Oscars 2015- Let's predict the Oscar nominees 2015
In two days time, the nominations for this year's Oscars will be released. With this release come two questions. Do the Oscars matter? And what will be nominated? The first is debatable but not nearly as much as the possibilities of the nominations are. What's going to be happening on the blog in the run up to the Oscars is basically Oscar fever. First (and what this is), I will attempt to predict some of the nominations for some of the awards based on what I've seen, general buzz and previous nominations. Then it's review after review of some of the big contenders for the main awards until we finally reach Oscar week. At this point, I shall do what literally no one has ever attempted and try to guess what will win the awards. In short, if you don't like the Oscars or Oscar films, maybe steer clear of the blog for a little bit. For everyone else, let the hype begin.
Best Picture
Birdman
Boyhood
American Sniper
Lets start with the biggy: Best Picture. The only one that casual film viewers care about. This year has been pretty solid for films and I've been changing my three around a lot. But in the end, I feel I've got three films here that are very likely to just be totally eaten up by the academy. First, Birdman. I recently had the pleasure of seeing Birdman in cinemas (review next week) and it will be on the list quite a bit. It's Michael Keaton's comeback and it's a wonder to behold. The direction is great, the acting is incredible and I'd be hugely surprised to not see it nominated. Then we have Boyhood which was filmed over twelve years, charts coming of age and apparently is just choc a bloc with nostalgia for the early 2000s. That'll be coming up in another one of the Oscar reviews. Finally is American Sniper. This has Bradley Cooper (Oscar fave) starring as a sniper dealing with tricky moral issues in a country in the middle east (Oscar fave theme) and is all directed by Clint Eastwood (Oscar fave). I have a good feeling that these three films will be in that illustrious nine slots at the top of the Oscars.
Best Lead Actor
Michael Keaton in Birdman
Benedict Cumberbatch in The Imitation Game
Eddie Redmayne in The Theory of Everything
And now the question of which leading man will take the trophy from last years winner Matthew McConaughey. Michael Keaton stands a good chance for his work in Birdman. Sure, he basically just plays himself. However, he is on camera for most of the film and his break down is what makes the film so compelling. No matter your feelings of the film, Michael Keaton's performance is one of his best ever and certainly one of the best of the year. Then we have two films that on paper are almost identical and total Oscar bait. They're young and handsome British men who have to overcome a problem to do something inspiring, against all the odds. But I've seen The Imitation Game and Cumberbatch's performance is very good and Redmayne plays a guy who slowly succumbs to a physical disability which is likely very good.
Best Lead Actress
Julliane Moore in Still Alice
Rosamund Pike in Gone Girl
Felicity Jones in The Theory of Everything
This category has been pretty hard to predict. In the end, it took looking at other predictions people have made and guessing what the academy would just totally eat up. First up, Julliane Moore for her performance in Still Alice. Julliane Moore (A highly respected actress) plays a woman slowly succumbing to dementure. It's bound to be moving and this will likely be down to Moore's performance. Then we have Rosamund Pike for Gone Girl. I haven't seen it yet but if she pulls of the role of Amy effectively, it would be incredible to see. But she's also on the list because, you know, it's a David Fincher film. Finally is Felicity Jones in The Theory of Everything. This film has been sweeping awards for ages and Jones has been garnering a lot of acclaim. It could go either way with this category
Best Supporting Actor
Robert Duvall in The Judge
Edward Norton in Birdman
J.K. Simmons in Whiplash
The next award is the slightly less cherished but still highly respected award for acting in men. Sorry, phrasing. Anyway, there are a few excellent contenders for this one. First up, Robert Duvall for The Judge. While The Judge has been generally forgotten, Robert Duvall was excellent as Robert Downey Jr's father and a man convicted for murder. His performance was one of the film's highlights and the reason that the emotional punches hit so hard. Also on the list is Edward Norton in Birdman. I've loved Edward Norton since the first time I watched Fight Club and he shines again in Birdman as an actor who decides he's better than Michael Keaton because he's a theater actor, not a movie actor. He's an asshole through and through and his fight scene with Michael Keaton is one of the film's many highlights. He's also a bit of a favourite with the academy so there's that. Finally is J.K. Simmons for Whiplash. I haven't seen Whiplash yet but it's been praised largely for Miles Teller's performance but mainly for the stellar work of J.K. Simmons. He destroys Teller completely and then tears down a bit more. The reviews of his performance have been rave and I can't wait to check it out for myself.
