AFI Names 2012 Movie & TV Selections

The American Film Institute gave its selections for the best of 2012. The recent New York and Boston critics darling Zero Dark Thirty. AFI Awards selections are made through AFI's jury process in which scholars, film and television artists, critics and AFI Trustees determine the most outstanding achievements of the year, as well as provide a detailed rationale for each selection. This year’s juries – one for film and one for television – were chaired by producers and AFI Board of Trustees Vice Chairs Tom Pollock (former Vice Chairman of MCA, Chairman of Universal Pictures) for the movies and Rich Frank (former Chairman of Walt Disney Television, President of Walt Disney Studios, President of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences) for television, and includes award-winning artists such as Angela Bassett, Brad Bird, Chris Carter, Marta Kauffman and Octavia Spencer; film historian Leonard Maltin; scholars from prestigious universities with recognized motion picture arts programs (Syracuse, UCLA, University of Texas, USC, Wesleyan); AFI Board of Trustees; and critics.

"AFI AWARDS celebrates America’s storytellers as collaborators," said Bob Gazzale, AFI President and CEO in a statement. "We are honored to bring together artists as a community, without competition, to acknowledge the gifts they have given the world in 2012."

AFI will honor the creative ensembles for each of the selections on January 11th in Los Angeles.

AFI Movies of the Year:

Argo
Beasts of the Southern Wild
The Dark Knight Rises
Django Unchained
Les Misérables
Life of Pi
Lincoln
Moonrise Kingdom
Silver Linings Playbook
Zero Dark Thirty

AFI TV Programs of the Year:

American Horror Story
Breaking Bad
Game Change
Game of Thrones
Girls
Homeland
Louie
Mad Men
Modern Family
The Walking Dead

LA Film Critics Name 'Amour' Best Picture, Boost 'The Master,' Jazz Up Oscar Race

After so much Zero Dark Thirty domination from the New York Film Critics Circle, their West Coast counterparts in the Los Angeles Film Critics Association made a splash with more art house-leaning picks, voting Michael Haneke's Amour the best film of 2012 — technically a foreign language entry, though Leos Carax's Holy Motors earned that honor. (I see what you did there, LAFCA — and I like it.) LA critics also showed love for Beasts of the Southern Wild, whose non-professional actor/NOLA-area baker Dwight Henry earned a Best Supporting Actor nod, launching his awards season prospects.

Get the full winners after the jump along with results from today's awards announcements from the Boston Society of Film Critics and the New York Film Critics Online groups, both boosters of Kathryn Bigelow and Zero Dark Thirty...
more »

Matthew McConaughey Ready To 'Put Those Leathers On Again' For Awards Season And 'Magic Mike 2'

We at Movieline HQ were quick to cheer when Matthew McConaughey was named Best Supporting Actor by the New York Film Critics Circle for his work in Magic Mike and Bernie. After busying himself with forgettable rom-coms, the uncannily likable Texan has been on a tear, choosing unique projects in which he can strut his unique and undeniable talents. For the first time in his career, he is a genuine contender for an Oscar nomination.

Movieline spoke to the man from the set of Dallas Buyers Club (the film that required him to drop tons of weight, so if the noms don't come this year, he'll be primed for 2014) about awards campaigns, how he's perceived by fans, some of his classic lines and some possible film sequels. Normally we'd take laser focus in pruning our interviews, but with a guy as wonderfully laid back as McConaughey (who announces himself on the phone as "McConaughey") you'd be a fool to ignore all the "man"s.
more »

Oscar Index: 'Zero Dark' Domination & McConaughey's 'Magic' Moves

Welcome back to the Gold Linings Playbook, otherwise known as the Oscar Index, in which we take the pulse of the pundits handicapping this year’s emerging Oscar class!

