Weekend Awards Wrap-Up: From the Vatican to Vegas

by Cláudio Alves

Mikey Madison crashes into the Best Actress race thanks to BAFTA.

Last weekend marked the rapid ascendance of Anora as the Oscar Best Picture frontrunner. This past week's guilds honors haven't dispelled that notion, though BAFTAs might have, with Conclave taking the top prize from the British Academy. Will the race come down between a doomed Vegas wedding and a Vatican election, or will another contender rise with SAG next Sunday? From social media controversies to precursor disharmony, his season has been uncommonly chaotic and I, for one, am loving this sense of unpredictability. As much as we like to presume otherwise, this isn't a numbers game and stats exist to be broken. So let's break them…

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The Costume Designers Guild loves themselves some Witches

by Cláudio Alves

Paul Tazewell is dancing through the season, toward an Oscar win for WICKED.

PGA this, DGA that, SAG whatever. The most important guild in my heart is the Costume Designers Guild (CDG), formed by those great artists who clothe our movie stars and style the pictures we love so dearly. This year, they're feeling especially witchy with their nominations, somehow bestowing three nominations on Agatha All Along and two for the Dune universe and the formidable Bene Gesserit sisterhood. And, of course, there's Wicked with its aesthetically opposite duo – green does go well with pink. I imagine Paul Tazewell is about to win his first Academy Award for the blockbuster musical, this CDG nod and likely victory a stepping stone on his path to Oscar gold. 

But enough about magical women. Let's assess the complete CDG nominations…

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The CDG loves "Barbie" pink but doesn't care for "The Color Purple"

by Cláudio Alves

Don't be sad, Mr. WONKA. Better luck next time.

Once upon a time, the Costume Designers Guild differed from the Academy on the regular. It wasn't even that long ago when three of the Oscar nominees got nothing from their guild, including winner Jacqueline Durran for Little Women. However, since that year, every Academy lineup has been entirely made from CDG-honored titles. It's hard to tell if the trend will continue, but, at the very least, one can surmise that the absence of a film indicates a lack of broad industry support. So, it's bad news for Wonka and The Color Purple. In the former's case, it's especially galling when you notice it was beaten by such critically lambasted projects as Disney's Haunted Mansion and the first Rebel Moon movie.

From Barbie pink to Crown gold, let's explore the complete list of nominations…

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Costume Designers Guild Nominations: "Top Gun" soars, "The Fabelmans" flounder

by Cláudio Alves

Worry not, "Fabelmans" fans. Mark Bridges may still get an Oscar nomination.

For the past two years, all the Oscar nominees in Best Costume Design were also recognized by the Costume Designers Guild, but that's not always the case. Indeed, in 2019, they didn't nominate three of the eventual Oscar nominees, including the winner – Jacqueline Durran for Little Women. All this to say that you should take this year's nominees with a grain of salt in terms of Oscar, especially regarding two big omissions – Mark Bridges for The Fabelmans and Sandy Powell for Living. Both designers have secured Oscar nominations with no corresponding guild support in the past – he for Joker, she for Gangs of New York, Mrs. Henderson Presents, and The Irishman. In any case, their lack of recognition proves that the industry may not be as into their films as previously anticipated. We shall see.

After the jump, the complete list of nominees and some further comments… 

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CDG Nominations: 'Gucci' is IN, 'Spencer' is OUT

by Cláudio Alves

My reaction, seeing SPENCER snubbed, yet again.

The Costume Designers Guild announced its nominations for the 2021 movie and TV year. Some trends continue to accentuate, including the industry's lack of passion for Spencer and the resurgence of Nightmare Alley as an awards contender. House of Gucci is also getting a boost, as is Spider-Man: No Way Home, which scores an inexplicable nomination here. Overall, though, this was a good day for the Marvel industrial complex, scoring nods across the board, both for their big screen and small screen fare. As far as victory predictions go, Jenny Beavan's Disney couture for Cruella seems like the obvious choice. 

Come check out the full lineups and additional comments after the jump…

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