So the Oscars are tonight, and the academy has already made some horrible nominations, but lets hope they get SOME of these right. These aren’t what I think will win, these are what I think should win.
Best Picture- Slumdog Millionaire
It should be everything I hate. A cliche story, a happy ending, characters that don’t get too deep. But a movie has to be this good to have me rooting so much for the cliche ending and for the two characters to fall in love.
Best Actor- Mickey Rourke:
The Wrestler I do have to admit, this is a tough field right here, with Penn, Langella, and Pitt all giving great performances, but Rourke easily wins this in my book. Every moment, he IS Randy the Ram, for no second did I think of him as an actor, or this as a movie, but just like we were watching his life.
Best Actress- Kate Winslet: The Reader
While I haven’t seen two of the nominees in this category, I didn’t see too much from the trailers to make me doubt this choice. Winslet was great as the Nazi, and was believable the whole time. She went out of her comfort zone and still came out believable, and that’s what I think makes an Oscar winning performance.
Best Actor in a Supporting Role- Heath Ledger: The Dark Knight
Do I really have to explain myself? Only Brolin in this category has a chance at taking this from Heath, but I don’t think that will happen.
Best Actress in a Supporting Role- Marisa Tomei: The Wrestler
Again, just like Rourke, Tomei WAS Cassidy the stripper. This was easily the best performance in this category, and one of the best of the year as well. But, Cruz will probably get the Oscar.
Best Directing- David Fincher: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
While Boyle did a good job as well with Slumdog, Fincher has not made a bad movie from what I’ve seen. Button is just as good as these, and this is through the eyes of a true film genius, being able to make some of the most tense thrillers and still making this great drama.
Best Original Screenplay- In Bruges
It should win, and hopefully, it will win. The dialogue is excellent, and story interesting from beginning to end. Nothing else in this category is close to what Bruges has done.
Best Adapted Screenplay- Slumdog Millionaire
What can I say? It had me hooked until the end. This is a tough category though, and I wouldn’t be too sad if Nixon or Doubt took this one away.
Best Cinematography- Slumdog Millionaire
This was tough between Benjamin Button and Slumdog, but I had to give it to the latter. The images were beautiful in every shot, and just amazed me how well it could be done.
Best Editing- The Dark Knight
To keep a 2 1/2 hour movie go by as fast as The Dark Knight is an amazing accomplishment.
Best Art Direction- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
If you see the movie, you’ll see what I mean. Each set is meticulously done, and sets up for the cinematography.
Best Costume Design- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Again, Button is a huge feat in the production of it, and the costumes are all so realistic for the time. Duchess I haven’t seen though, but it will probably win.
Best Makeup- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Making an actor age like this is part makeup, part special effects. And both these elements worked together so well to make Pitt and Blanchett age.
Best Music- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
I had the score stuck in my head for the next 3 hours, and I loved it.
Best Original Song- Slumdog Millionaire: Jai Ho
Ugh, NO “THE WRESTLER” BY BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN??!? THAT was easily the best song of the year, and instead, they choose 3 mediocre ones. This is just unforgivable…
Best Sound- The Dark Knight
They did such a great job with the Batpod, explosions, and everything.
Best Sound Editing- Iron Man
This should have been nominated in both sound categories and win both.
Best Visual Effects- Iron Man
Sure, Button was good in the more subtle effects, but some of the characters looked fake (young Daisy). But Iron Man looked just as real as any of the other actors in the movie.
Best Animated Feature- Wall-E
Sure, Kung Fu Panda was more enjoyable, but Wall-E was more of an achievement in film. With little dialogue, we still knew what was going on and felt for the characters. The animation was also so great, bringing the movie to life.
The rest I haven’t seen enough of the contenders to make an accurate judgement, so I’d like to know what you guys think about them.
