After a lot of deliberating and discussing, we compiled this list of the Best 50 Movies that came out between 2010 and 2014. These are films we love, cherish, and suspect we will remember years and years from now. A lot has changed with film in the last 5 years, but the quality of the creative output only seems to keep getting better. Here’s to an amazing first half of the decade, and let’s hope the next five years lead to even bigger and better things.

Every day this week we will release ten films from our list, here is #40 through #31.

Best 50 Movies Of The Decade So Far
(#40 – #31)

Spring Breakers

Harmony Korine’s Spring Breakers is a diabolically delicious assault of bleached-out colors, alcohol, and synthesized sounds. All of which makes for a ferociously dazzling watch. From its mesmerizing opening depicting hundreds of young adults participating in grossly outrageous spring break shenanigans,—while sounds of robotic vomiting (courtesy of dub-master Skrillex) discharge on the audio track—up until the final scene, a gun fight eruption (lit up with bright neon tints) at a South Floridian Oceanside manor, the film grabs hold tightly. So seldom are films released that are this audacious. The film follows four young college girls who will stop at nothing (and I mean nothing) to have the greatest spring break ever. The film is essentially a terrifying, unrelenting montage; we see the girls go from parties to robberies to gunfights and back again. James Franco owns every inch of the film while he’s on screen as cornrow-flowin’, gold teeth-showin’ drug lord/rapper Alien. He is on fire here in a career best performance that should’ve gotten him an Oscar nomination. While stars Franco, Vanessa Hudgens, Selena Gomez and Rachel Greene are all excellent, the real star here is Harmony Korine, who has found a way to sell his weird, subverted look at humanity to the masses. Spring Breakers is an instant classic. [Blake]

All is Lost

A spellbinding exercise in visual storytelling, J.C. Chandor’s All is Lost is a tale of survival at sea and a fascinating study in male ego. Robert Redford stars as the nearly-wordless film’s unnamed subject, a man alone on a boat in the middle of the ocean whose will to survive is immovable. Despite the elements threatening to rip his precious vessel to shreds, he fights tooth and nail to keep the boat (and his spirits) afloat. While his dogged refusal to perish at first looks a lot like bravery, as it becomes clear his efforts are futile, heroism turns into stubbornness. At what point does giving up become a virtuous act? Redford has enough experience to keep his performance reality-based, maintaining a deadpan expression in moments where lesser actors would look to the heavens with a face that screams, “Why me!?” He’s simply behaving, letting his body do the talking rather than relying on high drama and facial flourishes. The film’s presentation is as stunning and engrossing as Gravity’s, a similar film that came out in 2013 as well. (I prefer All is Lost’s grit and realism to Gravity’s sometimes maudlin tendencies.) If you haven’t seen this one, find it and make sure you watch it on a big screen with a muscly sound system. [Bernard]

The Wolf of Wall Street

Even in his 70’s, Martin Scorsese proves he’s intrinsically capable of capturing the enticing aspects of capitalism within the context of a searing indictment of greedy stock brokers. The Wolf of Wall Street may feel like an ode to opulence and apathy for those Wall Street bankers who allegedly cheered for the film’s characters in their most despicable moments, but for those in the audience with an understanding for the real world implications of Wolf, Jordan Belfort & Co. look like the band that played while the Titanic sank. Worse, they feel like the band’s onlookers. Among the most telling anecdotes from the film is one in which Belfort reminisces in voiceover about a ménage à trois he and Donnie Azoff (Jonah Hill) shared with the future wife of their co-worker. Belfort recounts with glee the lurid aspects of their tryst only to end the anecdote by mentioning that his co-worker later slit his wrists in a bathtub, before Belfort sighs and moves on to his next deplorable indulgence. That juxtaposition allows Scorsese’s film to serve as a criticism without coming across as preaching. The Wolf of Wall Street creates an engaging experience without neglecting substance. [Zach]

Melancholia

Leave it to Lars Von Trier to make one of the best films ever made about depression. The titular planet at the center of Melancholia, which winds up annihilating Earth by smashing into it, isn’t exactly the most subtle allegory, but Von Trier makes it work. He understands how depression can be such a large, destructive, all-encompassing force, and by equating it with the end of existence he finds the perfect way to evoke the true power of despondency. With jaw-dropping visuals and sound (it’s hard to get tired of hearing Wagner), as well as two astounding performances from Kirsten Dunst and Charlotte Gainsbourg, Lars Von Trier wound up making one of his best works with Melancholia. [CJ]

