Emmy Awards - The Morning After

Last night's Emmy telecast was easily one of the best I'd ever seen. Having Neil Patrick Harris host was a brilliant move on CBS's part, and I think we can assume the next time the network gets the ceremony, NPH will be back as emcee. Whoever hosts next year's ceremony on NBC (most likely their go-to guy Conan O'Brien) has some pretty big shoes to fill. I loved the Dr Horrible bit, with NPH and Nathan Fillion in character. Fillion is entertaining on Castle, but the procedural doesn't fully utilize his charisma and comedic talents. He needs his own half-hour comedy series, preferable on HBO. I enjoyed the presentations by Ricky Gervais (as usual) and Jimmy Fallon (surprisingly). I also loved the fact the Music and Lyrics category was moved to the Primetime Emmys, so the overexposed Justin Timberlake could except an award live, but he lost to the team who wrote Hugh Jackman's opening Oscar number.

While the show itself was great, the actual award winners were all over the place. The night started off with a great win for Supporting Actress in a Comedy, the always adorable Kristin Chenoweth from Pushing Daisies, but any happiness from that win was stripped away once the Supporting Actor in a Comedy trophy went to Jon Cryer. I had predicted a win for him, but mainly as a joke about how bad the Emmys can sometimes be. They proved me right. What is it about NPH that stops them from giving him the prize? I was happy Lost's Emerson picked up the prize for Supporting Actor in a Drama, though my own pick would have been Aaron Paul, and while I love Glenn Close on Damages and Bryan Cranston on Breaking Bad, I kind of wish they hadn't repeated their wins from last year. The same goes for Alec Baldwin and his Best Actor in a Comedy win. Seriously, will Carrell ever get the award. The big prizes for Comedy and Drama Series went to deserving winners 30 Rock and Mad Men. I was worried Mad Men would lose, as it had only picked up one trophy at the Creative Arts Emmys, for hairstyling, and only one other Emmy last night for writing. I thought there could have been a backlash against so much attention being paid toward a cable television series. You know the networks are steamed about being shut out of most categories these last two years, but hey that's what happens when you fill you're schedules with a bunch of crime and medical procedurals.

"Shmemmys" Handed Out

Over the weekend, the Creative Arts Emmys, or the Shmemmys, were handed out at a ceremony hosted by Kathy Griffin. The awards show was taped and will air next weekend on the E! channel, so I do look forward to watching it. Sadly, Kathy did not win the prize for Best Reality Series, losing to A&E's Intervention. I suppose you can't win every year, unless you're named The Amazing Race, and last summer's season of My Life on the D-list wasn't the strongest, so its not too big of a loss. It will definitely provide her with a lot of fodder, and she'll most likely win again next year if she submits either the Prop 8 or Maggie's bucket list episode. In the other categories, Tina Fey deservably won for Best Guest Actress for her appearance as Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live, and Pushing Daisies was a big winner, taking home three trophies for Costumes, Make Up, and Art Direction. It's kind of ridiculous the show didn't recieve a nomination for Best Comedy Series. Mad Men, on the other hand, only picked up one trophy for Hairstyling, which makes me worry it doesn't have enough support to win Best Drama Series next weekend. Though really, the Emmy awards often make very little sense.

Tony Awards - The Morning After

I know it's really mean, but I'm still chuckling over Brett Michaels almost being decapitated. The show has a whole was gaffe prone - mics not working, odd edits, mixing up actresses. Get it together people. Anyway, the acting veterans kept it alive - Liza, Lansbury, Rush, Langella (the funniest part of the night), as well as Neil Patrick Harris, though I thought he should have sang at the beginning of the show, rather than over the closing credits. Also, question for Broadway/Hollywood - Christopher Sieber can sing his ass off and is quite easy on the eyes, so why is he stuck playing Lord Farquad in Shrek the Musical? Some things I just don't get.

