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FILM FLAM FLUMMOX *EXTRA*
77th Academy Award Nominations
January 25, 2005
I have learned to never ask for nor expect much from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences with their annual Academy Award nominations, particularly when it comes to a movie year as generally underwhelming as 2004. That said, all I was wishing for was one little nomination for one particular film, a nomination generally considered a shoo-in. Yet somehow Oscar voters managed to irk me in a way that I never thought possible.
But that particular snub (details to come) was but one of few surprises in the nods for the 77th Oscars. After the riches of shockers last year, when the Academy went off the beaten path--no doubt a direct result of the accelerated nomination schedule--voters for the most part went for the expected this year. That, of course, can be attributed to studios adjusting their campaign strategies and release schedules --not to mention the triumphant return of the "For Your Consideration" screener DVD--to avoid such surprises from ever occurring again.
PICTURE
- THE AVIATOR
- FINDING NEVERLAND
- MILLION DOLLAR BABY
- RAY
- SIDEWAYS
These are the five that many had short listed as the likely contenders, so no surprises here at all. After the startling COLD MOUNTAIN snub last year, Miramax (or, should I say, what's left of it) is back in the game (as a company swan song?) with two representatives here, Martin Scorsese's rousing THE AVIATOR and Marc Forster's middle-of-the-road claptrap NEVERLAND. If there is a surprise here, it's that UA's HOTEL RWANDA, which had been gaining considerable steam in the awards home stretch, wasn't able to pull off a spoiler nod. Absentee films touted as possible contenders at one point or another: KINSEY (too much sex, I suppose); CLOSER (too much talking about sex, I suppose); THE INCREDIBLES (stay in your ghetto, animated films!); COLLATERAL (too down-and-dirty and genre); FAHRENHEIT 9/11 (indeed one's vote still counts, and one used it to not whine over now-passed election results), THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST (no explanation necessary), and the critics' darling of early 2004, ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND (I cannot help but wonder, though, how different things would have been had the release date for this and SIDEWAYS had somehow been reversed).
ACTOR
- Don Cheadle, HOTEL RWANDA
- Johnny Depp, FINDING NEVERLAND
- Leonardo DiCaprio, THE AVIATOR
- Clint Eastwood, MILLION DOLLAR BABY
- Jamie Foxx, RAY
For the life of me, I continue to be flummoxed by the nominations and praise for Depp's merely functional--at best--NEVERLAND performance, but his presence was nonetheless expected here. If there's a surprise inclusion, it's that of Eastwood, but even then he was largely considered to be in one of the "bubbling under" slots, and the widespread (and undeserved, if you ask me) love for M$B put him in prime spoiler position. The top names "spoiled" out of a nod: the Fox Searchlight pair of KINSEY's Liam Neeson and--Eastwood's most likely victim--SIDEWAYS's Paul Giamatti (first snubbed last year for AMERICAN SPLENDOR, now this--will this guy ever get the recognition he deserves?); and THE SEA INSIDE's Javier Bardem, whose snub I commend with every last fiber of my being. Had their distributors (respectively, Newmarket and THINKFilm) been bigger and had more resources for a push, THE WOODSMAN's Kevin Bacon and THE ASSASSINATION OF RICHARD NIXON's Sean Penn could have feasibly made the short list; alas, no.
ACTRESS
- Annette Bening, BEING JULIA
- Catalina Sandino Moreno, MARIA FULL OF GRACE
- Imelda Staunton, VERA DRAKE
- Hilary Swank, MILLION DOLLAR BABY
- Kate Winslet, ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
The big news here is Moreno's nod for that most peculiar of animals, the Spanish-language American independent feature, but after her Screen Actors Guild nomination was announced two weeks ago, she more or less sealed the up-for-grabs fifth spot in this category. Notable, but not surprising, omissions: Laura Dern in WE DON'T LIVE HERE ANYMORE, BEFORE SUNSET's Julie Delpy (who actually received her due elsewhere, to my pleasant surprise), and Golden Globe nominee Uma Thurman in KILL BILL VOL. 2.
SUPPORTING ACTOR
- Alan Alda, THE AVIATOR
- Thomas Haden Church, SIDEWAYS
- Jamie Foxx, COLLATERAL
- Morgan Freeman, MILLION DOLLAR BABY
- Clive Owen, CLOSER
First things first: how can anyone consider Foxx's COLLATERAL role a supporting one, as he clearly receives the most screen time out of anyone in that film? That said, it's nice to see him recognized for this performance, which, for my money, is actually more impressive than his more celebrated RAY work; big praise also for the inclusion for Golden Globe winner Owen, who was unfairly overlooked by SAG. The one headscratcher here for me is Alda, who is perfectly fine in THE AVIATOR, but hardly what I call awards-worthy (and I say this as a major fan of Scorsese's film). Notable snubees who were considered to have an outside shot at a nomination: VOL. 2's David Carradine and SAG nominees James Garner (THE NOTEBOOK and young Freddie Highmore (FINDING NEVERLAND). Noteworthy work that would only get nominations in my most wild and pleasant dreams: THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE's Liev Schreiber, I HEART HUCKABEES's Mark Wahlberg, and THE WOODSMAN's Mos Def.