Midnight in Paris

Not reading anything about Woody Allen’s fantastical and joyous comedy Midnight in Paris was the best choice I could have made. Admittedly, I didn’t do this on purpose; it was more by happenstance than anything. I say I didn’t know anything about the film, but actually knew that it stared Owen Wilson and it took place in Paris. If you’ve never been to Paris (like myself) the opening 5 minutes is a basically a montage of everything you’ve always dreamed about experiencing in the sprawling French capital. The food. The music. The people. The museums. If you have been to Paris, it’ll have you pining to go back. The film’s plot centers on Wilson (never better) as he peruses Paris and discovers a magical world that awakens at night, one that makes his wildest dreams come true. Allen’s film is a nostalgic fever dream aimed at those who wish to have lived and experienced an era unbeknownst to them. The Wilson character fantasizes about the wild nights in which Picasso, Hemingway and Fitzgerald drank alcohol and told old, grand stories about love lost. Allen has essentially made a film a year since the late ’60s; this is easily in his top five. Romantics and old souls will revel in Allen’s glorious world. [Blake]

Shame

Before Steve McQueen earned a Best Picture Oscar for 12 Years A Slave (which also made our list) and became a household name, he made a grueling, yet exquisite film about sex-addiction called Shame. Despite all the acclamation for Michael Fassbender’s flattering full-frontal scenes, the film itself offers little else to cheer for. McQueen presents a depressing look into the life of Brandon (Fassbender), a man who’s constantly in search of his next orgasm, though he never finds any kind of meaningful pleasure in them. He’s completely lost his ability to connect with people on an emotional level. The only emotions he experiences are dissatisfaction and shame (hence the title). As you’d probably expect, watching a man slip deeper and deeper into sexual addiction is emotionally exhausting, but Shame remains a profoundly powerful experience thanks to McQueen’s fearless filmmaking and brilliant vision. Shame is not an easy watch, but the discomfort is absolutely worth it. [Dustin]

The Place Beyond the Pines

A perfect example of the idea that a story isn’t nearly as important as how it’s told, The Place Beyond the Pines strives in its every moment to defy categorisation. Its three acts are entirely unlike one another in genre, and yet are harmoniously strung together in their aesthetic and thematic content. What begins as an honest insight into the lives of the working class ends as an introspective on the notion of how our lives eventually come to affect those of our children, in ways we don’t expect. What truly stands out about this film, however, is how bold every choice is, from the opening shot to a 15 year jump in the plot. Directed by Derek Cianfrance, who also co-wrote the script, the film allows its characters to develop as authentic people by providing foundations upon which the actors can build highly convincing emotions. Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper and Eva Mendes are all unforgettable in their own ways, and yet the film handles melodrama with the lightest touch, keeping emphasis firmly on the humanity behind its events. [Pavi]

Gravity

Gravity does two things extraordinarily well. In fact, it does one of those things so well it’s worth overlooking the film’s flaws. The out-of-this-world photography, aided by a partnership of special effects and star Sandra Bullock’s physicality, is the reason the film belongs on this list and will be remembered for a long, long time. There isn’t a film that looks like Gravity, and there honestly may never be another. Looks aside, the film’s ability to create intense emotional stakes is also remarkable. If our connection with astronaut Ryan Stone (Bullock) throughout her crazy journey was missing, it wouldn’t matter how amazing everything looked. But we do connect, thanks to Bullock, who gives a remarkable (I’d even argue underrated) performance, as well as the success of its excellent (though much-derided) script. Screenwriters Alfonso and Jonás Cuarón trade in big sci-fi mythology for a streamlined, simple approach, and it works. Not all of the dialogue plays well, but there is a beating heart at the center of Gravity that makes it more than just a pretty face. Additionally, the film’s achievements in 3D filmmaking are groundbreaking. Gravity wonderfully melds forward-thinking technological concepts in filmmaking with an old-fashioned, emotionally charged story—an uncommon balance pulled off extremely well. [Aaron]

13 Assassins

13 Assassins, despite being a remake of a different film, could easily be summed up as Seven Samurai for the 21st century, a leaner, meaner take on Akira Kurosawa’s classic. The film’s first hour briskly sets up the situation: a samurai gathers 12 other assassins to take out the Shogun’s tyrannical half-brother. Once all the pieces get put into place, 13 Assassins spends its second hour unleashing one of the great action sequences of this century, an epic battle between an army of hundreds and the small group of samurai. Takashi Miike, one of the most prolific and versatile directors working today, directs 13 Assassins with a level of classicism and efficiency that’s a complete breath of fresh air compared to today’s action films. 13 Assassins is near-flawless genre filmmaking of the highest order. [CJ]

