Award season is getting underway in the film industry, and some surprising titles are getting attention. In this week's edition of 'Cinema Chat', David fair and Russ Collins provide the news from Hollywood and cover the movies opening for you this weekend.
2015 Oscar Predictions: Best Picture
While no film has emerged as a full-on frontrunner, four films seem pretty locked in to potentially emerge as just that. First, there's Alejandro González Iñárritu's "Birdman" and Richard Linklater's "Boyhood," Both have the critics on their side, have proved commercially successful and have sustained -- or even continued to build -- Oscar buzz since they made their debuts. At the absolute very least, they are both getting nominations. It's hard to imagine Toronto Film Festival audience winner "The Imitation Game" not getting in as well (though it's also hard to imagine it winning). And then, of course, came "Selma." Ava DuVernay's civil rights film got exactly the kind of reaction from its AFI FEST premiere that very much locks it into this race, and likely gives us the first best picture nominee ever directed by a woman of color.
They Seem Pretty Locked In:
1. "Boyhood" (Richard Linklater)
2. "Birdman" (Alejandro González Iñárritu)
3. "Selma" (Ava DuVernay)
4. "The Imitation Game" (Morten Tyldum)
5. "The Theory of Everything" (James Marsh)
More Iffy, But All Have Solid Shots (It Just Depends on How Many Nominees There Are):
6. "Unbroken" (Angelina Jolie)
7. "Whiplash" (Damien Chazelle)
8. "Foxcatcher" (Bennett Miller)
9. "The Grand Budapest Hotel" (Wes Anderson)
10. "Mr. Turner" (Mike Leigh)
11. "Gone Girl" (David Fincher)
12. "American Sniper" (Clint Eastwood)
13. "Into The Woods" (Rob Marshall)
14. "A Most Violent Year" (JC Chandor)
7 Surprises From Wednesday Morning’s SAG Award Nominations
The SAG Awards announced its annual nominations this morning, and they definitely offered a few unexpected shakeups to the overall awards race. You can read our take on television side of things here, but as far as the film races go, "Birdman," "Boyhood" and "The Imitation Game" solidified their statuses as frontrunners with three nominations apiece (including Best Ensemble Cast).
But there were a few major surprises too -- and if the Golden Globes second those votes tomorrow morning, it could make the road to Oscar either a lot harder or a lot easier for some of the other contenders. Of course, it's worth keeping in mind that last year, six of the 20 nominees in SAG's film acting categories didn't make Oscar's cut (Tom Hanks, Forest Whitaker, Emma Thompson, Daniel Bruhl, James Gandolfini and Oprah Winfrey). In any case, the first industry group has offered its take on the season, and here's how it shook down:
Jennifer Aniston
The fifth slot in the Best Actress race has been one of this awards season's biggest question marks, and SAG gave Aniston a huge boost by putting her in a group alongside guaranteed Oscar nominees Julianne Moore, Reese Witherspoon, Rosamund Pike and Felicity Jones. If the Globes do the same thing tomorrow (which we suspect they will), Aniston's Oscar heat is going to pick up speed.
"Selma" and "Unbroken" shut out.
Two films may or may not have been hurt by the fact that they screened so late: Ava DuVernay's "Selma" and Angelina Jolie's "Unbroken" received a grand total of zero nominations this morning, which is not so much a big deal for the latter (it hasn't received much buzz in the acting races), but definitely hurts the former. The ensemble cast -- lead actor David Oyelowo and, to a lesser extent, supporting actor Tom Wilkinson -- seemed like good bets. But then again, Paramount wasn't able to send screeners for the film and voters had to judge it based on a handful of screenings. That's exactly what happened when another Paramount film, "The Wolf of Wall Street," opened late last year. And that film went onto get loads of Oscar nominations, so this outcome might not actually mean anything other than voters didn't see it -- yet.
Naomi Watts gets in for "St. Vincent."
Other than perhaps Aniston, the acting nomination most pundits didn't see coming was Naomi Watts for "St. Vincent." Her role as a pregnant Russian stripper in the Bill Murray-led box office hit was on very few prognosticators' lists for Best Supporting Actress, but SAG has definitely changed that by giving her a nomination today. Watts (who also got a nomination for being part of the Ensemble Cast for "Birdman") is still on very shaky ground when it comes to getting a third Oscar nomination, but this is definitely one of the most interesting (and refreshing) nominations this morning.
No Jessica Chastain or Laura Dern.
Watts knocked out two women who were on many prognosticators' lists: Jessica Chastain for "A Most Violent Year" and Laura Dern for "Wild." Both of them now really need Golden Globe nominations tomorrow. Last year, only one actor -- Jonah Hill -- got an Oscar nod without a SAG or Globe mention before it. That's obviously not a set-in-stone rule, but the odds will definitely be against Chastain or Dern if the HFPA don't go for them.
The ensemble nomination for "The Grand Budapest Hotel."
It shouldn't be much of a surprise given how epic an ensemble it is (there are a whopping 11 Oscar nominees in its cast -- and they are all great), but it was definitely no sure thing that Wes Anderson's "The Grand Budapest Hotel" would make the Best Cast cut with SAG. "Into The Woods" or "Foxcatcher" (not to mention "Selma" and "Unbroken") seemed more likely, but SAG went with "Budapest Hotel" in perhaps the most inspired move of the morning. It's the first SAG nomination ever for a Wes Anderson film, and gives Edward Norton the biggest haul of the morning (he also got nods for his performance in "Birdman" and for being part of the cast of that film).
