Jesse Eisenberg and Jeremy Irons Cast in the New Batman vs Superman

After it was announced Ben Affleck would be playing Batman/Bruce Wayne in the upcoming sequel to Man of Steel, today Warner Bros. announced that Academy Award Nominee Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network) and Academy Award Winner Jeremy Irons would be joining Affleck, and veterans Henry Cavill and Amy Adams.

Scarlett Johansson Makes Men Disappear in Under the Skin

Johansson follows up Don Jon and Her with a completely different performance as a man-eating alien. 

Scarlett Johansson is having something of a career renaissance lately, and I couldn't be happier about it. After a "better than advertised" performance in Joss Whedon's "The Avengers" in 2012, Johansson followed up with back to back great turns in Joe Levitt's "Don Jon" and Spike Jonze's "Her'. In both films, Johansson acted with ferocious energy that hasn't been seen since before her career slump, post- Lost in Translation Oscar buzz (remember when she won a BAFTA for Leading Actress that year?).

Fact of the matter is, after uninspired choices like "The Nanny Diaries" or "The Island", Johansson is back to making very inspired and brave acting choices, and overall seems very excited about the performances she's giving (unlike sleepwalking through roles like "The Black Dahlia" or "The Other Boelyn Girl").

She was (unfairly) overlooked for the Best Supporting Actress Oscar (an award she should have won) this year for her voice-work (yes, she's that good as just a voice) in Her, but that doesn't seem to be stopping her from choosing tricky roles and delivering energetic performances.

So that's why I (and others) are thoroughly excited about her next film; Johansson will appear as the lead in Jonathan Glazer's "Under the Skin", distributed by A24 (the same company who distributed Spring Breakers and The Bling Ring). In the film, Johansson plays a beautiful alien searching for men, or rather their flesh.

All New Maleficent Trailer Featuring Lana Del Rey's Cover of "Once Upon A Dream"

Hot off of her contribution to The Great Gatsby's soundtrack with her song "Young and Beautiful", singer Lana Del Rey has returned with another soundtrack credit. Actress Angelina Jolie has reportedly handpicked the singer to perform a cover of the song "Once Upon A Dream" for the new Disney movie "Maleficent"

A new trailer featuring the song (which is quite great) has been released, which you can watch below. You can also find a link to download the track for free! (only for a limited time only).

Alfonso Cuaron Wins at the DGA: What Does This Mean for Oscar?

Affleck passes the torch to the director of Gravity.

In a not so surprising announcement (unlike last week's tie at the Producers Guild), Alfonso Cuaron was awarded at the Directors Guild Awards last night. It comes as no surprise, because Cuaron has been the frontrunner in this category since Gravity had been seen. Not to mention, he's won the most awards (the only major award he lost was at the NYFCC to Steve McQueen) out of every director in the category.

With the DGA behind him, it's clear to say that he will win the Oscar. But can Gravity win Best Picture?

It very well could. However, while most people will be quick to say that Gravity will win Best Picture and Director (and a shit ton of tech awards), I think that there will be a split between Picture and Director. It doesn't happen very often, but it can happen.

There is an argument that if you're voting for Cuaron, you recognize that Gravity succeeds because it's his masterpiece, and that's true. Without Cuaron, Gravity would not be the amazing experience we all know it is. But to think 12 Years A Slave is only going home with 1 Oscar (Lupita Nyong'o for Supporting Actress) just doesn't seem right to me. It would be the first predominantly black film to win Best Picture, not to mention it's a masterpiece in its own right. I would be happy if Gravity won, but I think this award belongs to 12 Years A Slave; films like this do not come around that often, and should be rewarded.

It'll be interesting to see where BAFTA goes with their Picture choice. Gravity was the film with the most nominations, so if it cleans up, that's how we'll know it's over for 12 YAS.

Full list of winners below.

Worst Oscar Winners: Best Actress In A Leading Role

Hey everyone! So I was brainstorming for a new post series to keep me busy and to keep content flowin (I've gotta keep you all interested right?). Since we're coming towards the end of Oscar season, and we pretty much know who's going to win in the major categories, why not revisit some past years? In particular, the years in which we had some pretty terrible nominees and even worse winners.

