Awards Season 2021: Tez's Official Oscar Predictions

Tonight, the great and good of Hollywood will convene to celebrate the best of film-making in 2020 at the 93rd Academy Awards. 

Delayed from February due to the COVID pandemic, the event- produced by Jesse Collins, Stacey Sher, and Oscar-winning director Steven Soderbergh- will take place at the Dolby Theatre as well as Los Angeles' Union Station, with several international hubs (including at the BFI in London) for those unable to travel to the US. 

There'll be no main host (for the third year running) but an "ensemble cast" of 15 presenters- including Angela Bassett, Bong Joon Ho, Laura Dern, Regina King, Marlee Matlin, Joaquin Phoenix, Brad Pitt, Renée Zellweger, and Zendaya- will be on hand to give out the awards.  

It has become a tradition for me to predict the nominations and the winners in the main six categories (the four acting categories, Best Director and Best Picture).  I've done this since 2003 with varying degrees of success. Last year, I got 4 out of 6 (not predicting Parasite's history-making Best Picture win, nor Bong Joon Ho's Best Director win).

So, without further ado, here are my predictions for who will win.

Best Supporting Actress: Youn Yuh-Jung (Minari)

Several of the major awards bodies (including SAG, BAFTA, and the Independent Spirit Awards) have gone for Youn's performance as unconventional grandmother Soonja in Lee Isaac Chung's semi-autobiographical drama as their Best Supporting Actress, so I do think the Academy will do the same. It's a strong performance which adds some levity and a certain comic relief to the sometimes heavy family drama. 

Best Supporting Actor: Daniel Kaluuya (Judas And The Black Messiah)

Kaluuya has won the vast majority of Supporting Actor awards for his soulful and intense performance as Black Panther chairman Fred Hampton in Shaka King's powerful biographical drama, so I fully expect to see him named as Best Supporting Actor tonight. 

Best Actress: Carey Mulligan (Promising Young Woman)

The Best Actress category has been wide open this year, with four of the five Oscar nominees winning at least one other major award. However, for me, Carey Mulligan deserves to win the Oscar for her fearless, ferocious performance as avenging angel Cassie in Emerald Fennell's black comedy-drama. It's a performance (and a film) that has stayed with me long after I first watched it, which isn't really something I can say about any of the others that I've seen.

Best Actor: Chadwick Boseman (Ma Rainey's Black Bottom)

Despite the BAFTA going to Anthony Hopkins, I still say that the late Chadwick Boseman will win the Best Actor award. His performance as Levee in the August Wilson adaptation is an absolute powerhouse, made all the more poignant for the fact it was his last on-screen performance. Boseman was so much more than a comic-book character actor, and Ma Rainey's Black Bottom demonstrates that perfectly. 

Best Director: Chloé Zhao (Nomadland)

Best Picture: Nomadland

Zhao has been the outstanding winner of the Best Director awards all throughout this awards, so it'll be a surprise of epic proportions if any other name than hers will be read out tonight. If Zhao does win, she will only be the second female director to win the top prize. 

Similarly, Nomadland has swept the Best Picture categories, so its success seems fairly sewn up. A slow-moving contemplative drama about the life of older people who travel around America working seasonal jobs, it's the kind of film that wins Best Picture. Whilst I liked it for the most part, there are other films that nominated for Best Picture which were better films in my opinion.

These aren't official predictions, but I'd really love to see Promising Young Woman win Best Original Screenplay, Nomadland to win Best Cinematography, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom to win Best Costume Design, and Sound Of Metal to win the newly-combined Best Sound award. 

I'll be watching the Oscars broadcast tonight (well, early hours of Monday morning) and will update with my thoughts on the ceremony and all the winners as soon as I can once it finishes. 

Awards Season 2021: Independent Spirit Awards Winners

Last night (Thursday 22nd April), the 36th Film Independent Spirit Awards took place, in a ceremony hosted by Melissa Villaseñor (Saturday Night Live, Toy Story 4) for the first time. 

As I'm sure you all know by now, they recognise films made wholly or partly outside the traditional studio system. They're also the first major awards to be announced in any given awards season (as was the case this awards season back in January), and one of the last to be awarded.   

