How much more could be written about “Shame” at this point? Guy loved in Venice. I loved it in Telluride. The film got the inevitable NC-17 rating. Fox Searchlight wore that as a badge of honor and Roth talked to star Carey Mulligan about her performance. The film finally makes its way to screens today (on whichever ones will have them — some, like Cinemark, will not). I’ll be eager to hear your thoughts on the film when/if you get around to it this weekend or in the near future, so come on back here and give us your take if you do. Also, don’t forget to rate the film in our “related events” feature below.

This is news I’ve been excited to report for some time. This year, I was on the London Film Critics’ Circle awards committee to determine who would receive the group’s annual Dilys Powell Award for contribution to British cinema, which wasn’t the most simple of tasks. Many worthy names were bandied about, but the final choice is one no one could take issue with: venerable London-born director and former cinematographer Nicolas Roeg.

It’s hard to think of someone more deserving of career recognition: in addition to helming such offbeat classics as “Performance,” “Don’t Look Now” and “The Man Who Fell to Earth,” Roeg brought equal formal vigor to his lensing of “Far From the Madding Crowd” and “Petulia,” among others. The choice strikes a chord with me personally, given that “The Witches” was something of a formative film for my seven year-old self. Indeed, Roeg’s was the first director’s name I ever took note of.

Roeg has been honored by the London critics before, winning their Best Director prize in 1980 for his masterful puzzle picture “Bad Timing.” Having seen it for the first time earlier this year, I can only wish more awards groups had taken their lead. The Academy, needless to say, has never acknowledged his peculiar genius.

This career-achievement award is well-timed, coming in a year when the director was the subject of a major retrospective at the British Film Institute and when “Don’t Look Now” was named the greatest British film of all time in a Time Out poll. (The results of the poll, in which I was one of the participants, are here.) The award will be presented at the Circle’s awards ceremony on 19 January.

Full press release as follows:

Britain”s leading film critics have bestowed their highest honour, the Dilys Powell Award for Excellence in Film to veteran film maker Nicolas Roeg, joining the illustrious company of Dirk Bogarde, Richard Attenborough, Julie Walters, Judi Dench, Quentin Tarantino and Kristin Scott Thomas.

Director of films including Performance, Don’t Look Now and The Witches, Roeg has attained legendary status in British film circles, as well as lasting international recognition. Working with Mick Jagger, David Bowie, Julie Christie, Anjelica Houston, Oliver Reed amongst others, his mix of sexual and psychedelic imagery established him as a supreme visual artist, creating films that have been experimental and provocative yet always accessible and unforgettable. In addition Roeg has excelled in all areas of film making, from cinematography to screenwriting, directing, editing and composing. He remains a lasting testament to innovation and individuality in cinema, a director whose films define an era of British cinema yet never seem to go out of style.

Roeg said of the honour: “This award has truly amazed me and certainly caught me a bit leftfooted. I’m sure the critics will understand when I say: on looking through and reading some of my old reviews, I’m torn between thanking you and forgiving you. But having slept on it, I’ll go with the positive and thank you all and hope that in the countdown for the decision of the ‘Critics’ Circle’ to give me a tribute, some old mathematical rule applied where two negatives can sometimes make a positive.”

Chairman of The Critics” Circle Film Section, Jason Solomons, added: “Nic Roeg’s films stand out as one of the most distinctive and influential bodies of work of any British film maker. I am thrilled that he can now join the list of illustrious honorees of the Dilys Powell Award for Excellence in Cinema – he adds mischief, daring and brilliance to it, as well as the sort of maverick artistic spirit that only cinema can liberate.”

The award will be presented to Nicolas Roeg at the London Critics’ Circle Film Awards in partnership with Virgin Atlantic on Thursday 19 January at BFI Southbank, where the Critics” Circle will also reveal its full list of annual award winners at the glittering ceremony. Nominations for all other award categories will be announced on Tuesday 20 December.

The 32 nd annual edition of the London Critics’ Circle Film Awards will again be in aid of their charity partner, the BFI National Archive, to help with the preservation and restoration of British film, in particular Hitchcock’s nine silent features, as part of the BFI’s landmark ‘Rescue the Hitchcock 9″ campaign.

Welcome to Oscar Talk.

In case you’re new to the site and/or the podcast, Oscar Talk is a weekly kudocast, your one-stop awards chat shop between yours truly and Anne Thompson of Thompson on Hollywood. The podcast is weekly, every Friday throughout the season, charting the ups and downs of contenders along the way. Plenty of things change en route to Oscar’s stage and we’re here to address it all as it unfolds.

It’s been a busy, busy week on the awards circuit, and it was a busy Tuesday in particular. Awards shows, screenings, nominations announcements and the first critics awards of the season were all thrown into the mix. Let’s see what’s on the docket today…

The Gotham Awards happened Sunday night and the Independent Spirit Award nominees were announced Tuesday. We talk a bit about how the indie field played out there.

Also dropping Tuesday was the New York Film Critics Circle’s announcement of year-end superlatives. We chew on a few of those as well.

Cameron Crowe’s “We Bought a Zoo” sneaked int heaters across the country last weekend and we both happened to catch screenings. We give our takes on the film, which doesn’t seem primed to be an Oscar contender, but is nevertheless a heartfelt endeavor.

Is anything in trouble? Anne seems to think “Midnight in Paris” is. I talk a bit about a potential resurgence for “The Ides of March.” We kind of just mull over where we are in the season after these announcements.

And finally, reader questions. We answer queries regarding the fate of Leonardo DiCaprio this season, the security of “The Help” and the FYC battle being waged on behalf of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2.”

Have a listen to the new podcast below with a little Crowe-inspired Dylan leading the way. If the file cuts off for you at any time, try the back-up download link at the bottom of this post. And as always, remember to subscribe to Oscar Talk via iTunes here.

“Buckets of Rain” courtesy of Bob Dylan and Columbia Records.
“Hunger Strike” courtesy of Temple of the Dog and A&M Records.

