Best Cinematography
Moonrise Kingdom - Robert D. Yeoman
Skyfall - Roger Deakins
Life of Pi - Claudio Miranda
The Dark Knight Rises - Wally Pfister
Beasts of the Southern Wild - Ben Richardson
Moonrise Kingdom
I would have loved Moonrise Kingdom even if the script was bunk - it wasn't by the way. Each frame is a piece of art capable of standing alone. Humor, beauty and tenderness are expertly communicated visually. Yeoman's intensely stylized shots are a feast for your eyes.
Source: davidmerryweather.wordpress.com via Molly
Best Production Design
The award formerly known as "Best Art Direction" is now called "Best Production Design."
Life of Pi
David Gropman (Production Design); Anna Pinnock (Set Decoration)One nominee. One winner. From the opening credits to the final frame, Life of Pi is a stunner. Vibrant colors pop off the screen from the opening credits until the final frame. The stunning beauty of this film is even more impressive considering a sizable percentage of the scenes take place on a raft. This is easily one of the most beautiful films I've ever seen.
Source: screenrant.com via Molly
Best Adapted Screenplay
Argo - Chris Terrio
Beasts of the Southern Wild - Lucy Alibar and Benh Zeitlin
Life of Pi - David Magee
Silver Linings Playbook - David O. Russell
Bernie - Skip Hollandsworth and Richard Linklater
Silver Linings Playbook
Silver Linings Playbook surprised me. I saw it early at the Chicago Film Festival. I saw before I knew what to expect. As long as I'm being honest, I saw it because it had a killer cast. But Silver Linings Playbook surprised me. It is so much more than just an incredibly smart romantic comedy. It has a dark side. Be warned - it will stick with you.
Source: vulture.com via Molly
Best Original Screenplay
Zero Dark Thirty - Mark Boal
Moonrise Kingdom - Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola
Moonrise Kingdom
Once again, Wes Anderson does not disappoint. Moonrise Kingdom is clever, humorous and touching. Anderson and Coppola have created characters that manage to be delightfully quirky and surprisingly relatable. Undoubtedly one of the most original, unexpected and entertaining films of the year.
Source: khaalibakar.com via Molly
Best Actor
Bradley Cooper - Silver Linings Playbook
Bernie - Jack Black
Daniel Day-Lewis - Lincoln
Jared Gilman - Moonrise Kingdom
Daniel Day-Lewis
I'm not going to lie to you. The other actors listed were really fantastic. The problem is Daniel Day-Lewis made a movie this year. He's impeccable. He disappears into a role like no other working actor. He is a genius. Period.
p.s. I didn't really like Lincoln
Source: liveforfilms.com via Molly
Best Actress
Quvenzhané Wallis - Beasts of the Southern Wild
Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty
Quvenzhané Wallis
She was five when she was won the role of Hushpuppy and can now be called the youngest Oscar nominee in history. But I assure you, she isn't winning the AcadeMolly award because of her age. Wallis is a gifted actress who delivered a compelling performance.
Source: ibtimes.com via Molly
Best Director and Best Picture
I've mentioned this before...if a movie is good enough to be called "Best Picture" surely the person in "charge" should be nominated as "Best Director". I'm sure there are lots of reasons why this doesn't happen. Some of those reasons are practical, some are artistic and some are political. But these are MY awards so I get to make the rules.
Life of Pi - Ang Lee
Argo - Ben Affleck
Zero Dark Thirty - Kathryn Bigelow
Beasts of the Southern Wild - Benh Zeitlin
Moonrise Kingdom - Wes Anderson
Silver Linings Playbook - David O. Russell
Zero Dark Thirty - Kathryn Bigelow
I knew how the story was going to end and I still had sweaty palms through the last 30 minutes. I'm staunchly opposed to torture but this film made me stop for just a second and reconsider. Heck I was rooting for the people doing the torturing! There's a list of reasons why I shouldn't have liked this movie but not one entered my mind for the two and a half hours that it captured me. It made me think. It grabbed me. Zero Dark Thirty is brilliant. Whether it's 100% fact or purely a work of fiction, I don't care. This is an entertaining film.
Now it's Your Turn!
What did I get right? What did I get wrong?
*I'm kind of bummed that I didn't get a chance to see The Master.
Netflix should be delivering it next week.