Stories We Tell

There is a common misconception that documentaries must be concerned with the truth, and with facts. Stories We Tell is a documentary film that seems to be uncovering truth at its surface, but in reality is examining something much more human. Director Sarah Polley’s goal may at first seem to be uncovering the truth about her mother, but as the film progresses, we can see that it is specifically her family’s memories of her mother that she is actually interested in. This ties together the essence of family itself, highlighting the way in which her family continues to remain supportive of each other and place their relationships above all else. Taking an unusual but effective approach to her discoveries, Polley focuses not on creating an accurate narrative of her mother’s life, but on displaying the complexities inherently involved in storytelling. It is through this portrayal that a film about her family becomes much more universal, allowing us to partake in the shared memories even if only through our own nostalgia. After all, the past is only as significant as the story it tells. [Pavi]

See the rest of our Best Movies Of The Decade lists!

View Other Lists of this Feature:
Best 50 Movies Of The Decade So Far (#50 – #41)
Best 50 Movies Of The Decade So Far (#30 – #21)
Best 50 Movies Of The Decade So Far (#20 – #11)
Best 50 Movies Of The Decade So Far (#10 – #1)

While Hugo started off the 84th Annual Academy Awards strong but The Artist made come back later in the night. At the beginning of the award show Hugo piled on the wins in most of the technical awards such as Best Visual Effects, Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing and Best Art Direction. With the momentum it built early on, it sort of makes sense that it won the Best Cinematography award (although I thought The Tree of Life should have won).

As the night progressed and some of the bigger categories were announced is when The Artist came into the spotlight. The Artist won the top award of Best Picture as well as the prestigious Best Director award. The film received another large award when Jean Dujardin won for Best Actor. It also won for Best Score and Best Costume Design.

Thankfully, there were some upsets throughout the night to keep things interesting in what many thought to be a fairly predictable year. Arguably the biggest upset was when Meryl Streep’s name got called for Best Actress as many, myself included, expected Viola Davis to win. The people from Undefeated accepting the award for Best Documentary even sounded surprised they won that category. Most of the time Best Film Editing winner goes to win Best Picture but The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo won it instead and it was their only one of the night.

The full list of Oscar winners:
(The winners are highlighted in bold red font)

The Artist
The Descendants
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
The Help
Hugo
Midnight In Paris
Moneyball
The Tree of Life
War Horse

Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Alexander Payne – The Descendants
Martin Scorsese – Hugo
Woody Allen – Midnight In Paris
Terrence Malick – The Tree Of Life

Demian Bichir – A Better Life
Jean Dujardin – The Artist
George Clooney – The Descendants
Brad Pitt – Moneyball
Gary Oldman – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Glenn Close – Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis – The Help
Rooney Mara – The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep – The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams – My Week With Marilyn

Kenneth Branagh – My Week With Marilyn
Jonah Hill – Moneyball
Nick Nolte – Warrior
Christopher Plummer – Beginners
Max Von Sydow – Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Berenice Bejo – The Artist
Jessica Chastain – The Help
Melissa McCarthy – Bridesmaids
Janet McTeer – Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer – The Help

Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Kristin Wiig & Annie Mumulo – Bridesmaids
J.C. Chandor – Margin Call
Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris
Asghar Farhadi – A Separation

Jim Rash, Nat Faxon, Alexander Payne – The Descendants
John Logan – Hugo
George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon – The Ides Of March
Steve Zaillian & Aaron Sorkin – Moneyball
Peter Straughan & Bridget O’Connor – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

A Separation
Bullhead
Footnote
In Darkness
Monsieur Lazhar

A Cat In Paris
Chico & Rita
Kung Fu Panda 2
Puss In Boots
Rango

Hell And Back Again
If A Tree Falls; A Story Of The Earth Liberation Front
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory
Pina
Undefeated

Guillaume Shiffman – The Artist
Jeff Cronenweth – The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Robert Richardson – Hugo
Emmanuel Lubezki – The Tree of Life
Janusz Kaminski – War Horse

Anne-Sophie Bion & Michel Hazavanicius – The Artist
Kevin Tent – The Descendants
Kirk Baxter & Angus Wall – The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Thelma Schoonmaker – Hugo
Christopher Tellefsen – Moneyball

The Artist
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2
Hugo
Midnight In Paris
War Horse

Anonymous
The Artist
Hugo
Jane Eyre
W.E.

