What now for THE WHEEL OF TIME?

A Memory of Light is now out, but already the question has been asked if this is truly the end, or if there will be further instalments/expansions of the series. Brandon Sanderson has addressed this issue in both a blog entry and also an interview on Wired.com. Here's a brief summary of what the situation is:

The Outriggers
During the writing of Knife of Dreams (2002-05), Robert Jordan revealed that he had come up with an idea for what he called some 'outrigger' stories. These stories would not be direct sequels to or extension of The Wheel of Time but would expand on some characters and feature side-storylines that would not be addressed in the main series. The storylines for the outriggers were not revealed at the time, although there was some fan speculation that elements such as Talmanes and the Band of the Red Hand's adventures whilst employed by King Roedran of Murandy (in the several months between The Path of Daggers and Knife of Dreams) would be suitable for exploration.

Later on Jordan confirmed that one of the outriggers would focus on Mat Cauthon and Tuon returning to the Seanchan home continent to stabilise the Empire and assert Tuon's rule there. This story would take place about ten years after the main Wheel of Time series. Initially it appeared this would just be one book, but in recent years Team Jordan have indicated there was enough scope for a trilogy. However, it has also been revealed that Robert Jordan himself only wrote two sentences of notes for the books, clearly not enough to base anything solid on. As a result, despite some initial musings by Tor Books and by Team Jordan, the outriggers will now not be written for a dearth of Jordan-written material and a reluctance to turn the series into an open world franchise.

The Prequels
When Robert Jordan expanded New Spring into a novel, he also revealed plans for two other short prequel novels. One would focus on Tam al'Thor, and the other on Moiraine and Lan's continuing adventures, ending immediately where The Eye of the World begins. However, Jordan again apparently did not write much in the way of notes for these books and again, they will now not be written.

The Encyclopedia
Work on The Wheel of Time Encyclopedia is well underway. This book is being written by Harriet McDougal and other members of Team Jordan (Robert Jordan's assistants) and will feature extensive new information on the series. Early reports indicated that the book will feature a 10,000-word vocabulary for the Old Tongue and might feature new maps and tons of notes on characters, places and events. The book will be illustrated, but should not be expected before 2014 at the earliest.

Adaptations
The long-gestating and highly ill-advised Wheel of Time movie project is apparently still percolating at Universal Studios as it has done for the last few years, with no sign of any movement on it. The new Wheel of Time RPG appears to be effectively cancelled, with Red Eagle failing to raise any money for it from publishers and Obsidian Entertainment (the superb game development studio that had originally been hired to work on it if the money had been raised) moving onto other projects. It's possible that the completion of the series will spark renewed interest from those quarters, but at the moment there is no news on them.

42nd International Film Festival Rotterdam Lineup

This year the fest brings us many films but to be brief here are the sixteen (16) films selected for the Hivos Tiger Awards Competition 2013. Among them are five films supported by IFFR's Hubert Bals Fund. The three winners of the Hivos Tiger Awards will be chosen by a jury of five, among them celebrated filmmaker Ai Weiwei. The winners will be announced on Friday 1 February 2013.

36, Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit, Thailand 2012, European premiere
Director Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit uses 36 shots for his original, crisply-told film about memory and lost digital time. In this light-footed and melancholic feature, a location scout loses a year's worth of her photos. She has the feeling that part of her own memory has been deleted and she does everything to get the photos back. In a playful way, this film tackles the issue of changing memory. Deeply hidden in the broken hard disk is also the picture of a possible lover.

Silent Ones, Ricky Rijneke, Netherlands/Hungary 2013, world premiere, CineMart Project 2009
Rotterdam-based Ricky Rijneke shot her first feature film for a large part in Hungary. A young Hungarian woman (played by Hungarian actress Orsi Tóth) wakes up inside a crashed car in the middle of nowhere, not knowing where her brother Isti is. Upset and alone, she leaves aboard a cargo ship to keep a promise she made to him. Once at sea, she withdraws into a dream world and loses grip on her life completely.

Chungmeng (Longing for the Rain), Yang Lina, Hong Kong 2013, world premiere, Hubert Bals Fund-supported film
Linking several genres in a surprising and successful way, Yang Lin’s fiction feature debut is an Asian ghost story in which documentary scenes show how incongruous today's reality can look in China. Protagonist Fang Lei lives in material wealth and only has to care for her daughter. One night, a young mysterious lover appears and makes passionate love to her.

