Ok, the Globes are (thankfully) over, I've seen most of the perspective nominees (I'm just waiting on Waltz with Bashir and maybe Revolutionary Road, I refuse to see The Reader) and most of the award shows have announced their nominees, so it's time for my Oscar picks. First will be my dream ballot, then my actual predictions
Best Picture:
Hope:
Synecdoche, New York
The Wrestler
The Dark Knight
the Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Rachel Getting Married
Actual:
Slumdog Millionaire
Dark Knight
Benjamin Button
Milk
The Wrestler
Most people have Frost/Nixon making it over The Wrestler. I just can't believe that they'd nominate two films as needlessly mediocre as Slumdog and Frost/Nixon, and while Slumdog was unquestionably the lesser film, it also has much more hype. The Wrestler was the best reviewed non-documentary of the year.
Best Actor:
Hope:
Mickey Rourke The Wrestler
Sean Penn Milk
Phillip Seymour Hoffman Synecdoche, New York
Brendan Gleeson In Bruges
Sam Rockwell Snow Angels
Actual:
Sean Penn
Mickey Rourke
Brad Pitt Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frank Langella Frost/Nixon
Clint Eastwood Gran Torino
Dicaprio is the dark horse, but I doubt he'll get it. The academy is far too stupid to actually honor Synecdoche, and they've already forgotten In Bruges and Snow Angels. Langella and Eastwood were fine, so I'm not really complaining.
Best Actress:
Hope (honestly, I haven't seen that many films with female leads this year, so I'm just basing this on actresses I like):
Anne Hathaway Rachel Getting Married
Sally Hawkins Happy-Go-Lucky
Kate Winslet Revolutionary Road
Rebecca Hall Vicky Christina Barcelona
Cate Blanchett The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Actual:
Hathaway
Hawkins
Winslet
Hall
Merryl Streep Doubt
I don't know much about this category. Streep gets the nod over Blanchett because she's Streep.
Best Director:
Wish:
Charlie Kaufman Synecdoche, New York
David Fincher The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Chris Nolan The Dark Knight
Darren Aronofsky The Wrestler
Jonathon Demme Rachel Getting Married
Actual:
David Fincher
Chris Nolan
Danny Boyle Slumdog Millionaire
Ron Howard Frost/Nixon
Gus Van Sant Milk
I think the directors of the five best films deserve the nominations (all five films had great visuals in their own way). Ron Howard is a bad director. People don't seem to understand this. Danny Boyle is a good director. Slumdog is his worst film. Even fewer people seem to understand this. I have no problem with Van Sant getting the nomination. Milk was a very well-directed film.
Supporting actor:
Wish:
Heath Ledger The Dark Knight
Emile Hirsch Milk
Javier Bardem Vicky Christina Barcelona
Robert Downey Jr. Tropic Thunder
Ralph Fiennes In Bruges
Actual:
Ledger
Brolin Milk
Fiennes The Reader
Phillip Seymour Hoffman Doubt
Javier Bardem Vicky Christina Barcelona
I refuse to see any films that can be described as manipulative dreck about the holocaust, so I haven't seen The Reader, but I do love Fiennes, and his performance in In Bruges was wonderful. Doubt just wasn't that good, so I'd rather see Hoffman's spot go to Downey, who gave the year's funniest supporting performance. They may be marketing Bardem as a lead actor, but he was great. Ledger should win.
Best supporting actress:
Wish:
Penelope Cruz Vicky Christina Barcelona
Amy Adams Doubt
Samantha Morton Synecdoche, New York
Marissa Tomei The Wrestler
Rosemarie Dewitt Rachel Getting Married
Actual:
Cruz
Tomei
Kate Winslett The Reader
Taraji P. Henson The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Viola Davis Doubt
I'm in the minority on this, but I thought Amy Adams gave the best performance in Doubt, and essentially saved the film from absolute mediocrity. Things that make me angry: 1. The lack of any love for Synecdoche
Original Screenplay:
Wish:
Charlie Kaufman Synecdoche, New York
Robert D. Siegel The Wrestler
Jenny Lumet Rachel Getting Married
Andrew Stanton Wall-E
Martin McDonagh In Bruges
Actual:
Lumet
Stanton
Black
Woody Allen Vicky Christina Barcelona
The Coen Brothers Burn After Reading
Why can't anyone recognize the brilliance of Synecdoche? Burn After Reading was great, but not really Oscar-worthy. I'd be perfectly ok if Allen was nominated.
Adapted Screenplay
Wish:
Eric Roth Benjamin Button
Jonathon Nolan, Christopher Nolan, David S. Goyer The Dark Knight
John Ajvide Lindqvist Let The Right One In
David Gordon Green Snow Angels
Dan Gilroy, Tarsem The Fall
Actual:
Roth
Nolans and Goyer
Simon Beaufoy Slumdog
Peter Morgan Frost/Nixon
John Patrick Shanley Doubt
The Fall really didn't have a great screenplay, but there weren't that many films I liked this year from adapted screenplay, namely the final three films listed here.