Albert Nobbs
Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows Pt. 2
The Iron Lady

Ludovic Bource – The Artist
Alberto Iglesias – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Howard Shore – Hugo
John Williams – The Adventures Of Tintin
John Williams – War Horse

“Man Or Muppet” – The Muppets
“Real In Rio” – Rio

Drive
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Transformers: The Dark Of The Moon
War Horse

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Moneyball
Transformers: The Dark of The Moon
War Horse

Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Pt. 2
Hugo
Real Steel
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Transformers: The Dark of the Moon

The Barber Of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement
God Is The Bigger Elvis
Incident In New Baghdad
Saving Face
The Tsunami & The Cherry Blossom

Dimanche
The Fantastic Flying Books Of Mr. Morris Lessmore
La Luna
A Morning Stroll
Wild Life

Pentecost
Raju
The Shore
Time Freak
Tuba Atlantic

Blake and I list our top ten favorite films of 2011. Comparing films to one another is hard to do when they are often so different. Thus ranking other people’s artwork such as films is never easy but everyone likes a Top 10 list (which is the reason why I told Blake we should do a numbered list of 10 instead of just an alphabetical one). So without further ado, our list of Top 10 Films of 2011:

]]> http://waytooindie.com/features/top-10-films-of-2011/feed/ 0 http://waytooindie.com/news/awards/2012-oscar-nominations/ http://waytooindie.com/news/awards/2012-oscar-nominations/#comments Mon, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://waytooindie.com/?p=2630 The nominations for the 2012 Oscars were announced this morning with Hugo leading the pack for the 84nd Academy Awards with 11 nominations. The Artist came in as a close second with 10 nominations including; Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Score. There were a few big surprises in the Best Picture and Best Director categories. Click Read More to see the full list of Oscar nominations.]]>

The nominations for the 2012 Oscars were announced this morning with Hugo leading the pack for the 84nd Academy Awards with 11 nominations. The Artist came in as a close second with 10 nominations including; Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Score. This is the first year with the new Best Picture rule, no longer is there a set number of Best Picture nominations, instead a film needs to get 5% of votes get a nomination. The new rule is a great change. This year still ended up with 9 films, a few more than I expected.

Perhaps the biggest surprises were The Tree Of Life getting nominations for Best Picture and Best Director, which I am glad that film is getting some love from the Academy. Other shocker is Michael Fassbender not getting a nomination for Best Actor for his role in Shame, shame on you Academy. Tilda Swinton comes up empty for Best Actress for We Need To Talk About Kevin. But some good news, Gary Oldman received his very first Oscar nomination which makes a lot of people happy.

Full List of 2012 Oscar Nominations:

The Artist
The Descendants
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
The Help
Hugo
Midnight In Paris
Moneyball
The Tree Of Life
War Horse

Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Alexander Payne – The Descendants
Martin Scorsese – Hugo
Woody Allen – Midnight In Paris
Terrence Malick – The Tree Of Life

Demian Bichir – A Better Life
Jean Dujardin – The Artist
George Clooney – The Descendants
Brad Pitt – Moneyball
Gary Oldman – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Glenn Close – Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis – The Help
Rooney Mara – The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep – The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams – My Week With Marilyn

Kenneth Branagh – My Week With Marilyn
Jonah Hill – Moneyball
Nick Nolte – Warrior
Christopher Plummer – Beginners
Max Von Sydow – Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Berenice Bejo – The Artist
Jessica Chastain – The Help
Melissa McCarthy – Bridesmaids
Janet McTeer – Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer – The Help

Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Kristin Wiig & Annie Mumulo – Bridesmaids
J.C. Chandor – Margin Call
Woody Allen – Midnight In Paris
Asghar Farhadi – A Separation

Jim Rash, Nat Faxon, Alexander Payne – The Descendants
John Logan – Hugo
George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon – The Ides Of March
Steve Zaillian & Aaron Sorkin – Moneyball
Peter Straughan & Bridget O’Connor – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

A Separation
Bullhead
Footnote
In Darkness
Monsieur Lazhar

A Cat In Paris
Chico & Rita
Kung Fu Panda 2
Puss In Boots
Rango

Hell And Back Again
If A Tree Falls; A Story Of The Earth Liberation Front
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory
Pina
Undefeated

Guillaume Shiffman – The Artist
Jeff Cronenweth – The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Robert Richardson – Hugo
Emmanuel Lubezki – The Tree Of Life
Janusz Kaminski – War Horse

Anne-Sophie Bion & Michel Hazavanicius – The Artist
Kevin Tent – The Descendants
Kirk Baxter & Angus Wall – The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Thelma Schoonmaker – Hugo
Christopher Tellefsen – Moneyball

The Artist
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2
Hugo
Midnight In Paris
War Horse

Anonymous
The Artist
Hugo
Jane Eyre
W.E.