Jake Gyllenhaal makes the cut for "Nightcrawler."
This wasn't entirely shocking, but Jake Gyllenhaal's Best Actor nomination for Dan Gilroy's "Nightcrawler" is a big vote of confidence in an incredibly crowded race. Had more voters seen "Selma," it's easy to imagine Jake would have been the one to sit things out for David Oyelowo. But maybe not. If he's a Globe nominee tomorrow, you can officially watch out for Jake.
The extreme lack of diversity.
Unfortunately, it wasn't surprising (at least if one assumed "Selma" would get shut out) that the SAG nominations were really, really white and male. Every single nominated film was directed by a white man, and every single acting nominee (on the film side) was also white. Let's hope this is one area where the Golden Globes and Oscars don't follow suit.
Opening at the Multiplex
Exodus: Gods and Kings
From director Ridley Scott comes "Exodus: Gods and Kings," the story of one man's daring courage to take on the might of an empire. Using state of the art visual effects and 3D immersion, Scott brings new life to the story of the defiant leader Moses (Christian Bale) as he rises up against the Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses (Joel Edgerton), setting 600,000 slaves on a monumental journey of escape from Egypt and its terrifying cycle of deadly plagues. Early reviews are less than kind: Scott Mendelson of Forbes writes “To be absolutely fair, even if ‘Exodus’ were cast with 100% racial/ethnic authenticity, it would still be a terrible film.” "Exodus: Gods and Kings” opens Friday.
Top Five
“Top Five” digs under the surface of show business, politics, rap, and the exigencies of being black and famous today-holding it all up to the light in the way only Chris Rock can. Written, directed by, and starring Chris Rock, the film tells the story of New York City comedian-turned-film star Andre Allen, whose unexpected encounter with a journalist (Rosario Dawson) forces him to confront the comedy career-and the past-that he's left behind. “Top Five” opens Friday.
Opening Downtown
The Homesman
In “The Homesman,” when three women living on the edge of the American frontier are driven mad by harsh pioneer life, the task of saving them falls to the pious, independent-minded Mary Bee Cuddy (Hilary Swank). Transporting the women by covered wagon to Iowa, she soon realizes just how daunting the journey will be, and employs a low-life drifter, George Briggs (Tommy Lee Jones), to join her. The unlikely pair and the three women (Grace Gummer, Miranda Otto, Sonja Richter) head east, where a waiting minister and his wife (Meryl Streep) have offered to take the women in. But the group first must traverse the harsh Nebraska Territories marked by stark beauty, psychological peril and constant threat. Peter Howell of the Toronto Star says, “’The Homesman’ is a western hard and true, one that probably comes closer to depicting the hardships of frontier life than any number of more conventional oaters.” “The Homesman” opens Friday at the Michigan Theater.
Continuing Downtown
Don’t miss the wonderful films – and sure bets this awards season – continuing downtown! “The Theory of Everything,” Birdman,” and “Interstellar” are sure to receive nominations as awards season heats up, and they’re all playing downtown through Thursday December 18.
Special Screenings Downtown
Skylight
In “Skylight” on a bitterly cold London evening, schoolteacher Kyra Hollis (Carey Mulligan) receives an unexpected visit from her former lover, Tom Sergeant (Bill Nighy), a successful and charismatic restaurateur whose wife has recently died. As the evening progresses, the two attempt to rekindle their once passionate relationship only to find themselves locked in a dangerous battle of opposing ideologies and mutual desires. “Skylight” plays tonight at 7 PM. Presented in partnership with UMS; tickets on sale at ums.org.
One Sleepy Night: The Musical
“One Sleepy Night the Musical” premiered live in Ann Arbor in December 2013. Now experience the show on the big screen! The video premiere of “One Sleepy Night” take place Saturday December 13 at 12:30 PM at the Michigan Theater. Free admission!
Elf
Director Jon Favreau and Will Ferrell team up in “Elf,” the story of a regular-sized man who was raised as an elf. When the news is finally broken to Buddy that he’s not a real elf, he decides to head back to his place of birth, New York City, in search of his biological family. Also starring Ed Asner, James Caan, Mary Steenburgen, ZooeyDeschanel, and Bob Newhart, “Elf” plays on Sunday, December 14 at 1:30 PM at the Michigan Theater and admission is free!
The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness
In “The Kingdom of Dreams & Madness,” granted near-unfettered access to the notoriously insular Studio Ghibli, director MamiSunada follows the three men who are the lifeblood of Ghibli – the eminent director HayaoMiyazaki, the producer Toshio Suzuki, and the elusive and influential “other director” IsaoTakahata – over the course of a year as the studio rushes to complete two films, Miyazaki’s “The Wind Rises” and Takahata’s “The Tale of The Princess Kaguya.” The result is a rare “fly on the wall” glimpse of the inner workings of one of the world’s most celebrated animation studios, and an insight into the dreams, passion and singular dedication of these remarkable creators. “The Kingdom of Dreams & Madness” plays Wednesday, December 17 at 7 PM at the Michigan Theater. The finale to The Studio Ghibli Collection: A 30-Year-Retrospective.
