Awards Season

UPDATE: Winners in bold
ACCURACY (will win):  9/16

 February is upon us, when the Baftas and the Oscars dish out another year's worth of accolades, meaning an end to the constant stream of top-drawer cinema releases - out with the fodder! (Hello Wild Card!). Over the past few months we've seen Mr Turner, Gone Girl, Nightcrawler, The Imitation Game, Interstellar, Whiplash, Foxcatcher, Boyhood, Paddington, Birdman, Wild, The Theory of Everything, Inherent Vice, American Sniper and A Most Violent Year all get a cinematic release; the big hitters slugging it out for awards nominations. The Grand Budapest Hotel is the only other film to receive notable recognition outside of this pre/post Christmas cinematic feast. 
For sheer tenacity and dedication, Richard Linklater surely deserves some recognition for the twelve years he spent making Boyhood, whilst Alejandor G. Inarritu is also a strong contender with his radical direction of Birdman - a single shot which seamlessly flows between scenes for almost the entire running time of the film. Birdman and Boyhood are both strong entries, as are all their competitors.

It's very hard to predict which way the voters will go; American Sniper has likely made itself redundant from the race due to the bad press coverage it has garnered as a result of its graphic depictions of anti-muslim violence, otherwise it'd be a sure shoe-in for the Oscar - remember the awards for The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty. It's a real shame not to see Gone Girl and Nightcrawler gain more nods in some of the main categories, whilst it's a disgrace that The Lego Movie didn't get a Best Animated nod from Oscar, and Phil Lord and Chris Miller deserve to be in the Director category. 

And the burning question: where the hell is Timothy Spall, Mike Leigh and Mr Turner? An outstanding film with world-class performances from all involved, it's lack of recognition feels almost insulting, so glaring is its omission. Bafta is however awarding Mike Leigh with a fellowship this year, which seems bizarre given Mr Turner is one of his best films, and arguably the finest Leigh-Spall collaboration yet.  

If this writer had his way, Leigh, Spall and Mr Turner would be up for the top awards, along with Fincher and Gone Girl (the perfect adaptation!), The Lego Movie for everything that is awesome, Oscar Isaac for his chilling portrayal in A Most Violent Year, and Lenny Abrahamson's much-loved off-the-wall musical drama, Frank. But alas, I do not get to cast the nominations, so looking at what is generally considered to be the eight main categories, here are the nominations, and some unfounded guessing as to which nominations will take away the awards...

BEST FILM

OSCARS: American Sniper, Birdman, Boyhood, The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Imitation Game, Selma, The Theory of Everything, Whiplash

will win...Birdman

should win...Whiplash

BAFTAS: Birdman, Boyhood, The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Imitation Game, The Theory of Everything

will win...The Imitation Game

should win...Boyhood

BEST DIRECTOR

OSCARS: Alejandro G. Inarritu (Birdman), Richard Linklater (Boyhood), Bennett Miller (Foxcatcher), Wes Anderson (The Grand Budapest Hotel), Morten Tyldum (The Imitation Game)

will win...Alejandro G. Inarritu

should win...Richard Linklater 

BAFTAS: Alejandro G. Inarritu (Birdman), Richard Linklater (Boyhood), Wes Anderson (The Grand Budapest Hotel), James Marsh (The Theory of Everything), Damien Chazelle (Whiplash)

will win...Richard Linklater 

should win...Richard Linklater 

BEST ACTOR

OSCARS: Bradley Cooper (American Sniper), Steve Carrell (Foxcatcher), Michael Keaton (Birdman), Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game), Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything) 

will win...Eddie Redmayne 

should win...Eddie Redmayne  

BAFTAS: Michael Keaton (Birdman), Ralph Fiennes (The Grand Budapest Hotel), Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game), Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler), Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything)  

will win...Eddie Redmayne 

should win...Eddie Redmayne 

BEST ACTRESS

OSCARS: Marion Cotillard (One Day Two Nights), Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl), Julianne Moore (Still Alice), Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything), Reese Witherspoon (Wild)

will win...Julianne Moore 

should win...Rosamund Pike

BAFTAS: Amy Adams (Big Eyes), Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl), Julianne Moore (Still Alice), Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything), Reese Witherspoon (Wild) 

will win...Felicity Jones

should win...Rosamund Pike

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

OSCARS: Robert Duvall (The Judge), Ethan Hawke (Boyhood), Edward Norton (Birdman), Mark Ruffalo (Foxcatcher), J.K. Simmons (Whiplash) 

will win...Mark Ruffalo

should win... J.K. Simmons 

BAFTAS: Ethan Hawke (Boyhood), Edward Norton (Birdman), Mark Ruffalo (Foxcatcher), Steve Carrell (Foxcatcher), J.K. Simmons (Whiplash) 

will win...Ethan Hawke

should win... J.K. Simmons 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

OSCARS: Patricia Arquette (Boyhood), Laura Dern (Wild), Keira Knightley (The Imitation Game), Emma Stone (Birdman), Meryl Streep (Into the Woods) 

