It's Oscar weekend, my favorite holiday of the year! And for once, my favorite movie of the year (Mad Max: Fury Road) is nominated in a bunch of categories, including Best Picture. Mad Max may, in fact, be my favorite movie of the past five years or so. Perhaps the past decade. It is amazing on all levels and if I had my way, it would win all the Oscars including Best Picture and a write-in Best Actress for Charlize Theron.
But there's a big gap between what I want to win and what I think will win. Here are my best guesses as to how the hardware will be distributed:
Best Picture: The Revenant
Best Director: Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
Best Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio
Best Actress: Brie Larson
Best Supporting Actor: Sylvester Stallone
Best Supporting Actress: Alicia Vikander
Best Original Screenplay: Spotlight
Best Adapted Screenplay: The Big Short
Best Film Editing: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Cinematography: The Revenant
Best Score: The Hateful Eight
Best Song: "Til It Happens to You" from The Hunting Ground
Best Art Direction: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Costumes: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Makeup: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Visual Effects: Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Best Sound: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Sound Effects Editing: Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Animated Feature: Inside Out
Best Documentary Feature: Amy
You'll notice that while I'm picking The Revenant for Best Picture, I'm picking Mad Max to take home the most Oscars. Mad Max was, objectively, the best looking, best sounding movie of the year. I'll be thrilled if it wins more, but I predict it will take at least six Oscars.
There was a lot of buzz for Spotlight and The Big Short in the Best Picture race, but I think The Revenant will take it in the end and the others will take the screenplay awards. Also, it looks like Inarritu is poised to become the third person in Oscar history to win back to back directing Oscars. The lead acting categories are locks and Vikander is a strong favorite for Supporting Actress, but Stallone is in a tough race. His win (for a role he's played in seven movies) could be seen as a defacto lifetime achievement award, but many may feel that that's a lifetime of bad action movies and cast their votes elsewhere.
The category I'm most anticipating is Best Score, where the legendary Ennio Morricone is poised to win his first competitive Oscar in a lifetime of creating memorable music. This will be the best-deserved Oscar of the night and I'll be very bitter if he doesn't receive a standing ovation. In other music news, I predict that Lady Gaga will be halfway to an EGOT by the end of the ceremony.
As usual, I don't pick the short films and this year I'm not comfortable taking a guess in the Foreign Language category. I will take a shot at Animated Feature (Pixar is usually a safe bet) and Documentary Feature.
The Oscars are on Sunday night on ABC with Chris Rock hosting - it should be a good time. I'll post the winners and my correct picks.
Showing posts with label Best Actor. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Best Actor. Show all posts
Friday, February 26, 2016
Monday, February 14, 2011
Best Actor
This year's Best Actor nominees are Javier Bardem (Biutiful), Jeff Bridges (True Grit), Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network), Colin Firth (The King's Speech), and James Franco (127 Hours).
I think it's pretty cool that for the first time ever, an Oscar host is also up for an award - and one as big as Lead Actor. It's also cool that Jeff Bridges could be the third person in Oscar history to win back-to-back Best Actor trophies.
In the end, though, I think Colin Firth will take home the prize. His character deals with a debilitating physical impediment in an inspirational period film - pure Oscar bait. Bardem's film is gaining momentum but it's extra-super depressing. Firth's real competition comes from Bridges, who eliminates all vestiges of "The Dude" in his gruff performance as Rooster Cogburn.
I think it's pretty cool that for the first time ever, an Oscar host is also up for an award - and one as big as Lead Actor. It's also cool that Jeff Bridges could be the third person in Oscar history to win back-to-back Best Actor trophies.
In the end, though, I think Colin Firth will take home the prize. His character deals with a debilitating physical impediment in an inspirational period film - pure Oscar bait. Bardem's film is gaining momentum but it's extra-super depressing. Firth's real competition comes from Bridges, who eliminates all vestiges of "The Dude" in his gruff performance as Rooster Cogburn.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Best Actor
The nominees for Best Lead Actor are Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart), George Clooney (Up In the Air), Colin Firth (A Single Man), Morgan Freeman (Invictus), and Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker).
Clooney and Freeman are previous winners (both for Supporting Actor), Firth and Renner are first-timers, and Bridges has had four previous nominations. Renner does a good slow burn and Clooney and Firth give very subtle performances. Besides resembling Mandella, Morgan Freeman proves his worth by expertly taking on the voice and mannerisms of the South African president, but If the SAG and Golden Globes are any indication, it looks like Jeff Bridges is the front-runner for the Oscar. His work has been long-admired by his fellow actors, but with such a quirky and varied resume, he really hasn't had any serious Oscar consideration before. Now, in Crazy Heart, he has a serious role to show off his acting (and singing) skills and just like Sandra Bullock in this years Best Actress race, I think voters will jump at the opportunity to finally give him the prize.
