SAG Award and Golden Globe Nominations for Motion Pictures

Nominations are out for the 19th annual SAG Awards – can it really be 19 years that we have been doing this? Anyway, these nominations can be a harbinger (for the most part) of Oscar nominations in the actor category. Because of some differences in the nominating process, some films that qualify at the last minute for Oscar consideration can have been missed by the SAG Awards.

Nominations are also out for the Golden Globes. We'll look at those acting nominations as well.

SAG Awards:

For Theatrical Motion Pictures, there are nominations for male and female actors in the leading role and supporting role categories. There are also nominations for Motion Picture casts as a whole. There are also similar category nominations for Television but I won’t deal with those today.

Argo, Lincoln, Les Miserable, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Silver Linings Playbook have all been nominated in the Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture category. I have to think that Lincoln and Les Miserable may have the inside track however Hotel could be the sleeper. It truly is ensemble work with terrific performances by a cast of veteran and favored actors. It is wonderful to watch seasoned actors who know how to interact (and react) with their peers in such a seamless and seemingly effortless fashion.

Lincoln and Les Miserable are also represented in the Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading role category: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln and Hugh Jackman in Les Miz. These are both big and showy parts, so again one has to consider them the favorites. However, my money is on John Hawkes in The Sessions. This is the kind of role and performance that actors (they are the ones who vote) really appreciate. Bradley Cooper in Silver Linings Playbook and Denzel Washington in Flight are also nominated.

For the women, it is Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty, Marion Cotillard in Rust and Bone, Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook, Helen Mirren in Hitchcock and Naomi Watts in The Impossible. Here, I don’t have a clue.

In the Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role, Tommy Lee Jones in Lincoln, Philip Seymour in The Master, Robert De Niro in Silver Linings Playbook, Javier Bardem in Skyfall and Alan Arkin in Argo. I think Arkin may win this.

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role has Sally Field in Lincoln, Anne Hathaway in Les Miserables, Nicole Kidman in The Paperboy, Maggie Smith in The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Helen Hunt in The Sessions. I am leaning to Maggie Smith, but it certainly could be Hunt because of the nature of the film and the role.

I have listed what I think may be the outcome in the categories but not necessarily how I will vote. I do get to vote but I won’t make up my mind until I have to submit my ballot. Stay tuned.

We will know Sunday night, January 27, 2013.

Golden Globes:

The best actor nominees also include Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln John Hawkes in The Sessions and Denzel Washington in Flight. Additionally, Richard Gere in Aribitrage and from The Master Joaquin Phoenix.

Leading women nominated are almost identical to the SAG Awards nominees: Jessica Chastain in Zero Dark Thirty, Marion Cotillard in Rust and Bone, Helen Mirren in Hitchcock, Naomi Watts in The Impossible. The anomaly here is Rachel Weisz in The Deep Blue Sea.

Footnote: I have always refused to use the word ‘actress’ in referring to a woman who acts. There are male actors and there are female actors – it is gender neutral as far as I am concerned and I hate the idea of ‘genderizing’ what we as actors do.

The Golden Globes also nominate separately for actors in a comedy or musical.

For the men: Jack Black in Bernie, Bradley Cooper in Silver Linings Playbook, High Jackman in Les Moserables, Ewen McGregor in Salmon Fishing in the Yemen Bill Murray in Hyde Park on Hudson

Bradley Cooper and Hugh Jackman also made the SAG Awards list.

For the women: Emily Blunt in Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, Judy Dench in Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook, Maggie Smith in Quartet, Meryl Streep in Hope Springs

It is interesting that Maggie Smith has a SAG Awards nomination for her supporting role in The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, and here, Judy Dench is nominated for the same film.

For supporting actors, the Globes don't create separate categories for comedy/musical and drama.

Men include some also nominated by the SAG Awards: Alan Arkin in Argo, Philip Semour Hoffman in The Master and Tommy Lee Jones in Lincoln. The others are Leonardo DiCaprio in Django Unchained and Christoph Waltz also in Django Unchained.

The Golden Globes nominated four women also nominated for a SAG Award: Sally Field in Lincoln,
Anne Hathaway in Les Miserables, Helen Hunt in The Sessions and Nicole Kidman in The Paperboy. Amy Adams was nominted for The Master.

I don't have a vote in the Golden Globes - I don't think I am foreign enough.

The Golden Globes Awards show airs January, 13th. that is two weeks before the SAG Awards and two days before the Oscar nominations are announced. As I said earlier, stay tuned.