2014 Muriel Awards: Best Ensemble Performance

Of all the ways the Muriels are better than the Oscars, one of them is that the Oscars don't have an ensemble performance category. So much of the success of a movie rides on its cast- not merely its stars who might get love in the individual performance categories, but the folks who round out the smaller roles, the ones who might get high billing but lend texture to a film in the best cases and distract from the storyline in the worst. Of course, it would be a challenge for the Oscars to recognize entire casts, what with having to give awards to every performer of note and the resulting sharp increase in statuettes that would require.

In our case, not presenting actual awards to our winners, or even necessarily notifying them of their wins (although allegedly Lars von Trier's assistant informed him of Antichrist's win for Best Cinematography back in 2010, which is sort of mind-boggling). But anyway... man, that intro just got away from me, didn't it? The perils of having to post this at the last minute, I suppose.

But enough of my yakkin'. Let's boogie.

Third place:

Boyhood (136 points / 20 votes)

Second place:

Inherent Vice (169 votes / 28 votes)

And the Muriel Award goes to...

The Grand Budapest Hotel (216 points / 33 votes)

"In Wes Anderson’s debut feature Bottle Rocket, a third act twist involves a mentor robbing the home of an unsuspecting apprentice, as the apprentice is concurrently failing at a more elaborate and messy heist. The ending comes as an inevitable surprise because, in far too many films, supporting characters are either utensils used to deliver plot exposition, or garnishes to provide a superficial sense of something more than what’s being served. Wes Anderson’s supporting characters, in contrast, are large; they contain multitudes. The mentor isn’t just a mentor; he’s a career criminal who exploits a group of amateurs when the opportunity falls in his lap.

"Anderson’s commitment to imbuing each character, regardless of screen time, with a sense that they’re on their own personal journey explains why The Grand Budapest Hotel is his second film in a row (following 2012’s Moonrise Kingdom) to win the Muriel for Best Ensemble. For Hotel Anderson and his frequent casting director Douglas Aibel found their lead, Tony Revolori, after watching YouTube clips of him playing guitar. Like Max Fisher, Revolori’s Zero is a precocious youth who forges a strong bond with a middle aged mentor. Like Herman Blume, Ralph Fiennes’ M. Gustave sees much of himself in his protégé, and does his best to fill a selfless role his ego isn’t quite prepared for. Unlike the Rushmore characters, the dawn of fascism lingers over the world of The Grand Budapest Hotel, and the two find their fates too intertwined to allow petty quarrels to stand between them. Both Revolori and Fiennes strike the perfect balance of comedy and tragedy to suit the unique and difficult tone of the film.

"In addition to the two leads, Aibel cast mostly virgins to the Anderson universe in central roles. Saoirse Ronan, Jude Law and F. Murray Abraham all fit perfectly into Anderson’s stable, and seem destined to reeturn in his future films. Secondary characters are largely played by sophomore Anderson performers. Adrian Brody, Jeff Goldblum, Willem Dafoe, Tilda Swinton, Edward Norton and Harvey Keitel all return, each bringing a completely new type of physicality and psychology than in their previous collaborations. Rounding out the cast in minor roles are veterans of the Wes Anderson Stock Company - Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman and Owen Wilson - who each have just a brief scene or two, but because they are so familiar they suggest each has a rich and detailed history within the film’s world.

"By ensuring each face has a history, Anderson prevents any character from seeming to be simply a utensil or bit of garnish, instead they are each full of humanity; adding background depth and texture which allows the foreground plot to thicken, as they say… but why?

"Is it a soup metaphor?" ~ Kevin Cecil

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