2017 Golden Globe Nomination Predictions

Ah, the Golden Globes. Truth be told, I'm not their number one fan.

Sure, on occasion, they produce an awesome winner (Sally Kirkland! Sigourney Weaver twice in '88!!) but this is the Hollywood Foreign Press Association we're talking about, the group that has infamously handed out honors to the likes of Sharon Stone (love her but that bizarre nom for The Muse was legit the result of Rolex watches she sent every member), Pia Zadora and others in exchange for glitzy goodies.

That said, I do of course still get some pleasure of the Globes and predicting them. I love that I can list the likes of Sam Elliott, Aubrey Plaza and Debra Winger, none of who have a prayer at surfacing on Oscar nominations morning.

So, here's my hunch on how the 2017 Golden Globe nominations might just pan out, ranked from most to least likely to be nominated.

Enjoy reading and of course feel free to offer up your own two cents too!

Best Motion Picture - Drama

1. Dunkirk
2. The Post
3. The Shape of Water
4. Call Me By Your Name
5. Phantom Thread
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6. Darkest Hour
7. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
8. The Florida Project
9. Mudbound
10. Wonder Woman

Best Motion Picture - Comedy/Musical

1. Lady Bird
2. Get Out
3. The Disaster Artist
4. I, Tonya
5. Victoria & Abdul
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6. The Big Sick
7. Baby Driver
8. Beauty and the Beast
9. The Greatest Showman
10. Downsizing

Best Director

1. Guillermo del Toro, The Shape of Water
2. Christopher Nolan, Dunkirk
3. Steven Spielberg, The Post
4. Luca Guadagnino, Call Me By Your Name
5. Greta Gerwig, Lady Bird
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6. Jordan Peele, Get Out
7. Paul Thomas Anderson, Phantom Thread
8. Joe Wright, Darkest Hour
9. Martin McDonagh, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
10. Patty Jenkins, Wonder Woman

Best Screenplay

1. James Ivory, Call Me By Your Name
2. Greta Gerwig, Lady Bird
3. Jordan Peele, Get Out
4. Paul Thomas Anderson, Phantom Thread
5. Aaron Sorkin, Molly's Game
   ---
6. Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, The Disaster Artist
7. Martin McDonagh, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
8. Liz Hannah and Josh Singer, The Post
9. Guillermo del Toro, The Shape of Water
10. Christopher Nolan, Dunkirk

Best Lead Actor - Drama

1. Timothee Chalamet, Call Me By Your Name
2. Daniel Day-Lewis, Phantom Thread
3. Tom Hanks, The Post
4. Gary Oldman, Darkest Hour
5. Christian Bale, Hostiles
   ---
6. Jake Gyllenhaal, Stronger
7. Robert Pattinson, Good Time
8. Hugh Jackman, Logan
9. Denzel Washington, Roman J. Israel, Esq.
10. Jacob Tremblay, Wonder

Best Lead Actress - Drama

1. Meryl Streep, The Post
2. Sally Hawkins, The Shape of Water
3. Frances McDormand, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
4. Jessica Chastain, Molly's Game
5. Jennifer Lawrence, mother!
   ---
6. Vicky Krieps, Phantom Thread
7. Annette Bening, Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool
8. Gal Gadot, Wonder Woman
9. Daniela Vega, A Fantastic Woman
10. Isabelle Huppert, Happy End

Best Lead Actor - Comedy/Musical

1. James Franco, The Disaster Artist
2. Daniel Kaluuya, Get Out
3. Adam Sandler, The Meyerowitz Stories
4. Hugh Jackman, The Greatest Showman
5. Ali Fazal, Victoria & Abdul
   ---
6. Steve Carell, Battle of the Sexes
7. Sam Elliott, The Hero
8. Ansel Elgort, Baby Driver
9. Kumail Nanjani, The Big Sick
10. Matt Damon, Downsizing

