19 February 2012

Skandiewrap, or: More Than You Really Wanted to Know

Some years it's obvious months in advance which film is going to win our Best Picture award, while other years I'm gnawing my fingernails waiting for that final ballot to arrive. I'd thought 2011 belonged to the former category, but it turned out to be much closer to the latter, with eventual winner The Tree of Life trailing most of the way—it was actually in 4th place at roughly the midpoint. In the end, however, as I'd suspected, it was just on too many ballots (27 out of 36), which, in combination with Malick's several crazed partisans among the voting body, did in fact ultimately seal the deal. Poor Asghar Farhadi—I idly suggested late last year that he could potentially win both the main survey and the Undies sidebar, and instead he wound up the bridesmaid in both. On the other hand, as noted below, his screenplay did set a new all-time record for most points amassed, even if that's not 100% meaningful given that the number of participants doesn't remain constant. (It's been fairly static for a while, though, with a regular rate of attrition/recruitment. Arguably I should try to add a few more folks to ensure that nothing like Shame ever happens again.)

And then there's the sad case of Margaret, which managed to finish third in Best Picture and win two acting categories despite barely being released. 28 voters still managed to see it, but those other eight might well have made the difference, since it was less than 50 points behind. And of course, we didn't have the help of an official awards screener to pass around, as Fox Searchlight only sent those out at the last minute, following weeks of pressure from aggrieved critics. I did manage to track down a horrible copy of an unfinished version from 2008, with no sound editing and temp music, but most of the voters who live in cities where Margaret never opened chose not to watch it, for aesthetic or ethical reasons (or just garden-variety paranoia, I suspect, in one case). Average rating suffers from no such hindrances, however, and in the insanely detailed stats section below you'll find Margaret among the ten highest-rated films in Skandie history—the first film to crack that list in 11 years, along with A Separation (but not The Tree of Life, a film with a few more skeptics).

As always, I'm overjoyed when we crown winners who are both (a) richly deserving and (b) unrecognized elsewhere. I'd dared to dream that Peyman Moadi (whose transliterated name I'd thought was Moaadi, which looks way cooler; IMDb and Sony Classics say 'Moadi,' though, so I've switched over) might squeak out a victory in Actor, but never imagined for a moment that he'd win by a near-landslide. And while Jeannie Berlin does fine work in Margaret, and I didn't begrudge her surprise victory in the indieWire and Voice polls, my own heart belongs to J. Smith-Cameron, whose richly nuanced performance suggests/implies an alternate version of the film in which she's the protagonist and Lisa just one of her many daily challenges. Even the underseen House of Pleasures scored a victory for its almost unbearably anachronistic use of the Moody Blues (plus top five in Picture and top three in Director, which is hugely impressive for a film completely ignored by every other American voting body).

Meanwhile, a number of widely acclaimed pictures left this group (and yours truly) fairly cold—not just presumptive-at-this-writing Oscar winner The Artist (which actually got a respectable 2.82 average), but also alleged career highlights from the likes of Woody Allen, Alexander Payne, David Cronenberg and Aki Kaurismäki. Midnight in Paris, in particular, received almost no love at all, despite being a critical and commercial smash; since I exited its world premiere at Cannes holding my nose, it's nice to be vindicated by my self-selected peers.

Speaking of Cannes, 2011 was further proof that that's where the vast majority of first-rate movies come from. Nine of the films in our top 20, including the winner, premiered on the Croisette, and 11 of 20—over half!—played the festival. (Martha Marcy May Marlene and Take Shelter went to Un Certain Regard and Critics' Week, respectively, from Sundance '11.) Venice, by contrast, boasted only two finalists, one of which (Shame) only got two votes. Sundance: the two noted above. Berlin: 2. Toronto: 2. Tribeca: 1. There's just no comparison, frankly.

Okay, now for the number-crunching. (Many of you will want to check out at this point.) What follows are the stats I used to send out to voters (via snail mail!) back in the '90s, which I still maintain for my own obsessive amusement.