Traditionally, these awards take place on the Saturday afternoon before the Oscars, in a marquee on the Santa Monica beach. Obviously not an option in these times. So, the decision was made to bring the Spirits forward to a prime-time event a few days earlier and make it a virtual live show instead. 

Here is a full list of winners.

Best Feature: Nomadland

Best Female Lead: Carey Mulligan (Promising Young Woman)

Best Male Lead: Riz Ahmed (Sound Of Metal)

Best Supporting Female: Youn Yuh-Jung (Minari)

Best Supporting Male: Paul Raci (Sound Of Metal)

Best Director: Chloé Zhao (Nomadland)

Best Screenplay: Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman)

Best First Screenplay: Andy Siara (Palm Springs)

Best Cinematography: Nomadland

Best Editing: Nomadland

Best First Feature: Sound Of Metal

Best International Film: Quo Vadis, Aida?

Best Documentary: Crip Camp

John Cassavetes Award: Residue

Robert Altman Award: One Night In Miami

The John Cassavetes Award is given to the creative team of a film budgeted at less than $500,000, whilst the Robert Altman Award is presented to the ensemble cast of the movie, its director, and its casting director(s). 

Nomadland was the big winner of the night with four awards, with Sound Of Metal winning three (incidentally, winning all three categories it was nominated in), and Promising Young Woman got two. 

Despite leading the nominations with seven nods, there was nothing for Never Rarely Sometimes Always. Ma Rainey's Black Bottom also didn't convert any of its five nominations to a win, with Riz Ahmed seen as a surprise winner for Best Actor. 

Congratulations to all winners!

There'll be more awards stuff this coming weekend, with the Razzies being announced on Saturday (24th April) and the 93rd Academy Awards on Sunday (25th April). 

 

Awards Season 2021: Critics' Choice Movie Award Winners

More awards shenanigans to report, as yesterday (Sunday 7th March) was the 26th Critics' Choice Awards, hosted by Taye Diggs. 

Before we get into the results, this is just a heads-up: if you're not a fan of awards stuff, this week is gonna be absolutely chockful of it (there's going to be awards stuff every few days up until next Monday [15th March, when the Oscar nominations are announced]), so forewarned is forearmed. 

Anyway, here's a full list of film winners:

Best Picture: Nomadland

Best Actor: Chadwick Boseman (Ma Rainey's Black Bottom)

Best Actress: Carey Mulligan (Promising Young Woman)

Best Supporting Actor: Daniel Kaluuya (Judas And The Black Messiah)

Best Supporting Actress: Maria Bakalova (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm)

Best Acting Ensemble: The Trial Of The Chicago 7

Best Director: Chloé Zhao (Nomadland)

Best Original Screenplay: Promising Young Woman

Best Adapted Screenplay: Nomadland

Best Comedy: Palm Springs

Best Foreign Language Film: Minari

Best Score: Soul

Best Song: "Speak Now" (One Night In Miami)

Best Production Design: Mank

Best Editing: Sound Of Metal and The Trial Of The Chicago 7 (tie)

Best Costume Design: Ma Rainey's Black Bottom

Best Hair & Makeup: Ma Rainey's Black Bottom

Best Visual Effects: Tenet

Best Cinematography: Nomadland

Best Young Actor/Actress: Alan S. Kim (Minari)


Nomadland was the big winner of the night with four awards, and Ma Rainey's Black Bottom went away with three. 

Congratulations to all winners!

You may have noticed that there are a couple of categories that haven't been included in the list this year (notably, Best Animated Feature, Best Sci-Fi/Horror Movie, and Best Action Movie). 2021 saw the first annual Critics' Choice Super Awards, which honoured genre television and movies in a separate ceremony. 

The ceremony happened in January, with Da 5 Bloods winning Best Action Movie, Soul winning Best Animated Movie, The Invisible Man taking the Best Horror Movie title, Palm Springs named the Best Science Fiction/Fantasy Movie, and The Old Guard winning Best Superhero Movie. .

As if this wasn't exciting enough, tomorrow (Tuesday 9th March) sees two more awards bodies- BAFTA and the Directors Guild of America-  announcing their nominations for this year's awards.

Don't say I didn't warn you...

Countdown: 10 Oscar-Nominated Actors Who Have Appeared In Doctor Who

Few television shows are as iconic or as culturally dominant as Doctor Who. Even if you're not a fan, you know about the TARDIS, the Daleks, K9. Its influence is felt all over the world and- much like the Harry Potter franchise- it's seen as a bit of a mark of street cred to appear in it. This goes for actors just starting in their careers as well as established stars.

