BAFTA nominations

And so the BAFTA noms…

Good to see District 9’s Neill Blomkamp make the Best Director list, though I don’t get all the Nowhere Boy love.

Below are the complete nominees with what I think will win (not necessarily what should) in bold:

BEST FILM
AVATAR - James Cameron, Jon Landau
AN EDUCATION - Amanda Posey, Finola Dwyer
THE HURT LOCKER - Nominees TBC
PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE - Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness, Gary Magness
UP IN THE AIR - Ivan Reitman, Jason Reitman, Daniel Dubiecki

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM

AN EDUCATION - Amanda Posey, Finola Dwyer, Lone Scherfig, Nick Hornby
FISH TANK - Kees Kasander, Nick Laws, Andrea Arnold
IN THE LOOP - Kevin Loader, Adam Tandy, Armando Iannucci, Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Tony Roche
MOON - Stuart Fenegan, Trudie Styler, Duncan Jones, Nathan Parker
NOWHERE BOY - Kevin Loader, Douglas Rae, Robert Bernstein, Sam Taylor-Wood, Matt Greenhalgh

OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER
LUCY BAILEY, ANDREW THOMPSON, ELIZABETH MORGAN HEMLOCK, DAVID PEARSON - Directors, Producers – Mugabe and the White African

ERAN CREEVY - Writer/Director – Shifty
STUART HAZELDINE - Writer/Director – Exam
DUNCAN JONES - Director – Moon
SAM TAYLOR-WOOD - Director – Nowhere Boy

DIRECTOR
AVATAR - James Cameron
DISTRICT 9 - Neill Blomkamp
AN EDUCATION - Lone Scherfig
THE HURT LOCKER - Kathryn Bigelow
INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS - Quentin Tarantino

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
THE HANGOVER - Jon Lucas, Scott Moore
THE HURT LOCKER - Mark Boal
INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS - Quentin Tarantino
A SERIOUS MAN - Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
UP - Bob Peterson, Pete Docter

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
DISTRICT 9 - Neill Blomkamp, Terri Tatchell
AN EDUCATION - Nick Hornby
IN THE LOOP - Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche
PRECIOUS: BASED ON THE NOVEL PUSH BY SAPPHIRE - Geoffrey Fletcher
UP IN THE AIR - Jason Reitman, Sheldon Turner

FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
BROKEN EMBRACES - Agustín Almodóvar, Pedro Almodóvar
COCO BEFORE CHANEL - Carole Scotta, Caroline Benjo, Philippe Carcassonne, Anne Fontaine
LET THE RIGHT ONE IN - Carl Molinder, John Nordling, Tomas Alfredson
A PROPHET - Pascale Caucheteux, Marco Chergui, Alix Raynaud, Jacques Audiard
THE WHITE RIBBON - Stefan Arndt, Veit Heiduschka, Margaret Menegoz, Michael Haneke

ANIMATED FILM
CORALINE - Henry Selick
FANTASTIC MR FOX - Wes Anderson
UP - Pete Docter

LEADING ACTOR
JEFF BRIDGES - Crazy Heart
GEORGE CLOONEY - Up in the Air
COLIN FIRTH - A Single Man
JEREMY RENNER - The Hurt Locker
ANDY SERKIS - Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll

LEADING ACTRESS
CAREY MULLIGAN - An Education
SAOIRSE RONAN - The Lovely Bones
GABOUREY SIDIBE - Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire
MERYL STREEP - Julie & Julia
AUDREY TAUTOU - Coco Before Chanel

SUPPORTING ACTOR
ALEC BALDWIN - It’s Complicated
CHRISTIAN McKAY - Me and Orson Welles
ALFRED MOLINA - An Education
STANLEY TUCCI - The Lovely Bones
CHRISTOPH WALTZ - Inglourious Basterds

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
ANNE-MARIE DUFF - Nowhere Boy
VERA FARMIGA - Up in the Air
ANNA KENDRICK - Up in the Air
MO'NIQUE - Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire
KRISTIN SCOTT THOMAS - Nowhere Boy

MUSIC
AVATAR - James Horner
CRAZY HEART - T-Bone Burnett, Stephen Bruton
FANTASTIC MR FOX - Alexandre Desplat
SEX & DRUGS & ROCK & ROLL - Chaz Jankel
UP - Michael Giacchino

CINEMATOGRAPHY
AVATAR - Mauro Fiore
DISTRICT 9 - Trent Opaloch
THE HURT LOCKER - Barry Ackroyd
INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS - Robert Richardson
THE ROAD - Javier Aguirresarobe

EDITING
AVATAR - Stephen Rivkin, John Refoua, James Cameron
DISTRICT 9 - Julian Clarke
THE HURT LOCKER - Bob Murawski, Chris Innis
INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS - Sally Menke
UP IN THE AIR - Dana E. Glauberman

PRODUCTION DESIGN
AVATAR - Rick Carter, Robert Stromberg, Kim Sinclair
DISTRICT 9 - Philip Ivey, Guy Poltgieter
HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE - Stuart Craig, Stephenie McMillan
THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS - Nominees TBC
INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS - David Wasco, Sandy Reynolds Wasco

