Thursday, December 03, 2009

NBR Still Crazy For Clint & Clooney

The National Board of Review have announced their winners. Their ceremony will be held on.

Film: Up In The Air
Director: Clint Eastwood, Invictus
Actor (tie): Morgan Freeman, Invictus and George Clooney, Up In The Air
  • This is Clooney's 3rd personal NBR prize in 7 years. The situation with Clint Eastwood is yet more extreme. This is Clint's 4th personal NBR prize in 10 years. Every film he's made since 2003 has found a home in their top ten list -- all seven of them, even Flags of Our Fathers -- and in two of those year's his films hogged 20% of their top ten list. In addition to Clint's 4 prizes, 2 of his films have won their Best Picture prize.
Actress: Carey Mulligan, An Education
Supporting Actor:
Woody Harrelson, The Messenger
  • Is this an awards season meme we didn't see coming ("time to honor Woody!") or a minor wave that will subside before Oscars hit shore?

Supporting Actress: Anna Kendrick, Up In The Air
Foreign Film: A Prophet
Documentary: The Cove
Animated Feature: Up
Ensemble Cast: It’s Complicated
Breakthrough Performance, Actor: Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker
Breakthrough Performance, Actress: Gabourey Sidibe, Precious

  • So they didn't like Precious (no top ten) but they loved Gabby? Is this a natural split opinion or the desire to honor a cross section of future Oscar nominees?

Directorial Debut (3 way tie): Duncan Jones, Moon. Oren Moverman, The Messenger. Marc Webb, 500 Days of Summer

  • When a precursor can't decide do any of the winners get any awards bump whatsoever?

Original Screenplay: Joel & Ethan Coen, A Serious Man
Adapted Screenplay: Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner, Up In The Air
Special Award: Wes Anderson, The Fantastic Mr. Fox
William K. Everson Film History Award: Jean Picker Firstenberg

NBR Freedom of Expression:
Burma Vj: Reporting From A Closed Country, Invictus, The Most Dangerous Man In America: Daniel Ellseberg and The Pentagon Papers
Top Eleven Films
(In alphabetical order): (500) Days of Summer, An Education, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, Invictus, The Messenger, A Serious Man, Star Trek, Up, Up In The Air and Where The Wild Things Are

  • because top 10 is so ... uh... 11! "This one goes to 11". By the way... I know it can't be helped but Up and Up in the Air always following each other in lists is starting to annoy me. I keep reading it as one title "Up Up in the Air", like way up there.

Top Ten Independent Films (In alphabetical order) : Amreeka, District 9 ,Goodbye Solo , Humpday, In The Loop, Julia, Me And Orson Welles, Moon, Sugar and Two Lovers

  • This one makes no damn sense to me... they actually SAW Julia... and Tilda didn't nab their actress prize?

Top Six Foreign Films (In alphabetical order): The Maid, A Prophet, Revanche, Song Of Sparrows ,Three Monkeys, The White Ribbon
Top Six Documentary Films (In alphabetical order): Burma Vj: Reporting From A Closed Country, The Cove, Crude, Food, Inc. ,Good Hair, The Most Dangerous Man In America: Daniel Ellsberg and The Pentagon Papers

  • 11,10, 3-way ties, 6.... Because in the year of Oscar going to 10, mathematics is totally passe.

42 comments:

Lily said...

Go Carey! If Tilda can't win, then Carey should!

Rich Aunt Pennybags said...

Supporting Actor: Woody Harrelson, The MessengerIs this an awards season meme we didn't see coming ("time to honor Woody!") or a minor wave that will subside before Oscars hit shore?

Kris Tapley had a quick mention about this a few weeks ago, but several of Harrelson's colleagues (Owen Wilson, Ben Stiller, Charlize Theron, Sean Penn) and friends have been screening The Messenger for other friends and colleagues.

So with that help, with supporting actor being pretty fluid except for Christoph Waltz, the success that he's had at the box office, (he's like the male Sandra Bullock), I think Harrelson has a great chance of getting in this year.

The only cons are that The Messenger is such a small film, and that he got placed into the leading category at the Globes for some reason which could hurt him. I think it will be like when Catherine Zeta-Jones was nominated in leading, and he'll still get the supporting nomination.

Anyhow, I'm really excited that Harrelson has suddenly gone from longshot to probable status now, at least in my predictions with the NBR win. I like that the NBR also went a little more populist than they sometimes do, but I'm not excited about the Clint love again.

