"American Sniper" and "Selma": The Problem No One is Talking About

It seems all anyone has been talking about for the past week is Clint Eastwood's "American Sniper". I have to admit, I did not take it seriously as a contender until the very last minute, when it nabbed critical DGA and PGA nominations over "Selma". The film's late release date, and the middling reception kept it from truly registering on my radar. But the Academy had different ideas about the film; they bestowed it with 6 nominations, including surprising ones for Bradley Cooper and the film's screenplay.

I've already talked about how sickening it was on the Academy's part to not only heap such praise onto the film, but at the expense of other (better) films such as Selma, or even "Gone Girl" and "Nightcrawler". Even more disappointing, and sickening, is that not one person of color was nominated in a major category, and to make it worse, none of the nominees outside of the actress categories are women. But all that aside, what's truly the most problematic thing about this whole thing, is American Sniper's existence in the first place.

Producer's Guild and Screen Actor's Guild: The Race is Wide Open

Move aside "Boyhood", we have a new frontrunner on our hands. 

If you thought that this year's Oscar race was getting a little boring (like me), then this weekend was exactly what you needed. After winning nearly every critic's prize and the Golden Globe, it seemed "Boyhood" was getting ready to steamroll its way to the Oscars. But with announcements from the Producer's Guild and the Screen Actor's Guild, its path just got a little more obscure.

SAG Winners

Full list of winners below.

Broadcast Film Critics Awards

Full list of winners below:

Academy Award Nominations: The Whitest Oscars Since 1998

Sometimes, the critics do matter; Marion Cotillard was nominated in Best Actress in a Leading Role for "Two Days, One Night". 

"Wow" just about sums up my reaction to this year's Oscar nominations. As they always do, the Academy reminded us that they really do go their own way when it comes to what they see as 'the best'. 

Academy Award Nominations: What to Expect Tomorrow

Frontrunner "Boyhood" has a lot of momentum going into nomination day. 

We've heard from the Globes, and we're still awaiting on final decisions from SAG, the DGA, the PGA and the Broadcast Film Critics, but we finally have a consensus, at least.

Cake: A New Chapter in Jennifer Aniston's Career?

Jennifer Aniston, the actress, has never been taken as seriously as she deserves to be. Her work on "Friends", though highly regarded by fans of the show, was much more difficult than many seem to realize. And many regard her work in "The Good Girl" some beautifully nuanced work that was deserving, but ignored, of an Oscar nomination. Since the end of Friends, however, Aniston has been churning out a lot of pretty low-grade comedies, ones that make money, but none that either showcase her comedic talent or challenge audiences.

So when it was announced that Aniston had taken the role of Claire in Daniel Barnz's "Cake", her die-hard fans took notice, but the incredibly small size of the film kept it from being more than a blip on peoples' radars.. that is, until last year's Toronto Film Festival. Though reviews for the film were largely mixed, Aniston received a standing ovation following the film's screening. Since then, she has been promoting the hell out of the film, distributed by the very tiny Cinelou films, and has found herself to be the recipient of nominations for Best Actress in a Leading Role from the Golden Globes, the Screen Actors Guild and the Broadcast Film Critics. And on Thursday, she will probably be nominated by the Oscars alongside Julianne Moore, Reese Witherspoon, Felicity Jones and Rosamund Pike; her first career nomination.

*Yawn* DGA Nominations

Ava DuVernay was left off of the DGA shortlist this morning in favor of Clint Eastwood and Morten Teldum. 

In hindsight, awards don't mean anything. Year after year great films are produced and go unnoticed by voters in favor of mediocre awards-bait.

But what's so disappointing, is that a film that is not only great (the best of the year) on ever level, but socially relevant, is being shut out of awards contention. And as I sit here typing these words, maybe that's why "Selma" is being snubbed by all of the guilds (PGA, SAG and now the DGA).

Recap: Last Night's Golden Globes

Margaret Keane's best "Big Eyes" painting was in attendance at last night's ceremony.

If there's anything learned watching last night's Golden Globes, it's that the HFPA really is into doing their own thing. Several categories went in a completely different direction, awarding the underdogs in their respective races. It seems like the Globes are really trying their best to distance themselves away from the organization that nominated "The Tourist" back in 2011, especially in regards to the television categories.

"Selma" Snubbed Again at the BAFTA's

It's honestly mind-blowing to me that the year's best film is having such a hard time with awards season. Though I suppose a lot of the blame has to be placed upon distributor Paramount for the lack of screeners being released to voters, and the hackneyed release (though that apparently has to do with how late team "Selma" was in finishing the final cut of the film).

Still, the fact that BAFTA did not give the film a single nomination is a clear snub. Instead, "The Grand Budapest Hotel" showed some very robust, and unexpected strength and managed 11 nominations, the most for any film this year.

"The Theory of Everything" predictably did very well with BAFTA, while "Boyhood", "The Imitation Game" and "Birdman" continued their status as top-tier contenders.

See the full list of nominations (and commentary) below.

Top Films: 2014

2014 had a lot to live up to in terms of its film output. Last year was one of my favorite years at the movies. We had "Her", "12 Years A Slave", "Blue is the Warmest Color"... the list goes on. So to say the bar was high is no understatement. Did this past year live up to the expectations? It's hard to say, though not for a lack of effort. There were tons of projects with limitless potential, but to say they stuck the landing is a different story entirely.

I will, however, look back on the past year and be able to remember it fondly if for nothing else, all the wonderful places I was transported to. Christopher Nolan and the "Interstellar" gang took us back in space for round 2 after last year's "Gravity", while the creepy Lou Bloom documented crime chases in the seedy streets of L.A. in "Nightcrawler" and watching Anna Kendrick's Cinderella sing her little heart out and run away from Chris Pine's Prince through the woods was a spectacle in its own right.

