Thoughts on this season's BAFTA nominations

La La Land was the not unexpected leader for the BAFTA nominations. Slightly less known ahead of time was what film would threaten its leader status and that is arguably more surprising: divisive Nocturnal Animals tied for second place with the not very divisive Arrival with nine nominations each.

The film suffering the most this morning from lack of BAFTA love is surely Loving, which had the advantage of a popular new homegrown star Ruth Negga but missed in all categories but for "Rising Star" for Ruth Negga. The nominations in all categories after the jump...

Best film 

• Arrival
• I, Daniel Blake
• La La Land
• Manchester by the Sea
• Moonlight 

I, Daniel Blake which was the Palme D'Or winner last summer and which has just opened in the US is nominated in both of BAFTA's Best Picture categories. Shouldn't they actually just have Outstanding Non-British Film and British Film to prevent the doubling up. 

Outstanding British film

 

• American Honey
• Denial
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
• I, Daniel Blake
• Notes on Blindness
• Under the Shadow

Perhaps there was a tie? Denial came and went with next to no fanfare in the States but across the Atlantic this BAFTA nod suggests a much warmer reception. The UK's foreign language film submission for Oscar, the Tehran set horror film Under the Shadow will eventually find its US audience when it hit Netflix later this month but in release in the States it only made $31,000 (Yours truly contributed to that gross). 

Director

The Nocturnal Animals team (pictured here at TIFF) have reason to celebrate today

• Damien Chazelle - La La Land
• Tom Ford - Nocturnal Animals
• Ken Loach - I, Daniel Blake
• Kenneth Lonergan - Manchester by the Sea
• Denis Villeneuve - Arrival

It's fairly horrifying to see Moonlight's Barry Jenkins left off of this list! If this comes to pass with Oscar we will be very very sad and the director's branch will deserve all the ire that comes their way. We'll assume the BAFTA shrug is due to its US southern atmosphere. Notice that Loving didn't make their lists at all!

Leading actress 

• Amy Adams - Arrival
• Emily Blunt - The Girl on the Train
• Natalie Portman - Jackie
• Emma Stone - La La Land
• Meryl Streep - Florence Foster Jenkins 

It's the exact SAG list, whoa. With Emily Blunt rising again. Though it should be noted that the Globe winning Huppert was not eligible for this particular award due to Elle's very very late release in the UK. Best Actress just won't settle down this year but this can't be good news for Oscar hopeful Ruth Negga who is more well known in the UK than in the US.

Leading actor

• Casey Affleck - Manchester by the Sea
• Andrew Garfield - Hacksaw Ridge
• Ryan Gosling - La La Land
• Jake Gyllenhaal - Nocturnal Animals
• Viggo Mortensen - Captain Fantastic

Okay. Hear me out. I know that many of you are less than thrilled with my loathing of Nocturnal Animals. But I am always able to separate overall feelings about a film with its disparate elements. For instance, I've long maintained that a Michael Shannon nomination for this picture would not be at all undeserved and even though I wouldn't nominate them, I would understand Production Design or Cinematography or Score impulses. But Jake Gyllenhaal?!? He's one of my personal favorite movie stars, as you know, so I'm predisposed to ENJOY his work but I think this is his weakest performance in quite some time. And in place of the towering magnificence of Denzel Washington or the quiet character work of Joel Edgerton or [insert several more names here] ? I can't. I just can't. I cannot. WHAT?

P.S. Guy Lodge shared the startling fact today that Denzel Washington, one of the world's most enduring and Oscared movie stars, has never been nominated for a BAFTA.

Supporting actress 

• Viola Davis - Fences
• Naomie Harris - Moonlight
• Nicole Kidman - Lion
• Hayley Squires - I, Daniel Blake
• Michelle Williams - Manchester by the Sea 

I Daniel Blake's supporting actress lands the spot we've seen Hidden Figures occupy in US awards shows. 

Supporting actor

• Mahershala Ali - Moonlight
• Jeff Bridges - Hell or High Water
• Hugh Grant - Florence Foster Jenkins
• Dev Patel - Lion
• Aaron Taylor-Johnson - Nocturnal Animals

Aaron Taylor Johnson again, huh. Just a week ago everyone thought his Globe nomination was a fluke. Now he's got a win and a BAFTA nomination. Is his creepy performancing harnessing the power of the entertainment's industry's terrror about all the racist, sexist, uneducated sociopaths who are currently throwing so much of the world into disarray right now? If so maybe he is getting nominated. The other four men are looking locked up for Oscar now after so many nominations. This leaves Lucas Hedges (again, as we've stated multiple times due to his age) more vulnerable to being ousted from the Oscar lineup.