HIGHEST AVERAGE RATING (1996–2011)
(includes only films receiving a minimum of ten votes)

01. 3.65 The Sweet Hereafter (1997)
02. 3.61 Being John Malkovich (1999)
02. 3.61 A Separation (2011)
04. 3.58 Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills (1996)
05. 3.57 In the Company of Men (1997)
06. 3.56 Secrets & Lies (1996)
07. 3.53 La Promesse (1997)
08. 3.52 Yi Yi (A One and a Two…) (2000)
09. 3.50 From the Journals of Jean Seberg (1996)
10. 3.48 Irma Vep (1997)
10. 3.48 Lone Star (1996)
10. 3.48 Margaret (2011)



LOWEST AVERAGE RATING (1996–2011)
(includes only films receiving a minimum of five votes)

01. 0.20 Date Movie (2006)
02. 0.58 Miss March (2009)
03. 0.60 Dragonfly (2002)
04. 0.61 The Roommate (2011)
05. 0.67 3000 Miles to Graceland (2001)
06. 0.70 Beastly (2011)
07. 0.75 The Mod Squad (1999)
08. 0.79 I Melt With You (2011)
09. 0.80 Just One Time (2000)
09. 0.80 13 Ghosts (2001)
09. 0.80 What’s the Worst That Could Happen? (2001)

(Incredibly, Battlefield Earth dropped off the list this year.)



MOST DIVISIVE FILMS (2010)
(std. deviation >= 0.75; minimum 2 votes 3.5 or higher, 2 votes 1.5 or lower)

  • The Future (0.76)
  • Rubber (0.75)

    (That's it. No significant love/hate feuds this year; even Shame and We Need to Talk About Kevin got enough grudging respect from detractors.)



    BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT
    (lowest-ranked film seen by at least 75% of respondents)

    1996: Twister (1.80)
    1997: The Lost World: Jurassic Park (2.33)
    1998: He Got Game (2.59)
    1999: Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (2.18)
    2000: Nurse Betty (2.31)
    2001: Vanilla Sky (2.20)
    2002: Storytelling (2.03)
    2003: The Matrix Reloaded (2.29)
    2004: The Village (2.30)
    2005: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2.49)
    2006: Little Miss Sunshine (2.52)
    2007: Ocean's Thirteen (2.52)
    2008: Milk (2.83)
    2009: The Hangover (2.35)
    2010: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2.71)
    2011: Midnight in Paris (2.47)



    PASSIONATE MINORITY AWARD
    (lowest average among top 20 films in Picture voting)

    1996: Dead Man (2.94)
    1997: Crash (2.52)
    1998: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (2.68)
    1999: The End of the Affair (2.96)
    2000: Requiem for a Dream (2.73)
    2001: Amélie (2.71)
    2002: 8 Women (2.79)
    2003: The Good Thief (2.81)
    2004: I ♥ Huckabees (2.84)
    2005: Oldboy (2.68)
    2006: Manderlay (2.69)
    2007: Once (2.79)
    2008: Funny Games (2.83)
    2009: A Serious Man (2.83)
    2010: The Exploding Girl (2.75)
    2011: Shame (2.63)

    (As you can see, Shame has the lowest average for a film to make the list since Cronenberg's Crash.)



    DAMNED WITH FAINT PRAISE
    (highest-ranked film by average rating not to place in Picture voting [10+ voters] )

    1996: Get on the Bus (3.29)
    1997: Forgotten Silver (3.36)
    1998: The Kingdom II (3.14)
    1999: My Name Is Joe (3.18)
    2000: Erin Brockovich (3.14)
    2001: No Man’s Land (3.19)
    2002: Roger Dodger (3.14)
    2003: The Weather Underground (3.18)
    2004: Bright Leaves (3.16)
    2005: Howl's Moving Castle (3.15)
    2006: The Devil and Daniel Johnston (3.18)
    2007: The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters (3.25)
    2008: The Duchess of Langeais (3.20)
    2009: Night and Day (3.07)
    2010: Another Year (3.21)
    2011: Senna (3.07)



    DAMN THE REVIEWS, FULL SPEED AHEAD
    (lowest average among films seen by at least 10 respondents)

    1996: Twister (1.80)
    1997: Batman & Robin (1.28)
    1998: The Avengers | Stepmom [tie] (1.50)
    1999: Jawbreaker (1.14)
    2000: Pay It Forward (1.41)
    2001: Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (1.26)
    2002: Scooby-Doo (1.08)
    2003: Bad Boys II (1.60)
    2004: Exorcist: The Beginning (1.21)
    2005: Undead (1.29)
    2006: The Hills Have Eyes (1.65)
    2007: Smokin' Aces (1.64)
    2008: Jumper (1.54)
    2009: Gigantic (1.00)
    2010: The Last Airbender (1.05)
    2011: Vanishing on 7th Street (1.55)