Oscar handicapping began in earnest this week with The New York Film Critics Circle’s selection of Kathryn Bigelow’s Zero Dark Thirty as Best Picture, adding further speculation that the hunt for Bin Laden drama may steal some of Ben Affleck’s Argo’s thunder. In the past decade, four of the NYFCC’s Best Picture winners have gone on to win the Academy Award: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King; No Country for Old Men; The Hurt Locker, and The Artist.
more »

'The Hunger Games' And 'The Muppets' Top Grammy Awards Movie Nominees

The Hunger Games, The Dark Knight Rises, The Muppets, Midnight In Paris and even last year's Oscar winner for Best Picture, The Artist are up for awards this year, but this time it's for the 55th annual Grammy Awards.

Theatrical titles dominated this year's Grammy categories dedicated to visual media with The Hunger Games receiving two nominations for Best Song ("Abraham's Daughter") and Taylor Swift's "Safe & Sound." The Muppets also scored two nominations, including Best Song for "Man Or Muppet" in addition to a nomination for Best Compilation Soundtrack. Others in the category include this year's Marley documentary and 2011's The Descendants and Midnight in Paris.

Trent Reznor received a Best Score nom for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo along with Hans Zimmer for The Dark Knight Rises and John Williams for The Adventures of Tintin - The Secret of the Unicorn.

The Black Keys' "Lonely Boy," Kelly Clarkson's "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)," Fun's "We Are Young" Gotye's "Somebody That I Used to Know," Frank Ocean's "Thinkin Bout Your" and Taylor Swift's "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" are the Grammys' nominees for Record of the Year.

The Grammy Awards ceremony will be broadcast February 10th on CBS.

55th Grammy Awards' Visual Media-related nominees follow with information provided by the Recording Academy (for other categories, visit the Grammy's website).

Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media:

The Descendants
(Various Artists)
[Sony Classical/Fox Music]

Marley
(Bob Marley & The Wailers)
[UMe/Island/Tuff Gong]

Midnight In Paris
(Various Artists)
[Madison Gate Records, Inc.]

The Muppets
(Various Artists)
[Walt Disney Records]

Rock Of Ages
(Various Artists)
[WaterTower Music]

Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media:

The Adventures Of Tintin - The Secret Of The Unicorn
John Williams, composer
[Sony Classical]

The Artist
Ludovic Bource, composer
[Sony Classical]

The Dark Knight Rises
Hans Zimmer, composer
[WaterTower Music]

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, composers
[Null/Madison Gate]

Hugo
Howard Shore, composer
[Howe Records]

Journey
Austin Wintory, composer
[Sony Computer Entertainment America]

Best Song Written For Visual Media:

Abraham's Daughter (From The Hunger Games)
T Bone Burnett, Win Butler & Régine Chassagne, songwriters (Arcade Fire)
[Universal Republic; Publishers: Régine Chassagne, Absurd Music, Win Butler, Henry Burnett Music, Baffle Music]

Learn Me Right (From Brave)
Mumford & Sons, songwriters (Birdy & Mumford & Sons)
[Walt Disney Records/Pixar; Publisher: Pixar Talking Pictures]

Let Me Be Your Star (From Smash)
Marc Shaiman & Scott Wittman, songwriters (Katharine McPhee & Megan Hilty)
[Columbia; Publishers: Winding Brook Way Music, Walli Woo Entertainment]

Man Or Muppet (From The Muppets)
Bret McKenzie, songwriter (Jason Segel & Walter)
[Walt Disney; Publisher: Fuzzy Muppet Songs]

Safe & Sound (From The Hunger Games)
T Bone Burnett, Taylor Swift, John Paul White & Joy Williams, songwriters
(Taylor Swift Featuring The Civil Wars)
[Big Machine Records/Universal Republic; Publishers: Sony ATV Tree Publishing, Taylor Swift Music, Sensibility Songs, Absurd Music, Shiny Happy Music, Baffle Music, Henry Burnett Music]

[Source: Yahoo]

'Zero Dark Thirty' Takes Top National Board Of Review Honors

In another major awards win for Kathryn Bigelow's latest, Zero Dark Thirty took major nods from the National Board of Review, receiving kudos for Best Film, Best Director and Best Actress for Jessica Chastain.

