The Academy Awards

The Oscars are, by far, my favorite day of the year. And yes, I'm aware that Christmas and my birthday happen every year as well. That said, if you haven't noticed, film is kind of my thing... so here are my picks for tomorrow's Oscars (!!!!):


Performance by an actor in a leading role:

Daniel Day-Lewis is the clear win for this category. If I had money to bet, it would go to him hands down - everything from the way he carries himself to the way he talks to the look in his eyes is perfectly played. He manages to take a film about good, evil, oil, and preachers and turns it into a film about his character, which is pretty brilliant.

Performance by an actor in a supporting role:

Like I've said before, Javier Bardem is my main man. Generally I put up the arguement that whoever stretches themselves is more deserving of the Oscar, and even though the personality he plays isn't a stretch, nailing the lack of personality is what gets me. He sincerely creeped me out until I saw promo photos of him - what's with the older men? I love it... George Clooney, Adrian Brody, Javier, etc... superfine. I should also give props to Casey Affleck for being so natural it's easy to forget he's acting and to Tom Wilkinson for that opening monologue.

Performance by an actress in a leading role:

This is a pretty tough call, which is what I love about the 2008 Oscars - besides the male acting categories, it's tough to decide who deserves the award the most. I'm rooting for Marion Cotillard because it took a lot of guts to play Edith Piaf, someone who was so well loved and hated by her country. She nails everything from the alcoholism to the young swagger to the old age stagger. Props to Cate Blanchett for nailing that look in her eyes that I think is so important - Elizabeth I is probably my favorite woman in history and I think Cate does her justice.

Performance by an actress in a supporting role:

Amy Ryan is my personal favorite because I see women like her on the skytrain every day, and even though a drug addicted single mom isn't exactly news to any city in the world, it's hard to get into that mindset when most of us are so far from it. It's easy to hate her, but it's easy to love her - she's misguided but the way she portrays the love for her little girl is legit. Also, props to Saoirse Ronan because she was beautiful and elegant which is difficult for a girl who's only thirteen - which is also the reason she shouldn't win. She has to find herself a lot more as she grows up before we throw that much ego on her.

Best animated feature film of the year:

I unfortunatly didn't get a chance to see Persepolis, but it seems pretty clear that Ratatouille is going to win. I'm pretty sure the only other animated film to ever be nominated for a 'big' award (it's also up for original screenplay) was Beauty and the Beast when it got a Best Picture nomination. Ratatouille is great because it combines really lovable characters with a great story, a great end, a great soundtrack, and a really rich and warm animation.

Achievement in art direction:

For anyone who isn't all that into film, art direction is basically figuring out how the scenes are going to look - where stuff is placed, etc. I'm siding with Atonement for this one because class and status is a pretty crucial part of the characters and plot, so surroudings are really important. The sets are beautiful (as they are in every nominated film) but because they connect with the characters they have my vote. Also, props to Sweeney Todd for the awesome grimy look.

Achievement in cinematography:

This is one of my favorite categories because I've always been in love with art, so aesthetics in film is important. Again, this is a tough call because Jesse James gives a beautiful dreamlike quality with the way they use blurred edges and backgrounds, and There Will Be Blood uses warm and cool colours to compliment the good/evil theme I've talked about before. However, I'm going with No Country for Old Men because the 'dry' look works well with the wide desert shots and how these two aspects work together with the way the characters play out and the lack of music.

Achievement in costume design:

Although costumes in each film work well and look great, Elizabeth the Golden Age is the clear winner - the lace and bells and everything else which is so true to the era.

Achievement in directing:

Again, No Country for Old Men is my choice because the Coen brothers are surreal. They've managed to take a fairly ordinary story of chance and misfortune and through direction have turned it into the next Citizen Kane. Props to Paul Thomas Anderson for making There Will Be Blood so enjoyable to watch and so easy to invest emotion in.

Achievement in film editing:

The Borne Ultimatum is definetly deserving of this award because of the way the camera shakes, the way the scenes are cropped, and the way shots jump back and forth frantically when the plot is frantic. It's difficult to capture adrenaline with a camera but Borne does it. Also, props to There Will Be Blood for doing this to a milder extent.