COSTUME DESIGN
BRIGHT STAR - Janet Patterson
COCO BEFORE CHANEL - Catherine Leterrier
AN EDUCATION - Odile Dicks-Mireaux
A SINGLE MAN - Arianne Phillips
THE YOUNG VICTORIA - Sandy Powell

SOUND
AVATAR - Christopher Boyes, Gary Summers, Andy Nelson, Tony Johnson, Addison Teague
DISTRICT 9 - Nominees TBC
THE HURT LOCKER - Ray Beckett, Paul N. J. Ottosson, Craig Stauffer
STAR TREK - Peter J. Devlin, Andy Nelson, Anna Behlmer, Mark Stoeckinger, Ben Burtt
UP - Tom Myers, Michael Silvers, Michael Semanick

SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS
AVATAR - Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham, Andrew R. Jones
DISTRICT 9 - Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers, Robert Habros, Matt Aitken
HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE - John Richardson, Tim Burke, Tim Alexander, Nicolas Aithadi
THE HURT LOCKER - Richard Stutsman
STAR TREK - Roger Guyett, Russell Earl, Paul Kavanagh, Burt Dalton

MAKE UP & HAIR
COCO BEFORE CHANEL - Thi Thanh Tu Nguyen, Jane Milon
AN EDUCATION - Lizzie Yianni Georgiou
THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS - Sarah Monzani
NINE - Peter ‘Swords’ King
THE YOUNG VICTORIA - Jenny Shircore

SHORT ANIMATION
THE HAPPY DUCKLING - Gili Dolev
MOTHER OF MANY - Sally Arthur, Emma Lazenby
THE GRUFFALO - Michael Rose, Martin Pope, Jakob Schuh, Max Lang

SHORT FILM
14 - Asitha Ameresekere
I DO AIR - James Bolton, Martina Amati
JADE - Samm Haillay, Daniel Elliott
MIXTAPE - Luti Fagbenle, Luke Snellin
OFF SEASON - Jacob Jaffke, Jonathan van Tulleken

ORANGE RISING STAR AWARD
JESSE EISENBERG
NICHOLAS HOULT
CAREY MULLIGAN – text MULLIGAN to 82058 to combat the predicted Twilight whitewash!
TAHAR RAHIM
KRISTEN STEWART

The Baftas are awarded Feb 21.

The awards season just got interesting

So the Globes went for James Cameron and Avatar for Best Director and Best Picture - Drama. Bet that pleased Kathryn Bigelow!

You can see why they did it though. Is Avatar the best film of the year? No, of course it isn't. But it is impressive. It has changed the way a film can be made. It is looking likely to become the highest grossing film of all-time (international is now a certainy, it just being a question of this week or next weekend now). It is in short the most memorable. When in 5 years, 10 years, 50 years people look back on 2009 the film it will be remembered for is Avatar. There may not be many people that would say it deserved to beat The Hurt Locker (it doesn't) but then that never stopped Titanic beating the far superior LA Confidential.

Then there's Sandra Bullock. The only woman ever to lead a film to a $200m gross in the US. Immediately following a massive result for The Proposal. Popular. Survived as a palpable, profitable lead well into her 40s (no mean feat in Hollywood). She produces worthy projects (like the Oscar-winning Crash). Now she's put herself into an awards-worthy role. And she's done it in a year when the most outstanding actresses are virtual unknowns in their first lead roles - Carey Mulligan in An Education and Gabourey Sidibe in Precious. Voters can happily slap themselves on the back and decide the nomination is the win for both these young actresses. The Bullock win is a game changer - expect this to translate to the Oscars. It just makes so much sense.

And then, praise be, Jeff Bridges. While it messes up my plan for betting on the Oscars (his odds will be rubbish now - i was relying on the HFPA to give it to Clooney so i could get good odds on Bridges for the Oscars). He is the actor that deserves the win this year. Plus he's beloved. Plus he's always excellent. Plus he's had multiple nominations over a period of 25 years and never won. Plus... he's the DUDE man!

At this point i suspect the Globes may have aced their four acting awards as far as predicting the Oscars goes. But the Oscars usually pull out a surprise somewhere. But where? Hmmmm!

Top 20 Most Anticipated Films of 2010

As with the top films of last year my top 10 most anticipated titles for 2010 will remain at the bottom of the blog for reference but an extended list appears here.

Inevitably there will be omissions, both deliberate and accidental, that others think I should have included but these are the 20 titles I am currently most looking forward to seeing in 2010. Some because they look fun, others because I expect true greatest, and still others that are there purely on faith in a particular director, actor, etc. Sometimes maybe all three, but a line of reasoning accompanies each one on this broader list.

I will also note this is MY most anticipated so doesn’t include excellent 2010 films that I happen to have already seen, most notably Martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island and Matthew Vaughn’s Kick-Ass, which would otherwise have made the list.

On the bottom list of the top 10 they’ll be listed 1-10 but here I’m going to count them down in reverse order:

20. Stone – I basically know nothing about this film except that it’s a thriller. But the fact that it pairs Robert De Niro and Edward Norton (two of the best actors around) gets it a place in my most anticipated. Of course there last pairing, alongside Marlon Brando in The Score, was good but not great, but it that would have been higher on my anticipation list that year.

