Here they are, the winners of the Spearie Awards for the best films of 2012. I am listing the winners below, with a short blurb about them. I will be presenting these awards in the order they were presented at the Oscars this past year, with my extra categories placed by a random number generator (yes, really). So without further ado, here we go.
List of Nominees
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Skyfall
Other Nominees:
Beasts of the Southern Wild
The Grey
Life of Pi
Lincoln
Of course Roger Deakins would make Skyfall the best looking Bond film of all time. The camera work is astoundingly beautiful, making the entire film seem just that much classier. This helps set Skyfall apart from the grunge and grit that seems to be the name of the action game nowadays, showing that James Bond films are different. Clearer. More beautiful. More deadly.
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Cloud Atlas
Other Nominees:
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Lincoln
Moonrise Kingdom
Prometheus
Cloud Atlas tells six stories, successfully interweaving six different worlds, all with their own visual style. Ranging from an 1840s ship, to an abandoned research station in the far future, the film's production design creates six different worlds that are distinct, but at the same time cohesive, calling forth the entire theme of the film.
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Django Unchained
Other Nominees:
Cloud Atlas
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Lincoln
Snow White and the Huntsman
The costumes in Django are very telling and brilliant, and they play an important part to the story at times. They are so perfectly suited to the characters and actually help to tell the story in a way few other films can achieve. One look at Calvin Candie's wardrobe, for instance, and you can immediately tell what kind of character he is. I have to give it the win just for how the costumes play such a large role, rather than just eye candy.
BEST ACTION SEQUENCE
Zero Dark Thirty-Bin Laden Compound Raid
Other Nominees:
Django Unchained-Candieland Shootout
Dredd-Dredd vs. the Judges
The Hobbit: an Unexpected Journey-Goblintown escape
Skyfall-Glass Building fight
All of the other sequences nominated were very exciting, but the final sequence of Zero Dark Thirty tops them all in one important facet: Realism. Despite the low body count of the sequence and the relatively slower pace, it is nail bitingly suspenseful and keeps you on the edge of your seat, despite the fact that you already know how it goes. If there is a downside to the sequence it is that the rest of the film cannot compete with this level of mastery.
BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
Cloud Atlas
Other Nominees:
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Lincoln
Looper
Snow White and the Huntsman
The photograph above shows one actor as four different characters. Cloud Atlas tells six different stories, using all the same actors. As such, makeup plays such an integral role in the film, as it is used to transform each actor into several different characters, different races (which admittedly doesn't always work perfectly) and even different genders (which works surprisingly well). It's not perfect, but it very successfully achieves what the filmmakers were going for, and easily deserves this award.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Lena Headey-Dredd
Other Nominees:
Amy Adams-The Master
Doona Bae-Cloud Atlas
Judi Dench-Skyfall
Sally Field-Lincoln
Once I post my awards, I don't like to change them. Opinions naturally change, but I try to recognize that and keep a certain conviction. However, when I realized I had forgotten to nominate Lena Headey for playing the villainous Ma-ma in Dredd, I had no choice but to put her in. Headey's performance is so brilliant that you know not to mess with her from the first moment she appears on screen, and she keeps that terrifying presence throughout the film, creating a believably ruthless and intimidating villain for Karl Urban's Dredd to face. In the end, this category was no contest.
BEST FILM EDITING
Cloud Atlas
Other Nominees:
Argo
The Grey
Skyfall
Zero Dark Thirty
Editing is about more than just putting shots together in a sequence. It's about deciding how to put scenes together so the film makes sense. This can be simple enough in a straightforward film, but Cloud Atlas is not a straightforward film. It intertwines six stories, and if these stories were put together poorly it could have ruined the film. It didn't, however, and the stories were edited so perfectly that they complimented each other, building six stories into a cohesive narrative, with each story getting its own attention and nothing being overshadowed. Not only is it the best editing of the year, it is one of the best edited films of all time.
BEST SOUND EDITING
Zero Dark Thirty
Other Nominees:
The Avengers
The Dark Knight Rises
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Skyfall
Zero Dark Thirty is actually not a very loud film for most of the running time. It does not fill the soundtrack with explosions and gunshots, but rather dialogue and simple atmospheric sounds. However, when it does get to these "loud" moments, they are all the more real and powerful for it.
BEST SOUND MIXING
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Other Nominees:
Django Unchained
The Grey
Skyfall
Zero Dark Thirty
This is one category that, in some ways, the Hobbit even manages to outdo the Lord of the Rings. The sound work on this film is superb, and it helps play a great role in the film. Every chop with a sword, every swing of a hammer can be heard perfectly, and help to make this film easy to follow, even in an action sequence such as the escape from goblintown, in which there is enough going on to make it confusing, the sound mix keeps things so they are easy to follow.
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Other nominees:
The Avengers
Cloud Atlas
Life of Pi
Prometheus
I know that the Oscars will go for Life of Pi in this category, and the work in that film is superb, but digital animals are really nothing new, and I was fully aware they were digital. The Hobbit, however, manages to even improve upon the Lord of the Rings in many ways, including Gollum, who it is hard to realize is a digital character. The creatures just look so real, even the goblins, who are quite clearly fantastic, look extremely real, moreso than even makeup could do. It is simply amazing how, even ten years later, Jackson and co. can still impress us with their effects work.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Dwight Henry-Beasts of the Southern Wild
Other Nominees:
Javier Bardem-Skyfall
Tommy Lee Jones-Lincoln
Christoph Waltz-Django Unchained
Ben Whishaw-Cloud Atlas
It's truly amazing that Dwight Henry never acted in a film before Beasts of the Southern Wild, because he is such a revelation in it. He fully becomes the character of Wink, a man who is very flawed, but who we nevertheless come to love and care about. Dwight Henry makes him a real person, not a character in the film. He's said that he will not go out of his way to seek out acting roles because he doesn't want to uproot his family. I respect that, but it's sad to think that we may never see him act again, because he is truly brilliant.