Dummy Jim, Matt Hulse, United Kingdom 2013, world premiere, CineMart Project 2007
More than 50 years ago, deaf Scotsman James Duthie cycled from his fishing village to the Arctic cycle. Together with deaf actor / filmmaker Samuel Dore, Matt Hulse set out on the long journey through northern Europe to adapt this story into his first feature film. Hulse mixes fictional and documentary elements into a virtuoso blend: unusual people in fictional Super 8-films, playful animated sequences and archive footage of the era in the countries traversed.

Eles voltam (They'll Come Back), Marcelo Lordello, Brazil 2012, international premiere
Cris, aged 12, and her brother are left at the side of the road by their parents. The punishment quickly turns into an even greater challenge. Marcelo Lordello's first feature film Eles voltam, which follows Cris in her attempts to find her way back home, is a modern-day fable through different realities guided by the people that inhabit them.

Gozetleme Kulesi (Watchtower), Pelin Esmer, Turkey 2012, European premiere
After her successful fiction feature debut and Hubert Bals Fund-supported film 10 to 11, Pelin Esmer's second feature film Watchtower is a profound character study that takes a critical point of view towards conservatism and the patriarchal system. Haunted by a tragic incident, a fire warden has isolated himself in his remote observation tower. Through a series of events, his life and that of a bus station hostess are brought together.

Halley, Sebastián Hofmann, Mexico 2012, European premiere, Hubert Bals Fund-supported film
In Halley, protagonist Beto's days are numbered. He has been dead for years, but can no longer hide the fact. Perfume and make-up do not help to mask his physical decline; the end is now final for this silent zombie. Sebastián Hofmann shows the world through the eyes of a zombie in decline. His first feature film is a contemporary Gothic story without the spectacle, but with plenty of compassion.

It Felt Like Love, Eliza Hittman, USA 2013, international premiere
In her debut film, Eliza Hittman sketches a sensitive and often painful portrait of a 14-year-old girl on her way to adulthood. During an uneventful summer on the outskirts of Brooklyn, Lila turns her attentions to Sammy, an older thug she sees at Rockaway beach. Wanting something to brag about, she weaves a story about him and becomes fixated on seeing it realized. When her attempts fail, she propels the lie even further, claiming they have had sex.

Larzanandeye charbi (Fat Shaker), Mohammad Shirvani, Iran 2013, European premiere, Hubert Bals Fund-supported film
Fat Shaker is no ordinary film – certainly not by Iranian standards. Its maker, Mohammad Shirvani, is an artist who uses powerful and occasionally absurd images. The story is about a fat father who tries to con money from women with his young and attractive yet deaf-and-dumb son. The role of the father is played by Levon Haft, who is also the striking protagonist in the film Parviz (also in IFFR). As part of the Inside Iran programme, Mohammad Shirvani has made a special art installation titled Elephant in Darkness.

Môj pes Killer (My Dog Killer), Mira Fornay, Slovakia/Czech Republic 2013, world premiere
Môj pes Killer is a one-day drama portraying eighteen-year-old Marek living near the Slovak-Moravian border with his dad and his racist friends. However, Marek's best true friend is his dog. His life is shaken up when he discovers the secret of his lost mother Marika. Fornay's first film Foxes (2009) premiered in Venice and was presented in IFFR 2010's Bright Future.

Noche (Night), Leonardo Brzezicki, Argentina 2013, world premiere, Hubert Bals Fund-supported film
Six friends return to the big farmhouse in the middle of a subtropical landscape where their best friend Miguel spent his last days. While the sound of his recordings fills the house and gardens, they pack the things he left behind. Brzezicki's directorial début is a haunting sensorial journey through memories, images and sounds.

Penumbra, Eduardo Villanueva Jiménez, Mexico 2013, world premiere, Hubert Bals Fund-supported film
In Penumbra, the second feature film by writer, producer and filmmaker Eduardo Villanueva Jiménez, an experienced old hunter shows his world within a rural Mexico lost in time: a place of suspense and mystery where he creates a fascinating and illusory world together with the spirits of the forest.

