Duplicity Trailer

Here's Tony Gilroy's (Michael Clayton) next directorial project reuniting Julia Roberts and Clive Owen. It is described as a thriller but I can't help finding a kind of dark comedic tone à la Fargo, so I can't wait for this one... What do you think?

Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs Trailer

Will Scrat finally get his acorn or will he find something else entirely? Rounding up the whole cast, this will be a big hit next summer... What do you think?

1st Golden Globes Predix

DAVID

With the nominations announcement just under 3 weeks away, here's the first batch of predictions for the 66th annual Golden Globe Awards. Let's just hope there will be an actual ceremony this year...

Best Motion Picture - Drama (I'll put 6 nominees but who knows how many there will be?)
1. The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
2. Doubt
3. Frost/Nixon
4. Milk
5. The Reader
6. Revolutionary Road

Best Motion Picture - Musical/Comedy
1. Slumdog Millionaire
2. Burn After Reading
3. Happy-Go-Lucky
4. Synecdoche, New York
5. Vicky Christina Barcelona

Best Motion Picture Director
1. David Fincher - The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
2. Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire
3. Clint Eastwood - Changeling
4. Sam Mendes - Revolutionary Road
5. Gus Van Sant - Milk

Best Actor - Drama
1. Sean Penn - Milk
2. Benicio Del Toro - Che
3. Leonardo DiCaprio - Revolutionary Road
4. Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon
5. Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler

Best Actress - Drama
1. Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road
2. Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married
3. Angelina Jolie - Changeling
4. Kristin Scott Thomas - I've Loved You So Long
5. Meryl Streep - Doubt

Best Actor - Musical/Comedy
1. Philip Seymour Hoffman - Synecdoche, New York
2. Adrien Brody - Cadillac Records
3. Josh Brolin - W.
4. Dev Patel - Slumdog Millionaire
5. Brad Pitt - Burn After Reading

Best Actress - Musical/Comedy
1. Sally Hawkins - Happy-Go-Lucky
2. Elizabeth Banks - Zack And Miri Make A Porno
3. Scarlett Johansson - Vicky Christina Barcelona
4. Samantha Morton - Synecdoche, New York
5. Meryl Streep - Mamma Mia!

Best Supporting Actor
1. Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
2. Josh Brolin - Milk
3. James Franco - Milk
4. Philip Seymour Hoffman - Doubt
5. Michael Shannon - Revolutionary Road

Best Supporting Actress
1. Taraji P. Henson - The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
2. Penelope Cruz - Vicky Christina Barcelona
3. Viola Davis - Doubt
4. Marisa Tomei - The Wrestler
5. Kate Winslet - The Reader

Best Screenplay
1. The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
2. Doubt
3. Happy-Go-Lucky
4. Milk
5. Revolutionary Road

Best Original Score
1. Revolutionary Road
2. Australia
3. The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
4. Doubt
5. WALL-E

Best Original Song (I'll just put three here because the shortlist hasn't been released yet)
1. WALL-E - 'Down To Earth' (Peter Gabriel)
2. Synecdoche, New York - 'Little Person' (Jon Brion)
3. The Wrestler - 'The Wrestler' (Bruce Springsteen)

Best Animated Feature Film
1. WALL-E
2. Kung Fu Panda
3. Waltz With Bashir

I'll get back on the Foreign Language Film category later once I have a better idea of the contenders. What do you think?

BRIAN

We really need some better comedy contenders...

Best Picture - Drama
1. Revolutionary Road
2. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
3. Doubt (it won't do this well at the Oscars, but this is something the HFPA would love)
4. Milk
5. The Reader (not sure if TDK can make the cut here)

Best Picture - Musical or Comedy
1. Slumdog Millionaire
2. Happy-Go-Lucky
3. Vicky Cristina Barcelona
4. Mamma Mia! (ugh)
5. Burn After Reading (but W. seems like something they'd love)

Best Actor - Drama
1. Brad Pitt - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
2. Sean Penn - Milk
3. Leonardo DiCaprio - Revolutionary Road
4. Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon
5. Mickey Rourke - The Wreslter (Jenkins has to be in here too, but I don't know who to cut)

Best Actress - Drama
1. Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road
2. Cate Blanchett - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
3. Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married
4. Meryl Streep - Doubt
5. Kristin Scott Thomas - I've Loved You So Long (the trailer makes this look like a performance no one can ignore, but is three weeks enough time to build an audience?)