You’ve probably noticed the Fox ads decorating a number of sites (including this one) pimping Andy Serkis’s motion capture performance in “Rise of the Planet of the Apes.” It’s apt language — “The time is now.” — and a commendable play even if it is the steepest of uphill battles. In this morning’s Oscar Talk podcast we’ll talk a little more about it, but it’s worth it to stir the conversation at least to the point that those who walk in Serkis’s footsteps in the form, or perhaps Serkis himself down the line, will benefit and maybe be taken a little more seriously in the awards season. The buzz on the matter has been swirling ever since Tom Roth made some public comments about it, and that buzz has made its way across the pond. [Guardian]

Steven Spielberg gets a nice nostalgia cover in this week’s EW. [Entertainment Weekly]

If you’re just getting to know Michael Fassbender, here are five films that flesh him out (no pun intended). [USA Today]

Speaking of which, just how gratuitous is his “Shame” nudity? [Vulture]

Allison Loring, meanwhile, considers the aural (now we’re missing puns by the skin of our teeth) qualities of the film. [Film School Rejects]

David Cronenberg on “A Dangerous Method” and the “parallel universe” of Oscar. [Film Experience]

Reed Johnson talks “Carnage” with John C. Reilly and Christoph Waltz. [Envelope]

Director, Roman Polanski, talks the film overseas. [Le Figaro]

Parents of the victims in Memphis Three case are asking Oscar to ignore “Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory.” [Associated Press]

Greg Ellwood reports from the Britannia Awards. [Awards Campaign]

The Satellite Awards don’t get much respect on the precursor beat, and there’s a reason for that: no one really seems to know who votes for them, they appear to be supremely undiscriminating with their lengthy nominee list, and their choices are frequently as head-scratching as they are admittedly inspired. (Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Best Supporting Actor nominee Colin Farrell in “Horrible Bosses.”)

Still, as ridiculous as they are in many ways, I find it impossible to dislike an awards body that has so little regard for its own precursor status — you certainly can’t accuse a group who nominates John Michael McDonagh, debut helmer of “The Guard,” for Best Director of trying to anticipate the Oscar race. And it’s hard not to be a little tickled by a nominee list that is jointly led, with eight nods apiece, by two films at such opposite ends of the bait spectrum: “War Horse” and “Drive.”

So for every baffling mention here (Rachel McAdams for “Midnight in Paris,” anyone?), there’s another that’s refreshingly off-the-wall: props for recognizing Olivia Colman for “Tyrannosaur” and the fine craft work in foreign films like “Faust” and “Mysteries of Lisbon.” (I’m also glad somebody noticed how good Hugo Weaving is in “Oranges and Sunshine.” Glenn Close, at least, should be sending them a muffin basket: the “Albert Nobbs” star scored three bids for acting, writing and songwriting.

Anyway, take a look through the list and enjoy it for its curiosity value — they’ve streamlined things a little this year by removing the comedy categories, but still found a way to nominate just about everyone. Except Jean Dujardin, for some reason, though I doubt the potential Oscar frontrunner will have sleepless nights about missing this list.

Best Picture
The Artist
The Descendants
Drive
The Help
Hugo
Midnight in Paris
Moneyball
Shame
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
War Horse

Best Director
Tomas Alfredson, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
John Michael McDonagh, The Guard
Steve McQueen, Shame
Alexander Payne, The Descendants
Nicolas Winding Refn, Drive
Martin Scorsese, Hugo
Steven Spielberg, War Horse
Tate Taylor, The Help

Best Actor 
George Clooney, The Descendants
Leonardo DiCaprio, J. Edgar
Michael Fassbender, Shame
Brendan Gleeson, The Guard
Ryan Gosling, Drive
Tom Hardy, Warrior
Woody Harrelson, Rampart
Gary Oldman, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
Brad Pitt, Moneyball
Michael Shannon, Take Shelter

Best Actress 
Olivia Colman, Tyrannosaur
Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis, The Help
Vera Farmiga, Higher Ground  
Elizabeth Olsen, Martha Marcy May Marlene
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
Charlize Theron, Young Adult
Emily Watson, Oranges and Sunshine
Michelle Williams, My Week with Marilyn
Michelle Yeoh, The Iron Lady

Best Supporting Actor  
Kenneth Branagh, My Week with Marilyn
Albert Brooks, Drive
Colin Farrell, Horrible Bosses
Jonah Hill, Moneyball
Viggo Mortensen, A Dangerous Method
Nick Nolte, Warrior
Christopher Plummer, Beginners
Andy Serkis, Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Christoph Waltz, Carnage
Hugo Weaving, Oranges and Sunshine

Best Supporting Actress  
Jessica Chastain, Tree of Life
Elle Fanning, Super 8
Lisa Feret, Mozart”s Sister
Judy Greer, The Descendants
Rachel McAdams, Midnight in Paris
Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
Carey Mulligan, Shame
Octavia Spencer, The Help
Vanessa Redgrave, Coriolanus
Kate Winslet, Carnage

Best Foreign Language Film
Faust
The Kid with a Bike
Las Acacias
Le Havre
Miss Bala
Mozart”s Sister
Mysteries of Lisbon
A Separation
13 Assassins
The Turin Horse

Best Animated or Mixed Media Film
The Adventures of Tintin
Kung Fu Panda 2
The Muppets
Puss in Boots
Rango
Rio

Best Documentary Feature 
American: The Bill Hicks Story
Cave of Forgotten Dreams
The Interrupters
My Perestroika
One Lucky Elephant
Pina
Project Nim
Tabloid
Senna
Under Fire: Journalists in Combat

Best Original Screenplay 
Paddy Considine, Tyrannosaur 
Rene Feret, Mozart”s Sister 
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist 
Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life 
John Michael McDonagh, The Guard
Steve McQueen and Abi Morgan, Shame

Best Adapted Screenplay 
Steven Moffat, Joe Cornish and Edgar Wright, The Adventures of Tintin 
Glenn Close and John Banville, Albert Nobbs 
Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon and Jim Rash, The Descendants 
Tate Taylor, The Help, 
Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin, Moneyball 
Lee Hall and Richard Curtis, War Horse

Best Original Score
Marco Beltrami, Soul Surfer
Alexandre Desplat, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
Michael Giacchino, Super 8
Cliff Martinez, Drive
James Newton Howard, Water for Elephants
John Williams, War Horse

Best Original Song
“Bridge of Light” (Alecia Moore and Billy Mann), Happy Feet 2
“Gathering Stories” (Jonsi and Cameron Crowe), We Bought a Zoo
“Hello Hello” (Elton John and Bernie Taupin), Gnomeo & Juliet
“Lay Your Head Down” (Sinead O”Connor, Brian Byrne and Glenn Close), Albert Nobbs
“Life is a Happy Song” (Bret McKenzie), The Muppets
“Man or Muppet” (Bret McKenzie), The Muppets