SUPPORTING ACTRESS
- Cate Blanchett, THE AVIATOR
- Laura Linney, KINSEY
- Virginia Madsen, SIDEWAYS
- Sophie Okonedo, HOTEL RWANDA
- Natalie Portman, CLOSER
Another ho-hum category of expected contenders. Notable omissions: RAY's Sharon Warren and Regina King; a second nod for Kate Winslet, for FINDING NEVERLAND; the walking Oscar bait that is Meryl Streep for THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE.
DIRECTOR
- Clint Eastwood, MILLION DOLLAR BABY
- Taylor Hackford, RAY
- Mike Leigh, VERA DRAKE
- Alexander Payne, SIDEWAYS
- Martin Scorsese, THE AVIATOR
If there were any truly shocking multiple nominee this year, it's Mike Leigh's VERA DRAKE, which was not expected to garner much support outside of a shoo-in Actress nod for star Imelda Staunton. Did the Academy decide to make their token political statement by propping up this tale of a noble abortionist rather than feed Michael Moore's ego? In any case, I can't say I'm pleasantly surprised by Leigh's nomination as he's made far worthier films, and he certainly didn't deserve the nomination over, say, ETERNAL SUNSHINE's Michel Gondry, whose superlative work has gone all but unnoticed this awards season; or COLLATERAL's Michael Mann. At least the director's branch didn't follow the lead of the Directors Guild of America and recognize Marc Forster's thoroughly pedestrian job on FINDING NEVERLAND.
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
- BEFORE SUNSET - Screenplay: Richard Linklater & Julie Delpy & Ethan Hawke; Story: Richard Linklater & Kim Krizan
- FINDING NEVERLAND - David Magee
- MILLION DOLLAR BABY - Paul Haggis
- THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES (Diarios de Motocicleta) - José Rivera
- SIDEWAYS - Alexander Payne & Jim Taylor
My vote for most pleasant surprise of the morning goes to SUNSET's nod here. I'm not quite sure why it's considered adapted (is it simply because it's a sequel?), but I'll take what I can get. The high-profile absences here are those of Patrick Marber's CLOSER, but there never seemed to be much enthusiasm over the film outside of its performances; Tina Fey's MEAN GIRLS, but I guess Academy recognition of a current SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE cast member a bone is a bit too much to ask for; and Alvin Sargent's SPIDER-MAN 2, but then comic book adaptations are always doomed to go unrecognized, regardless of acclaim.
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
- THE AVIATOR - John Logan
- ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND - Screenplay: Charlie Kaufman; Story: Charlie Kaufman & Michel Gondry & Pierre Bismuth
- HOTEL RWANDA - Keir Pearson & Terry George
- THE INCREDIBLES - Brad Bird
- VERA DRAKE - Mike Leigh
It's a well-known fact that Leigh doesn't so much write his screenplays than develop them through extensive rehearsals with his actors, so it's always a bit eyebrow-raising when he gets a writing nod. The huge omission here is that of Bill Condon's KINSEY, which based on its one nod (for Supporting Actress Laura Linney) apparently didn't play too well with voters.
FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
- AS IT IS IN HEAVEN (Sweden)
- THE CHORUS (Les Choristes) (France)
- DOWNFALL (Germany)
- THE SEA INSIDE (Mar Adentro) (Spain)
- YESTERDAY (South Africa)
And here is where the Academy got my blood boiling. If you ask me, no nomination story is bigger than the stunning exclusion of China's entry, Zhang Yimou's stunning HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS--which, as anyone who knows me can readily confirm, I have been praising to the heavens and beyond since I first saw it in early September. This is one gimme-nod-gone-awry that I'm sure Sony Pictures Classics will find themselves mulling over for some time to come. I've only seen two of these five films--Christophe Barratier's nice-'n-sweet CHORISTES and Alejandro Amenábar's amazingly dreadful big screen disease-of-the-week weepie MAR ADENTRO--but even with three of the contenders unseen, I can't fathom how the well-liked and high-profile DAGGERS and the genius of Zhang went unrewarded here.
ANIMATED FEATURE
- THE INCREDIBLES
- SHARK TALE
- SHREK 2
Despite box office grosses that continue to chug along well after the holiday season--and after most observers pronounced it dead on arrival after a disappointing opening--THE POLAR EXPRESS was snubbed in favor of SHARK TALE. Perhaps that isn't so surprising considering the motion capture manner in which POLAR was made, which undoubtedly turned it off to animation traditionalists.
