God bless the BAFTAs. Year after year the press claim the BAFTAs want to be seen as a forerunner to the Oscars and year after year BAFTA voters attempt to disprove this theory by voting in all kinds of slightly odd choices. This year is no different. You've got to love it.
Sure, as expected Slumdog Millionaire leads the way, matching 11 nominations against Curious Case of Benjamin Button. But even Slumdog has those wacky nominations. Frieda Pinto is up for Best Supporting Actress. I'm not saying Ms Pinto isn't good in the film, i've seen it twice and she is, but she is barely in it and this does seem one of those typical "all in" votes, where by a film becomes so popular the voters just put it in everything. As good as he is there's even an argument that Dev Patel's Best Actor nomination is a bit left field given the overwhelming strength of that category this year.
Then there's our Kate! It comes as no surprise to me - not only did i predict it, i voted that way myself - but the BAFTAs (rightly) completely ignored the "supporting actress" propaganda of The Reader's campaign and put Ms Winslet up for two Best Actress nominations for The Reader and Revolutionary Road. I love BAFTAs refusal to play ball on such things. No double-win for Winslet at home though.
British Film features the excrable Mamma Mia! And given this is a Universal movie set in Greece with Swedish music and two Americans in the leads how it qualifies as British i do not know. Furthermore if that qualification comes way of Film Council recognition then Dark Knight (an infinitely better film) would also qualify, making this nomination even harder to swallow.
My favourite oddity (again because i voted that way too) is that Amy Adams made Supporting Actress for Doubt but Viola Davis didn't. Most attention has been on Davis in this category elsewhere. Personally i have railed against as Davis' role (while very well done) could have been done equally well me many actors because it is that kind of explosive showy supporting role that pops in. The writing on her scenes is exquisite and she benefots from that. Meanwhile Adams is the core of the story, the audience's eyes and the slightly thankless underwritten wet-drip role. I'm glad she's getting the attention here. That said with no Winslet in this category I guarantee Penelope Cruz will walk off with this one.
Speaking of Vicky Cristina Barcelona - no Woody Allen in best original screenplay?! No Tom McCarthy (for The Visitor) either? Hmmm!
Brad Pitt got two nominations by bagging one for Supporting Actor in Burn After Reading and is joined by Brendan Gleeson (marvellous and deserved) as another surprising choice alongside the more expected Heath Ledger, Robert Downey Jr and Philip Seymour Hoffman. No Michael Sheen in Frost/Nixon though? No David Kross in The Reader. No Ralph Fiennes in The Duchess or The Reader? Again, surprising.
And then that brings me to my biggest surprise. The first thing i did was look to Best Animated Film to make sure my favourite film of the year Waltz With Bashir had made the third nomination spot beside the accepted certainties of WALL-E and Kung Fu Panda. It had. Brilliant. But here was a surprise, Kung Fu Panda hadn't made it. Alongside WALL-E and Waltz With Bashir was Persepolis. Now i didn't see that coming. I worried Persepolis would get in instead of Bashir but i never considered they'd both be there at the expense of Po the Panda. I hope that doesn't hurt Bashir's chances of winner, though i fear it will.
Anyway, there they are. The BAFTA noms are out for al to see and are filled with the usual eccentricities. No doubt the press will just report on the Slumdog/Benjamin Button majorities and the presence of Mickey Rourke and Kate Winslet among the nominations and cal them "predictably safe, attempting to be relevant ahead of the Oscars" but we see the truth behind these false headlines. BAFTA always has been, always will be, slightly bafflingly at times, independent. And while i often disagree with where they go i love them for it all the more!
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