Best Cinematography
Bruno Delbonnel, Faust
Janusz KaminskI, War Horse
Emmanuel Lubezki, Tree of Life
Robert Richardson, Hugo
Guillaume Schiffman, The Artist
Newton Thomas Sigel, Drive

Best Visual Effects
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 
Hugo
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Super 8 
Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon  
War Horse 

Best Film Editing
Chris Gill, The Guard
Mat Newman, Drive
Kevin Tent, The Descendants
Joe Walker, Shame
Michael Kahn, War Horse
John Gilroy, Sean Albertson, Matt Chesse, Aaron Marshall, Warrior

Best Sound  
Drive  
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 
Super 8  
The Tree of Life
Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon  
War Horse 

Best Art Direction 
Stephan O. Gessler and Sebastian T. Krawinkel, Anonymous  
Gregory S. Hooper and Laurence Bennett, The Artist  
Yelena Zhukova and Jiri Trier, Faust 
Dante Ferretti and Francesca lo Schiavo, Hugo 
Isabel Branco, Mysteries of Lisbon
Jack Fisk, Water for Elephants

Best Costume Design
Isabel Branco, Mysteries of Lisbon
Mark Bridges, The Artist
Lisy Christl, Anonymous
Lidiya Kryukova, Faust
Michael O”Connor, Jane Eyre
Jacqueline West, Water for Elephants

Best Ensemble
The Help

Best First Feature
Tyrannosaur

The Academy announced today its list of 10 animated shorts that will compete for nominations in the category. This has become a favorite race to follow in these later stretches, I must say. The only film of the bunch that I have seen is Pixar’s “La Luna,” which could walk away with the prize. (It’s the studio’s best animated short in years; my thoughts from Telluride can be found here.)

The Short Films and Feature Animation Branch Reviewing Committee viewed all the eligible entries for the preliminary round of voting in screenings held in New York and Los Angeles, the press release notes. Branch members will now select three to five nominees. Screenings will be held in Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco in January.

The 84th Academy Awards nominations — in case you need reminding — will be announced live on Tuesday, January 24, 2012, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater. We’ll know then which of these made the cut.

Check out the full list of shorts below.

“Dimanche/Sunday,” Patrick Doyon, director (National Film Board of Canada)

“The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore,” William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg, directors (Moonbot Studios LA, LLC)

“I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat,” Matthew O’Callaghan, director and Sam Register, executive producer (Warner Bros. Animation Inc.)

“La Luna,” Enrico Casarosa, director (Pixar Animation Studios)

“Luminaris,” Juan Pablo Zaramella, director (JPZtudio)

“Magic Piano,” Martin Clapp, director and Hugh Welchman, producer (BreakThru Films)

“A Morning Stroll,” Grant Orchard, director and Sue Goffe, producer (Studio AKA)

“Paths of Hate,” Damian Nenow, director (Platige Image)

“Specky Four-Eyes,” Jean-Claude Rozec, director and Mathieu Courtois, producer (Vivement Lundi!)

“Wild Life,” Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby, directors (National Film Board of Canada)

Any guesses on which films might make the cut? Generally there are clips available on YouTube. I imagine Shorts International and Magnolia Pictures will once again launch its program featuring the eventual nominees in both the animation and live action fields in January.

For year-round entertainment news and awards season commentary follow @kristapley on Twitter.

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Not so fast, “The Artist.” After Michel Hazanavicius’s silent love letter came out earlier this week in the front of the Best Picture landscape (nailing down five Independent Spirit Award nominations and winning the New York Film Critics Circle’s Best Picture prize), Martin Scorsese’s “Hugo” has planted a flag in the race today by claiming the National Board of Review’s prize for best film of the year.

The film also won the Best Director prize for Scorsese, and overall, I’m a bit surprised. But happily. I was worried for a moment there we might have a steamroller this season.

“The Artist” did manage to crack the NBR’s top 10 list, which also included Best Picture hopefuls “The Descendants” and “War Horse,” and somewhat surprisingly left room for Nicolas Winding Refn’s “Drive” and Terrence Malick’s “The Tree of Life.” And the organization being the Clint Eastwood devotees that they are, “J. Edgar” naturally showed up, too.

Speaking of “The Descendants,” George Clooney finally nailed down a prize after being passed up by the Gothams, snubbed by the Independent Spirits and being ignored by the NY press. Clooney was joined by co-star Shailene Woodley in the honors, who was picked for Best Supporting Actress.

More intriguing, though, is Tilda Swinton’s win for Best Actress in “We Need to Talk About Kevin.” She has a fighting chance for a nod on the outside of things, but that’s still a tough category to break into this season. Christopher Plummer rounded out the acting honors by winning Best Supporting Actor for his currently Oscar-frontrunning performance in “Beginners.” Though Felicity Jones (“Like Crazy”) and Rooney Mara (“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”) were both cited for breakthrough performance recognition.

There’s a little bit of everything (as usual). “The Help,” for instance, which did not, interestingly enough, show up on the top 10 list, did happen to take the Best Ensemble prize. “Margin Call” and J.C. Chandor stole another debut film prize away from Sean Durkin and “Martha Marcy May Marlene” (which was actually snubbed across the board) and Michael Fassbender’s prolific year didn’t go unnoticed, as he received the Spotlight Award for all of his work.

Other notable snubs included “My Week with Marilyn,” “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy,” “Albert Nobbs,” “Young Adult” and, most surprisingly, “Moneyball.”

However meaningless one might deem the NBR to be, this is a big get for a film that has been poised to lead the Best Picture conversation for some time. Nevertheless, it’s worth pointing out that the NBR winner rarely duplicates that feat with the Academy. Only “Slumdog Millionaire” in 2008 and “No Country for Old Men” in 2007 turned the trick.

Also worth noting: Just like with the New York Film Critics Circle, “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close” was not screened for the National Board of Review.

