The Oscar nominations just came out, and I’ll be damned
if four out of the five Best Picture nominees weren't also
to be found in my previous article listing the best films
of 2004. Obviously, Hollywood bigwigs were
impressed by my perceptive and trendsetting critiques and
decided to agree with my picks. Since that’s the case,
Mr. Spielberg, have I got a script for you!
Lest
you think I have delusions of grandeur (or, in my case,
delusions of adequacy), let’s cut out the kidding and get
down to what I think about this year’s nominations and the
Academy Awards in general.
There
are always notable nomination omissions and snubs, and this
year was no exception. The most egregious omission
was writer-director Bill Condon’s fine film Kinsey.
Only Laura Linney got a well-deserved supporting actress
nod for that film. The film, Condon and Liam Neeson
were also snubbed. The film was obviously too controversial
a hot potato to nominate; for more details on why I feel
this film was largely excluded, click
here.
The
Academy has a long history of either omitting worthy films
or awarding the Oscar to unworthy picks. Examining
the Best Picture winners over the last thirty years, one
sees a slew of films that were unworthy Oscar recipients:
Rocky, Chariots of Fire, Amadeus and
Forrest Gump are ones that immediately come to
mind. These dated and overrated films beat out a variety
of fine films that are considered timeless classics:
Network, All the President’s Men, Taxi
Driver, Reds, Raiders of the Lost Ark,
The Killing Fields, Quiz Show, The
Shawshank Redemption and Pulp Fiction.
Now
that I’ve finished venting about what I thought were lousy
Best Picture winners, this year the Academy is to be commended
for, by and large, a very good selection of nominees.
As usual, sometimes picking a personal favorite can be quite
difficult, owing to the fact that multiple nominees are
worthy of an Oscar. The Supporting Actor and Actress
categories are particularly difficult this year, with six
performers (Alan Alda, Cate Blanchett, Morgan Freeman, Thomas
Haden Church, Laura Linney, and Virginia Madsen) all giving
Oscar-worthy performances. Still, one has to winnow
their choices somehow; with that caveat being said, what
follows is my list of what I feel should win in
the major categories:
Best
Picture: Sideways
Best
Actor: Jamie Foxx, Ray
Best
Actress: Imelda Staunton, Vera Drake
Best
Supporting Actress: Cate Blanchett, The Aviator
Best
Supporting Actor: Morgan Freeman, Million Dollar
Baby
Best
Director: Martin Scorsese, The Aviator
Best
Adapted Screenplay: Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor,
Sideways
Best
Original Screenplay: Mike Leigh, Vera Drake
As
noted above, this is a list of films I feel should
win, not what will win; that’s another matter entirely.
I have definite opinions on that also, but don’t want to
divulge them, because I’ll be entered in two Oscar pools
which could net me close to a grand and don’t wanna give
my fellow entrants any clue about what the winning picks
will be. However, for a nominal fee, if you want to know
who I think will win, send me an e-mail c/o of this address
and I will...NAH!
See
ya soon.
Steve
can be reached at steve@babblog.com. |
