Friday
Jan082016
BAFTA Nominations: Bridge of Spies and Carol lead
Friday, January 8, 2016 at 3:33AM With the Oscar nominees less than a week away, the British Academy of Film and Television Awards, or BAFTA as they're more easily referred to, can often be a real indicator of where AMPAS might be headed come Thursday morning. It used to be that the British were quite idiosyncratic in their tastes, picking homegrown, grassroots produce like Fish Tank. Unfortunately recent years have seen even the Best British Film category taken a much more populist bent. Therefore, it's their taste in American films that can often be a huge indicator of what energy the British contingent might inject into their Oscar votes.
Eligibility rules can often cause an issue - Murtada gave a rundown of any possible hiccups the other day - but recent years have seen studios keen to align the two continents as much as possible, to avoid situations like Charlize Theron's Oscar-winning turn in Monster turning up a whole year later at BAFTA. So, never fear - Trumbo's still here!
Carol hearing the news she has to share the glory
TFE favourite Carol and - rather unexpectedly - Bridge of Spies lead the nominations with nine a-piece, with The Revenant also surprising with eight, and Mad Max: Fury Road landing seven, despite missing all of the top categories (alas). The Big Short had a big morning, and British production Ex Machina continued its recent surge. Take a jump to get the full roster of nominations.
The Big Short won't stopBest FilmThe Big Short
Bridge of Spies
Carol
The Revenant
Spotlight
The Big Short hitting this hard just reaffirms its growing juggernaut status - it's now a very viable challenge to Spotlight's grip on the big prize, even if it seems unlikely to win here at BAFTA. There's also a huge boost for Bridge of Spies and The Revenant, neither of which had been looking assured of a Best Picture nomination but both have very strong nomination counts at BAFTA today. At least we can luxuriate in the glory of Carol. Joint top in these nominees with Bridge of Spies, it's also on the up today.
Best British Film
45 Years
Amy
Brooklyn
The Danish Girl
Ex Machina
The Lobster
They had to balloon the category to six to include something vaguely unexpected, but The Lobster is exactly the kind of thing that should be here, as opposed to the creaky period ache of The Danish Girl. It's obviously great to see 45 Years here, but... oh, we'll get to that in a minute.
Best Director
Adam McKay, The Big Short
Steven Spielberg, Bridge of Spies
Todd Haynes, Carol
Ridley Scott, The Martian
Alejandro G. Iñárritu, The Revenant
Adam McKay showing up here is an immense show of strength. That it means George Miller misses for Mad Max is a huge shame, but BAFTA just didn't go for the film in the top categories like we hope and expect Oscar to. Spieleberg sticks his foot back in the door, and Carol lights up another category as Todd Haynes gets more glory. Hurrah.
Best Actor
Bryan Cranston, Trumbo
Matt Damon, The Martian
Leonardio DiCaprio, The Revenant
Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
Eddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl
Is this your Oscar line-up? If Ian McKellan or Tom Hanks (given Bridge of Spies' high nomination count) were going to make a move, you'd think it would've shown here. We can hope for Michael B. Jordan to pop up as a spoiler, but this lot are looking increasingly set in stone.
Could Dame Maggie be the British Oscar nominee after all?Best ActressCate Blanchett, Carol
Brie Larson, Room
Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn
Maggie Smith, The Lady in the Van
Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl
DON'T EVEN TALK TO ME RIGHT NOW. British voters, you have let me down. Dame Maggie has her usual sharp comic timing and grumpy gravitas in the otherwise disposable Lady in the Van, but why, WHY, when Charlotte Rampling is right. there. would you go this way?
It doesn't necessarily spell doom for Rampling's Oscar hopes - she and Andrew Haigh have been blitzing the American press - but it's rather dispiriting. Meanwhile, Vikander and Mara continue to split the category fraud defiance, leaving everyone still bewildered about what might happen at Oscar, and Larson, Ronan and Blanchett cement their places, leaving two spots as anyone's guess.
Best Supporting ActressJennifer Jason Leigh, The Hateful Eight
Rooney Mara, Carol
Alicia Vikander, Ex Machina
Julie Walters, Brooklyn
Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs
Vikander really is the darling this year, isn't she? Could she pull off a double nom at the Oscars too? Ex Machina is a British production, but it's really come on strong in the guilds the past week as well, and showed a fine five nominations at BAFTA today. Walters is your annual patriotic nominee, but it's nice to see her inclusion somewhere this season.