Original screenplay 

• Hell or High Water - Taylor Sheridan
• I, Daniel Blake - Paul Laverty
• La La Land - Damien Chazelle
• Manchester by the Sea - Kenneth Lonergan
• Moonlight - Barry Jenkins

As a reminder The Lobster was not eligible as it was BAFTA nominated last year since it waited so long for a US release. (Was 20th Century Women ineligible or was it just stiffed for inferior work?)

Adapted screenplay

• Arrival - Eric Heisserer
• Hacksaw Ridge - Robert Schenkkan, Andrew Knight
• Hidden Figures - Theodore Melfi, Allison Schroeder
• Lion - Luke Davies
• Nocturnal Animals - Tom Ford 

No Fences? grrrr.

Outstanding debut by a British writer, director or producer

Under the Shadow well received at home.

• The Girl with All the Gifts - Mike Carey (writer), Camille Gatin (producer)
• The Hard Stop - George Amponsah (writer/director/producer), Dionne Walker (writer/producer)
• Notes on Blindness - Peter Middleton (writer/director/producer), James Spinney (writer/director), Jo-Jo Ellison (producer)
• The Pass - John Donnelly (writer), Ben A William (director)
• Under the Shadow - Babak Anvari (writer/director), Emily Leo, Oliver Roskill, Lucan Toh (producers)

If you've seen these movies speak up!  How do you feel about this category. It's the rare awards category where we haven't seen enough of the nominees to have an opinion and would have to abstain from voting.

Film not in the English language

• Dheepan - Jacques Audiard, Pascal Caucheteux
• Julieta - Pedro Almodovar
• Mustang - Deniz Gamze Erguven, Charles Gillibert
• Son of Saul - Laszlo Nemes, Gabor Sipos
• Toni Erdmann - Maren Ade, Janine Jackowski

Due to the lack of unity in release dates we have an interesting mix of two of 2015's Best Foreign Language Film nominees, a Cannes winner from two summers ago, Oscar-snubbed Julieta (which Spain submitted this year but it didn't make the finals) and future Oscar nominee Toni Erdmann. From this list I am 100% a Mustang man. You?

Documentary

• The Beatles: Eight Days a Week - The Touring Years
• The Eagle Huntress
• Notes on Blindness
• 13th
• Weiner

Notes on Blindness and the Beatles are not in the running for the Oscar race in this category. With OJ Made in America, the television miniseries which has been hogging feature prizes this season, out of the running which film do you suppose takes the BAFTA?  

Animated film

• Finding Dory
• Kubo and the Two Strings
• Moana
• Zootropolis

Why only four nominees? And with only four why Finding Dory (which is increasingly forgotten... at least in this brain... and feels more and more like a disposable cash grab as it fades?)

Original music 

• Arrival - Johann Johannsson
• Jackie - Mica Levi
• La La Land - Justin Hurwitz
• Lion - Dustin O'Halloran, Hauschka
• Nocturnal Animals - Abel Korzeniowski 

Arrival was deemed ineligible for the Oscar race. Strangely, given the Golden Globe love for the movie, Nocturnal Animals was not nominated for score there. Can Abel Korzeniowski (who has 2 Globe nods, 1 BAFTA nod, and 3 Emmy nods already) nab his first Oscar nomination?

The Original Score nominations willl be interesting to watch with Oscar this year. The Academy music branch is generally very very wary of "new" composers -- preferring to keep the nominations in the branch house. If these nominations were to transfer direct to Oscar (sans Arrival) there would be no previous nominees nominated which I believe has never happened in my entire lifetime with Oscar's historically most insular category.

Cinematography

• Arrival - Bradford Young
• Hell or High Water - Giles Nuttgens
• La La Land - Linus Sandgren
• Lion - Greig Fraser
• Nocturnal Animals - Seamus McGarvey

Another field of strong contenders that, with the exception of Seamus McGarvey, would be first time Oscar nominees.

Editing 

• Arrival - Joe Walker
• Hacksaw Ridge - John Gilbert
• La La Land - Tom Cross
• Manchester by the Sea - Jennifer Lame
• Nocturnal Animals - Joan Sobel

No offense intended but I'm struggling to see how Manchester by the Sea keeps pulling down editing nods at every show with such ease. And over Moonlight of all things in this case, a film that is so obviously and artfully edited? Usually being "obvious" helps in this category. *cries* Note: there is nothing whatsoever wrong with MbtS's editing but "Best" of its year? A bit of a head scratcher.

