2007

I just have to say that 2007 was such a great year for movies, I've taken away my limit on the honorable mentions, continued my 6-nominee Best Poster category, and added Best Original Screenplay and Best Adapted Screenplay.  Oh, and there's a new Overlooked Prize, you know, for the actual indies that don't get any attention, as opposed to the faux indies that populate the awards circuit.  So please enjoy the longest BMAs yet:

Best Picture: 

3:10 to Yuma
Into the Wild
No Country for Old Men
Once
There will be Blood

The BMA goes to:    There will be Blood.  Sorry for making the top 5 such a boys club (despite the presence of Once).  Also, now you know my top 5 films, but this is just a teaser for my novel-length Top Movies of 2007 list. 

Atonement
Juno
Michael Clayton
No Country for Old Men
There will be Blood

The BAA goes to:  There will be Blood.  Thrilled at the noms, though. Just wish Michael Clayton's slot could have gone to Into the Wild, but it's a mild gripe, and I haven't even seen Michael Clayton yet. 

Best Actor:

Casey Affleck--The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
Javier Bardem--No Country for Old Men
Josh Brolin--No Country for Old Men
Daniel Day-Lewis--There will be Blood
Viggo Mortensen--Eastern Promises

The BMA goes to:  Daniel Day-Lewis.  I know, I know, he's the frontrunner, blah dee blah.  He was mind-blowing.  I must say, however, that Day-Lewis here and Casey Affleck in The Ass of Brad Pitt gave two of my all-time favorite performances (come to think of it, the ass of Brad Pitt would be a pretty great performance as well).  It's a shame Affleck's been relegated to supporting status, because he's the lead.  Also notice the tragic lack of Christian Bale.  Sorry, lover. 

Apologies to:  Michael Cera (Superbad), Emile Hirsch (Into the Wild), Christian Bale (3:10 to Yuma, Rescue Dawn), Russell Crowe (3:10 to Yuma), Brad Pitt (The Assassination...), James McAvoy (Atonement), Frank Langella (Starting Out in the Evening), Phillip Seymour Hoffman (Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, The Savages), Tom Hanks (Charlie Wilson's War), Casey Affleck (Gone Baby Gone), Glen Hansard (Once), Ryan Gosling (Lars and the Real Girl), Sam Riley (Control)

George Clooney--Michael Clayton
Daniel Day-Lewis--There will be Blood
Johnny Depp--Sweeney Todd
Tommy Lee Jones--In the Valley of Elah
Viggo Mortensen--Eastern Promises

The BAA goes to:  Daniel Day-Lewis for There will be Blood.  Great noms, even Tommy Lee Jones despite my public hatred for Paul Haggis films.  On the other hand, I'd have preferred Josh Brolin or someone to Johnny Depp, but what're you gonna do? 

Best Actress:

Angelina Jolie--A Mighty Heart
Nicole Kidman--Margot at the Wedding
Laura Linney--The Savages
Ellen Page--Juno
Tang Wei--Lust, Caution

And the BMA goes to:  Ellen Page.  I don't know what it is with me and the frontrunners this year.  I was thisclose to giving the award to Nicole Kidman, but what the heck.  It's not often you get such a powerhouse teenage performance.  Regardless, these five women kept up with the great roles for men this year, and I highly recommend checking out each of them.  Also, for once I didn't have to stretch to get five great lead actresses!

Apologies to:  Sigourney Weaver (Snow Cake), Julie Christie (Away from Her), Keira Knightley (Atonement), Marketa Irglova (Once), Cate Blanchett (Eizabeth:  The Golden Age)

Cate Blanchett--Elizabeth:  The Golden Age
Julie Christie--Away from Her
Marion Cotillard--La Vie en Rose
Laura Linney--The Savages
Ellen Page--Juno

The BAA goes to:  Ellen Page for Juno.  Again, exciting noms, and despite Elizabeth 2's lack of focus, Blanchett freaking ruled in that film.  Very deserving of a nom. 

Best Supporting Actor:

Paul Dano--There will be Blood
Jeremy Davies--Rescue Dawn
Robert Downey, Jr.--Zodiac
Phillip Seymour Hoffman--Charlie Wilson's War
Hal Holbrook--Into the Wild

And the BMA goes to:  Hal Holbrook.  I left the theater noting the brilliance of the entire cast, but the standouts were Emile Hirsch, Catherine Keener, and the old man at the end.  Come to find out, he's actually famous, and not only that, he's kind of a frontrunner for a Supporting Nom.  He freaking blew me away, and it's sad not to be able to award my favorites like Bale, Cera, and PSH, but Holbrook, in the fifteen minutes or so he has, became the spirit of one of my favorite movies of the year. 

