The 27th Sundance Film Festival had drawn its curtains. In the realm of feature films, "Like Crazy" emerged as the greatest victor, while in the realm of documentaries, "Eternal God of Cars" reaped a comprehensive harvest.
Amidst the clamor, Renly once again became the center of attention. This marked the fourth time in the past decade that the festival bestowed the Jury's Special Award upon an actor.
The previous three recipients were Monica from "Precious" in 2009, Amy Adams from "Junebug" and Lou Taylor Pucci from "Thumbsucker" in 2005, and Tom Wilkinson and Sissy Spacek from "In the Bedroom" in 2001.
These three prior winners garnered Oscar nominations for their acting, and one even secured the Berlin Silver Bear Award.
Furthermore, this was the first time in the past ten years of the Sundance Film Festival that the Jury's Special Award was singularly granted to an actor. Both in 2009 and 2005, there were other joint winners.
Undoubtedly, Renly, who had delivered splendid performances in both "Buried" and "Like Crazy", swiftly ascended to become a prominent figure in the independent film industry. His fame and recognition spread at a visible pace.
Conversations had begun to buzz with anticipation, debating whether Renly's sudden rise was akin to a shooting star, a fleeting brilliance that swiftly fades, or whether he possessed abundant talent, meticulously honing his craft to become another venerable performer of historical significance. Alternatively, some pondered if he would fall into creative decline, his meteoric ascent during youthful exuberance followed by stagnation.
This was Hollywood, where all things were possible.
Moreover, the dazzle of fame and fortune often left individuals bewildered, lost amidst its brilliance, struggling to find their way back.
Renly was only twenty-one this year, full of vitality, exuberance, and recklessness. Aiming to sustain his acting career for a decade, two decades, or even longer without losing his way, succumbing to hardships, or becoming weary, was an arduous task. In Hollywood, stories of talented individuals who were eventually forgotten were countless.
The intensity of scrutiny upon Renly was staggering—doubt, curiosity, examination, praise, and criticism merged into a cacophonous symphony.
The future remained distant, unpredictable, yet the 83rd Academy Awards were imminent. Following the conclusion of the Sundance Film Festival, Renly secured the Jury's Special Award through "Like Crazy", and thus, the suspense surrounding whether "Buried" would garner an Oscar nomination gained momentum.
This year, the momentum of Gen Y actors was undeniably formidable. In past years, the average age of the Best Actor Oscar winners had ranged between forty and forty-five, a prevailing trend in all of Hollywood. However, this time, actors under the age of thirty-two surged forward, ushering in an era of prosperity.
James Franco, Ryan Gosling, Jesse Eisenberg, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Renly Hall—these five actors possessed the potential for nominations. Beyond them, actors aged above thirty-two appeared to fade somewhat, yet remained noteworthy. Any ascent or fall seemed a natural outcome. So, who would ultimately have the last laugh?
Amidst the gaze of the masses, Tom Sherak, the chairman of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, alongside last year's Best Supporting Actress winner, Mo'Nique, unveiled the list of nominations at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater.
Among all the awards presented at the ceremony, the Best Picture category remained the most anticipated. Even though the number of nominated films had increased from five to ten, the level of attention remained undiminished, and this year was no exception.
"The King's Speech" and "The Social Network", the leaders of the awards season, secured their nominations without a doubt. "The Kids Are All Right" easily swept through the musical comedy category, its nomination unsurprising.
"Inception", with the stance of a commercial film, stormed through, enjoying both box office success and acclaim, securing a nomination and marking a new breakthrough in director Christopher Nolan's career.
Likewise, the widely acclaimed "Toy Story 3" also earned a nomination. It became the first animated film to compete for Best Picture since the inception of the Best Animated Feature category, and the second animated film since "Beauty and the Beast" to achieve such an honor in all of Oscars' history.
Beyond these five films, "Black Swan", "127 Hours", and "The Fighter", works that had been repeatedly discussed during the awards season and displayed outstanding performance, inevitably secured nominations, continuing their prior strong momentum.
However, the last two spots brought a mild surprise.
"True Grit", which had previously not received a single Golden Globe nomination, made a last-minute turnaround. Breaking through the barriers, it secured a place among the Best Picture contenders.
Directed by the Coen Brothers, this film, although having premiered at the New York Film Festival on December 14th and received widespread acclaim, had failed to garner favor at the Golden Globes. Later, on the 22nd, it officially screened, its reputation soaring. It was generally believed to be far superior to the Coen Brothers' "A Serious Man" from the previous year and "Burn After Reading" from two years prior. Its level of quality was nearly on par with "No Country for Old Men", which won the Academy Award for Best Picture.
