The 2012 BAFTAs: our thoughts, and the full list of winners

Looking down the lengthy list of BAFTA nominees there’s one thing that immediately springs to mind: 2011 was a great year for movies. And while awards ceremonies don’t always focus on the films that truly deserve exposure, it was great to see Nicolas Winding Refn’s Drive – this site’s favourite film of the last 12 months – given the attention it deserved, with no fewer than four nominations (assuming we can count properly, that is).

We were pleased to see We Need To Talk About Kevin so prominently featured, too, since it was sorely overlooked by the Academy in its Oscar shortlist – that the BAFTAs would champion a British-made film isn’t much of a surprise, of course, but Lynne Ramsay and Tilda Swinton richly deserved recognition for their outstanding work.

And the results? It’s a little disappointing to see the usual pattern at awards ceremonies, where one film wins just about everything. In this instance, it was The Artist that dominated this year’s BAFTAs, with its director and lead actor both awarded as the finest in their respective fields, and also walking off with the somewhat coveted Best Film gong. All in all (again, assuming we can count after approximately four beers) The Artist won a total of eight scary gold faces. It was undeniably one of the finest films of 2011 – and certainly one of the more inventive – but it’s always slightly disappointing to see one movie sweep the board when other films could have been given a bit of attention and praise.

Meryl Streep’s victory over Tilda Swinton and Olivia Colman for the Best Actress award was disappointing but not at all unexpected, and to be fair, Streep was the best thing about the deeply flawed Thatcher portrait, The Iron Lady.

Although it was disappointing that We Need To Talk About Kevin and the magnificent Drive didn’t win anything, there were plenty of other films that received some much deserved attention. Paddy Considine and his fellow filmmakers more than earned the Outstanding Debut award for Tyrannosaur, and if there’s any justice, the BAFTA coverage will encourage more people to seek it out on DVD and Blu-ray.

The mighty Senna richly deserved its Best Editing and Best Documentary wins, since its account of the life and death of Brazil’s greatest ever racing driver was never less than electrifying.

The big surprise of the evening, though – at least for us – was Rango‘s acquisition of the Best Animated Feature Award. Viewed against the Spielberg-directed might of Tintin, and the UK-backed Arthur Christmas, ILM’s debut was surely the underdog. Tintin may have had Hollywood’s most bankable director, and Arthur Christmas the UK’s most famous animation studio, but Rango was surely among the very finest films of 2011, and its intelligent writing and rich execution made Rango a more than worthy winner.

And with Christopher Plummer winning Best Supporting Actor for his work in Beginners, and John Hurt receiving some recognition for his outstanding body of work, even the most cynical of pundits would surely admit that, as far as movie awards go, this year’s BAFTAs were pretty well distributed.

If we had any say, Drive should really have won something, though. And not even so much as a nomination for Fast Five? For shame…

Best film

WINNER: The Artist

Nominees:The ArtistThe DescendantsDriveThe HelpTinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Outstanding British film

WINNER: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Nominees:My Week With MarilynSennaShameTinker Tailor Soldier SpyWe Need To Talk About Kevin

Best director

WINNER: Michel Hazanavicius

Nominees:Michel Hazanavicius – The ArtistNicolas Winding Refn – DriveMartin Scorsese – HugoTomas Alfredson – Tinker Tailor Soldier SpyLynne Ramsay – We Need To Talk About Kevin

Best actor

WINNER: Jean Dujardin

Nominees:Brad Pitt – MoneyballGary Oldman – Tinker Tailor Soldier SpyGeorge Clooney – The DescendantsJean Dujardin – The ArtistMichael Fassbender – Shame

Best actress

WINNER: Meryl Streep

Nominees:Berenice Bejo – The ArtistMeryl Streep – The Iron LadyMichelle Williams – My Week with MarilynTilda Swinton – We Need to Talk About KevinViola Davis – The Help

Best supporting actor

WINNER: Christopher Plummer

Nominees:Christopher Plummer – BeginnersJim Broadbent – The Iron LadyJonah Hill – MoneyballKenneth Branagh – My Week with MarilynPhilip Seymour Hoffman – The Ides of March

Best supporting actress

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WINNER: Octavia Spencer

Nominees:Carey Mulligan – DriveJessica Chastain – The HelpJudi Dench – My Week with MarilynMelissa McCarthy – BridesmaidsOctavia Spencer – The Help

Outstanding debut

WINNER: Tyrannosaur

Nominees:Attack The Block – Joe Cornish (director/writer)Black Pond – Will Sharpe (director/writer), Tom Kingsley (director), Sarah Brocklehurst (producer)Coriolanus – Ralph Fiennes (director)Submarine – Richard Ayoade (director/writer)Tyrannosaur – Paddy Considine (director), Diarmid Scrimshaw (producer)

Best foreign language film

WINNER: The Skin I Live In

Nominees:Incendies (Canada)Pina (Germany)Potiche (France)A Separation (Iran)The Skin I Live In (Spain)

Best animated feature film

WINNER: Rango

Nominees:The Adventures Of Tintin: The Secret Of The UnicornArthur ChristmasRango

Best documentary

WINNER:Senna

Nominees:SennaGeorge Harrison: Living in the Material WorldProject Nim

Best original screenplay

WINNER: The Artist

Nominees:The Artist – Michel HazanaviciusBridesmaids – Annie Mumolo, Kristen WiigThe Guard – John Michael McDonaghThe Iron Lady – Abi MorganMidnight In Paris – Woody Allen

Best adapted screenplay

WINNER: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Nominees:The Descendants – Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim RashThe Help – Tate TaylorThe Ides Of March – George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau WillimonMoneyball – Steven Zaillian, Aaron SorkinTinker Tailor Soldier Spy – Bridget O’Connor, Peter Straughan

Best original score

WINNER: The Artist – Ludovic Bource

Nominees:The Artist – Ludovic BourceThe Girl With The Dragon Tattoo – Trent Reznor, Atticus RossHugo – Howard ShoreTinker Tailor Soldier Spy – Alberto IglesiasWar Horse – John Williams

Cinematography

WINNER: The Artist

Nominees:The Artist – Guillaume SchiffmanThe Girl With The Dragon Tattoo – Jeff CronenwethHugo – Robert RichardsonTinker Tailor Soldier Spy – Hoyte van HoytemaWar Horse – Janusz Kaminski

Editing

WINNER: Senna

Nominees:The Artist – Anne-Sophie Bion, Michel HazanaviciusDrive – Mat NewmanHugo – Thelma SchoonmakerSenna – Gregers Sall, Chris KingTinker Tailor Soldier Spy – Dino Jonsater

Production design

WINNER: Hugo

Nominees:The ArtistHarry Potter And The Deathly Hallows – Part 2HugoTinker Tailor Soldier SpyWar Horse

Costume design

WINNER: The Artist

Nominees:The ArtistHugoJane EyreMy Week With MarilynTinker Tailor Soldier SpySound

WINNER: Hugo

Nominees:The ArtistHarry Potter And The Deathly Hallows – Part 2HugoTinker Tailor Soldier SpyWar HorseSpecial Visual Effects

WINNER: Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows – Part 2

Nominees:The Adventures Of Tintin: The Secret Of The UnicornHarry Potter And The Deathly Hallows – Part 2HugoRise Of The Planet Of The ApesWar Horse

Make-up and hair

WINNER: The Iron Lady

Nominees:The ArtistHarry Potter And The Deathly Hallows – Part 2HugoThe Iron LadyMy Week With Marilyn