will win...Patricia Arquette

should win...Patricia Arquette

BAFTAS: Patricia Arquette (Boyhood), Keira Knightley (The Imitation Game), Emma Stone (Birdman), Imelda Staunton (Pride), Rene Russo (Nightcrawler)

will win...Imelda Staunton

should win...Patricia Arquette

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

OSCARS: Birdman, Boyhood, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Foxcatcher, Nightcrawler

will win...Birdman

should win...Nightcrawler

BAFTAS: Birdman, Boyhood, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Nightcrawler, Whiplash

will win...Birdman

should win...Whiplash

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

OSCARS: American Sniper, The Imitation Game, Inherent Vice, The Theory of Everything, Whiplash

will win...The Theory of Everything

should win...Inherent Vice

BAFTAS: American Sniper, The Imitation Game, Paddington, Gone Girl, The Theory of Everything

will win...The Theory of Everything

should win... Gone Girl

2014 Round Up

A little late to the party, but wanted to round off 2014 after a shockingly lazy and sparsely written ending to the year – changing jobs has its demands!

Anyhow, it was a great year for cinema and TV alike, and although the London Film Festival and BFI preview screenings through the year weren’t as memorable as previous years, the productions on showcase were stronger, and some films in particular really packed a punch. Timothy Spall’s two-year crusade to learn to paint for Mr Turner was a worthwhile investment, giving a bulldog portrayal of the grunting artist, Jake Gyllenhaal shed the pounds and sharpened the cheekbones for a snake-like Lou Bloom in the brilliant Nightcrawler, and Rosamund Pike is finally brings her A game with a subtle and nuanced delivery of Amazing Amy in Fincher’s creepy adaptation Gone Girl. We also had the fast-paced beats of Whiplash, the quirky storytelling of Grand Budapest Hotel, Michael Fassbender and co go experimenting with sounds (and mental health) in Frank, and Phillip Seymour-Hoffman’s swansong performance as German spymaster Günther Bachmann in LeCarre adaptation A Most Wanted Man. It was a kick ass year for cinema.

However, fantastic storytelling, epic character arcs and incredible acting chops are more commonly becoming synonymous with the small screen rather than the big one, and 2014 truly defined the golden age of television, as bigger budgets, higher viewing numbers and increased network and on-demand competition demanded better programming for the more selective viewer. Maggie Gyllenhaal (like her aforementioned brother) deserves a mention for her wonderful performance in Hugo Blick’s The Honourable Woman, Billy Bob Thornton went uber-cool psychopath in Fargo, and the McRenaissance continued with Matthew’s philosophical gothic cop drama, True Detective, and let's not forget Keeley Hawes as the years most discussed British character Lindsay Denton in Line of Duty.

Without further ado, here’s a list of the best of 2014, (and worth noting, I missed Boyhood, hence the glaring omission given the buzz generated):

Film

1. Whiplash – psychological thriller pitching drum prodigy against master conductor
2. Frank – off the wall drama following wacky fictitious band The Soronprfbs
3. Mr Turner – Mike Leigh’s masterpiece sees Timothy Spall capture the last decades of the great artist
4. Nightcrawler – neo-noir crime thriller which explores the antics of crime reporter and sociopath, Lou Bloom
5. Gone Girl – Fincher adapts Gillian Flynn’s creepy  bestseller with aplomb
6. The Grand Budapest Hotel – escapade comedy from the amazing mind of Wes Anderson
7. Edge of Tomorrow – Doug Liman adapts Japanese sci-fi to create the best blockbuster of the year
8. The Guest – crime thriller with nostalgic sounds, kick-ass one-liners and a twisty plot
9. A  Most Wanted Man – Hamburg-set spy thriller complete with labyrinthine plot and slow-burn chills
10. Interstellar – Nolan delivers another unique blockbuster, delving into quantum physics and future survival
11. Calvary – whodunnit religious crime drama from the team who brought us The Guard
12. The Imitation Game – another Cumberbatch performance, another British classic
13. The Babadook – Australian horror which showcases some terrifying imagery and genuine scares
14. Leviathan – Russian masterpiece which sees one man go up against the establishment

TV

1. The Honourable Woman (BBC Two; Hugo Blick)
2. Fargo (FX; Noah Hawley)
3. Utopia 2 (Channel 4; Dennis Kelly)
4. True Detective (HBO; Nic Pizzolatto
5. The Walking Dead 4 (AMC; Frank Darabont)
6. Line of Duty 2 (BBC Two; Jed Mercurio)
7. Happy Valley  (BBC One; Sally Wainwright
8. Sherlock 3 (BBC One; Steven Moffat, Mark Gatiss)
9. Hannibal 2 (NBC; Bryan Fuller)
10. The Missing (BBC One; Harry & Jack Williams)
11. Game of Thrones 4 (HBO; David Benioff, D.B. Weiss)
12. The Fall 2 (BBC Two; Allan Cubitt)
13. Homeland 4 (Showtime; Howard Gordon, Alex Gansa)
14. Suspects (Channel 5; Darren Fairhurst, Steve Hughes)