And the Oscar Goes to...

It’s that time of year again. Blizzards in New England, Spring Training is underway, and famous people dress up in fancy clothes to honor each other with trophies and accolades. That’s right, it’s the 85^th annual Academy Awards taking place on Sunday night.

I will first admit that my knowledge of this year’s nominees is lacking. I really wanted to see some of this year’s contenders, especially Django Unchained, Argo, and Lincoln. But when you work full time and are finishing up a master’s degree, it sometimes can be tough to find a few spare hours to venture to a movie. I’m not trying to make excuses though.

I was able to see the film favored by many critics, Zero Dark Thirty. My second admission is that I fell asleep about halfway through the movie. A cheeseburger and two Dogfish Head IPAs before a 10:05 screening on a school night can do that. Again I’m not trying to make excuses. Not all was lost though. I’m not sure how long I was asleep for, but I was awoken by the sound of gun shots taking place in the movie. After my cat nap I was able to focus on the rest of the film.

So what does all that say about my ability to make informed picks? Very little. But certain patterns tend to develop over award season and front-runners develop. And in my mind it’s fun, so I’m going to do it anyway. Let’s tackle the major categories that people actually want to tune in for (sorry best sound mixing).

Best Supporting Actress:

Amy Adams – The Master

Sally Field – Lincoln
Anne Hathaway – Les Miserables
Helen Hunt – The Sessions
Jacki Weaver – Silver Linings Playbook

Who doesn’t love Anne Hathaway? She’s the all American actress, this generation’s Judy Garland. Not to mentioned she looked pretty damn good last summer donning the Catwoman suit in The Dark Knight Rises. But I’m straying off the point. This is her second career nomination for a role where she’s barely on screen for fifteen minutes. Plus she dropped twenty five pounds for the role and does her own singing. Sally Field might sneak in and take the prize, but after winning the Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Awards, the trophy goes to Hathaway.

Best Supporting Actor:

Alan Arkin – Argo

Robert De Niro – Silver Linings Playbook
Philip Seymour Hoffman – The Master
Tommy Lee Jones – Lincoln
Christopher Waltz – Django Unchained

None of these actors are a stranger to Oscar. Arkin (Little Miss Sunshine), De Niro (The Godfather II, Raging Bull), Hoffman (Capote), Jones (The Fugitive) and Waltz (Inglorious Basterds) have all basked in Oscar’s glory. This might be the most wide open category, but I’m going with Jones for his role as radical Republican Congressman Thaddeus Stevens. Oscar loves portrayals of real life people. Plus he should win for this alone.

Best Actress:

Jessica Chastain – Zero Dark Thirty

Jennifer Lawrence – Silver Linings Playbook
Emmanuelle Riva – Amour
Quvenzhane Wallis – Beasts of the Southern Wild
Naomi Watts – The Impossible

In a category that has the oldest (Riva) and the youngest (Wallis) nominees ever, it’s a two way race between Chastain and Lawrence. Both won Golden Globes, and Lawrence won at the SAG Awards, making her the front-runner. But I’m going with Chastain. She’s the best thing about Zero Dark Thirty as a fiery CIA agent hell-bent on finding Osama Bin Laden. Years from now when looking back upon great movie lines, her “I’m the motherf!*#er that found this place” should be at the top of the list.

Best Actor

Bradley Cooper – Silver Linings Playbook

Daniel Day-Lewis – Lincoln
Hugh Jackman – Les Miserables
Joaquin Phoenix – The Master
Denzel Washington – Flight

Sorry Bradley, Hugh, Joaquin and Denzel, but you don’t stand a chance. This will make the third Oscar for Day-Lewis (My Left Foot, There Will Be Blood) as his portrayal as our 16^th president. He will make history, being the first actor to win three times in the best actor category. It’s his to lose.

Best Director

Michael Haneke – Amour

Behn Zeitlin – Beasts of the Southern Wild
Ang Lee – Life of Pi
Steven Spielberg – Lincoln
David O. Russell – Silver Linings Playbook

I wrote in a previous post that it was surprising that Katherine Bigelow was ignored for best director for Zero Dark Thirty. How did I miss Ben Affleck’s snub for Argo? All he’s been doing for the past month is piling up directing awards. With that being said, I don’t think anyone is touching Spielberg. He is one of the best at his craft, and he does well at Oscar when it comes to historical matters (Schindler’s List, Saving Private Ryan). But don’t worry. Affleck will have his revenge.

Best Picture

Amour
Argo
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Django Unchained
Les Miserables
Life of Pi
Lincoln
Silver Linings Playbook
Zero Dark Thirty

A month ago this would have gone to Zero Dark Thirty, but the debate on the films controversial torture scenes has killed its changes. Also I personally didn’t think the film lived up to all of the critical hype, but I don’t receive a vote. So that leaves Argo and Lincoln. Spielberg is going to have flash backs to 1998 when he won best director for Saving Private Ryan but then was hosed for best picture, losing to Shakespeare in Love. Wait, didn’t Affleck have a small role in that movie? I see a small pattern developing. With twelve nominations, Lincoln is definitely the favorite. But Argo has been gaining a lot of steam, racking up awards like Affleck. At the end of the evening the underdog Argo takes home the top prize. Hopefully I can stay awake to see it.