Well, the world didn't end which means that the awards season can continue unfettered, and today the Academy unveiled the shortlist for the Best Foreign Language Oscar and it's impressive. With themes of death, politics, religion, child soldiers and more throughout, it seems that voters weren't shying away from difficult films this year.
The two no-brainers of the category that most everyone expected to see are here, with Michael Haneke's tough "Amour" and the crowd-pleasing box-office hit "The Intouchables" both making the cut. Pablo Larrain's entertaining "No" also found its way into the mix, as did two more austere but no less excellent films, Christian Mungiu's powerful "Beyond The Hills" and Ursula Meier's observant "Sister." All told, it's very strong line up of films that have made the cut, and it's going to be sad to see any of them go for the final five.
The final nominations will be announced on January 10th. Check out the shortlist below. [Deadline]
Austria, “Amour,” Michael Haneke, director (review)
Canada, “War Witch,” Kim Nguyen, director (review)
Chile, “No,” Pablo Larraín, director (review)
Denmark, “A Royal Affair,” Nikolaj Arcel, director (review)
France, “The Intouchables,” Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano, directors (review)
Iceland, “The Deep,” Baltasar Kormákur, director
Norway, “Kon-Tiki,” Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg, directors
Romania, “Beyond the Hills,” Cristian Mungiu, director (review)
Switzerland, “Sister,” Ursula Meier, director (review)