AWARDS WAR

Here is a new way to have some fun with this year's film awards: look at the selections made by film critics versus those by filmmakers.

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On the one hand, up on the Big Screen, as it were, you have the people actually produce the goods. The actors, directors, producers and crew members who put there lives on the line getting stories shot and into cinemas.

They are known as Academy members, as in the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. AKA the folk who award the BAFTAs.

On the other side of the fence, lounging in the comfy chairs of screening rooms across the country, are those nasty people with pens who see a dozen films a week, get jaded if something doesn’t grab them by the throat and find considerable pleasure in saying nasty things about 80% of what they view.

They are the Critics and, for the purposes of this review, there are two groups of them: the celebrated London Critics’ Circle group, including writers for most of the national papers, and the Regional film critics, uncorrupted by metropolitan life, who this year named their annual awards after Richard Attenborough.

First it is worth comparing the main prizes between the two critics’s groups, posting London’s choice’s first, otherwise they will complain.

For Best Picture, London chose No Country For Old Men while the Regionals favoured Atonement.

You see, things are interesting already. What does this difference mean? That the Big City is happier with violence, the country in general more at home with refinement? You decide.

Best Actor pits Daniel Day Lewis vs James McAvoy. Hmm.

Best Actress Cate Blanchett and Marion Cotillard. Now that’s curious!

Actually London named a second Film of the Year, Control, and gave the Best British Actor/Actress to James McAvoy and Julie Christie, just to muddy the waters.

Best Director was split between Paul Thomas Anderson (London) and Joe Wright (Regionals).

The screenwriter choices were Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, the German behind The Lives of Others, and Christopher Hampton for Atonement (really, did the Regional critics not like any other films?).

The only thing both sets of critics agreed on was the Rising Star, Sam Riley, for Control. Fine, we will look for great things from him.

Now, hurrying on, despite the critics disagreements, to the main contest with BAFTA.

Briefly, BAFTA went for Atonement, like the Regionals; Best Actor was Daniel Day-Lewis, like London’s Critics; Best Actress was Maria Cotillard, as per London again; Best Director was the Coen Brothers, so no agreement there; Best Screenplay went to The Diving Bell and The Butterfly, another surprising foreign choice; and the Rising Star was Shia LeBeouf (a weird digression, but this award was chosen by the public so doesn’t really count here.

So what conclusions can be drawn between the filmmakers and critics’ choices? Principally that, predictably, they don’t agree on very much.

Filed February 14, 2008.