Sao karaoke (Karaoke Girl), Visra Vichit Vadakan, Thailand 2013, world premiere
Young sex worker Sa is the protagonist of Visra Vichit Vadakan's first feature film. Sa was sent to Bangkok when she was just 15. After three years in a factory, she decided to become a sex worker in order to support her family. Four years later, Vichit Vadakan met her and invited her to be the subject of this film. She documented Sa's life in the city and in the country and also wrote a fictional script for her to act in. Karaoke Girl is made from these building blocks of real life and fiction.

Soldate Jeannette (Soldier Jane), Daniel Hoesl, Austria 2012, European premiere
Daniel Hoesl makes his directorial debut with Soldate Jeannette after working in the arts for a while, and for filmmakers like Ulrich Seidl and Michael Glawogger. Soldate Jeanette, a film with a distinct personal signature, impeccable aesthetics and original narrative, portrays Fanni, a middle-aged woman living a lifestyle that only the most advanced post-postmodern capitalist society can offer: independence, financial speculation, compulsive consumerism, matcha, taekwondo. She meets Anna, an attractive young woman in dire need of reinventing herself. Together, the comrades set out for new horizons, defying all conventions.

Su Re (The King), Giovanni Columbu, Italy 2012, international premiere
Transposing the story of the Passion of Jesus to Sardinia, Su Re draws for the very first time on the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John together. Giovanni Columbu's distinct view is shot in a landscape unaffected by modernity and played out by an amateur cast, offering still new insights into the life of Christ.

De wederopstanding van een klootzak (The Resurrection of a Bastard), Guido van Driel, Netherlands 2013, world premiere, CineMart Project 2010
The Resurrection of a Bastard, feature debut of visual artist and filmmaker Guido van Driel, is based on his own graphic novel. An original, bleak and sometimes surreal story shot in a compelling, controlled way, Van Driel's film brings together an old Frisian farmer bent on revenge, an Amsterdam criminal barely surviving a liquidation and an illegal immigrant.

To check films in all sections go here.

A Memory of Light by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson

The Last Battle has begun. The fate of the world and time itself hinge upon Rand al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn, and his allies. The great city of Caemlyn burns, the Borderlands are overrun and Lan Mandragoran's army at Tarwin's Gap has been overwhelmed. Rand must convince the nations of the world that they must stand united against the Shadow or face oblivion.

For Rand's allies, they have their own struggles to face. The Black Tower is in jeopardy of falling to the Shadow, and it falls to the least-powerful of the Asha'man to try to save the day. Mat Cauthon must convince his wife, the proud Seanchan Empress, to join the great coalition against the Dark One. Perrin Aybara hunts the wolf dream for the creature known as Slayer. And Egwene al'Vere must confront the possible annihilation of the Pattern itself, which is in danger of unravelling from the use of the forbidden weave known as balefire.

On a day that dawns twice, the forces of the Dragon Reborn and those of the Shadow meet in two titanic conflicts. On the Field of Merrilor, millions will fight and die in the greatest battle the world has seen in three and a half thousand years. In the shadow of Shayol Ghul, Rand al'Thor must confront the Dark One and end this struggle once and for all.

The Wheel of Time is finished. That's a statement that's going to take a while to get used to. The first volume of the series, The Eye of the World, was published in January 1990. George Bush Snr. and Margaret Thatcher were still in power and the Cold War was still ongoing. Fourteen books, four million words, eleven thousand pages and over fifty million sales (in North America alone) later, the conclusion has finally arrived. Can it possibly live up to the expectations built up over that time?

It is a tribute to the plotting powers of Robert Jordan, the writing skill of Brandon Sanderson (who took over the series after Jordan's untimely death in 2007) and the hard work of Jordan's editors and assistants that A Memory of Light is - for the most part - a triumphant finale. Given the weight of expectations resting on the novel, not to mention the unfortunate circumstances under it was written, it is unsurprising that it is not perfect. The novel occasionally misfires, is sometimes abrupt in how it resolves long-running plot strands and sometimes feels inconsistent with what has come before. However, it also brings this juggernaut of an epic fantasy narrative to an ending that makes sense, is suitably massive in scope and resolves the series' thematic, plot and character arcs satisfactorily - for the most part.

