Take that, Golden Globes.
After being completely shut out by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the Coen brothers and True Grit, their fine remake of the John Wayne western, got lots of love from Oscars this morning, winning 10 nominations, including deserving nods for picture, director, adapted screenplay, lead actor (Jeff Bridges), and – although it’s really a lead performance – supporting actress (Hailee Steinfeld).
It, along with The King’s Speech (12 nominations), The Social Network (8) and Black Swan (5), were the predictable names on the list.
Canadians can all breathe a little easier now that Denis Villeneuve’s Incendies made the cut for best foreign language picture – although come February 27, it may have a tough time beating Biutiful, which also scored a surprise nomination for actor Javier Bardem (looks like Julia Roberts’s campaign paid off). Golden Globe-winner Paul Giamatti didn’t get a best actor nomination for the Canuck-made Barney’s Version, but the film did get a nod for best makeup, which, come to think of it, was one of the most convincing things about it.
The biggest overall surprise this morning was the strong showing by Winter’s Bone, a quiet, intense picture about poverty in the Ozarks, released early in 2010. Lead actress Jennifer Lawrence’s nomination was pretty much a given, but it was interesting to see nominations for picture, supporting actor John Hawkes and adapted screenplay. Not that any of them will win.
It was good to see Mark Ruffalo and Oscar co-host James Franco score first-time nominations, the former for his charming supporting turn as a sperm donor in The Kids Are All Right, the latter as mountain climber Aron Ralston in 127 Hours.
Some disappointments came in the director category. Best picture nominees 127 Hours and Inception were completely director-driven vehicles, but neither Danny Boyle nor Christopher Nolan got any credit. Strangely, Nolan’s Inception, with its bravura cutting between three or four storylines, didn’t get an editing nomination, yet The King’s Speech did.
I’m also disappointed that none of the supporting actors from The Social Network – Andrew Garfield, Justin Timberlake or Armie Hammer – got noticed for their work. Garfield was the obvious pick, but JT was campaigning awfully hard to have the “Oscar-nominated…” tag before his name. Speaking of supporting actors, also it was sad not to see Matt Damon’s work in True Grit acknowledged. His great timing adds a lot of comic relief to the film.
On the subject of comedy and relief, let’s all be grateful that the Golden Globe-nominated Burlesque was completely shut out, even in the best song category. On the plus side, that means no Cher or Xtina performance on the negative side, that means no Cher red carpet dress.
Here’s a complete list of nominees:
BEST PICTURE
127 Hours
Black Swan
The Fighter
Inception
The Kids Are All Right
The King’s Speech
The Social Network
Toy Story 3
True Grit
Winter’s Bone
BEST ACTRESS
Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole
Jennifer Lawrence, Winter’s Bone
Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine
BEST ACTOR
Javier Bardem, Biutiful
Jeff Bridges, True Grit
Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network
Colin Firth, The King’s Speech
James Franco, 127 Hours
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams, The Fighter
Helena Bonham Carter, The King’s Speech
Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit
Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christian Bale, The Fighter
John Hawkes, Winter’s Bone
Jeremy Renner, The Town
Mark Ruffalo, The Kids Are All Right
Geoffrey Rush, The King’s Speech
BEST DIRECTOR
Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
Joel & Ethan Coen, True Grit
David Fincher, The Social Network
Tom Hooper, The King’s Speech
David O. Russell, The Fighter
BEST ANIMATED FILM
How to Train Your Dragon
The Illusionist
Toy Story 3
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Hors la Loi (Outside the Law) (Algeria)
Incendies (Canada)
In a Better World (Denmark)
Dogtooth (Greece)
Biutiful (Mexico)
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Lisa Cholodenko and Stuart Blumberg, The Kids Are All Right
Scott Silver, Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson, The Fighter
Mike Leigh, Another Year
Christopher Nolan, Inception
David Seidler, The King’s Speech
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Michael Arndt, John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich, Toy Story 3
Danny Boyle and Simon Beaufoy, 127 Hours
Joel & Ethan Coen, True Grit
Debra Granik and Anne Roselini, Winter’s Bone
Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network
BEST ART DIRECTION
Alice in Wonderland
Happy Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1
Inception
The King’s Speech
True Grit
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Black Swan
Inception
The King’s Speech
The Social Network
True Grit
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Alice in Wonderland
I Am Love
The King’s Speech
The Tempest
True Grit
BEST DOCUMENTARY
Exit Through the Gift Shop
Gasland
Inside Job
Restrepo
Waste Land
BEST EDITING
127 Hours
Black Swan
The Fighter
The King’s Speech
The Social Network
BEST MAKEUP
Barney’s Version
The Way Back
The Wolfman
BEST SCORE
127 Hours
How to Train Your Dragon
Inception
The King’s Speech
The Social Network
BEST SONG
“Coming Home,” Country Strong
“I See the Light,” Tangled
“If I Rise,” 127 Hours
“We Belong Together,” Toy Story 3
BEST SOUND EDITING
Inception
Toy Story 3
TRON: Legacy
True Grit
Unstoppable
BEST SOUND MIXING
Inception
The King’s Speech
Salt
The Social Network
True Grit
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Alice in Wonderland
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1
Hereafter
Inception
Iron Man 2
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Killing in the Name
Poster Girl
Strangers No More
Sun Come Up
The Warriors of Qiugang
BEST ANIMATED SHORT
Day & Night
The Gruffalo
Let’s Pollute
The Lost Thing
Madagascar, Carnet de Voyage (Madagascar, a Journey Diary)
BEST LIVE-ACTION SHORT
The Confession
The Crush
God of Love
Na Wewe
Wish 143