It's a Wonderful Night for Oscar!

It's Upon Us Again - Oscar Buzz and Awards Season 2008

Hello Oscarphiles and Spouters alike!

Welcome to this year's edition of Oscar Buzz 2008.  December is the holiday movie month, and of course, our favorite holiday movies are the bevy of Oscar contenders studios pump into theaters at the last minute, before the eligible nomination year is up.  December is also when we start hearing about nominations and when preliminary, end-of-year awards shows give us clues about what movies will be the talk of tinseltown come February 24, 2008, the date of the upcoming Oscar broadcast.

This coming year, Jon Stewart reprises his role as Oscar host.  Hey, as long as the writers are on strike, and the Daily Show is down, he needs a job.  Oh, and he's hilarious too.

As always, this thread is meant to be the catch-all for Oscar buzz.  Also, the group will get active as I include links and lists aimed at Oscar's four major predictors: Critics' Choice, Screen Actors' Guild, Golden Globes, and the Directors Guild awards.   The aggregated results of these awards are the best ruler to aid Oscar predictions (though the talk and buzz has to be included if you're making predictions).  Remember, these awards shows occur pretty much one after the other leading up to the Academy Awards, and the nominations for each will get announced starting this month.  They all have official websites, which I will post as nominations get announced.

How about now, though?  What movies are you hearing buzz about?  What movies do you hope to see get nominated? 

Here's your first indication from imdb.com:

'No Country for Old Men' Named Best Picture by National Board of Review

In a year with no one film as a specific front-runner of the awards season, the National Board of Review has given a leg up to the Coen brothers' No Country for Old Men, honoring it as Best Picture, as well as with the group's ensemble cast award and adapted screenplay honor. In a reflection of the lack of heavyweight pictures and performances favored for potential Academy Award nominations, the National Board spread around its awards to a number of movies and actors. Tim Burton was named Best Director for Sweeney Todd, while former Oscar winners George Clooney (Michael Clayton) and Julie Christie (Away From Her) were honored as Best Actor and Actress; the supporting awards went to two highly acclaimed performances: Casey Affleck for The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford and Amy Ryan in Gone Baby Gone (which also starred Affleck). The Diving Bell and the Butterfly won the Foreign Film Award, with Body of War and Ratatouille named the best documentary and animated films, respectively. A group of film aficionados and academics, the National Board is not a critics' group per se, but has gained its fame by handing out the first honors of the awards season. Winners named by critics' groups in Boston, New York, and Los Angeles will follow in the next week, with the Golden Globe nominations being announced on Thursday, December 13.

Other awards include: Breakthrough Performance by an Actor - Emile Hirsch, Into The Wild; Breakthrough Performance by an Actress - Ellen Page, Juno; Best Directorial Debut - Ben Affleck, Gone Baby Gone; Best Original Screenplay (tie): Diablo Cody, Juno and Nancy Oliver, Lars and the Real Girl.

In addition to its Best Picture award, the National Board of Review also names the top ten films of the year, in alphabetical order: The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford, Atonement, The Bourne Ultimatum, The Bucket List, Into The Wild, Juno, The Kite Runner, Lars And The Real Girl, Michael Clayton, and Sweeney Todd.

Re:It's Upon Us Again - Oscar Buzz and Awards Season 2008

Hello again everybody!

Today, the critics' association announced the nominees for the 2007 Critics' Choice Awards!  Check out the link and new list that will appear shortly in our group!  I'm starting to get excited!!

http://www.bfca.org/NomineesWinners.asp

Re:Re:It's Upon Us Again - Oscar Buzz and Awards Season 2008

Yummy - two more scooplets of Oscar buzz for you, the interested Oscarphile (and me, duh).

First, from imdb.com:

'No Country for Old Men' Tops New York Film Critics Circle Vote

New Coen Brothers movie No Country For Old Men has dominated yet another influential end of year critics' poll - it has been voted Best Picture by the New York Film Critics Circle. Filmmaking siblings Joel Coen and Ethan Coen also won the Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay honors for the crime drama, which is based on a novel by Cormac McCarthy. Daniel Day-Lewis was named Best Actor for his role in There Will Be Blood, and the Best Actress prize went to Julie Christie for her performance in Away From Her. No Country For Old Men and There Will Be Blood are emerging as the front-runners to take top honors at the 2008 Academy Awards - both pictures lead various U.S. critics' polls, which are regarded as solid indicators of Oscar glory.

