BAFTA 2012 Nominations Announced

 

This morning's BAFTA press release has now arrived the final nominations have been announced. Unsurprisingly it is The Artist in the lead with 12 nominations, closely followed by Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy with 11. Martin Scorcese film Hugo has nine nominations, My Week with Marilyn has six and The Help and War Horse each have five.

Sadly Best Actress longlist nominee Olivia Colman has not made the final cut but first-time Director Paddy Considine has been nominated in the OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER category alongside Ralph Fiennes, Joe Cornish and Richard Ayoade. King of the award season so far, George Clooney, has some serious competition in the Best Actor category against Gary Oldman, Jean Dujardin and Michael Fassbender. And who will win the Best Actress category is anyone's guess with the final nominations including Bérénice Bejo, Meryl Streep, Michelle Williams, Tilda Swinton and Viola Davis.

Here are the nominations in full:

BEST FILM

THE ARTIST Thomas Langmann
THE DESCENDANTS Jim Burke, Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor
DRIVE Marc Platt, Adam Siegel
THE HELP Brunson Green, Chris Columbus, Michael Barnathan
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Robyn Slovo

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM

MY WEEK WITH MARILYN Simon Curtis, David Parfitt, Harvey Weinstein, Adrian Hodges
SENNA Asif Kapadia, James Gay-Rees, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Manish Pandey
SHAME Steve McQueen, Iain Canning, Emile Sherman, Abi Morgan
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Tomas Alfredson, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Robyn
Slovo, Bridget O'Connor, Peter Straughan
WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN Lynne Ramsay, Luc Roeg, Jennifer Fox, Robert Salerno,
Rory Stewart Kinnear

OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER

ATTACK THE BLOCK Joe Cornish (Director/Writer)
BLACK POND Will Sharpe (Director/Writer), Tom Kingsley (Director), Sarah Brocklehurst (Producer)
CORIOLANUS Ralph Fiennes (Director)
SUBMARINE Richard Ayoade (Director/Writer)
TYRANNOSAUR Paddy Considine (Director), Diarmid Scrimshaw (Producer)

FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE

INCENDIES Denis Villeneuve, Luc Déry, Kim McGraw
PINA Wim Wenders, Gian-Piero Ringel
POTICHE François Ozon, Eric Altmayer, Nicolas Altmayer
A SEPARATION Asghar Farhadi
THE SKIN I LIVE IN Pedro Almodóvar, Agustin Almodóvar

DOCUMENTARY

GEORGE HARRISON: LIVING IN THE MATERIAL WORLD Martin Scorsese
PROJECT NIM James Marsh, Simon Chinn
SENNA Asif Kapadia

ANIMATED FILM

THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN Steven Spielberg
ARTHUR CHRISTMAS Sarah Smith
RANGO Gore Verbinski

DIRECTOR

THE ARTIST Michel Hazanavicius
DRIVE Nicolas Winding Refn
HUGO Martin Scorsese
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Tomas Alfredson
WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN Lynne Ramsay

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

THE ARTIST Michel Hazanavicius
BRIDESMAIDS Annie Mumolo, Kristen Wiig
THE GUARD John Michael McDonagh
THE IRON LADY Abi Morgan
MIDNIGHT IN PARIS Woody Allen

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

THE DESCENDANTS Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash
THE HELP Tate Taylor
THE IDES OF MARCH George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon
MONEYBALL Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Bridget O'Connor, Peter Straughan

LEADING ACTOR

BRAD PITT Moneyball
GARY OLDMAN Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
GEORGE CLOONEY The Descendants
JEAN DUJARDIN The Artist
MICHAEL FASSBENDER Shame

LEADING ACTRESS

BÉRÉNICE BEJO The Artist
MERYL STREEP The Iron Lady
MICHELLE WILLIAMS My Week with Marilyn
TILDA SWINTON We Need to Talk About Kevin
VIOLA DAVIS The Help

SUPPORTING ACTOR

CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER Beginners
JIM BROADBENT The Iron Lady
JONAH HILL Moneyball
KENNETH BRANAGH My Week with Marilyn
PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN The Ides of March