Albert Nobbs
Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows Pt. 2
The Iron Lady

Ludovic Bource – The Artist
Alberto Iglesias – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Howard Shore – Hugo
John Williams – The Adventures Of Tintin
John Williams – War Horse

“Man Or Muppet” – The Muppets
“Real In Rio” – Rio

Drive
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Transformers: The Dark Of The Moon
War Horse

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Moneyball
Transformers: The Dark of The Moon
War Horse

Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Pt. 2
Hugo
Real Steel
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Transformers: The Dark of the Moon

The Barber Of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement
God Is The Bigger Elvis
Incident In New Baghdad
Saving Face
The Tsunami & The Cherry Blossom

Dimanche
The Fantastic Flying Books Of Mr. Morris Lessmore
La Luna
A Morning Stroll
Wild Life

Pentecost
Raju
The Shore
Time Freak
Tuba Atlantic

Midnight in Paris is Woody Allen’s latest film about a man who loves Paris and nostalgia which Allen gracefully provides in a whimsy and romantic manner. Allen does for Paris what he has done for New York in the past, cinematically capturing the city perfectly. Most people can agree, this is Allen’s best film in years.

Gil (Owen Wilson) is a Hollywood movie writer who is trying to give a shot at writing a novel but not having the easiest time with it. He is on vacation with his soon-to-be wife Inez (Rachel McAdams) in Paris, a city that he adores every square inch of, especially when it is raining. He brings up the idea of moving there once they are married but Inez does not share the same passion about Paris as he does and she hates being wet. In fact, the couple do not see eye-to-eye on much it seems.

The couple happen to run into some old friends who are visiting the City of Light as well. I decline to say mutual friends as Gil does not care much for Paul (Michael Sheen), a traveling professor who considers himself an expert on every subject on earth. Gil finds him very annoying whereas Inez finds him charming and fascinating. Paul asks if the two would be interested in going dancing and immediately they both respond with different answers.

While Inez and Paul are out dancing, Gil decides to take a walk around the city. He had a fair amount to drink that night so getting lost was not hard for him to do. He ends up on some church steps as the clock strikes midnight it’s bell rings. A few moments later a vintage car full of drunken Parisians pulls up and invites him in.

When the group ends up at a party that is when Gil starts to notice something a little…magical. The first person at the party he meets is Zelda Fitzgerald (Alison Pill). She is very eager to hear that he is a writer himself so she calls over her husband to tell him the news, Scott Fitzgerald (Tom Hiddleston). He can barely believe what he is seeing.

He does not spend too much time trying to figure out how he ended in what he considers the golden age, the 1920’s, he just embraces it. Woody Allen does the same; he does not bother to explain how this time travel is possible as how is not the important part. Gil has always wondered what Paris was like in the 20’s and now he gets his chance to see it.

The next day everything goes back to normal but Gil can barely wait until midnight to see if the process repeats itself. He walks around until he finds the same church and waits for clock to strike midnight. When the bell rings sure enough the same old car pulls up transports him back in time. Gil runs into a long list of famous heroes including, Gertrude Stein (Kathy Bates), Ernest Hemingway (Corey Stoll) and Salvador Dali (Adrien Brody). Gil realizes he finally found some people he trusts to critique his novel, something that he has never done before and what other perfect people do so than Stein and Hemmingway.

The story really picks up when he is introduced to Piacasso’s lover Adriana (Marion Cotillard). He instantly develops a crush on her. Gil and Adriana share one big thing in common; they both wish they belonged in a different time period. It is when Adriana fantasizes about being in Paris in another time than the 1920’s that he finally comes to a realization that life is a little unsatisfying and you can never think the present is the golden age.

Gil comes to this epiphany shortly after he heavily considers leaving his fiancé for Adriana. He does after all, get along with and share more in common with Adriana than we ever saw he did with Inez. The film does a great job making it about impossible to feel pity for Inez, she never seemed right for Gil from the start.

It is no secret that Woody Allen often portrays himself with protagonists in his films, Midnight in Paris is no exception, Owen Wilson might be the best actor to pull it off to date. Wilson may not come to mind as the perfect person for the role but he proved otherwise. He played the enthusiastic writer who is sometimes neurotically long-winded remarkably well. The rest of the cast also do a excellent job, especially Corey Stoll as Hemingway.

Ricky Gervais returned as the host for the 69th Golden Globe Awards offending attendees with a beer just as he did last year. Although, this year he was a little more tame with his jokes, he proved he was worthy of being a repeating host.

As expected The Artist ended up with the most wins with three (including Best Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical and Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical). But The Descendants was a close second with two big wins (Best Motion Picture — Drama and Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama).

