2009 Oscar Picks

The Oscars are tonight. Real quick, before they air, my wishes and predictions are below.

Best Picture

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
  
• Frost/Nixon
  
• Milk
  
• The Reader
  
• Slumdog Millionaire
  

1st Choice: Slumdog Millionaire
2nd Choice: Frost/Nixon
3rd Choice: Benjamin Button
4th Choice: The Reader
(Didn’t see Milk.)
All four that I saw were good, but only Slumdog Millionaire left me a complete sense of satisfaction. Benjamin Button, while containing a lot of nice technical achievements, was a little over-rated story-wise. And, neither Frost/Nixon nor The Reader were quite as engaging and enthralling as I think they were meant to be. After seeing four of these movies now, I will join many others who claim that, despite being a summer popcorn movie based on a comic book, The Dark Knight *really* does deserve to be in this list. It is no less special, epic, emotional, engaging, or well made than the ones actually nominated. I didn’t get around to seeing WALL-E a 2nd time to see if I thought it deserved to be in this list, but I do remember enjoying it more than I enjoyed The Reader.

Best Director

• David Fincher - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
  
• Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire
  
• Stephen Daldry - The Reader
  
• Ron Howard - Frost/Nixon
  
• Gus Van Sant - Milk
  

Similar opinion as above. Same order of preference. There’s no reason Christopher Nolan shouldn’t be in this list.

Best Actor

• Richard Jenkins - The Visitor
  
• Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon
  
• Sean Penn - Milk
  
• Brad Pitt - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
  
• Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler
  

From all the hype, it sounds like Mickey Rourke is a lock, but I saw The Wrestler yesterday, and I just wasn’t as impressed as the rest of the world. I like Brad Pitt (not for the reasons ladies like him); I think he’s capable, watchable, and likable. But, I wasn’t blown away by his performance. Having not seen Milk or The Visitor, Langella gets my vote by default.

Best Actress

• Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married
  
• Angelina Jolie - Changeling
  
• Melissa Leo - Frozen River
  
• Meryl Streep - Doubt
  
• Kate Winselt - The Reader
  

The only two I saw here were The Reader and Changeling. I’m doubting Angelina Jolie is not much of a contender for this, especially with Winslet & Streep in the mix, but I actually liked her performance. From what I’ve heard, Hathaway has a good shot, but that movie, or at least her character in that movie, didn’t look very watchable to me from the trailers & clips I saw of it.

Best Supporting Actor

• Josh Brolin - Milk
  
• Robert Downey, Jr. - Tropic Thunder
  
• Philip Seymour Hoffman - Doubt
  
• Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight
  
• Michael Shannon - Revolutionary Road
  

A default vote, since The Dark Knight was the only movie here I saw. But, Ledger is a lock. I have a hard time imagining anyone else winning, regardless of the reasons people voted the way they did. And, he definitely deserves to be nominated to say the least.

Best Supporting Actress

• Amy Adams - Doubt
  
• Penelope Cruz - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
  
• Viola Davis - Doubt
  
• Taraji P. Henson - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
  
• Maria Tomei - The Wrestler
  

I only saw Button & Wrestler. It sounds like Tomei may be a favorite for this, and she was good in her small role. However, I can’t help but wonder, was her emoting and delivery of lines enough to get her the nomination, or does the Academy give extra credit whenever an actress spins on a pole, wears a fishnet body stocking, bends over to the camera wearing a thong, and lets the makeup department litter her body with fake tattoos and nipple piercings. I’ll go with Taraji P. Henson, even though I think she’s a long shot.

Best Original Screenplay

• WALL-E
  
• Happy-Go-Lucky
  
• Frozen River
  
• In Bruges
  
• Milk
  

Another default vote. WALL-E was the only one I saw. I’ve read good things about In Bruges and Happy-Go-Lucky. I’m intrigued enough that I might check them out on video someday.

Best Adapted Screenplay

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
  
• Frost/Nixon
  
• The Reader
  
• Slumdog Millionaire
  
• Doubt
  

My choices here have the exact same order of preference as my Best Picture and Best Director picks.

Best Animated Feature

• Bolt
  
• Kung-Fu Panda
  
• WALL-E
  

Didn’t see Kung-Fu Panda though I’ve heard it’s good. Bolt was good, but not *quite* as good as I was hoping. In fact, my broadest complaint with it is that it felt a little short on overall quality compared to a Pixar movie. So, no brainer, it’s WALL-E.

Best Cinematography

• Changeling
  
• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
  
• The Dark Knight
  
• The Reader
  
• Slumdog Millionaire
  

1st Choice: Slumdog Millionaire
2nd Choice: The Dark Knight (very, very, very close 2nd; virtually a tie)
3rd Choice: Changeling
4th Choice: Ben. Button
5th Choice: The Reader
Ooh, tough, tough, category. Slumdog felt unique in it’s overall look. It was at time lively and kinetic but without using an excess of shaky-cam, which is about the only thing that keeps The Dark Knight from being my #1 pick. I liked the visual look & feel of Changeling. The camerawork in Benjamin Button was good, but I can’t remember any particular impressive scenes. And, I’m not entirely sure why The Reader is in the list.

Best Costume Design

• Australia
  
• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
  
• The Duchess
  
• Milk
  
• Revolutionary Road
  

A default vote. Button is the only one I saw.

Best Film Editing

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
  
• The Dark Knight
  
• Frost/Nixon
  
• Milk
  
• Slumdog Millionaire
  

Slumdog did such a good job cutting between the different time periods & settings. It was a little confusing in the beginning, but I like how things come together in the end. I think the editing had to be done carefully to balance all the elements.

Best Makeup

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
  
• The Dark Knight
  
• Hellboy II: The Golden Army
  

Excellent category. Benjamin Button had people looking different ages, and Dark Knight had the deformities of the Joker & Two-Face (although much of Two-Face’s look was done digitally). But, the makeup work done in Hellboy II was original, diverse, extensive, creative, and impressive.

Best Original Score

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
  
• Defiance
  
• Milk
  
• Slumdog Millionaire
  
• WALL-E
  

I don’t notice music too much in movies, but I think Slumdog may have stood out here.

Best Original Song

• “Down to Earth” from WALL-E
  
• “Jai Ho” from Slumdog Millionaire
  
• “O Saya” from Slumdog Millionaire
  

Sort of a default vote for WALL-E. Although I saw Slumdog, I wouldn’t have understood the words in the songs. Why are there only three nominees instead of five? Did enough people complain about the live performances of the Best Song nominees that they shrank the list?

Best Sound Editing

• The Dark Knight
  
• Iron Man
  
• Slumdog Millionaire
  
• WALL-E
  
• Wanted
  

I’m no expert on sound, but since there’s no dialogue in the first half of WALL-E, the strength of the movie relies on two main things: images and sounds effects. I think WALL-E is a lock for one, if not both, of the sound awards.

Best Sound Mixing

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
  
• The Dark Knight
  
• Slumdog Millionaire
  
• WALL-E
  
• Wanted
  

Same opinion as for Best Sound Editing.

Best Visual Effects

• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
  
• The Dark Knight
  
• Iron Man
  

Another really great category. With all the armor, computer screens, and in-helmet displays done by computer graphics, I’d be shocked if Iron Man didn’t win. But, there again, I almost forgot about the digital effects used to make Harvey Dent look like Two-Face in The Dark Knight. While equally excellent in quality, I think Iron Man is still more deserving when you factor in quantity of effects.


EDIT
I neglected to include Best Art Direction. Out of the three I saw, I would have preferred The Dark Knight or Changeling to win, but Benjamin Button got it instead.