HS Blog: Oscar, Oscar, Oscar

February 25, 2007

Oscar, Oscar, Oscar

Well, with just a few hours left until the 79th annual Academy Awards, I better get busy with my predictions. I have spent the last few weeks finishing up making my rounds to see as many of the Oscar nominees as possible (final tally: 89 of the 113 nominees).

Enjoy!

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Usually playing a deaf/mute teen with daddy issues will get the Academy drooling all over themselves to hand you the Oscar, but Rinko Kikuchi's performance in Babel won't stand a chance against the unstoppable Jennifer Hudson giving the performance of many lifetimes in her Dreamgirls debut.
My heart goes out to Adrianna Barazza, the Mexican nanny in Babel, who is absolutely stellar. In any other year, she wins.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Although Eddie Murphy has the momentum coming into tonight, having won the Golden Globe (joke of an award) and the far more respectable Screen Actors Guild award, I think this category will provide us with the most likely upset with the Oscar either going to Blood Diamond's Djimon Housou or to Mark Wahlberg.
Walhberg was positively electric every time he was on screen in The Departed. If there is an upset in this category, I hope it is for Marky Mark.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
With four of the nominees in this category also getting Best Picture nods, this is one of the tightest races. Historically, the screenplay categories are where the politics of Oscar rears its ugly head, giving the award to "the best picture that will never win best picture". Consider past winners Fargo, L.A. Confidential, Pulp Fiction and this year's likely recipient Little Miss Sunshine.
If Babel pulls of the mild upset in this category, look for it to possibly ride it all the way to a Best Picture win as well.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
With The Departed the lone best picture nominee up for adapted screenplay, it shouldn't even be close, especially against lightweights such as Little Children and Children of Men. And uh... did I mention Borat? Now that is one of the most mysterious nominations I have ever seen.
Notes on a Scandal could upset The Departed's apple cart here and it wouldn't be the first time that Scorsese found himself scratching his head at the Oscars.

BEST ACTRESS
I feel like Denny Green, former Arizona Cardinal's head coach who gave one of the best post game meltdowns after blowing a huge lead against the Chicago Bears this year. If you want to crown Helen Miren, then crown her! She is who we though she was! However, this category (along with supporting actor) could provide us with another upset, and one of the more major one's in recent memory. Judy Dench's performance in Notes on a Scandal is remarkable and could help validate the Academy's decision to give her an Oscar for 8 minutes of screen time in 1997 for Shakespeare in Love. But it would be a shocker for her to beat Helen Miren. The other ladies in this category are all afterthoughts.

BEST ACTOR
Well, there are three ways the Academy could go here.
1. Sentimental - Peter O'Toole in Venus
2. Conventional - Forest Whitaker in The Last King of Scotland
3. Surprising - Leonardo DiCapprio in Blood Diamond

As much as I love Peter O'Toole (pound for pound the second or third greatest actor... EVER), the Academy is off the hook for the sentimental choice by having given 7-time loser O'Toole a lifetime achievement award in 2003. Eight will not be the charm for him. As much as I can't stand Leonardo DiCapprio (pound for pound something less than O'Toole) I think he turned in the best performance of the year.
That being said, Whitaker has everything going for him, showing the charming (and not so charming) side of an infamous tyrant who most of the Academy voters will remember. He's got the look, he's got the voice and in a few hours he will most likely have the Oscar.

BEST DIRECTOR
It is not, I repeat NOT Scorsese's year. If Marty wins this year it will be an upset. For the Academy to give him the Oscar for The Departed would be an indictment on his previous work, saying that this was better than Raging Bull, Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, The Age of Innocence, The Last Temptation of Christ, etc. I don't believe the Academy can or will declare The Departed as Scorsese's finest work. They didn't do it with The Aviator and I don't think they will do it tonight and, as they did two years ago, the Academy will hand Clint Eastwood the Oscar instead of Martin Scorsese.
If you want an upset here look no further than Alejandro González Iñárritu and his work on Babel. This film built up a lot of energy and that could translate into a win here.

BEST PICTURE
Well, I thought last year that Crash was "the best picture that couldn't win best picture" and I was delightfully proved wrong. I hope the same is true for Little Miss Sunshine but I'm not holding my breath. The last (and I think ONLY) time a film whose director didn't get nominated won for best picture was Driving Miss Daisy 16 years ago. Tonight's award should go to Letters from Iwo Jima a tremendous feat of film making from Clint. It is ambitious, challenging and completely different than anything he's ever done before. I guess all those Kurosawa remakes as westerns he did rubbed off on him.
Babel just might raise the flag on Mount Suribachi. It has a lot of nominations and bigger upsets have happened (see Crash and Shakespeare in Love). But tonight will be Clint's third double-double (picture and director) cementing him not only as a Hollywood acting icon, but as a legendary director.

I'll be back to blog tomorrow undoubtedly with my tail between my legs congratulating Martin Scorsese, Eddie Murphy and Borat!

Enjoy the awards!