19. Love Ranch – Joe Pesci takes his first lead role in over a decade alongside fellow Oscar-winner Helen Mirren (what a pairing!) in a drama about the first legal brothel in Nevada and the violence that resulted when their relationship was tested by infidelity. Mirren’s husband Taylor Hackford (Ray) directs. Could be great year-end awards fodder but Pesci’s big-screen return alone (after a tantalising cameo in The Good Shepherd) gets this into the top 20.

18. Tron Legacy – If only for the 3D, the retro-cool of a 28-years-later sequel to Tron and the return of original star Jeff Bridges (the man seriously has to be the coolest actor working) this gets in there. Plus the teaser (seen not in 3D on my computer) looked freakin’ awesome.

17. Scott Pilgrim Vs The World – Michael Cera’s gotten awfully one note but if handled right (see Superbad, Paper Heart, Juno) can be immensely likeable. With Edgar Wright calling the shots on this comic-book adaptation about a boy who must battle the ex-boyfriends of the girl of his dreams in order to win her hand I’m expecting quality. The cast also includes Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Chris Evans, Jason Schwartman and Brandon Routh. It’s a little ironic though that the director who guided Cera’s best performance, Greg Mottola, is directing Simon Pegg and Nick Frost in Paul (see below) while Wright handles this. Perhaps they got assignment envelopes mixed up!

16. How Do You Know? – It may not be called that by the time it releases but a new James L Brooks movie is always worth getting excited about. Okay so Spanglish wasn’t great but this stars Reese Witherspoon and Paul Rudd and reunites Brooks with the man he directed to two Oscars, the legendary Jack Nicholson. Jack alone would put this in my top 30 to see this year, a combo with Brooks and those leads means it’s only a lick from the top 15.

15. Alice In Wonderland – Tim Burton’s take on Lewis Carroll’s legendary fantasy sees Johnny Depp (who else) as the Mad Hatter, Helena Bonham Carter (ditto) as the Queen of Hearts, plus Anne Hathaway, Matt Lucas, Crispin Glover (how have he and Burton not worked together before!) and newcomer (although she seems to be in a load of stuff coming up) Mia Wasikowska as the titular heroine. Burton can surely not go wrong, at least for fans like me, with this one.

14. Predators – okay, so this could be terrible, but I hear nothing but great things about director Nimrod Antal’s Kontroll and his horror Vacancy was efficiently made. Here he’s working from a script by producer Robert Rodriguez and a cast including Oscar-winner Adrien Brody, Rodriguez lucky charm Danny Trejo and, er, Topher Grace. Here’s hoping this puts the Predator name back in modern cinema-goers good books.

13. Never Let Me Go – Mark Romanek (the under-rated One Hour Photo) adapts Kazuo Ishiguro’s (The Remains Of The Day, When We Were Orphans) novel which stars 2009 break-out star Carey Mulligan and Keira Knightley. This’ll be worth seeing just to see Mulligan act circles around Knightley (last seen on screen together as sisters in Pride & Prejudice) but the tantalising combo of Romanek and Mulligan is what attracts me.

12. You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger – okay so Woody Allen misses as often as he hits lately but he’s always a must see for devotees like me and this new romantic comedy sees him returning to the UK after a quick spin around Spain and his hometown of New York. The cast includes Anthony Hopkins in his first collaboration with Woody, which is reason enough to be excited for this one. Poor title though Woody.

11. Black Swan – Darren Aronofsky follows up the brilliant The Wrestler with a psychological thriller set in the world of ballet, that features 80s/90s uber-cute starlet Winona Ryder and stars her natural successor 90s/00s uber-cute starlet Natalie Portman. Vincent Cassel also stars following his superb turn this year in the French-language Mesrine thrillers.

10. Edge Of Darkness – Mel Gibson returns. This really dark-looking thriller looks to have elements of Ransom and Payback (the good Director’s Cut version) and is directed by Malcolm Campbell (Casino Royale) revisited the ‘80s TV drama he directed in the first place. The trailers look good to me and this is headed our way in February so one of the first of 2010 to look forward to.

9. Machete – Fun actionners are everywhere in 2010 and this spin-off of Robert Rodriguez’s spoof Mexican revenge thriller trailer in Grindhouse, co-directed by Rodriguez, nearly rivals The Expendables for a genius cast. It’s certainly the most insane cast I’ve seen put together for some time. Bad-ass Danny Trejo finally gets a lead role while his support comes from the beautiful Jessica Alba, the feisty Michelle Rodriguez, the “tabloids are now my career” Lindsay Lohan, the “haven’t been in a theatrically released movie for 8 years!” Steven Seagal and two-time Oscar winner Robert De Niro. Yes, that’s Seagal and De Niro sharing the screen in a movie neither of them are even lead in. That alone makes this essential watching.

8. Hereafter – Clint Eastwood’s still going strong and next up is a supernatural thriller (his first in that genre) starring Matt Damon. With Clint who knows how “supernatural” this may be but you can rest assured it’ll be one of the best made films of the year.

