Friday, January 14, 2011

If We Were the HFPA


Image Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Thanks to my friend Brian over at Please Welcome Your Judges I finally have content for my blog! I love awards season, and here is our take on the movie portion of this Sunday's Golden Globes:

Best Motion Picture - Drama
Should Win: The King's Speech (Brian); Inception (Jason)
Should've Been Nominated: True Grit (Brian); Shutter Island (Jason)
Brian Says: Jason obviously has a crush on Leonard DiCaprio (more on that later) and Brian can't get enough of period pieces.
Jason Says: I can't help it that Leo makes every picture better, and Shutter Island is this year's best most-forgotten film.
Best Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical
Should Win: The Kids Are All Right (Brian and Jason)
Should've Been Nominated: Since Toy Story 3 isn't eligible... Morning Glory (Brian); Easy A (Jason)
Jason Says: Kids is my favorite movie of the year, behind Inception. Yes, that's likely because I managed to see it at Sundance. Easy A was this year's Mean Girls and given the weak comedy category it should've been nominated. Plus, Emma Stone > Lindsay Lohan.
Brian Says: Speaking of Mean Girls, Rachel McAdams' Morning Glory was SO underrated! If Alice in Wonderland wins this, I might throw a remote through the TV. Actually, anything except a Kids victory will elicit violent behavior.
Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama
Should Win: Natalie Portman, Black Swan (Brian and Jason)
Should've Been Nominated: Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit (Brian and Jason)
Brian Says: We occasionally have the same brain. Natalie's performance is miles ahead of the competition. I'll let Jason explain Hailee's appearance here.
Jason Says: Maybe I'm bitter, but this is definitely one of my most passionate thoughts of the awards season! Despite what critics will have you think, Hailee Steinfield is NOT a supporting actress contender. She was great, but belongs in this category. Oh yeah, and Natalie Portman was great too, but I haven't seen any of the other nominated performances, so she wins by default.
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama
Should Win: Colin Firth, The King's Speech (Brian); James Franco, 127 Hours (Jason)
Should've Been Nominated: Leonardo DiCaprio, Inception (Brian and Jason)
Jason Says: Again, living in the land of the Great Salty Lake has it's drawbacks, I haven't seen Firth's performance yet, so I can't weigh in there. However, since I think he was robbed last year I think I'll be riding the Firth train come Oscar time. As it stands now, I pick Franco. He carried 127 Hours. Oh yeah, and my crush on Leo continues.
Brian Says: Back-to-back years of phenomenal performances from Firth prove he is one of the great actors of our time. Leo was in Titanic, so he gets extra points from me.
Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical
Should Win: Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right (Brian and Jason)
Should've Been Nominated: Rachel McAdams, Morning Glory (Brian); Chloe Moretz, Kick Ass (Jason)
Brian Says: I tend to empathize with characters who are equally as obsessed with red wine as I am (more on that later), plus Annette was a true force in Kids. And Rachel McAdams was the shining star of the underrated Morning Glory.
Jason Says: I really wanted to pick Julianne just because I love Boston University alums, but Annette was so effortless in Kids that I didn't even notice she was acting. Chloe Moretz had a breakthrough year with Kick Ass and Let Me In, so the HFPA should've thrown her a bone here.
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical
Should Win: No One (Brian); Johnny Depp, Alice in Wonderland (Jason)
Should've Been Nominated: Michael Cera, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (Brian); Mark Wahlberg, The Other Guys (Jason)
Jason Says: I was one of five people who enjoyed Alice in Wonderland, so I vote Depp. I was actually surprised The Other Guys didn't get any nods - it was one of the few films this year that actually made me laugh. Plus, who doesn't love Marky Mark?
Brian Says: This group of nominees is miserable. I almost voted for Jake Gyllenhaal, except Love & Other Drugs was the opposite of funny. Michael Cera was fantastic as Scott Pilgrim—perfectly fit to his "type" but elevated by all of the great action sequences.
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Should Win: Amy Adams, The Fighter (Brian); Tie - Melissa Leo/Amy Adams, The Fighter (Jason)
Should've Been Nominated: Barbara Hershey, Black Swan (Brian); Marion Cotillard (Jason)
Brian Says: This is no doubt a knock out battle between the ladies of The Fighter (get it?), who both transformed themselves into true women of Lowell, MA. And I'm still waiting for someone to explain why Barbara Hershey is getting zero love for her great performance in Black Swan.
Jason Says: I'll agree with you on that. Though Black Swan wasn't my cup of tea, Barbara Hershey was much better than the overrated Mila Kunis. Though my biggest pet peeve is the lack of love for Marion Cotillard. She was the best performance in Inception. She navigated an incredibly delicate role perfectly.
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Should Win: Christian Bale, The Fighter (Brian and Jason)
Should've Been Nominated: Mark Ruffalo, The Kids Are All Right (Brian); Justin Timberlake, The Social Network (Jason)
Jason Says: Christian Bale scores a knockout (see I can make Fighter jokes, too!). Given my obsession with The Kids are All Right it was hard not to pick Ruffalo, but Justin WAS Sean Parker in The Social Network and deserves at least a little recognition.
Brian Says: To be fair, Justin was my second choice for the "should have" category, so we pretty much agree here, too.
Best Director - Motion Picture
Should Win: David Fincher, The Social Network (Brian); Christopher Nolan, Inception (Jason)
Should've Been Nominated: Joel and Ethan Coen, True Grit (Brian); Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right (Jason)
Brian Says: Putting all the pieces together for the much whispered-about "Facebook movie" was no easy feat, and it was pulled off brilliantly by Fincher. And it really takes true grit to remake a John Wayne classic, but the Coen brothers did it with style.
Jason Says: I voted Inception for the best film of the year, so it only makes sense to pick Nolan as the best director. Lisa Chodolenko directed The Kids are All Right effortlessly, drawing superb performances from the entire cast. She deserves to be among the boys.
Best Screenplay - Motion Picture
Should Win: Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network (Brian and Jason)
Should've Been Nominated: Scott Silver, Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson The Fighter (Brian); Michael Ardnt, Toy Story 3 (Jason)
Jason Says: Sorkin's dialogue in TSN was brilliant. Enough said. Animated films don't get enough credit, and Toy Story 3's story was a brilliant way to end the beloved trilogy.
Brian Says: Totally agree about Social Network. As for The Fighter? "If you call me a skank one more time I'll rip your ugly hair off your f***ing head." Done.
Best Original Score - Motion Picture
Should Win: Hans Zimmer, Inception (Brian and Jason)
Should've Been Nominated: Pharrell Williams, Despicable Me (Brian); Daft Punk, TRON: Legacy (Jason)
Brian Says: Just go on YouTube and you'll quickly see what a cultural impact Hans Zimmer's score had this year. And Pharrell's score brought a great groove and quirkiness to Despicable Me.
Jason Says: It'd be a shock if anyone other than Zimmer won. If you saw TRON: Legacy you know how much cooler Daft Punk's score made the film—leagues and leagues ahead of the original.
Best Original Song - Motion Picture
Should Win: "You Haven't Seen the Last of Me," Burlesque (Brian and Jason)
Should've Been Nominated: "Despicable Me," Despicable Me (Brian); "When Will My Life Begin," Tangled (Jason)
We Say: Cher. 'Nuff said.