Let The "Aw Shucks, For Me?" Speeches Begin

I don't know if it's been a lack of movies that I really want to see (or at least, movies I want to see that didn't get slammed by the critics) or that I haven't had time between work and a good TV season (which may soon disappear anyhow) but I'm TOTALLY behind on the movies and usually I can have some input when the awards list comes out but this year I got nothing.

Anyways, the first major "awards", the National Board of Review was announced yesterday (what? the Golden Satellite Awards don't count? Actually, I never even heard about them until Manuel at A Blog Next Door mentioned them, though I do have to give them props for nominating Shoot 'Em Up (my review here) in the Best Comedy Movie category. What the? As some of you may not know but this blog was started due to that movie (I won't get into the details but if you like this blog, you can basically thank that movie for it in some weird roundabout way)) and while the NBR is usually the least "important" of the critical bunch with the most mainstream choices, it's also the most mainstream of choices and at least starts narrowing down the Oscar field a slight bit, especially in this year where there really isn't any clear front runner at this point.

The National Board of Review usually announces one Best Picture and then 10 more runners up (in no order) and this year they gave the critically acclaimed No Country For Old Men the top award. I haven't seen it yet, partly because I'm afraid of the violence, though I've been told I'll like it.

The runners up though is an interesting list. The Bucket List? Really? It looked BAD to me but never underestimate Hollywood's love for Jack Nicholson AND Morgan Freeman. Yah Bourne Ultimatum and Juno!

Best Film: No Country For Old Men

Runners-Up: (In Alphabetical order)
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
Atonement
The Bourne Ultimatum (My Review)
The Bucket List
Into The Wild
Juno (My Review)
The Kite Runner
Lars and the Real Girl
Michael Clayton
Sweeney Todd

Director: Tim Burton for Sweeney Todd (Never underestimate the previously unrewarded fondness for Burton with Depp)
Actor: George Clooney for Michael Clayton (Never underestimate a chance to reward a Hollywood hottie A-lister when they actually act in something "important")
Actress: Julie Christie for Away From Her (Never underestimate the love to reward the old Hollywood guard and indirectly award a new young prodigy in director Sarah Polley)
Supporting Actor: Casey Affleck for The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (Never underestimate the urge to reward the lesser known brother to give him the light to move beyond the shadow)
Supporting Actress: Amy Ryan for Gone Baby Gone (Never underestimate the love to brand a newcomer a star)
Foreign Film: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Never underestimate the power of eyelids)
Breakthrough Actress: Ellen Page for Juno (Never underestimate Juno MacDuff!)
Breakthrough Actor: Emile Hirsch for Into The Wild (Never underestimate the the need to reward a teenage sex-comedy star when he does something "important")
Directorial Debut: Ben Affleck for Gone Baby Gone (Never underestimate Hollywood's love for actors turned director, a comeback story, and propping up their youngun's)
Original Screenplay: (tie) Lars and the Real Girl and Juno (Never underestimate movies shot in Canada)
Adapted Screenplay: No Country For Old Men (Never underestimate the power of a bob hairdo)
Ensemble Cast: No Country For Old Men (Never underestimate evil)
Animated Feature: Ratatouille (Never underestimate a rat) (My Review)Documentary: Body of War (Never underestimate things I've never heard of)

So what's missing?:

Usually I would have a long list by now but again, I'm WAY behind in my movie watch, so about the only thing I could see missing that I think deserves some award attention is Knocked Up at this point (my review here)

Here were the movies I was originally excited about when I did the Fall Movie Preview back in early fall, most have turned into duds with the exception of my December picks:

September
October
November
December