Also let us just take a moment to be thankful Helen Mirren isn't here.
Best Supporting Actor
Christian Bale, The Big Short
Benicio del Toro, Sicario
Idris Elba, Beasts of No Nation
Mark Ruffalo, Spotlight
Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies
Benicio del Toro is a wonderful curveball in a category that still won't settle itself down into any predictable shape - beyond Rylance, of course. Bale and Elba are also looking good, and BAFTA have just flung Spotlight's hopes of a male actor nomination back into the fray.
Best Adapted Screenplay
The Big Short - Adam McKay, Charles Randolph
Brooklyn - Nick Hornby
Carol - Phyllis Nagy
Room - Emma Donoghue
Steve Jobs - Aaron Sorkin
Best Original Screenplay
Bridge of Spies - Matthew Charman, Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Ex Machina - Alex Garland
The Hateful Eight - Quentin Tarantino
Inside Out - Josh Cooley, Pete Doctor, Meg LeFauve
Spotlight - Tom McCarthy, Josh Singer
Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer
Alex Garland (Director), Ex Machina
Debbie Tucker Green (Writer/Director), Second Coming
Naji Abu Nowar (Writer/Director), Rupert Lloyd (Producer), Theeb
Sean McAllister (Director/Producer), Elhum Shakerifar (Producer), A Syrian Love Story
Stephen Fingleton (Writer/Director), The Survivalist
Best Film Not In The English Language
The Assassin, Hou Hsiao-Hsien
Force Majeure, Ruben Östlund
Theeb, Naji Abu Nowar, Rupert Lloyd
Timbuktu, Abderrahmane Sissako
Wild Tales, Damián Szifron
Oscar frontunner Son of Saul and TFE fave Mustang are both ineligible here, as they're not released until later in the year. Theeb is the only contender here also eligible for Oscar's prize, so maybe move that one up in your predictions.
Best Documentary
Amy
Cartel Land
He Named Me Malala
Listen To Me Marlon
Sherpa
Best Animated Film
Inside Out
Minions
Shaun the Sheep Movie
Best Original Music
Bridge of Spies - Thomas Newman
The Hateful Eight - Ennio Morricone
The Revenant - Ryuichi Sakamoto, Carsten Nicolai
Sicario - Jóhann Jóhannsson
Star Wars: The Force Awakens - John Williams
Best Cinematography
Bridge of Spies - Janusz Kamiński
Carol - Ed Lachman
Mad Max: Fury Road - John Seale
The Revenant - Emmanuel Lubezki
Sicario - Roger Deakins
Best Editing
The Big Short - Hank Corwin
Bridge of Spies - Michael Kahn
Mad Max: Fury Road - Margaret Sixel
The Martian - Pietro Scalia
The Revenant - Stephen Mirrione
Best Production Design
Bridge of Spies - Adam Stockhausen, Rena DeAngelo
Carol - Judy Becker, Heather Loeffler
Mad Max: Fury Road - Colin Gibson, Lisa Thompson
The Martian - Arthur Max, Celia Bobak
Star Wars: The Force Awakens - Rick Carter, Darren Gilford, Lee Sandales
Best Costume Design
Brooklyn - Odile Dicks-Mireaux
Carol - Sandy Powell
Cinderella - Sandy Powell
The Danish Girl - Paco Delgado
Mad Max: Fury Road - Jenny Beavan
Best Make Up & Hair
Brooklyn
Carol
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Best Sound
Bridge of Spies
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Best Special Visual Effects
Ant-Man
Ex Machina
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Best British Short Animation
Edmond - Nina Gantz, Emilie Jouffroy
Manoman - Simon Cartwright, Kamilla Kristiane Hodol
Prologue - Richard Williams, Imogen Sutton
Best British Short Film
Elephant - Nick Helm, Alex Moody, Esther Smith
Mining Poems or Odes - Callum Rice, Jack Cocker
Operator - Caroline Bartleet, Rebecca Morgan
Over - Jörn Threlfall, Jeremy Bannister
Samuel-613 - Billy Lumby, Cheyenne Conway
The EE Rising Star Award
Bel Powley
Brie Larson
Dakota Johson
John Boyega
Taron Egerton
Reader Comments (70)
Do we know if 99 Homes was eligible? Can't find it online.
