Sunday, January 26, 2014

Add to Technorati FavoritesAn introduction to BEST ACTRESS 2013




I do believe years from now people will look back at this Best Actress year as one of the best in the category’s history. It’s not completely perfect and not the best, but the top 3 performances really are extraordinary.

I will get to ranking them in a few weeks, after I see the films (again) and count their screentime. This is just the introductory post and a look at how we ended up with these specific nominees. As of now, the only film of the 5 I have yet to see is Philomena, which I hope will be made available to me before March 2nd.
Interesting to mention this is only the 4th time in Oscar history that there are no first-time nominees in the Best Actress category (the other Best Actress years being 1941, 1944 and 1994 – previously discussed on the blog).


The 5 ladies that Oscar has chosen for 2013, in alphabetical order:









 Amy Adams as Sydney Prosser, in American Hustle



















Cate Blanchett as Jasmine, in Blue Jasmine

















Sandra Bullock as Dr. Ryan Stone, in Gravity


















Judi Dench as Philomena, in Philomena
















Meryl Streep as Violet Weston, in August: Osage County












Let’s look at each nominee and how they made it to the list of 5. Entering this race as a favourite is Cate Blanchett, who I think was a lock and had the first chance of getting nominated. This is Cate’s 6th Oscar nomination, and the 3rd in the leading category. She has previously won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for The Aviator (2004). Oscar nomination aside, she’s received some major awards for playing Jasmine: the Golden Globe for Best Actress – Drama, the SAG Award, and awards from major critics’ groups like the New York Film Critics, National Society of Film Critics and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association. Plus, nominations from BAFTA and Independent Spirit Awards (as of now, both pending). She is the clear favourite for another Oscar win, having dominated the season.

I think the actress with the second chance of getting nominated was Sandra Bullock. And it’s easy to see why, considering her film Gravity is a serious Oscar contender and one of the most profitable films of 2013. This is Sandra’s 2nd Oscar nomination, following her (infamous) Oscar win for Best Actress for The Blind Side (2009). Sandra enters the race having received nominations from all the major voting groups: nominations for Best Actress – Drama at the Golden Globes, for the SAG Awards and BAFTA. She also has a couple of wins from critics’ awards, but only small groups (like Kansas). The fact that she’s very popular among actors and a great campaigner also helped secure the nomination.

I think from here down, any of these actresses could’ve (more or less surprisingly) miss on a nomination. I would say Judi Dench was next, by chance of getting nominated. Her film, Philomena, also surprised with a Best Picture nomination and she did benefit from the British support, the British side of voters from the Academy. Interesting to note she is also the only one of the 5 nominees playing a real-life person (not a famous one, though). This is Judi’s 7th Oscar nomination and the 5th in the Best Actress category. She has previously won an Oscar for her Supporting performance in Shakespeare in Love (1998). For this performance Judi has also received nominations for Best Actress – Drama at the Golden Globes, from the SAG Awards and from BAFTA (which she might just end up winning).

Meryl Streep received her 18th acting nomination this year, more than any other actor in Oscar’s history, male or female. 15 of these nominations are for Best Actress (a record in this category). She has previously won 3 Oscars, for Best Supporting Actress for Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) and for Best Actress for Sophie’s Choice (1982) and The Iron Lady (2011). Despite her giving another amazing performance, this nomination was not a sure-thing, mostly due to the film receiving mixed reviews. Meryl enters this specific race with nominations from the SAG Awards and from the Golden Globes (for Best Actress – Comedy or Musical).

The almost-surprise nominee from the last segment of the awards season is Amy Adams, who, although she might’ve been 4th or 5th in line to get nominated, is the dark horse for the win and the only serious threat to Cate getting the trophy. She got nominated mostly due to the success of American Hustle, both with critics and the audiences, and the perfect timing of her late campaign. This is Amy’s 5th Oscar nomination, and the 1st one in this category, the other 4 being for Supporting Actress. She’s also the only one in this group to have never won an Oscar. Amy enters the race with a Golden Globe win for Best Actress – Comedy or Musical and a BAFTA nomination. The lack of a SAG nomination discouraged people from predicting her.