So, here are ten Oscar-nominated actors that have appeared in Doctor Who. They are listed in the order in which they appeared on the show.

1. Pauline Collins

Pauline Collins is not only one of a small group of Oscar nominees who have appeared in Doctor Who, but she's also one of a small group of actors who have appeared in both the classic and revived series too. She played Samantha Briggs in the Patrick Troughton story The Faceless Ones and then appeared as Queen Victoria opposite David Tennant in Tooth And Claw. She was nominated for the Best Actress Oscar for her performance in Shirley Valentine.

2. Richard Todd

Todd's Oscar nomination came in 1950 for his lead role in The Hasty Heart. It would be more than 30 years later before he would appear in Doctor Who, appearing as Sanders in the rather trippy and philosophical Peter Davison story Kinda.

3. Eric Roberts

Few roles in Doctor Who are as iconic as the Doctor's nemesis, The Master. Roberts (nominated for Best Supporting Actor for Runaway Train) took the role in the 1996 TV Movie opposite Paul McGann. He doesn't quite fit the role but seems to be having an absolute ball, especially with lines as camp as 'I always dress for the occasion'.

4. Andrew Garfield

One of this year's Best Actor nominees for his stunning turn in Hacksaw Ridge, Garfield appeared as Frank in the 2007 two-part story Daleks In Manhattan/Evolution Of The Daleks.

5. Carey Mulligan

The 2007 episode Blink (which introduces the Weeping Angels) is widely thought of as one of the best episodes of the revived series. That's in no short measure to the brilliant performance by Carey Mulligan as substitute companion Sally Sparrow. Mulligan would go on to be nominated for Best Actress for her role in An Education.

6. Felicity Jones

Eight years before her Best Actress nomination for playing Jane Hawking in The Theory Of Everything, Felicity appeared as socialite-with-a-secret Robina Redmond in the very fun Agatha Christie inspired episode The Unicorn And The Wasp.

7. Sophie Okonedo

Sophie Okonedo was nominated for the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role in Hotel Rwanda. She played kick-ass future monarch Liz Ten in The Beast Below (Matt Smith's second story as the Doctor). Whilst it's not very good, Okonedo is excellent. She reprises her role in a later episode, The Pandorica Opens.

8. Imelda Staunton

Imelda Staunton was nominated for Best Actress for her role in Vera Drake in 2005 (the same year as Sophie Okonedo). In 2011, she appeared as the Voice of the Interface in the Matt Smith story The Girl Who Waited. Her soothing tones help companion Amy Pond survive alone on an alien planet.

9. Ian McKellen

Acting legend Sir Ian McKellen has been nominated for two Oscars: Best Actor for playing film director James Whale in Gods And Monsters and Best Supporting Actor for playing Gandalf in The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring. In 2012, he provided the Voice of the Great Intelligence in the Christmas special The Snowmen.

10. John Hurt

The late, great John Hurt was nominated for two Oscars- for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Midnight Express and Best Actor for The Elephant Man. In 2013, he appeared as The War Doctor, a previously hidden incarnation of the Time Lord, for the 50th anniversary story The Day Of The Doctor and went on to reprise his role for audio dramas for Big Finish.


BONUS: Peter Capaldi

The incumbent Time Lord- who will sadly be leaving the series at the end of this year- is not only an Oscar nominee but an Oscar winner! In 1995, Peter won the Best Live Action Short Film Oscar for writing and directing Franz Kafka's It's A Wonderful Life. Here he is, with his award:

Review: Suffragette (UK Cert 12A)

It's a sobering thought to realise that the UK has only had universal suffrage for less than a hundred years. It was 1928 before all women over the age of 21 were allowed to vote; in 1918, women and men over 30 who met certain property criteria could vote. The suffragette movement, headed by Emmeline Pankhurst, would often use civil disobedience to make their points. Many suffragettes were imprisoned and several gave their lives for the cause. 

