Tis the Season: The Screen Actors Guild

(Scroll over any film title for the full Black Sheep review.)

You can always rely on the Screen Actors Guild to throw a couple of bones the way of unexpected nominees. And these folks have some serious sway with the Oscars, as actors make up the largest voting component of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences. This year, the most glaring and bewildering inclusion is that of Hilary Swank in the Best Actress category for the little seen and widely panned, CONVICTION. Her co-star, Sam Rockwell, has earned a couple of nods so far this season, but he misses out here. Michelle Williams is inexplicably and inexcusably shut out for BLUE VALENTINE as a result. Oh, and can someone please explain to me why Jeremy Renner keeps scoring nods for his simply adequate performance in THE TOWN.

Leaders in SAG nominations this year are THE KING'S SPEECH and THE FIGHTER. These are actor's films so it is truly not surprising to see these two out in front. It is also no surprise not to see awards season favorite, INCEPTION, as that, for all its combined cast talent, is more plot and effects driven, and so was completely shut out by the SAG, save for a nod for the stunt work. With INCEPTION missing from the roster, that left room for one film to sneak into the Best Ensemble category, the SAG equivalent of Best Picture. Aside from the expected titles listed below, that wild card slot went the THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT. Still no nod for Julianne Moore though. Her Oscar odds are all but dead.

The winners for the 17th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards will be handed out on January 30, 2011. Here is the full list of film nominees:

OUTSTANDING MALE ACTOR - LEAD

Jeff Bridges, TRUE GRIT

Robert Duvall, GET LOW

Jesse Eisenberg, THE SOCIAL NETWORK

Colin Firth, THE KING'S SPEECH

James Franco, 127 HOURS

OUTSTANDING FEMALE ACTOR - LEAD

Annette Bening, THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT

Nicole Kidman, RABBIT HOLE

Jennifer Lawrence, WINTER'S BONE

Natalie Portman, BLACK SWAN

Hilary Swank, CONVICTION

OUTSTANDING MALE ACTOR - SUPPORTING

Christian Bale, THE FIGHTER

John Hawkes, WINTER'S BONE

Jeremy Renner, THE TOWN

Mark Ruffalo, THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT

Geoffrey Rush, THE KING'S SPEECH

OUTSTANDING FEMALE ACTOR - SUPPORTING
Amy Adams, THE FIGHTER

Helena Bonham Carter, THE KING'S SPEECH

Mila Kunis, BLACK SWAN

Melissa Leo, THE FIGHTER

Hailee Steinfeld, TRUE GRIT

BEST ENSEMBLE

BLACK SWAN

THE FIGHTER

THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT

THE KING'S SPEECH

THE SOCIAL NETWORK

For a full list of the SAG nominees, please visit their website at www.sag.org

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Tis the Season: The Screen Actors Guild

Earlier this week, AN EDUCATION, THE HURT LOCKER and PRECIOUS saw their chances for Oscar gold increase with Best Film nominations at the BAFTA's. At the Screen Actors Guild awards, given out last night, it was another film that declared itself a contender. Without AVATAR or UP IN THE AIR to contend with, as they weren't even noninated, Quentin Tarantino's INGLORIOUS BASTERDS emerged triumphant in the Best Ensemble category, the SAG equivalent of Best Picture. As for the remaining acting categories, the winners remain unchanged from last week's Golden Globes. I still haven't caught Sandra Bullock's supposed best performance of her career in THE BLIND SIDE so I have no business saying anything at all about this but I will this week at some point, and let me tell you, if I'm right about this being just some big pay on the back for a long career and contribution to Hollywood, you will hear about it people! This is a guild made up of actors designed to reward the most incredible performances in their field. Again, I cite Carey Mulligan and Gabourey Sidibe as exceptional examples of this craft and I hope that the SAG aren't debasing themselves by proving that all of this is nothing more than a fancy popularity contest.

The Screen Actors Guild film award winners are:

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A CAST IN A MOTION PICTURE
AN EDUCATION
THE HURT LOCKER
NINE
PRECIOUS

And the winner is: INGLORIOUS BASTERDS

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
George Clooney, UP IN THE AIR
Colin Firth, A SINGLE MAN
Morgan Freeman, INVICTUS
Jeremy Renner, THE HURT LOCKER

And the winner is: JEFF BRIDGES - CRAZY HEART

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Helen Mirren, THE LAST STATION
Carey Mulligan, AN EDUCATION
Gabourey Sidibe, PRECIOUS
Meryl Streep, JULIE & JULIA

And the winner is: SANDRA BULLOCK - THE BLIND SIDE

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Matt Damon, INVICTUS
Woody Harrelson, THE MESSENGER
Christopher Plummer - THE LAST STATION
Stanley Tucci, THE LOVELY BONES

And the winner is: CHRISTOPH WALTZ - INGLORIOUS BASTERDS

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Penelope Cruz, NINE
Vera Farmiga, UP IN THE AIR
Anna Kendrick, UP IN THE AIR
Diane Kruger, INGLORIOUS BASTERDS

And the winner is: MO'NIQUE - PRECIOUS

For a full list of winners, visit the SAG website.

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