Love The Messenger love of course, and while I never doubted Carey Mulligan's chance of being nominated for an Oscar this season, I know many had for some reason so happy for her. Also, happy that Mo'Nique didn't sweep all the awards because I hate when one person/film does that every year. (Although in some cases I do make an exception.)

cal roth said...

I've seen Tilda in Julia, marvelous performance in a Gena Rowlands way, but Carey can't be beaten.

Go, Carey!

McGuire said...

Generally disappointed by the winners, although the Mulligan win is an unexpected pleasure.

Sad about the Precious snubs, particularly Mo'Nique not winning BSA. Her performance gave me chills, and I hope to see her get more recognition for it.

BrianZ said...

Happy to see Woody get some love, he and Morton are the only good parts of that film.

Robert said...

Last time an NBR supporting actor was not nominated for Oscar? Philip Seymour Hoffman (Magnolia).

Methink this is another exception.

Jim T said...

This one makes no damn sense to me... they actually SAW Julia... and Tilda didn't nab their actress prize?


Everyone who's seen "Julia" is saying the same thing!!!

PS: I can see you there smiling at the excusion of "Lovely(or not) Bones". Montgomerry thinks he makes you happy. Cats are so selfish!

Kim said...

Saw Up in the Air last night, and quite frankly, I loved it. My main thought was that if Clooney didn't have a relatively new and shiny Oscar, he'd be a shoe-in. I don't think any other actor could have pulled that role off as well. Both Kendrick and Farmiga were excellent as well.

I like that Mo'Nique is getting some competition. It makes things a little interesting, and hasn't she been acting like it is hers for sure anyway? It may be best to take her down a few pegs...just an opinion :-)

amir_uk said...

I'd been waiting all afternoon/evening for the NBR to announce - couldn't get on with my thesis until they announced, I was that excited.

But, you know what, these are actually rather good citations - especially as we know NBR can have strange (read: mediocre) tastes.

I've not yet seen Invictus, The Messenger or Where the Wild Things Are yet, but otherwise I really like the rest of their Top 11 (with the exception of A Serious Man).

George Clooney, Carey Mulligan and Anna Kendrick all gave wonderful performances - and though none of them would be my pick for the win this year, they'd all make my final 5 in their respective categories. Same with A Prophet for Foreign Film. It has 'world classic' stamped all over it.

Precious, A Single Man, Bright Star, Nine, The Lovely Bones - all snubbed. I wish they'd made room for the first 3 (haven't seen the other 2 yet), as they were my favourites (along with Up in the Air) from this year's London Film Festival.

amir_uk said...

Also really glad and surprised to see In the Loop, Moon and Two Lovers in their indie top 10. Again, all very good films from a very good year for film.

I'm actually really happy that Two Lovers hasn't been totally lost in the shuffle, seeing as it was released way back in February. Best Director and Best Actress (Paltrow - woop woop! Still can't get over this! Her most enchanting performance since Shakespeare) at the Spirits, and now this.

mrripley said...

Is morton good in the messenger seems is it time to welcome her back.

Anonymous said...

what does this mean for the movie precious? and i think its robbery that carey mulligan won... so many better performances than hers... such a shame... and no MONIQUE? HUH? real happy about the hurt locker getting love though.. but still no PRECIOUS? COME ON!!!

Jude said...

I agree with the NBR's decision about Precious. Gabourey was great, but the film as a whole just wasn't.

amir_uk said...

Also this year is Sean Penn all over again. George Clooney does career-best work in Up in the Air (as Penn did in Milk) and, like Penn, an Oscar this year wouldn't go amiss.

But it just makes me wish even more than Jake Gyllenhaal had won Clooney's first, as Bill Murray should've won Penn's first. And similarly Clive Owen and Morgan Freeman's first.

Then Best Actor would be truly exciting this year. I just don't like this idea of certain actors winning their second so soon after their first (like Freeman or Clooney might this year), when others don't even have one.

Ryan T. said...

All this does is makes me really excited about seeing Up in the Air. Hopefully I'll be doing that next Saturday.

It IS interesting to see many big "snubs" like Precious, Nine, The Last Station, etc. And even with these snubs, the top ten doesn't look particular bad. So now I'm wondering, maybe this IS a good year for a Top 10 Oscar Best Picture.