The series will cover the acting categories and Best Picture. My favorite category, Best Actress, will kick it off. I'll be posting Supporting Actress sometime next month, but in the mean time, send me some winners you feel shouldn't have won and explain why! Maybe you'll find your choices on this list.

Without further adieu, I give you, the worst Best Actress winners.

Memorable Movie Moments in 2013: 10 Favorite Shots

I've decided that in addition to compiling a top 10 list of my favorite films of the year, I'd also do a top 10 list of my favorite images/scenes/shots from films, because what's more fun than doing a top 10 list?? 

No, but really, it was a lot of fun sifting through and thinking about memorable moments from movies, especially this year. I had a lot of favorites I wish I could have included; choosing 10 is painstaking and I'm sure after I publish this I'll think of 10, or even 20 more I want to discuss/analyze. 

I guess I've just started a bit of a tradition now, but I'm okay with that. Let me know what you think! If you thought a scene/image/shot deserved to be considered, comment. I'm always up for feedback. The titles of the scenes have links (if I could get them) to take you to said scene/shot in the respective movie.

Anyway, here we go! Enjoy!

Where Are We in the Oscar Race?

Gravity, American Hustle and 12 Years A Slave are duking it out for the title of Best Picture of the Year. Who will the DGA pick? 

In the last month, we've heard from numerous critic's groups (including the BFCA), the Golden Globes, Screen Actors Guild and Producers Guild. The Directors Guild will announce their winner on Sunday, and ultimately decide the new frontrunner.

But throughout the announcements and the seemingly endless awards shows, there are 3 films that have consistently come out on top each time. These are the 3 films that are currently duking it out for the win, the big prize.

Each film has its own band of supporters, its own narrative and reason for winning; it's going to be a photo finish.

American Hustle, Gravity and 12 Years A Slave have built and maintained substantial heat in the past few months, but which film has enough gas in the tank to make it to the finish line?

Denver Film Critics Anoint Gravity

Some last minute "winning" traction after a big win with the PGA makes for a good Oscar campaign.


Best Picture: 

• Gravity

Best Director:

• Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity

Best Actor:

• Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club

Best Actress:

• Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

Amy Adams channels Elphaba from Wicked, Tarantino's Next Film & More Stories

My school closed today due to the large amount of snow we got yesterday, so I'm planning on not really doing much today except keeping warm and watching movies. However, I found a few things I thought you all would find interesting. So, enjoy!

• The Huffington Post (courtesy of TMZ) posted a video of Amy Adams singing "Defying Gravity" from the musical Wicked during karaoke. It's a little raw/rough, but god I can't say I don't love this woman.
• Why Are The Oscars Wrong For Young Women?
• Why are MORE Best Picture Nominees actually thinning out the number of actual contenders?
• Trent Reznor, hot off of his Academy Award winning score for The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, is back with another project
• Quentin Tarantino's screenplay for "Hateful Eight" leaked, and he's not happy about it.
• The Film Experience came up with a list for 10 actors in need of Oscar Nominations. I agree wholeheartedly with this list, and I highly recommend reading through it

What if "Her" Wasn't ScarJo?

By now, I'm sure you're all very familiar with the concept of Spike Jonze's film, Her. The newly divorced and very lonely Theodore (Joaquin Phoenix) installs a new Operating System (voiced by Scarlett Johansson). After getting to know each other on a frighteningly intimate level, the 2 embark on a relationship with one another. Yes, cue the "nerd dating his computer jokes" that I've already heard way too many times. But what Jonze does here is really magical, it's a love story that is able to transcend its premise and be relatable to anyone who has ever fallen in love before.

The movie works mainly because of Scarlett Johansson's beautiful and sensual voice; it's hard not to fall in love with her yourself. I found myself forgetting she was just a voice throughout the film. It's one of the best performances of the year, and Johansson doesn't even need her body!

But what if Samantha the OS was a different Samantha... a Samantha we learned to love many years ago, who is beautiful and sensual... in her own special way? What if it was Kim Catrell's Samantha Jones from Sex and the City?

Below is the trailer which casts a completely different Samantha for Theodore (and us) to fall in love with. And at the bottom I've included the original trailer so you can compare the two.