Best Supporting Actress
Keira Knightly in The Imitation Game
Emma Stone in Birdman
Patricia Arquette in Boyhood
And now the award for the ladies who were not quite the stars but still shone proper good in their roles. The Imitation Game steps up again with Keira Knightly. I'm not generally a fan of Keira Knightly but she did a very good job in The Imitation Game. She's also here because The Imitation Game is one of those films that's going to be rewarded with a scatter shot of nominations. Then is Birdman again for Emma Stone. Emma Stone is one of my favourite actresses and while she generally sticks to comical roles, she really managed to play the part of an ex junkie who's just trying to keep her and her dad afloat. A fun fact here for movie fans, if Stone gets nominated, the entire cast of Zombieland will have academy award nominations to their names. Finally, Patricia Arquette for Boyhood. Another film that I haven't seem but is in the middle of an award circle jerk. I doubt Arquette will win the award but she was in Boyhood so she'll get nominated.
Best Director
David Fincher for Gone Girl
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu for Birdman
Richard Linklater for Boyhood
Here we have the most ignored category of the main categories for the simple reason that many people don't care about directors. To this I say fair enough but I care so I'm speculating on it. First is David Fincher, my favourite director, for his work directing Gone Girl. Yes, I haven't seen it but it's David Fincher. He's a great director, his films are always soul destroying in the best way possible and that's more than enough reason for him to be on this list. Next is Alejandro... Er, I don't know how to do the rest of his name but the Birdman director. He did an incredible job with Birdman, bringing the very best out in every one of his actors and making the whole movie look like one continuous long shot. It's impressive to witness and that's down to the director. Finally is Richard Linklater for Boyhood. The film has been called his magnum opus and it's been the center of a media frenzy for quite some while now. The academy are highly likely to plump for it.
Best Animated Film
The Lego Movie
How to Train Your Dragon 2
The Book of Life
A rookie category here that doesn't really get a large look in. Now, 2014 was a great year for animated films. No, really. We had The Book of Life (which I didn't see but the trailers looked pretty), How to Train Your Dragon 2 (which I'm told was very good) and The Lego Movie (which was incredible). The Book of Life is on here because from the trailers, it looked beautiful. It had an art style that was incredible and blended elements of Mexican culture with the contents of Guillermo Del Toro's mind. Meanwhile, How to Train Your Dragon 2 has been called a perfect example of a sequel and garnered large comparisons to The Empire Strikes Back. But the film on this list I did see was a beauty. The Lego Movie was an original and incredibly hilarious creation from the minds that brought you the Jump Street films. If you haven't seen it, you simply must. It's a joy for children and adults and if the academy don't acknowledge it, they're fools.
So, those are the people and films that I think will be nominated/deserve to be nominated. We'll find out how close I was later this week. Then Oscar fest will truly begin here as each week, you'll get a review of one of the big contenders right up till Oscar week when I will do another set of predictions, this time for who I think will win. It's going to be a crazy fun time. Unless you don't like the Oscars in which case, see you in about a month.
Best Picture
Birdman
Boyhood
American Sniper
Lets start with the biggy: Best Picture. The only one that casual film viewers care about. This year has been pretty solid for films and I've been changing my three around a lot. But in the end, I feel I've got three films here that are very likely to just be totally eaten up by the academy. First, Birdman. I recently had the pleasure of seeing Birdman in cinemas (review next week) and it will be on the list quite a bit. It's Michael Keaton's comeback and it's a wonder to behold. The direction is great, the acting is incredible and I'd be hugely surprised to not see it nominated. Then we have Boyhood which was filmed over twelve years, charts coming of age and apparently is just choc a bloc with nostalgia for the early 2000s. That'll be coming up in another one of the Oscar reviews. Finally is American Sniper. This has Bradley Cooper (Oscar fave) starring as a sniper dealing with tricky moral issues in a country in the middle east (Oscar fave theme) and is all directed by Clint Eastwood (Oscar fave). I have a good feeling that these three films will be in that illustrious nine slots at the top of the Oscars.
Best Lead Actor
Michael Keaton in Birdman
Benedict Cumberbatch in The Imitation Game
Eddie Redmayne in The Theory of Everything
And now the question of which leading man will take the trophy from last years winner Matthew McConaughey. Michael Keaton stands a good chance for his work in Birdman. Sure, he basically just plays himself. However, he is on camera for most of the film and his break down is what makes the film so compelling. No matter your feelings of the film, Michael Keaton's performance is one of his best ever and certainly one of the best of the year. Then we have two films that on paper are almost identical and total Oscar bait. They're young and handsome British men who have to overcome a problem to do something inspiring, against all the odds. But I've seen The Imitation Game and Cumberbatch's performance is very good and Redmayne plays a guy who slowly succumbs to a physical disability which is likely very good.
