One Category at a Time: Animated Feature

I've already sounded off on how I perceive the state of animation this year, but allow me to reiterate: weak sauce. Not that any of these nominees are particularly bad, but I have a hard time mustering up much enthusiasm for most of them.

My 2011 Award winners

You've seen the nominees. Time to see my winners:

Best Picture:
THE TREE OF LIFE (Dede Gardner, Sarah Green, Grant Hill, Brad Pitt, Bill Pohlad, Terrence Malick)

Best Director:
TERRENCE MALICK, THE TREE OF LIFE

Best Actor:
BRAD PITT, MONEYBALL

Best Actress:
TILDA SWINTON, WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN

Best Supporting Actor:
CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER, BEGINNERS

Best Supporting Actress:
JESSICA CHASTAIN, THE HELP

Best Acting Ensemble:
A SEPARATION

Best Original Screenplay:
MIDNIGHT IN PARIS (Woody Allen)

Best Adapted Screenplay:
THE IDES OF MARCH (George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon)

Best Cinematography:
THE TREE OF LIFE (Emmanuel Lubezki)

Best Film Editing:
DRIVE (Matthew Newman)

Best Original Score:
WAR HORSE (John Williams)

Best Original Song:
“HELL AND BACK” from Hell and Back Again (J. Ralph)

Best Production Design, Set Decoration, and Art Direction:
HUGO (Dante Feretti, Francesca Lo Shiavo)

Best Costume Design:
CAPTAIN AMERICA (Anna B. Sheppard)

Best Sound Mixing:
WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN (Ken Ishii, Paul Davies, Robert Farr)

Best Sound Editing:
THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN (Brent Burge, Chris Ward, Dave Whitehead)

Best Visual Effects:
RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES (Richard Darwin, Joe Letteri, Dan Lemmon, Chris White)

Best Makeup and Hair:
THE IRON LADY (Mark Coulier, Marese Langan)

Best Animated Feature:
CHICO & RITA (Fernando Treuba et.al.)

Best Foreign Film:
A SEPARATION (Asghar Farhadi)

Best Documentary:
HELL AND BACK AGAIN (Danfung Dennis)

That makes four wins for The Tree of Life, and two wins apiece for Hell and Back Again, A Separation, We Need to Talk About Kevin, and Chico & Rita.

My Awards nomiations: Original Song

As is usually the case, this is a thin category. Songwriting for film just isn't in vogue nowadays, but if you look close enough you can usually spot at least three of four decent Original Songs a year:

"Lay Your Head Down" from Albert Nobbs (Brian Byrne, Glenn Close):

This lovely Irish lullaby that concludes the film appropriately captures the film's subdued, delicate nature. Only used for the credits, but it's just so pretty.

"Star Spangled Man" from Captain America (Alan Menken, David Zippel):

One of my favourite moments of the film was the snappy montage set to this jaunty anthem that gently satirizes wartime propaganda in the spirit of a USO show.

"Lily (Rita)" from Chico & Rita (Bebo Valdes):

A romantic and melodious love theme that evolves over the course of the film from random ticklings of the piano keys to a sweeping full-bodied orchestration.

"Hell and Back" from Hell and Back Again (J. Ralph):

Soulful, poetically worded, and given melancholy voice by Willie Nelson's country rasp, this track is a soothing epilogue to a wrenching character study.

"Life's a Happy Song" from The Muppets (Bret Mackenzie):

A bouncy opening number that signals the beginning of a laugh-out-loud romp, and it even gets a heart-bursting reprise as the film's big finale.

Just missed:
"The Living Proof" from The Help, "Pictures in My Head" from The Muppets,
"The Keeper" from Machine Gun Preacher

My Award nominations: Animated Feature

I'm gonna be straight up: this was a weak year for animation. Despite enough releases to expand the Animated Feature category to a maximum five for the Oscars, I can barely find three that I feel can justify earning the nomination. Anyway, here they are:

The Adventures of Tintin (Steven Spielberg):

If the Academy is willing to qualify it as animation, then so am I (although I do acknowledge the grey area it falls into). Regardless, this is one of the most enjoyable adventures in years, signalling the start of a promising franchise.

A Cat in Paris (Alain Gagnol, Jean-Loup Felicioli):

This stylishly animated (and sparingly brisk) family thriller is a delightful diversion to take in when you've got an hour to kill. The story may be formulaic, but visuals are consistently engaging, like the pages of a picture book come to life.

Chico & Rita
(Tonno Errando, Javier Mariscal, Fernando Trueba):

A sensual romance between a jazz pianist and his female singing star that spans decades and continents; It's a lovely little movie spiced with vibrant colours and sultry latin rhythms (courtesy Cuban bandleader Bebo Valdes).

Puss in Boots (Chris Miller):

As much as I despair the relative lack of originality emanating from Dreamworks these days, it's at least a bit refreshing to see Puss carry his own story without the interference of other Shrek characters. This stand-alone adventure/comedy is enjoyable enough, and beautifully animated, as one would expect of the studio.

Rango (Gore Verbinski):

Assuming the traditional definition of "animation", Gore Verbinski's surreal Western homage is the best domestic animated production of the year. It's hard not to respond affectionately to the unbridled imagination with which the film brims.

Animation catch-up

I've been behind on reviewing a lot of movies this year, including some animated products. There have been plenty this year, enough to bump the Academy's maximum nomination field to five, but I have to admit I really haven't been thrilled at the state of the medium this year. I've only seen a hand-full so far, and for posterity I've given each a summarized mini review after the cut. Others I either haven't seen yet or have been scared off by weak reviews.