AWARDS 2011: Gotham Award Nominations favors "Descendants"

The awards season has finally gotten rolling with the Gotham Independent Film Awards' nomination announcement. Despite my malign of the predictions period, I really do enjoy the awards circuit, seeing what films make the cut, and what films don't. These nominees are the perfect example of such, with "The Descendants" starting its likely undeserving awards run by picking up three nominations here. "Beginners" and "Take Shelter" both doubled up in the Best Feature and Ensemble.

However, the two most surprising developments came from the Best Feature race. Mainly "Martha Marcy May Marlene" being an odd omission and "Meek's Cutoff" instead sneaking in there. Not sure I could have called that. And "The Tree of Life" got in there, but it's a slow start to what could be an extremely fortunate awards run. Glad we're finally starting things off, if a bit slowly. Excited to see what's next.

BEST FEATURE

• "Beginners"
• "The Descendants"
• "Meek's Cutoff"
• "Take Shelter"
• "The Tree of Life"

BEST DOCUMENTARY

• "Better This World"
• "Bill Cunningham New York"
• "Hell and Back Again"
• "The Interrupters"
• "The Woodsmans"

BEST ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCE

• "Beginners"
• "The Descendants"
• "Margin Call"
• "Martha Marcy May Marlene"
• "Take Shelter"

BREAKTHROUGH DIRECTOR

• Mike Cahill ("Another Earth")
• Sean Durkin ("Martha Marcy May Marlene")
• Vera Farmiga ("Higher Ground")
• Evan Glodell ("Bellflower")
• Dee Rees ("Pariah")

BREAKTHROUGH ACTOR

• Felicity Jones ("Like Crazy")
• Elizabeth Olsen ("Martha Marcy May Marlene")
• Harmony Santana ("Gun Hill Road")
• Shailene Woodley ("The Descendants")
• Jacob Wysocki ("Terri")

BEST FILM NOT PLAYING NEAR YOU

• "Codependent Lesbian Space Alien Seeks Same"
• "Green"
• "The Redemption of General Butt Naked"
• "Scenes of a Crime"
• "Without"