Sunday Blessings - Neil Patrick Harris

In honor of tonight's telecast of the Tony Awards, this week's Sunday Blessings is devoted to this year's host, Neil Patrick Harris. Who would have thought, nearly twenty years ago, the kid from Doogie Howser M.D. would have grown into a hot gay guy? Not I. Since the days of Doogie, Neil has appeared in a number of Broadway shows- Proof, Cabaret, Assassins - so presiding over the Tony showcase won't be much of stretch, and if you saw the TV Land Awards last month, you realize the man can make for an entertaining host. Let's just hope the show as a whole is entertaining, and Shrek the Musical doesn't come away with prizes, but I'm guessing with all the fanaticism towards it, Billy Elliot will be the big winner of the night. I just wish Broadway could create original works, rather than adapting movies into stage shows. Anyway back to Mr. Neil Patrick Harris... he's adorable (I love that he's a magician as well) and his boyfriend/partner, stage actor David Burtka is equally adorable. They're just one big, adorable couple. Oh, also Neil's funny-as-hell on How I Met Your Mother, so he better win an Emmy this year. I really don't believe Jeremy Piven needs a fourth trophy. Amen.

TCA Nominations - Still Sexist

The Television Critics Association announced their nominations this week, and considering they are a critics group, you would think their nominations would be better than the Emmys. Well, that's not really the case. Some of their nods are confusing - Battlestar Galactica and Saturday Night Live gets nods for Program of the Year but not Drama and Comedy nods. They give nominations to the big network hits - The Mentalist get a nod for New Program of the Year. The most annoying aspect about the TCA, however, is they don't seperate their performance categories into Actress and Actor, leading to a lack of recognition for women year after year. Out of the ten performance nominations this year, only two are for women - Glenn Close for Damages and Tina Fey for 30 Rock. There is a definite sexist aspect to it, as television critics, who are mostly men, only seem to believe male roles are worthy of accolades, even the two women who are nominated, Glenn and Tina, have rather masculine roles in their respective series. The fact they'd give Hugh Laurie another nod for House, over the superior work of Marcia Gay Harden in Damages, Mary McDonnell in Battlestar Galactica, Elizabeth Moss and January Jones in Mad Men, or Jill Scott in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, is downright irritating.

The Noms:

Program of the Year:
Battlestar Galactica
Lost
Mad Men
Saturday Night Live
The Shield

Outstanding Achievement in Comedy:
30 Rock
The Big Bang Theory
The Daily Show
How I Met Your Mother
The Office

Outstanding Achievement in Drama:
Breaking Bad
Friday Night Lights
Lost
Mad Men
The Shield

Outstanding Achievement in Movies, Mini-Series, Specials:
2008 Summer Olympic Coverage
24: Redemption
Generation Kill
Grey Gardens
Taking Chance

New Program of the Year:
Fringe
The Mentalist
No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency
True Blood
United States of Tara

Individual Achievement in Comedy:
Alec Baldwin
Steve Carell
Tina Fey
Neil Patrick Harris
Jim Parsons

Individual Achievement in Drama:
Glenn Close
Bryan Cranston
Walton Goggins
Jon Hamm
Hugh Laurie

Outstanding Achievement in News & Information:
60 Minutes
The Alzheimers Project
Frontline
The Rachel Maddow Show
We Shall Remain

It's Been One Week..

I haven't posted since before last Sunday's Oscar ceremony. Sorry. Marisa Tomei's gorgeous dress caught my attention, preventing me from accomplishing any tasks for a week. It's true! Well, not really. Anyway what did I think about the show? I liked it, aside from the Slumdog Millionaire sweep. I find sweeps in general boring - a movie cannot be the best in every category. Hugh Jackman was splendid as the host. Hopefully he'll be brought back nexy year. I enjoyed the storyline of the awards, showing the process of filmmaking from script to post-production, and I really liked the acting presentations, bringing out former winners in the category to present the current nominees. Best of the bunch was Shirley MacLaine discussing Anne Hathaway They should bring that part back again, but maybe shorten each of the introductions and include clips of the films. Just an idea.

Predictions for Tonight's Oscars

The Oscars finally come on tonight, and I should be a lot more excited than I am. I guess it's the expectation of the inevitable Slumdog steamroll. There has to be something exciting about it tonight - maybe Hugh Jackman's hosting. He better be singing and dancing up a storm. I know it would never happen, but I think he should also host part of the show shirtless. Ratings boost!
So, anyway, here's how I'm predicting the night might go:

Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
Director: Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire
Actor: Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon
Actress: Kate Winslet - The Reader
Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
Supporting Actress: Viola Davis - Doubt
Adapted Screenplay: Simon Beaufoy - Slumdog Millionaire
Original Screenplay: Dustin Lance Black - Milk
Cinematography: Anthony Dod Mantle - Slumdog Millionaire
Film Editing: Chris Dickens - Slumdog Millionaire
Art Direction: Donald Graham Burt & Victor J. Zolfo - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Costume Design: Michael O'Connor - The Duchess
Makeup: Greg Cannom - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Original Score: A.R. Rahman - Slumdog Millionaire
Original Song: "Down to Earth" - WALL-E
Sound Mixing: Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke, Resul Pookutty - Slumdog Millionaire
Sound Editing: Richard King - The Dark Knight
Visual Effects: Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton, Craig Barron - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Foreign Language Film: The Class (France)
Animated Feature: WALL-E
Animated Short: Presto
Documentary Feature: Man on Wire
Documentary Short: Smile Pinki
Live Action Short: Spielzeugland (Toyland)

Indie Spirit Winners

I did pretty well in my predictions. I was surprised my the Best Director win for The Visitor. Tom McCarthy is actually kind of adorable, so I wish he would just shave off that god-awful beard. It's not doing anything for him! Also, I knew I should have predicted Penelope Cruz for Supporting Actress, but I thought they wouldn't give her the prize, seeing as she has a decent chance at the Oscars, and they would want to award DeWitt, since she seems to have been forgotten all awards season. I was wrong. Poor Rachel Getting Married. Even the Indie Spirit Awards don't want to go near it. What is it, radioactive?

The Winners:

Feature: The Wrestler
Female Lead: Melissa Leo - Frozen River
Male Lead: Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler
Supporting Female: Penelope Cruz - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Supporting Male: James Franco - Milk
Director: Thomas McCarthy - The Visitor
Screenplay: Woody Allen - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
First Screenplay: Dustin Lance Black - Milk
Cinematography: The Wrestler
First Feature: Synecdoche, New York
Foreign Film: The Class
Documentary: Man on Wire

Independent Spirit Award Predictions

The Independent Spirit Awards are being held tonight, so I thought I'd have a go at trying to pick the winners. Usually the Spirits are awarded to the bigger stars/celebrities, and to films and performances that are also nominated for an Oscar. It's as if the voting body decides, "well the Academy probably won't give you the award tomorrow night, but we will!" Anyway here it goes:

Best Feature: The Wrestler
Best Director: Jonathan Demme - Rachel Getting Married
Best Male Lead: Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler
Best Female Lead: Melissa Leo - Frozen River
Best Supporting Male: James Franco - Milk
Best Supporting Female: Rosemarie Dewitt - Rachel Getting Married
Best Screenplay: Woody Allen - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Best First Feature: Synecdoche, New York
Best First Screenplay: Dustin Lance Black - Milk
Best Foreign Film: Gomorra
Best Documentary: Man on Wire
Best Cinematography: Harry Savides - Milk

BAFTA Winners

The Baftas were also held yesterday, and I completely forgot to watch the ceremony. I knew there was a big awards show this weekend, but I kept thinking it was just the Grammys. Not the case - dang it! Here are the winners:

Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
Director: Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire
Actor: Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler
Actress: Kate Winslet - The Reader
Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
Supporting Actress: Penelope Cruz - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Adapted Screenplay: Slumdog Millionaire
Original Screenplay: In Bruges
Cinematography: Slumdog Millionaire
Editing: Slumdog Millionaire
Production Design: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Costume Design: The Duchess
Make Up and Hair: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Score: Slumdog Millionaire
Sound: Slumdog Millionaire
Visual Effects: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Foreign Film: I've Loved You So Long
Animated Film: WALL-E
British Film: Man on Wire

I thought Slumdog Millionaire's momentum would have started to slow down. Guess not! At this rate, come Oscar time, it will probably sweep with at least eight trophys. That ceremony is going to be boring. Please Hugh Jackman salvage that show for us!

Grammys - The Morning After

Wow, that show was kind of pointless. They aren't even trying to be relevant or at least appear to be interested in current music. I mean bringing out Paul McCartney, Neil Diamond, and Smokey Robinson to sing there old classics, was kind of ridiculous. The Grammys were essentially saying, "Here, see this is the music we like, never mind about today's crap." Oy! It's okay if you want to celebrate the artists, but at least have them sing their current stuff. Neil Diamond's last album was his first to reach #1 on the Billboard album charts, and it received good to great reviews. Why not have him sing something from that? Anyway, I'm going to try to focus on the positive from last night's broadcasts. My five favorite performances from last:

1. Jay-Z, Kanye West, TI, Lil Wayne & (a very preggers) M.I.A - "Paper Planes" & "Swagga Like Us"
2. Radiohead - "15 Step"
3. Estelle & Kanye West - "American Boy"
4. Jennifer Hudson - "You Pulled Me Through"
5. Sugarland & Adele - "Stay" & "Chasing Pavement"

Grammy Awards Tonight...Eh

The Grammy Awards are tonight, and while the awards themselves usually suck, I'll still watch the ceremony to see the performances. M.I.A. better be performing, damn it! Here's a run though of a few categories - who I think will win, and who I think should win.

