release Dec 18th
box office $714
box office rank for 2009 #1
company 20th Century Fox
awards Globes and 1 minor critics group
oscar tally 9 nominations

TFE grade A-
genre sci-fi allegory, romantic action epic, 3D spectacle
why'd it get nominated? EPIC power, EPIC box office, technological advancement spectacle

more

release Nov20th
box office $249
box office rank for 2009 #8
company Warner Bros
awards none. only for Sandra
oscar tally 2 nominations

TFE grade C-
genre inspirational sports drama, family film
why'd it get nominated? Sandra Bullock

more

release Aug 14th
box office $115
box office rank for 2009 #27
company TriStar Pictures
awards none. only nominations
oscar tally 3 nominations

TFE grade B
genre sci-fi allegory, action flick
why'd it get nominated? devoted fanbase, racial historical allegories lend gravitas

more

release Oct 16th
box office $11
box office rank for 2009 #135
company Sony Pictures Classics
precursors Spirit Award (foreign film). otherwise only nominations
oscar tally 3 nominations

TFE grade B
genre romance, coming of age drama, star (is born) vehicle
why'd it get nominated? charm

more

release June 26th
box office $12
box office rank for 2009 #131
company Summit
precursors BFCA, PGA, LA, NY and 8 minor critics groups
oscar tally 9 nominations

TFE grade A-
genre war drama, action flick
why'd it get nominated? it's awesome. 'finally an Iraq War film that works'

more

release Aug 21st
box office $120
box office rank for 2009 #25
company Weinstein Co
precursors SAG & BFCA (both ensemble) and 2 minor critics groups
oscar tally 8 nominations

TFE grade A-
genre revisionist war dramedy, Tarantino action flick
why'd it get nominated? Unforgettable A+ scenes embedded in loose framework of Oscar's favorite topic: WWII.

more

release Nov 6th
box office $47
box office rank for 2009 #65
company Lionsgate
precursors
Spirit Awards. otherwise only nominations
oscar tally 6 nominations

TFE grade A-
genre journey of the soul
why'd it get nominated? hard to shake, powerhouse acting, stands out from the crowd

more

release Oct 2nd
box office $9
box office rank for 2009 #145
company Focus Features
precursors none. only nominations
oscar tally 2 nominations

TFE grade B
genre Coen Bros
why'd it get nominated? sizeable Coen Bros fanbase

more

release May 29th
box office $293
box office rank for 2009 #5
companyPixar/Disney
precursors 1 critics group and animation prizes
oscar tally 5 nominations

TFE grade B+
genre Pixar fantasy adventure
why'd it get nominated? Pixar's consistency and the long wait for another Animated Best Picture nominee

more

release Dec 4th
box office $82
box office rank for 2009 #38
company Paramount
precursors NBR and 4 minor critics
oscar tally 6 nominations

TFE grade A-
genre contemporary drama, star vehicle
why'd it get nominated? polished, professional middlebrow bullseye. Just how Oscar likes it

more

Nomination Day In the end, despite all the excited about doubling the nominations, we basically ended up where we always end up: a mix of message movies, epics, dramas and war films. Same as it ever was even if some of it them took on slightly different shapes, walking and talking all funny like. Even if we'd stay with a five-wide best picture race, you still would've had your most populist lineup since at least 2003, with box office blockbusters (Avatar) big hits (Basterds) and medium sized grosses (Up in the Air, Precious) with only one film of the scale the media likes to cry "elitism" about when they win big awards (Hurt Locker)

Things that got AMPAS all hot and bothered this year: the color blue (Avatar, Up, Up in the Air), illiteracy (Precious, Blind Side, Basterds), race (Avatar, Blind Side, District 9, Precious), thinly disquised allegories (Avatar, District 9, The Hurt Locker), young girls coming-of-age (An Education, Precious), existential crises (A Serious Man, Up in the Air) and war (The Hurt Locker, Basterds)

Things that AMPAS dated but couldn't commit to: sports or race dramas that don't star aliens, Sandra Bullock or illiterate black kids (Invictus), stage bound musicals about cinema (Nine)

Things that turned AMPAS off: poetry (Bright Star), man-boy comedies (500 Days of Summer, The Hangover) the apocalypse (The Road) children with wild visual imaginations (Where the Wild Things Are, The Lovely Bones)

MORE ON THE OSCAR RACE