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

CAREY MULLIGAN Drive
JESSICA CHASTAIN The Help
JUDI DENCH My Week with Marilyn
MELISSA MCCARTHY Bridesmaids
OCTAVIA SPENCER The Help

ORIGINAL MUSIC

THE ARTIST Ludovic Bource
THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross
HUGO Howard Shore
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Alberto Iglesias
WAR HORSE John Williams

CINEMATOGRAPHY

THE ARTIST Guillaume Schiffman
THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO Jeff Cronenweth
HUGO Robert Richardson
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Hoyte van Hoytema
WAR HORSE Janusz Kaminski

EDITING

THE ARTIST Anne-Sophie Bion, Michel Hazanavicius
DRIVE Mat Newman
HUGO Thelma Schoonmaker
SENNA Gregers Sall, Chris King
TINKER TAILOR SOLIDER SPY Dino Jonsater

PRODUCTION DESIGN

THE ARTIST Laurence Bennett, Robert Gould
HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 2 Stuart Craig, Stephenie McMillan
HUGO Dante Ferretti, Francesca Lo Schiavo
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Maria Djurkovic, Tatiana MacDonald
WAR HORSE Rick Carter, Lee Sandales

COSTUME DESIGN

THE ARTIST Mark Bridges
HUGO Sandy Powell
JANE EYRE Michael O'Connor
MY WEEK WITH MARILYN Jill Taylor
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY Jacqueline Durran

MAKE UP & HAIR

THE ARTIST Julie Hewett, Cydney Cornell
HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 2 Amanda Knight, Lisa Tomblin
HUGO Morag Ross, Jan Archibald
THE IRON LADY Marese Langan
MY WEEK WITH MARILYN Jenny Shircore

SOUND

THE ARTIST Nadine Muse, Gérard Lamps, Michael Krikorian
HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 2 James Mather, Stuart Wilson, Stuart Hilliker, Mike Dowson, Adam Scrivener
HUGO Philip Stockton, Eugene Gearty, Tom Fleischman, John Midgley
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY John Casali, Howard Bargroff, Doug Cooper, Stephen Griffiths, Andy Shelley
WAR HORSE Stuart Wilson, Gary Rydstrom, Andy Nelson, Tom Johnson, Richard Hymns

SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS

THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN Joe Letteri
HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 2 Tim Burke, John Richardson, Greg Butler, David Vickery
HUGO Rob Legato, Ben Grossman, Joss Williams
RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES Joe Letteri, Dan Lemmon, R. Christopher White
WAR HORSE Ben Morris, Neil Corbould

SHORT ANIMATION

ABUELAS Afarin Eghbal, Kasia Malipan, Francesca Gardiner
BOBBY YEAH Robert Morgan
A MORNING STROLL Grant Orchard, Sue Goffe

SHORT FILM

CHALK Martina Amati, Gavin Emerson, James Bolton, Ilaria Bernardini
MWANSA THE GREAT Rungano Nyoni, Gabriel Gauchet
ONLY SOUND REMAINS Arash Ashtiani, Anshu Poddar
PITCH BLACK HEIST John Maclean, Gerardine O'Flynn
TWO AND TWO Babak Anvari, Kit Fraser, Gavin Cullen

THE ORANGE WEDNESDAYS RISING STAR AWARD (voted for by the public)

ADAM DEACON
CHRIS HEMSWORTH
CHRIS O'DOWD
EDDIE REDMAYNE
TOM HIDDLESTON

Harry Potter: The Order of the Phoenix - Film vs. Book

When The Goblet of Fire ended, readers were horrified to witness the return of Lord Voldermort. But in The Order of the Phoenix, we learn that not everyone is convinced Harry Potter does not tell lies. The Minister of Magic is convinced that it is all a fabricated plot by Dumbledore to take over the Ministry and Harry Potter is his pawn. But there is a prophecy about the boy who lived and Harry wants answers. But Voldermort is after the same thing and it's a race to see who will get there first.


