Awards
Page Index
* OSCAR coverage here
'07 FiLM BiTCH
Awards
by Nathaniel
R
Traditional
Oscar categories: Majors
/
Acting /
Technicals /
Technicals 2 (Tally of Noms)
Special Categories: Extras
/ Extras 2 / Scenes
1 / Scenes 2
(Tally of Noms) / Movie Mixers (Poll Games)
Please note: I follow similar rules to Oscar in terms of double nominations. Like Oscar I don't allow them in the individual acting races but I also don't allow them in the behind camera categories either so, for example, a costume designer can't be nominated for two different movies in the costume design category.
Best
Actress in a Leading Role
the
goddesses
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Julie
Christie "Fiona" Away From Her |
Nicole
Kidman "Margot" Margot at the Wedding |
Laura
Linney "Wendy" The Savages (and "Claire" Jindabyne) |
Ellen
Page "Juno" Juno |
Tang
Wei "Wong Chia Chi" Lust, Caution |
Gifted
with a dream role, she returns w/ a radiant star turn. Her elusive grip
on memory and that mix of resignation and terror for her vanishing self
are heartbreaking bonus points "Don't they remember Vietnam?" |
An
incisive, biting and darkly comic examination of one damaged and cruelly
dominating sister and mother bonus points So honest a portrayal that you end up feeling for Margot's deep hurt, despite her vicious verbal lashings |
It's
a toss up as to which role. If I allowed for two nominations here, she'd
hog 2/5ths of the list. She implodes with guilty perfection in Jindabyne
and totally owns The Savages with her immaturity and sly wit |
"I
don't really know what kind of girl I am" Page knows exactly
what kind of girl Juno is, expertly balancing off the cuff guard humor
w/genuine emotion |
Arguably
the most demanding female role of the year: a naive student turned fledgling
spy turned reckless woman in love. Wei makes you believe in every last
shift bonus points This is a screen debut !? As such it's a flat out miracle |
| Finalists:
Angelina Jolie was impressive in A Mighty Heart selling
Mariane's intellectual strength and controlled emotion deftly. When she
does break down its devastating * Anamaria Marinca has
the difficult task of holding the camera in rapt attention for the entirety
of 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days Semi-Finalists: Enchanted doesn't quite ask enough of Amy Adams but she elevates the movie with ample invention, deft mimicry and sweet humor * Carice van Houten is the year's other incredibly winning female spy in Black Book (breakthrough) * Ashley Judd unravels with co-dependent desperation in Bug * Molly Shannon wows with that frozen grin of interpretable shadings in The Year of the Dog. Like so many memorable characters in 2007, she's flailing to find herself * Halle Berry does her most subtle work in Things We Lost in the Fire * I also thought Keira Knightley was spot on in Atonement but the film belongs to McAvoy and the Brionys |
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Best
Actor in a Leading Role
the
idols
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Casey
Affleck "Robert Ford" The Assassination of Jesse James |
Daniel
Day-Lewis "Plainview" There Will Be Blood |
Benicio
Del Toro "Jerry Sunborne" Things We Lost in the Fire |
Tony
Leung "Mr. Yee" Lust, Caution |
Viggo
Mortensen "Nikolai" Eastern Promises |
Captures
great pathos in Ford's hero worship and the shift to the Judas role,
showing how discomfort in his own skin informs both Bonus Points: The last act (all his) makes the film |
There's
a whole ocean underneath this star turn: its a black hearted elemental
force Bonus Points: "I've abandoned my child" the best single scene work of the year, bar none |
What
happens if you give the best and fullest performance of your career
and nobody shows up? Bonus Points: Always presents Jerry's humanity but never invites easy sympathies |
One
of the great stars. He succinctly captures all the mysteries, cruelties
and romance of this elusive target with limited screentime Bonus Points: From jewelry store to bedroom: he's come undone |
Such
specificity here: every sigh, gesture, threat, resignation. He's pitch
perfect throughout Bonus Points: Reveals his hand but never loses the mystery of the man |
| Finalists:
George Clooney -burdened, compromised and excellent
as Michael Clayton * James McAvoy, a nominee
last year right here was just a
dream in Atonement, a brash romantic figure cut short and
transformed to angry war-scarred lover * Oscar loves a biopic so why
so little attention for Control, one of the better ones?
