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Tuesday, January 25, 2011

UPDATE - Oscars: What You Need to See

As I said a few weeks ago: hype changes things.  Case in point: before today, I thought Christopher Nolan (Inception) would edge out David Fincher (The Social Network) and win Best Director.  But now that Nolan isn't even nominated, the game has surely change.

The following is a hype-update of my eariler post.  You don't have to see every nominee to see the winners.  Stick to this list, and you should be good.

BEST PICTURE
The King’s Speech vs. The Social Network
With The King's Speech nabbing the most nominations (12 total) and the Producers Guild Award last week, it's now the favorite over The Social Network.

BEST DIRECTOR
David Fincher for The Social Network vs. Tom Hooper for The King's Speech
This is tricky.  Even if The King's Speech wins Best Picture, I don't see Hooper taking Director.  Fincher is still the safest bet.

BEST ACTOR
Colin Firth in The King’s Speech vs. James Franco in 127 Hours
Firth is this year's lock.  If, in the next month, James Franco rescues 13 crippled infants from a burning building while renegotiating peace treaties with Iran, he may win.  But, still, probably not.

BEST ACTRESS
Annette Bening in The Kids Are All Right vs. Natalie Portman in Black Swan
I think Portman is now the favorite.  She's got the number one movie at the box office (No Strings Attached) a new beau with a baby on the way.  She's Hollywood's Homecoming Queen.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christian Bale in The Fighter vs. Geoffrey Rush in The King’s Speech
There will be Bale (I hope).

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams in The Fighter vs. Helena Bonhman Carter in The King's Speech vs. Melissa Leo in The Fighter vs. Hailee Steinfield in True Grit vs. Jacki Weaver in Animal Kingdom
Any of these women could walk away with this award.  Weaver is the dark horse, but she's also the best, so see Animal Kingdom for your own sake of cinematic wonder.  If there's an edge right now, I'll give it to Leo.  But you honestly can't count any of them out.

Click here for continuing OSCAR coverage.

7 comments:

  1. okay first, i agree with your list... 100% only thing is i really was not that impressed by Annette Bennings role in "The Kids are Alright". I mean she was great in it, but i found her character annoying and i found myself thinking she deserved to be cheated on...how horrible is that? haha

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  2. That's a tough question to answer. I think Bening purposefully made her character cold and annoying, so the audience would sympathize with Julianne Moore and her infidelity.

    But I agree with you, I don't think Bening really deserves the praise she's been getting.

    We shall see if it pans out.

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  3. if only 1) you guys were not so far away and 2)the Oscars where not on Sundays...it would be nice to meet up with you guys for an Oscar party!!

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  4. We go all out, like seriously. Champagne, hor dourves, it's a legit party.

    It's my Super Bowl, Stanley Cup, World Series and NCAA Final Four all in one night.

    If we got smart about this, we could probably plan a way for me to drive you back to your house Monday morning... I do make the drive twice a day, anyhow.

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  5. King's Speech just moved to the top of my list. Matoli - you should join us on Oscar night!

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  6. No love for The Town, Nolan, Gosling or Kunis?

    sad

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  7. At first, I didn't even realize Nolan wasn't nominated, I had to look at the nominations list again to figure it out. I seriously thought he was going to win. Serious bummer. The reason the Academy began nominating 10 Best Pictures was because they snubbed "The Dark Knight" in 2008.

    Looks like they'll have to start nominating 10 directors too.

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