The full list of winners:

Best Film: “Hugo”

Best Director: Martin Scorsese, “Hugo”

Best Actor: George Clooney, “The Descendants”

Best Actress: Tilda Swinton, “We Need to Talk About Kevin”

Best Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer, “Beginners”

Best Supporting Actress: Shailene Woodley, “The Descendants”

Best Adapted Screenplay: “The Descendants”

Best Original Screenplay: “50/50”

Best Animated Feature: “Rango”

Breakthrough Performance: Felicity Jones, “Like Crazy”

Breakthrough Performance: Rooney Mara, “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”

Debut Director: J.C. Chandor, “Margin Call”

Best Ensemble: “The Help”

Spotlight Award: Michael Fassbender (“A Dangerous Method,” “Jane Eyre,” “Shame,” “X-Men: First Class”)

NBR Freedom of Expression: “Crime After Crime”

NBR Freedom of Expression: “Pariah”

Best Foreign Language Film: “A Separation”

Best Documentary: “Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory”

Special Achievement in Filmmaking: The Harry Potter Franchise – A Distinguished Translation from Book to Film

Top Films (in alphabetical order)
“The Artist”
“The Descendants”
“Drive”
“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2”
“The Ides of March”
“J. Edgar”
“The Tree of Life”
“War Horse”

Top 5 Foreign Language Films (in alphabetical order)
“13 Assassins”
“Elite Squad: The Enemy Within”
“Footnote”
“Le Havre”
“Point Blank”

Top 5 Documentaries (in alphabetical order)
“Born to be Wild”
“Buck”
“George Harrison: Living in the Material World”
“Project Nim”
“Senna”

Top 10 Independent Films (in alphabetical order)
“50/50”
“Another Earth”
“Beginners”
“A Better Life”
“Cedar Rapids”
“Margin Call”
“Shame”
“Take Shelter”
“We Need To Talk About Kevin”
“Win Win”

For year-round entertainment news and awards season commentary follow @kristapley on Twitter.

Sign up for Instant Alerts from In Contention!

As we await the National Board of Review announcement, let’s go ahead and knock this out. Anne and I will of course be giving our thoughts on the NYFCC, Indie Spirits and NBR announcements, as well as the Gothams and probably a bit on “We Bought a Zoo.” Tell us your need-to-knows outside of that and we’ll try to address a few. Keep it interesting, stay away from stuff we’ve already covered, etc.

There’s usually a fair amount of disparity between the Grammy nominations in the ‘Visual Media’ music categories and the choices of the Academy’s music branch — not least because they work on such different calendars. Still, with the Best Original Song race currently looking so sparse (seriously, just hand the Muppets their Oscar now and skip the formalities), we may as well take what signs we can get.

The Grammy race for Best Song Written for Visual Media highlights three eligible compositions I hadn’t really thought to include in my predictions. I highly doubt the Academy will share Grammy voters’ enthusiasm for Justin Bieber, and I’m not even sure how concert films would fare under their context-oriented voting system, but nevertheless, chalk up the Diane Warren-written “Born to be Somebody” from “Never Say Never” on the longlist.

Warren is also nominated in the category for Cher’s “You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me” from “Burlesque,” the song the Academy deemed less integral to its film than something Randy Newman scrawled on the back of a matchbook for “Toy Story 3,” but why reopen old wounds?

Perhaps a likelier candidate for Oscar inclusion is “So Long” from “Winnie the Pooh,” which is both written and performed in the film by Zooey Deschanel — it’s hard to say whether her relative celebrity is a help or a hindrance with these voters, but it’s the kind of mellow, pretty, slightly quirky oddity they frequently respond to. It’d be fun to see Deschanel on stage, if a little curious to see her first Academy recognition comes for her music rather than her acting. (We could call it a make-up nomination for the Best Supporting Actress bid she deserved for “The Good Girl” nine years ago.)

I haven’t seen “Footloose” yet, so can’t really say how Zac Brown’s “Where the River Goes” might figure into things, but perhaps you can enlighten me. (Prominently missing from the Grammys’ list: original songs from “Captain America: The First Avenger” and “The Help.” Not that that means anything.) 

Meanwhile, only one 2011 title makes it into the Grammys’ Best Score category, but it’s a pertinent one: amid the ubiquitous Alexandre Desplat’s umpteen horses in this year’s race, I’m wondering if his proficient if not especially striking work on “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2” might float to the top. He gets a second nod for “The King’s Speech,” while I’m glad to see the Grammy voters, at least, are sentient enough to recognize the best score of 2010: Daft Punk’s epic work on “TRON: Legacy.”

They also commendably list Clint Mansell’s Oscar-ineligible, Tchaikovsky-interpolating score for “Black Swan” — but what really intrigues me is the nomination for a 2010 Canadian horror film I’ve never heard of called “The Shrine.” A little help, please? I’m guessing the score must be something else.

Full list of nominees in the relevant categories:

Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media
“Black Swan,” Clint Mansell
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2,” Alexandre Desplat
“The King’s Speech,” Alexandre Desplat
“The Shrine,” Ryan Shore
“TRON: Legacy,” Daft Punk

Best Song Written For Visual Media
“Born to be Somebody” from “Justin Bieber: Never Say Never” (Diane Warren)
“Christmastime is Killing Us” from “Family Guy” (Ron Jones, Seth MacFarlane and Danny Smith)
“I See the Light” from “Tangled” (Alan Menken and Glenn Slater)
“So Long” from “Winnie the Pooh” (Zooey Deschanel)
“Where the River Goes” from “Footloose” (Zac Brown, Wyatt Durrette, Drew Pearson and Anne Preven)
“You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me” from “Burlesque” (Diane Warren)

Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media
“Boardwalk Empire: Vol. 1”
“Burlesque”
“Glee: The Music, Vol. 4”
“Tangled”
“True Blood: Vol. 3”

For more views on movies, awards season and other pursuits, follow @GuyLodge on Twitter.

