academy award nominations
"Argo" and "Zero Dark Thirty" continued to separate themselves from the pack as both films picked up major precursor awards.
On December 21, the Academy of Motion Picture and Sciences announced that 9 foreign films that were shortlisted for the final rounds for the Oscars.
The Oscar race continued its twists and turns as Argo, Zero Dark Thirty, and Safety Not Guaranteed picked up key wins on Tuesday.
Awards season has started to get excitingly unpredictable as there seems to be no clear front runner any longer. Zero Dark Thirty was once being heavily predicted to win the Best Picture award in February, but the film seems to have lost steam in the precursor awards.
As awards season continues on throughout December and January, Latinos could dominate the Oscar race throughout a number of categories.
The Golden Globes nominations were announced on December 13. Many actors were helped by their nominations but some lost all their hopes of awards buzz come Oscar nominations.
On Monday, the Oscar nomination votes will be due. With no major award associations announcing nominations or awards it is safe to say a major component of the race has already been finalized leading up to Monday's vote. After numerous precursors, the Golden Globe and SAG nominations, a few things have become increasingly clear.
The Las Vegas Film Critics announced that Life of Pi is the Best film of the Year. The film came as a surprise after Zero Dark Thirty had swept the majority of the critic's circles thus far.
The Golden Globes have announced their awards for 2012. Lincoln led the pack with 7 nominations putting it as the frontrunner. Argo and Django Unchained received five apiece while Les Miserables, Silver Linings Playbook and Zero Dark Thirty received four nominations.
The Hobbit comes out on Friday and the reviews have already stated their verdict on the film.
The Screen Actors Guild Awards nominees were announced on the morning of December 12 with many surprises. Lincoln and Silver Linings Playbook led the nominations with four a piece while Les Miserables, The Sessions and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel obtained two nominations.
Despite an endless number of battles and the arrival and departure of numerous characters, there is a feeling that nothing actually happened by the end of The Hobbit. The film revolves around Thorin's acceptance of Bilbo, but that focal point is lost in the mishmash of distracting subplots and uninteresting battles. The film is a clear setup for the next two pictures and in the grand scheme could wind up fitting within the framework of a trilogy. But as a standalone film and in the context of its legacy, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is overlong, uneven, and ultimately disappointing.
Despite some top notch performances, Django ultimately feels like a fruitless experiment. All of the Tarantino trademarks are present (and that alone will make fans happy), but they become quite tiresome after endless repetitions and ultimately make for an empty experience.
The Broadcast Critics announced their nominations for the best films of 2012 on Tuesday morning.
Zero Dark Thirty further solidified its status as the Best Picture frontrunner with a win from the Washington Film Critics.
