Sunday, February 17, 2013

2013 Oscar Predictions


Award show season is coming to a close, but it culminates with the big one: the Academy Awards, aka the Oscars, aka my Superbowl. Call it what you will, I can’t wait to pull for the surprise wins and see Seth MacFarlane host. I’ve seen 8/9 nominated films this year (ACADEMY, I’M BEGGING YOU, GO BACK TO 5 NOMINATIONS!) and as always, I like to put in my two cents for the should win/will wins. Readers beware: I’m not too thrilled with this year’s nominations, so forgive the rants.

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

Should Win: “Argo.” Unquestionably my favorite movie of the year, and it blows the other nominees out of the Kodak. Why Ben Affleck didn’t receive a Best Director nod is beyond me.

Will Win: “Argo.”

Best Actor
Bradley Cooper, “Silver Linings Playbook”
Daniel Day-Lewis, “Lincoln”
Hugh Jackman, “Les Miserables”
Joaquin Phoenix, “The Master”
Denzel Washington, “Flight”

Should Win: Daniel Day-Lewis for “Lincoln.” Though the movie was among the worst I’ve seen this year, his portrayal of an icon was hauntingly real. I missed “The Master” (available to rent after the Oscars, conveniently), but DDL gave a shout-out to Joaquin Phoenix during his SAG Award acceptance speech. If there is an upset, that could be it.

Will Win: Daniel Day-Lewis.

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”

Should Win: Ay yi yi. I’ve only seen 3 of these performances, and although I'm not sure any of them are Oscar-worthy, I suppose I’m pulling for Jessica Chastain in “Zero Dark Thirty."

Will Win: Jessica Chastain or Jennifer Lawrence, though I've seen both of them in better roles. They each won a Golden Globe, Jennifer won the SAG and Jessica won the Critics’ Choice. It’s a toss-up.

Best Supporting Actor - side note - all of these nominees have won before.
Alan Arkin, “Argo”
Robert DeNiro, “Silver Linings Playbook”
Philip Seymour Hoffman, “The Master”
Tommy Lee Jones, “Lincoln”
Christoph Waltz, “Django Unchained”

Should Win: It’s difficult for me to pull for someone other than Robert DeNiro, but Alan Arkin steals my vote, as well as every scene in "Argo" with his excellent comedic timing.

Will Win: Tommy Lee Jones for “Lincoln.” Unfortunately, I found his performance flat and forgettable. 

Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams, “The Master”
Sally Field, “Lincoln”
Anne Hathaway, “Les Miserables”
Helen Hunt, “The Sessions”
Jacki Weaver, “Silver Linings Playbook” - I don’t know how she snuck her way into this category.

Should Win: Helen Hunt for “The Sessions.” Anyone who has to do nude scenes with John Hawkes, bless his heart, deserves an Oscar.

Will Win: Anne Hathaway for “Les Miserables.” We all know you lost a ton of weight for this film, that your mom played this role and that you love your new husband. I wanted so much more from you in this film. But maybe if you win, you’ll take a sabbatical and give us all a break from you.

Best Director
Michael Haneke, “Amour”
Ang Lee, “Life of Pi”
David O. Russell, “Silver Linings Playbook”
Steven Spielberg, “Lincoln”
Benh Zeitlin, “Beasts of the Southern Wild”

Should Win: BEN AFFLECK FOR “ARGO.” Seriously Academy, what were you thinking? He won the Golden Globe and the Critics’ Choice, and the film won the Golden Globe, the SAG and the Critics’ Choice. And he didn’t even get an Oscar nod! UNBELIEVABLE. In other news, since we’ve already gone to crazytown, Benh Zeitlin should win for “Beasts of the Southern Wild.” He produced a truly beautiful film with a minimal cast and setting.

Will Win: David O. Russell for “Silver Linings Playbook.” He also wrote the screenplay, and people fell in love with the film.

Hope you all have your Oscar plans in the works! My mom and I will be watching the red carpet starting around 4, but tune in to ABC at 8:30 on Sunday, February 24 for the big show!

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