Paul Thomas Anderson, There Will Be Blood
Joel and Ethan Coen, No Country for Old Men
Tony Gilroy, Michael Clayton
Sean Penn, Into the Wild
Julian Schnabel, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
The Countdown has begun. At least for me. Until today, I have been following the awards season hoopla and filling in my annual Oscar prediction charts with every new announcement from another critics’ circle. But the announcement of the DGA’s annual nominations is, for me, the official kick-off to another Oscar derby. Of course, whether there will actually be an Oscar derby this year remains to be seen. And it's not looking good.
Anyway, back to the Directors Guild. As in the past, probably four out of these annointed five will go on to earn a directing nomination from the Academy. And, thus, it follows that more than likely four of the five scoring a directing nom will also score for best picture. But it's never likely that that only five films will earn the complete trinity of nominations --DGA , Oscar Director,and Oscar Picture -- and this year is no different. I can't help but think that somewhere in here lurks a nod at Atonement or maybe Juno?
Gilroy is a nice surprise, but a surprise nevertheless. Given his relative newbie status and the fact that Michael Clayton was much admired but not embraced with quite as much fervor as the other four, I was expecting the fifth slot to go to Joe Wright, Mike Nichols, Tim Burton or perhaps, as an affectionate gesture, Sidney Lumet. Anyway, good for Tony. (And, let’s face it, he did write those three marvelous BOURNE scripts.) But does he, as they say, have the legs to take him into the Oscar race?
Although I may change my mind tomorrow, I would say that Anderson, Schnabel and the Coens will go the distance. And given how much the Academy loves honoring those actors-turned-directors (Redford, Beatty, Eastwood, Gibson, Streisand --- oops, well, male actors- turned-directors anyway ---) Penn also stands a good chance. My fifth prediction would probably go to Wright or Burton who, along with Schnabel and the Coens, earned nominations from HFPA and the Broadcast Critics. Then again, Anderson was snubbed by both groups, so what do I know?
For the one truly big mystery to me, for the one movie I really thought would be in hot competition right now, kindly read the following post.
The Countdown has begun. At least for me. Until today, I have been following the awards season hoopla and filling in my annual Oscar prediction charts with every new announcement from another critics’ circle. But the announcement of the DGA’s annual nominations is, for me, the official kick-off to another Oscar derby. Of course, whether there will actually be an Oscar derby this year remains to be seen. And it's not looking good.
Anyway, back to the Directors Guild. As in the past, probably four out of these annointed five will go on to earn a directing nomination from the Academy. And, thus, it follows that more than likely four of the five scoring a directing nom will also score for best picture. But it's never likely that that only five films will earn the complete trinity of nominations --DGA , Oscar Director,and Oscar Picture -- and this year is no different. I can't help but think that somewhere in here lurks a nod at Atonement or maybe Juno?
Gilroy is a nice surprise, but a surprise nevertheless. Given his relative newbie status and the fact that Michael Clayton was much admired but not embraced with quite as much fervor as the other four, I was expecting the fifth slot to go to Joe Wright, Mike Nichols, Tim Burton or perhaps, as an affectionate gesture, Sidney Lumet. Anyway, good for Tony. (And, let’s face it, he did write those three marvelous BOURNE scripts.) But does he, as they say, have the legs to take him into the Oscar race?
Although I may change my mind tomorrow, I would say that Anderson, Schnabel and the Coens will go the distance. And given how much the Academy loves honoring those actors-turned-directors (Redford, Beatty, Eastwood, Gibson, Streisand --- oops, well, male actors- turned-directors anyway ---) Penn also stands a good chance. My fifth prediction would probably go to Wright or Burton who, along with Schnabel and the Coens, earned nominations from HFPA and the Broadcast Critics. Then again, Anderson was snubbed by both groups, so what do I know?
For the one truly big mystery to me, for the one movie I really thought would be in hot competition right now, kindly read the following post.
