"The Man Dresses Up Like a Bat. Clearly He Has Issues."

I feel like Christopher Nolan could craft this into the plot for Inception 2, if he were ever to make one. In any case, this is a really fun interesting fan item.

Awards 2010: Cinema Audio Society (CAS) Nominations

I'm not much of a followers of the Sound Mixing and Sound Effects Editing awards, because it's a very technical sort of things that I don't entirely understand as of yet. As far as subtle arts go in films, they can either make or break a film. I'm not surprised that TRON Legacy didn't make the cut for the CAS, because the work felt rather odd and just didn't work with the rest of the film. The Social Network is certainly a surprise bid, and I don't think it'll carry on to the Oscars.

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing
"Black Swan"
"Inception"
"Shutter Island"
"The Social Network"
"True Grit"

Awards 2010: Art Director's Guild (ADG) Nominations

Amongst my favorite factors of film production, as well as the most vital, is art direction, so the technical categories are often as fascinating as the main races for me. The ADG doesn't give so much of an idea of what to expect from the Oscar nominations. It's more of a reminder of all the films in the race, and what to choose. My current predictions remain mostly in the Fantasy Film category with films like Inception and Alice in Wonderland, but I'll probably change that up a bit before the nominations are announced. Until then, take a look at these nominations.

Period Film
"Get Low"
"The King's Speech"
"Robin Hood"
"Shutter Island"
"True Grit"

Fantasy Film
"Alice in Wonderland"
"The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader"
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1"
"Inception"
"TRON Legacy"

Contemporary Film
"Black Swan"
"The Fighter"
"127 Hours"
"The Social Network"
"The Town"

A Case of Mistaken Identity: Best Male Performances of 2010

To tell you the truth, of all the best of the year segments that I've written, the next two were probably the most difficult. It's much harder to sit down and compare specific performances than it is to compare films, or even aspects of films. Each actor has their own style, and I completely appreciate that. There were some actors who did fantastic jobs this year, but they weren't the best. Geoffrey Rush gave a fantastic and hilarious performance as Lionel Logue in The King's Speech, and his chemistry with Colin Firth gave such a great dynamic for the duo to work off of. Also just barely edged off the list is Jeremy Renner, who chose to follow up his performance in The Hurt Locker with an unnerving turn as the loose cannon of the group in The Town, Jem.

There's also the fact that some films aren't really acting showcases, so you have to do a bit of digging in order to find the best of the group. Inception was one of those films, and even though I really liked the work Cillian Murphy, Ken Watanabe, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt did, Tom Hardy was the guy who won over me. His character of Eames is practically the man most important to making the act of Inception work, and that sarcastic charm of his doesn't hurt either. Even though it was a team effort, giving Watanabe, Gordon-Levitt, and Murphy all a chance to shine, it's worth noting that Tom Hardy is the man Christopher Nolan's carrying on into The Dark Knight Rises, where I hope he will do even better work.

Beyond The Supernatural: Best Cinematography of 2010

I always find myself worried that people no longer believe that more is more. These days, and this is applicable to all aspects of filmmaking, people seem to be sticking with the familiar, rather than trying something new or challenging. Every time I went to the movies this year, I asked myself if the cinematographer merely went with whatever worked, or searched until finding whatever shot worked best. More often than not, I was largely disappointed. However, I am pleased with how many films decided to push things. Shutter Island, Let Me in, and Black Swan had a lot of help from the striking and disturbing imagery they were told to frame, but they were breathtaking nonetheless. The cinematography that impressed me the most this year was a lot more natural, and didn't rely too much on visual symbols or supernatural elements to make its point.

3. Inception

Wally Pfister has worked with Christopher Nolan on all his films, and over the years they have definitely grown through this partnership in terms of honing their respective skills. Nolan and Pfister have peaked in quality, starting two years ago with The Dark Knight, and continuing now with Inception. It's unclear how long this peak will last, or if they could do even better. For the time being, I'm just enjoying what they're placing onscreen. For a film that's largely based in the world of dreams, Pfister keeps the cinematography firmly grounded in some sort of reality. The lensing of most scenes have an over-lit yellow or slight gray tint to them, and the dream world is lit much lighter than the real world, giving an eerie sense of seduction to extended dream sequence. It's ultimately effective, and occasionally iconic, from the perfect first shot of the relentless ocean, to the foreboding and mysterious final shot of the film.

2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1

If this series hasn't always been a critical or emotional darling, the aspect that has always prevailed in the Potter saga is the production department. I wouldn't be surprised if the latest installment got several nods in technical categories this year, most especially for the lensing of the film. David Yates has had a habit of choosing more skilled and textured cinematographers than the first four films, and Eduardo Serra definitely brings something unique to the table. A lot of what makes the cinematography of this latest film work is the landscapes that the trio (or duo) are staying at. It's a nice way of keeping track of where the characters are emotionally. From the unfamiliar woods, to the barren and desolate mountains, every location has some sort of link to what the characters are feeling at that moment, and Eduardo keeps the camera perfectly focused throughout. There's a balance between the safe distances and the odd shakes in the camera, and it's clear that so much work went into making each frame emotionally impactful.

