The Broadcast Film Critics nominations have covered all the bases — too many, as usual, as far as the ten Best Picture noms are concerned. (Why not twelve? why not fifteen? Spread it around.) But their choices are tasteful and well-considered, for the most part. Seven nominations each for Babel (but no Best Director nom for Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu), The Departed, Little Miss Sunshine and Dreamgirls… plus both a Best Picture and a Best Foreign Film nomination for Letters From Iwo Jima. What, they couldn’t decide? I guess they’re just trying to up the odds of Clint coming away with a prize.
Two Best Actor noms for Leonardo DiCaprio (The Departed, Blood Diamond) either means a cancel -out factor (most likely) or that Leo has a shot at actually taking one from The Last King of Scotland‘s Forrest Whitaker.
There is, of course, one bizarre omisssion in the Best Foreign Language Film category: Florian Von Henckel Donnermarck‘s The Lives of Others . I can’t quite say this German-language film is “better” than Pan’s Labyrinth or Volver, my other two favorites in this exceptionally bountiful category, but it unquestionably delivers more, I feel, in the way of a symphonic, rock-your-world dramatic payoff. Either the BFCA nominators didn’t see it (inexcusable) or they’re playing political games for the sake of political gain.
This hypothesis seems not only credible but persuasive in light of the BFCA having included Mel Gibson‘s Apocalypto as one of its Best Foreign Film nominees. What is that…a sop to Disney along with a chance that they can get Gibson to attend the awards ceremony?
Of all the Best Young Actor nominees, Little Miss Sunshine‘s Paul Dano gives the deepest, funniest andmost expressive performance. This guy, for me, is easily as affecting and on-target as Alan Arkin and Steve Carell are in their Sunshine roles.