7. Clash Of The Titans – I had no real anticipation for this until I saw the trailers, but damn it looks fun. Louis Letterier did the recent Incredible Hulk which was a blast that knew how to cut loose and have some fun within a fairly daft world. Here he’s got Greek mythology to run around in and it looks like he’s throwing everything (probably including the kitchen sink) into it. It could all be brilliantly cut trailers but they’ve done the job on me. I’m there.

6. Paul – If Edgar Wright were directing this it might make it a couple of steps higher but even so this third major teaming of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) is the comedy to see this year. Directed by Greg (Superbad, Adventureland, Daytrippers) Mottola this sees the boys tackle the sci-fi genre. Expect a very Close Encounters-y riff and great cameos from sci-fi greats like Sigourney Weaver. If it’s half as good as their horror and action movie com-ages it’ll be among the year’s best.

5. Inception – Don’t know a great deal about the plot for this one other than it’s a sci-fi thriller. But with Christopher “I haven’t made a bad film yet” Nolan directing from a script by his brother Jonathan (Memento, The Dark Knight) surely only brilliance can await. Even without the Batman films Nolan has delivered such greats as Memento and Insomnia. Then consider the cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Marion Cotillard, Ellen Page, Ken Watanabe, Cillian Murphy, Michael Caine. The most intriguing film of the year.

4. The Expendables – This has as much chance of being a hideous mess as a great fun romp but Sylvester Stallone is assembling the greatest line-up of action heroes ever for a hopefully insane blast of a movie. Joining Sly to some degree or another (some are leads, many purely cameos) are Jet Li, Jason Statham, Mickey Rourke, Terry Crews, Eric Roberts, the late Brittany Murphy, Dolph Lundgren and damn it all both Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger (in an extended cameo scene together with Sly)! It’s a shame Kurt Russell, Steven Seagal and Jean-Claude Van Damme all turned down the opportunity to appear but even without them this either adds up to the greatest action spectacular ever or the biggest missed opportunity of all time. Either way it’s unmissable.

3. Iron Man 2 – The live action highlight of the summer is the sequel to the hugely entertaining 2008 movie. The great Robert Downey Jr (he can even make a Guy Ritchie movie good – is there nothing he can’t do?) returns, as does Gwyneth Paltrow and Samuel L Jackson in a more substantial role as Nick Fury. Add the ever brilliant Sam Rockwell as business rival Justin Hammer, Don Cheadle in as Rhodey in full War Machine armour, the gorgeous Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow and come-back-kid Mickey Rourke as villain Whiplash and we are set for a superb sequel from returning director Jon Favreau. Can’t wait.

2. True Grit – The Coen Brothers making a new film is always a highlight of any year but this is a new, more faithful to the novel, adaptation of a great western. It reteams them their No Country For Old Men producer Scott Rudin and star Josh Brolin (this time taking villain duties) and sees their first time working with Matt Damon. But the biggest draw here is their working again with The Dude himself, Jeff Bridges, since 1998’s The Big Lebowski. His role here as US Marshal Rooster Cogburn couldn’t be more different but Bridges never disappoints and this will follow his recent career best (yes, even beating The Dude) in the brilliant Crazy Heart. Bridges + Coens + Western + Brolin + Damon + Rudin = unimaginable genius.

1. Toy Story 3 – It’s been over a decade since Toy Story 2 but the franchise remains the highlight in Pixar Studios almost faultless catalogue despite such masterpieces as Ratatouille, The Incredibles and WALL-E coming since. It has a lot to live up to but like last year’s #1 anticipated picture, Avatar, you have to reason “when does Pixar ever let us down?”. If you could see only one film this year this would have to be it.

Top 20 Films of 2009

Been a bit absent on here last couple of weeks but have now returned with the run down of the top 20 films of 2009. The list of the top 10 will remain at the bottom of the blog but here is the full list (plus a few runners-up with reasoning).

It should be noted that this is as of today (Dec 29) and some of these have only been seen the once. It is naturally easy to favour those seen multiple times so perhaps the fight in my head over number 1 vs 2 and Coraline vs Ponyo might change in time. But for now this is the list. Only qualifying factor to get in the list is i had to see a finished version in the cinema for the first time in 2009. (Special mention: although i have seen a finished version of Shutter Island i have not included it here and am saving it for next year's list - competition permitting - as it doesn't officially screen until Berlin).

1. Up In The Air - I have gone back and forth on my number 1 (vs number 2) for a few days but Jason Reitman's bittersweet comedy just nabs it. Clooney has never never been better as an instantly relatable and appealing guy in a assholes' job. This film could have been mishandled in so many ways but Reitman nails the tone, Vera Farmiga is the sexiest love interest in film for years, Anna Kendrick manages to match George beat-for-beat (no mean feat for this sort of role) as a character you should loathe but can't help but love. It should leave you bummed out but instead fills you with a warm glow. Brilliantly done. The film of the year.