    SELECTION COMMITTEE ON CRACK
    (lowest average for a film that screened at the New York Film Festival)

    1996: Flirt (2.20)
    1997: Kiss or Kill (1.79)
    1998: Voyage to the Beginning of the World (1.80)
    1999: Dogma (1.89)
    2000: Before Night Falls (2.31)
    2001: La Ciénaga (1.95)
    2002: In Praise of Love (1.95)
    2003: Chi-Hwa-Seon: Painted Fire (2.19)
    2004: Free Radicals (2.08)
    2005: Palindromes (2.15)
    2006: Rolling Family (1.83)
    2007: The Go Master (1.93)
    2008: Married Life (2.25)
    2009: The Windmill Movie (2.13)
    2010: Hereafter (2.05)
    2011: We Are What We Are (1.64)

    (Worst. NYFF selection. Ever.)



    ALONE AGAIN (NATURALLY)
    (suggested by Alex Fung; lowest average for a film that received a 4-star rating

    1996: The Stupids (2.30) | Bryan “Frankenseuss” Theiss (ret.)
    1997: Kissed (2.46) | Alex Fung
    1998: Psycho (2.11) | Erik Gregersen
    1999: Twin Falls Idaho (2.28) | Milton Lawson (ret.)
    2000: Beautiful People (2.29) | Keith Collins
    2001: The Road Home (1.88) | Erik Gregersen
    2002: In Praise of Love (1.95) | Jeremy Heilman
    2003: Gigli (1.92) | Jeremy Heilman
    2004: The Passion of the Christ (2.18) | Victor J. Morton
    2005: The Brothers Grimm (2.29) | Bilge Ebiri
    2006: The Fountain (2.21) | Peter Reiher
    2007: Southland Tales (1.88) | Dave Cowen; Jeremy Heilman
    2008: Jellyfish (2.36) | Daniel Waters
    2009: 12 (2.29) | Bilge Ebiri
    2010: Somewhere (2.41) | Nictate
    2011: A Serbian Film (1.81) | Daniel Waters



    MAJOR FESTIVAL PRIZE WINNERS: OUR VERDICT

    Cannes Palme d'Or

    1995: Underground (#15, 1997)
    1996: Secrets & Lies (#2, 1996)
    1997: Taste of Cherry (#15, 1998)
    1997: The Eel (did not place)
    1998: Eternity and a Day (did not place)
    1999: Rosetta (did not place)
    2000: Dancer in the Dark (#10, 2000)
    2001: The Son's Room (did not place)
    2002: The Pianist (did not place)
    2003: Elephant (did not place)
    2004: Fahrenheit 9/11 (did not place)
    2005: L'Enfant (The Child) (#6, 2006)
    2006: The Wind That Shakes the Barley (did not place)
    2007: 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (#1, 2008)
    2008: The Class (did not place)
    2009: The White Ribbon (did not place)
    2010: Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (#9, 2011)
    2011: The Tree of Life (#1, 2011)

    Venice Golden Lion

    1995: Cyclo (#14, 1996)
    1996: Michael Collins (did not place)
    1997: Fireworks (Hana-Bi) (#5, 1998)
    1998: The Way We Laughed (did not place)
    1999: Not One Less (did not place)
    2000: The Circle (did not place)
    2001: Monsoon Wedding (did not place)
    2002: The Magdalene Sisters (did not place)
    2003: The Return (did not place)
    2004: Vera Drake (#6, 2004)
    2005: Brokeback Mountain (#3, 2005)
    2006: Still Life (#18, 2008)
    2007: Lust, Caution (did not place)
    2008: The Wrestler (#13, 2008)
    2009: Lebanon (did not place)
    2010: Somewhere (did not place)
    2011: Faust (TBD)

    Sundance Grand Jury (Dramatic)

    1995: The Brothers McMullen (did not place)
    1996: Welcome to the Dollhouse (did not place)
    1997: Sunday (did not place)
    1998: Slam (did not place)
    1999: Three Seasons (did not place)
    2000: Girlfight (did not place)
    2000: You Can Count on Me (#3, 2000)
    2001: The Believer (did not place)
    2002: Personal Velocity (did not place)
    2003: American Splendor (#20, 2003)
    2004: Primer (#10, 2004)
    2005: Forty Shades of Blue (did not place)
    2006: Quinceañera (did not place)
    2007: Padre Nuestro (did not place)
    2008: Frozen River (did not place)
    2009: Precious (Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire) (did not place)
    2010: Winter's Bone (#2, 2010)
    2011: Like Crazy (did not place)



    Most Appearances in Top 20 (Actors)
    (ties for number of appearances broken by average placement)

    [The same five as last year but Swinton moves into 2nd place.]