Enjoy

A TIE at the Producer's Guild Awards

  (Blurry) picture of Brad Pitt accepting the PGA award for 12 Years A Slave, ONE (yes there's another winner) of the winners for the Best Film Award.

That's right you guys, we're still no closer to knowing who is going to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards yet, which is strange because at this point we usually have the winner locked up.

Before tonight, we had 3 front runners: American Hustle, Gravity and 12 Years A Slave. The real fight seemed to be between 12 Years A Slave and American Hustle, both of whom have been winning Best Picture honors from the Globes and Broadcast Film Critics. But last night, Hustle edged out a win with SAG for Best Ensemble.

Poised to win again tonight, it tripped at the final lap, with not only 12 Years A Slave edging in a victory, but Gravity! The two tied for the Best Picture honor.

Now, unlike SAG Ensemble which has been known to miss with Oscar (The Help, Inglorious Basterds, etc), the PGA winner always goes on to win the Best Picture Academy Award.. so what does it mean that we 2 winners?

It will come down to the final Guild announcement: the DGA (Directors Guild). They announce their winner next week (Alfonso Cuaron of Gravity and Steve McQueen will both go toe to toe, with Hustle's O. Russell nominated as well).

Until then, a race that was becoming boring, managed to get exciting again. Hustle is out, and Gravity is in. Ballots go in on the 25th: This win could have an affect on the winner of the DGA.

Oscar Hopefuls: Those That Didn't Make the Cut (Video)

All of the Oscar hopefuls who didn't make the cut. From Oprah, to Pacific Rim. See who was snubbed and who never had a fighting chance.

Screen Actors Guild Spreads the Wealth

American Hustle predictably wins Best Ensemble

The Screen Actors Guild chose American Hustle as their Best Ensemble winner, the equivalent to their Best Picture award. It was always going to win the ensemble award; the starry cast (including Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper and Christian Bale) is catnip to voters. 

It's important to note that Hustle didn't sweep; Jennifer Lawrence lost Best Supporting Actress to Lupita Nyong'o, who has come back in a big way after losing at the Globes (she also won with the Broadcast Film Critics). 

Argo, last year's Best Ensemble award winner, went on to win Best Picture with the Oscars. Past winners who also went on to win Best Picture include The King's Speech, Slumdog Millionaire and No Country for Old Men. 

The race isn't over yet, however. The Producer's Guild and Director's Guild have yet to announce their winners; expect Gravity to win the DGA, and 12 Years A Slave could very well win the PGA. This is still very much a 3-way race. 

Read the full list of winners (including TV Actors) below:

New Maleficent Trailer

Disney is really starting to turn up the heat with their promotion of their newest film, "Maleficent".

Arguably Disney's greatest villain, the film takes a sort of "Wicked" approach; rather than focusing on Sleeping Beauty herself (played by Elle Fanning), the story will instead focus on the background of Maleficent (played by none other than Academy Award Winner Angelina Jolie), telling us how she got to be so evil.

After dropping a trailer about a month ago, a new one has surfaced featuring new footage and old scenes from the classic animated film, Sleeping Beauty.

The film is directed by Robert Stromberg, who previously served as a production designer on films such as Alice in Wonderland and Oz the Great and Powerful.

Watch the new trailer below.

Screen Actors Guild Award Predictions: Big Night for American Hustle?

The cast of American Hustle looks poised to con the award for Best Ensemble. 

The Screen Actors Guild is one of the most important precursor awards to have behind you or the film your in; the actors are the largest voting body in the Academy, and though SAG is significantly smaller than the AMPAS voting actors, it's very telling of which performances could win at the Oscars.

Unlike the Globes, the SAG awards take place before voting, so they have the power to influence voters. The Academy likes voting for winners, and a winner who can deliver a great speech is like catnip to them.

However, winners at SAG haven't always gone on to win the Oscar; Viola Davis not only won the Leading Actress award, but a shared award with the ensemble of The Help. Sadly, none of this was enough to conquer Meryl Streep, who went on to win her 3rd Oscar for The Iron Lady. Streep's Oscar narrative was just too strong I suppose.