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Martin Scorsese is famous for giving his collaborators plenty of homework in preparation for his films. At a recent Q&A for “Hugo,” production designer Dante Ferretti quipped through his thick Italian accent, “He made me watch a lot of movies.” Everyone gave a knowing laugh. It’s the Scorsese way. And it can always be interesting to note what films he picks to watch, either for his crew or for himself, when working on something. I always thought it was cool that he dug into “Once Upon a Time in the West” for “Gangs of New York,” as there are definite thematic parallels. Anyway, the homework on “Hugo” was unique: 3D movies. He had his crew watch everything from the original “House of Wax” to “Dial M for Murder,” with non-3D things like John Boulting’s “The Magic Box” and the films of the Lumière brothers thrown in for good measure. [Movies.com]

Speaking of which, David Poland sits down with “Hugo” star Chloe Grace Moretz. [Hot Blog]

Patrick Goldstein buries a hatchet with Oscar host Billy Crystal. Billy probably doesn’t even remember. [24 Frames]

Newly minted Independent Spirit Award nominee Michael Shannon talks “Take Shelter” across the pond. [Guardian]

Tim Appelo has a letter from Tom Sherak to Academy members imploring them to watch films on the big screen, not on screeners. [The Race]

Official screen credits and music entry forms are due today. [Oscars.org]

The anatomy of a scene from “The Artist.” [Carpetbagger]

Greg Ellwood talks “Shame” and “A Dangerous Method” with Michael Fassbender. [Awards Campaign]

The Gurus o’ Gold take another stab at it. [Movie City News]

Steven Spielberg”s “War Horse” is steadily building momentum as it approaches its Christmas Day release. Sneak screenings have begun for the film and Spielberg himself has been cautiously engaging with the press. One of the director”s goals was to shine a light on a WWI, a war that did not, and has not, received the same level cinematic attention that WWII or Vietnam have.

There are a number of complex reasons for the discrepancy, one of which may simply be a matter of timing (cinema was still in its early days during and after The Great War) and not the least of which is the mythos that surrounds what is perhaps the most unquestionably just (on the part of the allied forces) war in our collective memory: WWII. That is not to say that there are not complex issues surrounding that war, or the outcomes of our choices (particularly in the Pacific Theatre). It is simply to say that it is, as Spielberg described in a live-streaming Q&A following the sneak peeks, a more “fluid” war in several respects.

In thinking about “War Horse,” I find that it feels like two separate films. One, a fairytale (or a love story of a manner) about a mythical connection between a boy and his horse (reminiscent of “The Black Stallion” or, with a girl, “National Velvet”), the other a broad look at a complicated war. Using the horse as the through line, we see the evolution of the war that altered modern military action. The film is geared toward a wider audience and works to break down the complexities into digestible bites that provide enough of an overview to invite a larger conversation.

The arrogance and ignorance of the initial attempts to fight a “traditional” war is expressed via the titular Joey’s introduction to the cavalry and its ultimate end. We are witness to children being sent to their deaths like so much fodder, as well as the impact on the citizens of Europe via the idea that that war “took everything, from everyone,” and finally, the relentless horrific waste of the trenches. In what both Kris and I agree is the strongest moment in the film, we see the unique intimacy that the trenches provided, as well as the ultimate meaninglessness of the battle.

What strikes me, as I take a step back, is the decided lack of interest in films that deal with the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. That is not to say that there have not been worthy to remarkable documentary and narrative cinematic offerings that dealt with aspects of our modern wars: “Restrepo,” “No End in Sight,” “Operation Homecoming,” “The Messenger” and “Control Room,” to name just a few. It is to note that what is, by most accounts, the most well-known film to deal with either Iraq or Afghanistan, “The Hurt Locker” (as a result of its phenomenal success as the Academy Awards and Kathryn Bigelow”s historic Best Director win), still had lowly box office returns with $49 million worldwide and $17 domestic. Additionally, the film is so specific that it functions more as a character study than a true look at the overarching nature of these wars. The highest grossing Iraq war film in recent memory is “Green Zone” with $35 domestically.

The device that the novel “War Horse” and its subsequent stage and film adaptations uses to give that bird’s-eye (via a horse) view of WWI is unique, clever and effective. It makes it palpable for an expansive audience and allows the viewer to touch on multiple aspects of the event. So I have to wonder, why hasn”t someone done the same for these, our contemporary wars? It”s been eight years of war. And yet, most of us act like it is a non-issue. In truth, many believe that it is a non-issue in our daily lives. How unique a circumstance. WWII meant rations, women in the workplace, drastic social shifts. Vietnam was present in American living rooms nightly, and yet now we simply tune war out. We ignore it. We pretend that cataclysmic change and consequence have not occurred. But in fact they have.

So why does Spielberg, with all his scope and influence (his “Saving Private Ryan” grossed nearly $500 million in 1998), not choose to shine a light on today, right now? To be clear, this is not a condemnation of “War Horse” in any way, it is simply an examination of some questions that arose for me in thinking about the film in the broader context. Why have we become so deeply disconnected from ourselves, from reality? Why do we collectively choose to live as ostriches, and is that not in itself an appropriate subject for a film?

Spielberg says this is a “film about connections,” which indeed it is. Why, then, are we only able to connect with our humanity, with our desire to remember the fundamental links that bind us through the lens of the past? Perhaps it is too challenging, too complex to grapple with the present. Perhaps we would rather avoid, distract ourselves, indulge in unhealthy excess and comfort ourselves with fantasy.

In that sense, one of the films that best expresses our current collective condition is this weekend”s controversial offering “Shame,” a film that depicts profound alienation, stunted emotional growth, pathological disconnect from our own inner lives as well as the lives of others and as a reader said to me today on twitter, our “access to excess.”

For year-round entertainment news and commentary follow @JRothC on Twitter.

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To call Kenneth Lonergan’s “Margaret” my most anticipated film of the year wouldn’t be stating the case with total accuracy. Rather, it’s been my most anticipated film of the last few years running, repeatedly raising hopes of a sighting since 2006 before dropping from view amid ever more legal paperwork, like some form of film industry mirage.

We’ve touched on the film’s tortured route to the screen several times over the years, but happily, we don’t have to rehash that now. Through whatever process of grace or compromise, “Margaret” made it through the tunnel: the film is finished, released and here to be appreciated. Well, sort of. As if embarrassed by its complex backstory, distributor Fox Searchlight has seemingly attempted to fulfil its obligation to the film while sweeping it quietly under the rug: its September release was limited to say the least, with a number of major US cities left out of the loop altogether before it vanished from release. (Meanwhile, its UK release on Friday is a single-screen engagement in London.)

Now, with its hands full promoting the likes of “The Descendants,” “Martha Marcy May Marlene,” “Shame” and “The Tree of Life,” Searchlight is neglecting to mount any form of awards campaign for the film — despite some ecstatic reviews from the comparatively few critics privileged enough to see it. That extends even to the process of sending out screeners, denying many uninitiated critics and awards voters the chance even to consider it for their end-of-year lists and honors. (Kris, by the way, is one of them.)