Harry's cousin Dudley this time falls foul of a couple of rogue dementors as the two of them are near the house and Harry is forced to break the underage wizarding law and use magic to get rid of them to save not just himself but also his cousin (who in this book has turned into a bit of a rude boy and started picking on ten year olds bless). Harry's patronus does not go unnoticed of course and he is called up for his illegal act by the ministry who are convinced that this was not a self defence act but an act in support of Dumbledore.


In an attempt to keep a watchful eye over Hogwarts, the Ministry have sent over Dolores Umbridge to teach the Defence Against the Dark Arts class. But when it comes to lesson plans, Umbridge believes in the theory, not the practice of dark magic and has the class writing passage after passage. Though this of course does not sit well with those students who believe Voldemort has returned, it seems to always be Harry who has something to say and is punished for his disobedience using a nasty spell by the eerily polite yet totally evil teacher. Clearly she doesn't mind using dark magic, it's just teaching it she has issues with.


The most fun happens when Hermione takes charge (as Hermione always does) and organises an elite group of classmates who want to learn the practical side of defence under the tutelage of Harry himself. And then suddenly Neville shines, Cho and Harry get closer to their infamous first kiss and the group really start to form their own little private army ready to face Voldermort and the deatheaters. There's real fun and humour thanks to the new lesson and seeing Hermione realise that sometimes it's worth going against the rules is just delightfully naughty.


The Order of the Phoenix has one of my favourite endings (surpassed only by the ultimate Deathly Hallows ending) as the mini army of Harry and his friends face the deatheaters. The Order itself, comprised of the Weasleys, Lupin, Sirius, Snape and more new faces join in and a massive fight ensues.


This was the first book I have ever read where I was so shocked, so totally stunned by an event, that I actually turned the page back for fear I had misread it. Sadly, I had read it correctly.

In the film version, Imelda Staunton was beautifully cast as Dolores Umbridge. She has such a cute and cuddly persona and encapsulates the cat loving, pink cardigan wearing Umbridge beautifully while managing to show real menace behind her perfect smile. The film also saw the deatheaters start having things to say. So far we have only really seen Lucius Malfoy as a character but suddenly we are learning more about some of the others. Helena Bonham Carter was born to play Bellatrix Lestrange. Nobody else could possibly be that manic and silly and still scare you to your very core! Voldermort finally gets some real screen time himself and shines as Ralph Fiennes takes on the role of he-who-shall-not-be-named so creepily.


The real downside to the film is that massive amounts of the book got lost in the conversion. The big build up to the finale and the fight itself was trimmed down to its bare essentials, losing the suspense needed to make the end so jaw-dropping. It all just came off a bit rushed and panicked.

Favourite Quote:

Ron: Hermione, you are honestly the most wonderful person I have ever met. If I'm ever rude to you...

Hermione: I'll know you've gone back to normal.

The effects are cool, though, and there's more spells and wizadry to enjoy throughout. The three main actors have really come into their own now and have both the comic timing and serious drama down. More importantly though, they are able to lead the ever-growing ensemble cast. It's really become a team effort in Order of the Phoenix and everyone is holding their own.


All in all, nobody was ever going to get all the subtleties and character development of such a chunky and intricate book into a 2 hour film but they gave it a pretty good bash.

Harry Potter 6: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

DVD: Eat Pray Love, The Social Network, In Bruges and RED

Eat Pray Love

This film is sentimental. If you hate sentimental films do not watch it! If you think you can stand one woman's search to 'find herself' then give this film a look. I haven't read the book so cannot comment but the film was actually lovely. It's not overly sentimental just honest as a recently divorced (by her own doing I might add) Liz decides that life without feeling is useless and embarks on a year abroad to learn once more how to get back her appetite - for food and feelings.

The scenery is INCREDIBLE! (Possibly helped by the fact that I have just got back from Rome myself) and her journey is plausible - helped by the fact its based on a memoir not a book of fiction. The people she meets along the way are quirky and brilliant in their own ways and each have a part to play. The yummy Javier Bardiem is as fab as always.