@ eurocheese: It was released here back in September, so there's no reason why it shouldn't have been. Possibly just too low-profile.
Was Anomalisa ineligible for Best Animated Feature?
Yay for the Carol love.
Yes - Carol leading the nominations and the Julie Walters nomination.
No - The Maggie Smith nomination and Charlotte Rampling snub. The complete snub of Suffragette and Carey Mulligan, I'm truly disappointed by that.
Had really hoped Kristen Stewart would show up here given their friendliness towards both her (Rising Star Award winner) and European cinema in general. But compared to Rampling, a British actress in a British film with amazing reviews, it's not that shocking. How truly baffling. Meanwhile, are BAFTA the first organisation to put Vikander in lead for Danish Girl and Mara in support? I'm sure we hadn't seen that combo yet, but gosh.
In spite of all the good and all the weird, Adam McKay is still the most absurd. How does anybody watch that movie and go "Yup, that's better directed than Mad Max: Fury Road or Carol or... or... or..." It is aggressively under-directed in a way that even his Will Ferrell comedies are not. So bland with only the editing really attempting anything beyond the purely rudimentary. Ugh. I won't be able to understand if that pot of bland, milky tea wins up winning best picture.
Also, no SUFFRAGETTE anywhere.
can't wait for awards season to be over. so many write ups over something that makes so little sense and is ultimately useless.
I won't even bother commenting on the snubs and category frauds. it's exhausting.
I'm sorry, but Vikander is not supporting in either of the films she is nominated for, and most people would agree that Mara doesn't belong there either. Those two nominations should have gone to actresses like Sarah Paulson, Joan Allen and Helena Bonham Carter.
Oh crap, I only just noticed Carter Burwell missed out. What a bummer.
Best Director is the category we should all be saying "WHAT?". I mean, it's great they had Haynes and McKay but this hurts McCarthy, at least to some degree. Also, no George Miller but Ridley Scott got in.
And in Film Bridge of Spies and no Mad Max? No The Martian? Seems odd somehow.
And I know it's the category that doesn't exist in the Oscars but why nominate John Boyega and not Daisy Ridley?
Seeing editing, it's very possible Spotlight loses that seat too at the Oscars. I mean, the ones BAFTA chose are pretty good. Maybe Spotlight over Bridge of Spies?
The one that doesn't tell us ANYTHING is the Foreign Language category as two of the nominees were Oscar nominees last year and one more was not selected. And the Assassin is off the race now. Only Theeb could become an Oscar nominee this year.
Love the love for Vikander but I judge unfair that she is considered lead in Danish Girl and not Mara in Carol. Not much sense there.
Julie Walters... I can actually see that happening. Surprised to see Del Toro too.
If the British Film Academy can't back up Ian McKellan and Tom Courtenay no one else can. Shame.
I don't understand the love for THEEB. I really don't. It already hurts that it is on the shortlist and THE ASSASSIN isn't, but if it makes it all the way to a nomination, I will be perplexed.
Also.... yes, it seems SUFFRAGETTE is over. Pity, because I personally loved the movie, but if the Brits can't get behind it........
Absolutely disgusting that Charlotte Rampling has not been nominated, but Maggie Smith with her usual bag of tricks has. Julie Walters, is another actress who should not be on the list. Tom Courtenay could easily have been given Matt Damon place. BAFTA continues to disappoint me.
To answer Ez's question: Anomalisa was not eligible, as it opens in March this year.
And with the BAFTA noms, the stats have been broken - except for Argo (with the infamous Best Director 'miss'), no Oscar Best Picture winner since the expanded field has not garnered all of these nominations:
BFCA / Critics' Choice Awards (Best Picture & Director)
Golden Globe Awards (Best Picture & Director)
BAFTA (Best Picture & Director)
Guild Awards (ACE, SAG Best Ensemble, PGA, DGA)
The Big Short - NO GG Best Director & BFCA Best Director noms
Spotlight - NO ACE & BAFTA Best Director noms
The Revenant - NO SAG Best Ensemble nom
The Martian - NO SAG Best Ensemble & BAFTA Best Picture noms
Mad Max: Fury Road - NO SAG Best Ensemble, BAFTA Best Picture & Director noms
Bridge of Spies - NO SAG, ACE, GG Best Picture & Director noms
Carol - NO SAG, ACE, and PGA noms
gutted that charlotte rampling didn't get a nomination. gu-tted!!! i just watched 45 years and what a devastating performance! she should be called the great devastator.
