Sweeney Todd - a perfect match of content and creator.

It’s that time again for the RFP Overlooked Awards, celebrating award-worthy films, performances, directors, screenplays and animated shorts, which are all worthy of award recognition, but didn’t get enough of a chance to glow in the spotlight. This year I have add a Jury Prize for overlooked craft categories and films and/or performances that I missed since the Overlooked Awards began. So without further ado, here are the winners and honorable mentioned.

Picture
Winner: SWEENEY TODD
With three Oscar nominations for Johnny Depp, Outstanding Art Direction and Costume Design, Tim Burton’s adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’s SWEENEY TODD is a darkly humorous sensation that had me grinning the whole way through. Some have said they didn’t like the music or the bloody excess, but for me that was its charm. The traditional musical numbers subverted by the gore of a classic Hammer horror film. It’s the best musical I’ve seen since MOULIN ROGUE, and it’s the kind of musical that non-fans of the genre can certainly embrace. Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Timothy Spall and Sacha Baron Cohen all give stellar performances. For Burton, the devilish song and dance tale is perfect material. He handles it with his own signature twisted style; the perfect style for a tale about a murderous barber who has his victims cooked up as meat pies.

Honorable Mentions
BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOW YOU’RE DEAD
In his 80s, Sidney Lumet is still working at the top of his game. Part character study, part crime thriller, this thoughtful drama has great performances from Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Marisa Tomei and Albert Finney. Family can drive us to do awful things sometimes.

INTO THE WILD
Like SWEENEY TODD, Sean Penn’s adaptation of Jon Krakauer’s book about Christopher McCandless, who dropped out of society to go live in the wilderness of Alaska, is a perfect match of content and director. Along with a star-making performance from Emile Hirsch, Penn infuses this film about a lost soul with unmistakable passion.

LA VIE EN ROSE
Driven by a transformative performance from Marion Cotillard, who deserves to win the Oscar, this biopic about famed French singer Edith Piaf is not just a highlight reel of the performer’s life, but allows us to peek into her soul.

ONCE
If it were not for SWEENEY TODD, this indie musical would be the best musical since MOULIN ROGUE. Singers Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova give honest performances that drive this sweet romance that simply warms the heart.

Best Actor
Winner: Emile Hirsch — INTO THE WILD
Subtly doesn’t always grab the attention of award givers, but subtly is not always easy to perform. Emile Hirsch has been good in his other films, but this performance is remarkable. His dedication to the role of Christopher McCandless allows us to see into the mind and heart of the young man who dropped out of society to find himself. With his lead role in SPEED RACER coming this summer, Hirsch is poised to become a big star. But this performance in Sean Penn’s touching drama proves that he is more than a matinee idol.

Honorable Mentions
Josh Brolin — NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
Again subtly is overlooked. Josh Brolin’s laconic Llewelyn Moss drives the Coen brothers’ intelligent thriller. With little dialogue, Brolin uses body language to express more than words could ever convey.

Don Cheadle — TALK TO ME
Don Cheadle proves once again that he is one of the finest actors working today. As original shock jock Petey Greene, Cheadle explodes from the screen and grabs the audience’s attention from start to finish.

Chris Cooper — BREACH
As Robert Hanssen, the FBI agent who sold top secrets to the Soviet Union, Oscar winner Chris Cooper brings amazing complexity to the fascinating hypocrite.

Philip Seymour Hoffman — THE SAVAGES
Key to the success of THE SAVAGES is the performances. Laura Linney received an Oscar nod, but she wouldn’t have been half as good if she didn’t have Philip Seymour Hoffman to work off of. Having received a Supporting Actor nod for his flashy role in CHARLIE WILSON’S WAR, Hoffman was sadly overlooked for his subtler work in this film and BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU’RE DEAD.

Best Actress
Winner: Carice van Houten — BLACK BOOK
When it comes to star-making turns from an actress I have never seen before, no one stuck me in 2007 as strongly as Carice van Houten in Paul Verhoeven’s BLACK BOOK. As Rachel, a Jewish singer on the run from the Nazis, she infuses the character with amazing heroism. Few female roles give women a chance to be hero, and van Houten relishes in the opportunity. She not only makes us like her character, she makes us root for her. This year she will be seen in the Tom Cruise vehicle VALKYRIE, so be prepared for the dawn of a new superstar.

Honorable Mentions
Nikki Blonsky — HAIRSPRAY
HAIRSPRAY was a fun piece of cotton candy and a great deal of that is due to star Nikki Blonsky. Her pure enthusiasm for the role fills the film with electricity.