Clooney and Freeman are previous winners (both for Supporting Actor), Firth and Renner are first-timers, and Bridges has had four previous nominations. Renner does a good slow burn and Clooney and Firth give very subtle performances. Besides resembling Mandella, Morgan Freeman proves his worth by expertly taking on the voice and mannerisms of the South African president, but If the SAG and Golden Globes are any indication, it looks like Jeff Bridges is the front-runner for the Oscar. His work has been long-admired by his fellow actors, but with such a quirky and varied resume, he really hasn't had any serious Oscar consideration before. Now, in Crazy Heart, he has a serious role to show off his acting (and singing) skills and just like Sandra Bullock in this years Best Actress race, I think voters will jump at the opportunity to finally give him the prize.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Best Actor
Best Actor is another award that was decided ages ago. The category is filled with broad performances, but Mickey Rourke is poised to take the prize.
The Visitor, starring nominee Richard Jenkins is a great little film and his performance is wonderful. See it if you get a chance. Sadly, he is the least likely to win against a lineup of big-budget heavy hitters. Frank Langella mumbles and blusters his way through a terrible impression of Richard Nixon in Frost/Nixon. Sean Penn's portrayal of Harvey Milk is more nuanced, but doesn't have the heft of his competitors. Brad Pitt lives a lifetime in Benjamin Button and, as the lead in the most-nominated film, stands a reasonable chance.
But it looks like Mickey Rourke's year. Hollywood loves a comeback and he has certainly achieved it here. The whole movie plays as an allegory for Rourke's life and career: a young man wastes his fame and talent, burning hot and fast like a comet across the sky and in regretful middle age grasps at a fleeting happiness. The Wrestler is Mickey Rourke's apology for his youthful hubris and I can't think of anyone else who could play the part.
The Visitor, starring nominee Richard Jenkins is a great little film and his performance is wonderful. See it if you get a chance. Sadly, he is the least likely to win against a lineup of big-budget heavy hitters. Frank Langella mumbles and blusters his way through a terrible impression of Richard Nixon in Frost/Nixon. Sean Penn's portrayal of Harvey Milk is more nuanced, but doesn't have the heft of his competitors. Brad Pitt lives a lifetime in Benjamin Button and, as the lead in the most-nominated film, stands a reasonable chance.
But it looks like Mickey Rourke's year. Hollywood loves a comeback and he has certainly achieved it here. The whole movie plays as an allegory for Rourke's life and career: a young man wastes his fame and talent, burning hot and fast like a comet across the sky and in regretful middle age grasps at a fleeting happiness. The Wrestler is Mickey Rourke's apology for his youthful hubris and I can't think of anyone else who could play the part.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Best Actor
In a year of tough races, it's nice to have a few categories whith a strong leader. Let's talk Best Actor.
Daniel Day-Lewis is the immediate standout this year, for There Will Be Blood - his pushy oilman is really a tour-de-force and is definitely strong enough to earn him a second win. His nearest competitor might be Viggo Mortensen, in Eastern Promises, just because of the physical demands of the role and the challenging accent. Conversley, George Clooney pretty much played George Clooney in Michael Clayton. Tommy Lee Jones pulled in a surprise nomination for In The Valley of Elah, but Academy support is nearly nonexistant for that film. Still, Jones's unnominated work in No Country For Old Men might bolster his chances. Johnny Depp is enjoying his third nomination (his first for a Tim Burton film), but despite doing his own singing, Depp's chances are slim. I think audiences will see the artifice around the role (costumes, makeup, music) and not the performance itself. Still, despite his pechant for odd acting choices and roles, Depp is gaining momentum and good will with each nomination. So, my pick goes to Day-Lewis. I can't even conceive of who would upset his win.
Daniel Day-Lewis is the immediate standout this year, for There Will Be Blood - his pushy oilman is really a tour-de-force and is definitely strong enough to earn him a second win. His nearest competitor might be Viggo Mortensen, in Eastern Promises, just because of the physical demands of the role and the challenging accent. Conversley, George Clooney pretty much played George Clooney in Michael Clayton. Tommy Lee Jones pulled in a surprise nomination for In The Valley of Elah, but Academy support is nearly nonexistant for that film. Still, Jones's unnominated work in No Country For Old Men might bolster his chances. Johnny Depp is enjoying his third nomination (his first for a Tim Burton film), but despite doing his own singing, Depp's chances are slim. I think audiences will see the artifice around the role (costumes, makeup, music) and not the performance itself. Still, despite his pechant for odd acting choices and roles, Depp is gaining momentum and good will with each nomination. So, my pick goes to Day-Lewis. I can't even conceive of who would upset his win.
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