FrenchGirl said...

my trouble with Clooney is every time i saw him in a movie,i see Georges Clooney (except in "Syriana" where i see the character)
in the other side,in France,we can see him 135 times per day in Nespresso("what else?") commercial

Ibad said...

Don't see anything too unexpected about Woody. In my final November predictions I have him making the Oscar lineups and I predicted him to win this award. After the STELLAR reviews for the movie, combined with him having an excellent year (2012/Zombieland) and not being nominated in well over a decade...it all comes together quite nicely for him.

par3182 said...

do they not have some system for breaking ties? although i'm firmly behind any list that goes to six

i'm surprised stanley tucci didn't win here - they usually love the multi-taskers

still basking in the glow of carey mulligan's performance after seeing it days ago - i hope she goes all the way

Iggy said...

I'm crazy for Clooney, too. I can't help it. I even find the Nespresso commercials amusing (especially now with Malkovich, ha). So, I'm happy for him.
Other than that, most of movies will take so long to open here that I prefer not to think about it.

Nel said...

Carey Mulligan performance on par or even better than that of Tilda's in Julia? - erm ...no!

NATHANIEL R said...

Samuel, well sure. Woody began to see like a possible "career" recipient in November. I'm talking about 'didn't see coming' like... he wasn't talked up AT ALL before people actually saw The Messenger and before Zombieland did so well.

RJ said...

Very ho hum top 11.

Anway, since Supporting Actor is kind of up in the air at this point (hahaha), I guess he's got just as much chance as anyone else.

adelutza said...

How can Sidibe win and Mo'Nique loose? This doesn't make any sense for me. Star Trek in top 11???? (500) Days of Summmer? Who are these people?

rahulio328 said...

Does anyone else find ties really annoying? JUST MAKE UP YOUR MIND.

This whole "honor-everyone-so-that-they-come-to-your-award-show-desperation" trick is getting old.

And something about the Precious snub seems really underhanded. Maybe if a white man directed it, it would've gotten some love. Just saying...

Carl Joseph Papa said...

I think that the "Precious" snub was really not that shocking and it not racist at all. Maybe they are just in the minority that did not like the movie. I think that Gabourey Sibide was great in the movie and hers felt natural unlike mo'nique's monster mom which was superb but felt a little cartoon at times.

Anonymous said...

"So they didn't like Precious (no top ten) but they loved Gabby? Is this a natural split opinion or the desire to honor a cross section of future Oscar nominees?"

I don't think large critical boards generally worry about what other boards or what the Oscars think. When lists are made, it's when you start seeing consensus, which informs how Oscars will go. Not really the other way around. And PRECIOUS is divisive enough that it's going to miss some lists. And no, it doesn't have anything to do with race. Let's just go ahead and kill that suggestion right now.

Carl Joseph Papa said...

i like how they noticed young actors/actresses/directors. but pissed with the ties.

Faux said...

It's pretty offensive -I think- this kind of "career recipient" in case Woody wins. Why not "career recipient" Christopher Plummer, a real legend? At this point, it seems like Damon is out of the race, and probably are in: Waltz (one of the best performances of this decade!), Molina, Plummer, Tucci (for his "combo") and now Woody... what about Tobey? Please, no Baldwin, pleeeeeeeeze, it's soooo complicated to digest.

I really think Best Actor is a two horse race: definitely Bridges vs Firth. No way it will be "2-times Oscar winner" Freeman (not for this Freemanesque "Mandela") or Clooney (not so recently). The fifth will be Day Lewis without doubts. They love him and Nine will grow after release. (Renner or... who else? will be a surprise if they make the cut.)

Best Actress: I think this year is a kind of weak. Think about 2006 (Mirren, Dench, Streep, Cruz, Winslet) and then compare with this year... You can also compare the two "Streeper" characters (her Miranda Priestley and her Julia Child... please, no way, I don't want Meryl wins her third for this lightweight role...) So... Mulligan right now is the best choice, but if you think about i.e. Anne Hathaway last year... damn it, there's a big difference. And Sidibe is excellent (not magnificent) in Precious but come on. And you have then Mirren (who just won), and the fifth element (newcomer Cornish, Bullock -no, please!-, or Cotillard, recent winner... who else?). Where are Benning or Blethyn? By the way I must thank Amelia flops.

