IT’S MARCH and that most celebrated of showbiz shindigs, the Academy Awards, is upon us. Oscar-hungry actors, directors, cinematographers and composers have been dusting off their ball gowns and tuxes, and practising their rictus ‘I’m-truly-delighted-it-went-to-the-other-guy-I’m-just-thrilled-to-be-nominated’ smiles in front of the mirror for months.
Of course the frontrunners already have a head start, having toiled through such backslapping beanfests as the Golden Globes, the Screen Actors Guild Awards, the BAFTAs, the Satellite Awards, the Critics Choice Awards and so on. They will also have slogged along to the Berlin International Film Festival, the Palm Springs International Film Festival, the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, the Tokyo International Film Festival, the Göteborg Film Festival and the Cannes Film Festival to name but a few. And they will have got the nod from…