    01. Philip Seymour Hoffman (13)

    3s. Charlie Wilson's War
    5. Capote
    6. Synecdoche, New York
    6s. The Talented Mr. Ripley
    6s. Almost Famous
    10s. Magnolia
    10s. 25th Hour
    11. Doubt
    12. Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
    12s. State and Main
    15s. Happiness
    15. Owning Mahowny
    19s. Mission: Impossible III

    02. Tilda Swinton (10)

    1. Julia
    4s. Michael Clayton
    5. The Deep End
    5. We Need to Talk About Kevin
    9s. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
    11. I Am Love
    12s. Burn After Reading
    13s. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
    18. Female Perversions
    19s. Thumbsucker

    03. Nicole Kidman (9)

    2. Eyes Wide Shut
    2. Dogville
    2. Margot at the Wedding
    6. Moulin Rouge
    9. The Others
    9. The Hours
    11. Birth
    16. Rabbit Hole
    18. Birthday Girl

    03. Isabelle Huppert (9)

    2. The Piano Teacher
    2s. 8 Women
    4. Gabrielle
    8. The School of Flesh
    12. White Material
    13s. I ♥ Huckabees
    15. La Cérémonie
    17. Time of the Wolf
    19. Home

    05. Kate Winslet (9)

    3. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
    8. Titanic
    9. Jude
    10s. Quills
    10. Revolutionary Road
    12. Little Children
    13. Holy Smoke
    16s. Hamlet
    17. Hideous Kinky



    Most Films Landed in top 20 (Directors)
    (again, ties broken by average placement)

    [The same five as last year but Von Trier moves into second place.]

    01. Joel [& Ethan] Coen (8)

    2. No Country for Old Men
    4. O Brother, Where Art Thou?
    5. The Man Who Wasn't There
    6. Fargo
    7. A Serious Man
    11. Burn After Reading
    12. The Big Lebowski
    12. True Grit

    02. Lars von Trier (6)

    1. Breaking the Waves
    1. Dogville
    7. Melancholia
    10. Dancer in the Dark
    19. The Five Obstructions
    20. Manderlay

    03. Christopher Nolan (5)

    2. The Prestige
    3. Memento
    5. The Dark Knight
    13. Inception
    19. Batman Begins

    04. Claire Denis (5)

    6. Beau travail
    10. 35 Shots of Rum
    13. Trouble Every Day
    14. Friday Night
    19. White Material

    05. Quentin Tarantino (4)

    1. Inglourious Basterds
    2. Kill Bill Vol. 1
    4. Kill Bill Vol. 2
    4. Grindhouse



    And finally. Back when I started the survey, I remember looking forward to the time, a decade or so later (i.e. now), when there'd be tons of accumulated data to wade through. In particular, I was excited about the prospect of being able to compare how various films from major directors had been received over the years. Granted, that process isn't exactly definitive—the AVB has mutated over the years and even the diehards tend to be stingier with their star ratings than they were back in the mid-'90s. But perhaps my favorite task after receiving the averages is updating my Directors' Gallery, plugging this year's films into various post-'94 oeuvres. Here are the entries that saw additions this year—every filmmaker who's ever placed in the Director top 20. 2011 films are in bold. Numbers in parentheses indicate how the film placed in Best Picture that year, if applicable; if the film title is in parentheses that means it received fewer than 10 votes and hence the result is a bit less meaningful. N/A (not applicable) means it was eligible but didn't even get five votes and so didn't make the main list.

