Friday, February 15, 2008

BAFTA UPSETS LEFT WINNERS SPEECHLESS!

Last week's British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Awards offered us two major surprises: French-born Marion Cotillard upset hometown favorite Julie Christie (Away from Her) to win Best Actress, while British-born underdog Tilda Swinton (Michael Clayton) prevailed over presumptive front-runners and fellow Oscar nominees Cate Blanchett (I'm Not There) and Saoirse Ronan (Atonement), as well as Kelly MacDonald (No Country for Old Men) and Samantha Morton (Control).

The gorgeous-as-always Cotillard was, like most pundits, visibly shocked upon hearing her name called. Unfortunately, she was never quite able to collect herself and bumbled her way through her remarks. While this was cute for BAFTA, I hope someone has since helped her to prepare a real acceptance speech in case she pulls off the same shocker at the Oscars. Rival Christie, who is briefly shown in this clip looking on as Cotillard accepts the honor, gave a real winner of a victory speech at SAG, and—0dd as it may seem—this stuff can really count for something to some voters...

alt : http://www.youtube.com/v/6ZRDLd2BUqg&rel=1

Swinton certainly could have handled herself better, as well. Anyone who has met her knows she is a really lovely lady, but she didn't make the most favorable impression on those who have not. She was dressed in a bizarre yellow outfit that looked like a cross between a frock and a backpack and made her journey to the podium a bit tedious. She offered some jokes that didn't really make sense. And then, worst of all, she thanked her agent above all others and promised to give him the statue that had just been bestowed upon her—not the most endearing, heart-warming sentiment one can share in such a moment. (Afterward, she also volunteered some information about her personal life that Sasha Stone enjoyed, but that are undoubtedly going to weird out more Academy members than they turn on.)

alt : http://www.youtube.com/v/7_DgP50YWrs&rel=1

So where do these two super-talented actresses go from here? Does a BAFTA win indicate that there are similar groundswells with the Academy? It's possible. I think an Oscar win by Cotillard would be more deserved but less likely than one by Swinton, but we shall see...

Posted by Editor at 03:24:28 | Permanent Link | Comments (3) |

Sunday, February 11, 2007

BAFTA ANNOUNCES

BAFTA announced its winners today. They totally snubbed The Departed, essentially snubbed Casino Royale (after nine nominations, just Best Sound plus a special honor for Eva Green), and apparently really liked The Queen (no surprise), The Last King of Scotland (somewhat unanticipated), and Pan's Labyrinth (mainly in technical categories).
Here's a closer look at the results... (*denotes correctly projected)
  •  
    • *Best Picture: The Queen
    • Best British Picture: The Last King of Scotland (how does The Queen win Best Picture but not Best British Picture?)
    • Best Director: Paul Greengrass (United 93)
    • *Best Actor: Forest Whitaker (The Last King of Scotland)
    • *Best Actress: Helen Mirren (The Queen)
    • *Best Supporting Actor: Alan Arkin (Little Miss Sunshine) (was wide open, but I figured one of the only things Brits might like less than an American comedy is Eddie Murphy)
    • *Best Supporting Actress: Jennifer Hudson (Dreamgirls)
    • Best Adapted Screenplay: The Last King of Scotland
    • Best Original Screenplay: Little Miss Sunshine (chosen by Brits over The Queen... seals the deal)
    • *Best Foreign Film: Pan's Labyrinth
    • Best Animated Film: Happy Feet (the Happy Feet-Cars race remains undecided)
    • *Best Cinematography: Children of Men
    • Best Editing: United 93
    • Best Music: Babel (another blow for Dreamgirls)
    • Best Sound: Casino Royale
    • Best Costume Design: Pan's Labyrinth (upsets Devil, Marie)
    • Best Makeup and Hair: Pan's Labyrinth
    • Best Production Design: Children of Men (was wide open)
    • *Best Visual Effects: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
    • Best Rising Star: Eva Green (Casino Royale)
Posted by Editor at 15:54:06 | Permanent Link | Comments (1) |

Saturday, February 10, 2007

BAFTA FORECAST

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts will be announcing tonight. Here's my take on the race...

BAFTA PREDICTIONS

FILM
  • WIN: THE QUEEN - Tracey Seaward/Christine Langan/Andy Harries
  • ALT: BABEL - Alejandro González Iñárritu/Jon Kilik/Steve Golin
DIRECTOR (DAVID LEAN AWARD)
  • WIN: "The Departed" -- Martin Scorsese
  • ALT: "The Queen" -- Stephen Frears
ACTOR
  • WIN: Forest Whitaker -- "The Last King of Scotland"
  • ALT: Peter O'Toole -- "Venus"
ACTRESS
  • WIN: Helen Mirren -- "The Queen"
  • ALT: Judi Dench -- "Notes on a Scandal"
SUPPORTING ACTOR
  • WIN: Alan Arkin -- "Little Miss Sunshine"
  • ALT: Michael Sheen -- "The Queen
SUPPORTING ACTRESS
  • WIN: Jennier Hudson -- Dreamgirls
  • ALT: Emily Blunt -- The Devil Wears Prada
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
  • WIN: "The Departed" -- William Monahan
  • ALT: "Notes on a Scandal" -- Patrick Marber
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
  • WIN: "The Queen" -- Peter Morgan
  • ALT: "Little Miss Sunshine" -- Michael Arndt
FOREIGN LANGUAGE
  • WIN: "Pan's Labyrinth" -- Alfonso Cuaron, Bertha Navarro, Frida Torresblanco, Guillermo del Toro
  • ALT: "Volver" -- Agustin Almodovar, Pedro Almodovar

BEST BRITISH FILM (ALEXANDER KORDA AWARD)
  • WIN: "The Queen"
  • ALT: "United 93"
ANIMATED FILMS
  • WIN: "Cars" -- John Lasseter
  • ALT: "Happy Feet" -- George Miller
FILM MUSIC (ANTHONY ASQUITH AWARD)
  • WIN: "The Queen" -- Alexandre Desplat
  • ALT: "Babel" -- Gustavo Santaolalla
CINEMATOGRAPHY
  • WIN: "Children of Men" -- Emmanuel Lubezki
  • ALT: "United 93" -- Barry Ackroyd
EDITING
  • WIN: "The Departed" -- Thelma Schoonmaker
  • ALT: "The Queen" -- Lucia Zucchetti
PRODUCTION DESIGN
  • WIN: "Pan's Labyrinth" -- Eugenio Caballero, Pilar Revuelta
  • ALT: "Casino Royale" -- Peter Lamont, Simon Wakefield
COSTUME DESIGN
  • WIN: "Marie Antoinette" -- Milena Canonero
  • ALT: "The Devil Wears Prada" -- Patricia Field

MAKEUP AND HAIR

  • WIN: "Marie Antoinette" -- Jean-Luc Russier, Desiree Corridoni
  • ALT: "The Queen" -- Daniel Phillips

SOUND

  • WIN: "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" -- Christopher Boyes, George Watters II, Paul Massey, Lee Orloff
  • ALT: "Casino Royale" -- Chris Munro, Eddy Joseph, Mike Prestwood Smith, Martin Cantwell, Mark Taylor
VISUAL EFFECTS
  • WIN: "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" -- John Knoll, Hal Hickel, Charles Gibson
  • ALT: "Pan's Labyrinth" -- Edward Irastorza, Everett Burrell
Posted by Editor at 15:02:45 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |