Here's a Look at This Year's BAFTAS Nominations

Scene from The Revenant 

Today marked the announcement of this year's BAFTAS nominations. With The Oscars giving this year's line-up next week, Britain gets in on the game with their own prestigious awards show. While 2015 has proven to one of the most sporadic and unpredictable years on record (there's not a lot of front runners yet), there have been a few nominations lately that have given us some clue as to what to expect. With Carol leading the pack, this year's line-up has its own share of eyebrow raisers, including a few noticeable absences. The following is a rundown of every nomination as well as brief commentary on each category.

Scene from The Big Short

Best Film

-The Big Short 
-Bridge of Spies
-Carol
-The Revenant
-Spotlight

COMMENTS: Overall, a solid group of nominees that are giving more clues as to what The Oscars may end up looking like. There are the obvious favorites (Carol, Bridge of Spies, Spotlight) as well as unexpected favorites that have popped up in the last half of the Oscar season (The Big Short). However, there's likely those wondering where other favorites that intended to come up strong ended up. Where's Mad Max: Fury Road or Joy? Maybe they don't have nearly as much traction as they did a few months ago. We'll have to wait and see. Meanwhile, I am not a fan of The Revenant being on this list (read my review for further reasoning).

Eddie Redmayne in The Danish Girl

Outstanding British Film

-45 Years
-Amy 
-Brooklyn
-The Danish Girl
-Ex Machina
-The Lobster

COMMENTS: On the bright side, it's not as embarrassing as nominating Paddington last year. However, there's a few welcomed surprises on here that go beyond the obvious favorites such as Brooklyn and The Danish Girl. I am very excited to see the sci-fi sleeper Ex Machina make an appearance, as it has become a surprise hit on the awards circuit (Alicia Vikander received a Golden Globe nomination for her work). It could just be that I haven't seen Amy, but I am baffled by how a cut and paste documentary has been gaining such traction. However, I am really excited to see The Lobster on here, largely because I am a fan of director Giorgos Lanthimos and look forward to when it gets a proper release stateside. Of course, I would love if 45 Years actually gets enough traction by next week to make the cut, because it's a really great character drama.

Scene from Ex Machina

Outstanding Debut by British Writer, Director, or Producer

-Alex Garland (Ex Machina)
-Debbie Tucker Green (Second Coming)
-Naji Abu Nowar (Theeb), Rupert Lloyd (Theeb)
-Sean McAllister (A Syrian Love Story), Elhum Shakerifar (A Syrian Love Story)
-Stephen Fingleton (The Survivalist)

COMMENTS:I will be honest, I am not familiar with any of these except Ex Machina. I really like Alex Garland's work on the film, so it's hard not to just express my personal bias for the film as a whole. Hopefully the others are good and I unfortunately am just not aware of them.

Scene from Force Majeure

Best Film Not in the English Language

-The Assassin
-Force Majeure
-Theeb 
-Timbuktu
-Wild Tales

COMMENTS: Overall, a strong mix of films. I am not entirely sure when certain films are released in England, so I am both surprised and happy to see Force Majeure (a film that I saw in 2014) on this list. It's one of the best Swedish films of the past few years and definitely has a lot of great commentary on masculinity. I am not too familiar with The Assassin, but have been hearing great things about its beautiful cinematography. The same can be said for Timbuktu, which was also released quite awhile ago in America, and has only gotten great reception. However, Force Majeure may be my favorite of the bunch.

Scene from Listen to Me Marlon

Best Documentary

-Amy
-Cartel Land
-He Named Me Malala
-Listen to Me Marlon
-Sherpa

COMMENTS: I am still not entirely sure why people love Amy as much as they have, but I reserve judgment until I've seen it. While it sounds like a hacky idea, Listen to Me Marlon is a really well executed and inventive documentary on Marlon Brando that may very well show up at The Oscars. Among this line-up, I don't quite get why He Named Me Malala is on here, as it was a poor film about a great subject. Sometimes it does feel like documentary categories mistake importance for quality, which is not always the case.