Record of the Year:
"Bleeding Love" - Leona Lewis
"Chasing Pavements" - Adele
"Paper Planes" - M.I.A.
"Please Read the Letter" - Alison Krauss and Robert Plant
"Viva la Vida" - Coldplay

Should Win: "Paper Planes" - which will never happen in a million years! Also, where the hell is Estelle's "American Boys?" It should have been here!
Will Win: "Viva la Vida" - Coldplay's big win for the night

Album of the Year:
In Rainbows - Radiohead
Raising Sand - Robert Plant and Alison Krauss
Tha Carter III - Lil Wayne
Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends - Coldplay
Year of the Gentleman - Ne-Yo

Should Win: Umm? Actually I haven't heard any of these, but I'll say Radiohead, because, well...it's Radiohead
Will Win: Raising Sand - it's the Steely Dan Rule. If an older artist, who has never previously won Album of the Year, gets a nod, they automatically win.

Song of the Year:
"American Boy" - Estelle and Kanye West
"Chasing Pavements" - Adele
"I'm Yours" - Jason Mraz
"Love Song" - Sara Bareilles
"Viva la Vida" - Coldplay

Should Win: "America Boy" - duh
Will Win: "Viva la Vida" - throw another one to Coldplay

Best New Artist:
Adele
Duffy
Jonas Brothers
Lady Antebellum
Jazmine Sullivan

Should Win: Adele - she seems like she'll thrive longer than Duffy
Will Win: Yeesh tough call. Adele seems like the obvious choice, but this is the Grammys, so I'll go out on a limb and guess Lady Antebellum

Best Female Pop Vocal Performance:
"Bleeding Love" - Leona Lewis
"Chasing Pavements" - Adele
"I Kissed a Girl" - Katy Perry
"Love Song" - Sara Bareilles
"Mercy" - Duffy
"So What" - Pink

Should Win: Adele, Duffy, and Pink are all worthy, but based soley on vocal performance, I'll go with "Chasing Pavements," though it's not the best song
Will Win: "Bleeding Love" - the worst on the list

DGA Award... Well, Duh

Over the weekend the Directors Guild of America gave their award to Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire. Another trophy for the Slumdog. God, this awards season is boring!

SAG Awards - "I Didn't Even Buy a Dress!"

Oh Meryl, you make everything more entertaining! By far the best thing about last night's Screen Actors Guild Awards was Meryl Streep's acceptance speech. Wit, sarcasm, over-the-top enthusiasm - it was all there. I particularly loved her shout out to co-star Viola Davis. "My God, would someone giver he a movie!" You gotta love Streep. The rest of the winners were predictable Heath Ledger wins Supporting Actor, Kate Winslet wins Supporting Actress, and Sean Penn wins Lead Actor. The big award of the night, Best Ensemble, went to... Slumdog Millionaire? Really? Ok seriously, no one should refer to this movie as an underdog ever again. It's a giant awards juggernaut! It will win the Oscar for Best Picture and probably have a decent sized sweep of the other categories. This awards season has become quite boring. Although I suppose the acting categories still have some excitement. With Kate Winslet out of the picture, who will win Supporting Actress? I really could see either Davis, Cruz, or Tomei winning the prize. Will they give the Best Actress to Winslet, or will Streep be the upset? Is Best Actor going to Rourke or Penn, or as I think Langella? Supporting Actor is the one acting category that seems like a complete lock, with Ledger winning, but if there's one awards group that would snub his performance, it's the Academy. If that happens, I'll feel really bad for the actor who does win it.