    Tomas Alfredson

    Let the Right One In (17): 2.96
    Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy: 2.61

    Woody Allen

    Everyone Says I Love You: 3.09
    Vicky Cristina Barcelona (19): 2.98
    Match Point (13): 2.93
    Sweet and Lowdown: 2.63
    Deconstructing Harry: 2.61
    Cassandra's Dream: 2.60
    Midnight in Paris: 2.47
    Small Time Crooks: 2.37
    The Curse of the Jade Scorpion: 2.33
    Scoop: 2.28
    Whatever Works: 2.24
    Anything Else: 2.13
    Hollywood Ending: 2.13
    Celebrity: 2.04
    Melinda and Melinda: 2.00
    You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger: 1.93

    Pedro Almodóvar

    Talk to Her (12): 3.21
    All About My Mother: 3.11
    Volver (14): 3.00
    Live Flesh: 2.88
    Bad Education: 2.87
    The Flower of My Secret: 2.75
    Broken Embraces: 2.65
    The Skin I Live In: 2.62

    Gregg Araki

    Mysterious Skin (16): 2.92
    Kaboom: 2.57
    [Smiley Face]: 2.53
    (Nowhere): 2.42
    (Splendor): 2.33

    Joe Berlinger

    Paradise Lost (7): 3.58
    Metallica: Some Kind of Monster: 3.06
    (Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory): 2.71
    (Crude): 2.58
    (Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2): 1.13

    Brad Bird

    The Iron Giant (11): 3.24
    The Incredibles (8): 3.13
    Ratatouille (14): 3.08
    Mission: Impossible—Ghost Protocol: 2.91

    Kenneth Branagh

    Hamlet (9): 3.29
    (A Midwinter’s Tale): 2.83
    Thor: 2.39
    Love’s Labours Lost: 2.10
    Sleuth: 1.40

    Catherine Breillat

    Bluebeard: 3.02
    The Last Mistress: 2.88
    Fat Girl: 2.85
    The Sleeping Beauty: 2.75
    Sex Is Comedy: 2.66
    Romance: 2.00
    Anatomy of Hell: 1.77

    David Cronenberg

    A History of Violence (7): 3.11
    eXistenZ: 2.74
    Eastern Promises: 2.73
    Crash (18): 2.52
    A Dangerous Method: 2.48
    Spider: 2.34

    Cameron Crowe

    Jerry Maguire (10): 3.27
    Almost Famous (15): 2.99
    We Bought a Zoo: 2.50
    Vanilla Sky: 2.20
    Elizabethtown: 1.90
    Pearl Jam Twenty: N/A
    The Union: N/A

    Clint Eastwood

    Million Dollar Baby (9): 3.06
    Letters From Iwo Jima: 2.82
    Mystic River: 2.81
    Changeling: 2.70
    Space Cowboys: 2.63
    Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil: 2.57
    Invictus: 2.53
    Flags of Our Fathers: 2.52
    Gran Torino: 2.46
    Blood Work: 2.35
    Absolute Power: 2.32
    True Crime: 2.31
    Hereafter: 2.05
    J. Edgar: 2.04

    David Fincher

    Zodiac (3): 3.27
    The Social Network (4): 3.22
    Fight Club (3): 3.19
    The Game (9): 2.95
    Panic Room: 2.79
    The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo: 2.44
    The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: 2.42

    Jean-Luc Godard

    Notre Musique: 2.67
    Film Socialisme: 2.59
    In Praise of Love: 1.95
    (For Ever Mozart): 1.58

    Michel Gondry

    Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2): 3.28
    Dave Chappelle's Block Party (19): 3.02
    Be Kind Rewind: 2.59
    The Science of Sleep: 2.53
    Human Nature: 2.40
    Tokyo!: 2.37
    The Green Hornet: 2.00
    The Thorn in the Heart: N/A

    David Gordon Green

    George Washington: 3.05
    All the Real Girls (15): 2.93
    Pineapple Express: 2.71
    Undertow: 2.56
    Snow Angels: 2.56
    The Sitter: 2.00
    Your Highness: 1.89

    Werner Herzog

    Grizzly Man (1): 3.40
    (Little Dieter Needs to Fly): 3.10
    Encounters at the End of the World: 3.09
    The Bad Lieutenant—Port of Call: New Orleans: 2.91
    My Best Fiend: 2.85
    (The White Diamond): 2.83
    Cave of Forgotten Dreams: 2.73
    Rescue Dawn: 2.73
    Into the Abyss: A Tale of Death, a Tale of Life: 2.64
    (Wheel of Time): 2.57
    My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done: 2.53
    (The Wild Blue Yonder): 2.25
    Invincible: N/A

