2015 Film Independent Spirit Award Nominations!!

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The nominees and my thoughts on the category and pick to win are below. All of these are quality movies. Seek them out if you can.

BEST FEATURE

  • Birdman
  • Boyhood
  • Love is Strange
  • Selma
  • Whiplash

Boyhood is an achievement 12 years in the making. It’s the best movie this year. All of these are deserving (though I haven’t seen Selma, that won’t be out wide until January). Linklater deserves the Best Picture award here, though perhaps not Best Director …

BEST FIRST FEATURE

  • A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night
  • Dear White People
  • Nightcrawler
  • Obvious Child
  • She’s Lost Control

Nighcrawler is a terrific first feature, though perhaps too mainstream to get this sort of award. Instead maybe look to Dear White People or Obvious Child but I’m going for Nightcrawler. I’ve already posted about A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night and it looks good. If enough people see that this could come home with a win too.

BEST DIRECTOR

  • Damien Chazelle
    Whiplash
  • Ava DuVernay
    Selma
  • Alejandro G. Iñárritu
    Birdman
  • Richard Linklater
    Boyhood
  • David Zellner
    Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter

I have to give this to Inaritu because of the unique faux one take style of the film. That had to take so much planning. The story was great too. Everything came together for Birdman. It’s going to be a split in Best Movie and Best Director this year.

BEST FEMALE LEAD

  • Marion Cotillard
    The Immigrant
  • Rinko Kikuchi
    Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter
  • Julianne Moore
    Still Alice
  • Jenny Slate
    Obvious Child
  • Tilda Swinton
    Only Lovers Left Alive

Rumor is that Julianne Moore will be unbeatable, but Marion Cotillard was amazing in The Immigrant.

BEST MALE LEAD

  • André Benjamin
    Jimi: All Is By My Side
  • Jake Gyllenhaal
    Nightcrawler
  • Michael Keaton
    Birdman
  • John Lithgow
    Love is Strange
  • David Oyelowo
    Selma

Keaton as Batman! err Birdman. HE should win. Though Jake could contend as could Lithgow.

BEST SCREENPLAY

  • Scott Alexander & Larry Karaszewski for Big Eyes
  • J.C. Chandor for A Most Violent Year
  • Dan Gilroy for Nightcrawler
  • Jim Jarmusch for Only Lovers Left Alive
  • Ira Sachs & Mauricio Zacharias for Love Is Strange

Nightcrawler’s screenplay is a strength but I feel that the structure of Love Is Strange was such a heartbreaking way to tell a story. That’s my pick.

BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY

  • Desiree Akhavan for Appropriate Behavior
  • Sara Colangelo for Little Accidents
  • Justin Lader for The One I Love
  • Anja Marquardt for She’s Lost Control
  • Justin Simien for Dear White People

Haven’t seen any of these though the buzz for Dear White People is strong.

JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD (BEST FEATURE MADE FOR UNDER $500,000)

  • Blue Ruin
  • It Felt Like Love
  • Land Ho!
  • Man from Reno
  • Test

For me Land Ho! was just so life affirming so I’ll go with that. But I’d say the makers of Blue Ruin have more promise. I’ll be pulling for either of those.

BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE

  • Patricia Arquette for Boyhood
  • Jessica Chastain for A Most Violent Year
  • Carmen Ejogo for Selma
  • Andrea Suarez Paz for Stand Clear of the Closing Doors
  • Emma Stone for Birdman

Patricia Arquette was the glue for Boyhood. She might be the only one from that movie to receive major acting category consideration. Hope she wins.

BEST SUPPORTING MALE

  • Riz Ahmed for Nightcrawler
  • Ethan Hawke for Boyhood
  • Alfred Molina for Love Is Strange
  • Edward Norton for Birdman
  • J.K. Simmons for Whiplash

J.K. Simmons. That is all. This might be the strongest category of the bunch. Simmons all the way.

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

  • The Immigrant
  • Birdman
  • It Felt Like Love
  • A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night
  • Selma

Chivo’s work in Birdman is just too good. Though the B&W photography of A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night could be excellent and The Immigrant was so moody and was helped with excellent lensing, this is Birdman’s to lose.

BEST EDITING

  • Boyhood
  • Whiplash
  • Nightcrawler
  • A Most Violent Year
  • The Guest

Have to go with the frenetic editing of Whiplash to take home the prize.

BEST DOCUMENTARY

  • 20,000 Days on Earth
  • Citizenfour
  • Stray Dog
  • The Salt of the Earth
  • Virunga

20,000 Days on Earth was such a unique documentary. My vote goes here, though Citizenfour was very enjoyable.

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM

  • Force Majeure (Sweden)
  • Ida (Poland)
  • Leviathan (Russia)
  • Mommy (Canada)
  • Norte, the End of History (Philippines)
  • Under the Skin (United Kingdom)

My bet here is between Under the Skin and Force Majeure. Force Majeure comes to the Oriental in Milwaukee soon, so I’ll be seeing that shortly.

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