Charlotte Rampling and Ian McKellen.... WTFFFFFFF!!!!??????
I'm sure Smith is good in her film and I like Viaknder just fine in The Danish Girl (her Ex Machina nod is fully deserved) but how in the world can Rampling miss at BAFTA . Reminds me of Mr Turner missing out last year. I despair
Sigh. When you just want to predict Oscars you end up ignoring the good stuff of the year. The lack of Mad Max, so sad. That it's now going to get The Dark Knight comparisons despite being a vastly superior film, EVEN SADDER.
My reaction to these nominations: http://i.imgur.com/O85fQ3v.gif
What did voters see in THE BIG SHORT? Sloppiness all around from story telling, craft (cinematography, yuck!) to messy editing. I'm certain that Bale impressed AMPAS with gimmicky performance enough to book that supporting slot. UGH.
Paul. Viaknder is supporting in Ex Machina for me, except for one instance the entire film is never from her perspective and she isn't in as many scenes as Gleeson or even Isaac.
Damn - the BAFTAs are usually so good about putting lead actresses in lead (Bejo, Steinfeld, Winslet, Weisz, Johannson), and they're not afraid of nominating two actresses from the same film (The Hours, Kids Are All Right). They should have been able to put Mara in the correct category.
I haven't seen The Danish Girl yet, but if Vikander can score an Oscar nomination for Ex Machina I'll be very happy.
What I really want to know is how badly does this affect Rampling's Oscar chances? I know Nathaniel was very sure she was getting in, but this can't be a great sign.
My guess is that Mara got votes in both Lead and Supporting but her supporting tally was higher. They did right by Vikander re her category placement becaus so that seems to be the only logical explanation
I had predicted Rampling not only for the nomination but for the win. This is very disconcerting considering she gives the best performance of the year. I'm starting to get nervous about Oscar nomination morning!
On the upside...
That visual effects category is about as good as we can hope for, right? No JURASSIC WORLD at least, but the fun flair of ANT MAN and the more supportive effects of EX MACHINA.
No Desplat for the score to THE DANISH GIRL. I'm surprised it hasn't been ruled ineligible for sounding so much like this other scores.
THE REVENANT *is* ineligible for score at the Oscars, so CAROL can still easily slide in.
It's super depressing to think Adam McKay is now a safer bet for bet and that we could get either Miller *or* Haynes, but both seems like a stretch. Ugh.
Just can't grasp Tom Courtenay as a lead in 45 years, though he is. His character's more of a lead ghost. It's all about her somehow.
I really like Bridge of Spies. That said, I think it's sad that, of all aspects of the film, voters are choosing to ignore Tom Hanks - again. He gave a great, low-key performance reminiscent of Jimmy Stewart. Awards voters seem to think male movie stars can't act.
On the plus side, at least there's no McAdams or (surprisingly) Mirren here.
I honestly can't remember what the B in BAFTA stand for. Really can't. Can anyone help me ? At least I know about the B in BIFA which had a great list of nominees.
Is Vikander really all that? She doesn't need two nominations. I would give her lead for Ex-Machina, but we'll see what Oscar does.
Move aside Broadcast Film Critics and Golden Globes -- BAFTA is ensuring that its nose is the one pushed the furthest up the Academy's butt! These nominations are a disgrace. No Rampling, McKellen, Courtenay, Tremblay, Binoche, Stewart, Banks, Dano, etc. etc. etc
Mess.
People who hate THE BIG SHORT are really vocal on this site. I kind of get it, and get why people don't like it. But is it so wrong for some to actually like the film? Every turn people go on and rip this film to shreds. It's not the best movie of the year, but likely won't win BP or BD either. I am curious as to why people are so furious about it getting some buzz?
I like the film, don't love it like I do some other films. I think it has merits. I like that it's trying something new and entertaining. It's not exquisitely crafted like Carol, but quite the contrary. Has a film been this universally hated and received similar treatment from TFE and its twitter/podcast affiliates in the past? Makes me feel bad for likely it, seeing people who's opinions I respect so dearly having such a strong, negative, vocal opinion about it.
Thankfully, no Stallone. Murky about eligibility, however.