    Abbas Kiarostami

    Certified Copy (4): 3.43
    Taste of Cherry (15): 3.10
    The Wind Will Carry Us (11): 3.10
    10: 2.64
    A.B.C Africa: 2.18
    (10 on Ten): 1.88

    Takeshi Kitano

    Fireworks (Hana-Bi) (5): 3.26
    The Blind Swordsman: Zatoichi: 2.79
    Kikujiro: 2.70
    Outrage: 2.46
    Brother: 2.38
    Dolls: 2.34

    John Lasseter

    Toy Story 2 (4): 3.46
    A Bug’s Life: 3.05
    Cars: 2.62
    Cars 2: 2.45

    Kenneth Lonergan

    Margaret (3): 3.48
    You Can Count on Me (3): 3.29

    Terrence Malick

    The Tree of Life (1): 3.45
    The New World (2): 3.14
    The Thin Red Line (13): 2.95

    Steve McQueen

    Hunger (6): 3.10
    Shame (18): 2.63

    Takashi Miike

    Audition (6): 3.22
    13 Assassins: 3.03
    Dead or Alive: 2.79
    Ichi the Killer: 2.74
    The Happiness of the Katakuris: 2.73
    Gozu: 2.61
    The City of Lost Souls: 2.56
    Three…Extremes: 2.47
    Sukiyaki Western Django: 2.32
    The Great Yokai War: 2.25
    (One Missed Call): 2.20
    (DOA: Final): 2.17

    George Miller

    Babe: Pig in the City (9): 3.13
    Happy Feet: 2.42
    (Happy Feet Two): 2.20

    Errol Morris

    Fast, Cheap & Out of Control (4): 3.42
    The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons From the Life of Robert S. McNamara (11): 3.24
    Mr. Death: The Rise and Fall of Fred A. Leuchter, Jr.: 3.10
    Tabloid: 3.00
    Standard Operating Procedure: 2.98

    Jeff Nichols

    Take Shelter (17): 2.94
    Shotgun Stories: 2.92

    Alexander Payne

    Election (6): 3.26
    (Citizen Ruth): 3.22
    Sideways (7): 3.05
    About Schmidt (14): 2.97
    The Descendants: 2.68

    Roman Polanski

    The Pianist: 2.96
    The Ghost Writer (18): 2.94
    Oliver Twist: 2.71
    The Ninth Gate: 2.38
    Carnage: 2.36

    Cristi Puiu

    The Death of Mr. Lazarescu (11): 3.06
    Aurora: 2.29

    Lynne Ramsay

    Ratcatcher: 3.12
    Morvern Callar (20): 2.96
    We Need to Talk About Kevin (20): 2.85

    George Ratliff

    Hell House: 2.94
    Joshua (15): 2.92
    (Salvation Boulevard): 1.25

    Kelly Reichardt

    Old Joy (5): 3.17
    Meek's Cutoff (8): 3.13
    Wendy and Lucy: 2.98

    Raúl Ruiz

    Time Regained (14): 3.00
    Mysteries of Lisbon: 2.95
    Shattered Image: 2.20
    (Klimt): 2.20
    (Genealogies of a Crime): 2.17
    Three Lives and Only One Death: N/A

    John Sayles

    Lone Star (3): 3.48
    Men with Guns: 2.96
    Limbo: 2.70
    (Honeydripper): 2.60
    Sunshine State: 2.53
    Casa de los Babys: 2.45
    (Amigo): 2.21
    (Silver City): 2.00

    Martin Scorsese

    The Departed (1): 3.42
    Kundun (7): 3.22
    Shutter Island (14): 3.05
    Gangs of New York (9): 3.01
    The Aviator: 2.96
    Hugo (19): 2.93
    (Public Speaking): 2.79
    Bringing Out the Dead: 2.52
    Shine a Light: 2.50
    Living in the Material World: N/A

    Bruce Sinofsky

    Paradise Lost (7): 3.58
    Metallica: Some Kind of Monster: 3.06
    (Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory): 2.71