Production design 

Is Nocturnal Animals getting production design nods for its hillbilly sociopath filth or the art world emptiness?

• Doctor Strange - John Bush, Charles Wood
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them - Stuart Craig, Anna Pinnock
• Hail, Caesar! - Jess Gonchor, Nancy Haigh
• La La Land - Sandy Reynolds-Wasco, David Wasco
• Nocturnal Animals - Shane Valentino, Meg Everist

All of these films were also up for Art Directors Guild nominations - albeit spread across three different categories

Costume design

• Allied - Joanna Johnston
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them - Colleen Atwood
• Florence Foster Jenkins - Consolata Boyle
• Jackie - Madeline Fontaine
• La La Land - Mary Zophres

Allied is a bit of a surprise given that film's low impact but Marion Cotillard and Brad Pitt did look sensational throughout.

Make-up and hair

• Doctor Strange - Jeremy Woodhead
• Florence Foster Jenkins - J Roy Helland, Daniel Phillips
• Hacksaw Ridge - Shane Thomas
• Nocturnal Animals - Donald Mowat, Yolanda Toussieng
• Rogue One: A Star Wars Story - Nominees to be confirmed 

Of these nominations only Florence Foster Jenkins can repeat at Oscar. It's the only one of these films that made the American Academy's finals

Sound

• Arrival - Claude La Haye, Bernard Gariepy Strobl, Sylvain Bellemare
• Deepwater Horizon - Mike Prestwood Smith, Dror Mohar, Wylie Stateman, David Wyman
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them - Niv Adiri, Glenn Freemantle, Simon Hayes, Andy Nelson, Ian Tapp
• Hacksaw Ridge - Peter Grace, Robert Mackenzie, Kevin O'Connell, Andy Wright
• La La Land - Mildred Iatrou Morgan, Ai-Ling Lee, Steve A Morrow, Andy Nelson 

Special visual effects

• Arrival - Louis Morin
• Doctor Strange - Richard Bluff, Stephane Ceretti, Paul Corbould, Jonathan Fawkner
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them - Tim Burke, Pablo Grillo, Christian Manz, David Watkins
• The Jungle Book - Robert Legato, Dan Lemmon, Andrew R. Jones, Adam Valdez
• Rogue One: A Star Wars Story - Neil Corbould, Hal Hickel, Mohen Leo, John Knoll, Nigel Sumner

British short animation

• The Alan Dimension - Jac Clinch, Jonathan Harbottle, Millie Marsh
• A Love Story - Khaled Gad, Anushka Kishani Naanayakkara, Elena Ruscombe-King
• Tough - Jennifer Zheng 

British short film

• Consumed - Richard John Seymour
• Home - Shpat Deda, Afolabi Kuti, Daniel Mulloy, Scott O'Donnell
• Mouth of Hell - Bart Gavigan, Samir Mehanovic, Ailie Smith, Michael Wilson
• The Party - Farah Abushwesha, Emmet Fleming, Andrea Harkin, Conor MacNeill
• Standby - Charlotte Regan, Jack Hannon

EE Rising Star award (voted for by the public)

• Laia Costa
• Lucas Hedges
• Tom Holland
• Ruth Negga
• Anya Taylor-Joy

Since that last category is voted on by the public, which name would be on your ballot? 

Comments

[Jamie]

John T- I agree. If she misses, it would be a clear snub by academy voters. Do not think that is happening. The 20th nomination is happening.

[Yavor]

Best Actress is so evidently:

1) Emma Stone
2) Natalie Portman
3) Amy Adams
4) Meryl Streep
5) Isabelle Huppert (Bening still has a chance)

Negga and Blunt are just not going to happen.

When was the last time Meryl Streep had the SAG + BAFTA + HFPA trio without getting an Oscar nomination? -> never, that's never happened.

[Ready]

I know the conventional wisdom is that Taylor-Johnson has edged ahead of Hedges for Supporting Actor but I think if Taylor-Johnson makes the shortlist it may be at Dev Patel's expense. Lion buzz has mostly been quiet and I have the feeling the Academy will go big for Manchester which will bolster Hedges' chances.

[Someone]

Gyllenhaal was awesome in NA. Haven't seen Affleck yet but Gyllenhaal is clearly tej best of the other four. And Gosling is just AWFUL.

[choog]

I would love to see Naomi

[choog]

Whoops... I would love to see Naomi Harris win BSA on her home turf at Baftas! Stephen Fry is hosting again I think... he is pretty awful but keeps getting the gig.