2. The conundrum over number 1 was caused by Kathryn Bigelow's superb Middle East-conflict bomb-disposal movie The Hurt Locker. You can't get much more different a movie from Up In The Air so comparison is hard and i'll admit Hurt Locker has the disadvantage of only having been seen the once and some months ago. Nonetheless the visceral impact of Bigelow's triumphant return (her best work hands down) remains with you long after seeing it. Jeremy Renner gives a superb performance as the cock-sure lead and gets sterling support from Anthony Mackie. The tension is palpable and it is an astonishing achievement, let alone for a film that cost just $11m to make. The best war film of the current/recent conflict without doubt and one of the best of the past 3 decades.

3. Avatar - It could all have gone hideously wrong, but then this is James Cameron, hasn't he earnt our trust after fantastic, imaginative spectacular after fantastic imaginative spectacular. And they don't come more imaginative and spectacular than Avatar. Certainly it has some cheesy dialogue, stock characters and blatant lifts from other films (the plot is essentially Dances With Blue Aliens! and a lot of moments makes you think of Cameron's own Aliens and The Abyss) but the majesty of the world he has created here is extraordinary. It's not just the visuals and the 3D (which are astonishing and totally immersive - i've seen it twice so far and was as wowed the second time) it the fully realised world. Cameron fills every frame with the most minute details and has thought through every detail of Pandora. I don't remember when a blockbuster's environment was so perfectly thought out. Of course this does highlight the issue that the plot could have been better thought out but it almost seems greedy to ask for more when Avatar offers so much. And the effects? Holy cow. Zoe Saldana's character in particular demonstrates just how impressive this is, every emotion, every thought behind the eyes registers. That achievement alone makes Avatar deserving of a good ranking in year best lists but it's also damn entertaining fun.

4. Coraline - it's been a hell of a year for animation. The very enjoyable Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, Fantastic Mr Fox and Ice Age 3 all failed to make my top 20 and three did. Best of the bunch though was Coraline. Finally giving director Henry Selick the chance of truly shine, out from under the name of Tim Burton (who, due to marketing misrepresentation, most people still think directed The Nightmare Before Christmas) this was a wonderful dark treat not afraid to scare the bejesus out of kids (and more than a few adults). Genuinely creepy, always imaginative Coraline was the must-see animation of the year (and it wasn't even Pixar!)

5. Ponyo - close behind though was another stunning film from Japanese master Hayao Miyazaki, Ponyo. Close to rivalling My Neighbour Totoro and Spirited Away amongst Miyazaki's best films (who knows on repeated viewings perhaps it may even surpass). Miyazaki's ability to think in the scatterlogical way of a child, letting his imagination run away with him and the movie is what so delights in these movies and Ponyo does exactly that. You can't sit and analyse the story of a fish who becomes a girl (initially with chicken feet!) and befriends the young boy she was previous the pet of. Or why adults are happy to instantly accept the young girl was formerly the fish. In an American film there would have to be nay-saying adults not believing their "head in the clouds" children but this is Miyazaki's world and he understands not only is there nothing wrong with imagination it is actually a beautiful thing. And therefore so is this movie. A glorious escape into a world of imagination too rarely seen.

6. An Education - a good year for British films was headed by this wonderful little period piece from Danish director Lone Scherfig. You know you're in good movie hands when Nick Hornby's involved (heck, they managed to make good films starring both Hugh Grant and Colin Firth out of Hornby novels!) Here he adapts Lynn Barber's memoirs into a well judged screenplay of wit and pathos, innocence and intelligence. And he's matched moment-for-moment by a flawless cast. Carey Mulligan's takes her first lead with assurance making Jenny both wise and naive, self-assured and nervous, smart and short-sighted. She is expertly led astray by Peter Sarsgard who, with flawless English accent, treads the fine line between sleazy predator and charming rogue with aplomb (no doubt Hornby and Scherfig's hanlding of his character also was a major factor here). Then there's Alfred Molina's heartbreakingly old-fashioned and well-intentioned father. Plus a plethora of other fine support. A delight.

7. Crazy Heart - While this boasts probably the best performance of the year in Jeff Bridges' superbly realised, and completely believable washed-up Country & Western singer "Bad" Blake, it is also much more. It is a charming, funny and poignant drama. It sees a career-best performance from the always solid Maggie Gyllenhaal and strong support in small roles from Robert Duvall and Colin Farrell. It has just about the best soundtrack of a movie this decade. The cinematography is stunning. There is so much that's great about Crazy Heart but it all comes back to that first thing - Bridges. Bridges is an actor who is always great. Whether playing a corpse in Tideland, a president in The Contender, a machievelian villain in Iron Man or perfectly emboding cool and slovenliness as The Dude he is always a joy to watch, but he has truly never given a better performance than here. As far away from The Dude as he could be but every bit as convincing this should be the film to net him a long overdue Oscar. Here's hoping.

8. Let The Right One In (Lat Den Ratte Komma In) - In a time when vampire movies are everywhere (it isn't the only one in this list) this Swedish movie was more daring than any, more entertaining than any, more unnerving than any and more well thought through than any of modern times. Offering solutions for oft quoted and rarely explored vampire lores while creating a compelling narrative and an underlying potentially controversial edge this truly was filmmaking at its best. See it before the Americans ruin it with the unnecessary (and in production) remake.