    Steven Soderbergh

    Out of Sight (1): 3.37
    Traffic (5): 3.24
    Erin Brockovich: 3.14
    The Limey: 2.99
    Contagion: 2.96
    (Gray’s Anatomy): 2.94
    Ocean’s Eleven: 2.93
    The Informant!: 2.92
    Solaris: 2.86
    And Everything Is Going Fine: 2.75
    The Girlfriend Experience: 2.72
    Schizopolis: 2.70
    Bubble: 2.66
    The Good German: 2.66
    Full Frontal: 2.63
    Ocean’s Twelve: 2.52
    Ocean's Thirteen: 2.52
    Che: 2.35
    Eros: 2.15

    Steven Spielberg

    Saving Private Ryan (8): 3.27
    Minority Report: 2.92
    AI (7): 2.91
    Munich (14): 2.88
    Amistad: 2.83
    War of the Worlds: 2.82
    Catch Me if You Can: 2.79
    War Horse: 2.79
    The Adventures of Tintin: 2.78
    Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull: 2.39
    The Lost World: Jurassic Park: 2.33
    The Terminal: 2.10

    Bertrand Tavernier

    (Capitaine Conan) (12): 3.50
    It All Starts Today: 2.93
    (Safe Conduct): 2.83
    The Princess of Montpensier: 2.53

    Tom Tykwer

    Run Lola Run: 2.94
    Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (17): 2.75
    Heaven: 2.74
    The International: 2.43
    The Princess and the Warrior: 2.31
    Paris je t'aime: 2.24
    (3): 2.08

    Gus Van Sant

    Paranoid Park (6): 3.15
    Gerry (4): 2.93
    Good Will Hunting: 2.84
    Milk: 2.83
    Last Days: 2.79
    Elephant: 2.40
    Paris je t'aime: 2.24
    Psycho: 2.11
    Finding Forrester: 2.10
    (Restless): 1.94

    Lars von Trier

    Breaking the Waves (1): 3.43
    Dogville (1): 3.22
    The Kingdom II: 3.14
    Melancholia (7): 3.06
    The Five Obstructions* (19): 3.03
    The Boss of It All: 2.85
    Dancer in the Dark (10): 2.74
    Manderlay (20): 2.69
    The Idiots: 2.59
    Antichrist: 2.53

    * (with Jørgen Leth)

    Apichatpong Weerasethakul

    Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (9): 3.22
    Syndromes and a Century (5): 3.07
    Blissfully Yours (13): 3.00
    Tropical Malady (4): 2.90
    (Mysterious Object at Noon): 2.36

    Peter Weir

    The Truman Show (6): 3.13
    Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (10): 3.12
    (The Way Back): 2.28

    Nicolas Winding Refn

    Drive (6): 3.27
    (Pusher 3): 3.00
    Valhalla Rising: 2.83
    (Pusher II): 2.71
    Bronson: 2.69

    Joe Wright

    Pride & Prejudice: 3.02
    Atonement (20): 3.00
    Hanna: 2.57
    (The Soloist): 2.14

    Zhang Yimou

    Hero (5): 3.15
    Not One Less: 3.03
    House of Flying Daggers (20): 3.00
    Curse of the Golden Flower: 2.65
    (Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles): 2.50
    (Happy Times): 2.44
    (The Flowers of War): 2.42
    (A Woman, a Gun and a Noodle Shop): 2.19
    The Road Home: 1.88

  • 6 comments:

    Nictate said...

    Seeing Margaret in that Highest Average Rating list is damn sweet.

    Also, I stand by my solo 4.0 for Somewhere proudly.

    Thanks to MD'A and Mark P. for all of your Skandies efforts.

    Dan Owen said...

    What Nictate said - thanks for all the efforts, guys.

    Michael said...

    Stats ARE fun.

    Cue Lemonheads: "It's a Shame About SHAME"

    Nictate said...

    Lonergan's Best Director ranking is 150 points (and 9 voters) lower than MARGARET's Best Picture ranking. I can only guess the editing turmoil was held against him as a helmer, since the film's "messiness" in itself didn't keep it out of the top 5.

    Winding Refn's Best Director ranking is 83 points (but only 3 voters) above DRIVE's Best Picture ranking. I'm guessing he was being applauded for shaking up genre expectations, while his film's slick pleasures kept it out of reach of the top 5 (although only by 22 points).

    md'a said...

    I didn't vote for Lonergan in Director because his use of the camera is purely functional. Obviously he directs actors well, but I'm mostly concentrating on formalism in this category. Hence you'll often see me vote for the directors of films that came nowhere near my top ten list, e.g. Pedro Costa last year.

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