Scene from Inside Out

Best Animated Film

-Inside Out
-Minions
-Shaun the Sheep the Movie

COMMENTS: There's no denying that this is going to be Inside Out's category to lose in every single awards show it will be in. Even if The Good Dinosaur didn't show up for here, one cannot help but feel disappointed by the competition. While Shaun the Sheep is another solid film full of clever animation, one could only wonder why Minions is up. Even if everything else was ineligible, why even nominate Minions at all? It's not a great movie and not even great at animation. Was Anomalisa disqualified? This list is embarrassing, England.

Rooney Mara in Carol

Best Director

-Adam McKay (The Big Short)
-Steven Spielberg (Bridge of Spies)
-Todd Haynes (Carol)
-Ridley Scott (The Martian)
-Alejandro González Iñárritu (The Revenant)

COMMENTS: A solid line-up with a great variety of direction. Among these, I would love to think that Carol is something more than the great film that's only nominated because it's great. However, the lack of Spotlight on this list does raise an interesting dilemma for what will happen if Thomas McCarthy doesn't get nominated in directing. I am curious to see if The Big Short will show up in this category at The Oscars, which would at least make it the surprise story of the season. It's great to see The Martian on here as well. However, The Revenant is still my sore spot, as it only deserves a cinematography nod. Otherwise, I ask "What direction?" This film has nothing clever in the way of direction.

Samuel L. Jackson in The Hateful Eight

Best Original Screenplay

-Bridge of Spies
-Ex Machina
-The Hateful Eight
-Inside Out
-Spotlight

COMMENTS: There's a very solid variety here, and I would argue that save for Ex Machina (though even that's possible), this may be the line-up we'll see come The Oscar nominations. I definitely think that among these, The Hateful Eight does probably the most interesting work in Quentin Tarantino's career, but Inside Out does the most ambitious work on this list in ways that aren't just a year high, but Pixar's best. Spotlight may take this category however solely because of its well structured and thorough take on the events depicted. Bridge of Spies, which one of my favorite films of last year, is likely not going to win despite its ability to mix history and humor in effective ways.

Scene from Brooklyn

Best Adapted Screenplay

-The Big Short 
-Brooklyn
-Carol 
-Room
-Steve Jobs

COMMENTS: Even if Carol is probably my favorite film of the year, I do want to see Steve Jobs win this category. If nothing else, I think that Aaron Sorkin's writing effectively drives the story in ways that are both thematic and slight. Even if it's not the most exciting story, it at least manages to be riveting. Overall, a very solid line-up, and one that may end up being reflected at The Oscars next week. I'm mostly glad to see the smaller films like Brooklyn and Room showing up during this awards season. 

Scene from The Martian

Best Actor

-Bryan Cranston (Trumbo)
-Eddie Redmayne (The Danish Girl)
-Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant)
-Matt Damon (The Martian)
-Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs)

COMMENTS: I am mostly impressed to see that The Martian has been showing up strong over the awards season, if just because Ridley Scott's past few films haven't been the best. However, that does bode well for Matt Damon's Oscar chances. I also don't get the love for Trumbo, even if Bryan Cranston is a genuinely great actor. Steve Jobs is, again, one of my favorite underdogs of the year and hope that its box office failures don't end up hurting its chances overall. However, I genuinely hate that people take Leonardo DiCaprio's Oscar campaign for The Revenant seriously. It's not a great performance. It's a great example of an actor doing masochistic things, but it's not acting in the slightest.

Scene from Room

Best Actress

-Alicia Vikander (The Danish Girl)
-Brie Larson (Room)
-Cate Blanchett (Carol)
-Maggie Smith (The Lady in the Van)
-Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn)

COMMENTS: Overall, a really strong list. The one complaint is that Cate Blanchett's role in Carol is not a lead role, despite being the titular character. However, the remaining nominees are rather strong and I'm sure that Saoirse Ronan is the one to beat. Still, I'm mostly glad to see that Brie Larson has somehow become a strong awards contender over the past year. It makes me feel great as a United States of Tara fan. Even if I don't get The Lady in the Van love, this awards show is allowed to have one or two names that won't make the final Oscars list.

