Jan 27
Blinkbox loves Awards season
It’s that time of the year again, when the film industry gives itself a huge self-congratulatory pat on the back for a job well done – Awards season! It’s been a bumper year at the box office with over £1 billion in box office receipts in the UK alone – so there’s plenty of reason to celebrate.
Hot on the heels of James Cameron‘s Avatar triumph at the Golden Globes came the BAFTA nominations, for which Avatar is nominated for 8 awards. Can we expect Avatar to clear up or are we in for an upset? An Education and The Hurt Locker have also received 8 nods, so let the luvvie battle commence!
Let’s look at the five contenders for Best Picture…
1. Avatar
If you’re reading this I’m assuming you have not moved to another planet and, as such, are well aware of Avatar. On course to become the highest grossing movie ever, Cameron will be eclipsing his own Titanic as the number 1 movie of all time if it continues to do the business. An epic cinematic achievement with truly breathtaking visuals – has to been seen in 3D!
2. An Education
Based on Lynn Barber’s memoir and scripted by Nick Hornby, An Education is a beautiful coming of age story of one girl’s escape from life in dreary suburban London in the 60′s following a chance meeting with a charming older man. Featuring standout performances from Peter Sarsgaard and newcomer Carey Mulligan, An Education is sure to be picking up a few trophies!
3. The Hurt Locker
Kathryn Bigelow‘s brilliant The Hurt Locker is the critics’ favourite of the year, having already scooped the US Critics choice award for Best Picture and Director. The Hurt Locker follows an elite army bomb squad in the early days of the Iraq war. It’s an intense movie, perfectly capturing the ‘ticking clock’ over each of the movies players, with nerve shredding effect on the viewer! A real gem you might have missed at the cinema. Check out the trailer below.
4. Precious
We’ve previously mentioned Precious in our top 10 movies to look out for in 2010. A brilliant, heart-wrenching story of a teenager who has basically had The.Worst.Childhood.Ever! With a supporting actress Golden Globe already in the bag for Mo’nique, success is likely to be repeated in upcoming ceremonies.
5. Up In The Air
Written and directed by Jason Reitman (Juno) and starring George Clooney, Up In The Air follows Clooney‘s Ryan Bingham as he is paid to travel around the US laying off thousands of workers, while happily ensconced in his little 1st class bubble racking up frequent flier miles. Life is going along quite well until two women enter his life. The first, Alex (Vera Farmiga) whom he falls for, and secondly, Natalie (Anna Kendrick) a newbie fresh out of business school who Bingham must take under his charge in a city-to-city jaunt. With a touch of old school Hollywood, Up In The Air is a delight. Smart, and at times very funny – especially Anna Kendrick – it’s a well deserved Best Picture nomination and all three lead performances are nominated too boot!
So there we have it, which will be triumphant on the night? Tune into the BAFTAs broadcast on BBC1 on Sunday February 19th.
Don’t forget the daddy of awards shows – the Oscars taking place on March 7th bringing us the highlight of awards season – the Oscars red carpet! Forget the gold statues, the true barometer of who’s hot or not for the year is that carpet! Also serves as a good indicator of who has a few too many sycophantic ‘yes men’ assistants – Yes darling, that swan outfit is AMAZING!!!
And for those of you who tire off all this glitz, schmaltz, and in-group back slapping check out the alternative Oscars – The Razzies – where Hollywood is reminded that for every Hurt Locker, there’s a Norbit or Catwoman stinking-up theatres!
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