of “American Hustle”, there could be a few reasons for that including that “Out Of The Furnace” comes out sooner and could probably actually use Bale’s help in pushing it into absolutely any category, which is saying a lot. Jeff Bridges has an Oscar from … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Out Of The Furnace
For a documentary that I had absolutely no interest in seeing back in May, I’ve heard enough about it and seen it pop up in enough places to where my interest is peaked. Sarah Polley investigating her family to find truth to their stories, the film is a personal look into a creative woman’s family. Polley is also no stranger to the Oscars, having … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Stories We Tell
J.C. Chandor is no stranger to the Academy Awards, having garnered a nomination for his writing work on “Margin Call”. Now he lands in the directing chair, bringing this one man show to fruition. Robert Redford stars as the sailor lost at sea after his sailboat hits a dropped freighter full of shoes. Determined to survive, Redford delivers one of the most powerful performances … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: All Is Lost
Will he go from being under-appreciated to having two nominations this year? I might be pulling for it. Matthew McConaughey is a force to be reckoned with and delivering two absolutely astounding performances this year, we’ll not only see him in the critics’ awards circle, but I have a feeling we’ll see his name, not just once, but possibly twice in up for contention. … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Mud
From the trailer alone, I want to root for Joaquin Phoenix and his role in “Her” as a man looking for connection and finding it in the robotic voice that becomes his personal assistant. With director Spike Jonze guiding him and an emotional gambit to run, there’s no telling what Phoenix can deliver. Having been nominated three times for his acting work in different … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Her
Never say never. The Academy loves to nominate Roger Deakins without awarding him and this year could be no different and “Prisoners” is the Oscar caliber film that could go either way, meaning it could either grab a few nominations and no one would be surprised, or it could totally be forgotten and that wouldn’t effect many people either. With multiple Academy Award nominees … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Prisoners
Expect about the same showing, or even less, from this year’s “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug”. With the same nominations it had last, the film could easily slide into Best Visual Effects, Best Production Design, and Best Makeup and Hairstyling. As with more characters involved and the visual effects of a dragon, there’s absolutely no reason this film can’t harness those same nominations, … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Get out your pen and paper because “Gravity” will be kicking ass and taking names at this year’s Oscars, becoming one of the biggest box office successes and most critically acclaimed films of the year. Not only with this be shoveling in the critic’s awards, as one of the most successful original screenplays on the market this year, but it will also land in … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Gravity
Falling in the same boat as fellow Warner Brothers film “Man Of Steel”, the same sort of guidelines apply to “Pacific Rim”. Backed by a major studio award contender as of late, more attention can be placed on films under the umbrella, but with “Pacific Rim” not bringing in the greatest numbers or critical acclaim, the film could easily fall on the wayside. It … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Pacific Rim
With Warner Brothers backing it and the Christopher Nolan factor at play, “Man Of Steel” could make a slightly bigger impact at the Oscars than one would expect. Not to say it will land in any major categories, but there is a possibility it could garner some attention in at least Best Visual Effects, Best Sound Editing, and Best Sound Mixing, but those categories … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Man Of Steel
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: TEN ANIMATED SHORTS “Feral,” Daniel Sousa, director, and Dan Golden, music and sound design (Daniel Sousa) “Get a Horse!” Lauren MacMullan, director, and Dorothy McKim, producer (Walt Disney Feature Animation) “Gloria Victoria,” Theodore Ushev, director (National Film Board of Canada) “Hollow Land,” Uri Kranot and Michelle Kranot, directors (Dansk Tegnefilm, Les Films de l’Arlequin and the National Film Board of Canada) … Read More Oscars Shortlist: 10 Animated Shorts Shortlisted for 86th Academy Awards
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: NINETEEN ANIMATED FEATURE FILMS These are your Animated Feature films up for contention. With a mixed bag between U.S. and foreign films, box office smashes and flops, or soon to be released, these are the films that have the chance to make the short list and become an Oscar nominated film. With “The Wind Rises” being announced as likely to be … Read More Oscars Shortlist: 19 Animated Features Shortlisted for 86th Academy Awards
2013 International Documentary Awards Nominations BEST FEATURE AWARD THE ACT OF KILLING Director: Joshua Oppenheimer Producers: Joshua Oppenheimer, Signe Byrge Sørensen Executive Producers: Errol Morris, Werner Herzog, Torstein Grude, André Singer, Joram ten Brink, Bjarte Mørner Tveit Drafthouse Films BLACKFISH Directors: Gabriela Cowperthwaite Producer: Manuel V. Oteyza Writers: Gabriela Cowperthwaite, Eli Despres Executive Producers: Judy Bart, Erica Kahn Magnolia Pictures LET THE FIRE BURN … Read More Oscars Watch: 29th Annual International Documentary Association Nominees
Having supposed to released before last year’s Academy Awards, it would have been interesting to see what this film could have done. Now having released in May, “The Great Gatsby” is anything but fresh in our minds. Leonardo DiCaprio has been snubbed by the Oscars countless times and you can bet that he will not be receiving a nomination for his role as J. … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: The Great Gatsby
