tMF | The Movie-Fanatic

Jesse Eisenberg, Nicholas Hoult, Carey Mulligan, Tahar Rahim and Kristen Stewart are the nominees for this year's BAFTA Rising Star awards!
Yahoo UK made mention also the following:

Past winners have included James Bond actress Eva Green and Atonement actor James McAvoy. It's down to the public to vote for who they think should get the gong. The winner will be announced at the Bafta ceremony on February 21st. [ read more ]

Now, among these young actors, who should win the award? tMF's choice and a list of possible considerations after the jump!

As you may noticed, the names are arranged in alphabetical order, so I'm going to follow the same in my discussion:

Jesse Eisenberg, who first came into prominence via Roger Dodger and The Squid and the Whale, recently starred in Zombieland with Woody Harrelson. He also did Adventureland with fellow nominee Kristen Stewart. Both of his performances in these movies were alright, they were not exceptional though. I think he did his best in Zombieland and tMF even listed his character as one of the most fascinating for the year.

I think he was nominated because of his performances not only for this year but for a good number of years. Aside from Roger Dodger and The Squid and the Whale, he was the lead in The Education of Charlie Banks and a notable supporting role in The Hunting Party, which stars Richard Gere and Terence Howard.


His chances of winning? Slim to slightly probable. Take note that the British public will decide on who will win. Not that he is unpopular in the UK, but my line of thinking is that there are other nominees who are much more popular than Jesse Eisenberg, and I'll get to that later.

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Nicholas Hoult. Well, he's both talented and gorgeous and also very down-to-earth kinda guy. If you're going to ask me, his work as an actor is very diverse and I don't think there is anyone who can say he is not a good actor. Even his role choices are incredible, a testament to his versatility and dedication to his craft. While you might remember him in the TV series Skins, he was great in About a Boy, the movie that really started his acting career in the first place. He also played some amazing lead and supporting performances in Wah-Wah, The Weather Man (with Nicholas Cage), Coming Down the Mountain and Kidulthood.

But I guess you need to see him in A Single Man, the directorial debut of designer Tom Ford. It was not a major role, just a supporting one, but Hoult managed to impress me. The fact that he just finished doing theater in the UK added to his credentials as a serious young actor ready to take more matured and meaty roles in the future.

His chances of winning? Very good. In fact, if I'm to decide on who should win, I'll say Hoult is the man.

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Carey Mulligan. I'm still in awe even now after watching Carey Mulligan in An Education a few weeks ago. Her performance is simply impressive as the young Jenny who dreams of finding true love. It's not my first time to watch her, she was also very good in Pride and Prejudice, the movie where Keira Knightley got nominated for an Oscar. I also wanted to watch The Greatest, the movie that also stars Aaron Johnson, another young talent who should have been nominated.


Her chances of winning? Very good. I think when James McAvoy was nominated for the first ever Rising Star awards, the British public was really impressed with him, given his work as an actor. I feel the same way with Carey Mulligan in that she ought to get the award as an added 'testimonial' on her way towards an Oscar Best Actress win.

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Tahar Rahim. He's the lead star in Jacques Audiard's A Prophet. Its a French film and for BAFTA to recognize this young actor is a bit surprising to me. I mean, there are other young talents like Aaron Johnson and Saoirse Ronan right? Anyway, perhaps the people behind the nomination are as impressed as I am in the young Rahim. He reminded me of a young Melvil Poupaud and also of Romain Duris, who was the lead actor in another of Audiard's acclaimed film, The Beat That My Heart Skipped.


In the movie, Rahim played a young Arab man who is sent to a French prison where he becomes a mafia kingpin.

His chances of winning? Slim to slightly probable. The thing is, Tahar Rahim, just like Jesse Eisenberg is not very popular at all, except in the indie scene and the art house crowd. In fact, among the nominees, I think Rahim is the least known. Remember, this award is based on a public vote.

Oh, don't get me wrong. I love French films and I think Tahar Rahim is an incredible young actor. You might want to read this post I did about Rahim...
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Kristen Stewart. The Twilight Saga is a worldwide phenomenon. Kristen Stewart, who will always be identified as Bella, the heroine in the extra-ordinary vampire tales, is not a bad actress. In fact, she is cinema's most popular young star today. The fact that young moviegoers admire her is enough for a nomination in BAFTA's Rising Star award.

Has she got what it takes to become tommorow's lead actress? Definitely. If you're not a Twilight fan, then you should consider watching her in Yellow Handerkerchief, Into the Wild and Speak. If you're still not impressed, then I rest my case.

Her chances of winning? Good. But not as good as Carey Mulligan or Nicholas Hoult. Unless someone organize a cellphone brigade in the UK and start cmpaigning for her. The same strategy can be utilized by fans of Hoult and Mulligan too!

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Who will win? My guess is, it's a toss between Carey Mulligan and Nicholas Hoult.

Who should win? Nicholas Hoult.

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What's on your mind? Who do you think will win the this year's BAFTA Rising Star award? Let us know what you think!