So yeah, it's been a rather fun year at the movies, and another painstaking endeavor to try and rank the rather excellent work of some very talented and committed storytellers. But alas, here I am anyway.


So let's see how your favorites stacked up in my humble opinion. Or better question, are they even on here at all?

My top 10 films of 2014.

We're in for the Whitest, Male-ist Oscars Yet

Benedict Cumberbatch and Eddie Redmayne lead the several mediocre, white male-centric films destined for Oscar glory. 

After last year's Best Picture Oscar race, which including groundbreaking films such as "Gravity", "12 Years A Slave" and "Her", it's hard not to feel a sinking feeling of disappointment. 12 Years A Slave, on paper, fit into Oscar's wheelhouse, despite it's determination not to shy away from the atrocities of slavery, violence included. It was a period piece, and a biopic not to mention, it was an incredible achievement, one that Oscar couldn't look away from and still maintain it was the highest honor to receive in film.

In Gravity's case, a woman held the screen for the film's entire running time, going through her own character arc and overcoming hardship without the aid of a male character. Even "Philomela" found its way into the Best Picture race, which focused on an elderly woman grappling with being forced to give up her son by the Catholic Church. The film dealt with themes of faith, sexuality and love, and again was headlined by an 80 year old actress.

Sure, films focusing on white men overcoming hardship like "Nebraska" and "The Wolf of Wall Street" found their way into contention, but when you compare last year to this year, last year smells a little fresher. This year, you won't find films like Gravity or Philomena. Sure, there's Ava DuVernay's magnificent "Selma", but that film stands alone in a category filled with "The Theory of Everything", "The Imitation Game", "Foxcatcher", "American Sniper" and even "Boyhood". Gillian Flynn is the only woman screenwriter in contention for Best Adapted Screenplay, and of the acting contenders, Selma's David Oyelowo is the only person of color expected to receive a nomination.

PGA Nominees: Selma Snubbed

When it comes to predicting the Oscar's Best Picture line up, the Producer's Guild is the most important precursor there is. They're usually pretty accurate, though there are often 1 or 2 that miss with Oscar (last year's "Blue Jasmine", 2012's "Skyfall", 2011's "Bridesmaids").

The biggest surprise looking at this year's list of nominees, is in the inclusion of Clint Eastwood's "American Sniper" and Dan Gilroy's "Nightcrawler"  and the exclusion of Ava DuVernay's "Selma". In the case of Nightcrawler, the film seems to be beloved by many; Jake Gyllenhaal's performance has received substantial acclaim and the film itself is popping up in many other Best Picture lists, but it's always been perceived as an Oscar play for Gyllenhaal and not a serious Best Picture play. American Sniper, on the other hand, has received some positive reviews (mainly for leading man Bradley Cooper) and won big with the NBR, but hasn't really popped up anywhere else. Eastwood always registers better with the Academy, however, so I guess it shouldn't be that much of a surprise.

But the fact it made it in over the universally acclaimed Selma, is shocking to me, and hopefully not telling of what's to come with Oscar. Both films have yet to expand in wide release, but have been doing very well at the box office. If anything, I think Selma will eventually edge out Nightcrawler come Oscar morning.

Despite raking in some major money over the holidays, neither Angelina Jolie's "Unbroken" or Rob Marshall's "Into the Woods" could find any love here. In the case of Jolie, her film failed to live up to the monumental expectations dumped upon it as the frontrunner from the moment it was announced. Woods, on the other hand, received some great notices, but not as a Best Picture play. That shouldn't keep it from receiving attention for Meryl Streep and the craft/tech work.

The big winner though, is "The Grand Budapest Hotel", which has been receiving just about every nod it needed to overcome its early release date, including SAG, the Globes and now the PGA. I think it has what it takes to be one of the film's with the most nominations. And "Whiplash", once seen as a vehicle for eventual Best Supporting Actor winner J.K. Simmons, could squeak in on passion as "the little indie that could". It'll be interesting to see what eventually ends up on Oscar's shortlist.

See the full list of nominees below.

Golden Globe Predictions: Boyhood vs. Selma?

I've said it before and I'll say it again, this has been the strangest Oscar season in recent history. All of the contenders have been seen, and though "Boyhood" cleaned up the critic's awards, we still don't have a true frontrunner (remember, critics don't vote for the Oscars, just ask "The Social Network"). Next Sunday, the first major awards group from phase 2 (post-critics) will announce their winners: The Golden Globes. 

In recent years, the Globes have become a pretty substantial precursor, at least in predicting the nominees (sometimes you can win a Golden Globe and it doesn't really do much for winning momentum, ex: Jessica Chastain of "Zero Dark Thirty"). This year especially, the Globes seem to be trying to establish themselves as a serious awards body; gone is the group who nominated Angelina Jolie for just about anything ("The Tourist"); she and "Unbroken" were completely shut out this year in favor of non-household names such as Ava DuVernay ("Selma"). 

Speaking of DuVernay, her film is picking up a lot of (deserved) steam in this race, giving "Boyhood" quite the run for its money, heading into phase 2. That late release date barred its inclusion from many of the critic's awards and SAG, but its recognition at the Globes, the worldwide acclaim and assured box office success should give it all it needs to clean up nomination-wise at the Oscars in the coming weeks. If Richard Linklater and company have anyone to worry about at the Globes next Sunday, its team "Selma". 

Read my predictions, complete with commentary, below.