In Contention

Tag: Los Angeles Film Critics Association

  • Defending LAFCA

    There’s been an awful lot of online sniping at the Los Angeles Film Critics’ Association for having the audacity to look beyond the obvious Oscar fodder and reward deserving foreign-language performances by Kim Hye-ja and Niels Arestrup (not to mention Olivier Assayas for Best Director).

    David Poland described the choices as an “overreach,” Jeff Wells resorted to his usual “dweeb” jabs, while tired accusations of “snobbery” and “contrarianism” did the rounds.

    I was going to express my annoyance at this narrow take on things, but since I pretty much anticipated the issue in last week’s Long Shot column, I held back. Thankfully, Variety critic and LAFCA voter Justin Chang, responding to a comment by Scott Feinberg in a Hollywood Elsewhere thread, has neatly said everything I wanted to say on the matter.

    Chang’s elegant defense after the cut.

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  • Predict the LA and NY critics’ awards

    Tomorrow brings out the big guns in the critics’ awards derby, as the Los Angeles Film Critics’ Circle unveil their picks, with the New York Film Critics’ Circle following on Monday. (I believe the less prestigious but often interesting New York Online crix are announcing tomorrow too.)

    I offered some thoughts on the significance of these awards in this week’s Long Shot column. As for predictions, Kris and I both offered our best guesses in the top six categories over at Tom O’Neil’s Gold Derby site, so check ’em out there.

    I seem to be out on a limb with my LAFCA Best Picture prediction (though at least Sasha Stone thinks I’m onto something) — after last year’s overwhelming consensus among the critics’ groups, I can’t help sensing at least one of the majors will want to assert their individuality.

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  • THE LONG SHOT: Critical mass

    Guy’s updated Oscar predictions here.

    Just one week on from the first formal awards announcements of the season, the Oscar season may still be taking its first steps, but my personal interest in the precursor trail is nonetheless set to peak this very weekend.

    That, of course, is when the New York Film Critics Circle and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association weigh in with their selections of the year’s best, showing up the likes of the nominee-naming Washington group as the pretenders they are, while classing up the season with some unapologetically idiosyncratic film smarts.

    Or so we hope – for as much as the major critics’ groups often delight us by throwing caution (and Oscar-soothsaying cred) to the wind with rebellious left-field picks, they are equally capable of falling dully into line behind pre-anointed favourites. I was recently chased by Tom O’Neil’s resurrected Gold Derby site for my NYFCC and LAFCA predictions, and while I’m as game as anyone for a spot of light-hearted, consequence-free punting, the irony of the exercise still nagged away at me: the day I predict either group’s set of winners accurately is the day they’ll cease to matter to me.

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  • 12/9 OSCARWEB ROUND-UP: NYT mag’s actors gallery, Crystal’s advice to Oscarcast hosts and closure for Ronni Chasen

    • Fourteen actors acting: A video gallery of classic screen types. [New York Times Magazine]

    • Billy Crystal’s advice to this year’s Oscar hosts: “Look like you want to be there.” [Vulture]

    • “Animal Kingdom”‘s Jacki Weaver on her National Board of Review victory. [Little Gold Men]

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