BAFTA Noms...Excuse Me While I Puke

The BAFTA noms came out today and eh......ahhhhhhhhhhh......ehhhh? Slumdog Millionaire is everwhere with 11 nods, even in the acting categories, which every agrees is not their best asset. It was as if collectively the group went, "I love this movie so let me nominate it for everything, so everyone knows I love it! I LOVE SLUMDOG! YEAH!!!" Happy-Go-Lucky was completely snubbed. No Eddie Marsan, no Mike Leigh, no Sally Hawkins. You're a British film group, shouldn't you be honoring the best of British cinema. Happy was a respected film by a highly regarded British auteur and features what many consider to be one of the best performances of the year, and you completely ignore it. Mamma Mia! got an Outstanding British Film nomination over Happy-Go-Lucky! How? That movie was bad! AHHHHHH!
I'm done. Here are the noms:

Best Film:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire

Outstanding British Film:
Hunger
In Bruges
Mamma Mia!
Man on Wire
Slumdog Millionaire

Director:
Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire

Stephen Daldry - The Reader

Clint Eastwood - Changeling
David Fincher - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard - Frost/Nixon

Original Screenplay:
Burn After Reading
Changeling
I've Loved You So Long
In Bruges
Milk

Adapted Screenplay:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
The Reader
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

Leading Actor:
Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon
Dev Patel - Slumdog Millionaire
Sean Penn - Milk
Brad Pitt - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler

Leading Actress:
Angelina Jolie - Changeling
Kristin Scott Thomas - I've Loved You So Long
Meryl Streep - Doubt
Kate Winslet - The Reader
Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road

Supporting Actor:
Robert Downey Jr. - Tropic Thunder
Brendan Gleeson - In Bruges
Philip Seymour Hoffman - Doubt
Heath Ledger - The Dark Kngith
Brad Pitt - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Supporting Actress:
Amy Adams - Doubt
Penelope Cruz - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Freida Pinto - Slumdog Millionaire
Tilda Swinton - Burn After Reading
Marisa Tomei - The Wrestler

Music:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Mamma Mia!
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL-E

Cinematography:
Changeling
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire

Editing:
Changeling
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Frost/Nixon
In Bruges
Slumdog Millionaire

Production Design:
Changeling
The Curious Case of benjamin Button
The Dark Kngith
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

Costume Design:
Changeling
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Duchess
Revolutionary Road

Sound:
Changeling
The Dark Kngith
Quantum of Solace
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL-E

Special Visual Effects:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls
Iron Man
Quantum of Solace

Make Up & Hair:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Duchess
Frost/Nixon
Milk

The Golden Globes

I did very well in my predictions, missing only the two lead actor categories. In Drama, I had predicted the award going to Sean Penn, but it went, in fact, to Mickey Rourke. I wasn't sure if the Hollywood Foreign Press would get behind him or just think the nomination was enough of a recognition. Rourke's acceptance speach was the best of the night, I believe, at least among the film winners. For a while there, I was worried that the TV stars were going to keep outdoing the movie stars, with their speaches. With regards to Actor in a Comedy/Musical, I highly doubt anyone predicted Colin Farrell. I had predcited Dustin Hoffman, since he's a respected actor, and they haven't awarded him in a while. My second guess would have been Bardem, because of continued love from last year and support of the Woody Allen film, and I thought Gleeson had a shot, since the group really liked the movie and he was a respected, British character actor. In no way did I think Farrell would win, even though a lot of people have been saying it's one of the best, if not the best, performaces he's ever given. I just thought that since he's no longer the it-boy, and it's too soon for a so-called "comeback," they would have passed him over, but I was wrong. I seriously need to In Bruges now. The other big shocker of the night was Kate Winslet winning both Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress. I'm guessing she's now a lock in both categories. A Supporting Actress Oscar nod for The Reader was pretty much expected, but the Best Actress nod for Revolutionary Road was kind of shaky. I'd now consider her the frontrunner for Supporting Actress, but Actress, on the other hand, is still completely up in the air. It's exciting. The Academy could surprise us, and throw us a shocker, by nominating her in Lead for The Reader, which would actually be the correct category placement. What would happen then? Also can everyone now accept that Slumdog Millionaire is now the frontrunner, and not the underdog. Seriously. Unless there's a huge shock, it's going to win Best Picture at the Oscars, so stop calling it an underdog!