Best Lead Actress - Comedy/Musical

1. Saoirse Ronan, Lady Bird
2. Judi Dench, Victoria & Abdul
3. Margot Robbie, I, Tonya
4. Emma Stone, Battle of the Sexes
5. Salma Hayek, Beatriz at Dinner
   ---
6. Emma Watson, Beauty and the Beast
7. Allison Williams, Get Out
8. Debra Winger, The Lovers
9. Helen Mirren, The Leisure Seeker
10. Aubrey Plaza, Ingrid Goes West

Best Supporting Actor

1. Willem Dafoe, The Florida Project
2. Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
3. Armie Hammer, Call Me By Your Name
4. Idris Elba, Molly's Game
5. Michael Stuhlbarg, Call Me By Your Name
   ---
6. Ben Mendelsohn, Darkest Hour
7. Michael Shannon, The Shape of Water
8. Mark Rylance, Dunkirk
9. Richard Jenkins, The Shape of Water
10. Patrick Stewart, Logan

Best Supporting Actress

1. Laurie Metcalf, Lady Bird
2. Allison Janney, I, Tonya
3. Octavia Spencer, The Shape of Water
4. Tiffany Haddish, Girls Trip
5. Julia Roberts, Wonder
   ---
6. Lesley Manville, Phantom Thread
7. Kristin Scott Thomas, Darkest Hour
8. Holly Hunter, The Big Sick
9. Mary J. Blige, Mudbound
10. Melissa Leo, Novitiate

Best Animated Feature

1. Coco
2. Loving Vincent
3. The Breadwinner  
4. The Lego Batman Movie
5. Despicable Me 3
   ---
6. The Star
7. Ferdinand
8. Cars 3
9. The Girl Without Hands
10. The Boss Baby

Best Foreign Language Film

1. First They Killed My Father (Cambodia)
2. A Fantastic Woman (Chile)
3. In the Fade (Germany)
4. BPM (Beats Per Minute) (France)
5. A Letter to the President (Afghanistan)
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6. Her Love Boils Bathwater (Japan)
7. A Taxi Driver (South Korea)
8. The Square (Sweden)
9. Summer 1993 (Spain)
10. Foxtrot (Israel)

Best Original Score

1. Jonny Greenwood, Phantom Thread
2. Alexandre Desplat, The Shape of Water
3. Hans Zimmer, Dunkirk
4. Dario Marianelli, Darkest Hour
5. Thomas Newman, Victoria & Abdul
   ---
6. Michael Giacchino, Coco 
7. John Williams, Star Wars: The Last Jedi
8. John Debney, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, The Greatest Showman
9. Carter Burwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
10. Carter Burwell, Wonderstruck

Best Original Song

1. "Remember Me," Coco
2. "Evermore," Beauty and the Beast
3. "The Mystery of Love," Call Me By Your Name
4. "This Is Me," The Greatest Showman
5. "I Don't Wanna Live Forever," Fifty Shades Darker
   ---
6. "The Star," The Star
7. "Prayers for This World," Cries from Syria
8. "Mighty River," Mudbound
9. "There's Something Special," Despicable Me 3
10. "Home," Ferdinand

2017 Critics Choice Awards Nominees

Congratulations to this year's Critics Choice Awards honorees!

Best Picture

The Big Sick
Call Me by Your Name
Darkest Hour
Dunkirk
The Florida Project
Get Out
Lady Bird
The Post
The Shape of Water
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Director

Guillermo del Toro – The Shape of Water
Greta Gerwig – Lady Bird
Martin McDonagh – Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Christopher Nolan – Dunkirk
Luca Guadagnino – Call Me By Your Name
Jordan Peele – Get Out
Steven Spielberg – The Post

Best Actor

Timothée Chalamet – Call Me by Your Name
James Franco – The Disaster Artist
Jake Gyllenhaal – Stronger
Tom Hanks – The Post
Daniel Kaluuya – Get Out
Daniel Day-Lewis – Phantom Thread
Gary Oldman – Darkest Hour

Best Actress

Jessica Chastain – Molly’s Game
Sally Hawkins – The Shape of Water
Frances McDormand – Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Margot Robbie – I, Tonya
Saoirse Ronan – Lady Bird
Meryl Streep – The Post