If that’s an unfortunate outcome for any halfway decent independent film hoping to find an audience, it’s a deeply saddening one for a film as singularly astonishing as “Margaret,” which I finally saw yesterday at its only UK press screening, and which fiercely redeems whatever tangled creative process Lonergan endured to get it to us. As critics, we’re warned all the time to avoid using the word “masterpiece” at first blush, but I’m not sure I know what else “Margaret” is. Piercing, richly chaotic, fat with feeling and ideas, it’s the work of a brilliant dramatist not just at the very peak of his powers but in active fear of them being taken from him: I can only hope you understand how much I adore his 2000 debut feature “You Can Count on Me” when I say that this tardy follow-up makes it look like a stepping stone.

If nothing else — and trust me, it is plenty else — “Margaret” deserves to be bookmarked as perhaps the most searching and true of all post-9/11 New York films, itching with social uncertainties about strangers and family alike. There are points where it directly (though never patly) addresses American society’s ruptured sense of self and security over the past decade, notably in testily written classroom debates between Lisa, Anna Paquin’s privileged Jewish protagonist and a challenging Muslim rival. Still, this thematic undertow is no less present in the film’s core domestic drama, beginning with Lisa’s innocent instigation of a fatal bus accident and extending to the wary network of acquaintances affected by it.

This is solitaire-structured storytelling in which every character’s wants seemingly block another’s, and no one trusts the other enough to clear the obstruction. As a kind of outsize parable of American middle-class manners, it’s appropriately, enthrallingly messy; as one-on-one character study, it’s precise yet detail-flooded, academic yet shot through with compassion. Lonergan shapes and splices his scenes in such a way as to surprise at every turn: conversations are left dangling, reaction shots teased, inevitable lines left unsaid, yet even the most abrupt of cuts maintains the thematic thread in parallel circumstances.

The ensemble is no less exacting or daring. Had this had a respectable, drama-free arthouse release a few years ago, there’s little doubt in my mind that Anna Paquin would be a two-time Oscar nominee (at least) by now: her Lisa is as aggressively adult as she is maddeningly adolescent, holding this heaving narrative together with the desperate, clear-eyed conviction of those one more certain of the need to do the right thing than the method. J. Smith-Cameron is no less spiny or alternately tender as her lonely, high-strung mother; brief but incisive turns by Mark Ruffalo as the disaffected bus driver and Matt Damon as Lisa’s perhaps over-kindly math teacher ensure not a performance goes wasted here. 

You may have got the idea, then, that I think “Margaret” is one of the year’s very best films, one as deserving of across-the-board awards attention (did I mention Nico Muhly’s layered, plangent score?) as it is destined not to receive it. Nothing new there: it’s par for the course with many of my favorites on an annual basis. The film is the reward, and all that. But it’s distressing that, for many viewers and even critics, the film can’t even be that: the least it can ask for is to be seen.

Happily, other people feel the same way. Today, coincidentally enough, I suddenly noticed the film’s title cropping up repeatedly in my Twitter feed: closer investigation revealed that Slant critic Jaime Christley, another besotted fan of the film, has launched an online petition politely challenging Fox Searchlight to make the film available to critics and other awards voting bodies ahead of the upcoming glut of Ten Best lists and precursor awards. The plea goes as follows:

After a protracted post-production phase, news of which seemed to spell disaster, Kenneth Lonergan’s MARGARET opened quietly in New York City and Los Angeles a few months ago, after which it seemed to disappear. (In fact, many major cities in the US didn’t get the opportunity to see it at all.) In that time, the film became known as a miracle – a major work of cinematic art, against the odds – to almost all of the critics and cinephiles who were able to catch it during its brief appearance. It has all the earmarks of a grassroots-supported movie phenomenon. We, the undersigned respectfully request that film critics and other pertinent voting bodies be given the opportunity to view MARGARET prior to voting in applicable awards, or compiling applicable year-end “best of” lists.

I can’t say I recall any awards-season precedent for this, and I heartily commend Christley for doing this. Its effect on “Margaret”‘s long-flatlined awards hopes is immaterial; the victory will be if the studio is swayed to give even a little more exposure to this staggering film, the unexpected jewel of their already robust 2011 prestige slate. I’ve already signed; you can do so here.

For more views on movies, awards season and other pursuits, follow @GuyLodge on Twitter.

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It’s heartening to note as of late that a bit a fire has been lit under the campaign for Corey Stoll’s performance as Ernest Hemingway in Woody’s Allen’s “Midnight in Paris.”

The actor was on hand at the Gothams Sunday night as part of the tribute for David Cronenberg (a shrewd move on Sony Classics’ part to get him in front of the audience — the company is distributing both “Midnight in Paris” and Cronenberg’s “A Dangerous Method”). The actor nailed down an Independent Spirit Award nomination yesterday for Best Supporting Male (one of many Sony Classics citations honcho Michael Barker was beaming over when I spoke to him on the phone last night). And now, it’s been announced that Stoll will participate in a unique event at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston on Sunday, December 11.

Lucky for us, Tech Support columnist Gerard Kennedy happens to live in Boston and will be on hand to cover the evening, which will feature a discussion of “The Letters of Ernest Hemingway: Volume I, 1907 – 1922” with the book’s editor, Sandra Spanier, and novelist Ward Just. Stoll will be reading selections from the volume.

Hemingway is far and away my favorite author. I first sparked to him on my first trip to Key West, Florida in 1995, where Hemingway lived for a number of years, writing “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” and “For Whom the Bell Tolls” while he was there. His house on Whitehead Street, just a few blocks from the Southernmost Point monument to the south and Mallory Square (best sunset you’ll ever see) to the north is naturally a bit of a shrine to the man, and taking a gander at his writing studio in the back always gives me chills. I was just there again two weeks ago on my 30th birthday.

There’s a great story I heard while at a bar now called Captain Tony’s Saloon. When Hemingway was there it was called Sloppy Joe’s. Hemingway received a royalty check for $1,000 once and went to a local bank to cash the check. He was dressed like a bit of a bum, Florida casual. And the bank scoffed. So he had to take his business elsewhere. He went into Sloppy Joe’s and the owner, Joe Bruno (who had ties to the mob), knew who Hemingway was. “I’ll cash your check,” he told him. And from that point on, they were two peas in a pod, went fishing together, etc. When they raised the rent on Joe by one dollar, he moved to a new location close by on Duvall Street, where it still stands today. But the Captain Tony’s location feels like a place Hemingway would more likely frequent.

