Best Picture
The likely nominees:
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo -- The trailer and sneak footage were the most impressive I've seen so far. Fincher's meticulous touch is evident and he's in fine form. There's some question about whether Oscar voters will nominate a remake of a dark and violent pulp novel but Fincher is a favorite and he could swing a nomination.
In the Land of Blood and Honey - The 2nd most impressive trailer I've seen. If the film is as good as I expect it to be, this should also be a lock for a nod. And it's my bet to win it all -- the look, feel and subject matter are right up the Academy's alley. For sheer ambition alone this rises far above the rest.
The Descendants - Critics are divided with many saying this is one of Payne's weaker efforts but it's still widely considered a frontrunner. Personally, I was underwhelmed as I felt it didn't connect as deeply emotionally as it should have and some of the humor was awkward. But George looks like he's a shoo-in for a nom.
Midnight in Paris - This was a strong contender after it premiered in Cannes but hasn't figured in the conversation recently. Still, there's a better than even chance it will get in.
Moneyball - Another well-loved film and it may have enough passionate supporters to get the requisite 5% vote. Brad is neck and neck with George in the Best Actor race and I feel he delivers a better performance. And as noted earlier, Brad is due.
The Artist - A small, delightful jewel of a film that just might win enough votes to get a nod. Jean Dujardin should get a nom -- and his dog should get a supporting actor nod.
War Horse - Looks treacly but one can never underestimate the power of Spielberg + a rousing John Williams score.
May miss the cut:
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - A lot rides on the talent and charisma of the young actor playing Hanks' and Bullocks' son and he didn't impress in the trailer. Still, director Stephen Daldry is an Academy favorite and with that cast, it could get in if the field is weak.
J.Edgar - The trailer looked embarrassingly bad and I think we can forget about a nom for Leo. Clint should slow down a little and not churn out films in rapid succession as the last few have been mediocre. Changeling was his last good film and even that could have been better.
The Iron Lady - Pundits are already giving the Best Actress to Streep but to me she looked like she was mugging it. If we're going to give an award for mimicking we might as well give it to Michelle Williams in My Week with Marilyn -- another weak film. I don't have high expectations from the director of Mamma Mia so I don't think this will be a contender.
Tree of Life - It has a small but passionate group of supporters although they ultimately may not have the numbers to get in.
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy - The trailer was the 3rd most impressive I've seen and early reviews are strong, but spy thrillers are not usually considered Oscar material. Gary Oldman is getting raves and may receive an acting nomination.
Harry Potter 7.2 - It made a ton of money and comparisons have been made with LOTR - Return of the King but I don't think enough voters in the Academy will feel a need to acknowledge this.
The Ides of March - This has been dismissed by quite a few critics so its chances are very slim. I felt is was a superficial depiction of double dealing and blind political ambition. Clooney's supporters will instead just focus on The Descendants.
Empire Magazine: New Trailer For Land Of Blood & Honey
Angelina Jolie's directorial debut
24 October 2011 You're just about the most famous woman in the world with a cast-iron A-list status, a loving family and an army of devoted fans. So what do you next? Build a house made entirely of gold and bezel it with rubies and sapphires? Hire Slider from Top Gun to fly your private jet? Reoccupy the Rhineland?
If you're Angelina Jolie, the answer would be none of those things. Instead you'd probably turn your hand at writing and directing your own film. Something nice and light to start with. The Balkan War, for instance.
Take that with a scoop of salt, of course. Judging by its new trailer, Jolie's directorial debut - hatched and written while she was recuperating from the flu - is shaping up to be anything but lightweight. In The Land Of Blood And Honey tells the story of the forbidden love between a Muslim woman and a Serbian man during the Balkan conflict. Between them lie vicious ethnic divides, the bonds of family, and, on this evidence, about six million snipers.
The story looks like it'll test Jolie's directorial skills to the limit. Action beats sit cheek-by-jowl with more tender moments, and the subject matter obviously comes freighted with plenty of its own baggage. Jolie turned to a local cast for the film, including Zana Marjanović, Rade Šerbedija and Taken's Goran Kostic.
In The Land Of Blood And Honey makes its US bow at the end of the year. In the meantime, prepare to chalk another one in the 'Angelina Jolie is the new Clint Eastwood' column.
Phil de Semlyen
Angelina Jolie's In the Land of Blood and Honey trailer revealed
The Hollywood actor's directorial debut depicts a troubled relationship spanning the divide of the war in Bosnia
Ben Child
guardian.co.uk,
Angelina Jolie could hardly have chosen a more difficult directorial debut than In the Land of Blood and Honey. Jolie's self-penned film, which is set against the backdrop of the Bosnian war, caused outrage when the media reported that the plot revolved around a Bosnian rape victim falling in love with her Serbian attacker.
The Bosnian government briefly suspended Jolie's right to film in the country, while Bosnia's Association of Women Victims of War wrote to the United Nations calling for Jolie to lose her UN goodwill ambassador status.
According to the synopsis, the movie is a wartime love story between a Serb guard in a prison camp and his former girlfriend, a Bosnian Muslim detainee and does not contain any rape scenes. Jolie said that she was the victim of "unfair pressure based on wrong information" and eventually had her filming permissions restored.
Given the controversy, the film might have been released under the radar. Instead, the promotional campaign is churning into gear, starting with the release of the trailer. The film, which is shot in both English and Serbo-Croat, will be released in the US on 23 December.
Angelina Jolie tackles the Bosnian War in the trailer for her directorial debut 'In The Land of Blood and Honey'
This is serious stuff
No one should be surprised that when Angelina Jolie took the time out of her busy schedule to direct her first feature it wasn't going to be something frivolous. The film would have to speak to her passions and her world view. Enter "In The Land of Honey," an original drama set during the height of the Bosnian War in the 1990's where a Serb (Goran Kostic) and a Bosnian (Zara Marjanovic) try to co-exist in a detainment camp after having a previous romantic relationship before the conflict. In a new trailer released today, it appears the trust between the couple begins to waver as the war goes on.
Worth nothing, Jolie also wrote the screenplay for the picture which won't hide the brutality of the conflict. The drama has been rated R "for war violence and atrocities including rape, sexuality, nudity and language" so don't expect Jolie to stray from the horrors of violence. A UNCHR Goodwill Ambassador for over a decade, Jolie is using her real-life encounters and experiences with refugees across the globe to inform her work. This new preview might not suggest a major Oscar contender, but it certainly looks like Jolie has a voice that we'll be hearing from behind the camera for some time.
You can check out the trailer embedded in this post.
"In the Land of Blood and Honey" debuts in New York and Los Angeles on Dec. 23. It opens across the nation in January, 2012.