Best Actor - Musical or Comedy
1. Dev Patel - Slumdog Millionaire
2. Josh Brolin - W.
3. Dustin Hoffman - Last Chance Harvey (clearly a drama, but maybe they'll run it in this category...?)
4. Brad Pitt - Burn After Reading
5. Robert Downey, Jr. - Iron Man

Best Actress- Musical or Comedy
1. Sally Hawkins - Happy-Go-Lucky
2. Meryl Streep - Mamma Mia!
3. Emma Thompson - Last Chance Harvey
4. Rebecca Hall - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
5. Sarah Jessica Parker - Sex and the City

Best Supporting Actor
1. Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
2. Michael Shannon - Revolutionary Road
3. Philip Seymour Hoffman - Doubt
4. Josh Brolin - Milk
5. James Franco - Milk

Best Supporting Actress
1. Viola Davis - Doubt
2. Taraji P. Henson - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
3. Kate Winslet - The Reader
4. Penelope Cruz - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
5. Amy Adams - Doubt

Best Director
1. David Fincher - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
2. Gus Van Sant - Milk
3. Sam Mendes - Revolutionary Road
4. Stephen Daldry - The Reader
5. Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire

Best Screenplay
1. Revolutionary Road
2. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
3. Doubt
4. Slumdog Millionaire
5. Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Best Animated Film
1. WALL-E
2. Kung Fu Panda
3. Bolt

The Wrestler Trailer

I don't know about you, but those of you who aren't on the Mickey Rourke bandwagon yet might want to reconsider after this trailer... I have a feeling he might be a lock come February for a nomination, but there are a lot of strong contenders... What do you think?

Watchmen: New Trailer

Stunning. As a massive fan of the graphic novel, I am especially looking forward to this film on 03/06/09.

Best Documentary Race

According to indieWIRE, the Academy has named 15 films which will compete for the five slots for the Best Documentary category for the 2008 Oscars. If you want to get a better idea which films to choose, here's the list:

- At the Death House Door (Peter Gilbert, Steve James)
- The Betrayal (Ellen Kuras)
- Blessed Is the Match: The Life and Death of Hannah Senesh (Roberta Grossman)
- Encounters at the End of the World (Werner Herzog)
- Fuel (Josh Tickell)
- The Garden (Scott Hamilton Kennedy)
- Glass: A Portrait of Phillip in Twelve Parts (Scott Hicks)
- I.O.U.S.A. (Patrick Creadon)
- In a Dream (Jeremiah Zagar)
- Made in America (Stacy Peralta)
- Man on Wire (James Marsh)
- Pray the Devil Back to Hell (Gini Reticker)
- Standard Operating Procedure (Errol Morris)
- They Killed Sister Dorothy (Daniel Junge)
- Trouble the Water (Carl Deal, Tia Lessin)

We'll keep you posted...

Nothing But The Truth Trailer

The storyline for this film looks very promising. With a strong cast, we might be looking at a contender come Oscar time. What do you think?

Star Trek XI Trailer

Here's the trailer for one of the other big blockbusters scheduled for next summer. Helmed by the creator of Lost J.J. Abrams, this looks promising... What do you think?

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Trailer

One of the blockbusters for 2009, here's the new trailer for the sixth installment for the famous franchise about the famed teenage wizard. More than 300 million$? What do you think?

Updated Predix

We did this just recently, but it's that time of year where it's necessary to change them quite frequently. Critic Awards aren't far away...

