Oscar Post-Mortem 2014

I had my best Oscar Night ever, correctly picking 19 out of 21 categories! That's 90.5% - so much for all the hype over "the closest races in years." Here's a list of winners, with my correct picks in bold:

Best Picture: 12 Years a Slave
Best Director: Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity
Best Lead Actor: Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyer's Club
Best Lead Actress: Cate Blanchett, Blue Jasmine
Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyer's Club
Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o, 12 Years a Slave
Best Original Screenplay: Her
Best Adapted Screenplay: 12 Years a Slave
Best Cinematography: Gravity
Best Film Editing: Gravity
Best Sound Mixing: Gravity
Best Sound Effects Editing: Gravity
Best Score: Gravity
Best Song: "Let it Go," Frozen
Best Art Direction: The Great Gatsby
Best Makeup: Dallas Buyer's Club
Best Costumes: The Great Gatsby
Best Animated Feature: Frozen
Best Foreign Language Film: The Great Beauty, Italy
Best Documentary Feature: 20 Feet From Stardom

I thought the show was really fun, but, as always, I could do without the montages. Ellen was a great host and kept things light. She seems to be bulletproof in a thankless and often-criticized role and I hope she gets asked back again. 

I can't imagine that I'll do better at my picks next year, but there's a little room for improvement. For now, it's back to the music!

Doug's Big Oscar Quiz - Part 5

Let's change things up a little. Match the Oscar winner with their correct quote from their acceptance speech:

21. "I dedicate this to... the six million who can't be watching."

22. "This is the highlight of my day. I hope it's not all downhill from here."

23. "I love it up here!"

24. "I'm gonna cry, because this show has been as long as my career."

25. "C'mon, Oscar. Let's go for a drink."


a. Julia Roberts
b. Kevin Spacey
c. Bette Davis
d. Steven Speilberg
e. Shirley MacLaine

Writing Awards

Let's start with the Original Screenplay award. First up is Lars and the Real Girl, a film that was panned by critics and ignored by audiences. Ratatouille was the opposite - praised by critics and a huge commercial success, but it's animation, and is still looked down upon by many as a "kids' movie." Moving on, The Savages splits the difference - it's a movie that earned raves from critics and, due to minimal advertising and a limited run, was ignored by audiences. There are two films this year that are also up for Best Picture, which augments their odds of winning. Michael Clayton is up for more awards, but Juno is this year's "quirky arty," and this is the category where the "quirky arty" gets its recognition. Michael Clayton's characters are sharply written, but Juno's overall charm and immensely quotable dialogue should push screenwriter Diablo Cody up on stage.

The Adapted Screenplay category is a trickier prospect, with the other three Best Picture nominees showing, alongside two other strong contenders. The others in question are Away From Her (written by actress/director Sarah Polley) and The Diving Bell And the Butterfly. Diving Bell is in French, which I think might be a turnoff in the screenplay category, but the Academy loves to give writing awards to actors, so Polley's chances are elevated. Atonement and No Country For Old Men are both adapted from prestegious books and, of the two, I'd give No Country the edge. As I stated in an earlier post, the Cohen brothers' main strength is their dialogue. Finally, we have the loosest adaptation of the five - There Will Be Blood isn't as much based on Upton Sinclair's "Oil!" as it is inspired by it. Still, There Will Be Blood is the front-runner for Best Picture, and its writing really is excellent on all counts, making it my pick for Adapted Screenply.

Answers to Doug's Big Oscar Quiz - Part 2

6. Who has the most nominations for screenwriting?
c. Woody Allen

7. Who is the first performer to win an Oscar, Emmy, Tony, and Grammy?
d. Rita Moreno

8. Which is the only major Hollywood studio that has never won Best Picture?
b. Disney

9. Who was the first actor to refuse an Academy Award?
a. George C. Scott

10. What movie won the most Oscars without winning Best Picture?
b. Cabaret

Juno

Oh, kids these days. In such a hurry to grow up. In our modern, fast-paced world, kids are all too eager to abandon the simple joys of childhood but are often unprepared to handle the pressures and responsibilities of adulthood. Such is the case with the titular hero in Juno - a confident and independent-minded teenager who treats the grownups in her life as equals and quietly disapproves of her classmates' childishness. Her friend, Paulie Bleeker, is less adept at the grownup thing. He tries to put up a mature and confident front, but the anxiety of being rushed into an adult world shows through regardless.



When Juno and Bleeker (awkwardly) have sex, they find themselves surprised and unprepared for the most adult of consequences - pregnancy. Bleeker has a quiet freak-out, while Juno barrels ahead, navigating the responsibilities with a matter-of-fact attitude and a quick-witted sense of humor. With the support of her friend and the reluctant help of her parents, she strikes a deal to let a childless yuppie couple adopt her baby. The Lorrings, Mark and Vanessa, seem like the perfect potential parents. Vanessa is a responsible and sensible woman and Mark is a successful commercial musician who long ago gave up his rock-star dreams for a life of quiet suburban stability. Over the course of Juno's pregnancy, she and Mark bond over music and movies and we soon see why they can communicate on the same level - Juno is a child yearning to be a grown-up, while Mark a man trapped in a grown-up life who yearns for the freedom of his youth. As their relationship and Juno's pregnancy develop, Juno begins to see the value in her youth and slows down enough to rediscover the simple joys she had once been so eager to abandon.



Juno is up for four Academy Awards - Best Picture, Best Actress (Ellen Page), Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay. Clearly, this movie holds the "quirky arty" slot in the Best Picture race (once filled by movies like The Full Monty, Chocolat, and Little Miss Sunshine) and a nomination is probably as far as that will go. Four other, more prestigious films are nominated for Best Picture and Best Director. Twenty-year-old Ellen Page did a brilliant job and successfully carries most of the movie, but she is up against some heavyweights in the Best Actress category. Fortunately, Juno is up for Original Screenplay - the best hope for the "quirky arty." Voters don't feel right giving major awards to "lighter" movies, but often reward them for their sharp writing. And the writing in Juno could cut glass.

Doug's Big Oscar Quiz - Part 1

1. Who was the youngest Best Lead Actress nominee?
a. Vivien Leigh
b. Diane Keaton
c. Keira Knightley
d. Audrey Hepburn

2. Which film's entire cast was nominated for acting Oscars?
a. Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf?
b. Moonstruck
c. Murder on the Orient Express
d. The Piano

3. What was the last all-black-and-white film to win Best Picture?
a. All the King's Men
b. All About Eve
c. From Here to Eternity
d. The Apartment

4. Who was the first actor to be nominated posthumously?
a. Peter Finch
b. James Dean
c. Paul Muni
d. Peter O'Toole

5. What was the first movie to be released on video before winning Best Picture?
a. Platoon
b. Silence of the Lambs
c. Rain Man
d. Driving Miss Daisy

Answers will be posted soon!