On the TV side of the awards no one show dominated and there were some surprises, namely Kelsey Grammer winning as Best Actor in a Drama and Matt LeBlanc getting a win for Best Actor in a Comedy. Game Of Thrones, Modern Family and American Horror Story each walked out with a win while Boardwalk Empire and Breaking Bad sadly going home empty handed.

The full list of Golden Globe film winners:
(The winners are highlighted in bold red font)

Best Motion Picture – Drama:
The Descendants
The Help
Hugo
The Ides of March
Moneyball
War Horse

Best Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical:
50/50
The Artist
Bridesmaids
Midnight in Paris
My Week With Marilyn

Best Director:
Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris
George Clooney – The Ides of March
Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Alexander Payne – The Descendants
Martin Scorsese – Hugo

Best Actress – Drama:
Glenn Close – Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis – The Help
Rooney Mara – The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep – The Iron Lady
Tilda Swinton – We Need to Talk About Kevin

Best Actor – Drama:
George Clooney – The Descendants
Leonardo DiCaprio – J. Edgar
Michael Fassbender – Shame
Ryan Gosling – The Ides of March
Brad Pitt – Moneyball

Best Actress – Comedy or Musical:
Jodie Foster – Carnage
Charlize Theron – Young Adult
Kristen Wiig – Bridesmaids
Michelle Williams – My Week With Marilyn
Kate Winslet – Carnage

Best Actor – Comedy or Musical:
Jean Dujardin – The Artist
Brendan Gleeson – The Guard
Joseph Gordon-Levitt – 50/50
Ryan Gosling – Crazy, Stupid, Love
Owen Wilson – Midnight In Paris

Best Supporting Actress:
Berenice Bejo – The Artist
Jessica Chastain – The Help
Janet McTeer – Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer – The Help
Shailene Woodley – The Descendants

Best Supporting Actor:
Kenneth Branagh – My Week with Marilyn
Albert Brooks – Drive
Jonah Hill – Moneyball
Viggo Mortensen – A Dangerous Method
Christopher Plummer, Beginners

Best Foreign Language Film:
The Flowers of War (China)
In the Land of Blood and Honey (USA)
The Kid With a Bike (Belgium)
A Separation (Iran)
The Skin I Live In (Spain)

Best Screenplay – Motion Picture:
Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris
George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon – The Ides of March
Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash – The Descendants
Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin – Moneyball

Best Original Score – Motion Picture:
Ludovic Bource – The Artist
Abel Korzeniowski – W.E.
Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross – The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Howard Shore – Hugo
John Williams – War Horse

Best Animated Feature Film:
The Adventures of Tintin
Arthur Christmas
Cars 2
Puss in Boots
Rango

Best Original Song – Motion Picture:
Hello Hello – Gnomeo & Juliet, music by Elton John, lyrics by Bernie Taupin
The Keeper – Machine Gun Preacher, music and lyrics by Chris Cornell
Lay Your Head Down – Albert Nobbs, music by Brian Byrne, lyrics by Glenn Close
The Living Proof – The Help, music by Mary J. Blige, Thomas Newman, Harvey Mason Jr.; lyrics by Mary J. Blige, Harvey Mason Jr., Damon Thomas
Masterpiece – W.E., music and lyrics by Madonna, Julie Frost, Jimmy Harry

Cecil B. DeMille Award:
Morgan Freeman

The full list of Golden Globe television winners:

Best Drama Series:
American Horror Story
Boardwalk Empire
Boss
Game of Thrones
Homeland

Best Comedy Or Musical:
Enlightened
Episodes
Glee
Modern Family
New Girl

Best TV Movie/Miniseries:
Cinema Verite
Downton Abbey
The Hour
Mildred Pierce
Too Big to Fail

Best Actress – Drama:
Claire Danes – Homeland
Mireille Enos – The Killing
Julianna Margulies – The Good Wife
Madeleine Stowe – Revenge
Callie Thorne – Necessary Roughness

Best Actor – Drama:
Steve Buscemi – Boardwalk Empire
Bryan Cranston – Breaking Bad
Kelsey Grammer – Boss
Jeremy Irons – The Borgias
Damian Lewis – Homeland

Best Actress – Comedy or Musical:
Laura Dern – Enlightened
Zooey Deschanel – New Girl
Tina Fey – 30 Rock
Laura Linney – The Big C
Amy Poehler – Parks and Recreation

Best Actor – Comedy or Musical:
Hugh Bonneville – Downtown Abbey
Idris Elba – Luther
William Hurt – Too Big to Fail
Bill Nighy – Page Eight
Dominic West – The Hour