The Winners:

Picture, Drama: Slumdog Millionaire

Picture, Comedy/Musical: Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Actor, Drama: Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler

Actor, Comedy/Musical: Colin Farrell - In Bruges

Actress, Drama: Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road

Actress, Comedy/Musical: Sally Hawkins - Happy-Go-Lucky

Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight

Supporting Actress: Kate Winslet - The Reader

Director: Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire

Screenplay: Slumdog Millionaire

Score: Slumdog Millionaire

Song: "The Wrestler" - The Wrestler

Foreign-language Film: Waltz with Bashir

Animated Film: WALL-E

P.S.: On a completely shallow note, can I just add something about Sting and Bruce Springsteen. For two men approaching sixty, they are damn hot. I'd still do either one of them, or both of them together. Now there's a fantasy!

Predicting the Globe Winners

The Golden Globes ceremony airs tomorrow night, and with its arrival, the awards season begins to become clearer. Which films have the necessary momentum to capture Oscar nods, and who are the frontrunners when it comes to the acting categories? Seriously! Who are the frontrunners? I mean, yeah, Heath Ledger is completely locked up for the Oscar in the Supporting Actor category, but the rest of the acting categories are still up in the air. So, here are my predicitons for tomorrow's ceremony.

Best Picture, Drama:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
The Reader
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

Prediction: Slumdog Millionaire. Its only real competition is Benjamin Button, but I think the Globes will want to award an international film and cheer on the "underdog." Slumdog will then steamroll its way to the eventual Oscar win, all the while being called the underdog.

Best Picture, Comedy/Musical:
Burn After Reading
Happy-Go-Lucky
In Bruges
Mamma Mia!
Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Prediction: Vicky Cristina Barcelona. The category is interesting this year, as none of the nominees have a chance at a Best Picture Oscar nod, which actually makes it more fun. I'm going with Vicky, because I'm sure the Hollywood Foreign Press would like to award Woody Allen, since it has been a while. However, I wouldn't be surprised if they awarded it to Mamma Mia!, even though the movie was crap.

Best Actor, Drama:
Leonard DiCaprio - Revolutionary Road
Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn - Milk
Brad Pitt - The Curious Case of Bejamin Button
Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler

Prediction: Sean Penn. He's in a biopic. He plays a homosexual. Cha-ching! Although, this was the only nomination the film got, so maybe there's not much support behind it. If Penn loses, expect Langella to pick it up. Afterall, he also plays a real life person, and one who is more famous than Harvey Milk. He just lacks the "brave" aspect of playing a homosexual.

Best Actress, Drama:
Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie - Changeling
Kristin Scott Thomas - I've Loved You So Long
Meryl Streep - Doubt
Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road

Predicitions: Eh...Meryl Streep? I'm ignoring all the online buzz about Hathaway having a star next to her name on the Globes' website, and going with Streep. I could just as easily see Winslet or Hathaway winning. The Best Actress category is so exciting this year. As of yet, no frontrunners have emerged. If Hathway does win this, I think she could take that title, since the Oscars do love their fresh young things in this category.

Best Actor, Comedy/Musical:
Javier Bardem - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Colin Farrell - In Bruges
Janes Franco - Pineapple Express
Brendan Gleeson - In Bruges
Dustin Hoffman - Last Chance Harvey

Predicitions: Dustin Hoffman. Like Best Picture, this category is fun, as none of the nominees have a real chance at an Oscar nod. I picked Hoffman by a process of elimination. No way are they awarding Pineapple Express an award. Gleeson isn't famous enough. Farrell is, well, Farell. So, that leaves Bardem and Hoffman. Hoffman has the long career, and Bardem was just awarded last year, therefore I'm giving it to Hoffman.

Best Actress, Comedy/Musical:
Rebecca Hall - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Sally Hawkins - Happy-Go-Lucky
Frances McDormand - Burn After Reading
Meryl Streep - Mamma Mia!
Emma Thompson - Last Chance Harvey

Predictions: Sally Hawkins. Hawkins is the only one with a real chance at an Oscar nod. She's also got all the critics behind her. Now if Streep doesn't win in the Drama category, I think she might win here. She is Meryl Streep and "she's singing and dancing to ABBA, oh my god, me and my friends use to do that, oh my god, she's having so much fun, oh my god, I'm having so much fun, oh my god, she was in Sophie's Choice, oh my god, I love her!"

