The Storylines
Maybe I'm crazy but I'd call this one of the strongest field of contenders in a long while. Something about this season just seemed on the right track. Not only did box office bounce back but film quality did as well, which always makes for an interesting awards season. That being said...
It's hard to look past Don't Hang Up and Doctor Love as the two major contenders. They seem poised to duke it out all over the ceremony, with the clear winner already have been decided: Mo Buck, obviously. Either way, with those two being the big standouts, I think it is clear that we must declare Season 12 as The Season of the Comedy.
Comedies rarely climb high in nominations so to see two do it is unheard of. Not to mention: the highest grossing film of the season also relied heavily on comedic elements. I'd say that this kind of inclusion of different genres is good for the GRAs going forward and may open the door for some surprises in the future.
This was also a very strong season for original stories. Both of the previously mentioned films, Ypsilanti, Cold, Orchid, Our Father, Time Passages, Under Pressure, Depth Perception, The Mutation. Excuse my French but...holy shit! I've always found that the studio is at its strongest when it is flexing its original storytelling muscles and that is certainly the case this season. Hopefully there is more of this in the future!
One other trend I noticed among the roles of this season is the common trend to put actresses in victim roles. The two most obvious are in Cold and Ypsilanti, where both of its nominated actresses were the victims of sick murders. Similarly, Anna Kendrick received a nomination for the lead in a horror/thriller, which obviously had some nuance to it. Alice Eve's character in Doctor Love was trying to escape an abusive relationship. And, hell, even Orchid and Under Pressure feature two protagonists who are victims of celebrity culture and overbearing parents. This isn't a comment on the quality of the parts or the performances, just that there seems to be a trend there.
The Surprises & Snubs
Snub: Lupita Nyong’o - This is probably the most glaring snub of this nominations season, given the typical shallowness of the Best Actress pool. Sure, the role itself was very awards-friendly but that doesn’t mean Lupita’s performance was any less worthy of praise. Anya Taylor-Joy probably nabbed the final spot, which was a bit surprising given the minimal amount of dialogue her character was given in Ypsilanti.
Surprise: Jeff Nichols - Per usual, the director category was stacked and so it was a little surprising to see Nichols sneak in for Scion 3's only nomination. Granted, Director is typically the one category of the big ones to land an outside nominee but, even then, that is usually applicable to big names (like Soderbergh for Carmilla in Season 6). For example, Guillermo del Toro seems like a prime candidate for that spot this season. I have a sneaking suspicion that part of this is a lifetime-achievement nomination for the Scion franchise's contributions to LRF. Either way, the studio has to be pretty happy with this given that they've already handed the keys to Nichols for their major Superman project.
Snub: Melanie Laurent - As I just said, the director category was stacked. Fincher. Villeneuve. Soderbergh. Hell, even Tom McCarthy missed out despite his highly-acclaimed film. But I feel like Laurent is the biggest snub, given how much she added to Under Pressure. There were a lot of way that that film could've been a middle-of-the-road sports drama but Laurent was an inspired choice and brought a very level-headed approach to the material.
Snub: Taron Egerton - Speaking of Scion, this felt like the one other area that the film could've gotten recognition (it also had a shot with Production Design). You could say that Egerton was snubbed for Scion 2, but even then the character was still developing his villainous persona. But in Scion 3, Luqan became a strong presence in the franchise, posing a threat to humans and hybrids alike. One might think that he may have lost out to a bigger name like Tom Hanks, who is one of many "villains" in that film but is much more "cold" compared to the edgier younger versions of the villains.
Surprise: Alice Eve & Jon Hamm - Doctor Love was the highest nominated film of the season and these two nominations were probably its two most unexpected. Having the titular role in a highly-acclaimed film is obviously a good spot for Hamm but the part is more of a straight man compared to the colorful characters that surround him. His love interest in Alice Eve was in a weaker category but she also was a bit lost in a sea of big personalities. However, her personal issues are one of the film's more obvious dramatic plot lines (along with fellow nominee Wyatt Russell) so it isn't too surprising.
Snub: Our Father - As previous mentioned, this was a strong season for original stories but I felt that Our Father would've had a shot in that category. I'm guessing that the supernatural elements - no matter how minor - were detrimental to its chances. It did land two acting nominations, and you'd have to think that a name like Michelle Williams had a shot in Supporting Actress as well.
Surprise: Swamp Thing - I don't know if anyone could've guessed that this film would come out with 5 nominations. A late-round bump might be a potential cause but you have to give APJ props for his strong casting in this lesser property.
Snub: Jack Reynor & Michael Stuhlbarg - And finally, the outsiders of the Best Actor category. Between Days Without End and Torso (plus Suzanne last season), Reynor's rise is a storyline to look out for, even if he didn't get nominated this season. Meanwhile, in my opinion, Stuhlbarg was the real standout of Cold despite being one of the lesser name son the marquee.
The Returns
Previous Winners:
Steven Soderbergh - As previously mentioned, Soderbergh makes his return to the GRAs after his Best Picture win in Season 6. The two nominations couldn't be anymore different: for Carmilla, he was the film's only representation while for Doctor Love he is one of nine.
Ryan Reynolds & Jake Gyllenhaal - Both of these leading men (and famous superheroes) have won in ancillary categories in the past. Reynolds won Best Starring Couple with Brie Larson for Uncharted and has a chance to win it again with Michael Keaton. Fellow Best Actor nominee Gyllenhaal won Best Ensemble for Heavy Rain, a film he had the lead part for. Torso marks the fourth time Jake has been nominated for Best Ensemble.
Dwight Gallo & John Malone - Two notable writers for the studio made their first LRF appearances since Season 9 and both landed nominations in categories they've already won. Ypsilanti is notable for being Gallo's first Original Story nomination since Blackwater, which he won for all the way back in Season 2. Meanwhile, we all know Malone's prowess in the Adaptation game, having won four of the first five awards in that category. This is his first adaptation since Season 6, when he won for Death Dream.
Previous Nominees:
Shia LaBeouf - Just last season Shia was in the Newcomers category but here he is with back-to-back Supporting Actor nominations. Last season he was nominated for The Raven.
Emma Stone - Stone is now two-for-two in nominations for her first two films with the studio. She was nominated for Supporting Actress in Haute Couture.
David Fincher - One of the more surprising elements of the season was the quick turnaround between jobs for Fincher, who had just directed The Devil in the White City last season. This was clearly a smart decision as it washed the taste of that one out of our mouths and landed him his second nomination after his LRF debut with Survivor in Season 6.
The Newcomers
ACTRESSES - Well...I mentioned Emma Stone and, believe it or not, she is the only nominated actress who had received any type of nomination in the past. This field spans from A-Listers (Stone) to seasoned veterans like Debra Winger to relative newcomers (Anya Taylor-Joy) and lesser-knowns (Astrid Berges-Frisbey). The right kind of variety, if you ask me.
Wyatt Russell - The Chad Taylor regular has frequently worked for the studio and has landed his first individual nomination for his work as General Rhett Gunn in Doctor Love (plus he received double nominations in the Ensemble category).
Jimmy Ellis - Finally some new blood in the writing categories. Despite being here for three seasons, Ellis is getting to become one of the studio's most steady contributors, having seen his script total increase every season thus far.
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