• Before you refresh yourselves on the week’s events here at The Awards Circuit, I have but one favor to ask of you all: Go. See. Argo. Now. Don’t worry, I can wait for two hours. Done? Great — please share your thoughts here! Now on to the weekly recap…We began the week by, of course, continuing our monthly special of 31 Days of Horror. Beginning with a countdown of the best horror films #50-41 and ending with a “Did You Know?” episode that had a touch of awards seasoning, there was plenty to be frightened about this week!
  

• This week’s Power Hour featured some more NYFF talk, reactions to Seth MacFarlane as 2013′s official Oscar® host, a discussion on the “Best Original Song” category, and a quick run through of the major categories. Every day the race becomes simultaneously foggier and clearer, and it’s our job to weed out the sure-bets from the over hyped and undersold. Hopefully these podcast episodes are a clear demonstration of where our heads are at in this crazy race! Speaking of NYFF, our coverage continued with reports on Elle Fanning’s new film, Ginger and Rosa.

• Reviews for the week are as follows: The First Time, Detropia, Lincoln, Argo, Nashville, The Details, Sinister, Smashed, and The Sessions. New trailers included Lindsey Lohan’s The Canyons, Hitchcock, Django Unchained, Zero Dark Thirty and Gangster Squad.

• Which new release found itself the lucky winner of Joey’s DVD-Pick-of-the-Week? I’ll give you a hint: following last year’s Mission Impossible — Ghost Protocol, it’s the rare fourth film in a canonical franchise to out-gross its predecessors. Yep, that’s right, it’s the incredibly decisive undeniably masterful Prometheus. With a host of bonus features and insightful audio commentaries, this should be one of the best bangs for your buck when it comes to 2012′s DVD/Blu-Ray selections. For his vintage choice, Joey went with Gone Baby Gone and The Town in appropriate honor of Ben Affleck’s latest outing, Argo. I’m no fan of Gone Baby Gone, and felt The Town had glaring imperfections despite impressive craftsmanship, but Argo is the Affleck movie that won me over. If anything, watching all three demonstrates Affleck’s movie-by-movie improvement. Now that we’re on the subject of Affleck, check out whether Joey thinks the director and star of Argo could be seeing a “Best Actor” nod for next year’s ceremony in his Sizing Up series.

• There were a slew of new announcements that came from AMPAS, motion picture studios and foreign countries in relation to Oscars 2013. The first is that are going to be 71 countries — a record number — that will submit their films for “Best Foreign Language Film” consideration. AMPAS also released a shortlist of the eight contenders that will duke it out for a spot in the 5-slot “Best Documentary Short Subject” category. Finally, the major studios have been activating their “For Your Consideration” pages on their respective sites. Click here to check out all the info, including a hugely surprising campaign reveal.

• Television continued its usual habit of shocks and surprises. The Voice‘s Battle Rounds were surprisingly strengthened in quality by the addition of the “steal” feature. Meanwhile, Dancing with the Stars: All-Stars continued to prove just how much power Bristol and Kirstie’s fans have on this program. Despite scoring the lowest two weeks in a row, they managed to outlast two former winners of the popular dancing program. Let’s see what transpires in a few week’s time…

• The week’s most salient event was the trip overseas to the London Film Festival, courtesy of our on-site man with the screening plan, Daniel Ashtiany. Daniel is doing a terrific job covering the daily LFF proceedings, and it’s especially wonderful to hear incredible feedback on films that may be completely invisible on our movie radar (i.e., Laurence Anyways). Thanks to Mr. Ashtiany, The Awards Circuit is now physically global, too! Please do yourself a favor and check out his Day One (Parts 1 and 2), Day Two, Day Three and Day Four diaries! Once again, thank you all for your readership and dedication to this growing entertainment site. I know I always say this, but some even bigger things are coming your way soon, including some huge announcements and articles that will make you smile from ear to ear! Stay tuned, Awards Circuit devotees…

About Joseph Braverman

My name is Joseph Braverman. I am 24 years old and a recent graduate from the University of California, Santa Cruz with a Bachelor of Arts in Film and Digital Media. I love watching and analyzing films and television shows. I have a huge obsession with "Best Of" or "Top #" lists. I am currently living in Los Angeles, CA, trying to become enmeshed in the movie industry scene in any way possible. Don't forget to follow me on Twitter @JBAwardsCircuit.

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