The Storylines:
The biggest story of this awards ceremony is certainly Wish You Were Here, which has officially broken the record for most nominations in a single ceremony with 11. That record used to be tied at 10 between six different films. This might be the most surprising stat of the entire ceremony: since it did not put forward nominations in the Best Villain and Most Wanted Sequel category, WYWH was nominated in every single category that it was eligible for. While this is already a major achievement, a run of wins could solidify it as one of the best films in LRF history. The sights are set on the record of seven wins for The Prisoner back in season 3.
This also follows up a major story that I touched on last season. In the Season 19 edition of this post, I was quoted as saying "If last season was the season of Gallo, this might be the season of Horne." While that was surely the case then given he had two big hits, the nomination success of WYWH only further confirms the coronation of Roy Horne as one of LRF's most successful writers. Another ripple effect of the success of this film, along with a respectable showing by Boys of the Bayou, is that this is one of the most diverse acting line-ups in quite some time.
But focusing solely on WYWH would overlook three other films that received seven or more nominations. Risico and Stepford both notched nine nominations each. With the likes of Chris Nolan and John Malone associated with it, LRF's first James Bond film is certainly one to keep an eye on. Stepford, meanwhile, has had one of the most interesting paths to production in the history of LRF. It would be a truly remarkable story if it ends up with a Best Picture win under its belt. And then you have Sinatra at 7 nominations, which lagged behind the others because of a lack of supporting nominations. That being said, it has the powerhouse duo of DiCaprio-Scorsese in its corner and that is nothing to sneeze at. This is all to say that this could be one of the most exciting Best Picture races we've ever had.
You'll notice in the sections below that this ceremony is actually pretty heavy on first-time nominees. While there are a few previous winners in the bunch, it seems very likely that there will be some first-time winners throughout the night. This is obviously an exciting prospect for a studio now completing its 20th season. Another major storyline to be on the lookout for is the cover Golden Reel of Achievement award. This is given out once every five seasons and so this will be the only fourth time it is handed out. It is difficult to even speculate about who could be in contention given the plethora of options. Past winners of the award include Tom Cruise, Mo Buck, Chad Taylor, and John Malone.
The Surprises & Snubs:
Snub: If We Know the Right Way - For a film that was fairly well received, it was a bit tough to see this totally shut out. This likely boils down to a combination of the difficult subject matter and a cast of people primarily unknown internationally.
Surprise: Risico Supporting Actors - It was not a surprise that the latest Bond film was ever present on nominations day. It was perhaps a little surprising, though, that Sally Hawkins and Richard E. Grant were both nominated for the film.
Snub: Production Design of Sinatra and The Emperor of Latium - The production design at LRF has steadily improved over the last few seasons so it is no surprise that there will be some snubs in this category. I was personally a fan of the simplistic classic look of Sinatra while the production design was one of the strongest elements of The Emperor of Latium.
Surprise: Emma Roberts - Coming into awards season, the fourth slot in the Best Actress category was almost always going to be some sort of surprise. We don't often get horror nominees in these main categories but this was a welcome surprise.
Snub: Jeff Bridges - It is not always easy getting nominated for a film that received mixed-to-poor reviews. That being said, I found Bridges to play his part well and it would be nice if he gets a role worthwhile of a GRA nomination at some point in the future.
Previous Winners:
Leonardo DiCaprio - We all know the story by now: three films, three Best Actor statuettes. Four for four?
Emma Stone - Emma is now a three-time nominee after being nominated in Best Supporting Actress for Haute Couture and winning Best Actress in Season 12 for Under Pressure.
Christopher Nolan - While he does not have a perfect record like Leo, Nolan is 2-for-3 with Best Director (and Best Picture) wins for both The Prisoner and Caesar.
Previous Nominees:
Idris Elba - This Best Actor nominee was previously nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category for his role in The Great Beyond.
Anne Hathaway - While she has yet to win a GRA, Anne has been nominated for every role that she's had in LRF with this Best Villain nomination. This follows double nominations for both Calamity and Eileen.
James Spader - Speaking of villains, Spader is a previous nominee in this same category after having been nominated for Don't Hang Up.
Wyatt Russell - Elba's Wish You Were Here co-star was previously nominated in Season 12 for his role as General Rhett Gunn in Doctor Love.
Emma Roberts - While her nomination might have been a surprise, this is actually her second time being nominated for Best Actress after getting recognized for The Stand.
Dan Stevens - This nomination only keeps Stevens' hot streak going. He was nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category for his part in Elysian. His last two films before Bond won Best Picture - could Risico make it three-in-a-row?
The Newcomers:
Carl Flimmer - Flimmer has been writing for the studio since Season 2, primarily with video game adaptations. Stepford, for which he was nominated for Best Adaptation alongside Lon Charles, is his tenth film for LRF and lowest-grossing financially.
Wyatt Allen - On the flip side, Wyatt Allen has announced his arrival in the form of a Best Original Story nomination with only his second film.
Denzel Washington - Long considered one of the greatest actors of his generation, this marks Washington's first Golden Reel Award nomination. That being said, he did it in his second film as he debuted in LRF back in Season 15 with Bastion.
Best Supporting Actress - All four actresses in this category - Hawkins, Nathalie Emmanuel, Jurnee Smollett, Gemma Arterton - have all had LRF careers before this season but this marks their first nomination.
Best Supporting Actor (sans Russell) - Outside of Wyatt Russell, this category makes 7 of the 8 supporting actor nominees to be first-timers. Samuel L. Jackson had the most films up until this point, with Boys of the Bayou being his eighth LRF film.
Margaret Qualley & Gugu Mbatha-Raw - These two actresses are both first-time nominees but have been around at the studio for quite some time. Qualley debuted in Season 1's Paradise Lost and Observance was her sixth LRF film. Mbatha-Raw made her debut in The Prisoner back in season 3 and Wish You Were Here was her seventh film at the studio.
Tom Ellis & Boris Kodjoe - Both of these Best Villain nominees made their debuts in the big-budget films for which they were nominated.
Martin Scorsese - Marty debuted at the studio in Season 1 with The Raven in the Night and has not been seen at LRF since. With Sinatra, his second LRF film, Scorsese is now a Best Director nominee.
Joe Wright - Unlike Scorsese, Wright has had a quietly consistent career at LRF. Wish You Were Here is his fifth film for the studio over the span of 18 seasons and his first Best Director nomination.
Season 21 Preview:
We can look ahead a bit to look at what is coming in the future as LRF kicks off a new era. GRA-nominee Carl Flimmer returns to the Resident Evil franchise to kick off the season. If Roy Horne's hot streak continues, then Wolf is certainly worth keeping an eye out for. It reunites him with Nicholas Winding Refn, a perennial GRA favorite, and has the star power of Bradley Cooper. There are two films in Rookie's Road and My Musical Adventure in Another World as An Old Man! that seem like unpredictable prepositions on paper. And then there is also more traditional fare like The Water Cure. No matter what, I look forward to writing about another season of Last Resort Films! See you then...
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