The Edge of the Frame

I can’t say I’m as enthralled by the MPSE’s nominations. They just don’t have the same oomph and hutzpah that their younger brother, the Cinema Audio Society, seems to exhibit. It might have to do with their obvious indecisiveness, citing forty-seven nominees split into seven different categories. I do, in fact, understand the difference in editing both music and dialogue, yet, when you can’t narrow it down past eight nominees for ADR editing, you’re just not trying hard enough.

That brings me to the second point which is quality. When you’re nominating films like “Hop,” “Abduction” and “Priest” for actual awards, those films better have sound editing on par with “Saving Private Ryan.” Otherwise, you look just about as stupid as the Academy’s make-up branch when they nominate the latest Eddie Murphy or Adam Sandler flick. Some films just deserve to be forgotten and by nominating them for awards, you’re just not helping anyone. And “Quarantine II: Terminal”? Seriously? I have no words.

As far as what these awards mean for Oscar, one thing’s for sure. Even if the Academy’s visual effects corridor has shunned it, “Super 8” has certainly made its make in regards to its sound. After picking up a CAS nom yesterday, the film dominated the MPSE with three mentions, in other words, every category that it was eligible in. I think it would be safe to put money on Abrams’ film making it in for at least one, if not both of the AMPAS sound categories.

See the full list of nominees after the cut:

BEST SOUND EDITING: SOUND EFFECTS AND FOLEY IN A FEATURE FILM
“Drive”
“Fast Five”
“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”
“Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol”
“Rise of the Planet of the Apes”
“Super 8”
“Transformers: Dark of the Moon”
“War Horse”

BEST SOUND EDITING: MUSIC IN A FEATURE FILM
“Drive”
“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”
“Hop”
“Hugo”
“Priest”
“Super 8”
“Transformers: Dark of the Moon”
“The Tree of Life”

BEST SOUND EDITING: DIALOGUE AND ADR IN A FEATURE FILM
“Abduction”
“The Help”
“Moneyball”
“Quarantine II: Terminal”
“Rise of the Planet of the Apes”
“Super 8”
“War Horse”
“The Way”

BEST SOUND EDITING: MUSIC IN A MUSICAL FEATURE FILM
“Footloose”
“The Muppets”
“Perfect Age of Rock ‘n’ Roll”
“Pina”

BEST SOUND EDITING: SOUND EFFECTS, FOLEY, DIALOGUE, AND ADR IN AN ANIMATION FEATURE FILM
“The Adventures of Tintin”
“Cars 2”
“Kung Fu Panda 2”
“Puss in Boots”
“Rango”
“Rio”
“The Smurfs”

BEST SOUND EDITING: SOUND EFFECTS, FOLEY, DIALOGUE, ADR AND MUSIC IN A FEATURE DOCUMENTARY
“Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey”
“Cave of the Forgotten Dreams”
“George Harrison: Living in the Material World”
“Lemmy”
“Pearl Jam Twenty”

BEST SOUND EDITING: SOUND EFFECTS, FOLEY, DIALOGUE AND ADR IN A FEATURE FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
“1920: The World’s Most Important Battle”
“Circumstance”
“Tropa de Elite 2 (Elite Squad 2: The Enemy Within)”
“The Flowers of War”
“In the Land of Blood and Honey”
“Sarah’s Key”
“The Skin I Live In”

Some of the other films that have proven popular among this guild, earning two out of 3 nominations, apiece:

“Drive”
“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”
“Rise of the Planet of the Apes”
“Transformers: Dark of the Moon”
“War Horse”

If I recall, aside from the PGA Awards Gala tomorrow night, this might be the final scheduled precursor to be announced before Super Tuesday (That’s right. I just coined this January 24th as the awards-equivalent of Super Tuesday). Therefore, expect my final predictions…probably no later than Monday night. Hey, I’m a procrastinator and a self-debater. What can I say?