Probably the most important precursor of them all, the Directors Guild of America announces their nominees tomorrow. With the field of Best Picture anywhere between five and ten, the names called tomorrow morning will be essential to making the final cut in both Motion Picture and Director. Last year, the group chose Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan), David Fincher (The Social Network), David O. Russell (The Fighter), Christopher Nolan (Inception), and eventual DGA and Oscar Winner for Director Tom Hooper (The King’s Speech). Four out of the five men were nominated with Christopher Nolan, yet again, missing out at a nomination. Will this year be more telling?
This year, with a race wide open as this, it’s going to be interesting to see how this plays out. With “The Artist” as a frontrunner in various categories, director Michel Hazanavicius is locked in for a mention tomorrow. Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese are also likely mentions for “War Horse” and “Hugo.” Even when Spielberg floundered in and out of the race in 2005 for “Munich,” his Oscar nomination was locked and loaded with a DGA mention. Other contenders fighting for a spot is Terrence Malick for “The Tree of Life.” What helps Malick is, no matter what you think of his film, there are some who can still give him a salute for such an ambitious effort. With “The Help” being such a box office success and mentioned by PGA, SAG, and the Globes, Tate Taylor should be nominated tomorrow. The DGA and anyone who knows him loves Woody Allen so a nomination for “Midnight in Paris” wouldn’t be too far-fetched. As locked as “The Descendants” is for a Best Picture nomination, and a “sniff” of a backlash forming, Alexander Payne missing the DGA wouldn’t be too surprising.
Bennett Miller and “Moneyball” would be right back on the table in a big way with a nomination, given he was mentioned for his debut film, “Capote.” Same goes for George Clooney and “The Ides of March,” which has been building buzz back up for itself the past few weeks. Nicolas Winding Refn would be AWESOME! But I have to remain realistic, it’s a long shot for “Drive.” Same goes for “Shame” and Steve McQueen. Clint Eastwood’s name being mentioned would be the worst thing EVER. Period. ”J. Edgar” could have been directed better by my 10-year-old nephew. Is there still love leftover for David Fincher and “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo?” Could be. And what of “Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows Part 2″ and a nomination for the finale director, David Yates? Slim to none me thinks.
Here are the Predictions:
Woody Allen – “Midnight in Paris”
Michel Hazanavicius – “The Artist”
Martin Scorsese – “Hugo”
Steven Spielberg – “War Horse”
Tate Taylor – “The Help”
Alternate: Alexander Payne for “The Descendants”
Next Up: Bennett Miller for “Moneyball”
Surprise: Nicolas Winding Refn for “Drive” or David Fincher for “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”
Documentary Feature Predictions
Werner Herzog – “Cave of Forgotten Dreams”
Danfung Dennis – “Hell and Back Again”
Wim Wenders – “Pina”
James Marsh – “Project Nim”
Asif Kapadia – “Senna”
Alternate: “Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory”
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Tags: Article, Directors Guild of America, Editor, Hugo, Martin Scorsese, Michel Hazanavicius, Midnight in Paris, predictions, Steven Spielberg, Tate Taylor, the artist, The Help, war horse, Woody Allen
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My Predictions:
Fincher
Hazanavicius
Refn
Scorsese
Spielberg
GL(Quote) (Reply)
Michel Hazanavicius
Martin Scorsese
Nicolas Winding Refn
Bennett Miller
Alexander Payne.
Though I love Woody, I think Midnight in Paris is going to be given a script nomination, and maybe a picture. Drive has gotten more recognition/awards then War Horse. The Help is all about acting. Maybe Fincher will sneak in a nomination for his snubbed win last year.
But the 5 directors I picked did exactly what the director’s guild SHOULD be looking for. Films that are as good as they are because of direction. Could any director besides Refn make Drive a better film? Same goes for the other 4.
Alex LoSchiavo(Quote) (Reply)
Great list except for Payne. The Decendent’s has solid enough direction but little to elevate it. To be fair though I have some pretty big issues with the film’s writing so that could be clouding my judgment. Still, I think that Alfredson would be a better choice as his framing and compositions are what really made Tinker Tailor… the movie that it is.
huffy08(Quote) (Reply)
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy was flawlessly directed, and it’s a shame that it is not as popular here as it was overseas. I think most of the films that came out this year will get more public recognition when they come out on DVD/On Demand.
Alex LoSchiavo(Quote) (Reply)
i really hope Tate Taylor is not nominated tomorrow – i enjoyed The Help well enough for what it was, but it got a lot of deserved criticism for it’s limited portrayal of the hardships the domestic workers dealt with and its reliance on a ‘white savior’ framework. several specific choices from the director could have made a much more complex and interesting film – off the top of my head, when one maid is being arrested, the police beat her over the head with a nightstick and the shot cuts to the policeman rather than the impact – showing an actual beating, or showing her time in prison, etc, could have gone a long way to flesh out the stories of the maids. (plus almost every performance has notes that are too broad and should have been reeled in by the director). as far as i’m concerned it was Taylor that held the film back in almost every department – i’d be really surprised to see him get in.
craig146(Quote) (Reply)
my predictions:
woody allen
michel hazanavicius
alexander payne
martin scorsese
tate taylor
alternates:steven spielberg or bennett miller
david gufatson(Quote) (Reply)
I know that bashing Tate Taylor is going to be the hip thing this year but there is really no logical reason why he belongs on here. Even if you loved The Help I don’t see how you can argue that his direction was anything more than solid. Every single year a film with workmanlike direction scores tons of best director nominations on the strength of its colloquial popularity. I can understand (though not necessarily agree with) nominating The Help for Best Picture but why should the goodwill towards the actors bleed over into the director category?
huffy08(Quote) (Reply)