Apologies to:  Christian Bale (I'm Not There), Heath Ledger (I'm Not There), Michael Cera (Juno), Jason Bateman (Juno), Ben Foster (3:10 to Yuma), Paul Rudd (Knocked Up), Tommy Lee Jones (No Country for Old Men), Tom Cruise (Lions for Lambs), Robert Redford (Lions for Lambs), Steve Zahn (Rescue Dawn), Vincent Cassel (Eastern Promises)

Casey Affleck--The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
Javier Bardem--No Country for Old Men
Phillip Seymour Hoffman--Charlie Wilson's War
Hal Holbrook--Into the Wild
Tom Wilkinson--Michael Clayton

The BAA goes to:  Casey Affleck for The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.  Here's an interesting situation where my BMA winner is nommed in the category but up against someone who I had as a lead (and accurately so).  As such, Affleck, who gave one of my favorite modern performances, takes the prize. 

Best Supporting Actress:

Cate Blanchett--I'm Not There
Jennifer Garner--Juno
Jennifer Jason Leigh--Margot at the Wedding
Leslie Mann--Knocked Up
Amy Ryan--Gone Baby Gone

And the BMA goes to:  Cate Blanchett.  I know, another frontrunner.  Sue me.  To be accurate, Amy Ryan's the girl to beat now, though, not Blanchett.  And for what it's worth, Jennifer Garner had my second place.  She really captivated me in Juno, and it was great being able to see her soften, if just a little.  And at least I managed to get Leslie Mann a nom, if that even slightly makes up for not getting Michael Cera or Paul Rudd anything. 

Apologies to:  Catherine Keener (Into the Wild), Meryl Streep (Lions for Lambs), Kelly Macdonald (No Country for Old Men), Allison Janney (Juno), Ruby Dee (American Gangster), Vanessa Redgrave (Atonement), Saoirse Ronan (Atonement), Helena Bonham Carter (Sweeney Todd)

Cate Blanchett--I'm Not There
Ruby Dee--American Gangster
Saoirse Ronan--Atonement
Amy Ryan--Gone Baby Gone
Tilda Swinton--Michael Clayton

The BAA goes to:  Cate Blanchett for I'm Not There.  Not too jazzed with the Ruby Dee nom simply for the fact that I hear she has 5 minutes of screen time, and thus took a spot from one of my faves like Jennifer Garner or Catherine Keener.  Congrats to Saoirse Ronan, though, who I couldn't find room for. 

Best Ensemble: 

Grindhouse
I'm Not There
Lions for Lambs
Paris Je T'aime
Rendition

The BMA goes to:   I'm Not There.  In addition to the six Dylans, we got some outstanding Charlotte Gainsbourg, Bruce Greenwood, Julianne Moore, Michelle Williams, and David Cross action. 

Apologies to:  Nothing.  I can't believe it was difficult to find five whole movies with no lead actors this year.  What happened to Stephen Gaghan?

Best Adapted Screenplay: 

3:10 to Yuma
Atonement
Into the Wild
No Country for Old Men
There will be Blood

The BMA goes to:   There will be Blood (Paul Thomas Anderson).  "There are times when I look at people and I see nothing worth liking."   

Best Original Screenplay: 

The Darjeeling Limited
I'm Not There
Margot at the Wedding
Once
Superbad

The BMA goes to:  Margot at the Wedding (Noah Baumbach).  "This is why I hate games."  Btw, is it me, or does this category seem way jazzier than Adapted? 

Best Foreign-Language Film: 

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Le Scaphandre et le Papillon)
Lust, Caution (Se, Jie)
Paris, I Love You (Paris, Je T'aime)
Persepolis

The BMA goes to:  Paris Je T'aime, for now.

Best Documentary: 

Helvetica
In the Shadow of the Moon
The King of Kong
My Kid Could Paint That
No End in Sight

The BMA goes to:   The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters.  These are some of my favorite documentaries I've seen.     

Best Poster:

3:10 to Yuma
Across the Universe
American Gangster
Grindhouse
Into the Wild
Paris Je T'aime

The BMA goes to:   Grindhouse, for the entire poster campaign.  I picked the one that first blew me away, but I love the entire series, and one of the Death Proof posters is on my wall. 