Best Supporting Actor

Willem Dafoe – The Florida Project
Armie Hammer – Call Me By Your Name
Richard Jenkins – The Shape of Water
Sam Rockwell – Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Patrick Stewart – Logan
Michael Stuhlbarg – Call Me by Your Name

Best Supporting Actress

Mary J. Blige – Mudbound
Hong Chau – Downsizing
Tiffany Haddish – Girls Trip
Holly Hunter – The Big Sick
Allison Janney - I, Tonya
Laurie Metcalf – Lady Bird
Octavia Spencer – The Shape of Water

Best Ensemble

Dunkirk
Lady Bird
Mudbound
The Post
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Young Actor/Actress

Mckenna Grace – Gifted
Dafne Keen – Logan
Brooklynn Prince – The Florida Project
Millicent Simmonds – Wonderstruck
Jacob Tremblay – Wonder

Best Animated Film

The Breadwinner
Coco
Despicable Me 3
The LEGO Batman Movie
Loving Vincent

Best Foreign Language Film

BPM (Beats Per Minute)
A Fantastic Woman
First They Killed My Father
In the Fade
The Square
Thelma

Best Original Screenplay

Guillermo del Toro and Vanessa Taylor – The Shape of Water
Greta Gerwig – Lady Bird
Emily V. Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani – The Big Sick
Liz Hannah and Josh Singer – The Post
Martin McDonagh – Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Jordan Peele – Get Out

Best Adapted Screenplay

James Ivory – Call Me by Your Name
Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber – The Disaster Artist
Dee Rees and Virgil Williams – Mudbound
Aaron Sorkin – Molly’s Game
Jack Thorne, Steve Conrad, Stephen Chbosky – Wonder

Best Cinematography

Roger Deakins – Blade Runner 2049
Hoyte van Hoytema – Dunkirk
Dan Laustsen – The Shape of Water
Rachel Morrison – Mudbound
Sayombhu Mukdeeprom – Call Me By Your Name

Best Costume Design

Renée April – Blade Runner 2049
Mark Bridges – Phantom Thread
Jacqueline Durran – Beauty and the Beast
Lindy Hemming – Wonder Woman
Luis Sequeira – The Shape of Water

Best Film Editing

Michael Kahn, Sarah Broshar – The Post
Paul Machliss, Jonathan Amos – Baby Driver
Lee Smith – Dunkirk
Joe Walker – Blade Runner 2049
Sidney Wolinsky – The Shape of Water

Best Makeup/Hairstyling

Beauty and the Beast
Darkest Hour
I, Tonya
The Shape of Water
Wonder

Best Original Score

Alexandre Desplat – The Shape of Water
Jonny Greenwood – Phantom Thread
Dario Marianelli – Darkest Hour
Benjamin Wallfisch and Hans Zimmer – Blade Runner 2049
John Williams – The Post
Hans Zimmer - Dunkirk

Best Original Song

"Evermore" – Beauty and the Beast
"Mystery of Love" – Call Me By Your Name
"Remember Me" – Coco
"Stand Up for Something" – Marshall
"This Is Me" – The Greatest Showman

Best Production Design

Paul Denham Austerberry, Shane Vieau, Jeff Melvin – The Shape of Water
Jim Clay, Rebecca Alleway – Murder on the Orient Express
Nathan Crowley, Gary Fettis – Dunkirk
Dennis Gassner, Alessandra Querzola – Blade Runner 2049
Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer – Beauty and the Beast
Mark Tildesley, Véronique Melery – Phantom Thread

Best Visual Effects

Blade Runner 2049
Dunkirk
The Shape of Water
Thor: Ragnarok
War for the Planet of the Apes
Wonder Woman

Review: "The Disaster Artist"

James Franco, you have come so very far since the 2010 Oscars.

Franco is a legit tour de force, both in front of and behind the camera, as leading man and director of The Disaster Artist. He has exquisitely approached a role that, in the hands of another, less committed actor, could have easily played as caricature, adding layer upon layer to the irresistibly oddball filmmaker Tommy Wiseau.