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Other Nominees:
The Avengers
Cloud Atlas
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Lincoln
This category was very competitive this year, as there were many scores that would easily win any other year. However, it was also easy, because I have never heard another score like that of Beasts of the Southern Wild. It is so filled with emotion, and simultaneously fun to listen to, and simultaneously completely and totally unique. There was never a chance I wouldn't pick this film for this award.
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
Song of the Lonely Mountain-The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Other Nominees:
Ancora Qui-Django Unchained
Skyfall-Skyfall
Touch the Sky-Brave
Who Did That to You-Django Unchained
This is a song that fits the film perfectly, actually being about the film itself, making many references to the plot. As such, it fits the film perfectly. However, it is also just a beautiful song to listen to, a true ballad, as it tells the story of a great quest. It is suitably epic, and actually, in my opinion, tops any of the songs that were on the credits of The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Lincoln
Other Nominees:
Argo
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Cloud Atlas
Silver Linings Playbook
Another no brainer here. Lincoln's screenplay is a work of pure brilliance. Perfect dialogue, that stays true to every character, an awesome story structure, and some of the greatest insults ever committed to film. However, despite its heaviness on dialogue, it is very definitely a film, and a damn fine one at that.
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
The Cabin in the Woods
Other Nominees:
Django Unchained
Looper
Moonrise Kingdom
Zero Dark Thirty
Man it is hard to find a suitable image from this film without spoilers. I won't even talk about this movie much. Just go see it and don't read a damn thing about it first. Go in with an open mind and just experience it, you'll be glad you did.
BEST DIRECTOR
Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski-Cloud Atlas
Other Nominees:
Kathryn Bigelow-Zero Dark Thirty
Joe Carnahan-The Grey
Steven Spielberg-Lincoln
Benh Zeitlin-Beasts of the Southern Wild
This category was one of the hardest this year, second only to Best Picture. In the end, I went with Tykwer and the Wachowski's because of the sheer magnitude of what they pulled off. This film was mind-blowingly ambitious and could fail with extreme ease. However, it didn't fail. It was awesome and beautiful and emotional and it all goes to these three directors, who somehow managed to take three directors, splitting into two groups and each directing half of the movie, and they make it completely cohesive. The three of them entirely deserve this award for this achievement in filmmaking, which unfortunately was unsuccessful, so we are unlikely to see something like this again in the near future.
BEST ACTOR
Daniel Day Lewis-Lincoln
Other Nominees:
Bradley Cooper-Silver Linings Playbook
Tom Hanks-Cloud Atlas
Liam Neeson-The Grey
Joaquin Phoenix-The Master
Could it ever be anybody else. Day Lewis knocks every performance out of the park, and this is no exception. No matter how many times you've seen him in a role, you never see him, just his character. Here he becomes Abraham Lincoln, such a far cry from his last Oscar winning role, Daniel Plainview. He perfectly underscores the inner turmoil of Lincoln, a man who wants only to do the right thing, but sometimes is forced to take a not entirely righteous route to get there. However, he allows us to see inside the character, and thus we never doubt him, and always are on his side, because we can see the great man that is at his heart.
BEST ENSEMBLE CAST
Lincoln
Other Nominees:
Cloud Atlas
Django Unchained
Moonrise Kingdom
Silver Linings Playbook
The main reason I added two categories is because of this one, I felt that this category is very important. You can talk all you want about an individual actor, but just as important is how the entire cast functions together. In those regards, Lincoln easily wins this year. Day Lewis knocks it out of the park, but there is not a bad performance in the film. Each role, however big or small, is fully fleshed out, and we connect to each character and see the humanity inside of them. Truly a remarkable feat, even if I can't give individual awards to all of them.
BEST ACTRESS
Quvenzhane Wallis-Beasts of the Southern Wild
Other Nominees:
Halle Berry-Cloud Atlas
Jessica Chastain-Zero Dark Thirty
Kara Hayward-Moonrise Kingdom
Jennifer Lawrence-Silver Linings Playbook
Quite possibly the greatest performance of the year, and she was six years old when she played the part. Quvenzhane Wallis commands your attention in the film, creating such a powerful and vulnerable character, one who has to come of age at such a small age. Her nomination, more than anything else, was what I was rooting for when the Oscar nominations were announced, and her name being called was the happiest moment of the announcements for me.
BEST PICTURE
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Other Nominees:
Cloud Atlas
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Lincoln
Zero Dark Thirty
This was a hard one. There were three movies this year that I really wanted to give my award to. When I went with my heart, though, I found that Beasts of the Southern Wild was the film. It was the one that I felt the most passion for, that stuck out to me. I connected the most to this film, and in the end, that was what mattered to me. Beautiful, heart wrenching, unique, and inspiring, Beasts of the Southern Wild is the Best motion picture of 2012.
This year was quite possibly the best year for movies that I have been alive to see. There have been so many wonderful films this year, it was hard to make these awards. However, don't let the winners fool you, I loved so many films this year.
Thank you all for taking the time to see my opinions here. And of course, that's what all of these are, opinions. Meant, not to tell you how to feel, but to inspire conversation and maybe get a few of you to see some of these films that you haven't. And tune in later this week when I will be posting a ranked top ten list. Sure you already know what's number one, and what the top 5 are, though not their order, but I will have comments about all of them. So I hope you enjoyed this and I'm looking forward to another great year in movies.
