The Longlists: Narrowing the Field

It's long been a tradition to do a Longlist, the kind BAFTA does, with the semi-finalists in each category. Having yet to catch up with the other 2011 releases, I have decided -- not through impatience, but through honesty -- to keep the eligible films to those I saw during the year. I had ample time to see a lot of films, and not everything can be seen. Besides, these are the Hollmann Awards, which means two things. First, it means that they do not represent all of 2011 cinema, but my own cinematic year. Second, it means I can basically make up the rules as I go along.


With the notable exception of Best Picture (for I've already revealed the unranked Top Ten) and Best Original Song (for choices were few), the categories are narrowed down to fifteen contenders. Interestingly, the most difficult categories to pare down were Director and Supporting Actor. Doesn't Chris O'Dowd's contribution to Bridesmaids warrant recognition? How could I ignore the greatness of Steven Spielberg, especially since War Horse made it to my Top 25? Wasn't Wyatt McCallum fantastic in The Myth of the American Sleepover? I could always make up a new rule, but if you're not going to kill your darlings, you may as well not do your own awards. And for heaven's sake, who wants that?!?

You will also see actors who are currently being campaigned for supporting in the leading categories. This is because I feel that their roles are large enough to warrant a category change. Peppy Miller and Alice Dainard are more than just the love interests who help their guy make it through to the end. They have their own fully-developed arcs. The movie just couldn't exist without them.


Eighteen categories. It's a lot of text, but I always like the conversations these can spark. Shall we?