1. True Grit

I was truly worried that my top pick in this category wouldn't make it into the cinematography category at all, and then True Grit came around the corner and changed everything. I thought that Roger Deakins' Oscar hype for his work here was a bit overblown until I saw it. I was captivated by the meticulous first shot, starting with a strange yellowish fade in, and then focusing into this wonderful portrait of a man lying dead as the snow fell upon him. This attention to detail and quality composition never once wavered for the rest of the film. There wasn't a moment in this film in which I felt that they could've chosen a better shot. The black outline of Tom Cheney riding away and escaping remains a powerful one, and even more powerful is the final shot that leads into the end credits. It's not truly symbolic of anything, but it's simply beautiful to look at. Roger Deakins deserves to win the Oscar for cinematography this year, because he has no equal in this race. This year, he is the best.

Awards 2010: San Diego Film Critics Association

Continuing the fun trend of critics breaking mold of what is expected is the San Diego film critics, who put a distinct voice forward. Rather than go with the unanimously agreed upon opinion of The Social Network, they instead decide to give Best Film to Winter's Bone. As a matter of fact, Winter's Bone took a number of the awards in this race. However, there was a wide variety of films being appreciated here. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World was rewarded for it's super-kinetic editing style, Shutter Island was observed for it's high production values, and even though I didn't shine to it, Never Let Me Go received attention for it's odd musical score.

Best Film: Winter's Bone
Best Director: Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan)
Best Actor: Colin Farrell (Ondine)
Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence (Winter's Bone)
Best Supporting Actor: John Hawkes (Winter's Bone)
Best Supporting Actress: Lesley Manville (Another Year)
Best Adapted Screenplay: The Social Network
Best Original Screenplay: Four Lions
Best Foreign Language Film: I Am Love
Best Documentary: Exit Through the Gift Shop
Best Animated Feature: Toy Story 3
Best Cinematography: Inception
Best Editing: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
Best Production Design: Shutter Island
Best Score: Never Let Me Go
Best Ensemble Performance: 44 Inch Chest

Oscar 2010: Semifinalists for Visual Effects

Well it looks like my outside guess that Toy Story 3 would make it into this category was as completely unfounded as all my other outside guesses. Maybe I'm just stupid, but I certainly hope not. This visual effects shortlist has been announced, and it includes a few unlikely choices like Shutter Island and Unstoppable. It would be interesting if Shutter Island ends up pulling out a surprise nomination for Best Picture, but it's unlikely at this point. My current guesses at what will be nominated are pretty clear. You can check them out at the Oscar Predictions page, and the semifinalists are listed below. Feel free to weigh in on your opinion, but you won't because nobody ever comments.

Alice in Wonderland
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
Clash of the Titans
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
Hereafter
Inception
Iron Man 2
The Last Airbender
Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
Scott Pilgrim vs the World
Shutter Island
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
Tron: Legacy
Unstoppable

Awards 2010: National Board of Review Honors "The Social Network"

The awards season is now off to an official start with the announcement of the winners in the eyes of the National Board of Review. We'll be getting plenty of surprising developments and changes as the weeks go by, so it's fine if we only have a few this time around. It's not that surprising that The Social Network took the top prize, given universal critical and commercial acclaim. It's going to be interesting looking at it and The King's Speech duke it out for attention over the next season. The biggest surprises came from the acting races, which decided to neglect the players for The King's Speech altogether, and went on to grant recognition to Jesse Eisenberg for The Social Network and Lesley Manville for Another Year. This all reminds us that the awards season is something of a wake-up call for all of us, and so a few things are going to be tossed out the window in favor of unlikely contenders. We won't really know the full meaning of any of these winners until we have more. For now though, we have a rather nice beginning. In the meantime, please let me know what you think of the winners and losers. I haven't heard from any of you for a while now, and I'm feeling a little neglected.

Best Film: The Social Network
Best Foreign Language Film: Of Gods and Men
Best Documentary: Waiting for "Superman"
Best Actor: Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network)
Best Actress: Lesley Manville (Another Year)
Best Supp. Actor: Christian Bale (The Fighter)
Best Supp. Actress: Jacki Weaver (Animal Kingdom)
Best Ensemble Cast: The Town
Best Breakthrough Performance: Jennifer Lawrence (Winter's Bone)
Best Director: David Fincher (The Social Network)
Debut Directors: Sebastian Junger and Tim Hetherington (Restrepo)
Best Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin (The Social Network)
Best Original Screenplay: Chris Sparling (Buried)
Best Animated Feature: Toy Story 3
Special Filmmaking Award: Sofia Coppola (Somewhere)
Production Design Award: Dante Ferretti (Shutter Island)

Ten Best Films:

Another Year
The Fighter
Hereafter
Inception
The King's Speech
Shutter Island
The Town
Toy Story 3
True Grit
Winter's Bone

Five Best Foreign Films:

I Am Love
Incendies
Above All
Soul Kitchen
White Material

Five Best Documentaries:

A Film Unfinished
Inside Job
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
Restrepo
The Tillman Story

Ten Best Independent Films:

Animal Kingdom
Buried
Fish Tank
The Ghost Writer
Greenberg
Let Me In
Monsters
Please Give
Somewhere
Youth in Revolt