Written by Abi Morgan (Shame, The Iron Lady) and directed by Sarah Gavron, Suffragette tells the story of the women's suffrage movement through the prism of a fictional character, laundress Maud Watts (Carey Mulligan) who gets caught up in a suffragette riot on her way from work. She gradually becomes more involved in the movement which causes friction at home and work. Meanwhile, the suffragettes resort to more and more extreme measures to get their voices heard.

Mulligan's performance as Maud is just superb. Maud really goes through the wringer, imprisoned, beaten and (in one particularly unpleasant scene) force-fed, then ostracised from family and friends for daring to speak up. The irony is at the beginning Maud isn't at all interested. Mulligan has some great scenes opposite Ben Whishaw, who plays her husband Sonny, who is opposed to the movement. There's a particularly well-written scene where Maud asks Sonny what they would have called their child had it not been a boy. I fully expect to see Mulligan's name crop up in the upcoming awards season as this is a truly brilliant performance. 

Helena Bonham Carter is similarly excellent in her role as Edith Ellyn. Ellyn is a fictional character, although based in part on a suffragette called Edith Garrud. Ellyn is a chemist and one of the instigators of a more extreme type of protest. I fully expect to see Carter recognised in awards season too. Meryl Streep is as good as always as Emmeline Pankhurst but, if she's onscreen for longer than five minutes, I'll be surprised (which does make the poster slightly misleading). She gives a rousing speech from a balcony and then disappears into the back of a cab. Whilst the story of the suffragette movement would be whitewashed without a mention of Pankhurst's role, I do wonder about whether this scene is particularly needed.

Other performances are similarly strong: Anne-Marie Duff is a strong presence as Maud's workmate Violet Miller who helps get Maud into the movement and there's a good turn by Romola Garai as a local MP's wife who is also sympathetic to the cause. FInally, Natalie Press is powerful as Emily Wilding Davison, the suffragette whose actions at the Epsom Derby brought the movement to widespread attention. 

In terms of the male characters, you may expect them all to be unsympathetic oppressive bastards. This isn't entirely the case, although both Samuel West and Geoff Bell fulfil those roles as the local MP and the lecherous laundry boss respectively. Whishaw's performance is strong but Sonny's sympathy only extends so far before social pressure becomes too much for him. Similarly, Brendan Gleeson is good as Inspector Arthur Steed, a man charged with finding and dealing with any suffragette actions. He has some particularly good scenes with Mulligan as Maud and Steed clash heads.

So, it's well acted, well written for the most part (the script manages to mostly avoid the tendency to be overtly preachy), and the period detail is impeccable. However, the whole thing is let down by some frankly nauseating camerawork. It uses the handheld approach for scenes that really don't need it which does detract from what's actually going on in the scene.

That niggle aside, this is a well made film about an important part of British history and should be seen widely.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Tez

Review: Inside Llewyn Davis (UK Cert 15)

OK, confession time: I'm not the Coen brothers' biggest fan. I don't actively dislike them and I have enjoyed a number of their films (O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Fargo and True Grit) but I don't class myself as a fan of their work. Usually, I have to be in the mood for a Coen brothers film as sometimes their characters may strike me as quirky or idiosyncratic at one sitting, but downright bizarre or annoying at another. And let's not even go near their ill-advised and downright awful remake of The Ladykillers... But the trailer for Inside Llewyn Davis seemed intriguing, so I thought I'd- in the immortal words of The Watchers- give it a punt. 

Inside Llewyn Davis is a bit of an odd film to categorise. It's probably best described as a character study, I suppose. Set in New York's Greenwich Village in 1961, Llewyn (Oscar Isaac) is a struggling folk singer, performing at the Gaslight Cafe and sofa-surfing with friends and acquaintances. What happens next is a series of vignettes rather than a fully-formed plot or story; in fact, Joel Coen has remarked that 'the film doesn't really have a plot'. Llewyn ends up having to carry a ginger cat around with him until he can reunite it with its owners. He's previously slept with his friend Jean (a fiery Carey Mulligan) and she's pregnant but it could be either Llewyn's or her boyfriend Jim's (a dimwatt Justin Timberlake). He sees his manager. He gets some session work. He rides to Chicago with an obnoxious jazz musician (John Goodman) and his laconic valet (Garrett Hedlund). And so the film goes on. 