Posted by Selby at February 25, 2007 11:03 PM

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February 25, 2007 Oscar, Oscar, Oscar Well, with just a few hours left until the 79th annual Academy Awards, I better get busy with my predictions. I have spent the last few weeks finishing up making my rounds to see as many of the Oscar nominees as possible (final tally: 89 of the 113 nominees). Enjoy! BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS Usually playing a deaf/mute teen with daddy issues will get the Academy drooling all over themselves to hand you the Oscar, but Rinko Kikuchi's performance in Babel won't stand a chance against the unstoppable Jennifer Hudson giving the performance of many lifetimes in her Dreamgirls debut. My heart goes out to Adrianna Barazza, the Mexican nanny in Babel, who is absolutely stellar. In any other year, she wins. BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR Although Eddie Murphy has the momentum coming into tonight, having won the Golden Globe (joke of an award) and the far more respectable Screen Actors Guild award, I think this category will provide us with the most likely upset with the Oscar either going to Blood Diamond's Djimon Housou or to Mark Wahlberg. Walhberg was positively electric every time he was on screen in The Departed. If there is an upset in this category, I hope it is for Marky Mark. BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY With four of the nominees in this category also getting Best Picture nods, this is one of the tightest races. Historically, the screenplay categories are where the politics of Oscar rears its ugly head, giving the award to "the best picture that will never win best picture". Consider past winners Fargo, L.A. Confidential, Pulp Fiction and this year's likely recipient Little Miss Sunshine. If Babel pulls of the mild upset in this category, look for it to possibly ride it all the way to a Best Picture win as well. BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY With The Departed the lone best picture nominee up for adapted screenplay, it shouldn't even be close, especially against lightweights such as Little Children and Children of Men. And uh... did I mention Borat? Now that is one of the most mysterious nominations I have ever seen. Notes on a Scandal could upset The Departed's apple cart here and it wouldn't be the first time that Scorsese found himself scratching his head at the Oscars. BEST ACTRESS I feel like Denny Green, former Arizona Cardinal's head coach who gave one of the best post game meltdowns after blowing a huge lead against the Chicago Bears this year. If you want to crown Helen Miren, then crown her! She is who we though she was! However, this category (along with supporting actor) could provide us with another upset, and one of the more major one's in recent memory. Judy Dench's performance in Notes on a Scandal is remarkable and could help validate the Academy's decision to give her an Oscar for 8 minutes of screen time in 1997 for Shakespeare in Love. But it would be a shocker for her to beat Helen Miren. The other ladies in this category are all afterthoughts. BEST ACTOR Well, there are three ways the Academy could go here. 1. Sentimental - Peter O'Toole in Venus 2. Conventional - Forest Whitaker in The Last King of Scotland 3. Surprising - Leonardo DiCapprio in Blood Diamond As much as I love Peter O'Toole (pound for pound the second or third greatest actor... EVER), the Academy is off the hook for the sentimental choice by having given 7-time loser O'Toole a lifetime achievement award in 2003. Eight will not be the charm for him. As much as I can't stand Leonardo DiCapprio (pound for pound something less than O'Toole) I think he turned in the best performance of the year. That being said, Whitaker has everything going for him, showing the charming (and not so charming) side of an infamous tyrant who most of the Academy voters will remember. He's got the look, he's got the voice and in a few hours he will most likely have the Oscar. BEST DIRECTOR It is not, I repeat NOT Scorsese's year. If Marty wins this year it will be an upset. For the Academy to give him the Oscar for The Departed would be an indictment on his previous work, saying that this was better than Raging Bull, Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, The Age of Innocence, The Last Temptation of Christ, etc. I don't believe the Academy can or will declare The Departed as Scorsese's finest work. They didn't do it with The Aviator and I don't think they will do it tonight and, as they did two years ago, the Academy will hand Clint Eastwood the Oscar instead of Martin Scorsese. If you want an upset here look no further than Alejandro González Iñárritu and his work on Babel. This film built up a lot of energy and that could translate into a win here. BEST PICTURE Well, I thought last year that Crash was "the best picture that couldn't win best picture" and I was delightfully proved wrong. I hope the same is true for Little Miss Sunshine but I'm not holding my breath. The last (and I think ONLY) time a film whose director didn't get nominated won for best picture was Driving Miss Daisy 16 years ago. Tonight's award should go to Letters from Iwo Jima a tremendous feat of film making from Clint. It is ambitious, challenging and completely different than anything he's ever done before. I guess all those Kurosawa remakes as westerns he did rubbed off on him. Babel just might raise the flag on Mount Suribachi. It has a lot of nominations and bigger upsets have happened (see Crash and Shakespeare in Love). But tonight will be Clint's third double-double (picture and director) cementing him not only as a Hollywood acting icon, but as a legendary director. I'll be back to blog tomorrow undoubtedly with my tail between my legs congratulating Martin Scorsese, Eddie Murphy and Borat! Enjoy the awards! Posted by Selby at February 25, 2007 11:03 PM