DANIEL

Best Picture
1. Revolutionary Road
2. Milk
3. Slumdog Millionaire
4. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
5. The Dark Knight

Best Director
1. Gus Van Sant, Milk
2. Sam Mendes, Revolutionary Road
3. Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
4. David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
5. Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight

Best Actor
1. Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler
2. Sean Penn, Milk
3. Leonardo DiCaprio, Revolutionary Road
4. Richard Jenkins, The Visitor
5. Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon

Best Actress
1. Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road
2. Kristin Scott Thomas, I've Loved You So Long
3. Meryl Streep, Doubt
4. Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
5. Angelina Jolie, Changeling

Best Supporting Actor
1. Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
2. Josh Brolin, Milk
3. Michael Shannon, Revolutionary Road
4. Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
5. Dev Patel, Slumdog Millionaire

Best Supporting Actress
1. Viola Davis, Doubt
2. Rosemarie DeWitt, Rachel Getting Married
3. Taraji P. Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
4. Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler
5. Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Best Original Screenplay
1. Milk
2. The Visitor
3. Vicky Cristina Barcelona
4. Rachel Getting Married
5. Happy-Go-Lucky

Best Adapted Screenplay
1. Revolutionary Road
2. Slumdog Millionaire
3. Doubt
4. The Dark Knight
5. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

BRIAN
Best Picture
1. Revolutionary Road
2. The Reader
3. Slumdog Millionaire
4. Milk
5. The Dark Knight

Best Director
1. Stephen Daldry - The Reader
2. Sam Mendes - Revolutionary Road
3. Gus Van Sant - Milk
4. Baz Luhrmann - Australia
5. Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire

Best Actor
1. Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon
2. Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler
3. Sean Penn - Milk
4. Leonardo DiCaprio - Revolutionary Road
5. Ralph Fiennes - The Reader

Best Actress
1. Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road
2. Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married
3. Kristin Scott Thomas - I've Loved You So Long
4. Meryl Streep - Doubt
5. Cate Blanchett - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Best Supporting Actor
1. Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
2. Josh Brolin - Milk
3. Philip Seymour Hoffman - Doubt
4. Michael Sheen - Frost/Nixon
5. Robert Downey, Jr. - Tropic Thunder

Best Supporting Actress
1. Viola Davis - Doubt
2. Kate Winslet - The Reader
3. Marisa Tomei - The Wrestler
4. Taraji P. Henson - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
5. Amy Adams - Doubt

Best Original Screenplay
1. Milk
2. The Wrestler
3. Rachel Getting Married
4. Happy-Go-Lucky
5. Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Best Adapted Screenplay
1. Revolutionary Road
2. Slumdog Millionaire
3. The Reader
4. Doubt
5. The Dark Knight

DAVID

Best Picture
1. The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
2. The Dark Knight
3. Doubt
4. Milk
5. Revolutionary Road

Best Director
1. David Fincher – The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
2. Sam Mendes – Revolutionary Road
3. Christopher Nolan – The Dark Knight
4. Gus Van Sant – Milk
5. Steven Soderbergh – Che

Best Actor
1. Sean Penn – Milk
2. Benicio Del Toro – Che
3. Leonardo DiCaprio – Revolutionary Road
4. Frank Langella – Frost/Nixon
5. Mickey Rourke – The Wrestler

Best Actress
1. Kate Winslet – Revolutionary Road
2. Anne Hathaway – Rachel Getting Married
3. Angelina Jolie – Changeling
4. Kristin Scott Thomas – I’ve Loved You So Long
5. Meryl Streep – Doubt

Best Supporting Actor
1. Heath Ledger – The Dark Knight
2. Josh Brolin – Milk
3. Liev Schreiber – Defiance
4. Philip Seymour Hoffman – Doubt
5. Michael Shannon - Revolutionary Road

Best Supporting Actress
1. Taraji P. Henson – The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
2. Amy Adams – Doubt
3. Viola Davis – Doubt
4. Marisa Tomei – The Wrestler
5. Kate Winslet – The Reader

Original Screenplay
1. Milk
2. Happy-Go-Lucky
3. I’ve Loved You So Long
4. Synecdoche, New York
5. WALL-E

Adapted Screenplay
1. The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
2. Doubt
3. Frost/Nixon
4. Revolutionary Road
5. Slumdog Millionaire

Simply for future predictions, according to Universal Pictures' For Your Consideration, Michael Sheen is being considered in the Best Actor category and NOT for Best Supporting Actor in Frost/Nixon...

