So how does today’s Producers Guild Awards announcement — and its surprising omission of The Tree of Life — affect the overall Oscar race? The Tree of Life took a bit of a hit today; if it also fails to earn a Directors Guild nomination, it may be down for the count. Here are my weekly ranked lists in the six major categories.

BEST PICTURE
1. The Artist (last week: 1)
2. War Horse (last week: 2)
3. The Descendants (last week: 3)
4. The Help (last week: 4)
5. Hugo (last week: 5)
6. Midnight in Paris (last week: 6)
7. Moneyball (last week: 8 )
8. The Tree of Life (last week: 7)
9. Bridesmaids (last week: 10)
10. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (last week: 14)
11. The Ides of March (last week: 12)
12. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (last week: 9)
13. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 2 (last week: 11)
14. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (last week: 13)
15. Drive (last week: 15) READ FULL STORY »

Image Credit: Jaap Buitendijk/Paramount Pictures

This morning’s Critics’ Choice nominations from the Broadcast Film Critics Association provide the most definitive sharpening of the Oscar race so far. Last year, nine of the BFCA’s 10 Best Pictures were nominated by the Academy, while 18 of the 20 eventual Oscar nominees in the acting categories were recognized by the BFCA first. The Artist and Hugo have dominated the early critics prizes so far — the question in my mind at this point is, Can Hugo actually win? It certainly has a lot going for it: a prestige director, a lovely screenplay, gorgeous technical attributes. But will it have enough support from the actors’ branch, the largest unit in the Academy? No film in the last 15 years has won Best Picture without at least scoring a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for Best Cast, so I’ll be looking closely at tomorrow’s SAG Award announcement. If Hugo makes the cut, then it’s within striking distance for the win.

BEST PICTURE
1. The Artist (last week: 1)
2. The Descendants (last week: 2)
3. War Horse (last week: 3)
4. Hugo (last week: 7)
5. The Help (last week: 6) READ FULL STORY »

The Washington, D.C. Film Critics Association has now chimed in with its annual winners, including The Artist for Best Picture and Hugo‘s Martin Scorsese for Best Director. Its acting prizes, meanwhile, went to George Clooney (The Descendants), Michelle Williams (My Week With Marilyn), Octavia Spencer (The Help), and Albert Brooks (Drive). Here’s how the six main Oscar races stand, after the D.C. critics and last week’s National Board of Review announcement.

BEST PICTURE
1. The Artist (last week: 1)
2. The Descendants (last week: 2)
3. War Horse (last week: 3) READ FULL STORY »