Best Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
Best Supporting Actress: Kate Winslet - The Reader
Best Director: Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire
Best Screenplay: Slumdog Millionaire
Best Score: Slumdog Millionaire
Best Original Song: "The Wrestler" - The Wrestler
Best Foreign Film: Waltz with Bashir
Best Animated Film: WALL-E

A Slumdog Orgy: The BFCA Winners

The BFCA awards were on last night, and I tuned in and out. They're really a boring awards show. For all the criticism the Oscars get for their overlong ceremony and unnecessary tributes and performances, at least they're exciting. The only really excitement came with the Best Actress category, where there was a tie between Anne Hathaway and Meryl Streep. I wish Streep had actually been there, as you know she would have given a great speach about having tied with her former Devil Wears Prada co-star. Anne Hathaway probably gave the best speach of the night. You just felt so happy for her. As for the rest of the awards, the BFCA went gaga over Slumdog Millionaire, bestowing it five of its honors. Apparently that's their prediction for the Best Picture prize at the Oscars, since predicting Oscar noms and wins appears to be their only purpose. With all the noms and wins, can people now stop refering to Slumdog as the underdog and the little film that could. It's the frontrunner; it's an awards juggernaut. The only film that has a serious chance at beating it is The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Maybe The Dark Knight is an underdog for the prize, but I still doubt the Academy would go for a superhero film.

The Winners:
Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
Director: Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire
Actor: Sean Penn - Milk
Actress: Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married & Meryl Streep - Doubt (tie)
Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
Supporting Actress: Kate Winslet - The Reader
Screenplay: Slumdog Millionaire
Score: Slumdog Millionaire
Song: "The Wrestler" - The Wrestler
Ensemble: Milk
Younger Actor: Dev Patel - Slumdog Millionaire
Action Film: The Dark Knight
Comedy Film: Tropic Thunder
Animated Film: WALL-E
Foregin-language Film: Waltz with Bashir
Documentary: Man on Wire

PGA Nominations - YAWN!!!

So begins the onslaught of the guilds handing out their nominations, with the Producers Guild starting us off today. Their nominees are, well, lacking any sort of excitement. I mean really! It's the same five films being recognized everytime. I thought their might have been some excitement added to the race, with WALL-E getting a nod from the guild, or maybe a bigger surprise with Revolutionary Road, The Wrestler, or Happy-Go-Lucky getting mentioned. Nope. None of that. No excitement here. Expect the same five films to be nominated for the Directors Guild Award, at which point we can be almost certain of the Oscar Best Picture line up.

Nominees:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - Cean Chaffin, Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall
The Dark Knight - Christopher Nolan, Charles Roven, Emma Thomas
Frost/Nixon - Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Brian Grazer, Ron Howard
Milk - Bruce Cohen, Dan Jinks, Michael London
Slumdog Millionaire - Christian Colson, Paul Ritchie

SAG Nominations and Chicago Winners

Sometimes the Screen Actors Guild provides surprises on nomination day, but this year, not so much. There's the continued clusterf*** over Slumdog Millionaire, with two nominations for the film, Best Ensemble (really?) and Best Supporting Actor, Dev Patel (isn't he the lead?). The rest of the ensemble nominations are for films aiming for Best Picture Oscar nominations. Couldn't the guild member's think outside the box? Where's the surprise nomination? Where's this year's Hustle & Flow, The Station Agent, or 3:10 to Yuma? Just because you love a film and think its amazing, doesn't mean it has the best ensemble performance. There's always talk about the Oscars adding a Best Ensemble category, but I'm kind of glad that they don't, because you know if they did, it would be the same exact linup as the Best Picture category.

The Nominations:

Ensemble:
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Doubt
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire

Actor:
Richard Jenkins - The Visitor
Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn - Milk
Brad Pitt - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler

Actress:
Anne Hathway - Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie - Changeling
Melissa Leo - Frozen River
Meryl Streep - Doubt
Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road

Supporting Actor:
Josh Brolin - Milk
Robert Downey Jr. - Tropic Thunder
Phillip Seymour Hoffman - Doubt
Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
Dev Patel - Slumdog Millionaire

Supporting Actress:
Amy Adams - Doubt
Penelope Cruz - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis - Doubt
Taraji P. Henson - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Kate Winslet - The Reader


The Chicago Film Critics Association also handed out awards today. More Slumdog! Zzzzzzz... Their winners were:
Picture: WALL-E
Director: Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire
Actor: Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler
Actress: Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married
Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
Supporting Actress: Kate Winslet - The Reader
Original Screenplay: WALL-E
Adapted Screenplay: Slumdog Millionaire
Cinematography: The Dark Knight
Score: WALL-E