[Related: NY Film Critics Circle Spices Up Oscar Race With 'Zero Dark Thirty' Best Picture Pick]

Also taking major wins by the group were Bradley Cooper for Best Actor for Silver Linings Playbook, Leonardo DiCaprio (Best Supporting Actor) for Django Unchained, while Michael Haneke's Cannes Palme d'Or winner Amour took Best Foreign Language Film. Sundance '12 winner Beasts of the Southern Wild won both Best Directorial Debut for Benh Zeitlin and the Breakthrough Actress prize for Quevenzhané Wallis. Ben Affleck's Argo received a Special Achievement in Filmmaking mention.

Meredith Vieira will host the National Board of Review Gala on January 8th in New York.

2012 National Board of Review Prizes:

Best Film: Zero Dark Thirty
Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow, Zero Dark Thirty
Best Actor: Bradley Cooper, Silver Linings Playbook
Best Actress: Jessica Chastain, Zero Dark Thirty
Best Supporting Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio, Django Unchained
Best Supporting Actress: Ann Dowd, Compliance
Best Original Screenplay: Rian Johnson, Looper
Best Adapted Screenplay: David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook
Best Animated Feature: Wreck-It Ralph
Special Achievement in Filmmaking: Ben Affleck, Argo
Breakthrough Actor: Tom Holland, The Impossible
Breakthrough Actress: Quvenzhané Wallis,  Beasts of the Southern Wild
Best Directorial Debut: Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild
Best Foreign Language Film: Amour
Best Documentary: Searching for Sugarman
William K. Everson Film History Award: 50 Years of Bond Films
Best Ensemble: Les Misérables
Spotlight Award: John Goodman (Argo, Flight, Paranorman, Trouble with the Curve)
NBR Freedom of Expression Award: Central Park Five
NBR Freedom of Expression Award: Promised Land
 
Top Films 
(in alphabetical order)
 
ARGO
BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD
DJANGO UNCHAINED
LES MISÉRABLES
LINCOLN
LOOPER
THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER
PROMISED LAND
SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK
 
Top 5 Foreign Language Films
(In Alphabetical Order)
 
BARBARA
THE INTOUCHABLES
THE KID WITH A BIKE
NO
WAR WITCH
 
Top 5 Documentaries
(In Alphabetical Order)
 
AI WEIWEI: NEVER SORRY
DETROPIA
THE GATEKEEPERS
THE INVISIBLE WAR
ONLY THE YOUNG
 
Top 10 Independent Films
(In Alphabetical Order)
 
ARBITRAGE
BERNIE
COMPLIANCE
END OF WATCH
HELLO I MUST BE GOING
LITTLE BIRDS
MOONRISE KINGDOM
ON THE ROAD
QUARTET
SLEEPWALK WITH ME

'2016 Obama's America' Filmmakers Cry Oscar Bias

The Oscar-winning producer of this year's anti-Obama doc 2016 Obama's America is calling foul after the Academy released its Documentary Shortlist for Oscar consideration earlier this week.

[Related: Academy Names 15 As Best Documentary Oscar Contenders; 'Central Park Five' Snubbed]

Gerald Molen, who produced 1994's Schindler's List (with Steven Spielberg and Branko Lustig) won the Academy Award for Best Picture said political bias is to blame for 2016 not making the cut of 15 titles to advance to the next round.

Directed by Dinesh D'Souza, the pic took in a cool $33.44 million domestically, earning more at the box office than the 15 who did advance to Oscar-nomination eligibility combined. Molen, however, said D'Souza believed the Academy - which is criticized by conservatives of being largely liberally biased - might snub the doc.

"Dinesh warned me this might happen," Molen said with a laugh, according to THR. "The action confirms my opinion that the bias against anything from a conservative point of view is dead on arrival in Hollywood circles. The film’s outstanding success means that America went to see the documentary in spite of how Hollywood feels about it."

2016 Obama's America is not the only box office cash-cow that didn't make the short list for 2012. Dan Cutforth and Jane Lipsitz's Katy Perry: Part of Me did not join the fifteen. Though not quite as successful as 2016, the Katy Perry movie did gross over $25.3 million domestically (and over $32 million worldwide).