Re:Re:Re:It's Upon Us Again - Oscar Buzz and Awards Season 2008

If you haven't already guessed, thanks to SpoutBlog and everyone else, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced this year's Golden Globe nominees.  Remember, the Globes are one of the four major Oscar predictors.  Of course, there may not be a ceremony this year....

Link up to the official site: www.hfpa.org.

Or, if you just want to see a convenient list, check out the new one here in our Oscars group.

PS, I'll start listing what each film is specifically nominated for later under each list entry, but for right now, just be amazed at the lists themselves.  Oooh.  Aaaah.

Re:Re:Re:Re:It's Upon Us Again - Oscar Buzz and Awards Season 2008

So, on December 20, the SAG award nominations came out: www.sagawards.org.  I made a new list, but I haven't had as much time to blow on the internet as I usually do, so all of the noms lists still need work (I usually try to put down what the noms are for under each entry and haven't been able to do that).

In other news, who's been paying attention to the news about the writers' strike?  The awards shows are in jeopardy.  They're still going to try to have them, but the announcements may just be broadcast on the news rather than in a formal ceremony.   That would make me sad, but others might rejoice.  Anyone care to render an opinion or have thoughts on the writers strike in general?

PS, is there anyone out there?  Anyone at all?  <crickets>

Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:It's Upon Us Again - Oscar Buzz and Awards Season 2008

Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:It's Upon Us Again - Oscar Buzz and Awards Season 2008

Well, the first awards' season casualty of the writers' strike has inevitably happened.  The Golden Globes have been canceled.  I am beside myself, mainly because all of the political coverage is burying entertainment news anyway.  New Hampshire Shmew Hampshire.  Just kidding - I am being ironic ;-).

Anyways, from imdb.com:

Golden Globes Ceremony Canceled

'There Will Be Blood' Tops Critics Awards

There Will Be Blood has been hailed as the Best Picture of the Year for 2007 by the National Society of Film Critics. The movie, which was directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, beat competition from Joel Coen and Ethan Coen's No Country For Old Men and Julian Schnabel's The Diving Bell And The Butterfly to take the award, while he beat the same filmmakers for the Best Director prize. There Will Be Blood was also praised for Daniel Day-Lewis' portrayal of an oil-hungry businessman, winning him the honor for Best Actor. Best Actress went to Julie Christie for her starring role in Away From Her, while Best Supporting awards were awarded to Casey Affleck for The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, and Cate Blanchett for I'm Not There. Other winners included the Romanian 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days as Best Foreign-Language Film, while No End In Sight, by Charles Ferguson, won the award for Best Non-Fiction Film.

This may be the most depressing awards season yet.  And also the most unpredictable.  What do you think?

Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:It's Upon Us Again - Oscar Buzz and Awards Season 2008

Here's another blurb from imdb.com:

'Into the Wild' Dominates Palm Springs Film Festival Awards

Into The Wild emerged the big winner at the Palm Springs International Film Festival on Saturday, netting two awards including Director Of The Year for Sean Penn. The movie's star Emile Hirsch was also honored at the California event - with the Rising Star/Actor prize for his role as tragic real-life adventurer Chris McCandless. Elsewhere, Daniel Day-Lewis collected Actor Of The Year for his performance in Oscar favorite There Will Be Blood, while Actress Of The Year went to Halle Berry for her role in Things We Lost In The Fire. French star Marion Cotillard won the Breakthrough Award for her turn in La Vie En Rose, and Hairspray's Nikki Blonsky collected the Rising Star/Actress honor. The Ensemble Performance Award went to the Hairspray cast, while the Juno cast picked up the Vanguard Award.

Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:It's Upon Us Again - Oscar Buzz and Awards Season 2008

Slightly old news by now, but the Critics' Choice Awards were aired a day later, on January 8.  There is a new list to reflect the winners, and I've also finished both the nominees and winners lists for these awards by reflecting their categories.  I will do the same when the Golden Globes are <gulp> announced during the utterly pointless news conference this weekend.

Sigh.

Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:Re:It's Upon Us Again - Oscar Buzz and Awards Season 2008

Two items of note.

The last of the four major predictor awards leading up to the Oscars announced nominations yesterday.  The Directors Guild of America awards are usually a bona fide indicator of what is favored for best picture.  The five nominees have been added to a new list in our group.

This just in:  Gil Cates, producer for this year's Oscars, assures the public that the Oscars will move forward, even if the writers' strike lingers.  From imdb.com (you can get lots of entertainment news there, you know):

Cates: The (Oscar) Show Must Go On