9. Up - Who'd have thought a beautiful, hilarious, exciting new film from animation powerhouse Pixar, than had me crying first with sadness, then laughter than triumphant joy, would only rank at 9 on my top films of the year (and third in animation - which shows just how good a year it's been!). Despite this Pixar's latest was a perfect blend of everything they do best. The adventure story, particularly the all-action finale, was genuinely exciting. Dug the Dog was hilarious, with a brilliantly thought out way to justify the all-too-common-in-animation talked animal. The leads were perhaps Pixar's most overtly cartoony and yet believably human (except, ironically, WALL-E!). The the use of the depth of 3D to reflect the feelings of the characters and mood of the piece was ingenious. Another Pixar masterpiece.

10. A Prophet (Un Prophete) - A powerful prison drama, almost as compelling as The Hurt Locker in many ways, featuring an excellent lead performance. My review on the blog goes into all the whys and wherefores but Jacques Audiard's film should not be missed.

11. Mesrine: Killer Instinct - Another excellent French crime piece, but this is much more of a thriller. Vincent Cassel has never been better than here as the real-life criminal, while Gerard Depardieu reminds us just how good he can be with a memorable supporting role as a crime boss. Swift and exciting it was followed by the nearly as good, but slightly more langorous and dramatic Mesrine: Public Enemy Number 1.

12. Moon - An incredible debut from Bowie Jr (Duncan Jones), made all the more remarkable for a $5m budget that bought faultless effects (albeit with an old-school feel) and a career-best performance from the always reliable Sam Rockwell. It also boasts one of the smartest scripts of the year. A genre piece Britain can be proud of for once. I can't wait to see what Jones does next.

13. Star Trek - speaking of genre JJ Abrams' fantastically fun and exciting reboot of the tired Star Trek franchise was the triumph of the summer blockbuster season. Instantly wiping away memories of its over-serious predecessors this delivered a hugely emjoyable piece of escapism. From Chris Pine's cock-sure Kirk, to Zachary Quinto's astute Spock, to Simon Pegg's hilariously Glaswegian Scotty, Zoe Saldana's smoking hot Uhura and Karl Urban's scarily exact recreation od DeForest Kelley's Bones, the cast took over the iconic roles with ease. And the pacing and action was masterful from JJ. A script overly reliant on coincidence and a weak villain let it down a little but this was a promise of great things to follow as much as a fun ride shot-in-the-arm to a seemingly lifeless franchise.

14. Looking For Eric - Ken Loach's best film. Surprisingly whimsical and fun for Loach, yet with the expected trials and tribulations of a put-upon everyman at its centre this was the film that kick started a banner year for British film.

15. A Single Man - yet another career best, this time from Colin Firth, in a lyrical, touching film from fashion-designer Tom Ford. A few moments feel too designed (like we're in a commercial) but the film gets better and better as it moves along and ultimately leaves you with a sense of true beauty. Julianne Moore is magnificent in support as the boozy has-been Charley and Nicholas Hoult marks himself out as a potentially major player on the UK circuit as a student who may be a siren or simply getting in over his head. A major achievement for a debut film.

16. (500) Days Of Summer - how you could go wrong with Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel (two of the most talented, charmed and likeable young actors working today) is a question this wonderful anti-rom-com thankfully doesn't have to answer. A tight funny and completely truthful (if marginally exacted for fun) script is matched by both leads giving their best. JGL has never been as likeable and Deschanel triumphs as a cold-hearted character you should hate but can't help but love. A final, too-perfect zinger may through the tone slightly but you don't begrudge this comedy a gag after a breezy lesson in how to make a rom-com well.

17. District 9 - Neill Blomkamp's apartheid-allegory turned sci-fi actionner boasted fantastic effects (for $30m, although Blomkamp does have an effects background), a smart script and dynamic action sequences. Plus a lot of laughs. Yet another great genre pic for 2009.

18. Thirst - the other great vampire flick of 2009 Korea's Park Chan-wook. More a tale of addiction, moral dilemma, conflicts of faith, greed and jealousy this fable about a priest who volunteers to risk his life as a guinea-pig for curing an infectious disease only to become an unholy creature of the night who must feed on blood to keep the disease away it uses the parallel of vampirism and human sexuality in a new and clever way. Park's best since Oldboy.

19. Inglourious Basterds - Tarantino's best since Jackie Brown saw a creepy, unnerving, and at times hilarious performance from Christoph Waltz as the highlight of an incredibly entertaining film. I don't understand the Golden Globes placing of it in their Drama category as this was one of the funniest films of the year in my book. Brad Pitt and co's masquerading as Italian filmmakers complete with Southern American accents was the greatest single moment, but from Diane Kruger to Michael Fassbender to the stunning Melanie Laurent everyone was firing on all cylinders. Scenes like the opening farmhouse scene and the underground bar-room stand out as vintage QT but the whole film, while silly, was effortlessly entertaining. Welcome back QT, we've missed you.