It is a familiar viewpoint that The Wheel of Time is a slow-burning series, with Robert Jordan not afraid to have his characters sitting around talking about things for entire chapters (or, in one case, an entire novel) rather than getting on with business. However, Jordan at his best used these lengthy dialogue scenes to set up plot twists and explosive confrontations further down the line, pulling together the elements he'd established previously in surprising and interesting ways. This reached a high in the slow-moving sixth book, which ended with what is regarded by many as the series' best climax to date at the Battle of Dumai's Wells. Steven Erikson (whose Malazan series is the most notable recent mega-long fantasy series to have also reached a final conclusion) used the term 'convergence' for such structural climaxes and it's fair to say that this is what A Memory of Light is: a convergence for the entire series. All thirteen of the previous novels lined up plot cannons in preparation for the Last Battle, and in the closing chapters of Towers of MidnightBrandon Sanderson started triggering them.

The result is not The Wheel of Time you may be familiar with. A Memory of Light is a brutal, bruising, 900-page war novel that kicks off with all hell breaking loose and doesn't pause for breath until the ending. The prologue starts with a well-paced sequence as we find out the state of play for the major characters, intercut with Talmanes and the Band of the Red Hand engaging hordes of Shadowspawn on the streets of Caemlyn. The rotation of scenes between the desperate street fighting and more familiar politicking is highly effective and is exhausting in itself. Immediately after this we alternate between Rand's attempts to pull together a coalition against the Shadow whilst a small group of Asha'man try to save their organisation from destruction against overwhelming odds. No sooner is that over than the Last Battle is joined in full force. Vast armies clash, channellers engage one another in One Power exchanges that dwarf anything seen before in the series and lots of stuff blows up. There's more action sequences in A Memory of Light than the rest of the series put together, more than earning the adage 'The Last Battle'.

The action sequences (which make up almost the whole book) are, for the most part, impressive but benefit from unpredictability. Jordan has been criticised for making his characters too safe, with almost no major character of note (on either side) dying in the previous books of the series. This limitation has been removed for the Last Battle. Major characters, middling ones and scores of minor ones are scythed down in this final confrontation with near-wild abandon. Some get heroic, fitting, blaze-of-glory ends. Some die in manners so unexpected, offhand and callous that even George R.R. Martin might nod in approval. Many of the survivors are seriously wounded, either in body or mind. Jordan's experiences as a Vietnam vet informed Rand al'Thor's arc in The Gathering Storm, and resurface here when one major character is tortured by the Shadow before being rescued, but spends the rest of the book suffering the effects of his experiences. The war scenes are suitably epic and exciting, but Sanderson remembers to include moments counting the cost of such a struggle.

That said, there is an annoying discrepancy in the Last Battle sequence compared to earlier novels. Based on the army sizes in previous volumes and the number of channellers in each faction, the good guys should have brought the better part of a million troops and five thousand One Power-wielders to the Last Battle, and the Shadow several times more. There is no indication that such vast numbers are present, which seems rather odd. There is also the fact that the channellers suddenly seem to be much less effective in mass combat than previously shown. This is most blatant when Logain is angrily told that he and a couple of dozen Asha'man cannot hope to defeat a hundred thousand Trollocs by themselves. Given this is exactly what happened in one scene in Knife of Dreams, I can only conclude that the channellers were deliberately reduced in power for this book, which is very strange.

For the most part, this is the level of problems A Memory of Light presents: something mildly irritating to those who prefer consistency from fictional works but ultimately not hugely relevant to the overall thrust of the narrative. Similar issues can be found with a number of very minor subplots that the novel fails to resolve (or even address) from earlier volumes. In some cases these may be examples of what Robert Jordan himself said would happen in the last book, with some elements left deliberately hanging to give the illusion that life goes on after the last page is turned. In other cases, it may be that Jordan did not draft out how those storylines ended, so Sanderson chose to leave them rather than risk too inventing too much of his own material. Sanderson even refuses to name an important river that Jordan did not name himself, resulting is a slightly awkward battle sequence where characters talk about the 'river on the border', the 'river on the battlefield' and so on, which is a bit laboured.

However, whilst the war scenes rage there is also a philosophical struggle at the heart of the book, and of the series. This struggle is shown in the confrontation between Rand and the Dark One in which their visions of the world and the Wheel are shown in conflict with one another. Robert Jordan was convinced that whilst there were certainly complexities and shades of grey in real life, he also believed that real good and real evil existed, and these ideas form part of the philosophical struggle that takes place alongside the battles. How successful this is will vary (perhaps immensely) from reader to reader, but is not helped by some muddling of the issues. The primary struggle of the books has consistently been Good vs. Evil, but in this philosophy-off the idea of the Creator personifying Order and the Dark One Chaos also arises, possibly as their primary roles. This is in conflict with the rest of the series and is also more tiresomely familiar and predictable. Once that interpretation arises, it's impossible not to think of the ending of the Shadow War in the TV series Babylon 5, and the resolution we get is not a million miles away from it (Rand even gets a line almost as awful as "Get the hell out of our galaxy!").

On the prose side of things, it's pretty much the same set-up as The Gathering Storm and Towers of Midnight: acceptable, faster-paced and a bit less prone to unnecessary introspection. Where Sanderson comes undone (yet again) is his very occasional use of terminology and language that Jordan would never have used, particularly modern words and terms. Though relatively rare, they still jar a little bit when they appear. The book's centrepiece is a single chapter that is almost 200 pages (and 70,000 words) long in hardcover, with some 70 POV characters playing a role. Apparently both Sanderson and Jordan wrote parts of this chapter, and a few minor inconsistencies aside their writing styles mesh very well. The very last section of the epilogue, written by Robert Jordan himself before he passed (including, rather eerily, Jordan's epitaph from his own funeral), is indeed a fitting way to end the book.

Taking everything into account, A Memory of Light (****½) is a lot better than perhaps we had any right to expect. The book is a relentless steamroller of action, explosions, plot resolutions, deaths and philosophical (if somewhat confused) arguing. Some elements are under-resolved, or a little too convenient, or not fleshed out enough. But that's par for the course with any ending to a series this huge. The big questions are answered, the final scene is fitting and the story ends in a way that is true to itself, which is the most we can ask for. The novel is available now in the UKand USA.

2013 BAFTA Rising Star Nominations

A few moments ago BAFTA announced the nominees for the current edition and most interesting is to find that is a ladies year as four out of the five are actresses. Nominees were selected by a jury headed by Pipa Harris and if you vote you'll have a chance of winning tickets to BAFTA Film Awards ceremony on Sunday February 10th.

Voting starts today, January 7th and ends tomorrow, January 8th. To Vote go here.

These are the nominees that had a "breakout year in 2012":

Andrea Risenborough, Elizabeth Olsen, Juno Temple, Suraj Sharma and Alicia Vikander

After thinking for a while my vote went to Alicia Vikander for her magnificent performance in A Royal Affair.

Gollancz to publish three ELITE novels

Gollancz have announced that they will be publishing three novels based on the Elite series of computer games in 2014.

The new Elite game, Elite: Dangerous (the fourth in the thirty-year-old series), recently passed its funding goal on Kickstarter, ending with more than £1.5 million raised for game development. The title is expected to be released by mid-2014. To help the game reach its goal Gollancz pledged a significant sum on Kickstarter to buy the rights to publish three novels based on the Elite universe.

Gollancz had already been in discussions with David Braben and Frontier Studios about adding the original Elite tie-in novella, The Dark Wheel, to its SF Gateway online store. The Dark Wheel is notable as it was written by the late Robert Holdstock, best-known for his Mythago Wood series of novels. The Dark Wheel was packaged with the original BBC Micro release of Elite in 1984 (I still have a copy in a box somewhere). Frontier: Elite II, released in 1992, was also accompanied by a book of short stories entitled Tales of Life on the Frontier. Whether this will be reprinted at some point is unknown (but unlikely; it was not as good as Holdstock's novella).

The three novels will be published in 2014. The identities of the potential writers have not yet been revealed.

2013 Oscar Nominations Predictions

In RED those who were nominated. As many of us, did really bad with director category; but the other categories were not that bad, however believe that my profound dislike for Beasts of the Southern Wild makes me not to think about this movie. Being objective is not easy when you have seen the movies. Sigh.