Apologies to:  In the Shadow of the Moon, Into the Wild, The King of Kong, The Savages, Margot at the Wedding

Best Trailer:

Atonement
Grindhouse
Juno
Once
There Will be Blood

The BMA goes to:  There Will be Blood.  Honestly, this trailer makes me excited to be a movie-lover.  The runner up is Atonement. 

Apologies to:  The Darjeeling Limited, Into the Wild, Lions for Lambs, No Country for Old Men, 3:10 To Yuma, Across the Universe, Superbad

Overlooked Prize: 

Control
Snow Cake
This is England
The TV Set
Wristcutters: A Love Story

The BMA goes to:   Control.  Although, I do want to point out that I recommend all of these films, in case that wasn't obvious.  And it pains me not to be able to include Man from Earth in the noms, since the concept is incredible. 

Apologies to:  Man from Earth, Ira and Abby, Away from Her, Diggers, First Snow

Brandon A. Nowalk Award for Creativity: 

I'm Not There

Honorable Mentions:  Across the Universe, Grindhouse

BMA MVP: 

Christian Bale--I've made no effort to hide my love for my soul mate, Christian Bale, and this year afforded me with an opportunity to crown him MVP with three brilliant performances in three brilliant films.  I was first reunited with my love (since The Prestige) at 3:10 to Yuma, and he contributed to making it my favorite film of the year at that point.  Then I downloaded Rescue Dawn, where he continued to impress.  And finally I caught his portrayal of one face of Bob Dylan in Todd Haynes' I'm Not There, and he again proved why he's the best actor working.  Just wait till you find out how high the lowest-ranked Christian Bale movie is on my list this year.   

Honorable Mentions: 
Philip Seymour Hoffman (Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, Charlie Wilson's War, The Savages)
Josh Brolin (American Gangster, Grindhouse, No Country for Old Men)

BMA Losers:

The AMPTP--NEGOTIATE for the sake of cinephiles!
Paul Haggis--Shut Up Already!  For the brilliant realism of In the Valley of Elah which has bamboozled certain critics into hating it, for some reason

BMA Shout Outs: 

Philip Seymour Hoffman--Most Versatile--my runner-up MVP
Johnny Greenwood--for the score for There will be Blood
Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova--no reason
Judd Apatow--for Knocked Up and Superbad
Michael Cera--Breakthrough--for Superbad, Juno, Impossible is the Opposite of Possible, and everything else he's done this year (and ever)
Garret Dillahunt and Paul Schneider--Go-to supporting players

Other award-ish notes:

1.  The script for Juno is excellent.  However, it is not the best in a long time.  You need only look back to Superbad, or No Country for Old Men, or Once to find other excellent scripts from this year, not to mention other critical darlings like Atonement and There will be Blood. 

2.  90s auteurs Paul Thomas Anderson, Wes Anderson, the Coen Brothers, Todd Haynes and David Fincher have crafted masterpieces this year.  Not necessarily their best work, but one could argue their cases, especially for PTA and Todd Haynes. 

3.  00s up-and-comers like Judd Apatow, Jason Reitman, James Mangold, and Joe Wright have each improved on previous films culminating in their best work yet, with even more to come. 

4.  The score for Atonement is tied with Johnny Greenwood's in my mind.

5.  Cinematography this year has been outstanding, with my fave five being:  The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Atonement, Into the Wild, No Country for Old Men, and There will be Blood.  Should I start a Best Cinematography award? 

6.  The best use of dogs goes to three films:  No Country for Old Men, I am Legend, and Juno. 

7.  My favorite cameos of the year are:  Julianne Moore (I'm Not There), Vanessa Redgrave (Atonement), and Sacha Baron Cohen (Sweeney Todd)

BMAs 2007 Recap: 

There will be Blood:  4 BMAs--Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay, Best Trailer
I'm Not There:  2 BMAs--Best Supporting Actress, Best Ensemble
Grindhouse:  1 BMA--Best Poster
Into the Wild:  1 BMA--Best Supporting Actor
Juno:  1 BMA--Best Actress
The King of Kong:  1 BMA--Best Documentary
Margot at the Wedding:  1 BMA--Best Adapted Screenplay
Paris Je T'aime:  1 BMA--Best Foreign Film

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