So if you win the SAG award, its not set in stone that you will win an Oscar, just like being nominated does not guarantee you an Oscar nomination (.... Helen Mirren and Emma Thompson anyone?).

So where does that bring us in terms of this year? 12 Years A Slave will face off with American Hustle (Gravity has one nomination in Sandra Bullock, in no fault of its own as the cast is made up of her and George Clooney) for Supporting Actress (Jennifer Lawrence vs. Lupita Nyong'o) and the Ensemble award (SAG's equivalent to Best Picture). Lawrence won the Globe, but Nyong'o just won the Broadcast Critics' Award, which tends to line up with Oscar more often than not, so the edge is with Nyong'o on this one. But American Hustle's starry cast is almost irresistible, and the acting is really the movie's only true strength.

Expect Hustle to take the Ensemble award, it's almost stupid to bet otherwise. If there were more support for Lee Daniels': The Butler or August: Osage County, they could surprise and win it, but those ensembles are just lucky to be there honestly. I suppose 12 Years A Slave could upset... it did land more nominations than American Hustle did, but the popularity of American Hustle is just too hard to ignore.

But this will not be the end of the Best Picture race... that will come with the announcement of the PGA, on Sunday.

Read my official predictions below:

If You Guys Forgot About Meryl Streep....

So often do we all (myself included) get wrapped up in the overwhelming acclaim of Meryl Streep that we forget that she really is a gem in the acting world. Here she is on Ellen proving once again she is not only a great actress, but a down to earth person.

Streep received her 18th Oscar nomination for Best Actress for her performance in August: Osage County yesterday.

Critic's Choice Awards: 12 Years A Slave Wins Best Picture

After a victory at the Oscars, 12 Years A Slave wins another Best Picture honor.

The fight for Best Picture isn't over yet; 12 Years A Slave is putting up a good fight against American Hustle, with Gravity hanging in the wings. 

American Hustle won another Comedy Best Picture award, but unlike the Globes, the Broadcast Film Critics have a separate award entirely for Best Picture of the year, where American Hustle was mentioned. However, Steve McQueen's epic won, giving it some much needed gas in its Oscar campaign tank.

American Hustle did win Best Ensemble however, leaving it in a good position to win the same award at the SAG awards on Saturday. 

Gravity won a bunch of technical honors, an actress award for Sandra Bullock and another award for Alfonso Cuaron. There's clear support for all 3 of these films, and it will be interesting to see how the guilds decide what their choices are.

What the Oscar Nominations Tell Us

Here are some takeaways from this morning's Oscar Nominations (if you're interested in what I think)

They're Here: Oscar Nominations

Here's a list of the major categories announced this morning. Full list can be found here. I'll be posting my thoughts later when I've fully absorbed everything announced.... some BIG surprises, and snubs.

Final Oscar Predictions

Tomorrow is the big day; we're finally going to see what films the Academy prefers as we head into Phase 2 of awards season.

Important things to watch out for below. You can view my final predictions for nominations here.

Golden Globe Winners: What Does It All Mean?

American Hustle won 3 of the top awards (including trophies for Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence)

The Golden Globes are a weird case of award show. They take place before the Oscar nominations are announced, but after the voting for nominees has closed. What this means, is that no matter what happens at the Globes, it has nothing to do with a film or person's chances at getting nominated for an Oscar.

Unlike SAG, BAFTA, DGA and PGA, the Hollywood Foreign Press has no association with the Oscars. For example, the members of SAG are all members of the Academy, so their choices for winners are indicative on how the much larger voting body of actors will vote come time to decide a winner. But the HFPA is their own body, with entirely different people voting. And as history will tell you, they love nominating and awarding stars over character actors.

So then, what does it all mean? If this award has nothing to do with Oscar nominations, why is it important? Is it simply just another glamorized but meaningless award ceremony?

12 Years A Slave and American Hustle Win Best Picture at the Golden Globes

It was a big night for American Hustle; David O. Russell's "comedy" won 3 awards, including Best Picture.

After being shut out from every award it was nominated for, 12 Years A Slave came back with a Cinderella story win. "A bit of a surprise" admitted director Steve McQueen. After signs of slowing down from its frontrunner status, this puts a bunch of pep in the film's chances at taking it all home, or at least giving American Hustle a run for its money.