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Next week we will finally learn the Oscar nominations so today took out my crystal ball to guess what they may look like. If you have been following the news know by now that there is heavy buzz about the new online voting problems and probably are wondering how these problems could influence the results. I'm estimating that there could be some unexpected surprises -especially in non major categories- as tech savvy members have to be the smaller percentage of younger voters that probably have different tastes in movies.

Up to today movies that have major buzz are Lincoln and Les Misérables with many foreseeing that Lincoln could be the one with most nominations (around 11); but if you review the only critic's tally Zero Dark Thirty and Argo have collected the most honors. Most interesting is that critics have not given honors to Les Misérables and Lincoln has only one win. However we can estimate that these four movies surely will a get a nomination in the top category.

As we know the Best Picture category can have up to 10 nominees if each gets enough votes to obtain a nod. As a viewer that have seen many of the frontrunners but still haven't seen one or two, my best guess to fill the number five spot is Silver Linings Playbook followed by Life of Pi in the sixth position. Still believe that maybe other indie films could make it like Moonrise Kingdom and even if I didn't like it Beasts of the Southern Wild could also make it. Still my huge hope is that Amour gets a nod in this category, but know that is a long shot.

These leaves us with some controversial movies like The Master and Django Unchained plus the possibility that blockbusters could be included like Skyfall and Looper. Other films among the 282 that qualified with some degree of buzz are: Holy Motors, Flight, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Anna Karerina and The Impossible.

Best Picture
Very Sure: Lincoln, Les Misérables, Zero Dark Thirty and Argo
Sure: Silver Linings Playbook and Life of Pi
Maybe: Moonrise Kingdom, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Django Unchained
Long Shots: Amour and The Master
Blockbusters: Skyfall and Looper
Very Long Shots: Holy Motors, Flight, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Anna Karerina and The Impossible.

When talking about directors only a few years, in the 85 AMPAS awards history,  nominated best pictures and best directors coincide; still today IF best picture gets 10 nominees there are chances that the five directors could have their movies nominated. Then as we know Kathryn Bigelow has the most only critics honors and Ben Affleck follows far and both movies surely will get a nomination.

The Directors Guild of America will announce their nominations next Tuesday, so we have no help from them to guess which other directors could get nods two days after. Still general buzz includes Ang Lee, Steven Spielberg, David O. Russell, Tom Hooper, Paul Thomas Anderson, Quentin Tarantino, Wes Anderson, Benh Zeitlin and more, all with films that are also contenders in the top category. Most unlikely to get a nod is Michael Haneke, but many have included him in their predictions and of course I would simply LOVE if Haneke also gets a well-deserved nomination.

Best Director
Very Sure: Kathryn Bigelow (ZD30) and Ben Affleck (Argo)
Sure: Ang Lee (Life of Pi)
The other two: Paul Thomas Anderson (The Master) and Wes Anderson (Moonrise Kingdom)
Long Shots: Michael Haneke (Amour), Quentin Tarantino (Django) and Steven Spielberg (Lincoln)

Jessica Chastain and Jennifer Lawrence are the frontrunners in the best actress category and critics tally confirms it; the other three spots could include critics favorites Emmanuel Riva and Rachel Weiz, but general buzz goes also to, Helen Hunt, Marion Cottillard, Naomi Watts, Helen Mirren, Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Quvenzhane Wallis and more. Helen Hunt has one of those roles that some consider to be leading while others consider supporting, so she's in both categories in my predictions as she is fantastic in this role. Don't believe that Naomi Watts has an Oscar worthy performance in The Impossible but buzz is getting higher for her, so she's in my predictions.

Best Actress
Very Sure: Jessica Chastain (ZD30) and Jennifer Lawrence (SLP)
The other three: Marion Cotillard (R&B), Naomi Watts (The Impossible), Emmanuelle Riva (Amour)
Possible Spoilers: Helen Hunt (The Sessions), Rachel Weiz (The Deep Blue Sea), Quvenzhane Wallis (BOTSW), and Helen Mirren (Hitchcock)

According to critics and general buzz, Daniel Day-Lewis is the frontrunner by far; still he could be challenged by Hugh Jackman and perhaps by Denzel Washington. Other actors with buzz are Bradley Cooper, John Hawkes (great performance), Jean-Louis Tritingnant and most unlikely -believe movie and actor are so controversial- Joaquin Phoenix (even if he deserves the honor).