Best Lead Actress
Julliane Moore in Still Alice
Rosamund Pike in Gone Girl
Felicity Jones in The Theory of Everything
This category has been pretty hard to predict. In the end, it took looking at other predictions people have made and guessing what the academy would just totally eat up. First up, Julliane Moore for her performance in Still Alice. Julliane Moore (A highly respected actress) plays a woman slowly succumbing to dementure. It's bound to be moving and this will likely be down to Moore's performance. Then we have Rosamund Pike for Gone Girl. I haven't seen it yet but if she pulls of the role of Amy effectively, it would be incredible to see. But she's also on the list because, you know, it's a David Fincher film. Finally is Felicity Jones in The Theory of Everything. This film has been sweeping awards for ages and Jones has been garnering a lot of acclaim. It could go either way with this category
Best Supporting Actor
Robert Duvall in The Judge
Edward Norton in Birdman
J.K. Simmons in Whiplash
The next award is the slightly less cherished but still highly respected award for acting in men. Sorry, phrasing. Anyway, there are a few excellent contenders for this one. First up, Robert Duvall for The Judge. While The Judge has been generally forgotten, Robert Duvall was excellent as Robert Downey Jr's father and a man convicted for murder. His performance was one of the film's highlights and the reason that the emotional punches hit so hard. Also on the list is Edward Norton in Birdman. I've loved Edward Norton since the first time I watched Fight Club and he shines again in Birdman as an actor who decides he's better than Michael Keaton because he's a theater actor, not a movie actor. He's an asshole through and through and his fight scene with Michael Keaton is one of the film's many highlights. He's also a bit of a favourite with the academy so there's that. Finally is J.K. Simmons for Whiplash. I haven't seen Whiplash yet but it's been praised largely for Miles Teller's performance but mainly for the stellar work of J.K. Simmons. He destroys Teller completely and then tears down a bit more. The reviews of his performance have been rave and I can't wait to check it out for myself.
Best Supporting Actress
Keira Knightly in The Imitation Game
Emma Stone in Birdman
Patricia Arquette in Boyhood
And now the award for the ladies who were not quite the stars but still shone proper good in their roles. The Imitation Game steps up again with Keira Knightly. I'm not generally a fan of Keira Knightly but she did a very good job in The Imitation Game. She's also here because The Imitation Game is one of those films that's going to be rewarded with a scatter shot of nominations. Then is Birdman again for Emma Stone. Emma Stone is one of my favourite actresses and while she generally sticks to comical roles, she really managed to play the part of an ex junkie who's just trying to keep her and her dad afloat. A fun fact here for movie fans, if Stone gets nominated, the entire cast of Zombieland will have academy award nominations to their names. Finally, Patricia Arquette for Boyhood. Another film that I haven't seem but is in the middle of an award circle jerk. I doubt Arquette will win the award but she was in Boyhood so she'll get nominated.
Best Director
David Fincher for Gone Girl
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu for Birdman
Richard Linklater for Boyhood
Here we have the most ignored category of the main categories for the simple reason that many people don't care about directors. To this I say fair enough but I care so I'm speculating on it. First is David Fincher, my favourite director, for his work directing Gone Girl. Yes, I haven't seen it but it's David Fincher. He's a great director, his films are always soul destroying in the best way possible and that's more than enough reason for him to be on this list. Next is Alejandro... Er, I don't know how to do the rest of his name but the Birdman director. He did an incredible job with Birdman, bringing the very best out in every one of his actors and making the whole movie look like one continuous long shot. It's impressive to witness and that's down to the director. Finally is Richard Linklater for Boyhood. The film has been called his magnum opus and it's been the center of a media frenzy for quite some while now. The academy are highly likely to plump for it.
Best Animated Film
The Lego Movie
How to Train Your Dragon 2
The Book of Life
A rookie category here that doesn't really get a large look in. Now, 2014 was a great year for animated films. No, really. We had The Book of Life (which I didn't see but the trailers looked pretty), How to Train Your Dragon 2 (which I'm told was very good) and The Lego Movie (which was incredible). The Book of Life is on here because from the trailers, it looked beautiful. It had an art style that was incredible and blended elements of Mexican culture with the contents of Guillermo Del Toro's mind. Meanwhile, How to Train Your Dragon 2 has been called a perfect example of a sequel and garnered large comparisons to The Empire Strikes Back. But the film on this list I did see was a beauty. The Lego Movie was an original and incredibly hilarious creation from the minds that brought you the Jump Street films. If you haven't seen it, you simply must. It's a joy for children and adults and if the academy don't acknowledge it, they're fools.
So, those are the people and films that I think will be nominated/deserve to be nominated. We'll find out how close I was later this week. Then Oscar fest will truly begin here as each week, you'll get a review of one of the big contenders right up till Oscar week when I will do another set of predictions, this time for who I think will win. It's going to be a crazy fun time. Unless you don't like the Oscars in which case, see you in about a month.
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