Angelina Jolie — A MIGHTY HEART
Better than her Oscar-winning turn in GIRL, INTERRUPTED, Angelina Jolie has rarely been better. As Mariane Pearl, the wife of murdered reporter Daniel Pearl, Jolie creates a female character who remains strong under unthinkable circumstances.

Christina Ricci — BLACK SNAKE MOAN
Christina Ricci gives an amazing performance as a sexually obsessed young woman in this sweaty morality tale. In lesser hands, the performance could have been laughable camp.

Keri Russell — WAITRESS
Keri Russell proves that she is more than a “TV actress.” She carries this fun romantic comedy, crafting a character deeper than most female romantic leads ever get to be.

Best Supporting Actor
Winner: Ben Foster — 3:10 TO YUMA
When I first saw 3:10 TO YUMA, I said Ben Foster deserves an Oscar nomination for his savage fey cowboy. He steals every scene that he is in even up against the likes of Russell Crowe and Christian Bale. He is a scary man. You don’t want to be at the end of a gun he is pointing at you. One is stuck by the power that he commands, but watch for the subtle flares that he weaves in. It’s a complex performance.

Honorable Mentions
Jason Bateman — JUNO
Jason Bateman is one of the great surprises in a film filled with them. As a supporting character with a large character arch, he makes us believe in his character’s change of heart.

Sacha Baron Cohen — SWEENEY TODD
I gave Sacha Baron Cohen the Best Actor prize for BORAT last year and now he returns with an honorable mention this year. In SWEENEY TODD, he sings, and proves that he isn’t just a prankster, but also a great performer.

Andy Griffith — WAITRESS
In a persona-bending performance, Andy Griffith shines like a star, skewering his squeaky clean persona as a wonderful foul-mouthed curmudgeon.

Peter O’Toole — RATATOUILLE
Voice-over performances are always overlooked when it comes to award time. Peter O’Toole’s performance as brutal food critic Anton Ego is classic. One more iconic part of add to his iconic resume.

Best Supporting Actress
Winner: Helena Bonham Carter — SWEENEY TODD
No one touched me more in SWEENEY TOOD than Helena Bonham Carter as Mrs. Lovett, the meat pie cook who longs to be close to the demon barber of Fleet Street. She brings the perfect flare to the tunes, bringing the musical numbers to life. She makes us care about her murderous character, which is key to the success of the entire film. Her love for Todd allows us to see him through her eyes even when he sinks further and further into madness. With a perfect dose of wit, she makes it impossible to see any other actress in the role.

Honorable Mentions
Jennifer Garner — JUNO
Like Jason Bateman, Jennifer Garner could have played her wanna-be mommy as a stereotypical stuck-up yuppie, but she brings depth and heart to her performance.

Catherine Keener — INTO THE WILD
In a great cast, Catherine Keener gives another stand-out performance as an aging hippie who has a great deal of buried sadness.

Leslie Mann — KNOCKED UP
Making people laugh is easy for Leslie Mann, but she also makes us believe in her character at the same time. As the ignored wife in KNOCKED UP, she brings a great deal of honesty and heart to a role that could have come off like a stereotypical shrew.

Imelda Staunton — HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX
Playing one of the great villains in the HARRY POTTER series, Imelda Staunton deliciously cooks up the sugary sweet disciplinarian who tries to carve out a dictatorship at the school for wizards that will remind many viewers of petty rule enforcers from their youth.

Best Director
Winner: Tim Burton — SWEENEY TODD
As I mentioned before, Tim Burton found the perfect material for his taste in SWEENEY TODD. He’s crafted a career of subverting the sentimental with the twisted and he relishes the chance to mix horror and grand musical traditions. In addition to bringing the perfect look and tone to the story, he also handles the grand music with equal skill. Gothic epic is the best way to describe SWEENEY TODD, which is exactly what it should be. Burton understands this production and delivers.

Honorable Mentions
Brad Bird — RATATOUILLE
Brad Bird is not only one of the great animation directors working today, but simply one of the great directors. Coming onto this film late in the production, he infuses it with his one signature touch.

Olivier Dahan — LA VIE EN ROSE
Olivier Dahan takes the story of Edith Piaf and makes a rare biopic that truly touches the core of the person who he chronicles. At every turn, his unique choices surprise the viewer.

Sidney Lumet — BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU’RE DEAD
One of the all time great directors proves once again why he is one of the all time great directors. Sidney Lumet is a legend.