Best Actress – TV Movie/Miniseries:
Romola Garai – The Hour
Diane Lane – Cinema Verite
Elizabeth McGovern – Downton Abbey
Emily Watson – Appropriate Adult
Kate Winslet – Mildred Pierce

Best Actor – TV Movie/Miniseries:
Alec Baldwin – 30 Rock
David Duchovny – Californication
Johnny Galecki – The Big Bang Theory
Thomas Jane – Hung
Matt LeBlanc – Episodes

Best Supporting Actress – TV Series:
Jessica Lange – American Horror Story
Kelly MacDonald – Boardwalk Empire
Maggie Smith – Downtown Abbey
Sofia Vergara – Modern Family
Evan Rachel Wood – Mildred Pierce

Best Supporting Actor – TV Series:
Peter Dinklage – Game of Thrones
Paul Giamatti – Too Big to Fail
Guy Pearce – Mildred Pierce
Tim Robbins – Cinema Verite
Eric Stonestreet – Modern Family

The 2012 Film Independent Spirit Award nominations were announced today by presenters Anthony Mackie and Kate Beckinsale kicking off the award season. Of the total 277 total film submissions The Artist and Take Shelter raked in the most nominations this year with five in total. Close behind them with 4 nominations were films Martha Marcy May Marlene, The Descendants, and Drive. I would say the front-runner for awards this year is The Artist but all of the films above will have a shot of being represented here as well as at the Oscars.

Michelle Williams gets her second nomination Best Female Lead nomination in a row with her role in My Week With Marilyn (last year’s nomination was for Blue Valentine). She was not the one to get a repeat nomination for the second year in a row as John Hawkes also received a nomination for Martha Marcy May Marlene for Best Supporting Male (John Hawkes won the award last year for Winter’s Bone).

In order to qualify for Spirit Awards a film has to be made for under $20 million, which would explain the absence of Tree Of Life among the nominations, which is a little disappointing as it has been my favorite film of 2011 so far (I still have a fair amount to see still though). Although I have not seen them yet, I am a little disappointed that Alps and The Skin I Live In did not make the cut for a nomination in the Best Foreign Film category (need to have at least 1 U.S. producer to qualify for the other awards).

The winners will be announced at the 27th annual Film Independent Spirit Awards on February 25th and the broadcast will air at 10 p.m. ET/PT on IFC.

50/50 – Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Ben Karlin
Beginners – Miranda de Pencier, Lars Knudsen, Leslie Urdang, Jay Van Hoy, Dean Vanech
Drive – Michel Litvak, John Palermo, Marc Platt, Gigi Pritzker, Adam Siegel
Take Shelter – Tyler Davidson, Sophia Lin
The Artist – Thomas Langmann, Emmanuel Montamat
The Descendants – Jim Burke, Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor

Mike Mills – Beginners
Nicolas Winding Refn – Drive
Jeff Nichols – Take Shelter
Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Alexander Payne – The Descendants

Another Earth – Directed by Mike Cahill; Producers: Mike Cahill, Hunter Gray, Brit Marling, Nicholas Shumaker
In The Family – Directed by Patrick Wang; Producers: Robert Tonino, Andrew van den Houten, Patrick Wang
Margin Call – Directed by J.C. Chandor; Producers: Robert Ogden Barnum, Michael Benaroya, Neal Dodson, Joe Jenckes, Corey Moosa, Zachary Quinto
Martha Marcy May Marlene – Directed by Sean Durkin; Producers: Antonio Campos, Patrick Cunningham, Chris Maybach, Josh Mond
Natural Selection – Directed by Robbie Pickering; Producers: Brion Hambel, Paul Jensen

Demian Bichir – A Better Life
Jean Dujardin – The Artist
Ryan Gosling – Drive
Woody Harrelson – Rampart
Michael Shannon – Take Shelter

Lauren Ambrose – Think Of Me
Rachel Harris – Natural Selection
Adepero Oduye – Pariah
Elizabeth Olsen – Martha Marcy May Marlene
Michelle Williams – My Week With Marilyn

Albert Brooks – Drive
John Hawkes – Martha Marcy May Marlene
Christopher Plummer – Beginners
John C. Reilly – Cedar Rapids
Corey Stoll – Midnight In Paris

Jessica Chastain – Take Shelter
Angelica Huston – 50/50
Janet McTeer – Albert Nobbs
Harmony Santana – Gun Hill Road
Shaileen Woodley – The Descendants

