Movie Man » And the nominees are…

And the nominees are…

January 22nd, 2008 at 08:42am Will Pfeifer

Javier Bardem nabbed a Best Supporting Actor nomination for his portrayal of cold-blooded killer Anton Chigurh in “No Country for Old Men.”

The blog is up and running (obviously) and the nominations are out. Let’s see who’s going to be fighting for one of those coveted naked gold guys. (Want to see more? There’s a complete list of nominees and categories at the official Oscar site, Oscar.com.)

BEST PICTURE: “Atonement,” “Juno,” “Michael Clayton,” “No Country for Old Men,” “There Will be Blood.”

BEST ACTOR: George Clooney (”Michael Clayton”), Daniel Day Lewis (”There Will Be Blood”), Johnny Depp (”Sweeney Todd”), Tommy Lee Jones (”In the Valley of Elah”) and Viggo Mortensen (”Eastern Promises”)

BEST ACTRESS: Cate Blanchett (”Elizabeth: The Golden Age”), Julie Christie (”Away From Her”), Marion Cotillard (”La Vie en Rose”), Laura Linney (”The Savages”) and Ellen Page (”Juno”)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Casey Affleck (”The Assassination of Jesse James Yada Yada Yada”), Javier Bardem (”No Country for Old Men”), Philip Seymour Hoffman (”Charlie Wilson’s War”), Hal Holbrook (”Into the Wild”) and Tom Wilkinson (”Michael Clayton”)

BEST DIRECTOR: Julian Schnabel (”The Diving Bell and the Butterfly”), Jason Reitman (”Juno), Tony Gilroy (”Michael Clayton”), Joel and Ethan Coen (”No Country for Old Men”) and Paul Thomas Anderson (”There Will Be Blood”)

Definitely a few surprises in there. I didn’t hear anyone predicting Viggo Mortensen for “Eastern Promises,” but I guess you can never underestimate the power of a nude fight scene. (Wonder if that’s the clip they’ll show during the ceremony?) Nice to see “No Country” and “There Will Be Blood” get nods for both Best Picture and Best Director. The Coens are definitely due for an Oscar after making some of the best movies of the past 20 years, but it’d be pretty exciting to see Paul Thomas Anderson, a young director who seems to embody that crazy energy of ’70s filmmkaing, get the gold. And by most accounts, “There Will Be Blood” is a singular achievement, one of those movies we’ll be talking about 50 years from now. I’ve liked all Anderson’s previous movies, from “Hard Eight” to “Punch Drunk Love,” and I’m dying to see “Blood.” Maybe now that it’s nominated, it’ll finally come to Rockford.

Any thoughts? The annual Beat the Movie Man contest kicks off Sunday, so start planning your picks now.

Entry Filed under: Oscars

10 Comments Add your own

1. Bob Schaper - Assistant Metro Editor | January 22nd, 2008 at 3:07 pm

Look, there isn’t anything scary about a killer who limps around town carrying a 50-pound air tank and a hose. Javier Bardem’s character is about as scary as Ghandi, only his haircut is worse.

At least Tommy Lee Jones didn’t get the nod for his overacting imitation of Garrison Keillor in a cowboy hat.
2. Will Pfeifer | January 22nd, 2008 at 3:17 pm

I’m well aware of your opposition to this fine, fine film, Bob. (For those who don’t know — and why would you? — Bob and I saw it with our wives opening weekend.) I still think it’s one of the year’s best, and think Bardem made a very memorable villain. So there.
3. Mack Lewis | January 22nd, 2008 at 3:17 pm

Heh. Tough room. Seems like a good batch of nominations this year. Nothing seems to scream out “What the—?” like we sometimes get.

I’m looking forward to reading your new blog, Will.
4. Will Pfeifer | January 22nd, 2008 at 4:17 pm

Thanks, Mack. No, I didn’t see any huge surprises either. My big disappointment — nothing for ZODIAC!
5. Denise Holzmeier | January 23rd, 2008 at 1:40 pm

Hi Will—-it’s the 2time Beat The Movie Man winner-Denise…..
I’ve moved to the Tri-Cities in the state of Washington and will
miss participating in this years Oscar ballot race. I wanted
“3:10 to Yuma” represented but alas no….I think this years top
5 films all are deserving……LOVED-”Juno”!!! I only hope we
have a telecast to enjoy this year. Thanks for the Rockford
memories of “Beating the Movie Man”-twice!!!
6. Eric Eiss | January 23rd, 2008 at 3:33 pm

I don’t know if I agree with your analysis Bob S. He was pretty intense and completely captivating. I do know that the Academy seem to be suckers for putting up nominees that are ‘ready’ for such an award due to their body of work. I have yet to see something Javier Bardem has been in that wasn’t quality.

So, do you think there is any logic to the ‘alter-ego’ theory in NCFOM? I must say a ‘literal’ translation would be hard to prove, but it certainly makes for some very interesting thought-provoking conversation.
7. Will Pfeifer | January 23rd, 2008 at 8:08 pm

Denise — good to hear from you! I’m a bit relieved — maybe I’ve got a chance to win this year! Actually, if you want to play, you still can via the magic of the Web …and even if you don;t, I’d like to hear your picks. Good luck in Washington.

Eric — I suppose there’s a bit of logic, but like all those crazy film theories that analyse what might be lurking just below the surface, it’s all up to the viewer’s interpretation. Still, it’s an intriguing theory. (The theory, as I understand it, is that Bell and Chigurh are two sides of the same coin — heh heh — Bell is the man who is supposed to dispense justice, but Chigurh is the one who actually does … which is one reason Bell seems so ineffective and frightened at the end of the movie.)
8. Bob Schaper - Asst. Metro Editor | January 23rd, 2008 at 8:25 pm

No, no, no. The reason Tommy Lee Jones is “ineffective and frightened” is because he’s OLD. Get it? This is no country for OLD men. Simple as that.

As I’ve said before, NCFOM is a routine murder-suspense film, a sort of Fargo South that doesn’t quite work.

I had the same problem with Silence of the Lambs, which was NOT Oscar worthy.
9. Will Pfeifer | January 24th, 2008 at 5:12 pm

As for SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, it was arguably the best of a mixed bag that year. Personally, out of the nominees, I would’ve picked Oliver Stone’s JFK. The others were BUGSY (pretty good), BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (OK, but nothing compared with what Disney would release over the next few years) and PRINCE OF TIDES (awful awful awful).
10. Marcy Sylvester | January 24th, 2008 at 9:12 pm

I enjoyed reading your blog…always good to have a place to talk about movies with people that seem to actually like them. I recently saw Juno and was amazed at how funny it was. I felt it was this year’s Little Miss Sunshine - funny with very interesting characters. I know I will never look at Sunny D the same way. I know it won’t win the Oscar but it is my pick as it is quite an interesting movie that made me laugh and cry…and actually think. Oh, and PS….I want a hamburger phone too!