Black Sheep Reviews presents the 2012 Mouton d'Or Awards

It's that time again, ladies and gentlemen! And it is actually that time for me for the eighth time. I know it was seven years last year so the realization that this is the eighth year should not be so much of a shock for me but it is. May I present to you the 2012 Mouton d'Or Awards!

This year was such an incredible year for film, with so many filmmakers reaching new heights in their careers and abilities. With this in mind, what finer example is there to lead the nominations than Paul Thomas Anderson's THE MASTER, which leads with eight nominations in total, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. Next up on the leader board is the breathtaking, LIFE OF PI, from Ang Lee. It too is nominated for Best Picture, Best Director and four others for a grand total of six. ARGO, BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD and MOONRISE KINGDOM round out the remaining Best Picture nominees and each earns five Mouton d'Or nominations in total. And though they may have missed out on the top prize, LES MISERABLES and SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK still have a strong showing, also with five nominations apiece.

P.T. Anderson's THE MASTER

I would like to thank everyone who shared their favorite movies with me in the last few weeks for the Black Sheep Readers Choice Award. There was so much response and so much passion for films that went on to be nominated that I had to expand the category to ten nominees, up from six last year. Be sure to vote in the poll at the top of the right hand sidebar for your favourite! And again, thank you so much for your participation. Your enthusiasm was moving.

And so, without further ado, here are the 2012 Mouton d'Or Award nominations ...

(Scroll over any film title and click for the full Black Sheep review.)

BEST BIG MOVIE

THE AVENGERS
THE DARK KNIGHT RISES
THE HUNGER GAMES
LES MISERABLES
SKYFALL

BEST LITTLE MOVE

AMOUR
KEEP THE LIGHTS ON
LAURENCE ANYWAYS
MAGIC MIKE
STORIES WE TELL

THE WORST MOVIE I SAW ALL YEAR

DETACHMENT
DR. SEUSS' THE LORAX
HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET
THE INNKEEPERS
WHERE DO WE GO NOW?

THE BLACK SHEEP READERS CHOICE AWARD

ARGO
THE AVENGERS
THE DARK KNIGHT RISES
DJANGO UNCHAINED
THE HUNGER GAMES
LES MISERABLES
LIFE OF PI
LOOPER
SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK
SKYFALL

ANIMATED FEATURE

BRAVE
FRANKENWEENIE
PARANORMAN

BEST LOOKING MOVIE

ANNA KARENINA
LIFE OF PI
THE MASTER
MOONRISE KINGDOM
SKYFALL

BEST MUSIC

THE DARK KNIGHT RISES
LES MISERABLES
LIFE OF PI
THE MASTER
MOONRISE KINGDOM

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

ROBERT DE NIRO in SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK
LEONARDO DICAPRIO in DJANGO UNCHAINED
DWIGHT HENRY in BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD
PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN in THE MASTER
EWAN MCGREGOR in THE IMPOSSIBLE

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

AMY ADAMS in THE MASTER
SALLY FIELD in LINCOLN
ANNE HATHAWAY in LES MISERABLES
HELEN HUNT in THE SESSIONS
NICOLE KIDMAN in THE PAPERBOY

BEST ACTOR

DANIEL DAY LEWIS in LINCOLN
JOHN HAWKES in THE SESSIONS
HUGH JACKMAN in LES MISERABLES
JOAQUIN PHOENIX in THE MASTER
DENZEL WASHINGTON in FLIGHT

BEST ACTRESS

JESSICA CHASTAIN in ZERO DARK THIRTY
JENNIFER LAWRENCE in SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK
EMANUELLE RIVA in AMOUR
QUVENZHANE WALLIS in BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD
NAOMI WATTS in THE IMPOSSIBLE

BEST ENSEMBLE

ARGO
THE HUNGER GAMES
MAGIC MIKE
SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK
SKYFALL

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

AMOUR written by Michael Haneke
LOOPER written by Rian Johnson
THE MASTER written by Paul Thomas Anderson
MOONRISE KINGDOM written by Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola
STORIES WE TELL written by Sarah Polley

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

ARGO written by Chris Terrio
BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD written by Lucy Alibar and Benh Zeitlin
LIFE OF PI written by David McGee
LINCOLN written by Tony Kushner
SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK written by David O. Russell

BEST FIRST FEATURE

ANTIVIRAL
BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD
SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED

BEST DIRECTOR

BEN AFFLECK for ARGO
PAUL THOMAS ANDERSON for THE MASTER
WES ANDERSON for MOONRISE KINGDOM
MICHAEL HANEKE for AMOUR
ANG LEE for LIFE OF PI

BEST PICTURE

ARGO
BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD
LIFE OF PI
THE MASTER
MOONRISE KINGDOM

Thanks for reading. The 2012 Mouton d'Or Award winners will be announced February 16th and voting for the Black Sheep Readers Choice Awards will close at midnight on Sunday, February 10th.