The BAFTA Nominations

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts has announced it's nominees for the year's best performances and it looks quite different from other lists; the nominees are below and they are worth noting because some films have shown up here not on other lists. The nominees for the Oscars will be announced tomorrow and I will be getting them up asap.
This weekend I finally got to see The Artist which is sweeping the awards; I absolutely loved The Artist and have been working on my post for it since Saturday, but it's a complex film and I want to do a good job on it so I don't want to rush through but I hope to have it up today. Drive isn't released on DVD until the end of January (that's the only nominee I haven't seen).

This plane crash could be the stock market: flying high one minute and rock bottom the next. Man against nature films usually are not man against nature films, you just have to figure out what they really are.

I am, however, suddenly looking forward to Liam Neeson in The Grey: why? Based on the limited information provided by the trailer, it looks like it could be one of the flurry of class-warfare films set to be released this year (Snow White and the Huntsman, Mirror, Mirror, Jack the Giant Killer, Lincoln). Given the veto on the pipeline this last week, who would a pack of wolves hunting down an oil-drilling team be? Environmentalists. I could be wrong, but that's the point of watching the film.
In the meantime, the BAFTA nominees are:

BEST FILM:
The Artist
The Descendants
Drive
The Help
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM:
My Week With Marilyn
Senna (available to watch on Instant Play at Netflix)
Shame
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
We Need To Talk About Kevin

LEADING ACTOR:
Brad Pitt, Moneyball
Gary Oldman, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
George Clooney, The Descendants
Jean Durjardin, The Artist
Michael Fassbender, Shame

LEADING ACTRESS:
Berenice Bejo, The Artist
Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
Tilda Swinton, We Need To Talk About Kevin
Viola Davis, The Help

SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Christopher Plummer, Beginners
Jim Broadbent, The Iron Lady
Jonah Hill, Moneyball
Kenneth Branagh, My Week With Marilyn
Philip Seymour-Hoffman, The Ides of March

SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Carey Mulligan, Shame
Jessica Chastain, The Help
Judi Dench, My Week With Marilyn
Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids,
Octavia Spencer, The Help

Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer:

Attack the Block
Black Pond
Coriolanus
Submarine
Tyrannosaur

Best Documentary

George Harrison: Living in the Material World
Project Nim
Senna

Best Original Screenplay

The Artist
Bridesmaids
The Guard
The Iron Lady
Midnight in Paris

Best Adapted Screenplay

The Descendants
The Help
The Ides of March
Moneyball
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Best Film Not In the English Language

Incendies
Pina
Potiche
A Separation
The Skin I Live In

Best Animated Film

The Adventures of Tintin
Arthur Christmas
Rango

Best Original Music

The Artist
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
War Horse

Best Cinematography

The Artist
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
War Horse

Best Editing

The Artist
Drive
Hugo
Senna
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Best Production Design

The Artist
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Hugo
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
War Horse

Best Costume Design

The Artist
Hugo
Jane Eyre
My Week with Marilyn
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Best Sound

The Artist
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Hugo
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
War Horse

Best Special Visual Effects

The Adventures of Tintin
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Hugo
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
War Horse

Best Make Up & Hair

The Artist
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Hugo
The Iron Lady
My Week with Marilyn

Orange Wednesdays Rising Star Award

Adam Deacon
Chris Hemsworth
Tom Hiddleston
Chris O'Dowd
Eddie Redmayne
I am shocked that Elizabeth Olson from Martha Marcy May Marlene is not up there, really shocked.
What is the Orange Wednesday Award? The Award I am most interested in finding out who wins, but technically, the Orange Wednesday Award "recognizes exceptional new acting talent in the film industry. A shortlist of six nominees is selected by BAFTA juries regardless of the nominee's gender and nationality. The winner is then voted for by the public. This award is dedicated to the memory of Mary Selway, the highly respected BAFTA-winning British casting director who died in 2004."