Sean Penn — INTO THE WILD
No director could have done a better job bringing INTO THE WILD to the screen. Sean Penn makes this a labor of love.

Best Screenplay
Winner: Kelly Masterson — BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU’RE DEAD
This smart, character-driven thriller jumps forward and backward in time, but for good reason. Kelly Masterson understands dramatic pacing wonderfully, knowing how to reveal and withhold information so that we are more engaged in the material. It’s not about what happens sometimes, but why that makes us inch to the edge of our seats. He fleshes out all his characters and brilliantly brings together all the threads of the story into one sensational ending that keeps us guessing at every turn. But it’s not the plot that drives any of the tension, but our clear understanding of the film’s complex characters.

Honorable Mentions
John Carney — ONCE
Working with songwriters Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, John Carney crafts a perfect balance between story and music. He gives us the songs of the lead characters, which allows us to peek into their hearts.

Olivier Dahan — LA VIE EN ROSE
Along with his great direction, Olivier Dahan also crafts a pitch-perfect screenplay that even keeps secrets from us that his subject doesn’t want to share until the end.

Scott Frank — THE LOOKOUT
One of the great thrillers of 2007, Scott Frank not only characters complex leads, but can also give surprising dimension to the smallest character in a quick moment. It’s a great example of economic screenwriting.

Vincent Paronnaud & Marjane Satrapi — PERSEPOLIS
Based on Marjane Satrapi graphic novels, Vincent Paronnaud and Satrapi craft a script that unravels the life of an Iranian girl in three parts that powerfully captures the feelings of living under oppression, leaving one’s home and the pain of returning to a place that will never be the same.

Best Animated Short
Winner: THE PEARCE SISTERS — Luis Cook
From Aardman Animation, the creators of Wallace and Gromit, THE PEARCE SISTERS seems to be too dark for the tastes of some awards voters. The devilishly black comedy chronicles the surprising relationship of two hideous sisters, who live a solitary life by the sea. The exquisite design work and color scheme fit the tone of the piece perfectly. The short has already come to iTunes in the U.K. and I hope to the States very soon. For those who like their entertainment a little oft kilter this is the perfect film for you.

Honorable Mentions
FRANZ KAFKA’S A COUNTRY DOCTOR by Koji Yamamura
Previous Oscar-nominee Koji Yamamura crafts a trippy bizarre world that honors the name Franz Kafka. The stream-of-conscience imagery collides one idea upon the next. It’s short, but filled with so much thought.

JOHN AND KAREN — Mathew Walker
This story of a polar bear who returns to the apartment of his girlfriend after a fight is hilarious. Oh, did I mention that his girlfriend is a penguin? With signature British wit, this smart little toon makes us laugh with the truth of it all.

T.O.M. — Tom Brown and Daniel Gray
Twisted, twisted, twisted. A boy reveals a great deal about his strange personality on his way to school. After seeing this film, you might not know what it means, but you won’t ever forget it.

HOW TO HOOK UP YOUR HOME THEATER — Kevin Deters and Stevie Wermers
This throwback to classic Disney shorts of the past captures the humor and tone of those films wonderfully. Kevin Deters and Stevie Wermers pay homage to the past, but keep it fresh enough with the story of contemporary problems with modern gadgetry.

Jury Prize
This is a new category to recognize films that I missed seeing in time for last year’s RFP Overlooked Awards, as well as films that were overlooked in the craft categories that I feel need to be acknowledged.

* A documentary has never been nominated for best picture, but films as good as JESUS CAMP or THE BRIDGE (which didn’t even get a Best Documentary nod) deserve to be considered for the top prize. If I had seen them in time they would have made my cut for Best Overlooked Film of the Year.

* The Oscars are notorious for missing great documentaries and 2007 wasn’t an exception. THE HEART OF THE GAME, SHUT UP & SING and WHO KILLED THE ELECTRIC CAR? all deserved an Oscar nomination. Just because a doc is about the Iraq War doesn’t make it brilliant.

* Brittany Murphy’s performance in THE DEAD GIRL is a remarkable thing to behold. The film was overlooked and she was sorely overlooked in a performance that is shocking in how it displays her unexpected range.

* SPIDER-MAN 3 was not the best film in the series, but its effects were. The remarkable sand simulation alone should have placed this film in the final three. As it stands the Academy didn’t even deem it worthy enough to make the final seven.

* FACTORY GIRL was a good film, but not a great one. However, Guy Pearce’s performance as Andy Warhol is great. I’ve seen a lot of people play Warhol, but Pearce brings to life the vulnerability and cruelty of the pop art icon.