2012 Oscar Nominations!

Best Motion Picture of the Year
Nominees:

• The Artist (2011): Thomas Langmann
• The Descendants (2011): Jim Burke, Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor
• Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (2011): Scott Rudin
• The Help (2011): Brunson Green, Chris Columbus, Michael Barnathan
• Hugo (2011/II): Graham King, Martin Scorsese
• Midnight in Paris (2011): Letty Aronson, Stephen Tenenbaum
• Moneyball (2011): Michael De Luca, Rachael Horovitz, Brad Pitt
• The Tree of Life (2011): Nominees to be determined
• War Horse (2011): Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role
Nominees:

• Demián Bichir for A Better Life (2011)
• George Clooney for The Descendants (2011)
• Jean Dujardin for The Artist (2011)
• Gary Oldman for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)
• Brad Pitt for Moneyball (2011)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Nominees:

• Glenn Close for Albert Nobbs (2011)
• Viola Davis for The Help (2011)
• Rooney Mara for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
• Meryl Streep for The Iron Lady (2011)
• Michelle Williams for My Week with Marilyn (2011)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Nominees:

• Kenneth Branagh for My Week with Marilyn (2011)
• Jonah Hill for Moneyball (2011)
• Nick Nolte for Warrior (2011)
• Christopher Plummer for Beginners (2010)
• Max von Sydow for Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (2011)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role
Nominees:

• Bérénice Bejo for The Artist (2011)
• Jessica Chastain for The Help (2011)
• Melissa McCarthy for Bridesmaids (2011)
• Janet McTeer for Albert Nobbs (2011)
• Octavia Spencer for The Help (2011)

Best Achievement in Directing
Nominees:

• Woody Allen for Midnight in Paris (2011)
• Michel Hazanavicius for The Artist (2011)
• Terrence Malick for The Tree of Life (2011)
• Alexander Payne for The Descendants (2011)
• Martin Scorsese for Hugo (2011/II)

See the rest of the nominees after the break.

Warrior

Brendan, the youngest son of Paddy, an alcoholic former boxer returns home, where he’s trained by his father for competition in a mixed martial arts tournament — a path that puts the fighter on a collision corner with his older brother Tommy.

IMDb – 8.3

RottenTomatoes – 83%

Moneyball

The story of Oakland A’s general manager Billy Beane’s successful attempt to put together a baseball club on a budget by employing computer-generated analysis to draft his players.

IMDb

RottenTomatoes

Now that it’s almost Oscar season, with the nominations being released in just a few days now, this movie is getting a lot of talk, from Best Movie and Best Actor to Supporting Actor and Best Adapted Screenplay. Brad Pitt is a favorite among many for best actor, and Jonah Hill is easily going to earn a nomination for his supporting role. And then you have the award winning Aaron Sorkin adapting the screenplay, looking for his second straight Oscar for the subject.

Read the rest of my review after the break.

The Thing

At an Antarctica research site, the discovery of an alien craft leads to a confrontation between graduate student Kate Lloyd and scientist Dr. Sander Halvorson.

IMDb – 64%

RottenTomatoes – 35%

Let me start off by saying that “horror” movies, if people wish to call them that, are my least favorite kind of movie ever. I never find them horrifying or scary, and usually the production is absolutely terrible. But 2012 is a new year and I want to give these movies a chance. I’ll be honest, I’m only watching this movie because Mary Elizabeth Winstead [Live Free or Die Hard, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World] is in it, and I want to marry her. Or do other things to her, but let’s not get into that.

Read the rest of my review after the break.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

In the bleak days of the Cold War, espionage veteran George Smiley is forced from semi-retirement to uncover a Soviet agent within MI6’s echelons.

IMDb

RottenTomatoes

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, based off of the book written by John le Carre, is a movie that has gotten a lot of attention and praise from most every outlet. The first notable thing when looking at this movie is the cast. Lead by the infamous Gary Oldman, this movie includes Colin Firth, John Hurt, Mark Strong, Toby Jones, Tom Hardy, and many others. With all the the aforementioned being originally from England, and the plot being about England, you can imagine how big this movie is over there. Almost an “ode to the country” sort of thing. I think that is a really cool idea for a movie, and after seeing it in action, I can say that it is damn effective, even though I am not English myself.

Read the rest of my review after the break.