Scene from Beasts of No Nation

Best Supporting Actor

-Benicio del Toro (Sicario)
-Christian Bale (The Big Short)
-Idris Elba (Beasts of No Nation)
-Mark Ruffalo (Spotlight)
-Mark Rylance (Bridge of Spies)

COMMENTS: I am one of the few who thought that Beasts of No Nation was insufferable in its attempt to be overtly dark and dramatic, so I am not quite as on board with Idris Elba's traction for whatever reason. However, I am glad to see that Mark Rylance, who may be one of the breakout performances of 2015, showing up here as one of the biggest reasons that Bridge of Spies was so much fun. It's also great to see Mark Ruffalo on here, as he was probably the standout in Spotlight. Overall, a strong line-up for a category that has largely been indecipherable for most of this awards season.

Jennifer Jason Leigh in The Hateful Eight

Best Supporting Actress

-Alicia Vikander (Ex Machina)
-Jennifer Jason Leigh (The Hateful Eight)
-Julie Walters (Brooklyn)
-Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs)
-Rooney Mara (Carol)

COMMENTS: It looks like Quentin Tarantino was right when he praised Jennifer Jason Leigh's performance in The Hateful Eight - as it is arguably the highlight of the film. Otherwise, a familiar mix of names from throughout the season, including Carol. Most of all, it's nice to see Alicia Vikander showing up in both acting and supporting categories for two very effective roles. I wonder however if she'll be able to keep it up at The Oscars. I'm hoping that Kate Winslet also manages to make it, as she is one of the best parts of Steve Jobs.

Scene from Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Original Music

-Bridge of Spies
-The Hateful Eight
-The Revenant
-Sicario
-Star Wars: The Force Awakens

COMMENTS: I think we as a culture need to have some lessons in what original means. As much as I love John Williams, I don't think that his music incorporating themes from past Star Wars movies should really be counted as eligible. Otherwise, it's a decent list and it's great to see Bridge of Spies on here. However, I am disappointed by the lack of Carol, which is possibly one of Carter Burwell's greatest works. Among the few highlights, it's great to know that Ennio Morricone may be able to win a competing Oscar for The Hateful Eight, given that things continue to look good for him.

Scene from Mad Max: Fury Road

Since I do not have too many thoughts on the remaining fields, I will simply share them. Feel free to share any and all thoughts in the comments, as well as what you think of this year's BAFTAS nominees. In all honesty, it's a solid bunch, though in many ways it has its fair share of disappointment. I don't hold the awards to as high of a standard as The Oscars, but I'd like to think that there's some predictive quality to these awards. Do you think that The Academy has any insight from The BAFTAS? If you think so, feel free to explain yourself in the comments.

Best Cinematography

-Bridge of Spies
-Carol
-Mad Max: Fury Road
-The Revenant
-Sicario

Best Editing

-The Big Short 
-Bridge of Spies
-Mad Max: Fury Road
-The Martian
-The Revenant

Best Production Design

-Bridge of Spies
-Carol
-Mad Max: Fury Road
-The Martian
-Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Costume Design

-Brooklyn
-Carol
-Cinderella
-The Danish Girl
-Mad Max: Fury Road

Best Make-Up and Hair

-Brooklyn
-Carol
-The Danish Girl
-Mad Max: Fury Road
-The Revenant

Best Sound

-Bridge of Spies
-Mad Max: Fury Road
-The Martian
-The Revenant
-Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Special Visual Effects

-Ant-Man
-Ex Machina
-Mad Max: Fury Road
-The Martian
-Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best British Short Animation

-Edmond
-Manoman
-Prologue

Best British Short Film

-Elephant 
-Mining Poems or Odes
-Operator
-Over 
-Samuel-613

EE Rising Star

-Bel Powley
-Brie Larson
-Dakota Johnson
-John Boyega
-Taron Egerton