The rest of the races were filled with some surprises, and the usual "duhs". Check them out below.

Golden Globes: Who Will (and Should) Win?

Jennifer Lawrence won last year's Best Actress: Comedy or Musical award. Who will win this year?

For better or for worse, the Golden Globes are almost upon us. The good thing is that Tina Fey and Amy Poehler hosting again this year (they'll be hosting next year's Golden Globes too) so it's definitely not going to be a boring ceremony. Personally, I'm glad to see that some of my favorites (Julia Louis-Dreyfus, namely) will be in attendance.

It's a competitive year for awards; American Hustle, Gravity and 12 Years A Slave have all dominated the attention, with Dallas Buyers Club and Her hot on their tails. The Globes don't make it easy to predict frontrunners, however, because they split the drama and comedy categories. Therefore, American Hustle's win is almost assured, but either Gravity or 12 Years A Slave could win. However, it's always good to have a win behind you, whether it happens to be in the Comedy or Drama category. Ex: Jennifer Lawrence won Best Actress in a Comedy last year and walked away with the Oscar; it doesn't always matter which genre you belong to, it's all about momentum, and who has it and who doesn't.

So below you'll find a run through of the major categories (and brief commentary) on who will win, who could win, and who should win on Sunday night. Enjoy!

Iowa Film Critics Love 12 Years A Slave

Michael Fassbender and Sarah Paulson as the poisonous Master and Mistress Epps in 12 Years A Slave.

Best Picture:

• 12 Years A Slave (runners-up: Nebraska & American Hustle)

Best Director:

• Steve McQueen, 12 Years A Slave (runners-up: David O. Russell, American Hustle; Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity)

Best Actor: 

• Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years A Slave (runners-up: Oscar Isaac, Inside Llewyn Davis; Bruce Dern, Nebraska)

Best Actress:

• Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine (runners-up: Amy Adams, American Hustle; Sandra Bullock, Gravity)

Best Supporting Actor:

• Michael Fassbender, 12 Years A Slave (runners-up: Barkhad Abdi, Captain Phillips; Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club)

Best Supporting Actress:

• Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years A Slave (runners-up: June Squibb, Nebraska; Jennifer Lawrence, American Hustle)

Best Documentary:

• 20 Feet From Stardom (runners-up: Black Fish & Stories We Tell)

Best Animated Feature:

• Frozen (runners-up: The Wind Rises & Despicable Me 2)

Top 10 Films of 2013: My Take

It's been quite the year for movies, and when I say that, I truly mean that. This year, we saw Jennifer Lawrence's "science oven" explode, Sandra Bullock survive against all odds in deep space, the story of Mary Poppins come to life, graphic 15 minute lesbian sex scenes, Melissa McCarthy take down plenty of bad guys, Jonah Hill's penis and Amy Adams' cleavage, and that doesn't even begin to to scratch the surface of what we saw this year.

But aside from all of that, 2013 managed to be one of the most amazing years for film in recent history. It seems like everyone, from the actors, to their directors, to the screenwriters brought their A-game in telling some of the most interesting stories. Steve's McQueen managed to finally craft the first real authentic portrait of the horrors of slavery, while Alfonso Cuaron took us into space, reminding us of its dangerous beauty. There was also Selena Gomez and Vanessa Hudgens flirting with danger in Harmony Corrine's (flawed) examination of youth in revolt with Spring Breakers; the kids are NOT alright.

But I digress, the stories are plentiful and the talent even more so; it was extremely difficult in crafting this list. We're almost 2 weeks into 2014 and I just now finished this (partly due to the fact that movies have finally expanded to theaters in my area). I hate whittling it down to 10 but unlike the past few years, this year was the hardest. I could make a case for almost every movie not included on this list; even films I didn't like had things to admire about them, from the editing to the sound design.

I'll say it again, it's been a hell of year for movies; this one will always stick out in my mind as one of the best.