Based on the eponymous 2013 book by actor Greg Sestero and Tom Bissell, The Disaster Artist opens on Sestero (Dave Franco) who, toward the end of the 1990s, is an aspiring young actor living in San Francisco with his mom (Megan Mullally). Sestero encounters the peculiar Wiseau at an acting class and is awestruck by the audacious scenery-chewing in his rendition of a scene from A Streetcar Named Desire. Over the months to come, the two form an unusual but solicitous bond and, yearning to make it in Hollywood, eventually make the move to L.A.

On the steep climb to making their dreams come true, Sestero secures an agent (and a girlfriend) but nonetheless finds negligible success, while the industry all-around shuns Wiseau. One day, Sestero casually floats the idea of making his own picture to provide himself with a film role. Wiseau takes this suggestion literally and, over the next three years, pens the screenplay for what will become The Room, now considered one of the worst films ever made and, because of that distinction, an unimpeachable cult classic.

The making of The Room, which fills out most of the back half of The Disaster Artist, is often devastatingly funny and sure to even resonate with viewers not familiar with Wiseau's 2003 film. What I especially adore about this picture, however, is the relationship between Wiseau and Sestero and how their chance meeting saved them from the doldrums of ordinary life and inspired them to pursue seemingly impossible dreams.

Both Francos are in prime form, with James in particular deserving kudos for not approaching Wiseau as some sort of SNL creation. When, toward the beginning of the picture, Wiseau tells Sestero he wishes he could have his own world, a planet where nothing but love exists, he sounds entirely sincere and it's a stunningly moving moment. The supporting cast is, for the most part, comprised of an endless series of celebrity cameos, some inspired (Josh Hutcherson and Jacki Weaver are a hoot as actors in the film) and others perplexing (please stop giving Zac Efron work).

Comparisons have, no surprise, been made between The Disaster Artist and Ed Wood, Tim Burton's picture about another lovably dreadful filmmaker. While this film does not operate on the same sky-high level as Ed Wood, it's still one heck of a great time and a strong contender for the year's funniest film.

A-

2017 Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award Winners

Congratulations to this year's Los Angeles Film Critics Association honorees!

Best Film

Call Me By Your Name

Runner Up: The Florida Project

Best Director

TIE

Luca Guadagnino, Call Me By Your Name

Guillermo del Toro, The Shape Of Water

Best Actor

Timothee Chalamet, Call Me By Your Name

Runner Up: James Franco, The Disaster Artist

Best Actress

Sally Hawkins, The Shape of Water

Runner Up: Frances McDormand, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Supporting Actor

Willem Dafoe, The Florida Project

Runner Up: Sam Rockwell, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Supporting Actress

Laurie Metcalf, Lady Bird

Runner Up: Mary J. Blige, Mudbound

Best Screenplay

Jordan Peele, Get Out

Runner Up: Martin McDonagh, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri

Best Foreign-Language Film

TIE

BPM (Beats Per Minute)

Loveless

Best Animated Feature

The Breadwinner

Runner Up: Coco

Best Documentary Feature

Faces Places

Runner Up: Jane

Best Film Editing

Dunkirk

Runner Up: I, Tonya

Best Production Design

Blade Runner: 2049

Runner Up: The Shape of Water

Best Score

Phantom Thread

Runner Up: The Shape of Water

Best Cinematography

The Shape of Water

Runner Up: Blade Runner: 2049

2017 New York Film Critics Circle Award Winners

Congratulations to this year's New York Film Critics Circle honorees!

Best Film

Lady Bird

Best Director

Sean Baker, The Florida Project

Best Actor

Timothee Chalamet, Call Me By Your Name

Best Actress

Saoirse Ronan, Lady Bird

Best Supporting Actor

Willem Dafoe, The Florida Project

Best Supporting Actress

Tiffany Haddish, Girls Trip

Best Screenplay

Paul Thomas Anderson, Phantom Thread

Best Cinematography

Rachel Morrison, Mudbound

Best Animated Film

Coco

Best Documentary

Faces Places

Best Foreign Language Film

BPM (Beats Per Minute)

Best First Feature Film

Get Out