Despite missing the selection window for the "Oscar Three Indicators", "True Grit" still powerfully secured an Oscar nomination. The Coen Brothers had indeed lived up to their reputation as the most outstanding directors in the industry over the past five years, effectively demonstrating the principle of relying on one's own excellence during the nomination stage.
The final spot was taken by "Winter's Bone", last year's winner of the Sundance Jury Prize, which garnered acclaim throughout the year. Its momentum surged from the beginning to the end of the year, propelling it into the top ten nominations for the Oscars.
Strictly speaking, the nomination for "Winter's Bone" couldn't be considered an underdog, but it did require a hard-fought battle to emerge victorious. It managed to secure a nomination after triumphing over a lineup of outstanding works such as "Blue Valentine", "Buried", "Barney's Version", and "The Town". It became one of the most representative independent films of 2010.
With this, the ten nomination slots for Best Picture had been fully revealed, leaving no popular works behind.
Similarly, in terms of the number of nominations, these ten films naturally took the lead.
"The King's Speech" led the pack with twelve nominations, sweeping all major categories—Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Original Screenplay, Best Film Editing, and more. With a come-from-behind strategy, it successfully captured the hearts of the academy judges, making a confident ascent during the nomination stage.
The Weinstein Brothers had truly displayed their exceptional skills.
Previously leading the pack, "The Social Network" noticeably lost momentum during the final stage of nominations, securing only eight nominations.
While it's true that major categories like Best Director, Best Actor, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Film Editing were all covered, stumbling in the Best Supporting Actor category left people bewildered. What's more, a film that excelled in technical aspects like "The Social Network" found itself overshadowed in those very areas by the more performance and story-driven "The King's Speech". This was not good news.
"The King's Speech" versus "The Social Network" became the main theme of this year's entire awards season. "The Social Network" stunned everyone with its sharpness and sophistication of the 21st century, taking the lead in the first half of the season. "The King's Speech", on the other hand, followed closely with a retro elegance from the previous century. The film fully exploited the academy's conservatism and self-love, coming from behind.
This clash would extend to the Oscars ceremony. However, right after the nominations were announced, a sudden change in the winds occurred. "True Grit" secured ten nominations, surpassing "The Social Network" and closely trailing behind "The King's Speech". With its grand momentum, the awards season's situation suddenly became more intricate.
Among the nominations for "True Grit" were Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, and Best Adapted Screenplay, among other significant awards. Its only disadvantage was the omission of the Best Film Editing nomination, but its overall momentum was no less impressive than "The King's Speech".
With the Coen Brothers at the helm and heavyweights like Jeff Bridges, Roger Deakins, and Scott Rudin lending their support, the film's influence was not to be underestimated, standing strong against the Weinstein Brothers.
Furthermore, beyond "True Grit", "Inception", with eight nominations, and "The Fighter", with seven nominations, also commanded grand attention. The former held an absolute advantage in the technical departments, while the latter exhibited formidable performance impact.
In other words, what was initially thought to be a two-way contest now appeared to be a skirmish among five films. This pattern was already evident from the nominations for Best Director alone.
The Coen Brothers of "True Grit", David Fincher of "The Social Network", Tom Hooper of "The King's Speech", David O. Russell of "The Fighter", and Darren Aronofsky of "Black Swan" all successfully secured Best Director nominations.
As a commercial director, Christopher Nolan, after "The Dark Knight", once again faced the academy's disregard. Wanting to follow in the footsteps of James Cameron and Peter Jackson, Christopher still had a long way to go. And replacing Christopher was the dazzling Darren, riding high on the success of "Black Swan" during the awards season.
Darren, who had previously delivered outstanding works like "Requiem for a Dream", "The Wrestler", and "The Fountain", finally emerged victorious, securing his first Oscar nomination in his career—a well-deserved recognition.
Overall, five films engaged in a melee, presenting the most vivid interpretation of the 83rd Oscars nomination list. "The Social Network", which lost its lead, chased after the commanding "The King's Speech", the strategically savvy "True Grit", along with the clearly defined strengths and weaknesses of "Inception" and "The Fighter", promised an immensely captivating Oscars ceremony this year.
Of course, the ever-ambitious "Black Swan" cannot be forgotten.
Compared to the rather predictable Golden Globe Awards, the unveiling of the Oscar nominations successfully ignited discussions and anticipation. And above all individual categories, there were still many points of interest.