British Independent Film Awards 2009

2009 British Independent Film Awards
2009 British Independent Film Award nominations: Oct. 26, 2009
2009 British Independent Film Award winners: The Brewery in London on Dec. 6, 2009
 

Emma Thompson, Carey Mulligan in An Education (top); Katie Jarvis in Fish Tank (bottom)
 

BEST BRITISH INDEPENDENT FILM
An Education
Fish Tank
In the Loop
Moon
Nowhere Boy
BEST FOREIGN FILM
Il Divo
The Hurt Locker
Let The Right One In
Sin Nombre
The Wrestler
BEST DOCUMENTARY
The Age of Stupid
The End of The Line
Mugabe and The White African
Sons of Cuba
Sounds Like Teen Spirit
BEST DIRECTOR
Andrea Arnold – Fish Tank
Armando Iannucci – In the Loop
Duncan Jones – [...]

Oscar 2010: Early Predictions – Best Actress

Best Actress

Abbie Cornish, Bright Star
Frances ‘Fanny’ Brawne has a relatively brief but intense love affair with poet John Keats

Carey Mulligan, An Education
In 1960s London, a schoolgirl falls for a man in his 30s

Michelle Pfeiffer, Cheri
An older courtesan introduces a young man to the art of lovemaking

Gabourey ‘Gabby’ Sidibe, Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
An abused pregnant teen is befriended by a compassionate teacher

Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia
Julia Child joyfully introduces dead poultry into American kitchens

A dozen actresses — female actors if you wish — can be considered as very strong candidates for a 2010 best actress nomination (as long as their movies open in LA until December 31). In addition to the [...]

Cannes 2009: Best Actress Favorites

Best Actress
Charlotte Gainsbourg as a bereaved mother in Antichrist.
Penélope Cruz, Almodóvar’s diva in Broken Embraces.
Abbie Cornish as Fanny Brawne in Bright Star.
Katie Jarvis as an aimless teenager in Fish Tank.
Giovanna Mezzogiorno as Benito Mussolini’s ex in Vincere.
 
Photos: Courtesy Festival de Cannes
 

Cannes 2009: Best Actor Favorites

Best Actor
Tahar Rahim as a young man behind bars in A Prophet.
Ben Whishaw as John Keats in Bright Star.
André Dussollier as the elderly hero in Wild Grass.
François Cluzet as a con man in In the Beginning.
 
Photos: Courtesy Festival de Cannes
 

Cannes 2009: Palme d’Or Favorites

Palme d’Or 2009, Grand Prix, Special Jury Prize:
Alain Resnais‘ romantic fantasy Wild Grass (adapted by Alex Reval and Laurent Herbiet from Christian Gailly’s novel), about a man who becomes intrigued by a younger woman
Jacques Audiard’s tough prison drama A Prophet (written by Audiard, Thomas Bidegain, Abdel Raouf Dafri, and Nicolas Peufaillit)
Writer-director Michael Haneke’s The White Ribbon, about a northern German community enmeshed in a series of nasty events right before the beginning of World War I
Writer-director Jane Campion’s Bright Star, about the doomed love affair between British poet John Keats and his neighbor, Fanny Brawne
 
Photos: Courtesy Festival de Cannes
 

Cannes 2009: Jane Campion, Alain Resnais, Brillante Mendoza, Johnnie To, Lou Ye

Peter Bradshaw on Bright Star (with Abbie Cornish and Ben Whishaw, above) in The Guardian:
"Jane Campion has put herself in line for her second Palme d’Or here at the Cannes film festival with a film which I think could be the best of her career; an affecting and deeply considered study of the last years in the short life of John Keats, and the ecstasy of loss which suffuses his love affair with Fanny Brawne – a love thwarted not due to illness, but to a pernicious web of money worries, social scruples and irrelevant male loyalties."
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Maggie Lee on Kinatay in The Hollywood Reporter:
"Festival darling Brillante Mendoza’s Kinatay is a long night’s journey into the [...]