Crossing Over Trailer

An interesting project for Wayne Kramer following his surprising Running Scared. Although the subject manner may sound familiar (Crash anybody?), it still might be fun to watch. Starring Harrison Ford, Ashley Judd and Ray Liotta. Will it make a run for this year's Oscars? We'll know soon, as it says at the end. What do you think?

Why Do I Prematurely Hate Slumdog Millionaire?

On Sunday as I filled out my newest predictions and looked at Daniel's, I found both he and I were predicting Slumdog Millionaire as a strong contender, and, when the predix were accumulated, it turns out that we are predicting it to win Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay.

And why shouldn't we? Early reviews have been wonderful, there are few other contenders and it's about time that an independent dramadey took the top honor.

And yet...I just don't get it. I've loved all of the out-of-the-blue comedy contenders of recent years: Juno, Little Miss Sunshine, Sideways, Adaptation, etc. But I just don't feel the same way about Slumdog...at all. When I first heard the premise, I thought it sounded like a thesis film for a high school scriptwriting class. Obviously, I haven't seen the film, and there's still a good chance that I'll end up loving it like everyone else. But I just can't shake this feeling that I'll be the black sheep of this bandwagon.

We'll see how it plays out. What do you all think? Will Slumdog Millionaire be the indie hit of the season, or was its buzz short-lived?

Predix Revamp

DANIEL

Best Picture
1. Milk
2. Slumdog Millionaire
3. Doubt
4. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
5. The Dark Knight

Best Director
1. Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
2. Gus Van Sant, Milk
3. David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
4. Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight
5. Baz Luhrmann, Australia

Best Actor
1. Sean Penn, Milk
2. Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler
3. Clint Eastwood, Gran Torino
4. Leonardo DiCaprio, Revolutionary Road
5. Richard Jenkins, The Visitor

Best Actress
1. Kristin Scott Thomas, I've Loved You So Long
2. Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road
3. Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
4. Meryl Streep, Doubt
5. Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky

Best Supporting Actor
1. Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
2. Josh Brolin, Milk
3. Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
4. Dev Patel, Slumdog Millionaire
5. Robert Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder

Best Supporting Actress
1. Viola Davis, Doubt
2. Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler
3. Taraji P. Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
4. Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
5. Kate Winslet, The Reader

Best Original Screenplay
1. Milk
2. Rachel Getting Married
3. The Visitor
4. Vicky Cristina Barcelona
5. Happy-Go-Lucky

Best Adapted Screenplay
1. Slumdog Millionaire
2. Doubt
3. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
4. The Dark Knight
5. Frost/Nixon

BRIAN

Best Picture
1. Revolutionary Road
2. The Reader
3. Slumdog Millionaire
4. Frost/Nixon
5. The Dark Knight

Best Director
1. Stephen Daldry - The Reader
2. Baz Luhrmann - Australia
3. Sam Mendes - Revolutionary Road
4. Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire
5. Gus Van Sant - Milk

Best Actor
1. Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon
2. Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler
3. Sean Penn - Milk
4. Leonardo DiCaprio - Revolutionary Road
5. Dev Patel - Slumdog Millionaire

Best Actress
1. Kate Winslet - Revolutionary Road
2. Kristin Scott Thomas - I've Loved You So Long
3. Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married
4. Kate Beckinsale - Nothing But the Truth
5. Meryl Streep - Doubt

Best Supporting Actor
1. Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
2. Philip Seymour Hoffman - Doubt
3. Josh Brolin - Milk
4. Liev Schreiber - Defiance
5. Robert Downey, Jr. - Tropic Thunder