Because, wouldn't you know, another movie about dudes comes along at the last minute the mansplain shit to us with a bunch of big stars and people start throwing their panties at it like it's some second messiah.
Pascal Le Duff, I think the B shipped off somewhere else. Maybe to the same place where all the voters who would once upon a time vote for ROMEO + JULIET were sent when the organisation decided they needed to be as close to the Oscars as humanly possible. Because nothing says "relevance" like the same nominations and winners as every other award show!
DISASTUH Darling !!! NO Rampling - choosing Vikander for Danish Girl instead of Charlotte Rampling - clearly this choice was not based on merit. Not to mention no Carey Mulligan.
I am fine with the inclusion of Maggie Smith, but the inclusion of Vikander is down to her astonishing publicity team. I have no problem with her Supporting Actress nom - Ex Machina is the better film and performance. But she didn't need 2 nominations. Her PR team and her status as IT girl of the year is making me grumpy.
Also, Tarentino getting an automatic screenplay nomination seems a bit of a joke. Even reviewers who like the film aren't claiming it's well written.
@Guest - I liked "The Big Short" a lot. "Brooklyn" is my number one choice of the year, but I agree with Sasha Stone, "The Big Short" could easily become the consensus choice and get BP at the Oscars. It's hitting that "Network" sweet spot and is a valid BP choice for this season.
I saw The Big Short a few days ago and expected to hate it because of the reviews and hate on here, but I really enjoyed it. Bale was pretty phenomenal I thought, and the rest of the cast (save for Tomei's really nothing part sadly) was pretty good too. It's not in my top 10 of the year but I can see why people like it.
Pascal -- funny. but TRUE.
Glenn -- oh don't get me started on that score. I love Desplat but he SERIOUSLY needs a break. It was all wrong for that picture.
Everyone -- perhaps i'm burying my head in the sand but like Marion Cotillard last year i cannot imagine people watching that performance (Charlotte Rampling) and NOT voting for it... *IF* they aren't trying to predict Oscar. But Oscar doesn't worry about predicting Oscar (haha) they just vote. I cannot imagine that performance having trouble winning #1 placements. I really can't.
FINALLY a nomination for Julie Walters!!!
This makes me so happy I don't even mind Brooklyn and Room missing from the Best Film lineup.
guest - I like The Big Short. But there have been a lot of BP nominees that have generated a disproportionate amount of hatred here at TFE. It was no fun being a fan of The Descendants during awards season 2011.
I love TFE, but the mob mentality and hyperbole - both pro and con certain films and performances - can be ridiculous here at times (and I'm probably as guilty as anyone of contributing to it).
Rami, Ex Machina is a three-hander and to me Vikander is the female lead. And (without spoiling anything) the last act of the film makes that perfectly clear, if it wasn't already.
Without her there is no story, no film. And it's no coincidence that she's the one—in the foreground or alone—on every poster, every ad.
We're in such a weird place right now, because the consensus best film of the year is a genre sequel released in May, and awards bodies are figuring out whether to embrace something that goes against everything they typically stand for. It's different than rewarding Lord of the Rings because that was rewarding an entire trilogy, not just one film. Is a reboot action flick really our best picture?
Carol would make a great traditional escape route for the Academy, except for you know, that other bias. Spotlight and Bridge of Spies are respected, but there's no passionate consensus behind them. The Revenant was ambitious, but flawed. So when something like The Big Short comes along that has plenty of white male movie stars playing together with a fun script, it's like oxygen to the voters.
Personally I liked The Big Short, but much like Room and The Martian, I don't think it's Best Picture worthy.
I tink the biggest snub is indeed Rampling!!!. A well respected British veteran in a well reviewed British movie, giving the perf of her life....& snubbed by her own peers!!! She got more lovin across the ocean, how ironic!!
I'm surprise tt BAFTA din place Mara in lead as they are well known to disregard cat fraud & do wat is rite (eg. Winslet; The Reader, Bejo; The Artist, & Steinfeld; True Grit ) Someone pointed out correctly, if they could recognize both Bening & Moore as co-leads in The Kids are Alright, why not Blanchett & Mara in Carol???...this is really perplexing...I'm afraid now the Oscar voters r just gonna take their cue from here
O a side note, the BAFTA really does luv their Dame Maggie, not so much for the other dame, Mirren ya?? lol
Paul - I agree 100%, to me Ex Machina is a 3-Lead Movie and it confuses me when people are OK with Vikander as Supporting but contest that placement for The Danish Girl.