Best Picture:
Hope:
Synecdoche, New York
The Wrestler
The Dark Knight
the Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Rachel Getting Married
Actual:
Slumdog Millionaire
Dark Knight
Benjamin Button
Milk
The Wrestler
Most people have Frost/Nixon making it over The Wrestler. I just can't believe that they'd nominate two films as needlessly mediocre as Slumdog and Frost/Nixon, and while Slumdog was unquestionably the lesser film, it also has much more hype. The Wrestler was the best reviewed non-documentary of the year.
Best Actor:
Hope:
Mickey Rourke The Wrestler
Sean Penn Milk
Phillip Seymour Hoffman Synecdoche, New York
Brendan Gleeson In Bruges
Sam Rockwell Snow Angels
Actual:
Sean Penn
Mickey Rourke
Brad Pitt Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frank Langella Frost/Nixon
Clint Eastwood Gran Torino
Dicaprio is the dark horse, but I doubt he'll get it. The academy is far too stupid to actually honor Synecdoche, and they've already forgotten In Bruges and Snow Angels. Langella and Eastwood were fine, so I'm not really complaining.
Best Actress:
Hope (honestly, I haven't seen that many films with female leads this year, so I'm just basing this on actresses I like):
Anne Hathaway Rachel Getting Married
Sally Hawkins Happy-Go-Lucky
Kate Winslet Revolutionary Road
Rebecca Hall Vicky Christina Barcelona
Cate Blanchett The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Actual:
Hathaway
Hawkins
Winslet
Hall
Merryl Streep Doubt
I don't know much about this category. Streep gets the nod over Blanchett because she's Streep.
Best Director:
Wish:
Charlie Kaufman Synecdoche, New York
David Fincher The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Chris Nolan The Dark Knight
Darren Aronofsky The Wrestler
Jonathon Demme Rachel Getting Married
Actual:
David Fincher
Chris Nolan
Danny Boyle Slumdog Millionaire
Ron Howard Frost/Nixon
Gus Van Sant Milk
I think the directors of the five best films deserve the nominations (all five films had great visuals in their own way). Ron Howard is a bad director. People don't seem to understand this. Danny Boyle is a good director. Slumdog is his worst film. Even fewer people seem to understand this. I have no problem with Van Sant getting the nomination. Milk was a very well-directed film.
Supporting actor:
Wish:
Heath Ledger The Dark Knight
Emile Hirsch Milk
Javier Bardem Vicky Christina Barcelona
Robert Downey Jr. Tropic Thunder
Ralph Fiennes In Bruges
Actual:
Ledger
Brolin Milk
Fiennes The Reader
Phillip Seymour Hoffman Doubt
Javier Bardem Vicky Christina Barcelona
I refuse to see any films that can be described as manipulative dreck about the holocaust, so I haven't seen The Reader, but I do love Fiennes, and his performance in In Bruges was wonderful. Doubt just wasn't that good, so I'd rather see Hoffman's spot go to Downey, who gave the year's funniest supporting performance. They may be marketing Bardem as a lead actor, but he was great. Ledger should win.
Best supporting actress:
Wish:
Penelope Cruz Vicky Christina Barcelona
Amy Adams Doubt
Samantha Morton Synecdoche, New York
Marissa Tomei The Wrestler
Rosemarie Dewitt Rachel Getting Married
Actual:
Cruz
Tomei
Kate Winslett The Reader
Taraji P. Henson The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Viola Davis Doubt
I'm in the minority on this, but I thought Amy Adams gave the best performance in Doubt, and essentially saved the film from absolute mediocrity. Things that make me angry: 1. The lack of any love for Synecdoche
Original Screenplay:
Wish:
Charlie Kaufman Synecdoche, New York
Robert D. Siegel The Wrestler
Jenny Lumet Rachel Getting Married
Andrew Stanton Wall-E
Martin McDonagh In Bruges
Actual:
Lumet
Stanton
Black
Woody Allen Vicky Christina Barcelona
The Coen Brothers Burn After Reading
Why can't anyone recognize the brilliance of Synecdoche? Burn After Reading was great, but not really Oscar-worthy. I'd be perfectly ok if Allen was nominated.
Adapted Screenplay
Wish:
Eric Roth Benjamin Button
Jonathon Nolan, Christopher Nolan, David S. Goyer The Dark Knight
John Ajvide Lindqvist Let The Right One In
David Gordon Green Snow Angels
Dan Gilroy, Tarsem The Fall
Actual:
Roth
Nolans and Goyer
Simon Beaufoy Slumdog
Peter Morgan Frost/Nixon
John Patrick Shanley Doubt
The Fall really didn't have a great screenplay, but there weren't that many films I liked this year from adapted screenplay, namely the final three films listed here.
Dream major nominee count:
Synecdoche: 5
The Wrestler: 5
Rachel Getting Married: 5
Benjamin Button: 4
Dark Knight: 4
Milk: 3
In Bruges: 3
Vicky Christina Barceona: 3
Snow Angels: 2
Happy-Go-Lucky: 1
Revolutionary Road: 1
Tropic Thunder: 1
Doubt: 1
Let The Right One In: 1
The Fall: 1
Wall-E: 1
I'll pick winners after the actual nominations come out
No comments:
Post a Comment