Both D'Souza's 2016 and Michael Moore's 2004 not-so-subtle anti-Bush smash Fahrenheit 9/11 may indicate an emerging cinematic convention: Anti-presidential incumbent non-fictions turn out the crowds, but not the Oscar nominations. Fahrenheit outstripped 2016 at the box office, taking in over $119 million in 2004 dollars and it even scored the Cannes Palme d'Or that year. But it did not receive an Oscar nomination.

Still, the Oscar snub has caught the eire of its filmmakers and they're not above throwing a bit of light-hearted shade to some of those films that did make the list this week.

"I want to thank the Academy for not nominating our film,” D’Souza said. "By ignoring 2016, the top-performing box-office hit of 2012, and pretending that films like Searching for Sugar Man and This Is Not a Film are more deserving of an Oscar, our friends in Hollywood have removed any doubt average Americans may have had that liberal political ideology, not excellence, is the true standard of what receives awards."

[Source: THR]

'The Hobbit' 3-D Early Review: Back Again, But Not Quite There

As beloved and popular as J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit has been in the seventy plus years since its publication, the simple adventure story has never been much more than prologue, a light and sunny rain compared to the epic hurricane force of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, the transformative high fantasy quest narrative which C.S. Lewis once said contained "beauties which pierce like swords or burn like cold iron."

The worst thing that could be said about Peter Jackson's fourth cinematic foray into Middle Earth, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, is that it follows suit, being merely good when greatness was anticipated or expected. more »

Academy Names 15 As Best Documentary Oscar Contenders; 'Central Park Five' Snubbed

Fifteen docs advanced to the final stages for Oscar consideration Monday. While the films making the cut are, of course, notable, some others that did not are also. Today's winner of the New York Film Critics Circle for Best Non-Fiction film of 2012, Central Park Five, which made headlines recently because New York City officials attempted to gain access to the film's outtakes related to a pending civil suit, did not make the cut. Other high profile docs also left out were Toronto's West of Memphis and Sundance's Marina Abramovic: The Artist is Present as well as Magnolia's The Queen of Versailles. While distributor IFC Films will likely be disappointed by the CP5 omission by the Academy, it will celebrate the inclusion of How To Survive a Plague, an AIDS doc that opened quietly, but to acclaim for its bravery. The distributor also had its Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry in the list.

[Related: Movieline's Central Park Five coverage]

Tribeca's Bully, which opened to controversy for its R-rating from the MPAA to pushback from distributor The Weinstein Company, also made the cut.

The 15 films are listed below in alphabetical order by title, with their production companies (information provided by AMPAS):

 
  
Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry, Never Sorry LLC
   
Bully, The Bully Project LLC
   
Chasing Ice, Exposure
   
Detropia, Loki Films
   
Ethel, Moxie Firecracker Films
   
5 Broken Cameras, Guy DVD Films
   
The Gatekeepers, Les Films du Poisson, Dror Moreh Productions, Cinephil
   
The House I Live In, Charlotte Street Films, LLC
   
How to Survive a Plague, How to Survive a Plague LLC
   
The Imposter, Imposter Pictures Ltd. 
   
The Invisible War, Chain Camera Pictures
   
Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God, Jigsaw Productions in association with 
Wider Film Projects and Below the Radar Films
   
Searching for Sugar Man, Red Box Films
   
This Is Not a Film, Wide Management
   
The Waiting Room, Open'hood, Inc.

Lawbreakers, Unite: After NYFCC Awards, Is Matthew McConaughey An Oscar Contender?

All right, all right, all right.

Awards season has officially gotten down in the dirt with a little bit of glorious stank. The New York Film Critics Circle, an august body despite three years of madness under Armond White's leadership, has named Matthew McConaughey the year's best supporting actor for his work in both Magic Mike and Bernie.
more »

'Amour' Wins Big At European Film Awards

Michael Haneke's Amour swept the European Film Awards over the weekend, picking up four big wins including best European film and best director. The Cannes Palme d'Or winner also won two acting awards for its principal stars, Emanuelle Riva and Jean-Louis Trintignant. The film, which centers on an elderly couple whose lives change when the woman has an attack, will open in the U.S. December 19th via Sony Pictures Classics.