In supporting, I think it's Mo'Nique's to lose. The other four nominees are "in the air"... I don't know if "up". I would thank them if they nominate both Cotillard and Cruz for Nine, really, BOTH supporting. And I like Farmiga most than Kendrick. At this point, I think Julianne is now in danger for her minimal screen in A Single Man. And it's said she has no real "Oscar scene". So... let see what's next.

The Pretentious Know it All said...

Mulligan and Sidibe...is it safe to say that it's now officially on like Donkey Kong?

NATHANIEL R said...

I'm not sure where this Julianne Moore has no screen time thing started but it's not really accurate. It's true she doesn't have a lot but what she has is very big in that it's not a plot movie so your visits to her house are big deals... Otherwise you're trapped in Colin's head.


Anon -- while I agree that people are too quick to cry 'racism' (or any ism) ... Just saying it's not doesn't mean it's not, you know? For all we know the NBR us 12 old white guys ;) they've never been a very public or to my understanding large group

Bing147 said...

To be fair Nate, no one talked about Woody before the film was seen because the film was just too small. As soon as it was seen it was in as a possible long shot. And the more people thought about it, the more it made sense. I've been predicting him for over a month now myself and I think this is a big boost if only because it will (along with the picture citation) probably convince a lot of people to see it that wouldn't have. Which will probably help Morton as well.

Danny King said...

That Eastwood win seems like a joke. He'll be lucky to get an Oscar nomination.

adam k. said...

Since when does the NBR do sweeps? Best Pic, Actor, Supporting Actress, Adapted Screenplay? Really? This group is getting harder to predict, but simultaneously more and more like other awards groups, in terms of sweeps and such.

I will be sad for Vera Farmiga if this becomes her second movie to win best picture but fail to earn her an individual nom.

But I am very happy Star Trek made the cut. If they were gonna go "blockbuster" just for the sake of it, they couldn't have picked a better one this year.

And yeah, I honestly can't fathom how anyone could actually SEE Julia and still honestly think that Mulligan, Sidibe, or even Streep was better. It's just not true. Look how much Tilda was doing in that film. How riveting and shocking and highwire and was she? I mean really. Honestly, she wins best actress running away this year. Only Cornish so far has come anywhere near, for me.

I honestly was not that bowled over with either Mulligan or Sidibe. The former just didn't have that demanding a role, IMO, however good and charming she was. And the latter I think was a case of perfect casting and a very attentive and performance-crafting director. If either of those two wins, I'll be rather disappointed. I'd take lightweight Streep over either. Though even that would be a bit of a disappointment, in terms of the quality that should be there for a win.

...

TILDA!!!!!!

bbats said...

top eleven to make sure invictus got in there.

Alex said...

I think the Up in the Air girls will probably fight for a spot in the nominations list. I could actually see the academy choosing Farmiga over Kendrick if they get enough precursors. And I could see Kendrick drawing attention away from Farmiga with only Kendrick getting nominated. Or if they love Up in the air, I can see both of them getting in. I kinda want to see Farmiga nominated as I feel she's been snubbed a couple of times before.

cal roth said...

How can anyone not love Carey Mulligan? How can anyone not to become obsessed on her? How can anyone not to root hard for her to win? Color me crazy about her, absolutely in love.

MEH MEH MEHRYL said...

INVICTUS deserved awards

Faux said...

"Up in the Air" is this year "Sideways".

"Julia" suffers lack of traction. I think Tilda is not interested in another Golden Boy.

jimmy said...

i saw "Nine" last night - not good. i can't see any acting noms. i got terribly bored - i would have left if i weren't with some pals who liked it.

Faux said...

About NINE... attention: SPOILERS!!!

The Weinstein Co. includes the film score (complete) in the webpage. You can hear Day Lewis singing. Here: http://nine-movie.com/#/the-score


1. Overture Delle Donne
2. Guido's Song/ Daniel Day Lewis
3. A Call From Vatican/ Penélope Cruz
4. Folies Bergere/ Judi Dench
5. Be Italian/ Fergie
6. My Husband Makes Movies/ Marion Cotillard
7. Cinema Italiano/ Kate Hudson
8. Guarda la Luna/ Sophia Loren
9. Unusual Way/ Nicole Kidman
10. Take It All/ Marion Cotillard
11. I Can't Make This Movie/ Daniel Day Lewis
12. Finale

Unknown said...

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Arkaan said...

I saw Julia, and she's a comfortable third for me. Tilda's good, but not great. And to quote Adam K "I can't fathom anyone who thinks otherwise."