Bellflower – Written and directed by Evan Glodell; Producers: Evan Glodell, Vincent Grashaw
Circumstance – Written and directed by Maryam Keshavarz; Producers: Karin Chien, Maryam Keshavarz, Melissa M. Lee
Hello Lonesome – Written and directed and produced by Adam Reid
Lovers of Hate – Written and directed by Dee Rees; Producer: Nekisa Cooper
The Dynamiter – Writters: Matthew Gordon and Brad Ingelsby; Directed by Matthew Gordon; Producers: Kevin Abrams, Matthew Gordon, Merilee Holt, Nate Tuck, Amile Wilson

An African Election – Jarreth J. Merz, Kevin Merz
Bill Cunningham New York – Richard Press
The Interrupters – Steve James
The Redemption of General Butt Naked – Daniele Anastasion, Eric Strauss
We Were Here – David Weissman, Bill Weber

A Separation – Asghar Farhadi
Melancholia – Lars von Trier
Shame – Steve McQueen
The Kid With A Bike – Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne
Tyrannosaur – Paddy Considine

Joel Hodge – Bellflower
Benjamin Kasulke – The Off Hours
Darius Khondji – Midnight In Paris
Guillaume Schiffman – The Artist
Jeffrey Waldron – The Dynamiter

Joseph Cedar – Footnote
Michel Hazanivicius – The Artist
Tom McCarthy – Win Win
Mike Mills – Beginners
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon & Jim Rash – The Descendants

Mike Cahill & Brit Marling – Another Earth
J.C. Chandor – Margin Call
Patreck DeWitt – Terri
Phil Johnston – Cedar Rapids
Will Reiser – 50/50

Margin Call
Director: J.C. Chandor
Ensemble Cast: Kevin Spacey, Paul Bettany, Jeremy Irons, Zachary Quinto, Penn Badgley, Simon Baker, Mary McDonnell, Demi Moore

Chad Burris – Mosquita y Mari
Sophia Lin – Take Shelter
Josh Mond – Martha Marcy May Marlene

Heather Courtney – Where Soldiers Come From
Danfung Dennis – Hell and Back Again
Alma Har’El – Bombay Beach

Simon Arthur – Silver Tongues
Mark Jackson – Without
Nicholas Ozeki – Mamitas

Cannes Film Festival is considered one of the most prestigious film festivals in the world and today they announced their lineup for 2011. This year the festival will be held from May 11th through May 22nd with American actor Robert De Niro being The President of the Jury.

Midnight In Paris (director Woody Allen)

The Beaver (director Jodi Foster)
La Conquete (director Xavier Durringer)
The Artist (director Hazanavicius)
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (director Rob Marshall)

The Skin I Live In (director Pedro Almodovar)
L’Apollonide – Souvenirs de la maison close (director Bertrand Bonello)
Hearat Shulayim (director Joseph Cedar)
Pater (director Alain Cavalier)
Bir Zamanlar Anadolu’da (Once Upon a Time in Anatolia) (director Nuri Bilge Ceylan)
Le gamin au vélo (director Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne)
Le Havre (director Aki Kaurismäki)
Hanezu no Tsuki (director Naomi Kawase)
Sleeping Beauty (director Julia Leigh)
Polisse (director Maïwenn)
The Tree of Life (director Terrence Malick)
La source des femmes (director Radu Mihaileanu)
Ishimei (Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai) (director Takashi Miike)
Habemus Papam (director Nanni Moretti)
We Need to Talk about Kevin (director Lynne Ramsay)
Melancholia (director Lars Von Trier)
Drive (director Nicolas Winding Refn)

Restless (director Gus Van Sant)
Martha Marcy May Marlene (director Sean Durkin)
The Hunter (director Bakur Bakuradze)
Halt auf freier Strecke (director Andreas Dresen)
Hors Satan (director Bruno Dumont)
Les neiges du Kilimandjaro (director Robert Guédiguian)
Skoonheid (director Oliver Hermanus)
The Day He Arrives (director Hong Sangsoo)
Hong Sangsoo (director Cristián Jiménez)
Tatsumi (director Eric Khoo)
Arirang (director Kim Ki-duk)
Et maintenant on va où? (director Nadine Labaki)
Loverboy (director Catalin Mitulescu)
Yellow Sea (director Na Hong-jin)
Miss Bala (dir. Gerardo Naranjo)
Trabalhar cansa (Travailler Fatigue) (directors Juliana Rojas and Marco Dutra)
L’exercice de l’Etat (director Pierre Schoeller)
Toomelah (director Ivan Sen)
Oslo, August 31st (director Joachim Trier)

Labrador (director Frederikke Aspöck)
Wu Xia (director Chan Peter Ho-Sun)
Days of Grace (director Everardo Gout)
Le Maitre Des Forges De L’Enfre (director. Rithy Panh)
Michael Petrucciani (director Michael Radford)
Tous Au Larzac (director Christian Rouaud)