Best Actor
Very Sure: Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)
Sure: Hugh Jackman (Les Mis) and Denzel Washington (Flight)
The other two: John Hawkes (The Sessions) and Bradley Cooper (SLP)
Long Shots: Joaquin Phoenix (The Master), Jean-Louis Tritingnant (Amour)

In the supporting roles categories buzz is dominated by Anne Hathaway, Sally Field and Amy Adams; the Golden Globes nomination gave Nicole Kidman buzz, but other contenders are great  Maggie Smith and Ann Dowd. Tommy Lee Jones is fantastic in Lincoln, so is Javier Bardem in his Skyfall first scene (not the action ones) but buzz tell us that Philip Seymour Hoffman, Alan Arkin and Robert De Niro are also strong contenders, the last not so much but included him in my predictions. If Django Unchained is not too much for Academy members then DiCaprio and Waltz have high chances to get a nod.

Best Supporting Actress
Very Sure: Anne Hathaway (Les Mis), Sally Field (Lincoln)
The other three: Nicole Kidman (Paperboy), Helen Hunt (The Sessions) and Amy Adams (The Master)
Possible spoilers: Maggie Smith (Marigold Hotel), Ann Dowd (Compliance)

Best Supporting Actor
Very Sure: Alan Arkin (Argo) and Tommy Lee Jones (Lincoln)
Sure: Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Master)
The other two: Javier Bardem (Skyfall) and Robert De Niro (SLP)
Possible spoilers: Leonardo DiCaprio (Django) and Christoph Waltz (Django)

Original and adapted scripts are not that easy to guess as WGA nods doesn't gives us much insight, but perhaps the adapted category has better information for us. Nevertheless non-WGA writers are the ones that are getting buzz for movies like Django and yes, Amour.

Original Screenplay
Sure: Mark Boal (ZD30), Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola (Moonrise Kingdom)
The other three: Paul Thomas Anderson (The Master), John Gatins (Flight) and Quentin Tarantino (Django)
Possible spoilers: Michael Haneke (Amour)and Rian Johnson (Looper)

Adapted Screenplay
Sure: Tony Kushner (Lincoln), Chris Terrio (Argo)
The other three: David O. Russell (SLP), David Magee (Life of Pi) and Stephen Chbosky (The Perks of Being a Wallflower)
Possible spoilers: Ben Lewin (The Sessions), William Nicholson (Les Mis),

Best Documentary

Category is really spread with many docs honored by critics and with strong buzz, but as we know only 15 are AMPAS qualified. Have seen many, so I'm guessing from the ones I have seen.

Very Sure: Searching for Sugar Man and The Gatekeepers
Sure: The Imposter
The other two: How To Survive a Plague and The Invisible War
Long Shots: Mea Maxima Culpa and 5 Broken Cameras

Some remarks

The Master has become a movie that seems American audiences, critics and the industry in general did not appreciated much; non-American markets tend to be highly positive about movie, so it's not easy to predict what will happen with this movie. Still I can foresee that maybe movie will not be honored but those that "crafted" the film could be nominated (Seymour, Adams, Anderson). Joaquin Phoenix is a big question mark as many believe he has not been forgiven for his past behavior.

This year have lost interest in the foreign language category as we know that France submission will have a nomination. The only way I could be interested again is IF France does NOT get a nod OR if Amour doesn't get nominations in other categories. BUT if the last happens and France wins I will be extremely upset. So better not to get too involved with this category (lol).

That's it, wont guess more categories and next Thursday finally we will know who got what and the next guessing game will began. Already have My Awards for this year (some of which I am almost sure will win an Oscar), but let's get into the second stage of the game to share with you all.

Cheers!

JAB TAK HAI JAAN

Dated Released : 13 November 2012
Quality : BRRip 720p
Info : imdb.com/title/tt2176013
IMDB Rating : 7.4 (17,596 users)
Star : Shah Rukh Khan, Katrina Kaif, Anushka Sharma
Genre : Drama | Romance
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By: icinema3satu.com


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After finding and losing his true love in London, Samar Anand defies death by becoming a bomb disposal expert for the Indian Army. Returning to London after 10 years, he suffers amnesia after an accident. Will he be reunited with his love?