Before seeing “42” in April, I would have strongly guessed this film would garner tons of Oscar attention. But after seeing the film, I realized it was just a well produced sports film and not much more. With strong historical relevance and a period piece setting, the film had all the prerequisites to grab some nominations, but with weak delivery and now some much … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: 42
“Rush” is one of those feature films that has so many things going for it, like an Academy Award winning director in Ron Howard (“A Beautiful Mind”) and a top-notch cast in Chris Hemsworth and Daniel Brühl, but has the chance of not being noticed at this year’s Oscars. I could see this year playing out one of two ways. Either “Rush” upsets and … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Rush
It’s not every year you have a Peter Berg film in the For Your Consideration bracket for the Academy Award, but this year, “Lone Survivor” barely makes the cut, coming out in December. This brute military film about four men facing off against an unexpected army looks well done but to the extent of being nominated for anything. If we were going to put … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Lone Survivor
Along with “Despicable Me 2”, I highly expect to see “The Croods” as another Best Animated Feature nomination, with an amazing voice cast, some great visuals, and a strong score. On par with nominations from other years, “The Croods” was also a huge box office success, bringing in over $580 million in its worldwide run, meaning its wide spread. Do not expect this to … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: The Croods
GOTHAM AWARDS NOMINATIONS Best Feature “12 Years a Slave” – Steve McQueen, director “Ain’t Them Bodies Saints” – David Lowery, director “Before Midnight” – Richard Linklater, director “Inside Llewyn Davis” – Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, directors “Upstream Color” – Shane Carruth, director Best Documentary “The Act of Killing” – Joshua Oppenheimer, director “The Crash Reel” – Lucy Walker, director “First Cousin Once Removed” … Read More Oscars Watch: 23rd IFP Gotham Independent Film Award Nominees
As far as “Labor Day” goes, I’ve heard literally nothing about the film. With a late start date and no reviews surfacing yet, the only thing we have to go on is those involved their history with the Oscars. Director Jason Reitman has been to Oscars twice with four total nominations between “Juno” and “Up In The Air”. Sadly, with how heavy competition is … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Labor Day
Alexander Payne has won 2 Oscars for his writing work (“Sideways” & “The Descendants”). His latest film, “Nebraska”, it does not appear that he has had any hand in the writing, which could fail to grab this film a nomination for writing. That being said, Bruce Dern’s performance is being raved about from the few critics that have seen it. Being apart of Cannes … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Nebraska
With a tone and feel much like last year’s “Zero Dark Thirty”, which garnered countless critics’ awards and several nominations from the Academy, “Captain Phillips” will probably not be as popular, but guaranteed that this film gets recognized in nominations regardless. With a well-rounded, newspaper headline film, there’s two nominations that almost have to be locked, Best Actor (Tom Hanks) and Best Supporting Actor … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Captain Phillips
The first “Despicable Me” may not have gotten nominated for an Academy Award in 2010-2011, but “Despicable Me 2” has a huge chance of getting the nod. Up against fellow animated films like “The Croods” and “Monsters University”, “Despicable Me 2” goes into the For Your Consideration section with mostly positive reviews and a box office of almost $1 billion dollars, meaning people have … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Despicable Me 2
Do not count it completely out, but chances are high that “Fast & Furious 6” does not make it to Oscar nominations in the least. Banking more on Best Sound Mixing and Sound Editing, those seem to be this film’s only chance of making it to the big night. With popularity rising for this franchise, that doesn’t mean much considering none of the previous … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Fast & Furious 6
With last year’s Academy Award winner for Best Cinematography Claudio Miranda (“Life Of Pi”), impeccable futuristic-wasteland visual effects, and an original score from the band M83, “Oblivion” has to be on the Academy’s radar. If I were to put all chips on one nomination out of Joseph Kosinski’s science fiction thriller, it would have to be on Best Visual Effects, with all the gadgets … Read More For Your Consideration 2013: Oblivion
Looks like we’re playing it safe this year as producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron announced Ellen DeGeneres as the host of the Academy Awards in 2014. Last year, Seth MacFarlane took the stage to mostly panned reviews, despite his freshand brash humor. Nothing against Ellen, as I think she’s great and on the occasions of seeing her show, have been ultimately impressed, however … Read More Oscars Watch: Ellen DeGeneres to Host 86th Academy Awards
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: EIGHT DOCUMENTARY SHORTS “CaveDigger,” Karoffilms “Facing Fear,” Jason Cohen Productions, LLC “Jujitsu-ing Reality,” Sobini Films “Karama Has No Walls,” Hot Spot Films “The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life,” Reed Entertainment “Prison Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall,” Prison Terminal LLC “Recollections,” notrac productions “SLOMO,” Big Young Films and Runaway Films “CaveDigger” (39 min) Ra Paulette digs … Read More Oscars Shortlist: 8 Documentary Shorts Shortlisted for 86th Academy Awards
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: 76 FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILMS Afghanistan, “Wajma – An Afghan Love Story,” Barmak Akram Albania, “Agon,” Robert Budina Argentina, “The German Doctor,” Lucía Puenzo Australia, “The Rocket,” Kim Mordaunt Austria, “The Wall,” Julian Pölsler ** Azerbaijan, “Steppe Man,” Shamil Aliyev Bangladesh, “Television,” Mostofa Sarwar Farooki Belgium, “The Broken Circle Breakdown,” Felix van Groeningen ** Bosnia and Herzegovina, “An Episode in … Read More Oscars Shortlist: 76 Foreign Language Features Shortlisted for 86th Academy Awards
