(95) Days of Spirit

The Spirit Awards are coming! In 95 days. The nominees have a long time to decide which pair of jeans or casual designer wear would best suit the event. Though the Spirits have traditionally passed out their ever-so-slightly off mainstream prizes the day before the Oscars this year they’re moving to a Friday night situation on March 5th. All the better for partying? Still time to use those hangover cures before the Oscars on Sunday.

Sin Nombre, a 3 time nominee

Here are the nominees

Best Feature

(500) Days Of Summer | Amreeka |Precious | Sin Nombre | The Last Station

• I warned y'all that The Last Station would have more awards strength than many pundits are indicating. I must get around to Sin Nombre before the end of this year. I suspect Precious is your winner since the Spirits generally award the actual Oscar hopefuls.

Best Director
The Coen Bros A Serious Man | Lee Daniels Precious | Cary Joji Fukunaga Sin Nombre | James Gray Two Lovers | Michael Hoffman The Last Station

Best First Feature
Crazy Heart | Easier With Practice | The Messenger | Paranormal Activity | A Single Man

John Cassavettes Award (this is for the really low budget efforts)
Big Fan | Humpday | The New Year Parade |Treeless Mountain | Zero Bridge

Documentary
Anvil! The Story of Anvil | Food, Inc. | More Than a Game |October Country |Which Way Home

• If the Spirits want to make an anti-Oscar statement, you might see some rallying for Anvil!

Foreign Film
A Prophet (France) | An Education (UK/France) | Everlasting Moments (Sweden) | Mother (South Korea) | The Maid (Chile)

• I find this category quite curious in that 3 of its 5 competitors are most often lauded for the lead actress at the heart of the film and yet none of the three actresses are nominated in the Best Actress category. But apparently is a rule. It's a very dumb rule if you ask me... Since when should acting prizes not apply to foreign languages... or even the English language? (see Carey Mulligan) I guess this means Bright Star was also a foreign film since its director Jane Campion not American.
  

Best Screenplay
(500) Days of Summer | Adventureland | The Messenger | The Last Station | The Vicious Kind

First Screenplay
Amreeka | Cold Souls | Crazy Heart | Precious | A Single Man

Cinematography
Roger Deakins A Serious Man | Adriano Goldman Sin Nombre | Anne Misawa Treeless Mountain | Andrij Parekh Cold Souls | Peter Zeitlinger Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans

And now the acting categories...

Female Lead
Maria Bello Downloading Nancy | Helen Mirren The Last Station | Gwyneth Paltrow Two Lovers | Gabourey Sidibe Precious | Nisreen Faour Amreeka

• No Mulligan, huh? Hmmm. Sidibe has this locked up. Though if you're dubbed a "foreign film" apparently you're not eligible. And An Education was... even though The Last Station (also British) was not. People are Awards groups are strange.

Male Lead
Jeff Bridges Crazy Heart | Colin Firth A Single Man |Joseph Gordon-Levitt (500) Days Of Summer |Souléymane Sy Savané Goodbye Solo | Adam Scott The Vicious Kind

• The curious omission here is Hal Holbrook since his vehicle, That Evening Sun received two acting nominations. It's worth noting here that the Spirits reversed the (500) Days Satellite nominees and left out Zooey Deschanel's fantasy girl for Joseph Gordon-Levitt's wounded boy. I suspect this contest between Bridges and Firth will be tighter at the Spirit Awards than at the Oscars.

Supporting Female
Dina Korzun Cold Souls | Mo’Nique Precious | Samantha Morton The Messenger | Natalie Press Fifty Dead Men Walking | Mia Wasikowska That Evening Sun

• I can totally get behind Mo'Nique and Morton nods. I liked Wasikowska (Tim Burton's Alice) in ...Sun but I think her screen mother Carrie Preston gives a more impressive and more complicated performance. So... I don't get it.

Supporting Male
Jemain Clement Gentleman Broncos | Woody Harrelson The Messenger | Christian McKay Me and Orson Welles | Raymond McKinnon That Evening Sun | Christopher Plummer The Last Station

• Even if McKay don't gain any Oscar traction, that Orson Welles performance sure is turning into a resume builder.

Then there’s a few categories that don’t get a lot of attention. The Robert Altman prize, which goes to one films director, casting director and ensemble is going to A Serious Man, The “Piaget Producers Award” will go to either Karin Chien (The Exploding Girl, Santa Mesa), Larry Fessenden (I Sell the Dead, The House of the Devil) or Dia Sokol (Beeswax, Nights & Weekends). The “Someone to Watch” Award will go to either Kyle Patrick Alvarez (Easier With Practice), Asiel Norton (Redland) or Tariq Tapa (Zero Bridge) and the “Truer Than Fiction” prize to either Natalia Alamda (El General), Jessica Orek (Beetle Queen Conquers Tokyo) or Bill and Turner Ross (45365)

The Take Away
Should be a fun night for (500) Days of Summer and a trophy gathering night for Precious. The Spirit's nominating team wants you to see Amreeka and Sin Nombre. Will you?
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