The Dublin Film Critics Circle has selected Tomas Alfredson's Let the Right One In as Best Film at the Dublin International Film Festival. It's become a familiar refrain:Best Foreign Language Film:
- Boston Society of Film Critics
- Broadcast Film Critics Association
- Calgary International Film Festival
- Chicago Film Critics Association
- Florida Film Critics Circle
- Kansas City Film Critics Circle
- Online Film Critics Society
- Phoenix Film Critics Circle
- San Diego Film Critics Society
- San Francisco Film Critics Circle
- Satellite Awards
- Southeastern Film Critics Association
- Toronto Film Critics Association
- Washington DC Area Film Critics Association
And yet, you will not see Let the Right One In mentioned tonight at the Oscars in the Best Foreign Language Film category. No, it hasn't even been nominated. That's because of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' bizarre rules when it comes to foreign flicks. Apparently, the Academy cannot evaluate any movie it chooses when it comes to deciding nominees. Rather, they can only consider the films each nation has deemed worthy of being submitted for consideration. This has caused many worthy films to be excluded over the years, whether it be for political reasons, or because said nation doesn't feel that it wants to be represented by what it deems to be a "lowly genre film".
And so, alas, Sweden did not submit Let the Right One In for consideration, leaving a movie good enough for a Best Picture nomination to be left out in the cold completely. Shame, really.