So here we go! My top 10 films of the year

Art Directors Guild choose Her, Blue Jasmine & American Hustle

Excellence in Production Design- Period Film:

• American Hustle (Judy Becker)
• The Great Gatsby (Catherine Martin)
• Inside Llewyn Davis (Jess Gonchor)
• Saving Mr. Banks (Michael Corenblith)
• 12 Years A Slave

Excellence in Production Design- Contemporary Film

• August: Osage County (David Gropman)
• Blue Jasmine (Santo Loquasto)
• Captain Phillips (Paul Kirby)
• Her (K.K. Barrett)
• The Wolf of Wall Street (Bob Kirby)

Excellence in Production Design- Fantasy Film

• Elysium (Philip Ivy)
• Gravity (Andy Nicholson)
• The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (Dan Hennah)
• Oblivion (Darrel Gilford)
• Star Trek into Darkness (Scott Chambliss)

American Hustle Has a Perfect Guild Record: Costume Designer Guild Nominees

American Hustle is the only film this year to have been represented by every Guild thus far; SAG, WGA, PGA, DGA and now the Costume Designers have thrown their support behind the film. It will compete in the period category amongst fellow front runner 12 Years A Slave.

Also present in the lineup are Saving Mr. Banks, Her, and even The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. Look below to see the full list of nominees.

BAFTA Nominations: Races Are Tightening

Sandra Bullock led Gravity to 11 nominations, more than any other film this year. 

Gravity may be the one to beat at the BAFTAs this year; the Brits loved Alfonso Cuaron's space epic and rewarded it with more nominations than 12 Years A Slave and American Hustle (both of which received a healthy amount of nominations as well).

Surprisingly, Dallas Buyers Club received absolutely no attention, not even for the two sure things McConaughey or Leto. This comes as a shock after the film received stronger than expected guild support with both PGA and WGA nominations. It shouldn't be any cause for alarm, however; the British contingent within the Academy isn't large enough to cause a shut out for Dallas Buyers Club (especially since the film managed an Ensemble nod from SAG).

August: Osage County managed only 1 nomination for Julia Roberts, who is becoming the film's only bid for Oscar it seems; with the late resurgence for American Hustle, Amy Adams might knock Streep out of the race (stranger things have happened).

See the full list of nominations below.

Vancover Film Critics Go For 12 Years A Slave & Cuaron

Best Film:

• 12 Years A Slave

Best Director:

• Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity

Best Actor:

• Oscar Isaac, Inside Llewyn Davis

Best Actress:

• Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine

DGA Nominations

Gravity, Wolf of Wall Street, 12 Years A Slave & American Hustle all received support from the Directors Guild.

Good news for Captain Phillips and Wolf of Wall Street; the Directors Guild awarded both Paul Greengrass and Martin Scorsese with nominations amongst Oscar frontrunners Steve McQueen, Alfonso Cuaron and David O. Russell. Both Greengrass' and Scorsese's films received support from the PGA, which strengthens their bid to break into the competitive Best Picture race.

The Coens could've used a nomination here, also missing is Nebraksa's Alexander Payne and Spike Jonze. Unlike the Coens, however, both Payne and Jonze's films were included in the PGA lineup; it seems like Inside Llewyn Davis is on the outside looking in.

Not all is lost though; last year Kathryn Bigelow and Ben Affleck were both nominated for the DGA, with Affleck winning, and were not nominated for the Academy Award. Instead, Michael Hanake and Benh Zeitlen, 2 unseen nominees, were nominated for smaller films. This not only provides a small glimmer of hope for Jonze, the Coens and Payne, but also Dallas Buyers Club director Jean-Marc Vallée, whose film is receiving a ton of indistry and guild support (PGA+SAG+WGA).

The full list of nominees is below:

National Society of Film Critics End the Critics Portion of Awards Season; Inside Llewyn Davis gets a Boost

After missing out on PGA and WGA love, the final (major) critics group threw their weight behind the Coen's film in a big way. Inside Llewyn Davis won Picture, Director, Actor and Cinematography honors. Not that this will have huge influence on the AMPAS, but it's not a bad laurel to have.

