The 2011 Knight Award Winners!

Traditionally the Knight Award Winners are announced the day before the Oscars.  Time simply got away from me this year.  But I was determined to get them posted by the following day.  To be honest, this was a tough year for me on deciding the ultimate winners.  Best Picture and Best Director gave me the most trouble, as did a couple of the acting categories.  What you will find below is as final of a decision as I can possibly make.  In a week I’ll probably have changed my mind, but for now this will do.  2011 was a very good year for movies, despite my constant groaning about the Academy’s decisions on what was “best”.  True, there were few, if any, “masterpieces”, but we can’t expect the likes of The Social Network, Inception, Black Swan and True Grit to grace the silver screen every year.  2012 is now upon us, so its time to look forward to the coming films and fondly remember the movies of old.  Without further ado, here are the 2011 Knight Award Winners.  Enjoy.

Best Visual Effects

Rise of the Planet of the Apes – WINNER

Tree of Life – Honorable Mention

Best Make-Up

Morag Ross, Anni Buchanan – Hugo – WINNER

Deborah La Mia Denaver - Super 8 – Honorable Mention

Best Sound Editing

Lon Bender, Victor Ray Ennis – Drive – WINNER

Christopher Scarabosio – Hanna – Honorable Mention

Best Sound Design

Erik Aadahl, Craig Berkey - The Tree of Life – WINNER

Gary Rydstrom - War Horse – Honorable Mention

Best Musical Score

John Williams – War Horse – WINNER

Alberto Iglesias – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy – Honorable Mention

Best Production Design

Maria Djurkovic, Tom Brown - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy – WINNER

Dante Ferretti – Hugo – Honorable Mention

Best Costume Design

Sandy Powell – Hugo – WINNER

Jacqueline Durran – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy – Honorable Mention

Best Editing

Mathew Newman – Drive – WINNER

Dino Jansater - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy – Honorable Mention

Best Cinematography

Emmanuel Lubezki - The Tree of Life – WINNER

Hoyte Van Hoytema - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy – Honorable Mention

Best Original Screenplay

Andrew Haigh – Weekend – WINNER

Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris – Honorable Mention

Best Adapted Screenplay

Bridget O’Connor, Peter Straughan - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy – WINNER

Hossein Amini – Drive – Honorable Mention

Best Ensemble

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy – WINNER

Super 8 – Honorable Mention

Best Animated, Motion Capture, Voice Over, or Mixed Media Performance

Andy Serkis – Rise of the Planet of the Apes – WINNER

Johnny Depp – Rango – Honorable Mention

Best Actress in a Limited Role

Kathy Burke – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy – WINNER

Anjelica Huston – 50/50 – Honorable Mention

Best Actor in a Limited Role

Niels Arestrup – War Horse – WINNER

Philip Baker Hall – 50/50 – Honorable Mention

Best Supporting Actress

Carey Mulligan – Shame – WINNER

Jessica Chastain – The Help – Honorable Mention

Best Supporting Actor

Albert Brooks – Drive – WINNER

Brad Pitt – The Tree of Life – Honorable Mention

Best Actress

Glenn Close – Albert Nobbs – WINNER

Viola Davis – The Help – Honorable Mention

Best Actor

Gary Oldman – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy – WINNER

Michael Fassbender – Shame – Honorable Mention

Best Director

Nicolas Winding Refn – Drive – WINNER

Tomas Alfredson – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy – Honorable Mention

Best Picture

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy – WINNER

Drive – Honorable Mention

 And thats all she wrote.  Until next year...

The 2011 Knight Award Nominations

By Sean Knight

Welcome to the 2011 Knight Award Nominations!  As many of you will know I have been doing this since about 2000 when I was a freshmen film student in High School.  It's a way for me to honor the films that I love in a given year and let my opinion be known to the world at large... or rather the few friends who indulge me and pretend to care about what I have to say.  A few things to note about the Awards - 1. There are six nominees per category because I like even numbers and its hard enough whittling down the nominee list as it is.  2. There are best limited performance categories for roles that are smaller than your average supporting role, essentially extended cameos.  3. I also have a best animated, voice over, motion capture, or mixed media award because contrary to the Academy's thinking this does count as real acting.  Instead of confusing matters by mixing them in with the regular acting nominees I have given them their own category.  Perhaps the Academy should consider something similar.  4.  I also don't nominate a traditional slate of  Best Pictures.  Instead I list my top 20 films of the year in Alphabetical Order.  Essentially, they are all competing for Best Picture.  The winners will be announced the day before the Oscars, so this year it will be February 25th.  Thank you for stopping by to read the nominees.  Feel free to comment, bitch, moan etc.  And now onward to the 2011 Knight Award Nominations!