And now about the competition the 5 actresses had encountered. These were the other names thrown in the game.

One obvious runner-up / #6:

Emma Thompson for Saving Mr. Banks (she had received SAG, Golden Globes and BAFTA nominations, a National Board of Review win, but the Oscars didn’t care).

Quite possible / Dark horses:
Adèle Exarchopoulos – Blue Is the Warmest Color
Julie Delpy – Before Midnight
Brie Larson – Short Term 12
Greta Gerwig – Frances Ha

Very long shots:
Kate Winslet – Labor Day
Julia Louis-Dreyfuss – Enough Said
Berenice Bejo – The Past
Felicity Jones – The Invisible Woman
Carey Mulligan – The Great Gatsby
Sophie Nelisse – The Book Thief
Paulina Garcia – Gloria


I guess my ranking will be posted in a few weeks.
Enjoy the season! J

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Add to Technorati FavoritesFinal Oscar predictions


A fun Oscar year is one with potential for surprises. As of now, I can’t tell you who/what will win Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor & Best Supporting Actress. And that feels great! :))
Here are my predicted nominees (in order of their chance of getting nominated):




BEST PICTURE
1. 12 Years a Slave
2. Gravity
3. American Hustle
4. Captain Phillips
5. Nebraska
6. Her
7. The Wolf of Wall Street
8. Dallas Buyers Club
9. Saving Mr. Banks
Runner-ups: 10. Inside Llewyn Davis  11. Philomena  12. Blue Jasmine

BEST DIRECTOR
1. Alfonso Cuaron – Gravity
2. Steve McQueen – 12 Years a Slave
3. David O. Russell – American Hustle
4. Paul Greengrass – Captain Phillips
5. Spike Jonze – Her
Runner-ups: 6. Martin Scorsese – The Wolf of Wall Street,  7. Alexander Payne – Nebraska

BEST ACTOR
1. Chiwetel Ejiofor – 12 Years a Slave
2. Matthew McConaughey – Dallas Buyers Club
3. Bruce Dern – Nebraska
4. Tom Hanks – Captain Phillips
5. Leonardo DiCaprio – The Wolf of Wall Street
Runner-ups: 6. Robert Redford – All Is Lost  7. Christian Bale – American Hustle

BEST ACTRESS
1. Cate Blanchett – Blue Jasmine
2. Sandra Bullock – Gravity
3. Judi Dench – Philomena
4. Emma Thompson – Saving Mr. Banks
5. Amy Adams – American Hustle
Runner-ups: 6. Meryl Streep – August: Osage County  7. Adèle Exarchopoulos – Blue Is the Warmest Color

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
1. Jared Leto – Dallas Buyers Club
2. Michael Fassbender – 12 Years a Slave
3. Barkhad Abdi – Captain Phillips
4. Daniel Bruhl – Rush
5. Bradley Cooper – American Hustle
Runner-ups: 6. Jonah Hill – The Wolf of Wall Street  7. Tom Hanks – Saving Mr. Banks

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
1. Jennifer Lawrence – American Hustle
2. Lupita Nyong’o – 12 Years a Slave
3. June Squibb – Nebraska
4. Julia Roberts – August: Osage County
5. Oprah Winfrey – Lee Daniels’ The Butler
Runner-ups: 6. Sally Hawkins – Blue Jasmine  7. Sarah Paulson – 12 Years a Slave

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
1. American Hustle
2. Her
3. Nebraska
4. Blue Jasmine
5. Inside Llewyn Davis
Runner-up: Dallas Buyers Club

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
1. 12 Years a Slave
2. Before Midnight
3. The Wolf of Wall Street
4. Philomena
5. Captain Phillips
Runner-up: August: Osage County

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
1. Gravity
2. 12 Years a Slave
3. Inside Llewyn Davis
4. Captain Phillips
5. Prisoners
Runner-up: The Grandmaster

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
1. 12 Years a Slave
2. Gravity
3. The Book Thief
4. Saving Mr. Banks
5. All Is Lost
Runner-up: Captain Phillips.

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
1. Frozen
2. The Great Gatsby
3. Her
4. Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom
5. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
Runner-up: One Chance.