ART DIRECTION
- THE AVIATOR - Art Direction: Dante Ferretti; Set Decoration: Francesca Lo Schiavo
- FINDING NEVERLAND - Art Direction: Gemma Jackson; Set Decoration: Trisha Edwards
- LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS - Art Direction: Rick Heinrichs; Set Decoration: Cheryl A. Carasik
- THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA - Art Direction: Anthony Pratt; Set Decoration: Celia Bobak
- A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT (Un Long Dimanche de Fiançailles) - Art Direction: Aline Bonetto
Again, upset at the lack of DAGGERS love, and I'm also disappointed (though hardly shocked) at the snub of the truly original design of THE LIFE AQUATIC WITH STEVE ZISSOU. Good news for the folks at Warner Independent as their insanely aggressive (and, one could say, obnoxious) campaigning for Jean-Pierre Jeunet's wartime romance garnered some technical recognition. Other notable absences: the memorable CG worlds of THE INCREDIBLES and SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW.
CINEMATOGRAPHY
- THE AVIATOR - Robert Richardson
- HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS - Zhao Xiaoding
- THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST - Caleb Deschanel
- THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA - John Mathieson
- A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT (Un Long Dimanche de Fiançailles) - Bruno Delbonnel
I suppose I can take some solace in the fact that DAGGERS received this one nod, and quite a well-deserved one at that. Despite Icon's unusually high road approach to awards campaigning--that is, engaging in none at all--Mel Gibson's PASSION received a notice here, but I chalk that up more to Deschanel's sterling reputation than admiration for the film itself as a whole (though Deschanel's work is, indeed, nod-worthy). The shocking omission here is that of Dion Beebe and Paul Cameron's groundbreaking high-definition digital work on COLLATERAL--but then that's probably exactly why they didn't make the cut.
COSTUME DESIGN
- THE AVIATOR - Sandy Powell
- FINDING NEVERLAND - Alexandra Byrne
- LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS - Colleen Atwood
- RAY - Sharen Davis
- TROY - Bob Ringwood
Not to sound like a broken record, but... no DAGGERS nor Team ZISSOU?
FILM EDITING
- THE AVIATOR - Thelma Schoonmaker
- COLLATERAL - Jim Miller and Paul Rubell
- FINDING NEVERLAND - Matt Chesse
- MILLION DOLLAR BABY - Joel Cox
- RAY - Paul Hirsch
NEVERLAND? Over the likes of ETERNAL SUNSHINE, SPIDER-MAN 2, and (yes) DAGGERS? C'mon now...
MAKEUP
- LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS - Valli O’Reilly and Bill Corso
- THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST - Keith Vanderlaan and Christien Tinsley
- THE SEA INSIDE (Mar Adentro) - Jo Allen and Manuel García
Throw a skullcap and grey hair on Javier Bardem, get an Oscar nomination. Whatever. The other four nomination finalists: THE AVIATOR, DE-LOVELY, HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN, and the truly robbed candidate, HELLBOY. How the hell Bardem's skullcap and grey hair is more awards worthy than Ron Perlman's stunning transformation, I will never know.
ORIGINAL SCORE
- FINDING NEVERLAND - Jan A.P. Kaczmarek
- HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN - John Williams
- LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS - Thomas Newman
- THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST - John Debney
- THE VILLAGE - James Newton Howard
A couple of scores that were considered top contenders, Howard Shore's THE AVIATOR and Clint Eastwood's MILLION DOLLAR BABY, were ruled ineligible for various reasons; that, of course, doesn't explain the absence of Michael Giacchino's super-heroics for THE INCREDIBLES, Alexandre Desplat's haunting BIRTH score, Shigeru Umebayashi's sweepingly romantic DAGGERS work, nor Jon Brion's inventive music for both I HEART HUCKABEES and ETERNAL SUNSHINE.
ORIGINAL SONG
- “Accidentally In Love," SHREK 2 - Music: Adam Duritz, Charles Gillingham, Jim Bogios, David Immergluck, Matthew Mallery & David Bryson; Lyric: Adam Duritz & Daniel Vickrey
- “Al Otro Lado Del Río,” THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES (Diarios de Motocicleta) - Music & Lyric: Jorge Drexler
- “Believe,” THE POLAR EXPRESS - Music and Lyric: Glen Ballard & Alan Silvestri
- “Learn to Be Lonely,” THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA - Music: Andrew Lloyd Webber; Lyric: Charles Hart
- “Look To Your Path (Vois Sur Ton Chemin),” THE CHORUS (Les Choristes) - Music: Bruno Coulais; Lyric: Christophe Barratier
The exclusion of ALFIE's "Old Habits Die Hard" is a true stunner, on par with, say, a hypothetical Jamie Foxx snub in the Actor category; after all, it has the usually foolproof clincher for Oscar in that it's co-written and performed by an aging white rocker (Mick Jagger), and it was the clear frontrunner to win the trophy prior to nominations. Maybe his multiple contributions to the ALFIE soundtrack split the vote? Also notably missing is the soaring DAGGERS aria "Lovers" and Wyclef Jean's "Million Voices" from HOTEL RWANDA. There is a pleasant surprise for me, and that's the inclusion of LES CHORISTES; nice to see Miramax's rather half-hearted one-week, late December one-week qualifying run in L.A. be good for something. Of course, if I had it my way, all five slots would've gone to Trey Parker for his hilarious work on the TEAM AMERICA: WORLD POLICE soundtrack. If only we would be so fortunate to hear "The End of an Act" performed live on the telecast...
