British Independent Film Award Nominations

The British Independent Film Awards are to the BAFTAs what the Independent Spirit Awards are the Oscars stateside; they’ve often provided some of my favorite nominations of the season, recognizing some fantastic performances and films that went otherwise unnoticed. Last year’s proceedings featured a stellar lineup including “An Education,” “In the Loop,” “Moon,” “Nowhere Boy,” “Fish Tank” and “Bright Star,” and there were a few genuinely inspired choices, including Best Actor for Tom Hardy in “Bronson.”

This year’s nominations are a bit…well, wacko. You would expect Mike Leigh’s “Another Year” would’ve been a smash hit here, but the film couldn’t even manage a screenplay nomination, which is fairly astounding. Then again, Leigh’s films have always been more well-received here in the U.S. than in Leigh’s homeland, strangely enough. Still, the Best Picture nominees have a distinctly mainstream taste this year; one wonders where exactly we’re drawing the line between independent and studio fare these days (“Kick-Ass??” Really??) Some people are now panicking that “Another Year” could go the way of “Happy-Go-Lucky” a couple years ago and flame out in the awards cycle, but I’ll still stand behind it for the moment. “Happy-Go-Lucky” was, in the end, not much more than a vehicle for Sally Hawkins’ considerable talents (besides her performance, I must admit I was never really a fan of the film), and the reviews for “Another Year” indicate it is a far more complete effort. An Original Screenplay nod is all but certain, anyway (even “Happy-Go-Lucky” managed that one), and strong writing + loads of talented, respected British actors is always a good base for a Best Picture campaign.

Anyway, here are the BIFA nominations; I’m particularly intrigued/excited by the nods for “Four Lions,” “Monsters” and “The Illusionist.”

Best British Independent Film

• Four Lions
• Kick-Ass
• The King’s Speech
• Monsters
• Never Let Me Go

Best Director:

• Mike Leigh, “Another Year”
• Matthew Vaughn, “Kick-Ass”
• Tom Hooper, “The King’s Speech”
• Gareth Edwards, “Monsters”
• Mark Romanek, “Never Let Me Go”

Best Debut Director:

• Debs Gardner Paterson, “Africa United”
• Clio Barnard, “The Arbor”
• Rowan Joffe, “Brighton Rock”
• Chris Morris, “Four Lions”
• Gareth Edwards, “Monsters”

Best Actor:

• Riz Ahmed, “Four Lions”
• Jim Broadbent, “Another Year”
• Colin Firth, “The King’s Speech”
• Aidan Gillen, “Treacle Jr.”
• Scoot McNairy, “Monsters”

Best Actress:

• Sally Hawkins, “Made in Dagenham”
• Carey Mulligan, “Never Let Me Go”
• Andrea Riseborough, “Brighton Rock”
• Ruth Sheen, “Another Year”
• Manjinder Virk, “The Arbor”

Best Supporting Actor:

• Andrew Garfield, “Never Let Me Go”
• Bob Hoskins, “Made in Dagenham”
• Kayvan Novak, “Four Lions”
• Guy Pearce, “The King’s Speech”
• Geoffrey Rush, “The King’s Speech”

Best Supporting Actress:

• Helena Bonham Carter, “The King’s Speech”
• Tamsin Greig, “Tamara Drewe”
• Keira Knightley, “Never Let Me Go”
• Lesley Manville, “Another Year”
• Rosamund Pike, “Made in Dagenham”

Best Screenplay:

• Jesse Armstrong, Sam Bain, Simon Blackwell, Chris Morris, “Four Lions”
• Jane Goldman, Matthew Vaughn, “Kick-Ass”
• David Seidler, “The King’s Speech”
• William Ivory, “Made in Dagenham”
• Alex Garland, “Never Let Me Go”

Most Promising Newcomer:

• Joanne Froggatt, “In Our Name”
• Tom Hughes, “Cemetary Junction”
• Conor McCarron, “Neds”
• Andre Riseborough, “Brighton Rock”
• Manjinder Virk, “The Arbor”

Best Technical Achievement:

• Tim Barker (sound), “The Arbor”
• John Mathieson (cinematography), “Brighton Rock”
• Sylvain Chomet (animation), “The Illusionist”
• Eve Stewart (production design), “The King’s Speech”
• Gareth Edwards (visual effects), “Monsters”

Best Foreign Film:

• Dogtooth
• I Am Love
• A Prophet
• The Secret in Their Eyes
• Winter’s Bone