In the other races, Cate Blanchett reigned supreme over Adele Exarchopoulos after sharing the LAFCA win with her last month; though it's good she of all people was Blanchett's fiercest competitor, this award could have really given a boost to Exarchopoulos' campaign; it's becoming likely she will be left out after a brief glimmer of hope after the wave of critics. Usual winner Jared Leto was beaten by Spring Breakers' James Franco, though his Oscar hopes are quite slim; this was the first major award he won (he shared the LAFCA win with Leto).

Full list of winners (complete with # of votes) below, check them out.

Playing Catch Up: Dallas Buyers Club & Enough Said

I went to the movies this weekend! Well.. sorta

Enough Said and Dallas Buyers Club are 2 films that had been alluding me for quite some time (both were never playing in my area when I finally had the time to sit down and watch them), but luckily, I was able to catch up with them both in a sort of double feature. Of the 2, Dallas Buyers Club is the one with the chances at Oscar glory; the film itself, Matthew McConaughey, Jared Leto, and possibly other [deserving facets] will get nominated.

Enough Said, however, is a film that deserves much more acclaim than it has won (and it's won quite a bunch). It isn't easy territory, but the trio of director/screenwriter Nicole Holofcener, and stars Julia Louis Dreyfus and James Gandolfini elevate what could have very well been a simple "rom com" to a greatly touching, memorable and mature film.

Writer's Guild Nominations: Blue Jasmine & Dallas Buyers Club Get a Boost, Another loss for Inside Llewyn Davis

Support from the PGA and now WGA mean great things for these 2 "underdogs".

Yesterday's PGA nominations found Dallas Buyers Club continuing its Screen Actors Guild success by landing a nomination for Best Film; with both PGA and SAG behind it, Best Picture seemed pretty likely. But now, with the WGA backing it, there seems to be a lot more support behind the film than previously thought.

Woody Allen's screenplay for Blue Jasmine was always seen as a sure thing given his track record. But after receiving a PGA nomination yesterday and a Golden Globe nomination for Sally Hawkins, it seems there's more support for the film outside of Cate Blanchett's masterclass turn and Allen's screenplay.

Films that were ineligible for the WGA include 12 Years A Slave, Philomena, Rush, Blue Is the Warmest Color, Short Term 12, Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom, Fruitvale Station and In a World. I imagine that's how Lone Survivor (a film that's been ignored all season) made it in.

The Coen Brothers' Inside Llewyn Davis was passed over for a nomination after being passed over by the PGA. Though the PGA loss is less worrisome (they didn't nominate A Serious Man back in 2009 and it managed to get a Best Picture nomination), the WGA exclusion is more worrisome; the WGA has always gone for the Coens. Though this isn't a nail in the coffin, it can be telling in terms of consensus.

You can read the full list of nominations below.

Central Ohio Film Critics Anoint Gravity, Adele Exarchopoulos, James Franco & More

Best Picture: 

• Gravity

Best Director:

• Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity

Best Actor:

• Chiwetel Ejifor, 12 Years A Slave

Best Actress:

• Adele Exarchopoulos, Blue Is the Warmest Color

Producers Guild Nominations: Our Potential Best Picture Lineup?

Blue Jasmine, American Hustle, Captain Philips and Dallas Buyers Club among the list of nominees

The Producers Guild, much like the Screen Actors Guild, is an important precursor to have behind your film; the Best Picture winner and most of the films to be nominated for picture (save for a few surprise inclusions/exclusions on nomination morning) are always included on this long list.

That bodes well for the small Dallas Buyers Club, which was only seen as a vehicle for stars Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto, but managed to score a nomination here AND a Best Ensemble nomination with SAG a month ago; a Best Picture nomination looks very likely now. Blue Jasmine, the film that will undoubtedly win Cate Blanchett her second Oscar (first Leading Actress trophy), also landed on the long list of nominees; that writing nomination for Woody Allen and Best Supporting Actress nomination for Sally Hawkins aren't seeming too crazy now with the level of support being expressed for the film.

Another surprise was the critically adored Inside Llewyn Davis being passed over for Wolf of Wall Street. Both were passed over by SAG, but Wolf's inclusion over Davis here could be pretty telling... then again, there's still time for that to change.

Other than that, the nominees are pretty standard; both 12 Years A Slave and American Hustle landed nominations.

Take a look people; this could very well be our Best Picture lineup