Special Citations

Lifetime Achievement Award

Christopher Plummer

Breakthrough Filmmaker

Andrew Haigh - Weekend

Special Cinematic Achievement Award

Terrence Malick for The Tree of Life

Breakthrough Actor

Joel Courtney – Super 8

Breakthrough Actress

Felecity Jones – Like Crazy

Most Disappointing Film of the Year

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Most Overrated Film of the Year

Moneyball

Most Underrated Film of the Year

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Worst Film of the Year

The Green Lantern

Most Mediocre Film of the Year

Carnage

Worst Actor of the Year

Ezra Miller – We Need to Talk About Kevin

Worst Actress of the Year

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley – Transformers Dark of the Moon

Top 20 Films of the Year in Alphabetical Order

50/50

The Adventures of Tintin

The Artist

Attack the Block

Contagion

Drive

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Hanna

Hugo

Martha Marcy May Marlene

Midnight in Paris

Rango

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Shame

Super 8

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

The Tree of Life

War Horse

Weekend

Win Win

2011 Knight Award Nominations

Best Director

Tomas Alfredson – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris

Steve McQueen – Shame

Nicolas Winding Refn - Drive

Martin Scorsese – Hugo

Steven Spielberg – War Horse

Best Actor

Tom Cullen – Weekend

Michael Fassbender – Shame

Paul Giamati – Win Win

Ryan Gosling – Drive

Joseph Gordon Levitt – 50/50

Gary Oldman – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Best Actress

Glenn Close – Albert Nobbs

Viola Davis – The Help

Roony Mara – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Elizabeth Olson – Martha Marcy May Marlene

Soarise Ronan - Hanna

Michelle Williams – My Week with Marilyn

Best Supporting Actor

Kenneth Branagh – My Week with Marilyn

Albert Brooks – Drive

Benedict Cumberbatch – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Ben Kingsley – Hugo

Chris New – Weekend

Brad Pitt – The Tree of Life

Best Supporting Actress

Jessica Chastain – The Help

Elle Fanning – Super 8

Anna Kendrick – 50/50

Janet McTier – Albert Nobbs

Carey Mulligan - Shame

Shailene Woodley – The Descendants

Best Actor in a Limited Role

Niels Arestrup – War Horse

Adrian Brody – Midnight in Paris

Robert Forster – The Descendants

Philip Baker Hall – 50/50

John Hurt – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Alan Rickman – Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Best Actress in a Limited Role

Nicole Beharie – Shame

Kathy Burke – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Judy Dench – My Week with Marilyn

Judy Greer – The Descendants

Anjelica Huston – 50/50

Emily Watson – War Horse

Best Animated, Motion Capture, Voice Over, or Mixed Media Performance

Ned Beatty – Rango

Daniel Craig – The Adventures of Tintin

Johnny Depp – Rango

Peter Linz – The Muppets

Andy Serkis – The Adventures of Tintin

Andy Serkis – Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Best Ensemble

Attack the Block

Contagion

The Ides of March

Midnight in Paris

Super 8

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Best Adapted Screenplay

Hossein Amini - Drive

Steven Zaillian - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon - The Ides of March

Moira Buffini - Jane Eyre

Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin - Moneyball

Bridget O’Connor, Peter Straughan - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Best Original Screenplay

Will Reiser - 50/50

Joe Cornish - Attack the Block

Woody Allen - Midnight in Paris

John Logan - Rango

Abi Morgan, Steve McQueen - Shame

Andrew Haigh - Weekend

Best Cinematography

Newton Thomas Sigel - Drive

Robert Richardson - Hugo

Adriano Goldman - Jane Eyre

Emmanuel Lubezki - The Tree of Life

Hoyte Van Hoytema - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Janusz Kaminski - War Horse

Best Editing

Michael Kahn - The Adventures of Tintin

Anne-Sophie Bion, Michel Hazanavicius - The Artist

Mathew Newman - Drive

Kirk Baxter, Angus Wall - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Stephen Mirrione - The Ides of March

Dino Jansater - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Best Costume Design

Mark Bridges - The Artist

Anna B. Sheppard - Captain America: The First Avenger

Sandy Powell - Hugo

Sonia Grande - Midnight in Paris

Jill Taylor - My Week with Marilyn

Jacqueline Durran - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Best Production Design

