Give Amy Ryan the Oscar Right Now

December 10, 2007

By Brad Brevet

I am honestly getting very excited as award season is in high gear. The latest critics to weigh in with their best of 2007 list are the Washington, DC Area Film Critics Association (WAFCA) and they have gone the way of the Coen, naming No Country for Old Men the best film of 2007 joining the Boston Film Critics and the National Board of Review. The WAFCA love for No Country doesn’t end there however with nods for director (Joel and Ethan Coen), ensemble and supporting actor (Javier Bardem).

They also agree with just about everyone else that Amy Ryan is best supporting actress for Gone Baby Gone and it seems like the Oscar for best actress is quickly shaping up to be a battle between Marion Cotillard from La Vie En Rose and the WAFCA’s choice Julie Christie for Away From Her.

The D.C. crix named The Diving Bell and the Butterfly best foreign film certainly adding to the buzz around that film and they through a wrench in the best actor category by going with George Clooney and his fantastic performance in Michael Clayton. As much as I liked Clooney in Clayton I think his performance was more about the words Gilroy wrote down than the performance, I don’t see this as much of an Oscar sign.

For the complete list just look down a smidge:

Best Film: No Country for Old Men/Miramax & Paramount Vantage

Best Director: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen (No Country for Old Men)

Best Actor: George Clooney (Michael Clayton)

Best Actress: Julie Christie (Away From Her)

Best Ensemble: No Country for Old Men/Miramax & Paramount Vantage

Best Supporting Actor: Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men)

Best Supporting Actress: Amy Ryan (Gone Baby Gone)

Best Breakthrough Performance: Ellen Page (Juno)

Best Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin (Charlie Wilson’s War)

Best Original Screenplay: Diablo Cody (Juno)

Best Animated Feature: Ratatouille/Disney & Pixar