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
1. The Great Gatsby
2. 12 Years a Slave
3. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
4. Gravity
5. Oz The Great and Powerful
Runner-up: Saving Mr. Banks

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
1. The Great Gatsby
2. 12 Years a Slave
3. American Hustle
4. Oz The Great and Powerful
5. The Invisible Woman
Runner-up: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

BEST EDITING
1. Gravity
2. 12 Years a Slave
3. Captain Phillips
4. Rush
5. American Hustle
Runner-up: The Wolf of Wall Street

BEST SOUND MIXING
1. Gravity
2. Captain Phillips
3. Rush
4. 12 Years a Slave
5. Lone Survivor
Runner-up: All Is Lost

BEST SOUND EDITING
1. Gravity
2. Rush
3. All Is Lost
4. Lone Survivor
5. Captain Phillips
Runner-up: Pacific Rim.

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
1. Gravity
2. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
3. Pacific Rim
4. Iron Man 3
5. World War Z
Runner-up: Star Trek: Into Darkness

BEST MAKEUP/HAIRSTYLE
1. American Hustle
2. Dallas Buyers Club
3. The Lone Ranger
Runner-up: Bad Grandpa

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
1. Frozen
2. The Croods
3. The Wind Rises
4. Monsters University
5. Ernest and Celestine
Runner-up: Despicable Me 2

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
1. The Hunt
2. The Broken Circle Breakdown
3. Two Lives
4. Omar
5. The Great Beauty
Runner-up: The Grandmaster

No predictions for Documentary & short categories.
We’ll see how it goes. J Definitely not sure about most of them. 12 Years a Slave should lead the nominations - I have it now with 12.


For previous predictions on this OSCARS edition, just click on the date:


April 3rd     - that was early, I know ;)

Sunday, January 12, 2014

Golden Globe predictions



Time to put “on paper” the predictions for tonight:

Best Motion Picture – Drama
Will win: 12 Years a Slave
Could win: Gravity
Should win: Gravity (haven’t seen Philomena)

Best Motion Picture – Comedy/Musical
Will win: American Hustle
Could win: The Wolf of Wall Street
Should win: Nebraska (have yet to see Her)

Best Actor – Drama
Will win: Chiwetel Ejiofor – 12 Years a Slave
Could win: Matthew McConaughey – Dallas Buyers Club
Should win: Matthew McConaughey – Dallas Buyers Club (haven’t seen Elba, but I doubt I’m a fan)

Best Actor – Comedy/Musical
Will win: Bruce Dern – Nebraska
Could win: Leonardo DiCaprio – The Wolf of Wall Street
Should win: Oscar Isaac – Inside Llewyn Davis (have yet to see Joaquin)

Best Actress – Drama
Will win: Cate Blanchett – Blue Jasmine
Could win: Sandra Bullock – Gravity
Should win: I’m not saying ;)

Best Actress – Comedy/Musical
Will win: Meryl Streep – August: Osage County
Could win: Amy Adams – American Hustle
Should win: Meryl Streep – August: Osage County

Best Supporting Actor
Will win: Jared Leto – Dallas Buyers Club
Could win: Michael Fassbender – 12 Years a Slave
Should win: Michael Fassbender – 12 Years a Slave (kills me to choose between these 2 excellent performances)

Best Supporting Actress
Will win: Lupita Nyong’o – 12 Years a Slave
Could win: Jennifer Lawrence – American Hustle
Should win: Julia Roberts – August: Osage County (CLEARLY a leading performance)

Best Director
Will win: Alfonso Cuaron – Gravity
Could win: Steve McQueen – 12 Years a Slave
Should win: Alfonso Cuaron – Gravity

Best Screenplay
Will win: American Hustle
Could win: Her
Should win: Nebraska (haven’t see Her & Philomena)

Best Original Score
Will win: Gravity
Could win: 12 Years a Slave
Should win: All Is Lost

Best Original Song
Will win: Inside Llewyn Davis
Could win: Frozen
Should win: Inside Llewyn Davis

Best Foreign-Language Film
Will win: Blue Is the Warmest Color

Best Animated Feature
Will win: Frozen

And I’m not going into the TV categories. ;) I do that over at goldderby.com