Andrew L Jones, Jeff Wisniewski - The Adventures of Tintin

Rick Heinrichs - Captain America: The First Avenger

Dante Ferretti - Hugo

Mark McCreery, John Bell - Rango

Maria Djurkovic, Tom Brown - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Jack Fisk, David Crank - The Tree of Life

Best Musical Score

The Chemical Brothers - Hanna

Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Hans Zimmer - Rango

Michael Giacchino - Super 8

Alberto Iglesias - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

John Williams - War Horse

Best Sound Design

Dave Whitehead - The Adventures of Tintin

Ren Klyce - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Chuck Michael - Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Peter J. Devlin - Transformers Dark of the Moon

Erik Aadahl, Craig Berkey - The Tree of Life

Gary Rydstrom - War Horse

Best Sound Editing

Lon Bender, Victor Ray Ennis - Drive

Ren Klyce - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Christopher Scarabosio - Hanna

Philip Stockton, Eugene Gearty - Hugo

Addison Teague - Rango

Ben Burtt - Super 8

Best Make-Up

Clarisse Domine, Zoey Hay - The Artist

Lisa Westcott - Captain America

Mark Coulier, Nick Dudman, - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

Morag Ross, Anni Buchanan - Hugo

Daniel Phillips - Jane Eyre

Deborah La Mia Denaver - Super 8

Best Visual Effects

The Adventures of Tintin

Hugo

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Super 8

Transformers Dark of the Moon

The Tree of Life

Stop back on February 25th for the announcement of the 2011 Knight Award Winners!

The Could've Been Contenders 2011

By Sean Knight

Another year another Oscar season is upon us. Another year another Knight Awards.  Many have claimed that 2011 has been a weak year for film, but I have to disagree.  Perhaps the Oscar baiting studio fair was disappointing, but some of the bigger budget Hollywood projects, smaller personal films, and gritty indies pushed through to provide some great moments at the cinema this year.  The variety of projects that touched me, in one way or another, in 2011 was rather striking.  It began way back in April with Duncan Jones’s unique sci-fi tale Source Code, and pushed all the way through till December with Steven Spielberg’s unabashedly sentimental and gorgeously old fashioned War Horse.  In fact, there were so many films that I really liked in 2011 that it was rather difficult to limit my top films of the year to twenty.  I easily could have gone up to thirty, possibly even forty.  My Knight Award nominations will be announced in a few hours, but I wanted to take the opportunity to throw a shout out to a few films and performances that I just didn’t have room for in my top twenty or top awards.  These are the almost could’ve been contenders and you should seek them out if you haven’t seen them.

Source Code

Dir. Duncan Jones

A couple years ago Duncan Jones burst onto the scene with the tense character driven science fiction low budget indie, Moon.  It signaled the arrival of a major new talent and he even managed to snag my breakthrough filmmaker of year Knight Award.  His follow up project, Source Code, arrived in April of 2011.  Source Code is a big budget science fiction thriller about a man who is sent back in time to relive eight minutes aboard a explosion bound commuter train over and over again until he can find the bomber.  It’s logic is completely wonky, and it’s ending may leave something to be desired, but the picture shows a wild amount of creativity and skill from director Jones.  It also boasts some solid performances from the usually wooden Jake Gyllenhaal, the subtly sexy Michelle Monaghan, and from musical theater star Michael Arden.  The film never did catch on at the box office, but this high concept thriller had bigger cojones than 99% of the Hollywood output in the early part of the year.  I hope Jones is able to move on to bigger and better things.  Hollywood is in need of a unique and risk taking talent such as his.

Beginners

Dir. Mike Mills

Beginners is a deeply personal film for Director Mike Mills who based much of the story off of his own life.  Beginners follows the story of a young man struggling to come to terms with his fathers coming out of the closet and recent death as he meets and falls in love with a young actress.  Ewan McGregor plays the young protagonist and Melanie Laurent plays the young actress and they are sweet and affectionately portrayed by the pair.  But the film belongs to Christopher Plummer who plays the recently out and deceased father.  Plummer has never been more genuine and sympathetic as he is here. And watching a man in his 80’s discover his true self for the first time is a joyous experience.  Plummer is the frontrunner to win the Oscar for Supporting Actor next month and for very good reason.  He doesn’t fall into stereotype or cliché, but instead works hard to make us understand how a man could live with a lie for so long.   It’s a liberating performance.  He barely missed making it into my supporting actor nominations as this was a very good year and competition was stiff.  A Part of me wishes that I could still plug him in, but that would come at the expense of several other good actors. 

