'The Help' wins three at NAACP Image Awards

Posted by · 6:03 pm · February 17th, 2012

The 43rd annual NAACP Image Awards were held this evening, and “The Help” was the big winner, taking down three prizes for Best Picture, Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress. “Jumping the Broom” also brought in two performances awards.

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Oscar Talk: Ep. 82 — BAFTA winners, live action and documentary shorts

Posted by · 7:57 am · February 17th, 2012

In this week’s podcast, Kris and Anne reflect on last weekend’s BAFTA Awards and analyze the live action and documentary short nominees, among others.

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'The Artist' cleans up at the BAFTAs

Posted by · 10:36 am · February 12th, 2012

“The Artist” dominated tonight’s British Academy Awards, winning seven trophies, including Best Film, Director, Actor and Original Screenplay, while its nearest competitor, “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy” had to be content with wins for Best British Film and Adapted Screenplay.

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Predicting Sunday's BAFTA Awards

Posted by · 1:38 pm · February 10th, 2012

The BAFTA Awards take place on Sunday, and offer the Brits the choice between rubber-stamping the Oscar favorite, “The Artist,” and siding with their own pet, “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.” We consider what will win this year — and what should.

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Oscar Talk: Ep. 80 — The runaway 'Artist' train and Santa Barbara tributes

Posted by · 7:58 am · February 3rd, 2012

In this week’s podcast, Kris and Anne discuss the continued dominance of “The Artist” this season, the tribute circuit at Santa Barbara fest and the release of “The Grey,” among other things.

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Breaking Oscar's biopic addiction

Posted by · 4:15 pm · January 31st, 2012

If the results of Sunday’s SAG Awards are repeated at the Oscars, it’ll be the first time since 1997 that all four acting awards go to actors playing fictitious characters. Are voters slowly getting more resistant to biopics?

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Tate Taylor to receive WGA's Paul Selvin Award

Posted by · 1:36 pm · January 31st, 2012

After a strong showing at Sunday night’s SAG awards “The Help” is set to receive another boon on its way to Oscar night. The Writers Guild of America West announced that they will honor writer/director Tate Taylor with the 2012 Paul Selvin Award which “recognizes written work that embodies the spirit of constitutional rights and civil liberties.”

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'The Help' wins big at the SAG Awards

Posted by · 6:01 pm · January 29th, 2012

The 18th annual Screen Actors Guild went down tonight and added, well, nothing to the conversation.

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Viola Davis talks Steven Soderbergh, Tyler Perry, Meryl Streep and humanizing her characters

Posted by · 12:46 am · January 28th, 2012

The tributes at this year’s Santa Barbara Film Festival kicked off with a bang tonight as Viola Davis took the stage at the Arlington Theatre to be fluffed up for her Outstanding Performer of the Year Award. And in my four or five years of attending the festival, it was one of the better productions I’ve seen.

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Oscar Guide 2011: Best Supporting Actress

Posted by · 10:00 am · January 27th, 2012

Four first-timers, Bérénice Bejo, Jessica Chastain, Melissa McCarthy and Octavia Spencer, join previous nominee Janet McTeer in the Best Supporting Actress Oscar race. We weigh up their chances, and decide who deserves to win.

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Predicting Sunday's SAG Awards

Posted by · 5:29 pm · January 26th, 2012

We handicap the five film categories in the upcoming Screen Actors’ Guild Awards, which should in turn anticipate the Oscar race.

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Round-up: Cracking the code of 'Tinker, Tailor'

Posted by · 8:00 am · January 26th, 2012

Also: Mary J. Blige’s Oscar sulk, and a gold watch for Uggie

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The Long Shot: Fade away and radiate

Posted by · 1:50 pm · January 25th, 2012

This year’s Oscar nominations were not only kind to Hollywood’s old guard, but a number of films with their eye on the rear-view mirror.

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Round-up: The incredible comeback of 'Extremely Loud'

Posted by · 8:11 am · January 25th, 2012

Also: R.I.P. Theo Angelopoulos, and Oscar nomination post-mortem

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Tech Support: 'The Artist,' 'Hugo,' 'Dragon Tattoo' and 'War Horse' feature heavily in Oscar's crafts categories

Posted by · 1:12 pm · January 24th, 2012

This morning, many crafts artists in Hollywood (and elsewhere in the world) found out that they are heading to the Kodak Theatre for the 84th Annual Academy Awards. The thrill they are experiencing must be difficult to describe.

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'Hugo' leads with 11 Oscar nominations, 'War Horse' in, 'Dragon Tattoo' out

Posted by · 4:15 am · January 24th, 2012

The nominees are in and the surprises are few and far between, in my opinion (though others seem to be picking their jaws up off the floor this morning). As indicated yesterday, “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” caught fire with voters down the stretch and was very much on their lips. The film turned up in the nine-film Best Picture category today, despite being critically disassembled, and that was pretty much the only eyebrow-raiser of the major categories. The film only showed up in one other category: Best Supporting Actor for Max von Sydow.

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'The Help,' 'Pariah' lead NAACP Image Award nominees

Posted by · 10:20 am · January 20th, 2012

With six and five nominations respectively, “The Help” and “Pariah” represent the yin and yang of current African American-themed cinema, so it’s apt that they should lead the field in the NAACP Image Awards.

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Iowa critics dig 'Descendants'

Posted by · 4:51 pm · January 19th, 2012

The Iowa Film Critics have joined and drowned in the on-going chorus of year-end kudos-dishers. Drowned-in because it’s all just a blur now. “The Descendants” came out on top, winning both Best Picture and Best Director. And there’s Melissa McCarthy, yet again.

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