Anyway, it goes without saying Stoll’s performance in Allen’s film put a big smile on my face. It was a stroke of genius on the page (Hemingway’s dialogue styled as if it were his stripped-down prose) and a wonderful embodiment on the screen, one that could find a headwind and land what would at this point be a bit of a surprising Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination.

It’s a fluid category right now, to say the least. Albert Brooks solidified his “Drive” effort with an NYFCC win yesterday to go along with his Indie Spirit nomination. Christopher Plummer still looks good to go after taking the stage to accept on behalf of the “Beginners” ensemble at the Gothams and also chalking up an Indie Spirit nod of his own.

John Hawkes might have received an uptick in attention after his Spirit nod for his “Martha Marcy May Marlene” performance, though I don’t think John C. Reilly should expect to capitalize on his for “Cedar Rapids.” But those are the names in the actual awards hat right now.

Moving outside of that, back into the prognostication realm we’ve been in all season, Max Von Sydow is left to be seen in “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close,” but could ultimately be a formidable force if early word is correct. Patton Oswalt has what it takes on screen and off, while Brad Pitt’s shared NYFCC honor for Best Actor included his supporting turn in “The Tree of Life.” He’s definitely a possibility.

I think names like Kenneth Branagh (overshadowed by his “My Week with Marilyn” co-star), Armie Hammer (drowned by negative reviews for “J. Edgar”) and George Clooney/Philip Seymour Hoffman (“The Ides of March” having been disavowed by the critics) are falling down the ladder, while names like Nick Nolte (hitting the press rounds again for “Warrior”), Jonah Hill (a potential beneficiary of a “Moneyball” surge) and, indeed, Corey Stoll, are going to be the ones to watch as they claw their way back up it.

I look forward to finally catching up with Stoll myself next week as he’s coming back around on the press circuit as of late. Gerard’s coverage of the Kennedy Library event, meanwhile, should drop some time the week of December 12.

For year-round entertainment news and awards season commentary follow @kristapley on Twitter.

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Unlike my esteemed colleague, I must admit I was pretty thrilled with the outcome of yesterday’s New York Film Critics’ Circle Awards — within the bracket of likely Oscar contenders, they picked the most formally adventurous and openly lovable option for their top prize, recognizing that it’s principally its director’s achievement to boot. Awards for supporting performances, foreign language film and cinematography were all as well-deserved as they were predictable, and if Brad Pitt’s Best Actor prize came as a surprise, it’s good see a major star rewarded for raising his game in worthy projects.

The one major award I was less than pleased with, you probably won’t be surprised to hear, was Meryl Streep’s Best Actress prize for “The Iron Lady” — her fifth win with the Gotham crowd. The performance, I suppose, is accomplished enough (though far from the most inspired or affecting work in the category this year), but it’s surrounded by a film so muddled and misguided as to steer even its expert star into the wrong tonal territory on occasion.

I’ll save my full thoughts on “The Iron Lady” for a review later this week — my Twitter followers already have some idea of how little I like it — but my problems with it are split fairly evenly between its structural and technical ineptitude and its ludicrously myopic politics. Not only highly selective with Thatcher’s laundry-list of socially destructive policies and decisions, the film’s take on the ones it does cop to is still, shall we say, pretty creative.

That’s a subjective view, of course, so it’s prudent of Streep herself to remind us that the film is entitled to its own. USA Today reports that while in Washington to accept her Kennedy Center honor this weekend — it sure is a good week for the actress — Streep presented “The Iron Lady” to an audience of political types, former state senators and governors among them. Perhaps anticipating a more politically concerned response to the film, she had a clever semi-defence ready:

“This is not a biopic,” the actress warned the packed audience before the feature directed by her Mamma Mia! maestro Phyllida Lloyd began. Instead, The Iron Lady presents an older Thatcher as she flashes back to the highs and lows of her career while staving off dementia. “It’s a subjective look back,” Streep explained. “As close to the truth as fiction will allow.”

Hard to argue with that: “The Iron Lady” is as free to interpret its subject however it wishes as I am to find that interpretation dramatically and/or ideologically ill-considered. As it stands, for a film that was pitched all along as a mere performance showcase, I’m increasingly interested in tracking the critical response to it as a whole.

For more views on movies, awards season and other pursuits, follow @GuyLodge on Twitter.

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The tribute announcements for the upcoming Santa Barbara International Film Festival have started coming in, and the first is a shot across the bow for anyone thinking Viola Davis’s performance in “The Help” is waning as a contender int he face of recently revealed, excellent portrayals by Meryl Streep, Charlize Theron and Michelle Williams.

Davis will be honored with the Outstanding Performer of the Year Award on Friday, January 27, right at the start of the festival. The tribute will celebrate her performance in Tate Taylor’s film and will be an opportunity to celebrate the career of an actress who has been on the verge of exploding onto the scene as a leading lady for some time.

“It’s hard to imagine another performance this year that pierces your heart the way Viola does as Abileen,” SBIFF Executive Director Roger Durling said via press release.

Davis joins former winners including James Franco (“127 Hours”), Colin Firth (“A Single Man”), Penelope Cruz (“Vicky Cristina Barcelona”), Angelina Jolie (“A Mighty Heart”), Helen Mirren (“The Queen”), Heath Ledger (“Brokeback Mountain”), Kate Winslet (“Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”) and Charlize Theron (“Monster”).

The Santa Barbara fest competes with the Palm Springs festival for some of these fetes in some way. The latter will be honoring Michelle Williams’s “My Week with Marilyn” performance, for instance.

The 27th annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival runs January 26 – February 5, 2012. Once again, I’ll be on hand covering the fetes and tributes on what has become a crucial step on the march to the Academy Awards.

For year-round entertainment news and awards season commentary follow @kristapley on Twitter.

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Vanity-based industry that it is, it”s hardly surprising that Hollywood should deem itself an endlessly fascinating subject for its own movies. Even from relatively early days, filmmakers have found great satisfaction, perhaps even release, in either documenting or representing the creative, financial and personal trials of their profession on screen – anticipating a movie-mad audience keen to know what goes on behind the camera, in the service of entertainment.

It”s a subject that has made for a number of landmark films both about Hollywood and other hubs of filmmaking, ranging from “Singin” in the Rain” to “Adaptation” to Truffaut”s “Day for Night.” Clearly, it”s not an area of interest that appears to be dwindling, given its presence in a number of current high-profile releases. “Hugo” and “My Week With Marilyn” are over-the-shoulder valentines to auteur innovation and white-hot star power, respectively; meanwhile, major Oscar hopeful “The Artist,” yesterday named the year”s best film by the New York Film Critics Circle, celebrates an entire medium previously laid to rest.