Jane Eyre

Dir. Cary Fukunaga

This latest adaptation of the literary classic Jane Eyre plays up the gothic elements of the story.  It is gorgeously shot and carefully crafted in all areas.  The performances from Michael Fassbender and Mia Wasikowska are fiery and downright sexy, with the latter just missing for my best actress nominations.  The films pacing is it’s weakness with a somewhat meandering sensibility, but the story remains fascinating.  By playing up the darker elements, director Fukunaga elevates the material to new realms never before explored in previous adaptations.  A worthy effort and in a weaker year it might very well be a front-runner for many an award.

The Ides of March

Dir. George Clooney

It’s almost a little unfair listing this as an almost contender considering how many nominations this film did end up getting from me.  The Ides of March is impeccable filmmaking from start to finish with sharp writing, great performances, and meticulous direction.  The problem with Ides of March is that it has nothing new to say about the political system and it’s twist ending is almost unbelievable in the context of who the candidate is supposed to be based off of.  Clooney wanted to show the dirty side of politics and the dangers of idealism, and he does so winningly, but in the end I was left thinking – so what?  Still, it’s a film that deserves to be seen and many of its performances were on the bubble of a nomination from me.  Who knows, maybe it could surprise with a couple major Oscar nominations come tomorrow morning?

Warrior

Dir. Gavin O’Connor

I’m not a sports guy and I have little interest in boxing or mixed martial arts, but that isn’t to say that great movies can’t be made about them.  Warrior is on the cusp of being a great film. It certainly is great entertainment.  The story focuses on two brothers who are competing for SPARTA and their alcoholic trainer father who wants to reunite with them.  The plot is a bit contrived and doesn’t offer anything new to the table, but it’s got a lot of heart and it’s characters are real flesh and blood people that you come to care about a great deal.  Tom Hardy continues his rise as one of the great young up and coming actors as the more introverted and damaged of the two brothers.  But, it is Nick Nolte who truly shines here as the alcoholic father trying to win back his two boys.  It’s a heartbreaking performance that hits very close to Nolte’s own personal life and he slips into the character with great ease.  There is never a false moment from him.  The film is directed with a lot of skill and it is the kind of rousing entertainment that simply makes you feel good when you leave the theater.  In many ways Warrior was a great palette cleanser after last years uneven, clichéd, and downright ugly sports awards movie juggernaut The Fighter.

The Beaver

Dir. Jodie Foster

Foster’s film was met with open hostility for both its outlandish concept and for the fact that it starred the now much hated Mel Gibson.  It’s a shame really, because while The Beaver is a bit silly in its execution it features a unique script and a truly outstanding performance from Gibson.  It’s the kind of performance that if it weren’t for all the trouble surrounding his personal life, we would be looking at a bona fide Oscar contender.  I have long said that people need to separate the art from the person, but it is understandably difficult to do when someone’s personal life is so troubled and, often times, downright disgusting.  But, it is precisely because of Gibson’s troubles that he is able to look deep into his soul and pull out such a nuanced and unsettling performance.  Gibson’s slip into madness through the use of a Beaver puppet is both hilarious and frightening, but, most importantly, believable in its every turn.  The rest of the film may not have the polish of his performance, but he is worth the price of a rental alone. 

And that is that.  Tomorrow morning brings about the announcement of the Oscar Nominations.  I will be up bright and early eagerly awaiting a surprise or two.  Will You?  Stay tuned later in the day for the announcement of the 2011 Knight Award Nominations.

Tis the Awards Season: Golden Globe Nominations

The Golden Globe Nominations have been announced! Check them out after the jump.

Tis the Awards Season: SAG Award Nominations

It's that special time of the year! It's awards season folks and boy is it shaping up to be interesting. After the jump check out the SAG award nominations. There were definately some surprises to say the least. Check 'em out after the jump.

The Steven Spielberg Retrospective Part 3: The 1990's - Schindler's List (1993)

Schindler's List

Release Date: December 15, 1993

Runtime: 195 Minutes

Awards: Won 7 Oscars-Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Director, Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, Best Picture, Best Screenplay

Read Jamie's thoughts after the jump!

The Steven Spielberg Retrospective Part 3: The 1990's - Jurassic Park (1993)

Jurassic Park

Release Date: June 11, 1993

Runtime: 127 Mins

Winner of all three Academy Awards for which it was nominated including Best Sound Effects Editing, Best Sound, and Best Visual Effects

Read our thoughts after the jump...