Sam Riley does his own singing and sadly displays the loneliness
and emotional/physical terror of disease, fame and depression that
tore Ian Curtis apart * |
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| Oscar's
Race for Best Actor
|
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Best
Actress in a Supporting Role
huge
assets
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Cate
Blanchett "Jude" I'm Not There |
Charlotte
Gainsbourg "Claire" I'm Not There |
Imelda
Staunton "Dolores Umbridge" Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix |
Tilda
Swinton "Karen Crowder" Michael Clayton |
Marisa
Tomei "Gina" Before the Devil Knows You're Dead |
Her
most valuable acting tool is her voice, and it's put to stellar use
for the centerpiece Dylan proxy Bonus Points: That unpleasant ego flaring up in thorny oroborus conversations. The final smile |
[paraphrased
from my
review] 'her highly specific gravity, that sad undertow in her face. Claire proves a welcome, steady anchor in this sea of mutation' Bonus Points: a bewitching break up monologue |
A
wickedly inventive act. Imelda seizes the film as ruthlessly as Dolores
conquers Hogwarts Bonus Points: The throat clearing, that swallowed chirp of a giggle --vocal tics both funny and creepy |
She
refashions a tricky role into a fascinating study of self-preservation
and performance anxiety. An intelligent and gripping actorly feat Bonus Points: Her mesmerizing rehearsals |
All
childish shrugs and inchoate emotional response: a woman who doesn't
know herself (full
review) Bonus Points: Break up. She can't even decide how much to hurt him. She can't see one emotion through |
Finalist:
Saorsie Ronan is a precocious bad seed as the youngest
"Briony" in Atonement but what's most interesting about
the character is the way that the three actresses (Romola Garai and Vanessa
Redgrave, the others) playing her both match and depart from one another.
Still, Saorsie kicks off the character like a true pro. Can't wait to
see what she does next. Semi-Finalists:
There's six more I want to mention: Emily Mortimer's
sweet compassion in Lars and the Real Girl was key to
its success, helping audiences suspend their disbelief * Michelle
Pfeiffer (my personal goddess) returned with a vengeance as "Lamia"
in Stardust and "Velma" in Hairspray --but
more on both of those star turns later. Kelly MacDonald
deepened the terror of No Country For Old Men with the gift of
tender humanity in her final scene * Samantha Morton
is potent and completely believable as the abandoned, confused and rather
simple "Debbie " in Control * Lesley Mann
was game, funny, and striking in Knocked Up * And last but not
least, Sigourney Weaver was a laugh riot in the otherwise
middling comedy The TV Set. "14 share motherf***ers!"
|
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Oscar's
Race for Supporting
Actress |
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Best
Actor in a Supporting Role
lynchpin
players
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Javier
Bardem "Anton Chigurh" No Country For Old Men |
Hal
Holbrook "Ron" Into the Wild |
Irfan
Khan "Captain" A Mighty Heart |
Max
von Sydow "Papinou" The Diving Bell and Butterfly |
Tom
Wilkinson "Arthur Edens" Michael Clayton |
One
could argue that he's the lead of No Country For Old Men but,
then again, he's also tantalizingly but a ghost. He haunts whether on
screen or off Bonus Points: "Friendo" |
He
doesn't appear for hours but when he does, the film isn't the same again.
A tender honest portrayal Bonus Points: ...that reshapes (or reconfirms) your views of the lead character |
The
standout in an impressive and complex web of actors, gifting his character
with backstory and agenda amidst the chaos Bonus Points: His family man in The Namesake |
Hugely
moving in just two sequences, this legendary actor helps you understand
what father and son possessed and what's been lost Bonus Points: That telephone call: gah! Bring a hankie |
A
full throttle turn, selling the crazy without losing the character Bonus Points: That street scene instantly pulls the rug out. You've been warned. This man: not to be underestimated |
| Finalists:
Mark Ruffalo, Anthony Edwards
and Robert Downey Jr.
But how to choose between all these haunted men, destroyed by the
Zodiac killer? * |
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| Oscar's
Race for Supporting Actor
|
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