[brandz]

It's always more interesting to see the snubs rather than the actual nominees.

[dan]

Every year someone comes up from nowhere and grabs a nod (2016 Tom Hardy, 2015 Laura Dern...) I expect a surprise nod in supp actor, since its the most open race

[Seán]

Not to be a griper but I really wish that we could make the distinction that Ruth Negga is Irish, not British. She lives in London like a lot of us but got her start in Irish film and television, and it's in Ireland she studied acting. We're quite proud of her and it's a bit disheartening when English speaking Europeans are just assumed to be English/British. So in that regard I hope she wins the Rising Star!

[brookesboy]

dan, i got a feeling Neeson is gonna sneak in here.

[Craver]

YES ARRIVAL!!! Hope Amy will get some boost for it too.
WTF I know the score also has a previous Max Richter composition (briliiant too btw) but the score is amazing and deserves to be nominated at the Oscars.
Don't you think it's weird that this late in the race and the fifth spot is up for grabs for everyone in both supporting races?
BAFTAs sure do love their Nocturnal Animals, and why nominate Jake when they can go for Daniel Blake lead actor?
Silence has been silenced and I'm still holding out for Liam Neeson. Don't disappoint me, Academy!

[Pete]

Brookesboy - I agree, Meryl DOESN'T deserve an Oscar nom for FFJ. She's the weakest in that field. Ruth's and Annette's performances were far superior to hers. Sad case of rubberstamping as you have mentioned!

[Jaragon]

Aaron Taylor Johnson looks hot in that group shot- he really should be a bigger star

[Hav]

I'm happy to see that Laia Costa is nominated for EE Rising Star, amazing performance in Victoria, but she's probably not going to win though.

[Jono]

I am happy to stick up for Meryl since she is sublime in Florence Foster Jenkins. She got some of the best reviews of her entire career. It's not an easy part, and she managed to be funny and touching. Her movie by Steven Frears will also stick around longer than many of these other films, so I don't have any issue with her being nominated again for this role.

The one I don't understand is nominee Emily Blunt, apart from her being British.

[Glenn Dunks]

Aaron Taylor-Johnson *is* British, after all...

[Aaron]

Is it just me or do the only "sure" things for Best Picture seem to be La La Land, Moonlight, Manchester by the Sea, Arrival, and Hidden Figures (In that order)? Hell or High Water, Hacksaw Ridge, Lion, and Fences all seem somewhat vulnerable, but what would replace them? Nocturnal Animals? Silence? Jackie (I know, wishful thinking for that but it deserves a best picture nomination)? I just can't fathom a Deadpool nomination. Embarrassing.

I think the only BAFTA category that will match up with Oscar is best supporting actor. Lucas Hedges may happen, but it's difficult to gauge who he would replace (maybe Patel or Taylor-Johnson?)

[/3rtful]

I continue to be baffled by the tepid awards reception that Fences has received, particularly in light of all of the high praise it got following advance screenings. One can't even say that it peaked too early.

The initial high praise was from SAG guild screenings. Fences is an actor's showcase and therefore all the attention is on the two best performances in the movie.

[/3rtful]

Aaron Taylor Johnson looks hot in that group shot- he really should be a bigger star

His personal life will prevent that level of stardom. His attitude is just as crappy as Miles Teller's and his talent seems to be a projection from those who have no discernment.

[Someone]

What exactly was not OK with Gyllenhaal's acting?
He was great. As Adams, Shannon and Taylor-Johnson.
I am little shocked that Adams is nominated for her mediocre performance in ARRIVAL and not for her truly great work in NOCTURNAL ANIMALS (one of the best performances of her career).
As I've written previously: Gyllenhaal should easily win with Garfield, Mortensen and horrible Gosling but we know that he won't.
Stop that nonsense about Ford's movie because your attitude is just laughable.

[Luke]

If Aaron Taylor-Johnson receives a nomination for Supporting Actor Oscar, he will be the youngest person to do so since Jake Gyllenhaal. That's quite an accomplishment.

[dan]

brookesboy, i dont know, it usually comes from a movie well received by the Academy, (Tom Hardy, Jonah Hill, Jacki Weaver), and I dont see love for it in the other categories. Has anybody actually seen Silence? Is it any good?

[brookesboy]

Dan, I saw it last weekend and was blown away. It's incredibly beautiful visually, and builds in cinematic force as it goes. It's not an Oscary movie, and it is very much about religious faith, but the Scorsese factor is undeniable.