So the nominations for this year's Oscars were announced this week. I must say that I haven't been overly impressed with this year's selections. The films that have received a lot of hype, to me, failed to live up to the expectations. Same as with 2009 where I think The Hurt Locker was hugely overrated (Inglorious Basterds should've won). Of course, as with every year, the Academy makes some glaring omissions. I am going to look at each main category and discuss my feelings on the selections -there are one or two films I've yet to see, but I feel I've seen enough to be able to make comment:
BEST PICTURE
127 Hours
Black Swan
The Fighter
Inception
The Kids Are All Right
The Kings Speech
The Social Network
Toy Story 3
True Grit
Winters Bone
I hate the fact that its ten nominees and not five. Realistically, to be in the running, you have to have a Best Director slot. So that means the race is between Black Swan, The Fighter, The Kings Speech, The Social Network and True Grit. Of these films, Kings Speech is the best. To be honest, I fail to see why The Social Network, Black Swan and The Fighter have received so much acclaim. They are good films, but really they don't stand out at all. I have three favourites from thid bunch, either one I wouldn't mind winning: that being The Kings Speech, Inception and Toy Story 3. I feel they are the strongest contenders from this bunch, and I will make my personal pick known closer to the time.
Biggest snub: Shutter Island
Its disappointing that, in a field of 10, Shutter Island didn't make the cut. Yes it rubbed people up the wrong way, but its technically a strong movie and has some very gripping performances. Should've made the list here.
BEST DIRECTOR
Darren Aronofsky - Black Swan
Ethan & Joel Coen - True Grit
David Fincher - The Social Network
Tom Hooper - The Kings Speech
David O Russel - The Fighter
An overall solid group of directors here, but the race is most certainly between Fincher and Hooper. It could go either way. Personally, I am not a fan of The Social Network, so if I had to chose from this bunch I'd vote for Tom Hooper.
Biggest snub: Christopher Nolan - Inception
A familiar story repeats itself again: Christoper Nolan, as with The Dark Knight, is robbed of a Directing nomination. This is a shocking omission from the Academy as Inception was the best directed film of the year. Nolan can take solace in his nomination in the screenplay category, but this is most certainly a slap in the face from the Academy.
BEST ACTOR
Javier Bardem - Biutiful
Jeff Bridges - True Grit
Jesse Eisenberg - The Social Network
Colin Firth - The Kings Speech
James Franco - 127 Hours
Whilst I felt the absence of really strong films this year, the acting department kept at an extremely high level with some fantastic performances across the board. This category is extremely strong, but for me personally its between Firth and Franco. Both giving complex and extremely layered performances on each side of the spectrum, its difficult to differentiate between the two performances. I will give my personal choice in my final precitions.
Biggest snub: Leonardo di Caprio - Shutter Island
Say what you like about the film, but Di Caprio shines in his performance as the tormented Marshall trapped on the chilling island. His performance in Inception, and this film, have gone fairly unnoticed this season, and its a true pity because he really did a fantastic job this year.
BEST ACTRESS
Annette Benning - The Kids Are All Right
Nicole Kidman - Rabbit Hole
Jennifer Lawrence - Winters Bone
Natalie Portman - Black Swan
Michelle Williams - Blue Valentine
It's Benning vs Portman in this one. Personally, I feel Benning is the better overall actor and gives the better performance of the two. I really hope she pulls this one off because she has had a distinguished career (can we ever forgive the Academy for snubbing her performace in American Beauty??..sigh). But I think Portman will probably win here.
Biggest snub: Julianne Moore - The Kids Are All Right
Benning was the main star of the movie, but Moore also gave a fantastic performance in a movie that was definitely an "actors" movie. Would've liked to see her nominated here.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christian Bale - The Fighter
John Hawkes - Winters Bone
Jeremy Renner - The Town
Mark Ruffalo - The Kids Are All Right
Geoffrey Rush - The Kings Speech
A pretty solid line up in this category as usual, but Christian Bale will win this for sure. He probably gives the best performance of the bunch, but I felt the real best supporting actor wasn't even nominated (see below):
Biggest snub: Andrew Garfield - The Social Network
I was extremely disappointed not to see Garfield's name mentioned on Oscar morning. He most certainly was best thing about The Social Network, and in mind gave the most honest and real performance of the lot. He would've had my vote if nominated, but alas, the Academy makes another stupid mistake.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams - The Fighter
Helen Bonham Carter - The Kings Speech
Melissa Leo - The Fighter
Hailee Steinfeld - True Grit
Jacki Weaver - Animal Kingdom
I think Amy Adams gives the best performance amongst this group. Her acting definitely stood out amongst the rest of her cast mates, but I got a feeling Melissa Leo will end up winning.
Biggest snub: Marion Cotillard - Inception
Cotillard put in a great performance in Inception, and would've been nice to see her nominated here as well.
Other notable snubs:
Inception for Best Editing (what the hell?? It is EASILY the best edited film of the year!)
Shutter Island for Best Cinematography (the film was well shot and deserving of some recognition)
There are probably others, but I'm too tired to think now.
Overally, 2010 has been a disappointing year, but not because the movies were poor, its because the movies that were hyped and the major contenders really shouldn't be (I'm looking at you Fighter, Network and Black Swan). I will give my personal picks when I make my final predictions, but its Network vs Kings Speech for now. Whose your money on?
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