Winners were chosen by the 2,700 members of the European Film Academy. The ceremony took place over the weekend in Malta.

EUROPEAN FILM 2012:
Amour
France / Germany / Austria, 127 min
Written & directed by Michael Haneke
produced by Margaret Menegoz, Stefan Arndt, Veit Heiduschka & Michael Katz
 
EUROPEAN DIRECTOR 2012:
Michael Haneke for Amour
 
EUROPEAN ACTRESS 2012:
Emmanuelle Riva in Amour
 
EUROPEAN ACTOR 2012:
Jean-Louis Trintignant in Amour
 
EUROPEAN SCREENWRITER 2012:
Tobias Lindholm & Thomas Vinterberg for Jagten (The Hunt)
 
CARLO DI PALMA EUROPEAN CINEMATOGRAPHER AWARD 2012:
Sean Bobbitt for Shame
 
EUROPEAN EDITOR 2012:
Joe Walker for Shame
 
EUROPEAN PRODUCTION DESIGNER 2012:
Maria Djurkovic for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
 
EUROPEAN COMPOSER 2012:
Alberto Iglesias for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
 
EUROPEAN DISCOVERY 2012 – Prix FIPRESCI:
Kauwboy by Boudewijn Koole (The Netherlands)
 
EUROPEAN FILM ACADEMY DOCUMENTARY 2012:
Hiver Nomade (Winter Nomads) by Manuel von Stürler (Switzerland)
 
EUROPEAN FILM ACADEMY ANIMATED FEATURE FILM 2012:
Alois Nebel by Tomáš Luňák (Czech Republic / Germany / Slovakia)
 
EUROPEAN FILM ACADEMY SHORT FILM 2012:
Superman, Spiderman Or Batman by Tudor Giurgiu, Romania
 
EUROPEAN CO-PRODUCTION AWARD 2012 - Prix EURIMAGES:
Helena Danielsson, Sweden
 
EUROPEAN ACHIEVEMENT IN WORLD CINEMA 2012:
Dame Helen Mirren, UK
 
EUROPEAN FILM ACADEMY LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD:
Bernardo Bertolucci, Italy
 
THE PEOPLE'S CHOICE AWARD 2012:
Hasta La Vista (Come As You Are)
directed by da Geoffrey Enthoven

Oscar Index: Everything's 'Dark' And 'Miserables,' Until We Get 'Unchained'

Welcome back to Movieline's Oscar Index, where each week we take the pulse of the awards chatter en route to Hollywood's big day. This week both Tom Hooper's Les Miserables and Kathryn Bigelow's Zero Dark Thirty surged through the ranks after debuting in their first, successful, awards screenings, though Spielberg's Lincoln still reigns supreme — but Peter Jackson's 48fps gamble The Hobbit and Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained are right around the corner, gunning for the spotlight...
more »

Hey Academy! Time To Take Nicole Kidman's 'Paperboy' Role Seriously!

Once, Nicole Kidman barely had to raise an eyebrow to get awards attention. Now, she barely can raise an eyebrow and her best work in years is being completely ignored in the Oscar conversation. The Paperboy stars Kidman as Charlotte Bless, a damaged attention-seeker who becomes sexually obsessed with a convicted murderer (John Cusack), while cock-teasing the only man—or really, teenager—who truly loves her (Zac Efron). It's Kidman's bravest, boldest, and most committed performance ever, and no one cares for the short-sighted reason that the movie is terrible.

How unfair. The Nicole Kidman of To Die For used to have a bright future before that bright future came true and blinded everyone to her comedic gifts. Once Kidman scored her first Oscar nomination for 2002's Moulin Rouge, she became the prey of the Hollywood awards hunt, in which the chase for For-Your-Consideration goes like this: take one prestigious actress (see Kidman, Berry, Jolie, Swank), make her play someone vulnerable (see Cold Mountain, Things We Lost in the Fire, The Changeling, Conviction), then cross your fingers. This is why we've had a full decade of Kidman drifting about in period costumes or, god forbid, stretching herself to play a movie star in Nine. And people, this is why the Oscar season is boring. This formula guarantees a chase to the middlebrow, and it's why every Best Picture Oscar winner since Silence of the Lambs is something your grandma would see at an arthouse matinee.

