Because they don't matter. They don't. And yet, I care.
Which is why I am making this post.
Here goes nothing.
As I sit here in my currently crippled state (theater audition; long story, not one for this blog), depressed, anxious about going back to aforementioned terrible horrible school, and a bit sad that I definitely did not make the cut for also aforementioned musical, I am looking at this list, smiling, gasping, and in all honesty, caring.
So predictions and thoughts and whatnot.
BEST PICTURE NOMINEES ARE...
Amour
Argo
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Django Unchained
Les Miserables
Lincoln
Life of Pi
Silver Linings Playbook
Zero Dark Thirty
So let's see here, this is a pretty predictable bunch. A lot of these are directed by people who have before, or have been nominated, i.e. Kathryn Bigelow, Steven Spielberg, Tom Hooper, Quentin Tarantino. However, my money is on Lincoln or Argo to win. Possible upsets are Zero Dark Thirty and Les Miserables. If I could have picked these, Skyfall would have been put into a tenth slot. I really had hopes for that one. Also, I'm a little surprised to see The Dark Knight Rises snubbed. I'm not the biggest Nolan fan, but I thought it was a commendable and thought-provoking movie. Also, where is The Hobbit? Rarely have I enjoyed a film more. I know I'm a super fan, but coooome ooooooooooon.
BEST ACTOR NOMINEES ARE...
Bradly Cooper for Silver Linings Playbook
Daniel Day-Lewis for Lincoln
Hugh Jackman for Les Miserables
Joaquin Pheonix for The Master
Denzel Washington for Flight
Okay, anybody who does not feel like losing twenty bucks has their money of Daniel Day-Lewis. And if it's not himn, it'll be Hugh Jackman or Denzell Washington, no question.
BEST ACTRESS NOMINEES ARE...
Jessica Chastain for Zero Dark Thirty
Jennifer Lawrence for Silver Linings Playbook
Emanuelle Riva for Amour
Quvenzhane Wallis for Beasts of the Southern Wild (She's only 9!)
Naomi Watts for The Impossible
Alrighty, let's see here. Jessica Chastain is definitely the forerunner here, with Jennifer Lawrence and Quvenzhane for second and third choices. Also, was Silver Linings Playbook really that good? I mean, really? I thought it kind of looked liked a chick flick. Maybe I'll have to go see it now. Side note: The Actress category is interesting because it contains both the youngest, Wallis, and oldest, Riva, actresses to be nominated ever. Pretty interesting.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR NOMINEES ARE...
Alan Arkin for Argo
Robert de Nero for Silver Linings Playbook
Phillip Seymour Hoffman for The Master
Tommy Lee Jones for Lincoln
Christoph Waltz for Django Unchained
Yeah, okay, nothing unusual here either. Tommy Lee Jones or Christoph Waltz will get it. I would've liked to see Tom Hardy's Bane from Dark Knight Rises here though. In the words of another critic, Tom Hardy can do more with 20% of his face than most actors can do with all of theirs. I thought it was a truly interesting take on an interesting character, one that deserves recognition more than for just a weird voice. Also, wher eis Javier Bardem for his performance in Skyfall. I was genuinely scared and fascinated of his character when ever he was on screen. That guys got mad skill. Sad to see it snubbed.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS NOMINEES...
Amy Adams for The Master
Sally Field for Lincoln
Anne Hathaway for Les Miserables
Helen Hunt for The Sessions
Jacki Weaver for Silver Linings Playbook
If Anne Hathaway does not win this, there is no justice in the world. I have not seen Les Miserables (yet), but I listened to Anne Hathaway sing I Dreamed A Dream one night, sitting alone in my bedroom, and I literally was sobbing by the end of her solo. She deserves it. Also, she was extremely dedicated to her role as Fantine, facing a lot of scrutiny in the media and handling it all very well. I think she has this one in the bag.
BEST DIRECTOR NOMINEES ARE....
Michael Haneke for Amour
Ang Lee for Life of Pi
David O. Russel for Silver Linings Playbook
Steven Spielberg for Lincoln
Benh Zeitland for Beasts of the Southern Wild
While Lincoln is a front runner for nearly everything right now, I'm going to be a rebel and say the Ang Lee will probably get this one. Life of Pi was once deemed unfilmable. Well, obviously it's not. So yeah. Ang Lee. Props. Even though I haven't seen the movie.
I'm going to skip around here. There are somethings that I know you guys are more interested in. So if I skip your favorite category, comment, and we'll pick each other's brains.
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Brave
Frankenweenie
ParaNorman
Wreck-It Ralph
Pirates!
While Brave will probably win this one, I myself was not very impressed with it, so I'm going to be a rebel once again and put Wreck-It Ralph down for this one. Frankenweenie also stands a good chance, especially since it seemed to have redeemed the legendary Tim Burton from his two remakes, Alice in Wonderland and Dark Shadows.
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Anna Karenina by Dario Marinelli
Argo by Alexendre Desplat
Life of Pi by Michael Danna
Lincoln by John Williams
Skyfall by Thomas Newman
It'll probably end up being John Williams (seriously, how old is that guy?), but I'd like to see either Desplat or Newman win. Skyfall had a score that, like the rest of the movie, was better than expected. I'm a bit sad to see Hunger Games snubbed here. I thought the score for that was actually perfect for the film and an interesting experiment in that Appalachian versus futuristic style. It mixed those two styles perfectly for the film.
BEST ORIGINAL SONG NOMINEES ARE...
"Before my Time" from Chasing Ice, by J. Ralph
"Everybody Needs A Best Friend" from Ted, by Norah Jones
"Pi's Lullaby" from Life of Pi, by Bombay Jayashiri
"Skyfall" from Skyfall, by Adele
"Suddenly" from Les Miserables, sung by Hugh Jackman.
Skyfall. The end. Good-bye. Everybody go home.
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS NOMINEES ARE...
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Life of Pi
The Avengers
Prometheus
Snow White and the Huntsman
Again, I'm surprised TDKR was snubbed here. That had excellent effects! I would like to hope that Avengers will one thing, but Prometheus, The Hobbit, or Life of Pi are the most likely contenders, with Snow White and the Huntsman being the clear under dog.
Welp, there. I cared. Sue me.
See you on awards night.
-Randi
Hi GC! I have to admit that I haven't seen ANY of these movies (except Hunger Games, the snubbed one, of course), but you write an awesome Oscar prediction. I shall see the Hobbit one of these days before it leaves the theater, though. Glad to see you are still writing. Hang in there. School feels like it lasts forever, but later it seems like just a bad dream. I promise.
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