Achievement in makeup:

While La Vie En Rose is tempting to side with because of the way they turn Marion Cotillard (who's gorgeous, wow) into a sickly, empty, dying woman, it's only fair to go with Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End for this one. I would never have known otherwise, but a friend of mine who's in makeup school told me that the bases of Davy Jones's tentacles were put on his face, along with all that other makeup and prosthetics, every day. The moving parts of the tentacles were animated, of course, but I think it's pretty pimp that eight daily hours of work went into someone who could have been digitally edited even more.

Achievement in music written for motion pictures - Original Score:

Scores are always tougher to remember because they're usually part of the plot instead of defined by the plot. This category is a toss up because each score works well with each film, effectively setting the mood. I'm going to side with Atonement though because the music is pretty dang regal. Props to 3:10 to Yuma as well.

Achievement in music written for motion pictures - Original Song:

Although I didn't see Enchanted or August Rush I can't see any song being more deserving than Once's "Falling Slowly". It's an interesting situation because the indie flick hired professional musicians to star in the film and also to write the songs. Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova (who's adorable) nailed what the song needed to be to make the film work: it's full of love and passion even though the characters don't share that with each other.

Best animated short film:

Suprisingly, the only film to be unavailabe online was "I Met the Walrus", which is basically an interesting five minute animation set to the amateur interview a kid did with John Lennon. While that sounds neat and even worthy for an award, the film is only five minutes long and the sound has been sitting around for years. While the other films are great, my favorite was "Even Pigeons Go to Heaven" because it dealt with some interesting issues and made me laugh so hard, especially when the Reaper nails the con. Props to Peter and the Wolf for an interesting end.

Achievement in sound editing:

For those who don't know, sound editing is the digital editing process of polishing off the sounds that are created for a film. With that in mind, my vote goes to Transformers because so many different sounds are worked in with amazing clarity given to each. The purity of the sound works well with the color saturation to make it seem extra surreal.

Achievement in sound mixing:

This category is different from the last because it deals more with the way sounds are initially created. My vote is a dead split between Transformers and Ratatouille because Transformers is intense and uses a lot of different sounds, while Ratatouille nails the rich hustle and bustle of a kitchen in a way that makes you want to eat there because it sounds good to cook there.

Achievement in visual effects:

Again, I'm siding with Transformers and I don't think I need to explain why. Although Pirates is great, Transformers is amazing - good thing I hang out with a lot of boys who wanted to watch it, because I probably wouldn't have rented it on my own, and I'm really glad I did.

Adapted screenplay:

Although I love No Country, the film is centered more on tone and feel than on script. There Will Be Blood will probably take this award and will definatly deserve it, but Atonement is my favorite in this category because the film is hugely based on script - one lie creates the whole film. Plus, I'm a girl, and it made me cry in the theatre, so there.

Original screenplay:

Although I loved Juno, I don't think it deserves an Oscar in any other category except for this one. It's incredibly witty in its banter, and although I'm sure none of us could be that funny, it somehow comes across as very natural for the characters. I loved Michael Cera's "I try really hard actually," Rainn Wilson's "that aint no etch-a-sketch, homeskillet" and Ellen Page's "My hamburger isn't working". If Juno doesn't win, Ratatouille is an equal contender.

Best Picture:

This one makes me cry every year because I can imagine how ever person who worked on it must feel when the title is announced. In every other category, these people can be happy for their coworkers, etc., but with this award everybody was a part of winning it. This year is really great because each film is fantastic in it's own way, even if it doesn't deserve the title. But, as I'm sure you've guessed, my vote goes to No Country for Old Men for pulling off what, in my opinion, only Citizen Kane has done before it. I have a feeling that There Will Be Blood will take the award because it's more lively - but I hope not. Kane was booed offstage and wasn't given the many awards it should have won, and I hope that for it's sake, the next film to follow in it's footsteps can snag the Oscar.


Note: I didn't discuss 'best documentary feature', 'best documentary short subject', 'best foreign language', or 'best live action short film' because I didn't see any of the films in those categories. unfortunatly, most foreign nominees aren't popular until after the awards, so if I get around to seeing any of them I'll probably post about it. I guess I could have gotten a hold of Sicko from the documentaries, but let's face it - Michael Moore is a fat slob, and socialism just isn't going to cut it, baby :)