This film is great for its story, characters and scenery and is not just for those post break-up looking for inspiration but for anyone who has looked at their life and just thought - there's got to be more than this.

Not worth it on the big screen but good on DVD.

LE xx


Social Network

Funny moments - when Eduardo's crazy girlfriend doesn't understand why he hasn't responded to her 47 messages and then sets fire to his room, the opening conversation which starts it all and the final scene where Zuckerberg friend requests the girl that started it all.
Oh and Andrew Garfield is hot - I'd probably keep watching if he was reading the yellow pages.
The rest is dull, only made interesting by the fact that its based on reality.

In Bruges


When this film was first released it didn't do too well. But it has developed, over time, into a bit of cult classic with a loyal group of followers spreading the word of its brilliance. And I am now one of them.

The film is fundamentally a serious one. The plot is based on two hired hitmen (Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson) who are sent to the remote Belgian town of Bruges after a hit goes wrong by their boss (Ralph Fiennes).

But the banter between the two is the funniest thing I have seen in years. Well done to the scriptwriters and the main cast are just brill. Add to this the constant Bruges bashing, the insults, the complete un-PCness of the entire film and the random inclusion of a dwarf and a film dream sequence and you have pure comedy genius.

Fiennes is fantastic as always as the cockney gangster and the one-liners throughout made me laugh out loud. It's been a while since a film has made me smile as much as this one did - go and see it right now!

RED (Retired, Extremely Dangerous)
I'll admit it was the cast more than the plot that drew me to this one. For those who don't know the plot is about a bunch of ex-CIA agents who are being systematically wiped out and they have no idea why. Of course, they won't go down without a fight...

Bruce Willis is seriously like a fine wine and just gets better with age. Throw in Helen Mirren with a machine gun and the likes of Morgan Freeman and John Malkovich and you've got yourself a kick-ass film! The one-liners are brill, the acting is ace but of course it is the cast list is made up of the best actors over the age of 40. John Malkovich is once again playing the crazy man - but just because you're paranoid doesn't mean you're not being followed! Bruce Willis is just trying to get a date but can't seem to leave the old CIA life behind.

Favourite dialogue from the whole film:
Marvin Boggs: [from trailer ] Why are you trying to kill me?
Frank Moses: Look, why would I be trying to kill you?
Marvin Boggs: Because last time we met, I tried to kill you.
Frank Moses: That was a long time ago.
Marvin Boggs: Some people hold on to things like that.

It was silly and will win no Oscars but was class-A viewing and made me laugh hysterically on many occasions. The good thing is you don't have to really pay too much attention so it works brilliantly for a night in with your mates and a bottle of vino. It's also got enough violence to keep the guys interested.

Check out Bruce Willis walking away guns-a-blazing from a moving vehicle:

LE xx

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part One

The Deathly Hallows continues on from where book 6 left off - the death of Albus Dumbledore. Harry has decided not to return to Hogwarts this year and his friends Hermione and Ron are going to join him on his mission to find the remaining Horcruxes and defeat the evil Vold - you know who :) - played by the incredibly menacing Ralph Fiennes. 

Having been a massive fan of the books for years, I was relieved when they announced they'd be making the last book into two films because it's simply impossible to cram it all into one film and do it justice! Unlike the other books, The Deathly Hallows rarely lets up. The book starts with a fight and ends with one and there are only brief moments of calm throughout where our three young heroes are stuck together in a tent for days on end as they plan their next move.

Firstly, the film does an incredible job of sticking to the actual plot. Though a few parts are left out and a couple added in (I actually really liked the cute dance scene between Harry and Hermione), overall the plot is still there which is such a relief! One tiny section really angered me (passion fuelled nakedness is just not necessary in a film watched by children in my humble opinion) but overall it really is darker and more sinister than it's predecessors and compelling viewing.

A stellar cast will leave you wanting more - just a shame we have to wait till July to see the second part!

The effects are amazing so go and see it on the big screen if you can! :) LE x

4/5