BAFTA Nominations

The BAFTA nominations are out. Hopefully they can restore my faith (not that I ever had much) in awards after the debacle that was the Golden Globes. I am a little disappointed to see so many films nominated that aren’t out in the UK yet but fortunately most of them are coming out soon so I will get to see them before the awards are given out. Here are the nominations with a few of my thoughts on the subject:

BEST FILM

• Avatar
• An Education
• The Hurt Locker
• Precious: Based on the novel Push by Sapphire
• Up In The Air

Inglorious Bastards really deserved a nomination ahead of Avatar. I’m note sure what loophole got Precious a nomination as it isn’t released in the UK for another week. For me a clear winner is The Hurt Locker but I fear Avatar may do it.

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM

• An Education
• Fish Tank
• In The Loop
• Moon
• Nowhere Boy

I didn’t see In the Loop, all the others were good, it’s a close call between Fish Tank and An Education for me.

OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER

• LUCY BAILEY, ANDREW THOMPSON, ELIZABETH MORGAN HEMLOCK, DAVID PEARSON Directors, Producers – Mugabe and the White African
• ERAN CREEVY Writer/Director – Shifty
• STUART HAZELDINE Writer/Director – Exam
• DUNCAN JONES Director – Moon
• SAM TAYLOR-WOOD Director – Nowhere Boy

No contest, it has to be Duncan Jones for Moon.

DIRECTOR

• James Cameron – Avatar
• Neill Blomkamp – District 9
• Lone Scherfig – An Education
• Kathryn Bigelow – The Hurt Locker
• Quentin Tarantino – Inglourious Basterds

Great to see Tarantino nominated but again for he it has to be Kathryn Bigelow for The Hurt Locker

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

• Jon Lucas, Scott Moore – The Hangover
• Mark Boal – The Hurt Locker
• Quentin Tarantino – Inglourious Basterds
• Joel Coen, Ethan Coen – A Serious Man
• Bob Peterson, Pete Docter – Up

Clear winner: Tarantino and his Basterds.

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

• Neill Blomkamp, Terri Tatchell – District 9
• Nick Hornby – An Education
• Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche – In The Loop
• Geoffrey Fletcher – Precious: Based on the novel Push by Sapphire
• Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner – Up In The Air

Two things stood out about An Education the acting and how well written it was so has to be Nick Hornby.

FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE

• Broken Embraces
• Coco Before Chanel
• Let The Right One In
• A Prophet
• The White Ribbon

My movie of the year last year Let The Right One in.  The White Ribbon was also really good and could be in with a strong chance.

ANIMATED FILM

• Coraline
• Fantastic Mr Fox
• Up

I have to go for Fantastic Mr Fox as it is the only one of the three I saw but I suspect it will be Up.

LEADING ACTOR

• Jeff Bridges – Crazy Heart
• George Clooney – Up in the Air
• Colin Firth – A Single Man
• Jeremy Renner – The Hurt Locker
• Andy Serkis – Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll

Of the nominations I have only seen The Hurt Locker and Up in the Air. Crazy Heart and A Single Man are not out yet and although Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll is out it is on very limited release and I haven’t seen it. The two I have seen were both excellent performances and I would be happy for it to go to either of them.

LEADING ACTRESS

• Carey Mulligan – An Education
• Saoirse Ronan – The Lovely Bones
• Gabourey Sidibe – Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire
• Meryl Streep – Julie & Julia
• Audrey Tautou – Coco Before Chanel

Precious comes out next week and The Lovely Bones next month. I missed Julie & Julia at the cinema. Coco Before Chanel was a very average film but Audrey Tautou was very good in it but a clear winner has to be Carey Mulligan for An Education.

SUPPORTING ACTOR

• Alec Baldwin – It’s Complicated
• Christian McKay – Me and Orson Welles
• Alfred Molina – An Education
• Stanley Tucci – The Lovely Bones
• Christoph Waltz – Inglourious Basterds

One of the few the golden globes got right, Christoph Waltz for Inglourious Basterds.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

• Anne-Marie Duff – Nowhere Boy
• Vera Farmiga – Up in the Air
• Anna Kendrick – Up in the Air
• Mo’Nique – Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire
• Kristin Scott-Thomas – Nowhere Boy

I will reserve judgment until I have seen Precious but have seen the other two films that make up the other four nominations and can say they are all great with Kristin Scott-Thomas just edging it.

MUSIC

• Avatar – James Horner
• Crazy Heart – T-Bone Burnett, Stephen Bruton
• Fantastic Mr Fox – Alexandre Desplat
• Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll – Chaz Jankel
• Up – Michael Giacchino

I haven’t seen enough of the films to have an opinion.

CINEMATOGRAPHY

• Avatar – Mauro Fiore
• District 9 – Trent Opaloch
• The Hurt Locker – Barry Ackroyd
• Inglourious Basterds – Robert Richardson
• The Road – Javier Aguirresarobe

A close call, but The Hurt Locker just edges out The Road for me.

EDITING

• Avatar – Stephen Rivkin, John Refoua, James Cameron
• District 9 – Julian Clarke
• The Hurt Locker – Bob Murawski, Chris Innis
• Inglourious Basterds – Sally Menke
• Up In The Air – Dana E. Glauberman

The Hurt Locker Again.

PRODUCTION DESIGN

• Avatar
• District 9
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
• The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
• Inglourious Basterds

Inglourious Basterds was brilliantly designed but it was the one thing that Avatar was faultless on s I have to say Avatar.

COSTUME DESIGN

• Bright Star
• Coco Before Chanel
• An Education
• A Single Man
• The Young Victoria

My choise Inglourious Basterds isn’t nominated so I will reserve judgment as I haven’t seen the film that I have been told should win it, A single man.

SOUND

• Avatar
• District 9
• The Hurt Locker
• Star Trek
• Up

Avatar will probably clean up with the technical awards but I would go with The Hurt Locker.

SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS

• Avatar
• District 9
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
• The Hurt Locker
• Star Trek

Has to be Avatar.

THE ORANGE RISING STAR AWARD (voted for by the public)

• Jesse Eisenberg
• Nicholas Hoult
• Carey Mulligan
• Tahar Rahim
• Kristen Stewart

I have already blogged on this subject. My vote has already been cast for Carey Mulligan.