The timing, then, could hardly be more ideal for a list gathering the best films about the film industry. Less easy was deciding on just 10 titles to fill it. It”s a generously stuffed subgenre, and as I whittled down my shortlist, I was surprised at what I forced myself to leave out – including some obvious canon classics that I”m sure some of you will kvetch about. As always, omission isn”t necessarily dismissal.

So, apologies, “The Player.” Pardon me, “Le Mépris.” I”ll make it up to you, “The Day of the Locust.” I still like you. I feel less guilty about there being no biopics at all in the list, though “Ed Wood” was a notable contender. (Meanwhile, I ruled out “The Purple Rose of Cairo” only because it”s more about spectatorship than filmmaking.) I could only go with the 10 films that most insistently nagged in my head when this theme came up – many of them obvious, some a little less so.

Against competition this fierce, could one of the new batch even hope to crack the list? See if it did in our new gallery, and please do share your thoughts and personal favorites in the comments section below.

For more views on movies, awards season and other pursuits, follow @GuyLodge  on Twitter.

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Remember when I noted Patton Oswalt’s bringing down the house at the Los Angeles pop-up screening of Jason Reitman’s “Young Adult” at the New Beverly? “If he really puts in the work, he can easily find himself in that mix,” I wrote at the time. This is a guy built for the circuit, because he’s sharp, witty, outspoken but never puts his foot in his mouth and is just too lovable to be held accountable even if he did let a gaffe slip. That gregarious train kept rolling at the Gotham Awards this weekend, where Oswalt was, by all accounts, the star of the show. It helps, of course, that his performance in the film is entirely worthy and a real surprise, even for those of us who knew he had it in him. [Carpetbagger]

Charlize Theron, meanwhile, talked her weird “Dead Ringers” obsession at the ceremony. [Vulture]

David Poland, meanwhile, chats up the film’s writer, Diablo Cody. [Hot Blog]

Lou Lumenick explains how the NYFCC balloting broke down in each round of voting. [New York Post]

Robbie Collin calls Steven Spielberg out for hypocrisy across the pond. [Telegraph]

Christina Radish talks “Shame” with the film’s director (Steve McQueen) and star (Michael Fassbender). [Collider]

With the first wave of announcements behind us, Dave Karger takes his Oscar stabs. [Entertainment Weekly]

Nathaniel Rogers sits down with “Beginners” writer/director Mike Mills. [Film Experience]

Jesse Eisenberg would prefer to not be a part of the long lineage of stars who have been used to sell movies despite barely being in them, thank you very much. [E! Online]

Sasha Stone on how the lead actress race is taking shape. [Awards Daily]

Seth Rogen is not interested in hosting the Oscars. Unless and until they “hire some better writers” that is.

The actor made the lighthearted remark during a recent interview with Short List. He”d been asked about his interest in hosting the Oscarcast given his relationship with last year”s co-host James Franco. He made a laughing, affable reply that actually raised some salient (particularly in the face of this year”s shake-ups) points.

“I think when you agree to do something like that, you put a certain amount of faith in the institution, hoping that they”ll take care of you, and I feel like they didn”t [take care of him]…Why hire James Franco and then give him Billy Crystal”s monologue? It was like, ‘Oh, we”ll hire these young hosts and then we”ll just do the same shit we do every fucking year.” Which to me was really odd. I think they just approached it wrong. They didn”t think it through, and they were way underprepared. I think they hung him out to dry.”

Now, I”ll be honest, whether the material was appropriate or not, Franco”s delivery left something to be desired. And I like him quite a bit as an actor. Anne Hathaway seemed a touch at sea, and perhaps misused, but was making a legitimate effort to engage with the task she was given. He was presented with an odd set of circumstances that were not ideally suited to his strengths, and it didn”t entirely pan out. No one can knock it out of the park every time.

Where I think that Rogen has it right is in the idea that the organization seems far more concerned with saving face than protecting and standing behind the talent that they bring aboard. If an Oscarcast is a success then they reap the accolades, if it is not well received, it is the hosts’ doing, or the producers. I would also agree that they seem to be floundering some as they work to keep in step with the times.

It was surreal, in an uncomfortable way, to watch the awkward attempts to introduce social networking platforms into the proceedings. It was like witnessing a person who does not speak the language attempt a freestyle rap — or like watching me attempt a freestyle rap. There”s nowhere safe to cast your eyes in that scenario. Additionally, and as we well could have predicted, it was clearly a mistake to have someone double as a nominee and host.

There has been a sense that the Academy was hedging its bets last year, one step toward a new generation of entertainers and one step toward tradition. Balance as a goal makes sense, but what actually occurred was the sort of first date that makes you wish you were getting your teeth cleaned instead. A clear mismatch. The material was stale, the host untried and abandoned without clear guidance. This year they simply seemed to bet on the wrong horse. Though, why they thought Brett Ratner would be anyone other than Brett Ratner we will never know.

In truth, in all likelihood they imagined “Tower Heist” was going to be a box office success. It wasn”t. So the public good will that they imagined Ratner would be enjoying, paired with a renewed interest in the talents of Eddie Murphy, did not manifest. In a sense, the PR disaster provided the AMPAS with an excuse to skirt around another misstep. The back to basics response really does feel like the best move they could have made given the time constraints and need for swift action.

However, had they possessed the imagination and foresight months ago, “Muppet Oscars” really may have offered the harmony of fresh, current and classic the Academy has been seeking. The Muppets are not cutting edge in a way that would undermine the gravitas of the event (we don”t need another MTV movies awards – we have Spike for that) and yet they would infuse a sense of play that would energize the evening.

If this were the year of the youthful host, rather than last, another “Freaks and Geeks” alum would have been the correct choice. Jason Segel is more of the Billy Crystal of our day than either Hathaway or Franco. A Segel/Muppets Oscarcast may have been the ideal answer, albeit a bit of a commercial for the film.

So, in “taking the pulse” the Academy may want to look for hosts that are young, well liked, and also writers, so that they can take a bit more ownership of the material rather than throwing talent at a wall and hoping for a Jackson Pollock.

For year-round entertainment news and commentary follow @JRothC on Twitter.

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