20. Zombieland - And speaking of incredibly entertaining, i expected to hate this film - yet another zombie film, that was surely just going to be an American Shaun of the Dead. But this was a very funny romp along with four actors giving their all while boasting the best cameo (and cameo one-liner) in years. I don't remember the last time Woody Harrelson had top billing in a theatrically released film but he was so much fun to watch here i hope it (combined with what i understand is a brilliant performance in The Messanger - which i haven't seen yet) puts him back on top.

Runners-up - 7 films I can't believe didn't make the grade, but it's been a pretty good year:

State Of Play

Drag Me To Hell

Gran Torino

A Serious Man

Precious

Frozen River

Synecdoche, New York

Golden Globes nominations

This year’s Golden Globe Film Award nominations were announced today. Paramount's Up In The Air headed with 6 major nominations, followed by Nine's 5 and Inglourious Basterds' 4.

Up In The Air is excellent and deserves its nominations. Especially pleased to see both Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick make the 5 Best Supporting Actress nominations.

Also very pleased to see Jeff Bridges in for Best Actor, though i would have liked to see Crazy Heart pick up more nominations. Much love for The Hurt Locker but they missed out Jeremy Renner, which is a shame. Nice to see the ever great Joseph Gordon-Levitt in Best Actor Comedy for (500) Days Of Summer.

The Best Actress Comedy/Musical seems a bit rubbish though and what on Earth It's Complicated, with its cliched characters and unrealistic dialogue, is doing in best screenplay is beyond me. If that's one of the best 5 screenplays of the year then we're in trouble!

Full list (with my, no doubt completely wrong, predictions of the winners in BOLD) below:

Best Picture – Drama:
Avatar
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Precious
Up In The Air

Best Picture – Comedy/Musical:
(500) Days Of Summer
The Hangover
It’s Complicated
Julie & Julia
Nine

Best Director:
Kathryn Bigelow – The Hurt Locker
James Cameron – Avatar
Clint Eastwood – Invictus
Jason Reitman – Up In The Air
Quentin Tarantino – Inglourious Basterds

Best Screenplay:
District 9
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
It’s Complicated
Up In The Air

Best Actor – Drama:
Jeff Bridges – Crazy Heart
George Clooney – Up In The Air
Colin Firth – A Single Man
Morgan Freeman – Invictus
Tobey Maguire - Brothers

Best Actor – Comedy/Musical:
Matt Damon – The Informant!
Daniel Day Lewis – Nine
Robert Downey Jr – Sherlock Holmes
Joseph Gordon Levitt – (500) Days Of Summer
Michael Stuhlberg – A Serious Man

Best Actress – Drama:
Emily Blunt - The Young Victoria
Sandra Bullock – The Blind Side
Helen Mirren – The Last Station
Carey Mulligan – An Education
Gabourey Sidibe - Precious

Best Actress – Comedy/Musical:
Sandra Bullock – The Proposal
Marion Cotillard – Nine
Julia Roberts – Duplicity
Meryl Streep – It’s Complicated
Meryl Streep – Julia & Julia

Best Supporting Actor:
Matt Damon – Invictus
Woody Harrelson – The Messenger
Christopher Plummer – The Last Station
Stanley Tucci – The Lovely Bones
Christoph Waltz – Inglourious Basterds

Best Supporting Actress:
Penelope Cruz – Nine
Vera Farmiga – Up In The Air
Anna Kendrick – Up In The Air
Mo’Nique – Precious
Julianne Moore – A Single Man

Best Animated Film:
Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs
Coraline
Fantastic Mr Fox
The Princess And The Frog
Up

Best Score:
Avatar
The Informant!
A Single Man
Up
Where The Wild Things Are

Best Song:
Avatar
Brothers
Crazy Heart
Everybody’s Fine
Nine

Best Foreign Language Film:
Baaria (Italy)
Broken Embraces (Spain)
The Maid (Chile)
A Prophet (France)
The White Ribbon (Germany)

(Previously Announced) Cecil B DeMille Award: Martin Scorsese

Latest screening: Crazy Heart

What a breath of fresh air this film is. Crazy Heart works on every level. It's not that it screams originality - hell this format has been used time and again whether in last year's The Wrestler or other country-singer themed films like Tender Mercies and Honkytonk Man - but everything is firing on all cylinders here.

The story of washed-up alcoholic country-and-western singer "Bad" Blake the film is a gentle and funny tale. It shows the state in which Blake has gotten himself but he's not a tragic figure in the same way as say Mickey Rourke's Randy "The Ram". He is a man enjoying his life as best he can. He's been dealt some bum hands but he's playing with what he's got and seems to be enjoying the game. Then he meets a young journalist who starts to make him see what's wrong with the way things are more clearly. Like i said, nothing mind-blowingly original, but handled in a confident and engaging way by the writer/director, and it sweeps you along with ease, never dragging, never outstaying it's welcome. In fact if there's a criticism i would make of the filmmaking itself it's that sometimes it feels to move too swiftly. The film addresses Blake's alcoholism and realisation that he wants to do something about too quickly and neatly. Perhaps the director didn't want to give the world yet another "the trials of rehab" scene or a "struggles of recovery" moment, and that's fine by to mop it up and sweep it under the carpet the way the film does, does seem to be short-changing the audience that are on this journey with the character just a bit. Still, small complaint.