Performance-wise, it's all good enough. Isaac makes for a compelling lead, even though Llewyn isn't that likeable as a character- he's abrasive, condescending, slightly big-headed and a little too sincere, baulking at his sister's suggestion that he could always go back to the merchant marines if the music doesn't work out. Sometimes, the Coen brother's films are comedies of embarrassment, piling misfortune on misfortune on some poor schmuck (for example, A Serious Man or Intolerable Cruelty), making it almost excruciating to watch them struggle against the mounting absurdities around them. There's an element of that to Inside Llewyn Davis- although, in this case, some of those circumstances are of Llewyn's own making.

Other performances are similarly good. John Goodman's character Roland Turner embodies my previous statement about Coen brothers' characters; this time I found him quirky, another time I might have found him too brash or too oddball. Carey Mulligan doesn't have a lot else to do except snarl and throw some great one-liners at Llewyn, but she does it well and her singing voice is quite lovely. The music, produced by Marcus Mumford and T Bone Burnett, is- as you would expect- excellent; there are a few stand-out numbers such as 'Hang Me, Oh Hang Me' and 'If I Had Wings'. Bruno Delbonnel's cinematography is particularly good and overall it's a well-made piece, but I didn't love it and I'm finding it difficult to articulate why. 

Perhaps it's the lack of a clear-cut story? Maybe the script is a little too obtuse, a little too vague (although naming the Gorfiens' cat Ulysses is a none-too-subtle tip of the wink). Maybe it's the fact that the central character is actually a bit of a jerk. During one scene, Llewyn's manager mentions another character- a singing soldier called Troy Nelson (Stark Sands)- and predicts he'll be big because 'People connect to him' (unlike Llewyn). The film also frustratingly leaves the character hanging.

So, in summary, certainly no Ladykillers but far from being a Fargo. 

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Tez 

Review: Shame (UK cert 18)

Critics do like to use the term ‘brave’ when it comes to certain types of roles, usually anything involving full-frontal nudity or sex. Unsurprisingly, this appellation has been applied liberally in other reviews of Shame, a cheerful little film about sex addiction.

Brandon Sullivan (Michael Fassbender) is a thirtysomething executive living in New York . He’s also a sex addict; watching online porn at work, hiring hookers and even not averse to a bit of man-on-man action to scratch the itch. His lifestyle leaves little room for emotional intimacy, preferring as he does to opt for the physical kind. Into his carefully controlled life comes his chaotic sister Sissy (Carey Mulligan), an aspiring jazz singer, who throws things on their heads.

There’s been a lot of fuss over the fact that Michael Fassbender has some full-frontal scenes, thus showing that the age-old hypocrisy around nudity (female nudity, fine; male nudity, not) is still alive and well. It is, however, entirely appropriate in the context of the film; put the physical on display, keep the emotional hidden.

And that’s my main problem with Shame. There’s precious little intimation of the root causes of Brandon’s addiction (some allusions to a fractured childhood are dropped in), only the effect of it. But even that’s not fully explored. A dinner date with his colleague Marianne (Nicole Behari) hints at Brandon’s mindset- why tie yourself to one person for life? - but nothing more is developed.  Their fumbling sexual encounter leads Brandon to momentary impotence; she’s got too close for comfort. However, one prostitute later and he’s back on track.

It’s a powerful performance by Michael Fassbender even if the script doesn’t always serve him well. He’s unable to really get to the heart of the character because there is not much heart to get to. Nonetheless, it’s another strong performance to add to his already impressive roster.  Carey Mulligan’s performance is similarly impressive, but again there’s little development or explanation for her emotional neediness. That said, her story arc is more rounded and she gives a cool jazzy rendition of ‘New York, New York’. Her chemistry with Fassbender is undeniable, lending their scenes together (particularly the pivotal argument scene towards the end) some much-needed crackle.

It’s true that I have been thinking about the film since I saw it; in fact, I’ve been wondering exactly what I’m meant to have taken from it. It certainly doesn’t glamorise sex addiction; Brandon rarely looks fulfilled or content when he’s in flagrante and a traumatic twist at the end hints at some kind of rehabilitation, but my main feeling about this film is that it’s much ado about nothing.

A couple in front of me quipped at the end ‘it’s a Shame we sat through that’. I wouldn’t go that far; it’s worth seeing for the strong performances of Fassbender and Mulligan, two actors for whom I have a lot of respect. But the script does let it down.

Rating: 3 out of 5


Tez