There's only one thing we can do to save the Academy Awards: nominate Nicole Kidman for The Paperboy.

Just because The Paperboy is bad doesn't void the bravery it took to make it. Kidman's Charlotte is a balls-out wonder. She's pure sex and need, at once over-confident and fragile. Slithering around in her neon polyester pants, Kidman is fully alive for the first time since Baz Luhrmann murdered her with tuberculosis. And The Paperboy even has not one but two stand-out scenes that will live on in infamy—Sally Field standing on a table in Norma Rae can't compete with Kidman peeing on Zac Efron or giving John Cusack an orgasm just by breathing at him from across a prison cell.

Imagine if Oscar voters were able to parse the jewels from the schlock. Why should Les Misérables clutter up every acting category? What if this year's ceremony didn't just include the dull favorites like Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln and Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty—roles everyone respects, but no one loves—but made room for Michael Shannon in Premium Rush and Michael Sheen in Breaking Dawn – Part 2. Imagine just being able to say, "The Academy Award-nominated bike messenger thriller Premium Rush."

Plus, this wouldn't be the first time we've given an actor a statuette for good work in an awful film. We did it three years ago when Mo'Nique won for Precious. It's no coincidence that Precious and The Paperboy were both directed by bizarro auteur Lee Daniels, a former casting agent and producer with the clout to get serious actors to take him seriously. He convinced the likes of Helen Mirren, Cuba Gooding Jr., and Joseph Gordon-Levitt to star in his debut film, Shadowboxer—-and that's despite a script which opens with Stephen Dorff shoving a pool cue up a guy's ass.

In fact, let's go one step further. Not only does Nicole Kidman deserve a Best Actress nomination for The Paperboy, Lee Daniels deserves Best Director. He's clearly one of the greats. Not because his films are any good, but because his actors would do—and do do—anything for him. Anthony Minghella, Sidney Pollack, Rob Marshall only wish they could pull as passionate of a performance out of Kidman, and Daniels behind-the-scenes alchemy is that powerful with every single one of his actors. He not only convinced Helen Mirren and Cuba Gooding Jr. to shoot a strip scene in Shadowboxer, he convinced them to commit to it like it was high art. And The Paperboy performs more stunt-casting miracles: An American sweetheart, John Cusack, is loathsome; Macy Gray is the next great actress and Zac Efron, convincingly, can't get laid. Could Steven Spielberg swing that? Never.

Luckily, we're not alone in appreciating this wonderful, terrible gem. In October, a group of rogue cinephiles launched a For Your Consideration Facebook page flogging Nicole Kidman's outstanding work in The Paperboy. As of today, the page has 10 fans. Let's get that number growing.

What If Vince Vaughn And Zooey Deschanel Starred In 'Silver Linings Playbook'?

There's nothing like a good bit of alternate "What if?" casting to make you appreciate a movie whose stars' chemistry works, so picture what might have been if David O. Russell had made his Oscar contender Silver Linings Playbook a few years back... with Vince Vaughn and Zooey Deschanel.
more »

'Zero Dark Thirty': Strong Women, Ambiguous Ethics Drive Bigelow's Oscar Pic

Kathryn Bigelow’s ambitious Oscar contender Zero Dark Thirty started out as a film about the 2001 siege of Tora Bora hunting down al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, but as the Academy Award-winner told a rapt audience at the picture's buzz-building debut in Beverly Hills on Sunday, it changed direction in one quick, fateful instant.

“At about 10 o’clock at night on May 1, 2011 we realized we no longer had a project about the hunt for Osama bin Laden,” Bigelow said at a packed post-screening Q&A at the Pacific Design Center, “because he was no longer living.”
more »