Jeff Bridges is stunning here. Bridges is always reliable but he excels here and i would say this is his best role to date. He hasn't inhabited the body of a character this convincingly since The Dude in The Big Lebowski and his "Bad" Blake feels as real as characters come. Whether singing on stage, writing songs, getting drunk or getting in over his head he never hits a wrong note. I haven't seen Morgan Freeman in Invictus yet but for my money Bridges trumps all the other actors this year and I hope he finally gets his due for this. It is a towering performance, at once both in your face and yet subtle. A masterclass in acting.

Maggie Gyllenhaal more than holds her own and deserves a best supporting actress nod, though it's a tough field in that category this year and i suspect Bridges performance may eclipse much of the rest of the movie. This would be a shame though. Here she is likeably believable in an understated way and without her balance of the main character the film would struggle more.

Colin Farrell and Robert Duvall are both solid in smaller supporting roles but neither is really in it enough to get any awards attention.

The photography, like everything about this movie, is beautiful; while the soundtrack of new songs is simply stunning. Bridges has a great voice for them and personally i plan to buy the soundtrack album for this one. It'll have you top-tapping and thigh-slapping in the aisles!

One of my favourite films of the year. An awards movie that is also just plain entertaining - which is all too rare - with great songs and excellent performances, including a career-best from Bridges. A must see.

Latest screening: It's Complicated

These days you know something is bad when the best thing about your comedy is Steve Martin. Don't get me wrong, i am a big Martin fan but i can't avoid the fact that in the last 15+ years the only comedy he's made that was good was the self-penned Bowfinger. Mostly, sadly, he sucks now! Unless he takes an occasional serious role - like in David Mamet's excellent The Spanish Prisoner. And weirdly that is why he works here. Despite his second-billing on the poster the poster image (left) tells the truth for once. Martin is barely in this film. When he is he is mainly a subdued straight-man version of Martin, only getting to let out the better known Steve in one extended scene. So, for what little he's around, he comes out of this best.

And thank god for him and John Krasinski. Without the pair of them this film would be so tedious as to make you wonder by about half way through if suicide is a preferable option to sitting through another hour (plus) of this obvious, unfunny, cliched, dreck!

Nancy Meyers knows how to plum the depths of obvious, supposedly witty but really hackneyed comedy. Films like the fun What Women Want, the saved-by-the-leads Something's Gotta Give and the odious The Holiday have shown that she likes to write a so-called observational comedy, which couldn't bare less resemblance to real life if aliens invaded halfway through - and at least that might add some interest.

Here we have Meryl Streep as the long divorced wife of Alec Baldwin with three grown children. He is now married to a much younger woman and they are trying for a baby. Streep and Baldwin rekindle a flame and start an affair. Martin comes on the scene as a straight-laced divorcee suitor for Streep and... (see title)

The thing is none of it is even vaguely convincing. Streep and Baldwin have zero chemistry. Martin, again, fares better but has the thankless - only serves as a plot point - character that has no depths to explore. Streep and Baldwin are fine within their own characters but aren't convincing together.

In standard movie cliche way Streep's band of "outrageous" girl friends are always on hand for some sage advice and "outrageous" innuendo at a moments notice, but of course have no real characters beyond screeching here, going "Oh My GOD!!!" there and generally behaving "outrageously" in a way no actual human being does. They also, of course, disappear from the plot when no longer needed without another reference. Rita Wilson pops up here and does all the wrinkled brow, hand flapping, oohing and aahing that these characters tend to demonstrate, showing once again why she's never made it big as an actress in her own right.

These aren't the only cliches, the movie positively revels in them, and the whole doesn't have an honest moment in it - a problem, surely, for an "observational" comedy?

The Streep-Baldwin kids are also badly cast. Not only has the casting director managed to cast three young actors without the remotest resemblance to either Streep or Baldwin, but they've cast three without a passing resemblance to each other. Heights, shapes, facial features. Nothing links a single member of this family with another. That might not matter if it were because they'd gone for the best actors, but the son - geez, if they couldn't find a better actor than him than there ought to be an actor-shortage alert put out to get aid to Hollywood.

The saving grace is John Krasinski. Playing son-in-law to Streep and Baldwin he has the only genuinely funny moments after he inadvertently (and unwillingly) becomes the sole recipient of the knowledge of Streep and Baldwin's affair. He plays this beautifully, hitting every moment for maximum comic-effect. It wouldn't be hard to stand out in a film this lame and irritating, but he really is quite good.

Generally though what a waste of good talent. Streep should know better. This feels like her cashing in on her recent label of being "bankable" thanks to Devil Wears Prada and Mamma Mia! This has to be the worst role she's ever played and the laziest performance she's ever given. I'm sure the millions will keep her warm at night but she ought to be ashamed. Baldwin is trading off his 30 Rock success and has Kim Basinger to keep off his back and Martin couldn't spot a good script these days if he was mummified in it so i can forgive them, but Meryl, what were you thinking?

A hackneyed, cliched, tedious, obvious, trite mess. It's Complicated is not complicated, it's just rubbish.