SOUND MIXING
- THE AVIATOR - Tom Fleischman & Petur Hliddal
- THE INCREDIBLES - Randy Thom, Gary A. Rizzo & Doc Kane
- THE POLAR EXPRESS - Randy Thom, Tom Johnson, Dennis Sands & William B. Kaplan
- RAY - Scott Millan, Greg Orloff, Bob Beemer & Steve Cantamessa
- SPIDER-MAN 2 - Kevin O’Connell, Greg P. Russell, Jeffrey J. Haboush & Joseph Geisinger
SOUND EDITING
- THE INCREDIBLES - Michael Silvers & Randy Thom
- THE POLAR EXPRESS - Randy Thom & Dennis Leonard
- SPIDER-MAN 2 - Paul N.J. Ottosson
The other four nomination finalists: THE AVIATOR, COLLATERAL, THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW, and RAY.
VISUAL EFFECTS
- HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONDER OF AZKABAN - Roger Guyett, Tim Burke, John Richardson & Bill George
- I, ROBOT - John Nelson, Andrew R. Jones, Erik Nash & Joe Letteri
- SPIDER-MAN 2 - John Dykstra, Scott Stokdyk, Anthony LaMolinara & John Frazier
The other four nomination finalists: THE AVIATOR, LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS, and the FX-heavy TOMORROW pair of THE DAY AFTER... and SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF....
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
- BORN INTO BROTHELS - Ross Kauffman & Zana Briski
- THE STORY OF THE WEEPING CAMEL - Luigi Falorni & Byambasuren Davaa
- SUPER SIZE ME - Morgan Spurlock
- TUPAC: RESURRECTION - Lauren Lazin & Karolyn Ali
- TWIST OF FAITH - Kirby Dick & Eddie Schmidt
Kudos for the nod for TUPAC, which barely missed the deadline for last year's Oscars.
LIVE ACTION SHORT
- EVERYTHING IN THIS COUNTRY MUST - Gary McKendry
- LITTLE TERRORIST - Ashvin Kumar
- 7:35 IN THE MORNING (7:35 de la Mañana) - Nacho Vigalondo
- TWO CARS, ONE NIGHT - Taika Waititi & Ainsley Gardiner
- WASP - Andrea Arnold
ANIMATED SHORT
- BIRTHDAY BOY - Sejong Park & Andrew Gregory
- GOPHER BROKE - Jeff Fowler & Tim Miller
- GUARD DOG - Bill Plympton
- LORENZO - Mike Gabriel & Baker Bloodworth
- RYAN - Chris Landreth
DOCUMENTARY SHORT
- AUTISM IS A WORLD - Gerardine Wurzburg
- THE CHILDREN OF LENINGRADSKY - Hanna Polak & Andrzej Celinski
- HARDWOOD - Hubert Davis & Erin Faith Young
- MIGHTY TIMES: THE CHILDREN'S MARCH - Robert Hudson & Bobby Houston
- SISTER ROSE'S PASSION - Oren Jacoby & Steve Kalafer
MULTIPLE NOMINEES
- THE AVIATOR - 11
- FINDING NEVERLAND - 7
- MILLION DOLLAR BABY - 7
- RAY - 6
- SIDEWAYS - 5
- THE INCREDIBLES - 4
- LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS - 4
- HOTEL RWANDA - 3
- THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST - 3
- THE POLAR EXPRESS - 3
- SPIDER-MAN 2 - 3
- VERA DRAKE - 3
- THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA - 3
- THE CHORUS (Les Choristes) - 2
- CLOSER - 2
- COLLATERAL - 2
- ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND - 2
- HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN - 2
- THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES (Diarios de Motocicleta) - 2
- THE SEA INSIDE (Mar Adentro) - 2
- SHREK 2 - 2
- A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT (Un Long Dimanche de Fiançailles) - 2
The Academy Awards will be handed out on Sunday, February 27 at 8PM Eastern/5PM Pacific on ABC, beginning with the official Oscar pre-show.
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