Best Supporting Actress
1. Viola Davis - Doubt
2. Kate Winslet - The Reader
3. Amy Adams - Doubt
4. Taraji P. Henson - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
5. Penelope Cruz - Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Best Original Screenplay
1. Rachel Getting Married
2. Happy-Go-Lucky
3. Vicky Cristina Barcelona
4. Milk
5. I've Loved You So Long

Best Adapted Screenplay
1. Revolutionary Road
2. Slumdog Millionaire
3. Frost/Nixon
4. Doubt
5. The Reader

DAVID

Best Picture
1. The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
2. Doubt
3. Milk
4. Revolutionary Road
5. Slumdog Millionaire

Best Director
1. David Fincher – The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
2. Clint Eastwood – Changeling
3. Sam Mendes – Revolutionary Road
4. Gus Van Sant – Milk
5. Steven Soderbergh – Che

Best Actor
1. Sean Penn – Milk
2. Benicio Del Toro – Che
3. Frank Langella – Frost/Nixon
4. Brad Pitt – The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
5. Mickey Rourke – The Wrestler

Best Actress
1. Angelina Jolie – Changeling
2. Anne Hathaway – Rachel Getting Married
3. Kristin Scott Thomas – I’ve Loved You So Long
4. Meryl Streep – Doubt
5. Kate Winslet – The Reader

Best Supporting Actor
1. Heath Ledger – The Dark Knight
2. Josh Brolin – Milk
3. Liev Schreiber – Defiance
4. Philip Seymour Hoffman – Doubt
5. Michael Sheen – Frost/Nixon

Best Supporting Actress
1. Taraji P. Henson – The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
2. Amy Adams – Doubt
3. Viola Davis – Doubt
4. Vera Farmiga – Nothing But The Truth
5. Marisa Tomei – The Wrestler

Best Original Screenplay
1. Milk
2. Happy-Go-Lucky
3. I’ve Loved You So Long
4. Synecdoche, New York
5. WALL-E

Best Adapted Screenplay
1. The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
2. Doubt
3. Frost/Nixon
4. Revolutionary Road
5. Slumdog Millionaire

It's a real shame The Road won't contend this year. This was the movie I wanted to see this season especially since I read the novel. I hope the Weinsteins will be able to market it for next year.

Up Trailer

Here's Pixar's next great picture from director Pete Docter (Monster's Inc.) Pixar has a long history frontrunning the Animated Feature Film category (we'll see if WALL-E continues the tradition), so we should keep a close eye on this one. Featuring the voice of Edward Asner as Carl Frederickson. What do you think?

Che Trailer

Here's the new trailer for the upcoming two-part film on Che Guevara. From the Oscar-winning team of Traffic, director Steven Soderbergh and Benicio Del Toro as the Argentine revolutionary. Expect them both to compete in their respective categories. What do you think?

Monsters vs Aliens trailer

Could this be one of the contenders for the Animated Feature Film category of 2009? We'll see... Featuring the voice talents of Seth Rogen, Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon, Jack Bauer and Dr. House :-) What do you think?

Good Trailer

According to the Internet Movie Database, this movie should be released on December 31st (I'm guessing in limited release). Pending that's the case, Viggo Mortensen might still have a shot at a nomination for Best Actor (due to the unfortunate setback of The Road), so we'll keep an eye out for this one. What do you think?

Cadillac Records Trailer

I have a feeling this might score big at the Golden Globes, but this might stir up a couple runs in the acting categories... In fact I might not be surprised if they try to push for Jeffrey Wright or Mos Def. I don't think Beyoncé or Adrien Brody can muster Oscar nominations, but in a year where a lot of early Oscar contenders are pushed back to 2009, you just never know. What do you think?

The Reader Trailer

Kate Winslet might be looking at a split in the Best Actress category with this film and Revolutionary Road, but this role might be more Oscar bait, so look for it to make waves come Oscar time. What do you think?