Mike In Canada - it can seem that BAFTA usually correct category fraud, but that usually is only when they want to 'make up numbers' in their 15-strong longlist for voters. I'll never understand Weisz as Leading - she has little screentime and fully 'supports' Fiennes' story. Almost the perfect supporting role, in many ways. Anyway, lest we forget, BAFTA nominated Foxx for Collateral, Roberts for August: Osage County and Affleck for The Assassination Of Jesse James, three of the most egregious instances in the last 10 years. Mara simply continues that trend.
Nathaniel - if it was two years ago, I'd be saying that Rampling was dead in the water. However, after Cotillard last year, anything is possible. Smith at BAFTA (she has been ignored consistently since Gosford Park, not even a nomination for Downton Abbey at the TV Awards) has proven that working the circuit in the UK reaps rewards. Better that Rampling has been doing so in the USA, I reckon. I would argue that we only get Rampling if Mara appears in Supporting?
Suzanne - You're absolutely right. As much as I love this site, sometimes the mob mentaity around certain films and performances (which is not just a probllem here, BTW, you can visit any film site) leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth. I also like The Big Short more than most people around here (I think the topic is important and presented in a way that makes people angry about having to pay for their governments' and markets' screw-ups). I wouldn't call it the best year, especialy not above Carol or Spotlight (or even The Revenant, which I also liked a great deal), but I can see why it's striking a chord with all these voting bodies.
For now, I'm relieved that Carol made it here. It seems to now be in prime Philomena position (missing at the PGA, but brought back at the BAFTA) and will most likely show up on the Oscar list. I know Philomena is not the ideal comparison for a film everyone around here wants to see win, but if it makes Carol an Oscar Best Picture nominee, I'll take it.
It also shows that maybe Mad Max is not as strong as everyone has been assuming it is with the Academy. I'm one of those people who thinks it's somewhat overrated (visually it's a masterpiece, but every time I see it I feel there's something missing) and it does feel like it's headed toward The Dark Knight territory. Plenty of tech noms, but no Best Pic. We'll see...
Paul -- i 100% agree on Vikander. but i opted not to say much about it because i was already getting a hoarse throat for screaming that she wasnn't supporting in THE DANISH GIRL. She had three leading roles this year and the advertising, salaries, screenplays and initial advertising all support that she led three movies in 2015. Just not the awards campaigns which have been pretending she's a supporting player and not the main attraction. If you're being strictly letter of law "only the main attraction!" than okay she's secondary to Redmayne in Danish Girl. But she's the whole entire story of EX MACHINA
I realize people care about leading actors more than character actors but this just gets tiring. It's totally fine to love movie stars (lord knows i do) but there needs to also be room for the players who make up the vast bulk of faces onscreen in most movies (i.e. everyone other than the leads). Ex Machina is just kind of a weird example because there is basically only 1 supporting role and it's non-speaking.... ;) or maybe Oscar isaac is supporting if yo ustretch the definition. I'm less perturbed by that as he's the guy who sets everything in motion but the story is essentially about MAN (gleeson) & ROBOT (vikander)
Ex Machina is a movie with 3 lead performances, it's not even debatable. Vikander's campaign team is cheating every time EITHER of her performances gets in supporting. I'm so sick of this.
I'd love to see a post on the changing demographics of Best Actress winners. In recent years Moore, Streep, Blanchett, Bullock and Winslet (all veterans) have won. At her young age Natalie Portman seemed like an old-timer with decades of respect under her belt.
We treat Jennifer Lawrence's win like the rule when lately, she's the exception: She's a rare young actress whose position in the industry transcended hesitation about her age. Neither Ronan nor Larson is this year's Jennifer Lawrence, no matter how hard the media tries to make those narratives happen.
This is to say that I think there's a strong case to make for Cate Blanchett as our Best Actress winner (Again!). It seemed improbable one or two months ago but today it seems very reasonable.
@Suzaane... I agree about the "mob mentality" ... I have been faithful to this blog site since it practically began... it was so friendly and fun to learn so much ... but for 2 years I was away in a place we had no signals ( for anything ) ... when I returned I could not believe it was the same blog ... suddenly everyone became anal .. I still look at the blog from time to time and I contribute ( ? ) a review of a movie and that's it... It seems to have gotten away from Nat..